nyerm

Note: This article is a snapshot of content from my old Interests page. The effort required to keep this page up to date finally pushed me over the edge, and I installed Movable Type so I could just blog current events in my life. This article represents a snapshot of my interests, circa 26 February, 2003. For a more up-to-date view of my current interests, just take a look at my entries on the home page.

The personal computer is one of humanity’s finest inventions. It is a powerful tool that helps to organize and accomplish tasks only dreamed of by earlier generations of humanity. But more importantly: you can play games on one.

My most recent waste of time on a PC is Earth & Beyond, a fantastic MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game) that puts you in the shoes of a starship captain, along with thousands of other players, in real time. Earth & Beyond does a good job of catering to different play styles; it’s possible to advance in the game through combat, trade, and exploration. It also gets away from the tired clichés of fantasy RPGs; Earth & Beyond is a refreshing alternative to bashing orcs.

I’m also a fan of first-person shooters. My most recent addiction is Day of Defeat, a World War II modification to Half-Life. You can play on the Allied or Axis sides, with very nicely researched and modeled weaponry for either. Game play requires much tactical thinking; running in guns blazing is usually a quick way to die.

When I get a new computer put together that can handle the strain of a modern 3D game engine, I plan to spend a lot of time playing Neverwinter Nights, a really nice adaptation of the Dungeons & Dragons, 3rd Edition rules. The graphics are truly outstanding, but they’re a slideshow on my poor little 450MHz Celeron and Nvidia TNT2 rig.

I picked up an Xbox last year, and my housemate owns a Playstation 2, so I’ve developed an unhealthy attachment to console gaming. I just finished Splinter Cell, a fabulous romp through the near future of NSA spookdom. I’m currently playing Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Ratchet & Clank, and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers on the PS2. I will always be a Halo fan; it stands as the best game ever made for the Xbox. Hopefully, lightning can strike twice, and the upcoming Halo 2 will be able to live up to the hype of its predecessor.