Memorial Day Weekend

I'm heading to Atlantic City for the long Memorial Day weekend, hoping to come back with at least the clothes that I arrived with. Anything on top of that (you know, like cash) is just a bonus. We're staying at Resorts on Thursday night for free, as I'm finally taking advantage of the money I've lost in the past and getting a free weekday room. Then, Friday/Saturday/Sunday nights, we're going to the Showboat, which had slightly lower prices than the other casinos with vacancies.

There was some discussion when we were making plans about staying in a crummy hotel as opposed to one of the casinos. Initially I figured a hotel/motel would be better because of the price, but a few factors changed my mind:

• Convenience. There's nothing quite like walking out of your room, taking an elevator, and immediately placing bets. Hotels can get close, but they can't match it.
• The "Fancy" factor. I've stayed in a couple of very nice hotels, but casinos are just a little bit better. The room we got at Resorts a few years back was just huge, and while you don't use much of that space, you feel more comfortable with it there.
• Safety. Atlantic City is not a nice town. If you go more than one block off the boardwalk, you're asking for trouble. Staying at a casino means that you never have to set foot on the sidewalk if you don't want to, and trust me: you don't want to.
• Price. I know what you're thinking. Casinos, Joe? They're always so expensive. And you're right, staying in a casino is substantially more expensive than staying in a motel. But really, what's the value of that price? You'd still be paying around $200/night at the crummiest of places in Atlantic City, and if you're going to be shelling out that kind of cash, don't you at least want to enjoy the place you're paying for? You work hard for the money. You'd better treat you right.

Best wishes for everyone this weekend. Have a fun and safe holiday, and we'll see you Tuesday.

Video Game Hall of Fame: Civilization 2 Multiplayer Edition

You know what I’ve noticed about these first few inductees to the video game hall of fame? Well, for starters, they’re all sequels: Civ2, Diablo 2, Mega Man 2. They’re also all older games, which sort of makes sense. You don’t induct Albert Pujols today; you make sure that he can stand the test of time as one of the best in the game. Chances are he holds up, just as chances are that (insert your favorite new video game here) holds up. But that’s why you play the games…hey, how about that double-meaning?

Today brings us to Civilization 2. I was a big fan of the original Civilization game; I remember playing it at Learningsmith in the local mall and thinking, “This is the kind of game I want to play for the rest of my life.” So when Civ2 came out, I was ready to hop on board. The game stays very true to its predecessor, remaining a turn-based strategy game, but with a lot of added complexities that really enrich the experience. They incorporated a couple of new battle concepts (to prevent spearmen from beating tanks…too often), and changed up some of the wonders of the world to try to balance them a little better. Additionally, they improved diplomacy (slightly) and added an Internet- and network-capable multiplayer option.

But at its heart, the reasons that Civ2 was tremendous were the same reasons that the original game was so much fun: building up cities, waging war, managing research, and conquering the world (in whichever way you see fit). The opportunity to play against your friends is obviously a bonus, especially since the difficulty levels on the game seem to get very hard, very quickly. Level 1 is “Chieftain,” which is relatively easy. Level 2 is “Warlord,” where you’ll lose most battles. Anything beyond that and you really must just be a glutton for punishment.

The game runs easily in any Windows starting at 95, up to and including XP (I haven’t tried it in Vista, but I assume Vista cracks your disc in half and spits on your face). It runs in a window; add to this the fact that it’s turn-based, and you’ve got the perfect game for when you’re multi-tasking. You can run AIM and Gmail while you play, and even kick in an online TV show.

It’s not widely available for purchase anymore, but you should be able to find a copy on eBay or Amazon. Give me a holler if you need help and I’ll try to find it for you.

Movie Hall of Fame: Braveheart

Braveheart was one of the least-anticipated movies among those I'd consider hall of fame worthy. The reason, of course, is that when I was 15 years old, I didn't really care for "epic" movies. I was more into...well, I don't know what I was into, I didn't really watch a lot of movies back then. But for as long as I can remember appreciating movies, I've thought Braveheart was a tremendous film.

I've met more than a few people who feel the same way as I do, but I've also met a few people who don't care for Braveheart, and while I think they're as wrong as you can be, I sort of understand it. Some people (such as those who don't like Braveheart) are weak-minded ne'er-do-wells, the dregs of society who can't appreciate a true cinematic masterpiece when it's staring them in the face. That's their cross to bear; mine is that I am compelled to berate them at every turn.

Seriously, how could you not like Braveheart? It's got one of the best villains of all time in King Edward the Longshanks, a great protagonist in William Wallace, and a perfect sidekick, Hamish, the red-haired bruiser. It's got a ton of memorable and quotable lines, some of the best action scenes of this era, and for the ladies, a pair of love interests, both of whom are romanced by Wallace in a sappy enough way that only the truest "chick flick" fan would be disappointed.

One thing I've found most interesting about this movie is looking for some of the actors in other films, specifically Brendan Gleeson, who plays Hamish. He was in the past two Harry Potter films (as Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody) and Kingdom of Heaven (as the warmongering Reynald de Chatillon). Gleeson and Brian Cox (who plays William's uncle Argyle) were in Troy (among the siegers), and Cox was also in the first two Bourne movies, The Escapist, X-Men 2, and lent his voice to a pair of video games (Manhunt and Killzone). Cox was also in a bar/restaurant in Westminster, MD one time, and my brother's roommate talked to him. Angus Macfadyen, who played Robert the Bruce in Braveheart, appeared in Saw III & IV and episodes of Alias and ESPN's Tilt.

I don't know why it's interesting. I think maybe it's the whole "six degrees" thing. Plus, for whatever reason, I find some satisfaction out of recognizing voices and faces from movies/shows/video games. Familiarity is the key.

There was apparently a poorly-received Braveheart video game, but I never played it. You have to think that it's a franchise that someone will tap into again to make a new video game, and if they do it right, it could be really excellent.

But back to the movie, it's really one of the best movies of our time, and it will (and should) go down in movie history as one of the all-time greats. In that regard, it is unique among the current member movies of the House Housington Movie Hall of Fame. But don't worry, we'll get some other legitimate powerhouse movies to make Braveheart feel right at home.

Portal

I tried to think of a witty title for this post, but I was up late playing the aforementioned game, and I'm too tired now at work to be creative.

Portal is part of The Orange Box, a 5-game pack from the makers of Half-Life. In addition to Portal, it includes the previously released Half-Life 2, as well as two follow-up "episodes," and Team Fortress 2, a multiplayer shooter game that involves characters with different roles (medic, engineer, soldier, 6 others). While I'm excited about playing the rest of the games in the suite, Portal is the only game I'm going to discuss right now.

The basic concept of the game is one of solving puzzles. Think of a first-person version of The Adventures of Lolo or Solomon's Key. The equivalent of Solomon's wand in this game is the Portal gun, which you don't have fully together until level 7 or so. Using the portal gun, you can create two ends of a portal, one orange and one blue. The two portals link to each other, so you can transport yourself to many different places in the world, and you'll have to do just that to progress in this game.

The first 15-20 challenges are refined, constructed rooms, designed specifically to test the player in a training sort of context. There are still deadly foes, so your life is on the line, but the game auto-saves after every minor accomplishment, and it offers a manual save anywhere in the game, so you won't have to worry about "lives" like in old NES puzzle games. After the final "test" room, you begin the more intense and more Half-Life style portion of the game. You still use your portal gun to move forward in the game, but things are much more dangerous, and you'll have to dodge bullets and pistons to stay alive.

One of the more endearing aspects of this game is GLaDOS, the artificial intelligence that guides you through the test rooms, and becomes the main antagonist by the end of the game. It's a robotic female voice that offers advice, quips, and sometimes outright lies about your progress in the game (such as the one room that she states is impossible). She's very funny, as are a few other aspects of the game, such as the machine gun drones who whine when you disable them. GLaDOS also sings a song at the end of the game that really embodies the attitude of the game. If you're itching to hear/see it, YouTube has got a bunch of videos of the end credits (the song is called Still Alive). For those of you who own Rock Band for the 360, it's a free download to add the song to your game.

The one shortcoming of the game is that it's very short. I played for two hours one night, then beat it the following night after another hour. But even though the game doesn't last very long, it's got a decent amount of lasting appeal, as I could definitely see going through the game again in a month.

A link I've found when reading about the game is here. It's a blog with a lot of Portal-inspired media, like songs and sound clips. Some pretty neat stuff on there, worth checking out I think.

Music Hall of Fame: AEnima (Tool)

Note: I know the title isn't written correctly; I tried using the percent signs and such to make the combination A/E but it didn't work. You know what album I'm talking about, so stop complaining.

In high school and the summer to follow, this album was featured heavily when hanging out with "the group," which included Nitin, Sam, Sam, Chip, Laura, Scott, Joe Perez, Carmack, and a few other stragglers from time to time like Lu and Victor. Oh, Victor. Anyways, back to the album. I used to get pissed off when someone (read: Nitin or Perez) would put it on. I found the music abrasive and disagreeable, and a stark contrast from the bands I enjoyed most at that time in my life, like DMB, Toad the Wet Sprocket, and Counting Crows.

I don't know exactly when it was, though if I were to guess, I'd say sometime during my freshman year of college, but I quietly started to enjoy the album. I think I warmed up to it a little bit before then, when we all went to North Carolina for our senior spring break trip. Then, a few trips to visit Nitin at UMD, and I was on the path to Toolville...I know it's not a real place, it's a metaphor, dick.

Anyways, eventually I acquired a Tool CD from Scott. He had made his own "Best of Tool" CD, but then changed his mind about what he wanted to put on the album, rendering the original obsolete. The winner, of course, was me.

Among my favorite songs from this album are H, Stinkfist, Eulogy, and the title track, but the first song I truly embraced was Forty-Six & 2. It's more along the lines of a standard song rather than the industrial/electronic sound that surrounds a lot of their other music. It still hits as hard as any of them, but I think I found it easier to enjoy Forty-Six & 2 earlier because it wasn't all that different from traditional music. The guitar hook is tremendous, one of my favorites from the 90s.

But what really defines this album is the tracks that aren't truly "songs" by the standard definition. Message to Harry Manback is...well, you've really just got to hear it. Also, if you're familiar with Ana Nuckols, you've really got to imagine her saying the stuff from that track, it's a riot. Die Eier von Satan is perhaps the most memorable track on the whole album, drawing its lyrics from a baking recipe, but reciting it in German and making it sound like a political rally...think Nazis.

"Die hard" Tool fans will say Undertow should be the hall of fame inductee, and they're not wrong. Undertow is a tremendous album, and I'd venture to say it may even have more of a broad appeal. But I don't have any stories about Undertow. I've got plenty about this one, so this is the one that makes it...first. Stay tuned, maybe Undertow gets the nod down the road.