Random note:

So, as I've mentioned before, I love all things gaming. When I was young I aspired to be a comic book artist, and  it's something that I came back to a couple years ago - drawing & story writing that is.

Anyways, I've always had an interest in learning more about video game creation; character & world design, plot creation, and all the aspect of programming. Several years ago I ran my own business, and during that time I created my own website, logo's, ads, and everything you can think of with Photoshop - teaching myself what I could by trial and error and online tutorials. Since then I've slowly continued to expand my knowledge of Photoshop in a wide range of applications, and wanted to share a recent wallpaper I created.

Not that I think it's amazing, but I would love to hear what people thought and get some feedback on things to try/improve.

As I originally stated, this blog is a combonation of me sharing my passion for 'all things gaming' and current gaming news that I think people should know. In the future I hope to have much of the content driven by what any readers find interesting, because - as my name states - I simply love to talk gaming, and being part of a gaming community!

Anyways, let me know what you think!

-thesocialgamer

Spike VGA's 2012

Friday December 7th at 9pm ET will be the tenth anniversary of the Spike Video Game Awards, a yearly show that recognizes the best computer and video games of the year. Spike TV always puts on a great show, with top performances, coming game previews, and Samuel L Jackson hosting it all.

Headlined in the awards every year is 'Game of the Year' and the 5 nominees are:
- Assassin's Creed III [Ubisoft]
- Dishonored [Bethesda/Arkane Studios]
- Journey [Sony/ThatGameCompany]
- Mass Effect 3 [Electronic Arts/Bioware]
- The Walking Dead: The Game [Telltale Games]

The  Awards are highlighted by Dishonored & Mass Effect 3 (each at 5 nominations), Assassin's Creed III (at 6 nominations), and leading the way is Journey - with 7 VGA nominations.

Journey is an adventure game developed exclusively for PlayStation 3, and was nominated for the following awards:
- Game of the Year
- Best PS3 Game
- Best Song in a Game ("I was born for this" by Austin Wintory)
- Best Original Score
- Best Graphics
- Best Independent Game
- Best Downloadable game

This year players can vote for the 'Most Anticipated Game" and "Character of the Year", so be sure to head over to the Spike VGA website and do that. I'll be following the VGA's as they go on, so follow me on twitter (link right of page) to find out whose winning. I'll also be doing a recap post afterwards for those that couldn't watch.

Leave a comment below, and tell me who you think should win 'Game of the Year'!

Whats on my hard drive?

Wow, great question...

Answer: Not Enough!

Well I guess thats my opinion, but with 1.2 terabytes of space there's no reason for me not to fill it up with more games.

We'll get to that later, but for now, I'm going to dive in and recap a few games I currently have on my computer - what games I'm playing hardcore, and which are collecting virtual dust.


Top Played: FireFall [Red5 Studios]
This mmo shooter is what got me out of my gaming funk about a month ago, it's a fantastic blend of so many different ideas and is such a fresh - and much needed - change in the mmo industry. The guys at Red5 aren't scared to push boundaries and try things other developers wouldn't dare, such as releasing the beta while the game was far from a polished state, and using member feedback to dictate the course of development. Crazy but true, and last week I voted to name one of the game's local species! They're so interactive with the beta community and you commonly run into R5 dev's while your gaming, and there surprisingly fun and... well normal. I could honestly go on about this game for much longer, and I definitely will in a future blog post so stay tuned.

Need to Play More!: Mass Effect 3 [Bioware]
Why have I not played this game! Like I've barely done anything, maybe 2 hours played... MAYBE. I seriously need to crack down, take a day, and put some serious hours into this game - I feel that it definitely will deserve it. I loved the original title, but never really played the second much, for no particular reason, and I don't want that to happen again!

Tried and True: Skyrim [Bethesda]
I just love the Elder Scrolls series. I got started years ago with Morrowind and have been a fan of each one since. Like many others, I've put a considerable amount of hours into the game, and it has so much replay value and is always a consistently fun experience whenever I play. Currently looking forward to Dragonborn DLC, and even more excited for The Elder Scrolls Online in 2013!

Losing Traction: World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria [Blizzard]
Most people are either passionately for or against the most recent WoW expansion, I'd say I'm somewhere in the middle. The game just doesn't do 'it' for me any more, but I've logged so many hours and made some great friendships that I don't want to give it up. I started WoW so many years ago back in beta, played all through Vanilla, but took an extended break during Burning Crusade and Wrath of the Lich King. I run a casual raiding guild on a small US server, and the people I play with are one of the only reasons I still frequent Azeroth.


On Pause: Star Wars: The Old Republic [Bioware]
Wasn't initially enthralled with this game - honestly way preferred the old Star Wars: Galaxies - but as a Star Wars fan from childhood, I would like to play it because of the Star Wars world, more than the actual game itself. With other games on the go I decided not to play past the free trial, but today SWTOR has gone FTP so I'll likely get back into it.

Maybe Later: Rift [Trion Worlds]
I originally played this game when I first became disillusioned with WoW. It is a very good game from my experience, a nearly perfected version of the traditional mmorpg mold. Unfortunately, that is also why it failed to keep my interest, as I needed a fresh change, and this game just didn't provide enough to warrant giving up on all the time I've dedicated to WoW.

Honourable Mentions:
League of Legends [Riot] - Have played LoL sparingly, more so because friends were playing and I just never got that into it.
The Secret World [Funcom] - A very interesting game that captured my attention and I was very close to giving it a run. Provides some nice changes from the traditional mmo

On the Horizon: 
GuildWars 2
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning


I've hoped you enjoyed my spiel about what going on in my gaming life, I plan to do some more in depth reviews of some of the above games in the near future, as well as other gaming related stories.

If there's any games you think I need to try, leave a comment and let me know!


And thats all folks!

-The Social Gamer

And it starts with...

You.

Yes, you.

It all starts with you, and I'll tell you why.

You introduced me to my first video game as a kid. You played co-op mode with me. You made me want to become an artist. You Grouped with me to take down the boss. You inspired me with videos and photos. You ran a live stream just for the fun. You invited me to your clan. You trolled people and made me laugh. You played all night till we reached our goal. You wrote a guide so I'd know what to do. You made me connect with my character. You hung out all the time on ventrillo just because it was more fun to play together.

And those are just a few of the things you did, which resulted in me getting to this point - right... now.

You, are a gamer, and you are the reason I'm writing.

To me, video games have always been much more than simply hours clocked playing in a virtual world. It is the people I've met, played with, and gotten to know that has really made video games what they are. The social aspect of games is what has kept myself and gamers everywhere enthralled for many years. Whether it's playing with the same group night after night focussed on accomplishing a goal together, or casually shooting other people in the face - its the people we play with that make the experience. Okay, okay, the game itself is important too.

If you're reading this very first blog post, you've successfully found the preliminary ramblings of a random gamer. However, I hope you stick around and frequent this blog as I give opinion, insight, and a look into anything and everything that's gaming (and a few things that aren't).

Now, as I'm diving into this endeavour I hope you enjoy the content I shovel out and please toss any feedback to me!

Officially signing off for the first time,

-the social gamer