Retro Review - Deus Ex: Invisible War

The New Deus Ex: Human Revolution is out and I'm going to need some solid time to sit down and enjoy this game.  I enjoyed and played the crap out of the original Deus Ex, but was dissuaded from playing the second in the series because I heard it wasn't very good.  Years later I Youtube'd the gameplay which didn't look too bad and bought it off of STEAM for like 6 bucks and change.    

Invisible War came out in 2003.  The graphics are ... not terrible for the time.  Unfortunately, people of the future can't turn their heads or move their eyes so they have to turn their entire bodies to look at something...it's really quite funny when you notice it.  There really is only 2 more things to complain about for this game;  The zone boundaries are short and the loading times between them are long.  You have to cross many boundaries to accomplish certain objectives and then go all the way back to turn them in.  The levels are cluttered and confusing.  The game crashes enough to be a little distracting and can compromise the integrity of a saved game so that you literally lose all your progress. 

What did I like more about Deus Ex?  Space.  Invisible war is constantly crowded and cramped.  I miss the open spaces.  Hanging around Hong Kong at the top of a building while Blade Runneresk music plays on the ambient background.  I miss the skill point system that you could use to customize you character to unique specifications.

What was good about Invisible war?  So many things, actually:

The dialogue was engaged and intellectually stimulating.   The story was intricate and linked back to characters from the first.  (The irony of being told one of the few truths by a character who's voice actor was the same as Walton Simons - 2IC Villain from the first - did not escape my attention).  The Biomods didn't make you a superman...you still had to fight smart.  Simplification of resources with multi-tools and 'Ammo' as a generic commodity.  The voice acting was generally better than the first *.    The intentional music was way better in IW.  The ambient music was less in your face with Invisible War but I do miss some points from the original score (Blade Runner ambience).   The combat system encourages a player to fight smart **.   The newer universal ammo system means that you can use whatever weapon you like.  The weapons have an 'Alt Fire' ability that makes them even more fun than before.  There are even 'unique weapons' hanging around here and there.  Different custom mods to weapons can be used to appeal to different play styles.

The Deus Ex series is an innovation of both story and gameplay.  How the game ends is based on what you as the main protagonist chooses to do.  You start off not knowing what is going on and end the game shaping the future.  Deus Ex: The Invisible War isn't bad.  This is a 2003 game I would give a 8.5/10  

Definately worth the $6 and change!

*Laura Bailey was amazing (Though I played Fallout New Vegas before this so it was odd running through a game with a character sounding like Lieutenant Boyd).   Not to say that most of the voice actors weren't top notch in the first but a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Maxence Tillitette never had a voice acting part before or after the original Deus Ex. He had one good voice and the other sounded like he just woke up after a drunk and someone thrust a script in front of him and said 'Read This'. 

**You are as 'bullet proof' at the end of the game as you were at the start. That means that you have to play smart. During one battle where I was surrounded by Templars (purity extremists) in a hanger with a massive military bot. I ran and hit cloaking (both visual and IR) and threw a scrambler grenade at the bot before ducking under cover. Their formerly loyal bot wiped out the Templars and I 'EMP droned' the milbot from my hiding place. In the first Deus Ex..you didn't need to play that smart. You could power up your Ballistic Armor, your Ballistic protection implants, Aggressive Defense and Rambo the room...but really?  Doing that just isn't as fun.

The Step Mother-in-law from hell

On some level of hell must go a sect of people with whom nothing is ever really good enough for.  Their level of tolerance is as thin as a layer of saran wrap, yet as flexible as a sheet of glass.  There is a reason why campy Sci-Fi puts a Nazi uniform on individuals with 'Upper English'  accents.      

Recently there is what was (supposed to be) a private email which was written by Carolyn, the woman pictured below, to her future Step-daughter-in-law.  The letter went viral.  The letter, completely oblivious to its own delivery of rudeness, chastises the D I L for being rude in the most minor of social infractions (according to Carolyn's high standards for other people).  

Carolyn: The Step MIL from HELL

The Letter in question 

  There has been a lot of discussion online about this one.  Let's  break it down, shall we?

It is high time someone explained to you about good manners. Yours are obvious by their absence and I feel sorry for you.
Those are some strong words of disappointment.  Heidi must have shown up picking her nose and smashing beer cans against her forehead while belching in the faces of the other guests.  Well lets read WHAT Carolyn had a problem with (oh man...it must be pretty bad)


When you are a guest in another’s house, you do not declare what you will and will not eat – unless you are positively allergic to something.
 Okay.  So she didn't eat it, and threw it at the maid and stomped around the table in a chant protesting - no?  There was just food that she didn't want to eat.  Okay.  What else did you have a problem with, Carolyn?


When a guest in another’s house, you do not lie in bed until late morning in households that rise early – you fall in line with house norms.
So she slept in. Maybe a bugle would be in order. You should get her to polish her shoes and press her dress and stand at attention in the drive-way at dawn while you inspect her before getting her to run 10 miles with a 75 lb pack.


You do not remark that you do not have enough food
Maybe she didn't know there was to be 7 more courses finishing off with an ample serving of quiet British contempt.


You do not start before everyone else.
 Well it seems to me that SOMEONE is going to start eating first.  Given that the person in question is a Diabetic, and that managing her blood sugar level is a question of life or a horrible death or loss of bodily functions, I'd say 'Give her a fucking pass'.


You do not take additional helpings without being invited to by your host.
(oh...this is too funny) Please Sir! Can I have some more?


I am being kept awake – or woken early – by Bomber who is so profoundly upset by your behaviour on your recent visit that he is depressed and anxious.
(Bomber is the dog) YES!  The dog was very upset that she used the dessert fork for the main course.  The DOG is traumatized that SHE SLEPT IN.  The DOG needs to see a psychiatrist because Heidi took another helping of DINNER!!!   OOOOOOO Kay!

Or are you saying that Heidi 'Made you feel' so upset that the dog was reflecting your own emotional distress?  Interesting.  Carolyn; no one can 'Make you feel' anything.   You clearly over-reacted and drove your own emotions into a tizzy. 


Unfortunately for Freddie, he has fallen in love with you and Freddie being Freddie, I gather it is not easy to reason with him or yet encourage him to consider how he might be able to help you.  
It may just be possible to get through to you though. I do hope so. Your behaviour on your visit to Devon during April was staggering in its uncouthness and lack of grace.  
 I Think Carolyn has delusions of being the Queen.  What kind of flowers do you grow, exactly?

You should never ever insult the family you are about to join at any time and most definitely not in public. I gather you passed this off as a joke but the reaction in the pub was one of shock, not laughter.
Carolyn; The thing about an insult is that it's not exactly true.  Judging from what you said, I very much doubt Heidi would have to resort to fiction to retrieve something unflattering about the family.   


I have no idea whether you wrote to thank Georgia for the weekend but you should have hand-written a card to her.
Yes...and have that dispatched on the quickest horse in the stables!


You should have hand-written a card to me. You have never written to thank me when you have stayed at Houndspool.
Dear Carolyn, I found your quiet contempt most endearing.  It was only a couple of days with you but it really seemed like years.  Thanks for having me over.   I really want to do that again soon.

 
Georgia has quite the most exquisite manners of anyone I have ever come across. You would do well to follow her example.
Georgia will be heading to the sanitarium soon.  Please write her a 'get well' card.  BTW.  She finally farted and took out half of  Devon.


Unfortunately, this was not the first example of bad manners I have experienced from you. If you want to be accepted by the wider Bourne family I suggest you take some guidance from experts with utmost haste.  
Yes...I am a woman and I want me and my offspring to have the last name of WIDER-BOURNE.  I want a life so critical and un-fun that I can, in turn, be critical of other people as is outlined in the `broomstick up the ass` manifesto.   


You regularly draw attention to yourself. Perhaps you should ask yourself why.
It is tragic that you have diabetes. However, you aren’t the only young person in the world who is a diabetic.  
Yeah!  Get over it!  Sheesh...you`d think it was some kind of life threatening disease or something! 


I know quite a few young people who have this condition, one of whom is getting married in June. I have never heard her discuss her condition.
Probably because she doesn`t trust you...go figure


She quietly gets on with it. She doesn’t like being diabetic. Who would? You do not need to regale everyone with the details of your condition or use it as an excuse to draw attention to yourself. It is vulgar.
Oh for God Sake!  Just shut up and die in a very British way.  No one has to know that you have a disease (and by knowing could potentially save your life).  It`s more important to not say anything and, at least not call attention to yourself.  

There are plenty of finishing schools around. You would be an ideal candidate for the Ladette to Lady television series. Please, for your own good, for Freddie’s sake and for your future involvement with the Bourne family, do something as soon as possible.
Yes...RUN!!!

As a diabetic of long standing you must be acutely aware of the need to prepare yourself for extraordinary eventualities, the walk to Mothecombe beach being an example. You are experienced enough to have prepared yourself appropriately.
Yes!  You can only eat when we tell you it`s okay to eat so for GOD`s SAKE...if you know we are going to the beach, digest your food slower!

No one gets married in a castle unless they own it. It is brash, celebrity style behaviour.
Fun!? What is this word...`Fun`? 
 

I understand your parents are unable to contribute very much towards the cost of your wedding. (There is nothing wrong with that except that convention is such that one might presume they would have saved over the years for their daughters’ marriages.)  
Her dad ran an agency supplying nurses to care homes...the business recently went under.   Thanks for rubbing that in.   How polite of you to mention it.



If this is the case, it would be most ladylike and gracious to lower your sights and have a modest wedding as befits both your incomes. 
Carolyn...you grow flowers.  You are not 'The Queen'.  You are the Queen of Spades though. 



One could be accused of thinking that Heidi Withers must be patting herself on the back for having caught a most eligible young man. I pity Freddie.
He repairs bikes and she`s a PA.  Lets look at the couple:

Freddie...you are one lucky Son of a bitch (or is that `Step` son)

In Conclusion;  Carolyn...you need to have a long, hard talk with Bomber.   I think he will tell you that your expectations are too linear in an ever evolving world of cultural tolerances.   Your Broom-up-ass viewpoint limits the potential of your own human experience.

As well...stop snorting your damn flowers  (Ruff!!)

A tale of two Noids (a pair o' noids)

I take joy in punishing the paranoid if they have proven themselves to be jerks.   How do you punish the paranoid...well...it's actually kind of hard not to.  I'm not saying that one shouldn't protect certain information.  It is when the desire to protect oneself surpasses the realistic expectations of a threat.  The problem is that the term 'Realistic' depends on the individual's perception of reality. 

Stupid by the pairs :   When two people get together in a couple, they communicate about their opinions on subjects.  Generally the couple reaches a consensus about what 'their' opinion is.  This is dangerous ground.  When the members of a couple are mutually askew in the same way...they can re-enforce a false belief .  This can manifest itself dysfunctionally in several ways.  Arrogance and Paranoia are two of those manifestations.  In some ways, a couple that isolates itself from having deep and respectful interaction with others is almost like an individual that isolates himself and experiences a certain degree of dementia.

The dummies in question?  :  Just a couple of small minds who now live in a small town.  Their relationship compounded their ignorance and a friend I loved drowned in a sea of illusion.

ASSHOLES OF HISTORY

Joseph R "Douchebag" McCarthy

A man who could have single handedly started World War 3.  This American politician found Communists in his fruitloops.  He was just the right sort of paranoid that the US would have embraced in the '50s in the aftermath of WW2 with the fear of Stalinism (that they unilaterally called Communism because Americans don't know the difference between that and essentially Fascism under a guise of 'ultra- democracy').  This R-Tard came along and started his Witch-Hunt armed with  pointed fingers and power.  Communism was viewed as a disease that must be purged at every turn lest it spread like some kind of Zombie infestation.  This irrational view of communism created a rift between the West and the (then) Soviet Union and China.  The resulting 'Cold War' would last another 39 fucking years. 

Why?

Because Stalin was an idiot.  Sure.  Stalin should have been shot in the face in his crib with a hollow point 7.62...at least...but Stalinism is not Communism.  DUH!  You get fear mongerers like this fool running around saying 'THERE'S A COMMUNIST! QUICK...THROW IT IN THE FIRE!'. 

This is what happens when you don't have an educated public. 

You have people running around being afraid of what idiots like this TELL them to be afraid of.

So lets have a look at "Tailgunner Joe's" Resume, Shall we?

• Chose US marines to further his future political career.  ...and bring integrity to the unit by all of his past and future dealings...NOT!!!
• Education allowed him 2nd Lieuie...he later said he started as a 'Buck Private' so as to 'look better'.  When the lies get this casual...it's time to wonder how deep the rabbit hole goes.
• flew 12 combat missions as a gunner / observer, Lying later saying he flew 32 in order to get the Distinguished flying cross which he later received.   Yeah...12...give or take 20.
• Forged and publicized his own 'Military commendation' with the "signatures" of  his commanding officer and Admiral Nimitz, abusing his position of 'Intelligence Officer'.  He was just saving the Admiral some time...and command responsibility.  Go Marines! 
• A "War Wound" involving AA and plane crashes was actually received aboard ship in a ceremony for sailors who crossed the equator for the first time.  Maybe he tripped on the AA gun and smacked his head on a plane that was parked there.
• In Senate campaign, McCarthy attacked La Follette for not enlisting.  La Follette would have been 46 at the time of Pearl Harbour.  He also accused La Follette of profiting from the country being in the war...while 'he' and his fellow 'Americans' were off fighting it.   (Turns out the McCarthy was also profitting to an equal extent in the same way).  You see McCarthy subscribed to the teachings of the Greek philosopher 'Hypocrites'. 
• Charged that the US Army was engaged in a coverup of judicial misconduct ... without anything to back it up.  God...well he must have been a fucking Scorpio.
• Made "Worst Senator of all time" list for the time.  I would have thought his quick temper and penchant for irrational accusation would have endeared him to his fellow politicians.
• Gave himself the nickname "Tailgunner Joe" for his military service.  Which, by itself, has a double-entendre of epic proportions.  (Considering all the 'Tails' he has 'Gunned').
• Died at the age of 48 due to Accute Hepatitis aggravated by rampant Alcoholism.  He must always have been seeing Communists in pairs.
• Accused both a US war hero and Harry S. Truman of being Communist sympathizers.   "Yes Mr. President...or should I say DA, COMRADE!!!"
• McCarthyism today is a term used in the context of baseless defamation and mudslinging.  As an alcoholic liar, McCarthy believed he could fool all the people all the time.  Now All the people will only believe him to be a fool for all time.
• Assumed the role of  a crusader against what he convinced the public to be a clear and present threat (in order to gain political power).  He nurtured fear of Communism along with his commitment to root it out.  The fear lasted well after McCarthy and caused the US to make some unfortunate decisions like Vietnam.  Way to put the nation first...for the firing squad.
• Won his first campaign with serious backing of a 'union' on the basis he would be 'Left Friendly'.  That was the kind of advice that if it were a cheque would be written in crayon with a clown's face on it.

The problem with McCarthy is that people were afraid of the 'Spread' of Communism and not willing to sit down and actually think about what exactly they were afraid of.  This fear gave way to a need that an opportunistic fear mongerer like McCarthy could exploit.  Communism doesn't work.  It fails to address the natural human need to acquire the best shit.  Stalinism was the perversion of the Communist ideals to terrorize and control the people in a Totalitarian system.  Stalinism is what the US was actually afraid of and was the closest thing to the Nazi 'ultra-fascism' to ever exist; before, during and since.  So here's the funny part;  Fascism is Right Wing!!!

If the 'Tail Gunner' ran out of 'Tails' to 'Gun' on the left, he could have started calling Republicans Nazis...well not all of them...just the ones that exploit the fear of the masses to serve their own purp -

uh "Never Mind".   Yeah I'll bet, Hypocrites.

More LowLights from the Stanley Cup Playoffs

More photos of the 2011 Stanley Cup Riot:

Once again...congratulations go out to the parents;  They're the really big losers of the Stanley Cup playoffs.  Teach your kids to take pride in themselves...not in a fucking sports team.

Stanley Cup Riots in Vancouver...AGAIN!

As it turns out, the big losers of the Stanley Cup finals weren't the Canucks who actually were rather good about the whole thing.  Sure they lost...but in many ways they won as well.  One game short of the Stanley Cup?  Fuckin' A (Well maybe an A- but still pretty good).   To be honest?   They'll be back and they will learn from what they did right and what they did wrong (or at least I hope so).   Boston deserved the win...they out scored the Canucks 3-1 in 7 games.

The big loser were the parents of the Vancouver teens and 20 somethings who pursued the 'group-think'.   Thousands of young people Rioting in the streets of downtown Vancouver.  Well that's what you get for mating with thugs; Thick, stupid children who have no respect for anything.  Congrats to all you parents who had a kid out there breaking things.  This is for you.


We really showed Boston and the rest of the world how gracious we can be even in defeat (and if you don't get it, ask a friend).  Hopefully each and every one of the people identified by the copious amount of evidence will be presented with a hefty fine for being a complete idiot.  Either that or have a group show up at their place and break their stuff (actually...I kind of like that idea).


Man...I saw the `group-think` going toward downtown.  My wife had the car so I was taking the skytrain into Burnaby going West.  The crowd going toward the stadium was ready to fight.  I don`t think even cheering a victory would have satisfied them.  There was a negative vibe...they were out to tear shit up.   The pictures are courtesy of the Winnipeg Sun http://www.winnipegsun.com/photos

More to follow

Duke Nukem Forever - One more thing

If you are old enough to be a fan of the original Star Trek...do you remember how badly the first movie sucked?

10 years after the series ended and it arrived so badly short of expectation that everyone shook their heads and sighed.  Was it the movie company (Paramount?) resting their heads on the original appeal of the series...maybe.  The series came together as a combination of chemistry between production, writing and acting.  A movie 10 years after, with mostly different staff,  isn't going to hit the ground running.  It's very difficult to re-create the soul of something.   As far as I'm concerned... you can't.  Star Trek died when its production was cancelled back in '68.  So let`s take this back to the Duke.

Duke didn't Fail...it just tried to be too much and spread itself too thin.  I want sales of this game to rocket.  We got the Duke Nukem The Motion Picture TF out  of the way;  I want to see Duke Nukem's 'Wrath of Khan'.

Seriously...Duke IS Ranxerox for Americans.  As Brutality goes, Ranxerox got him beat though.

KHAN!!!