Today's Sailor Moon Crystal was yet another (semi) faithful adaptation of Act 6 in the manga series, this time focusing on Tuxedo Mask's ambition to obtain the Silver Crystal, even at the cost of masquerading as a criminal and making himself known to the public. However, his plan backfires, as the third of the Heavenly Kings - Zoicite - has plans of his own to speed up the plan Tuxedo Mask had in motion. Disguising himself as a woman, Zoicite infiltrates a TV network station, transmitting hypnotic energy through the satellite in order to brainwash every civilian in Tokyo to search for the Silver Crystal.
Catching on quickly to the plan, Luna summons the Sailor Senshi to the "basement" of the Crown arcade, growing en more suspicious of Tuxedo Mask's actions. Sailor Moon objects to the possibility and runs away, leaving the other Sailors to fight Zoicite at the rooftop of the network station. During the battle, Queen Beryl makes a personal appearance before the heroes, and easily immobilizes them.
Meanwhile, Sailor Moon wanders the streets in anxiety, torn between her duty as a leader and wanting to trust Tuxedo Mask. At that moment, Tuxedo Mask appears before him, fully aware she and Usagi Tsukino are one and the same person and encouraging her to help her friends fight Queen Beryl. Tuxedo Mask's words were more than enough to give her the strength to fight, causing her to do amazing physical feats such as vaulting to the roof of the building. At that moment, she unleashed the power of Luna's Moon Stick and used Moon Healing Escalation to defeat Zoicite and restore the people of Tokyo back to sanity.
However, using the technique exhausted Sailor Moon, and the next thing she knew, she woke up in the residence of Mamoru Chiba, who willingly reveals himself to be Tuxedo Mask.
Sunday, September 28, 2014
Friday, September 26, 2014
Personal Blog #4: Making Extended Custom Loops for Your Favorite Music
This is more or less an informal guide for a recent hobby and pastime I have embraced since taking on a project as my way of contributing to the Dead or Alive community not too long ago: Making customized loops of existing music.
How do I do this, you ask? It's easy. All you have to do is download a freeware sound editor called Audacity online, and you are well-equipped for the task. But you've only been shown the door and walked through it. The question is, how do you make yourself at home with this intimidating program?
The first thing you'll want to do when opening the program is to select an mp3 file of your choosing to edit using Audacity. Upon selecting it, the following image will give you a basic rundown of what the Audacity app should look like upon running the program:
And now comes the fun part... tampering with your audio file and extending it further. But first, you'll want to familiarize yourself with the basic controls, or rather, the ones you'll be using often.
If you're going with the intention of looping your track seamlessly for a set amount of minutes, be sure to listen and listen well to the song while paying attention to the marker. It's up to you and your good ear to judge where you wish to start the loop point and end it. When you found the points you wish to loop, click the timeline of the project, click the end of the loop point, and drag to the starting loop point of the timeline. The highlighted loop point of the track should be a transparent gray, looking like this:
Now comes the most painstaking part of the project... making the loop sound as seamless as possible. If you don't get it right the first couple of times, that's absolutely fine. God knows when I first took on my batch of tracks for Ronin Warriors, I was hella frustrated when the loops didn't sound right.
NOTE: Remember that EVERY TIME you wish to use the editing tools, make sure you press "Stop" on the track, otherwise the editing tools will not work.
Step 1: To be on the safe side, edit the loop so that it repeats once. To execute this editing technique, make sure you pressed "Stop" first to activate the editing tools. After you do this, click on "Effect" from the top menu, then select "Repeat". You will be prompted to type in how many times you wish to repeat the loop. Set the number of times to "1" for a quick test run.
Step 1A: If the newly edited loop point still doesn't sound right, do not panic. Simply go to "Edit" on the top menu and select "Undo Repeat". The points where you selected the loop points previously should remain intact. And now this is where the "Zoom" options come into play.
Step 1B: To get better accuracy on your looping points, click the "Zoom In" icon to get a better fix on the beat in which you wish to edit, then using the cursor, click on each end of the highlighted area and drag it to the more accurate looping points. When you're finished, go to "Effect", select Repeat, set the number of times to "1", and listen to the looping point again. Please note that it may take a couple of tries and more zooming for some songs you may wish to edit, so be patient and don't get frustrated.
Step 2: Once you're satisfied with how the looping point sounds, go to "Edit", select "Undo Repeat" once more, Click "Effect", go to the "Repeat" option, and set the number of times to whatever closely caps the number of minutes you wish the looped track to be.
Step 3: Now you're ready to create a new customized, extended loop of your favorite music track. To complete the process and convert your work into an MP3 format, select "File", then go to "Export". From there, all you have to do is confirm the conversion, and the new MP3 will appear in the "Audacity" folder under "Program Files".
Now this is just making the MP3 alone. What if you wish to share your project on Youtube for others to listen to? Depending on your computer and available software, it may take a while to convert, or it could take a matter of minutes. I'm not exactly using a high-end computer, so I used the basic Windows Movie Maker. Some of you use Sony Vegas, so if that works for you, by all means, use that.
Making the video isn't that hard by comparison. Simply insert the MP3 to your video editing project, and insert the image file you feel is appropriate for the track.
*For Windows Movie Maker, all you have to do is make sure you drag the image file to the equal length of the track itself in order for the video to be saved.*
Once the video has been converted, go to YouTube. It is highly recommended you sign up for a YT account, because it's the only way you can upload your videos on your account (duh!). The uploading shouldn't take too long by comparison, maybe 2-3 minutes tops. From there, you can put in the title, description, and all that jazz. And if you have a playlist in mind, add that uploaded video to the playlists you have (or are about to create as you upload).
One final note: Some videos you upload may be under license from another company. Acknowledge the third party content and file a dispute. Usually, I'd select "I'm not selling the video nor making any money from it", which at the end of the day is the truth. You're doing this for fun, and it should be just for fun. Besides, I usually have custom video game music in mind when making these anyway... and the more variety I have, the better.
Well, I hope this tutorial helps. Hope to see some of you guys try out something with your favorite tracks that haven't got any love on YouTube soon. Have fun, and remember, take care of yourselves.
How do I do this, you ask? It's easy. All you have to do is download a freeware sound editor called Audacity online, and you are well-equipped for the task. But you've only been shown the door and walked through it. The question is, how do you make yourself at home with this intimidating program?
The first thing you'll want to do when opening the program is to select an mp3 file of your choosing to edit using Audacity. Upon selecting it, the following image will give you a basic rundown of what the Audacity app should look like upon running the program:
And now comes the fun part... tampering with your audio file and extending it further. But first, you'll want to familiarize yourself with the basic controls, or rather, the ones you'll be using often.
If you're going with the intention of looping your track seamlessly for a set amount of minutes, be sure to listen and listen well to the song while paying attention to the marker. It's up to you and your good ear to judge where you wish to start the loop point and end it. When you found the points you wish to loop, click the timeline of the project, click the end of the loop point, and drag to the starting loop point of the timeline. The highlighted loop point of the track should be a transparent gray, looking like this:
Now comes the most painstaking part of the project... making the loop sound as seamless as possible. If you don't get it right the first couple of times, that's absolutely fine. God knows when I first took on my batch of tracks for Ronin Warriors, I was hella frustrated when the loops didn't sound right.
NOTE: Remember that EVERY TIME you wish to use the editing tools, make sure you press "Stop" on the track, otherwise the editing tools will not work.
Step 1: To be on the safe side, edit the loop so that it repeats once. To execute this editing technique, make sure you pressed "Stop" first to activate the editing tools. After you do this, click on "Effect" from the top menu, then select "Repeat". You will be prompted to type in how many times you wish to repeat the loop. Set the number of times to "1" for a quick test run.
Step 1A: If the newly edited loop point still doesn't sound right, do not panic. Simply go to "Edit" on the top menu and select "Undo Repeat". The points where you selected the loop points previously should remain intact. And now this is where the "Zoom" options come into play.
Step 1B: To get better accuracy on your looping points, click the "Zoom In" icon to get a better fix on the beat in which you wish to edit, then using the cursor, click on each end of the highlighted area and drag it to the more accurate looping points. When you're finished, go to "Effect", select Repeat, set the number of times to "1", and listen to the looping point again. Please note that it may take a couple of tries and more zooming for some songs you may wish to edit, so be patient and don't get frustrated.
Step 2: Once you're satisfied with how the looping point sounds, go to "Edit", select "Undo Repeat" once more, Click "Effect", go to the "Repeat" option, and set the number of times to whatever closely caps the number of minutes you wish the looped track to be.
Step 3: Now you're ready to create a new customized, extended loop of your favorite music track. To complete the process and convert your work into an MP3 format, select "File", then go to "Export". From there, all you have to do is confirm the conversion, and the new MP3 will appear in the "Audacity" folder under "Program Files".
Now this is just making the MP3 alone. What if you wish to share your project on Youtube for others to listen to? Depending on your computer and available software, it may take a while to convert, or it could take a matter of minutes. I'm not exactly using a high-end computer, so I used the basic Windows Movie Maker. Some of you use Sony Vegas, so if that works for you, by all means, use that.
Making the video isn't that hard by comparison. Simply insert the MP3 to your video editing project, and insert the image file you feel is appropriate for the track.
*For Windows Movie Maker, all you have to do is make sure you drag the image file to the equal length of the track itself in order for the video to be saved.*
Once the video has been converted, go to YouTube. It is highly recommended you sign up for a YT account, because it's the only way you can upload your videos on your account (duh!). The uploading shouldn't take too long by comparison, maybe 2-3 minutes tops. From there, you can put in the title, description, and all that jazz. And if you have a playlist in mind, add that uploaded video to the playlists you have (or are about to create as you upload).
One final note: Some videos you upload may be under license from another company. Acknowledge the third party content and file a dispute. Usually, I'd select "I'm not selling the video nor making any money from it", which at the end of the day is the truth. You're doing this for fun, and it should be just for fun. Besides, I usually have custom video game music in mind when making these anyway... and the more variety I have, the better.
Well, I hope this tutorial helps. Hope to see some of you guys try out something with your favorite tracks that haven't got any love on YouTube soon. Have fun, and remember, take care of yourselves.
Tuesday, September 23, 2014
DOA Community Blog #8: CCC2: Mass Misconstrued Marketing
As the title suggests, this is the (unexpected) "sequel" to a blog topic I had discussed a while back called "Chaotic Costume Controversy", which generally explained the nonsensical reasons people don't give certain fighting games a chance solely because of costume choices, when sex appeal has been quite prevalent in many fighting games of the past, and well-accepted by the masses, at that.
However, today's blog topic "sequel" is gonna take a different perspective. Not toward the mentality of the consumer, but Team Ninja's marketing direction and how it's slowly taking away the momentum of its original slogan following the resurrection of their flagship fighting game series "Dead or Alive" back in 2011...
At this point, the fans had every reason to be concerned about the direction they're going in promoting the game. Some pondered whether Team Ninja was following the money so much that they forgot they were making a fighting game. Granted, it made them money and secured a huge pot prize for an upcoming major tournament event in two weeks following this blog, but it's gotten to a point that they're overselling certain costumes with certain characters a bit too much. In the process, it almost seems that they had forgotten the "I'm a Fighter" slogan which put them on the map once again with the fighting game community to begin with. One such fan, Ronnie Hall, had addressed this concern on the Dead or Alive Game Facebook page yesterday:
However, today's blog topic "sequel" is gonna take a different perspective. Not toward the mentality of the consumer, but Team Ninja's marketing direction and how it's slowly taking away the momentum of its original slogan following the resurrection of their flagship fighting game series "Dead or Alive" back in 2011...
Not too long ago earlier this month, Team Ninja has graced us with yet another major (and admittingly unexpected) update:
Many DOA fans were ecstatic, while some others had their concerns that Team Ninja was following Capcom's self-destructive route a little too closely. Either way, Yosuke Hayashi - the new head of Team Ninja and Tomonobu Itagaki's successor - went on the record saying that this will, in fact, be the last major update for the successful sequel. That being said, there are many expectations to be had. Team Ninja was expected to pull out all the stops in presenting the game well.
The first of these attempts? Announcing that this particular update will not only be on the previous generation consoles Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, but also the current generation consoles Xbox One and Playstation 4. Both are assumed to be essentially the same game, but in order to differentiate both generations of consoles, Team Ninja suggests that the current gen consoles will include a "Soft Engine". A texture-enriching tool that allows more realistic skin tones and - more profoundly - better breast movement for the females in particular.
With Tokyo Game Show not too far off, you would think that's not the only thing they have up their sleeve when showing off the game... that they would at least have some of the best players in Japan repping some decent level of play ( if not necessarily the best) like some other fighting games were, such as Ultra Street Fighter 4. Unfortunately, this didn't happen. Too much of the focus went toward the current gen's Soft Engine, whereas gameplay discussion seemed to be a mere afterthought. However, it wasn't all bad news. Reportedly, there will not only be a new unannounced female character, but apparently a "resurrected" male character that "many fans will be happy with". Many speculate it will be the original Tengu or Raidou. What's more, as far as stages go, it was confirmed that not only will the Crimson stage from Dead or Alive 2 be returning...
But a reimagining of the classic Dead or Alive 1 stage, with explosive floors on the outer rim of the ring like in the days of old...
Even so, the Tokyo Game Show showcase stream wasn't all that exciting for most fans looking to eagerly anticipate it, even less so for competitive gamers who were expecting a demonstration for gameplay changes.
And if that wasn't a nail in the coffin for some fans, immediately after the showing, another DLC set was announced in the typical fetishistic fashion. And once again, Rachel, Christie, Lisa, and all the male characters were once again denied a new costume for their respective fans to be excited for once again.At this point, the fans had every reason to be concerned about the direction they're going in promoting the game. Some pondered whether Team Ninja was following the money so much that they forgot they were making a fighting game. Granted, it made them money and secured a huge pot prize for an upcoming major tournament event in two weeks following this blog, but it's gotten to a point that they're overselling certain costumes with certain characters a bit too much. In the process, it almost seems that they had forgotten the "I'm a Fighter" slogan which put them on the map once again with the fighting game community to begin with. One such fan, Ronnie Hall, had addressed this concern on the Dead or Alive Game Facebook page yesterday:
To Team Ninja--
A serious question: is your "I'm a Fighter" slogan meant to be ironic? I've seen a translation of the interview that producer Yousuke Hayashi did with Famitsu and it was...rather embarrassing to read. That coupled with the fact that another set of what I can only describe as "fetish" bunny DLC for only female characters (not even all of them, showing repeated neglect of a few) is really starting to make me question it.
I'm glad that you all seem to be supporting the tournament scene, but it doesn't look like you're treating many of your own characters with the dignity that they perhaps deserve. Your main draw for the Tokyo Game Show appeared to be nothing but displaying how nice the females' breasts look on next-gen hardware via your "soft engine". You claim that you want the public to view this as a serious fighting game, but I don't think you realize how detrimental coverage like what was seen at the Tokyo Game Show may be to that goal. There was even a snippet in a recent Game Informer magazine making fun of your current business practices.
It appears that you are alienating many fans of the game with your DLC practices, e.g. perhaps fans who have a male character as their favorite, in addition to many that would like to see more unique costumes and less themed, shared costumes. Do you ever plan on releasing DLC not "sexy" or "naughty" and more inline with the Casual or Legacy DLCs? Or are those simply not worth the time and cost investment?
Many people have been asking for such for a long time now, only to be repeatedly sidelined in favor of more and more "sexy" outfits and even gravure videos. Have you forgotten that your male characters exist? Do you realize how ridiculous the gap in the number of costumes between male characters and female characters has become, for instance? As long as you have the characters in the game at all, I feel like you should be treating them a little more fairly than you have been. Not only do they not receive costumes, they are modeled more poorly, and not promoted nearly as much in advertising for the game. Various other fighting games seem to do a better job in these areas.
Does it even concern you what people think of the male characters? If not, then why are they in the game in the first place? I don't think you are giving them to chance to become more popular.
I'm trying to write this as evenhandedly as possible so it won't be taken as just an angry rant. But, I'm worried. I think that you may be in danger of losing a decent portion of fans when it may not have to be that way. I think that there are a number of things to be enjoyed about the Dead or Alive series. But, if you are only concerned with promoting and exploiting how sexy the female characters are, anything else good about the series may be obscured. I don't think the sex appeal should be outright removed. But, I don't think that everything should proceed in this exact manner.
We are coming upon the dawn of an even further version of Dead or Alive 5. I hope that you will somewhat consider the ways that you have been handling some of your affairs moving forward. I'm not even sure that I can defend or support this series in any way for much longer and I've been following the series for 16+ years now.
Sincerely,
A Fan
A Fan
Please understand, this blog is not intended to bash Team Ninja, but rather to make folks aware that if this is gonna be their last major update for DOA5, they're gonna have to dig deeper than just sex appeal to market their game as a more respectable fighting game, because as of late, at least in my opinion, they've lost focus. First, they'll have to focus on gameplay. What's new to the fighting engine? What tweaks have been made? Will they attempt to make tag more competitively viable in most players' eyes?
Second, they'll have to focus on even the male characters more for a change. They've always been getting the short end of the stick, almost to the point where they've been ignored almost entirely for more awesome costumes. Given the capabilities of the current gen consoles that should give them incentive to put more effort into them as they already do the females. Yes, I'm aware that the females are the show-stoppers and they sell the game, but going that extra mile will draw more respect from fans and convince more people this is in fact a fighter that puts equal care into both genders of the roster like some other games do.
Heck, personally I want them to give this game an actual Attract Mode following the title screen like most other fighters. When I leave the game idle, I want a reason to be attracted to it when I walk into a local... a kick-ass cinematic, a gameplay demo, anything! It would also be nice if they added all the music from every version of DOA1. They already have "Superstar", so they may as well finish what they started.
All things considered, I really hope Team Ninja's aware of the outcry of some fans and are convinced they need to do something different pertaining to the aforementioned. If not, then I'm afraid the outcry is going to get worse, and I'll likely end up doing a blog trilogy...
Friday, September 19, 2014
DOA Community Blog #7: Contribution is Power, Enriched by the Heart
NOTE: The following blog is meant not only for those who feel inadequate when wanting to contribute more to the DOA community. This blog is meant for gamers in all walks of life, no matter what genre they compete in. So feel free to share if you feel this is helpful to them.
What we're gonna talk about in this blog is contributing knowledge to your community in general. Now you're probably thinking, "This topic sounds generic, everybody knows anybody who's willing to do so should do so, it helps the community grow!" Sometimes, I wish it were that easy for some. In this era we live in full of bloated competitive egos, reckless keyboard warriors, and shady gaming journalists, it's oftentimes very hard to make a contribution to your own community without someone throwing shade in your face accusing you of being all kinds of things like a "sellout", a "leech", a "money grubber", or my personal favorite, a "fake OG who talks like he won big tournaments", all accusations that are especially targeted toward significantly popular Youtube users who get a lot of views and likes. But this topic isn't just about the ones that do throw the shade, but learning and knowing how to illuminate that shade on your own while doing what you know in your heart is the right thing.
Now let's focus on you, the willing contributor. And for the sake of being down-to-earth, let's assume you're just an ordinary guy posting in your community forum that plays your game and striving to get better. No accolades, no consistent top placings in local and major tournaments, no tight-knit connections to high-level or top players, none of that stuff. But despite this, you feel deep down inside that you're decent enough to share what you know.
Despite having limited knowledge of playing the game like some comparatively famous high level / top players do, you also happen to have networking and communication skills to an extent. What's more, you have some experience making videos, you're not incredibly shy on the camera, you're pretty humble, you're willing to do what you can without any trace of desire for compensation, and you're very welcoming to the newcomers and viewers who want a different outlet of learning besides the forum community they feel is too abrasive. What could possibly go wrong?
You make your first set of videos, and the first batch of comments you get are along the lines of "Who are you?", "Stop sucking *said company*'s dick", "*Famous player*'s stuff shits all over yours", and "Stop talking like you're some big shot OG from back in the day". And you're here thinking, "What did I do to deserve this?" All you wanted to do was help people. You weren't selling yourself. You weren't promoting yourself. You were bringing awareness to your game and the wonders it can offer to the player, should they choose to study it. So where did you go wrong? The truth is this.. your heart was in the right place. However, there are ways you can convince your audience and let them see you on the same page:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1) Whatever format of contribution you create for your community, DO NOT make it about you.
Remember, when making a contribution to help other players, this isn't about you. It's about helping them to someday help others, provided your contribution was sufficient enough to get them to that point. With humility comes selflessness. While the temptation for a quick buck may be strong for some gamers, let's be real here. You should not want to contribute for profit or personal gain, much less focus on that as your ONLY source of income. A mistake that unfortunately is being made by some gamers in recent memory which I will not name. If you bring yourself into the equation that isn't relatable, chances are the detractors can use this against you, and perhaps even twist your words around to the point where you seem like another attention whore, when you know that isn't the case.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2) If you want to go above and beyond your current knowledge, do your research. And don't be afraid to ask for help.
Another common mistake aspiring contributors make that some detractors LOVE to nitpick about. It's one thing to want to share what you currently know, but it's another when you want to dig deeper, only to discover there were holes - or in this case, opinions - in your fact sheet. If you are able, do the research on your own to ensure the information you're providing is correct. But sometimes going alone won't be enough. You'll likely need a second hand, and there is absolutely no shame in asking for help to contribute to a greater cause. Just make sure you give credit to those willing to help you along the way... it's good manners, after all.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3) DO NOT measure your success or your relevancy on likes, comments or views.
So many people make the mistake of determining their own personal self-worth based on statistics... and that includes me, I'm guilty of it too. Make no mistake about it... you are a human being with a heart and soul first. You're worth more than just packets of data on a grid. And if you don't think you are, take a moment to think about this.
There was once two martial artists who trained under their master. One was just and truthful, wanting only to take the path the master instructed him, having faith in his knowledge and getting the results when the time is right. The other believed that cutting corners by any means necessary to get results was more important. The latter student was eager to learn the ultimate technique of his style, and wasn't afraid to challenge the authority of his master to do so.
The master expressly forbade either to study this style until they were of sound body and mind. And wouldn't you know it, the latter rushed in and successfully learned this ultimate technique... or so he believed. He gained power and glory, of course, and his body was sufficient enough to withstand the demand of this ultimate technique. But he gained it in a dishonest way, and unbeknownst to him, it cost him his soul, for his mind was not ready. Sound familiar? It should if you played enough fighting games...
But don't misunderstand the moral of this story. I am not saying that gaining fame through the natural result of honest hard work is a bad thing. I am saying that fame should not be your sole motive - let alone a primary factor - to want to help your community, especially if it's small. If fame and popularity is meant for you, it will come. But it should not come at the cost of the good qualities that define you as a person. It's better for you to have an impact on a few people who will successfully carry on your good influence than a myriad of people taking the fast lane, only to crash and burn when they least expect it.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
4) Last, but not least, be honest with yourself.
There are some contributors who mislead those in the community into thinking they're pro-gamers, former pro-gamers, high/top level players, or former high/top level players. If you know for a fact you haven't achieved such accolades, make a disclaimer that you are by no means anything under this category. Yes, you may have gone to some locals - and probably majors - and participated to compete. Heck, you could be an online player who hasn't had the privilege of taking part in any offline local activity given your personal circumstances. But even so, leave it at that. If you do this, I promise you, no one in the right mind will hold this against you unless they're just desperately looking for drama.
So yeah, it is what it is, ladies and gentlemen. Contribution is power. Power enriched by the heart. If your heart wishes to do something to help, do it. Just don't do it for selfish reasons, and most importantly, be honest with yourself. You never know who you'll relate to, much less inspire.
There are a number of people I wanna dedicate this particular blog to, but to keep this short, I'll leave it to a quick "They know who they are" so no one will feel singled out. And if you don't know, I'll let you know.
To those who read this in full, thank you for taking the time to read, and take care of yourselves.
What we're gonna talk about in this blog is contributing knowledge to your community in general. Now you're probably thinking, "This topic sounds generic, everybody knows anybody who's willing to do so should do so, it helps the community grow!" Sometimes, I wish it were that easy for some. In this era we live in full of bloated competitive egos, reckless keyboard warriors, and shady gaming journalists, it's oftentimes very hard to make a contribution to your own community without someone throwing shade in your face accusing you of being all kinds of things like a "sellout", a "leech", a "money grubber", or my personal favorite, a "fake OG who talks like he won big tournaments", all accusations that are especially targeted toward significantly popular Youtube users who get a lot of views and likes. But this topic isn't just about the ones that do throw the shade, but learning and knowing how to illuminate that shade on your own while doing what you know in your heart is the right thing.
Now let's focus on you, the willing contributor. And for the sake of being down-to-earth, let's assume you're just an ordinary guy posting in your community forum that plays your game and striving to get better. No accolades, no consistent top placings in local and major tournaments, no tight-knit connections to high-level or top players, none of that stuff. But despite this, you feel deep down inside that you're decent enough to share what you know.
Despite having limited knowledge of playing the game like some comparatively famous high level / top players do, you also happen to have networking and communication skills to an extent. What's more, you have some experience making videos, you're not incredibly shy on the camera, you're pretty humble, you're willing to do what you can without any trace of desire for compensation, and you're very welcoming to the newcomers and viewers who want a different outlet of learning besides the forum community they feel is too abrasive. What could possibly go wrong?
You make your first set of videos, and the first batch of comments you get are along the lines of "Who are you?", "Stop sucking *said company*'s dick", "*Famous player*'s stuff shits all over yours", and "Stop talking like you're some big shot OG from back in the day". And you're here thinking, "What did I do to deserve this?" All you wanted to do was help people. You weren't selling yourself. You weren't promoting yourself. You were bringing awareness to your game and the wonders it can offer to the player, should they choose to study it. So where did you go wrong? The truth is this.. your heart was in the right place. However, there are ways you can convince your audience and let them see you on the same page:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1) Whatever format of contribution you create for your community, DO NOT make it about you.
Remember, when making a contribution to help other players, this isn't about you. It's about helping them to someday help others, provided your contribution was sufficient enough to get them to that point. With humility comes selflessness. While the temptation for a quick buck may be strong for some gamers, let's be real here. You should not want to contribute for profit or personal gain, much less focus on that as your ONLY source of income. A mistake that unfortunately is being made by some gamers in recent memory which I will not name. If you bring yourself into the equation that isn't relatable, chances are the detractors can use this against you, and perhaps even twist your words around to the point where you seem like another attention whore, when you know that isn't the case.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2) If you want to go above and beyond your current knowledge, do your research. And don't be afraid to ask for help.
Another common mistake aspiring contributors make that some detractors LOVE to nitpick about. It's one thing to want to share what you currently know, but it's another when you want to dig deeper, only to discover there were holes - or in this case, opinions - in your fact sheet. If you are able, do the research on your own to ensure the information you're providing is correct. But sometimes going alone won't be enough. You'll likely need a second hand, and there is absolutely no shame in asking for help to contribute to a greater cause. Just make sure you give credit to those willing to help you along the way... it's good manners, after all.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3) DO NOT measure your success or your relevancy on likes, comments or views.
So many people make the mistake of determining their own personal self-worth based on statistics... and that includes me, I'm guilty of it too. Make no mistake about it... you are a human being with a heart and soul first. You're worth more than just packets of data on a grid. And if you don't think you are, take a moment to think about this.
There was once two martial artists who trained under their master. One was just and truthful, wanting only to take the path the master instructed him, having faith in his knowledge and getting the results when the time is right. The other believed that cutting corners by any means necessary to get results was more important. The latter student was eager to learn the ultimate technique of his style, and wasn't afraid to challenge the authority of his master to do so.
The master expressly forbade either to study this style until they were of sound body and mind. And wouldn't you know it, the latter rushed in and successfully learned this ultimate technique... or so he believed. He gained power and glory, of course, and his body was sufficient enough to withstand the demand of this ultimate technique. But he gained it in a dishonest way, and unbeknownst to him, it cost him his soul, for his mind was not ready. Sound familiar? It should if you played enough fighting games...
But don't misunderstand the moral of this story. I am not saying that gaining fame through the natural result of honest hard work is a bad thing. I am saying that fame should not be your sole motive - let alone a primary factor - to want to help your community, especially if it's small. If fame and popularity is meant for you, it will come. But it should not come at the cost of the good qualities that define you as a person. It's better for you to have an impact on a few people who will successfully carry on your good influence than a myriad of people taking the fast lane, only to crash and burn when they least expect it.
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4) Last, but not least, be honest with yourself.
There are some contributors who mislead those in the community into thinking they're pro-gamers, former pro-gamers, high/top level players, or former high/top level players. If you know for a fact you haven't achieved such accolades, make a disclaimer that you are by no means anything under this category. Yes, you may have gone to some locals - and probably majors - and participated to compete. Heck, you could be an online player who hasn't had the privilege of taking part in any offline local activity given your personal circumstances. But even so, leave it at that. If you do this, I promise you, no one in the right mind will hold this against you unless they're just desperately looking for drama.
So yeah, it is what it is, ladies and gentlemen. Contribution is power. Power enriched by the heart. If your heart wishes to do something to help, do it. Just don't do it for selfish reasons, and most importantly, be honest with yourself. You never know who you'll relate to, much less inspire.
There are a number of people I wanna dedicate this particular blog to, but to keep this short, I'll leave it to a quick "They know who they are" so no one will feel singled out. And if you don't know, I'll let you know.
To those who read this in full, thank you for taking the time to read, and take care of yourselves.
Sunday, September 14, 2014
DOA Community Blog #6: Why Am I Going to TFC, Much Less Competing?
In the near-past 2 years since Final Round back in 2013, I've given a majority of people in the DOA community more reasons to hate me than like me. I've lost tournaments (some more poorly than others), I've lost confidence, many give the impression that I'm not good enough to socialize with them, and I've been called a fraud every so often by others to the point where I believed it myself. With the Road to TFC events in motion, there is expected to be a lot of people showing up to this major in North Carolina, many of whom don't see eye-to-eye with me or have ridiculed me in the past. I may have a handful of friends here and there, but at the end of the day, the detractors outweigh the devotees.
That being said, why am I going to TFC despite the expected vitirol? Sure, I may be going for experience and supporting the community, but it doesn't necessarily mean it will be a good experience, or whether my "support" will be little more than just being another number to keep the interest of the game going and getting free pizza for everyone, which looks like my only purpose for being there to compete. I'm not exactly wanted there for the right reasons.
I'm taking quite a risk here. I may not even survive the weekend if I'm not careful. It's gotten to the point that unless I pull some miracle and do well in this tournament, I will not only decrease the chances of regaining lost friendships, but won't hear the end of this fraud talk. Or worse, I may end up being invisible to most people.
But DOA needs that support more than ever. It's a sacrifice I have to make in order for its competitive community to keep thriving. And the more I and others support it, the more likely majors will exist... which means there will be more opportunities to prove myself as a player - no, a human being - to the entire community. So if it means enduring more ridicule because I didn't do well enough, then so be it. At least the few friends I still have will still support me, as I will support them. Whatever the outcome, TFC's gonna be a huge DOA tourney, and one that may go down in history. I may as well make the most of it, face my fears, put up with the vitirol, and look at the big picture.
To the remaining friends I do have in the community, see you around. I will be going to TFC, and not to spectate, but to compete. I don't know how far I'll make it, but it's better than not trying at all. If by the slim chance I place high enough to get a sum of the prize money, I'll give it to someone else. I never go to tournaments for money, but rather something as immaterial as acceptance. As much as I fear rejection, being accepted and liked by everyone in the community is far more valuable to me than you know.
Anyway, there's my vent. I'm going to get it over with, compete in TFC, and that's that.
That being said, why am I going to TFC despite the expected vitirol? Sure, I may be going for experience and supporting the community, but it doesn't necessarily mean it will be a good experience, or whether my "support" will be little more than just being another number to keep the interest of the game going and getting free pizza for everyone, which looks like my only purpose for being there to compete. I'm not exactly wanted there for the right reasons.
I'm taking quite a risk here. I may not even survive the weekend if I'm not careful. It's gotten to the point that unless I pull some miracle and do well in this tournament, I will not only decrease the chances of regaining lost friendships, but won't hear the end of this fraud talk. Or worse, I may end up being invisible to most people.
But DOA needs that support more than ever. It's a sacrifice I have to make in order for its competitive community to keep thriving. And the more I and others support it, the more likely majors will exist... which means there will be more opportunities to prove myself as a player - no, a human being - to the entire community. So if it means enduring more ridicule because I didn't do well enough, then so be it. At least the few friends I still have will still support me, as I will support them. Whatever the outcome, TFC's gonna be a huge DOA tourney, and one that may go down in history. I may as well make the most of it, face my fears, put up with the vitirol, and look at the big picture.
To the remaining friends I do have in the community, see you around. I will be going to TFC, and not to spectate, but to compete. I don't know how far I'll make it, but it's better than not trying at all. If by the slim chance I place high enough to get a sum of the prize money, I'll give it to someone else. I never go to tournaments for money, but rather something as immaterial as acceptance. As much as I fear rejection, being accepted and liked by everyone in the community is far more valuable to me than you know.
Anyway, there's my vent. I'm going to get it over with, compete in TFC, and that's that.
Saturday, September 6, 2014
Anime Blog #10: Sailor Moon Crystal Impressions (September 6, 2014)
"Mako-chan, where were you on the night of September 6?"
"I was summoned by my guardian Jupiter to give Nephrite a Code Red..."
OK, all jokes aside, this episode was considerably well done for an episode we had to wait not two, but 3 weeks to be shown. Because, you know, not all months operate the same way. For the most part, this episode - as always - tries its best to stay true to the manga's roots, with only one deviation (the four Heavenly Kings being left alive) as the only thing being different.
Usagi's wandering the streets of Juuban and is saved by Makoto Kino, a transfer student who was supposedly expelled for fighting. She lives by herself, as both her parents died in a plane crash. She also had a love interest with an unnamed senior, who then revealed he already had a girlfriend. Upon meeting with Usagi at the Crown arcade, the manager Motoki Furuhata immediately reminds her of that very senior.
Meanwhile Nephrite infiltrates a bridal store in order to gather more energy and draw out the Silver Crystal, which is again foiled by the Sailor Senshi, and in the process causes Makoto to awaken as Sailor Jupiter after being subjugated by a possessed Motoki. For the first time, we're treated to seeing Jupiter's Flower Hurricane in motion, as up until now it was just a manga-only technique. Oddly enough, her lightning-based technique is called Jupiter Thunderbolt instead of Supreme Thunder.
The next episode will be focusing on Tuxedo Mask and his backstory.
"I was summoned by my guardian Jupiter to give Nephrite a Code Red..."
OK, all jokes aside, this episode was considerably well done for an episode we had to wait not two, but 3 weeks to be shown. Because, you know, not all months operate the same way. For the most part, this episode - as always - tries its best to stay true to the manga's roots, with only one deviation (the four Heavenly Kings being left alive) as the only thing being different.
Usagi's wandering the streets of Juuban and is saved by Makoto Kino, a transfer student who was supposedly expelled for fighting. She lives by herself, as both her parents died in a plane crash. She also had a love interest with an unnamed senior, who then revealed he already had a girlfriend. Upon meeting with Usagi at the Crown arcade, the manager Motoki Furuhata immediately reminds her of that very senior.
Meanwhile Nephrite infiltrates a bridal store in order to gather more energy and draw out the Silver Crystal, which is again foiled by the Sailor Senshi, and in the process causes Makoto to awaken as Sailor Jupiter after being subjugated by a possessed Motoki. For the first time, we're treated to seeing Jupiter's Flower Hurricane in motion, as up until now it was just a manga-only technique. Oddly enough, her lightning-based technique is called Jupiter Thunderbolt instead of Supreme Thunder.
The next episode will be focusing on Tuxedo Mask and his backstory.
Anime Blog #9: Ronin Warriors Re-Released on DVD! Thank You Based Discotek!
All right, before I go into my usual impressions with the latest Sailor Moon Crystal episode, I gotta talk about the retro awesomeness that is the North American media distribution company, Discotek Media.
For those not in the know about this company, it has become something of a haven for resurrecting anime and Asian cinema spanning the 70s, 80s, and 90s. The company was responsible for bringing many great classics to the states on DVD, such as Mazinger Z, Samurai Pizza Cats, the Saint Seiya movies, and even a DVD release of the long sought after Galaxy Express 999 movies that was canceled by Viz Media, leaving fans only with the soon-obsoleted VHS releases.
And just recently, Discotek Media has announced a re-release of my favorite anime of all-time, Ronin Warriors (Yoroiden: Samurai Troopers in Japan) in a convenient box set collection.
http://www.fandompost.com/2014/09/05/samurai-troopers-anime-gets-license-rescue/
However, unlike the original North American release date from way back in April 2002, they will not only be exclusively released as a box set, the DVD format in which they will be released will have a bit of a separation anxiety.
The original stateside DVD release contained both the original Japanese version as well as the English dubbed Ronin Warriors in a rare DVD-10 format, which essentially is a double-sided DVD. Some fans have often complained about this format because it meant that the DVDs had to be handled a lot more carefully in order to prevent scratches. Furthermore, it also meant that the video quality in some instances had to be compressed, which led to Bandai having to cut certain footage to make ends meet (mainly the commercial bumpers and episode previews).
When Sony released the Region 2 (Japanese DVD) format on a single-sided dual layer DVD, the differences became more apparent, particularly with the original Japanese version. Some episodes lacked the sharp clarity of picture, and all of the footage - including both commercial bumpers each episode as well as the episode previews - remained intact. Which leads me to believe that Discotek Media will be releasing the series in this format as a response to previous feedback regarding the differences from back in the day. For die-hard fans, purists, and completionists like myself, this is quite a big deal.
Which begs the question: If the box set release is for the original Japanese version only, what of the English dubbed release? Discotek has gone on the record saying they're going through legal talks with Bandai on the Ocean dubbed release right now, and if they managed to get the Ocean dubs for other older anime licensed, this will likely get released sometime soon as well.
But yeah. On February 2015, the original Japanese version of Ronin Warriors will be released on DVD in a deluxe box set, based on the superior Region 2 masters complete with all commercial bumpers and episode previews intact. Big news for a big fan. When I read about this, my respect for the company just skyrocketed. And what's even more mind-blowing about this announcement is that it was made on the wake of the resurgence of Sailor Moon and it's re-release of the classic series on BD/DVD this November, which back in the day sparked lots of talks about potentially making crossovers between the two because the parallels are so good. Although realistically most of us knew this wouldn't happen, it didn't stop folks from dreaming, much less make fanfiction. But that's a story for another day. Time to talk up a storm about Sailor Jupiter in my next anime blog.
Again, thank you based Discotek for being consistently awesome!
For those not in the know about this company, it has become something of a haven for resurrecting anime and Asian cinema spanning the 70s, 80s, and 90s. The company was responsible for bringing many great classics to the states on DVD, such as Mazinger Z, Samurai Pizza Cats, the Saint Seiya movies, and even a DVD release of the long sought after Galaxy Express 999 movies that was canceled by Viz Media, leaving fans only with the soon-obsoleted VHS releases.
And just recently, Discotek Media has announced a re-release of my favorite anime of all-time, Ronin Warriors (Yoroiden: Samurai Troopers in Japan) in a convenient box set collection.
http://www.fandompost.com/2014/09/05/samurai-troopers-anime-gets-license-rescue/
However, unlike the original North American release date from way back in April 2002, they will not only be exclusively released as a box set, the DVD format in which they will be released will have a bit of a separation anxiety.
The original stateside DVD release contained both the original Japanese version as well as the English dubbed Ronin Warriors in a rare DVD-10 format, which essentially is a double-sided DVD. Some fans have often complained about this format because it meant that the DVDs had to be handled a lot more carefully in order to prevent scratches. Furthermore, it also meant that the video quality in some instances had to be compressed, which led to Bandai having to cut certain footage to make ends meet (mainly the commercial bumpers and episode previews).
When Sony released the Region 2 (Japanese DVD) format on a single-sided dual layer DVD, the differences became more apparent, particularly with the original Japanese version. Some episodes lacked the sharp clarity of picture, and all of the footage - including both commercial bumpers each episode as well as the episode previews - remained intact. Which leads me to believe that Discotek Media will be releasing the series in this format as a response to previous feedback regarding the differences from back in the day. For die-hard fans, purists, and completionists like myself, this is quite a big deal.
Which begs the question: If the box set release is for the original Japanese version only, what of the English dubbed release? Discotek has gone on the record saying they're going through legal talks with Bandai on the Ocean dubbed release right now, and if they managed to get the Ocean dubs for other older anime licensed, this will likely get released sometime soon as well.
But yeah. On February 2015, the original Japanese version of Ronin Warriors will be released on DVD in a deluxe box set, based on the superior Region 2 masters complete with all commercial bumpers and episode previews intact. Big news for a big fan. When I read about this, my respect for the company just skyrocketed. And what's even more mind-blowing about this announcement is that it was made on the wake of the resurgence of Sailor Moon and it's re-release of the classic series on BD/DVD this November, which back in the day sparked lots of talks about potentially making crossovers between the two because the parallels are so good. Although realistically most of us knew this wouldn't happen, it didn't stop folks from dreaming, much less make fanfiction. But that's a story for another day. Time to talk up a storm about Sailor Jupiter in my next anime blog.
Again, thank you based Discotek for being consistently awesome!
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