commented out

When the moon rises high over Lion’s Arch
And the wind moans through the most hollow of eves

Shutter your homes this holiday
Steer clear of the shadows
For on this night, they say,

A long-addled spirit returns from the grave
Pumpkin upon his head,
A wicked deed within his heart
A pint of witch’s brew for all those who misbehave

Heed these words, all ye who dare enter here:
Bind your souls to the mortal realm
For the regent of madness draws near

This verse kicked off the celebration of Halloween in Tyria. The once blue skies over the city of Lion’s Arch darkened as clouds shaped like witches, ghoulish laughing faces, and the grim reaper filled the sky. A wicked moon cast its gaze upon the citizens as one by one they lost their human bodies and took on twisted, monstrous forms. The herald, now demon on an undead steed, rode through the city warning of the return of Mad King Thorn and the doom he would bring. As the days went by, more of Lion’s Arch fell to darkness. Overlooking the once-blue waters of the bay, the lighthouse shone with a sinister red hue as a pirate’s ghost ship took its place at the docks, afloat in sickly green water. The city had become a victim of The Mad King’s mischief.

Thus, the scene was set for the arrival of the Mad King Thorn himself, and large crowds gathered, spread over more than 180 districts, all waiting for their chance to see The King and recieve his gifts. Suddenly, the Mad King’s Guard (which looked like Candy Corn Elementals) straightened from their dormant posture and announced the King’s iminent arrival, following which he sprang from nowhere, startling some. He welcomed us and beckoned us closer, announcing a celebration in his honor. He told jokes, challenged random people to a match of Rock, Paper, Scissors, incited music and dancing, and ended the night with Mad King Says. Throughout this affair, those who pleased him were given gifts possessing various properties, while those who did not were killed on the spot, only to be resurrected and given another chance at pleasing the King. At the end, everyone got a parting gift: a jack-o-lantern helmet called a Pumpkin Crown.

All in all, it was a great time and I can’t wait to see what events ArenaNet has planned for other holidays. Imagine Charr Axe Wielders with Santa Clause hats, or gingerbread man guards. Maybe replace the artwork for all wands and staves with candy canes.

Really, though, what makes this all incredible is that Guild Wars is free to play. ArenaNet made certain claims about the product they were producing, and they delivered on it. We now have a solid massively multiplayer gameplay experience for no monthly fee. Who could ask for more? Well, they put time and resources into giving us more anyway. I already thought my money was well-spent, and now I’m doubly sure. To everyone at ArenaNet: Thank you, and I wish you continued success with a great game.

It’s been a while since anything got posted. This is due in part to a massive amount of DSL woe. The other part is that I’ve just been busy elsewhere. At least I think I’ve managed to sort out the DSL troubles.

It only seems to cut out when it rains (consequently, it rained around here a lot) so it’s time to check the water seal on the box outside. If that fails, we’ll see if there’s any leakage on Verizon’s end. At any rate, it’s working and let’s hope it stays that way.

Now, to figure out what I’ve been meaning to comment on…

First, and foremost, there are some things around here that need work. I have an image gallery script ready to install, so that will hopefully get done shortly. I also have some ideas for reorganizing the menu a bit, as well as some new content that just needs to be polished and uploaded. Woohoo! The Links are about to get updated and possibly overhauled, and there’s some old game-related work that’s been freshly dug up so that’ll be available shortly as well.

Played F.E.A.R. and it’s a solid game. Pros? Nice engine, good firefights, the atmosphere and creepy effects are well done, decent AI. Cons? Levels are good looking, but often bland in design. Story is interesting, but not fleshed out well enough. Most importantly, even though a patch was available the day the game was released, there are still major bugs that need fixing. Overall? It’s an engaging game that’s well worth the price of admission. Just wait for another patch or two first.

Still working on a mapping project. I might grab some work-in-progress screenshots.