Greybeards Gripes

Ice on the river today.  20 inches at the deepest point drilled.   Didn’t have much luck though, no fish. 

New WII game:   Call of Duty, World at War.   Haven’t had a chance to jump in yet, so no game report.   I can report a bit on the Call of Duty, Reflex online play though.  I’ve test myself online a few times now,  and although the game itself looks good and responds well,  I’m not really happy with the online play.  Reason:   It seems that every game I get involved with is dominated by CHEATERS.   Ok,  I can except that there are people out there with far better skills than mine and for the first few times I dutifully served as cannon fodder.   When that got old,  and I couldn’t figure anyway to stay alive more that a minute or two,  I decide to play a little differently.  Arming up with the heavy machine gun,  I backed into a long blind alley and trained the weapon on the opening.   Ok,  I should be able to get a least one kill,  right?   NOT!   The first opponent that peared into the alley, got a long burst of automatic fire, right in the face.  You think that would do it, but no,  he runs toward me,  bullets spraying all over his body.   Maybe 2 or 300 hits later,  he kills me with his knife.    

Ok,  so I figure he’s cheating.   Set up again,  same alley.   Guy walks by alley,  looks in,  grenade go’s of at his feeting,  and full auto fire pummels his body as he charges toward me and again uses a knife to kill me.

Cheating confirmed,  connection broken.   I really don’t understand what kick these people get out of playing a game in this fashion.  I tend to think they just might have a few screws loose.  I wish someone was policing the online Wii games like they used to back when I played PC games online.  Cheat=get booted on the game server.

PS:  The Dlink seems to be working ok right now,   but then it hasn’t been on very long.  I had it shut down while I was installing a new 23 in. LCD monitor.  A ViewSonic VA2323wm.   I like this monitor!

With the campaigns in Call of Duty, Reflex completed,  I’m starting to think about another game.   The arcade mode just doesn’t hold the thrill of running a campaign,  and I’m just not that good of an online player.  (I have a sneaky suspicion  that many online gamers are using cheats).  Suggestions would be welcomed.

Well,  it cost me 25 points on my blood pressure yesterday afternoon,  but I can now state that I have completed all missions in Call of Duty Reflex Edition for the Wii.   Arcade mode is opened.

The Au Gres River is still solidly frozen and a few fish are being taken through the ice.   A 20 inch Walleye came out,  right in front of my house a day or so ago.   The Bay ice is another story,  not to many fishermen out there this week.   The 30ish weather is rumored to be leaving soon, with a cold snap on the way.

As for my Wii adventures with Call of Duty,  I’ve just made it through the second level,  finished by a wild firefight in a big Television broadcasting studio.   Definately intense,    and pretty challenging.  So far I haven’t been disappointed (if you don’t take the Wii graphics into consideration that is).   Let me back up just a bit,  and complain a little about the fact that my 7.62×51  SAW wasn’t able to shoot through office cubicles. 

 When it came down to making the order,  I wound up getting Call of Duty Reflex in a package deal with another nunchuck and a Zapper.   (If you don’t do Wii,  this probably doesn’t make sense).

I played Call of Duty for the first time tonight.   I didn’t save anything,  just kind ran through the steps and got the feel of it.  As expected,  it’s pretty hard.    Controlling your character is rather difficult,  and often seeing your target (who’s actively shooting at you) is often a problem due to the machines graphics limitations.

The Zapper,  (a short carbine like holder for the Wii controller and nunchuck) goes a long way toward making the game more playable,  and it also came with a game called Link’s Crossbow Training.   This added on game is designed to use the Zapper,  and goes a long way toward building the sighting skills needed for Call of Duty and other programs that use the Zapper as a controller.

It’s been a long time since I’ve written any gaming reviews,  and my skills have eroded a bit,   but as long as the weather is cold,  you might see a few more gaming articles.

We’ve played more of the Wii sports games,  and I’m actually starting to feel some muscle pain,  (and a flair up of carpal tunnel) that has to be Wii related.  So I guess I’m getting exercised.   One of the problems I’ve noticed with it:  The controllers don’t really care about what kind of form you’re using in your chosen game/sport.  For instance,  pitching a baseball:   One can do the full windup and pitch and get a 98 mph fastball,  or a quick underhanded flick of the wrist = 98 mph fastball.  The Boxing game is even more unsophisticated.   Hold your hands in front and do quick, short jabs,  producing powerfull knockout punches on the Wii opponent.  If you actually step into the punches and use your hips and shoulders,  the power produced on the Wii system is much less, plus if you throw combo’s too fast,  it fails to recognize them . It’s just not that realistic.  That said,  I -am- getting some excercise.   From the feel of the nerve systems in my right arm,  probably a little to much jerking and snapping for my own good.

To give my carpal tunnel a break,  I’ll be working on the balance programs for the next few days.   And looking further into a “Shooter”.   “Conduit” comes with  recommendations (although Gamespot didn’t care for it) as does “Medal of Honor 2: Heros“, (and GameSpot like it)   I’m still holding back of Call of Duty Reflex,  in all honesty, I’m a little worried that it might require a little more skill than my old bones can produce.