New Year incoming

While being tired, just a short post.
I haven't forgotten about Another Story, but have been busy these past days without being in the mood to type without a real topic.

At last, a friend finally managed to bring over his keyboard so I could start setting up my old/his new Computer.
His PC broke ages ago, leaving him with the pitiful and nearly broken netbook of one of his flat-sharing mates.
Now I'm going to sell him my old PC, too many spare parts left after upgrading.

My Ultramarines-DVD arrived two days ago, and I love it. The Steelbook is nice, the Graphic Novel cleared up the things I pointed out as unclear and so on.

I'm finally over my illness, can talk and even sing again, though I still feel like having something inside my throat. Well, it's winter.
It just annoys me that I killed almost one whole package of tissue-packs during that awful week. Bought new ones, arranged them nicely on my shelf and then watched them go down in masses.

Christmas gave me a new Desk, which was completely necessary.
End of November my old table broke, which I got second hand anyway.
The massive Stone-plate plus all the stuff on it were just too much for the rusty metal part holding the chosen height.
The Desk shouldn't have been in store before the 27th, but wickedly, they already sold it on the 23rd, and I was busy building it up til late at night due to cleaning and having to drive the screws manually.

Christmas was - wonder, oh wonder - Dorama-less.
Actually kinda nice and relaxing, though a bit boring.

Now I'm sitting here on my new desk, drinking Strawberry Milk and watching Anime while thinking about the last months, that troublesome year and all these things.
I am not going to visit anybody tonight;
having an individual taste in music and not drinking alcohol really can be annoyances sometimes.

My flat is a mess right now, due to all these orders I didn't manage to get rid of the packages yet, the soon-to-be-sold-PC + Screen take up some space while the old table blocks a part of the room...
I didn't make it for new year, eh? But nevermind, I'll get rid of it soon enough...

Reading progresses slowly; about half of The First Heretic is done, but I didn't seem to progress since I got sick.


So yeah, I've been busy.
And I finally found some time to catch up on some Anime shows I've been neglecting.
Finished Ika Musume last weekend, just one more arc of Amagami SS to go, Shiki will end for me once night falls.
Got shocked by Yosuga no Sora episode 4, btw.
Watched 1-3 after their respective releases by UTW, but just now when CoalGirls released the first 4 BD episodes, I decided to go on.
This show turned into some serious hentai, eh?

Now enough, I want to play some games now.
Later~

Christmas on Another Story! More Game-Giveaways!

Alright, yesterday's giveaway was for a good cause,
this time it's because of Christmas!

I collected all these indie games over the past months. I didn't pay much and bought them for gifting.
Which occassion may be more fitting than Christmas Eve?

Namely, I have one of each of these games to gift:


Beat Hazard
Welcome to a new experience in gameplay mechanics: Beat Hazard
Gameplay Powered by YOUR Music!
Experience your music collection like never before with this intense music driven arcade shooter. Each of your songs will have its own unique ebb and flow based on the music.
Power up your spaceship and watch as the music boosts your firepower. Unleash hell on the enemy ships when you max out with weapon pickups!
Beat Hazard seamlessly mixes the love of gaming and music. Together they become greater than the sum of their parts.

AaAaAA!!!
BASE jump through a floating city, creating your own stunts to delight your fans.
You dive off a skyscraper, relying on quick reflexes to negotiate the intricate tangle of girders that make up the floating city. All eyes are on you as the judges mark your score. One hundred points for hugging those exposed struts as you fall. A thousand for planting a kiss on the side of that building. Twisting and turning, you thread the needle between two billboards, earning cheers from your fans.

Shatter
Shatter is a retro-inspired brick-breaking game that merges familiar action with unique twists and a modern crafted production approach.



DogFighter
DogFighter is a fast paced, arcade aerial combat game with arena style gameplay values. Players can compete against up to 15 opponents in 4 multiplayer modes, or go solo in 7 single player game modes, using beefed up biplanes sporting over 20 different offensive and defensive weapons...
... and that’s just the start.

What you need to do?
Write a comment under this post!
Tell me why you want to get the game you desire, link me to your Steam-Profile
(I'm not giving help on creating one!)
And, most of all, I want to read your NAME on the comment. I won't give them away to anonymous posters!

Good luck, guys, and Merry Christmas!

Humble Bundle Christmas-Giveaway

I'm sure most of you already know the Humble Bundle by now;

The Humble Bundle is a charity-sale of a bunch of indie games of which you might or might not heard of yet.

You decide how much you want to pay and who should receive how much out of it:
Charity or Developers, or do you just want your games?
You can support the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Child's Play, or support the cause by supporting Humble Bundle itself, who provide the bandwidth and development - in fact, they keep the project alive.

This is, actually, already the second round.
The first bundle will be yours as well if you donate more than a certain amount, but the 2nd bundle will be yours no matter how much you actually pay.

The games are also DRM free, but the bundles may also be activated on Steam.
Again, it is charity, so why bother with DRM?


If you want to do some small good for Christmas, this is a way to achieve it.


And here goes my Giveaway:
The first person sending me an EMAIL (look at the top-right corner at the buttons),
using the headline "Humble Bundle" will get both bundles tonight, once I get home from my family-dinner.
This was my second donation, and I did it for the sake of the cause.
The games could be yours..

Alright, I'm back home!
The winner is...
Robin McCoy!
He was pretty quick, the fastest one, so he gets the humble bundles!
Merry Christmas, Rob!

May the Christmas Drama avoid you this year!

My experience tells me that christmas ends dramatically for most families, so I hope this year is gonna be different!

Christmas Posts following later, later later today~

"Merry Christmas", eh?

ULTRAMARINES Movie Review

Movie Artwork Gallery

Alright, while I'm still waiting for my hardcopy (predicted to arrive early next week (read: before christmas), I got the opportunity to get a digital copy of the movie.
Don't ask me where I got it from or such.
I won't upload my copy once it arrives either, at least not til we get word about the sales from Codex Pictures and wether or not there will be a standard retail copy available.

Oh, and beware, this post will probably spoil you!

I am watching the movie right now, and the first thing coming to mind was the awesome music.
Chants while watching the training Ultramarines? Godly!
Hopefully Codex Pictures will publish the Soundtrack anytime soon, for I can't wait to get more Warhammer-material for my Music Library.


The animation looks pretty good, I have to admit.
Given, THQ has done better with Dawn of War 2 and Space Marine, but they have a long history of 3D Design and High-End Games.
This, though, as a first attempt of a small studio, is great!

While I still have some issues with the design of the Marines' power armour (mainly the helmets), I admit that the animation looks fluid enough to satisfy.


Movie Artwork Gallery

The first half an hour progresses rather slowly, introducing the characters;
While I think it is a bit odd to see a Captain with only one Squad of Space Marines on a whole vessel and descending to a planet's surface to rescue the remnants of a whole company (which consists of a whole hundred of Astartes), it still is impressive to watch.

I don't really understand how this is the first battle of the newfound squad; didn't they serve as Scouts for the Chapter before?
Well, nevermind, the situation is well depicted and the tension rises, the closer we get to Chaos.


The first battle scenes were truly amazing. Not only do we get to see some wicked Chaos Space Marines, but also 3 Ultramarines lose their lives.

Small details are the most precious parts about that scene, from the Banner that wouldn't drop to the ground to the ammo clips.
I really am amazed of the detail in the Chaos Marine's head.

Afterwards, a brilliant scene follows, where we get to watch an Apothecary extracting the gene seed from his fallen brothers - we never got to see that before!

The coming battles where progressing kinda unpredictable and proved to be really exciting.
Seeing a Chaplain in action rendered me speechless, to say the least.


Movie Artwork Gallery

After the mission built up for the first half an hour, it got faster with every new scene, and was an excellent movie til the very end.

It's not a cinema blockbuster, but perfect fanservice, showing the love of the team in every detail.

While the movie has just been released, I'd love to see more of Codex Pictures in the future.

Guys & Girls, if you're fans of Warhammer 40.000, go and order this movie.
Not only does it satisfy your fan-heart, but shows also that the movie is well-approved by the fans, which may lead to further movies in the long term.


WE MARCH FOR MACRAGGE,
AND WE SHALL KNOW NO FEAR!

Quick thoughts: Black Library & Dawn of War 2

The third Unabridged Audiobook got released, alongside Hammer & Bolter 3 and a couple of other snacks.
My copy of Garro: Oath of Moment still has not arrived - I hate how long it takes til buecher.de gets the new releases...
Next month's going to be great, Horus Rising will join my shelf.

Due to lacking a credit card, I am not able to directly buy from the Black Library, though. Still no Paypal accepted.

So, if anybody is able to help me out, share with me, I'd be infinitely thankful and would consider a reward.


On another note, I'm through with 1/3 of The First Heretic, great novel. Just epic.


The Black Library also unveiled the Cover for Nagash Immortal, the last part of the Nagash trilogy, and I can't wait til August to put it onto my shelf.

I really hope there will be another round of Time of Legend-Novels, though. All three trilogies will come to a close this year, but there are so many great characters we could hear about.

I predict Ultramarines the Movie to arrive early next week as well.


Grand news before finishing this post:

STEAM changed the Dawn of War 2: Retribution-Image on the Steam Wishlists to this one:

This should seal the whole "It is going to add the Inquisition!"-theories, eh?

Worms: Reloaded - Weekend Deal

Alright, as I have been a longtime Worms-Player,
I'd like to promote this game some more.



The bugs have been fixed, there might be still something left, but nothing game-breaking or overly annoying anymore.

It is a fun game for LAN-Parties or just local multiplayer and gives you challenging campaign missions as well as other game types.

The recent update threw more forts, hats and even a soundset editor in - Great!

For mere 10€/$10,
this game is an ideal christmas present for your gaming buddies


DC out, now back to Drama (and sleep)~

Too much Drama

So forgive me for not posting much.
There's serious, multi-dimensional Drama on Colorless going on, I'm still reading The First Heretic, had a visitor yesterday and need some Day of Defeat to balance all that hate.

Anyway, thinking about the new posts all the time, but I can't think of a simple yet interesting topic.
Gonna push my Trine-Challenge back til Trine 2 is getting more public attention, and cause I don't really have the time to complete the preparations right now.

Alright, fellows, I need to get back to the CL council, missed too much talk already.
You'll hear from me again later

Free Steam Guest Passes - CS:S, TF2 & Alien Breed

Alright, I've bought a couple of games during the last couple of sales, leaving me with 3 Guest Passes that will expire over the next weeks if not redeemed.

Namely, I have one to each of these games:


Alien Breed: Impact
First game of the trilogy.
More on Alien Breed

Guest Pass will expire on Saturday if not redeemed.


Team Fortress 2

Guest Pass will expire on the 28th if not redeemed.
Given to Rafael. Have fun, buddy!



Counter Strike: Source

Guest Pass will expire on Christmas Eve if not redeemed.

You can use a guest pass to get whole 3 Days of full access to the game.
You are not limited during that time.
Once time runs out, the access will be revoked and you'd need to buy the game to continue playing.

I don't know who I could give my passes to, mainly due to my gaming buddy still not getting his "new" computer to work and that these games are shooters, which doesn't appeal to my friends.

So I want to give Another Story's readers the opportunity to get one of these three per person.

What you need to do?
Write a comment under this post!
Tell me why you want to get the guest pass of the game you desire, link me to your Steam-Profile
(I'm not giving help on creating one!)
And, most of all, I want to read your NAME on the comment. I won't give them away to anonymous posters!

That being said, be quick and tell me why you want what =)


PS: Expect some more charity soon!

Update Report [December]

Alright, this is probably going to be the last Update Report in 2010.

This december, a lot of things already have changed and I'm still working on new stuff coming to start 2011.

First of all, thank you for visiting Another Story as often as you do.
No, really, I really enjoy your visits and more and more frequent comments.

I updated the comments-box a couple of times, as you might have noticed;

You will now see this picture for unknown/anonymous users (or those who simply don't have a picture):

If you have a picture, it will show up.

But let me ask you to always use Name/URL instead of Anonymous when writing comments?
I'm having a hard time following/responding comments without the note who has written them.
Just pick your usual net-name, insert your web presence (website, twitter, whatever) and I'm happy.


Next parts on the list:

The Sidebar now reaches til the end of the post wrapper.
The footer-border has been modified to fit this new design change.

Also, the Sidebar now is grey, which will hopefully provide a more comfortable reading situation.


The Follower-widget (hardly used), finally got restyled (more like 'replaced').
I used the normal Follower-Widget from blogspot before, which didn't apply my settings, no matter what I did.
The widget I got from Google Friendsconnect worked, however.

Below the Followers, you can now sign up for email notifications about new posts on Another Story!


Browsing through Another Story just got easier.
Numbered pages, 5 posts per page, make the site easier to access.
Also, upon searching for older entries, you won't get bombed with dozens of entries anymore.


The Background-Gradient now isi fixed and thus, if you scroll up and down, it will remain on the screen.
Had wanted that like forever, but never got to realize it.
The whole purpose of the gradient was, in fact, lightening the page up - now it really does.


Lastly, quotes have been redefined.
Now they are like this.
Grey background, border, F/Bass clef opening and ending the quote.

Easier to read and distinguish, plus it has gotten much more effective,
Don't you think?

Sincerely,
DarkChaplain

This was December 2010's Update Report;
In case something else comes up, I may update it.

Symphonic Fantasies: Music from SQUARE ENIX

Alright, let me bump this topic (again).
It's been quite some time since posting the Live-recordings, but with the CD being out since September 17 and the Encore Suite coming on December 14, this is one thing I need to post.

My CD arrived, so now there's also a FLAC-Download available.
This post now is complete, I will post the Final Boss Suite once it's becoming available.


When Symphonic Fantasies came to Germany, I was overwhelmed.
Reality slapped me right in the face, though, because I was not able to sit live in the audience.
Thanks to an amazing Live Stream, people around the world were able to watch the performance of the WDR Rundfunkorchester, me included, and I can tell you straight:
I cried tears of joy when listening to these amazing suites.

To be completely honest with you, I never really tried the soundtracks of the Secret of Mana or Chrono games, but.. these suites were epic.

I regret not getting my CDs signed by the masters of game soundtracks; all 4 composers involved were sitting in the audience, smiling about the reactions of their fans to their music.

Uematsu, Shimomura, Kikuta and Mitsuda.
Amazing people who we all need to thank for enlightening us with their music..

So.. Take this post as a pre-christmas present from your friendly neighborhood Chaplain~

Download:

MP3
Rapidshare.com
Uploaded.to
Megaupload.com

FLAC
Rapidshare.com
Uploaded.to
Megaupload.com

Tracklist:

01. Fanfare overture (Jonne Valtonen)

02. Fantasy I: Kingdom Hearts (Yoko Shimomura)
- Dearly Beloved, The Other Promise, A Fight to the Death, Hand in Hand etc.

03. Fantasy II: Secret of Mana (Hiroki Kikuta)
- Fear of the Heavens, Into the Thick of it, The Oracle, Prophecy etc.

04. Fantasy III: Chrono Trigger/Chrono Cross (Yasunori Mitsuda)
- Chrono Trigger, Scars of Time, Battle with Magus, Prisoners of Fate etc.

05. Fantasy IV: Final Fantasy (Nobuo Uematsu)
- Prelude, Bombing Mission, Battle at the Big Bridge, Phantom Forest etc.


Special Performances:

Benyamin Nuss (Piano) and Rony Barrak (Darbuka)

FFXIV now effectively Free2Play til it doesn't suck so much anymore!

"SCORE!"
Yeah, that was my first thought!


In case you just want the quick summary, Sankakucomplex did quite well:

While more than two months have passed since the official launch of FINAL FANTASY XIV service, we deeply regret that the game has yet to achieve the level of enjoyability that FINAL FANTASY fans have come to expect from the franchise, and for this we offer our sincerest of apologies.

After thorough deliberation on how to meet those expectations, it was decided that the most viable step was to approach improvements under new leadership and with a restructured team.

[Spiel about the replacement team (their leader even goes so far as to admit nobody has ever heard of him) redacted]

We realize time is of the essence and are fully determined to provide our customers with quality service. It is because of this that we ask our customers to be patient until we are able to confidently present them with a concrete plan outlining FINAL FANTASY XIV’s new direction. The free trial period will be extended until that time.

Regarding the PlayStation 3, it is not our wish to release a simple conversion of the Windows version in its current state, but rather an update that includes all the improvements we have planned. For that reason, we have made the difficult decision to delay the release of the PlayStation 3 version beyond the originally announced date of March 2011.

The FINAL FANTASY XIV team is working hard to bring our customers an unparalleled adventure, and we ask for your continued understanding and support as we march ever diligently towards that goal.

President and CEO, Yoichi Wada

For all those who wanna read the complete announcement and apologies, please look over here


So now even I consider getting the retail box one day (assuming the game really does steps in the right direction first).

This is a terribly broken game right now.
These "major patches" couldn't help that at all, not even hiding the servers population could cover up the fact that nobody actually really played it.

But I guess not even unlimited free play doesn't get it on top again, at least not now and not before real improvements;
with World of Warcraft: Cataclysm being just released, the spotlight is clearly somewhere else.

Well, sucks for those who waited for the PS3 port, but..
I TOLD YOU THIS WAS GONNA HAPPEN!

I exactly predicted that it gets semi-trashed; they wouldn't throw a broken game on the market, not like this and not as a PS3-title.

As much as I personally hate Yoichi Wada - he made my day!


It really bothers me that we haven't heard much from THQ's Dark Millenium lately, although Space Marine is making good progress.

Angel Beats! Music Collection

With almost everything out, I thought it would be nice to collect all Music Releases of Angel Beats! on Another Story.

Please, buy the CDs if you like the music!



OP/ED Single -
My Soul, Your Beats!/Brave Song

»Tracklist«

O

1. My Soul, Your Beats!
2. Brave Song
3. My Soul, Your Beats!(TV Size)
4. Brave Song(TV Size)
5. My Soul, Your Beats! (Instrumental)
6. Brave Song (Instrumental)

Download
Rapidshare.com
Uploaded.to
Megaupload.com
Buy at CDJapan



Crow Song - [Girls Dead Monster]

»Tracklist«

O

1. Crow Song
2. Alchemy
3. My Song

Download
Rapidshare.com
Uploaded.to
Megaupload.com
Buy at CDJapan



Thousand Enemies - [Girls Dead Monster]

»Tracklist«

O

1. Thousand Enemies
2. Rain Song
3. Highest Life

Download
Rapidshare.com
Uploaded.to
Megaupload.com
Buy at CDJapan



Little Braver - [Girls Dead Monster]

»Tracklist«

O

1. Little Braver
2. Shine Days
3. Answer Song

Download
Rapidshare.com
Uploaded.to
Megaupload.com
Buy at CDJapan



Keep the Beats! - [Girls Dead Monster]

»Tracklist«

O

1. Crow Song (Yui Ver.)
2. Thousand Enemies
3. Shine Days
4. 23:50
5. Run With Wolves
6. Morning Dreamer
7. Rain Song
8. Alchemy (Yui Ver.)
9. Ichiban no Takaramono (Yui Ver.)
10. Little Braver (Album Ver.)
11. My Song (Yui Ver.)
12. My Soul, Your Beats! (Gldemo Ver.)
13. Brave Song (Gldemo Ver.)

Download
Rapidshare.com
Uploaded.to
Megaupload.com
Buy at CDJapan



Original Soundtrack

»Tracklist«

O
CD 01

1. My Soul, Your Beats!
2. Theme Of SSS
3. School Days
4. Girl's Hop
5. Art of War
6. Today is ok
7. Memory
8. My Most Precious Treasure
9. Tactics
10. Enemy Country
11. Operation Start
12. Decisive Battle
13. Attack!!
14. Critical Point
15. Study Time
16. Niku Udon
17. Invention
18. Toy of Spring
19. Deochi!
20. Light Drop
21. Worthy Rival
22. Burial
23. Play Ball
24. Walkure
25. Let's Operation
26. Evening Breeze
27. Moment of Rest

CD 02

1. Initial Impulse
2. My Heart
3. Soul Friends
4. Kanade
5. My Most Precious Treasure -Orgel-
6. Memory -orgel-
7. Unjust Life
8. Nocturne in the Afternoon
9. Anxiety
10. Abyss
11. Alter Ego
12. Siren
13. Transforms to the Shadow
14. Otonashi
15. Angel's Flight
16. Firing Preparation
17. Desperation
18. Breakthrough
19. Ichiban no Takaramono (Original Version)
20. Brave Song (Full Size)

Download
Rapidshare.com
Uploaded.to
Megaupload.com
Buy at CDJapan




Okay, now really EVERYTHING should have been released, so I'm updating this thread with these last 3 uploads:




Official Band Score - Keep The Beats!

»Tracklist«

O

1. Crow Song (Yui Ver.)
2. Thousand Enemies
3. Shine Days
4. 23:50
5. Run With Wolves
6. Morning Dreamer
7. Rain Song
8. Alchemy (Yui Ver.)
9. Ichiban no Takaramono (Yui Ver.)
10. Little Braver (Album Ver.)
11. My Song (Yui Ver.)
12. My Soul, Your Beats! (Gldemo Ver.)
13. Brave Song (Gldemo Ver.)

Download
Rapidshare.com
Uploaded.to
Megaupload
Buy at CDJapan



Ichiban no Takaramono - [Girls Dead Monster]

»Tracklist«

O

1. Ichiban no Takaramono -Yui final ver.-
2. Storm Song
3. Day Game

Download
Rapidshare.com
Uploaded.to
Megaupload
Buy at CDJapan



Last Song - [Girls Dead Monster]

»Tracklist«

O

1. Last Song
2. Hot Meal (Another "Thousand Enemies")
3. God Bless You

Download
Rapidshare.com
Uploaded.to
Megaupload
Buy at CDJapan

#Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai: Matsuribayashi-hen

Since Mangagamer hasn't released the Kai-Arcs as a complete pack like the Question Arcs, I'll release the four Kai-Arcs one by one.

Anyone who hasn't already read Higurashi 1-4 can pick them up here
Meakashi-hen, Tsumihoroboshi-hen and Minagoroshi-hen are over here~

Again, this is prepatched; PS2-Grafics with the old PC-Grafics stored in "data02000.arc.old";
change the "data02000.arc" to e.g. "data02000.arc.new" and the "data02000.arc.old" to "data02000.arc" to use the old grafics instead.
Anyway, some background-images might not be replaced, but don't worry.
Music files have been inserted as well.

The Game is a portable version!
Just start it using the "higurashi_kai_matsuribayashi.exe", "BGI.exe" would ask you for the serial, higurashi.exe bypasses that.
Means, you could easily put it onto some USB stick and play it anywhere you want, be it your home pc or just some netcafe.
Translation's the official english one by MangaGamer.

Download:

Rapidshare.com

Uploaded.to

Megaupload

Password: anotherstory

That's all.
Have fun reading this awesome Visual Novel!


NOTE:
This release concludes my Higurashi-post-series.
It's the last Kai-arc, but if MangaGamer decides to release the Rei-arcs in the future, they might be patched and added.
You can still watch the Rei-OVAs, though.

Anyway, there are still some side-arcs, as far as I know, and if chance comes, I'd like to release them as well - heavily depends on patches, though.

But point is: better be prepared that this is the last release.

It has been fun, though.

This month there's also gonna be a PS3 Version of the first 4 Umineko no Naku Koro ni arcs;
If chance comes and patches are being made, I'm totally in for releasing them on AnotherStory!

First Impressions: The First Heretic

So, while waiting for Ultramarines the Movie and watching my bookshelves getting more and more crowded,
I take the chance to write this post about Aaron Dembski-Bowden's first Horus Heresy novel.

I just finished chapter 5 out of 29, not counting Pre- or Epilogue.
85 pages out of 502 done.
And I am loving it.

But before I venture into the plot, let's watch the Black Library's trailer-interview with Dembski-Bowden:



Promising, isn't it?

The novel starts around 50 years before the events on Isstvan, where the Warmaster Horus got rid of the Loyal parts of the Traitor Legions on Isstvan III and later ambushs the Loyal Legions on Isstvan V, which became known as the dropsite massacre.
Horus isn't yet Warmaster, the Great Crusade is still running and the Emperor himself is leading it.

In the first chapter we get to 'see' a shrine world, one of those lost worlds reclaimed by the Word Bearers Legion.
The world is systematically cleansed by a company of Ultramarines, who don't hesitate to slay those people who resist evacuation.

When the Word Bearers finally arrive at the planet, they only find ruins where they once left a perfect city.
The whole Legion is ordered to descend to the surface by the Ultramarines' Primarch Roboute Guilliman.
A whole Legion of Astartes, gathered on one planet.

They demand answers. Together with their Primarch Lorgar, they face only one company of Ultramarines - and Guilliman.
Lorgar's anger doesn't even stop before Malcador the Sigillite, first regent of Terra, who accompanies Roboute.

When Malcador fails to calm Lorgar down, he uses his psychic powers to call the Emperor, who, to the surprise of all, teleports to the surface as well.

He scolds his son Lorgar, for he didn't create him to found a religion, worshipping the Emperor as a God.
Lorgar has failed him. Instead of banishing religion forever, he replaced it with another one. Instead of conquering, he built temples.
Thus made all his achievements during the Crusade worth nothing.

Lorgar should be more like his brother, Guilliman, and stop being a priest.

This is when the corruption of the Word Bearers began.
A corruption that later infected the Lunar Wolves/Sons of Horus, Death Guard, Emperor's Children, World Eaters and other Legions.
This is where Chaos took root in the hearts of Lorgar and his sons...



The scolding of Lorgar and his shame are probably common knowledge, but the way Dembski-Bowden retells them is amazingly vivid.
You can see the whole Legion kneel before the Emperor. The jaw-dropping arrival of the God-Emperor of Mankind in his golden armor.
You join Lorgar, Kor Phaeron and Erebus in their talk about the Emperor and the other Primarchs.
You bind much tighter with the Word Bearers than the Sons of Horus during the opening trilogy, for example.
Lorgar Aurelian is in fact one of the most natural feeling Primarchs I ever read about.
He is not a great tactician like the Lion or Guilliman, not as perfect as Fulgrim, not as strong as Angron.
He is a man of faith. A great leader, yes, but full of flaws.

It is hard to read about the Legion that takes the blame for the Heresy that split mankind in half without being able to hate the characters.


If you really want a good read, this is your best choice.
You should read the opening trilogy (Horus Rising, False Gods & Galaxy in Flames) before The First Heretic, though.


Aaron Dembski-Bowden did not only provide another piece to the puzzle that is known as the Horus Heresy;
this novel is an important one, telling events that might sway your view of the Imperium of Men forever.
It makes you question if the ones who you always deemed the bad guys really have that bad intentions..

Grab your copy of The First Heretic, you won't regret it!

ULTRAMARINES shipping next week!

I may be a bit late, but I didn't want to push down the FFXI-rant right after posting it.

Now, with my headache cured, I want to inform you that Codex Pictures wrote another mail:

We can now confirm that shipping of the Ultramarines DVD Collector’s Set will begin next week. Orders will be prioritised according to the date that they were received. All orders should be shipped by the end of that week. You will receive a confirmation email once your order has been dispatched.

Once again, please accept our sincere apologies for this delay. We do hope that you will soon be able to enjoy to your Ultramarines movie.

Codex Pictures

Post on the Ultramarines Movie Website

Now these are good news!
Due to money-reasons, I only ordered at the end of November, so my copy will probably be on the later ships.

Anyway, we got almost daily news on our orders, thanks Codex Pictures!
I love to see a fanservice-project like this being supported excellently like this!

3 Days of Misery - FFXI

I am at a loss of words.
Final Fantasy XI is the game which troubled me more than any other game I bought before - and that before actually getting to play it.


How did it came that I decided to risk playing this game?

Well, on one hand, I wanted to compare it to FFXIV, which fails hard on its own already.
On the other, Steam had the Ultimate Collection collecting the game, 3 addons and the 30 day trial for 5 bucks.
Then again, I had a companion, who surely will agree with my tale of misery, settled in Vana'diel.

Alright, I thought, If I get it via Steam, setting up the game should be fairly easy!
Hell, was I wrong!

DAY 1

After downloading 8GB of game files from Steam, the creepy PlayOnlineViewer opened up.
It took an hour to fully register (you are forced to insert not only your adress, but also your bank/credit card information!).
After that hour, I forced myself through getting my Content ID, which was another 30 minutes worth of nothing.

The whole PlayOnline interface is bloated, even worse than Windows Live Messenger 2011 (which says a lot), and the focus clearly is not playing the game you bought.
It is hard to work through these tons of special terms and options, while they don't really help you after all.

Now, both me and my companion thought about creating our characters.
We weren't able to.

Defying the whole sense of Steam's patching features, SquareEnix forced 9 to 10 hours of patching onto both of us.
The download connection didn't even take 5% of my bandwidth, and regardless of my connection being massively faster than that of my companion, we both loaded equally slowly.

DAY 2

So after 3 hours of setting up the game and then finally pushing the Play-button, we got doomed by Square Enix's pathetic servers, binding us forever.

At that point, I already hated this game for real.
Not for what it was, but for what it did to us before it even started.

This whole patching and frustration consumed the 2nd day of our travel to Vana'diel.
You see, 3 Days of Misery aren't meant to describe the game itself, no, it doesn't take that long to notice that the game sucks.

DAY 3

Alright, the actual gameplay started.
But.. not so fast.
First, another half an hour of patches...

You ready?
Starting the game..
Ignoring the 'run windowed'-tick in the configuration tool, the game started fullscreen.
And crashed.

Remember this:
[ALT] + [TAB] = CRASH FFXI

Great!
Now, to get it to work, we had to search for a tool called 'Windower'.
This tool... didn't run at first.
We had to modify it's settings slightly to make it work with our Steam-FFXI.

After it finally ran, I really... didn't know wether to laugh or to cry.
These textures were horrible!
The whole screen was screaming "NOOOOOOOISE!" into the world.
Don't expect smooth pictures in FFXI.
At least here, FFXIV did an amazingly better job.

Now... the Character creation. Finally.
Let's pick a Mithra.
These nice nekomimi-girls are probably the best female characters in the game.
And wow, we were able to pick one out of half a dozen different heads.
No charms, no details, no facial expressions. Heads.
With one haircolor-variation!

Okay, okay, I think you get the misery of creating your character.

When the "intro" played, we saw more black scenes than animated ones.
The camera was constantly fading out; reading the few lines of introduction were nigh impossible.

There is no speech in the game.
It is more like a text adventure than a living world.
The game lacks atmosphere, the warmth you see in other MMOs - be it World of Warcraft or Warhammer Online, Aion or Guild Wars.

Atmosphere-wise, Final Fantasy VIII had more to give than FFXI after all these years of patching.

Next problem:
How to control your character?

You will need to constantly press the left mouse button, dragging the cursor slightly into the (nearest) direction you want your character to go to.
The whole handling of your character is pathetic, it leaves you running spastically through the poor landscape, running against walls and against other people (NPCs..).

With no real tutorial on the controls, you are left alone with.. well, nothing.
You aimlessly run around.
The action menu is poor, unexplained and pops up once in a while.

Running through the empty village of Windurst, I felt an urge building up inside of me.

I was getting suicidal.

All I wanted to do was to kill my Mithra, deleting the game and never coming back to Vana'diel.

It took me 20 minutes of running aimlessly through the empty world to actually find an enemy.
A Bee.
But .. it didn't kill me fast enough!
So I ran around, the bee following me, and attacked an innocent rabbit which joined the bee.
A few attacks later, my Mithra died, and I couldn't help but play the Victory fanfare of Dissidia: Final Fantasy.

I could finally leave the game.


EPILOGUE

Before actually cleansing this awful game from my computer, I had to kill PlayOnline and cancel my account.
Took my about 90 minutes to work through forums and the POViewer, before finally being able to close this interface for the last time.


No matter how bad my opinion about Final Fantasy XI was before, this experience even worsened it.
It is not even funny anymore.
Making jokes about Final Fantasy XI will never be the same to me...

This game doesn't even deserve being talked about.
I have deep respect for everyone who actually managed to survive the first week of the game, including signing up and patching the game to the moon.


My last words?
Never touch Square Enix MMOs...