One question for anyone else here: After I hit and hold the 'get' key to grab something, how do I throw it?  I can pull bodies really slowly, but I can't pick up a cup and launch it, which seems odd.  I can use a discus throwers motion (side release, momentum + inertia carries the object forward), but no real 'oomph' in throwing things.

You pretty much figured out the only way for this. I was hoping for a throw similiar to Thief3, so you could use it as a distraction.

Went in this afternoon to the GS where I pre-paid for my CE edition. Unfortunately the ASSistant Manager, whom I dislike, was there. He had pulled the regular editions (which my friend bought), but told me that it would take an hour for him to go through the 3-4 boxes he had left. 1 HOUR for 3-4 small boxes...

Also, and he has done this to me before, he basically ignored me after I asked for Oblivion (and before my friend paid for his) and started helping a customer who had come in after us, even though we were waiting. I really can't stand him. He somes off as rude to me and seems very anti-social.

As soon as all my pre-orders are done (most are store credit, which I don't know if you can transfer) I am going to stop going there and I'm seriously thinking about writing to the district manager. I never had a problem there when the old store manager was there.

Seriously - write to the DM.  Thats a load of crap.

Yeah, I decided tonight that I am going to. I went back and found out that they didn't have any CE's! Apparently, none of the other GS's nearby got any either (except for the 360 version, bah..)It would have taken him 5 minutes to check the boxes and tell me that so I didn't have to make a 2nd trip for nothing. One other reason I was holding back was that I like most of the people in the store and didn't want to get "the store" in trouble. I found out that wasn't the case and that other customers have complained. I figured it's better to try to get him out before he ruins the stores whole reputation.

On a side note, the manager was nice enough that I got a regular edition to play and can return it when the CE's come in, so I'm not SOL! Yay!
We already tried my friends copy at work on a PIV 3.6Ghz, 2GB, 7900GTX 512MB system. Maxed out everything and it ran smooth.

Hey Punisher.  Thanks for the questions:

1.  Yes.  To get advice on how to better pose her, lighting, etc.   The standard stuff.   I'd post it on a photography forum, but I know you guys much better than anyone on some strange forum and thus I somehow feel more comfortable posting it here (and thought the same about OO before the trolls showed up).

2.  sexy/sultry

3.  It's a recent hobby for me.   My whole gallery that includes other shots are at www.pbase.com/msduncan

4.  Yes.  The colors were very reddish/warm.   I did some color correction to get it right.  Other than that, none.

5.  Yeah... gotten several responses that mention the background 'clutter'.   Will work on fixing that with maybe a backdrop or something.

6.  The shadows under the arms were major problems.   Especially making her breasts appear strange for some reason.  I didn't see it until after I downloaded the pictures to the computer.

7.  Yeah.  She hated that part.   I think it was the shadows or something.   Her breasts don't look like that in person.   I also didn't notice this until post-editing.

8.  So don't half-do the tattoo.  Hide it or completely show it.   Gotcha.  Probably acts as a distraction if it's only partly shown because people try to make out what it is....

9.  That's the most common remark thus far.   Will be corrected in the next shoot.   Thanks!

10.  Great idea!

Thanks for the questions/feedback.   Very very good.   Very helpful.

1) OK, just wasn't sure if you were focusing on one thing or not. It might be beneficial to purchase an inexpensive starter light kit.

2) OK, that seems to have been done.

3) Looked at the gallery. I like the B&W stairs and the colorized stairs. How is the helicopter a WIP? Do you honestly think they are going to stay hovering there while you snap pictuyres?

4) hmmm, I was specifically thinking about the blur, it looks like a bad photoshop job. That is mostly what bothered me about the background, not the clutter. Might be a focus issue on the camera. Speaking of which, what kind do you use?

5) See 4 above

6) yeah the left arm doesn't look evenly lit. One of the reasons I mentioned a light kit.

7) I didn't think they looked like that when she wasn't leaning on them. It may have been shadow, but it looked like they were folded in on themselves.

Yeah, half-way is distracting. Maybe cover it with makeup or PS it out if it's half-way. Can't tell how far down it goes, so I don't know if you should be showing the whole thing or not.  :lol:

9) Besides different hair styles, you could also try wigs...Guess it depends on how far you want to go with this....

I am a very basic amatuer photographer/videographer. Pure hobby and just begining and I wouldn't know a f-stop from a bus stop...

Went in this afternoon to the GS where I pre-paid for my CE edition. Unfortunately the ASSistant Manager, whom I dislike, was there. He had pulled the regular editions (which my friend bought), but told me that it would take an hour for him to go through the 3-4 boxes he had left. 1 HOUR for 3-4 small boxes...

Also, and he has done this to me before, he basically ignored me after I asked for Oblivion (and before my friend paid for his) and started helping a customer who had come in after us, even though we were waiting. I really can't stand him. He somes off as rude to me and seems very anti-social.

As soon as all my pre-orders are done (most are store credit, which I don't know if you can transfer) I am going to stop going there and I'm seriously thinking about writing to the district manager. I never had a problem there when the old store manager was there.

I am curious about some things...

1) What is the intent on posting this? To get better at picture taking? lighting? posing? etc... Serious question.

2) What were you trying to accomplish with the pictur itself? was it supposed to be sexy, cute, etc... If we know your intent, we can make sure that we are commenting on the correct thing.

3) Do you plan on making photography a job or hobby? Do you plan on different subject matter or stay specifically with people in general or your wife(?) specifically?

4) Did the picture include postwork? If so, what?

5) The background looks "wierd".

6) Lighting seems good except on her left arm.

7) The pose makes her chest area look unnatural and "folded over"

Tatoo should eithe rbe hidden or (if appropriate) shown.

9) Hair style should expose more of her face, but the half hidden eye does look interesting.

10) If you plan on doing this more often, you should post small series of pictures to help illustrate your strengths and weaknesses. Different lighting, poses, etc...

No, you have to download it separately...

I also wonder if it would be possible to have a construction set that works without having the game installed. This way people who don't have the game can still make mods.

I love when the sales lumps insist that they are correct...."The street date is tommorrow", "no stores have it today", "it is not released yet" etc....

[FAILURE!]

Here I go!

I'm leaving now for lunch (it's 11:40am EST) and heading over to Gamestop in the mall to pick up my copy!  It better be there because I want to spend the afternoon at work reading the manual!!!!

I will let you know if I was successful.

 

Good luck!

FAILURE! :evil:

It looks like tomorrow for me.  Darn.  Central New Jersey Gamestop - will have it tomorrow.

At least that gives me another night to fine tune my character!  

I can confirm that multiple North Jersey stores (BB, GS, etc... )are the same. I am still gonna try a couple more today to see, but it looks like reports of the big stores getting their shipments last week were either incorrect or did not apply to most stores.....

I got "the call" tonight by that automated "Aris" at Gamestop Headquaters that said I could pick up my copy of Elder Scrolls IV: Obivion CE, Monday Afternoon!  The manager already told me earlier in the week that they would be selling the game on Monday, but this confirmed it.

     

I hate you.... MY GS still says Tuesday at the earliest...

I think there is some new rpg type game due out this week. I might look into more info on it and get it for the PC...

Wait until Oblivion is out, both places will be dead and have bandwidth to spare..

My review will be up today probably and I had this exact issue. Unfortunately, I had to restart the mission. It looks like a bug...

For those interested, there are pics of the paint quest I mentioned on pg 243 of the strategy guide. They don't, however, have quite the impact as seeing them in person.

Does anyone know what the official, don't get fined, street date is? There seems to be some confusion of wether the stores can even sell the game on the 20th.

I'm glad I know now that pirate dogs rank above ninja dogs on the hierarchy of badass killers.  Where does Chuck Norris fit in then?

I am sorry, but Ninja Dogs > Pirate Dogs

Is it Monday yet?

I wish....but on that note....lots of EB's and Gamestops will have the game for sale on Monday Afternoon/Evening it looks like.

Unfortunately, not mine....

There are rumors going around now that Gamestop.com has started shipping the game today. So, if you ordered from them, expect it on Monday.

"Look at all these rumors, I can't take it no more...."
Probably showing my age...

Also, the highwaymen took me by surprise. Ironically, I was accosted right after stealing a newswomens horse. I got off to fight him, then "my" horse left.

Ok what was that last effect when they fired the bow and it seemed to explode on contact... was it a perk of high marksmanship?

No, the bow is enchanted with an area effect lighting spell (maybe some other stuff too).  Arrows inherit whatever enchantment or poison is on the bow.  Area-effect damage spells send enemies flying.

hmmm...I don't remember being able to poison the bow, only the arrows(and only individually, which sucked..) ....Was I doing something wrong?

Where did you get the coupon?

I just did a GS search on the guide. It is now listed as shipping on the 20th and no store in a 200 mile radius has it...

Oh and I just got a call from my local Gamestop, confirming that I can come pick up Oblivion at 6PM on Monday! They say they had an overwhelming amount of preorders and they were going to be doing an "early release" like they do with Madden, GTA etc....

Well, I haven't gotten that phone call yet. That ain't good.

I want my Oblivion!

Me neither, and my GS told me they weren't getting any guides until Friday or next week, not even pre-orders.

Someone with the guide....


1) Where did you get it?
2) Can you look and see if that painting quest is mentioned?

If anyone sees me online: punisherxbox360

2 things...

1) it "could" just be a store room for a store...
2) It looks like it's mixed with books and movies, so there may not be as many games as you think...

Looks like Hetz got the game....


http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7555305225326282999&q=oblivion

 :twisted:

Gamestop has now changed the date...damn....

Is there a way to tell if a game has Starforce from the box?

I did a little looking and found a few games installed on my PC also has Starforce.  Luckily nothing has gotten screwed up, but it still makes me feel wary (dirty?) and I don't want to support a company like that.

No, which is one of the problems......

Also, I just realized something.....

CP is there to prevent casual copying, yet stores won't let you return opened software in case you copied it.... Besides the obvious fact that CP games are pirated anyway, it seems that the stores don't think that CP does any good as well. Companies would probably save more money, by not putting hardcore CP in, then by worrying about piracy.

Sorry, can't tell you the local store for fear of corporate drones descending on them.

Well, I doubt they could get in trouble for saying a date, only if they actually sold it before they were supposed to.

As a new reviewer in general, I just wanted to mention some things, that I have assumed over the years about most reviews.

1) First and foremost, any review is just the opinion of the reviewer. There is not some magical course you can take that will give you a 100% accurate review that fits everyone's tastes. Some people like game A, some hate it. A reviewer is just another person.
2) If you keep track of reviewers, after a while you can get a feel for what types of games they like and how it compares to your feelings. You can then adjust the reviews accordingly.
3) If a reviewer has a liking for a particular genre, they are more likely to give a game in that genre more credit. (not nesescarily more then it deserves though). If they like that particular series, it will probably increase more. The opposite is also true. There are exceptions to everything though.
4) No reviewer can tell you what you will like. Use reviews as a guide.
5) I am willing to bet that the majority of reviewers do so without actually finishing a game (unless it is one of those 6-8 hour games). There is usually too much of a time constraint and some games take so long to finish, that it is not practical. That isn't to say that they don't play a lot of hours, but it could answer descrepancies when games go up and down or crash in quality in the full end game and reviewers don't mention it.

all of the above is my opinion and I may be completely wrong. I do know that my preview (and any future pre/reviews) are purely my opinion on what I saw in a game. I will also do my best to get as far as possible in a game as well, under the time constraints. As for my preview of Oblivion:
1) I am a fan of the series, but wouldn't consider myself a fanboy. I am a fanboy of games in general though.
2) I never finished any of the Elder Scrolls games. They were too big for me, but I did have fun playing them. (And I did reinstall MW about a month or so ago and so far. I'm further along then I ever remember being.)
3) No game is perfect. For me the end question is, "Is the game fun overall?" If it is, then I will usually look past any "defects". For some, those same defects may be game killers. For some defects, they may kill the game for me, but others love it.

While I agree that CP sucks, just not purchasing games that have SF (or ny protection) does not really send a message at all. It is not really a "missed sale" because the publishers have no way of knowing that you DIDN'T purchase something, nor why you didn't. The same way that there is no way of KNOWING exactly how much piracy affects sales either.

You would have to make sure that everyone not buying it for CP reasons, also sent letters/emails to the all the companies involved and why. But if the the title did well anyway, this probably wouldn't make much of a difference as to wether or not they put CP in later games or not.

What are the odds of it being released early?  Would Bethesda surprise us like that?  What are your thoughts?  Maybe we can bribe some people.....

I asked Bethesda on this and was told flatly that there will be nothing shipping before the 20th.  Piracy is a while different animal...

hmm, if they don't ship until the 20th, that means that a lot of people won't get it until the 22nd at the earliest then. I don't think every store gets drop shipments, so it would be:
20th ship overnight to EB warehouse (for example).
Receive on 21st, hope the workers aren't having a bad day
Ship from warehouse overnight arrive on the 22nd.

Does that sound right?

My comapny primarily sells WD. We only get other brands if the customer specifically requests it. We haven't noticed any unusual amount of problems with them. I currently have 7 300GB WD drives in one of my PC's and haven't had any problems yet.

I should be picking up my pre-order after work (whenever that is), I just don't know when I'll be able to play it.
One of my favorite clients had their server crash this morning and I'm trying to get that back up, then I have to go on a 2 hour drive tommorrow morning at 7 for some network troubleshooting, then I'm going away for the weekend.
I might just end up bring the 360 with me on the weekend though..

Although they never said it, I actually don't think they wanted us to know this info because it's easier to get a reservation on something if you say "oh yeah, we should have it day one" (notice how I didn't promise anything) instead of saying "it looks like the game you are really excited about has been deemed minor so we shipped it to arrive about a week after release, but I doubt our competitor will have it by then anyway."  In the age of the internet, you would just buy it online if you knew it wasn't going to be in stores for a few days.

And actually, due to the lack of reliable info, a lot of people I know have stopped buying at the stores and ordering online. Many places have cheap or free overnight now and some people have been getting titles before the street date. This is even more true with PC titles, which all my nearby EB/GS stores have slowly shrunk down. The most they have now is about 2 and 1/2 racks and They don't always get everything quickly. Hell, the Walmart near me has gotten some things quicker. (Plus they are more likely to break street date. )

link on that page is dead.

I am very disappointed.....A thread started by Hetz AND a reply by Hetz and no mention of Oblivion...Are you feeling ok?

it was directed by Kurt Wimmer, of Equilibrium

I didn't realize that, but it explains why it "looks" like Equilibrium, which I liked. We are going to see it this weekend probably.

You're supposed to burn the flag when it needs to be trashed (seriously).  Not in a "DEATH TO THE INFIDELS!!" manner, of course

Or give it to your local veterans group - they'll take care of it for you.

Ironically, my local VFW burnt down about 2 months ago.... Seriously.

the "read more" link appears to be broken..

Well, by the time I actually care about playing Oblivion then I might have rebuilt my system so it can run the game. I'm looking at another two years maybe.

And no, I won't be reviewing it for this site.

If we could find a way to review a Falcon Mach V and the game at the same time, that would kill 2 birds with one stone.