Who Will Lead?

Friday! Here we are at the end of the week wondering what the weekend will bring. Well besides M-Ra has an been thinking about what would happen if the leaders of each faction in Warcraft were to die who would take over for them. It is an interesting question and when you think about it could lead to some internal problems. So what were her ideas on who would? Well have a look

If Anduin would die, a noble who is somehow related by blood the the House of Wrynn and has the most power and supporters on his hands would claim the Throne. As long as Jaina Proudmoore is not somehow related to the Wrynns (which could totally be. In real-life monarchic Europe, many royal families were somehow related to each other) she would have no claim for the Throne of Stormwind. Stormwind is still a monarchy. 

With the Council of three Hammers cone, Magni would take the Throne of Ironforge again, if he is not there Brann would probably the regent of the Bronzebeard while Dagran is still a child, while the most powerful or trusted Dark Iron would be Dagrans regent on Dark Iron side. Kurdran would probably take over the wildhammer clans again.

With Gelbin gone, the Gnomes would vote their best as their new King.

For the Night Elves, it could be that the military takes over and Shandris becomes the new Leader. Otherwise, the Temple of Elune would vote a new Priestess as their High Priestess and she would become Leader of Darnassus, probably with the most high ranking elvish Druid of the Cenarion Circle. I think Broll would take over the Circle and would become the Co-Leader of Darnassus.

With Velen gone, I think the Triumvirate of the Hand of Argus would take the leadership of the Draenei. It don't looks like they still have their System of Exarchs like they had on Draenor.

If Genn dies, Tess would be the next in the line of sucess, maybe with Darius Crowley as Regent-Lord if Tess has no experience.

If the Pandaren Leader would die, probably the best monks after them would take over.

If Saurfang dies, Eitrigg could be the next Leader of the Orcs, or a battle for leadership starts under the most powerful Orcs.

After Vol'jin, Rokhan could become the next Leader of Darkspears, after Vol'jin has no heir.

After Baine, the Tauren Tribes would probably vote for a new High Chieftain under the Chieftains. I think Hamuul Runetotem would be a logical candidate.

Without Sylvanas, I think Nathanos Blightcaller would be the new Leader of the Forsaken. He is Sylvanas most trusted Champion and was her personal student in Lifetime. Lilian Voss isn't a Member of the Forsaken.

I think if Lor'themar dies, Halduron or Rommath would take over regency. Probably Halduron,after he is the Ranger-General and was Lor'themars best friend.

If Gallywix dies, the battle about who becomes the next merchant prince would start. The most powerful would take the Throne.

Well what do you think? And what do you think the fallout would be? As always thank you to everyone who sent something in it could not be possible without all of you taking part.

Enjoy your weekend!

Game of C'thun

So like most people who play Hearthstone I was all excited to get into the new expansion this week. There are new cards and of course there will be a new meta which will have to establish itself. Until then though it seems like every game is about who gets their C'thun buffed and out first.

Now I know what you are all thinking. It has been out for 2 days and you shouldn't think too much about it. People just want to see their new cards in action and everyone who logged in got themselves a new shiny C'Thun to play with. Just imagine if when Hearthstone came out everyone got the same legendary minion. It would have been the same thing. It just so happens C'Thun happens to be a game changing type card if played correctly within your deck. One thing also to remember you can have horrible luck and he may be stuck at the bottom of your deck and you don't get a chance to play.

People will adapt and get used to how these things play. Also people will get more cards and work themselves into new patterns and new strategies. Just as of now just know what the game is all about right now and don't take out your frustration on it as it is. 

Rally Ho

Happy Wednesday everyone. Here I was just sitting around thinking what the list would be about this week when I remembered how fun town and cities in games can be. Now there is different types of towns there are the ones which are always fun to visit or there are the ones which are iconic. This week going to with the ones which are just always fun to visit. So let's see the choices.

5. Tibetan Village - Uncharted 2

So before it comes under siege and actually even after this tiny village up in the Himalayan mountains is just a great place to walk around and feel at home. The people although you have no idea what they are saying love to chat and spend some time with.

4. Goron City - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

So this little town is full of bomb loving adorable Gorons. How could anyone not love this place? It may have been some time since I may have visited the city but that doesn't mean I can't remember it like yesterday

3. Dalaran - World of Warcraft

So there are many amazing cities in WoW, but none of them are as fun or have as many things to do as Dalaran. I really wish there was more cities like this in Azeroth and beyond, but then Dalaran wouldn't feel the same.

2. SimCity -SimCity

This is probably cheating, but your city can be whatever it is you want it to be. It can even be a nuclear wasteland if you so choose. Anything possible you can make it.

1. Conde Petie - Final Fantasy IX

Rally-Ho! There are tons of things that just makes you smile and laugh. That being the names of the townsfolk or the way they it is just fun to read the text and you wish it would be remade so it could be voice acted. There is just way too much to love about this tiny little town.

There you have it this week's list. What do you think are the most fun places to visit in gaming? As always let me know one way or another.

You Fail At Developing Good Lore If...

Fail Day! Yes here we are on yet another Tuesday ready to see who is going to be poked up of this week. While the title kind of explains it some people may not be smart enough to figure it out until I start writing. Also some people may not even read the titles I put so much time and effort into thinking up and you people should feel bad. So ya now I am just going to get on with it.

You Fail At Developing Good Game Lore If...

• The community boards are full of questions without any real answers
• Everything players conclude is speculation
• Your players skip dialogue because it just leads to more confusion
• Players know more about the combat system then the story
• The number one game request is a rewind button
• You ignore everything that happened in previous games when you develop a new one
• There is no real reason for the hero doing anything
• The games story finishes exactly where you started
• Every time you expect answers you are left with more questions which are the opposite of your previous questions
• Your answers to players questions use the word "magic"
• You often confuse yourself while writing story
• You think the ending twist to the movie "Signs" made sense

And Finally

• When someone  beats the game they truly have no idea what the purpose was

There you have it this week's edition of fail. Hope you all enjoyed it in some way or another. Maybe even while discussing some game lore cluelessly, but that might be just a little too ironic, don't you think?

Oldie But Goodie

So it is Monday, and yes I always showcase some sort of video gaming related to get everyone in the swing of things. This week I felt like going back to an Oldie, but a Goodie in Boom De Yada the WoW version. Just brings back some good memories provided by Irdeen. Enjoy!



Now you can start the day off right.

Ask Gauss

Sunday and not just any Sunday. It is the Sunday which brings back Game of Thrones to the masses. Now that has nothing to do with gaming, but it has everything to do with the good of mankind. Before everyone pays attention to that though it is time to answer some questions for the week so here we go.

So do you think we will see another Game of Thrones game?

I am not sure. I will say I wasn't overly impressed with the first game. Not that it was a bad game, but Game of Thrones in my mind requires more connection to the main players. The game although certain characters made an appearance they didn't play a major role in the story itself so you felt disconnected. So maybe if they find a way to do that we may see another game. If not then I don't think we will.

Why do you feel players seem to copy builds from professionals in Heroes of the Storm and are all over people when they don't?

Well pros know what they are doing, and their builds do work and usually are specific to their team compositions and who they are playing with. If those conditions aren't in place those specific builds may be not of any benefit to the everyday players games. This is what I think a lot of people don't think about. See it all the time in Starcraft II when a lower level player trys a build a pro with next level micro does and wonders why it doesn't work. With everything the same yes, if not then don't expect the same result.

So you playing Legion?

Gauss will be ready.

There they are the questions for the week. Hopefully they were of some use. Enjoy Game of Thrones tonight just like I will.

What Is The Nexus?

Friday. Yes here we are at the end of the week wondering what the plan is for our weekends. Besides the obvious and that is watching Game of Thrones on Sunday. Before you get to the weekend though it is time to see what is up for the Reader Post this week. Well Surge has an interesting take on "The Nexus" you know that place that exists in Heroes of the Storm. Now I just think it is a random place and has no real story, but that doesn't mean others don't think too much about it. So have a read and tell me what you think.

It's a Valhalla, where fierce warriors are sent after their death, to enjoy combat for all eternity.

Not being brought to the Nexus physically; but for all things, there is an essence. The prime and lesser evils all expired at some point, and although the were reborn, a fragment of their essence was likely pulled into the Nexus realm.

Raynor was seen in the tutorial, getting ambushed by a crapload of zerg. Right before he died, he was conveniently teleported to the Nexus...

Right?

What if those were his final moments before, oh, I don't know.. A hydralisk spine pierced his helmet?

Tychus remembers being killed by Raynor, heard when he kills Kerrigan, "There's nobody to stop me this time"

Murky's home was destroyed, and he just HAPPENED to be the sole survivor? Or was he just the bravest Murloc in the village? Chosen by the gods to do battle for eternity.

The Lost Vikings were last (un)seen lost in a desert, then suddenly fell off a massive cliff. Olaf recalls waking from a nap. Falling millions of feet and you only fall unconscious? Ehhh, I don't know. 

Johanna disappeared without a trace, and left behind her favorite shield and flail, which means she was unarmed. Perhaps she was assassinated in her sleep? For Johanna it is purely speculation, but it does seem fishy that she was brought to the Nexus without her titular equipment. 

All of these heroes died or will die at some point, and have been called to the realm of the Nexus to battle for glory and honor in the afterlife. However, not all heroes were cut down in their prime.

Heroes called to the Nexus are brought back to their prime time of vigor and strength. Tyrael? He's fighting in his angelic form.

Actually, Tyrael, Diablo, and Azmodan are all assuming the form they had when they were first slain.

Makes sense.

So what are you thoughts? Completely insane or has some merit? As always let me hear it. Enjoy your weekend.

The Art Of Gaming

Happy there are still a few days to go till Game of Thrones starts day. So while we are all trying to distract ourselves by what occupying our time not thinking about that I have something that really doesn't get talked about much and really doesn't get the appreciation it always deserves. What is that you ask? Well that is the art of the games we know and love.

You see I have always been a fan of concept pieces companies release after the fact. How they got the ideas for specific worlds and their inspiration for them. It is like someone's imagination coming to life. Seeing how one became another is really something to appreciate. Also how the game designers can take one persons vision of the world in their eyes and make it "real".

This can also be seen through the designs of armor and weapons. Sure sometimes we get out of this world weapons which are still awesome like the Buster Sword. There are also ones where you get a culmination of ideas that just create a masterpiece as in something like Frostmourne. The ideas which are words and random ideas coming to life are to me something special.

Music and theme is something I also think is extremely underated especially know since everything is voice acted. The music still tells a story in modern games, but it isn't as focused on as much because tone of voice is something which can be used. Now we can relate the music to the person rather than the other way around. Also think this is why it is not as appreciated as much as it once was, but I would never discount how important it is to the tone of the game.

So what am I saying? Well next time you are gaming appreciate everything that is around you and what it brings to the games you know and love. Something which seems so simple is beyond important to the tone of everything involved into what you are playing. It really is what is making the game so never forget that.

Why Do You Believe That?

Wednesday, middle of the week which means it is time to make a list about a random topic for the week. So what is the topic this week? Well I figured I would go with the best plot twists in video games, mostly because I have been on a plot twist kick lately. Oh and obviously spoilers.

5. You Killed Your Wife - Silent Hill 2

So you go through the story and trying to find your wife and all that jazz. When you find out that not only was she killed, but you were the one responsible

4.  Aiden Is Your Twin - Beyond Two Souls

So you are enjoying your super powers going through the story and finding out exactly what is going on in the past present and future. When near the end you find out not only were you born in a secret facility run by the CIA, but that you had a stillborn twin brother who is the result of your super powers.

3. Scott Shelby Is the Origami Killer - Heavy Rain

So no one saw this coming. It was so neatly and weirdly intertwined that it was pure genius. Even replaying trying to find clues leads you no where.

2.  Would You Kindly - Bioshock

In what amounts to one of those phrases that changes when you know the context of it. Kind of like "For the Watch". This is a massive and disturbing reveal that I doubt anyone really saw coming.

1. You Are Darth Revan - Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic

So you hear about these awful things that have happened and how this evil guy was responsible. You hear about this over and over again until you find out the evil guy is in fact you.

There you have it this week's list all nice and pretty for you. What do you all think are the best gaming plot twists? Let me know one way or another.

You Fail At Plot Twists If...

Fail Day! Yes it is here and I am ready. Well at least I think I am ready. How about you? Are you ready for the twists and turns when you never know what is going to happen next. Well you kind of know what is going to happen. I am going to make some people feel awful, some hang their heads in shame, and then a bunch of you laugh. How though is the question. So let the fail be so with how you can do so with Plot Twists of the gaming variety

You Fail At Plot Twists If...

• You think it was all a dream is a good one
• You have an R.L. Stine reading level
• Even Bagellord saw it coming
• You think Call of Duty has had some of the best
• You have problems with controller rage
• You have a knack for getting overly attached to characters
• You have trouble with poor decisions
• You expect gamers to ignore half the plot disproving your twist
• You have trouble understanding complex story telling
• You read reviews containing spoilers
• You pay no attention to in-game dialogue
• You have the ability to blurt out anything important storywise to a game to anyone and everyone who may or may not play a game.

And Finally

• No one takes your game serious enough to know something was a twist

There you have it this week's edition of Fail. Hope you all enjoyed it if you were a victim or otherwise. You may now continue on with your day.

Beheading Out To Quest

So it is Monday and we are in the home stretch when we realize that it is less than 1 week to the new season of Game of Thrones. So what better way to distract us on how hard these next days are going to be then enjoying some Carbot in the for of WoWCraft. Enjoy!



Exactly my thoughts on beheading quests.

Ask Gauss

Sunday! Yes, the weekend is almost over and you really haven't done much of anything. So why change? Just sit back and see what questions I am answering this week. Yep, let's get right to it.

What game do you think has the worst controls?

Well I would say Lair almost every day of the week, but then this past week recently saw the controls for using a controller on the original Magicka. How has anyone ever used those? Honestly, at least Lair's made sense even if they didn't translate well at all in game. Why do you endlessly have to make circles on a controller when you could just push a button. Like on a mouse of keyboard.

Do you really think Uncharted 4 is going to be the last game?

I think it will be the last game, which is going to be centred around Nathan Drake as the main character. I think and also hope for the chance to play a prequel game where we can get into Sully's story. Mostly because we really don't know too much about him. I wouldn't hate it if eventually the series is brought back with Drake's children, because I enjoy the series as a whole. Just think it would be a great wrap up to the story if we knew how everything began.

Game of Thrones not that far away.

Not gaming related but very good point.

There you have it questions done for the week. Hope you all got something out of it or at least it was only a marginal waste of time.

Is Sylvanas Depressed?

Friday. Yes here we are at the end of the week wondering what the weekend is going to bring us. Now I was reading through a bunch of Reader Posts which I was going to pick when I came across this one by Snowraven who has an interesting take on Sylvanas. So sit back and maybe these points will make you think.

Now, at first I thought it's probably not true, but then I stood to think more. What if Sylvanas acts the way she does because she's lonely and depressed?

I mean, think about it:

• her sister Alleria disappeared during WC2. She was not found in the Burning Crusade anywhere.
• She was made a banshee by Arthas and forced to kill her people, friends, family. 
• When she managed to free herself, the feeling that controlled her most was revenge but she saw how humans, blood elves (at that time) disliked her and looked at her like at a freak 
• She was so lonely she made friends with a dreadlord (who later betrayed her), well, ok, she forced him to be her friend. 
• She did want revenge but saw how the forsaken are also shunned by their people, their former friends and family, like she was, so she made a faction with them and made an alliance of need with the Horde. Because she wanted friends too and Thrall offered to be friends. But the forsaken were still treated with mistrust and seen as outcasts. 
• Later on she played a vital part in rescuing the blood elves and inserting them into the Horde as surely her sisters and brothers would understand her, right? But they didn't really, they just saw her as some sort of freak and when she asked for help in her plight to Northrend, Loth'remar first refused her, she had to coerce them into helping her. Why didn't anyone want to help her she wondered? 
• She made the idea of a plague to finish the Scourge but have it ready to be used against others who would attack her and her forsaken and befriended an apothecary named Farnell who had found an anti-plague but even he betrayed her and ousted her from her city, treating her like a meaningless junk. 
• In the end, after WotLK, her final goal in life was done. She had killed the one that brought her to this state, now she could finally rest as there was no reason for her to remain alive so she tried to kill herself as she was now depressed, having no point in life. 
• She saw what awaits her in the afterlife and started feeling fear, in the end it would just be her, alone, cold, in a void of darkness and her pets, those she bunched up together after she thought they felt the same, wiped out by Garrosh. 
• She came back, but Garrosh forced her to obey him and attack Gilneas. Still, she started raising new friends from graves, but it wasn't really the same. Some of them even betrayed her again and shot her. 
• She became paranoid when Koltira made friends with Thassarian, what if another would leave her? And this time a blood elf too, who should understand her! So being scared at the thought she dragged him to have a chat with him, so that he'd never leave her. 
• During the War Crimes novel she reunited with her sister Veressa and was so happy! Finally someone whom she loved! She would feel happy and loved again, and she would ensure Veressa would never leave her and they'd lead the forsaken together like best sisters forever! She'd only have to kill her and raise her as forsaken and all would be amazing again! 
• But Veressa betrayed her too. Sylvanas was so angry and depressed, she just went to kill animals as she could no longer even cry and she felt so much rage at how lonely she was. 

Think about it? What if the whole "tough spiteful bitch" is actually just a façade and she's just lonely and depressed and she uses the façade to hide that. And she's become so lonely and depressed that she's psychotic, willing to kill others to have friends, willing to force others to be her friends as her pets and constructs are loyal, not like the living?

There you have it this week's Reader Post. What did you think? Is it possible? Guess Legion will tell the tale.

Login

So it is Thursday so it is about the time in the week where something has pissed me off to the point where I need to rant about it. What is it this week you ask? Well really it is how I have to login and signup for something and everything now. No matter where I want to game computer or console or even on my phone I have to sign in to my specific account by the specific company in order to get access.

Now don't even me wrong I know why these things exist. I after all went to University for encryption I am not an idiot when it comes to this stuff. Now it is everyone has there own app for everything. To showcase everything they make or want to sell. It has become never ending. I actually looked at the space all of these apps for the sake of connecting a companies game take up on my system and it is kind of insane. I know I know companies have a right to do this, but now every time I am logged into one of these services I am being sold on why I should by something else from such and such a company. It really is becoming next level.

Not to mention I assume some people are smart and don't use the same passwords for everything. I stopped counting when I got to 8 different companies apps I have passwords for, and this is just the gaming companies services. This is putting people in spots where they have to use same passwords and that is never a good option for anything. All of this for the sake of making sure you know what company you are playing your games from or what game I have no interest is coming out with an expansion, or what game no one wants to play is in open beta, or guess what it is free to play this game this weekend, and don't forget the game you have no connection to is on sale you better blast that on my screen so I can get into fits of angry closing the damn ad.

So yes I may be in a rage fit right now writing this, but that doesn't change the point I will make once I have chilled out a bit. This whole connect with our games through our app crap is getting old. I get you want to connect your games and want your players to be apart of the community. If that is all it is great, but if you are trying to force feed because it is the perfect opportunity to do so well then please give it a rest.

Here We Go

Wednesday seems to have come out of nowhere, but that doesn't mean that it is time to slack and not think of a list for the week. When coming up for a topic for this week's list I had a lot of ideas, but some just kept popping in the last few weeks that I have finally decided to do. What is it you ask? Well the best spinoff video games. So here they are.

5. Demon's Crest

So Ghosts N Goblins is a love hate relationship in the gaming world. Mostly because of the "ending" that really isn't an ending. That didn't stop us from getting to know Firebrand though on our SNES when we got the chance to play along with the red devil.

4. Donkey Kong Country

So in the 80s there was this game where DK was the bad guy and we had to be dodge masters. Most of you probably know nothing about it. Without this introduction we never would have got this great game and series we all love.

3. Final Fantasy Tactics

So we all know Final Fantasy. Opinions or not about the series you know it. This is one of the most influential series of all time. So in the late 90s there was this spinoff in the form of tactics which focused more on specific strategy of classes. A game to this day which is incredibly well received.

2. Portal Series

Portal is a Spinoff? Yes it is. Of Half-Life no less. Some would argue that Portal Series itself now has surpassed Half-Life in every way. Was really hard for me and my love of the series to not throw this in at number 1.

1. Mario Kart Series

Is this really a surprise? Mario Kart is known as one of the greatest series of all time it really is important to remember it is a spinoff of another amazing series. Blue shells aside it is always a fun and exciting thing to get into.

There you have it this week's list all wrapped up for you. What do you all think? Any you believe should have been included? As always let me know one way or another.

You Fail At Telling Gaming Stories If..

Fail Day! Yes here we are again sitting back and waiting to see what is the topic of the week for my feel good post. Well that is unless you are on the receiving end then it really isn't that feel good at all. This week I decided to go with a nostalgic type post, which is when you are telling people about games you have played and what you have done. So here goes.

You Fail At Telling Gaming Stories If...

• You don't know the first game you beat and how
• You have never beaten a game
• You don't have at least one segmant of a game that turned out to be your nemesis
• You can't explain a step by step strategy to beat a particular boss
• You have never played a Souls game
• You don't have a Blue Shell rage story
• You have never played Diablo Hardcore
• You haven't played online with a 12 year old chirping your mother
• You don't have a Black War Bear
• You have never been in a group when I was the leader
• You have never topped a leaderboard
• You have never been the bottom feeder on a leaderboard
• You have never start a story "out of nowhere"
• You never blamed Novicane
• You have never been to a midnight launch

And Finally

• You have no interesting stories

There you have it this week's edition of Fail. Hope you all enjoyed it in one way or another. Go forth and make new memories to tell another day.

Reaping Rewards

Monday! New week, new things to do, new things to put off until next week. Before we get to all that though it is time to start the week out right with a nice showcase video. This week I decided to go with the new episode of Starcrafts courtesy of Carbot Animations. Have a watch and enjoy.



So isn't everything all better now?

Ask Gauss

Sunday, and the first Sunday in awhile without Walking Dead, but no worries Game of Thrones is on its way soon enough. There are other things to do on Sunday though, one of them being checking out what questions I am answering this week. So why don't we get right to that.

So what do you think of the Heroes Weekend?

I think it is a great opportunity to show off the game and to allow players to play some heroes in actual games they are thinking about. It is like a free week hero to the maximum. The XP bonus also allows players to get these heroes to level 5 as quickly as possible so players can hop right into Hero League. I really think Blizzard wants players to get into Hero League and shy away from quick match for the most part. This lets their Matchmaking system work to the best of it's ability.

So they have known the Final Fantasy XV release date of over 2 years, why just tell us now?

Well I think this is the way most games are. They have an objective and they work towards it. Things can change over time and instead of changing the date again and again they keep it to themselves till they know for sure. Just think of all the outcry that happens when companies change release dates. It is not like all of us gamers so "good for you, take your time we can wait". No it is more like "Do your job and release it when you said you will or I will never buy a game from you all again." So it the companies mind it is just a safer bet to wait.

Whispers of the Old Gods seems very RNG no?

That is the point, I believe.

There they are questions all answered. Thank you to everyone who has sent one in, this would not be possible without all of your contributions. Now you have my permission to enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Simple Fixes

Friday! Yes how exciting that the weekend is here and we will be off doing what we do on weekend things. Before we get into weekend mode though Bluelightnin has something to have on our minds for the weekend. These would be his opinions on simple improvements which would add a lot to the game.

I love Heroes of the Storm. In fact, I would say it's my favorite game since Warcraft 3... and that's my favorite game of all time. However, there are some glaring issues that everyone talks about which hold this game back from being the force it could be. I mean, it really should be a phenomenon and it isn't. Having thought about the problems, here are the solutions I've finally come up with and hope Blizzard will use to make this game much better.

Rank
In this game, one bad play late in the game by a stranger can cause your rank to go down. And sure, it's not that big of a deal except when you have an unlucky streak of bad teams for like 3, 4, 5 games straight. It happens. The problem is then that your rank is more associated with a grind than with actual skill. The hardest part about changing this problem is that it's nearly impossible to judge your skill via any algorithm that can determine how good you really are. 

I discovered the solution while watching an Overwatch video. At the end of each match, players vote on good plays by all the players on each of the teams. I'm thinking that in Hero League, not Team League, players should be allowed to upvote 3 players and downvote 3 players at the end of the match. If you get a certain percentage of upvotes, you either go up in rank (win) or lose less rank (loss). If you get a certain percentage of downvotes, you either gain less rank (win) or lose more rank (loss). You wouldn't be allowed to vote for yourself, but you could upvote 3 and downvote 3 players from both teams. I think this would make a HUGE difference in preventing the frustration that is having your rank based totally on wins and losses that you have 1/5th control over at most.

Now, before you say this would be manipulated/scammed/cheated/etc, please tell me how. I've thought it through and I just can't see the method for how to cheat this system. Even if you're with a partner, you can only vote for each other once, and that's not enough to do anything. Best of all, that toxic player or two, they're going to de-rank to the bowels of hero league hell. 

Spending Change
Most of the purchases in HotS are big chunks of gold or dollars. Usually the lowest is like $4.00. That leads to a long slog and feels like a slow progression. I suggest that Blizzard add some small purchases so that players can constantly buy new additions so they are always upgrading (think Rocket League). So what could we spend small amounts of money and gold on (think 50 gold or $0.25)???

Music
How about we get access to hundreds of Blizzard game background music files. We can purchase them in the store for small amounts of gold or change, and they're then downloaded to our HotS account so that we can pick to listen to them or listen to all the ones we've downloaded randomly while we're waiting in the loading screen. I want to play the Undercity theme on Tomb of the Spider Queen, and I want to do it in the program.

Kill Candy
How about in addition to mounts and skins, we now also get to pick a Kill Candy for our heroes. You can rename the feature to anything, I don't care. Basically, maybe when I kill someone I want confetti to explode. Or maybe I want fireworks. Or maybe I want a wolf to howl. You could do tons of these very easily and people would happily pay for them. I would love to play as Stitches and every time I kill someone a little RIP gravestone pops up where they died for a few seconds. And since these are not a big money thing, only allow them to be purchaseable for heroes above level 10.

Poses
Tracer's issues aside, people would likely drop a $0.50 to buy poses for their heroes when they're selected in draft and after a win in the game. They're paying ten bucks for skins, so why not buy an inexpensive pose that really shows it off?

Classifications
I get that you want to keep the simple Tank/Assassin/Support/Specialist, but can you at least just put a division for each of those categories so newer players can figure this out? If we could divide them in two, that would help so much in so many ways:

1) Warrior = A) Tank or B) Bruiser
2) Assassin = A) Sustained or B) Burst
3) Support = A) Healer or B) Auxiliary
4) Specialist = A) Siege or B) Utility

Well, before I keep going on and on these are my ideas please feel free to provide constructive criticism.

There it is this week's Reader Post. What do you think? Would these be improvements or just someone reaching to change things that don't need to be changed. Enjoy your weekend

We Deserve Real Endings

So here I am looking to rant about something although I already know what I am trying not to rant about. Obviously cliffhangers have been on my mind the last few days. There are good and bad ways to do it. I think the best cliffhangers are the ones where they don't actually have to be a cliffhanger. For example, I think the way The Last of Us ends is great.

Sure it leaves something open where it could continue, but if it ended there it would still be wrapped up. You can decide for yourself how it ended. I think any time you leave yourself with a cliffhanger this is the way it should be done. People can interpret it the way they want, think what they want, and if you want to continue with your story then people can see if they were right.

The bad way? Forcing people to continue to see the ending they put the time in, not having a real ending at all, making people think they got the ending they deserve, or not sure how you wanted it to end so give an ending where you can have more time to decide on what you actually will do. All of these ways are a slap in the face to fans.

These are the people you rely on to make your games a success and you slap them in the face with your endings based solely on your future bottom line. These are the things which need to be avoided, and we as consumers should never be quiet about.

So yes this whole ranting week started because of the stupid Walking Dead ending, but it also has made me realize how angry I get when this type of thing happens in the games I love. We deserve real endings and not ones that drive sales.

We Are All Books Containing Thousands Of Pages

So this week seems to have a theme. What is it you may ask? Well Cliffhangers. So when coming to games what games have the worst cliffhangers? Well that is what this week's list is all about, so why don't we get right to it.

5. Mass Effect 2

So a fleet of Reapers are heading towards the Milky Way so basically every mission you have completed in the first couple days has lead to the events of the next game. It is an obvious attempt to bring you to the third game and not one based on your enjoyment of the previous 2.

4. Final Fantasy XIII-2

So you go through time correct all these mistakes and the happy music starts playing and everything is good in the world. Oh wait no! Sera dies and the world is destroying itself so it is almost as if everything you did during the game had no purpose. So ya have fun playing the 3rd game if you want an sort of ending. 

3. Half Life 2

So Aylx's father is killed right in front of you and we are left waiting and waiting for Half Life 3, which no one knows if and when it will ever happen even though the gaming public has been asking Valve for it for years on end.

2. Metal Gear Solid(Pick Which Game)

Every game in the series is supposed supposed to tie into the next. Every game though tends to angry me as the story just doesn't end and wrap up nicely. It is tied directly to the next game.

1. Assassin's Creed 

So the first time I played this I didn't even realize this was the ending. You just stare at a wall and wonder what you are supposed to do next. It is beyond frustrating, and an obvious attempt to hook you on to the next game so you are not permanently in the twilight zone.


There it is this week's list. Do you have a game whose cliffhanger ending just pissed you off that I didn't include. Well you know what to do let me know one way or another.

You Fail At Cliffhangers If...

Fail Day! Yes it is Tuesday, don't act like you didn't know it is the sole reason you are here. So then what is the topic? Well if you can read the title it is pretty easy if not then you are probably still angry like the rest of the world with the Walking Dead cliffhanger we have been left with to deal with till October. There are some of the same problems with people and gaming so let's get on with it.

You Fail At Cliffhangers If...

• You replay the ending again and again in hopes that some how it would change
• Upon completion you just head to the forums and complain
• You comment on forum threads and write your own ending
• You create a cliffhanger because you know the sequel is going to bomb and need a reason for people to buy it
• You have no other storytelling device
• You don't actually create a sequel and leave people with nothing
• You are not the most patient person in the world
• You have OCD issues
• You tend to have attention span issues when comes to games
• You hate making your own choices in regards to interpretation
• You have attachment issues with characters
• You like the "it was all just a dream" scenario 

And Finally

• You are Valve

There you have it this week's edition of Fail. Hope you all enjoyed it and maybe just maybe struggle a little less in the future.

Brotherhood Final Fantasy XV

Monday. Yes it is here and I know many of you are not only sad that the weekend is over, but are still recovering for yesterday's Walking Dead finale. So while all that is going on you are still here waiting to see what I will be showcasing this week. For that you may not be aware that Square Enix is releasing a series of episodes to introduce Final Fantasy XV. If you have not watched it here is the first episode.



So what do you think?

Ask Gauss

Sunday! Not to mention Walking Dead Finale Day. So while you are distracting yourself from that and waiting to see what Neegan and crew are going to be up to you came here. I feel special that my questions and answers mean that much to you. So here goes

So with April Fools come and gone, what was your gaming favourite?

I always enjoy the WoW patch notes there is always something in there for everyone. Being poking fun at broken abilities, laughing at pop culture references, or just at design mistakes they have made in the past. I always read them and can think of friends that would enjoy each and every aspect of it. Not to mention the jabs that always are given to Pallys.

So we have a Final Fantasy XV release date. Good timing?

I actually like the September 30th release date. It is the type of game I will want to spend some time on so having it come out when the weather is getting colder and there is less and less reason to be outside makes for good planning. Also it isn't conflicting with any other releases that I will be playing so everything in my mind is on the up and up. I just wished they would have given it to us sooner then I wouldn't have been thinking again that it wasn't coming out this year.

Is Daryl Dead?

Well not as of writing this.

There they are the questions for the week. Hope you all got something out of it in one way or another. Now sit back and enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Is Azeroth Already Done For

Friday! Meaning it is time for me to go through all of the posts sent in and make a decision. This week I went with Mace's post which relates directly to the Warcraft Chronicle and if Azeroth itself is already corrupted. Have a read and let me know what you think.

I mean the nascent titan-soul ... from the old gods.

We know the Titans are victorious over the old gods before they get to corrupt the world soul - but knowing Chris Metzen, do you want to bet after everything happens, she's still going to end up corrupt? The man doesn't seem to miss an opportunity for great catastrophe to happen to generate a new set of drama, especially on what would appear to be possible victory. Creates a situation where you are hoping your efforts succeeded, but it's not clear. When the the reveal finally comes to confirm, the thing you feared is what happened - and he does that 10/10. Still that's just me guessing.

From what you've read so far, what do you think?

Titan's kill Y'shraaj - but his corpse remain keep on corrupting, even Ra-den gathering his heart and locking it away seems to leave an option open for restoration back to life for Y'shraaj or corruption spreading even further.

The tendrils have sunk too deep into the earth to be removed completely - even if a titan is dead or contained - they have shown that the things can still continue to corrupt.

Yogg-saron's prison has been weakened enough for him to affect and control all the keepers for Millennia till we get to Ulduar and kill him, if he was strong enough to corrupt them millennia ago, part of me thinks or at least wonders whether he hasn't already got to Azeroth.

Same with C'Thun and we know their tentacles were deep in place for a long long time before we killed them, does that mean those remains are continuing deeper and deeper to corrupt?

Finally, N'zoth - no word from what he has done all these millennia, and if he other two's prison was weakened, it sounds like his would have been the most damaged if the land broke apart and sunk to the bottom of the ocean. Also it sounds now more likely that it was he who directed the naga's birth.

The emerald dream is affected by Yogg Saron at first, this is the titan-world soul's dream. Fandral's foolish efforts may have made all that effort be for nothing. Azeroth's soul is now receiving a nightmare. I'm also not sure how it has continued without Yogg-Saron , and after all the efforts of Stormrage - how has both Xavius and the nightmare returned...?

Is the nightmare now been controlled by the legion and not the old gods? to what end? I thought the idea was to destroy Azeroth not corrupt her?

So what do you think? Agree with Mace? Think about it while you enjoy your weekend!