The Journeyman Project Turbo

From the era When Games Were Games and my computer didn’t want to run many of the games I wanted to play:

The Journeyman Project, a trip through various times that I never got to see because every click of the mouse took forever to get a response, before just completely freezing….agh. I bought its sequel Buried In Time as well, ever hopeful.

This is one of my first nominees for older point and click games that would be so perfect for the ipad. I really think so many older games would be so great for that format and would do much to end the drought of awful games that are currently available. Dream big! Dream small enough for my ipad.

Lord Of The Rings Online…At The Standing Stones…With The Eye Of Sauron?

How’s that for a post title, Clue/Lotro/Daybreak Fans? Couldn’t resist!

MassivelyOP’s Monday Post on Lord of the Rings Online getting it’s own independent studio, called Standing Stone Games and being published by the ever mysterious Daybreak Games…Yikes! Eyes popping out of head! Impossible, yet, yow!

http://massivelyop.com/2016/12/19/turbine-spins-lotro-and-ddo-teams-out-to-new-studio-using-daybreak-as-publisher/

http://massivelyop.com/2016/12/20/the-daily-grind-does-daybreaks-involvement-with-lotro-and-ddo-worry-you/

http://massivelyop.com/2016/12/20/lotro-is-considering-revamping-its-character-models-in-2017/

My immediate reactions were:

WTH????

Huge relief on behalf of the developers of LORTO that they are free of the soul sucking influence that has been Warner Brothers.

Amazement that Daybreak, which has had one of the wildest rides from a once (great) studio to a total unknown quantity that could shut down any day would be the new Publisher for Standing Stones. BONK!

Excitement for LOTRO. A desire to fire up my characters and play the game because it was going to be run by the so dedicated, incredible development staff who really can make this game even more awesome.

Where I am today:

I fired up all of my characters this morning, all are snuggled where I left them. Adventures await, and for the first time in a long time I really want to send them back out to the lands of Middle Earth.

I’m thinking of how I fled Star Wars Galaxies after the NGE and found the folks at Lord of The Rings Online to be so warm, friendly, welcoming. I spent a little time on the Isengard server and got to see the development process pretty close up. I have nothing but awe and respect for the way the game was built, and how generously the staff shared their plans and dreams and looked for and listened to feedback.

In an interesting turn, I feel like I can now go ahead and invest time in the Everquest 2 world, because this bold move feels like a company with plans for the future, and I’m relieved.

For all the time I spent hugely invested with SOE, some part of me still smiles to see their logo pop up when I log into the Galaxies Emu.

In a very odd way, having LOTRO coming together with former SOE feels like coming home. Messed up, I know.

I’m really enjoying what others have to say:

Myndariel’s Middle Earth She’s hopeful that the new studio and arrangement with Daybreak mean good things to come. http://myndariel.blogspot.com/2016/12/update-192-yule-festival-and-future-of.html

Ravalation feels that the developers who created the world will bring about a better Middle Earth than that allowed by Warner Bros (in so many words) http://ravalation.blogspot.com/2016/12/lotro-moving-to-standing-stone-games.html

Parallel Context also sees the departure from Warner Bros. as a good thing. http://parallelcontext.blogspot.com/2016/12/bye-bye-turbine.html

Contains Moderate Peril examines the business and marketing aspects of the changes in Middle Earth. http://www.containsmoderateperil.com/blog/2016/12/20/standing-stone-games-and-lotro

Endgame Viable is cautiously optimistic that the developer at Standing Stones will be able to proceed and make a better LOTRO than has been allowed in recent times. http://endgameviable.com/lotro-ddo-turbine-standing-stone-games/

GamingSF feels that good things can come from a smaller, more focused studio, and thinks Daybreak has done well by Everquest 2, enhancing the game greatly. https://gamingsf.wordpress.com/2016/12/21/lotro-pre-holiday-news-avalanche/

Aywren Sojourner has a very positive outlook on the changes, and is hopeful this means nothing but good things for LOTRO. https://aywren.com/2016/12/21/the-future-of-lotro-is-with-standing-stone-games/

Biobreak has six reactions to the news from Standing Stone, and interesting thoughts on what it means for Turbine itself going forward. https://biobreak.wordpress.com/2016/12/21/the-future-fate-of-lotro-and-ddo/

Ancient Gaming Noob looks at the business aspects of the changes. https://tagn.wordpress.com/2016/12/19/a-standing-stone-gathers-no-momentum/

A small note on DDO: I basically never made it out of the starter area. You know what doom that spells for a game that you’re not going to be playing. I went in a single dungeon, and in the voice chat any imaginary world idea was rather ruined by my fellow dungeoneers, a woman who said she was a high school teacher flirting with the two guys who were part of the party who sounded as if they were in high school. Yech.

Cryptogram Answer From Lord of The Rings Online

From an early quest in the game, we present the text of:

Find Malin

Your search for Addie’s missing sons found the remains of Amlach Wheatley clutching his brother’s journal. The last cryptic entries seem to reveal that Amlach heard fell voices coming from the southern reaches of the Barrow-downs.

EHTL ZISLYJ GHL SKKBI’Z DBZZBOF ZHOZ GHTOK XJI LIDSBOZ HG SDASYJ UJISXAIE YATXYJBOF JBZ MLHXJIL’Z WHTLOSA. XJI ASZX YLEVXBY IOXLBIZ ZIID XH LIPISA XJSX SDASYJ JISLK GIAA PHBYIZ YHDBOF GLHD XJI ZHTXJILO LISYJIZ HG XJI MSLLHU-KHUOZ.

Working on these Cryptograms has me reading the quest text in every game I play now. I’m finding that I don’t appreciate the straightforward quests that say “go here, do this, come back.” There are a million of em’ out there, in every game. When I’ve been thinking of games that tell good stories and have good text writing, it appears I have been linking the stories they tell together in my mind to get an impression of tales well told rather than actually finding any game where each quest text is a sort of mini-gem of writing.

Crypto-Questing 2

Welcome to another fine Cryptogram. Answer up on December 10. Best of luck.

To get started, write out the alphabet on a piece of paper and look for recurring letters in the quest text below, then make educated guesses as to what the words might be. The words will soon form intriguing sentences.

Dear Corpse, Thanks!

I finally got two mounts from my datapad generously given to me by The Corpse while she was in game. It was night time so the pictures aren’t so glorious, but creature pets and mounts in Galaxies are all part of the happy life you can lead in the Galaxy.

Elsinor Dustbunnie on her Cupa at last. A merchant who sells Swoops and Speeder bikes doesn’t want to be seen about town on a flaming swoop. Instead she can trot in on her sweet mount named after herself. It occurs to me Elsinor does not have an equivalent character in the live game. Noone had her particular skill set.

My Architect on her Dewback named CookieeMonster. My live game Architect meant to be a chef, so she had her Dewback named CookieeMonster to sort of RP the profession. While leveling up the Artisan tree, she made a few pieces of furniture and put them in her house. That was it, no more chef, Architect forever. She loved her CookieeMonster, and she cried when she was taken away in the NGE.

Dewbacks are a royal pain to fight in the wild because they group up on you and just pound on you. As a mount, look at that SMILE! They are the happiest creatures, and they bound merrily rather than running or walking.

Better pictures as we go along, and in daylight so you can see these sweeties. I’m so happy to get them out of my datapad.

Fo’ Grizzle My Shizzle

I’ve gotten waylayed by holidays, Darkmoon Faire and a certain other game and my World of Warcraft rotation has slowed way down.

I’m currently working in the Grizzly Hills area of Northrend with my level 79 Assassination Rogue. Three boxes to level 80! I have never completed the quests in this area, or (cringe/cone of shame) all of Northrend.

A goal for 2017 will be to get Loremaster for all areas of the game. That is why I’m going to let this character get the achievement for Grizzly Hills and every other area of Northrend. Who better to complete everything than a sneaky sneaky rogue?

As you can see, it’s going to take her a few turns/levels to complete this area, let alone Northrend generally. Since I’m already working 9 characters towards 110, I don’t need these other characters to rush through content I’ve done so many times. I’m going to stop and enjoy the scenery, get my trade skills to level, and go fishing as often as needed to live the fine life. And become the Loremaster I should have been long ago.