What are you playing now?

[BBP]

Exactly. Both the chant and the five finger fillet are completely optional and pretty much rewardless.

[Tawmis]

Good luck, Tawm. But, just wondering ... isn't WoW very, very addictive and very, very expensive to play? That's one reason why I stayed away from it.

It can be "addictive" (but these days, what can't be considered "addictive").
As for expensive; depends on what you would classify as expensive.

6 Months - $12.99/month (Save $24.00 per year)
3 Months - $13.99/month (Save $12.00 per year)
1 Month - $14.99/month

I currently have a 6 month subscription. Three of my D&D players from work all play (two of them - VERY heavily). And they wanted to drag me back - so they bought me the expansion and the character pop for their server.
So I figured I'd do 6 months. I did my 6 months and played with them, then when it ended I stopped. Another co-worker decided to play, and asked if I would come back (because they bought the expansion and the character pop for themselves), so I did another 6 months recently. The wife however, only did 1 month.

She and I (along with our friends, back then - Paul & Christi) used to do annual EverQuest. After EverQuest, we jumped to WoW, but my wife lost interest fairly quick (which is why she had stopped playing before the first expansion came out). She's only interested now, because of Quarantine, and being bored - and the fact that we have two machines that can run WoW easily, we can hang out and do stupid things in WoW.

For us, it's the cost of a movie - (actually cheaper than The Lott) and rather than last 2 to 3 hours, where we sit in silence - it lasts all month, where we get to talk, make jokes, and be silly. (She's the worse at trying to follow me since she's not that great at reading the WoW map quests)

[Rath Darkblade]

Fair enough. Over here in Australia, because our dollar is so weak against the Greenback (and the Pound, and the euro...), we pay somewhere around $25-30 a month (with no savings).

When WoW came out, I was unemployed so I couldn't afford to splash out on non-essentials. I can afford it now, but when I looked at WoW and how huge it is ... it just struck me as a cash cow for Blizzard. Meh.

I also tried other play-over-internet games (e.g. Diablo II, Warcraft 3, TF2, Elder Scrolls Online etc.) and wasn't too impressed. Sorry. *shrug* Maybe my non-impressed thing is because:

a. I was never too impressed with Diablo II (way too many random enemies and way too much lag, 'cos I was playing it over dial-up, back in '98).

b. WC3 online was exactly the same as WC3 offline, minus all the impressive "films".

c. Elder Scrolls Online took forever to install, even with a physical DVD, and had waaaaaaaaay too much lag. And

d. TF2 online is full of jerks. I never want to play TF2 online again. Too many trolls, power players, and other jerks. They can all kiss my ----ing donkey.

(All right, it wasn't like that when I played TF2 with DPX and Maia. They were cool. One or two other people were cool. But when I tried playing with another random group, and mentioned I was new to the game etc., the other team ganged up on me and my own team left me to die. Donkey-holes.)

[Tawmis]

When WoW came out, I was unemployed so I couldn't afford to splash out on non-essentials. I can afford it now, but when I looked at WoW and how huge it is ... it just struck me as a cash cow for Blizzard. Meh.

Well. It's a business. So... yeah, it's a "cash cow."

I also tried other play-over-internet games (e.g. Diablo II, Warcraft 3, TF2, Elder Scrolls Online etc.) and wasn't too impressed. Sorry. *shrug* Maybe my non-impressed thing is because:
a. I was never too impressed with Diablo II (way too many random enemies and way too much lag, 'cos I was playing it over dial-up, back in '98).
b. WC3 online was exactly the same as WC3 offline, minus all the impressive "films".
c. Elder Scrolls Online took forever to install, even with a physical DVD, and had waaaaaaaaay too much lag. And
d. TF2 online is full of jerks. I never want to play TF2 online again. Too many trolls, power players, and other jerks. They can all kiss my ----ing donkey.
(All right, it wasn't like that when I played TF2 with DPX and Maia. They were cool. One or two other people were cool. But when I tried playing with another random group, and mentioned I was new to the game etc., the other team ganged up on me and my own team left me to die. Donkey-holes.)

Diablo II & WC3 are not MMO's, however. They're pretty much the same game on or offline - just online you can group with people.
Elder Scrolls Online, I never played.
TF2 - I don't think they left you. In TF2, there's no "Team" in Team Fortress.

Lord of the Rings Online is free to play (if you pay, you get more stuff) - but I play for free and never paid. And enjoy it. The game is enormous.
D&D Online (DDO) is also free to play. Again, you can pay to get more. I play this if I am really, really, really bored.
Neverwinter Online - Same. Free. Pay if you want more. I used to play this a lot. A lot. Haven't in forever.
Star Wars: The Old Republic is free to play (again, pay for more) and is pretty incredible. Has NPCs that join you and have quests. It's Bioware, so of course.
Drakensang Online is free and pay for more. But it's just like Diablo. I play this from time to time for brainless clicking.

[Rath Darkblade]

There's no "Team" in Team Fortress 2? What about maps where you have to capture and hold a point? If I'm on the defensive team, I might play an engie, so I'd build those machines that fire on people - plus machines that'd heal me and give me more resources. The guns would fire at people, and the resource-machines would give me resources to upgrade the guns.

But I couldn't defend the point just by myself. I'd need help. And that's what I mean - those other guys were off pointlessly playing Rambo, and I was left to the other team, like a lamb to the slaughter. Their spy killed me, another spy disabled my guns, and then their soldier just waltzed into the point, cool as a cucumber. All the while, the other people on my team were still playing Rambo, and we lost both points. Drat it.

Hmm - LOTRO sounds fun. I might give it a try.

[Tawmis]

Hmm - LOTRO sounds fun. I might give it a try.

I'd say jump on the same server I am on; but considering the time zone difference, I doubt there's much chance we'd be on at the same time.

[BBP]

Got hooked to Mahjongg Investigations: Under Suspicion to the point I'm going to chuck it off for self-protection.

[Tawmis]

Lord of the Rings Online is free to play (if you pay, you get more stuff) - but I play for free and never paid. And enjoy it. The game is enormous.
D&D Online (DDO) is also free to play. Again, you can pay to get more. I play this if I am really, really, really bored.

Just thought I'd share this:

https://lotro.com/en/friendsforever
We have seen our communities come together in recent months as we unlocked quest, raid, and adventure area content to all players, and we are excited to make some announcements today that you'll want to read.

We would like to thank you for supporting us! To begin with, you can continue to enjoy playing all quests, raids, and adventure areas for free through August 31st, 2020. We would also like to provide a way for you to move forward with your gaming when our event eventually comes to an end, so in the coming days we will be providing a Coupon Code that will let you acquire all currently-available quest packs permanently on your account(s)! However, you will need to act quickly, as this Coupon Code is available to redeem through August 31st, 2020.

The Coupon Code is: LOTROFREEQUESTS (1/Account, available to redeem through August 31st, 2020)

This Coupon Code will grant the following to your game account:

Quest Pack: Central Gondor
Quest Pack: East Gondor
Quest Pack: West Gondor
Quest Pack: Wildermore
Quest Pack: Angmar
Quest Pack: Enedwaith
Quest Pack: Eregion
Quest Pack: Evendim
Quest Pack: Forochel
Quest Pack: Eriador Bundle
Quest Pack: Misty Mountains
Quest Pack: North Downs
Quest Pack: Trollshaws
Quest Pack: Lothlorien
Quest Pack: Great River
Quest Pack: Old Anórien
Region Pack: Far Anórien
Quest Pack: March of the King
Quest Pack: Battle of the Black Gate
Quest Pack: Legacy of the Necromancer
Quest Pack: Where Dragons Dwell
Quest Pack: The Vales of Anduin
Quest Pack: Mists of Wilderland
Additionally, in the near future, we will be conducting a limited time sale on select Expansion quests in the LOTRO Store where you will be able to pick up the following items for only 99 points:

Expansion Quests: Mines of Moria
Expansion Quests: Siege of Mirkwood
Expansion Quests: Rise of Isengard
Expansion Quests: Riders of Rohan
Expansion Quests: Helm's Deep
Instance Cluster: Rise of Isengard
Instance Cluster: Riders of Rohan
We are also announcing an update to our VIP program! Soon, VIPs will get access to a vendor that will grant them the following benefits once per day: 48-hours of town services items, a buff that negates item wear, and a buff that provides rapid crafting.

VIPs do not need to do anything to get this update, as your VIP account(s) will automatically receive this benefit in a game update in the near future.

Please continue to enjoy our games, and we are happy to have you here.

Sincerely,

The teams at Standing Stone Games

And...

https://www.ddo.com/en/news/free-questi ... tone-games

We have seen our communities come together in recent months as we unlocked quest, raid, and adventure area content to all players, and we are excited to make an announcement today that you'll want to read.

We would like to thank you for supporting us! To start, players can continue to enjoy all of our quests, raids, and expansion content for free through August 31st, 2020. We would also like to provide a way for you to move forward with your gaming when our event eventually comes to an end, so in the coming days we will be providing a Coupon Code that will let you acquire all currently-available adventure packs permanently on your account(s)! However, you will need to act quickly, as this Coupon Code is available to redeem through August 31st, 2020.

The Coupon Code is: DDOfreequests (1/Account, available to redeem through August 31st, 2020)

The coupon code grants the following quest packs:

The Devil’s Gambit
Trials of the Archons
The Temple of Elemental Evil
Heart of Madness
Haunted Halls of Eveningstar
Shadow Under Thunderholme
The High Road of Shadow
The Druid’s Deep
Devil Assault
Three-Barrel Cove
Secrets of the Artificers
Vaults of the Artificers
Phiarlan Carnival
The Catacombs
The Sharn Syndicate
Delera’s Tomb
The Demon Sands
The Dreaming Dark
Attack on Stormreach
The Necropolis, Part 1
The Necropolis, Part 2
The Necropolis, Part 3
The Necropolis, Part 4
The Path of Inspiration
The Reaver’s Reach
The Restless Isles
The Ruins of Gianthold
The Ruins of Threnal
Sentinels of Stormreach
Shan-to-Kor
The Devils of Shavarath
Sorrowdusk Isle
The Red Fens
Harbinger of Madness
Tangleroot Gorge
The Vale of Twilight
The Vault of Night
Reign of Madness
Against the Slave Lords
Dragonblood Prophecy
The Mines of Tethyamar
Disciples of Rage
White Plume Mountain & Other Tales
The Soul Splitter
Keep on the Borderlands
The Lost Gatekeepers
Additionally, we will be conducting a sale on two of our expansions in the DDO Store! When the sale is active, players will be able to pick up the quests included in Menace of the Underdark and The Shadowfell Conspiracy for 99 DDO Points. Stay tuned for exact timing on the sale.
We are also announcing an update to our VIP program! VIPs will be getting a permanent +1% XP boost for every member in their party other than themselves and hirelings, up to a maximum of 5%. This boost stacks with other bonuses, and works the same as our long-running weekend Buddy Boost bonuses.

VIPs do not need to do anything to get this update, as your VIP account(s) will automatically receive this benefit starting in a game update in the near future.

Please continue to stay safe, and we are happy to have you here.

Sincerely,

The teams at Standing Stone Games

[Rath Darkblade]

So I started playing Full Throttle ....... and I'm in a pickle. What do I do in the Old Mine Road to beat up those bikers and take their weapons? It seems that no matter what I do, they beat me up and throw me off my bike. It's very repetitive.

Does anyone know if there's some way to beat these guys?

[MusicallyInspired]

You can kick/punch other bikers on Old Mine Road. Eventually (with strategy) you can defeat them and take their weapons. Some bikers can only be beaten with certain weapons that you can only get from other bikers. This makes it a bit of a ladder climb working your way up the easier bikers to the more difficult ones and it's quite arcadey (this game has lots of arcade sequences). You can also find one or two other items ....somewhere...I don't remember where. In ScummVM you can auto-win with a certain control (Esc?) since it wasn't 100% reproduced authentically and can be finicky. If you're playing the Remaster, I don't think you can do that.

LMB attacks with the currently selected weapon. RMB selects a different weapon. Moving the mouse horizontally back and forth moves your bike left and right on the screen which is highly necessary to avoid attacks and move in to attack them.

[Rath Darkblade]

Hmm. I noticed the other bikers have their own weapons:

1. Chain;
2. Chain with ball-and-spikes;
3. Chainsaw;
4. Length of wood; and
5. Those little guys on their yellow bikes.

What weapon do I use to beat these guys? I've beaten one or two by trial and error, but I just can't work out how I did it, or what to do next. Spoilers welcome.

[MusicallyInspired]

The Cavefish bikers are the trickiest ones. If you get too close for too long they quickly shoot out an oil slick which crashes your bike instantly. The only way to defeat the Cavefish bikers is with the plank of wood and only when they lift their heads up to look straight ahead (they otherwise look straight down through a visor screen on their bikes). You get a pair of their special goggles from them so you can find the Cavefish secret hideout while wearing them when you're simply driving (not in battle).

You must use the chain without ball-and-spikes on the male Vultures biker to get his speed booster. He attempts to speed away and you grab him with the chain and pull him off while he tries to shoot off, crashing his bike and granting you his speed booster.

I BELIEVE those are the only two items you need to progress, so the idea is to get the chain and the plank of wood so you can do so. I don't remember who has those or how to defeat them to get them though. If you already have them, you're good to go.

There's no REAL trick to it. You just attack them with different weapons to see what works. After hitting them for so long eventually they go down. It's just a matter of time and how many times you hit them. Except for the Vultures guy who will go down immediately when you use the chain and likewise the Cavefish with the plank of wood (when you can finally get a shot in that is without crashing your own bike on his oil slick).

There's also a crowbar you can use that you find in the world somewhere. I'm not sure if it's required to defeat a specific biker or not.

[Rath Darkblade]

Hmm. Thanks, MI! I also noticed from time to time that I lose one or two of these weapons that I worked hard to acquire. Is that normal?

Well, I got most of the stuff - the chain, the chain with ball and spikes, etc. But I can't find the male Vultures biker ... what does he look like? I beat up many of the male bikers, but where is he?

[BBP]

Yes, you can also lose some o the weapons. There's a man who always cycles away fast when you approach - because he has the booster you need to jump the gorge. Male with black hair iirc.

[Rath Darkblade]

Thank you, BBP! I have now finished the game.

It's obviously shorter than many other LucasArts or Sierra games, but I liked it very much. The plot is fairly simple, but many of the puzzles are non-intuitive. The music and the voice art is top-notch. The graphics are nice too.

I'm not sure what more there is to say here ... Full Throttle is a very good game, and the remaster is great!