Have you ever taken a look at a game and known, just known you were going to enjoy it? Well this week I had the pleasure of receiving an early copy of Eduardo Baraf’s GemPacked card game and as soon as I opened it up, I knew it was going to be fun.
Sandy Collora crowdfunds creature feature Shallow Water
Sandy Collora is a veteran special FX artist who worked with industry titans like Stan Winston, Rob Bottin and Henry Alvarez before going on to direct short films, commercials and music videos. This lead to making acclaimed fan film Batman Dead End. Collora made his feature debut with Hunter Prey and is currently running a campaign to raise funds for his next film Shallow Water.
Inspired by the classic creature features Collora’s Shallow Water is a practical FX oriented horror film about a fishing trip to a remote fishing hole nestled deep in the Sea of Cortez, on the Baja peninsula. When the group of fishermen finally reach their destination though they encounter………..something. Their trip fast becomes a struggle between Mother Nature and Human Nature. Whilst this campaign is definitely ambitious (it has the highest funding goal of any horror film campaign on Kickstarter) it also looks pretty damn cool.
As Collora put it,
“I hear people complaining about how the Hollywood machine is cranking out the same stuff OVER AND OVER, choosing economic safety over the creative art of filmmaking. I grew up on the original Alien and Predator films. I love them. But where are the NEW iconic creatures and characters? How long has it been since we’ve seen something new, truly unique, and powerful in a genre film? Too long. If Hollywood won’t do it, I will. With your help, we can raise enough independently to make a great genre film and maybe together we can even change the paradigm.”
As a fan of horror, creature features, indie film and practical FX I’m really hoping that Collora hits his target. The crowdfunded Harbinger Down is a great example of what can be done by talented people with a small budget and this looks set to follow in the wake of Alec Gillis’ film. Talent and enthusiasm can only get you so far though, at the end of the day you still need funding and crowdfunding enables indie directors to make the film they want to make without having to compromise by relying on studio’s for funding. If you like the idea of supporting an indie film maker wanting to make an atmospheric practical FX driven creature feature horror film then check out the perks on offer, a digital download of the film will set you back a measly $12/£8 and there’s plenty of other cool stuff on offer.
For more info go here Shallow Water on Kickstarter
Why We Love Comic Cons
Last weekend, Geek Pride were asked to help out with the inaugural Blackpool Comic Con in Winter Gardens. This meant a whole day of interacting with our fellow Geeks, handing out little gifts to our followers, and selling merchandise to folks who just love how awesome we are/our stuff is. We hosted the Game of Thrones panel, ran the DJ booth, and pitched in in a few other areas as well cause we rock like that.
Whilst there has been some negative feedback about the Con itself, I wanted to instead concentrate on just how fantastic Comic Conventions are as events, and why we go to so many every year!
Of course, calling them Comic Conventions is a little bit of a misnomer as folks from television, wrestling, film, and authors all rock up to Cons every year, with some of the bigger ones getting video games companies to pitch in too. And isn’t that just brilliant?! Somehow, the idea of Geek Culture has been able to combine elements of a hundred different genres and fandoms, bringing people who remember the Al Snow days into the same world as those who built full-sized Space Marine costumes in their spare time.
Oh and the costumes, the costumes! My other half is studying Costume Design for Film and Television, and she would have been blown away by the attention to details and craftsmanship if work hadn’t called her away at the last minute (but that’s a matter for another day). I spent the whole day admiring the sheer love and care that went into each of the costumes, the attention to the smallest parts of the characters’ dress and style… and trying to remember exactly which series each character comes from. Come on, the winner of the kids’ competition was a brave young man with Cerebral Palsy who got dressed up as Hannibal Lecter in the dolly and mask, with his Mum dressed as a cop. How ace is that?!
I’m still ashamed at how long it took me to remember the Scout outfits from Attack on Titan, though…
The costumes also serve as a physical display of one’s love for the various works and characters that make up Geek Culture. Maniac Cop walks alongside Sebastian Michaelis Black Butler, Fairy Tail cosplayers watch Jedi and Sith face off with one another. Yeah, we could use a few less Deadpools, but seeing so many people displaying their endearing affection for works of art is inherently satisfying and fulfilling. It is, in the most awesome of ways, pageantry and peacockery, a call out for appreciation which will be returned by fellow Geeks who also love the works.
That said, it isn’t all about cosplayers.There are the guests, the stars and creators who we can meet and show our appreciation for (even if that does have to take a financial form as well). I personally spent the whole day on a mission to meet Mick Foley, and am so fricking delighted that I got to meet him. And the swag, the comics, figures, custom art and, if you’re lucky, Geek Pride merchandise all available to snatch up. Or there are the shared experiences of friends who turn up in geeky t-shirts are a great sight as well as families just wanting to show their kids around, let them awe at the Star Wars droids racing around or the range of good on sale. Future Geeks being shown their spiritual homes is great to see.
I guess that’s the essence of what a Comic Con is for we geeky few: it is a spiritual home. Full disclosure, I’m a big football fan (which I know makes me weird as a Geek) but this means I’ve been to quite a few football games and the atmosphere and buzz in the stadiums before the match is similar to that of a convention. A crowd shares a passion, an interest, and knows that those around them is of the same mind. That is a unique feeling in public, as we often only get to experience it in cliques or Film/RP societies.
Yes, even with the broad acceptance, and commercialisation, of Geek Culture, it is not always very easy to express one’s geekery. Loving a book or show so much you almost cannot take it, discussing in detail the twists and turns of a film, sharing your struggles with a particular boss battle, these are still sometimes difficult things to do publicly. Not that Geeks are some oppressed minority, but sharing your deep loves can leave one exposed. Many people find these sorts of media and love then, of course, but it is the Geek who takes them to heart, almost makes what they love a part of their identity. For whatever reason, we absorb these artworks, let them into our souls, and that makes them unutterably special too us.
A Comic Con, then, is a place where you can safely let everyone know that you love Doctor Who so much that you’ve made a Tardis dress, or that the Daedra are so impressive to you that you’ve spent hundreds of pounds on a suit of Daedric armour, or simply that Game of Thrones means something special to you and meeting someone from the series brings you closer to this thing you love. And there will be no judgement of that. You can wear your Immortan Joe mask and call people mediocre, have at it. As long as you are earnest in your affections, you will be accepted at a Con.
And that, folks, is why we love them.
The Battle for Wesnoth
The Battle for Wesnoth, for the many of you I’m sure who don’t know, is a turn-based fantasy-themed strategy game for the PC (and now tablet) which you can go and download right now. Usually I would go on for a bit longer before making the final recommendation, but since this game is completely free to download, has no advertising, no micro-transactions and no connectivity requirements, then really, you should just start downloading it now. It’s got cutesy, sprite-based graphics so it won’t take you that long. Go on, I’ll start a new paragraph while you set it off.
The game plays from a top down perspective as you command various troops around the battlefield, competing for the villages that bring you income with which to support your troops, as well as the best defensive positions available – castles tending to be a safe bet for most unit types, but some units, like Elves or Dwarves, do better on certain terrain. I’ll leave you to guess which. Troops making an attack against an enemy usually have multiple choices of weapon, perhaps trading off between a damage type your enemy is vulnerable against vs. having more attacks to throw out if one big swing won’t cut it. Some attacks also cause poisoning or other effects, while making an attack your enemy has no counter against – such as shooting at a swords-only Orc – is met by no counter attack. Once a unit’s gained enough experience, it levels up to an upgraded version, sometimes with a choice in what they become – a Horseman may chose to become a Knight or a Lancer, for example.
Wesnoth’s v1.0 release was in 2006, but I came to the party a few years later, when the map editor and multiplayer features had been added. Back then, there were around a dozen campaigns to play through, varying in length from short eight map tutorials for the Elven faction, to the twenty-odd scenarios detailing the rise of the titular Kingdom of Wesnoth, and its contentions over the throne many years later. Combine that with the skirmish maps where you simply pick a faction, pick a map and then play, and you can see that Wesnoth gives you more content than most AAA releases these days. It even includes an Add-Ons browser in the main menu where you can download player-created content like new factions, campaigns and multiplayer maps.
You get so much game for you money (which is nothing, its free, remember?) that it reminds me a lot of older PC games from when I first started out in the hobby – the Heroes of Might & Magic series in particular, another turn-based fantasy-strategy with map editor and skirmish modes. Also like older games, at times the writing can be overlong or a little clunky, with the written conversations between characters flicking back and forth between their sprites for just a little longer than necessary. However, I’d call that a pitfall of the fantasy genre as a whole, rather than Wesnoth in particular, which does the job of breaking it up and filling it with nicely drawn characters.
Aside from the occasional hiccup in the writing, Wesnoth’s only other detracting feature is its reliance on the random number generator, the percentile chance of your attacks hitting or missing depending on your enemy’s defence bonus. Like other games with a random element, such as Darkest Dungeon, it can at times be sadistic – your Elven Archer with a 70% dodge in the forests being struck by every clumsy Orc Warrior who tries, or your Grand Mage, whose magical fireballs always have a 70% hit chance, missing every single blast. But it’s perhaps my love affair with Darkest Dungeon that’s made me save-scum Wesnoth a little less these days – managing your losses is an important part of the game, and you’ll only frustrate yourself by loading the game up too much. I’m not mental though. If my favourite unit’s on the line I will load an earlier save and move him out of danger – if you make a bad move, the game doesn’t punish you for loading your saves and coming up with a new strategy.
All in all, you couldn’t ask for a better game to add to your collection, especially if you’re on a budget. With weeks’ worth of vanilla campaigns, skirmishes and the modding community, The Battle for Wesnoth could be a game you never uninstall, or just something to bridge the gap before everything gets grimdark in Total War: Warhammer.
The Golden Joystick Awards 2015
It’s the time of year again where internet personalities, games and their companies are given awards – and where you, the player, get to decide who exactly wins what.
With over 9 million people voting last year, the Golden Joysticks, the acclaimed “only gaming accolades voted for by you, the players”, are doing their 33rd awards ceremony where there are over twenty-one separate categories for you to choose from. With categories such as best audio, best storytelling as well as most wanted game, there are many chances for games to win different awards.
It takes five minutes and you even get a reward at the end, but more about that later.
With the Golden Joystick awards you have the ability to choose who exactly (admittedly, from the provided list) wins what award. With such contenders like Hotline Miami 2, Bloodborne and Sunset Overdrive for different awards, your vote really counts to see which game wins. You’re also given the choice to skip the category and move on if you feel as if nothing on the list is worth your precious vote.
As much as the incentive of the reward is sweetening, by voting for these games you’re also, by proxy, letting companies and indie developers know what the players enjoyed the most. After all, your votes tell who is worthy of winning the award much better than any sales number could do, and some of the games on the list deserve every reward they could get.
Here are some of the categories and choices available for you to vote on:
Best Storytelling
1) Pillars of Eternity (Obsidian / Paradox)
2) Sunless Sea (Failbetter Games)
3) Life is Strange (Square)
4) Her Story (Sam Barlow)
5) Far Cry 4 (Ubisoft)
6) Game of Thrones (Telltale)
7) Dragon Age: Inquisition (EA)
8) The Talos Principle (Devolver Digital)
9) Bloodborne (Sony)
10) The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (Namco Bandai)
11) Batman Arkham Knight (Warner)
Best Indie Game
1) Axiom Verge
2) Affordable Space Adventures
3) Volume
4) Everyone’s Gone to the Rapture
5) Kerbal Space Programme
6) Crypt of the Necrodancer
7) Her Story
8) Invisible, Inc
9) Chaos Reborn
10) OlliOlli 2
Performance of the Year
1) Ashly Burch as Chloe in Life is Strange
2) Freddie Prinze, Jr. as The Iron Bull in Dragon Age: Inquisition
3) Mark Hamill as The Joker in Batman Arkham Knight
4) Molly Stone as Talia Forrester in Game of Thrones
5) Laura Bailey as Fiona in Tales from the Borderlands
6) Troy Baker as Pagan Min in Far Cry 4
7) Viva Seifert in Her Story
8) Patrick Warburton as Vasquez in Tales from the Borderlands
9) Fry and Laurie in Little Big Planet 3
It’s your voice, your choice, your vote.
And for those wondering what the reward is: after you finish voting, you are able to get Bioshock: Infinite for £1/$1/€1 on PC via Steam, as well as being able to purchase Bioshock 1 and 2 for apparently exclusive discounted prices, the perfect excuse to start the series if you haven’t already.
You can also get the money you spent to get Bioshock: Infinite back just by playing the game, which is an added bonus.
Confessions of a Tech Addict
I can’t help myself. I look at something, I imagine the possibilities how that wonderful piece of technology can change my life for the better, and I convince myself that I need it. Granted, these urges often only last for a few days but regardless, if I gave in within that time period I’d be in serious debt. Microsoft Surface Pro 3? Yeah, I need that. Why? I’m not quite sure yet, let me get back to you on that. GoPro? I want it on me, around me, following me, documenting my life. Does my life need documenting, and do I facilitate the kind of life style that the target audience should have? Definitely not. I go to work, I play games, and as much as I enjoy the latter, it’s not a great spectator event. Well… mostly.
So what is it that tech addicts like myself crave? Is it newer, higher specifications, or bragging rights? Does the slight graphical advantage a GTX Titan offers when compared to, say, a GTX 960, matter in the long run, or is it just knowing that your gear is outdated and you need the newest and best? Is it, as previously mentioned, the thought of how you could best use it and change your life for the better? There are lots of questions and there will never be just one answer. Everyone is programmed differently and, in all things in life, that’s the beauty in it. We all have are urges, our wants, our needs, likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses. Mine is tech. My latest crux is that I desperately want a DJ Phantom III, and that I’ve already started planning some amazing shots, videos and locations I can visit to make the most of my purchase. Will I grow out of this latest craze? Most definitely. Do I still want one regardless? Oh yes.
Mike Orvis (of Geek Pride) constantly derides me knowing that, in his words, I am constantly “chasing all things shiny”. In some regards, he is correct. I bought a MacBook on a whim a few years ago, an iPad Air 2, and very few phone contracts often last their two year period as I need newer, better devices. An Apple Watch rounds off the Apple fan in me, but hey, most people have watches, mine just does a few other things. If James Bond could rock a high-tech device on his wrist, why can’t I? Whilst I’m talking about Apple, they are due to be hosting their yearly iPhone reveal this Wednesday (9/9/15) where the iPhone 6s/6s plus will no doubt be announced. Rumoured to be featuring an improved camera, force touch and a higher ppi on their screen, as well as launching with iOS 9, this year’s iteration is ‘the refinement’ one. I’ll say I don’t want/need it now, but I said that last year when I had an iPhone 5s, and I ended up giving my contract to my brother so I could get the new device. Other monetary commitments prevent me from doing so this year but, I’m sure that if you listen very carefully, you’ll hear me struggling to resist. Other rumours are an iPad Pro, being a larger, better iPad Air 2, possibly a Surface Pro 3 rival, as well as a push into the gaming space with Wii-like functionality on the latest Apple TV. Interesting stuff.
Some people are just naturally attracted to beautiful devices, and they will no doubt understand what I’m talking about. Others don’t care about the new tech, citing that it will be so much cheaper, and better, in years to come. Which is correct, but my brain doesn’t work like that. If you go through life with that mentality, you’ll always be delaying inevitable purchases, and sometimes it’s nice to treat yourself. Yes, you can get a PlayStation 4 at launch and enjoy the machine in it’s infancy, and spend time encountering a less robust, occasionally buggy system, but you’ll be experiencing it with everyone, on day one. To me, that’s a special feeling, and not one that can easily be replaced.
AMDS Films Presents “Hell’s Club” the Best Film Mash up Ever
Imagine a place where fictional characters meet outside of logic and time – this place is Hell’s Club. The profoundly talented Antonia Maria Da Silva aka AMDS Films has created such a place. At Hell’s Club Jedi drink at the bar whilst Austin Powers looks on, Brian Flanagan makes cocktails and Tony Montana smokes cigars. Club owner Carlito Brigante looks down from his office whilst Patrick Bateman and Blade eyeball each other and Tony Manero busts some moves as The Terminator searches for a target.
Sound’s insane right and yet it works brilliantly.
Check it out.
Ernest Cline’s – Armada
If you’re a fan of Ernest Cline you could say that since his last release it’s been rather difficult to find another novel of a similar nature, unless of course you’ve read Robopocalypse by Daniel H. Wilson or YOU by Austin Grossman. However in July of this year, Cline finally released Armada, his greatly anticipated follow up to the 2011 science fiction best-seller, Ready Player One, Cline’s first and highly entertaining story that followed Wade Watts and his on-line companions as they fought their way through the virtual world of OASIS to save humanity from Innovative On-line Industries.
With Armada, Cline once again shows off his absolute love of 80’s geek culture, as he unashamedly references films music and video-games throughout the entire story. Films like The Last Starfighter (1984), and Orson Scott Card’s science fiction novel Ender’s Game (1985) feature within Cline’s new story, giving the impression that Cline has been so heavily influenced by these stories, he’s dedicated his latest novel to them.
Following a very similar structure to Ready Player One, Armada is the story of Zack Lightman, an average teenager with anger issues, who, like most, spends his days at school and his nights on-line wishing his actual life was a little bit more like his virtual life. That is until the day Zack sees a spaceship that looks exactly like one of the alien spaceships right out of Zack’s favourite video-game,
Armada. As the story unfolds Zack and a group of gamers, who have some of the highest scores in Armada and Terra Firma, two of the most popular video games in the world, are recruited by the Earth Defence Alliance in a battle to save the whole of mankind. The story contains all the things you’d come to expect from a Cline novel, exciting battles, both in the virtual and real world, references to 80’s science fiction, a bad-ass gamer chick (who Zack falls for), and some exciting plot twists that add to the overall story, even if they don’t arrive until later on in the book. Cline’s focus on keeping the reader engaged is on point, as he moves through the story giving more than enough to make sure you stay glued to the pages.
However, as exciting as Armada is, and as great as the 80’s pop culture references are (I myself got caught up in a phase of hoarding anything from the 80’s) you can’t help but sometimes feel like you’re reading what is essentially Ready Player One, albeit with different characters, which is down to Cline’s narrative structure. The plot, as already mentioned, is very similar to Ready Player One, as it focuses on bunch of high scoring on-line gamers who are recruited to save the world from some form of evil that normally relates to a video-game, and even the though it’s enjoyable, the constant 80’s referencing can sometimes feel like it’s only there to help get the point across that this book is dedicated to everything that inspired it, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it can become quite repetitive, especially if like myself, you’ve already got the fact that this is essentially a love letter to the 1980’s.
Trailer Released for The Gamechangers from the BBC
Now, most of the entertainment news comes from America, with the exception of certain geeky-British shows such as Doctor Who and Sherlock. This is something entirely different, but still entirely geeky and wholly interesting.
Made by the BBC, The Gamechangers is a 90-minute dramatisation of the legal battle between Rockstar and Jack Thompson, the US lawyer who sought tighter restrictions and outright bans on violent games. Back in to early 2000s Jack Thompson involved himself in murder cases involving young men, and tried to argue a link between their crimes and violent video games. He fought against Bully, Manhunt, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, and Grand Theft Auto 4, in an attempt to prevent the games from being sold in the US.
The BBC synopsis explores this in more detail;
In Autumn 2013, the game’s latest iteration – GTA: V – earned $1bn in just three days, becoming the fastest-selling entertainment product in history. But this drama goes back to 2002, to tell the story of a three-year period of intense controversy in the history of this iconic game’s development. It happened when two passionate men on either side of a high-stakes cultural divide clashed. This conflict, between the creative genius behind the game and a self-styled crusader for American morality, escalated into a fight for the hearts, minds and freedoms of an entire gaming generation.
The fastest-selling entertainment product in history comes not from Silicon Valley, but is driven by a bunch of British game designers. Friends since their school days, they are led by the game’s mastermind-designer, Sam Houser. By 2002, Sam and his creative team have constructed for their fans a vast virtual world, teeming with a high-octane mix of criminal characters, lethal weapons and outrageous storylines. Here you can even shape and sculpt your avatar, crafting their character and appearance to your personal preference.
Within this fantasy landscape, some players choose to take part in a series of dangerous missions, while others become immersed in a sprawling criminal underworld, killing cops, hijacking cars and running over pedestrians. And it’s this that increasingly drives opposition to GTA. Because the game’s violent gameplay leads to fierce opposition: from parents worried about its impact on children; from politicians, fearful of its influence; and, above all, from campaigners fighting to prevent the game being played by minors.
At the vanguard of this crusade is the formidable Christian lawyer Jack Thompson, a man determined to do whatever he can to stop the relentless rise of the game and its influence on children. The Gamechangers tells the story of how British game designers pushed boundaries into uncharted territory, of how those fighting GTA became consumed by a battle which overwhelmed their lives, and how the subsequent fallout threatened to bring down leading players on both sides.
This drama is for an adult audience and has not been authorised by the producers of Grand Theft Auto. Rather, it is based on court documents and interviews with many of those involved in the real events behind this compelling story.
Now, that last part is rather interesting to me, as the last time I heard about this project was back in May, when it was reported that Take-Two Interactive, the owner of Rockstar Games, was suing the BBC for trademark infringement. It seems to have been acknowledged by the BBC, but done nothing to deter the project.
The dramatisation looks to be on top form, and with a beardy Daniel Radcliffe front-and-center, this looks to be one to watch. The Gamechangers will air on BBC Two on the 15th of September at 9pm.
Fallout 3 – One Last Time
If you’re anything like me, which is to say a living human being who likes video games, then you’ll have heard that Fallout 4 is coming out in November and it looks like it’s going to be the best thing since sliced Skyrim. I’m sure you cannot wait to sink your teeth into all that crafting, city building, dog-handling and general wasteland wandering – neither can I – and after Fallout Shelter’s release on Android gave me the Fallout bug once more (I got jealous of those guys having more fun in the Wasteland than I was micro-managing their odd mating rituals), I decided to reinstall Fallout 3: GOTY, and have myself a whale of a time, one last hoorah before it goes to gather dust with Oblivion. So if you want to join me in a final trip into the Capital Wasteland, then here are the ten mods I couldn’t live without.
1 – Fallout Wanderer’s Edition
FWE is highly rated and deservedly so, being such a massive overhaul of everything from damage to inserting a primary needs system a la New Vegas’ Hardcore mode. It also alters weapon damage and adds a veritable Rivet City of new lore-friendly items, but as one of my friends pointed out, not everybody’s in Fallout for that desperate fight for survival feel and, while I’ve enjoyed it for scrappy fights with Raiders, it can be a little unforgiving at best and at times unreasonably cruel. Fear not however, because it’s all configurable from within the game with FWE Defaults, Vanilla and many options between being available for every facet of the game. I have it set somewhere in-between: no walking out into gunfire and running a stimpak IV, but no bullet-sponge Super Mutants either.
If you’ve played a modded version of Skyrim, you’ve probably come across Immersive Creatures, and its adjustable lore-friendly/not so much options. MMM is that, for Fallout 3. As well as adding more and more varied enemies, it also diversifies their skins. That’s a pretty small change, but it’s the accumulation of these small changes in mods that can help immerse you into the world. “Hey, don’t all these mole rats look alike?” – Not anymore. New things to kill, new names and stat adjustments for things you’ve already killed, and new loot to harvest from their dead, mutated carcasses. What’s not to like?
If slightly re-coloured mole rats doesn’t float your boat for immersion, this will. You know all those boarded up shops, rubble-blocked doors and blown-in shopfronts? This mod removes some of the boards, the rubble and puts new windows in, making loads of previously dead space into new, explorable environments – particularly in DC, though you’ll notice them all over the Wasteland. The DC ruins were interesting enough on the major missions, but for those aimless wandering sessions, there wasn’t much to go and see. Now there’s loads of places to go dig through, but watch out for some of the more hostile residents of these new game cells…
I was initially a bit “meh” on this when I first loaded it up, but it’s grown on me over time for the kind of emergent storytelling it pushes you into. Every so often, time-scales adjustable for min/max duration and intervals between, it will rain – and your Geiger counter will start ticking. This can lead to some really interesting complications, forcing you to move forward and seek shelter rather than explore cautiously, pushing you to hide out in buildings you might have been about to skip by, or fall back into your metro tunnel for a couple hours while the storm rumbles outside, driving you into a night-time excursion instead – and yes, the storm does indeed rumble above when you’re inside buildings. As with any Bethesda game, it’s impossible to stop the weather from clipping through ceilings though, so don’t expect an open shack roof to help you out.
You might be thinking “Flora overhaul? Isn’t the Wasteland supposed to be a blasted hellscape where nothing ever grows?” – Well, if you’re into that, yeah. Flora Overhaul comes in several flavours, ranging from the lush Forested package, to absolute Total Devastation, which is a bit lore friendlier. I go with the middle ground option of Dead Edition, which adds the occasional leafy tree, but keeps most things burned out and suitably post-nuclear. I figure in the two hundred years since the bombs dropped that some life’s returning to the Wastes (even without that Oasis quest).
I used to use “Fellout” to take the green tint out of the camera, just to make the game look a little better. Combine that with the weather mod, and the game had a whole new environmental side, where previously it was pretty dull. DC Moods goes a little further than Fellout, and oh my, is it moody. Fog makes you feel like you’re about to get slasher-flicked, and when combined with the Flora and Weather, really puts a new tone over the Capital Wasteland. It’s not all fog and cloud though – when you get a clear sky you can’t help but feel like your character should have a spring in their step. A moody, moody spring.
While the music is certainly very fitting, bridging a gap in styles between Fallout 3 and New Vegas, it is slightly not lore friendly. Some of the songs for example, mention Josef Stalin and elements of the Cold War, rather than the American-Chinese War of the Fallout Mythos. Maybe I’m missing something in my patchy Fallout history and this is actually okay for the lore – so even more reason to download it. As much as I like the tunes on Galaxy New Radio and Radio New Vegas (I’m a metalhead who likes swing, fantastic), it can grate after a while. At times, the music can be extremely obvious American propaganda. But that’s how the music was, so, awful as some of it is, it really suits the game. The icing on the cake however, is in Conelrad’s public service messages – all real, period appropriate, and some of them sponsored by celebrities, like Johnny Cash. Having the Man In Black tell me to check out my nearest civil defence shelter while I was being shot at by Mutants nearly laughed me into an early quickload.
Extremely highly rated. Sadly, the weapons added by FWE aren’t compatible with the kits, meaning after a while I tend to drift towards using base game weapons kitted up to the eyeballs rather than the new toys, but I imagine an undertaking of that size would be no end of tedious grunt work for a modder, especially if they had to make it compatible with an Ironsights mod as well..which has been tried, but the results are so-so. However, can’t recommend WMK enough, especially since it has all DLC compatibility. Go forth and put a scope on your hunting rifle, you’ll like the results.
For making the Wasteland’s only other lone wanderer into the Lone Wanderer’s travelling companion. So they can be alone together, I guess? Erm, not like that. Sydney, who you may remember from Stealing Independence, becomes a fully-voiced follower for the player, with plenty of location-specific dialogue and a trust-o-meter for your relationship. If you butter her up enough, she’ll let you play with her SMG, equip different armour and even…cook for you. Now that’s companionship. The mod also recommends Charon Improved, who was the Ghoul Manservant to my Daring Dashwood on just about every character.
10 – NMC’s Texture Pack & UHQ Terrain Overhaul
Alright, I cheated, I said ten, but now you’re getting eleven – or possibly twelve if you count Charon’s endorsement via the Sydney mod. Anyway. Load NMC’s first to retexture everything pretty, then load UHQ after, to retexture the ground even prettier. The combination of having immersive environments from NMC and Flora, solid ground textures from UHQ and a more dynamic skybox with weather from DC Moods and Weather, it all just brilliantly updates the game, makes it visually pleasing again. You’ll have to find a mod to your own taste when it comes to fixing faces though, I slipped enough in above the ten mod limit.
Of course, I run a few dozen more mods than this, but I’m not going to list every “Black & Red Leather Armour” or “Underground Hideout” – these are just the ten (or so) mods that, if you made me stick to a number, I’d pick. A bit of immersion, some expanded content, and a few bells and whistles – generally configurable, generally universal. Get your last plays in before Fallout 4 comes out, because you might not want to come back – and remember, don’t feed the Yao-Gui. That is all.
Do you have a favourite Fallout 3 mod that’s not been mentioned? What are you looking forward to about Fallout 4? Let us know in the comments below!
