Showing posts with label Review. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Review. Show all posts

Monday, May 30, 2016

Module Review - B1 In Search of the Unknown

Title: In Search of the Unknown
Code: B1
Author: Mike Carr
Rule Set: D&D
Year: 1978
Pages: 32
Number of characters: 3 to 6
Levels: 1-3
Rating: ★★★☆☆

In Search of the Unknown is a classic dungeon crawl, the true value of this module is in the open ended nature and guided tour aspect of the adventure. The DM is provided with rooms and descriptions but no monsters. The opening Notes for the Dungeon Master are masterful, great advice for every DM every when and where. The notes cover everything from background to hirelings. The last 7 pagers are for players, including henchmen, hirelings, sample characters and tips.

This is a rough module, no monsters are provided, nor are there any thematic clues as to what sort of beings should be found. This is great for someone who has a preset world, the module is ready to be plugged in. However, as a stand alone product the lack makes running the adventure cumbersome for the DM. Additionally, the upper level map is weird. It reminds me of Zork’s “you are in a maze of twisty little passages, all alike”. Player mapping is often a disaster, thanks to the twists, turns and goofy angles scattered around the upper level.

All and all, this module ranks a solid 3 stars of 5.

Where to buy:
Click for DriveThru RPG

Monday, January 18, 2016

The Martian by Andy Weir

Title: The Martian
Author: Andy Weir
Year: 2014
Pages: 384
Rating: ★★★★★

This review is a reworking of a 2016 post. 

This is a gripping novel about biologist and astronaut Mark Watney surviving Mars after an accident leaves him alone and stranded. Watney must overcome challenge after challenge, none of which seem contrived to hold on until... What?

No one back home knows Watney is alive, there is no rescue coming. He has supplies for a 50+ day mission for six, machinery that isn't designed to last more than 30 days and no hope. Watney has to make his own way, with only his know-how and the equipment left behind.

Watney comes to us via logs and down to Mars first person narratives, which are heart pounding, humorous and chilling by turns. No hands are waved on this techno-thriller, the story is pack full of details and observations that could right from NASA. No surprise here, Andy Weir is a lifelong programmer for a national laboratory and space enthusiast.  

This was a very interesting read as the premise was to build an engrossing story through the lens of engineering, failure and success. It is very much like the works of Robert Forward however Watney's character is in the driver's seat of the feats of engineering and not the math or the physics. All of the characters live and breathe in the novel where problem solving and engineering are a significant feature and purpose, but not the only one. There is a perfect tagline spoken by the hero: "Let's science the shit out of this", which is very apt.    

Sunday, May 17, 2015

Destiny Done…

Well, that day has come. I have completed all the missions and tasks with my Titan in Destiny.


As of right now, I do not have PSN, House of Wolves, or The Dark Below. I do plan on adding the expansion packs but I am not sure when.

Destiny’s delineation between PvP and PvE is nice. I find PvP to be annoying and Destiny’s model allows me to safely ignore it. I hate being pwn’d by a 12-year-old and Destiny lets me avoid it.
The style of stories shifts as the player progresses, and the planet system neatly ties them all together. The scenes on each world are really nice, except for The Moon. For whatever reason, the grey tones leave me with the impression that the map is more open than it really is. So far, I have killed myself by driving off the map more times than I can count. I could use a few more Vex encounters, but hey, that is what expansion is for. I can’t wait for more Vex. The Legionnaires and their cohorts are interesting and present new challenges. I also love the fact that Venus is presented as a very 1940s, swamp-like planet.
I’m torn. Destiny costs $50 bucks. I am fine with that, however, to continue receiving new challenges, you need PSN, PSPlus, and the expansion packs. That pushes the cost up to $135 for a year or $11.25 a month.

This is where I am torn. I am actually very happy to play a game for less than $12 a month. In addition to great new content and multiplayer, you are free to create 3 characters per profile on your PS4. All three of my kids, plus my wife and I can play this game. This is not true of most online games, normally we would need an account for each player.

As the father of three children, I have to say I find PS4’s limitation of 16 profiles to be spectacular. When I go to a hockey game or baseball game, all the tickets come in “4 Packs”, which sucks when you need 5. The pricing for the 5th ticket is pretty cheap, but the rigamarole of ordering is obnoxious. That doesn’t happen with 16 profiles, which is very generous.

I do find the PSN email requirements for children to be vexing (see what I did there?). I am not sure I want to arm my 10-year-old with an email address. As a happy medium, I created that email account but did not give my child the password. Sony needs to step up and create a more protective model.

I believe that the main hurdles are not created by Bungie, but by Sony. An internet-connected device that requires a separate monthly purchase to connect to some types of data is stupid. I hate it on my phone and I hate it on my games. Of course, Bungie does charge for new content, but that is offered a la carte. I don’t have to do it and still be happy.
So to wrap up, the plus/minus list for Destiny 

Pluses:
1. Inventive Storylines.
2. Nice gameplay.
3. Multiple expansions.
4. PvP or PvE, your choice.
5. Bungie’s website.

Minuses:
1. Sony’s PSN and PSPlus system.
2. Only three classes.
3. Lack of a manual.

On the whole, I really enjoyed Destiny. I can’t say I have seen every detail and facet, but all and all it is gratifying.

Friday, May 15, 2015

Nextbook NX785QC8G Review

My son recently purchased the NX785QC8G Nextbook at Walmart for $69.00.

This is a budget 8″ tablet, the screen is a smidgen under 8″.
I snapped a quick picture, sorry f9r the blow quality. The glass on this product is super high gloss and easily collect fingerprints, smudges, etc. However, the device feel solid and is equipped with a 3.5 mm headphone jack, a mini USB port, a micro HDMI port and an micro SD slot.
The Nextbook has 5.5 GB of memory which is on the light side for a game crazy child. My son found tht he didn’t enough room to install more games. We inserted a 4 GB micro SD card and discovered the tablet happily dropped downloaded apps on to the card by default. Nice feature. His only issue now is to maintain enough space for downloading and installing. Since he is living on just a few megs of space, there are days when he can’t install items without rebooting. Presumably, he is running with a lot junk open and the cache eats his free storage space.
The camera is so-so. It is on par with an old cell phone. The single speaker works as you would expect, but found that the volume is more than adequate.
At the end of the day, I can’t say this great tab but for $69 it is very reasonable.