Laboratory of Mathematics and Writing

Mass Effect I actually recall when this series of games came out in the late 2000s and early 2010s. I was oddly hyped for them even though I had no intentions of playing them. I must have been hyped on behalf of gamers somehow. Perhaps I read it in a magazine or watched a commercial and fell for the marketing. What I garnered was that Mass Effect is supposed to be a more action oriented version of Knights of the Old Republic. Now, I did play the first KOTOR back in the day. While I did have quite a bit of fun, I was disappointed that the real time combat didn't exactly feel like real time combat. I was confused exactly how it functioned and how turns where determined. Luckily, it's not important to understand how each turn is determined. You could easily just select your actions and hack away at enemies. Real Time Combat I've digressed. The action in Mass Effect is indeed action oriented. There are no turns and there are no lightsab...

Max Payne 3 I played the first two Max Payne games on the originial Xbox when I was a teenager. I absolutely adored them. I also finally played Max Payne 3 all these years later. This game, too, was a lot of fun. I can't quite remember how the second one ended, but I'm pretty sure that Max came to terms with the loss of his wife and child by the end and was ready to move one. So, when the third chapter begins with him still unable to let go, it's somewhat jarring. At any rate, the shooting action is about as good as ever, even if the story is less interesting than the first two. Dwelling on the Past The story for the third installment begins with an alcoholic and depressed Max that still refuses to let go of his past tragedies. He carries his scars on his body, his personality, his character, and his very soul. Amidst his drunken depression, he takes on a job protecting rich people in the city of Sao Paulo, Br...