The more MMO's I play, the less quest text I read. With LOTRO, there's so much quest text, I never read it. I click my way through, then read the top sentence or two in my quest journal, which they nicely reduced to "kill these things at this location, which is that direction". Prefect for the 'web trained' mind that I have.
Sounds pretty much like a slightly more developed version of the badge system in Co(H/V) (Also seen in a few other MMO's as well, I believe), so I'd hardly call it unique.
Actually, I would sum up LOTRO as "CoH crossed with WoW with a LOTR theme". There's a lot of things I see in LOTRO that I first experienced in CoH (though, it might have shown up in other games before CoH.)
There's the 'forward attack' or (as I call it) 'assist' feature. You can click a group member and attack what they're attacking without switching targets.
The traits remind me more about enhancements from CoH, than WoW's talents. It's something you can 'plug in' and upgrade later on or switch around all you want. Only, you never loose a virtue if you replace it, like in CoH. Though, there's not much reason to usually go back to one (that I've experienced so far).
The Titles remind me of the badges in CoH. By discovering a new area or killing x amount of y, you can get a title to display over you head. After finishing quests for the local hobbit pub keeps, I got "Shire Brewmaster" as a title. It does nothing but show as part of my name. Likewise, kill enough wolves or deliver enough mail and you can get "Wolf Bane" or "Master Postman" or some such title. Often, there's a 2nd tier quest (or if it's a long quest) that will end with a trait reward that can be plugged into your character for some sort of bonus, like more health, power, resists, etc.
Swift Travel - Reminds me of Trams in CoH. More or less instant travel to a location. Though, only far apart locations get these. Inter-zone horse travel is still pretty slow and expensive.
The default UI and combat system reminds me a lot of WoW... without the ability to customize. Likewise, the quest system reminds me a lot of WoW as well, though, you quest in one MMO, you've quested in them all (kill w things, deliver x item, defeat y boss, talk to z person).
Inner-zone travel reminds me of DAOC.
Graphics reminds me of EQ2... only better.
Quest stories remind me... of nothing else. Some of the 'epic' quest lines are nicely done to fit in with the book.
I'd hardly call it unique.
It's systems are not unique, but their combination is.
All in all, I really enjoy LOTRO. I can level a character again (after hitting level 70 in WoW, there wasn't much for me to do besides "LFG ", which could take hours. Even when in a good raid guild). I almost dropped LOTRO. The running around, distance/travel reminded me too much of DAOC and the painful 10 min horse rides. While not as bad as DAOC (due to swift travel), the running around can be hard on some people. I stuck with it, and I'm glad I did. Though, I pre-ordered and also only pay $10/month, which is another really big selling point for me.
"Intel CEO promises to deliver magical new uber processor within five years".
Great now, I have to wait five years before I buy my next computer because nothing else will compare unless it's got 80 cores. My duel core looks soooo small now. =(
Starcraft sold a ton of copies, but it is now a moneysink. It is free to play on Battle.Net and not many new copies are being sold. They are continuously losing money from a game created many many years ago....The $15/month from a MMO cannot be understated.
From the article (one of more interesting parts, I think)...
Given the popularity of "WoW," do you have any plans to go to subscription model with "StarCraft II" or any subsequent releases?
We're going to do what's right for the game. We made "WoW" to be a subscription game from the very beginning. With "StarCraft II" it's probably going to follow more of a box model. But we'll decide more of that stuff down the line.
Battle.net is pretty expensive to maintain, isn't it?
It's not as expensive as "WoW" to maintain! (Laughs)
Interesting... will Blizzard make the first attempt to charge a subscription, ala XBox live, for playing online via Battle.net? What would that price be in the market place, if that choice is made? $5/month? $50/year? More likely, they won't charge anything, but it's interesting to hear they're considering it, though probably not taking it seriously.
Where World of Warcraft has largely failed in my mind is in the end-game. Here the content is, aside from reputation quests, entirely Raid driven and controlled by harsh unforgiving bosses and large time sinks.
Ahmen. Even reputation became group required. This is my #1 reason for leaving WoW. I couldn't participate in the End game (which I COULD get to easy enough). My #2 reason? Too hard to find a group (even when in a good guild, oddly) to participate in the end game.
To expand on the OP's question, one of LOTRO's (which I play and I'm enjoying very much) biggest talking points is it's creative license.
What's are some of the challenges, benefits, and surprises when working on a set story licenses? A license that has been around the bend many times from fan art, to multi-million dollar movies, to endless cartoon adaptations. Are there any challenges in creating something 'new' when there's so much already out there?
Until you see some bright-eyed player coming onto the forums wanting to know what they should spec as this class, and see them shat on and driven away by petty and selfish people who are simply leveraging for game buffs, you will not understand.
Wow, his post was great. It's so true about MMO communities, particularly ones of super public popularity (EQ, WoW, DAoC, etc). I got this all the time when I first started MMO's and 'speccing', like DAoC. "Hey, I would love to be this kind of character!" l3w3tt22!11! says: "d00d, U R A F*(King n3wBt4rd! d4t S3c sUcKzz!!1!1!"
I saw a post on Slashdot to a penny-arcade, I wish I bookmarked it. It was funny. Had a chalkboard drawing of Unreal 2004 and showed a mathematical formula for how people online are ass hats. Of course, I cannot say I've not taken the opportunity now and again to speak frank about something under the guise of anonymity.
When holding it sidewides, it fits my hand so poorly that it's not even funny.
I agree with you on this. The box design is no Cadillac when holding it sideways for VC games or games like Paper Mario. But I give them props for designing a multi-functioning controller that CAN be used in two different positions. In this game, the functionality is more important than the perfect comfort.
Red Steel is a great example of horrid pointing.
Red Steel is the the prefect example of how to screw up the pointer detection at the game level. I picked up this game at release and traded it back in a week later. Never bothered to play it very long. This wasn't due to how crappy the pointer is, but how the game interacted with the pointer. Often, it would jump around the room 'locking on' to things.
Also, as I've been finding out, a 'bright' room causes havoc with pointer detection. Trying to play Paper Mario when it's sunny out and the curtains are open is just painful. You need a good game interface and a darker room and the point works like magic. Just play Wii Play to see how well it can work. Not perfect, sure, but far from being obtuse.
I might rent Red Steel again (being a Blockbuster online member, I get a free game rental a month) to see how much was the remote sensitivity on a bright day and how much was the game interface. Since that time, I've learned to adjust the pointer sensitivity and room brightness.
Who wouldn't want to invade Wisconsin? It's the land of beer nuts and cheese.
Who needs to invade us? I'll invite you over for a Friday Fish-Fry (It's more popular to call it a 'fry' than a 'boil', at least in the SE of WI) or grill out some of our famous Brats. To top it all off, we'll tour the Miller brewery, sample some of Wisconsin's best micro-brews, Capitol Brewery and New Glarus. Or even the more popular Leinenkugel's variety.
And yes, I've been to the popular local event Brat Days, the popular festival where the headlining band are those popular 70's and 80's bands or former members of them. Like Vince Neil, Firehouse, and others. I've also been to Brat Fest. No, not because I like brats (I do, but it's not something I dare eat too often). Just the right place at the right time kind of thing.
If beer, brats, and (any variety of Cheddar) cheese is your thing, come on over! Of course, you might want to call the E.R. before coming, as you might suffer several heart attacks doing it. hehe
i debate this with my father often. if you take a longer route, your mileage efficiency will go up but you may have just tacked on an additional 5-10 miles to your commute thereby nullifying any gains.
Of course, it will depend on a persons individual situation. Some people only have 1 real option for driving. Others will have multiple routes to the same place that only add, maybe, 1-2 more miles total. If one has to add an extra 5-10 miles, then of course it's not going to add up.
The more interesting debate would instead be to argue that you're adding more miles to the engine which is a cost that's not immediate tangible (until something wears down and breaks). This is a good argument but likewise, the stop/go of traffic is harder on an engine than smooth highway mileage, which is why you'll always hear that a car with high mileage that was 'highway miles' is not a bad sell.
if you want to raise your mpg, switch to public transportation.
Of course, it would be the best if the U.S. actually had a train system. Alas, as history has proven, the car companies bought out the train companies back and shut them down so they could sell more cars.
I dream all the time of having a major commuting system here in Wisconsin that could connect high-speed trains between the major cities of Green Bay, Manitiwoc, Sheboygan, Port Washington, Milwaukee, Madison, Fund du Lac, Oshkosh, Appleton, etc. with other trains that make more stops but are slower. Coupled with a decent bus system to get you to your place of business from a train station. This was even more evident as both my fiancee and I are commuters. When one of our cars broke down, it cause a huge problem as it pretty much stranded one of us as we commute in opposite direction (to save one person from having to drive 2 hours a day).
Of course, it's even evident of America's "driving culture" just trying to walk 1 block to some local big-box retailer. We have to either walk on a soft shoulder of a 55mph road, or through a small field that's often muddy after a rain. After that, there's a sidewalk, but yet, it's still not connect to other sidewalks or major intersections are not properly built with pedestrian buttons.
Ah, it makes me dream of being back in Twickenham England, a suburb of London. 20-min train ride to Waterloo station, which was within a short walk to pretty much most of the entertainment in London. Even walking.5 mile to school was comfortable. Plenty of sidewalk space (usually). I spent plenty of time walking from city to city. Sure, maybe it was 5-10-20-45min walks, but it was enjoyable. On the weekends when I had plenty of free time, it was real nice. No need for a car. If I wanted to travel, I could hop a train to Paris and the rest of Europe or to plenty of major airports.
that's one thing you can do to save gas: NOT use the cruise control
That's informative. Not something I would have really thought about, maybe due to my area of Wisconsin is not exceptionally hilly. There's some things, but not a lot.
One thing I would question is the cost/comfort trade off? Is the MPG worth the easy of not having to think about your speed? Actually, my Corolla replaced a '93 Ford Escort (college beater) which didn't have Cruise. Often, I could find myself going much faster/slower than expected. It wasn't a big deal not having it, but it's definitely a nice comfort feature. (particularly the future wife, whom lived without C.C. in France for her whole life who's now addicted to it here in the US, despite her original complaint that it would make driving too boring.)
I suppose it's just one more thing to get into a good habit with. Although, probably a more reasonable suggestion than driving on the 'inside' lane for turns (if it's safe to do so) on multi-lane roads.
Can you please explain to me how "better braking habits" will save some gas?
By getting in the 'habit' of 'breaking less'. I admit, it's a bit of a backwards way of thinking of it, but that's the way it came out when I wrote it. But I appreciate/. for it's nit-pickers. It helps keep me on my toes.
My car (an '07 Caliber) was rated at "28 to 32 MPG". I consistently get 26 or less.:(
Manual or Stick? Driving habits effect the ratings. Do you drive 65mph on a 65mph freeway or do you drive 75mph-80mph? Do you accelerate fast? Do you find yourself braking often? Think about it the next time you approach a stop-sign. Does your foot move from the accelerator directly to the brake when you want to stop? Or are you 'coasting' and letting your momentum slow you down before you start to brake? Do you speed quickly the the next red light just to stop, or do you slowly coast to it, even if all the other cars are 'rushing' to the red? Do you drive with your windows down or the air-conditioner on a lot (it creates more drag or needs more energy to use)?
I bought a 2006 Pontiac Vibe (new) and just recently a 2007 Toyota Corolla (both awesome cars, though, I do wish the Vibe had a little more 'pep'). The Vibe was rated at 28-36 MPG if I remember right. I'm currently getting ~35MPG (mostly) highway (though it was closer to 31 MPG in the winter). The Corolla (while only having it for about a month now) is getting about 38 MPG (mostly) highway.
Both of these are manual "stick" transitions. The fiancee drives the Corolla, I drive the Vibe. While I don't usually drive aggressively, I don't pussy-foot the cars when accelerating to highway speeds (winding out the RPMs pretty high). However, I do kick in the cruise control at speed limit speeds, occasionally 5-over. What I do try to do, and what I'm getting better at recognizing, is that I try not to 'waist' energy by having the car do more than it needs to do, particularly in braking. Lets put it this way, the more you use your brakes, the more energy you're waisting. (which is the theory behind Hybrids, to turn the brake heat/energy back into car energy). Better braking habits will not only help save some gas but also extend the life of your breaks.
If your car is significantly getting much lower MPG than the rated amount, I would 1st) get it checked out by the dealership. 2nd) look at your own driving habits. If you're getting 26 MPG and you do pretty much all city driving, then I would say you're right on schedule (You can usually take off 1-2 MPG from the rating for 'real' estimates). If you want to raise your MPG, take a longer route in the city that makes you stop much less frequently. Stop/Go is the hardest on an engine and your millage efficiency.
Microsoft's Robbie Bach saying that 'the video graphics on it aren't very strong;
hehe, tell me about it! Here I am playing Super Mario Brothers, Super Mario World, The Legend of Zelda, etc. Man, graphics must be REALLY important in selling a video game system or games for it! Oddly, like the GP said...
TFA is not working. Did it say that Shrek was walking around the "Disney" park? That would be odd given Shrek is a Dreamworks property, a prime competitor of Disney.
LOTRO will actually meet it's destiny not just sit there and look at it from a distance.
Indeed, and on top of that, it should be semi-clear on how this might all fall about. First, I read on the official forums that devs stated that the time line will move very slow. Mines of Moria? Expect an expansion sometime in over 1-year. Given this very slow pace, they can stretch the entire series out over many many years, probably it's entire life-time.
Second, the game already introduces time disparities. The 'intro' quest shows some sort of 'past event' action that teaches you how to do the basics. Only when you finish a quest, you can click on the quest giver and 'transport' into the future/current time line. As it seems, they're probably going to keep the time lines separate. Meaning, there will always be the "Shadows of Angmar" time line which will allow people to always play, even 'after' the store time line proceeds to the 'next event'. Players will probably be able to go back to the original time line and have it explained as some sort of 're-living the past' sort of thing.
Doing this will allow them to avoid totally killing off past event while allow future events to unfold without impacting previous stuff, such as "sorry, you can no longer kill boss XYZ because the story has evolved to past that event". While, the game will sort of 'end' at some point given the license agreement, it's going to be so far into the future that it's probably going to release "LOTRO 2". Even better graphics! hehe Eventual, LOTRO will become, like the book, a full story and worth playing over sometime after it's not 'fresh' anymore.
What draws many people to an MMO is the ePeen, competitive factor.
I agree with you about the ePeen thing in a round-about sort of way. I believe the real draw of MMO's is either 1) Collection/Progression or 2) Social.
The 'collector' is the person who likes to 'finish' everything. They might have collected sports cards, action figures, or comic books as kids (or perhaps still do as adults). MMO's draw their eye because they can 'collect' things. It's also a sense of progression. Your character can get 5 pieces of an armour set. Every piece you collect gives them a sense of progression. What was one is now two, what was two is now three and that's one more piece to 'the end' of a 'set' or 'collection'.
Social are the people who enjoy playing games with others. 1-player games where never exciting. It was the +2-player games that they would always buy and invite friends over to hang-out and do things.
Either case, the person has to enjoy video games and RPG style games as that. It's also the 'collector' who the 'ePeen' factor can be seen. One of the motivations of 'collectors' are to show others they have something they believe will draw the envy of others. Have the #1 print limited edition comic book, Mint Condition Michael Jordon or Barry Sanders rookie card or the 0.001% chance to drop 'Sword of 1000 Truths' is to show others that you have it and not them. Of course, some people will see it as an investment as items in real-life can be re-sold. In MMO's it's either the 'ePeen' or the 'progression' factor that will make a person 'want' said item.
Of course, it's not a black and white case. A person can have both social and collectible desires and to varying degrees.
Although, there is a 3rd degree as well, what use to be more niche is becoming more main-stream. It's the 'Competitive' kind of people you mention, which also can include the 'ePeen'. These are the PvP sort of people. They're the people who play primarily for competition.
The moral of the story is if you download illegal music; do it from a university and with a forged MAC.
Take my advice as a consumer: Sell CD's for $5 without DRM and I'd buy a lot more music. Otherwise, I'll wait for the next AllOfMp3.com to purchase music from. I'm sick enough of the P2P stuff. The radio and my current album collection works just fine for me.
You are most likely male, between the ages of 18 and 25. You are not who Nintendo wants to sell these things to.
I wouldn't say that the 18-25 range isn't part of their demographic, but it's definitely not their focus. After all, how many cruise ships are installing 360's or PS3's? The 'Wii' is more than just a video game. It's made it's way into pop-culture. That's not to say it's a superior product, but it is a marketers wet-dream when it's on the tip of everyone's tongue.
It's up to Nintendo to just DO something with this momentum. Something they've dropped the ball with in the past.
Slashdot Mirror
The more MMO's I play, the less quest text I read. With LOTRO, there's so much quest text, I never read it. I click my way through, then read the top sentence or two in my quest journal, which they nicely reduced to "kill these things at this location, which is that direction". Prefect for the 'web trained' mind that I have.
Actually, I would sum up LOTRO as "CoH crossed with WoW with a LOTR theme". There's a lot of things I see in LOTRO that I first experienced in CoH (though, it might have shown up in other games before CoH.)
It's systems are not unique, but their combination is.
All in all, I really enjoy LOTRO. I can level a character again (after hitting level 70 in WoW, there wasn't much for me to do besides "LFG ", which could take hours. Even when in a good raid guild). I almost dropped LOTRO. The running around, distance/travel reminded me too much of DAOC and the painful 10 min horse rides. While not as bad as DAOC (due to swift travel), the running around can be hard on some people. I stuck with it, and I'm glad I did. Though, I pre-ordered and also only pay $10/month, which is another really big selling point for me.
Cheers,
Fozzy
Great now, I have to wait five years before I buy my next computer because nothing else will compare unless it's got 80 cores. My duel core looks soooo small now. =(
hehe, it's an MMO... come on, you know it is. An MMO FPS.
From the article (one of more interesting parts, I think)...
Interesting... will Blizzard make the first attempt to charge a subscription, ala XBox live, for playing online via Battle.net? What would that price be in the market place, if that choice is made? $5/month? $50/year? More likely, they won't charge anything, but it's interesting to hear they're considering it, though probably not taking it seriously.
Cheers,
Fozzy
Ahmen. Even reputation became group required. This is my #1 reason for leaving WoW. I couldn't participate in the End game (which I COULD get to easy enough). My #2 reason? Too hard to find a group (even when in a good guild, oddly) to participate in the end game.
As an offshoot of the OP's question, how was the decision made to offer Pre-orders special subscription prices, including a life-time fee?
To expand on the OP's question, one of LOTRO's (which I play and I'm enjoying very much) biggest talking points is it's creative license. What's are some of the challenges, benefits, and surprises when working on a set story licenses? A license that has been around the bend many times from fan art, to multi-million dollar movies, to endless cartoon adaptations. Are there any challenges in creating something 'new' when there's so much already out there?
Ha, that's the one! /salute Reikoku
Wow, his post was great. It's so true about MMO communities, particularly ones of super public popularity (EQ, WoW, DAoC, etc). I got this all the time when I first started MMO's and 'speccing', like DAoC. "Hey, I would love to be this kind of character!" l3w3tt22!11! says: "d00d, U R A F*(King n3wBt4rd! d4t S3c sUcKzz!!1!1!"
I saw a post on Slashdot to a penny-arcade, I wish I bookmarked it. It was funny. Had a chalkboard drawing of Unreal 2004 and showed a mathematical formula for how people online are ass hats. Of course, I cannot say I've not taken the opportunity now and again to speak frank about something under the guise of anonymity.
Cheers,
Fozzy
I agree with you on this. The box design is no Cadillac when holding it sideways for VC games or games like Paper Mario. But I give them props for designing a multi-functioning controller that CAN be used in two different positions. In this game, the functionality is more important than the perfect comfort.
Red Steel is the the prefect example of how to screw up the pointer detection at the game level. I picked up this game at release and traded it back in a week later. Never bothered to play it very long. This wasn't due to how crappy the pointer is, but how the game interacted with the pointer. Often, it would jump around the room 'locking on' to things.
Also, as I've been finding out, a 'bright' room causes havoc with pointer detection. Trying to play Paper Mario when it's sunny out and the curtains are open is just painful. You need a good game interface and a darker room and the point works like magic. Just play Wii Play to see how well it can work. Not perfect, sure, but far from being obtuse.
I might rent Red Steel again (being a Blockbuster online member, I get a free game rental a month) to see how much was the remote sensitivity on a bright day and how much was the game interface. Since that time, I've learned to adjust the pointer sensitivity and room brightness.
Cheers,
Fozzy
Who needs to invade us? I'll invite you over for a Friday Fish-Fry (It's more popular to call it a 'fry' than a 'boil', at least in the SE of WI) or grill out some of our famous Brats. To top it all off, we'll tour the Miller brewery, sample some of Wisconsin's best micro-brews, Capitol Brewery and New Glarus. Or even the more popular Leinenkugel's variety.
And yes, I've been to the popular local event Brat Days, the popular festival where the headlining band are those popular 70's and 80's bands or former members of them. Like Vince Neil, Firehouse, and others. I've also been to Brat Fest. No, not because I like brats (I do, but it's not something I dare eat too often). Just the right place at the right time kind of thing.
If beer, brats, and (any variety of Cheddar) cheese is your thing, come on over! Of course, you might want to call the E.R. before coming, as you might suffer several heart attacks doing it. hehe
Of course, it will depend on a persons individual situation. Some people only have 1 real option for driving. Others will have multiple routes to the same place that only add, maybe, 1-2 more miles total. If one has to add an extra 5-10 miles, then of course it's not going to add up.
The more interesting debate would instead be to argue that you're adding more miles to the engine which is a cost that's not immediate tangible (until something wears down and breaks). This is a good argument but likewise, the stop/go of traffic is harder on an engine than smooth highway mileage, which is why you'll always hear that a car with high mileage that was 'highway miles' is not a bad sell.
Of course, it would be the best if the U.S. actually had a train system. Alas, as history has proven, the car companies bought out the train companies back and shut them down so they could sell more cars.
I dream all the time of having a major commuting system here in Wisconsin that could connect high-speed trains between the major cities of Green Bay, Manitiwoc, Sheboygan, Port Washington, Milwaukee, Madison, Fund du Lac, Oshkosh, Appleton, etc. with other trains that make more stops but are slower. Coupled with a decent bus system to get you to your place of business from a train station. This was even more evident as both my fiancee and I are commuters. When one of our cars broke down, it cause a huge problem as it pretty much stranded one of us as we commute in opposite direction (to save one person from having to drive 2 hours a day).
Of course, it's even evident of America's "driving culture" just trying to walk 1 block to some local big-box retailer. We have to either walk on a soft shoulder of a 55mph road, or through a small field that's often muddy after a rain. After that, there's a sidewalk, but yet, it's still not connect to other sidewalks or major intersections are not properly built with pedestrian buttons.
Ah, it makes me dream of being back in Twickenham England, a suburb of London. 20-min train ride to Waterloo station, which was within a short walk to pretty much most of the entertainment in London. Even walking .5 mile to school was comfortable. Plenty of sidewalk space (usually). I spent plenty of time walking from city to city. Sure, maybe it was 5-10-20-45min walks, but it was enjoyable. On the weekends when I had plenty of free time, it was real nice. No need for a car. If I wanted to travel, I could hop a train to Paris and the rest of Europe or to plenty of major airports.
Cheers,
Fozzy
Raquette ball
That's informative. Not something I would have really thought about, maybe due to my area of Wisconsin is not exceptionally hilly. There's some things, but not a lot.
One thing I would question is the cost/comfort trade off? Is the MPG worth the easy of not having to think about your speed? Actually, my Corolla replaced a '93 Ford Escort (college beater) which didn't have Cruise. Often, I could find myself going much faster/slower than expected. It wasn't a big deal not having it, but it's definitely a nice comfort feature. (particularly the future wife, whom lived without C.C. in France for her whole life who's now addicted to it here in the US, despite her original complaint that it would make driving too boring.)
I suppose it's just one more thing to get into a good habit with. Although, probably a more reasonable suggestion than driving on the 'inside' lane for turns (if it's safe to do so) on multi-lane roads.
Good Tip!
Cheers,
Fozzy
Cheers,
Fozzy
By getting in the 'habit' of 'breaking less'. I admit, it's a bit of a backwards way of thinking of it, but that's the way it came out when I wrote it. But I appreciate /. for it's nit-pickers. It helps keep me on my toes.
Cheers,
Fozzy
Manual or Stick? Driving habits effect the ratings. Do you drive 65mph on a 65mph freeway or do you drive 75mph-80mph? Do you accelerate fast? Do you find yourself braking often? Think about it the next time you approach a stop-sign. Does your foot move from the accelerator directly to the brake when you want to stop? Or are you 'coasting' and letting your momentum slow you down before you start to brake? Do you speed quickly the the next red light just to stop, or do you slowly coast to it, even if all the other cars are 'rushing' to the red? Do you drive with your windows down or the air-conditioner on a lot (it creates more drag or needs more energy to use)?
I bought a 2006 Pontiac Vibe (new) and just recently a 2007 Toyota Corolla (both awesome cars, though, I do wish the Vibe had a little more 'pep'). The Vibe was rated at 28-36 MPG if I remember right. I'm currently getting ~35MPG (mostly) highway (though it was closer to 31 MPG in the winter). The Corolla (while only having it for about a month now) is getting about 38 MPG (mostly) highway.
Both of these are manual "stick" transitions. The fiancee drives the Corolla, I drive the Vibe. While I don't usually drive aggressively, I don't pussy-foot the cars when accelerating to highway speeds (winding out the RPMs pretty high). However, I do kick in the cruise control at speed limit speeds, occasionally 5-over. What I do try to do, and what I'm getting better at recognizing, is that I try not to 'waist' energy by having the car do more than it needs to do, particularly in braking. Lets put it this way, the more you use your brakes, the more energy you're waisting. (which is the theory behind Hybrids, to turn the brake heat/energy back into car energy). Better braking habits will not only help save some gas but also extend the life of your breaks.
If your car is significantly getting much lower MPG than the rated amount, I would 1st) get it checked out by the dealership. 2nd) look at your own driving habits. If you're getting 26 MPG and you do pretty much all city driving, then I would say you're right on schedule (You can usually take off 1-2 MPG from the rating for 'real' estimates). If you want to raise your MPG, take a longer route in the city that makes you stop much less frequently. Stop/Go is the hardest on an engine and your millage efficiency.
Cheers,
Fozzy
hehe, tell me about it! Here I am playing Super Mario Brothers, Super Mario World, The Legend of Zelda, etc. Man, graphics must be REALLY important in selling a video game system or games for it! Oddly, like the GP said...
'nuff said.
Cheers,
Fozzy
If you beat the other team badly enough, you could be charged with rape.
TFA is not working. Did it say that Shrek was walking around the "Disney" park? That would be odd given Shrek is a Dreamworks property, a prime competitor of Disney.
Cheers,
Fozzy
Indeed, and on top of that, it should be semi-clear on how this might all fall about. First, I read on the official forums that devs stated that the time line will move very slow. Mines of Moria? Expect an expansion sometime in over 1-year. Given this very slow pace, they can stretch the entire series out over many many years, probably it's entire life-time.
Second, the game already introduces time disparities. The 'intro' quest shows some sort of 'past event' action that teaches you how to do the basics. Only when you finish a quest, you can click on the quest giver and 'transport' into the future/current time line. As it seems, they're probably going to keep the time lines separate. Meaning, there will always be the "Shadows of Angmar" time line which will allow people to always play, even 'after' the store time line proceeds to the 'next event'. Players will probably be able to go back to the original time line and have it explained as some sort of 're-living the past' sort of thing.
Doing this will allow them to avoid totally killing off past event while allow future events to unfold without impacting previous stuff, such as "sorry, you can no longer kill boss XYZ because the story has evolved to past that event". While, the game will sort of 'end' at some point given the license agreement, it's going to be so far into the future that it's probably going to release "LOTRO 2". Even better graphics! hehe Eventual, LOTRO will become, like the book, a full story and worth playing over sometime after it's not 'fresh' anymore.
Cheers,
Fozzy
I agree with you about the ePeen thing in a round-about sort of way. I believe the real draw of MMO's is either 1) Collection/Progression or 2) Social.
The 'collector' is the person who likes to 'finish' everything. They might have collected sports cards, action figures, or comic books as kids (or perhaps still do as adults). MMO's draw their eye because they can 'collect' things. It's also a sense of progression. Your character can get 5 pieces of an armour set. Every piece you collect gives them a sense of progression. What was one is now two, what was two is now three and that's one more piece to 'the end' of a 'set' or 'collection'.
Social are the people who enjoy playing games with others. 1-player games where never exciting. It was the +2-player games that they would always buy and invite friends over to hang-out and do things.
Either case, the person has to enjoy video games and RPG style games as that. It's also the 'collector' who the 'ePeen' factor can be seen. One of the motivations of 'collectors' are to show others they have something they believe will draw the envy of others. Have the #1 print limited edition comic book, Mint Condition Michael Jordon or Barry Sanders rookie card or the 0.001% chance to drop 'Sword of 1000 Truths' is to show others that you have it and not them. Of course, some people will see it as an investment as items in real-life can be re-sold. In MMO's it's either the 'ePeen' or the 'progression' factor that will make a person 'want' said item.
Of course, it's not a black and white case. A person can have both social and collectible desires and to varying degrees.
Although, there is a 3rd degree as well, what use to be more niche is becoming more main-stream. It's the 'Competitive' kind of people you mention, which also can include the 'ePeen'. These are the PvP sort of people. They're the people who play primarily for competition.
Cheers,
Fozzy
Take my advice as a consumer: Sell CD's for $5 without DRM and I'd buy a lot more music. Otherwise, I'll wait for the next AllOfMp3.com to purchase music from. I'm sick enough of the P2P stuff. The radio and my current album collection works just fine for me.
Cheers,
Fozzy
So... it's going a few seconds faster than a few seconds?
I wouldn't say that the 18-25 range isn't part of their demographic, but it's definitely not their focus. After all, how many cruise ships are installing 360's or PS3's? The 'Wii' is more than just a video game. It's made it's way into pop-culture. That's not to say it's a superior product, but it is a marketers wet-dream when it's on the tip of everyone's tongue.
It's up to Nintendo to just DO something with this momentum. Something they've dropped the ball with in the past.
Cheers,
Fozzy