#but for some reason each one has a frame that's just default knight?

[pharioom]

been working on a custom knight mero skin. it's looking pretty good so far

[hillbillyoracle]

Tarot as Representations

So one of the recommended uses I talk briefly about in my zine, tarot in the time of the apocalypse, is to use tarot cards as icons in a parred down travel altar set up. What I didn't get into too much is how to select these cards to use as representations. I wrote the zine originally with a more experienced practitioner in mind and thought that most folks would select a card based on intuition.

Which will totally work. But recently as I was using cards to set up a petition, I realized there was a lot more I could have said there. Some of it

Astrological Representations

So a lot of people know that Tarot has astrological associations. I knew about a lot of these but I've been learning about so many more recently. You can use these associations to create representations of your work with the planets for petitions, prayers, or other workings. If you have decks you don't need, you can us the card as a base to attach paper talesmins to and give them some rigidity while adding to the correspondences (good for if you need to tuck it in a car visor or a book). Really there are so many options for using tarot as representation for astrological concepts.

The classical planets and the 12 zodiac signs are the most agreed upon from what I can tell and they are as follows.

Classical Planets

Moon - the High Priestess

Sun - the Sun

Mercury - the Magician

Venus - the Empress

Mars - the Tower

Jupiter - the Wheel of Fortune

Saturn - the World

The Moon card is traditionally associated with the sign of Pisces but I've swapped these out a few times and not noticed a major difference. I have also substituted Judgement for Saturn when not working with them in an earthly or cthonic capacity and that's worked alright for me. I try to stick to the traditional associations when reading a spread but when picking a representation it seems like it's slightly less important.

Outer Planets

Uranus - the Fool

Neptune - the Hanged One

Pluto - Judgement

These are less agreed upon but what I've found most common. I use them when reading but I will swap them out when picking a representation. I think they work okay for the most part. But truthfully I don't work with the outer planets a whole lot and don't often need a representation of that.

Zodiac Signs

Aries - the Emperor

Taurus - the Hierophant

Gemini - the Lovers

Cancer - the Chariot

Leo - Strength

Virgo - the Hermit

Libra - Justice

Scorpio - Death

Sagittarius - Temperance

Capricorn - the Devil

Aquarius - the Star

Pisces - the Moon

Just as a note, the signs also correspond with parts of the body and can be used to represent requests or petitions in that way too. I have some times used the Emperor (the sign of the head) and the Moon (the feet) to represent that my request is for my whole body. It's too much to fit into this article but it's easy to find on Google and something to add into the language of what you can represent.

Representing Fixed Stars

It's become more popular to work with fixed stars of the Zodiac (Deneb Algredi, Algol, Regulus, etc) and one way I've been using to set up an altar to the ones I work with is to select the tarot card that corresponds to the decan that the fixed star is found in and par it with the Star card.

The decans and card associations are too many to list here but the principle is fairly straight forward.  There are 4 elements of the zodiac (Fire, Earth, Air, Water) and they correspond with the four suits of the Tarot (Wands, Pentacles, Swords, Cups; respectively). The Aces embody the elements themselves. Without the Aces, each suit has 9 cards, that are then divided by the three modalities of the Zodiac (Cardinal, Fixed, and Mutable). Each of these modalities has three cards representing the three decans of each sign. Each decan covers 10 degrees of a sign and have associations themselves.

Cardinal signs are at the beginning of each season, so they are equated with the beginning of each suit (2,3,4). Fixed signs are in the middle of each season, so they are equated with the middle of each suit (5,6,7). Mutable signs are at the end of each season, so they are equated with the end of each suit (8,9,10). Using this you can figure out what decan belongs with which sign.

Say you want to represent Algol, who is at 26 degrees Taurus. Taurus is a Fixed (5,6,7) Earth (Pentacles) sign. 26 degrees is between 20-30 and so is in the last decan of Taurus. Meaning the card you'd select would be the 7 of Pentacles.

Sun, Moon, Rising

So on occasion, when I realize I probably won't be using a deck but I want to keep it around, I'll pull a few of the cards and use them as artwork. One way I've done that is by displaying my Sun, Chart Ruler, and Rising Sign using Tarot Cards. I don't have any presently to show as an example but I will get stiff paper, attach cards in a grid, and put it in a cheap frame. Now that I know the decans, I would also include the decans in addition to or replacing the sign cards. I use the World here for Rising Sign because it has felt right to me and at one point incorrectly learned Saturn as being associated with Judgement so I still use that when laying out cards for this kind of artwork.

For instance:

The Sun - The Chariot - 2 of Cups

The World - The Devil - 3 of Pentacles

Judgement - The Star - 3 of Swords

Hell of a combination, I know. The reason I've done Chart Ruler instead of Moon is purely because I have a total solar eclipse in my natal chart so they'd use the same sign and decan cards and this way I don't have to have a second deck.

I'm actually working on turning this layout into a spread/worksheet. More on that in another post though.

Deity Representations

I have used tarot cards as deity representation a lot in my practice, especially with travel altars as I mentioned. But it really could be extended to others as well. This is where there's more intuition and less structure to go off of so what I say here is by no means law. Artwork of the cards themselves will dictate quite a lot.

For the Greek and Roman deities associated with the planets, the choice is pretty easy; the Magician can be a representation of Mercury, the Empress for Aphrodite, etc. For Kemetic deities that were syncretized with Greek and Roman deities, you can also use those correspondences too. I have used the Magician card to stand in for both Hermes and Yinepu for instance.

For other deities, my recommendation is to stick with the court cards as your basis. These already are often read as actual people in a given situation and the artwork in a lot of decks will only include a single person - which is just helpful for me personally when using it as a representation in an altar set up.

However, where you want to call a deity in a specific role, combining a court card and a major arcana can be really powerful. When I use the cards in my work the Morrigan, I always use the Queen of Swords as my base. But if I want to call her in her role as prophetess, I might combine the Queen of Swords and the High Priestess. If I want to call her in her role as battle raven, I might combine the Queen of Swords and the Tower.

If you work with the Elements as entities or as guardian spirits, you can utilize the Aces for their representation as they are the embodiment of the purest qualities of each element. This also works in combination with a Court Card for deities you are calling in connection with their association with an element. Say if I wanted to represent Geb, I might use the King of Pentacles and the Ace of Pentacles.

Ancestor Representation

I have not done a lot of this personally though in the times I have tried it, it has worked pretty well. Court Cards not only refer to people but often have associated ages as well and in a pinch I've used the Court Card associated with the gender and age that someone passed away. I have not used this yet for someone who has passed away that was nonbinary but I would probably default to using the Knight or the Page as they're less gendered, even though they correspond with younger age groups. It's imperfect and I'll write more on this later as it evolves.

The age groups associated with the court cards (as I learned them) are:

Page: young, usually under 35

Knight: someone mid career, age 35 - 50

Queen and King: someone at their height or who has reached old age, 50+

I tend to pick the suit for what they were most known for; were they really emotionally oriented (Cups), did they work really hard (Pentacles), were they especially known for their intellect (Swords), or were they fiery and artistic (Wands)?

If you want to use the cards to honor your dead generally, you can always use a representation of a psychopomp who opens the way for you if that's a part of you practice. You can also just use the Death card, perhaps in combination with the Six of Cups. I am much more likely to do this than represent a specific ancestor but I have needed to on occasion and this is roughly what I used.

Spellwork Representations

This honestly could - and hopefully will - be it's own article or zine at some point but I did want to mention a little bit on using the cards for spellwork on the fly. The main ways I've used them so far is either to petition the spirits of the Major Arcana for assistance or use the pips to specify what I want to happen.

The former is pretty straight forward. I personally have found the Major Arcana to be spirits in of themselves, which makes sense to me coming from a Chaos magic background, and I have petitioned them with offerings like I would any other spirit. The Magician has seemed to be most open to this so far but others are helpful in their own ways.

The latter works the best if you've worked with the cards long enough to understand their concrete meanings. Often beginners will have these very general understandings, that are still accurate by all means, but hard to take action on. If you're at a point in your tarot practice where you can see for instance the 4 of Wands know it's connotations with marriage and contracts or the 9 of Swords associations with bringing on nightmares, then this method should work for you.

Sometimes I'll combine this with a deity representation and lay a pip before it as my petition and then give offerings and burn a candle or incense. Just using them as representations for what I want to happen alone hasn't worked well but using them in combination with something else has. Have someone walk over the 5 of Pentacles or 3 of Swords enough times and there will be consequences. Just as walking under the 6 of Wands or the 10 of Cups will bring blessings.

Conclusion

So I hope this was helpful to someone out there. It's been super helpful for me to just grab my deck and go in so many situations. I can grab it and then scrounge for offerings when I get some place and not feel like I'm without something core to what I need.

And I know there are so many variations on this. This is by no means the be all end all of how you can use them and I do hope to expand on some of them in later writing, but I do think this is a decent springboard to experiment with.

How do you use your tarot deck for representations?

[shih-coulda-had-it]

offshoots of starlight

Notes: My Star Wars!AU, feat. Jedi!Nana and Toshinori, Mandalorian!Sorahiko. This is more in the lines of an actual Chapter 1, as opposed to the initial post, which was me doing a Nanahiko 101. Noumus are stand-ins for Sith chrysalides; you will see me do narrative backflips to avoid naming canonical SW characters. TW: Mention of gore; typical noumu biology Word count: 1,541

//

Nana Shimura had left the Jedi Temple of her own volition, only a few years before news of Sith noumus—monsters of nature, twisted by experimentation and the Dark Side—began to surface in the galaxy. It seemed more than reasonable at the time; she had just gotten the news that she was pregnant with Sakumo’s child. Moreover, her old Master had been assassinated. Lured onto an Outer Rim planet and crushed under rubble so all Nana could recover was his bloodied corpse.

He had left her with a reminder.

There is a Sith Lord working within the Senate. This is a secret only our lineage must be trusted with. When our padawans are finished training, we masters must turn our attentions to rooting the evil out.

She could not choose a padawan and ask them to follow her fate. So rather than continue the cycle, Nana stepped away from it entirely.

In the whirlwind of her transition outside of the Order’s traditional home, her marriage, and her pregnancy, Nana was guiltily grateful that Sorahiko was preoccupied elsewhere. They had lost contact with each other years ago, just before she undertook the Knight trials, and contrary to what Nana told Rokudo, it had not been a peaceful parting.

They were both at fault. Sorahiko was in a righteous, hot-headed rage about his homeworld and the encroaching Kalevalans. Nana had been grasping for serenity, releasing anxiety after anxiety into the Force. He wanted validation; Nana wanted comfort.

Neither could appeal to the other. So they cut ties and went their separate ways.

The will of the Force was truly ineffable, that Nana was now here. Bereft of a son and husband, blessed with a padawan and the return of a very old friend.

“Ah,” she murmured, observing the shiny beskar plates and the obnoxious yellow of his hydrophobic woolen cape. The latter marked his identity to her, this Mandalorian dipping his head to ease his entrance into her tent. He took one step further inside before coming to a halt. Nana circled the table, tucked her hands in the voluminous folds of her sleeves, and briefly inclined her head. “Sorahiko, it’s been a while.”

“Shimura,” said Sorahiko, his voice coming out hoarse and incredulous. The impassive mask of his helmet offered little insight into his feelings, but Nana was an old hand at deciphering Sorahiko’s body language. “They—all the Jedi said you’d left.”

“I did. It was a personal matter.”

“I didn’t even know you could leave the Order.”

“Not the Order,” she corrected. “I left the Temple, but I never gave up being a Jedi.” Nana tilted her head and grinned. A line of tension left Sorahiko’s shoulders in reaction, but the two of them were still standing apart, strangers still. “You’ve been talking to other Jedi? Peacefully, I hope.”

Before Sorahiko could shoot an answer back, Nana’s padawan ducked back inside, clearly outraged at the audacity of their guest.

“You can’t just barge in here!” Toshinori’s cracking voice lectured at the Mandalorian towering over him. “Master Nana’s trying to strategize!”

“If I know Master Nana,” ah, there was the playful mockery, “she’ll default to some last-minute plan and play it off as the Force’s intervention.”

Toshinori quivered, but he obeyed Nana’s gesture for him to stand at her side readily enough. He settled at the ruffle to his hair. Nana assumed he was still glaring at Sorahiko, judging by the offended sulk she could feel across the training bond.

“I’ve gotten better at creating flexible plans,” Nana said. “Anyway. Sorahiko Torino, meet my padawan, Toshinori Yagi.”

There was a beat of silence. She nudged her padawan into grumpily performing the formal introduction. As a result, Sorahiko finally snorted and nodded back, tacitly agreeing to a temporary peace with a kid twenty years his minor.

Nana decided it was very pertinent for Toshinori to meditate. Yes, right now, don’t argue, and don’t get into trouble. She withstood the power of her padawan’s pout and ushered him outside; with their privacy somewhat secured (Nana did not put it past Toshinori to eavesdrop), Sorahiko edged closer to the holoprojector.

“How long has the kid been with you?”

“A few months. This is his first time out of the Temple, so don’t be mean.”

“A little roughing up never did anyone harm,” Sorahiko automatically responded. “How old is he?”

“Fourteen.” Nana smiled at his scoff. She and Sorahiko were around the same age, and they had met in their tweens. Before, Nana had thought Rokudo was just being an excessively cool Master��brother in all but name—but now…

Rokudo had wanted the best for Nana, his padawan, his little sister. In this case, that had meant isolating her from her fellow Jedi. Waiting for her to leave the crèche, to craft her lightsaber, to finish the immediate classes—then spiriting her from mission to mission, severing any possibility to cultivate deep friendships with her age-mates.

Enter, Sorahiko Torino.

She turned her eyes to the display: the imperfect grid of Takodana’s densest forested region, pitted with a lake formed by a shift in the earth’s crust. Sensors weren’t able to register its depths. Hopefully, whatever noumu had been seeded here, it preferred the trees to the waters.

“You’re here for the monster,” said Sorahiko, switching back to the issue at hand.

“The noumu, yes. Jedi are uniquely suited to tracking them down.”

“And taking them out?” he inquired.

It took effort to paste on the fearless grin, one that used to soothe Sorahiko’s worries about the adventures they inevitably stumbled into. Clearly, judging by the way he folded his arms, Sorahiko was not reassured.

“Depends on the noumu,” Nana admitted. “And honestly, the victories have been more theoretical than real. We learned about Sith creations in classes, since, y’know. They have been gone for several millennia.”

Slowly, Sorahiko said, “This is the twentieth notice about a bio-modificated monster terrorizing a planet.”

“Your number’s outdated. We’ve counted up to fifty.” And more were being reported, sometimes in batches, sometimes with long stretches of nerve-wracking silence at a time. The Order hadn’t been obligated to tell a retired Jedi about the noumu; they couldn’t have predicted that one would pop up on Inusagi, slaughter its way through her chosen community, and—

“Hey.” Sorahiko was by her side now, and the shoulder-check was awfully gentle. Tentative, but gentle. “Are you alright, Nana?”

Nana breathed through the old hurt. She unclenched her fingers from where they clutched the edge of the table, but she could not take her eyes away from that guesstimated depths of the infamous rift lake. Something told her the noumu nested there.

“Not really,” she admitted, a little terse. She glanced sideways at her old friend. “Why are you here, Sorahiko?”

His posture stiffened; the Sorahiko she knew long ago would have rocked on his heels, and held his wrist behind his back, as though it would help control the shaky notes in his response. He never did well with emotional vulnerability.

Nana supposed it was rude of her to try and peel back his beskar-hardened shell now, at the first opportunity of their reunion.

“I was here for a job,” he said. “I heard a Jedi was on Takodana to deal with its monster, and I came looking to offer… help.”

“How charitable of you.”

That visibly stung him. Sorahiko’s shoulders hunched, and it looked as though he was trying to tuck his chin under the folds of his cape. A cape that Nana had gifted him years ago, as a practical joke he couldn’t throw away due to its functionality.

“I just want to help,” Sorahiko told her.

She studied him. However good his contacts were, Sorahiko couldn’t have heard about the early fatality rates amongst the senior Jedi Masters—warriors who had been sent to deal with a problem on their lonesome, and killed due to lack of backup.

The Jedi Order had not known about Inusagi’s noumu. The bipedal creature with frightful black wings heavy with blood, exposed organs, distended muscles and protruding eyes—the talons dripping with entrails—weapons of fire-hardened wood and steel piercing its hide. Nana had killed it. A terrible, bloody affair with no fanfare afterwards. Only a raw throat and an aching body, stubbornly clinging to Light.

When she was done, she reported back to the Temple for the first time in four years.

Nana exhaled. She shut off the holoprojector for now, and checked in with her padawan—Toshinori sent a distracted, delighted pulse of LIZARD!!! back, causing Nana to laugh.

Sorahiko startled backwards at the unexpected sound. He still waited silently for her decision.

“You can help,” Nana said, and redid her half up-do, combing through her hair with just her fingers. She kindly looked past the jolt of Sorahiko’s frame as he registered her words. What the heck would he have done if Nana rejected his help? Stand in the sidelines? Please. “You just have to be nice to Toshinori, or else I’m obligated to beat you up.”

“Your kid’s coming with?”

“He’s my padawan,” Nana emphasized. “Jedi learn by doing.”

“I’m beginning to remember,” Sorahiko grunted, and he followed in her footsteps, as steady a presence as he’d ever been.

[lilyhoshikawa]

Yugioh Vrains & Trauma

The concept of Yusaku, Takeru, and Ryoken as characters and the way they each process trauma is so interesting to me and I wish we got more exploration of it.

The pieces though, are certainly there, and I think it's worth some thought.

We came close a few times to having a very real, direct statement about the trauma the characters face. For example, Takeru's duel with Blood Shepard, where he pulls a fast one and Blood Shepard attempts to use traumatizing imagery from Takeru's past against him, but Takeru- who has began the path of recovery- has reached a point where he can face triggering images without completely being overtaken by weakness. Having Flame with him grounds him in reality. All of this fitting the theme of his deck, Reincarnation, which he uses to turn the duel around.

Despite this, Takeru isn't healed completely. One of my biggest criticisms of those episodes is the framing of Takeru's trauma as something he has moved past, as if it's that simple. Takeru doesn't let his trauma define him, but it's still a part of him. He wants to be a cool hero and enjoys his duels against opponents he respects, aspects he does not share with the deeply depressed Yusaku, but one place the mask slips is in the confrontation with Revolver. He gets mad. He is faced with someone he can reasonably pin the blame of his torment on. He is not directly responsible, but there's enough room to make a case that he deserves to suffer for his actions. Takeru becomes angry and tries to defeat Ryoken, and this scene is great. It's powerful. It illustrates how two traumatized people- young people without parents, also- process their trauma. It's two people who are very hurt clashing. But they process it in different ways.

Ryoken blames himself for a lot of things. For his father's death, for his father's illness, even to an extent for the lost incident. In his duel with Go he explains that he doesn't duel for a grand symbolic purpose or for himself, but to accomplish his goal. This is an extension of how Ryoken exists in life. Ryoken Kogami, the person, hates himself. He, at the very minimum, blames himself for a lot of heavy things. But as Revolver, as the leader of Hanoi, he's simply acting out his mission to exterminate the Ignis. He doesn't have to deal with his feelings about himself because he's acting professionally.

The duel against Takeru is the only time he does not duel as Revolver, but as Ryoken. He is being faced with someone who wants to hold him, personally, accountable for his actions. This isn't like the duels with Playmaker, who despite being a victim of the Lost Incident, is trying to stop the Knights of Hanoi and their plans. Takeru only wants to defeat him for personal vindication. And as a person, Ryoken is unable to stop him. He has the cards to make a play, sure. He could even very well win. But what does that prove, if he does? It'd be refusing to own up to his actions. Ryoken fully believes he is guilty of everything for which Takeru accuses him. And he is prepared to face that. He doesn't value himself enough to defend. The duel will always end either with Takeru defeating him or forgiving him and moving on.

Now the character whose trauma we get the most insight on is Yusaku, but it's a strange way. So much of it is much more subtle. Yusaku has nothing and no one, this is the foundation of his character. On the surface, he's surrounded by people. Naoki is present in his life trying to be his friend, Kusanagi is his mentor and ally, Ai never shuts up, he's got Roboppy at his house, countless duelists in Link Vrains look up to him as Playmaker.

And yet, Yusaku is distant. He chooses to be distant. Perhaps not even in a voluntary way, but out of preservation.

Almost as second nature, he keeps his distance. He ignores Naoki. He avoids roping Go Onizuka into the fight against Hanoi. He shares his feelings only with Ryoken, who understands his past, and later with Takeru. He does share these feelings with Kusanagi to am extent, but even then, he's careful not to show too much. Kusanagi is a friend and ally, but not someone who Yusaku wants to drag into his deepest turmoil.

This can also be observed in his role as Playmaker. Unlike Takeru, Yusaku does not want to be a hero. He operated in secret until he was dragged out into the open. He fought for the personal goal of revenge until the danger became massive enough to affect innocent people. Even then, though, he didn't care about saving others so much as he did fighting Ryoken. In season 2, he is cast countless times as the hero of Link Vrains, but he doesn't care to be that. He owes Ai and wants to help him, and to assist his friends, but he has no interest in being a "cool hero". In fact, he's all but ready to drop the veil when Kusanagi loses.

While Takeru has Flame to keep him stable, Yusaku has Kusanagi. A close person that grounds him in reality. Yusaku is forced not only to watch him vanish, but to be the one to do it. He's vulnerable and afraid, but there is no one to comfort him. He has no choice but to fight back and win to fulfill Kusanagi's promise with him- not so that he can keep fighting, but because he made a promise. It's the same reason he wakes up and keeps going. He doesn't care about defeating Bohman and saving the world. All he knows is that he owes someone close to him, and he has to keep moving. But having to directly end Kusanagi is understandably traumatic. Yusaku comforts himself with the knowledge that Kusanagi was proud of him, but even then, it's a huge burden.

He had to face someone who he loves and trusts and directly be the one to end his life, and it takes all he has. The giant scream he lets out right before his last turn- the only turn in which he can bring himself to declare an attack- is the moment he builds up all his strength to make one strong move to win all while pushing back his own feelings. As soon as its over, he can't keep himself together.

Yusaku waking up is also deeply symbolic. For people with serious depression, just getting out of bed can be a tremendous ask. It's so hard to get up and face the world. You're tired. It's easier just to give up. Yusaku repeats all of these points. "I've had it with everything. I'm tired".

Yusaku never got the help he needed. His attempts at therapy didn't fit with his needs, as he was already so deeply traumatized that he shut himself off to trusting others. He had night terrors. He lived completely alone. He found a person to live with and stabilize him in Kusanagi, but the depression still majorly controls his life.

He sleeps in class, he has no interests or properties outside of his mission. He barely knows anyone and makes no effort to connect with people, in fact, he actively pushes them away- not just to preserve his identity. He abandons anything that doesn't involve his mission if he can. He ignores the words of others, especially Ai, and only focuses on his dueling.

You get the feeling that while Yusaku is pushing himself, all of this is taking a lot of effort for him. Every action is a massive request, it's difficult. And Yusaku remains alone in this journey even as friends amass beside him. He does not confide in them, he simply relies on them for technical and strategic help. At no point does he come to them about his personal struggle. So of course he doesn't see himself as a hero. Being a hero takes work, it requires a sense of duty and honor. Yusaku has none of those qualities, or at least, he doesn't believe he does. He simply motivates himself to keep going, nothing more. He struggles to grow, to better himself, to recover. When he finds Ryoken and Takeru, it's a step up for him, much as it was when he met Kusanagi. They are people he can confide in and feel close with, but they are as traumatized as he is. Ryoken is distant and confrontational. Takeru is kind, but his personality is too different from Yusaku's own to connect. He remains in large part with all of his feelings internalized.

But what this does to Yusaku is set him up in a very vulnerable place. When he fails, when people close to him and that rely on him are let down, or taken away, he is damaged more and more. He has already lost so much in the course of the series. He allowed himself to rely on Go Onizuka and Blue Angel and ended up hurting them. Now his closest friends and allies are being defeated in the war against the Ignis. He has faced so much loss and had so many people he cares about get hurt that he is emotionally fragile. It'd be interesting to see him finally crack, finally open up and admit to someone that he's hurting and needs them. He has the people there, he simply needs to be open with them. And that role which would normally default to Ryoken can't be fulfilled because of Ryoken's own very poor coping making him distant. This is why I think Takeru is the right person to set both of them on the path to recovery. He's a kind person who wants the best for others, that's what Bohman even says upon defeating him. His earnest and caring demeanor is what it would take, in my opinion, to break through Yusaku's walls of defenses and distancing that he has set up as a coping mechanism to isolate his struggles and weakness from others, both as a result of a lack of trust and the duties placed on him as Playmaker, the Savior and Hero of Link Vrains. Only someone who has been in that position can really understand, or if anything, connect with him.

There is a lot more, honestly. I think signs of Yusaku’s intense state of depression brought on by his untreated trauma is really evident in almost everything he does as a character, and that’s why I like him so much. All that said, though, I’d basically be repeating myself so I’ll just close by saying Vrains has the potential to explore this in more depth and I hope desperately that that’s what we’ll get out of season 3. The Bohman narrative is pretty cliche and played and it doesn’t have quite as many opportunities for intimate character moments as I’d like. Yusaku isn’t gonna, y’know, open up about his trauma to Bohman during the final duel.

A forced duel between Soulburner and Playmaker, in a similar vein to the Kusanagi duel, could open that door and bring them closer together as well. It’d be nice to naturally integrate Takeru in the story a bit more, too.

[thesevenseraphs]

Bungie Weekly Update - 2/21/19

This week at Bungie, the Drifter is preparing for a turn to lead the next season.

We’re nearing the end of Season of the Forge. Guardians have plundered the Black Armory of its secrets and weapons. Shaxx hosted Crimson Days and Lord Saladin is watching over the final Iron Banner of the season. Before the Drifter takes center stage, we’ll be hosting a Raid-Along livestream featuring Scourge of the Past. If you’ve ever wanted to know what it’s like to build a raid from the ground up, this is your chance to peek behind the curtains here at Bungie.

Scourge of the Past Raid Along

Date: Tuesday, February 26

Time: 10 AM–12 PM PST

Watch: Twitch.tv/Bungie

Members of the Raid Test team will be fighting the good fight, as designers, artists, producers and more lend commentary on taking an idea and creating the greatest challenge our game has to offer.

Alright, Alright, Alright…

To get Gambit primed for the Season of the Drifter, we have been working on some Quality of Life improvements We’re changing the way this little game is played, based on our own experience as players and a lot of feedback that we’ve collected since Forsaken launched. Today, Senior Designer Robbie Stevens is speaking on behalf of the team to take us through the changes you can expect on March 5.

Robbie: As we build on the Gambit theme in Season of the Drifter, we want to make sure to address some of the top feedback items for the base activity. Below is a sneak-peak of changes we’ve made based on the community’s feedback. Expect more details and additional quality-of-life changes for Gambit when Season of the Drifter drops on March 5.

Changed the third round of Gambit to a Primeval rush sudden death. This will speed up Gambit matches overall and add a change of pace to the final round.

Overhauled how we choose the invader spawn location and increased the number of invader spawn points for each map. This should greatly reduce the chances of spawning very near or in direct line of sight of an enemy Guardian.

Implemented Idle Protection which means that players that remain dormant for too long will not receive end-of-match rewards or Infamy points.

The Triumph “Light vs. Light” can now be progressed by killing any Guardian using a Super, not just invaders. This makes attaining the Dredgen title a less daunting task.

Adjustments to Blocker types by deposit tier:

Small Blocker = Taken Goblin with less health than the previous Phalanx.

Medium Blocker = Taken Captain with more health than the previous Knight.

Large Blocker = Taken Knight with more health than the previous Ogre.

These changes arrive with the Season of the Drifter. To get you ready for the change in seasons, we’re enabling Triple Infamy for the final week of Season of the Forge.

Triple Infamy

Start: 2/26/2019, 9 AM PST

End: 3/5/2019 

Are you looking to become a Dredgen and impress the Drifter? Or maybe acquire a few weapons to round out your collection? Wins, losses, and bounties will all reward you with increased Infamy throughout the week.

Back to the Sandbox

Alongside the Gambit quality-of-life changes, our Sandbox Team will be fine-tuning some weapon archetypes to refresh the gameplay experience in Destiny 2. The following is a quick preview of some changes coming with Destiny Update 2.2.0, with developer commentary from Sandbox Designer Victor Anderson:

Linear Fusion Rifles

These Energy weapons have dominated Gambit for quite some time. First came Sleeper Simulant. Then came the Queenbreaker. We’ve made them less forgiving so we can enjoy a change of pace.

Linear Fusion Rifle aim-assist values will receive an adjustment to reduce effectiveness at very long ranges.

While Queenbreaker has high aim-assist values by default, we discovered an issue where it was not honoring aim-assist values that applied to other Linear Fusion Rifles of the same archetype. This resulted in Queenbreaker having over double the intended aim assist.

Linear Fusion Rifles will receive a 10% damage increase in PvE to compensate for the above changes.

Shotguns

In Season of the Drifter, we’re making a few changes to rapid-fire Shotguns, and the Full Auto perk. We're doing this for a few reasons, one of them being that the Full Auto perk feels far too important to Shotguns in PvE. This perk effectively doubles the damage output of any given Shotgun due to the rate of fire increase.

While we believe it is important to have useful perks on your weapons, the efficacy of this was so impactful that rapid-fire Shotguns became the only Shotguns worth considering for PvE. When the following changes release in Season of the Drifter, we hope you might be inspired to equip an aggressive Shotgun or maybe even take a slug Shotgun for a spin in a PvE activity.

Shotguns will receive a damage multiplier in PvE activities, effectively doubling their damage.

The Legend of Acrius is an exception to this.

Full Auto rate-of-fire bonus for Shotguns is now +10%, down from +100%.

In addition, it no longer increases the Shotgun pellet spread.

Default rate-of-fire values for have also shifted:

Aggressives are 55 RPM, up from 45 RPM

Precisions are 70 RPM, up from 55 RPM

Lightweights are 80 RPM (they were erroneously stated to be 90 RPM previously)

Rapid-Fire 140 RPM, down from 200 RPM (they were previously natively 100 RPM, but due to the intrinsic full auto, actually had 200 RPM)

Also reduced base damage for Shotguns across the board to align with their new rates of fire on a per sub-archetype basis.

Ammo reserves for Shotguns were re-evaluated due to the increased efficiency of having more damage per shot.

We also took the opportunity to slightly adjust Shotguns for the Crucible. While Shotguns will remain effective in the Crucible, we have toned down the range at which Shotguns could secure a one-shot kill.

Additionally, the team has some information regarding balance changes for the One-Eyed Mask Exotic, which will release with Update 2.2.0:

One-Eyed Mask

In various combat situations, One-Eyed Mask has been too effective, and has become a non-choice Exotic for Titans in PvP environments. After implementing the following changes, we believe the Exotic will still be potent if used well, but there will be more opportunities to counter it.

The duration of the Mark of Vengeance has been reduced from 15 seconds to 8 seconds

The way players refill health after a successful kill has changed. Before, it restored all of your health and the overshield refilled over time. Now, the health refills over time alongside the overshield. This should give a leg up when encountering situations where multiple people are fighting one person with the One-Eyed Mask equipped.

Vengeance will no longer trigger for players in Super. This was making Supers far too potent.

A new season means a new reality in combat. Keep up the chatter, and we’ll keep curating the Sandbox so that Destiny adapts to the way you play!

They’ll Be Your Guide

Navigating the various destinations of Destiny can sometimes be difficult, whether a snag occurs when following a quest line or an enemy fails to appear in the world. The Player Support Team is here to shine a light on the right path forward so you can get you to the loot you’ve been hunting.

This is their report.

Destiny 2 Update 2.2.0 Resolved Issues Preview – Part 2

Following the conversation from last week, here’s the second batch of player-impacting issues that we expect to be resolved with Update 2.2.0 in early March.

“Mint Condition” Triumph: The “Mint Condition” Triumph is not unlocking.

“Forged in Fire” Triumph: The “Forged in Fire” Triumph is not unlocking.

“Master Smith” Triumph: The “Master Smith” Triumph is not updating for Rare research frame completions.

“Calculated Trajectory” Triumph: The “Calculated Trajectory” Triumph and medal do not trigger in Iron Banner.

“The Eternal Return” Emblem: The emblem “The Eternal Return” is not updating each time players conquer Dûl Incaru in the Dreaming City.

“Senior Recruiter” Emblem: The emblem “Senior Recruiter” is not updating for Refer-a-Friend referral completions.

“Black Armory Devotee” Bounty: The “Black Armory Devotee” bounty does not progress when using non-frame Black Armory weapons.

Check back next week for our third and final Resolved Issues Preview for Update 2.2.0. For the full Destiny 2 Update 2.2.0 patch notes when they are available, players should monitor our Updates page.

Relics of the Golden Age

Also resolved in Update 2.2.0 is an issue that has caused confusion regarding the “Relics of the Golden Age” quest for Sturm. Currently, one of the steps in this quest directs players to “decrypt” five Legendary engrams and one Exotic engram. In Update 2.2.0, this quest description will update to direct players to “pick up” these engrams, which aligns with Year 2 world-drop engram behavior.

To set the correct expectations, here are special cases that players should be aware of when completing this step:

Prime Engrams do not count toward this quest step.

Vendor rank-up rewards and Cryparch-purchased engrams do not count toward this quest step.

Fated Engrams and direct-purchase Exotics from Xûr do not count toward this quest step.

Engrams left in activities that recover to postmaster do not count toward this quest step.

Year 1-style Legendary and Exotic engrams that slot into players’ inventories and require manual decryption do not count toward this step. These are very rare, but are still available from some sources.

As always, players who encounter gameplay issues should report them to the #Help forum.

[jay-turbo-edition]

Video game reviews for the Week of 4/8/2019

Hey All, First time really writing reviews. I wrote these and put em on another forum for games and was told I could probably get a better audience here; so here I am! I’ll be posting short reviews of games and comics here, generally whatever I finished within that week. So I hope you all enjoy! I’ll be posting Video game reviews every Monday and comics reviews every Friday. This post is just a repost of the original reviews I had done on another website for this week, just to have everything in one place. Also before I forgot here is the grading scale I generally go by. Anyway without wasting anymore of your time lets jump in!

Garfield Kart

Starting off strong with everyone's favorite kart racing meme, Garfield Kart. Honestly this game felt like the stuff I used to make in Unreal engine when I was in high school; meaning that its just not really fun to play. The driving overall just kinda sucks  and some important aspects like drifting either don't always work or sometimes it just inverts for no reason. Though I will say this could just be because I had to use the keyboard controls, since the game refused to acknowledge my controller at all, and they might not have been set up properly. The game also has you do a tutorial before you start actually playing it and it covered all the wrong things in my opinion. It teaches you that you can move forward, how to use items, etc. What it doesn't teach you about however is the bonus parts and such that you can put on your vehicle before starting races. Considering these help you do better I feel like that might have been slightly more important than knowing that the forward arrow key is what makes you move forward. Lastly, and this is mostly a nitpick, but the starting roster of characters is just Garfield and Jon. Like seriously who would want to play as Jon? As unfun as this game was for me, it gave my friends and I this review to laugh about so it can't be all bad. 2/10.

Power Rangers Battle For The Grid

I love fighting games, and generally I don't ask for much out of them. Just that they're fun, have a decent roster, and are 60 FPS constantly. Power Rangers manages to have surprisingly fun 3v3 gameplay that feels pretty fluid while also being pretty unique combo wise. The game seems to have taken heavy inspiration from previous 3v3 fighters such as MvC3, SKullgirls, and DBFZ in its systems and certain attacks; and while that is normally pretty good some things don't mess all too well. The giant robot hand attacks being a prime example of something that doesn't mess with the rest of the gameplay that well. Overall gameplay is great, the only thing holding it back is the roster. The game launched with 9 characters. In a 3v3 fighter that's almost nothing. While each character feels unique it doesn't exactly bring a lot to the table when you're seeing 1/3 of the roster every match. I will say that as of the time of me writing this the studio making the game have stated that they'll be adding in free characters alongside the season pass, so maybe in about 6 months to a year we'll have a lot better of a roster. Game runs at 60 FPS consistently and doesn't seem to have any frame drops from what I played of it. So that's solid at least. 5.5/10

Feather

Feather was a game I saw randomly on a post on r/nintendo about games coming out this month and honestly it was pretty fun. its a flight simulator where you play as a bird and explore this little island. There's no story and there's no real direction to it, you're just taught how to fly and told to explore. Its honestly really relaxing. The flying feels good and its cool finding new little hidden caves and such on the island. There's also glowing rings scattered about which I'm not quite sure what they do but I know that they way they're set up makes for some fun little flying challenges. The music is also pretty solid and relaxing as well. It also lets you fly with friends apparently if someone else you know picks it up. Overall its just a fun little relaxing flight sim. 7/10

Castle Crashers Remastered

The original is a game that I've gone back to numerous times since I got the game back in 2010, and Castle Crashers remastered is just more of the same. This isn't a bad thing though. My brother bought  it early last week to play with a few of his friends who had never bought the game before the remaster, and after he was done playing with them the two of us had a good time just playing through the game all over again. Some changes made are definitely nice, such as the Pink knight and Blacksmith being default characters to go along with the other knights. The art style seems to all be touched up and just generally smoother, which is fine by me since it keeps the game looking as good as I remember it being when I was 11. Bottom line on this one is, its Castle Crashers. If you liked it before you'll like it now; and if you've never played it before definitely check it out. 7.5/10 ~~please give us a sequel behemoth~~

Yoshi's Crafted World

Last game on the list for this week, and I will say its definitely a good one. I generally don't care about graphics all that much because for me fun > all else; but Yoshi's crafted World's aesthetic is just so damn cool. I love all the clever little crafts used in game to make up each part of the world, a lot of them feel and look like things you could make in real life and I just think that's really awesome. The gameplay for the most part is pretty solid as well. You can now free aim egg shots which is a great improvement over past yoshi games. Finding the flowers needed to unlock the next area is pretty easy for the most part as well. Speaking of, I like the semi freedom this game's map gives. You're able to to choose which area you want go after first after you finish the first island of the story. This is pretty cool because it let me go towards the areas I was most interested in like the Ice land and the ninja place before going to places I wasn't as excited for like the desert. The boss designs were all pretty solid and clever as well, with the final boss of the story being the best by far.  Coop play was a bit jank however, with it automatically making you piggyback on to the other player if you ran into them on accident. Other than this the only complaint that I had was that the music wasn't really that good. Overall solid 8/10 game.

Anyway that’s pretty much everything for this week, let me know what you all think and have a good night everyone!

[clumsyprophet]

Cinderella Phenomenon as Tarots

Welcome, welcome!

So, as the title said, this is an analysis that attempts to link each Arcana to someone (or something) from Cinderella Phenomenon. Why? Well...I like tarots, I like Cinderella Phenomenon and I like rambling, in no particular order. It's not an original idea by any stretch of the word 'original': pretty much every fandom has done it, but it's still an interesting analysis to make! The Arcana are archetypes, something ancient and universal...and their message can be found basically everywhere, assuming you are willing to reflect a bit to notice the links.

I'm not an expert Tarot reader (or scholar) by all means, so I'm more than willing to hear critiques, suggestions and whatever you think might improve my analysis. Also, I would definitely not object if someone wanted to use this as a base to draw the deck/an Arcana: if you want to go ahead, this is not private property, it’s just something I made for fun and then decided to share.

With that being said, some final notes:

I am only considering the Major Arcana...it would be nice to have a full deck, but I'm afraid there's not enough material to fill 56 cards in addition to the 22 described below.

I tried to include all named characters without repeating them. Lucette is an exception, since she appears from 2 to 4 cards...but she's the protagonist, so that's kinda expected. Another exception is Rumpel's ex (which doesn’t appear), a bit because I forgot about her and a bit because when I remembered she still didn't fit anywhere. Village man #2, Child #1 and their faceless friends are also not included, for rather obvious reasons.

This will contain SPOILERS, no way around that. So, if you haven’t finished the VN what are you waiting for, go and finish it read at your own risk.

So, without further ado, let’s start!

THE FOOL

Lucette (riches to rags version) / Lucette (w/ Mr Broom)

Ah, the Fool, number 0 (or XXII) of the deck, the child, the wanderer, the...well, fool. This card is a card of beginnings, of a journey that is about to start with all the wonders and perils (often dictated by inexperience) that such an adventure brings by default. So, who else other than the Ice princess, who has just woken up having lost everything, can represent this card? While she lacks the enthusiasm the fool usually overflows with there's no denying that she has a long journey in front of her, one full with danger but promising a shining happy ending. Hopefully...have you seen how easy is to get bad ends?! *Ahem* Anyway...another option would be having the scene where Lucette is swept away by Mr Broom...same reasoning (journey just started) with an emphasis on the 'Fool' part of the Arcana.

THE MAGICIAN

Waltz

...I swear not all the cards I chose are this literal. Ahem...either way, the Magician is a card of potential applied, will shaping reality as the Magician desires, the male (or active) principle of creation, the Yang to the High Priestess Yin. Also, even if I'm rather reluctant to bind powerful cards such as the Major Arcana to rather mundane elements (but hey, someone does) the Magician can represent a young, willful man. So...well, Waltz. He's even a witch, what more can you wish for.

THE HIGH PRIESTESS

Delora

As I mentioned above, the High Priestess is the counterpart to the Magician: where the Magician is a willful, active force of reshaping reality the High Priestess is an intuitive caretaker of hidden secrets and intimate knowledge of the universe. So, why Delora, you ask? The High Priestess knows, but she will reveal only when the time is right, when you are ready to accept the truth she is offering. I considered Parfait for this card, but I believe Delora fits better (and we have the nice symmetry of two witches, one male and one female, holding the complementary positions of Magician and High Priestess).

THE EMPRESS

Ophelia

The Empress is a feminine card like the High Priestess but, unlike the third Arcana, the aspect she focuses on is not intimate, intuitive knowledge but rather 'motherhood': creation and nurturing. She is Mother Earth, offering to her children endless affection and sustenance, forgiving their slights when they hurt her because her love is just so deep. So, well, Ophelia might be a Queen and not an Empress, but she has all the other characteristics of this Arcana.

THE EMPEROR

King Genaro

...Okay, maybe quite a lot of cards are rather literal, but it's not my fault they fit so well. The Emperor is the Father to the Empress Mother, to no one's surprise: he loves his children no less than the Empress, but the gift he gives are rather different. The Emperor is a card of unbreakable will, like the Magician, but this time applied not through creation but through laws. He is strict and can appear, at times, rational and cold, but that's his way of protecting his children...and have no doubt, he will protect them. He wields power, but he will never be corrupted by it. So, well, here we are, our beloved King.

THE HIEROPHANT

Alcaster

The Hierophant, much like the Emperor, is an Arcana of law and order. Unlike the Emperor, however, his domain is far more focused on the society as a whole, his objective being upholding a system of belief and/or traditions. If that system is fair, just and peaceful then good, if it's not...well, you get Alcaster and his plans for a 'better' Angielle.

THE LOVERS

...Too many to count, TBH

Aight, this is one easy card to explain, since it's exactly what it says on the tin: an union (90% of the time a romantic one) between two persons, working harmoniously together towards a goal. Said goal can be living together, bettering themselves...you name it. Sometimes it's a reminder to choose between two persons, but the usual meaning it's the first one I explained. The problem with this card it's that there are simply too many couples that can fit even discarding my first idea, Garlan and Jurien, since they are already taken for another Arcana. Candidates are Viorica and her fiancee, or Lucette in her Evermore outfit framed in a way that makes ambiguous who the LI is. No shipping wars, thank you.

THE CHARIOT

Rod

The Chariot is an Arcana of emotional control. Much like the driver depicted in all decks is guiding the horses in front of them to lead them to their destination, a person blessed by the Chariot will (ideally) guide their emotions without suppressing them but instead using their tumultuous strength to reach their goals. Of course, this card could also means that you are controlling your emotions too much...don't look at me like that, I never said the Arcana have only a favourable meaning. So...well, Prince Rod, case closed.

STRENGTH

Fritz

Much like the Chariot, the Strength is a card dealing with controlling oneself. With quiet determination and unwavering patience most cards depicts a maiden taming a lion, animal representing the wildest, darkest side of her. If you aren't getting what I'm implying go back playing the game, because seriously, just replace the lion with a wolf and the symbolism becomes as subtle as a punch on the nose. Fritz, full stop.

THE HERMIT

Hans Grimm

I'll admit it, this was an hard Arcana to assign, but I believe I found a rather nice match. The Hermit represents, unsurprisingly, the need for a withdrawal from the world. Maybe it's because you need to reflect alone on your life...or maybe because you feel extremely guilty because your stories (unwillingly) caused a war and countless death, who can say!

THE WHEEL OF FORTUNE

You

Yes, you read that right: you (the player) are the Wheel of Fortune. Chances, situations shifting, choices with uncertain outcome: all are the domain of the Wheel. You are fate, you are the force that sways the path of the Fool, you are, in the end, the difference between a bad and a happy ending. Sadly, it's a bit hard to represent 'the player' in a tarot, so I'm proposing the closer thing that can be easily put down in visual terms: a stained glass wheel (or, well, circular window if you want) with all the routes' symbols (referencing the main menu), maybe with Lucette's slippers in the middle, to represent the biggest choice a player makes while playing (that is, which route will they follow).

JUSTICE

Jurien and Garlan

Remember when I said that I considered our favourite knight couple for the Lovers, but in the end I changed my mind? That's because they equally fit the Justice...and no one else does fit this Arcana like them. Justice is the herald of Judgment, a reminder that Karma (not, not him) exists and will reward you as you deserve. Alcaster, dear, thought you could get away with your coup? Bitch, please! Also, the Justice can represent a fair and just attitude, doing the right thing no matter what...well, I don't need to say anything else, right? That's our noble knights, right there.

THE HANGED MAN

Rumpel

The Hanged Man, like everybody who has some knowledge of Tarots symbolism will tell you, is Odin, hanging upside down from the branches of Yggrdrasil so he could gain the knowledge of Runes. Rumpel and his quest for knowledge (well, memory, but it's still some form of knowledge) fit nicely. The Hanged Man also warns us that in order to gain something it's often necessary to give up something else: in our case, give away his old habits that ruined him so he can gain a true happy ending.

DEATH

Parfait (end of Waltz' route)

Death is, probably, the most misunderstood card of the whole deck, though I have to admit lately its true meaning has become more and more known. Death is a card of endings and change (and, unlike the Hanged Man, this change is often forced instead of voluntary), but with the promise of a new beginning. Death is winter, with the implicit promise of a new spring. While Parfait dies at the end of Waltz' route, hope is still alive: her niece will uphold her legacy and a new era will be born, one hopefully devoid of the hate that destroyed the last one. It's sad, to see her go, but she has no more regrets, her story ended: now it's time for a new tale to be told.

TEMPERANCE

Annice

Temperance is, by definition, a card about balance and restraint. What does that mean, you ask? Well...other than the obvious meanings, it's a card that encourages solving conflicts with grace and diplomacy. Life will slap you hard in the face (life, and people), but it's (usually) not a good reason to fly off the handle. Keep your wits with you, stay calm, breathe: you will find a way to go on. Don't bend backwards, of course, but do try to let hatred flow away like water in a stream. I have to admit, I had a lot of trouble with this card...then I thought about Annice. True, she can't remember Lucette firing her for something she didn't do (thus she has no reasons to 'fly off the handle'), but she is still a composed, hard working girl. Also, I considered the Lucis and the Tenebrarum for this card (emphasizing the whole 'balance' aspect)...but, in the end, they got roped as candidates for another Arcana (more about that later!) and besides, I wanted Annice to be somewhere in the deck, too.

THE DEVIL

Varg

The Devil is, in short, a powerful reminder of our dark side. Our inner desires, our negative: the Devil appearing in a reading often means that, right now, your worst enemy is none other than yourself. With that being said, this is still part of you and you have to accept it: both stubbornly ignoring your dark side or being completely dominated by it are harmful; that's the message of the Devil. So...that's literally our wolf man, here.

THE TOWER

Hildyr

The Tower is known as the card of ruin and, to be honest, this reputation is often well deserved: like a lighting bolt striking a previously (apparently) intact tower, this Arcana warns about sudden, violent changes often revealing flawed bases. Death can be seen as the natural conclusion of a situation: maybe the ending itself was rather sudden, but there were very clear signals about the outcome...not the Tower. Mind you, this change can be a positive one (and since it tends to let everyone see how flawed the previous status quo was it's not entirely harmful), but it's sure shocking! Now, with that being said, if Hildyr and her resurrection is not a lightning bolt destroying the apparent peace in Angielle I don't know what that is!

THE STAR

Emelaigne

The Star is one timid Arcana, it's message one of quiet optimism but boy how much strength can the maiden of the Star bring! Thanks to her strong heart and her unwavering hope she can walk through the night unharmed: maybe she will stumble, from time to time, but she will never give up. She will face darkness both external and internal but she will still go forward, her heart unwilling to even just consider the idea of giving up. Even if Emelaigne's trust in herself is far lower than the Star would suggest her heart and faith in others make her an almost perfect fit for this Arcana.

THE MOON

Mythros

The Moon is a card of illusions. Things aren't like they appear, maybe because someone is pulling wool over your eyes or even because you are doing it, unwilling to see the truth. Still...never trust what you are seeing in the light of the Moon, because it's distorting reality. Of all the character, Mythros immediately comes to mind: he fooled the entire court for years and played Lucette like a fiddle in Fritz' route...with disastrous results (for Angielle. His plan was rather successful). He's not the only manipulative character, but he's surely the one who has 'deception' as his whole modus operandi.

THE SUN

Karma

You survived Death, the Devil, the Tower, you endured the deception of the Moon...but you have won. This is a card of victory, and surely not a quiet one! Forget the timid light of the Star...the Sun is full of life and confidence (someone may say full of himself...not entirely wrong, I'd respond), blazing in the sky for all to see. Even reversed this card promises that setbacks are only temporary, no matter how bad things look. After all the night seemed to be dark and full of terrors (cit.), but look at the sky now! So, Karma. Yep.

JUDGMENT

Lucette (breaking the curse)

The Justice warned you that a reckoning would not be postponed indefinitely (cit.)...and now the moment has come. You are about  to reap what you have sown, buddy. So, if you are a bad guy Karma is about to kick your ass (no, not that Karma. ...Maybe? I mean, Karma kicks a lot of ass)...but what if your efforts were put into, say, being a better person? Well, your reward is going to be great indeed! Lucette is no longer the Fool she was at the beginning of the journey: through sacrifice and pain she has earned an happy ending.

THE WORLD

The Lucis and the Tenebrarum, in harmony / Lucette (Queen)

The World is, like the Sun, a card of victory. The journey has ended and you have found whatever you were searching for: sure, you will probably depart again soon, but for now you are complete. This equilibrium is not the unstable one we saw being destroyed in the Tower: it's an hard fought victory that is destined to last. Bask in the joy of the World, accept its message of harmony: you deserve the prize, after all you did to obtain it. With that being said...I can't still decide which one of the two proposals I like more: both are the symbol of the end of Hildyr's reign of terror and generally a big fat 'CONGRATULATIONS, YOU ARE GREAT', but other than that...eh. I'm slightly leaning towards the Crystal, to represent in the deck that important part of the story, but I would not object to either choice.

[tribow]

So I watched Season 1 of The Seven Deadly Sins

I'm actually watching a popular anime this time! Weird right?

The Seven Deadly Sins is a shounen set in a fantasy world with european inspirations. The Seven Deadly Sins are a powerful group of knights that were framed for the murder of an important political figure as well as dozens of holy knights. The sins split up and are either in hiding, captured, or minding their own business I guess.

The story follows Meliodas; the leader of the sins who also has 10 years of memory loss since the incident he was framed for, and Elizabeth; the princess of the kingdom whose goal is too regroup the Sins and stop the evil holy knights from taking over the kingdom.

I hate to say this despite enjoying the show, but this anime is bad. There are way too many plot contrivances, the world building is confusing, the dramatic tension is near non-existant, the pacing falls over itself, and the main cast that is the Seven Deadly Sins aren't even interesting characters.

This is mostly because each Sin's character arc and plot threads already happened. They don't change in any significant way. What becomes important is how the Sins affect the characters around them. Good news is, the anime does a great job with most of these characters.

Easily the best part of this anime is seeing different holy knights act against the Sins. Some are good people working under a corrupt system, some are genuinely horrible people who need to be stopped, and some fall in a moral grey area and it's fun to see which way they might swing.

This show has a really good sense of just being fun as well. There's a lot of cool moments and the characters have some interesting abilities to think about. The interactions between these immensely powerful characters can only be described as fun.

The drawback is what I mentioned earlier. There's no dramatic tension. The Sins are crazy powerful just by default and they really feel unbeatable no matter the situation. Time and time again the anime tries to make it seem like they'll lose, but it does nothing to make me believe that they actually CAN lose. A lot of fights just leave me saying, "Huh, I guess they can do that I guess," for EVERY fight. There's no reason given, I just have to accept that they can. The same goes for the world building. I just have to accept something exists because...well because it does.

From a storytelling perspective, this anime falls apart so hard and I'm super worried for the next seasons because of it. I really don't see how it can improve based on where it left off at season 1 so I have a bad feeling will just be downhill from there. I will be returning to watch season 2 at some point. This show does have the potential to turn the bad storytelling around and become a lot better. Especially if it manages to wrap up old plotlines to open up new ones.

Here's to hoping it actually ends up that way

[fridge-reviews]

Star Wars: Republic Commando

Developer: Lucasarts Publisher: Lucasarts, Lucasfilm, Disney Interactive Rrp: £6.99 (Steam and Humblebundle) £8.09 (Gog.com) Released: 1st March 2005 Available on: Steam, Gog.com and Humblebundle Played Using: Mouse and Keyboard A long long time ago, in a galaxy far away blah, blah, blah, Star Wars, Star Wars, Star Wars. Clones, Empire, Rebels, Robots. Explosions, stupid mesa guy, lightsabres, Sith, Jedi, Wookies...

I think its fair to say that I don't need to explain the basic concept of what Star Wars is. I mean they have a metric ton of games, movies, series, books, comics, toys and all sorts of other stuff and that’s without going into the old expanded universe. There is some debate as to whether this game is actually part of the canon of the Star Wars universe, so if that’s important to you then you'll have to make your own minds up. Either way the events of this game happen bit before and during Star Wars: Episode two. The game itself is a team based first person shooter, in which you control a squad of four (including yourself) clone commandos. Even though these commandos are all cloned from the same person, each member has their own specialisation and personality. Your team is known as Delta Squad and you in particular take on the role of Delta RC-1138 (otherwise known as 38 or Boss).

Unfortunately I have to start off with a negative if only because its the first thing you come across when you boot the game up. I never thought I'd have to say this about any major release game but its easier to navigate the main menu (which is a dull as sin, seriously a grey background) with the keyboard due to the in menu mouse being insanely fast. Turning down the sensitivity does help a lot but it also causes the in game mouse movement to also slow down, meaning you have to turn it right back up again afterward. The HUD is shown as part of your helmet by default, you can choose to disable the helmet view in the options menu if you so wish. Personally I didn't find that the helmet got in the way but I know some people who took issue with it.

The game is separated into missions which in turn are split off into small levels that essentially act as corridors. Each missions structure tends to pretty simple and similar, get to a certain point, blow something up and escape. Of course while you attempt to complete your mission you'll be set upon by droids and other such enemies. Most of these tend to be fodder and easily dispatched but mixed among them are more elite units that generally need the whole squad to concentrate fire on to defeat. They can be defeated without issuing the 'concentrate fire' order but it takes much longer and usually you'll find that a few of your commandos have fallen in the process. As I just briefly mentioned above you can issue orders to your fellow commandos. These come in two flavours, the contextual 'blow this up / concentrate fire' or the general orders like regrouping and securing a position. If you choose not to issue any orders (other than those necessary to progress) and treat the game as an ordinary shooter you'll find the game to be much more difficult and the commandos will seem somewhat stupid, they'll eventually get the job done but they'll be terribly inefficient and will likely need to be brought back to full health after any large fight. If you instruct them correctly though they can be a real force to be reckoned with taking down large swaths of enemies. It does mean you as the commander have to have a level of situation awareness though.

If a commando goes down during a fight you can send another commando to put him back on his feet or you can do it yourself. Once they're on there feet they'll limp around and fight as best they can until they find or are order to use a healing station. I found that the combat itself felt a bit lacklustre, all the weapons seemed to lack any real 'kick' or sense of weight. Since this is basically all you'll be doing through the game its a rather large problem and its not one that I found I could get over.

This game shows its age graphically the worlds look quite angular and blocky and the textures are clearly fairly low resolution, at least compared to whats around now. All of that could be forgiven though but for some reason the games frame rate really takes a dive during combat. I don't feel that its due to any limitation on my system... I mean I can play most modern games on the high graphical settings which makes me think that this is a problem with the game itself. The game also doesn't have a setting for 1080p. I'm sure this is largely due to the games age but it does mean that on the highest resolution the game has a large vertical black bars on either side of the screen. One thing this game has done is remove my rose tinted glasses. I remember this game so differently, and feeling much more open. Now I can see it for what it is, its a decent squad shooter, not amazing but also not terrible. The levels are linear as all hell and the gameplay loop does get a bit tedious after a while. If this appeals to you perhaps try; Star Wars: Dark Forces Star Wars: Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight Brothers in Arms: The Road to Hill 30

[4colorrebellion]

Review-In-Progress: Yakuza 0

The Yakuza series is always one that has fascinated me, but for some reason, I had never actually sat down and played any of the games. This distinctly Japanese take on Grand Theft Auto has always hovered on the periphery of my awareness as something that I was pretty sure I would enjoy, but until recently, it was just one of those series where each new entry arrived at a bad time.

When SEGA reached out and offered up a copy of their newest entry, Yakuza 0, I was thrilled to finally give the series a fair try. Read on for my impressions of the first three chapters.

I should preface the following with one disclaimer - I have not finished the game. This is a long game. I could easily see sinking 70 or 80 hours into it. Since I have a full time job, I haven’t had time to finish this off in the two weeks that I’ve been playing it. Right now, I am fifteen hours into the game, and in the third chapter (out of 10). With the game coming out in a few days, I thought that I should share my impressions for those of you thinking about picking it up.

The newest game, Yakuza 0, is a prequel to the five mainline entries in the series. Set in the late 1980s, the story follows two characters - Kiryu Kazama and Majima Goro - who have, for various reasons, found themselves drawn into a power struggle over a vacant lot in Tokyo. The story swaps back and forth between Kiryu - who has been framed for murder and ousted from the Yakuza - and Majima - who has been exiled to Osaka for his role in an earlier assassination.

The story of Yakuza 0 is not exactly going to win any literature awards, but like a great action movie, it really sucks you in. Every bit of the writing in Yakuza, from the central plot to the dialogue, is played completely straight. Yet, at the same time, there is this surreal insanity to it. The story is over-the-top - hell, every interaction is kind of over-the-top - and you just have to smile at the madcap machismo of it all. 

Whether it is Kiryu - on his knees in the rain, imploring his adoptive father to induct him into the Yakuza - or Majima - dodging punches from a drunken cabaret patron while playing the role of the doting, obedient waiter - I love every melodramatic exploit that these characters get into. They’re these ridiculous tough guys, and I really want them to succeed. I want to be them. Hell, I’d settle for being half as cool as them.  

Where the writing really shines is in the side stories. Yakuza 0 has two different cities that you can explore - the Kamurocho neighborhood of Tokyo and the Sotenbori neighborhood of Osaka. As you wander around these two cities, you end up stumbling into the lives of the locals. Sometimes, this is indirect - you overhear a rumor about an event going on in another part of town, and can wander over to check it out. Sometimes this is quite direct - somebody sees you as their knight in shining armor. These quick optional quests offer welcome breaks from the central storyline, and do a great job of drawing you into the world of the game. 

To give an example, as I walked by a restaurant, a TV crew begged me to stand in for their missing producer. The producer had quit after getting tired of the endless demands from the hard-assed director. As Kiryu, I had to pretend to know my stuff long enough for filming to complete. In the end, the show went off without a hitch - until the previous producer and his buddies showed up to beat the tar out of the director. Fortunately for him, they picked a fight with the wrong mobster. In the end, the sobbing director confessed that he just wanted the entire crew to understand his passion

Insane, right? Also, completely awesome. The side stories even build on each other over time. My friendship with the director ended up leading to a job protecting the “Prince of Pop” from.. Well, you’ve probably seen the video. 

The characters you meet in these stories, and the interactions you have with them, really make these cities come to life. You can even befriend a number of characters, and learn their stories as you stop and interact with them. 

Speaking of characters. If this scene does not convince you to play this game, nothing will.

The art direction also does a great job of bringing these cities to life. Although Yakuza 0 is not going to blow anybody away on a technical level - it was released in Japan on both the PS3 and PS4 - the sheer attention to detail that has gone into every nook and cranny leaves a great impression. The streets of Kamurocho are dense with detail - loaded with endless neon signs, pay phones, and storefronts. Just like any Japanese city, the streets of Kamurocho and Sotenbori are densely packed with people, businesses, and twisty back alleys to get lost in. You are almost hit with sensory overload, and it is all a great feast for the eyes. 

To really see what I mean, just enter one of the many convenience stores dotting Kamurocho. I have never seen instant noodles rendered so lovingly in my life, and I cannot think of another game where I can enter a store and see such a variety of items at once, at such a level of fidelity. It’s fun to enter buildings just for the “virtual Japan” experience. 

That attention to detail extends to the open-world gameplay. The sheer number of things you can do in the game is staggering. You can go to bars and play darts or pool, you can go bowling, you can hang out in Mahjong parlors. There are two entirely different rhythm games - representing karaoke and disco dancing. You can go to SEGA-branded arcades and play actual arcade games, such as Outrun, or collect stuffed animals from the crane machine. The list of minigames goes on and on, and you could easily put hours into them. 

There are even alternate modes on many of the games. For example, you can either play a standard game of billiards, or you can play “Puzzle Pool”, where you are presented with particular arrangements of balls and tasked with sinking the target in one shot. 

Many of these minigames are quite good. I’ve enjoyed bowling, pool, and darts the most so far. Actually, darts is another case where the attention to detail is fascinating. You go to a bar to play, and other patrons will come and challenge you to a match. If you win, they usually want a rematch - with a round of drinks in between. Yakuza 0 actually models drunkenness in the darts minigame! The more you drink, the more your vision blurs and your aim is affected. Again, I just can’t stop marveling at the endless little details that the developers have packed into this game.

If those weren’t enough, you can also build up business and real estate empires on the side. I haven’t delved into business management just yet, but I’m pretty sure it’ll be just as addictive as the other minigames. 

Of course, the minigames aren’t the main focus of your adventure - those are the battles. At its heart, Yakuza 0 is a kung-fu crime flick, and you’ll spend a lot of time beating the hell out of an endless procession of goons, punks, and other ne’er-do-wells. At story-mandated points, or as you wander the cities, you’ll be ambushed by a bunch of guys and have to defeat them to move on - almost like a JRPG, but with more punching and fewer menus. The basic fighting system is relatively simple. You have a light attack, a heavy attack, and a grapple. You can also block moves. From these basic building blocks, you string together combos. You can also use objects in your environment as make-shift weapons, or equip more deadly weapons that you buy from merchants. All weapons have limited durability, so you have to manage their use carefully. 

As you chain together attacks, your heat gauge builds up. Once it reaches a high enough level, you can unleash brutal attacks. When I say brutal, I mean it. You smash faces into walls, stomp on heads, and break limbs with abandon. None of this is shockingly brutal - it all fits into the over-the-top aesthetic - but it can still make you cringe. 

Each character has three distinct fighting styles. Kiryu’s default is the “brawler” style - a balance between speed and brutality. He also has a “rush” style, based on boxing, that favors mobility and dodges. Finally, his “beast” style is slow, but devastatingly powerful. Majima’s default is the “thug” style, which acts as a balance between his “slugger” style - a weapon-heavy stance - and his “breaker” style - a speed-based style that makes use of dance moves.

You can switch between styles freely, and all of these styles have their place. If you are surrounded by enemies with weapons, the faster styles will allow you to avoid being hit. The heavier styles are needed to bring down the big guys. So far, I spend most of my time in the default balanced styles, but break into the others in special situations. The brawler style, in particular, just feels satisfying to use. 

Defeating enemies and playing minigames both earn you cash. This can, of course, be spent on items such as food or clothing. More importantly, cash can be spent on your moves. Each fighting style has a number of upgrades that you can purchase, arranged in a series of rings. The cost to upgrade increases dramatically between rings. For instance, abilities in the first ring cost 400,000 yen to purchase. Abilities in the second ring cost 2,000,000. Abilities in the third cost 30,000,000. The prices just keep increasing from there. If you want to master each fighting style, you are going to need a whole lot of dough.

After fifteen hours, I am hooked. I feel like I have only scratched the surface of what Yakuza 0 has to offer, but I can’t wait to get back in there and keep digging. If, like me, you’re curious about the series, Yakuza 0 feels like the perfect point to jump in. As a prequel, you do not need to know a thing about the characters or storyline to appreciate what the developers have crafted. Going in, I suspected that I would like these games - I just didn’t know that I would like Yakuza this much.

Yakuza 0 launches in North America on January 24th, for the PS4. 

[gta-5-cheats]

Sony KD-65A1 4K HDR OLED TV Review

New Post has been published on http://secondcovers.com/sony-kd-65a1-4k-hdr-oled-tv-review/

Sony KD-65A1 4K HDR OLED TV Review

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Sony’s legacy with TVs is legendary. Even back in the CRT days, Sony had established itself as a premium but reliable brand. Not to say that every Sony product is great, but even in India, people buy Sony products because they consider that they’re getting some peace of mind. That’s a pretty important factor when you’re putting down Rs. 4,64,900 for a new TV such as the new KD-65A1.

The hefty price is justified by two big reasons. The first is that this an OLED panel, which is still an expensive technology in 2017. That’s why you’ll only see OLED panels on flagship TVs, and also phones for that matter. The second reason for the price is that it’s a 65-inch panel. This might not seem like much considering how affordable 55-inch TVs have become, but the 55 to 65-inch jump is pretty significant, not just from a technological standpoint, but also in terms of how difficult they are to manufacture.

With that out of the way, what we have here today is Sony’s 2017 flagship TV in India – the very best it has to offer this year. It’s deceptively understated in its looks, especially when compared to the fancy stands and attachments that set Samsung’s QLED range apart. However, once you switch the TV on, you see exactly what you’re paying for.

  Design The Sony KD-65A1 is big, and impressive to look at. On the front, it has a thin frame and just a minimalist white indicator light at the bottom centre. There isn’t even any over-the-top branding. Looking at it sideways, the panel is extremely thin at just 88mm. Sony has made a pretty bold decision in going with a photo-frame-like desk stand, which naturally tilts the screen upwards at a 5-degree angle. It’s an odd decision that doesn’t suit all home viewing environments, because it requires a low surface. The stand has a purpose beyond keeping the TV upright – it also houses all the input and output ports. If you’re mounting this TV on a wall, the stand remains attached and folded in. This keeps the ports accessible, albeit with a bit of difficulty. Like with any other TV, you should sort out your cabling before mounting it to a wall.

Connectivity and remote The Sony KD-65A1 has four HDMI ports, all capable of handling 4K HDR input and one (HDMI 3) that also supports ARC (Audio Return Channel). There are also two USB ports, one being USB 2.0, and the other USB 3.0. You also get a single composite input jack, antenna terminal, headphones socket, and an optical audio output. Interestingly, there are no component inputs. Internet connectivity can be through the Ethernet port at the back, or using Wi-Fi 802.11ac. The TV also supports Bluetooth 4.1. Finally, to the left of the mount there’s another USB 2.0 port.

The remote is perhaps our biggest disappointment with the Sony A1. Not that there’s anything drastically wrong with it, but it’s a simple IR remote, not what we’d expect with a TV of this calibre. The only redeeming feature about it is that it has a button for voice input. Besides the usual controls, there are direct shortcuts for Netflix and Google Play. It would have been great if it had motion control support, like LG’s remotes or even a Bluetooth option like Samsung’s, so you don’t have to point at the TV every time, which doesn’t feel very flagship-worthy.

  OS and features The Sony A1 runs Android Nougat and comes with a number of common Android apps preinstalled, namely Netflix, YouTube, Google Play Movies, and Sony’s own Serial Ab Tak. Amazon Prime Video is easily available from the Play Store, and if you’re into Jio Movies, Yupp TV, BIG Flix, etc. there are apps for each of these as well. There are obviously games available to download as well, and it would have been nice if Sony had included a controller of any kind to let us play them, but the IR remote doesn’t support motion control, so you’ll need a supported accessory. The TV does come with a tiny IR blaster cable that you can use to control other devices in your home theatre using the TV remote.

Sony has a very interesting way of handling audio with this TV unit – the screen itself is your speaker. The KD-65A1 has two actuators that use the surface of the screen itself to emit audio. It’s fascinating to hear the audio emerge right from where the image is, and it does create a sense of immersion that works really well. For lows there is a separate sub-woofer, and we’ll get to the audio performance of the unit in a bit.

Video performance OLED TVs are inherently capable of producing brilliant blacks. The panel technology is excellent for taking advantage of dark environments, and there are movies and games in which deep black levels make or break the immersion. The Sony KD-65A1’s OLED panel is stunning when it comes to movies, regardless of the input medium.

Our tests included a variety of films and TV shows that showed off the panel’s strengths and weaknesses. Gerald’s Game (Netflix), exhibits an excellent application of HDR, especially for outdoor sequences at the beginning which looked stunning with natural gradients and deep reds. Our favourite Blu-ray test disc – Planet Earth II in 4K HDR – really pushed the TV. Brighter sequences in which the camera captures the high luminosity of the sun were also handled well by the KD-65A1. That said, the same sequence on the Samsung QLED we tested earlier, had us literally squinting due to the intensity of the sunlight, which is the way it’s meant to be in our opinion. Samsung claims a maximum brightness level of 1500nits with its QLED range, whereas the Sony KD-65A1 puts out closer to 1000 nits.

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Some TV shows like Star Trek Discovery and Stranger Things 2 are excellent showcases for HDR on smaller-sized panels, but once you get to a 65-inch TV like this one, the lower mastering quality of TV shows (due to lower budgets as compared to films), becomes quite evident. This was especially true in the darker scenes of both shows. That said, our target viewing distance when reviewing TVs is 5-6 feet, which is way closer than where you’d be watching from in most likelihood. It isn’t the panel at fault here, it’s the mastering of the medium.

Non-HDR content that’s rich in colour saturation, such as Hindi films, Hollywood action movies and TV sitcoms were handled pretty well. The enhanced contrast of the OLED panel worked extremely well in The Dark Knight, which has quite a lot of wide-aperture night shots. As a result of the panel’s high contrast, the colour tones and gradients are more easily noticeable than on most other panels. There is an option to force HDR, but we found that the picture quality esd better with that turned off, because it allowed for more natural-looking bright spots and colour tones.

Sony’s motion enhancement features are turned on by default, and you can even optimise the TV’s brightness according to the light in the room. We preferred keeping both these options disabled. Viewing angles are great on the Sony KD-65A1. There’s no image quality degradation no matter what angle you look at the screen from. Rest assured that in terms of image quality, there won’t be a bad seat in your home theatre. Upscaling worked wonderfully on the KD-65A1 as well. Sony TVs are known to reduce compression artefacts and upscale lower-resolution media well, and of course, this flagship model is no exception. You’d have to look closely to determine whether any particular Blu-ray playing on this TV is not true 4K. DVDs did get a bit soft in the upscaling, but not to the extent that the experience was hugely degraded. Of course, if you’re spending so much on a flagship TV, why would you ever play a DVD on it to begin with?

  Gaming performance Games always have an edge when it comes to showcasing HDR, and this experience was no exception. Gaming on the Sony KD-65A1 was a treat to the senses. We ran our usual test games, which include Uncharted 4, Injustice 2 and Horizon Zero Dawn, and even threw in the newly released Star Wars Battlefront 2 – all using a PlayStation 4 Pro. As expected, they all looked exceptional on this TV. Uncharted 4 and Injustice 2 look great on just about any TV, but the experience was ideal on the KD-65A1, thanks to its evenly lit panel without any kind of light leaks, colour leaks or ghostly edges. We didn’t face any input lag either, even when we tried a twitch-heavy game like Injustice 2.

Motion lag, which is a known issue with many 4K panels was handled well by the Sony KD-65A1. This is definitely an excellent panel that makes the most of the PS4 Pro’s enhanced visuals.

We tried letting the TV upscale 1080p games using a PS4, and 720p games using an Xbox 360, and both were handled admirably well. Xbox 360 games do show their age at this point, especially on a 65-inch panel. However, looking at 1080p performance, we can safely say that even if you don’t own a PS4 Pro, the visuals on the Sony A1 will still be pretty impressive.

  Audio performance We didn’t honestly expect much from the Sony KD-65A1 in terms of audio performance, considering the unique nature of its ‘acoustic surface’, but consider us surprised. Audio output was crisp, and easily capable of filling a large room. Levels seemed well balanced right off the bat, so we didn’t need to change the equaliser preset. We were satisfied with the mix of highs, mids and lows for most kinds of media, be it for TV, movies or gaming. We did find a bit of a distortion at the highest volume level, but we found a sweet spot at the 90 percent mark which worked great for most movies and shows. Of course, you’d be better off with a multi-channel speaker system for making the most of this TV, but for casual usage or in case you want to keep the room clutter-free, the TV itself will do a pretty good job of handling audio.

Verdict With the KD-65A1, Sony has presented its vision of a flagship consumer TV, and it can handle anything that you throw at it. Video quality is extraordinary, no matter what media you throw at it, and its support for both HDR-10 as well as Dolby Vision makes it future-ready as well. Even in terms of audio, this TV is unique and does an excellent job of giving you good quality, immersive sound. The maximum brightness is one weak spot, but the uniform blacks without any hue or light leaks at any viewing angle do make for a compelling argument in favour of the Sony. It would be hard not to recommend this TV for both HDR and SDR viewing. Buyers just have to be prepared to deal with its odd angular stand and lacklustre remote.

Price: Rs. 4,64,900

Pros

Deep blacks

Excellent 4K performance without motion lag

Supports HDR-10 and Dolby Vision

Lots of input and connectivity options

Cons

The table stand tilts the screen upwards

Uninspired IR remote

Ratings (Out of 5) Design: 4 Performance: 4.5 Value for money: 4 Overall: 4.5

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[squadaloo]

My year in games - 2016

So for the past few years, I’ve been recapping the games I’ve played for the first time in the past year.  I was going to do things differently for 2017 as the first 6 months of this year were full of absolutely amazing games and the second half of the year is looking just as good.  However, I realized I actually never posted my 2016 games here, so let me do that first!  Here are the games I played in 2016 and what I thought of them:

The Witness (PC) - I actually wasn’t that big of a fan of Braid, but I like puzzles so I picked up Johnathan Blow’s latest game.  Quite fun with a lot of great puzzles, but suffers from indie art game syndrome where it thinks it’s more amazing and profound than it actually is.  Beat the main ending, didn’t beat every puzzle.

Star Fox Zero (Wii U) - The controls in this game get a lot of hate, but outside of a couple of circumstances, I thought the gyro controls made the game way more fun and with some practice became extremely rewarding.  However, the game is insanely short, and I had pretty much tired of the limited content after just 5 hours.  It has less content than even Star Fox 64 which is unacceptable for a supposedly major release in 2016.  Beat the game, didn’t get every medal because I’m not a completionist.

Star Fox Guard (Wii U) - The tower defense game that came with Star Fox Zero.  I’m not a big fan of Tower Defense and only played it once for about an hour.

Uncharted 4 (PS4) - Being tired of Nintendo not supporting the Wii U, I decided to pick up a PS4 and so Uncharted 4 was the first game I played.  Personally, the only other Uncharted I really liked was 2 (1 was shit, 3 was mediocre) so I wasn’t sure what to expect.  The game has an excruciatingly slow beginning, but picks up after a while.  Never reaches the heights of 2, but ends up being a fun enough adventure by the end.  Beat the game.

Gravity Rush Remastered (PS4) - I like this game way more than I should.  The plot sort of falls apart in the second half and the gameplay can be very repetitive, but this is mitigated by the fact that flying around with control of gravity is a blast.  It also helps that it has an excellent soundtrack.  I actually delayed beating Uncharted 4 so I could play this all of the way through.  Actually got sad when I got the Platinum trophy (my first!) since it meant there was no more game left.  Beat the game.

Batman Arkham Knight (PS4) - The Batman Arkham games are pretty much all great including, IMO, the non-Rocksteady developed Origins which I feel actually has the best story.  Arkham Knight is no exception, although it does have one notable weakness:  the Battank.  Driving around with the Batmobile is fun, but as soon as it goes into tank mode, the combat becomes repetitive and boring:  two things this series has typically done a great job of avoiding.  Beat the game, didn’t get all of the Riddler trophies and see the true ending, though.

No Man’s Sky (PS4) - I…actually liked this game?  I wanted a relaxing game I could just waste time doing meaningless (but somewhat fun) tasks in for a few weeks, and that’s what I got.  I wouldn’t recommend it for normal people though, as it’s lacking content, but by now you’ve probably read about that  Didn’t get to the center of the universe because I don’t like losing progress.

Journey (PS4) - I know everybody and their mother loves this game, but I just didn’t.  I do not care for games that put storytelling way over gameplay unless they go full in (more on that in a bit), and I really don’t care when the storytelling isn’t very compelling.  I felt like I knew where the game was going from the moment I turned it on, and got more and more bored as I was continuously proven right.  The multiplayer aspect however, was a very good idea.  Beat the game.

Shantae Risky’s Revenge (PS4) - A rather fun platformer.  It’s pretty short (I beat it only a little over 2 hours) but it has some fun ideas.  There’s two areas that feel like the platformer equivalent of Zelda dungeons which were extremely good, but they only made up about 30% of the game.  The rest was more standard (but decent) fare.  Beat the game.

Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse (PS4) - A much better platformer than Risky’s Revenge.  It has similar Zelda-ish dungeons but more of them spread throughout the game.  The presentation is better with lovely HD artwork, and the game’s sense of humor is excellent.  Highly recommended.  Beat the game.

Transformers Devastation (PS4) - A PS+ free game which I otherwise wouldn’t have played since I don’t give the slightest care about Transformers.  I didn’t make it very far into the game, but it was a pretty fun and very challenging action game from what I had played.  Didn’t come close to beating the game as I got a PSVR the next week.

Playstation VR Worlds (PSVR) - And here’s where we get into the wild and crazy world of VR.  I bought a PSVR because I was curious about VR and had cash to burn, but I really didn’t try it until this game.  VR Worlds is really a collection of 5 tech demos I MEAN FULLY REALIZED GAMES MOST DEFINITELY NOT TECH DEMOS BEING SOLD BY SONY, NOPE.  Some are good.  Some are not.  I’ll go into each game in a bit, but let me just say if it had not come in my PSVR launch bundle, I would not recommend buying it for $40.

Ocean Descent - A simple experience in which you stand in a shark cage in the ocean.  At the end of the main dive, a shark attacks the cage.  This is the first thing I played in VR and judging by the fact the game comes with the headset in the launch bundle and the fact that it always defaults to Ocean Descent on bootup, it’s basically designed to be a first experience…and succeeds massively.  Within seconds, I was giggling like a little boy at how awesome it was.  VR is the real deal!  There is no gameplay, so it’s a very easy thing to show to non-gamers.   I also showed this demo to my parents who are not gamers, and they loved it as well.

Luge VR - It’s street luge you control with your head.  The graphics look horrible and blurry, even after properly callibrating the headset.  I played it once, and that was enough.

The London Heist - A 40 minute interactive experience in which you help steal a diamond.  It’s split between about 70% interactive cutscenes and 30% shooting action sequences.  Cutscenes are far more effective in VR and I don’t mind them as much.  The shooting sequences are great.  However, outside of a choice right at the end of the experience, there’s not much of a reason to replay it other than just for fun.  It does have a shooting gallery mode which is somewhat neat.

Scavenger’s Odyssey - A FPS in which you pilot a mech.  So far, this is one of the only times I’ve gotten VR sickness.  VR sickness, for those who don’t know, is basically what happens when your eyes tell your body it should be moving when it knows it isn’t.  This is why most VR games either use teleporting for movement or give you a fixed point of reference while moving (like being in the cockpit of a mech) instead of just giving you standard FPS controls.  While this game does try to sidestep VR sickness by putting you in a mech, it also involves jumping and flipping gravity which is what pushed me over the top.  I quit for a while but eventually came back and finished it.  It’s...ok.  Nothing really special.

Danger Ball - An arcade game that’s effectively like cooler PONG except your opponent is in front of you (like in actual ping pong) and you move your paddle by looking in a direction.  It’s kind of fun, but in order to put spin on your ball, you have to flick your neck which kind of hurts because I am out of shape and spend all day on a computer.  It’s kind of fun, but not something I’d really return to.

Batman Arkham VR (PSVR) - It’s a Batman game in which you don’t fight and it only lasts 40 minutes to run through the story.  While this is disappointing, it’s not as much as it would seem for two main reasons.  First, the game is only 20 bucks.  Second, VR is awesome and being Batman is awesome.  The story is somewhat interesting and the VR is probably the most immersive out of any title.  The suiting up and entry into the Batcave sequence is honestly one of my favorite experiences I’ve ever had in a game entirely because VR sells it.  As for the game itself, I liked that they emphasized the detective aspect of Batman and would have gladly wanted a longer game with more cases even if it still didn’t have combat (although it would be nice).  The game has optional Riddler challenge upon completion so the full amount of gametime is probably more like 3 hours, which isn’t too shabby.  Love the experience, despite its length.

Rigs (PSVR) - I’m not much of an FPS person, but after playing the demo of Rigs, I decided to go ahead and buy it.  Rigs is a team-based FPS in which you drive giant mechs and compete in a sort of sports league.  It’s probably the most complete experience currently available in PSVR as it has single player offline modes and online play.  It could use more modes and maps (which is why it’s a good thing they’ve announced another map is coming soon) but it’s still pretty fun.  I’ve always hated shooting with control sticks on consoles which is why I like that you can aim with your head.  VR also makes the scale of the game feel massive which I love.

Windlands (PSVR) - A first person platformer where you use grappling hooks to get around.  This is the first VR game I’ve played with full locomotion with no static frame of reference and I thankfully did not get sick.  The game itself is pretty decent.  There’s some fun platforming but it’s a bit bland as there’s no enemies or major obstacles:  just you vs. the geometry of the level.  Overall, probably not the best use of VR.

Job Simulator (PSVR) - A game in which you visit the museum of jobs run by robots in the year 2050.  The robots don’t exactly know how these jobs worked which leads to…let’s just say inaccurate emulations of Office Worker, Chef, Convenience Store Clerk, and Mechanic jobs.  This is a good example of a game that would suck if not for being in VR.  There’s something that’s a ton of fun about throwing crap around and screwing with people in VR.  The game has a great sense of humor as well.  However, the game is light on content (a major pain point with most early VR games) and some of the jobs get repetitive.  Still, it’s a good game to show to people who are new to VR and want to see what it’s like to use motion controls to interact with the environment.

Call of Duty Jackal Assault (PSVR) - A free game in which you pilot a ship in space and shoot down other ships.  The detail in the ship is great and space combat is way easier when you can look separately of aiming thanks to VR.  However, it only lasts about 5 minutes, which I guess is fair given it’s free with no strings attached…outside of the massive terms of service you have to read prior to playing.

Star Wars Battlefront (PS4) - I bought this on sale for less than $8 because of the VR experience coming soon.  I never bought it originally because it seemed like every other modern shooter I don’t like where only a couple of shots can kill you and you have regenerating health…and that’s exactly what it is.  It can be fun from time to time, but I just suck at it and given the offline AI is stupid, I can’t really get any better either as there’s no good way to train.  The VR mission is pretty nice, but only 20 minutes long and features some absolutely horrible voice acting for your playable character that tries its best to ruin the mission.

Bound (PS4/PSVR) - I bought this because it was 50% off at the same time I was picking up Battlefront and it’s got a VR mode and I’m starving for VR content.  It’s very artistic like Journey, but the more platformy gameplay makes it feel more gameplay based.  Also, the fact that it’s very immersive in VR really helps.  Hell, I’d probably have liked Journey a whole lot more if it were in VR as well.  I haven’t finished this, however, because the VR camera was kind of rough at launch.  They’ve since patched it but I still haven’t returned to it because there’s been pretty much nonstop games I want/put tons of time into this year.