Amnesia: The Dark Descent Review by Mike MacDonald

I had mentioned a couple of posts ago that would be doing a review on a little game called Amnesia by Frictional Games.  This is that post.

Introduction

Amnesia is a classic survival horror game that can be described as a hidden masterpiece in the video game industry.  This being a not so well known 3rd party publisher, it's nice to see something different and actually well done compared to all of the heavy hitter titles from well known publishers that have somewhat taken the main focus.  I'll explain to you all f the features that make this a great game.

Story

Amnesia begins with the protagonist Daniel traveling through the castle of brenninburg (spelling?).  He had drank something to make himself lose his memory, on purpose.. for some reason.  Daniel leaves himself a note explaining that he needed to make himself loose his memory and that he must kill Alexander, specifically says "murder".  There are narrated notes and flashback sequences that explain how Daniel got into the position he's in.  A good storytelling method to keep the mood of the game and still keep pretty good pacing.  Daniel travels through the castle to find Alexander and makes his way to the Inner Sanctum, Alexanders most precious chamber located deep underground.  Throughout the game you see mentionings of a Mythic Orb that Daniel found in Africa on an expedition, this orb holds great significance throughout the entire game and is a main plotpoint as to why Daniel is in his position and why he is going to "murder" Alexander.  The story is very immersive and keeps you interested through the entire game, you're constantly wondering what the monster is that is chasing you, and what the purpose of the orb is.  It has a great sense of mystery which is something that few games today accomplish.  The only thing I was disappointed with was the lack of backstory Daniel and Alexander, but again that adds to the mystery to the past of Alexander, the castle, and his motives.

Story Rating: 8.5/10

Gameplay


Amnesia has a simple, unique, and somewhat classic RPG gameplay style.  You are completely immersed into the world as Daniel, there are no cutscenes, not breaks in the gameplay.  Everything that happens does so on screen in front of Daniel, so basically what he see's you see.  You ARE Daniel.
The most fantastic feature that makes this game so unique is the fact you have no weapons, you have no way of defending yourself against the monsters in Brenninburg.  This mechanic works incredibly well as a survival horror factor.  You literally have no choice but to run and hide, and that's exactly what you'll do.
Daniel has a lot of issues, one of those issues is, he's afraid of the dark... literally..  this isn't explained in the game, but you can kind of tell by how he starts to go insane if in the dark too long.  I'm not even joking, there's literally an insanity meter in the game.  Staying in the dark slowly drains your insanity, the more insane you get the more blurry your vision becomes, the harder it gets to walk around, and you'll eventually imagine bugs crawling on your face and faint.  After you've fainted though you lay down for a bit and get back up, and your insanity is reset, so you can really go through the whole game without turning on a light.  The negative to light though is that it's much easier for monsters to see you, and if you see a monster, your insanity starts going way up if you look at them too long.  Usually though if you see the monster you're pretty much dead.  This is what you see before you die.

Notice how all of the lights are on?

So if you want to be smart, you'll stay in the dark.., you'll slowly go insane, but progressing through the game and solving puzzles with help you regain your insanity.  Now the above pictures shows you what not to do..  Now this is what you're supposed to do!

Dammit!  He evaded me with darkness!

The rest of the gameplay revolves around puzzles and creating items.  At times you'll find your route blocked because of weird organic substances, or a bunch of rocks.  You eventually make acid and explosives, and you need to create other items in order to obtain the ingredients needed to create other items.  The puzzles really aren't all that hard, but you will find yourself in some places where you don't know what the hell to do with something you just picked up.  I picked up a metal pipe at one point... and I never ended up using it, but rest assured every item has a purpose, but you can find ways around even needing those items, so the game kind of lets you be creative in the way you progress.  The only items you can't get, are weapons.  Of course you can pick up things you could use as weapons.. but even though Daniel some how sports super human throwing strength, he doesn't seem to understand the concept that knives are sharp... and hammers cause blunt force trauma...

Health, Sanity, Inventory

The gameplay really does provide a great survival horror experience without allowing you to harm the monsters or defend yourself, it's really just you going from point A to point B, but having to hide in dark corners while your trying to get there.  There are instances in the game where you can't even hide from the monsters, and are forced to just run and slam doors behind you... Which the monsters will inevitably smash open.  It is kind of weird though that there's plenty of weapon type things lying around that you could use, but Daniel explains at the first of the game that he's tried everything.  So I guess he can't pick any weapons up because he already knows and doesn't want to embarrass himself.

Gameplay Rating: 9/10

Graphics

Now, I don't think graphics are particularly all that important when it comes to this kind of game.  That being said, the graphics really aren't bad and are actually pretty comparable to some bigger titles.

The textures are all pretty sharp and the environments are chilling, especially when they change right before your eyes.  The sprites in game could use a little more TLC, but you rarely see any people or even the monsters to really care about that much about it.  The lighting in all of the different areas sets a different mood and feel.  Those moods being "I am definitely going to die here." and "I might possibly die here.."

All of this plumbing and I have not ONCE seen a bathroom!

Everything about the castle in Amnesia tells you that it's always been a dark and dreary place, some messed up stuff happened here..  You're constantly looking around every corner in suspense, you never really feel safe.  That's definitely a job well done when it comes to survival horror.  All of this being said, you can tell the graphics are a bit dated in this day in age, but you can't really expect all that much from a low budget.  The graphics do the job, and the team knows the limitations of the engine and don't try to overdo it.  The game runs smooth and some lower end PC's with decent graphics as well, which is pretty much a plus I'd say.

Graphics Rating: 7/10

Design


When I talk about the design of a game, I'm really talking about the sound, atmosphere, environment, art style, and the overall feel all of these elements bring to the game.  In Amnesia's case, all of these elements work together rather well.  Having these things work good in a survival horror game is pretty vital, because in this kind of game, if you don't instil fear into the player than the game isn't doing it's job.

The sound works incredibly well to bring you into the atmosphere.  You hear distant screams through pipes running through the castle and underground.  There are plenty of instances where Daniel will gasp and turn in a direction uncontrollably without warning, which is actually kind of freaky at times, because you're like "WHAT?! WHT IS IT DANIEL!! TELL ME! O GOD!".  It's quite a fun experience..

I'm not really one for scripted occurrences, because it takes away from re-playability.  The game isn't very fun when you know when and where something is going to happen.  There are some places where this happens in Amnesia, but not as much as other survival horror games.  Of course if you've played the game as much as I have, you'll know when to be careful and where you can relax.  Really, the first play-through is the best, and definitely scares the bajesus out of you.  Doors will open by themselves, pianos will play in the distance, and when you find them.. there's no one there.. you close the piano, and you leave.. you hear it again.. go back.. AND THE PIANO IS OPEN AGAIN!  This and other scripted happenings like, someone banging on a door and yelling to get out and than quickly silenced by a hulking beast.  All of these things work together well to make you feel unsafe... and insecure.  Which is exactly what they should do.

Design Review: 10/10



Final Verdict


Amnesia, is one great game, it will terrify you, and if you like survival horror, it doesn't get much better than this.  Disturbing scenes and images will haunt you..  For the type of game Amnesia is, it does everything right.  Anyone interested should really buy the game, don't just download it.  Buying the game actually helps this publisher and will get them to make bigger and better games!

Story: 8.5/10
Gameplay: 9/10
Graphics: 7/10
Design: 10/10

Overall: 8.6

Now, I leave you with some excellent moments in Amnesia!

Crysis 2 Multiplayer Demo Review! by Mike MacDonald

Now, I've been hearing people all up in arms about the Bulletstorm demo, probably just because it's made by EPIC, who did Gears of War.  Ya it look cool, has some cool ideas, but I think people are missing a real true hidden gem that was released just 2 days ago.  Well... Dead Space 2 came out just 2 days ago and that is definitely something you should pick up. Awesome game..  But I'm talking about the Crysis 2 Multiplayer Demo.  I don't have very many pictures, because I couldn't find very many that do the game justice, so be prepared to read rather than look at pretty pictures.

I feel like Crysis is being a little underrated by people who haven't really taken the time to play it.  Crysis 2 is a learning curve at first, but it's very familiar.  Crysis 2 sports the exact same control scheme as the Call of Duty franchise, you could say that their ripping it off, but it works perfectly and is good for people that are shooter fans.  I was able to jump right into the fray, I even placed 1st in my 1st game!  The controls are almost exact give or take a couple of buttons.

In a nutshell, this game almost feels like Call of Duty and Halo had a baby.  You'll see what i mean when I go over the features of the game.  Right now actually!


Features

At first glance, Crysis 2 seems like just another shooter, borrowing ideas from other shooters..  But lets not forget that the first Crysis game was using these same ideas on PC back in 2007, roughly around the same time Modern Warfare and Halo 3 came out, Crysis actually brought new ideas and implementations to the table that we're only now starting to respect.  When I heard Crysis 2 was coming to the consoles, I was both excited and skeptical.  I wasn't sure how they were going to work all of the abilities into the control scheme of a modern console controller.  But I have to say, they worked it out pretty good.

I won't have to explain much, because everything is exact to COD controls except the D-Pad and the Bumpers.  Your bumpers now sport 2 armor abilities "similar to Halo Reach".  Your D-Pad now holds your grenades, you need to equip them and than throw them.

Unlike Halo, you have all of your armor abilities available to you at all times.  These abilities include:

• Maximum Armour (almost like an over shield, extra armor you can trigger in a firefight)
• Cloak (Simulated invisibility to sneak up on people.)
• Run (same as COD, slowed down while in Power Armor mode)
• Super Jump (Holding the A button will make you jump really really high, almost like having a jetpack, but quicker.)

Maximum Armour Bitch!! :D

These are just your default armor abilities, everyone in the game has them.  These abilities can be upgraded as you progress throughout the game.

All of these powers are used with limitations via the energy meter.  Every ability uses energy, and once your energy meter is empty you just have to wait for it to recharge.  This is good because it balances the game and encourages you to use more than one ability.  However, if you do like using one ability, like say.. The cloak ability, that ability will level up higher than all of your other abilities.  The more you use it the better it gets.

I've only made it to level 10 so far, so I've unlocked some things, but probably not as much as I could.

There are some cool little features you can add to your armour and replace.  One ability in particular that I've replaced is the ground stomp.  This ability allows you to crash to the ground with a powerful shockwave after jumping and holding the B button.  I decided to replace it with an unlocked ability, I can't remember what it's called haha, but it's basically a sonar ability to let you know when enemies are nearby.  It's starts off with a quiet beep and gets louder as they get closer to you or you get closer to them.  This helps a lot when flushing out campers or if you're looking for a stealthy kill.  There's also a similar ability that allows you to detect cloaked enemies.  You can really describe these as perks, similar to call of duty.  But as similar as it may seem, it is a completely different multiplayer experience.

The game is balanced in a couple of different ways, you gain experience and unlock different things and level up your abilities.  But unlike CoD, you don't just unlock your weapons at a certain level, you eventually earn weapon unlocks/class unlocks, and they also become available as you progress.  This isn't necessarily due to your level, depending on your performance, you can receive attachment upgrades and unlock new weapons.  This might be due to level as well, but you're not restricted to a certain gun or attachment at a certain level.  It's hard to say what it will actually be like in the retail version because a lot of things are locked out in the multiplayer demo.

There are 2 available gametypes in the game.  One is your typical team deathmatch, 6v6.  The second gametype is basicaly king of the kill.  An alien ship drops a pod, and you need to find and capture the pod for however long you can to earn points.

Killstreaks are present in the game, I've only witnessed 3 so far, and I'm not sure if they're customizable, they're not in the demo.  The way this works is you collect dog tags after you kill an enemy player.  These dog tags count as your killstreak.  Instead of just simply killing someone, you have to collect their dogtags, 3 tags=rader, 5 tags=giant beam thing, 7 tags=alien air combat thing.  the equivalent to a helicopter in COD, except alien, which is cooler.  If you miss the dogtags you don't get the killstreaks, sometimes you'll have to kill more people to get your streak.  For example, I killed 9 people, but only collected 5 tags.  I like this system better, because it doesn't spam the game with constant bombings of killstreaks.  You can go through a whole match without ever seeing a killstreak.  This is a much better balance because you still get your reward for your streaks, but it's not as constant, and you can focus on having fun more.  Also, you don't have to use your streak as soon as you get it, or before you die.  If you only have 2 tags and you die, than yes, you lose your streak, but if you hit 3 and than die, than you will still have your rader, but your tag collection is reset.  Same as if you hit 7 tags, you will have all 3 of your streaks if you die.  Unless you used one of your streaks at some point.  Regardless you will still have whatever streaks you leaft off with before you died.  Your tag collection still goes up even if you've used a killstreak reward.

I'm probably not explaining things in a way everyone can understand.  But what I can say is, that Crysis is well on its way to being the next big shooter franchise.  The game is just as good if not better than Halo and Call of Duty.  Fanboys will probably disagree with me, but that's why they're called fanboys.  This first glimpse at Crysis has really impressed me, even with such a small experience, it feels massive and complete, give or take a few bugs here and there.

If you're interested in the Crysis 2 Multiplayer demo, you can download it now on the Xbox Live Marketplace under game demos.  The multiplayer demo only has one playable map, 2 gametypes, and only allows small class and character customization.  It's definitely worth playing, I've been playing it for the past 2 days and haven't gotten bored of it yet.  The game feels incredibly balanced with all of the features it has and is just damn fun!

So play the game a couple of times, get the feel for it, and enjoy it!  It takes a little bit of getting used to, with all of the super jumping and what not, I definitely jumped off of the edge and killed myself on more than 10 occasions...  but it was still super fun to kill myself!

Say ello to my lil friend!

In conclusion, Crysis 2 is a beautiful looking game, top notch graphics and excellent gameplay.  I personally can't wait for the release of this monster!  A nice surprise after seeing all of the other dry shooters out there (and seeing the same damn COD game get released 4 times in a row...).

Look for Crysis 2 March 22nd,  and here's a visual taste since my explanation doesn't do it justice.

DISTURBING NEWS! by Mike MacDonald

I know I said I was going to do a review of Amnesia next, but that will have to wait...

I was watching TV, just like any regular lazy procrastination filled night.  Than a commercial came on...  O but not just any commercial mind you, no no no, this was a movie trailer!  What kind of movie trailer you ask?  What kind of disturbing monstrosity with 100 eyes, 20 legs, 75 arms, and british looking teeth could it possibly be!?

Well my friends... it seems that the countdown to 2012 (if you believe in that BS) has begun, but if you don't believe in 2012, you may begin to believe..

Get to the point already?  What is it?  Can it really be that bad?  Is it another remake or sequal?  A straight to DVD Disney movie?

Ok ok...  I won't keep you in suspense any longer......




...


sorry..

The trailer that struck me so hard, that I needed to blog about it instead of writing a legitimate review on something else... was..

The Justin Beiber Movie!!

(pause for effect)

I know... shocking, isn't it?  Not only is a movie bad enough..  It's advertised as a "Rags to ritches story".  A rag to ritches story?  Are you fucking kidding me?  The kid was attending school when he was "discovered" at 13 years old for crying out fucking loud!  What kind of rags was he in?  They must be talking about the dish rag he used for chores, for allowance money, that he clearly doesn't need anymore..  So it should really be called, a Doing dishes to riches story.  Right than you can kind of imagine how the movie would play out..

Mom - Justin, do your dishes!  Pick up that dish rag and do them!

Justin- NO!  I'm going to become a famous tween sensation and make millions of dollars off of cliche crappy pop songs, but little pre-pubescent girls will love it because I'm singing to them and they can relate to my dish washing pain!

Mom - You'll never achieve that goal!  You must do dishes in order to get your allowance money, and you need money to get places n life!

Justin - Beiber my balls mom, I'll show you!


Than he somehow becomes famous, and never had to do dishes again...  hence the rags to riches..

In all honesty though, it's kind of hard to go from rags to riches in 3 years... especially when your a teenager and you don't have to worry about anything at all, because your mommy and daddy buy everything for you, and drive you everywhere you need to go.  I mean, the kid hasn't even gotten old enough to move out of his damn house or even reach puberty for that matter!  Maybe if he was like 30 years old now and 10 years ago he lost everything and than became a pop star and became rich.  Than there would be an excuse, but you're about 14 years away from that Beiber old boy... or... young.. boy?

Regardless... the majority of the audience that are going to attend this movie are girls under 16, young boys confused about their sexuality, and pedophiles...  Someone... will get raped..  I mean, seriously though, Michael Jackson didn't get his own movie until he was dead! DEAD!  Not to mention that his reputation wasn't exactly all that great near the end of his life.  But there's a lot of material for a movie there!  Because he's been a star, pretty much his whole life.  There are a lot of artists that have movies now though, and some that are based on other artists.  But come on...  To have the nerve to even suggest someone have their own movie about their life of a 3 year span, and than have even more nerve to play yourself in that movie?  That's just ridiculous.  I mean having a 50 cent movie was bad enough, and now this.  I guess this is the same kind of idea that happened with Hannah Montana.. or.. Miley Cirus?? whatever her name is.  Sooner or later this kid, being all famous and being undisciplined will probably hit the drugs and alcohol eventually and fuck up his image and be all over the news.  Personally, I can't fucking wait for that to happen..

In my opinion, I don't think anyone his age should be exposed like that, sure if you have talent I think you should be able to express that and promote it.  But not like that, not like a god damn tween posterboy.  I think everyone should have a chance, but when they're older.. mature.. and can actually handle the pressure that will come with that kind of fame.

In conclusion... this movie is the first of many events to occur, that will start a chain reaction which brings us to the apocalypse!

Mac vs PC by Michael MacDonald

Anyone involved with computers are pretty familiar with the constant flame wars between Mac and PC users..  Well I'm here to douse those flames and bring peace to the ever growing fanboy empires of modern middle earth.  Except in this case there is no one computer to rule them all... or ring...

I am not biased in any way shape or form.  I like to look at both sides of the equation and weigh them equally before I make the ultimate decision that will decide the fate of the computer fairing world.

When you're looking at computers, you can't look at it as a computer.  There is such a thing called the "Operating System" or for those who enjoy acronyms, the OS.  This is really what makes a computer what it is.  So when you're saying Mac vs Pc, you're really saying OS X vs Windows.  I say this because  a Mac and a PC have very similar insides... Pretty much every computer does regardless of the Operating system.  When it comes down to it, every computer is a PC "Personal Computer".  As I said before, the debate is mainly about the operating system, but we'll get into that.  A PC can range from various operating systems, like Linux, Windows, and even OS X.

In the rest of this article, i'll go over the pro's, cons, and benefits of the hardware and software as you would buy them.  Hopefully this might sway someones opinion in one direction if they are torn between purchasing one or the other.

The Mac (Macintosh)

Steve Jobs personal computer

Macs are seen as high end, expensive, and professional.  I'm currently using a mac, so all of that is immediately proven false.  For the average user a Mac would seem expensive.  Why are Macs so expensive?  Well, the main reason is because Steve Jobs has an image to uphold, blue jeans and black turtle necks just scream "money".  In simple Terms, Steve Jobs is the same to Apple that Bill Gates is to Microsoft.

The noblest of men

Mac runs primarily on the o so originally named Mac OS X "Macintosh Operating System 10".  There are many benefits that come with this operating system.  One of these benefits is Multitasking, which you'll see in many of apples devices like the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad.  For the Mac it is primarily done in what is called "Expose".  With simple touches of the keyboard or mouse, you can switch quickly between various windows and different programs.  Another great multitasking feature is "Spaces".  Spaces allows you to have multiple desktops and switch between them at lightning fast speed.  Certain programs can also be assigned to a certain space or "desktop" making it so that when you select the program from your dock it automatically switches to that space.

Multitasking definitely is my favourite feature of the Mac, and this makes it great for video editing and photo manipulation.  I definitely prefer the Mac for using programs like Photoshop.

Spaces and Expose

The recently released Mac App store is also an excellent addition to this operating system.  If you've ever used the app store for the iOS "iphone, ipod, ipad OS" than you probably understand the basic concept.  You can look through the app store, buy apps instantly and install them right into your dock.  It also updates your apps whenever they are available.  Avery streamlined process.  1 click install.  but of course, there will be a "hacked" version of this app store to come out at some point.  I've heard rumours of a program called "Kickback" that might be coming out in the fall..  But you didn't hear it from me!

Apps.. you cost money.. but not for long..

As a whole, the Mac OS is very simple to use once you get to know it, and it's very functional.  Most apps have many customizable features and preferences that you can set.  The operating system itself has preferences that you can set for the layout, size and many other things including the expose and dashboard feature.

The dashboard is one of those things that you can have little gadgets with.  Want to instantly know the weather?  date? keep track of your twitter feed, facebook, post it notes with one click.  Thats the dashboard.

This is my Dashboard, there are many like it, but this one is mine.

When it comes to features, the Mac is highly customizable.  Not so much the look of mac, although I'm sure you can do that too, I choose not to.  Mostly anything that has preferences can be customized.  You can also download new preference applications to do so, so that it integrates directly with the rest of your preferences.

Now, the real beauty in the operating system lies within the hardware/software integration.  The operating is designed specifically to work with the hardware built into every macintosh computer.  That means that the operating system can run faster, and more efficiently than the average computer.  All of the applications mad by apple also fall under this same principle.  Apple only uses a select range of hardware and mostly design or have a hand in designing most of it themselves.  So when it comes down to it, the Mac really is the complete package, designed around one idea to make it more efficient.

The only problem with the complete integration the mac has, is that it's not very customizable when it comes to new hardware.  Macs are made specifically so that there is no unused space, and thus, you can't really add anything.  That and if something in the computer breaks, you need to send it back to the company, unless you really know what you're doing, but than you'll probably void any warranty you had by opening it.  Of course if you wanna add more RAM you probably could, if you know what you're doing you can replace parts obviously, but again, that's not what Mac's are made for and they only have specific drivers installed within the Operating System.  So if you don't know what you're doing, don't be stupid and do something...

One huge benefit that I think people sometimes overlook with the Mac is the BootCamp feature.  BootCamp is made so that you can install windows onto the Macintosh as an additional operating system via hard drive partition.  This may sound complicated, but it's actually quite easy when using the boot camp app in mac OS to install, than you install Windows regularly.  This is a definite bonus when it comes to the Mac because it fixes one of its flaws.  That flaw is the ability to run .exe (executable) files that Windows runs natively.  There are ways around this for Mac, as there usually is for everything, but we'll get into that later. 

Sexy, or what?

With BootCamp, you can start up your Mac and set it up so that you can either use Windows as your default OS or your Mac OS X as your default OS.  If you need to run windows programs, or play certain games that only windows can run, than you have that option.  Also, at this point, windows fanboys really have nothing to complain about or any argument... Because Windows runs perfectly fine if not better on the Macintosh hardware with BootCamp than it does on a comparable PC.  However, Windows does run the battery and system much harder than the Mac OS does.  However, even though Mac has these capabilities, it's still kind of pain that you can't run a lot of games and PC software natively on the OS.

If you're like me, than you don't really like having to switch between and boot another OS whenever you want to use a certain program.  So here's the work around.  There are various programs you can download that will allow you to run .exe files almost natively on a mac.  Some of these include CrossOver, crossover allows you to install programs and games and run them through that program.  It does cost money however.  WINE is another recently discovered program I've been using to run .exe files and proves to work quite smoothly and has Direct X capabilities.  Those programs don't have great support however and can be slow depending on the program they're trying to emulate.

Here's one important fact, Mac's do get viruses, but they are few and far between.  The Mac file system greatly differs from the PC file system and doesn't get viruses that a PC can get, and that's the way viruses are designed. I've never had a problem with it.  That being said, Macs don't have a very big library when it comes to pirated software "lets be honest we all do it.."  But if you're a goody goody, than you will likely never run into this problem and can omit it from the evaluation.  This also might be due to that there are some programs you can get for both PC and Mac, and PC pirated software floods the library, Mac specific software isn't really that hard to find. but can be hard to find cracks/serials for them.

On to discussing the price range of the Mac..  In comparison to relatively the same hardware as a PC, it is more expensive.  But if you're like me, you won't get a PC unless it's custom made, in which case, it comes to roughly the same price as a Mac.  Also taking into consideration the time and effort used to integrate the software and hardware and still satisfy windows users.  I'd say the price is worth it, you definitely get what you pay for.

All of this being said, the Mac is quickly increasing in popularity and is getting more support for games and other software that used to only run on Windows.

The PC (Personal Computer)

pretty big statement there.. compensating for something?

The PC is obviously the most common household item.  Most of these use the Windows operating system, and lets be honest, Windows hasn't exactly had the best run with the introduction of Vista, and had to release Windows 7 just to fix the bugs.

Windows 7 is basically a remake of Vista, but that being said it's definitely the best OS that windows has released thus far.  The huge benefit of Windows is that, you can really do almost anything you want with it.  There are many available customizable features available, but like the Mac, it's mostly 3rd party software.  The downside to this is that to customize windows, you usually have to go into the file structure and do a lot of the work yourself to get it the way you want it, and it's not always easy, and if you screw something up, than you have to restore or reformat/reinstall windows.  I haven't really experimented with the actual Mac UI and doing themed look that I have with windows, so I don't know if the same problems exist.

dock, taskbar, gadgets... let's add a fucking wheel!

Windows 7 definitely has jumped forward to compete with OS X.  The new taskbar allows you to see what programs are open and see all of the windows open in that program by rolling over the programs icon.  you than have the option to close the window or program from the taskbar or to open the window/program.  Mac has a similar feature within the expose if you only want to view a certain program instead of all, but windows is limited to only viewing one through the taskbar.  Most people know about fast program switching when holding the Alt+Tab keys, this applies both for windows and mac.  Mac is pretty basic, just like windows used to use.  But windows now shows the open programs in a diagonal form.  This is good to see that windows is trying something new, but falls somewhat short because you don't always know which program is which, depending on what programs you have open.

It's like the OS X dock!  Except.. not..

The big major difference and huge con of the PC is of course, viruses, malware, spyware.. all of those fun things.  You gather a lot of these when surfing the web, and due to the way the windows file system is set up, it's pretty easy to get a virus unknowingly.  It's almost like telling your kids STD's exist and are bad and than sending them into a whore house and telling them don't forget to wear protection.  We know how people can be, people are stupid, and often don't wear protection, or sometimes the condom breaks, or she forgot to take the pill.  That's what the internet is like to your PC, if you don't know what your doing, you will contract a virus.  I use AVG when using a PC, it's a free virus protection program, and I like to think I know what I'm doing, and I have never contracted a virus within the last 2-3 years on PC.

Most people that have a PC, get those crappy store bought ones from Staples or Best Buy, all of those "brand names" like HP, Acer, Dell etc. are crap, all of these have little additional programs they include with the operating system and are annoying as all hell.  They make you think you're being protected with these little restore/backup programs, but all of these are crap.  I'm telling you right now, if you're serious about buying a computer and aren't really constricted by a low budget, get a custom computer..  These are the real computers.  Most of these companies strive to meet the same standards as Apple, but they fail in comparison, mainly because they do the same thing, but worse.  They have warranties that are void if you open the computer to either fix or add to.  Stores that sell these computers also benefit from Viruses and things that go wrong because they charge you to bring it back so they can fix it.  It's the same idea as bringing a car to a mechanic.  Once its fixed you find out something has mysteriously gone wrong with it, or the mechanic discovers that something that wasn't previously broken before is now broken.  This is what goes on with stores that sell these kinds of computers.

lol

I've been bashing a lot of PC things so far, but here are the real benefits for REAL PC users.  Real PC users that know what they're doing and are serious and have the cash, go for a custom built rig.  This way you can decide exactly what parts you want in your computer.  The average lifespan for a PC is probably 1-2 years.  With the way technology keeps jumping forward, this isn't surprising.  Most custom PC's will outlast and can live for up to 5-10 years maybe.  I can directly relate to this because I custom built my own PC and I've never had to take it to a computer repair man, mainly because I can do it myself... I won't say it didn't have problems, but I was able to buy specific parts that allowed my PC to last and stay up to date.

This one thing PC's can do that Mac's can't.  Stay up to date.  If you buy a mac, you're pretty much set, the hardware is good, but in the next 2 years, it's almost guaranteed that there's going to be a much better version.  If you get the right motherboard for a PC you can put whatever the hell you want in it, it can last you for a very long time.  Need a new processor?  No problem!  New power supply? No problem!  New Graphics Card? WE CAN FUCKING DO THAT!  For serious gamers and users this is the main feature that wins people over obviously.  There's no competition when it comes to customizing the actual hardware of the machine, but this pro doubles as a con.  You will eventually dish out more money on your PC to keep it up to date by buying new hardware.  However.. I did say before that this was about the operating systems...  But I did also go into how the Mac hardware works for the Mac.  In PC's case this where most of the problems arise with Windows.

Windows doesn't have any set number of drivers or configurations, you can install pretty much anything you want, Windows isn't really open source like Linux, but when it comes to hardware, you're really only limited to the space you have.  Every piece of hardware a computer uses has a driver that allows it to run with the operating system.  A lot of the time, these drivers are made by 3rd parties to be able to run on windows, but you can run it on other operating systems too.  These drivers may be designed for windows, but Windows isn't designed specifically to run on a certain configuration.  Since windows doesn't have one configuration it doesn't have the same integration as Mac has, that's where you can get slower speeds and improper CPU/GPU usage.

However, it may come to a surprise to some of you that PC can also run the Mac OS.  Yes!  It's true!  This does take a lot of time, work, and frustration to accomplish but it is possible.  I have done it myself, and that's what ultimately drove me to buy a Macintosh computer.  If you have good PC knowhow and are familiar with your hardware, you can find certain Installers to install OS X for you.  Keep in mind that the hardware might not be supported and you'll have to do a lot of searching and tweaking to get your hardware to work properly with the OS X.  I was able to get OS X to run almost flawlessly on my PC, but I wanted the full experience and broke myself down...

BLASPHEMY! the fanboys cry

This last topic kind of brings me to Pirated software for PC.  Almost every program on PC has a pirated version, and it is incredibly easy to download and use the programs for free regardless of activation or CD keys.  However, use caution if doing this, because this is how a lot of people accumulate viruses, be smart about it.

The Final Verdict

I probably missed a lot of points when it comes to PC and Mac, but these are a lot of the main differences I see between the two.  If you asked me about Mac 3-5 years ago, I would have told you to definitely choose a PC.  Macs have had a lot of problems in the past, but have since than stepped up to the plate.  I'm still a PC man at heart, but Windows just can't deliver on what I enjoy in an operating system the way OS X can.

Mac Pros

• No Viruses
• Complete hardware/software integration
• Boot Camp to run Windows
• Expose/Spaces
• Clean and Customizable
• App Store
• Macs are ready to go out of the box and are actually a GOOD computer brand name

Mac Cons

• Small Game library
• Low support for .exe files
• Expensive
• No hardware customization/replacement
• Short lifespan in terms of new products
• Harder to get/find "pirated" software for both PC/Mac supported programs

PC Pros

• Highly Customizable hardware and OS
• Large program/game library
• Almost everything supports Windows
• Upgradable/Longe lifespan (if you build it right)
• Easily find/pirate software

PC Cons

• Very prone to viruses, malware, and spyware
• Constantly need to update hardware to stay up to date
• Store bought brand name PC's are garbage.
• Customizing Windows can be tricky and may lead to breaking the OS

You may have noticed some things about the Pro's/Con's comparison.  Before fanboys or any bigots start questioning my evaluation, shut up and let me explain!

Mac does have more Pro's than PC, but the Mac also features more Cons than the PC does.  In contrast, the PC's pro's and con's are more significant in what they are.  This just goes to show that the Mac has many notable features in it's operating system, and PC's are better known for their hardware.  Let me put it into even more simpler terms for you:

Software=Mac

Hardware=PC

Needless to say, the less expensive and easier route to get more power and bang for your buck is the PC.

You can do the same with Mac and really Mac has more powerful capabilities if you're willing to dish out the cash.  But Mac mainly relies on it's OS to get the job done, and it really does get the job done.

Well, that's my final decision on Mac's and PC's.  When it comes down to it and you really know what your doing, it comes down to personal preference.  I love both PC and Mac, but I prefer OS X over Windows, and you really can only get the Mac experience on a Mac.  I'm not biased, because I still used windows now again.  I'm more of... a Pacintosh guy!  Or... Personal Macintosh person?  Does that make sense?  No?  Well you're attention span was probably sucked dry about half way through this article.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this, and if you're thinking about purchasing a new computer, I hope this helped to sway your decision in whatever direction you were looking.

Next post will be a video game review on this wonderful hidden gem called Amnesia: The Dark Descent!

Thanks for reading!

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by

Michael MacDonald

Mike's Zombie Survival Guide!

I have written this Zombie survival guide with the qualifications of a 12+ month survivor with a picture of Chuck Norris from a facebook quiz.

In the event of a zombie apocalypse, and you are a survivor, it is assumed that you will be hospitalized for a prolonged period of time as depicted in most movies/television adaptations (28 Days Later, Resident Evil, The Walking Dead.)  If in this position you will wake up with slight pain (mainly due to being strapped up to some life saving contraption that you will ultimately tear off your body in disbelief).  You will also be disoriented either from the sudden awakening, from the accident you were previously involved in, or because it's been a shit long time and you've been asleep for weeks.

Most films and television adaptations show the protagonist proceeding on prolonged physical and mental exertion.  Food and water is a MUST regardless of your scenario!  Don’t follow the opinions portrayed on TV or in movies.  None of the protagonists seem to feed themselves within their first day of survival.  Keep in mind that you have been hospitalized for X amount of days without care depending on when the zombie outbreak occurred.  Actually the fact you weren’t eaten while you dreamt of that nurse in the hospital just goes to show how much compassion the world has given you already... So don’t fuck it up!!  A person must be mentally alert and physically able to survive the journey to your sanctuary or wherever you may find yourself.  Be sure to find a weapon on the way, a stick, shovel, gun or anything with a large extension and sharp edge or blunt end (axe, sword, sledge hammer, basically anything that can inflict sever blunt force trauma or sever the head).  After this find your holdout or sanctuary, make sure it is zombie free and try to make as little noise as possible when settling in.

I will now go through some simple ground rules in the event of a zombie apocalypse for different scenarios omit step 1 if you have woken up in a hospital as explained above..

Stock up on these if you can.

BASIC ZOMBIE OUTLINE - For all scenarios involving a Zombie or Infected outbreak.

1. If you find yourself in the event of a Zombie Outbreak happening outside your door.  First thing you should do is not panic, they’re slow, even if they're fast, just don't draw attention.  This won’t be a likely situation for an outbreak but if it does happen...  Lock your doors and windows, don’t panic, stay inside, and don’t make noise (maybe barricade the doors and windows just incase).  People will be panicking, running rampantly, getting bitten by zombies and leaving the city.. only to run into more zombies along the way.  Stay in your home and wait out the commotion until things calm down.  If survivors come to your door DO NOT LET THEM IN! unless of course they are good friends or loved ones, but be cautious.  You don’t want randoms eating your food and compromising your position, you may need to let them in and kick them out later to avoid drawing attention from zombies. 
2. After the commotion has calmed down and everyone either seems dead or... well... undead, you should now assess your situation.  Check your supplies, weapons, and evaluate the people around you.  At this point the people with you are probably going to stay with you, they were either people already in the home with you, or people you let in out of “kindness”... you pansy...  In any case, you can list the skills each of you bring to the table and decide who can do what in the group.  If you have hot headed or disrespectful women beater hick people in your group, you need to kick them out or kill them immediately!  They WILL compromise the group and they WILL get you killed!
3. You will most likely needs guns, ammo, food, and water after a while, so you will need to go outside.  Having a working vehicle is quite preferred because it offers you protection and transportation, just be sure not to drive into a large hoard of zombies, because than you’re pretty much screwed.  So don’t be stupid stupid!  Unless you have a Kmart near by, weapons and food won’t be in the same general area so you may want to do some research and find all of the nearest places (if you’re like me you’ve already done this and know where to go.)  If the power grid etc. hasn’t gone down yet you should be able to check the internet, make sure to do this early on, it will be vital later.
4. Head out on your journey, if you don’t feel your current sanctuary is safe, than bring only what you need with you, food, water, weapons..  Maybe family photos.. I guess.. maybe YOU don’t need them, but “she” will probably need them...  If you don’t have the location for weapons, you will need to search for weapons before you search for food, because stores usually have people and those people are now zombies.  (You SHOULD have something for protection right off the get go however as stated in the introduction.).  Once you have plentiful weapons and adequate protection. head to your food source, raid the shit out of that place, and don’t take more than you can carry because you don’t want to stay in one place for too long.
5. Take your things back to your sanctuary, but make sure the coast is clear.  You will most likely be living in an urban area so you will need to find some place more secluded like a cabin, or somewhere with a much lower population, because you will attract zombies going in and out of your current home (considering you are in a larger populated area or city.)  You may need to travel from place to place since resources will start to dwindle in your area, and the areas you move to.  It is not safe to stay in one place for too long or you may get overrun if not in a secluded area.  A warehouse or large store is NOT a good place to hold up with a large group.  A large complex is too hard to keep track of and there are plenty of places to miss and plenty of places for zombies and unwanted visitors to hide so once someone goes missing and they don’t answer, get the hell out of there.  They are obviously stupid and heard something and went off by themselves to get killed.  People would think that a large store complex is a good idea because of the abundance of resources, but unless you have a small group it is hard to keep track.  Smaller groups are easier to keep track of and less likely to attract attention.  If this is your situation be sure to check ALL entrances and exits, make sure you are adequately equipped with a gun or equally devastating weapon so that you can clear out the place if this is going to be your place. This option is based on opinion, because if you are only going to raid, than you need multiple trips eventually, which may give away your position.  If you are going to stay, clear out the threats and find a safe place inside the warehouse, because the warehouse itself can be dangerous due to its size.  Either way there is a risk.
6. Zombies will be attracted to you no matter what you do, so try to draw as little attention as possible, because you won’t be the only survivor(s) around.  There will be people who want shelter and protection and some people that just want to take all of your shit.  So be cautious, keep your party limited to only a few members.  There is not strength in numbers in this case, especially when your numbers may eventually want to eat you.  Don’t let new people in, and be careful not to attract the attention of raiders.
7. Check for zombie bites daily or after any sort of venture to the outside depending on the time it takes to turn.  This is important, as uncomfortable as it may seem, you will have to strip down to your nitty grittys and present to everyone your bare UNBITTEN body.  If one of the group is bitten than you will need to shoot them or decapitate them.  This will be hard for many people, especially the bitten, but it is for the safety of the group, and being bitten without telling anyone is compromising everyone, so don’t be an ass!  THIS PERTAINS TO THE READER TOO! NO EXCEPTIONS!  The reason you will do this check daily is because people are stupid, people do things without telling others and than get bit and fuck everything up...  You don’t want that!  You want to do it while the sun is up so that you don’t miss anything
8. Try to establish your group to have equal amount of men to women, this is dangerous as well because jealousy can become a big part when developing relationships.  On the other hand there would be no pro-creation, no “doing the nasty” etc.  All men groups can turn gay... and in some cases hostile.  Same as with all female groups.. CATFIGHTS!  Just.. try and do the best you can with this step...  Try and keep yourselves civilized!
9. NEVER go anywhere alone!  Always have a group with you, dark corners, small corridors, sewers, all of those things are bad news.  Any place where you are confined in a tight space is equally as bad, especially if there are more people with you.  Only take these routes if you absolutely have to, and in the event that you have to, make sure you have a flashlight to check it out before you go in to deep.  Also, bad sounds are usually bad... don't be an idiot and investigate them...
10. SURVIVE!  After reading through and performing these guidelines, all you need to do is survive.  This guide is meant for basic short term survival, to get you through the nitty gritty of the beginning.  After a year or 2, Zombie’s will be much easier to evade and kill due to decomposition.  You can than set on a search for more colonized locations or colonize an area yourself that you have cleared zombies out of, thus begins the rebuilding of the human race! HURRAY!!

Breakdown!

1. Wait out the initial breakout, barricade and secure your area (unless hospitalized).
2. Check your resources and allies, eliminate problems within your group.
3. Eventually supplies will get low, find a source of transportation and be ready to search for weapons and supplies.  The sooner you know where to look the easier it will be.
4. Get weapons than food, don’t take more than you can carry, in and out, fast!
5. Head back, or search for a more secluded location, you may need to move after resources get low in your area, be careful not to attract too much attention.
6. Always lie low, be cautious.  Don’t take in new survivors, and try not to draw attention of raiders.  It’s a Zombie eat Person world out there.
7. Check for Zombie bites every day! NO EXCEPTIONS! Strip down and check thoroughly!
8. Try and have =# of Men/Women, for... various reasons.
9. NEVER go anywhere alone!  Dark places where you can't see are bad, at least bring a flashlight, bad sounds are usually bad.. don't investigate...
10. SURVIVE!

How to kill a zombie

I will now go through the different types of zombies you may encounter and how to kill them.  This is drawn from extensive TV and Movie Zombie research!  Other scenarios such as Left 4 Dead are not included in this analysis.

Pretty self explanatory.

1. Slow Zombie (Resident Evil 1/2, Classic zombie flicks) - Blunt force to the head, bullet to the brain, or decapitation.  This zombie is slow, so it should be easy to kill, if you get bit... well... you deserve it for being such a moron!
2. Fast Zombie (Dawn Of The Dead, 28 Days Later) - Blunt Force to the head, bullet to the brain or decapitation.  This zombie can run, and will run straight for you.  This means it will not try to evade, so still fairly easy to kill.  The key here is to not panic!  Take a deep breath, aim, and fire.  If your aim sucks... and have no other weapon.. you can either knock the zombie to the ground or break their neck.  This is not recommended however..  Best way to deal with this zombie is to use a long blunt weapon, or a sharp edged weapon.
3. Slow Zombie Group - If you encounter a large group of slow zombies, the best thing to do is run in the other direction..  Unless you have a grenade, than blow them the hell up, because even though the grenade might not be able to kill all of them, it’s still fun, they’re slow.  You do also have the option to sneak past if they haven’t spotted you.  If they are a small group, you could probably kill them all, although fun, it is not recommended.
4. Fast Zombie Group - You’re so fucked... ESPECIALLY if you don’t have a grenade!  If it’s a smaller group you may be lucky, but a large group.. you’re totally screwed, you better hope your a fast runner and good at hiding.  If your unseen by the group, best thing to do is to be quiet, and find a different route to your destination. Being stealthy should be first priority regardless of Zombie situation.

*NOTE* If you encounter the 28 Days Later "zombie", than anything that would normally kill a person should still kill them.  These are technically not zombies, these are humans infected with a "rage" virus.  They are just very very angry...  They'll still bite you and are the most dangerous and highly infectious breed of zombie.

The zombie infection spreads mainly from bites from a zombie, but you can be infected by their saliva or blood, if any of it gets in your eye or mouth, your pretty much screwed.  So... try and avoid that, wearing masks are probably a good step to take when fighting these things.  Also be sure to cover any cuts or scrapes that you might have gotten from running away.  Most people usually do for some reason... Everyone must be clumsy.  Bandage yourself and throw away any clothes that you got zombie blood on, just incase.

--
by
Michael MacDonald

Evil Goats Milk by Michael MacDonald

        
Welcome to the Blog that has no rhyme or reason for existence!  This blog will be dedicated to random video game reviews, movies, outbursts, survival guides, and pet peeves!

If you do not enjoy any of the above, or are in fear of reading borderline moronic ramblings about things that do not pertain to you or your interests, than read on!  Because I could really care less if you are ignorant to topics relevant to myself or my associates who are yet to be named.

WARNING! YOU MAY LOSE CRUCIAL IQ POINTS IN THE PROCESS OF FURTHER READING!


On a side note, I do not harm animals, sasquatches, loch ness monsters, squirrels, or any other form of life in the making of these vlogs.  Maybe the odd housefly or spider now and again.  If this vlog becomes popular at any level by any means, you may suggest topics for me to go over and I may pick one to discuss.

Why Goat Milk?  Why not goat milk?  Do you have something against it?  I sure don't, I've never drank it before, but that doesn't remove any legitimate argument that it might actually be an excellent beverage.  That is the same principle this vlog is basing itself upon.  Is that a good comparison?  Of course it is.  Feel free to compare it to what you like.  You might prefer orange juice or pepsi, but that's not for me to decide.

I could continue with random gibberish for the first vlog post, but I think I will end it there.

Stay tuned for the upcoming zombie survival guide!  What you will need to know for when it ultimately arrives.

NOTE: For those of you paying attention, I did indeed call this *Blog a Vlog, just checking to see if you're paying attention.  Also this Blog will get more and more professional as I get more rich, so plan on bland white for the duration of your existence.

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by
Michael MacDonald