Mansions of Madness: Blood Ties (Part 2)
Our four investigators, searching the Artimus Estate for clues.
West of Arkham the hills rise wild, and there are valleys with deep woods that no axe has ever cut.
— H.P. Lovecraft, “The Colour Out of Space”
When we last saw our intrepid investigators, they were about to begin their adventure. Such suspense! This time, we’ll definitely get to see some actual adventuring as they investigate the estate of “Ashcan” Pete’s deceased uncle, who was quite strange. Before continuing, you should probably read Part 1.
Mansions of Madness: Blood Ties (Part 1)
The "Blood Ties" map, complete with starting setup cards.
The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents.
— H.P. Lovecraft, “The Call of Cthulhu”
Mansions of Madness by Fantasy Flight Games is about an ancient conflict, between incomprehensible things and a few ignorant people willing to peer into the unknown, and in the process push back the darkness for a few minutes more or lose their sanity. It takes place in the thick of Lovecraft’s (and his inheritors’) fiction, in a vast universe hostile, or perhaps worse, indifferent, to man.
I sat down on Halloween night with my wife, my sister Emilie, and two friends to play through one of the game’s scenarios, “Blood Ties.” This is the story of what befell four investigators as they struggled to uncover the mystery of a blood relative, and the legacy he may have passed on…
GLaDOS is a Vegetable, The Sequel
You know how it goes. You think you’re okay to go to that party. You know, the one that might be a bit too hardcore for you. Then you wake up as a vegetable. GLaDOS knows the feeling. And now it’s happened again. You’d think she’d learn.
The GLaDOS pumpkin, courtesy of my wife. She was going to carve Manny Calavera too, but that pumpkin fell off the table after being hollowed out.
Go ahead, click for a bigger image. And after the jump, a bonus pic…
The Most Frightening Game of the Year
Tabajaras says goodbye to his grandparents for the last time. Is this the most frightening part of the year? Tragically, no.
Last night was Halloween. This would have been posted then, but I sat down with a group of friends to play Mansions of Madness instead. So here’s Space-Biff’s first ever (belated) Halloween special.
I’d like to talk a bit about the game that’s frightened me the most this year. You may have already guessed what it is from the image above. If you have, you’re probably wondering how anyone could consider this game frightening. If you haven’t, a hint: it isn’t called “Nuevos Aires, 1960.” It’s a game that at its most profound level is about the detachment and numbness that follows real violence, about confronting impossible atrocities, and about a nation’s disconnect between the suffering of its people and the isolation — and ambitions — of its leaders. It’s also a puzzle game. About zombies. And smashing them to their constituent atoms.
RPS Ascension: Annum Belli Apparatum (Spring and Summer, Year 2)
Ichiro is feeling good about himself, for the first time he can remember since he joined the Demon Priesthood. There is peace between Wayland of the Marverni tribes and Akenbei of the Yomi, and the dominion of Akenbei is secure all along the coast thanks to Ichiro’s temples. So he’s mortified, naturally, to learn that Akenbei intends to invade the Marverni lands so soon after an agreement has been made.
The situation in the southern half of the western landmass of Antopeos
Ichiro sees some problems with Akenbei’s plan. First, there is no guarantee that Raidon’s army will be able to survive an attack on Bogger Wold after the army has been worn out by months of combat. Second, when the forces of the Yomi are compared to that of the Marverni, it is apparent that there are three Marverni soldiers to every Yomi currently fielded. Third — and most importantly — Ichiro has been left without any attendant army in Roca while Akenbei and Raidon have camped their forces in Temiglia. If they invade Bogger Wold, the inevitable reprisal from Marverni will likely consist of their army in Diluphe marching north to where Ichiro is stationed, burning and plundering everything in their path. Ichiro’s good mood simply won’t abide this possibility.
A Random Look at Vlambeer
Vlambeer, a small (two people!) Dutch game studio, released their latest game earlier today. Serious Sam: The Random Encounter is the most recent in Croteam’s series of indie versions of their Serious Sam franchise, and can be had for only five dollars from Steam. Their games have a strong history of being innovative changeups of familiar genres, and The Random Encounter is no exception. Thoughts on this, and their past games, below.
Rage: Explaining the Plot
Well, I finished Rage last night. I liked it overall.
Overall.
Id’s latest effort has been a tricky one for me to get a handle on. So many of its components are absolutely humming with perfection and tightness. Other parts felt like waxen imitations of better games. I can say that Rage is one of the few games I’m going to play through again. Unfortunately, it’s an uneven experience.
I’ll illustrate with a conversation I had with my sister.
RPS Ascension: White Candles (Winter, Year 1)
With peace brokered between Yomi and Marverni, Akenbei’s reign is secure for the time being, allowing him to turn his attention to resolving the war of faith with Nerae of Oceania and expanding south as quickly as his army will march. As winter begins, Nanvather the Demon Priest announces the construction of a temple in Cynaphe, the first temple dedicated to Akenbei outside of the capital. Soon after, Akenbei’s army, led by himself, Raidon the bandit, and Ichiro the prophet, conquers the meager defenders of the wasteland-province of Boggiton.
Winter begins
The Reason for my Rage
I’ve been anticipating id’s new game, Rage, for some time. Now it’s out, and I can’t bring myself to play past the first level. Here’s why:
On the left, half-loaded textures; on the right, even less-loaded ones (click for full resolution)
RPS Ascension: The Autumn Accords (Autumn, Year 1)
After the long summer campaign and successful conquest of Histyra, Akenbei is so swollen with confidence that he returns with his army to Yomi for a month of feasting and reinforcement. While there, his researching sorcerers inform him that they have completed their first forays into the lost science of Alteration — the school of magic concerned with bending the physical world to the will of the caster. Akenbei immediately decides to forget that he ever bothered with the useless Twist Fate spell, and sets to practicing one of the new Alteration spells being passed around Yomi: Personal Luck. This trick grants him immense fortune in combat, making enemy ankles catch in molehills as they charge, and swords slide uselessly off his rough hide.
But while Akenbei is delighting in his new powers, he receives some bad news, both from Rai in the south and the watchposts along the borders of Yomi.
Marverni, a nation of druids and allied tribesmen
SPACE-BIFF! 