Coming off the buzz of 2009's E3 the gaming community has been left jaded. Among the kaleidoscope of epic announcements, Valve has teased the first clips of Left 4 Dead 2, little less then one year after the original hit the shelves. The announcement has upset most gamers claiming Valve has turned it's back on promises that were made to support Left 4 Dead. While most enjoy jumping on the hate-wagon for any perceived injustice, I would like to present my own perspective.
Valve has provided time and again free content updates, not to mention bundling one of the best game values ever, The Orange Box. Team Fortress 2 receives constant new toys and is rebalanced. Why not direct the hate in the right direction? Shouldn't all of Fallout 3's content be free? What about Resident Evil 5 charging for a poorly made "Versus Mode?" To take this to an extreme, I don't want to pay for Modern Warfare 2 it's just new missions and weapons. Sounds familiar doesn't it? Activision can vomit up a new Guitar Hero every year, slap a big name on it and wait expectantly with his hand out for fifty bucks? Valve has given out so many treats that some feel that we're entitled, I'm just grateful there will be a continuation to the zombie carnage.
With the huge amount of modifications done to the game: Melee Weapons, Weather system, the ability for the "Director" to change certain areas, new special infected and of course 5 new movies. Five! That's five, one more then the original! Do we honestly think that Valve should give us more game then was in the game?
I'll freely admit I'm tight with my money and don't have much income for entertainment but with Valve treating the community at large with the respect they've shown in the past, I'll be ready and waiting, cash in hand on day 1.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Monday, June 8, 2009
Zombie Plan
This is kinda a work in progress that I started today, it's a typical Zombie Outbreak survival guide. Mst of the information is pretty basic but I hope a few things will catch the readers mind.
Please comment with input and ideas.
Step one:
Determine the extent of the out break, is this local that outside help will hopefully come? Is it the whole Nation/Continent? Will the rest of the world just turtle up and let your country get eaten? If your American then yes, yes they will.
Step two:
Estimate the infection vs. survivor vs. already dead rate. Most movies give us the idea that roughly 70-90% of the population will be dead or turned within 48 hours. Before this time the best thing to do is gather any loved one close by that you can contact and bunker down, something quick will do temporarily, attics are the best as they are hard enough to get up to while alive, intelligent and dexterous. Grab anything in your kitchen to stock up for a few days, do not attempt to gather weapons unless they are inside your house or chosen temporary bunker. Firearms should only be given to those with experience, as ammo will be low and all unnecessary kills will only draw attention. Remember to stay put as much as possible, no light source should be seen outside you as don't really know what type of Zombies your dealing with yet.
Step three:
Once food begins to get low, or the sounds of screaming, cars, and most all other life have stopped you can find your permanent Head Quarters. Do not under any circumstance ration food, I'll repeat that DO NOT RATION FOOD! Let anyone you've got with you eat their fill, but caution them to not over eat running almost sucks worse after a big meal then if you're hungry. Now have your last meal in your bunker and get everyone geared up for the move. You may think that it would be better to do this at night, and you would be wrong. Some movies tell us that zombies can just smell or sense living things so moving at night you've lost your sight and to be honest it's just creepier. Moving in the day will allow you to see what kind of numbers you're dealing with and keep track of your other party members. Depending on the amount of road traffic and your environment a large truck is suggested, second choice would be an SUV, no need to worry about gas prices anymore so the bigger the better. Depending on the situation outside getting to the vehicle should be easy, send one armed scout to check blind spots or other possible problem areas, best to send your most skilled gunner or your fastest runner. Assuming there are no problems getting to the car and getting everyone inside, if you must take two cars that's acceptable, or come back for the others within the day.
Step four: Location, Location, Location.
Your first priority in an HQ is defense, zombies are the best siege style of fighters hell every created, they will continue to push at your walls day and night for months, they do not rest, lose moral, or care whether they succeed or fail they only know to move towards food. Now that I've got you thinking about all that, you need to consider a long term living condition. Any large warehouse, with multiply floor and roof access will do. First job is to clear the building, some form of marking to be left on doors is a good way to insure every room is checked. Spray paint, grease, tape anything you can find. Send a few heavily armed teams through the building separately each one with order to check every room, starting at opposite sides of the building or send them at separate times. The first floor should be open as most warehouses are, any large industrial equipment that can be removed should be done if time permits, all stair access should be blocked or destroyed save one, the thinest or most easily defend able should be saved for normal usage. Now all survivors should begin setting up living quarters on the second floor, use all unnecessary items for barricades or just throw them out a window. Once the building is secure and all useful items handed out or in a commons area, most likely a break room or kitchen.
Step Five: Time for a shopping spree.
After the HQ is throughly examined it's time to go shopping, Wal-mart seems to be the best place to go. Most are now super-centers so they carry a large food selection as well as housewares and most have a sporting goods section so you can get a surplus of firearms and ammo. Now is when having that big truck will come in handy, most large walmart stores are completely devoid of windows just the 2-3 entrances. Back your vehicle up to the doors if you can back all the way in with the butt end inside the first set of doors, this will secure your exit and not allow anything to come in behind you. Do not break the doors with your vehicle any chance of disabling or hindering your transportation is counter productive, if you must just park against the door way with a door lined up to provide access to the store. Once inside you should clear the building throughly, if you secure it now and leave it unaccessible to zombies then every other will be no different then a trip to the store right now. Depending on how many people you've brought shopping jobs should be divided amongst the group after a trip to the sporting goods section to arm everyone. Unless you have 4 or more people with do not split up, how many times does that end badly? Teams of 2 or more at all times. The order of priority should be:
1. Food/water, send the larger team if there is one. Canned foods first, just start scraping everything off the shelves and rush back to the truck, one cart full per survivor will establish a surplus of foodstuffs. Then get all the water you can cram into a few shopping carts, this doesn't have to last a very long time but again a surplus is always best, is time and space permits the foods team can go back for perishable item, fruits, vegetables, breads, meats, and other type stuff. Remember to get junk food too, just because society is crumbling around your head doesn't mean you don't want a snickers bar and a soda.
2. Weapons, remember a lot of the ammo the store has is in the back in a large secured area so grab a set of bolt cutters or a cutting torch if can. Also, guns are great but melee may be necessary so crowbars, bats, rebar, and the like are always good to have on hand. I'll detail the pros and cons of some common weapons later on.
3. Other essentials, stop off at sporting goods again. Sleeping bags, air mattresses, propane stoves, propane, canteens, coolers, and first aid kits to name a few. Imagine you and the other survivors or going camping for a long time, this will be a reality soon enough. Next there will be a bit of running around, gas cans, tools, and other random items will probably be needed soon so grab anything that comes to mind. A lot of this will depend on the situation anyone with medical problems or concerns should be taken care of first, any item that can strengthen a weak spot of your HQ should be picked up if possible.
Step Five: Looking at the long term
Now that you have a store of foodstuffs and water to carry you for a while, and a secure base then you an relax right? No, sadly you still have about 65% of the population that now forms an army of the undead, and help is not coming. This is where the roof access comes into play, over time you should get materials to construct a roof top garden and some form of water collection system, you'll have to research that on your own. Scheduled journeys through your city to “thin the herd” and find other survivors is risky but I think them necessary, you will draw attention to yourself but with a heavy vehicle to get around and armed passengers most encounters should be easy enough. I recommend rigging a P.A. System in the vehicle so you can announce yourself to the surrounding area. Get a map of your town and street by street clear the major areas. Don't try to cover a lot of area in a day crawl along the streets at a few miles an hour, announce every minute or so “Attention survivors, if you can hear this message and would like rescue hang a sign outside of your nearest window, we will return in one hour to communicate and set up for extraction.” Training all of you survivors should be trained with firearms and practice with melee weapons a few times a week. The power will also go out sooner or later so find a few generators and a nearby gas station that can be secured, if the building has a back up generator that's a big plus too, although you may have to get creative on how you fuel it if it's on the ground floor or outside.
Please comment with input and ideas.
Step one:
Determine the extent of the out break, is this local that outside help will hopefully come? Is it the whole Nation/Continent? Will the rest of the world just turtle up and let your country get eaten? If your American then yes, yes they will.
Step two:
Estimate the infection vs. survivor vs. already dead rate. Most movies give us the idea that roughly 70-90% of the population will be dead or turned within 48 hours. Before this time the best thing to do is gather any loved one close by that you can contact and bunker down, something quick will do temporarily, attics are the best as they are hard enough to get up to while alive, intelligent and dexterous. Grab anything in your kitchen to stock up for a few days, do not attempt to gather weapons unless they are inside your house or chosen temporary bunker. Firearms should only be given to those with experience, as ammo will be low and all unnecessary kills will only draw attention. Remember to stay put as much as possible, no light source should be seen outside you as don't really know what type of Zombies your dealing with yet.
Step three:
Once food begins to get low, or the sounds of screaming, cars, and most all other life have stopped you can find your permanent Head Quarters. Do not under any circumstance ration food, I'll repeat that DO NOT RATION FOOD! Let anyone you've got with you eat their fill, but caution them to not over eat running almost sucks worse after a big meal then if you're hungry. Now have your last meal in your bunker and get everyone geared up for the move. You may think that it would be better to do this at night, and you would be wrong. Some movies tell us that zombies can just smell or sense living things so moving at night you've lost your sight and to be honest it's just creepier. Moving in the day will allow you to see what kind of numbers you're dealing with and keep track of your other party members. Depending on the amount of road traffic and your environment a large truck is suggested, second choice would be an SUV, no need to worry about gas prices anymore so the bigger the better. Depending on the situation outside getting to the vehicle should be easy, send one armed scout to check blind spots or other possible problem areas, best to send your most skilled gunner or your fastest runner. Assuming there are no problems getting to the car and getting everyone inside, if you must take two cars that's acceptable, or come back for the others within the day.
Step four: Location, Location, Location.
Your first priority in an HQ is defense, zombies are the best siege style of fighters hell every created, they will continue to push at your walls day and night for months, they do not rest, lose moral, or care whether they succeed or fail they only know to move towards food. Now that I've got you thinking about all that, you need to consider a long term living condition. Any large warehouse, with multiply floor and roof access will do. First job is to clear the building, some form of marking to be left on doors is a good way to insure every room is checked. Spray paint, grease, tape anything you can find. Send a few heavily armed teams through the building separately each one with order to check every room, starting at opposite sides of the building or send them at separate times. The first floor should be open as most warehouses are, any large industrial equipment that can be removed should be done if time permits, all stair access should be blocked or destroyed save one, the thinest or most easily defend able should be saved for normal usage. Now all survivors should begin setting up living quarters on the second floor, use all unnecessary items for barricades or just throw them out a window. Once the building is secure and all useful items handed out or in a commons area, most likely a break room or kitchen.
Step Five: Time for a shopping spree.
After the HQ is throughly examined it's time to go shopping, Wal-mart seems to be the best place to go. Most are now super-centers so they carry a large food selection as well as housewares and most have a sporting goods section so you can get a surplus of firearms and ammo. Now is when having that big truck will come in handy, most large walmart stores are completely devoid of windows just the 2-3 entrances. Back your vehicle up to the doors if you can back all the way in with the butt end inside the first set of doors, this will secure your exit and not allow anything to come in behind you. Do not break the doors with your vehicle any chance of disabling or hindering your transportation is counter productive, if you must just park against the door way with a door lined up to provide access to the store. Once inside you should clear the building throughly, if you secure it now and leave it unaccessible to zombies then every other will be no different then a trip to the store right now. Depending on how many people you've brought shopping jobs should be divided amongst the group after a trip to the sporting goods section to arm everyone. Unless you have 4 or more people with do not split up, how many times does that end badly? Teams of 2 or more at all times. The order of priority should be:
1. Food/water, send the larger team if there is one. Canned foods first, just start scraping everything off the shelves and rush back to the truck, one cart full per survivor will establish a surplus of foodstuffs. Then get all the water you can cram into a few shopping carts, this doesn't have to last a very long time but again a surplus is always best, is time and space permits the foods team can go back for perishable item, fruits, vegetables, breads, meats, and other type stuff. Remember to get junk food too, just because society is crumbling around your head doesn't mean you don't want a snickers bar and a soda.
2. Weapons, remember a lot of the ammo the store has is in the back in a large secured area so grab a set of bolt cutters or a cutting torch if can. Also, guns are great but melee may be necessary so crowbars, bats, rebar, and the like are always good to have on hand. I'll detail the pros and cons of some common weapons later on.
3. Other essentials, stop off at sporting goods again. Sleeping bags, air mattresses, propane stoves, propane, canteens, coolers, and first aid kits to name a few. Imagine you and the other survivors or going camping for a long time, this will be a reality soon enough. Next there will be a bit of running around, gas cans, tools, and other random items will probably be needed soon so grab anything that comes to mind. A lot of this will depend on the situation anyone with medical problems or concerns should be taken care of first, any item that can strengthen a weak spot of your HQ should be picked up if possible.
Step Five: Looking at the long term
Now that you have a store of foodstuffs and water to carry you for a while, and a secure base then you an relax right? No, sadly you still have about 65% of the population that now forms an army of the undead, and help is not coming. This is where the roof access comes into play, over time you should get materials to construct a roof top garden and some form of water collection system, you'll have to research that on your own. Scheduled journeys through your city to “thin the herd” and find other survivors is risky but I think them necessary, you will draw attention to yourself but with a heavy vehicle to get around and armed passengers most encounters should be easy enough. I recommend rigging a P.A. System in the vehicle so you can announce yourself to the surrounding area. Get a map of your town and street by street clear the major areas. Don't try to cover a lot of area in a day crawl along the streets at a few miles an hour, announce every minute or so “Attention survivors, if you can hear this message and would like rescue hang a sign outside of your nearest window, we will return in one hour to communicate and set up for extraction.” Training all of you survivors should be trained with firearms and practice with melee weapons a few times a week. The power will also go out sooner or later so find a few generators and a nearby gas station that can be secured, if the building has a back up generator that's a big plus too, although you may have to get creative on how you fuel it if it's on the ground floor or outside.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
First!
I had this idea a few days ago.
Here's the idea I give a list of items and you get pictures of them. You can either @reply them to me, SteelFox or link to them in the comments. I suppose you can cheat and be a jerk by just copying images but I want them found and taken by you. If you're interested feel free to retweet and tell your friends.
1. Smushed pop can.
2. A picture taken from squirrel point of view.
3. Any mp3 player.
And.... go.
Here's the idea I give a list of items and you get pictures of them. You can either @reply them to me, SteelFox or link to them in the comments. I suppose you can cheat and be a jerk by just copying images but I want them found and taken by you. If you're interested feel free to retweet and tell your friends.
1. Smushed pop can.
2. A picture taken from squirrel point of view.
3. Any mp3 player.
And.... go.
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