Did I ever say that? I was simply being devil's advocate. I was VERY clear on saying 'the cynical way of looking at it'. In this example, I don't know enough to make that much of a judgement. And in any case whether it is 'wrong' or not is clearly a very morally grey area. Honestly, the way you responded is not…

I sort of agree, although Portal 2 had more widely appealing humour, more thoroughly playtested levels, and more funneling towards the solution as a result. So it depends on the person I guess. I started my girlfriend off with the first Portal though. She wasn't interested in games much at all untill I sat her down…

Oh I agree, most of HL2's appeal at the time was the amazing graphics, the groundbreaking technology, the genuine immersiveness. Most of its biggest touted features have been superceded by modern games. But the fact that most of these qualities are passable still, and variety, story, pacing, level design and music…

Portal is easily the best example of something to start someone out on, or even Portal 2 tbh. Accessible, funny, engaging all the way through, not too hard, and not combat-heavy (at all).

Agree.

I'm mixed on the Consumer Preview. The new stuff is pretty exciting, and a split approach was perhaps the best way of preserving the experiences. But the start menu really needs more customisability for it to look nice for traditional desktops. It can be a bit fiddly at times, but that's probably just because it's so…

Of course it shows its age, but you have to admit that it's aged better than pretty much every other game at the time. I would also say that it hadn't aged very much until this sort of FPS revolution happened after CoD 4.

Definitely agreed. Team Fortress 2 is a fantastic example of this. Unfortunately it's become/will become a massive stumbling block for them with new gamers who have started with Call of Duty and such, who feel like not having sights is like having a limb chopped off when it comes to shooting. You have to admit that…

When that interview popped up I instantly thought that a hardware-standard PC was likely to come. Perhaps this is not true, but with Big Picture mode reportedly 'in development' for far longer than it would really take, it would make sense that it's effectively become 'console mode', and that marketable hardware to go…

That sounds so damn satisfying XD.

I guess the cynical way of looking at it though, is that instead of choosing Child's Play out of the kindness of their hearts, they chose it because while 30% of the proceeds went to charity, it would probably cause more than a 30% increase in bids. There is not better way to get people to spend money than to say 'it…

That's obviously sensible, I think people just like to be more relaxed, and APPEAR more relaxed when it comes down to it. I don't like to scrimp and scrape when it comes to money because it's an extra thing to worry about, I feel like I'm happier when I have a bit more of a live and let live attitude (although…

Aye, I do agree with you there, although usually I don't buy games day 1 so it doesn't bother me really, only games I pre-ordered last year were Deus Ex and Portal 2. Portal 2 was a quite reasonable £27 though. Also, I'm pretty sure it's the companies that make the games that determine the price, not Steam.

Heh, I'm hoping my 560 Ti lasts me a while longer than a year and a half. Since the only problems to be had with it at the moment are poor ports, such as GTA IV and Skyrim with mods, I'm crossing my fingers that it will run games fairly well when graphics bump up for next-gen consoles.

Unfortunately true. Feels a bit redundant doesn't it? I got the 560 Ti a few months ago, and the things that push my card hardest are modded Skyrim and GTA IV. It's totally counter-intuitive.

I'm not sure why people are complaining about the stiffness and acting in the film, it's about the same standard as any other love scene in Mass Effect so far. I didn't think it was terrible or warranted being disliked at all. Do not understand.

Well, I understand that many companies operate on a very rational level that simply champions profit above all. My problem is not so much with microtransactions themselves, but the role they play in the game, since I love Team Fortress 2 and think the microtransaction system is fully justified. However, that was put…

I guess I mean ethically so, why do they want to choke the creative process and their customers just to be more profitable? While profit is most important, the wellbeing of their employees and customers both come a close and joint second. Directly trading off one with the other seems silly to me.

Why does longer length even mean better value? I never understand how that makes any sense. Of course, on some scale it makes a difference, but quality is still by far the greatest indicator of value, since it will determine how much you actually enjoy the game. What has that got to do with attention span?

I think I like the actual voice acting, but it is noticeably jarring after hearing years of American VA. It's definitely seems more down-to-earth, as American voices usually make me feel like I'm in a big-budget film XD. I think while the delivery sounds a bit like amateur stage acting, the over-actedness feels better…