text:
Secretive Agents
The Philadelphia Inquirer reported yesterday that relief pitcher Chan Ho Park wanted to remain with the Phillies in 2010. Instead, Park wound up signing with the Yankees for 1.2 million, a great deal less than the 3 million the Phillies had offered earlier in the off-season.
Park stated, "Philadelphia was the No. 1 choice. I had a tough time leaving there. I had much support from fans and community, and I had the best teammates there…"
The question then becomes, why did he and his agent, Jeff Boris, turn down the Phillies offer if he wanted to stay there? Park made 2.5 million in 2009, so the 3 million was not only a raise, but likely to be the best offer he received. In the recent past, there has been what appears to be a string of mismanaged deals by baseball agents who become greedy and over estimate their clients' value. This certainly looks like one of them.
By the time Park and Mr. Boris realized this deal was a gift from an appreciative team who liked Park very much in 2009, it was too late. GM Ruben Amaro Jr. has a no-nonsense style of dealing with contracts. If he feels a player is not committed, he moves on. Amaro was not going to wait for Park to change his mind and quickly signed Danys Baez and Jose Contreras.
And if we believe Park was sincere in wanting to return, then why would Mr. Boris not jump on the one year deal? Another agent notorious for his hard-handed tactics is agent Scott Boras who recently took outfielder Johnny Damon on a fairly stressful ride through free agency. Damon wanted to stay with the Yankees but Boras handed down a $13 million dollar ultimatum to the Yankees, which frankly, was a lot more than Damon was worth and he should have known that. The Yankees scoffed at the gesture and Damon wound up signing with the Tigers for $8 million.
Damon told the NY Daily News, "I let Scott do his work…That's why he's there. In the end, I think he did a great job. It's funny, though. Every time I'm a free agent, I'm always on a new team." He said a mouthful there. Mr. Boras has a habit of burning bridges and this latest stunt was no exception.
Another player who may or may not have been burned by his agent this off-season is former Phillie Cliff Lee. Although agent Darek Braunecker denied any wrong doing back in December, the fact that the trade happened so quickly and right after talks with Braunecker makes you wonder if he did give some sort of indication that Lee would not accept certain terms (ie: less than 2 years, a certain dollar amount, etc…). Again, this is only speculation, but knowing the Phillies GM Amaro's straightforward style, if Braunecker said anything at all to make Amaro question Lee's commitment to the Phillies, it is easy to see why that could have triggered a fast trade.
Obviously, the depletion of the farm system played heavily into the trade, but was that the only consideration? What happens behind closed doors, we will never know, but it does make you stop and wonder. How much input each of these players had in the conversations with teams and their agents is also unknown, but based on the players reactions, maybe these agents need to think more about their clients well-being and less about their own pockets? But again, this is just one gal's humble opinion :O) We will miss Park and Lee and I wish them the best!
In other Phillies news, both Brad Lidge and JC Romero threw off the mound during Spring Training on Sunday. Each pitcher is taking it slow, but making descent progress. Lidge appears to be slightly ahead of Romero as far as being ready, but both are still hopeful about Opening Day.
As for the rest of the pitching crew, here is the week's schedule for when games begin on Wednesday:
– Wednesday vs. Florida State: J.A. Happ, Phillippe Aumont, Yohan Flande, Drew Naylor, Joe Savery, Jesus Sanchez and David Herndon.
– Thursday vs. Yankees: Roy Halladay, Kyle Kendrick, Jose Contreras, Andrew Carpenter and Sergio Escalona.
– Friday at Toronto in Dunedin: Cole Hamels, J.C. Ramirez, Ryan Vogelsong and Antonio Bastardo.
– Friday at Toronto in Dunedin (B GAME): Jamie Moyer, Chad Durbin, Ryan Madson and Scott Mathieson.
– Saturday at Pittsburgh in Bradenton: Joe Blanton, Danys Baez, Ehren Wasserman, Mike Zagurski, Bill White and B.J. Rosenberg.
– Sunday vs. Tampa Bay: Happ, Aumont, Naylor, Sanchez, Herndon, Flande and Savery.
Thanks to Todd Zolecki at The Zo Zone for posting the list!
Photos by Jenn
*Read more about the Phillies at my other home page, Phightin' Phils Phorum in the My Team Rivals network*
7 Comments
Hmm. Wow, I actually feel sorry for Park. Always liked him. As for the Damon comment, yeah, that's loaded with idiocy. Boras did NOT do a great job. He lost Damon money. And the fact that he's on another team every time is pretty telling. So as they say in Philly: booooooooooooo!
I read that about Park and wondered why he didn't take the deal the Phillies offered. Stupid! Oh, well. I hope he does a good job for the Yankees — for his pitiful $1 million. Ha ha.
The players don't get a lot of say when they have Boras… unless they fire him of course… Park would have been a good one to keep…
Outside the Phillies Looking In
Wow Jenn! Games begin Wednesday!? How exctiting! I love doing that flip of the calendar from February to March!
I never can figure out what agents are thinking especially Boras. It always has to do about money.
Chan Ho always has been and always will be one of my favorites.
Heartruss, Boras is no longer his agent.
Philliesphollowers, my guess is you haven't followed CHP much over the years because this is his typical MO. He did the same thing after the '01 season, said he wanted to stay in L.A. and owed them a debt of gratitude; otherwise he would still be pitching in Korea, and he ended up making history with the Dodgers. The Dodgers made him a fair offer and what did he do? Bolted to Texas. Returning to the Dodgers later, he had a good run, and after the '08 season he said he wanted to stay in L.A. because he loved the fan support, the largest Korean population in the U.S., etc., then modified that to "I'll only stay if I can be in the rotation all season." (He was a spot starter for the Dodgers that year.) Then he ended up in Philly, where he was NOT in the rotation all season. Now says he wanted to stay in Philly…??? It's anyone's guess which way the wind blows. I liked CHP a lot, but the 'pen is best suited for him at this point in his career.
I should also add to my previous post that in his crazy economy, agents are clearly overestimating teams' offers. That's why we're seeing so many wacky things like this. Who knew Randy Winn would end up replacing Johnny Damon too? It's just weird.


text:
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#123347 - 06/11/05 05:32 AM Re: nother resource
Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 07/20/03
Posts: 3230
Loc: Te Ika a Maui
>hey, didn't know you spoke Welsh!
Does anybody?_________________________
noho ora mai
#123348 - 06/11/05 01:21 PM Re: nother resource
Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 09/15/00
Posts: 4757
Are you taking the epistemology?
#123349 - 06/11/05 06:09 PM Re: Linguistics terms gloss
Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 09/15/00
Posts: 4757
with thanks to languagehat
#123350 - 06/13/05 06:26 PM Re: Digi-dics of South Asia
Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 09/15/00
Posts: 4757
For all interested in the languages of that region, this might be an interesting set of resources:
edit: and this is quite cool too:
~ a searchable copy of The Imperial Gazetteer of India
Hunter, William Wilson, Sir, 1840-1900
Cotton, James Sutherland, 1847-1918 ed.
Burn, Richard, Sir, 1871-1947 joint ed.
Meyer, William Stevenson, Sir, 1860-1922. joint ed.
New edition, published under the authority of His Majesty's secretary of state for India in council.
Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1908-1931 [v. 1, 1909]
~ with a nod to languagelog's quote of Dick & Garlick's blog:
#123351 - 06/13/05 06:36 PM Re: Digi-dics of South Asia
Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 07/20/03
Posts: 3230
Loc: Te Ika a Maui
Thanks, mav. I had the hobson-jobson from that that list but the Dick & Garlick's page was new to me. Now if I ever get to visit family in Pakistan, I can de-burgerise my speech to fit in._________________________
noho ora mai
#123352 - 06/13/05 06:59 PM Re: Multilipass! Multipass!
Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 09/15/00
Posts: 4757
Anyone tried this site? - it looks to be clean and effective on first trial...
#123353 - 06/13/05 07:34 PM Re: French, Italian speakers in USA?
Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 09/15/00
Posts: 4757
If you ever wonder about the mix of leaves in the Tossed Salad of A, here's the tool to tell you in case you haven't seen this before:
#123354 - 06/14/05 06:01 AM Re: French, Italian speakers in USA?
Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 12/01/00
Posts: 13803
the tool
"I'm sorry, Dave, but I'm afraid I can't write software that will communicate with your browser."
#123355 - 06/14/05 07:15 AM Re: French, Italian speakers in USA?
Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 06/24/02
Posts: 7210
Loc: Vermont
> browser
woiked fine for me?_________________________
formerly known as etaoin...
#123356 - 06/14/05 08:38 AM Re: French, Italian speakers in USA?
Carpal Tunnel
Registered: 09/06/00
Posts: 2788
Loc: Seattle, Washington, USA
I mighta made it all the way through life without knowing that there are 446 Navajo language speakers in the State of Washington. In that it is a long way from here to where the Navajo language is commonly spoken, one wonders as to the rest of this story.
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AnnJanette Alejano-Steele, Ph. D.
Research Director, The Colorado Project
LCHT Co-Founder and Board Chairperson
Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking
To blog. A foray into my brain and the spaces it is privileged to navigate. Cue: Chasing Pirates, Norah Jones:
My assignment this week is to reflect upon the start of my recent travels in relation to my work with the Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking. However, as I began this current journey, I realized that I needed some kind of "anchor" blog. Something eloquent and witty to set off a series of blogs; a starting point of some kind.
And it felt a little overwhelming. I must have started a handful of times. And true to the social scientist that I am, I did my due diligence and did some research.
Word length. Tone. Level of seriousness. What are these bloggers trying to convey? With the guidance of our communications expert, I read…many…many blogs.
And the anxiety increased ever so slightly.
Reading through the blogs, I got insight into the different ways in which people shared what was happening in their heads. Thoughts. Observations. Irritations. Passions. To consider this was to really think hard about the thoughts in my own brain and whether it was blog-worthy. Of course I overthought this.
I came to the realization that it's rare that I think with one "hat." And I'm fortunate to never really have to be in a position to think "alone." The nature of the Laboratory is to mix ideas and perspectives; the work and thinking of my incredible colleagues informs one another. We're fortunate to be able to think intentionally and critically about nuances of the anti-trafficking movement. So for me, to blog is not only to share what's going on in my own head, but to honor and feature the influence of family, friends and countless colleagues on my thinking. I've been extremely lucky to engage in some poetically simple and fantastically complicated conversations related to human trafficking.
And then there's the added challenge of the hats that my brain occupies.
Psychologist. Co-Founder. Academic. Victim Advocate. Feminist. Daughter. Partner. First-generation U.S. born Pacific Islander-American. Musician. Board Chair. Dog owner. Research and Training Director. Runner. Wanna-be oenophilist. Nerd.
To have the privilege of knowledge from these various hats also means that I get to reside in what we refer to as "spaces in between." Each of us at LCHT not only see these spaces in ourselves personally, but we get to help translate and make those connections to encourage shared learning. So for me, it's concretely navigating my two academic departments, psychology and women's studies. Navigating music and dance worlds. Navigating U.S. and Filipino cultures. Navigating law enforcement and service providers. Navigating academe and nonprofit cultures.
Admittedly, there are times where those spaces are vast, the kind where I need to use my "outside voice." And sometimes that feels lonely where I belong everywhere and nowhere. Residing in these spaces can be exhilarating, aggravating and downright humbling.
As I begin this formal foray into the blogosphere, I'll share two consistent threads that will help to set my blog intentions: random observations and music cues. Maybe it's my scientific training, my curious observant nature, but these two things usually happen all the time in my head. Not only am I always sensing, I'm usually noticing something out of the ordinary. Or annoying. Or inspirational or insightful.
And there's usually some kind of music playing in there as well. A soundtrack to my brain, you might say; it's always there in the background and sometimes I just have to focus to notice it. It's usually rhythmic, or speaks to my mood or reflects the "metronome" of my brain activity. Like Norah Jones' Chasing Pirates for this blog; it's there rhythmically calm and yes, those pirates roll around in there everyday. Oh, every now and then there's a distracting or intrusive earworm (thanks, Foster the People). My co-workers will tell you of my ever-present music distraction, however it also serves as an absolutely critical factor to my sustainability in this field.
But then that would be an entirely different blog.


text:
December 2006
Evergreen Parkway closed for final completion of road work
The southbound lane of Evergreen Parkway will be closed at the roundabout at the main college entrance through Monday, Dec. 11.
Published: December 05, 2006
Tuition waivers available to dislocated mine employees
In the wake of the closure of the Centralia coal mine by TransAlta Corp., The Evergreen State College is making tuition waivers of variable amounts up to $1200 and academic support available to displaced mine employees, the college announced.
Published: December 06, 2006
Faculty receive Harvill award for work in art, science
Four faculty members at The Evergreen State College are the first recipients of the Tom Rye Harvill award, providing $5,000 to explore art and science through visual arts, literature, multimedia, dance and theatre.
Published: December 13, 2006


text:
The MA in Translation & Localization Management program is organized around three areas of training: translation, technology, and business management.
According to independent market research firm Common Sense Advisory, the global market for outsourced language services and technology will reach US $33.5 billion in 2012. Employers across this rapidly growing industry rely on the Middlebury Institute as their go-to source for finding localization management talent.
To meet this need for talent, the Translation & Localization Management program is organized around three areas of training: translation, technology, and business management.
The translation component develops students' translation skills, as well as their language and cultural proficiency through core courses and electives.
The technology component covers translation memory and machine translation, terminology management, software and web site localization, process standardization, IT/workflow strategies, and project management. Examples of tools used in class include:
Kilgray memoQ,SDL WorldServer, SDL Trados Studio, SDL MultiTerm, SDL Passolo, Google Translator Toolkit, Across Language Server, Lingotek Collaborative Translation Platform, and Systran.
The business component covers key business management areas such as project management, multilingual marketing, managerial economics, product development, and international business strategy.
All of the following languages are paired with English:
Students pursuing degrees in Translation, Translation & Interpretation, and Conference Interpretation have the option of adding on a 14-unit Localization Management Specialization.
Our students gain valuable professional experience and field-specific knowledge that complements coursework through local and international internships. Learn more about internship opportunities for Translation and Localization Management students.
Our graduates work for private businesses, governments, and nongovernmental organizations around the world as employees or freelance consultants. Here are just a few specific examples:
Learn more about the exciting career paths our graduates have taken by visiting our careers page.


text:
Stones Throw Releases That Surprised You.
Posted 04 February 2013 - 11:30 PM
There's a bunch personally, but there's 2 that stand out:
First was Mayer Hawthorne....I think ST kinda dropped this out of nowhere, and I knew Mayer from the DJ Haircut days, so I didn't think dude could sing. Once I heard the snippet I went crazy over it [sidebar: when I got the CD, I still haven't heard the songs on the 4"], the heart-shaped 12" always gets a crazy look when people see it too.
The second is more recent: Chrome Canyon. I didn't know anything about it before I listened, but as a drip subscriber I downloaded it just because it was available...then ignored it for months. Listened to it New Years Day on the random, which led it being in constant rotation for 2 weeks. Prolly because it goes all over the place, it's as "interesting" as it is "good".
Anyone else?
Posted 04 February 2013 - 11:46 PM
Posted 05 February 2013 - 10:08 AM
- SunnyMeadowz likes this
Posted 05 February 2013 - 10:31 AM
It blew me away. Up there with the best hip hop releases ST put out IMO.
- GC90 likes this
Posted 05 February 2013 - 11:03 AM
Didn't see that one coming.....
I know there are probably a few more...but that was the first that came to mind
Got that Royal Kush 4 ya.....smoke up...
Posted 05 February 2013 - 02:34 PM
Posted 05 February 2013 - 06:29 PM
Posted 05 February 2013 - 09:14 PM
In Search of Stoney Jackson was a big surprise for me. Obviously I knew the beats would be on point, but I had never really heard anything impressive from them so I didn't know what to expect lyrically.
It blew me away. Up there with the best hip hop releases ST put out IMO.
Everything he said.
- GC90 likes this
Posted 06 February 2013 - 08:03 PM
Everything he said.
yall just made me order that MF off amazon hell yeah
me n ma son bout to be playin dis sheit yo!
Geechie MF d
Posted 06 February 2013 - 08:34 PM
good things was an instant classic.
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text:
LLL of Sunshine State is hosting a parenting conference and heath professional seminar in St. Petersburg Florida October 14-16, 2011.
Guest speakers include Dr. Becky Saenz and Barbara Coloroso.
We will be at a gorgeous beachfront location, during the very nicest time of year (October 14-16). Very low hotel rates and low airfares to Tampa make this a realistic trip for out-of-state professionals, parents, and Leaders. Make it a vacation by staying before or after the conference!
Check our website for updates: http://lllsunshinestate.org/conference.html
Or send your name and email address, with conference in the subject line, to email@example.com
Come join us for a great time!


text:
Editor's Picks: Frizz Fighters
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Calm Down1 of 13
By Zoe Schaeffer
The tropics can wreak havoc on many a hairstyle, but with the winter weather comes flyaways, frizzies and occasional static. From conditioning masks to styling sprays, we rounded up the best frizz tamers to help you keep it all in place.
Sea's Candy2 of 13
This oil treatment will protect the most raggedy strands with a marine blend of sea kale, sea fennel and sea beet. And then argon and sweet almond oils help to smooth strands and soothe the scalp.
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This two-in-one detangling milk and styling spray protects overheated hair (that's you, blown-out girls!) while smoothing strands at the same time. Furthermore, a plant extract from Southern India conditions the driest of the dry.
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We love the uber-moisturizing ingredients in this hair mask: amaranth, lupin and wheat. Instead of leaving a residue, it makes hair bouncy, shiny and frizz-free. Plus, its deep conditioning properties tame rebellious strands.
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Static-y strands are never a good look. Rub a little of this leave-in treatment onto the ends of hair on days when electricity seems to want to take over.
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Made with lavender, rice bran and soybean, this anti-frizzer sounds like it belongs on a farm table. Rather, it protects tresses from environmental hazards and has anti-humidity properties to lock in moisture and make hair glossy.
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This heat-activated spray imparts a patent-like sheen while keeping frizz at bay. Use it on wet hair before a blow-out or after styling for a polished finish. Sweet almond oil and wheat protein help to nourish damaged strands.
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Ladies with dyed hair (and let's face it, that's most of us) need extra help when it comes to keeping tresses nourished. This rich conditioning treatment protects hair that sees a colorist on a regular basis. The result is smooth, shiny, tangle-free locks.
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This styling spray uses a one-of-a-kind, anti-humectant that protects against harmful rays and humidity (which can wreck your hairstyle!). Keratin, a natural protein found in hair, strengthens strands to ensure sleek styling, no matter the weather.
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Abracadabra! After a few rubs in your palm, this light powder becomes a weightless pomade. Tiny and totable, you can keep it on hand to tame those unexpected frizzies.
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Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
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Topic: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games (Read 12543 times)
I'm fart and I'm smunny
Posts: 13305
RPGFan and Dice forever...
Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
May 01, 2013, 06:56:54 PM »
Any sort of personal Top 10's are a pain in the ass because you'll fumble through what you think is best.
Let's be lenient and say
so don't hurt yourself trying.
PS: I've sort of...overdone my list, do yours however (obviously).
Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.
Yes it was easy, and yes it was a "reworked Ocarina of Time". Fine. But, in my opinion, it took Ocarina of Time (which is, sorry, but dated by now) and made it better and provided an atmosphere that finally and deeply fleshed out how a Zelda game "should" feel. As the GameCube's swan song, the graphics are impressive even by today's standards and demonstrates a great range of dungeon styles, with interesting "in-between dungeon" tasks. I admire the new approach they took with Zant (from calm, creepy and devious to a complete obssesive lunatic) and a strong companion in Midna (who's wit and sass played infinitely better against the incessant chatterbox, Navi, and Nintendo's preschool mascot, Fi). While I know the game being "too easy" can be a major flaw, but I do like it for a more casual title in the series (whereas Skyward Sword made you do shit like the Silent Realm to piss you off than entertain you).
Play Count:
Honourable Mention:
Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past for being awesome.
Extra Points:
Ganondork's corn-roll-crown.
Final Fantasy IX.
I feel like this is what happens when a perfect blend of "Final Fantasy" and "fairytale-storybook" happens. You get the more creative/out-there concepts of a Final Fantasy game (Kuja, Terra, Garland, Black Mages) but the traditional story of a thief and a princess (which feels like a pseudo-Princess Bride) amongst wonderful/bizarre animal special (none more hilarious than "Hippo-people"). The battle system is somewhat basic, but there is tons to do and a great cast and world to support it. Although, I have to rip on the Chocobo Hot Cold; despite the amount of quests and characters, most major equipment is from that one game, making the rest of the quests feel less relevant (and way too many "key items" that do fuck all...hell, let them open up a gaming gallery or some shit).
Play Count:
2, likely another in the future though
Honourable Mention:
FF6 for a similar vibe, FF5 for battle system, FF7 for being a strong title as well
Extra Points:
ATE system
Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky.
I almost feel like a complete IDIOT for putting this here given we're about only 1/4 through the whole tale (yeah, it's three chapters, but the next two are longer than the first, so...). But I need to give major kudos to a series that is, in concept, extremely bland and not very original, but really creative and full of heart in its execution. The dialogue is clever and the plot is smart; the characters are tropes but extremely endearing; the battle system is typical turn-based but with a few added flairs to keep it fun. Apparently the treasure box messages were of XSeed's own devices... good on them! I'd actually murder a person to see the other games localized somehow...
Play Count:
2, working on third in between study sessions... Carnelia books suck.
Honourable Mention:
Radiant Historia for a lot of the same reasons. Simple, but well done take to normal turn-based battles and a more than decent script with good politics.
Extra Points:
Genki-girl lead -- probably to make up for the rest of the LoH females of the past....
Star Ocean: The Second Story.
While I think Star Ocean 3 has waaaayyy better customization options; the dungeons suck monstrous dick and come at your sometimes in waves of 3-dungeon areas IN A ROW that make it hard to pick up and play. And despite Star Ocean 4's dogshit story, the battle system plays extremely well and comfortably.
However; I like Star Ocean 2 because it is the easiest and perhaps most fun to play and the most fun to
. It was my first serious go at an RPG (as a kid, I won't lie, gameshark was my friend) and I love the atmosphere in the game (Arlia was a great change from the Sci-fi Earth world; and I love the random inclusion of Christian icons in the Hoffman Ruins, or the bizarre monster skeletons in the deeper parts of the Santuary of Linga). There are a ton of flaws, it's an older title after all, but the game is fun and for its time shows a really in-depth and deep character customization.
Play Count:
Tons; some to completion, some cut out half way. I usually make a habit of putting a movie on while I play through the prologue though...
Honourable Mention:
Star Ocean 3/4.
Extra Points:
PA system, getting a stupid high powered weapon by Mars if played right... Barrels!
Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth
It's hard to beat the added drama of watching your character's demise: It's one thing to see an in-game death (such as FF7's Aeris), but another to watch a scene knowing how it'll turn out, and the point where a characters tale slowly shows "telltale signs" that they're walking to their imminent death. The plot is extremely bittersweet but beautifully done, and the use of Norse myth in a new context was well-executed. One major complaint is that it's too easy to break down the "good characters" (Lawfer) from the really dogshit characters (Badrach, Lleleleleweyn). I also hate when the best characters and best equipment are in the last few floors of the bonus dungeon.
But anyways. Without a doubt, the "Hard Mode" (i.e.; the BEST MODE) provides some of the most unique, interesting, but complicated RPG-platform dungeons I've ever played. The battle system is a great take on RPG turn-based that requires using multiple attacks to be timed effectively.
Play Count:
Once, but a
perfect run!
It's a hard game to go back to. The dungeons are unique and extremely worthy of merit, but some are hard to trek through again (fuck you Lezard and your goddamn tower; the "Egyptian Tomb" also took me for-fucking-ever). Non-skippable cutscenes, for obvious reasons, hamper the idea of repeat playthroughs. And also, the requirements for the A-Ending are
Honourable Mention:
Valkyrie Profile Silmeria; battle system-wise, it doesn't get enough credit as it deserves.
Extra Points:
Three L's: Lawfer. Lezard. Lenneth.... and GUTS!
Resident Evil 5/6
(plus other co-op titles in this slot)
Yikes. Lumping two together. But it has to be mentioned; despite a TON of questionable design choices (moreso in Res6 than 5), the co-op multiplayer was a ton of fun. Six had the better controls (running and gunning was long overdue), but five had better replay value.
Play Count:
Several with many people
Honourable Mention:
I hate doing this too, but I wanna throw in stuff like
Mario Double Dash
Secret of Mana
and the like. While again, not my favorite games, reeeallly make the experience for me just because of good people there.
Extra Points:
Chris' biceps, Sherry being all adorbs, and Jake being fun to play as
Kirby Super Star
This game ruled my world in '96. Fun co-op, tons of levels, fun abilities, and exciting "kirby-music" and wonderful worlds. I want to put Kirby 64 on this list, but I think the nostalgia is doing funny things to my head (I think I also generally like the "speed" of Kirby Super Star; Kirby 64 and to a greater extent Kirby 3 was a goddamn pain in the ass because even running felt sluggish and slow).
...Why are Kirby games so cute, fun, and fluffy until their final bosses which are nothing short of nightmare-fuel?? Perfect I guess for a game that takes place in "Dreamland", I guess.
Play Count:
Honourable Mention:
Kirby 64.
Extra Points:
Could the Great Cave Offensive be *any* cooler?
Tales of the Abyss
Tales of Graces
EUGH, sorry...lumping again. But I honestly believe if you took the plot/characters from Abyss and the battle system from Graces you'd have what is a gaming unicorn, an 11/10. But I do think these games belong here on their own, but for different reasons -- so I thought I'd lump it together.
Tales of the Abyss plot sports not only a ton of unique and interesting NPCs, but also great main characters each representing their own nation's interests; they're a travelling "UN club" with great back stories behind them in addition to the very in-depth main plot. I also like how the game doesn't throw any punches with regards to their villain: If people hated FF9's Necron from coming out of thin air, a savvy enough person will figure out who Abyss' main villain within the first half hour of the game and plays the idea straight till the end. The game talks about life and death, politics and the environment, and destiny and freedom....but at the cost of an intriguing battle system (free run makes everything too easy) and a lot of backtracking.
Tales of Graces
sports what is one of the, if not THE best battle system -- not only amongst Tales titles, but easily as a contender for this generation of RPGs. It eliminates the need for MP in an extremely effective way, making it seem almost archaic and irrelevant to bring back (thanks, Xillia). The use of additional title-related skills as well as bumping up stats through them was unique and effective and gives the game a ton of mileage of small goals to help pave the way for additional growth (essentially give out what you put in). Funny enough, Graces suffers the opposite of Abyss' problem: The storyline is really, really cheesy and almost laughably simple (rather, some of the ideas are good, but played out pretty poorly).
I guess asking for a good plot and battle system is sometimes too much to ask for, huh?
Play Counts:
Abyss - 3
Graces - Still one the first run! But there's a lot to do, and it's easy to go back and forth between the end-game of the main arc and epilogue to get it all done in some weird-ass Groundhog Day time loop.
Honourable Mention:
Symphonia, Eternia, Vesperia. I dunno, the series has a lot of charm and is pretty easy to recommend...and one of few very RPG series' that's still alive and going strong.
Extra Points:
Jade and Pascal; proving you can be more than just the group's go-to "nerd"
Chrono Trigger
It's just a cool idea with a lot more going on in the plot than it really seems on the outside. C'mon, I mean, just how cool is it when you first arrive in the future? And when you're walking around magical floating continents thousands of years in the past? Also: a robot and a frog-knight join you -- that's grounds for an instant letter-grade bump up.
Play Count
: Maybe 4? It was a staple in the 90s, I've seen it played about as much as I've played it personally
Honourable Mentions
: I guess Radiant Historia for fitting in the time-travel part (and doing it justice). Chrono Cross also gets too little love for its ambition
Extra Points:
Robo, Frog.
Shadow of the Colossus.
While I was less than impressed with the noodle-grip of Wander in the "enhanced" PS3 version, the game is still phenomenal and just feels great to play. The game does a lot with the idea of "less is more"; the world is extremely lonely; but I love seeing how many unique environments are within the one land you're thrown into. I love how speed runs can complete all Colossi around the half hour mark, but the world is gigantic and will likely take up most of the time. Anyways, the good about this game has been stated thousands of times, so why go on?
Play Count:
3, room for more since it's relatively quick and easy to pick up.
Extra Points:
Other Honourable Mentions Nominees:
Zelda Oracle Series: It played on Gameboy, but didn't "feel" like gameboy gmae. The ideas and style were amazing and fun and the new tools made the 2D Zelda experience as somethng worthy to stand against the 3D titles.
Bust-a-Move: What good establishment in the 90s didn't have this paired with some other arcade game? 90% of places some kid had a birthday party at (bowling or Chuckie Cheese) had one of these and it's just a damn fun game. ...that, and Magical Drop as the "stays in Japan" take on bubble-popping fun.
Baten Kaitos (and Origins too): Great plot twists, and a card-based battle system that's actually fun.
Assassin's Creed II/Brotherhood: while the series has bad/apparent quality shifts, some games are awesome, some not, the series is overall a lot of fun. Who can say assassinating people in cool time periods is a bad thing?
Legend of Mana: It has that "storybook" quality of FF9 and the game looks amazing... but the overall gameplay is too easy to make use of all of its gameplay elements (magic, pets, robot) and the plot and style is just...too fucking random to be any "awesome".
Wild Arms 1/3: It's a western RPG. A guy named
gives you an alien sidequest. What the fuck else do you need? It would be on the Top 10, but I like the above better, so...
Super Metroid: AS a platformer, this was a hard title to be outdone even when it came out pretty early on the SNES' life cycle.
Zero Escape Series: No series has had me so shocked over plot twists, nor has any series delivered so many. Unfortunately, puzzle games suffer in that once you figure it out, repeat playthroughs are really dull for it.
Journey: It is amazing, but I do think unanimous glowing reviews are killing it for me. The game is just too damn short and therefore offers too few elements to really challenge/engage the players. An extra level or two would have been greatly appreciated. Anyways, I do like this somewhat wave of "art" games like Braid and Limbo and Unfinished Swan coming into the playfield.
Last Edit: May 01, 2013, 09:14:45 PM by Dice
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Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #1 on:
May 01, 2013, 07:01:22 PM »
If I wasn't seeing this just before I go to sleep I would totally write my list.
Consider this my placeholder entry.
Jade Cocoon 2
I've always had a fondness for monster collecting and I still go back to it to this day. You don't hear much about it these days, but I'd say it's definitely one of my favourites. It doesn't have the more mature art style the first game had, but there are remnants of it there, it's just a little more child-friendly. The monster designs are totally unique and adorable, I have no clear winner on which element I start the game with. There's also really good balance gameplay-wise, I never felt like one element was clearly better than the other, or that certain species within the element better or worse than others, they all had defined roles and were good at it. There's charm in its simplicity and heart in its characters. No melodrama, no "destiny", but still more plot than a Pokemon game.
Play Count: 4+ (I can't recall exactly)
Extra Points: Unexpected villain
999: 9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors (so many 9's)
i feel stupid saying it, but this game opened my eyes to how good a plot in a game can be and how mature it can be about it. I love this game so much, but Dice is right, it doesn't lend itself to repeated playthroughs. I am however, addicted to watching Let's Plays on youtube of it as long as they are playing blind because I love to see their reactions. Is that a bit weird? The final puzzle was just so perfect in execution, it really underlined the entire plot of the game. I just wish it wasn't Sudoku, I am so bad at that game, luckily the music was awesome so I didn't mind being there for 4 hours trying to solve it.
Playthroughs: 2
Honourable Mention: Virtues Last Reward (I also fricken love it, but I think 999 was tighter), Ever 17 (Also amazing, amazing,amazing but you have to stay invested for a bit longer to get the payoff)
Extra Points: Can't say and won't spoil
Mana Khemia: Alchemists of Al-Revis
I think this game just came at a time where I needed a breath of fresh air. It's not the best written, it's not the best looking, it doesn't play the best and it has glitches. I don't know why, but I still love it anyway. The battle system is really fun, and I liked that it took an element from another game (Final Fantasy X) and improved on it. I liked the characters in their own little cliche'd way and the alchemy system is as fun as ever. It's a personal favourite for sure, and I don't expect everyone to like it
Play Count: 2
Extra Points: Muppy!
Pokemon Black/White
I feel like I might get lynched for putting a Pokemon game on here, especially one that is as recent as it is. Pokemon Black is what brought me back into being interested in Pokemon again, after a long period of thinking I had grown out of it. I loved Red/Blue/Yellow and I was interested up until Emerald, just about. Diamond/Pearl/Platinum while I think I had a go at, just didn't grip me at all and I was ready to stop caring about Pokemon altogether. Then Pokemon Black came and it revitalized that for me. The fact it was all new Pokemon with cool designs excited me, and when I got to playing it I was glad of the improvements from the last game. Everything felt really slow and grindy in the previous generation, from battles to leveling to exploring. Black sped all that up and it did a world of good.
Play Count: 4...5 times maybe?
Honourable Mention: Pokemon RBY, for starting it all.
Extra Points: No fricken fishermen with 14 Magikarps
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Justice For All
I pretty much like all the Phoenix Wright games, I picked this one though because I think it had the best case.
Play Count: 3
Extra Points: "Look a ladder!" "That's a step-ladder." "So? What's the difference? You need to stop judging things based on narrow-minded cultural assumptions, Nick!"
Final Fantasy IX
Er, see Dice's post for more details. It is my favourite FF game.
Play Count: 4 at least
Extra Points: Rose of May ~
Suikoden II
I think this is probably as close to a perfect game for me as it could get. With more playthroughs I just get blow away with how much detail there is in the game. The story is mature and well told and well paced, the battle system is amazing (no grind!), there's a million and one things to do outside of the main plot. I think this is where Suikoden hit its peak, but that doesn't mean it was a sharp decline. Sure Suikoden IV was a nose-dive into a sea of bleehhhhhhh, but Suikoden V was a triumphant ascension back into greatness, save for a few problems such as load times.
Play Count: 3
Honourable Mention: Suikoden V, because it was a really hard choice for me.
Extra Points: Gay protag and antag. OKAY THEY WERENT BUT IN MY HEAD THEY WERE. ;-; They belong together.
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 2: Innocent Sin
I don't think I have to be totally objective on a personal list. I'm well aware of the games faults, BUT this was my FIRST SMT game. Persona 4 was just released and talk about it might have lead me to find out about the series. I can't remember why I started with this instead of 1, considering IS wasn't even officially released at the time, but that's what I did. I adore the plot of the game, and the battle system never seemed archaic to me because it was my first SMT game, it was just unique.
Play Count: 3
Honourable Mention: Every other SMT game, basically
Extra Points: ACTUAL gay protag and antag. In my version, anyway.
League of Legends
It COUNTS, shut up. Any game that has absorbed about £150 and 2 years of my life should be on here. Thanks for the addiction, John. -.-
Play Count: Nearing 2000+ games. Aka: WoW levels of time.
Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
Fire Emblem is a good series, but I think PoR is the best. It feels the most solid (I'll never say balanced for a Fire Emblem game), and the story was probably also the strongest in the series. Awakening was a contender, but I feel like Awakening relies to heavily on past titles to make its impression, while Path of Radiance gets by on its own merit.
Play Count: 4 (I think)
Extra Points: You aren't severely punished for actually using Titania!
Last Edit: May 02, 2013, 07:34:31 AM by Starmongoose
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Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #2 on:
May 01, 2013, 07:09:29 PM »
Quote from: Starmongoose on May 01, 2013, 07:01:22 PM
If I wasn't seeing this just before I go to sleep I would totally write my list.
Consider this my placeholder entry.
Haha love it. x)
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Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #3 on:
May 01, 2013, 08:35:22 PM »
1. Chrono Trigger
Timeless classic. I can't add any more to what everyone has said over the last decade.
Playthroughs: Too many to count
2. Valkyrie Profile (PSX original)
The though-as-nail, hyper-rewarding, incredibly scripted, beautifully orchestrated, Norse immersed wonder. This game is both beautiful and depressing. It stays on the grey line between life and death and portrays the pointlessness of life with a cast that are but tiny specks of dust that you can't help but root for. Lenneth is an incredible protagonist, but the rest of the cast doesn't fall far behind.
A small snippet at the start of the game shows the depth of the characters:
« It was through others' misfortune that I felt myself to be strong. That's right; I was myself without morals. Who was I to judge others? Who was I to look down on them? Injustice... »
Finally, if a game ever did cutscenes right, this is it.
Playthroughs: 2
3. Terranigma
On the complete opposite of Valkyrie Profile. This game represents the beauty of life. The story, ambience and thematic are magnificent. The ending is so good, I think I stood in front of the screen for minutes just staring and listening to the music.
Playthroughs: 2
4. Zone of the Enders: The Second Runner
The ultimate proof that if you make a great 3-hour game, people will play it for a bazillion hours.
The art style is wonderful. The controls are simply god-sent. The boss fights are plentiful and interesting (except the hacking one... fuck that one).
Playthroughs: Too many to count
5. System Shock 2
Go read everything I posted in the System Shock 2 thread =P
Playthroughs: 5
6. Ogre Battle 64
As far as tactic RPGs go, I have never met one that equalled it. This game stands tall like a king. The complexity of the system and the liberties left to the player allow incredible customization. The chaos rating system allows for multiple playthrough to be different.
Playthroughs: 3
7. Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines
I recently discovered this game and I'm amazed that even if I played it a decade later, the game didn't fall short because of it. This game shapes itself to how you play it to a degree that is almost hard to believe. "Don't. Open. It."
Playthroughs: 2
8. Star Ocean 2
I think this is the JRPG that came the closest to recreating the feeling of playing Chrono Trigger. It's happy, go-lucky and buckets of fun. The dual protagonist system is also a great feature.
Playthroughs: 6
9. Ar Tonelico 2
Although 1 and 3 are good too, this would be the most balanced one. An interesting take on the turn based combat system paired with big numbers (everyone loves big numbers). The music is excellent and Croix is by far the best character of the serie. The 3rd reyvateil ending is also one of the manliest thing I've ever seen a protagonist do.
Playthroughs: 1
10. Ever 17
I don't think a game will ever hit me as hard with its plot as that game did. I probably won't ever play it again, as knowing the ending just doesn't make it the same as the virgin run... but that first run was incredible.
Honorable mentions:
Super Metroid
Perfect Cherry Blossom and Imperishable Night (screw the game, the music itself wins it the honor)
Yakuza 4
Shining Force 2
Tales of Vesperia + Tales of Graces F
KotOR 2
Soul Nomad
Katawa Shoujo
Chrono Cross
Baldur's Gate 2 (+ every expansion)
Diablo + Diablo 2
Last Edit: May 01, 2013, 09:20:01 PM by Annubis
Posts: 10343
Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #4 on:
May 01, 2013, 09:04:48 PM »
1. Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne
2. Earthbound
3. Final Fantasy Legend 2
4. Ultima 7
5. SimCity 4
6. Unreal
7. Riven
8. Exile (BBC 1998)
These aren't so much favorite games as they are ones I found really exemplary for one reason or another.
Also tempted to put Oath in Felghana and Euro Truck 2 on here. Possibly replace Exile with Rayman Origins.
Last Edit: May 01, 2013, 09:52:45 PM by MeshGearFox
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Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #5 on:
May 01, 2013, 09:36:17 PM »
Top 10
1. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64/3DS)
2. Paper Mario (N64)
3. Rayman 2: The Great Escape (PC)
4. Skies of Arcadia Legends (GC)
5. Ever 17: Out of Infinity (PC)
6. The World Ends With You (DS)
7. Demon's Souls (PS3)
8. Dreamfall: The Longest Journey (PC)
9. The Void (PC)
10. Journey (PSN)
Honourable Mentions
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
Golden Sun 2
Zelda: A Link to the Past
Zelda: Oracle of Seasons
Metroid Prime
Snowboard Kids 2
Dragon Quest V
Final Fantasy XII
Shadow of the Colossus
Atelier Totori
FFVII: Crisis Core
Valkyrie Profile
Ys II
Wild Armor
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Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #6 on:
May 01, 2013, 10:25:59 PM »
Growlanser Generations (Yeah, I'm cheating: 2 for 1)
Radiata Stories
(Ganz slapping Jack should have been visually part of the cutscene, but they at least put the sound of him getting slapped XD)
Wild Arms 3
The Longest Journey
Infinite Undiscovery
Shadow of the Colossus
Dragon Warrior Monsters (AMAZING game and music)
Honorable mentions
Flower Sun and Rain
Final Fantasy Legend 2 (Good choice Mesh!)
Killer 7
Chrono Trigger
Dark Cloud 2
Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon
Dragon Quest VIII
Arc Rise Fantasia
Rhythm Heaven Fever
Final Fantasy 6
Wild Arms 2
Might be back to edit this list...maybe
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Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #7 on:
May 01, 2013, 10:52:25 PM »
Hmm... Let's see if I can actually come up with a well-rounded list here...
#10-4 isn't necessarily in order but #3-1 is.
10. Dark Cloud 2
What I love most in RPG's is variety, and this game had a ton of it. From fishing to photography, to the not-golf minigame of Spheda, there was always a way to get away from combat long enough to keep everything feeling fresh. Add in a fairly good plot, a unique leveling system, and a fantastic score, and I can't get enough of this game.
9. Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
My interest in the Zelda series fluctuates between each title, but I loved Twilight Princess. The presentation did an amazing job of bringing the mythos of Hyrule to life. TP's sacred glade was my favorite bit of Master Sword retrieval from the entire series. I loved the idea of a longer, more fleshed out Zelda title, and I'm really hoping Nintendo goes back to this sort of style again.
8. Super Paper Mario
I never really understood the mass appeal of the original two Paper Mario's. Don't get me wrong, they're great games, but the combat is slow and clunky at the best of times. Super Paper Mario took a unique spin on the "Mario RPG" formula by basically making it a Mario platformer, but with stats and stuff. Plus it had my favorite characters of the series.
7. Final Fantasy IX
I've always had a hard time pinpointing why this is my favorite entry in the series, other than the fact that I will vehemently defend Tetra Master as the best FF mini-game. It's not a particularly unique title complete with a rather simple character development system and an ultimately disappointing story. But where the overall story fails, the themes, the look, and the character personalities win me over every time.
6. The Longest Journey
I was late to the party on this one, only having played it about 4 or 5 years ago, but I quickly discovered why this is on so many peoples lists of favorite point and click adventures. The puzzles were a little more straight forward than your standard Lucasarts/Sierra fare (which, frankly, sometimes worked in its favor), but the characters, setting, and story more than made up for the simplistic gameplay.
5. Okami
I think anything that can be said about this game has been said by others much better than I could articulate, it's a visual masterpiece that doesn't use the unique art as a crutch for mediocre game play. The game also has some amazing Zelda-style game play, great music, and some surprisingly emotional writing (That damn scene during the final battle...)
4. Half-Life 2
I normally avoid FPS games like the plague, so the fact that this one got me so invested in it speaks volumes to the quality of the games. I firmly believe that Half-Life 2 was the game that inspired the more common "set piece" design of modern games. I felt really immersed in the game, but not because of the lack of cutscenes, but because of the natural-feeling level design and challenges.
3. Persona 4
As I've mentioned, I'm still slowly working my way through P4 Golden because this is a game meant to savor every moment. I talk to every single character every day that I can even if I know they're just going to repeat what they've said for the last week. The life the creators breathed into the town of Inaba is amazing, and it happens to be one of the few turn-based combat systems I still enjoy playing.
2. Kingdom Hearts 2
I love the Kingdom Hearts series, and I have to say that this one is still so far the pinnacle. The plot started coming into it's own (even though some would argue needlessly convoluted) and the keyblade combat was refined to include a unique sense of style I haven't seen in any other action RPG. The balance between Disney content and Kingdom Hearts specific content was still balanced, and nothing ever felt grindy, repetitive, or needlessly complicated.
1. Valkyria Chronicles.
I did not expect to enjoy this game as much as I did. The perfect balance of strategy and action with a story that was surprisingly engaging for basically being "WWII with a twist." I cared about my squad mates as much as I do in a Fire Emblem game, and fought hard to keep them all alive. It was challenging and rewarding, emotional and hilarious, and it is such a shame that the series committed suicide before it got off the ground by continuing on the PSP.
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Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #8 on:
May 02, 2013, 07:39:51 AM »
Edited my post. God it was hard.
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Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #9 on:
May 02, 2013, 08:59:14 AM »
Okay.....this is going to be hard. In no particular order:
10. Suikoden II - Like Starmongoose said, pretty close to a perfect game. Everything about it just clicks. Honestly though, I would have to include I, III and V in this as well as they all make up a larger story.
9. Final Fantasy IX - For the same reasons listed by other people.
8. Silent Hill 2 - It develops its themes carefully and maturely, it's got an amazing soundtrack and atmosphere and it has a mind blowing ending. There's not many games that have had more detail and attention given to them.
7. Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne - I'm not normally a fan of dungeon crawlers like this, but this game just clicked with me. The battle system is fun and challenging, the fusion is addicting and while the story isn't meaty, I thought what was presented was interesting. It was like no other game I had played with I went through this the first time, and I still love it. It's got a hell of an atmosphere.
6. Xenoblade - A really great experience. The JRPG with a fresh twist.
5. Pool of Radiance - This is my nostalgia pick. I *loved* the SSI D&D games as a kid and I still think this one is the best. Great story, great ideas, great monsters. And the twist that the guy giving you your missions was the one that sold you out blew my tiny young mind.
4. Grandia - Great battle system, great soundtrack. I really liked the characters in this game and the way the designers made an effort to make it feel like the characters were growing and changing throughout the game. Justin started out as a little kid, and by the end of the game you really felt like he had gone on a journey and grown up. The relationship between Justin and Feena felt organic as well.
3. KOTOR - This was my first Bioware game. I'm sure people will say older Bioware games are better, but this was my first and dammit, I loved it. The universe felt HUGE, the story was great (including the twist) and you really got attached to the characters. It was unique and enjoyable.
2. Nier - By no means a perfect game, but the battle system is fun, the soundtrack is amazing and the story......well it's godly.
1. Rayman 2 - The Great Escape - I *loathe* platformers. Can't stand them. Yet, Rayman 2 sucked me in. It has amazing control and doesn't make you feel like you died because the game was cheap. It has "cutesy" characters but they all talk in gibberish which gives it this surreal quality that other platformers don't have. I really, really dug this game. The only platformer worth playing as far as I'm concerned.
Honourable mentions :
Legend of Mana - Which never gets enough credit for its unique "Short story anthology" approach to the JRPG
Need for Speed High Stakes - Great control, great graphics (for PS1), fun to play and the best licensed soundtrack ever compiled. My favourite racer.
Shadow of Destiny - A really unique puzzle game with a weird atmosphere and a cool concept.
Text adventures - Zork, Hitchhikers, Adventure, The Scott Adams games, I love them all.
Ico - I loved the exploration and the mood of this game. It was like someone had taken what made Zork great and given it graphics.
Fatal Frame - The only horror game I've had to play with the lights *on*.
Mister Mosquito /Incredible Crisis/Robot Alchemic Drive - The holy trinity of weird, unique Playstation games that are essential in any collection.
Mr. Driller - This game is like crack for me.
Silent Scope - My favourite arcade shooter
Tekken Tag Tournament - My favourite fighter
Last Edit: May 02, 2013, 09:13:08 AM by Lard
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Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #10 on:
May 02, 2013, 09:16:28 AM »
No One Can Stop Mr. Domino.
You think this would be funny?
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Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #11 on:
May 02, 2013, 11:00:16 AM »
In no particular order:
1. Suikoden 2/3: Really hard for me to choose between these two. Suikoden 5 was good too, and it's actually probably better than both of these presentation-wise, but it had a lot of little things that irked me.
2. Megaman X4: Hard to choose a favorite megaman game, but this is probably the one that has the most polish to me. The cheesy voice acting adds to the charm for me.
3. Fire Emblem (7): First Fire Emblem I actually really played. I like it when games like this are fast-paced so sometimes the older games in the series can drive me crazy. Probably has my favorite cast, too, and that's important for me in the FE games.
4. Shining Force III: Counting all 3 games together here if I may. Too bad the series completely went off the rails after this, and Camelot seperated from SEGA. My dreams of the continuation of the story they teased will never happen.
5. Chrono Cross: I think I'm one of the few people that actually likes this over the prequel. I guess people that like Trigger more tend to like a more complete, well-made product, whereas I really love just big ideas and concepts in and of themselves.
6. Final Fantasy XI: I honestly have a bit of a love/hate relationship with this game at times, but given that it's gotten me to come back several times over a decade I figure it's obviously doing something right.
7. Grandia: Just captures that "boy goes on grand adventure" charm perfectly for me.
8. Mass Effect 2: Still haven't gotten around to the third game, I should really do that. Liked the story in the first one a lot more but as an actual game ME2 has the first one beat at almost everything (aside from the awful planet-scanning, I wish they had cleaned up the Argo sections because it made felt more like you were exploring planets in this gigantic galaxy), as well as a great cast of characters.
9. Earthbound: Really nothing that needs to be said that hasn't already been said.
10. Final Fantasy Tactics: Best Final Fantasy IMO. Great story, and I've always liked a more open-ended job system. I only get annoyed that it gives you too many named characters and you end up only using them. They also often lose all their relevance to the story once they join your party.
Honorable Mention: Energy Breaker. This is actually my favorite game of the Lufia universe, but it had some really weird pacing issues that wasn't the case with Lufia 2. I find the atmosphere and story a lot more enjoyable than Lufia 2 though. Kind of a shame so few have played it- I think the only person around here I've ever seen mention it aside from myself is Ramza.
Might elaborate on some of these more later.
Posts: 5169
ee yan~☆
Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #12 on:
May 02, 2013, 12:36:47 PM »
Wait... Energy Breaker is in the Lufia universe?
You think this would be funny?
Posts: 2491
Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #13 on:
May 02, 2013, 12:43:47 PM »
It's been a while since I've played it, but outside of one little reference in there I don't believe there was actually much else in common. Outside of that it could've been anything, probably. Didn't even have similar themes or anything- Lufia is a game about fighting evil giant bad guys that come back every so often to annoy humanity, whereas Energy Breaker had time travel and dimension hopping. It does have some similarity in narrative you'd probably spot though.
Actually, I think I'll go replay it now...
Last Edit: May 02, 2013, 12:45:23 PM by Hathen
I'm fart and I'm smunny
Posts: 13305
RPGFan and Dice forever...
Re: Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games
Reply #14 on:
May 02, 2013, 12:49:15 PM »
Quote from: Hathen on May 02, 2013, 11:00:16 AM
In no particular order:
Suikoden 5 was good too, and it's actually probably better than both of these presentation-wise, but it had a lot of little things that irked me.
Like load times?
And that stupid fucking boat village you had to go through 20 rooms to reach the "boat palace" made worse by load times??
I hate when a game looks...less than "awesome" but still seems to have terrible load times. Walking through Daath in Tales of the Abyss (a very room-filled cathedral) was an absolute chore in that it would take at least 5 seconds to load a straight hallway that ends in another door to another room.
SuikoV was killed for me, sadly based on that. I've heard nothing but amazing things, but I got frustrated and something else took my time up instead by then. =/
Suiko III holds a soft spot because I adore how everyone runs and how loud their shuffling is. ...oh and the plot's good.
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Related Reading
Learning WML, and WMLScript
This excerpt is Chapter 3 from Learning WML & WMLScript, published in October 2000 by O'Reilly.
This chapter covers two further parts of WMLtasks and eventsthat have no real equivalent in HTML. (In some cases you can use JavaScript to achieve similar effects.)
Tasks and Variables
The <prev> Task
The <refresh> Task
A WML task is an element that specifies an action to be performed by the browser, rather than something to be displayed. For example, the action of changing to a new card is represented by a
<go> task element, and the action of returning to the previous card visited is represented by a
<prev> task element. Task elements encapsulate all the information required to perform the action.
Tasks are used in many places in WML. Events (discussed later in this chapter) are tied closely with tasks, and many of the user interface elements (see Chapter 4, WML User Interaction) use tasks to perform actions.
To see how tasks are used in context, consider the element
<do>, which represents some sort of control that the user can activate, such as a softkey, a menu item on a cell phone, or maybe even an onscreen button if the device has a touchscreen. A
<do> element isn't itself a task element. Rather, it contains a task subelement that specifies the action to perform when the user activates the control.
<do> element that, on activation, simply assigns the value
wibble to the variable
test can be written as:
<do type="accept"> <refresh> <setvar name="test" value="wibble"/> </refresh> </do>
To have the same
<do> element instead send the browser to a card called
card2 in the current deck, you could write:
<do type="accept"> <go href="#card2"/> </do>
Note that the
<do> element is exactly the same for these two examples. The only difference is the task element (the
<refresh> or the
<go>). This added consistency (or orthogonality to use the technical term) is an important benefit of using tasks.
<do> element is explained more fully in Chapter 4.
All tasks can change variables in the browser's context using the
<setvar> element, as described in Chapter 2, WML Variables and Contexts. The new variable bindings don't affect the task itself but rather take effect when the task completes. For example, suppose the variable
page contains the value
login. The task:
<go href="$(page).wml"> <setvar name="page" value="bad"/> </go>
goes to
login.wml, not
bad.wml, because the browser substitutes the original value of the
page variable into the
href attribute before it assigns the new value to the variable.
As the name suggests, the
<go> task represents the action of going to a new card. (It is also used for a special purpose with WMLScript, but you must wait until later in the book to find out about that.)
<go> task takes several different attributes to customize exactly how to find the new card. Usually, only
href and sometimes
method attributes are used.
href (required variable url)
method (optional string; default
get or
post, corresponding to the GET and POST methods of HTTP.
sendreferer (optional boolean; default
true, the browser sends the URL of the current deck along with the request. This URL is sent as a relative URL if possible. The purpose of this is to allow servers to perform simple access control on decks, based on which decks are linking to them. For example, using HTTP, this attribute is sent in the HTTP
Referer header.
accept-charset (optional string; default
unknown (the default), the browser uses the same character set that sent this document to the browser. (Note that this attribute is an advanced feature and is rarely used.)
One of the more interesting options available on the
<go> task is the
method attribute. This specifies whether the request should be sent as a GET or as a POST. This option is used only when sending information for processing on the server: it's not used when simply fetching static pages of WML.
If you know HTML, you may recognize similarities with the
METHOD="GET" and
METHOD="POST" attributes that can be put on an HTML
<FORM> element. WML puts this attribute on the
<go> task instead, but it has essentially the same effect.
GET is the normal method used in HTTP. All the information sent to the server is encoded in the URL, and the server uses this URL to find some resource and return it to the browser.
The main advantage of GET is that it's simple. Any information is simply added to the query part of the URL (more on the parts of URLs in Appendix A, Absolute and Relative URLs). You can even put the query information directly into the URL using variables.
The main disadvantage of GET is that it can be used only for a limited amount of data. Web servers and other programs that process URLs impose certain limits on the length of a URL they are prepared to handle. This limits the size of the request that can be sent using GET.
A subtler problem with GET relates to the fact that all the information you send becomes part of the URL. Many browsers display the URL of the current deck somewhere on the screen (even if only briefly), and most web servers store the entire URL in their log files, complete with the extra data from the GET. If this information is of a sensitive nature (a password, for example), it's displayed on the screen and then saved for posterity in the web server's logs!
The POST method avoids these two problems, by sending the data separately from the URL in the request. As a result, the URL stays small, and the browser display and web server logs don't contain any of the data.
In modern versions of WML, information to be posted with the POST method is specified in
<postfield> elements within the
<go> element. This information takes the form of a list of name/value pairs. Each
<postfield> element specifies a single pair. The element is very simple, having only two attributes:
name (required variable string)
value (required variable string)
WML allows
<postfield> elements to be used even with the GET method. In this case, the fields are added to the end of the query part of the URL. For example, consider the task:
<go href="wibble" method="get"> <postfield name="x" value="17"/> <postfield name="y" value="42"/> </go>
This has the same effect as:
<go href="wibble?x=17&y=42" method="get"/>
Using the
<postfield> element in this way can make your WML much clearer and also makes your life much easier if you have to change the WML to use POST at some point in the future.
You can even mix the two styles. Here's another way to write exactly the same
<go> task as the last two examples:
<go href="wibble?x=17" method="get"> <postfield name="y" value="42"/> </go>
One form of task is more common than any other: a
<go> task that has no attributes other than
href and doesn't contain any
<postfield> or
<setvar> elements. Because this form is so common, WML provides a shorthand form you can use in many situations.
Instead of including the task as a complete
<go> element, the value that would be put into the
href attribute of the
<go> element is simply included as an attribute on a different element. For example, it is possible to bind a task to an option in a selection list, so that the task is performed when the option is selected. The normal way of doing this looks like this:
<option> <onevent type="onpick"> <go href="foo.wml"/> </onevent> Option text <option>
Using the shorthand form, this can be written as:
<option onpick="foo.wml"> Option text </option>
I think you'll agree, that's much shorter and clearer.
This is allowed for the
onenterbackward, and
ontimer attributes of the
<card> element; the
onpick attribute of the
<option> element; and the
href attribute of the
 element. These elements are all described later in this book: don't worry about them for now.
<prev> task represents the action of returning to the previously visited card on the history stack. When this action is performed, the top entry is removed from the history stack, and that card is displayed again, after any
<setvar> variable assignments in the
<prev> task have taken effect.
<prev> task takes no attributes.
Most uses of the
<prev> task are very simple. Usually no variables are involved, and so most
<prev> tasks are simply:
<prev> task is most commonly used in connection with a
<do> element (described in Chapter 4). Some browsers don't provide a back button unless one is specified in the WML, and so a great deal of WML contains the construct:
<do type="prev"><prev/></do>
This simply provides a button or some other user-interface construct, which when activated, sends the browser to the previous card.
One situation where it can be useful to include variables in a
<prev> task is a login page, which prompts for a username and password. In some situations, you may want to clear out the password field when returning to the login card, forcing the user to reenter it. This can be done with a construct such as:
<prev> <setvar name="password" value=""/> </prev>
<refresh> task is the simplest task that actually does something. Its effect is simply to perform the variable assignments specified by its
<setvar> elements, then redisplay the current card with the new values. The
<go> and
<prev> tasks perform the same action just before displaying the new card.
<refresh> task doesn't take any attributes.
<refresh> task is most often used to perform some sort of "reset" action on the card. Example 3-1 shows how this could be done. The
<input> elements prompt the user to enter strings and then store the strings into the variables specified in their
name attributes (see Chapter 4 for more information). There is also a
<go> task using the POST method to submit the login and password information to a server for processing.
Example 3-1: A Reset Button
<?xml version="1.0"?> <!DOCTYPE wml PUBLIC "-//WAPFORUM//DTD WML 1.1//EN" "http://www.wapforum.org/DTD/wml_1.1.xml"> <wml> <card title="Reset button example">
Login: <input name="login"/>

Password: <input name="password"/>
  <do type="accept" label="Submit"> <go href="login.cgi" method="post"> <postfield name="l" value="$(login)"/> <postfield name="p" value="$(password)"/> </go> </do>  <do type="reset" label="Reset"> <refresh> <setvar name="login" value=""/> <setvar name="password" value=""/> </refresh> </do> </card> </wml>
The purpose of the
<noop> task is to do nothing (no operation). This may seem particularly useless: why would anyone want a task that doesn't do anything?
The only real use for this task is in connection with templates (discussed in more detail in Chapter 6, WML Decks, Templates, and Cards). However, it can also be specified anywhere a task is required.
<noop> task is the only exception to the rule that tasks can set variables. It can't set variables and can't even contain any
<setvar> elements. If you want a task to just set variables and not change the current card, use the
<refresh> task.
<noop> task doesn't take any attributes.
Because the
<noop> task takes no attributes and can't even contain any
<setvar> elements, it always looks the same in use:
An event in WML is simply something that can happen to some element from time to time. For example, entering a
<card> element triggers an event on the
<card>, and selecting an
<option> from a selection list triggers an event on the
You can harness these events by binding them to a task. The usual way of doing this is with the
<onevent> element. As mentioned earlier in this chapter, for simple
<go> tasks you can usually make use of a simpler form: this will be mentioned when when we discuss the elements in question.
For example, the
<option> element (detailed in Chapter 4) declares an item in a list of selections. When this item is selected, it triggers an
onpick event on the
<option> element. Suppose the element were declared without an event handler, like this:
<option> Purple </option>
In this case, the
onpick event is ignored, since there is no handler. If, on the other hand, the option is declared as:
<option> <onevent type="onpick"> <go href="#purple"/> </onevent> Purple </option>
onpick event is handled by executing the
<go> task, sending the browser to a new card.
<onevent> element declares an event binding. It can't contain anything except a single task element that is performed when the event occurs. It may be present inside either an
<option> element (see Chapter 4) or a
<card> element (see Chapter 6). In either case, the
<onevent> element (or elements) must be the first elements declared inside their enclosing element.
<onevent> element takes only one attribute:
type (required string)
type="ontimer" to bind to the
ontimer event of a
<card> element.
Sometimes, you may want to do something special when the user enters a particular card. For example, you may want to initialize the values of variables so that the display looks correct. Another thing you may want to do is to clear out some variables when the user returns to a particular card in the history stack.
To make this possible, WML defines two events,
onenterforward and
onenterbackward, which happen on a
<card> element when the user enters it. Which event occurs depends on how the card was entered.
onenterforward event occurs when a card is entered in the forward direction. Entering as a result of a
<go> task, selecting a bookmark, or entering a URL directly are all in the forward direction. The most common use of this event is to initialize things that must be set up before the card is displayed, often by using a
<refresh> task or by using a
<go> task to run some WMLScript (see "Calling WMLScript from WML" in Chapter 13, WMLScript Functions).
Example 3-2 shows how this can be used. When the first card is entered forwards, the
<refresh> task is performed, which initializes the
state variable. This variable can then be updated by other WML pages and is passed through to the server by the
<go> task.
Example 3-2: Initialization on Entry
<?xml version="1.0"?> <!DOCTYPE wml PUBLIC "-//WAPFORUM//DTD WML 1.1//EN" "http://www.wapforum.org/DTD/wml_1.1.xml"> <wml> <card title="onenterforward example">  <onevent type="onenterforward"> <refresh> <setvar name="state" value="0"/> </refresh> </onevent>
<input name="text"/>
  <do type="accept"> <go href="submit.cgi"> <postfield name="s" value="$(state)"/> <postfield name="t" value="$(text)"/> </go> </do> </card> </wml>
If the task bound to the
onenterforward event is a simple
<go> task without
<setvar> or
<postfield> elements, you can use the shorthand form introduced earlier in this chapter: just add an
onenterforward attribute to the
<card> element. The value of this attribute is the destination URL.
For example, the event binding:
<card title="example"> <onevent type="onenterforward"> <go href="#card2"/> <onevent>  </card>
is equivalent to the shorter form:
<card title="example" onenterforward="#card2">  </card>
It's your choice to use the shorthand form, but it means less typing and results in less data being sent to the browser.
Be warned that not all tasks you can bind to the
onenterforwardevent actually make sense. For example, the event binding:
<onevent type="onenterforward"> <prev/> </onevent>
makes it impossible for the user to enter the card at all: as soon as she went to the card, the browser would immediately return to the previous one!
To make matters worse, the event binding:<card id="card1" onenterforward="#card1">
means that as soon as the browser entered the card, it would be immediately redirected to the same card, which would cause an immediate redirect to the same card, and again, and again. . . . Well-written browsers may notice this and signal an error, but not all browsers are well-written: many simply lock up or even crash.
onenterbackward event is the companion of the
onenterforward event for the backward direction. This event is triggered when the card is returned to as the result of a
<prev> task or some other action that navigates backwards in the history stack.
The most common use for the
onenterbackward event is to reset state back to some initial value when returning to the beginning. Example 3-3 alters Example 3-1 to illustrate this: instead of an explicit reset button, the login and password are cleared when the user returns to this card via the history stack.
Example 3-3: Reset on Reentry
<?xml version="1.0"?> <!DOCTYPE wml PUBLIC "-//WAPFORUM//DTD WML 1.1//EN" "http://www.wapforum.org/DTD/wml_1.1.xml"> <wml> <card title="Reset on reentry example">  <onevent type="onenterbackward"> <refresh> <setvar name="login" value=""/> <setvar name="password" value=""/> </refresh> </onevent>
Login: <input name="login"/>

Password: <input name="password"/>
  <do type="accept" label="Submit"> <go href="login.cgi" method="post"> <postfield name="l" value="$(login)"/> <postfield name="p" value="$(password)"/> </go> </do> </card> </wml>
Just as with the
onenterforward event,
onenterbackward also has a shorthand form in the case where the task is a simple form of
<go>, meaning that the event binding:
<card title="example"> <onevent type="onenterbackward"> <go href="foo.wml"/> </onevent>  </card>
is equivalent to:
<card title="example" onenterbackward="foo.wml">  </card>
Martin Frost is the author of Learning WML & WMLScript
Return to the Wireless DevCenter.
Copyright © 2017 O'Reilly Media, Inc.


text:
Benefit dinner planned for Tyler Simpson
CHESTER – Community support for Tyler Simpson, the teenage boy seriously injured in a car-pedestrian accident Nov. 18, continues to grow.
On Saturday, a benefit spaghetti dinner will be held for Team Tyler at the Fire House Bar & Grill, 652 Pyramus Road, next door to the Lawrenceville Volunteer Fire Department.
"All proceeds will be given to the family toward Tyler's medical expenses," said benefit organizer Robin Crowe, who works with one of Tyler's cousins at the restaurant.
Crowe said she cleared the fundraiser with the family.
The benefit dinner will be served from 3 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Saturday, with live entertainment beginning at 8 p.m. Tickets for the dinner are $8 for adults and $5 for children 12 and under. Cover charge for the concert is $5.
The dinner will include spaghetti with meatballs, salad, rolls with butter, a soft drink and dessert.
Music will be provided by Chad Squires, Brad Gibson, Kent Cox, Plan B, Coat Rack Life Jacket and Fred Ludovici and Mad River Men, with a special appearance by Dave Morgan. The performers are donating their time, Crowe said.
The event also will include a 50/50 drawing and a Chinese auction. Donations are still being accepted for the auction.
"We've gotten a lot of donations from area businesses," Crowe said.
Around 4 p.m., an Air Evac Lifeteam helicopter will land in an area across the street from the restaurant, Crowe said.
It was an Air Evac Lifeteam crew that transported Simpson, 14, of Chester to Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh following the accident in the 300 block of Carolina Avenue.
Simpson was crossing the street on Nov. 18 to meet some friends when he was struck by a trailer being pulled by a pickup truck. The Oak Glen Middle School eighth-grader suffered head and brain injuries and remains in critical condition in the hospital's intensive care unit, said his aunt, Rachael Taylor of Chester.
Supporters have been raising money to defray the family's medical expenses by selling Team Tyler T-shirts. More T-shirts have been ordered and are due to arrive soon, Taylor said. For monetary donations, an account has been set up at Huntington Bank, 241 Carolina Ave., Chester, WV 26034.
Organizers of Saturday's fundraiser hope to serve 400 dinners, Crowe said.


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23, 2002
Public input is now being sought on a five-year plan for
using technology in the state's classrooms.
The State Board of Education reviewed the plan Thursday and
authorized staff to distribute it for public comment and to
take those comments into consideration in drafting the final
report to be submitted for Board approval by November. The
plan "Digital-Age Learning," builds upon the first
state technology plan adopted in 1995. That plan outlined
many of the strategies used to help Illinois move from 49th
in the nation to first in the nation in the use of digital
technology in K – 12 education.
The purpose of the 2002-2007 Illinois State Technology Plan
is to set a course for the convergence of technology literacy,
higher-order thinking, 21st Century skills, and academic standards
for Illinois students.
The Plan outlines the progress of the state since the 1995
plan and specifies the goals and strategies to guide the state
in building on that progress over the next five years. Strategies
fall within four primary spending categories: hardware, software,
infrastructure and personnel development. Using the strategies
to reach every student and every teacher in the state over
the next five years will take an investment of a little over
one billion dollars, the report estimates.
Copies of "Digital-Age Learning," the State of
Illinois Five-Year Plan, will be distributed widely throughout
the state in order to get comments and suggestions from the
widest possible audience of interested parties. The Plan may
also be accessed on the Internet at http://www.isbe.net/board/meetings/aug02meeting/digitalfiveyr.pdf.
Illinois State Board of Education
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text:
Newsmaker Q&A: A new role for Panda's Jacob Castillo
- published_in
- The Edge
In November, the Larimer County Workforce Center hired the Fort Collins entrepreneur as its new economic development manager, Workforce Investment Board liaison and enterprise zone administrator – replacing Wymisner's position with the county. The former vice president of the Northern Colorado Economic Development Corp. and Panda Bicycles founder originally left economic development to pursue an MBA at CSU, and is looking forward to getting back into a field he feels passionate about.
He shared with the Business Report his plans for the future of the LCWC, and what that means for his nationally-recognized bamboo bikes.
Question: Economic development manager, Workforce Investment Board liaison and enterprise zone administrator are fairly broad and arguably ambiguous titles. How would you define your role with the LCWC and what will that look like practically?
Answer: I have three primary functions. The first is the economic development manager. On this role I work with the board of commissioners, county leadership and other economic development organizations and personnel in the region to develop an inclusive economic development strategy that works well for all of the communities within the county and serves the needs of Larimer County residents. I will be working with businesses to better understand their needs as they consider expanding or relocating here, supporting other economic development agencies with labor market information, statistics and strategic workforce information.
The second role I have is the workforce investment board liaison. The WIB is a federally funded, state-administered and locally-controlled workforce development system that strives to address the workforce needs of local employers. Our board is made up of public- and private-sector individuals, who are all dedicated to finding workforce solutions to help Larimer County residents and Larimer County-based businesses.
One of the initiatives they've done in the past, for example, is working with local businesses and Front Range Community College to develop machinist and welding programs that directly addresses some of the skill gaps that we're seeing in local businesses.
The third hat I wear is the enterprise zone administrator. We have state-designated enterprise zones within Larimer County that are designed to incentivize job creation, business growth and investment in capital equipment. The enterprise zones are also critical to nonprofit fundraising, as projects within the zone or that service the zone can opt to give contributors a 25 percent state tax credit. This helps keep money in our communities and delivers real value to many people that need it.
That said, I see all of my work falling under the economic development umbrella. And it is predominately working with the human side, which is really important to me. It has been a passion of mine to see the human side of economic development, matching workforce with business, and making sure the two are aligned.
Q: What are your goals for the center? Do you have any major changes in mind that we can look for in the next few years?
A: Part of my role at the workforce center is to bring the right people to the table so that we can have a meaningful conversation on how we develop the workforce of the future, starting now. It's a lot of information-esprocessing and forward-thinking. If the only reason business can't grow is they can't find the right people, then there is an opportunity for us to help either find those people or work with others in the community to grow skills in our workforce to meet employers' needs.
My goals are to work with the team here and the board of commissioners to define Larimer County's role in economic development and to create a policy program that serves Larimer county businesses, and supports job creation for residents. If we can make forward progress on that, then we've done a good thing.
There are some very big shoes to fill from people that have previously been in the role in Larimer County and I think you'll see we've revamped our business development program, so you'll see more outreach to the business community and more friendly faces out talking to the business community to understand what they need so that we can help match those needs to people seeking jobs in the area.
Q: You've also started two successful companies already, and we heard you are working on a book. What will happen to Panda Bicycles and PowerMundo as you take on this new role? How will you prioritize between all the hats you wear?
A: In regards to PowerMundo, I am almost completely hands-off. That company spun out of work I was doing with a friend and business partner out of the Global Social and Sustainable Enterprise program at CSU, but I've been hands-off for a number of years. Regarding the book, I was doing some co-authorship and editing support for a textbook with a professor at CSU and that project is thankfully complete now.
My main priority is the Larimer County Workforce Center and the role as economic development manager. This is where I am at every day. Although I still am involved in Panda, we are finding someone who can do the day-to-day operations and help move the company to the next level. We are looking for someone who has experience in the startup environment and knows how to grow a company from something young and exciting to something older and even more exciting. So I am in the throws right now of raising some investment capital and talking to some skilled entrepreneurs who can help run the organization.
Q: How will the entrepreneurial experience you have be a benefit to the role you'll be serving with the workforce?
A: Running a business gives you an amazing skill set in terms of practicing the art of triage on a regular basis and understanding time management and organization. Those are just some basic skills that come from managing a small company. One of the other things I think is advantageous is making sure that businesses can find the right people, because I know how important it is to have the right people at all levels. Also having that network of people in the business community that we can reach out to as the workforce center, and again understand what businesses need from an employment standpoint.
Q: Why is the role of the workforce center a crucial one in Larimer County, worthy of tax payers' dollars at a time when many are strapped for cash?
A: I've known and had the pleasure of working with the workforce center even back in my time at the NCEDC. But it was not until I came on board that I saw the breadth of amazing things that this organization does. The Larimer County Workforce Center annually sees over 20,000 people. Thousands of businesses are touched by what we do. We work with targeted populations like veterans, people that have been laid off, youth and people on public assistance, and all of the work that the amazing people here are engaged in every day is transitioning in a meaningful way to positions that are making a positive difference in their lives and in our community. I've been blown away by the things that this organization is able to accomplish on a daily basis.
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Gay leads Raptors past CelticsAP Photo
Toronto Raptors center Jonas Valanciunas, right, shoots over Boston Celtics center Vitor Faverani in Toronto.
TORONTO Rudy Gay had 19 points and eight rebounds, Amir Johnson and DeMar DeRozan each scored 13 points and the Toronto Raptors snapped a three-game losing streak in home openers by beating the Boston Celtics 93-87 on Wednesday night.
Jeff Green had 25 points, Brandon Bass had 17 and Vitor Faverani 13 for the Celtics, who were beaten in new coach Brad Stevens NBA debut.
Jonas Valanciunas had eight points and 11 rebounds and Tyler Hansbrough had 12 rebounds for the Raptors, who won for just the sixth time in 26 meetings with Boston.
Kyle Lowry had 11 points and eight assists as Toronto improved to 10-9 in season-opening games.
Kris Humphries had eight points and nine rebounds for the Celtics.
Boston fell behind by 16 points in the third, but rallied to tie it at 71-all heading into the fourth.
After Boston guard Jordan Crawford tied it at 78-all on a jump shot with 7:42 left, the Celtics didnt score again until Greens jumper with 4:08 remaining.
Johnson answered with a layup, Gay hit a turnaround jumper and DeRozan banked in a jump shot as Toronto opened a 10-point cushion, 90-80, with 2:34 left.
Faverani scored nine points in the first and the Celtics made 11 of 17 field goal attempts to lead 26-21 after one quarter.
Boston went cold to start the second, missing eight of their first nine attempts and allowing Toronto to take the lead with an 8-1 run.
The Celtics made just two of 14 shots in the second, while the Raptors got six points from Terrence Ross and four each from Gay and Johnson to lead 49-37 at the half.
Toronto extended its lead to 16 points at 60-44 on a Valanciunas dunk at 8:18 of the third, but the Celtics rallied behind nine points from Green and 10 from Bass, whose buzzer-beating dunk knotted the score at 71-all.
NOTES: Boston forward Jared Sullinger served a one-game team suspension, two days after a judge dismissed domestic violence charges against him. ... Toronto outrebounded Boston 48-33. ... Singer Jon Bon Jovi and former Raptors star Morris Peterson attended the game.MORE IN Sports WireOXON HILL, Md. Wade Davis already had closed out a World Series. Full StoryBOSTON New Boston Red Sox pitcher Chris Sale said he isnt worried that he might not be the ace... Full StoryNORMAN, Okla. Full Story
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