Hello all. Miss me?

"Who the hell are you?" is the proper response.

It's been an odd couple of months to say the least, but I suppose it's time to dust myself off and get back to one of the things I enjoy: boring the crap out of people with pointless speculation and aimless rambling. It's good to be back.

A special thanks to those of you who took the time to notice my absence. It really means a lot.

Alright. Let's get this show on the road.

Dungeons, Dragons and DLC

Though johnsteed7beat me to the punch on this one (curses! foiled again!), I just thought I'd put my two cents in on the topic. If you haven't discovered this yet, the treatment of DLC in Dragon Age: Origins is….discouraging….to say the least. Just to bring you up to speed:

There is a character placed in the game for the sole purpose of selling you the "Warden's Keep" download. You'll find him relatively early, and the conversation you'll have with him goes something like this: he asks you to help him, and then the following dialogue option pops up

"(Download New Content) Give me a minute, and I'll help you."

As johnsteed7 stated, after selecting this option you are then booted to the main menu so you can buy the content.

Now, this isn't a huge deal. It's not going to give me cancer or steal my car. But for me, one of the most crucial aspects of an RPG, what separates the ho-hum from the great, is how deeply I can lose myself in both the world and the story as I'm playing the game. This encounter put me right back on my couch.

Again, nothing earth shattering. It's just a shame. It shows a lack of respect for the gamer, and a lack of respect for the story. It also concerns me. As time goes by, am I going to be treated to more characters that do the same thing? As new content becomes available, will this world slowly fill with micro-peddlers? Will I eventually see an entire shop placed in town just to sell me crap that should be kept in the main menu and out of the game?

And what does all of this mean for Mass Effect? Will we see the same crap pop up there as well? I sure as hell hope not.

Now, on the subject of Bioware's culpability, I'm more inclined to place the blame on EA. Why? Well, if memory serves, they did the same thing in the original Godfather game. If I remember correctly, you could meet NPCs that would sell you in-game items for real-world currency.

Sigh.

Other Stuff

---Tried Afro Samurai a few months back. Just couldn't get into it. Though the visuals are amazing, it was just a little too dull for my taste. I've never been a huge fan of hack-n-slashers, so I guess that's what I get for trying to break out of my mold. That'll teach me.

---Borderlands is a mindless good time. The story, if you can call it that, is one of the most anemic in years, but if you're looking to run around blasting things this is your game.

---Can you really call your boycott a success if you disband before the product hits store shelves so that you can run out and buy it?

---How 'bout them Texans? I've been a fan for years. I have a thing for underdogs. Though the 105 penalty yards didn't help, I can't believe they missed out on overtime because of a blown field goal. Ah well. I dig the Colts too, so I guess it was win-win.

---Staph infections are not fun. I had an in-grown fingernail that got infected.Fortunately, antibiotics knocked it right out.

---Staphylococcus finds it's origins in the Greek word for "a bunch of grapes." Thank you, medicinenet!

---My dog is blind. He bumps into walls.

Wow. I think I am officially out of ideas. Thanks as always for reading. Hope everyone is doing well out there.