Weekly Penguin
April 4th, 2013

Return to the land of the living

Too long has passed since the last update, for various reasons. So without further ado, here we go.

What am I doing right now?

I'm trying to catch up with my personal schedule, trying to finish the second section of the first proper level. Once complete, this would mean we have two Levels one section away from being complete. And that's pretty darn awesome. This has been, again, delightfully different process, as majority of this level is built from custom slots and backgrounds crafted in Photoshop instead of being built in TAGAP editor.

This is a slow process and far from being applicable to most levels, but in this case it gives it just the feel it needs. Especially since thematically we're threading some familiar things here, but thanks to the different method of production it's feels fresh.

Unfortunately, this level section was supposed to be ready by this month, but that was due to...

Illness

As you may have read in our Twitter or Facebook page, I struck some health problems last month; A full-scale inflammation of my intestines, including the appendix. Naturally this threw me into hospital and surgery, which in turn left me bed-bound for over two weeks. As painful an experience this was, the biggest issue for me was the fact I was unable to work on anything TAGAP. Hell, I even missed one Weekly Penguin, the first one since my laptop broke down few years back!

Those who haven't checked out TAGAP 2 extras galleries might wonder how an appendix surgery affects sitting in front of a computer. Well, my computer rig is pretty infamous, MacGyvered from a shoestand and I use my computer while I sit on the floor. This is actually comfortable and ergonomic, but as I found out the hard way, impossible to use when your stomach is held together by stitches. All I was able to do was to lay in bed playing Xbox for two weeks. And trust me, nearing the two week mark it stops being that fun an activity to do all day long.

Speaking of Xboxes...

The Xbox disaster

So, yeah; My Xbox malfunctioned. Again. For those keeping track of these things, that's Xbox No. 5 down. This one just seized to read discs – again a totally new way of bricking. Luckily the system worked otherwise, meaning I've been able to play XBLA titles and I've used that as the excuse to finally complete The Walking Dead adventure game series (Petja's choice for GOTY 2012 and for a reason).

I was so damn disappointed and bummed I decided to give up Xbox for good, perhaps even stop playing everything but the stuff I've invested in on Kickstarter. But then I looked at my backlog; I have over ten frakkin' games on my shelf. In terms of money that's over two consoles worth of game discs and I didn't want to flush that kind of sums down the toilet. So, I got myself another Xbox. But I swear in the name of the Old Ones, this will be the last.

But on the positive side; We now have more stuff to abuse, torture and demolish in the name of TAGAP 3 sound effects recording! I guarantee that'll be one therapeutic session.

The Backlog

I mentioned my backlog – here it is;

In progress:

  • Bioshock Infinite
  • Happy Feet 2

Next in line:

  • Bodycount
  • Dead Space 3
  • Devil May Cry HD Collection (3 games, DmCs 1-3)
  • DmC: Vergil's Downfall
  • Fallout: New Vegas (ultimate edition with all the DLCs)
  • Hitman: Absolution
  • Hydrophobia
  • Saints Row: The Third (the full package edition with all the DLC)
  • Silent Hill: Downpour
  • Zone of the Enders HD Collection (ZoE 1+2)

Stuff completed in 2013 (in completion order):

  • DmC: Devil May Cry (I can't recommend this one enough)
  • Fallout 3 (with all the DLC)
  • Aliens: Colonial Marines
  • The Walking Dead (Telltale adventure series, Petja's GOTY for 2012)
  • FarCry 3 (Vaas for the win!)
  • Metal Gear Rising: Revengeange
  • Tomb Raider (the second best video game remake around, after DmC)


So, that's that for this update. Expect the next one occur far sooner than later.

Until next time,

Jouni Lahtinen, the head penguin