User information for Rahul Ganapathi

Real Name
Rahul Ganapathi
Nickname
CrashTestDummy
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Concealed by request - Send Mail
Description
lalal
Homepage
None given.

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Signed On
July 22, 2010
Total Posts
25 (Suspect)
User ID
55837
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25 Comments. 2 pages. Viewing page 1.
Newer [  1  2  ] Older
1.
 
Re: The International Ticket Sales Tomorrow
Mar 26, 2015, 21:06
1.
Re: The International Ticket Sales Tomorrow Mar 26, 2015, 21:06
Mar 26, 2015, 21:06
 
Was planning to go this year. But my wife is pregnant and due around the same time. Oh well, maybe next year.
18.
 
Re: Stardock Lawsuits Settled
Sep 24, 2013, 21:16
18.
Re: Stardock Lawsuits Settled Sep 24, 2013, 21:16
Sep 24, 2013, 21:16
 
You're naive if you think Brad Wardell didnt do anything wrong. Knowing what a douche he is, if he was actually innocent, he would have taken her to court and tried to milk it for as much publicity as possible and then danced all around her corpse once he was finished with her. Instead he settled.

In fact all you need to do is go back and read his comments on various forums to know that something was wrong with the way he treated that woman.
8.
 
Re: Sunday Tech Bits
Aug 25, 2013, 19:32
8.
Re: Sunday Tech Bits Aug 25, 2013, 19:32
Aug 25, 2013, 19:32
 
I don't understand all the hate for Ballmer. I think people are blindly comparing Microsoft to Apple and ragging on Ballmer. But I think Microsoft and Apple were never direct competitors. Microsoft was not in the business of making packaged hardware, while Apple has been doing that since their inception. Microsoft has always been first and foremost a software and services company. As a consumer, your direct form of contact with Microsoft was just through Windows and Office suite.

I think the biggest mistake Microsoft made was underestimating the power of the open internet and open platforms like HTML 5. They were having a jolly good time with proprietary platforms like .net, Microsoft Exchange etc. and making money by selling the tools and infrastructure that enabled enterprises to achieve maximum productivity with their platforms. The games and consumer media divisions was just a small piece of their overall business (albeit the most visible ones, due to the consumer facing nature of those divisions).

But with open platforms, faster internet and open source, more organizations and developers are moving away from these proprietary platforms, and Microsoft has been forced into the hardware and consumer space, and is always a few steps behind the rest of the competition. Maybe part of this is Ballmer's lack of vision, but ultimately, he was a good CEO for that time period, especially for the shareholders. He suffered from a lack of imagination, and I think he tried his best to transition the company. Surface was probably his last play to get back in the game, and he probably would have continued if it had been a major success.

He hasn't really done anything particularly "bad", to deserve the hate that he gets though. He's not as photogenic as Steve Jobs or Bill Gates, and definitely not as charismatic as either of them, so I guess people just like to hate on him.
38.
 
Re: X Rebirth in November; Specs; Trailers
Aug 8, 2013, 18:09
38.
Re: X Rebirth in November; Specs; Trailers Aug 8, 2013, 18:09
Aug 8, 2013, 18:09
 
Creston wrote on Aug 8, 2013, 15:18:
jacobvandy wrote on Aug 8, 2013, 15:13:
Exactly. EVE is easier to get into than previous X games...

Eh, a lot of people say that, but I went into X2 as a rookie and had picked it up in a matter of hours. And I don't consider myself some space gaming guru extraordinaire or something.

I think sometimes people just give up too easily and miss out on what's (in my opinion) the most immersive space series ever created.

To each their own, of course, and if people feel after an hour that it's too frustrating then obviously that's an issue with the game rather than with them, but it's not as if the X series is absolutely impossible to learn or something. It just takes a long time to master.

I kind of agree with you. Its just I have so many unplayed games in my Steam library, that sometimes I make a decision to move on after giving a game some of my time. When I was younger, with less money to spend, I would purchase like 1 game every 4-5 months, and thus have more motivation to actually sit through and play even complex games, spending as much time as required to learn the intricacies of the game.

That still doesn't excuse the fact that for a sim-like game, a better tutorial is required. I might reinstall X3 over the holidays to give it another shot and hopefully, this time I'm able to comprehend things faster.
10.
 
Re: X Rebirth in November; Specs; Trailers
Aug 8, 2013, 15:01
10.
Re: X Rebirth in November; Specs; Trailers Aug 8, 2013, 15:01
Aug 8, 2013, 15:01
 
Efflixi wrote on Aug 8, 2013, 14:50:
I tried so hard to get into X3 but the control scheme just did me in... I love space games. Freelancer is one of my favorite games of all time. I backed Star Citizen for more money than I've ever spent on a game before.

Yeah, I bought the entire X3 series when it was on sale for 5$ or something (for all 3 games combined), but I could never get past the first mission after playing for nearly an hour, because of the arcane controls. It was so bad that I had trouble even finding the guy who was supposed to give me the tutorial/training thing.

I've played many complex and deep games before, but all of them were designed well enough to ease me into the complexity, or atleast have well designed tutorials, that allowed you to jump into the game and atleast complete the simpler objectives.
6.
 
Re: Dota 2 for OS X and Linux Released
Jul 19, 2013, 21:53
6.
Re: Dota 2 for OS X and Linux Released Jul 19, 2013, 21:53
Jul 19, 2013, 21:53
 
[SC]TherMight wrote on Jul 19, 2013, 17:56:
My buddy is getting this for Linux. Can a Windows 8 client play seemlessly together with Linux players? I assume so... but some games partition their community by OS/platform.

Thanks in advance. And thanks for those tips above.

I'm not a 100% sure, but I think most source engine games are cross OS compatible. They mostly only separate the user base based on whether you're using a PC or a console, and even that is mostly because they are contractually bound to connect via XBox Live or PSN and are thus forced to be exclusive to that platform. There is nothing in the underlying source code that prevents cross platform play.
2.
 
Re: Dota 2 for OS X and Linux Released
Jul 19, 2013, 14:25
2.
Re: Dota 2 for OS X and Linux Released Jul 19, 2013, 14:25
Jul 19, 2013, 14:25
 
Beelzebud wrote on Jul 19, 2013, 13:20:
It runs flawless on my Arch Linux install. Now if only I could see what's in the game that makes so many people go nuts over it.

Its not easy to get into. Speaking as a long time player since the original DotA in 2004, the community can be hostile, the amount of stuff to learn is staggering (with over 102 heroes and 130+ items), and a bunch of wierd interactions between multiple hero skills and items (which can only be learned by playing a lot).

The easiest way to get into it is to find 3-4 friends at nearly the same level as you, and keep playing with them to have fun. Don't play with friends who are clearly better than you at the beginning, because DotA destroys friendships, especially if you're a slow learner (although no one accepts that they are).

However it is really fun and borderline addictive if you really get into it.
7.
 
Re: Tactical Intervention on Steam Next Month
Jul 3, 2013, 13:24
7.
Re: Tactical Intervention on Steam Next Month Jul 3, 2013, 13:24
Jul 3, 2013, 13:24
 
"To present his latest stroke of genius"

LOL dat ego! The greatest minds neither have the time nor care about glorifying their own work with such adjectives. That's why I run away from people with tags such as "serial entrepreneur" and "Inventor". When you are so full of yourself, you stop seeing whats in front of you and lose connection with your audience, and end up designing something that no one wants.

Sorry if its a bit off topic, I just hate people like that.

Also if anyone has seen the gameplay trailer, it looked like shite the last time I saw it.
2.
 
Re: Star Citizen Livestream
Jun 28, 2013, 20:46
2.
Re: Star Citizen Livestream Jun 28, 2013, 20:46
Jun 28, 2013, 20:46
 
I've been hearing about this game for a while, so I decided to finally check out the site today.

What a terrible redesign. I can't find any information on the homepage about the game. Its like an "inside" thing for people who already know about the game. If you're a prospective buyer, its almost impossible to get a quick rundown about the game, or the kickstarter or any of the other good stuff. In fact, except for a small link on the top right that says "Star Citizen", nothing else on the page even gives you a hint about what the hell is actually going on.

People need to understand that good design is not about flashy colors and graphics, but about being able to provide users with the right information at the right place. And hire an actual "designer" instead of an artist to do your designs.
1.
 
Re: Gatherings & Competitions
Jun 26, 2013, 14:15
1.
Re: Gatherings & Competitions Jun 26, 2013, 14:15
Jun 26, 2013, 14:15
 
That Starcraft 2 post on cinemablend is so badly written, its hard to make any sense out of it. You might want to consider changing the title to

"MLG no longer a part of WCS America"

because thats the actual story. WCS America is Blizzard's frankenstein e-sports tournament, which was threatening to kill all other SC2 tournaments in the US. Thankfully under the new arrangement MLG will still continue to host independent Starcraft tournaments under their Pro Circuit banner. They will no longer host the WCS America tournament (which has been handed over to the NASL). This means that there are more competitions for professional SC2 players to win money, and is actually a great news overall for the SC2 scene.
25.
 
Re: DNF Royalties Lawsuit
Jun 13, 2013, 20:38
25.
Re: DNF Royalties Lawsuit Jun 13, 2013, 20:38
Jun 13, 2013, 20:38
 
saluk wrote on Jun 13, 2013, 19:29:
The real winner is going to be the guy that turns this into a screenplay.

Nah...who would produce a movie about a failed Game studio suing another mediocre game studio seeking money for a dud game?

The real winners are actually going to be the law firms on both sides, billing their clients for every possible cent they can possibly squeeze out.
18.
 
Re: Deus Ex: The Fall Teasing?
Jun 4, 2013, 01:55
18.
Re: Deus Ex: The Fall Teasing? Jun 4, 2013, 01:55
Jun 4, 2013, 01:55
 
My body is ready.
15.
 
Re: Team Fortress 2 Community Patch
May 20, 2013, 17:43
15.
Re: Team Fortress 2 Community Patch May 20, 2013, 17:43
May 20, 2013, 17:43
 
deqer wrote on May 19, 2013, 01:34:
Redmask wrote on May 19, 2013, 00:47:
deqer wrote on May 18, 2013, 13:37:
That's why Random Crits exists. That's why the Spy class exists(for newb players that couldn't cut it, using a normal class). That's why Ubers exists. That's why it takes 3 rockets for a soldier to kill a spy, instead of 1 rocket. That's why sticky guns exists for Demoman. etc. etc. The list goes on and on; I could list 100+ examples. But, meh.

Your statement is inherently contradictory. 'the game is so balanced its handicapped' makes no sense.

Those elements of the game you mention are not weighted towards a specific side, both sides can take advantage of them which means a winning side playing well will still do better than a losing side who isn't as skillful. The spy class has been around since the beginning and requires a lot of skill to play effectively, you should L2P before talking about things you don't understand.

I'm sorry you couldn't understand the way I explained it(handicapped mechanics), nor the examples I gave.

And you're picking on only the FEW examples I provided (out of the HUNDRED I could also provide from TF2). Random Crits is a prime example of handicap mechanics -- it "randomly" gives a player(regardless of their skill) a temporary unfair advantage. If you take away Random Crits, then you'll see a lot more "true wins" from a skilled team vs an unskilled team.

TF2 is built with many handicap mechanics which are also linked to many of it's nerfed settings, such as nerfed rocket damage and/or splash damage.

Giving the game a skillless class "Spy" (that can cloak), is another example. Sure, the other team can use "Spy" as well, but that's not he point.

Not to mention, TF2 adds more and more items(handicapped benefits) to the game. For example, now a Spy can decloak "silently" -- as if the class wasn't already handicapped enough(by having a cloak ability in the first place.)

I would hate to live in a world where game designers listened to absolute cretins like you. Every single game would end up being a Call of Duty / Battlefield clone with "OMG realistic weapons and cover based gameplay". Seriously, you should stop talking about topics which you have absolutely no clue about, and go play some more Modern Warfare with 13 year olds.
8.
 
Re: More Watch_Dogs Footage
May 13, 2013, 12:08
8.
Re: More Watch_Dogs Footage May 13, 2013, 12:08
May 13, 2013, 12:08
 
The very first gameplay demo was pretty impressive when they revealed it at E3 last year. But I haven't been getting the same vibe from the subsequent trailers. Its starting to look more and more like GTA with hacking elements. Not saying that it won't be fun, but doesn't seem as innovative as it initially looked to be. Interested but skeptical about the final game.

Edit: The ability to jump from camera to camera was pretty cool though. I hope that it is implemented as a solid gameplay mechanic, rather than a gimmick.
23.
 
Re: Bethesda Unveils The Evil Within
Apr 19, 2013, 12:29
23.
Re: Bethesda Unveils The Evil Within Apr 19, 2013, 12:29
Apr 19, 2013, 12:29
 
ItBurn wrote on Apr 19, 2013, 09:53:
I do love horror games, but it's pretty rare that when you add "action" it turns out well. With what I've been shown, I see no reason to get excited... I know it's Bethesda, but it's not them making it...


Both Condemned : Criminal Origins, and the original F.E.A.R (not talking about any of the sequels here), did quiet an excellent job of mixing action and horror. The abandoned mannequin shop level in Condemned is probably still one of the most scariest levels I have played.
16.
 
Re: Another Bethesda Mini-Tease
Apr 17, 2013, 18:17
16.
Re: Another Bethesda Mini-Tease Apr 17, 2013, 18:17
Apr 17, 2013, 18:17
 
I think its just a straight forward reference to the Flamethrower weapon from Return To Castle Wolfenstein and 2009's Wolfenstein by Raven.
31.
 
Re: Final Fantasy 14
Apr 9, 2013, 14:58
31.
Re: Final Fantasy 14 Apr 9, 2013, 14:58
Apr 9, 2013, 14:58
 
necrosis wrote on Apr 9, 2013, 10:45:
BitWraith wrote on Apr 9, 2013, 10:18:
Has a Tomb Raider game ever sold Halo 4 type numbers? Diablo 3 was a huge, huge release, and I think it only sold 6 mil out of the gate. They thought Tomb Raider was a game franchise on the level of Diablo? Yeah, their marketing team is smoking something.
Wow. Didn't realize their numbers were that... stupid. Comparing it to D3 really puts things in perspective. No way in hell TR was **EVER** big enough to pull in numbers like D3 did.

To be fair though, D3 was PC exclusive, and 6 mill for a PC exclusive title is absolutely mind blowing for anything not named "World of Warcraft".

5-6 million is not an entirely unreasonable estimate for a multi-platform title over the course of its life-span, but TR is not the kind of title to set launch records, inspite of SE trying its darndest to make it appeal to the console audience.

7.
 
Re: Descent Fan Remake
Nov 11, 2012, 16:29
7.
Re: Descent Fan Remake Nov 11, 2012, 16:29
Nov 11, 2012, 16:29
 
Early 2013 seems far too optimistic since they seem to have done very little work. The ships dont have half the detail that the environment has. Will be interesting to see how this ends up. However with my (limited) experience in game development I feel that releasing a solid, bug free game on today's engines might take upwards of 10-11 months, especially from the state this demo is at, and with the scope of the project (porting all the original descent levels ), might take even a year and a half.
6.
 
Re: League of Legends Soars
Oct 12, 2012, 12:43
6.
Re: League of Legends Soars Oct 12, 2012, 12:43
Oct 12, 2012, 12:43
 
descender wrote on Oct 12, 2012, 12:29:
You aren't missing anything. "Denying" is a boring and stale mechanic.

Valve had a chance to redefine these MOBA games into something FUN. Something as simple as an over the shoulder camera view would have done wonders to change the atmosphere and feel of DOTA2.

Instead they are wasting their time in trying to recreate something that a majority of players do not find entertaining what-so-ever... in a perpetual Beta for a game no one will ever want to buy.

Hmm, care to elaborate what exactly about denying is "boring and stale" ? You just throw out those terms as if they are totally objective assessments about the mechanic itself and representative of the popular sentiment, when in reality it adds another layer of depth and raises the skill ceiling for a game that essentially has only 3-4 active skills per hero.

I'm guessing that at the low-medium skill pub level that you and most of the community plays at, denying makes absolutely 0 difference to the game, and in fact might even hinder your gameplay if you focus on denying instead of last hitting the enemy creep. Either that, or you have played a few games with bots which unfortunately place too much focus on denying(due to the way their AI is scripted) unlike real players who actually focus on other things like poking and harassing their opposing lane player.

With regards to over the shoulder view, I am not a big fan of it, but there is one game that does that (SMITE). I feel that it takes away a lot of strategic depth, overview, team coordination and map awareness that are integral to this type of gameplay. Once you get into over the shoulder mode, it just becomes WOW Arena 2.0.

This comment was edited on Oct 12, 2012, 12:55.
17.
 
Re: StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm Beta Underway
Sep 5, 2012, 13:34
17.
Re: StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm Beta Underway Sep 5, 2012, 13:34
Sep 5, 2012, 13:34
 
SimplyMonk wrote on Sep 5, 2012, 13:30:
CrashTestDummy wrote on Sep 5, 2012, 13:14:
I hardly ever post on blues, and I limit myself to just skimming the articles and comments, but I have to say the level of narrow mindedness on this forum is through the roof.

So... you are saying that since Korea has now adopted Starcraft as their national sport, we should treat it as all other sports that exist outside of our country of origin. Ignore it, its players and all of its rule changes and associated news.

Gotcha. Can do and done.

Atleast watch the 4 minute video that I posted in my previous post before spouting some ignorant bullshit which is no longer true. The entire video was shot in Anaheim. Last time I checked, Anaheim is in USA.
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