I’ll admit, I’ve only played a small amount of Left 4 Dead, but it seems the video did a very nice job capturing a small part of each aspect of the game, while also recognizing it is in fact a movie and not a game that we’re watching.

While perhaps some liberties have been taken with some cameos, I thought it was quite well done and entertaining to watch, and the cameos provide some nice shout outs to those who have been gaming for some time now.

Kudos to those who created it. I think I’ll be heading back to YouTube to look for more of their work after I finish writing this.

The video actually makes me want to really play Left 4 Dead. I’ve actually avoided it because I have no 360 and no love for Steam (yes, if I had to choose a DRM scheme that uses online activation, Steam would be it, but I still don’t like it), but the fact that Skyrim uses it has dragged me into accepting it’s here to stay… for now. Which means I’m now considering going back to purchase Left 4 Dead and play what I’ve been missing out on.

Anyone who knows me knows I’m not generally a fan of shooters. The last one I completed single player in was the original Unreal Tournament, and the last one I played for more than a couple hours was Brink. But the taste I got of Left 4 Dead on a friend’s 360 does leave me wanting more, and this video reminded me a little of that. So, sometime soon now, I should go pick up a copy (yes, I still insist on buying it on disc), so I can really play through it. Might give me something a little different from my usual gaming fare.

And this leads to my first point. Skyrim is designed in a way that your first playthrough is going to last a long time, and then you’re going to want to replay it to do even more stuff that you didn’t get to the first time. There’s a lot of game here, and it’s lasting appeal means you’re getting a lot for your $60.

Of course, a game being long and drawn out is no fun if the game is no good. But this is the Elder Scrolls we’re talking about. Unless you revile the concept of open world games and everything they stand for, of course it’s good. You may quibble about which one you like best, but every one that I have played (Morrowind on) has been a great experience. I’ve found the series has become better with each iteration, culminating in Skyrim being clearly one of the best games I’ve played. Yes, even though you can’t levitate, and there are no Oblivion gates. Actually, both of those help a lot in providing a better crafted experience. Quest markers are nice too, no matter what the Morrowind fans are telling you.

Getting to the meat of things though, Skyrim grabs you right from the beginning. You aren’t stuck in a dungeon following the emperor and killing rats. You don’t have to go through some dumb checkpoint in Seyda Neen. No, you’re about to die by the executioner’s hand, then a dragon attacks, and suddenly you’re fighting your way out of this place you’ve been brought to trying not to be killed by the dragon or any others who would impede your progress. Ah yes, much, much better. After that, you’ll be given some clear direction on where to go to get the main quest rolling, and not long beyond that, you’ll have more sidequests than you know what to do with. And when I say that, I mean in the sense that Baldur’s Gate II threw quests at you, and you would never run out of anything to do. In fact, if you focus on sidequests, you could ignore the main quest entirely and build your adventuring career on everything else you do.

That leads me to something else I feel Skyrim has done very well. The guild quests that I have done so far feel more like stories in their own right, rather than mini-quests meant to supplement the main quest. Playing through the guild quests feels, for the first time, just as rewarding as playing through the main quest. And that is meant to say I felt the guild quests were that good, and not meant to detract from the main quest.

Also, the new character building system is much nicer as well. No longer do you choose to define your character by choosing your primary skills, pigeonholing you into one playstyle. Instead, you just play the game as you want to play it, and your character becomes what you play. This is a very natural evolution of the Elder Scrolls, and one I’m extremely pleased has come to pass. As you level up, you can specialize your skills by choosing perks, but having played the game, you’ll know where to put them based on what skills have been leveling up. It’s a much more natural character generation system than just picking some skills or a class at the beginning of the game.

Moving into gameplay, this translates into you being able to do whatever you want effectively. Until I was heavily invested in the perks and gear I had chosen to define myself with, it was common for me to unleash all my magic at an enemy, then pull out my bow for some damage from afar, followed by mopping up with sword and shield. That could change in a boss fight, where there’s more running, shooting, and nuking, but let that boss get close enough, and you’ll be happy you have that shield to pull out. Moreover, I’ve noticed that making subtle changes to the way you fight a boss can be all that is needed to mean the difference between victory and reloading after an untimely death. Still, these things add a depth to combat that didn’t exist in previous Elder Scrolls games, and that I have yet to experience in any other first person adventure/rpg.

Then there is the newly revamped crafting system. Through most of the game, this system will let you upgrade your gear frequently, but it will commonly be replaced by better gear you find while adventuring. It’s a good balance that makes crafting useful, and keeps exploring fun. As you come closer to maxing out your enchanting and smithing skills though, you will eventually find that it is possible to create sets of gear better than anything you can find adventuring. You will still find single pieces better than any single thing you can create, but having a set of gear designed for one purpose will always outweigh the benefit of having that one more powerful piece. It’s very close to as good as you can balance a crafting system against the world though. Of course, it is also possible, with a lot of time and effort, to break the crafting system and make stupidly powerful gear, but for my purposes, it’s quite balanced, so long as you don’t make the effort to break it. If you are making that effort, you probably like doing that kind of thing anyway, so probably appreciate the ability is there.

Let’s move on though. I haven’t yet talked about the look of the game. Skyrim is hands down the best looking game I have played. It’s a bit dreary, as we are adventuring through the frozen north, but it is also a gorgeous land. Bethesda really outdid themselves this time, truly rendering the landscape as far as the eye can see. If your PC can handle it, they game can, with some tweaking, literally be set to render everything in sight. Otherwise, if you game on a PC like mine, the game is set to render the big stuff you’ll notice, and leave out the little things until you get closer and will actually be able to see them. And like most Elder Scrolls games, if you can see it, you can get to it. No prerendered backgrounds here. Then, there is also now a third person mode that looks good and plays fluidly. No more stiff animations for your character, and with the crosshair remaining on screen, you can still see what you are doing. I still prefer first person, because it is how I’ve always played The Elder Scrolls, but for those who like third person gaming, it is truly a viable gameplay option for the first time. Also, for those playing on PC, like me, there are already tons of texture packs and a couple post-processing mods coming out to enhance the visuals even more. And if, like me, you prefer a brighter look, that is also an option.

The soundtrack is also amazing, which you’ll know as soon as you hear the main theme, a version of which is played not only at the title screen, but also during some dragon fights. While that particular theme is a favorite of mine, the other music is also very well done and suits the game very well. The shift of music between different events is also handled very smoothly, and is done in a way that shifts you into and out of combat appropriately.

Finally, there are the iconic dragon fights. When first starting out, these are what the game is all about. Open world, many of them random, boss fights with the creatures threatening to destroy the world. An awesome soundtrack to go with them. And a good, solid level of difficulty in each fight. Unfortunately, as you become more powerful, even with the difficulty cranked, the dragon fights do eventually become a bit of a sad joke, and more an exercise in farming souls for your shouts. It takes a long time, and doesn’t happen until near the end of the game, but a method of scaling dragon power to level and gear would go a long way toward fixing this. Not a major issue, but it does kill end-game immersion a little bit. In any case, with that bit out of the way, the dragon fights are otherwise an exciting element of the game, and perhaps one of the defining elements, given that the game is built around them. And they play out far differently than any other battle as well, since dragons are the only enemy that can actually fly out of range of your attacks, changing the dynamics of the battles significantly compared to any other fights in the game.

Unless you have something against open world games, there is no reason to not buy this game. In the event you just usually aren’t a fan, you should probably try it anyway, as it really is that good, and will make you a believer. This is everything an epic fantasy adventure should be in game form.

Kylak presents VG Talk #6 To Reboot or Not to Reboot posted at All Geeks Rejoice. Kylak discusses the idea of reimagining a series to give it a fresh start. I agree that, so long as it’s done well, it can definitely breathe new life into a series.

Kylak presents VG Talk #7 Dark Souls Loves You posted at All Geeks Rejoice. Another piece from Kylak, discussing the difficulty of Dark Souls. Wish I could weigh in, but there’s currently no PC version for me to sink my teeth into. I do like the concept of a very difficult game to play once in awhile though.

Zack K. presents The Four Parks: Kirby Mass Attack Review posted at The Four Parks. Zack has a brief review for us of the new Kirby game recently released.

wearechange tv presents Warco: an FPS where you hold a camera instead of a gun posted at WeAreChangeTV.US. Wearechange talks a bit about Warco, which looks like a nice spin on the usual fps setup.

Marcy L presents A noob gets pwned: Giving World of Warcraft a try at my children’s insistence | (Don’t Be) Too Timid and Squeamish posted at (Don’t Be) Too Timid and Squeamish, saying, “A humorous look at two gamers’ mother trying World of Warcraft for the first time.” The experience of an inexperienced gamer trying out WoW for the first time. Perhaps a bit heavy on buzzwords, but that’s likely for effect. An interesting read to see perspective from those less inclined to gaming.

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Video Game Bloggers. Join us next month for more great gaming info. You can use the carnival submission form to submit posts for January’s carnival, as I’ll be taking a break from the carnival for December for Christmas. Be sure to check out some of the posts of other submitters and perhaps leave a friendly comment or two if you like their work.

Garret Moniz presents Gears of War 3 – For those who can’t game 9 to 5 posted at Gamesters Paradice, saying, “The Gears of War trilogy is finally over. Took a look back at an iconic moment that wasn’t even a part of the game.” Garret discusses some of the emotional impact Gears of War had for him. Short, but a good read.

Valaney presents Which Gaming Console Will Create the Next Big Thing posted at Techchai – Technology Tips, Tutorials, Articles and Updates, saying, “Rumors of next-gen consoles are starting to heat up, what do you think will be hot?” Some conversation about what consoles will be big next generation. Not a lot of talk of specifics, but Valaney still has a winner in mind.

Victor Stanescu presents Online Social Games ? Billion Dollar Industry posted at Vectorash.ro, saying, “A Sociable and Nice take on Online Social Games, a billion dollar industry for Facebook Games and Google+ Games!” Victor lays out some statistics on social network gaming and discusses a bit about what he sees as the rather mindless experience of playing social network games. I’m inclined to agree, and can happily say I play none of these Facebook games. Want a real social game? Invite some friends over for some Smash Bros., Mario Kart, or Gears of War, and actually socialize while you play a game.

Mark Roberts presents Man of Few Words posted at Alatar Tales, saying, “An investigation exploring the effects of a certain theoretical physicist’s lack of vocal chords.” Some thoughts on a certain main character’s lack of speech, and how Mark feels it takes him out of the game. Personally, I’ve never minded a mute main character. It’s a little odd at times, but it’s never pulled me out of the game experience.

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Video Game Bloggers. Join us next month for more great gaming info. You can use the carnival submission form to submit posts for next month’s carnival. Be sure to check out some of the posts of other submitters and perhaps leave a friendly comment or two if you like their work.

1) Morrowind Sounds and Graphics Overhaul

First things first. You probably want a graphics upgrade. If you don’t, that’s cool, you can skip this one. Otherwise, you’re going to want to install the Morrowind Sounds and Graphics Overhaul. This beauty is a compilation of tons of graphics enhancements for Morrowind, and it comes with a nice installer and guide to getting everything working the way you want it. Naturally, it won’t look as good as Oblivion from a technical standpoint. There’s only so much that can be done with the engine Morrowind is on. But this mod does a great job of pushing the engine to do more, and I think you’ll be impressed. Here’s a video showing off the best of this Morrowind Overhaul mod.

There are also some new sounds added, notably some voice acting for a few important plot points. If, like me, you prefer to read, you can disable those added voice overs. Be sure to grab all the patches as well for this mod, since they offer more options for graphics and added sound, as well as a nice gameplay tweak in the final patch. What is this gameplay tweak you may ask? Well, in the Morrowind Code Patch (included in this package), there is the option to enable “swift casting.” This makes it so the spell button in Morrowind no longer puts you into casting mode, but instead casts the spell you currently have selected, just like Oblivion. This alone makes gameplay for hybrid characters feel far more fluid.

For those of you not picking up the sound and graphics overhaul above, you can still get the swift casting and other game tweaks that may appeal to you by downloading and installing the Morrowind Code Patch separately.

2) Magicka Regeneration

Next up, there’s Magicka Regeneration. Because really, who wants to have to chug a potion or rest for a day after casting a couple powerful (or not so powerful) spells in order to keep casting. It’s not quite as forgiving as Oblivion’s magicka regeneration, but I find this mod regenerates magicka at a comfortable rate while adventuring. Just be sure to note that magicka does not regenerate during time that you are using Morrowind’s wait command. Likewise, when sleeping, magicka regenerates at Morrowind’s normal sleeping rate. It’s a small thing, to be sure, but something to be aware of while playing.

3) Bantari’s Ravenloft Mod

So now you have need of two more things. You need a stronghold, and fast travel. Yes, fast travel, though it is done fairly differently than in Oblivion. I assume it has to be without a lot more digging into the game engine, and this mod is primarily a stronghold mod which I also use for fast travel since it suits me.  It’s the best I’ve seen yet for Morrowind, and I appreciate the effort that went into it. With that said, there are two things to note about how it works. First, it’s a portable mansion you can access at any time to stash gear while adventuring, and you can return to where you were moments earlier by employing Mark and Recall spells. Alternatively, there is a teleporter room in this mansion with a Map of Vvardenfell with handy markings to bring you to any city in the base game, along with some other important plot locations. It’s not everything, but it sure beats walking, and makes Morrowind far more enjoyable. When you want to go somewhere new, just go to your stronghold, use the teleporter room, and off you go. As for the trinket that lets you access the stronghold? Well, the author of the mod wants you to work a little for that, so I’ll just say this. If you play from the beginning of the game, you can’t miss it. Otherwise, you want to be looking on the path through the Census and Excise building in Seyda Neen that you went through at the beginning of the game.

So with these mods, what’s missing? Well, the combat is still pretty lackluster compared to Oblivion’s, but really, I don’t think Oblivion’s was anything to phone home about either. Fast travel does require some movement, though once you get used to it, it’s almost as fast as navigating the menus in Oblivion. There’s still very little voice acting as well, which I am perfectly fine with. When I grew up, we read everything that characters said in our rpgs. You may feel differently though. Most notably, there is no compass to point you toward quest objectives. This still takes some getting used to, but talk to npcs and read your journal, and that’s something that can be overcome. Directions for quests are very well written in this game, and there are plenty of landmarks to follow.

That sounds like a lot, so here’s a quick summary of what you get. Enhanced graphics. Spellcasting while keeping your weapon ready for use for a smoother combat experience. Constant magicka regeneration to make spellcasting a more consistent option. A stronghold to store your gear like those available in Oblivion. Finally, an option for fast travel that doesn’t involve getting to town and then going town to town on silt striders or through the mage guild. Just finish your dungeon, jump to your stronghold, then teleport to any town you need to get to in order to finish up. Includes Ashlander camps too, among other helpful locations.

Morrowind is, of course, still its own game. Even with these mods, as I explained above, there are some differences in gameplay. Some are pretty major, notably the lack of compass, and will take some adjustment. This set of mods should help lower the level of adjustment needed so anyone used to Oblivion can get back into Morrowind faster if they wish to do so, but you will still most likely need to get used to it.

All in all though, this is a package that moves Morrowind very far in the direction it needed to go to keep up with Oblivion, and I was very pleased with the improved experience these mods provided. Many thanks to the authors who created them and put them all together. I hope this guide helps you get some more life out of Morrowind.

Zack K. presents Nintendo Video posted at The Four Parks, saying, “My Reccomendation of the Nintendo Video App for the 3DS.” Zack wants us all to know that Nintendo currently has some new video features on the 3DS. While the concept is cool, I’m not sure how useful it is when the Internet is open to anyone on many different devices to get any video online they would like. Still, it’s entirely possible this will develop further into something very cool.

Next Island presents Blueprint Development posted at Next Island Dev Blog. Next Island wants to let people know that they are working on blueprints for Entropia. As I’m not familiar with the game, I can’t comment too much, but it seems like they want to keep it moderately quiet for now other than letting the news out.

Jake Moses presents Anomaly Warzone Earth HD review | Best Kid iPad Apps posted at Best Kid Ipad Apps, saying, “In depth review – A good game for PC/Mac becomes a great game thanks to the iPad’s touch interface.”  Jake has provided a great review on Anomaly Warzone Earth HD for the iPad. Tower defense game, except you’re the aggressor?  Sounds pretty cool, and the rest of the review makes it sound like a good choice for iPad owners.

Video Game Llama presents New Details About PS Vita Online Features posted at Video Game Llama.  Video Game Llama delivers some information on some new features of the Vita.

Elijah Obasanya presents Are We Witnessing The Death of The Call of Duty Franchise? posted at The Game Maestro, saying, “An article on the well known BF3 vs. Mw3 debate” A quick piece talking up the differences of opinion on Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3. Both games will sell like hotcakes though, so I’m thinking it’s probably a moot point. Others may disagree though.

Zack K. presents Kirby’s Adventure Review posted at The Four Parks. Here Zack gives us a brief review of Kirby’s Adventure. Mostly opinion, with a few nuggets of information about the game.

The Legendary Carmine presents No Girls Allowed posted at Side Story Games – Carmine’s Comments, saying, “Video games are notorious for being a “boy’s club”. Most of the games that are developed for girls are a waste of time and money. Carmine seeks to establish what needs to be done to create better games for girls and how it fits into the industry’s current model.” Carmine discusses some thoughts on the state of games that attempt to appeal to girls instead of accepting they will likely have similar interests in gaming as guys do. Definitely worth a read, though I think it’s possible that we’ve begun reading too much into this. Make good games, and people of all genders will play them. Make bad games, and they’ll be relegated to the trash.

The Legendary Carmine presents A “Bad” Game vs A “Mature” Game posted at Side Story Games – Carmine’s Comments, saying, “Side Story Games is all about creating game reviews for parents, focusing on the mature content that may not be appropriate for kids. But sometimes the reviewers seem to think that certain ‘mature content’ is acceptable or even appropriate. Carmine clears the air as to what makes a game ‘bad’ vs. what makes it ‘mature’.”  I’m not sure I would say this piece clears the air on “bad” vs. “mature”, but it does get to the point that we use mature to denote adult themes, whether or not those themes are presented maturely. I personally think any amount of mature content is acceptable in a game, so long as those purchasing are aware of what they are getting into and adult games aren’t sold to children, and every gaming store I’ve been to has been very good about this.

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Video Game Bloggers. Join us next month for more great gaming info. You can use the carnival submission form to submit posts for next month’s carnival. Be sure to check out some of the posts of other submitters and perhaps leave a friendly comment or two if you like their work.

Colin Whaley presents The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D Review posted at OtherLoop. Colin’s review of Ocarina of Time 3d is extensive and very nicely detailed. It definitely paints a great picture of the experience, and, combined with my memories of what the game was, almost makes me want to go out and buy a 3ds for this game. Unfortunately, money is a finite resource.

John presents Is £10.99 too expensive for a Mobile Game? | jpmblog.com posted at jpmblog.com, saying, “Blimey a £10 iPhone game. Yes its good but is it too much to pay for a mobile app?” Well, $15.99 for a port of one of the best tactical RPGs ever made? Yeah, that sounds fair to me, so long as you’re cool with the model of digital distribution. This isn’t a tiny game. Porting it wasn’t a simple, quick task. Yeah, they had an engine and a story and all of that figured out, but they had to recode it to work with the iPhone, which is a very different beast from the hardware it has run on before. Final Fantasy Tactics is not a typical release for a mobile app, and that’s why it doesn’t have a typical price. I can understand why some may not want to pay it, but that doesn’t mean the price should be lowered. Now that you’ve read my editorializing, or perhaps before, you should go read John’s take as well.

John M presents A Fun Stress Relieving Game for the iPhone | iPhone Experience posted at iPhone Experience, saying, “Mobile phones are a great platform for stress relief games, and they don’t come much better then this ” Want to squish some rats? John M has a review of the game for you. Sounds like a simple concept, and looks great for killing time if you have an iPhone.

Eric Gargiulo presents Madden 12 Video Game Pre-order Deals & Bonus Offers posted at CamelCluchBlog.Com. Unfortunately, this one isn’t very timely, as I’m running a once a month carnival here, but if you’re curious what pre-order offers were going around for Madden 12, there’s a good collection in here.

Garret Moniz presents Modern Warfare 3 vs Battlefield 3 posted at Gamesters Paradice, saying, “Just taking a quick look at the upcoming competition between Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3.” Garret has some predictions about whether Modern Warfare 3 or Battlefield 3 is going to come out on top this year. Click through to see who he believes is coming out on top and why.

Eric Gargiulo presents Madden 12 Game Achievements & Awards posted at CamelCluchBlog.Com, saying, “If you’re like me, you ran out on Madddenoliday and purchased your copy of Madden 12 or pre-ordered it. Before I even have a chance to unwrap Madden, I got an early tip on the newest Madden 12 achievements & awards, and there are some real fun ones in this year’s game.” I’m not too much like Eric in this regard, as I tend to shy away from sports games, but for those of you into Madden 12, or simply curious, you can find out some information about achievements in the game right on this piece here.

Almigo presents The Need. The Need for Speed. And Scigheras. posted at Almigo’s Adventures. An interesting piece about the history of a car that made an appearance in Need for Speed 3 for PC, and was never seen again. And no, it wasn’t merely a made up car, it actually does (did?) exist. Click through and read on for the full story.

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Video Game Bloggers. Join us next month for more great gaming info. You can use the carnival submission form to submit posts for next month’s carnival. Be sure to check out some of the posts of other submitters and perhaps leave a friendly comment or two if you like their work.

Mr. Kermz presents Portal 2 Review PS3 posted at The Cynic Reviewer, saying, “Did my first video game review with Portal 2. Hope you like it.” We have a very nice first review here from Mr. Kermz, keep up the good work.

GameNinjaX presents E3 and Video Games Live posted at GameNinja. GameNinjaX shares his experience at E3 with us. Video Games Live sounds pretty sweet, I’m always a sucker for good game music.

Taylor Stein presents What We Hope RAGE Will Be posted at Gaming Precision. Taylor shares his thoughts on what he’s hoping RAGE will be like. Sounds like he has some high hopes, but they’re likely well founded with id at the helm. If it turns out well, I just may have to give it a test drive on my shiny new computer while I’m waiting on Skyrim.

John M presents Odd Spotting: A Fun Spot the Odd One Out Game for the iPad | iPhone Experience posted at iPhone Experience, saying, “A fantastic iPad based Spot the Odd One Out game for all the family. My wife is addicted ” John has some thoughts on Odd Spotting, which sounds like it could be an amusing diversion. Definitely a game for the casual crowd, but it sounds like a nice take on an old concept.

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Video Game Bloggers. Join us next month for more great gaming info. You can use the carnival submission form to submit posts for next month’s carnival. Be sure to check out some of the posts of other submitters and perhaps leave a friendly comment or two if you like their work.

So play the game. Seriously, don’t complain about it, just play as well as you possibly can. Learn how to deal with suboptimal situations better. It may not win the game for you now, but it will make you a better player in the long run, when you realize how you can turn the tables on a team in a 5v5 game when they get the jump on you.

Alternatively, if it’s early enough, try that wacky new build you’ve been meaning to test out, see if it works. If you’re most likely going to lose anyway, why not test it out and see how well it works? If it works really well, now’s the time for it, and if it doesn’t, well, you weren’t really planning on winning anyway, so no big deal, right?

Don’t worry about if your team wins the game or not (though continue trying to do so, of course.) Worry about your personal performance, and what you can improve or do better. Expand your ability to play the game well. There’s nothing like a handicap to teach you new skills in a game. Now’s the time to learn how to hold off and press an enemy team when one of your allies has been downed and you have to 4v5 for the next minute. If you can do it an entire match, you can do it for one minute when it comes up in an even match.

Perhaps rethink your strategy. Maybe (if you have the team composition for it) you can try all solo lanes with a jungler or roamer to take care of ganking, covering lanes, and all that fun stuff. Then capitalize on your level advantage while you can. Would this work? I have no idea, I’m not really that good at the game yet. But it’s better than just accepting defeat. Maybe you can come up with a better, less generic idea. If so, try that. You don’t have a whole lot to lose by trying something new.

Also, please, don’t continually complain about our team being shorthanded. I know we’re shorthanded already, and listening to the whole team whine about it doesn’t really help us do any better. Go ahead and vent for a minute or so if you must, but after that, just play and work with those of us who are still around.

As an alternative to all of this, if your whole team is on board, just goof around the rest of the match. Dance your way through a four person push, gang up on one opponent while the other four crush your lanes, hang out in the bushes chatting with the other team, whatever makes you happy and salvages some fun if you don’t really care about taking things too seriously. Sometimes, people will enjoy the break anyway, even if they didn’t realize it before the match.

Above all, remember this is a game. Yes, a competitive game, but still a game. Don’t get too worked up about it. Play and have fun, and worry about improving your own game, because, unless you play premades, you can’t control who your teammates are or what they do anyway.

The Legendary Carmine presents Dante’s Inferno posted at Side Story Games – Game Reviews. Here’s an in-depth look at the game Dante’s Inferno. Worth a read, especially if you might be interested in the game about the epic poem.

Maxwell randomly presents E Rated Games Aren’t All Crap posted at Maxwell Randomly. Sounds like someone other than me is fed up with the stereotype that E rated games are only for the wee ones.

Jeski presents Drawn: Dark Flight posted at Sublime Play, saying, “This is a pretty blog full of pictures and reviews of particularly beautifully designed puzzle and adventure games. The linked entry is one such review. ” A nice detailed review of the game Drawn: Dark Flight. Looks like an interesting game, hopefully I’ll find time to try it out sometime.

Grady presents To Washington: A Few Tips from the World of Video Games posted at The Outlaw and The Elitist. An amusing look at some lessons politicians could learn from video games. Of course, that would require them to play the games instead of trying to ban them.

Meg presents The Cave Is A Lie posted at Simpson’s Paradox. A quick bit of info about a bug suffered in a game Meg’s working on, and the achievement players suffering from this bug can find. For the reference of those reading, any chance we could get the name of this game so anyone possibly affected knows to be careful here?

Niels Van Hellemont presents Pre-Played: Star Wars: The Old Republic posted at The Grumbler, saying, “Taking a look at the upcoming BioWare game The Old Republic.” Niels has a preview for the new MMO coming from Bioware. Looks awesome, but my longstanding prohibition against paying monthly for MMOs means I’ll still likely be passing on this one.

Niels Van Hellemont presents Character Bio – Kratos posted at The Grumbler, saying, “Enjoy this in-depth look at the God Of War protagonist, Kratos.” A recounting of the story of the God of War series, a good read if you don’t mind spoilers or have already finished the game.

Jeremy Friedman presents How to Set Up a Minecraft Multiplayer Server posted at GeekGamut.com, saying, “A complete guide on how to set up and run a Minecraft Multiplayer Survival server.” As it says, instructions to set up a Minecraft server once you have the game. Great for those who want to play host to other gamers, but aren’t quite sure how to get started.

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Video Game Bloggers. Join us next month for more great gaming info. You can use the carnival submission form to submit posts for next month’s carnival. Be sure to check out some of the posts of other submitters and perhaps leave a friendly comment or two if you like their work.