FIX: Mass Effect 3 “Ready to Install” Loop

Beginning yesterday I’ve had a good number of search engine hits by people looking for a solution to Mass Effect 3 install loop issues. Not to fear, this is caused by the same issue that BF3 suffers. I don’t understand why we’re releasing full, AAA games on a distribution client that clearly says “Beta” on it.

Please follow the instructions on how to fix Battlefield 3′s install loop, except you very likely don’t need the DLL. Those people are a great minority who are running on Windows Server 2008.

You can find the proper registry entry below. This is assuming you have the game on C drive on a 64-bit Windows system. If not, you’re going to have to edit the file. Also please note that this is for the U.S. English version of the game. You can change the “Locale” value accordingly.

Registry patch for Mass Effect 3 “Ready to Install” issue.

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\BioWare\Mass Effect 3]
“GDFBinary”=”C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Origin Games\\Mass Effect 3\\GDFBinary_en_US.dll”
“GameExplorer”=”{550B93A1-5BFD-4037-BAA6-31CD218C10C7}”
“DisplayName”=”Mass Effect™ 3″
“Locale”=”en_US”
“Product GUID”=”{6A9D1594-7791-48f5-9CAA-DE9BCB968320}”
“Install Dir”=”C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Origin Games\\Mass Effect 3\\”
“Path”=”C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Origin Games\\Mass Effect 3″

Review: Navel4eve’s Go Home

I’m listening to Navel4eve’s debut full-length album “Go Home”. I’m slamming my fingertips into my mechanical keyboard in an unconventional style. I’m battling seasonal depression. As I bask in the upbeat pace and not-so-upbeat lyrics of the album and for some reason things feel better. I find this album somehow quite enjoyable regardless of my apathy towards this general genre and I’m about to tell you why.The album starts off with a nice, upbeat tune that reminds me of something you’d hear at the beginning of a happy, fun movie. The music changes to a more serious but no less happy song interwoven with skillful vocals provided by Ms. Navel4eve. Hearing the slightly faint yet emotionally effective vocals, we can only assume she’s like a sea captain from the planet LaserRocketFish or something equally cool. I want to listen to the rest of the album now, and that’s exactly how I want to feel after finishing the first song on and album. Not to say that the first track, “Go Home”, isn’t great by itself – I didn’t say that, guy – it’s great and it makes me want the rest of the album to be this good. Is it? Read on, no free rides here.

Starting off like it’s about to yell at me for doing something wrong, but wants to creep me out first to get me sweating, “Reigndear” excites me for what’s about to come. Will it be cool as hell? Yes. I must say that the guitar stands out as being very well executed. After a slower section we break out into dance, feel-good regardless of the lyrics seemingly being rather depressing. Reigndear leaves me saying “Why the hell did this just stop? Play it again, bard!”. How long can she keep this up?

Turns out she can keep it up for a while. I come across “Blue Cigarette” and I get that same damn upbeat feel that I can’t help but really enjoy. I certainly have never enjoyed a song this much that included the word “whore” as often as this does. I’m noting a low, bass-like guitar which is really adding a lot to the overall feeling. Well executed there, high five to our mighty sea captain Navel4eve. I must note that the song doesn’t often change mood, but it surprisingly doesn’t get boring at any point. I like this, it’s catchy and poses a danger to anyone who doesn’t like to get songs stuck in their heads.

Oh, “Cleft Chin”, don’t start with your cutesy styling that will make me want to concentrate on listening harder. This song brings up the issue of cleft chins, which we all know is an elephant in the room at any party Aaron Eckhart attends. He would probably be as big of a fan of this song as I am. This song leaves me able to start dancing at a funeral. Not one of those funerals that end up kinda like a wedding in which the bride is dead, but the ones where everyone is wearing black, it’s raining, and it’s becoming apparent that there is no catering.

“Freakshow”. Ignoring the blatant insult, this song seems more serious and intimate than the previous tracks. It’s no less listenable, and it’s definitely no less upbeat. Navel4eve does not use a man’s voice this time, which is quite a relief as her normal female voice works out great yet again. There isn’t really a lot to put into words, the song just works out, and it works out very well. What else can I really ask for?

“Lovely Ugly” uses what reminds me of a note from a 90s video game which puts a grin on my face every time. It ushers in a slower (than previous songs) pace and a darker overall tone but none of these new qualities take anything away from it. I rarely like to comment on the lyrics, but I can say that I quite like what’s going on here. Powerful and ominous without dropping the tension of the urge to dance.

“Some Song” is an inappropriate title; this is not just some song. These are sounds reminiscent of 8-bit video games and should be given a small shrine in Tunisia where the children may pray to the sea captain gods of the planet Navel4eve. It’s the first time in a long time that vocals haven’t ruined a chip-tune melody… instead they’re a great addition. I really like this song, I can imagine I could hear this on MTV if… well, if they still did that.

The first time I noticed “Sex Makes Babies” was on the list, I freaked out. I love this song, because it’s amazing – and that’s not opinion – NASA has probably also made this finding. I’m glad it has been updated and tweaked, and none of the tweaks are bad. “Sex Makes Babies” is exactly what I wanted the album to be like, and it actually is. It’s catchy, up-beat (have I said that before?), and just really well done. I also learned where babies come from, so that’s a plus. When your kids ask that question, just cue this masterpiece of awesome.

Unfortunately I had to stop writing about the previous track due to time and space concerns, I’m deeply sorry for the interruption. “Sex in Armour” is something I think we can all relate to. It’s delightfully rocky but doesn’t throw the album’s consistent theme in the garbage. In fact, it’s a great addition to the overall album. This song has some stand-out, kick-ass lyrics. It’s not about to teach you about the origin of babies, but it holds its own weight so well that it has the leftover strength to toss itself into your face. For your listening pleasure.

“The End of a Planet” has a very cool intro that readied me for a pretty-damn-good track. Honestly I was expecting the standard filler track by now, but it appears the album contains none. Instead, we get this. More of those awesome video game reminiscent sounds that turn it from good to awesome. Ending the album with a great track after 9 other great tracks seems to be a very good method of making me want to listen to the whole thing again, and I have done so. I plan on continuing to listen to this album until the next, which I’m confident will be cool as hell, just as this one.

Review: Skinny Puppy’s HanDover

So, I just received a copy of this about a week early. Since this is actually a big release for Skinny Puppy, breaking over 3 years of silence, I really want to put in some opinion. I’m not going to listen to the album multiple times to let them wear on me, so I may post in a few weeks with updates. This post will be written as I listen to it for the first time, in a sort of Stream of Consciousness fashion.

1. Ovirt

Ovirt is a messy track, even for Industrial music. If you have a crappy sound system or a bad ear for this general genre of music, you might not like it very much. It’s quick, and Ogre’s vocals very well timed to accommodate. I can certainly pick up some samples used in Skinny Puppy albums from years ago, which is a really awesome touch. Although messy, it’s really deep, and I can pick out a lot of semi-hidden voices and samples in the background. Overall I really like the track. It seems VERY pre-Process and I think that’s something almost every Skinny Puppy fan wants to hear.

2. Cullorblind

Starting off slowly with some interestingly simple sounds, Ogre breaks in with some surprisingly clear and understandable lyrics. No, you’re probably not going to know exactly what he’s actually singing about, but that isn’t the goal. The vocals are simply great, Ogre’s voice seems more smooth and deep than usual. It’s dancey and upbeat, very much like something we might have heard on the TGWOTR album… that’s not a bad thing. It seems very personal, that’s what I get out of it.

3. Wavy

Instruments and editing of them in this song immediately prove themselves as great, but Ogre’s voice effects are a bit sub-par to me. Starts off slow, gains depth and some serious call-backs to older albums. I don’t have a lot to say about this one, it isn’t going to become my favorite Skinny Puppy track anytime soon, but I can appreciate what was done in it.

4. AshAs

Clear verses again, catchy tunes. Ogre sounds very emotional and the lyrics themselves sound very personal and serious. I feel a lot of old content shining through with plenty of modern additions. The lyrics become just sad as hell at the end, I’ll leave them to you.

5. Gambatte

This song is just fucking cool. Upbeat, not immediately too complex but builds to what you’d expect. This one occasionally breaks into a heavier tune that makes me want to dance around, but I wouldn’t say it’s TGWOTR material at all. Maybe if TGWOTR and The Process made babies and then they went and had inbred babies. Delicious song.

6. Icktums

Starts off great. Builds to something greater and greater. By the time Ogre comes into the mix it’s already obviously a fantastic track. Slows down for Ogre to become a bit more clear and I just want this song inside of me. It gets better and towards the middle I thoroughly believe (Imma let you finish but) this is one of the greatest Skinny Puppy tracks of all time. I’m not going to describe it, that’s promotion for you to buy the album and find out for your damn selves. Fan-fucking-tastic.

7. Point

This is another one of those noisy tracks that you probably won’t like much if you can’t hear the music in it. Ogre isn’t incredibly audible but he ties the song together really well. Seems a bit angry but light-hearted at the same time. Not immediately my favorite track ever but it is done very well as usual.

8. Brownstone

They seem to have really gone back to Industrial’s roots for the tune of this one. It’s gritty and excellent. Ogre is using an interesting voice on this one, and I know that the lyrics were done in a single take, improvised IIRC. We finally meet Mr. Brownstone and it has become obvious that this track was done a long time ago, back when WDIHTF.com opened, or earlier.  This track is just neat, and well done.

9. Vyrisus

Dangerously dancey but not overly feel-good. I can’t stress enough how catchy this is and how much it makes me want to request it at a club. Doesn’t slow down too much during the verses, and the chorus sections brings the catchy tune up a handful of notches to an incredible level of eargasm. I don’t want it to stop, but I suppose it does bring me to my favorite song on the album:

10. Village

This sounds way better than the version we got to hear on Soundcloud last week. It helps when it’s not in streaming quality. This one is very angry, but far more understandable than Anger, as is every other spoken piece ever created. Deep again with a ton of sound all over the place — but it is in no way noisy or unbearable… it is in face the opposite. It’s almost unspeakably good, and if the rest of the album sucked I would still buy it just for this song. This song is a good example of why Skinny Puppy is still around, and why they should be. They just know how to innovate in a genre that supposedly died off 15 years ago. This almost seems to say “fuck you, we’re still here, and we’re still putting out great content.”.

11. NoiseX

Did you need an explanation of this one? It says in the name, it’s noisey as hell and it does no form of apologizing. “Fuck you, here’s noise.” It’s still put together in a way that it’s definitely still music, but it’s not something I can imagine myself listening to in, say, my car. Or really anywhere outside of my computer. It’s 7 minutes of something that I’m afraid could trigger a terrible trip at any given moment. Final Judgement: Do not listen to while on any hallucinogenic substance.

Overall, this album is a great addition to a collection that includes Skinny Puppy. If you liked ANY of their works you’ll very likely enjoy the majority of this album. It’s not going to be everyone’s TDP… but does it need to be? We already had out TDPs and our Remissions., and this is a worthy successor.

To Skinny Puppy: SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY

Fozee Blogs Again

There is a distinct lack of people wondering where I’ve been. I’m here to address this barely-existent audience. Maybe you’ll grow one day. I love you anyways.

I’ve mostly just been too busy. Too busy to post on some blog that never really made any sense or had any purpose. This was originally meant to be a revival of  The Skuz Blogs with a more relevant name, but more closely related to my work as a volunteer moderator. I found that, at the time, there was really nothing to post about. I couldn’t talk about moderation really, and I certainly couldn’t talk about Core Tester matters — I actually wasn’t even allowed to post in the Core Tester area of the forums because Andy and I disagreed on something.

So the blog lacked any real content besides what I called the CCCP#1, which was the Combined Community Concerns… I don’t remember what the P stood for. It was a bad move made by a Fozee in a bad personal state, but I suppose it seemed to be successful. It caused Andy to address the community, which we still can’t get them to do regularly. I then posted about RIFT, which was a good direction. Fozee’s blog should be about Fozee, not about WAR. Although I love the game, it’s not going to get any better because I blogged about it. If anything, that community gets pissy whenever I post something “unprofessionally”. We’ll get to that in another post.

This blog shall stay personal, although with my identity withheld as always. I’ll post about whatever I want and there will be no attempt to please any certain audience. It won’t be professional for I’m not aspiring to be a journalist and I’m not representing my ‘employers’ BioWare in any way. Perhaps I’ll post about BF3, GW2 or perhaps my favorite whiskey. Posts about the BioWare Social Network and Warhammer Online are not unexpected.