cerialthriller's Blog - 2old2play

Dealing with non-gaming significant others

    So I'm at work and I happened to read TDrag's blog. And it kind of got me thinking. I love video games and I have for a long time. When I met my current fiance, I wasn't really playing them much because I was kind of broke and working a job to try to put away some money for college. I probably wouldn't have met her if I was gaming at the time, as I wouldn't have been out of the house.
    So I was in college, didn't see her much, and I decided to get a refurbed PS2 and a couple games and I got back into gaming. And I haven't really stopped since. That was about 5 years ago. So, now I'm outta college and have a decent job and can afford all the games again. And she doesn't like it. First she was mad that I spent $400 on the 360. Now because I keep buying games. Now she's getting even madder because I am pressing to get an HDTV, that I probably shouldn't buy due to monetary reasons, but you only live once right? And I really don't complain about her buying hand towels for the bathroom that aren't to be used, or the unreasonable amount of "show pillows" on the couches and bed. Atleast a TV has uses aside from aesthetics..
    It is kind of wierd.. She was watching me play when I first started Final Fantasy X and she liked the story so much she asked me not to play unless she was watching. So I said OK, and we had a good time playing and going through the story together. So I finished the game and she said she wanted to try, so I said ok, and we played it together again but she played and I must say she did a way better job then I had done with the game. Then I couldn't get her to even try any other games.. It just didn't make sense.
    So maybe a month ago we were in Best Buy and they had Guitar Hero 2 on sale for $79.99 and she said she always wanted to try it, I kind of did but it was still kind of expensive for me to possibly not like it. So we buy it and sometimes she will play that but not really that much. But I love it and played it alot.
    But I guess in the grand scheme of things this is a minor issue, this is really the only thing that we don't agree on, and all other parts of our relationship are outstanding. I don't think she has a problem with my playing games, but more of a problem of me "wasting money" on them, but I don't see it as a waste really. She loves to watch her stupid reality shows and everything, and the monthly bill for DirectTV costs more then the $60 a month I spend to buy a game. I would imagine I am not the only one with this type of problem, have any of you guys had success getting rid of this situation without stopping your gaming? We don't have kids and probably won't anytime soon, neither of us want them at this point, so it's not an issue about being a neglecting father or anything like that, and I don't let it interfere with anything that we want to do together so I really don't see the big deal...

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It's Comcastic!

Well, i called Earthlink, they said my service ready date had changed from the 17th to the 30th.. So I called up Comcast, asked how quickly they could get here, they said tommorow, so I ordered it up. And now I have the internet, and a much faster connection then the 3 mbps earthlink was going to give me. I'm not a big Comcast fan, but they really came through for me. Finally, I can play TF2

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Still no Internet..

Well, I am still without the internet.. It's day 26, and I am going insane. I only get to browse when I'm at work and I am constantly having to hit the back button to avoid NSFW content in ads and such. So now instead of fighting with Verizon, I have begun the fight against Earthlink, my new supposed internet provider. (I'm not sure yet, they haven't provided me with jack shit yet.) So my service ready date was before midnight Mountain time on Oct. 16th. Well, that came and went. I called up last night, a woman with a very hard to understand accent gets on the phone, says her name is Cherry. So says oh yeah, its scheduled to be on today by 8 pm. Well 8pm comes, and nothing. I call back, oh, we meant 8 pm mountain time, its only 6pm mountain time now. Ok fine. 10pm comes, i call back, well if its not on now it will be on by midnight mountain time. Thats 2am EST (where i am). So I go to sleep pissed off at these people. I wake up in the morning, 4 am Mountain time on the 18th, no internet, which after doing the math a i figured out is after midnight mountain time. I called back today on my lunch break and their customer service system is down. I am so ready to tell them to shove it and pay the $70 for Comcast.. Now im behind on my work because I cant work at home and I can't even get online games going to relax after work, and I am just really pissed. Are all DSL companies like this? I used to have Comcast before they doubled the price and it was pretty good, very little downtime and rarely any calls to customer service..

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Suck It Verizon

So i got home last night, internet still isn't working. I called Verizon, for the 12th day in a row. They told me from all the calls that my account was so messed up that the only thing they could do was cancel my subscription and have me sign up for a new one. So I asked how long before I would have service if I did that, and they say it will ONLY take 10 to 12 days. So I said no thanks, if you can't get it back up for me in the next few hours, I am going somewhere else. The guy says "You don't have to go somewhere else, hold on a minute, I'll transfer you right to someone who can take your order." Nice try buddy. So this morning at work, I signed up for Earthlink DSL. And hey, they say I should have my equipment and service ready in 3 to 5 days and it's a higher speed service. Hopefully this works out for me. I looked at the comcast 3 for $99 package, but I like my DirectTV alot, especially this time of year since I get the NYC sports channels as well as the Philadelphia ones, so I can watch almost all of the Rangers games, where as with comcast i get to watch maybe 10 a year. Plus I like the DIrectTV DVR service alot better then the Comcast one. And I don't need the phone service, I may cancel my verizon telephone service and add a 3rd cellphone to my AT&T plan for an extra $10 a month to use as a home phone.

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Damn you Verizon, damn you to hell!

So I have been without the internet at home since September 22. That is 11 f'ing days. Basically, I woke up on a Saturday morning next to my girlfriend and decided to browse digg.com for a few minutes while she got ready so we could go out to breakfast. My firefox returns a screen: Unable to Find Host. WTF! i frantically type in www.google.com. Unable to find host. Son of a bitch. So we go out to breakfast, I am already getting aggravated. I figure maybe it was down for a bit and when I get it will be up again. I'm walking back into my house, and my neighbor stops me. He asks if I have Verizon DSL, i responded yes, already knowing where this conversation was going. He asks if I have service, so I tell him I didn't an hour ago. In the end we find 6 people on my block use Verizon, and none of them had service. I call verizon, explain whats going on. He says everything is fine on their end, and assures me it must be my router settings. So I say wait a minute, its impossible that 6 other households are affected by my router problems if they even existed. I havent changed any settings in months. He assures me its all just a coincidence. Nice try buddy. 1 and a half hours later we are no closer to any internet working in my house. So day 2, nobody still has internet I call again, now they says it's because I have a $1.23 outstanding balance. You've got to be kidding me. So i give them my Visa number, and ask how im behind in my balance when I have payments automatically setup to come out of my checking account. They don't know. They tell me it will be working within 24 hours. 24 hours go by, 48, 72, no internet. I call back. They say everything is fine again. Nobody in my neighbor has their Verizon service working. I ask for the supervisor, "he is too busy right now, he'll have to call you later tonite" Fine. I give him my house and cell number. No call in two days. 4 nights in a row im on the phone with them, and nothing. Then last night, I am playing my 360 and I notice the Internet light on my modem has lit up. Sweet! I fire up firefox, and bam, big screen Verizon: Denial of Service Please call Billing to resolve this issue. So i call billing, nothing is wrong with my account, I am all payed up. They don't know why I am getting this screen. I check with my neighbor, he's getting the same screen. So I called them this morning and told Verizon that if my internet isnt working when I get home at 6pm I am switching to Earthlink DSL, which turns out to be the only other DSL in my area. I just hate the feeling of helplessness these ridiculous companies give you. The only cable provider in my area is Comcast, and they have the prices jacked up so damn high ($69.99 a month) I can't bring myself to give them business.

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What a shitty week

So all kinds of crap has been going crappy this week. My DSL has been out since saturday morning, Verizon said there is nothing wrong on their end, but all of my neighbors that have it also have no service. We've all been repeatedly calling and they are saying its not them. I bought a used copy of a Star Trek game off ebay for $10, and when i got the "no scratches! works perfectly!" disc, its quite clear it was one of those ones damaged when some idiot knocked over his 360 while playing it. But eventually, after 3 resurfacings, it seems to work. Then the guy sends me a nasty email after I leave him a negative feedback when he refuses to refund and shipping charges if i want to send the game back for a refund. Then last night, I think my A/V pack died, because the picture on my tv went out and the music kept playing, and it does the same thing on other tvs. The VGA cable pack works on my PC monitor though, so it doesnt seem to be the console. The damn thing was just purchased 20 days ago and it already broke, wtf. I hadn't even unplugged it from the TV once since I got it. I also bought Guitar Hero 2 over the weekend and ever since my girlfriend has been hogging the shit out of my 360. After all this crap I really cant wait to get home and rip into one of these out-sourced call center motherfuckers.

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So many games

    So I was up just about all night last night playing Madden 08 just trying to get a hang of the game. It really pisses me off that they put those "fake" fumbles in there, that would be reversed in any real life game. And I know you can challenge them, but they really really suck when they happen in the last 2 minutes of the half and the challenge button is greyed out. I have lost 2 games to the CPU due to this stupid crap. The first one, I was down by one point with a little under a minute left on about the 15 yard line. Well what do you know, a fumble happens after my guy is clearly down, they pick it up and run it back for a TD. WTF! The challenge button is greyed out and the game didn't automatically review it like it is supposed to. So I was kind of pissed off at the game, even though its just a game and all. So the very next game, Same thing is going on except I am winning by a FG. I throw a pass, and it's intercepted. I tackle the guy, he is down, and he fumbles, and they pick it up and run it in for a TD. I get a kick-off with under 30 seconds left and down by 4 points and lose the game.. So needless to say at that point I pretty much cursed the entire EA team.
    Today, I was just so frustrated with the game, I was going to trade it in to GameStop and get Two Worlds instead. So I go up there, and they offer me $20 for the trade-in. They have to be kidding right, I see the used copy right there on the wall for $49.99. So I said nevermind, then went to Best Buy and got a copy of Two Worlds anyway, I didn't want to give GameStop the business at that point. But later I played another game of Madden and kicked some CPU ass and so I am kind of glad I didn't trade it in after all.
    But aside from all that, while I was browsing the games in GameStop, there are just so many games I want to pick up that I am going to go insane. And with every week something new comes out that I want to buy and there is no way I have the time or money to buy and play all these games. I really would like to pick up Blue Dragon and Eternal Sonata when that comes out, as I love my JRPGs. I am definately picking up NHL 08 next week sometime, I can't wait to play that. Lets get some action goin with all you hockey fans, I've seen a few blogs with NHL logos on them and some with NHL 07 in the now playing list. I really needed to hit that $300 million lotto that was going around..

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Finally got a 360!

    So like the title says, I finally made the plunge and bought an Xbox 360. Also picked up a copy of Madden 08 and Saint's Row when I bought it. So far I'm having alot of fun with, I didn't get to play it until like 11 pm last night and I think I was up until about 7am playing it. Today I've been messing around with all the other stuff like downloading demos and such.
    So I've been playing Madden, but I am still pretty bad at it, I think it's mostly I am not used to the controls. And I keep trying to play with the cord on my wireless controller. It's kind of like phantom limb syndrome and I keep imagining that the cord is tangled on something, wierd. But after a few more games hopefully I'll get the controls down. I started a NY Jets franchise and my first game was against Michael Vick and the Falcons. I was very pleased that I was able to sack that moron a few times. But if anyone would like to play in a game or two after I get a few more games under my belt, feel free to add me to XBL friends, my tag is CerialThriller. I still haven't played any online games yet, I don't have the courage to get owned yet, haha.
    Well thats all for now, hope everyone is having a good labor day weekend. I know I am

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Can You Feel the Hype?

    I just can't feel the hype for any of the upcoming games. I am just getting back into the console gaming "scene" if you will, after a long journey into the MMO world. So, I checked out gamespot.com (yeah, im not sure if this is still the website to checkout for this kinda stuff, ill have to look around) and I checked out all the top games for the 360.
Number 1 still is Bioshock. I heard so much about the game in the passed few weeks, so I had to check it out on the site. It just doesn't look like my kind of game. I never got into the horror genre of games, never caught the Resident Evil or Silent Hill fever.
    So the next obvious choice to check out was Halo 3. Now I may be the only person in the modern world that owns an xbox and does not own either of the Halo games. I was a staunch opponent of FPS games on a controller. I mean it just doesn't seem like it would work, right? So now that I am turning my back on PC gaming, I decided to give FPS on the console a whirl, so I went to the local Game Stop and picked up a copy of Black for the Xbox (I couldn't find any copies of either Halo there, the old Xbox section got cut in half to make room for the 360). And I must say, I am really liking it. So I am looking forward to getting Halo 3 for the 360 but I don't know, I just don't have the anticipation or anything like I did for say The Burning Crusade WoW expansion, which in the end was a horrible let down. I am even thinking of getting in on the Halo 3 midnight launch parties just to try to catch some of the Halo fever.
    I mean don't get me wrong, there are tons of games coming up for the 360 that I am planning on buying, but I just want that "little kid on christmas morning" feel for one damn game at least. Maybe I just haven't been back in the console world long enough to appreciate the year long wait that is usually ahead of those must-have games that just gives you that feeling the closer it gets to launch. Maybe I am just getting older and it just doesn't feel the same since now I have a job to support my gaming habit and I don't have to fill a piggy bank and hope I have enough in there so I can buy Mario All-stars. But then again, many of the games that I really enjoyed weren't those hyped up games. I ended up buying a Wii from all the hype it was getting and I've played Mario 2 on the virtual console more then anything else.

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My first blog post ever

    Hello everyone, and welcome to my first blog posting ever. I am new here at 2old2play and have had a wonderful time exploring the community and reading blog and such, so I decided to make my own. There is just such a large community and so much going on I am a bit overwhelmed at the moment, but hopefully that will soon pass and I can start making some friends. So anyway, as you can see my banner thing, I like to Rant and Rave a lot. And I like video games a lot. You get the picture.
    Truth is, I used to like video games a lot. I was stuck in the vacuum that is World of Warcraft for over a year, and the whole MMO scene 2 years before that. Needless to say, I am quite behind on console gaming. I was recently able to kick the habit, and in one week it will be 2 months since I have logged into an MMO. And on that day, I will treat myself to an Xbox 360. Now you may be saying to yourself, "Why not buy the 360 first to get you to stop playing MMOs in the first place." To that I would say, "Well, I tried that with the Wii, but it didn't work." So to justify buying the 360, I had to be sure that I wouldn't play it for a week and then ditch it for WoW, or LoTRO or some other such game.
    But anyway, enough about me, I will try not to talk about myself or my life too much, my life is quite boring and I won't bore you with it. What I will talk about is the latest gaming news, probably whatever is controversial at the time. I will try to keep it funny, so as not to sound like a whiny bitch or a fan boy. Recently Bioshock has been in the gaming news alot for various screw-ups and Manhunt 2 for submitting to the ESRB. I mean honestly, how many more copies of a game will sell with an M rating over an AO rating on the PS2 and the Wii. A large percentage of Wii owners are not in the Manhunt target audience (I would assume) and I would think that a good amount of people interested in Manhunt 2 have already switched over to next gen consoles. As for Bioshock, I really really hope for the PC version to flop, if not, it will only help the SecuROM sales pitch. Are we really entering the age where you need internet access to install a single player game? Does anyone remember the DIVX disc format? (Not the AVI codec). It was almost exactly the same, but luckily that died off very quickly. For those of you not familiar with it, you could buy a DVD very early in the DVD media uprising, for a little cheaper then a normal DVD, but you could only watch it a limited number of times. To check this, it needed an open phone line each time you wanted to play the movie so that it could dial a number to see if you could watch or not. PC gaming is dying off rather quickly, PC titles don't seem to get nearly any hype these days unless it also has a console port coming out. And if this becomes the normal practice, I think it will die off even quicker.
    Well, thats it for my blog for now, if you read this and enjoyed or read it and didn't enjoy it, leave me some kind of feedback, I'd like to know what I did well and what parts sucked.

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