Monkey-Shines

I recently started trying to finish up Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (CotW) in anticipation of the release of Puzzle Quest: Galactrix.  I’ve been looking forward to Galactrix (Galactrix) since they announced it, but now I’m not so sure it’s as highly anticipated as it was.  In finishing up CotW, I remembered why I stopped playing in the first place.  The fact that upper level characters always seemed to get exactly what they needed, long cascades , and extra turns.

It seems that in creating a difficulty curve for CotW, Infinite Interactive decided to give the computer the advantage by allowing it to influence the outcome of the AI moves.  In essence, the computer cheats.  Instead of giving higher level NPC’s enhanced stats to compensate for the player improving, they allow the game to cheat.  All but the final boss do the same amount of damage as the first rat you encounter.  The final boss however has the benefit of improved stats, much higher hit points, AND it still cheats.

This has some battles coming down to luck, and leaves the player feeling frustrated when the computer gets turn after turn of good moves and then they are left with turns that don’t give them anything they can actually use.

I’m disappointed that more time wasn’t spent in designing the NPC’s so that cheating isn’t necessary.  I’ve heard that the PC version of Galactrix suffers from the same problems although the game has been designed to alleviate it a bit.  It doesn’t remove the cheating but allows the players more tools to combat it.  That’s not much better, and now I’m not sure if I want to give my money to a company that feels it is okay to cheat the customer.

It is rare that I go on an all out boycott.  But when I do it’s for something that I believe very strongly in, and it’s generally permanent.  Piss me off enough, and you lose me forever.

The last time I boycotted a company was when the Exxon Valdez ran aground in the Prince William Sound spilling over 10 million gallons of crude oil back in 1989.  It wasn’t the accident that pushed me over the edge, it was the fact that Exxon half assed the clean up.  To this day I have purchased Exxon gas exactly once.  If it wasn’t for a nagging wife I wouldn’t have done it then.  Before you start thinking “awwww, people will do anything for love” you should know I only did it to shut her up.  I couldn’t stand to listen to her bitching anymore that day.  Needless to say, she is now my ex-wife.

The time has come for me to boycott another company.  This time Hershey has earned the top honors on my shit list. Why?  Because of this. I understand that it is often cheaper to move parts of operations to other countries.  It’s all a part to business to maximize profits.  However, when an American company closes a plant, laying off hundreds of workers, and moving to another country at a time when the country is in a recession and unemployment is at the lowest it’s been in decades I find it reprehensible.

If Hershey wants to turn its back on the American people, then I’m going to call on Americans to turn their backs on Hershey.  No more Hershey products will be purchased by me.  If you can’t stand with us in our time of need I see no need to stand behind you in yours.