The Gameslave Podcast - Episode 96

Good news, we have managed to keep to our weekly schedule after our break.  That also means that we are only 4 weeks from episode 100.  Do you guys wants anything special for it or just a normal episode?

Per usual the notes can be found on the podcast page, including information about our special guest.

This Weeks Geek

So I am looking for a new recurring article I can write.  This is propably going to be similar to Conversations with IrishPride, but let's see how it goes. 

This week I came to the realization that I have about three weeks before The Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning comes out, and I still need to finish The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword.  I really do want to finish this game, but at the same time I want to play two different characters in Star Wars: The Old Republic.  For the first time in years I need to schedule playing 2 (or more) games at once, and it is proving more trying then I thought it would. I have an issue of having a one track mind when playing games, as I am sure many of you do. When I start on a SWTOR toon I want to continue the story now, which makes it hard to immediately go back to Link and sneaking around a mountain to get my gear back. 

How does one force themselves to what essentially comes down to watching two movies at once? Currently I am testing out having a weekend game and a weekday game.  Zelda is played in long stretches during the weekend and SWTOR is played in smaller chunks during the week. This, so far at least, is allowing me to play my games and still have a social life. The only wrench in this plan is that we recently started D&D on Sundays, and this takes all day.  It prevents play of the weekend game for the day, but is worth it. Hopefully splitting my game time allows me to eat my cake and it not be a lie.

The Gameslave Podcast - Episode 95

Happy New Year.  We have returned from our break with the first podcast of the year. Hope you enjoy!

Notes are on the podcast page.

Conversations with IrishPride Episode 14

Click, click, click

 

Hello everybody!  Can I get a "Hell Yeah!" for back to back weeks of CwIP!?!  Today I'm going to talk about how I took my MMO experiences to a whole new level.

 

When I play MMO's, I've always been a "clicker" when it comes to activating my abilities.  I know I'm in the minority when it comes to this because, for the most part, everybody I know (excluding ZeldaQueen, she is a mouse clicker with me) uses the keyboard bindings to activate hotkeys.  I've never had a problem using my mouse to click, but there was one point while playing SWTOR that I couldn't find my cursor and thus couldn't activate an ability that could have saved my life.  I then decided it was time for a change.  I never really liked using the keyboard binding because I like my fingers to stay in the same WSAD area and not have to worry about the position.  But I also knew that I needed to change from mouse clicking.  After doing some research, I decided to buy a new mouse, the Razer Naga Epic.

 

Now this thing is a beast.  There are 12 programmable bindings on the side of the mouse thatThe word "Epic" in the name is appropiate. essentially work as the 12 keys on your keyboard that activates the abilities.  Now, most of you know that when you play MMO's there are tons of abilities for you to use.  So 12 may not seem like a lot, but add the Shift button with the 12 keys and now you have 24 different bindings.  Let's not forget the 3 other buttons on top of the mouse.

 

I admit, I am extremely late to the party when it comes to keyboard bindings.  And to be honest, I'm still not using the keyboard to activate my abilities (aside from pressing the Shift key), I'm still using my mouse.  However, the Razer Naga Epic allows me not to have to worry where my cursor is and can spam a certain ability thinking the faster I click it the faster it will come off cool down.  The Razer Naga Epic has been a perfect compromise for the way I like to play.  My left hand can still stay put in the WSAD area, while I'm no longer having to click all my abilities.  Granted, it did take me awhile to get use to the 12 keys on the side of the mouse.  My problem wasn't locating the 12 different numbers with my thumb, but remembering what skills I had programmed to each button.  But after a few hours of gameplay, I am now an elite Bounty Hunter.

 

So, if you're tired of your friends making fun of you because you are a "clicker" or you are like me and wanted to improve your gameplay experience, I highly recommend the Razer Naga Epic.  I also recommend the cheaper Razer, but if you're like me and need wireless, go with the Naga Epic.  I look forward to using this mouse and becoming more comfortable with the configurations of it.  Besides, having a smoother gameplay session is what it's all about.

 

This is IrishPride signing out and until next time...Go Broncos!!!  (Bet you thought I was going to say something related to the Naga Epic huh?)