Gamer and App Zone

How To Unlock Fast Travel Anywhere in Forza Horizon 5

2021-11-07T18:34:00.001-08:00

Older Forza Horizon Games would let you earn the ability to fast travel anywhere and this latest sequel to the great franchise does as well. It is not intuitive on how to get this ability so I will explain it here.

Third you need 2 million credits. If you are racing a lot and doing a lot of wheel spins, that should not take too long. You need it to buy the home

Second you need to buy the home called "Buenas Vistas" in the South West corner of the map. When you buy it, it gives you the perk of "Instantly travel to any road on the map!".

But first, you need to unlock the ability to buy the home. To do that, you need to start up the street racing Accolade called "Horizon Street Scene". Unlock that and finish the "Guanajuato Expedition" and the home should be available for purchase.

If you want to fast travel for free, you need to hit all the fast travel boards in the game. There are 50 of them. The more you hit, the cheaper it is to fast travel. Hit all 50 and you can zip around the map anywhere for free!

Here are the two hardest ones to get. The rest are rather easy but you either need to buy the treasure map or have a lot of time to find them.

You pretty much have to launch yourself off the hill to get this one

Just a gentle roll down the hill

Lag on my Playstation5

2020-11-25T15:18:00.001-08:00

I am writing this to help others that had my problem that almost made me cry.

I managed to get a pre-order of the PS5. I got it a few days late but still got it and I was very happy. I moved my games via wifi from my PS4 and was off to the races. Nothing big at the start. The free games seemed fine. But I was looking at Watch Dogs: Legion so I waited a few more days and bought it during the Black Friday sale. Then I installed it and the next day I played it.

Graphically it was very nice but something seemed off. It did not play that well. Not sure why during the intro play. Then I got in a car and tried to drive and it was horrible. I got out and finally noticed my problem. There was almost a 1 second lag between my controller and what was happening on the screen. I got a bit scared. Did I buy a broken game? No one else was complaining about the lag. Did I buy a defective PS5? I saw a couple videos of similar lag issues but it just seemed to be this game (Legion). After researching and failing at finding a solution or convincing myself it is still playable I started really getting worried. Here is pretty much what I did;

- quietly panic (not like I can get a replacement ps5 right now)

- convince myself it would be fixed in a patch so I could sleep at night

- did a lot more research. Someone suggested it was actually the controller so I recharged it. No change.

- tried other games, some others had lag as well but not as much. It seems to more graphically intensive, the more the lag. Quality was still fine and smooth however.

- read up about my TV (LG)

- said that you should check the settings and disable a bunch of smart features so I did. It fixed it a bit, there was less lag, but still lag.

- checked a few more sites.

- checked more details about the LG. Found that the audio also has enhancements that will slow down video to keep it in sync, disabled that as well. IT WORKED!!!

So in summary, if you are experiencing lag on your PS5 (or xbox probably) then you should remove all smart features of your TV. (Video AND Audio). You can keep the HDR on it seems.

Here is the link that saved me. (Though my TV is newer than that one, the basics are the same)

https://www.lg.com/ca_en/support/product-help/CT20098005-1392818510162#

Nostalgia Moment: Castle

2020-10-16T15:27:00.005-07:00

When we had our PCjr, there was not many games out there. One game we randomly got was called Castle. It was a ascii adventure game where you moved around a small map and typed in actions for your character to perform. Since there was no list or instructions on how to play, we never really finished it but we had a lot of fun trying to figure out how to actually do things. I recently watched someone else play it, (below) and found we actually got pretty far in the game. I think we even got the scepter once but never used it on the gate. But we tried a lot and had a lot of fun doing it.

Here is a random video of someone beating it in two parts;

Nostalgia Moment: Test Drive III

2020-10-16T15:20:00.005-07:00

Test Drive III was one of the first driving games that I played as a kid. It was amazing to watch you be able to control a car and drive under bridges and hit various things. We didn't have a legit version so we would always get stuck at the verification screen. We did know some answers which we had written down but most of the time we would guess wrong and have 1 minute only to drive before it would kick us out. Made us really want to buy the game but there was no way for us to actually do it at the time.

Gameplay was (at time time) awesome. Now... not so much. It was very choppy for us so we crashed a lot. Also we didn't know how to drive so we would just go as fast as possible. Also probably the reason why we crashed a lot.

Here is a random video of someone playing the game.

God Of War Map of Niflheim

2018-04-26T19:02:00.001-07:00

The second optional realm for God of War can be a tad confusing. I tried to make a map as spoiler free as possible but still be helpful. If you are searching for this, there is probably a reason and this should help.

You start at the bottom of the map... Good hunting.

Fallout 4: The Silver Shroud: Save Kent Connolly

2015-11-29T09:28:00.000-08:00

This game has everything. Sometimes you have to make choices. This is some help on how to make some better ones for The Silver Shroud Quest. Careful, there are some spoilers going on here.

There is a quest that you can start by talking with a ghoul names Kent in Goodneighbor. You do a lot of strange and fun stuff while pretending to be the Silver Shroud from an old TV and radio show Kent remembers before the war. Then Kent gets captured and there is a standoff while the boss, Sinjin, is holding a gun to Kent's head. You need to react quickly to save him which is entirely optional.

First off, if you act as the shroud through the entire conversation with Sinjin, you will scare off all the others and don't have to fight them. That leaves the man himself with a itchy trigger finger. There are a few ways to do this.

1) Have a really good weapon. Pretty straight forward; go into VATS mode and aim for his head and hope for the best. If you are not at a high enough level, this is not much of a chance. If you are lucky you can aim for his gun hand and disable him before he gets a shot off but again, unless you have high enough stats, you are betting against the house here.

2) Take some Jet. Or a few drugs if you want. You will greatly slow down time and might get enough shots off to finish him off.

3) change the choices. If you have high Charisma, you can get everyone including the boss to shoot at you instead of Kent. If you are not that strong, you might not survive however.

4) Use the syringe gun. This gun you will actually find in a locked room before the final elevator next to a chemistry station. You can make all types of syringes with the chemistry station including one that will freeze an enemy for 10 seconds. If you are a hoarder like me you can go back to your base and make one of those no problem. Come back and shoot him before he has a chance to do anything.

Thief (2014) Game Collection Sets and tips

2014-03-02T08:58:00.002-08:00

Serendi Stone Circles (7)
Amethyst Circle (Chapter 1)
Diamond Circle (Chapter 2)
Emerald Circle (Chapter 3)
Lapis Lazuli Circle (Chapter 4) #
Ivory Circle (Chapter 5)
Sapphire Circle (Chapter 6)
Amber Circle (Chapter 7)

Whiteridge's Duty (6)
The Constant Lady
The Statuesque Lady
The Observant Lady (Silence is Golden)
The Virtuous Lady (The Carnal Connoisseur)

Flowers Eternal (6)
Hydrangea Brooch (The City)
Daisy Brooch (Chapter 2)
Lilac Brooch (The City 2)
Sunflower Brooch (The City 2)
Roose Brooch (Chapter 5)
Iris Brooch (The City 4)

Memories of the Dead Set (6)
Charity’s Memory (Chapter 2)
Stonemason’s Memory (Chapter 3)
Soldier’s Memory (Chapter 4)
Child’s Memory (Chapter 5)
Braggart’s Memory (Chapter 6)
Elder’s Memory (Chapter 7)

The Mortal Coils Set (6)
Sootback Bracelet (Chapter 1)
Marsh Adder Bracelet (The City)
Wellpool Viper Bracelet (The City 2) #
Shale Snake Bracelet (Chapter 4)
Harlequin Bracelet (The City 3)
Bronzehead Bracelet (Chapter 7)

City Heritage Plaques (16) *
Our Lady of the Iron Litany Chapel (The City)
The Crippled Burrick Tavern (The City)
Ulysses Northcrest’s Obelisk (The City)
Obediah Northcrest’s Obelisk (The City)
Stonemarket Clock Tower (The City)
Stonemarket First Bank (The City)
Barnabus Northcrest Obelisk (Saving Face)
Carlysle’s Mill (The City 2)
Customs House Bridge (The City 2)
The Siren’s Rest (The City 2)
The Keep (Chapter 4)
Moira Asylum (Chapter 5)
Archibauld Northcrest’s Obeslisk (The City 3)
Elias Northcrest Statue (Chapter 6)

The Court of Montonessi (12)+
The Arrogance of Nobility (The City 2)
The Insatiable Appetite (The City 2)
The Dangers of Seduction (The City 2)
Rutting Out of Season (The Disappearing Poet)
Living a Lie (The City 2)
The Grace of Insecurity (Silence is Golden)
What is There Cannot Be Seen (The Carnal Connoisseur)
The Abundance of Emptiness (Chapter 4)
The Repulsion of Civility (Chapter 5)
The Married Spinster (Chapter 6)
Compassion, Foul (Chapter 8)

Unique Loot (9)
Lygrove's Jewelled Mask (Chapter 1)
Soul of the Automation (Chapter 2)
Ancient Figurine (Chapter 3)
Morendrum Medal (Chapter 4)
Mechanical Eye (Chapter 5) #
Glittering Plumage (Chapter 1)

Client Loot (8)
Jeweled Mask (Chapter 1)
Cornelius’s Ring (Chapter 2)
Ritual Book (Chapter 3)
The Talking Skull (Circus 1)
The Mechanical Hand (Engineer 1)

Bank Heist Loot (2)
The Star of Audale (The Bank Heist)
Sothrye's Watch (The Bank Heist)

The Pinned Castinets (6)
Oilbox (The City 2)
Jewelwing (Chapter 3)
Greater Ruststain (Chapter 6)
Ghost Girl (The City 4)
Dawn Gauzy (The City 4)
Mourning Bell (Chapter 8)

Help with Optional Objectives
How to find the Vase (The Bank Heist)
How to use the Medallion (Chapter 3)
How to Remain Undetected at the End (Chapter 4)
How to get in (Taking A Fence) ##
How to complete (Casing the Cargo)
How do I get in (Fit for a Queen) #
Where are the 5 pages (The Disappearing Poet)
How do I complete (Saving Face)
How do I disable the trap (Poor Protection) ^
How do I complete (Shark Bait)
How do I open the Southquarter Safe (extension of Sick Willy)

* Need Wrench
+ Need Razor
^ Need Wirecutter
# Need Rope Arrow

Other helpful links (1) (2) (3)

Dungeon Keeper Clones

2014-02-14T10:50:00.004-08:00

The original Dungeon Keeper is one of those games I hold dear to my heart. When Bullfrog created it, my mind was blown. You can actually be the bad guy and have fun doing it?! This tore at my little catholic mind and an evil sprite was created. Like lording over an anthill or taking all the lego wheels so your brother could not use them, it was good to be bad (just a little bit).

Dungeon Keeper 2 came along an I loved it even more. I grew weary of the few game crashing bugs but my love for it kept me coming back for more. I beat that game 3 times I think in a very short time span.

Fast forward to today and I am still looking for a updated version of that game. Heck, I was recently thinking on making my own. Then Dungeon Keeper for iOS came out from EA. It had all the same stuff but the love was not there. It was replaced with pay to win style gameplay. Not as bad as others are touting but it just doesn't let you feel the way the original did. I actually found myself playing the original on GOG.com recently to give me a quick fix.

I started looking out for others that might exist. Played several demos and have compiled a list for your devilish enjoyment.

Dungeon Keeper (1997) Bullfrog: The one that started it all.
Pros: Has a great story and feel. Lets you do what you want.
Cons: definitely dated
Rating: 5/10

Dungeon Keeper 2 (1999) Bullfrog: The masterpiece.
Pros: Everything
Cons: crashes sometimes, getting dated
Rating: 9/10 (Only reason why it don't give it 10 in it's own category is the bugs and the age)

Dungeons: (2011) Realmforge Studios: The attempt to expand the idea
Pros: Has the feel and humor
Cons: has unusual resources that force you to let people into your dungeon, steal stuff, and only then can you take them out. If you are going to do that, have some traps or triggers so you don't have to sit and watch and wait.
Rating: 5/10

Dungeons: The Dark Lord (2011) Realmforge Studios: The attempt to expand the idea version two

Pros: Still the same humor and good graphics
Cons: same problems as it's predecessor
Rating: 6/10

Dungeon Keeper Mobile (2013) EA: The pay to win
Pros: has the right minons and same sounds and graphics
Cons: No way to complete. Just keep building and keep the others out. And if you don't want to wait, you need to pay a lot.
Rating: 2/10

Impire: (2013) Cyanide Montreal: The wanna be
Pros: has all the basics you want. Lots of content.
Cons: Doesn't have the right feel. AI is not really there. Overly complex systems.
Rating: 6/10 Has a more unique tail to tell rather than simply a clone. A rather good one at that. The tediousness of the systems really keep you from liking it more.

War for the Overworld (2014) Subterranean Games: The updated clone that isn't afraid

Pros: Looks great, feels great, sounds great. Supposedly made by some of the guys who did the original
Cons: a tad expensive right now. too bad I missed the Kickstarter.
Rating: x/10 * I try not to give ratings to unfinished products but this is really looking like it will be a high score when done.

So my conclusion? I am looking forward to "War for the Overworld" but it is still a tad expensive for what it is recycling. Can't officially say until it's full release if it will be worth it. As for the rest, just stick to the original for now.

Xbox One: Forza 5: Benchmarking the P1 Achievement

2013-12-19T13:27:00.000-08:00

To get the badge

1) Setup and login to you xbox live account (does not need to be gold) http://www.xbox.com/en-US/live

1) Play Forza 5 for a little bit to get a few gold trophies etc.

2) Log into the Forza site https://rewards.forzamotorsport.net

3) merge your xbox live account with the site.

4) click on rewards

5) If you have accumulated more than 240 rewards points (not hard to do) then you click on "claim rewards". You will be sent to a page showing you have been sent 1,000,000 credits to your Forza 5 account.

6) Start up Forza 5 again and go to your Message Center

7) Go to gifts

8) Might take a few hours (but I got mine in minutes) and click on accept the million credit gift

9) You will need about 410,000 more dollars by other means to afford the 1,400,000 price tag with 10,000 in tune-ups.

10) enter the Exotic races, enter the"Modern Hyper Car" event.

11) Buy the Maclaren P1 with the tuneups

12) exit the race and go to the main profile screen

13) Select Free Play

14) Select Le Mans Circuit de la Sarthe

15) Select Old Mulsanne Circuit (this circuit has the longest straightaway)

16) race. Took me 2 triest to get the needed speed of 245m/h or 396km/h.

17) Finish the race and you should get the badge!

GTA V: Random Event: Saeeda

2013-09-30T17:55:00.000-07:00

Is no one safe?

As Franklin driving to the airport you will see a wine red CRV driving away fast with a woman screaming, "He stole my car!"

If you get the car back in relatively one piece she will say thank you and that her name is Saeeda. Not much other than that.

GTA V: Strangers and Freaks: Assuming The Truth

2013-09-30T12:12:00.000-07:00

Driving Way up north as Michael, you will be told you are now Zolag and need to prove yourself by stealing some cars. Yep, that makes perfect sense.

Here are the car locations;

-Pegassi Vacca

-Benefactor Surano

-Declasse Tornado

-Enus Super Diamond

-Dinka Double-T

GTA V: Vehicles: Dinka Double-T

2013-09-30T11:57:00.001-07:00

Dinka Double-T

The Dinka Double-T is at the lifeinvader HQ parking lot.

GTA V: Vehicles: Enus Super Diamond

2013-09-30T11:56:00.002-07:00

Enus Super Diamond

The Enus Super Diamond is in a back lot behind some buildings.

GTA V: Vehicles: Declasse Tornado

2013-09-30T11:54:00.004-07:00

Declasse Tornado

This one is hard to find but not impossible. It is at the parking lot of the Japanese auto tuner shop

GTA V: Vehicles: Pegassi Vacca

2013-09-30T11:53:00.002-07:00

Pegassi Vacca

If you are looking for this sweet ride, it is just south of Franklin's new place.

GTA V: Vehicles: Benefactor Surano

2013-09-30T11:51:00.000-07:00

Benefactor Surano

If you are looking for this car, it can be up north in the middle of the land surrounded by the lake or it could be right next door to where you would like to to be on the map.

GTA V: Random Event: Prisoner Lift 1

2013-09-30T10:18:00.000-07:00

He was just going for a walk is all.

As Franklin, driving north, you will come across a guy needing a lift. There will be a broken police car nearby with a dead cop inside. If you give him a ride, you will soon have some cops you will need to lose.

After you are free again, he will tell you he is a member of the Lost. You can then drop him off at their new hideout just south of the race track.

GTA V: Random Event: Zombie

2013-09-30T09:42:00.000-07:00

The undead are among us, and they don't have a law degree

Walking around Vinewood as Trevor, you can see lots of street stars on the sidewalk. As you are star gazing, you my come across an actor zombie who makes money by dressing up as the undead. He is not all that happy.

GTA V: Stock Locations: Post Op

2013-09-30T08:47:00.001-07:00

Sometimes Their competitor's trucks are there as well.

Post Op is a postal delivery company. Their main competitor is Go Postal. Their delivery office is located on the Elysian Island.

GTA V: Vehicles: Deludamol Van

2013-09-27T15:49:00.000-07:00

They just leave these things laying around

If for some reason you need to find a Deludamol Van, here is a spot that it seems to be at. No reason, just in case.

GTA V: Stock Locations: Cluckin Bell

2013-09-26T21:41:00.000-07:00

A lot of dead chickens want revenge

On way to make money in the stock market is to blow up the competition. If you want Cluckin Bell CLK stock to go down and Taco Bomb TBO to go up. Blow up and create general mayhem at their farm factory. It won't be much but it is will be enough to consider.

GTA V: Gauntlet Locations

2013-09-26T19:52:00.000-07:00

As easy as 1, 2, 3.

Here is the location of the three Gauntlet getaway cars that you might need for some reason in Grand Theft Auto 5.

First one (middle) is on the 5th (top) floor of a parking garage, the other two are on the street.

GTA V: Booty Call Girls

2013-09-26T00:00:00.000-07:00

There are many contacts you can make in Grand Theft Auto 5. A few help with things, a few give you missions, a few help you with heists, and then there are the few that are just there for a quick hook up.

The easiest ones to have sex with a the street hookers. Just drive around at night and honk your horn near one. They will get in, you go to a discrete location and pay them for what services you want. If you accidentally run them over afterwards, they will just happen to have that amount of money for you to pick up.

The second easiest and more clean are the strippers at the strip club. You can play the touch game when you are getting a lap dance and if you can fill their like meter, at the end of the dance they might ask if you want to go home with them. It seems any one of them will work but only one per guy. The rest won't go home with you it seems after you pick one of the others first.

First Nikki

Second Juliet

Here is a list of the ones found that aren't from the strip club.
Trevor can mess around with Ursula.

GTA V: Bounty Hunter: Curtis Weaver

2013-09-25T23:46:00.001-07:00

It's a lifestyle choice!

Curtis is the last bounty given before Maude retires to look for a better life. Curtis is not hard, he has a few friends that start shooting, one might run at your without a weapon but he is just running by. The rest just have pistols. Curtis takes off and you can easily chase him down with a stun gun or pistol to the leg.

On the way back he will give his opinion on life and be as disgusted with Trevor as Trevor is with Michael, Irony at it's most potent.

You will get $10,000 for taking him in alive.

GTA V: Events: Final Triathlon

2013-09-23T14:12:00.001-07:00

Make Sure you have 100 Stamina.

Average time for this baby is 30 minutes. About 7 minute are swimming, 19 are biking and 4 are running. I was 4th place most of the bike section and I still won so don't worry too much there.