A Journal Entry

"Day 477 in the year of our Lord, 2019. I feel as if time has been frozen for oh so long. We sent our oldest daughter Muriel out to the markets a fortnight ago, and alas, we fear she may be lost to the slavers, cannibals, or other predatory groups that stake claims along the trails leading into the city. As the fire dwindles and the night grows cold, the same question repeats itself in my mind: 'Why can't I just go out to get my hair cut?' "

         I couldn't stay asleep, and saw the Titanfall demo was up, so I figured I'd give it a shot. Initial impressions: Graphically, it's less than what I expected. It's certainly not the most impressive XBO game I've played, and it still won't be after the resolution changes (even with additional anti-aliasing/blurring, etc., you can tell it won't be super smooth). The graphics remind me a bit of Killzone: Shadow Fall. Not nearly as polished, but similar in usage of colors and patterns. The lighting and smoke are well done, and the pilot models look great from a distance. The training mode was fun, and reminded me of Portal, but without the humor. As far as tutorials go, it was one of the best I've seen in a while. Short, to the point, quick load times, and it chains together most of what you need to know well. Personnel executions are a bit lacking, and somewhat awkward, depending on your angle, and there's not much to the Titan versions, but the Titan executions do look good each time you perform them. Weapons are a bit bland, and while there are some interesting elements to them (like the smart pistol being similar to some other multi-target weapons or utilities), they leave a lot to be desired. There's not too much of a selection, but the force feedback on the triggers is well balanced, as opposed to how annoying it can be in some other games. The Titan's "falls" and boarding animations are pretty great. The Titan's melee on humans is a lot of fun at first, but you soon realize how comically bad the "splatter" animation is. Movement isn't bad, but can be somewhat resistant to fluidly dashing in quick succession. The Vortex shield is fun and somewhat interesting, and ejecting is pretty well done.

         Multiplayer Specifics: The server selection is a great idea. It measures your ping, gives you that information, and then still allows you to choose. For example: I had 31ms for "East," 34ms for "North Central US," and 265ms on SouthEast Asia (which is to be expected). You can therefore make the best compromise among friends and pick a server that works for you. The pings are external, though, so they don't necessarily indicate how good the connection will be when you're inside the matches--that's still a crapshoot. Kills and deaths are traded quickly. If you get shot, you can generally count on dying unless you're less than a second from cover. The free-running adds an interesting aspect to the game, but you don't get as many chances to use it as you'd like, because the walls tend to turn you into an easy target. The Titans are next to worthless. They only make you a large, clumsy, target when playing with competent enemies. There is a Titan-specific mode, though. It's also a bit bland, and short on options, but probably the most fun mode available on the demo. Assists don't count for much, which is sad for obvious reasons. The weapons are well-balanced, though, you get a very limited scattering of them across maps. This is unfortunate, because it means people have a strong motivation to camp. I've seen a few bugs (people corner-shooting, falling through floors, etc., but nothing game-breaking. It certainly doesn't appear to be Battlefield. Matvhmaking still has its hiccups, but is generally decent. Nothing special, just moderate wait times for a 6v6. The servers have been pretty decent so far (It's about 8:30am), but sometimes they already seem to be a bit stretched. It doesn't really say how many people are online, so it's hard to tell, but I think they'll be decent enough throughout the life of the game. So far, I'm a level 9, have a k/d of 4.5, and have been in the top 3, every match. Most people are still complete asshats and not many are particularly good, which I guess is to be expected of anything outside golf games and farming simulators.

New Xbox Live "Enforcement United" Policy May Entail Using Algorithms that Punish Without Human Oversite.

http://news.xbox.com/2013/08/xbox-one-enforcement-feature

     Essentially, the 4th paragraph is what worries me. Specifically:

"These decisions from participants feed into an algorithm our team developed. That algorithm takes several factors into account like how many participants believe there had been a violation and how reliably those individual members’ historical decisions aligned with the general consensus. The system can then determine whether or not to apply an enforcement action like requiring a Gamertag change, or if the complaint should be escalated for one of our enforcers to review more closely."

     I don't like the idea that a system which is already abused may be receiving more authority and less oversite. It's fine to factor in community feedback, and arguably essential. Allowing those actions to strengthen what is already an abused system, with little room for argument, is however, not. This could possibly turn out much better and may be another victim of Microsoft's recent inability to communicate the scope or rulesets of its programs, but based on how easy it is to get an account monitored or "devalued"(within the current reputation program), this compounds the recent increase in focus of reputation with the "Online Experience" and gives me reason to worry. 

     I've held tight over the past generation the idea that Xbox Live is the dominant platform in regards to online experience. However, with the increase in PSN benefits including sales, support and price-structure, coupled with the lowering value of XBL due to increased focus on directed marketing and server access/control to third parties (essentially enabling companies like EA to shut down access to online components of games instead of allowing for XBL-hosting duties or individual host-based matchmaking for older games), I'm becoming more and more worried about the future of the platform, and what it means for console gaming as a whole.

          As per failing of my "Before New Year's" resolution due to lack of interest, I've incorporated gaming into a major aspect of my 2013 resolutions. I'm leaving this as an active list for myself and friends who, via other means, are also tracking their achievements (virtual, professional, financial and tangible) throughout 2013. So without further ado: My checklist for 2013:

Gaming:

Gamerscore:

104,174/125,000

Titles over the 50% completion threshold (achievements in both number and GS, w/ story completion):

1. Tetris Splash                                             6. Wordament
2. Astropop                                                   7. Jeopardy
3. Plants Vs. Zombies                                    8. X-Men: Destiny
4. Alpha Protocol                                           9.
5. Tekken Tag Tournament 2                         10.

Titles @ 100% completion (Additional to 50%. Titles can not be counted twice.)

1. A World of Keflings                                   8.                                          15.
2.  Borderlands 2                                           9.
3.                                                                 10.
4.                                                                 11.
5.                                                                 12.
6.                                                                 13.
7.                                                                 14.

School:

Dean's List in both semesters.   Spring:  X       Fall:

Martial Arts:

Completion of the 11 form "families" as found in Karate-do Kyohan, with understanding through tertiary usages and bunkai. Likely keeping to Hirokazu Kanazawa's "style."
-This might likely be impossible, given my schedule and rank, but who doesn't like a challenge?

1. Taikyoku                                                6. Gankaku                      11. Ten no Kata
2. Heian                                                      7. Jutte
3. Bassai                                                     8. Hangetsu
4. Kwanku                                                   9. Tekki
5. Empi                                                       10. Jion

Two new TKD forms of my choosing (who cares for order?).
1.                                                    2.

Two new Chinese forms of my choosing (who cares for styles?)
1.                                                    2.


Conditioning:

5k Time:
???????/-15.00.00

A Video Game Diatribe.

A reply I made on a public forum, regarding over-saturation of DLC in the gaming marketplace:

Prepare for a book:

The problem with this train of thought, in my opinion, is that it doesn't tally former customers. Picture this, if you will: Johnny Gamer buys Game X-2. Game X-2 releases as a title that ends on a cliffhanger. 3 weeks later, that ending is finished with DLC that was on the disc. Johnny Gamer, frustrated, buys this anyways, because he wants to see the end of the story he's already invested so much time into. Johnny Gamer therefore drops the 15 bucks and finishes the game. Complete, yet, still angry; Johnny Gamer goes onto the internet to complain and swear off buying from this franchise again.

The developer of Game X-2, already has his money and cares not for his "idle" threats, as the next game, Game X-3, sells almost as much of the same type of DLC, as before. The developer/publisher(DP X) now truly believe Johnny Gamer to be a sucker who just wants to whine. Unknown to DP X, however, is that Johnny Gamer has been keeping his promise. Johnny Gamer, and those like him, have been falling prey to less of these types of milking tactics. They just don't realize it. Seeing only the bottom line, they believe the market has mostly remained unchanged, not realizing that new, younger, gamers have just been filling the shoes of those like Johnny Gamer. Eventually, though, people read enough of the complaints, the younger generation has to start buying more of their games with their own money, and the dedicated former fans are nowhere to be found. The franchise dies, and the developer either doesn't know why, or doesn't care. They have more cows to milk, anyway.

^ I guess that's just how I !feel! a lot of these companies are being run. You have a few people at the top, wanting to make as much as they can, in the short time they work for DP X, because they get big bonuses for keeping shareholders happy. The problem with that, though, is that 10-20 years down the road, the company doesn't exist. The employees have been laid off and lost a lot of their benefits, their educations' have now been wasted, and our hobby is no longer worth the time/money/hassle it demands. So gamers have moved on to knitting...or whatever. Which pisses me off, because I don't like knitting. It just doesn't seem like a very sustainable economic model to me. I believe they could make a lot more money over a longer period of time, but, it's just not what they're interested in.

For me, it's already been heading this way for a while. I got tired of new Madden's not improving, so even though I LOVE football, I stopped buying them. I was promised that Assassin's Creed's story would be a trilogy, so after the 4th game not finishing anything, and having cut out chapters re-sold to me, I gave up. I got tired of it dragging on and on. Which is sad, because I would have loved to see more if they would have just finished the damned story first, then gone onto all the other sides. I've given up CoD and Street Fighter and various other games, because it just felt stressful to see a newer, more "complete" version released just a few months later. When I buy any games like these, I will either buy them when their "complete editions" are less than full-price, if at all. If I had felt like I wasn't being sold the same game over and over again, I feel like things may have been different. They would be getting a lot more from me in the long run, that's for sure. I used to feel like I couldn't get enough of the franchises I loved. Like the 1-2-3 year waits were just so long. Now I feel like they're far too soon. And that's no way to run a company, in my humble opinion.

The "New" TKD

    I just tried watching the WTF TKD world championships but couldn't finish it. When they can call the participants "players" and no one disputes it, it says all you can about the direction being taken as a MA. While I understand the WTF is merely an organization and does not represent the whole of the art: more and more it seems to be acting as a watermark. Contrasted against ikken hisatsu, and simply as personal opinion, I can't seem to get behind point fighting that sacrifices defense, form and power, just to tap an opponent. I'm all for diversification, but it's sad to me to see traditional arts with applicable self-defense techniques, pushed aside for the sake of a gym class exercise. Forgoing usefulness in self-defense or even combat sports, points fighting, in my opinion, takes both the form and function, out of martial arts. When you have neither aspect, what do you have, besides a game?

Adventures in Life Abroad. A Friendly Rant.

   So my first roommate in the new apartment was from France. Never having met anyone from France who wasn't a giant hairy asshole(French Canadians don't count!), I was unsure of what to expect. It was only for a few days so either way I was sure I'd be able to deal. Aside from the time I asked him "What about cleaning?" to which he replied "I dunno"(3 months and you never cleaned?), he was quite a nice guy. Though, I will give it to him that he was not born in France but immigrated there from India. All-in-all, however, I will have to say that it was a pleasant few days. He worked long hours so I didn't get to know him well, but I can say it was a positive experience. After this I received an email that the next roomie was to be a man from Italy. While I am normally the type who likes his space, I will admit to hoping I could learn a few things from him. I have friends who live in Italy and rave about it. I love the food, family focus, and beautiful language. What's not to like, right? Well the day he arrived, my breath was taken away. Literally. This was the most foul-smelling human being I have ever encountered. For the next month, I avoided this man like he were a leper. I stayed in my room as often as possible, and when I needed to leave I would do so with a purpose. I casually suggested bathing to him on multiple occasions, but since I'm the non-confrontational type, I never flat out told him I could not share the same air with him. I wasn't home the day he left to return to Tokyo. I expected nothing to be gone, as he seemed like a nice guy, and I was correct. However, something was added. In response to the note I left him(wishing him a nice trip, safe travels, and saying it was nice to meet him), he left me with a larger one. This note was not, however, a friendly one. Inside it he informed me that he did not rent a shared space apartment for the cost, but for the companionship. So summarily, he was pissed and felt like I wasted his time and money. He also seemed to feel I have been wasting my own time by not leaving day after day to casually explore a town I somewhat know. Completely ignoring the time I mentioned to him that my reason for being here was primarily MA-related. I have more important focuses regarding my time and spending at the moment. Though, maybe it was karma, for once informing a friend that I had wished he would find a ditch to finish decomposing in, as he certainly smelled the part of a rotting corpse. Though I wish I could have returned in time to suggest that if he were looking for companionship to bathe and then go to a bar, or maybe the pound, and adopt a puppy. As I am of no obligation to be friends with a shedding, unclean, middle-aged man.

   Now the next and final roommate is here. He's about my age, from India, and apparently speaks decent Japanese. He works as a software engineer. Our backgrounds, religions and a few other things seem to be somewhat different, but I think it will be a good experience. He seems to be a good guy and has a good head on his shoulders and I even got him to play a little 360. Hopefully things will be much better this time around.