Blog Posts

Episodic Gaming, Irish Anthem screw-up & Pub Games for Fable II? - Welcome to the column that gets drunk & gambles a lot, but not enough to admit they have a problem known as Dare to Play the Game.

Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. So somewhere in my World of Warcraft experience, I think I burnt myself out a little bit. I was playing with my level 19 blood elf hunter quite a bit, going into battlegrounds and such. I worked up the 20 marks of honor and got myself a spiffy neck piece. However, that was not the end of it. I decided to go back to Ghostlands and finish up questing there. I spent the better part of Friday and some of Saturday, working myself into a frenzy to do so. I gained three levels (to 22) and finished everything in Ghostlands with the exception of killing the elite boss in Deatholme (name escapes me for a moment). Major accomplishments include getting exalted status for Tranquillen (which entitled me to a blue cloak from the reputation vendor) and defeating the two 20 elites that roam Dead Scar & surrounding areas by myself & at level 20. (on separate occasions of course). Notable accomplishments for sure, but it soured my taste on the game because I pushed myself so hard. So I'm taking it easy this week, I will play some; but remember folks we play games to enjoy them, I don't feel like making myself hate it. If that makes sense.

No Piracy for Crytek, Free Rainbow Six & Diablo III? - Welcome to the column that cares about you as the consumer but asks that you don't let the other consumers know about our torrid affair known as Dare to Play the Game.

Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. Rule #1 for this week, if you aren't a twink in the 10-19th level World of Warcraft Warsong Gulch battleground, be prepared for many many deaths. I have a level 19 blood elf hunter and after my main Lantanador (who is level 49) had so much success in the 40-49 WSG battleground, I figured I would give it a try with my hunter. HAHA, yeah. I usually have the same # of kills as I do deaths. My first battleground with my hunter was a slaughter. I managed 4 kills and died 15 times. Fifteen. At one point I got killed by the same guy five times in a row. My second effort was a lot better as I killed 6 and died 8 times. But then you might ask, don't twinks (or people who buy insane enchants and pay ridiculous amounts of gold for gear that is solely used for the purpose of succeeding in battlegrounds) exist at any level battleground? True, to a point. At level 19, the difference between somebody who is twinked and somebody who is not twinked has a much more noticeable difference than say one would at a level 49 battleground. I can do pretty awesome in the 40's bracket with good gear but if I only have good gear in the 19 bracket, I can get owned because I don't have amazing gear. Anyhow, safe to say I'm just trying to have fun with the early brackets and not worry about dieing so much. I am after all, earning honor and marks which will be used towards at least one very nice piece of armor.

PS2 Edutainment, Disney goes Rockband without the Band and the Beginning of the End? - Welcome to the column that knows the end is near when it's mentioned in the mainstream press as informative & witty known as Dare to Play the Game.

Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. I don't feel like crap anymore. Unfortunately, now my girlfriend feels like crap. So that means I'm feeling like crap by proxy I suppose. WoW update: 48/22/18 and I will be sick of Blacksmithing quests very soon. A man should not have to mine this many mithril bars in one sitting . One hundred and twenty bars of mithril (not to mention 40 bars of iron, 5 bars of truesilver & 4 citrine) to get 3 lousy blacksmithing recipes. Well they aren't lousy, but I'm not sure they are worth the effort either. My question is what the heck are they doing with the mithril bars? The quests are given in Stranglethorn Vale which is one of the worst places to mine (I've done most of my mining in a combination of Hinterlands & Thousand Needles). If this was a regular person and not a NPC, I would think I'm bankrolling his blacksmithing skill. I mean if all I had to do was handout three recipes and get in return hundreds of bars and entry trinkets, I would be one rich mofo.

Postal wins an award, 360 Avatars all gassed up and ready to go, and a brand new TV Gaming Competition Show? - Welcome to the column that got dressed an hour early but realized it has no place to go known as Dare to Play the Game.

Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. I feel like crap. Actually I'm getting better, because a day or so ago I felt like absolute crap. It's kinda different and usually doesn't involve vodka. I stayed home from work on Monday and spent a good portion of that time either getting rest or playing World of Warcraft with my trolly troll and working on a blacksmithing quest. Cause I soooo love blacksmithing quests *insert sarcasm flag here*. But it helps your skill, it really does. I also did the unthinkable. I pvp'ed. Yes, for many months I had openly discussed the bad taste of pvp and refused to do it. So I did it, and while I take back some of my comments that weren't too kind, I'm still not in love with it. I took a 46 into a battleground dominated by mostly 48 and 49's (and were much better pvp'ers than I was) and got my troll tuccus handed to me for the most part. So it was entertaining, I learned a lot about the battleground (Warsong Gulch) and will continue to play it in spurts. Just don't expect me to join a pvp server or start talking about leeeet pvp gear. It's not going to happen. And don't expect me to do Arena either. That's all I need is my tuccus handed to me and people actually notice that I don't know what I'm doing.

LucasArts putting on the halter, Wii wanting to go steady with HDD, and Blu-Ray & Xbox 360 tying the knot? - Welcome to the column that got married once but forgot to read the fine print about descending into the pits of hell known as Dare to Play the Game.

Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. So at some point last week, you were probably wondering where the heck is your favorite video game columnist. The truth is I don't know where Adam Sessler is and he won't return my messages (something about me and Morgan sitting in a tree). As for me, I was in Las Vegas, Nevada. Internet for tourists in Las Vegas, NV sucks. Why is that? Because they charge, $13.99 a freaking day. My conference did have it for free, but it moved like a 300 baud modem. (For the kids at home, that is like your dad asking you to walk to the liquor store on the other side of the county line and back with a bottle of JD stopping for every hobo that asks for a sip). So there was no decent way I could have got a column out last week. I wanted to, but alas the internet connection (not to be confused with vegas showgirls) wouldn't let me. But I am back, somewhat refreshed and ready to provide a winning column to you. Okay, 1 out of 3 ain't bad. I really should get a secretary for these things.

Bright Colors, Glam Rockers Sell Big on Rock Band & I'm going to Vegas babie! - Welcome to the column that is so proud it made a hundred postings that it just might consider blowing the paycheck on Morgan Webb and blow known as Dare to Play the Game.

Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. Believe it or not, I'm not starting with World of Warcraft in this column (that's the second paragraph). No sir, the column has reached a milestone, 100 posts. Almost two years, I have worked my nails to the bone to provide refreshing points of view and talented humor. Or perhaps a whole mess of sarcasm. I do however have some people to thank for their efforts. Cause without them, I might not have had that chance. First, (why all of the sudden do I feel like I should thank the academy?), I would like to thank Jeremy for giving me the chance to actually write a game column on a dvd website. Whether he regrets it now or is raking in the cash, who is to say. Second, I would like to thank the dozens who actually read the column (or is it a dozen?). Without you, well without you, I probably would have found something else to do by now like review gay mini-series on the Here! Network & Wrestling DVD's. Crap, I already do that? Sheeeeeet, nevermind. Lastly, I would like to thank my girlfriend Sarah, my love and my biggest supporter. She's read my work, promoted it and even gave me tips from time to time on how to improve it. I'm not sure how she puts up with me, but she does it with a smile and seems to appreciate everything I do.

Plagiarism in Video Games, Penny Arcade, & The Never Ending EA Offer - Welcome to the column that copies itself weekly with jokes that were relevant twenty years ago known as Dare to Play the Game.

Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. 43&22. Well, as some of you might remember, I had a goal for World Of Warcraft and my level 43 Troll Rogue last week. Actually two of them, one was with lockpicking and one involved cooking. My lockpicking skill was in the 160's and needed to be raised to 175 to compensate for the level 40 junkboxes I was starting to get. Once I understood my options, (which wasn't many) I traveled to Desolace and spent a lot of time underwater trying to find footlockers. After about an hour exploring and fighting a lot of nagas I was ready to give up. Then I found one, and found another and before I knew it, I hit the magical 175. I promptly got the heck out of the water and went to my second goal: cooking.

Adult Gaming, WiiWare, & The Death Knight class unveiled - Welcome to the column that discovered it was an adult one day back in 1996 and has not been heard from since known as Dare to Play the Game.

Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. 42&22. I unfortunately did not get to play my dwarf priest, except past a couple of quick quests and leveling some of my cooking & fishing. I honestly expected a slowdown with my Troll Rogue in WoW once I hit 40. Quite the opposite I guess. The game seems to get more interesting once you pass the magic mount level. My mining and blacksmithing are well over 200 (228 and 208 respectively) and my skills make me a major DPS force to any party. I even played as the main DPS for a group in Scarlet Monastery over the weekend and we did quite well. My only weak point as I consider it is my lockpicking. I'm currently at 166. I just started picking level 40 mobs that drop junkboxes that require 175. So needless to say, I need to be about 10 points higher. This weekend coming up, my focus will be on lockpicking (up to said level) and cooking. Cooking is at 223 and I hear Gadgetzan calling my name. You want Giant Eggs, Zesty Clam Meat and Alterac Swiss? Me got 'em mon!

Wiimote not to be threatened, GTA IV threatening the Wii, and Nazi killing gets a birthday - Welcome to the column that will not be threatened a second time ahhhhh (and bring us a shrubbery!) known as Dare to Play the Game.

Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. 40&22. Yes I got the silly emerald raptor. I still have half of my reputation bar for Undercity to go before I become exalted. By every calculation, it is near impossible to be exalted with Undercity by level 40 unless you are of course Undead to begin with. Will I get it by Level 60? Sure. I actually liked the Silvermoon area quite a bit when I was questing there last week. So much, that if I make another character (won't be before one of my characters hit 60) it will be a Blood Elf Hunter. I promise I won't be a huntard either. I played a max level Ranger in Guild Wars and know my way with a bow and a filthy animal. As to where I will quest with my Troll Rogue now? Stranglethorn Vale or Feralas seems to be the popular choice. Naturally I will still try to find any and all quests that have Undercity rep but my concentration will be in this area.

Video Game Gameshows, Vegas is Fixed, and more GTA IV than you can shake a hairy hooker at - Welcome to the column that will get Grand Theft Auto IV as soon as we figure out how to pay for the gas and the case of Mountain Dew known as Dare to Play the Game.

Welcome to another edition of Dare to Play the Game. 39&21 in WoW Land. As you can tell from the numbers, I played the heck out of my rogue this weekend. I was questing hard in everywhere from Desolace to Hammerfall. Somewhere around 12k experience away from level 40 and finishing a few Hammerfall quests, I got burnt out. I have about 160 gold, 200 Blacksmithing, 223 in Mining, First Aid, and Cooking (which is really odd to have the same number in three professions). But I'm burnt out because I still only have 7k into my exalted rep for Undercity with 14k remaining. So I kinda quit, I went back to Undercity, took the orb to Silvermoon City and decided to explore another area. I will get 40 on the weekend, pretty much by default. But since I have not quested in that area at all, I figured it was worth a shot. I know I will be getting mostly Silvermoon/Blood Elf rep where I am, but I decided I want to take it easy for the week before resuming the struggle to 40. Next week, I'll have my mount (which unless a miracle takes place will be a raptor) and I will be happy because I won't have to walk around anymore. Somehow, I will still miss stealthing on foot into areas that are 10-15 levels above me. Good times, good times.