On a more sombre note this week, albeit with a hint of humor, I want to talk a bit about Sir Terry Pratchett:

The works of this man, probably more than any other author, fill the shelves of my humble abode. When I think of a successful fictional author, it's not Tolkien or George R.R. Martin (both of whom I greatly respect and revere), nor J.K. Rowling and her Harry Potter series. No, Pratchett is the bar I find myself measuring others against. His writing never cease to bring me up, when I'm feeling down and always manage to make me chuckle or downright laugh out loud while reading. Happily, this is understood by others.

I remember leafing through one of his books that is currently among my favourites of his work, "Thief of Time", while in the bookstore and chuckling loudly at a particular passage. At the inquisitive glance from people around me, I found myself simply holding up the book by ways of explaining, and recieved a knowing smile and a nod from my fellow book-browsers - as if we all agreed that it was perfectly acceptable to laugh, with a Pratchett-book in your hands.

As such, when I learned about his sickness I was shocked and a bit saddened. Yet today I saw this following video, and I dare say my respect for the man has doubled. It's the Richard Dimbleby Lecture from the Royal College of Physicians, and though Sir Terry Pratchett himself is unable to hold the lecture due to the effects of his sickness, he has requested a "stunt-Pratchett" to read the speech on his part. It is in 6 parts on Youtube, with Tony Robinson (known to most as Baldric from the Blackadder series) thus reading the body of the speech on the topic of Alzheimers and assisted death (viewers discretion: this is a strong subject, although Pratchett really does broach the subject in a manner that makes you laugh, rather than cry):

- Thorsten

P.S.
When my time comes, I hope to go out with style myself. Preferably relaxing with the sun in my face and a smile on my lips - who knows, maybe even with a good book in my hands.

Dark Void

"In a world on the brink of war, a former pilot turned freight-man finds himself pulled into an alien world to fight the evil slugs and end their (unknown) oppression of humanity."

Although that's not the tagline Capcom most likely wanted, it *is* fitting. It also aptly helps to form a quick conclusion of what the game is like. In hindsight I wished someone has described the game that way to me, saving me the effort of learning for myself.

Dark Void places the player in 1938, right around the time when the world is close to the boiling point and WWII about to rear it's ugly head.
You play the cargo-pilot, Will, who's been sucked into an alternate universe as he was flying goods over the Bermuda Triangle. There he meets the inventor Nikola Tesla, gets a hardwired alien jetpack with no fuel-use whatsoever and has to help human resistance-fighters battle oppressive alien slugs and manta-rays in robot-outfits known as the "Watchers" - all while trying to find out if the girlfriend he last talked to three years ago still loves him. Confused? Well join the club.

Dark Void is a shooter, who promotes itself by giving the player a chance to fight on a vertical as well as a horizontal level. And while entertaining at first, neither is all that spectacular.
You'll get a jetpack early on and be able to play leap-frog across the levels (faster than running) or just plain buzz around as at hazardous speeds and kill stuff with an unlimited amount of bullets from two big-ass guns mounted at the sides of your jet-pack.

While there isn't really any point in remarking on the lack of reality in videogames, I find it hilarious that our hero is impervious to the biting cold when he's flying around at breakneck speed in high altitudes wearing only his flight jacket and army-issue pants, doesn't have to wear a oxygen-mask, and neither fears for his hearing when firing high-caliber machine guns right next to his ear nor setting his butt on fire with the jet-packs exhaust (which the loading screens inform us can achieve 1500 degrees Celsius at times).

It is quite clear that this was designed for a console first and foremost. Playing it on a PC as I have doesn't improve the experience. At times I found that activating my jet-pack it would immediately cause it to spin out of control and slam me into the nearest wall, because my mouse-aim moved slightly - as such I often had to let go of the mouse completely in tight spaces if I didn't want to reload three times in a row. Clearly this would work better with a controller or joy-pad, and the game does also has special options to allow just that.

["Sorry mate, but no means no... even in manta-ray-slug language!"]

Aiming when shooting won't really help all that much. Especially in the early parts of a game you need around two full clips to take down an enemy, and taking the time to aim from behind cover simply allows the rest of your enemies to flank you - if the somewhat dodgy AI can comprehend that. Instead sidestepping while firing your weapon on full auto, or firing blindly out from cover, seems to be the best method of attack. Even more so, get close enough, and you can kill almost anything with one punch in melee - save tons of ammunition and get one out of a few different finishing moves.

During the game, various tips and information pops up on the loading screens. At one point it was noted that "people coming to the Void may account for a lot of strange disappearances". With the weird story-angle so far, I was half expecting to meet Elvis after that. (Perhaps wearing one of the alien slugs as a fancy hat... sadly that didn't occur. Might have made the game a more enjoyable experience).

Concluding:
Dark Void is an action-game that promotes itself on free movement, vertical as well as horizontal. It does that, but little more. Dark Void is just one of those games you'll play once and afterwards forget ever existed.

Pros and cons:
+ The ability to go into arial mode at all times. Even inside a cave or a a small house (not smart, but doable)
+ Graphics is good and flows smoothly, despite the rapid movement when flying
- The story of this game is worse than the worst Steven Seagal movie... on crack.

Rating: 53%
Gameplay 6/10
Story-arch: 3/10
Audio & Cinematics: 7/10

Read more about the game at its official website:
www.darkvoidgame.com

- Thorsten

P.S.
As a side-note, when I installed the game, I was greeted by a Chinese Terms of Use-agreement. "Odd" I thought, but with the usual lack of care that I believe most people have in such a case I accepted it without further ado... If my pc begins spouting chinese propaganda in a few days, at least I know the reason.

Remember back when you where an adolescent teen, doing something you *really* enjoyed and you said "wouldn't it be awesome to get paid to do this?"
Well that's me at present. Uh-huh, I'm the dude who gets paid to do awesome stuff.

I consider myself lucky. Luckier than most, though many would probably not recognize my self-claimed title, or wouldn't understand my eagerness until I explained myself:

I study journalism in Aarhus, Denmark, and is as of now more than halfway through my education (education being the point where I can actually call myself a proper journalist and charge the magazines and papers accordingly for the work I do).
Now, I am currently working as an intern on Scandinavia's biggest PC-magazine "Komputer for Alle" (also known as PC-Tidningen in Sweden, Komputer for Alle in Norway and Kotimikro in Finland - yeah, my work gets translated to finish ).

While writing has always been on the top list of future occupations, and studying to become a journalist is awesome but in a mature "getting ahead in the world"-kinda way, that isn't what I mean by the title of this post. No, what I refer to as the geek dream come true, is the fact that I can honestly call myself a professional gamer/reviewer and know it to be true.

To understand my exhilaration at that, it should be said that I am an avid gamer. When I have the time I like to immerse myself in the roles of heroes, bastards, roughnecks or medieval knights and beat the living cr*p out of some computerbred enemies. To do so, and be able to convey my opinion of said game on a level that will be heard by the masses is a thrilling prospect to say the least. Everyone wants a wee bit of fame, don't they? And game-reviewers have a certain power to their name. With something as simple as a grade, they can stamp years of progress or work, and deem it "worthy" or a "waste of bytes" - it's not like they're saving the world, but in the eyes of the adolescent teen, a credible reviewers word is law. At least law enough that the producers are aware of the fact and listen to the critique this inner circle of geeks-become-gurus. An inner circle I am now tentatively attempting to establish myself in.

["Badmouth my glasses, and this will be going places only your doctor should ever have a need to visit."]

Now I know that I may not be as "professional" as others. I lack the experience and (currently) the credibilty. My reviews will (probably as most) be completely and totally biased depending on the amount of fun I myself had, while playing the game.
If something doesn't run properly it'll be the games fault, not my computer nor my ability to comprehend the aspects or trials of the game and I'll most likely make sure everyone knows. Bad reviews get more attention. (That's a fact. The most (in)famous reviewers on the web NEVER give perfect reviews - it's like an unspoken rule.)

But I *am* professional in the aspect that while many others get a free game in return for a review (or perhaps not even that), I get a free game, and a paycheck.
And that has to be somewhat near the ultimate geek dream come true - it is in my eyes.

- Thorsten

P.S.
I hereby solemnly swear that I will not abuse the *awesome* power that comes with this honorable position in the world of video-gamers. Even if it may get better hits or more attention.

Coffe. The only true way to douse the sunrise. The only way for man to actually get something done... And I'm addicted to it.

When I was younger, I wasn't really that much into coffee. Sure, it was a great way to keep you going, if you had had a rough night or just couldn't seem to penetrate the darkness that was your own eyelids.
But these days? Well let's just say, that the day I stop drinking coffee, you'd now. The cries from the Columbian coffee-plantations would shake the foundations of the earth we stand on.

The thing is, I'm becoming immune to the effects of the caffeine, or at least it feels that way. The first cup of the morning, seems to go totally unnoticed on my body. I've actually managed to fall asleep, with half a cup of coffee still in my hands (indecently I learned that gulping down hot coffee down isn't the only way to effectively wake you up. Spilling hot coffee in your lap will have a much more immediate effect, though the resulting stain can be somewhat hard to explain).

[However you twist and turn it, this *is* life-bringing ambrosia in my eyes.]

As I'm writing this, it's 14:45 pm Copenhagen-time, and I'm on my fifth cup of the day.
Yet I feel like I could rest my head against the edge of the cup and enter hibernation mode right now, if I didn't fear the less-than-subtle stains which might occur as a result.
The *fifth* cup! And I know I'm closing rapidly in on the fine edge between not having had enough coffee and temporary caffeine induced insanity. Yet still my body craves more... maybe I should get a permanent caffeine-drop inserted in my arm? It'd be easier, for sure.

Anyways... I have started to believe that the reason mankind accomplished anything, shouldn't be credited to our brains, but comes as a result of our opposable cup-gripping thumbs.

- Thorsten

P.S.
Incidentally I believe the "thumbs-up" sign, isn't an indication that you approve anything. It just means you've had your first cup and won't tear anybodies head of... just yet.

In this modern day age and world, I know that the likelihood of a 24 year old budding journalist ending up as head of a state is extremely unlikely (not impossible, just unlikely). Especially if you, as I, would rather be without politicians and think that the ways of yore probably weren't all that bad anyways and a monarchy sounds like all fun and good times.

But should some odd case of (un)fortunate events occur, and I end up on a throne with a scepter in my hand, and the power to do what I wanted because I "felt like it", I have one thing to say: Be afraid! Be very afraid!

Because I would be a tyrant. I have come to that conclusion myself and can honestly say that it doesn't really bother me. Oh, I'd probably attempt all the goodie-two-shoes stuff for a couple of weeks, perhaps a month, but then the heads would begin to roll.

The reason? Morons.
On a daily level I am stomped by the complete lack of sense in some people. It gets so bad at times, that I feel I have more in common with inanimate objects than with my fellow man. Worse yet, it makes me feel old, grumpy and decrepit.

To take an example:
This morning, when I was sitting in the bus heading for work, we pull over to gather up some more passengers. Some guy comes running towards the bus, but the busdriver has a schedule to hold, so he has to close the doors and keep going. Which is good for me, because otherwise I would've been late.
The guy on the sidewalk then proceeds to slap his hand forcefully against the side of the bus and yells "f-BLEEP you, you idiot!"
While his frustration is understandable - hell we've all been in a situation where we missed the bus - his outburst just gave me the urge to kneecap the bugger. Or at least forcefully suggest that he keep silent and try to be on time the next time. The world does not revolve around him (it revolves around me, we all know that.)

If I was King... guys like him, who believe they are the center of the universe, would be first against the wall.

[I have come to realize I might need a rather long wall, if I ever became king. This one might suffice.]

Right alongside the fellow who invented the "push button to cross street" concept. Oh yes, you heard me. The daft twit (excuse my language) who decided that there's a dire need for pedestrians to push a button to cross the street at a traffic light.

When, in the recorded history of man, has there ever been a need for pedestrians to stand at a junction and wait, only to *not* cross the street? I don't have an exact count at the amount of times I've stood like a planted tree wondering why the little man in the traffic light was red, and the rest of the lights pointing in my general direction where green... but I can guarantee you, that the number is nearing three digits at an alarming rate. Of course this might just be a danish thing, in which case it's just nation-wide stupidity to keep it around. Not worldwide.

So there it is. If I was King, morons and the guy who invented the button-crossing-concept (and who, in my book, incidentally fall into the same category at the first group of people) will be first against the aforementioned wall...

Oh, and arrogant bus-drivers who close the doors and leave, just as you come running towards the bus. I hate that.

- Thorsten

P.S.
Fifth cup of coffee, and the world is starting to seem just a wee bit more manageable.