Pokemon White's difficulty level began curving up faster as I went farther in, but after fighting the Elite Four, endgame content skyrocketed. I don't know how I feel about this. It is entirely possible to continue without much of a hitch, and the National Pokedex expands your Pokemon availability from 156 to over 400.
That was the fun part. Being able to replace all these new Pokemon with old favorites who are stronger (I caught a level 64 Milotic....).
SPOILERS?!?!!! D:
Monday, March 14, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Thursday Thoughts: Patch 4.1, Haste, and Being Bipolar
Moving On
Despite the bad feelings that were created a couple nights ago, we moved on last night without a hitch. One-shotted Chimarean, which made me feel good about myself (lol). Probably drop into Bastion tonight and get back at Cho'gall. We're going to have another off week because of absences, which, as far as I'm concern, is okay because I like playing Pokemon. I wonder when we'll get to the point where we can 2 heal fights. Probably not. too much bad luck type stuff happens.
Despite the bad feelings that were created a couple nights ago, we moved on last night without a hitch. One-shotted Chimarean, which made me feel good about myself (lol). Probably drop into Bastion tonight and get back at Cho'gall. We're going to have another off week because of absences, which, as far as I'm concern, is okay because I like playing Pokemon. I wonder when we'll get to the point where we can 2 heal fights. Probably not. too much bad luck type stuff happens.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Pokemon White: 4 Gym Battles In
The Power of Catching Them All (a short review)
I love this game. It's so much fun and it's renewed my love for the series and for console gaming itself. I've been so wrapped up in WoW and raiding and team playing that it's nice to be solely accountable for myself and only myself and battling the AI without any social play. Of course there's plenty of social opportunities in this game, but I don't need them.
Story
Pokemon White (Black) introduces the world of Unova and the 156 Pokemon that inhabit it. There are some things in the introduction that I wish could be bypassed (like learning to catch a Pokemon), but it's not enough of a complaint to warrant a change. There are two rivals this time, instead of one, and both portray a different type of stereotyped personality. The boy, Cheran, is the smart intellectual type, with his glasses. He smartly picks the Pokemon your starter is weak to. The girl, Bianca, is blonde, ditzy and not that smart. She picks the Pokemon whose weak against your starter. Throughout the game, you encounter them and battle them, and listen to their antics and small back stories. (Bianca has one, which seems weird.)
I'm impressed with the story overall. Team Plasma (the Team Rocket of Unova) is an interesting enemy. Instead of the usual "we steal pokemon and take over random centers of interest because we're so bad," Team Plasma has taken a more political approach. They are led by N, who doesn't believe owning Pokemon and battling with them is right (although he battles you several times). He is on a journey to form better relationships with Pokemon, but at the same time, his entire team spends the game harassing you and preaching about freeing Pokemon from us, the trainers. I was kind of shocked with the political nature of this conflict. I'm sure we won't be freeing the Pokemon any time soon, so I wonder how they will justify us as trainers capturing, collecting, and battling with them.
For some reason this story seems more mature than the game's intended audience. Good thing. Hell yah.
Graphics
I'm not a techie, spec person, so I don't understand the nature of what the DS is capable of. However, that being said, I would think that the height of the DS's graphics is Kingdom Hearts 365/2. Pokemon has always been a sort of 2d adventure. And while they maintain the same feel of Pokemon Diamond/Pearl/Platinum, they've also managed to make the graphics feel updated. The Pokemon have unique animations. There's even "3d" type areas, including a whole city, that brings some depth into the game without overwhelming anyone. Celestial Tower has a winding staircase that you can actually climb and wind with. Impressive.
Battles
The battle system hasn't changed much at all. The new types of battles, Triple Battles, and Rotation Battles (which are Black), are the new additions. I guess Triple battles are exclusive/more common in Pokemon White. I'm not a big fan of Triple battles. Your Pokemon are restricted depending on where they are standing (the one on the right can't reach the Pokemon on the left) and there's a lot going on. Two battles I think are enough.
I like that the leaders are strong enough, but not over powering. I remember when "super effective" moves would barely hurt a gym leader's Pokemon, even if you out level'd them by a ton. The level gaps aren't nearly that big either, so the game is nicely paced so far.
Leveling
I love leveling. Power-leveling has been given a nice boost in the form of "shaking" grass and the elusive Audino. You run back and forth near a grass spot (don't have to be in the grass, so you can avoid the random battles), and when you see a shaking grass spot, you enter an encounter, usually with Audino. This cute Pokemon yields a ton of XP, even to higher levels.
EXP is now distributed differently. If a Pokemon is lower, it gains extra EXP, while a higher lvl will gain slightly lower. This is great when coupled with EXP Share item, which now shares the experience with just one Pokemon instead of all of them. You can easily level a lower Pokemon to reach the right level using this method.
There's still a level of "farming" for the shaking grasses, but it bypasses the need to be constantly in a random encounter.
Bravo!
Overall so far
I'm loving this game so far. It's reminded me of how awesome the series is and that despite how old the anime is getting, the games never do get old. Nintendo and Game Freak do a great job at updating the game while keeping the same formula that makes the game great. I'm not sure about Post-Credit content, but I''ll update more when I reach there.
Happy catching!
I love this game. It's so much fun and it's renewed my love for the series and for console gaming itself. I've been so wrapped up in WoW and raiding and team playing that it's nice to be solely accountable for myself and only myself and battling the AI without any social play. Of course there's plenty of social opportunities in this game, but I don't need them.
Story
Pokemon White (Black) introduces the world of Unova and the 156 Pokemon that inhabit it. There are some things in the introduction that I wish could be bypassed (like learning to catch a Pokemon), but it's not enough of a complaint to warrant a change. There are two rivals this time, instead of one, and both portray a different type of stereotyped personality. The boy, Cheran, is the smart intellectual type, with his glasses. He smartly picks the Pokemon your starter is weak to. The girl, Bianca, is blonde, ditzy and not that smart. She picks the Pokemon whose weak against your starter. Throughout the game, you encounter them and battle them, and listen to their antics and small back stories. (Bianca has one, which seems weird.)
I'm impressed with the story overall. Team Plasma (the Team Rocket of Unova) is an interesting enemy. Instead of the usual "we steal pokemon and take over random centers of interest because we're so bad," Team Plasma has taken a more political approach. They are led by N, who doesn't believe owning Pokemon and battling with them is right (although he battles you several times). He is on a journey to form better relationships with Pokemon, but at the same time, his entire team spends the game harassing you and preaching about freeing Pokemon from us, the trainers. I was kind of shocked with the political nature of this conflict. I'm sure we won't be freeing the Pokemon any time soon, so I wonder how they will justify us as trainers capturing, collecting, and battling with them.
For some reason this story seems more mature than the game's intended audience. Good thing. Hell yah.
Graphics
I'm not a techie, spec person, so I don't understand the nature of what the DS is capable of. However, that being said, I would think that the height of the DS's graphics is Kingdom Hearts 365/2. Pokemon has always been a sort of 2d adventure. And while they maintain the same feel of Pokemon Diamond/Pearl/Platinum, they've also managed to make the graphics feel updated. The Pokemon have unique animations. There's even "3d" type areas, including a whole city, that brings some depth into the game without overwhelming anyone. Celestial Tower has a winding staircase that you can actually climb and wind with. Impressive.
Battles
The battle system hasn't changed much at all. The new types of battles, Triple Battles, and Rotation Battles (which are Black), are the new additions. I guess Triple battles are exclusive/more common in Pokemon White. I'm not a big fan of Triple battles. Your Pokemon are restricted depending on where they are standing (the one on the right can't reach the Pokemon on the left) and there's a lot going on. Two battles I think are enough.
I like that the leaders are strong enough, but not over powering. I remember when "super effective" moves would barely hurt a gym leader's Pokemon, even if you out level'd them by a ton. The level gaps aren't nearly that big either, so the game is nicely paced so far.
Leveling
I love leveling. Power-leveling has been given a nice boost in the form of "shaking" grass and the elusive Audino. You run back and forth near a grass spot (don't have to be in the grass, so you can avoid the random battles), and when you see a shaking grass spot, you enter an encounter, usually with Audino. This cute Pokemon yields a ton of XP, even to higher levels.
EXP is now distributed differently. If a Pokemon is lower, it gains extra EXP, while a higher lvl will gain slightly lower. This is great when coupled with EXP Share item, which now shares the experience with just one Pokemon instead of all of them. You can easily level a lower Pokemon to reach the right level using this method.
There's still a level of "farming" for the shaking grasses, but it bypasses the need to be constantly in a random encounter.
Bravo!
Overall so far
I'm loving this game so far. It's reminded me of how awesome the series is and that despite how old the anime is getting, the games never do get old. Nintendo and Game Freak do a great job at updating the game while keeping the same formula that makes the game great. I'm not sure about Post-Credit content, but I''ll update more when I reach there.
Happy catching!
Monday, March 7, 2011
Timeout for the WotLK Baby
I was reading Klepsacovic's blog about WoW difficulty, and he seemed to point out that WoW's problem isn't that it's too easy or too hard, but it's inconsistent. It definitely pays tribute to the fact that WoW has tried desperately to evolve, although not necessarily with its audience, but with something else, although I can't figure out what it is.I hesitate to say gaming community because the gaming community is so vastly varied that it would be a huge mistake to try and clump them together in one category (I've been taking a lot of Ethnic Group classes so I'm in a stereotype mode...Black or White?...is this racists...no its Pokemon!). That being said, the gaming community is where the money is at.So how do you keep so many varied people happy?
(I don't know.)
(I don't know.)
Sunday, March 6, 2011
PTR Patch 4.1 Updates: What to read?
Since I'm feeling kind of down and I have a few tests coming up and will be busy, here are some great reads from other blogs I recommend you read daily.
Druid Blogs Win!
Instead of posting the same stuff that other people have said (and much more eloquently than I), here are some readings about Patch 4.1
Efflorescence getting buffed weeeeee!
Both Keeva of Tree Bark Jacket, and Jarre of R4 Healing Touch go over the big Resto druid buffs coming our way, mainly in the form of Efflorescence 3 person smart heal and Tranquility cooldown reduction.
Tranquility buffed. Nerf doom impending.
Beruthial of Falling Leaves and Wings, offers some great insight to the awesome changes to Tranquility and the impending QQing and nerf that will follow if Blizzard continues in this direction.
Haste Breakpoint 2005 Here I come!
And Jarre confirms the 9th Efflorescence tick thanks to an abundance of Haste. This is most likely going to make 2005 the new desirable haste breakpoint.
Happy healing!
Druid Blogs Win!
Instead of posting the same stuff that other people have said (and much more eloquently than I), here are some readings about Patch 4.1
Efflorescence getting buffed weeeeee!
Both Keeva of Tree Bark Jacket, and Jarre of R4 Healing Touch go over the big Resto druid buffs coming our way, mainly in the form of Efflorescence 3 person smart heal and Tranquility cooldown reduction.
Tranquility buffed. Nerf doom impending.
Beruthial of Falling Leaves and Wings, offers some great insight to the awesome changes to Tranquility and the impending QQing and nerf that will follow if Blizzard continues in this direction.
Haste Breakpoint 2005 Here I come!
And Jarre confirms the 9th Efflorescence tick thanks to an abundance of Haste. This is most likely going to make 2005 the new desirable haste breakpoint.
Happy healing!
Saturday, March 5, 2011
The Real Folk Blues
This is a personal post. This post will be incredibly vague and ill-informed. It will reveal a side of me that is extremely emotional, rash, and indecisive.
It will reveal a side of me full of regret.
It will most importantly reveal a side of me that is desperate.
It will reveal a side of me full of regret.
It will most importantly reveal a side of me that is desperate.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Rift between Us Part 2
Deathwing won.
I am apparently not as strong or patient as I thought. Covers has officially been retired (so young!) simply because I couldn't handle the PvP environment. I was ganked a few times, camped once, and griefed by a little troll. I tried to endure. My friend, the reason I was on here, promised me it wasn't as bad, and I was just having bad luck. My boyfriend also wanted to keep pushing. So I tried. We were running around Ashenvale when a hunter literally swooped down, shot us both, then flew away. Well that was the last straw for me, and my bf, who was also a bit stunned that a higher level took the time to fly down, kill us, laugh at us, then fly away, agreed that we would leave the realm of world PvP for good.
I really REALLY don't understand why a higher level would take the time to kill a lowbie. The only reason I could think was that they were farming a node or herb that the higher level wanted. Other than that, no real reason but to grief other players. We can't harm the higher level. We don't give them any honor for killing us. We were in zones that yes, are contested, but really no high level has any reason to be there except Archaeology. I just don't understand the concept.
So thus I wave the white flag. I don't need to be playing on this realm, allowing other players to have the satisfaction that they are pissing me off. I pay for this game and I don't need to endure this.
Ally Lowbie Take Two
So, with my tail between my legs, my boyfriend and I journeyed to Med/High Pop PvE realm, Aerie Peak. The realm population seems like any other realm, with its eager beavers and trolls, but I don't thing Undermine ever had the amount of ninja ginvites going out like this realm Well, we were invited into a warm welcoming guild that had a couple guild perks and a couple noobs. I was leveling a death knight at the time, just to get a little gold, and was followed by another guildie who couldn't do anything on his own and had to be led around by the hand to figure out DK quests. Its kind of ironic because DK beginning quests are extremely linear and in my opinion, easy. I wonder how he'll fair in Outlands (or the world for that matter. Actually, how did he even get a toon to level 55 in the first place to unlock a DK. This can't be his real account, can it?). I chose to level a Paladin this time, simply because druids I love and love but may have over done. At least this time, I can level a Paladin right. I can't wait until level 30, when I can get dual spec and stop Exorcism-ing mobs to death.
Yes, I went Holy. At first I was planning to stick with Ret until I reached level 30 just because I wanted to quest more than dungeon run, but then we did RFC. The healer was a druid.
Here's the part where I meet a dumb druid
Now, I am a very proud druid healer. But I am also a sincerely flexible one. I don't think there is one right or wrong way in certain aspects. I mean, everyone has different playstyles and learning curves. That's a reason I read so many druid blogs-I like seeing different ideas and experiences. It's why I write a blog-I like sharing my own personal ideas and experiences that may differ from others out there. I guess writing a guide makes me seem like I believe there is a right and wrong way, but I also stress that a lot of things can and should be tailored to your own liking. That being said, I think I almost snapped after watching this druid fail.
At level 15 or so, you have Rejuvenation and Nourish. And Swiftmend from talenting into Restoration. I've noticed at lower levels, there is a lot of room for mistake, which considering our small resources at such a level is nice. If a dps pulls a mob, they won't get one shotted for being threat whores. Heals heal a lot of health. Tanks won't get smashed while your taking the 2-3 seconds to heal them. It allows for everyone to ease into their roles (at least healers. I'm not sure if letting DPS survive pulling aggro is such a good idea).
Well, the tank pulls in this little dungeon of RFC and dies. Why? I rez the tank, thinking it was just bad luck and we continue. The tank dies again. I stun the mob suddenly attacking me and look over. There's a bear next to me. The healer is in bear form. He starts to die after pulling threat. He backs up and casts a Rejuvenation on himself. And another one. And another one. I kindly tell him that casting Rejuvenation over and over again on himself will not make the "heal over time" spell heal him faster. He ignores me. I rez the tank again, then continue on. Because I don't feel like spending every fight rezing the tank, I decide to try healing the tank. I let the mage who keeps pulling everything die, and I let the druid die to make the point that continually casting Rejuvenation on yourself is not effective. But I effectively, in Ret spec, keep the tank alive and not go oom.
Meanwhile, the healer continues to do everything but heal. He moonfires a couple times. He melees some with his staff. He roles on a one handed mace with strength on it and wins over the tank. But man does he love being in bear form. Then loves taking aggro, dying, then "healing" himself continually spamming Rejuvenation.
I'll leave it at that. On to Rift
I mentioned before that the WoW Cataclysm sparkle is fading fast. I'm leveling an alt because I'm so damn bored.
Rift keeps looking more and more appealing. But that damn commercial still pisses me off.
It's like, ooo pretty ooo i wanna try ooo...wtf Azeroth?... I hate you Trion.
1. It's pretentious
2. It's admitting your competition is WoW (something we all know anyways) and begs to be compared to WoW. A lot of people say that playing Rift is like playing WoW but with rifts.
3. New audiences are probably going, "wtf is Azeroth."
But to be honest, the only thing that keeps me from Rift is the 59.99 it costs to buy the game. There's no way I can afford that. For me, on my budget, that is a few days of food and bus fare. A 60 dollar hit to my budget is bad. Maybe when I get my tax return, I'll pay rent for a few months, and use the left over to buy Rift as a small personal reward. (WTB Old Republic NAO)
So long, farewell
A lot of my friends have been planning to leave game within the next week. Interestingly enough, these are friends I am not guildies with. We all were old guildies but most are on different realms. Out of these though, only one has mentioned leaving WoW for Rift.
I think this proves that Rift is not a WoW killer. I highly doubt there will be one, at least for a long time. People have been giving WoW heat for releasing Patch 4.1 on the PTRs just in time for Rift headstart, claiming this is why there is no competition, and shame on your Blizzard for being an MMO audience hog.
I think that is a sad thing. Honestly, doesn't Blizzard have every right to counter a game that takes jabs at them (We're not in Azeroth anymore) on every single ad and commercial they show?
I don't think releasing Patch 4.1 on PTR has hurt Rift in the least.
I am apparently not as strong or patient as I thought. Covers has officially been retired (so young!) simply because I couldn't handle the PvP environment. I was ganked a few times, camped once, and griefed by a little troll. I tried to endure. My friend, the reason I was on here, promised me it wasn't as bad, and I was just having bad luck. My boyfriend also wanted to keep pushing. So I tried. We were running around Ashenvale when a hunter literally swooped down, shot us both, then flew away. Well that was the last straw for me, and my bf, who was also a bit stunned that a higher level took the time to fly down, kill us, laugh at us, then fly away, agreed that we would leave the realm of world PvP for good.
I really REALLY don't understand why a higher level would take the time to kill a lowbie. The only reason I could think was that they were farming a node or herb that the higher level wanted. Other than that, no real reason but to grief other players. We can't harm the higher level. We don't give them any honor for killing us. We were in zones that yes, are contested, but really no high level has any reason to be there except Archaeology. I just don't understand the concept.
So thus I wave the white flag. I don't need to be playing on this realm, allowing other players to have the satisfaction that they are pissing me off. I pay for this game and I don't need to endure this.
Ally Lowbie Take Two
So, with my tail between my legs, my boyfriend and I journeyed to Med/High Pop PvE realm, Aerie Peak. The realm population seems like any other realm, with its eager beavers and trolls, but I don't thing Undermine ever had the amount of ninja ginvites going out like this realm Well, we were invited into a warm welcoming guild that had a couple guild perks and a couple noobs. I was leveling a death knight at the time, just to get a little gold, and was followed by another guildie who couldn't do anything on his own and had to be led around by the hand to figure out DK quests. Its kind of ironic because DK beginning quests are extremely linear and in my opinion, easy. I wonder how he'll fair in Outlands (or the world for that matter. Actually, how did he even get a toon to level 55 in the first place to unlock a DK. This can't be his real account, can it?). I chose to level a Paladin this time, simply because druids I love and love but may have over done. At least this time, I can level a Paladin right. I can't wait until level 30, when I can get dual spec and stop Exorcism-ing mobs to death.
Yes, I went Holy. At first I was planning to stick with Ret until I reached level 30 just because I wanted to quest more than dungeon run, but then we did RFC. The healer was a druid.
Here's the part where I meet a dumb druid
Now, I am a very proud druid healer. But I am also a sincerely flexible one. I don't think there is one right or wrong way in certain aspects. I mean, everyone has different playstyles and learning curves. That's a reason I read so many druid blogs-I like seeing different ideas and experiences. It's why I write a blog-I like sharing my own personal ideas and experiences that may differ from others out there. I guess writing a guide makes me seem like I believe there is a right and wrong way, but I also stress that a lot of things can and should be tailored to your own liking. That being said, I think I almost snapped after watching this druid fail.
At level 15 or so, you have Rejuvenation and Nourish. And Swiftmend from talenting into Restoration. I've noticed at lower levels, there is a lot of room for mistake, which considering our small resources at such a level is nice. If a dps pulls a mob, they won't get one shotted for being threat whores. Heals heal a lot of health. Tanks won't get smashed while your taking the 2-3 seconds to heal them. It allows for everyone to ease into their roles (at least healers. I'm not sure if letting DPS survive pulling aggro is such a good idea).
Well, the tank pulls in this little dungeon of RFC and dies. Why? I rez the tank, thinking it was just bad luck and we continue. The tank dies again. I stun the mob suddenly attacking me and look over. There's a bear next to me. The healer is in bear form. He starts to die after pulling threat. He backs up and casts a Rejuvenation on himself. And another one. And another one. I kindly tell him that casting Rejuvenation over and over again on himself will not make the "heal over time" spell heal him faster. He ignores me. I rez the tank again, then continue on. Because I don't feel like spending every fight rezing the tank, I decide to try healing the tank. I let the mage who keeps pulling everything die, and I let the druid die to make the point that continually casting Rejuvenation on yourself is not effective. But I effectively, in Ret spec, keep the tank alive and not go oom.
Meanwhile, the healer continues to do everything but heal. He moonfires a couple times. He melees some with his staff. He roles on a one handed mace with strength on it and wins over the tank. But man does he love being in bear form. Then loves taking aggro, dying, then "healing" himself continually spamming Rejuvenation.
I'll leave it at that. On to Rift
I mentioned before that the WoW Cataclysm sparkle is fading fast. I'm leveling an alt because I'm so damn bored.
Rift keeps looking more and more appealing. But that damn commercial still pisses me off.
It's like, ooo pretty ooo i wanna try ooo...wtf Azeroth?... I hate you Trion.
1. It's pretentious
2. It's admitting your competition is WoW (something we all know anyways) and begs to be compared to WoW. A lot of people say that playing Rift is like playing WoW but with rifts.
3. New audiences are probably going, "wtf is Azeroth."
But to be honest, the only thing that keeps me from Rift is the 59.99 it costs to buy the game. There's no way I can afford that. For me, on my budget, that is a few days of food and bus fare. A 60 dollar hit to my budget is bad. Maybe when I get my tax return, I'll pay rent for a few months, and use the left over to buy Rift as a small personal reward. (WTB Old Republic NAO)
So long, farewell
A lot of my friends have been planning to leave game within the next week. Interestingly enough, these are friends I am not guildies with. We all were old guildies but most are on different realms. Out of these though, only one has mentioned leaving WoW for Rift.
I think this proves that Rift is not a WoW killer. I highly doubt there will be one, at least for a long time. People have been giving WoW heat for releasing Patch 4.1 on the PTRs just in time for Rift headstart, claiming this is why there is no competition, and shame on your Blizzard for being an MMO audience hog.
I think that is a sad thing. Honestly, doesn't Blizzard have every right to counter a game that takes jabs at them (We're not in Azeroth anymore) on every single ad and commercial they show?
I don't think releasing Patch 4.1 on PTR has hurt Rift in the least.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)