Foster's Down!
I play David Foster in Ghost Recon 2. I've been waiting for months to play it (ever since I recorded my first few lines of dialogue), and last night, I finally got my chance to try it out.
I couldn't sleep, so rather than lie in bed and toss around until I woke Anne and got The Wrath, I quietly went down to the living room to play.
Okay, the first mission? SO @!#$^%ING HARD! But that's good, because it sets it up for the player that this isn't going to be a cake walk. Save early, and save often, as the saying goes. :)
After several tries, I finally completed it with my entire squad intact, if slightly wounded. Funtimes!
On to mission two: blew the bridge with no problem, and lead my squad around the left side of the building complex, where we took a big group of hostiles completely by surprise! Yes! A few times, I heard me (Foster) tell myself, "Great shot!" or "Fire in the hole!" I must say, I am quite the badass . . . and so is David Foster.
So.
After we cleared this courtyard, I consulted my map and saw that we had a few hundred meters to cover before we met up with the British squad, so decided to send my men on the right flank while I went up the left side.
"Copy that," is that last thing I heard myself (Foster) say before a hail of gunfire errupted from behind some bushes.
"GARRAGGHHH!!!!!" I (Foster)screamed.
"Foster's been hit, captain!" Someone in my squad said, while I listened to myself (Foster) writhe in agony. "Oh shit!" I thought. "I have to save myself!"
I ordered my squad to lay down suppressive fire on the two North Koreans who had me (Foster) pinned down, and I crawled through the grass until I was close enough to adminster aid.
I heard the zip of the bullet cut through the air in front of me, just before it buried itself into my (Foster's) head.
"Foster is down!"
"We've lost Foster!"
"NOOOOO!" I shouted, loud enough to wake my entire house.
Luckily, the doors were all closed, and maybe my scream was louder in my head than it was in my living room, because The Wrath I would have gotten when Anne realized I was mourning my (Foster's) death in a video game would not have been pretty.
I reloaded the mission and tried again. This time, I ordered Foster to hang back while I tossed way too many grenades near the area where I knew the hostiles were lurking. Yeah, I spammed 'em good.
We hooked up with the Brits, held off a pretty nasty assault while we waited for extraction, and made it into the chopper relatively unscathed.
This game is fantastic. Between GR2 and San Andreas, I don't know how I'm going to get anything done between now and . . . March?
Comments
The SO got San Andreas last month. I've had lots of time for my own projects since then.
Some of us wives appreciate video games for keeping the husbands busy. ;-)
Posted by: Crystal | December 6, 2004 05:39 PM
Oh, to have your problems. I'm knee deep in review for a Differential Equations (or, How I Learned to Stop Living and Love The Math) final exam.
Of course, it begs the question: If you have to sacrifice you (you) or you (David Foster), who gets the dirt nap? =)
Posted by: David L. | December 6, 2004 05:41 PM
David L just made my head asplode.
Posted by: wil | December 6, 2004 05:44 PM
niiiiiice. i can't wait to play them.
Posted by: lewis | December 6, 2004 05:53 PM
LOL. You're such a dork! ;) *sigh* But I only laugh because that will be me when I get my copy. Oh yay for gaming!
Posted by: angie k | December 6, 2004 06:30 PM
"Your head a splode!"
Posted by: GURT | December 6, 2004 07:04 PM
wow i'm an idiot..
i should read comments before posting them. =X
Posted by: GURT | December 6, 2004 07:06 PM
Ok David, you just made Wil's head asplode, so I guess that answers your question of who gets the dirt nap.
/hopes wil didnt make too much of an asploding mess in his office, that would be kinda gross.
Posted by: Evin | December 6, 2004 07:06 PM
. . . that was hysterical :) . . . courageous stealth bombing while attempting to avoid The Wrath, and having it all be about you and "you" . . . I just love your blog :)
Posted by: Katherine | December 6, 2004 07:32 PM
David L just made my head asplode.
MUAHAH.. well, that certainly eliminates the problem, doesn't it? ;)
Posted by: David L. | December 6, 2004 07:48 PM
"The Wrath". God I hope Anne doesn't mind that. She sounds like a very nice person, doesn't deserve that rap.
Be carefull with Online RPG's, those cost me my marriage.
Posted by: Ana Marylee | December 6, 2004 08:03 PM
Gee Wil, I feel so bad. You died in my game and I just kept playing on. Had I known it was you I would have paused the game and mourned for a few seconds! It is such an awesome game, isn't it.
Posted by: Paul | December 6, 2004 08:05 PM
heh, i've been playing this game all week! little did i know that i was happily letting foster die... i'm sorry wil.
Posted by: tim | December 7, 2004 12:30 AM
I thought I recon-ized the name:
http://www.davidfoster.com/
Wil, rock and roll would prefer it if Foster stayed down.
Posted by: sandy k | December 7, 2004 12:39 AM
I hope I'm not the first to say this, but you need to quit playing with yourself.
Posted by: mikesum32 | December 7, 2004 12:59 AM
The screenwriter is screaming to get out. :] Well done.
"GARRRGH?"
Posted by: M. Douglas Wray | December 7, 2004 01:21 AM
I love "The Wrath" reference. I am also officially a very dark shade of jealous green, I wanna be a video game character!
Posted by: Jeremiah | December 7, 2004 06:38 AM
Wow sounds cool. No way my limited free time can survive it though. I'm already addicted to San Andreas and Metal Gear Solid 3 (an amazing, if at times frustrating game. Blows away MGS2, and I really liked that one.)
Maybe I'll get GR2 when it becomes one of those "best seller" titles.
Posted by: Jason | December 7, 2004 06:38 AM
this mad eme laugh out loud:
"Luckily, the doors were all closed, and maybe my scream was louder in my head than it was in my living room, because The Wrath I would have gotten when Anne realized I was mourning my (Foster's) death in a video game would not have been pretty."
Been there, well, except for playing a character in a video game, but well, every married guy knows what you mean, whether it's a replay of the Seminoles vs. Gators I in 1996, or the mashed potato mountian you're building in your den, or your attempt to learn juggling with the three beer bottles available at 4 am, or the underwear slingshot episode....
Posted by: peter | December 7, 2004 08:17 AM
Bad ass indeed. :)
So many video games, so little time. I've got Halo 2, Fable, GTA: SA, and my new Nintendo DS and the novelty hasn't worn off on any of them! And now this. Wil, what are you doing to me!
Posted by: Lisa | December 7, 2004 09:21 AM
I was going to comment how cool it must be to play a game with a character that you did the voice for, but I forgot what I wanted to say while I spent 10 minutes copying the above code allowing me to comment inthe first place.
\m/ Wil
Posted by: buntz | December 7, 2004 09:26 AM
Oh Wil, you are such a geek. I love you. :)
Posted by: Raven | December 7, 2004 10:21 AM
I think I'll go out and get that game. I play a lot of Halo2....A lot! Maybe I'll like GR2 as much. =) When Halo2 came out at 12am in the morning, I was the only girl in line. Here I am nerviously holding my credit card thinking..."oh God, what if this credit card doesn't work? What if they don't have anymore left by the time I get up to the register! What if I get in a horrible car accident on my way home and I don't get to play it before work at 7am!" Ok...now I sound like a dork.
Posted by: Alexis | December 7, 2004 11:19 AM
Holy cats, is there anything cooler (in a geek's world) than being a character in a video game?!
Having an action figure of you....
...or being the geeky kid on Star Trek!! (Wil, I wanted to be you!)
Posted by: Chris Goodwin | December 7, 2004 12:51 PM
You should have your agent look into getting you a gig with XBox Online's Game with Fame
http://www.xbox.com/enUS/news/events/gamewithfame.htm
That would be very cool!
Posted by: Michael | December 7, 2004 02:34 PM
That was pretty cool, if not hilarious. You got pwned as your own character. I may have to get GR2, though im already losing sleep over WOW, and HL2. :-|
Posted by: Nicholas Martin | December 7, 2004 02:47 PM
I love Ghost Recon, but I think it sucks on the PS2. I am a PC Ghost Recon guy, so with that in mind, anyone have any idea when it'll come out for the PC???? Thanks,
Earl Arthur
Washington State
Posted by: Earl Arthur | December 7, 2004 05:07 PM
Wil,
This game looks like fun. If your up that long, it's a great game.
FG
Posted by: Fabian | December 7, 2004 06:57 PM
hahahaha. You should record yourself saving yourself in the GR2 next time. That would be a riot, based on what you wrote here. I can't stop laughing! I guess, you have more incentive to win to save yourself from being killed inside the game...
Posted by: Cpl. Hicks | December 7, 2004 07:55 PM
hey wil,
i'm glad to hear you enjoyed ghost recon 2, one of my closest college friends spent the last year and a half working on the animation for it. he'll be pleased to hear you enjoyed it!
Posted by: Lorna | December 7, 2004 09:18 PM
My wife and I played some Ghost Recon 1 on the Xbox back when it came out. It was way too frickin' hard for us. I imagine GR2 is probably even harder. Your story is hilarious, tho, and makes me want to try it out.
Right now my gaming addiction is being fed by World of Warcraft. This game R0xx0rz! I've had the game for 9 days and I'm a level 17 Night Elf Ranger named Ami on the Argent Dawn server. This game is totally like EQ, except way better. Everything EQ did wrong, WoW does right, and then some. This game will pwnz me for months.
What's sad is I've been given Fable and Halo 2 on Xbox for my birthday and I haven't even booted them up yet. I did manage to sneak in some time on Half-Life 2 right before WoW came out, and I must say, it's the best first-person shooter to come out in, like, almost forever. It r00lz! But I'm still playing WoW over it.
What can I say, I'm an RPG-geek!
Posted by: Knight37 | December 8, 2004 08:18 AM
Doh! Ami is a HUNTER not a Ranger. You'd think I'd know that now after her /played is over 50 hours.
Posted by: Knight37 | December 8, 2004 08:20 AM
Guys and video games, I swear. I'm about ready to hurl my boyfriend's copy of Halo 2 into oncoming traffic.
Posted by: Amber | December 8, 2004 09:19 AM
I enjoyed your books and I enjoy your blog but when you talk about being in video games I want to...
"We're not worthy. We're not worthy."
That overstates matters, but only just a little.
Posted by: Corwin | December 8, 2004 05:24 PM
Laughed so loud at (Foster) you!
Can't wait to pick it up, and well, either make sure you survive, or die a wonderful death.
Love your column!
Posted by: Emily | December 8, 2004 08:43 PM
My mum got me your book for my 20th birfday today. Not even the first chapter out I can say that I've already laughed, I've cried, and my head asploded. Thanks for cheering me up. It's definitely going in my flight bag for the 10-hour journey to Tokyo next week.
I wish I had your gaming skillz. :
zomg lots of less-than-threes,
Molly
Posted by: Molly | December 8, 2004 11:06 PM
Well, my mom made the mistake of getting me an Xbox as an early Xmas present... Is there some sort of Xbox methadone, because I'm a hardcore addict now. Ghost Recon 2 is definitely going to be included in my letter to Santa. :o)
Posted by: Kimberly | December 8, 2004 11:35 PM
What a well written, funny post.
Hope you don't get mad at me when my ineptitude sees you having to repeat the same death scene over and over on my TV.
doesn't that ever get repetitive?
Posted by: Stephen Brophy | December 10, 2004 02:26 AM
I'm so sorry Foster died...*bursts out laughing* sorry, tried to keep through that without laughing. It's nice to know other people yell when video game characters die (even if you are closer, being the VOICE and all) at least you didn't wake up your family...*grins sheepishly*...well, they were getting up anyway. I can't wait to play GR2...SQUEE!
Posted by: Beth | December 12, 2004 10:11 AM
LOL....I have gotten so caught up in a game that I was yelling and screaming at the characters...of course, none had my voice, but still....
Great! You gave me my first smile of the day. =)
Posted by: Gayla | December 13, 2004 07:08 AM
That first mission is so hard, and the third seems to last for 2 hours, just when you see off one pack of pesky north koreans some more turn up. I had no idea Foster was you, if I'd known i would have equiped him with nothing but a red skin tight top and sent him out in front, the guy in red always gets it!
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Posted by: Ben | December 16, 2004 12:57 PM