Category Archives: Video Games

BigBadBob’s 2011 Game of the Year Awards

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Move over Spike’s VGA…you were and still are a whopping disappointment to the gaming community. Why you think I’d rather watch some jerk jump onto a Velcro wall or some deuche in a mouse helmet spin tunes rather than allowing the winning developers to give a one-minute speech that didn’t end in a tea-bagging incident is beyond me. But enough of that…this is my personal Game of the Year awards. These are the games I played and enjoyed the most this year, and some may be expected or a surprise. Just sit back, relax and enjoy.

Action/ Adventure Game of the Year: Batman: Arkham City

Batman: Arkham Asylum was successful in making a game in which you actually felt like Batman. It concentrated more on stealth, gadgets and puzzles than any other Batman game before. With Arkham City, Rocksteady Studios built on top of what it had already achieved and made it a bit better by adding a sandbox-style environment that the player could explore at will to uncover side missions and search for crimes in progress. The supporting cast of heroes and villains (and the voice actors that bring each to life) is phenomenal and despite all the baddies Batman faces the game never seems over-crowded. The combat is simple to learn yet complex to master and the urge to track down every last Riddler trophy is tempting (especially when the lives of hostages are on the line.) Batman: Arkham City makes for a fun romp through Gotham as the caped crusader and is easily the best Action/Adventure game of 2011.

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Unboxing of Lord of the Rings: War in the North Collector’s Edition

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I love the folks over at Co-optimus. Not only have I met a ton of online friends through the site, but they also have pretty frequent contests. For the approximately three years that I have been a regular on the site I have won an Xbox 360 console, a copy of Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga and now, as of today, I am the extremely proud owner of a brand-spanking new copy of Lord of the Rings: War in the North for the 360. And it’s not just any ol’ copy…IT’S THE FREAKIN’ COLLECTOR’S EDITION!!! I was anxiously sitting by the door all day waiting for the UPS dude to deliver my precious…

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Crimson Alliance: A New Breed of Hack and Slash/ Dungeon Crawler

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That’s the Soul Siren, your arch-nemesis

I’m sure many of you fellow gamers are familiar with the hack and slash/ dungeon crawler RPG genre. Here’s the generic laundry list that typically defines this genre:

  • Fantasy setting
  • Two or more players
  • Simple, button mashing combat
  • Several different classes of character, each with unique skills
  • Develop skills by assigning points to skill trees
  • Grind to get XP
  • Smash boxes and open chests to find gold and equipment
    • Purchase new equipment and sell off old equipment
    Here’s what Crimson Alliance does:
    • Fantasy setting
    • Two or more players
    • Simple, button mashing combat
    • Several different classes of character, each with unique skills
    • Develop skills by assigning points to skill trees
  • Grind to get XP 
  • Smash boxes and open chests to find gold and equipment
  • Purchase new equipment and sell off old equipment 
  • Seems like your everyday, run of the mill dungeon crawler 

    Read More »

    My First Time with a Redbox

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    No more feeling guilty when you hand the video clerk a copy of “Disney Universe”

    With my recent console dilemma I was stuck with PS3 games from Gamefly yet no PS3 to play them on. I only have a handful of games for the 360 so I wanted something new to play for a little bit to tide me over until Gamefly can send me a 360 game. Enter the Redbox. I had never used one before, and Netflix has always fulfilled our movie needs just fine. Now that Redbox offers games too I figured I would finally give the service a whirl.

    In case you don’t know, Redbox is a giant vending machine located in certain grocery and pharmacy stores that dispenses movies and games. You select your title, slide your credit card through, and they pop the disc out for you to take home. You have until 9:00pm the next day to return it and only pay one day charge ($1.20 for movies, $2.00 for games). If you keep it longer it’s an additional days charge per day. The really neat thing I discovered is that you can go onto their website and see what each kiosk offers, as each one not only has a few different titles but you can also see which discs are available and which are currently being rented. You can even rent a disc off their website and have it reserved so you can pick it up later! Read More »

    Fried Game Consoles, or The Importance of Having a Good Surge Protector

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    Only slightly exaggerated

    So there I was…Shell was doing some research on the computer last night, which meant it was time for me to play a bit. I turned the PS3 on, booted up the new Jurassic Park game, and was in the options screen getting things situated when all of a sudden my PS3 just died. There were no blinking lights, no beeps and blips, just complete and utter silence and stillness. I pushed and held buttons, plugged and unplugged wires, gave the PS3 a tour of all the outlets in the apartment, but no such luck. I was horrified, and it got even worse as I tried to turn the system back on without success. I was crushed.

    This morning I gave Amazon a call to see about getting an exchange. I had purchased this system in September, so the 30 day return policy was long overdue. But I didn’t let Amazon’s policy stop me from getting what I wanted. I spent an hour talking to two customer service reps and one supervisor before I convinced them to give me a refund. It was a battle, but a battle worth fighting, as the alternative was to wait weeks for Sony to “fix” it, and we all know those don’t always go as planned. So I packed the PS3 up and took it off to UPS so that Amazon can do what they want with it. Read More »

    Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Character Build Guide: Rogue

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    My character, the Wood-Elf thief/assassin/hunter (let’s just call him a “rogue”) Roland

    Skyrim is a massive RPG that allows you to make pretty much any character you want. While this is an awesome feature, it can also be quite a lot for the average gamer. Since there are no classes to choose from, the player is forced to build their character  from scratch without any guidelines, and with so many skills and play choices to choose from the novice player can quickly become overwhelmed. That’s where this guide comes in: I knew what I wanted from my Skyrim character and through over sixty hours of character development (plus hundreds of hours of playtime logged into Oblivion) I believe I have the information you need to make an unstoppable rogue character. The rogue is also the build you will want if you have dreams of being a sneaky thief or deadly assassin as well.

    Race: Of the eight races available in Skyrim I would recommend a few as being built for the rogue class. The following three races have initial skills or abilities that are beneficial to a rogue:

    • Wood-Elf/Bosmer: The Wood-Elf receives a +10 to archery as well as +5 to alchemy, light armor, lockpicking, pickpocket and sneak. Wood-Elves also have a 50% resistance to poison and disease (meaning there’s a 50% chance you won’t catch a disease or be affected by poison). The Wood-Elf is my personal choice because this rogue build is heavy on archery and sneaking, and not having to worry about diseases is always a nice perk.
    • Argonian: Another great rogue choice with a +10 to lockpicking and +5 to alteration, light armor, pickpocket, restoration and sneak. Argonians also have a 50% resistance to disease and also have waterbreathing, meaning you will be able to hide in a body of water to avoid enemies that are chasing you.
    • Khajit: These felines receive a +15 to unarmed combat as well as +10 to sneak,  +5 to alchemy, archery, lockpicking, pickpocket and one-handed. The really neat thing about the Khajit is that they have night vision which allows them to see easily at night (which just so happens to be the best time to sneak.)
    The Khajit make a great rogue thanks to their night vision
    Any of these three races will make excellent rogues. They all receive an initial bonus to sneak, lockpicking and pickpocket, which are the bread-and-butter of the rogue build. Since the game is so open as to creating own character, you could technically make a sneaky Orc if you wanted to, but I wouldn’t recommend it. The Wood-Elf, Argonian and Khajit are the three races you want to look into if you want to make a really solid rogue.

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    Gamefly Slacking Once Again

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    I generally love Gamefly, and most of the time they provide great shipping service. However, sometimes things take a bit slower than usual, and this week has been one of those times. I recently rented Lord of the Rings: War in the North and shipped it back to Gamefly. Now they had shipped it on a Monday (10/31/11) and I had the precious in my hands by Wednesday (11/2/11). A two-day shipping time is what I’m accustomed to with Gamefly. So after finishing it up I returned it on that Saturday (11/5). Then on Monday (11/7) my friend e-mailed me saying that Gamefly had just shipped his copy. I wanted to play the game online, so I decided to just re-rent it. They received my old copy on Tuesday (11/8)  and on Friday (11/11/11 AKA Skyrim Day) I received the e-mail that they had sent out my second request for War in the North. Problem is that as of today, 11/18/11, I am still gameless. I contacted Gamefly yesterday and they responded today saying they would send out another copy of the game whenever it’s available.

    You know somethings wrong when it takes over a week to receive a game. I don’t know if the game was lost at the facility, lost in the mail, lost at the mailbox, stolen, or whatever, but all I know is that I haven’t had a Gamefly game in two weeks. Thank the gaming gods that I had Fallout: New Vegas to occupy me until Skyrim arrived or I would have been going nuts!

    So Gamefly…you messed up this time ’round. I don’t appreciate the fact that I’ve been gameless since November 5th. Pick up the pace!

     

    Happy 5th Birthday, PS3!

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    On November 17, 2006, the PS3 was released here in the United States. I wanted one pretty badly back then but the price at the time was astronomical. I had went from the PS1 to the PS2, and I was intent on going for the PS3 once the price was right. And on November 8, 2008, the price was indeed right. I had $400 saved up and Wal-Mart had a promotion where if you bought the PS3 (which was $399.99 at the time) you got a $100 gift card. So I went to Wally World early that morning, waited on a line for over two hours, and eventually snagged my PS3. I’ve now had the PS3 for three years and I have to say I’ve really enjoyed it as a system. It introduced me to so many new features like online play, trophies, wireless controllers, affordable downloadable games and voice chat that I hadn’t experienced with the PS2 (no, I never played PC games).

    Before the PS3, I only had a small handful of friends that I knew that played video games, and it was always a local co-op affair. With the PS3 I was able to play with people from anywhere and I made some new online friends. In my quest for finding co-op partners I happened across C0-Optimus which is a site dedicated to co-op games and meeting fellow co-op gamers. Now I never have a shortage of gaming buddies to hit up when I jump online for a co-op game.

    Of course, the biggest part of the PS3 are the games. I will now regale you with tales of some of my favorite ones: Read More »

    My Skyrim: The First Twelve Hours

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    I’ve spent a good chunk of time with Skyrim yesterday and today and I wanted to talk about my experiences within the game. This isn’t a review but more of a run-down of my character and the stuff he’s encountered. I won’t go into too many specifics so don’t worry about spoilers.

    Let’s start with my character who I named Roland. I wanted to create a rogue/thief/assassin type character for my first playthrough so I went with the Wood Elf since they have an aptitude for stealth and archery (and I also liked his ability to have wild animals fight for him). As you level up you can assign your character perks from different skill trees. Here’s what I’ve been assigning to Roland to make him one heck of a sneaky archer:

    • Archery: In Oblivion I was unimpressed with archery and found it to be too weak. In Skyrim wielding a bow is as deadly as a sword, so once I saw how devastating the bow was I focused on archery as Roland’s main form of combat. The archery branch has several perks that increase the damage of regular bow attacks, the chance of hitting a critical attack and the chance of staggering an opponent. There are also non-damaging perks like increased arrows found on bodies, the ability to zoom in and the ability to slow down time while zooming in. All this, combined with the fact that arrows don’t count against the weight capacity that you can carry, make the bow a great weapon to play. Read More »

    The Dragon Has Landed

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    It has been a nerve-racking thirteen hours. As of 8:30 last night Amazon hadn’t listed my pre-ordered copy of Skyrim as shipped yet. Finally at 8:42 I got the e-mail that UPS had taken possession of the precious cargo. By 7:00 this morning the game was loaded onto the local delivery truck and was bound for my apartment. And then, at 10:46 this morning, I ripped open the package that the man in brown had delivered and beheld Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim in all it’s glory. Here’s the map that came with the pre-order:

    Goodbye world, see you in a few months.

    Thirteenth Platinum Trophy: Fallout: New Vegas

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    I received the Platinum trophy in Fallout: New Vegas today, and just in time with Skyrim arriving tomorrow. It took over a year, since I had pre-ordered New Vegas brand-spanking new last October. It ended up taking four playthroughs but it was all worth it. Plus Bethesda made the game is so fun that it never really felt like a chore. I had received the Platinum in Fallout 3 so I figured I would work towards doing the same in New Vegas.

    There were some pain in the ass trophies to get in order to receive the Platinum, the two biggest regarding gambling. I had to win thirty games of Caravan (a card game played in the Fallout story) for the Know When to Fold Them trophy. It’s a really annoying game because the rules are a bit confusing at first, but once I finally understood the basics I was doing pretty good. If you’re in the midst of doing it, don’t worry about tracking down extra cards to make a custom set…I received the trophy using just the default deck. The other trophy that was annoying was The Courier Who Broke the Bank, which requires you to win so much money at the three main New Vegas casinos that you are banned from gambling there. I initially started trying roulette, but was getting nowhere. Then I tried my hand at Blackjack and was winning crazy money. My biggest word of advice is to make sure you have a lot of luck…I had my luck maxed out at 10 for my casino playthrough and it made things a heck of a lot easier. Read More »

    Fallout: New Vegas Will Be My Next Platinum

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    Yup, it’s official…Fallout: New Vegas will be the next Platinum trophy I snag. I’ve gotten through all of the annoying trophies such as the casino and caravan ones and I have received all the trophies for using all the different weapons. I’ve also completed the game on three different occasions, so I have unlocked the trophies associated with siding with Mr. House, with Caesar, and for going rogue as a wildcard. Today I broke the casinos so the only thing left standing between me and that beautiful chunk of Platinum is completing the NCR story missions. The tricky stuff is over, all I have to do is play on until the end. It’s going to be a sweet Platinum indeed.

    The Simpsons Arcade Game FINALLY Being Ported to XBLA…Probably PSN

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    I have a lot of fond memories of arcades. Whether it was my aunt giving me $20 each time she took my sister and I to Discovery Zone or hitting up the arcade in Oneonta where they gave you free quarters for each good grade on your report card, I always had a blast. Running up to an awesome looking machine, popping in a shiny quarter, and playing alongside friends, family or complete strangers made up some of the best times of my childhood. Being the avid Simpsons fan that I am, it probably comes as no surprise that one of my favorite arcade games of all time is The Simpsons. I remember beating it for the first time when three friends and I were on a Cub Scout camping trip and there happened to be an arcade at the campsite! I also remember playing this arcade whenever we went to the Ground Round on Long Island (you know, the restaurant that had the popcorn as their “free bread service” and had ice cream sundaes in baseball helmets for dessert). Oh man, what a way to digress. The point of this rant is to inform you that this most excellent arcade game is in the midst of being ported to the 360 for sure, with a big possibility of the PS3 also.

    The game popped up for listing in Australia, meaning it’s in the works. The company that is supposedly developing the game is Backbone. This makes sense…Konami is the company that developed not only The Simpsons arcade game but also the company that developed the X-Men arcade game. AND when the X-Men arcade game was ported to XBLA and PSN earlier this year, guess who the developer was…BACKBONE! Soooo a listing showing Backbone working on a Konami arcade game makes sense. While the listing only mentioned the XBLA version, I’ve got my fingers crossed for a PSN version. With the X-Men port, XBLA received it a month or two before PSN, so chances are The Simpsons game will have the same deal. Read More »

    PS3 Review: Lord of the Rings: War in the North

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    That scary dude is Agandaur, and I think he raided the Witch King’s closet

    I’m a pretty big Lord of the Rings fan. My mother tried reading The Hobbit to me when I was like eight years old. I’ve read The Lord of the Rings series at least four times, possibly five. I own and cherish the lame 1970′s Hobbit movie. And I spent probably $500 or more on The Midde-Earth CCG game when I was a teenager. So when I heard there would be a Lord of the Rings game that took place at the same time as the War of the Ring, I was pretty darn excited. Oh, and did I mention it’s been developed by Snowblind (the studio behind one of the best hack-and-slash/ dungeon crawlers ever; Champions of Norrath: Return to Arms)? I was so excited I actually decided to pass up Uncharted 3 for the time being so that I could check out Lord of the Rings: War in the North. While it’s not the perfect game, it makes for an above-average RPG that any fan of Tolkien’s work will enjoy.

    According to War in the North, Minas Tirith and Rohan are not the only areas threatened by the forces of Sauron. To the northwest of these cities, a necromancer named Agandaur is raising an army of orcs and trolls in support of Sauron. It is up to a different fellowship of heroes to defend this area of Middle-Earth while the Fellowship we all know (Gandalf, Frodo and company) head east in an attempt to destroy the One Ring. This new, smaller fellowship is made up of three heroes; Eradan, Farin and Andriel. These heroes are tasked with hindering Agandaur’s actions and defending western areas such as the Shire and Rivendell. The game draws heavily from Peter Jackson’s trilogy in a visual sense, and you will recognize the looks of creatures like orcs and trolls, as well as major characters like Aragorn and Gandalf. As a fan service to other Tolkien nuts, you will also recognize names and areas that are never or barely mentioned in the movies such as Radagast the Brown, Gundabad, Elladan, and Ettenmoors. If you can’t tell the difference between Elrohir and Gwahir you may not be as awestruck as people familiar with Tolkien’s work, but that won’t stop you from enjoying a really solid RPG.

    You were wrong if you thought Legolas and Gimli were the only elf-dwarf tag team around Read More »

    One Week til Skyrim

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    A week from now, on the epic day of 11/11/11, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim launches from retailers to fire up a world of anxious gamers. This is not only my most anticipated title of the year, but I’m pretty darn sure I haven’t been this excited for a game ever (previous contender was Bethesda’s other masterpiece, Fallout: New Vegas). I first got introduced to the Elder Scrolls series when I made Oblivion my first PS3 game purchase after getting the system. I had heard how amazing the game was and how much replay value there was so I just had to check it out. I was blown away by the depth of the game, from the vast environment to the character creation to the seemingly limitless number of quests to undertake and dungeons to explore. The Shivering Isles expansion did so much more for the game and is probably one of the best pieces of DLC ever assembled. Plus it took me well over two years to beat the game since I would always get sidetracked into some other side quest and totally ignore the main quest.

    With all that being said, I am really looking forward to losing myself in Skyrim. The graphics blow away those of Oblivion, the new dual-wielding combat system sounds awesome (you can now have one item in each hand, be it a weapon, shield, or magic spell), and the inclusion of dragons, and LOTS of dragons at that, (plus TROPHIES) mean this is going to be one epic game. I’ve had it pre-ordered for quite a few months now and I’ve just been waiting relentlessly for release day. Next Friday can’t come soon enough!

    Child’s Play

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    Tis the season for charities to start bringing forth their A-game as consumers in the holiday spirit are more likely to be generous. I’m no stranger to holiday donations and I usually do something, whether it was a food drive at work, a “giving tree” at church or simply putting a couple of bucks into the Salvation Army bucket at Wally World. This year I came across a charity that actually speaks to me as a gamer, and I have made my donation.

    Child’s Play is a charity that is primarily funded through gamers. The monetary proceeds collected go to needy children across the world, generally those who are sick in hospitals. Child’s Play also gives you the option to donate items requested to local children’s hospitals, and that is what I did this morning. I went on their website and found the nearest children’s hospital, which happens to be right here in Charlotte. When you select an institution you are taken to their Amazon Wish List, and from there you can see what they want for the children at the hospital. I ended up donating three books that were requested.

    If you do happen to decide to purchase items off their Wish List, make sure you click the “this is a gift” box. This ensures that the shipping address will show up as the hospital and not your own.

    If you’re interested in donating to this worthy cause, or you just want to learn more about the charity, click here. You can either donate cash directly or you can choose a hospital from the map to see what they need. Don’t be a stingy…nerds are supposed to be nice guys!

    PS3 Review: Batman: Arkham City

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    What makes a video game based on a comic book super hero perfect? Is it an original story that you can see unfolding on paper just as well as it comes to life on the TV screen? Is it great visuals and voice acting that make it seem like you’re watching a movie? Is it having a great supporting cast of villains and other heroes who either hinder or aid the super hero? It is all these things, and one more; a successful video game adaptation of a super hero let’s you “feel” like you’re in complete control of the guy under the mask, cape, and tights. Rocksteady got this formula down right with Batman: Arkham Asylum, and they’ve done it again with the sequel.

    The biggest thing that Batman: Arkham City has going for it is that the Batman you are controlling feels like Batman. Batman is not a hero possessing super strength and speed…in the game he slow, controlled and methodical. Batman is known for his wide array of gadgets, and there are plenty to use from the batarang to the grappling hook to a freeze bomb. Batman is also known for his criminal science skills, and as the great detective you will be analyzing crime scenes to discover evidence, interrogate henchmen and use your intellectual knowledge to solve a whopping 400 puzzles left behind by my favorite Batman villain, the Riddler. All in all, the game stays true to Batman, and this dedication to the source material make Arkham City THE BEST super hero video game of all time.

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    Joker is a Fan of Lost

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    I’ve been playing through Batman: Arkham City for the past few days and I’m really enjoying the game. Everything from the gameplay to the storyline to the crisp graphics are amazing. And then they go and throw in a little treat for Lost fans, and I couldn’t  believe it. I went online and sure enough someone else had found it and went through the trouble of putting it on the ol’ youtubes. It’s not really a spoiler, and it is story-related, so you won’t miss it if you’re currently playing through the game (unless you’re not listening carefully.)

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    What’s the Deal with “Online Passes” in Today’s Games?

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    Within the past few months, more and more games are requiring an “online pass” to play online. Granted, the code is provided in all new packages of the game. So you run into this problem when you either buy a game used or rent a game, in that you will have to pay $10 (every one I’ve seen has gone for $10 so far) in order to play online. Is this fair to gamers? The game companies think so.

    The Defense:

    Game developers believe they have a right to charge people who did not purchase the physical game $10 to access the online co-op and multiplayer features. They argue that they should be properly compensated for the time and effort they put into creating and maintaining these modes.

    My Argument: Read More »

    Gearing Up for WWE ’12

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    Anyone who follows my blog knows I get crazy around this time of year when THQ starts releasing relevant information about their annual WWE new release. This year is no different, and they’ve done quite a bit of revamping since last year’s Smackdown vs. Raw 2011. Just remember, I am a fan of the game series, not of the actual WWE programming and do not watch it on television.  So what exactly are the new features? Read on:

    • Title: That’s right, THQ decided to drop the “Smackdown vs. Raw” title from now on and are sticking with just “WWE”. It makes a heck of a lot of sense and is something they should have down a long time ago. The first couple of SvR games were true to their name, as there were drafts between the shows in-game and there was a “Be a GM” mode where you had to get more money and viewers than the competing brand. But that all stopped over the past few years and it’s been more about WWE in general and less about a conflict between these two shows. So I’m totally happy with calling it “WWE ’12″ as opposed to “Smackdown vs. Raw 2012″ as it’s a heck of a lot easier to say and write. Read More »