So, I bought the PC Edition of this game back when ti was released but, I never got around to playing it. Mostly because I don't like gaming on my PC much for health issues. I do however LOVE the Witcher, Geralt. So of course I had to get the xbox edition because that just upped the chances I'll get to this game...(right after Amalur. Which I just went back to after finally finishing Mass Effect 3)
Anyway, I received my Dark Edition copy of the game today and so, I took some pics of the loot :)
Ok lets get started then.
After getting a hernia bringing the Amazon box in, (wasn't expecting it to be as big or heavy as it was) I cracked that puppy open and found a big shiny black box, after I removed the plastic sleeve I found that the top of the box had yet another plastic sleeve.
After removing the plastic sleeve with all the Xbox stuff on it I was left with this. A plastic cover that looks foggy and scratched up with a wolf image visible underneath
I discovered the plastic was removeable and that doing so would reveal this awesome sculpture of a wolf.
I put the plastic cover back on the box and noticed it had a drawer underneath. after carefully pulling it open I found the artbook.
I was happy to find a "REAL" full sized artbook rather than the tiny disappointing booklets of art found with games such as Catherine, Deus Ex, Assassin's Creed Revelations and even to some extent Mass Effect 3.
Underneath the artbook were the game case and a little box with another wolf logo on it.
looking in the small box I found the Witcher Medallion. Its a nice piece, on a weighty chain. Unlike the ring that came with Uncharted 3 This is not going to be something I will wear.
Under the game box you'll find another DVD case with the Making of - DVD and under that a small Quest guide.
To find this map I had to open the game case itself.
Its a nice colorful double sided map... and since thisis a Witcher game...check out them boobs hehe. I had to slip some sort of sexual innuendo in her somewhere... slipped...nipples...OMG ok, I'm done...
So, that's what I found in my new amazon box. I hope I get to play this in the near future but who knows, I have so many games to play at the moment (at any given moment really).
Normally when i post a CE I snap a few pics on my phone and upload them directly from there to here.But, this time, I felt like commenting as I take apart my new game. There are ups and downs.
First I was like YAY!!!!!
Then I was like...wha-??
and then I was like *sigh*
So here it is...my pretty new game:
Front of outer sleeve
Back of outer sleeve
Front view of outer box
Side view of the "book" the game comes in
The actual front cover with a beautiful Amano illustration of Lightning
Back cover with an Amano Illustration of new villain Caius
opening the book you find the disk holders folded and showing some lovely art work
On the left the game disk, on the right the 4 disk Soundtrack
OMG! an actual GAME MANUAL!!!!! Seriously, these days i'm always filled with glee when I open a game and it actually contains a manual...especially if it has more than 1 folded sheet of paper. This one has a pretty thick manual as you would expect a Final Fantasy game to have.
There's another little booklet in there with a list of all the songs on the soundtrack which I thought was a nice touch.
So far I'm pleased as punch with the CE....then I stopped to look at the Art Book...I am disappoint :(
I have not been this disappointed with an art book since Deus Ex Augmented Edition. The book is actually just a few pages attached to the actual case/book. Two of the illustrations are actually "sketchy" version of the 2 pictures on the folds of the case as you can sorta see below...
The rest are fairly bland environments, followed by drawings of 3 weapons and 2 "monsters" that's it.
didn't I just see these two pictures? Deja vu.....
Overall, its lovely packaging, and a half hearted inclusion of some drawings. I don't consider this an "art book" more like an "art leaflet"
Can't complain I guess since the Soundtrack alone retails for $34.99, the game for $60 and the CE is $79.99. (I had a $10 credit from Amazon so I actually paid $69.99 which soothes the burn a little)
I wasn't expecting much but even with low expectations that is a poor excuse for "art".
There's more beautiful art to admire in the Game Guide which set me back another $20 or so.
Not sure when I'll get to the game since I'm still trying not to hate Final Fantasy 13.
So there you go, the Final Fantasy 13-2 Collector's Edition. If you got it, well, none of this means jack to you and if you didn't...aside from some music you can totally torrent (I didn't say that!!!!) you aren't missing much.
Alright... no more putting it off...Next post will be that horrid Dragon Age Review...
and now....
to wait for Kingdom's of Amalur to get here!! (sadly I couldnt afford the CE to that. $275 is too rich for my blood)
The beautiful Collector's Edition game guide for Final Fantasy 13-2...but my copy of Final Fantasy 13-2 hasn't come in yet....AMAZON WHY DO YOU TEASE ME???
Maybe I should play Final Fantasy 13 since I'm barely into the story...I know, I'm such a lazy Gamer and shopping addict.
So, as you know, I have found Skyrim a bit less than enjoyable. But in all fairness, it took me 60 hours to really get into Oblivion. Yeah, 60 hours. Funny it really didnt take me long to like Fallout 3, and even though I initially didn't like New Vegas much and still think its inferior compared to Fallout 3 it still didnt take me that long to appreciate it, DLC definitely helped with that though.
But, I bought Skyrim after being very hyped for it and I'm not giving up on it yet. I've managed to stay awake the last few times I've played, killed a few dragons too. While I am still incredibly bored by roaming the wilds of Skyrim, I do enjoy the dungeon and ruin crawls.
So back when I pre-ordered Skyrim I also pre-ordered the collector's edition of the game guide and finally it just arrived. I'm hoping that with game guide in hand I'll be able to enjoy the game more and if any game guide can do it, it would be this one. I think I could probably smack down a dragon with this thing. it is a BEAST.
I'm also looking forward to checking out that interactive map it comes with.
So, tonight i'll be hitting the book and some dragons and we'll see if I can turn my experience around and love Skyrim the way I love Oblivion.
Definitely has to be the thickest game guide I own next to the Pokemon Platinum one.
So I had ordered the Assassin's Creed: Revelations ultimate bundle which came out to $111 and some change.
I did surveys like a mad woman to get a $25 gift card which I used to knock the price down a tad.
Today when my package arrived and I opened it...Surprise! I somehow ended up with 2 copies of the game. Awesomesauce!
This weekend I'll have to get hubby to hang my flying machine above my desk. Cool beans.
So its been a good couple of days. I mean sure I've got a horrid cold but. Yesterday I got my Uncharted 3 CE.
Today I got the latest issue of Nintendo Power and PC Gamer, a cool new teefury.com shirt (its a Mucha style picture of Sarah from Labyrinth in the white ballgown.) And I got my Deathsmiles LE.
Now to decide which Xbox to put the faceplate on. Guess I know what game I'll be giving a go to later.
Finally!
UPS finally delivered my CE. Yay. It's so cool, now to find a spot for it.
Now I feel like I MUST get through the first 2 games so I can play this one.
So, I have played Gears and i've finished the campaign. I laughed, I cried, I cheered...i'm madly in love with Baird..yeah, that shocked the hell out of me as well. Man i hated him in the first 2 games. Last book, he grew on me, so I was able to appreciate his brand of "asshole" in a new way this time around.
Way back when, I bought my Xbox360 because of Gears of War commercials, which is funny because I didn't buy Gears of War for a while after I got it. First game I bought was The Darkness. Eventually I did buy Gears and it just sat there for a while. Finally I tried it and barely got past the beginning. First Behemoth and I was DONE.
I asked my husband if he would play with me, because maybe we'd get past the Behemoth together, but he wasnt all that interested. I nagged for a while and he finally agreed. That was actually worse than our recent Dungeon Siege ordeal. He kept shooting at the ground and going down, I kept getting killed trying to save him. It ended with me throwing a fit, cursing him out and him declaring he'd never play with me again.
So Gears sat on my shelf and eventually was joined by Gears 2 and no one touched them.
It took a long while to get him to game with me again and since we did so well with Borderlands he decided he'd try Gears with me again. Shame it took us so long to play it because we both loved the game. Except for the fact that he found that whole Dom-Maria shit touching and I found it annoying.. I mean damn Dom, whine more why don't you? Cole was awesome, but who doesn't love Cole? We bemoaned the fact that the only Asian bit it and I wondered why the hell Anya was walking around on high heels. Its a damn war put on some sensible footwear! Baird was an incredible prick and I hated every single time I had to hear him spout more douchey crap.
Being sucky players we played on Casual and it was just easy enough to get us to keep going even the few times we hit a hard patch. Except the end, man that was frustrating as hell, but after much death and cursing we got through it. funny thing about the whole thing. I have like ZERO desire to ever play as Dom (though I have to because DAMMIT Gears 1 gives you achievements for playing as Dom which I find utter BS, but I'll get o that) but I found it strange that my husband has no interest in being Marcus. Why the hell not? Marcus is awesome dammit!! i don't get it at all.
As I was saying, Dom-only Achievements really piss me off. WTF is up with that? Why don't I get achievements for playing as a guy with no neck, a disfiguring scar, a scruffy do-rag and a voice like gravel yet managing to be absolutely hot? I deserve an achievement for that. What does Dom do? Besides whine more about Maria than Tony in West Side Story?
I know I know, he was a bad ass Commmando when Marcus was just a grunt but hat was the Pendulum Wars man, ancient history..well it feels like ancient history. Now he's just Marcus' shadow.
I'm bitter about those achievements if you can't tell...damn achievement whoring!!
So we finished Gears and barely stopped for breath before starting Gears 2. Which..I don't care what others say...was 10 times better than the first one in every way.
I do admit that there were a few cheap deaths....like the time I was standing on deck and the Leviathan ate me...WTH?? Can'ta person get a heads up?? But that was more of a hilarious cheap death than a frustrating one...I will also cop to getting bitch slapped into a pancake by a tentacle a couple times.
Right here I wanna take a moment to say... Benjamin Carmine died a horrific death and he was a damn fine Gear! Ant not so much...
Once we finished Gears 2 we finally decided to try Horde mode. I got double chainsawed so many damn times. But it was fun as hell.
By the time we finished Gears 2 I had read all the Gears books so I was warming up to Baird. I was amused that when we played Horde mode without really thinking about it, we chose Baird and Cole.
We didnt make it too far, Hubby got tired of dying and we quit after I think 7 waves.
We'll skip through the horrific drama....ok, no i wont, i'll just sum it up real quick...
I ordered the Epic Edition of Gears 3 MONTHS ago from Amazon. Release day delivery of course. My daughter jokingly said "you're gonna be running to the door every half hour to see if its here and looking out the window like a sad puppy"
How right she was.
And by 5pm I was a rabid puppy cause I had no Gears. I chewed out Amazon, they blamed UPS and said "sorry"
I was spitting fire.
Next day it was supposed to arrive before 3pm... Sad angry puppy spent all day running to the door...by 5pm, I was in a murderous rage. Sent another angry email to Amazon.
Eventually I got my game and embarassed myself for all to see in a video my daughter put on her Facebook, which you will get to laugh at below.
Gears 3 was definitely worth the $150 and the frustration to get it. It was definitely the best of the 3. The funny bits were funny, the sad bits made me cry and the shooting things in the face bit was incredibly satisfying.
Baird was awesome, Sam was a bitch, Sam and Baird were hilarious snapping at each other.
While I was not expecting Mataki to be sporting dreads, The kitty fur was present and she was sufficiently badass, I approve. Wish there had been more of her in the game. She was definitely one of my favorite characters in the books.
I can't say much about it cause I suck at not giving spoilers...
Just that, if you liked the first 2 you'll love this one and that you might want a box of tissues handy, or maybe I'm just too girly, cause I cried, even after a second playthrough I cried.
After we finished the campaign we tried Horde mode and again, without really thinking about it I chose Baird and my husband chose Sam and between the two of us we beat down the Locust with one liners and insults...
I kid...but only a little.
We made it to wave 20 before throwing in the towel. I got smacked down so hard I'm still feeling it haha.
But, I promised you a really embarassing video...
A few things before I do.
Yeah, I look like a scrubby bum most of the time, so basically how I look in that video is how I look all the time.
Second, no, I'm not sick or losing my voice...I always sound like Popeye and Joan Rivers' lovechild.
Third, yes, I really love my statue that much.
and finally...yes, my kids are goofy, dirty little ragamuffins and I love em like that.
So its kinda dark, super dorky, and very embarassing (there might even be a bra on the floor in one shot) but here you go:
Edit: While having a conversation on Gamespot about this I wrote something that I should have added here, so, here's a little PS:
Reading the novels, which are very well written will really get you to look at the game differently. One of the big things with 3 is that it was written by Karen Traviss, the woman who wrote the books, the first 2 werent. She really knows how to bring out each character, fleshing them out so you feel like these are people who are really going through this massive hell along with their own personal demons. so while the game has this whole "fate of the world" thing going on, you walk away thinking about the people in it and wondering how they will deal with whatever happens afterwards....
