jstout

I just got done getting a full extraction on a Gold APEX match (sniper rifle battle vs. outlaw). I used 5 first aid packs, 5 revives and 5 RPGs and regret nothing. The third wave was the toughest I've seen in weeks (hack caused all the enemies to pool on us), and by 4, I said "no way we get though 5." By 5, I said "no way we get through 6." We had to just pool up so somebody was always close when one of us died and another of us died trying to revive the first guy. When we finished, I let out this whoop like I'd just climbed Mount Everest. I felt like getting the other guys' names and addresses so we could have a reunion at a Holiday Inn 20 years from now and talk about the Battle on Derelict Ship Hill.

Got to play the multiplayer Remnant in the round, this tiny circular map that's kinda like a bowl. We finished it on Silver because I was the only one not cheap enough to plug the Destroyers with RPGs. Everybody else is shooting at them, and with everything else going on, that was a losing battle. It was fine after I found me a place to take cover - it wasn't great cover, but I was comfortable. It was strange to specifically target any Observers on the field over enemies closer to me, because with the way the room was constructed, no one could hide from the Observers. They had to go and go quick, and then we could deal with the other stuff in front of us. Fun room. Would be interesting to play other enemy types in it.

My female co-worker who plays this game is pretty much swooning in real life over Jaal - "Play it again! Romance him! Take notes! He's the perfect boyfriend!" Oh, and I chased Suvi like an idiot for years because I looked it up on the Internet and saw she could be romanced (but that's all I knew). So finally I get to the point where Peebee's all "what's it gonna be boy, yes or no?" and reconsulted the Internet, where I found Suvi could be romanced, but not by me. Ohhhh.

I gotta find a spot where I deem someone too low to be playing Silver and find me another bunch to play with. I had a Level 4 Krogan of some sort in a Silver game with me, and I think he died every 15 seconds. The objective was to revive him, then do all the other crap. Still, having mostly good luck with randoms.

I just wish the game would realize that I already have 2 trillion ammo packs and don't really need any more. It could then give me something I actually use, like an RPG, revive or first-aid pack. I also wish the guy left at Bioware Montreal could fix the bug where the guy (can't remember his name) quits talking to you during multiplayer. It sounds strange, but I can't stand to not hear when there's three left. It actually influences several decisions.

Kept my streak of at least partial extractions (with me always extracting) in Silver going, and even got brave and tried (and finished) a Gold APEX mission (Outlaws, of course). The Gold mission was a partial extraction, but I'm not sure how - I thought we had it. Gold is an entirely different critter. I think there were four Krogan coming after me at one point. When a Hydra showed up in Level 3, I knew I wasn't in Kansas anymore. Level 6 was a Devices wave, but I got so busy just trying to stay alive that I completely forgot about the devices. One Silver match was tainted by a Level 4 who took it upon himself to die 5,000 times. I revive him at one point and immediately die. He pretty much hops over my corpse to get started on the task of dying again, leaving one of our teammates to revive me. That partial extraction was a complete miracle. I've never quit out of a lobby so fast after it was over. Here was a charming one - Silver match, Remnant. I've had this happen before, but figured it was some kind of special stipulation in an APEX match. It wasn't. None of my d-pad stuff worked (first aid, revive, RPGs) - all of them showed zero, including the ammo packs that I have 4,502,034 of. And to make matters worse, the right bumper and left bumper didn't work either, so there went all my special attacks. I knew if I actually tried to help my teammates out, they'd be reviving me more than shooting enemies, so I just basically hid the entire match and we somehow all made it out. I knew it couldn't be a stipulation when one of my teammates died and immediately popped. No popping for me, no sir. That was tough. Another weird thing - I sent two NPC strike teams on either Bronze or Silver missions (their chances of completing the Gold missions is so small I don't wanna chance them getting negative traits for failing). I'm 100 percent positive they weren't Gold missions, but when I checked on my teams before calling it a night, they were both in Gold missions (with the bad chance of success) somehow. Here's a depressing little fact: XBox deals with gold is already selling the Special Edition download for $41. It listed for $69, so that's quite a price break. I remember it taking much longer for Fallout 4 to even drop by $10, for example.

Finishing silvers by the skin of my teeth with randoms. Lots of first aid packs and revives, but job gets done. Switched back to my human soldier 'cause he's an X and my Asari Adept is a III. The Adept just doesn't have enough shields, and punching things to gain them can be problematic. Also been doing Bronzes to level up different characters. Rule is that I try my damndest not to use first aids or revives. It's fun playing new characters, but the pay sucks. Got the Revenant I assault rifle. Would be an awesome gun if it packed a bit more punch. I think it'll sing once it gets to III or IV. It amazes me that when this came out, I couldn't fathom playing Silver because Bronze was overwhelming. Now it's my play-around level. I can't fathom doing Gold anytime soon, though. Maybe in a few weeks.

I had a bit of that last night, where I was just blasting a Krogan over and over again from point-blank range with a Disciple IV and seemingly not fazing him. I gave up and melee'd him to death. I need to try another shotgun or two, but the Disciple is way lighter than the other shotguns that do comparable damage.

I was looking for that in the article. I dunno about you longtime ME nerds, but I really liked the single player. Did it have flaws and bugs? Sure, they all do. But I reslly loved the storyline and relationships, and there were just so msny loose ends that need to be tied together that the (possible) thought of no sequel at all leaves me as displeased as when I watched the last "Deadwood."

Kotaku says BioWare Montreal has been scaled way down, which will probably slow down a sequel greatly.

Nice of them to patch the whole "you have mail" thing in single-player after I've finished it. They have a real ear on the multiplayer community and what they're doing. Everyone using the Vanquisher? Nerf it. Lots of people using Asari Adepts? Knock her shields down a peg. Some of it affects my gameplay, but I don't care. They're doing everything I wish Rockstar would've done with GTA Online - make adjustments to the game to keep one playstyle from being more effective than the others. There came a time in GTA Online where if you didn't use that fast sniper, you were at a serious disadvantage to everyone else in the game. I shouldn't have to play like everyone else or face such a harsh penalty.

That ain't much fun when you have 19 seconds to extract. Had a lot of actually helpful help this afternoon. Did a bronze APEX fighting Kett, a silver APEX fighting outlaws and a regular silver fighting outlaws.

I hit that fun glitch where you can't move forward while trying to evacuate during extraction on silver Kett. Was a tad angry about that.

Kett on Silver are no joke. Got all my common characters up to X today. Should I keep buying basic packs until I level up my common guns, or move to advanced packs to start working on my uncommon characters?

I got all the devices in one silver match today. I understand people wanting to play Silvers because they pay better, but just bring a decent character to the party. Every time I died, I popped, because I didn't want anyone sticking their necks out for me. New source of fun (for me): Bronze APEX matches. I'd been leaving them to my NPCs as a way to farm mission points, but they're pretty fun. They're harder than a random Bronze match (I think), and I love the stipulations. One I played today was no revives. Once you died in a round, you stayed dead for that round. Upped the ante a bit.

I felt the same way on my first run-in. I dropped it and came back to it when I felt better about my weaponry. Mass Effect: Assholia for today is fhis random hell-bent on playing his Level 3 character in Silver. None of us could get anything going for having to revive his sorry ass.

I've yet to really formulate a strategy for higher levels like silver and gold. The Asari Adept is a melee machine the way it's built, but when there's four tough enemies around you, you can't punch them all at once. I'm surprised I didn't have nightmares about the gold and silver Krogan.

It amazes me how one group of enemies on a certain level can be easy one time and horribly tough the next. Worse random luck?

Yup. They have these bigger items that get posted once a week that any of your characters can get bonuses from, and they also sell needed items like first aid packs and revives for 5 mission funds a pop. Instant message last night from a co-worker of mine who's playing single-player right now: "FUCK THOSE GIANT ASS FLYING SQUID MOTHERFUCKERS I HAVE DIED NO LESS THAN 12 TIMES WHAT THE FUCK"

I laughed harder than I have in weeks over Charlotte's statement that "these pictures must be removed from the internet immediately." Yeah, I'm sure the internet will get right on that...

There's tanks and jets and helicopters with heat-seeking missiles all around you. It's a war zone. Who goes shopping for clothes in a war zone? "La da da, think I'll buy me a new top..."

There's a whole bunch of people in Freemode - including me - who will torture low-level players trying to make a little scratch by robbing a store. Just like torturing anyone who tries to clothes shop in Freemode. Sticky-bombed-up car driven to block the door = ut oh for poor new guy. Store robbery is an throwback to bygone days, a waste of time better spent making more money. Kinda like survivals.

Actually, some folks are pitching a fit because robbing a store is occasionally one of the daily objectives. I looked - Tuto hadn't figured out some kind of wacky store-clerk dupe glitch, so I dunno what this is about.

So what you're saying is you want me and Melraz to sing a duet of this next time we're shooting Kett?

Don't forget the ever-depressing getting teabagged to death. That's always pleasant.