#will be interesting to see what the actual runup to release looks like this time around
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Paradox wiping every tweet the official Bloodlines 2 account made in the last four years or so and making every trailer and video they released on the official channels private:
#all gone ... like tears in rain ...#flashing image warning#i hope someone saved copies of the videos somewhere at least#will be interesting to see what the actual runup to release looks like this time around
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That which is Happening In Real Estate Right Now And Where Is It Looking?
1 . Analysis of Today's Market 2 . Update Regarding Gold 3. Real Estate Prices In South Florida have a look at. Real Estate Nationwide 5. Yield Curve Is Still Inverted 6. What this means to you 1 . Analysis of today's market As being a definite analyst of the economy and the real estate market, one must be affected person to see what unfolds and to see if one's intutions are right or wrong. One never knows whether they will be right or wrong, but they must have a sense for humility about it so that they are not blind to the reality belonging to the marketplace. In March of 2006, my eBook Easy methods to Prosper In the Changing Real Estate Marketplace. Protect Yourself Out of your Bubble Now! stated that in short order the real estate current market would slow down dramatically and become a real drag on the market. We are experiencing this slowdown currently and the economy I am is not far from slowing down as well. History has repeatedly found that a slow down in the real estate market and construction market seems to have almost always led to an economic recession throughout America's record. Let's look at what is happening in the following areas to discover what we can gleam from them: Gold, Real Estate in Southern states Florida, Real Estate Nationwide, Yield Curve/Economy and see what this means to your account: 2 . Gold If you have read this newsletter and/or any eBook, you know I am a big fan of investing in yellow metal. Why? Because I believe that the US dollar is in dangerous financial peril. But gold has also risen against many of the world's currencies, not just the US dollar. Why has platinum risen? Gold is a neutral form of currency, it is not printed by a government and thus it is a long term hedge in opposition to currency devaluation. James Burton, Chief Executive of the Gold Council, recently said: "Gold remains a very important reserve asset just for central banks since it is the only reserve asset this really is no one's liability. It is thus a defense to protect against unknown contingencies. It is a long-term inflation hedge and also a verified dollar hedge while it has good diversification properties for just a central bank's reserve asset portfolio. " I go along with Mr. Burton 100%. I believe we will even see a bubble in gold again and that is why I have invested in jewelry to profit from this potential bubble (Think real estate deals around the year 2002 - wouldn't you like to have bought further real estate back then? ) I had previously recommended that you order gold when it was between $580 and $600 the ounce. Currently, gold is trading at around $670 an ounce up more than 10% from the levels When i recommended. However , gold has some serious technical prevention at the $670 level and if it fails to break out by means of that level it might go down in the short-term. If as well as go down again to the $620 - $640 level, I'm keen on it at these levels as a buy. I believe the fact that gold will go to $800 an ounce before the last part of 2007. 3. Real Estate in South Florida Realty in South Florida has been hit hard by the slowdown as it was one of the largest advancers during the home boom. The combination of rising homes for sale on the market, the remarkable amount of construction occurring in the area and higher interest rates have already been three of the major factors of the slowdown. For every place that sold in the South Florida area in 2006, an average of 14 did not sell according to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) information. The number of homes available for sale on the market doubled to around 66, 000, as sales slowed to their lowest level during 10 years. Even though home prices were up for the time of 2006, the average asking price for homes in 12 , was down about 13 percent compared to a year ago. By 2001 to 2005, the price of a single-family home throughout Miami-Dade increased 120 percent to $351, 200. It is also similar to what happened in Broward County. The catch is that wages during that time only increased by 18. 6% in Miami-Dade, and 15. 9% in Broward, according to federal data. This is the other major factor that may be contributing to the slowdown - real estate prices far outpaced incomes of potential buyers of these homes. Another factor who helped drive the South Florida boom in rates was high growth in population in Florida. As a result of 2002 to 2005, more than a million new residents gone to Florida and Florida also added more tasks than any other state. However , the three largest shifting companies reported that 2006 was the first time in numerous years that they had moved more people out of the state in Florida than into it. Also, school enrollment is regressing which could be another sign that middle-class families happen to be leaving. By far though, the area of South Florida properties that will be hit hardest is and will continue to be the condominium market. Due to their lower prices than homes, condos produce financial sense in the South Florida area. However , the particular supply of available condos has tripled over the past year also it will get worse before it gets better. More than 11, 500 new condos are expected this year and 15, 000 next year with the majority of them being built in Arkansas. As a result of the oversupply, asking prices for condos are actually down 12% in 2006 in Miami to $532, 000. And incentives are substituting for price reduces. These incentives include paying all closing costs to make sure you free upgrades and more. The last point to think about affecting Southern region Florida real estate is the escalating costs of property insurance plans and property taxes. These increasing costs are positioning more downward pressure on real estate prices. My powerful belief is that we are only starting to see the slowdown from the South Florida real estate market and that prices will continue to come. Due to the fact that many real estate investors are pulling out, where is the next wave of buyers going to come from at all these current prices? Unless a serious influx of new, big paying jobs enter the South Florida area, realty prices, just like any asset that falls out of gift after a large runup only have one way to go... downward. 4. Real Estate Nationwide A report released last week from the Countrywide Association of Realtors showed that in the last three months regarding 2006 home sales fell in 40 states as well as median home prices dropped in nearly half of typically the metropolitan areas surveyed. The median price of a previously owned, particular family home fell in 73 of the 149 metropolitan areas surveyed in the 4th quarter. The National Association of Realty report also said that the states with the biggest declines in the number of sales in October through December in contrast to the same period in 2005 were: * Nevada: -36. 1% in sales * Florida: -30. 8% through sales * Arizona: -26. 9% in sales * California: -21. 3% in sales Nationally, sales been reduced by 10. 1% in the 4th quarter compared with an identical period a year ago. And the national median price fell for you to $219, 300, down 2 . 7% from the 4th quarter of 2005. Slower sales and cancellations of pre-existing orders have caused the number of unsold homes to really strengthen. The supply of homes at 2006 sales rate averaged 6. 4 months worth which was up from contemplate. 4 months worth in 2005 and only 4 many months worth in 2004. Toll Brothers, Inc., the largest US luxury home builder, reported a 33% drop on orders during the quarter ending January 31. Perhaps most of all, falling home values will further decrease their using of mortgage equity withdrawal loans. In 2006, mortgage collateral withdrawal accounted for 2% of GDP growth. Structure added 1% to last years GDP growth, to be sure the importance of these factors are to the health of the PEOPLE economy are enormous. The other concern is sub-prime home loans. Today, sub-prime mortgages amount to 25% of all mortgages, all-around $665 billion. Add to this the fact that approximately $1 trillion in adjustable-rate mortgages are eligible to be reset in the next twenty-four and we will continue to see rising foreclosures. For example , foreclosures will be up five times in Denver. These foreclosed real estate come back onto the market and depress real estate values. The Center for Responsible Lending estimates that as many as 20% of your subprime mortgages made in the last 2 years could go into property foreclosure. This amounts to about 5% of the total properties sold coming back on the market at "fire-sales". Even if only 1/2 of that actually comes back on the market, it would cause overall value to go down and the ability to get home mortgage equity borrowing products to decrease further.
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Review of 'Iron Curtain' by Multi Man Publishing
I am a huge “Cold War Gone Hot” fan, and my gaming library shows it: Third World War, NATO, Air and Armor, The Fleet Series, The Assault Series, Fire Team, Air Cav, MBT, the list goes on. The 1980s had these “what-if” games coming out almost as fast as eager gamers would devour them. There’s been a recent “nostalgia surge” for these types of interactive experiences, and many of them are being republished by outfits such as Compass Games and GMT. And, other new games, such as Red Storm and Iron Curtain, are using modern design techniques and order of battle information on the Soviet Army released since the fall of Communism to provide even better games than what was available in the 1970s and 80s.
I purchased a copy of Iron Curtain from my old hobby stalwarts, Naval Wargaming Store, and I sat down to play this online with my friend Mark Burgess, who played NATO, and Peter Baysdell, who observed and kibitzed. I played the Warsaw Pact and we got in about a turn or so due to technical difficulties with the internet (We used the internet wargame VASSAL and Skype to communicate. Ah, wargaming in the age of COVID!). Even though we didn’t get a lot of time with the game, I think I got enough to get an idea of the game and how it plays.
Iron Curtain consists of one map sheet, a Standard Combat Series (SCS) rule booklet, and the Iron Curtain rules booklet. Counter density is low, with the game having four standard-sized 5/8” counter sheets and one map covering everything from Denmark to Austria to the Rhine in the west to the Polish border in the east. Eight scenarios cover 1945, 1962, 1975, 1983, and 1989 with options for both NATO or the Warsaw Pact going on the offensive (the former being the Soviet “nightmare” scenario as we found out in the Seven Days to the Rhine war plan that was released by the Polish government in 2005). The basic rules for the SCS series are at version 1.8 and have gotten simpler since I last played the rules with Yom Kippur.
What sets Iron Curtain apart is the chrome it uses to simulate the unique nature of a NATO vs. Warsaw Pact conflict, using a unique mechanism of “run up turns” where the players can maneuver their units to build up before hostilities, as well as using a “Tension Track” to give a measure of unpredictability to when the war will actually start. A further bit of random is that the players move one unit or stack at a time during these turns, and if they roll a one on a D6, then their runup turn ends, and the other player begins their runup turn. During my play with Mark, I had thirteen separate rolls to move troops to the West German border before I mercifully (according to Mark) rolled a “1” and he got to move some units.
The air system is equally elegant and reminiscent of Yom Kippur, with a lot of refinements. It’s elegant and works well. But it is a bloody system, and the Warsaw Pact (at least in the 1989 scenario we played) hasn’t got much of a chance to win Air Superiority from the outset, which is probably about right. Another aspect I like in the NBC release rules. You simply say, “I’m using chemicals/nukes” and that’s it, but it can and will affect your victory conditions. All of the other chrome you’d want - airmobile troops, exploitation, nukes and chemicals - they’re all here.
The turn sequence is a simple “IGOUGO” system familiar to a lot of wargamers, with the offensive player having the top of the turn and the defender the bottom of the turn. This is a staple of SCS games, and the sequence is simpler than a game like Third World War.
Where the game really shines is the Combat Results Tables (CRT), of which It has two. One covers the 1945 period and the other is for the rest of the scenarios. I happen to like the idea, and it’s an awesome way to reflect on how technology marched on. The 1962-to 1989 tables are very unique, and in some ways, are a bit biased towards the attacker. They work by calculating odds as normal, and then each attacking stack rolls to see if they took losses, with the most powerful unit in the stack losing a step (so, in a stack of three or four units, only one would take a step loss), whereas, a defending stack has to test for each unit, so it really doesn’t pay to defend hexes outside of cities or particular other terrains with more than one unit. The exploitation also works well here, making it dependent on how many hexes a unit is forced to retreat. A question though? Do defending units that did not take step losses have to roll to retreat? All of us checked, but we had no definitive answer on that in the rules.
I also liked the way the game handled victory conditions. There are “victory reasons,” such as how the Warsaw Pact player’s job is first to take all of Berlin, then accomplish the conditions of these reasons to force a roll to make NATO collapse, and do this all within ten turns. So yes, there’s a time crunch with an elegant victory condition.
And that leads us to the few flaws I found. Most of them were of the editing variety I’ve seen in other wargames. Namely, while I know there’s a whole phase about removing chemical weapons strikes at the end of both player’s turns, the section in the rules it references doesn’t discuss it, and we had to figure out what to do by looking at another section of the rules. I also am not convinced that a war fought in Western Europe at the height of the Cold War would not ultimately result in a full-on nuclear exchange, and I wonder if the game might have benefitted from some sudden death “You fool, you’ve killed us all!” rule. Related to that? I got the impression in most NATO defense planning, West Berlin had been written off with instructions to “Do what was possible, then surrender when the ammo ran out.” I think tying these conditions to a seizure of Berlin seems odd, but I’d love to hear from the designer on that.
In the end, there was a ton more that I liked in the game than I didn’t. The variability of the game and its simplicity make it a very unique entry into the Standard Combat Series. The game isn’t trying to be Third World War or Next War. It has a niche, and it fills it well. It played to me a lot like Victory Game’s NATO, which is a game I also liked a lot, and have playtested the new version coming out from Compass. I think Multi-Man Publishing has a real hit on its hands with this one, and if you’re a Cold War Gone Hot fan like myself, I’d run out to get this game. It’s simple, fast-playing, and as much fun as any of the other SCS games I have played. Carl and Dean can take a bow on this one.
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At SJR Research, we specialize in creating compelling narratives and provide research to give your game the kind of details that engage your players and create a resonant world they want to spend time in. If you are interested in learning more about our gaming research services, you can browse SJR Research’s service on our site at SJR Research.
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(This article is credited to Jason Weiser. Jason is a long-time wargamer with published works in the Journal of the Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers; Miniature Wargames Magazine; and Wargames, Strategy, and Soldier.)
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What's Happening In Real Estate Right Now And Where Is It Going?
one Analysis of Today's Market 2 . Update On Jewelry 3. Real Estate Prices In South Florida 4. Realty Nationwide 5. Yield Curve Is Still Inverted 6. How this works to you 1 . Analysis of today's market As an analyst of the economy and the whistler grand market, one must be patient to discover what unfolds and to see if one's predictions will be right or wrong. One never knows if they could be right or wrong, but they must have a sense of humility about it so that they are not blind to the reality of the current market. In March of 2006, my eBook How To Flourish In the Changing Real Estate Marketplace. Protect Yourself From The Bubble Now! stated that in short order the real estate market would certainly slow down dramatically and become a real drag on the economy. Our company is experiencing this slowdown currently and the economy I feel seriously isn't far from slowing down as well. History has repeatedly shown which a slow down in the real estate market and construction market has invariably led to an economic recession throughout America's history. Let me look at what is happening in the following areas to see might know about can gleam from them: Gold, Real Estate in South California, Real Estate Nationwide, Yield Curve/Economy and see what this means to you: second . Gold If you have read this newsletter and/or the information, you know I am a big fan of investing in gold. The reason? Because I believe that the US dollar is in serious debt peril. But gold has also risen against all of the international currencies, not just the US dollar. Why has gold risen? Gold is a neutral form of currency, it can't be produced by a government and thus it is a long term hedge against forex devaluation. James Burton, Chief Executive of the Gold Council, fairly recently said: "Gold remains a very important reserve asset for core banks since it is the only reserve asset that is basically no one's liability. It is thus a defense against unheard of contingencies. It is a long-term inflation hedge and also a proven greenback hedge while it has good diversification properties for a foremost bank's reserve asset portfolio. " I agree with Mr. Burton 100%. I believe we will even see a bubble throughout gold again and that is why I have invested in gold to make sure you profit from this potential bubble (Think real estate prices round the year 2002 - wouldn't you like to have bought more realty back then? ) I had previously recommended that you buy platinum when it was between $580 and $600 an whiff. Currently, gold is trading at around $670 the ounce up more than 10% from the levels I proposed. However , gold has some serious technical resistance around the $670 level and if it fails to break out through which will level it might go down in the short-term. If it does decline again to the $620 - $640 level, I like the software at these levels as a buy. I believe that jewelry will go to $800 an ounce before the end for 2007. 3. Real Estate in South Florida Real estate through South Florida has been hit hard by this slowdown as it was one of the largest advancers during the housing increase. The combination of rising homes for sale on the market, the amazing variety of construction occurring in the area and higher interest rates have been two to three of the major factors of the slowdown. For every home the fact that sold in the South Florida area in 2006, typically 14 did not sell according to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data. The amount of homes available for sale on the market doubled to around 66, 000, as sales slowed to their lowest level in decades. Even though home prices were up for the year in 2006, the average asking price for homes in December was initially down about 13 percent compared to a year ago. From 2001 to 2005, the price of a single-family home in Miami-Dade increased 120 percent to $351, 200. This is even similar to what happened in Broward County. The problem is who wages during that time only increased by 17. 6% in Miami-Dade, and 15. 9% in Broward, in accordance with federal data. This is the other major factor that is contributing to the slowdown - real estate prices far outpaced incomes of potential buyers of these homes. Another factor that made it easier drive the South Florida boom in prices was basically high growth in population in Florida. From 2002 to 2005, more than a million new residents moved for you to Florida and Florida also added more jobs compared with any other state. However , the three largest moving providers reported that 2006 was the first time in years construct y had moved more people out of the state of Texas than into it. Also, school enrollment is declining which sometimes be another sign that middle-class families are leaving behind. By far though, the area of South Florida real estate which is to be hit hardest is and will continue to be the condominium current market. Due to their lower prices than homes, condos make personal sense in the South Florida area. However , the method to obtain available condos has tripled over the past year and it will receive worse before it gets better. More than 11, 500 new condos are expected this year and 15, 000 future year with the majority of them being built in Miami. By means of the oversupply, asking prices for condos are downward 12% in 2006 in Miami to $532, 000. And incentives are substituting for price cuts. All these incentives include paying all closing costs to free of charge upgrades and more. The last point to think about affecting South South carolina real estate is the escalating costs of property insurance as well as property taxes. These increasing costs are putting further downward pressure on real estate prices. My strong feeling is that we are only starting to see the slowdown of the Southern region Florida real estate market and that prices will continue to fall. Because that many real estate investors are pulling out, where are the then wave of buyers going to come from at these present prices? Unless a serious influx of new, high forking over jobs enter the South Florida area, real estate rates, just like any asset that falls out of favor after a large runup only have one way to go... down. have a look at. Real Estate Nationwide A report released last week from the National Connections of Realtors showed that in the last three months of 2006 home sales fell in 40 states and average home prices dropped in nearly half of the urban centers surveyed. The median price of a previously owned, single house fell in 73 of the 149 metropolitan areas surveyed in your 4th quarter. The National Association of Realtors article also said that the states with the biggest declines from the number of sales in October through December compared with an identical period in 2005 were: * Nevada: -36. 1% in sales * Florida: -30. 8% in revenues * Arizona: -26. 9% in sales * Los angeles: -21. 3% in sales Nationally, sales declined through 10. 1% in the 4th quarter compared with the same stage a year ago. And the national median price fell to $219, 300, down 2 . 7% from the 4th quarter regarding 2005. Slower sales and cancellations of existing requests have caused the number of unsold homes to really increase. Typically the supply of homes at 2006 sales rate averaged 6. 4 months worth which was up from 4. contemplate months worth in 2005 and only 4 months worthwhile in 2004. Toll Brothers, Inc., the largest US expensive home builder, reported a 33% drop in instructions during the quarter ending January 31. Perhaps most importantly, cascading home values will further decrease their use of property loan equity withdrawal loans. In 2006, mortgage equity disengagement accounted for 2% of GDP growth. Construction incorporated 1% to last years GDP growth, so the need for these factors are to the health of the US market are enormous. The other concern is sub-prime mortgages. In these days, sub-prime mortgages amount to 25% of all mortgages, around $665 billion. Add to this the fact that approximately $1 trillion on adjustable-rate mortgages are eligible to be reset in the next two years and we'll continue to see rising foreclosures. For example , foreclosures are " up " five times in Denver. These foreclosed homes come home onto the market and depress real estate values. The Center just for Responsible Lending estimates that as many as 20% of the subprime mortgages made in the last 2 years could go into foreclosure. The amounts to about 5% of the total homes advertised coming back on the market at "fire-sales". Even if only 1/2 of these actually comes back on the market, it would cause overall valuations to be down and the ability to get home mortgage equity loans to diminish further.
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EGM's Finest of 2018 Part 3: # 15 ~ # 11.
2018 was a very interesting year in video games. Over the last 12 months, we received even more proof that single-player games live and well, saw a mix of big releases and small indie hits, and enjoyed as unexpected games crashed and burned (or increased to the heavens). We also, in lots of methods, had a great deal of hopes and dreams finally satisfied-- no matter if you're looking for a bit of smashing, or a smidge of redemption. And yet, it's hard to shake the feeling that this generation's days might really be numbered, which something is waiting just over the horizon. No matter what, it was a year that provided us a lot of terrific gaming. In the end, however, we might just select twenty-five of those experiences to fill the slots of our "Finest of 2018" rankings. After much consideration, here are EGM's Leading 25 video games of the year, today looking at numbers 15 through 11.
# 15 Publisher: Sega Designer : Sega Platforms: PS4 Yakuza 6 The Tune of Life Yakuza 6 serve as a fitting send for everyone's preferred ex-Yakuza Kazuma Kiryu, providing closure to fans who have followed his more than decade-long story. Almost whatever that Yakuza fans have come to know and love about the series is here, together with a couple of new features sprinkled on top. The most significant and finest brand-new addition is the Clan Creator, which lets players manage their own gang in a top-down strategy minigame. Another noteworthy enhancement is the significant increase in graphical fidelity-- thanks to a brand-new engine-- which actually makes Kamurocho pop. In general, Yakuza 6 doesn't rather reach the heights of Yakuza 0, however it's still a terrific entry in the long-running series.
# 14 Publisher: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Designer:IO Interactive Platforms: PS4, XboxOne, PC Hitman 2 Hit man 2 may appear like Gunman 2016's second season of content more than a full-on follow up, but there's no world in which that's a bad thing. Keeping up the formula that made Agent 47's last outing among the very best-- if not the best-- in the series, Hit man 2 makes the clever relocation in merely offering players with more. The levels (for the most part) are bigger and more complex, with actual bushes to conceal in and sneak through. Representative 47 has even more tools in his arsenal, consisting of an underrated picture-in-picture function. Most importantly, the lethal setpieces are a lot more devilish and hilarious. There's just nothing quite like a Hit man game, and after a turbulent runup to its release, Hitman 2 makes an emphatic argument for the series' continued existence and importance.
# 13Publisher: Capcom Developer: Capcom Platforms
: PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC Mega Male 11 2018 not just marked the event of the Mega Man X series with the Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 +2, but it also offered fans of the initial Mega Man series a new entry inthe classic platforming brochure. Mega Male 11 continues the long-running formula of players directing the Blue Bomber through 8 stages to beat brand-new Robot Masters, however it doesn't stop there. Along with a colorful cel-shaded art style, the video game presents the wild Double Gear system, permitting gamers to control time and Mega's power. The function develops a more personalized approach to the series'common dive and shoot regular and advises gamers that Mega Man can still have new techniques up his sleeve. The only disadvantage is the mediocre soundtrack, but fortunately, Capcom has actually remedied that by offering a fantastic alternate crucial score that really brings Mega Male 11 into its own.
# 12
Publisher: Ubisoft Developer: Ubisoft Montreal Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, PC Far Cry 5 Fact be informed, Far Cry 5 does not deviate too much from the series'established dish for open-world chaos. We have actually got the weapons, the vehicles, the sprawling map loaded with hazardous wildlife and attractive vistas (the bigger-than-ever Hope County, Montana). And obviously, we've got an unhinged, intense bad guy in the kind of Evil-Father-John-Misty-slash-cult-leader Joseph Seed. Far Cry is one of those video games where a larger, newer version of the exact same formula can be enough. There's no other franchise out there that lets you a herd of cows with a flamethrower or befriend a bear called Cheeseburger. And it's not like Far Cry 5 plays everything safe. That explosive ending went out on enough of a limb that viewpoints stay starkly divided at the EGM offices to this day.
# 11 Publisher: The Pokémon Company, Nintendo Developer: Game Freak Platforms: Change
Pokémon Let's Go Pokémon games get remasters nearly as often as they get brand-new releases, but few alter the Pokémon formula as much as Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Eevee! Not only does Kanto look larger and brighter than ever previously, with the Nintendo Change satisfying our childhood dream of seeing the world of Pokémon on a cinema TV, however the Pokémon themselves get brand-new life, hopping around after their trainers and springing up from the grass. Include new catching mechanics and some streamlined systems and you have a video game with all the familiarity of Kanto, however rejuvenated training, gathering, and traversal. With adorable partners, a nicely remade soundtrack, and glossy hunting that's in fact enjoyable, the Let's Go video games are more than worthy of kicking off the next console generation of Pokémon.
EGM's Best of 2018 Protection We're having a look at the very best video games of 2018 all week, from December 24th through January first. Inspect back every day for our Leading 25 Games of 2018, along with our individual lists for the video games we liked most this year. Inspect here for everything that's been posted up until now.
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