Blog
The words and works JP Esteban.
August 2023
First performance as Ryv Against The Machine
Killing in the Name (of the Absolute).
Baldur’s Gate III has been my obsession since launch for allowing me to play D&D the way I’ve been wanting to for years. Larian did a great job, and it makes me happy and hopeful for the future of CRPGs (and gaming as a whole) to see their hard work on this title pay off with rave reviews.
1 minute
May 2023
How to set up a transparent chat overlay over webcam for teleprompter use without any additional programs.
Using a teleprompter for reading chat isn’t new, but how about mirroring your webcam underneath it so you can see what you’re doing while looking into the souls of your audience? I don’t stream regularly these days but when I did, one of the things I liked most about my setup was my teleprompter chat. It went through many iterations; from a simple phone mounted as close to my webcam as possible, to an actual beam splitter teleprompter with a DSLR camera monitor screen replacing the phone.
3 minutes
April 2023
Romanticizing the American Dream
My response to an honest question.
I responded to a Redditor who asked, “Do you think Filipinos still romanticize America?” I’ll quote their opening post: This is a genuine question of mine and no hate to Americans. Just the government, health care, economy and gun laws. Same as how foreigners were scared to come here during Duterte’s term. That’s a valid reason. Anyway, when I was a kid, I hear family members be so proud of another relative for being able to live in the US.
7 minutes
March 2023
Because I promised.
Hi, I’m JP, creator of r/PHGamers and r/PHBuildaPC. Things I used to do in gaming: Write for Game! Magazine, run a gaming blog, host a tech review channel, stream a D&D show, and design mobile games. Now I produce livestreams for clients. Ask me and the new mod team anything! Hi r/PHGamers, As promised, here’s the AMA! For those of you new to Reddit in general, an AMA (Ask Me Anything) is an online Q&A session where Reddit’s community asks a guest (or guests) questions.
14 minutes
February 2023
An idea on why it’s so hard.
Originally posted on Reddit. How tf do you make friends as an adult? Who has the answer? Someone tell me because this ish blows. Lol u/MissLi1886 It might not be the answer, but I have an idea. Posted this before, but I think it’s worth repeating: When we were younger, we were put in situations where developing friendships was inevitable. School being the biggest of course, but also clubs, birthday parties, etc.
2 minutes
December 2022
Pojifi NS2080 Controller Review
This ain’t it, Chief.
I was contacted by a rep from Pojifi to review their NS-2080, which looks to be a wannabe Xbox Elite Controller for the Switch. No idea why this person wanted me in particular to take a look at it, because I don’t really do this, but here goes. TL;DR: Don’t buy it unless you just want a cheap Xbox Elite Controller for the Switch. Like most of you I bet, I’d never heard of Pojifi before they reached out to me and asked for this review.
8 minutes
Soundcore VR P10 = Game audio over 2.4GHz + Discord from phone over Bluetooth, simultaneously
Edit (Feb. 1, 2023): I eventually returned them. I ended up not using the simultaneous BT+2.4GHz feature enough to justify keeping them, and the loss of ANC and lack of passive noise isolation led me to use my other earbuds over the VR P10s anyway. If Anker makes a new version that includes ANC, I might give it another shot. Just got these for $70 on sale across various onlone shops (Amazon, BestBuy, Target).
2 minutes
November 2022
JBL Quantum TWS Noise Cancelling Headset Earbuds
2.4GHz earbuds.
Originally posted on Reddit. I have these, they’re pretty good. I got them for the 2.4GHz transmitter, which is a rarity among TWS earbuds. I only know of two other products that do this. You can swap between 2.4GHz and Bluetooth connections almost instantly, but you can’t listen in on both sources at a time. If you want that feature you could look into the Soundcore VR P10. It’s great for ensuring your mic absolutely does not pick up any audio bleeding out of your headphones, which I find happens a lot even with closed-back studio headphones if you’ve got a condenser.
Gadgets Quotes Review Thoughts
4 minutes
October 2022
Thoughts and Findings on the 8Bitdo Ultimate Controller
TL;DR do NOT use if you want/need gyro on PC.
Originally posted on Reddit. My controller arrived today and I had ample time to play around with it. The TL;DR of this writeup is that I may end up returning the controller, but only because it lacked one specific feature I was hoping it would have. First, the good: It feels good. For its size, it feels surprisingly light. Much like the Google Stadia controller felt when picking it up out of the box.
Gadgets Gaming Review Thoughts
8 minutes
September 2022
Monster Hunter: World, or Rise?
Either is still a good choice.
Originally posted on Reddit. Question in relation to this thread. Is it still worth it to get MH World right now as my 1st ever MH game even if MH Rise is already out? Just because World is cheaper right now on Steam lol Edit: Or would it be better to just sacrifice more cash and just outright go for MH Rise? u/Impersona_9 I’m a third fleet MH vet (MH Tri was my first), and I’ve played every single MH game and spinoff since that generation.
3 minutes
What is a True Story About You That Sounds Made Up?
One of the rare r/askreddit questions I answered.
Originally posted on Reddit. I’m an English lit graduate who went down this whirlwind of a career path: Freelance writer for a gaming magazine (kept this up for many years as a side gig) ESL Teacher Copywriter at an ad agency Community Manager for brand social media sites Game designer/project manager at several mobile game development studios General freelancer doing lots of odd jobs Telephone communications assistant for the hard of hearing Livestream director for an events company Livestream production specialist for a marketing agency So this is either completely irrational for people who believe Eng.
1 minute
August 2022
JBL Quantum TWS Mic Sample/Comparison
Left Channel = shotgun mic; Right Channel = Quantum TWS
Originally posted on Reddit. Made this mostly for my own curiosity, as I wanted to hear what my Discord buddies might hear if I used the TWS mics only. The “control” audio is from an Audio-Technica AT875R shotgun mic. Left Channel is the AT875R, Right Channel is the JBL Quantum TWS. If you’re not listening using earbuds/earphones (to easily remove one bud from your ear to isolate the channels), you can do so in Windows by going to System > Sound, clicking on the arrow beside whatever your default output device is, and adjusting the Left/Right channel volume sliders individually.
2 minutes
July 2021
How to use Move Transitions OBS plugin to toggle punch-in visibility with mic activity
Video Punching or zooming in on your facecams is nice and all, but if you forget to hit that hotkey, there’s no recapturing/reframing that moment except in post. Using a couple plugins on OBS, you can make sure to capture all those pogchamp moments by just screaming into your mic. Requirements OBS Studio Version 27 and up Move Transition Plugin Stream FX Plugin (optional but helpful) In lieu of the Stream FX plugin, duplicating your facecam can be done via scene nesting.
1 minute
Create a Legitimate FFXIV Account From the Philippines
They should just make it easier.
Originally posted on Reddit.. As far as Final Fantasy XIV registration goes, Square Enix believes only 3 countries exist in the entire world: North America, Europe, and Japan. If you try to create an account from any other region, not only will it fail, but Square Enix will flag your email address and lock it out from being used for 24h. This lockout refreshes every time you try, too, leading many people to believe they killed their chance at playing this cool game.
4 minutes
June 2021
Xiaomi RMA’d my 34" Ultrawide
Originally posted on Reddit. I’m completely floored; nobody expected Xiaomi to RMA this monitor, but they did. I was completely prepared to repair the damage by myself using the suggestions provided by some very helpful Redditors in my previous post, linked above. Worst case scenario, I would’ve bought a replacement main board myself from Taobao. But the store (Technopop, a subsidiary of Kimstore) and Xiaomi pulled through. I’m back in Team Ultrawide!
1 minute
May 2021
Because a Meshilicious costs $200+ in Manila
Originally posted on Reddit. Gotta redo it because it’s not squared off, but I think this prototype works well! Don’t ask for how this affects thermals cuz I don’t have a computer inside of it currently, I’ll be migrating my parts over into it once my CPU arrives. I’ve never worked with wood before (am more of a papercraft and soldering iron guy), but this was a nice learning experience.
1 minute
Don’t make the same mistake I did; use only the provided VESA mount screws.
Originally posted on Reddit. I was mounting my Mi Surface 34 to my monitor arm and figured I’d just reuse the same screws, which are a little long because the previous monitor that was on it had very long spacers. One of the screws dug right into the Surface’s motherboard because there’s nothing protecting it from underneath the screw hole. It etched a couple copper traces right off. It’s only been about 4 months since I ascended into ultrawidemasterracedom, but now I must descend back into regular old 16:9.
1 minute
This was a teachable moment.
Originally posted on Reddit. Someone on Reddit asked why Half-Life should get a page in the history books of gaming. While gaming taste is certainly subjective, there are objective truths about the state of game development before and after Half-Life; clear, measurable changes that came about in the wake of its release. In any case I figured this was a teachable moment that I could actually give insight to, so I hope it helps the OP at least appreciate Half-Life a little more, if not consider playing HL games sometime.
3 minutes
March 2021
Genki ShadowCast Input Latency Tests & First Impressions
Results of using a high framerate camera to perform input latency tests on the Genki ShadowCast.
The Genki ShadowCast by Human Things is a capture card that fits entirely inside the shadow of the official Nintendo Switch dock, hence the name. It works just like any other USB thumb drive sized capture card, except for one thing: Human Things have developed specialized capture software customized specifically for the Shadowcast that they say reduces latency of the captured video to undetectably low levels, while using less system resources than alternatives.
Review Streaming Tech Thoughts
4 minutes
January 2021
On any gamepad (PC, Steam only)
Originally posted on Reddit. Greetings commanders, I recently wrote up this guide for my brother and figured why not share it with the rest of the Elite Dangerous community. Personally, I find it makes playing on controllers much more manageable when you want to do certain things like target wingmen, use heatsinks/chaff/ECM/shield cells, toggle night vision, or whatever other feature the game offers that don’t fit on the default controller bindings (even with classic context or default context controller options).
5 minutes
December 2020
Headtracking With Normal Webcams
Using OpenTrack and AITrack
Originally posted on Reddit. Now that SWSquadrons supports TrackIR, this opens up the potential to play the game using various 3rd party software alternatives to the expensive TrackIR hardware. We’ve seen one solution so far that involves pairing a paid smartphone app with OpenTrack (one of these free open source headtracking solutions), but if you already have a webcam, even one built into a laptop, you can use OpenTrack with a different piece of input software: AITrack, which is free to use.
4 minutes
ASRock X570 ITX/TB3 WiFi Issue
Intermittent connectivity due to disconnected WiFi module
Originally posted on Reddit. When I first booted up my system with this board, I noticed WIFI did not work at all, and the adapter wasn’t detected in Win10 device manager. I had read handfuls of posts by users reporting faulty/intermittent connections with their WiFi on this board, but none that say it is outright nonfunctional. The WiFi adapter was not seated properly. I had to take apart the IO cover/heatsink assembly and the WiFi module housing to see this.
2 minutes
November 2020
Custom Sentry case mod to let the GPU breathe.
Click for larger photos. I’m in the middle of transitioning to Ryzen, so it will seem a bit mismatched for now but here’s where I’m at and where I’m headed: i7-7700k -> r7-5800x Gigabyte Z270N-Wifi ITX -> ASRock X570 Phantom Gaming-ITX/TB3 32GB Gskill Ripjaws V 3200MHz PNY XLR8 RTX 3080 (previously Galax GTX 1070 Katana) Corsair SF600 Platinum -> Corsair SF750 Platinum (when prices become not stupid) Right now the i7-7700k is being cooled by a Thermolab LP53 w/ Noctua A9x14 because at the time that was the best performing cooler that could fit in the case.
3 minutes
October 2020
Horizontally Scrolling Chat Overlay
How to use custom CSS to switch from a vertically-flowing chat overlay to a horizontal one
One thing I noticed while playing and streaming Star Wars Squadrons is how much of the viewspace is taken up by the player’s ship instruments and cockpit view. I like having a chat overlay on my streams and, with this UI design cramping the precious little verticle space, I wanted a way to dispaly the chat without encroaching on the viewport. Video Requirements The only thing needed to use these lines of custom CSS is the Restream.
3 minutes
Desperate times, desperate measures
New graphics card arrived before my new case.
System config: i7-7700k delidded, liquid metalled PNY RTX 3080 32GB Ripjaws V RAM Gigabyte Z270N-WiFi Corsair SF600 Platinum Geeek M100WS My system used to be in a much nicer Dr. Zaber Sentry SFF case. However, the PNY 3080 is juuuuust a few mm too thick to fit in the graphics card partition. I will be selling the Galax GTX 1070 Katana that used to be in this build. It’s a single-slot graphics card, so, perfect for mITX builds like mine used to be.
1 minute
August 2020
Why you should regularly clean your laptops
These pics should adequately explain why regular laptop fan cleaning is necessary.
Today I would just like to share with you some results from my yearly laptop cleanse. Normally I do it earlier in the year, but the last time I cleaned my Acer Predator Helios 300 was 0001 BC (BC = before COVID). Photos Here’s what it looked like immediately upon opening up the laptop: Hmm, is that all? Not too horrib– Here’s the year’s worth accumulation of gunk from one of the fans:
2 minutes
February 2020
What is this, an arcade for ants?
Published on UnboxGuru. Introduction Portable gaming has come a long, long way from the gadgets of yesteryear. From the black-and-white days of Game & Watches and Gameboys, to the 3D-capable DSes and PSPs, and now to being able to play AAA games on pretty much any modern phone, it seems like all that’s left for people to figure out is how to render videogame graphics directly into our stimulant-starved retinas.
4 minutes
December 2019
As SEA Games closes, age of esports begins
SEA Games 2019 results for Inquirer.
Published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer. The neon haze of PC screens and mobile phones at San Juan’s FilOil Flying V Arena has begun to fade following the closing ceremony of the 30th Southeast Asian Games’s esports disciplines, but the fire still burns in the hearts of our national athletes—casting a bright light into the future of this burgeoning industry. For a first-time showing in Southeast Asia, Philippine National Team Sibol came out strong.
3 minutes
SEAGames Esport Qualifiers Results
SEAGames 2019 Philippine team esports results.
Published on Inquirer.net. The 2019 SEAGames esports opening ceremony began at the San Juan Arena with a series of videos about the months of preparation leading up to the event, produced by official SEAGames esports partner, Razer. Opening remarks by Hon. Mayor Francis Zamora of San Juan City, Razer CEO Min-Liang Tan, Asian Electronic Sports Federation President Kenneth Fok, and Congressman Abraham Tolentino followed, and after Philippine representative Jia led the oath of sportsmanship, the virtual games began.
3 minutes
How to Spectate Arena of Valor
SEAGames 2019 coverage for Inquirer.
Published on Inquirer.net. The SEAGames 2019 opening ceremonies played off to a rousing start last week, and challengers from all over the region—including some of our very own—have started claiming victories and medals in various familiar competitions. In just a couple of days, however, we will begin watching playoffs in the newest addition to this lineup of disciplines: esports. Many of us are at least casually familiar with a few of the games that will serve as the virtual courts for our new breed of athletes.
5 minutes
November 2019
Liyab to Light the Flame of a New Athletic Breed
Intro to esports for the Inquirer.
Published on Inquirer.net. With SEAG 2019 set to begin in just under a week, expectations are high as representatives from all over the region fly in with the hopes of making their marks and bringing home the gold. The myriad of competitions—from archery, aquatics, and arnis, all the way to weightlifting, wakeboarding, and wushu—opens the gates to athletes of all shapes and sizes as they vy for a place on the podium of their sport.
4 minutes
March 2019
The SNES Classic is a ’90s Nostalgia Box
First hosting gig for UnboxGuru.
Published on UnboxGuru. The Super Nintendo Entertainment System may have been released almost 30 years ago, but nostalgia is ageless. Those who spent their youths wired to the venerable SNES/Super Famicom still fondly look back on those innocent days during the golden years of gaming. This is why Nintendo’s move to re-release its classic consoles as miniaturized, modernized versions is so brilliant; not only is there a captive market of consumers already familiar and enamored with those products, but that market is now 20–30 years older, with disposable income to spare, and children of their own to pass on this hobby to.
7 minutes
February 2019
Nothing Can Protect You Against Loneliness
Because it’s part of your biology.
Originally posted on Reddit. I woke up to Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell: Loneliness today and almost felt personally attacked. It’s rare, but sometimes a YouTube video understands me more than I understand myself. If 12 minutes and 30 seconds is too long to listen to, the video essentially explains the evolutionary reasons why loneliness is painful, and how chronic loneliness became an epidemic more deadly than obesity and on par with smoking a pack of cigarettes a day.
1 minute
July 2018
I Cast Healing Word, Curing Friend’s Depression Condition
Friendship, the most magical spell.
Originally posted on Reddit Green Bro gave me permission to post this after I used my Action to Aid and cast Healing Word, curing his depression Condition.
Quotes Social Tabletop Thoughts
1 minute
January 2018
I Made a Dice Tower for Dicecast
But it doesn’t seem to like me very much.
Originally posted on Reddit.. I followed this video to create the dice tower out of foam board and just added supports to make the webcam mount, an inch-long 1/4"-20 thread screw, bolt and washer to hold the C920 in place, and strip LED lighting to illuminate the whole thing. Now we have an actual physical dice camera for the show/stream!
1 minute
December 2017
Dr. Zaber Sentry GTX 1070 Katana + Elgato 4k60 Bifurcated PC
Lots of words just to say: a really cool PC.
So, it’s relatively easy to modify the Sentry to use a PCIe bifurcation riser. I’m using an Ameri-Rack ARC1-PELY423-C5V3 which I paid $58 for all-in. I emailed Ameri-Rack ( Ameri-Rack Sales Department ), sending them this spiel: Hi, I was referred to your company by the users at Hardforum when inquiring about PCIe bifurcation risers, and came across two that I’d be very interested in purchasing. I hope you still sell directly to individuals.
2 minutes
October 2017
C-Force CF003 Portable Dock/Dongle Review
Bought with forwarders from China.
First posted on Reddit. CForce CF003 and Xiaomi Mi USB-C 45W 100-240v means it can be used anywhere in the world, 15v-3A means it delivers more than enough wattage to power the Switch through the dock I just got my Xiaomi Mi USB-C 45W charger, and it works extremely well to power the Switch Dock. It supports the 15v 2.6a USB-PD profile required by the official dock, is more portable than the official AC adapter, and is more versatile, supporting a removable USB-C cable.
1 minute
September 2017
3D-printed joycon + smartphone grip
A 3D-printed solution to the first world problem of holding your Joycon and phone at the same time
Switching I’m a pretty big fan of 3d-printing stuff for my Switch, and when I saw yesterday’s mockup of a joycon and smartphone grip combo done by /u/CubeGuy365, I immediately wanted to try my hand at it. This wasn’t a single printed model; in fact, it’s just a quick cannibalization of some existing prints I already had: Parts Nintendo Switch Con U v2 by artobot Nintendo Switch attachable grip by Brandon Mott Moto Z Style Mod (not a 3D print, just a spare shell I had lying around) As an added bonus, those joycon grips can be slid into the Switch console itself for added versatility.
1 minute
My YouTube video showcasing how to replace the Nintendo Switch Joycon locking tab.
Video I put this video together not only because I managed to fix my joycon on my own thanks to Thingiverse, but because a couple people have experienced a similar issue with the Joycon as I have so I figured if it could help them, it could potentially help others as well. Many thanks to Shapecloud.ph for providing 3D-printing services!
1 minute
August 2017
C-Force CF003 Portable Dock/Dongle Review
Bought with forwarders from China.
First posted on Reddit. Click for original size. The CF003 is a recent revision of the infamous C-Force CF001, which many of you might remember as the dock which the SFANS crowdfunding project copied. I don’t care about any of that, I only care about whether the thing works. I’m happy to say that it does, and in possibly the smallest, most portable form factor so far. I bought my CF003 from this Taobao listing.
4 minutes
July 2017
More 3D-Printed Nintendo Switch Accessories
Next up: Joycon grip and D-pad mod.
First posted on Reddit.. Click for original size. Item list: Folding stand Joycon+straps grip D-pad mod Everything works very well, but the Joycon tend to slide out of the grip pretty easily. Not sure if there’s a way for me to lock them in more securely. The d-pad mod works so much better than I expected; there’s actually a half-sphere at the center of the bottom that simulates a ball pivot.
1 minute
Printing Nintendo Switch accessories with Shapecloud.ph
First up: a folding stand.
First posted on Reddit. Click for original size. This folding stand allows for charging while playing the Switch in tabletop mode. I downloaded the .stl file from Thingiverse and had it printed by Shapecloud.ph while they were exhibiting their services at their booth during the Rappler event in SMX yesterday. It cost me ₱1000, which by itself is cheaper than the cost of just shipping from Shapeways. The print itself is very sturdy and fine.
1 minute
What’s A Geek features Dicecast
It’s nice to be recognized by peers!
Image from whatsageek.com. Many thanks to all the fans and supporters of the show who’ve helped put it on the radar for bigger blogs like What’s a Geek to see! Really, I can’t overstate my appreciation; the reception has been warmer than I’d hoped so far. Until next time, ready your dice!
Social Streaming Tabletop Thoughts
1 minute
March 2017
Customized D&D character journals
I built character sheets into journals to give to my D&D party
Click for larger photos. Materials A full list of the materials used and where I got them: Vintage faux leather journals Assorted Pendants Assorted Charms Icosahedron earrings (repurposed into holders for the charms) Card stock (from local bookstore) Total cost: about $10 per journal (I made 5) Character sheet design While waiting for the items to arrive from eBay, I worked on designing the character sheet based on the paper size listed in the journal description.
3 minutes
February 2017
DIY D&D character, ability, & spell cards
Cool, cheap, and easy home-printable D&D action cards.
Click for larger photos. Step 4: Print your card design I used this card generator to generate the PDFs, which was the hardest part because you need to manually input the content (Wizards of the Coast cracks down hard on illegitimately distributed reproductions of their D&D IP). Step 5: Stick to card stock Then I printed onto glossy sticker paper and stuck entire sheets on to card stock (my printer can’t print on stock directly, but if yours can, you can skip this step).
1 minute
January 2017
Played Overcooked with Maria Ozawa
Never thought I’d be in a video with a (former) porn star.
Originally posted on Reddit. In case you didn’t know, GG Network started a show called “Notice Me Senpai” back in Dec. hosted by Maria Ozawa. Here’s a Twitch VOD of her playing Mafia III with Miggy Chavez of Chicosci last week. Aside from playing the game with her, I hope to be able to talk to her more about her Eurasian heritage and the unique challenges she’s faced as an individual of mixed descent, and possibly her relationship with her parents.
Gaming Social Streaming Thoughts
1 minute
After 6 months, my Anne Pro finally started showing issues
Anne, are you ok?
Originally posted on Reddit. I used to think people were just getting unlucky with their Anne Pros, because even with a busted battery, mine exhibited no issues in the 6 months I’ve owned it - until now. When I press the “Y” key, the board also registers keypresses on the Q, W, E, U, I, O, and P keys. In addition to that, it no longer connects via Bluetooth to Android devices that it previously was able to pair with.
3 minutes
Anne Pro custom lighting with sanded keycap tops
What a set of manually-sandpapered keycaps look like with per-key RGB lighting
Sanding off the top of keyboard keycaps can result in a pretty beautiful diffused RGB glow. I got the idea from Taekeyboards. One thing to note before committing to this is that the process of sanding the top coats down is very time consuming. If I knew about these at the time, I would’ve just bought them. Video Basic technique There’s not much to say about my technique; I just wrapped some sandpaper around my finger, and kind of brushed the keycap over it along the length of my finger.
2 minutes
December 2016
Just me and some GGNetwork friends playing boardgames
GG Network Holiday Board Games Guide
Originally posted on Reddit. A few months ago I posted about working on something like this with some other like-minded creators who want to see local media diversify into geek culture with some semblance of production value. It’s starting to pick up, and we’ve started expanding from eSports into more niche categories. Let me or the rest of GG Network / D5 Studios know if this is the type of content you’d like to see.
Social Streaming Tabletop Thoughts
1 minute
September 2016
Thanks, JuanDip Hydroprints!
Originally posted on Reddit. Click for original size. I got this done by JuanDip Hydroprints, probably one of the best (and only) hydrodipping services here in the Philippines. It cost me PHP 1,000 and took just a little under 1 week to process (there’s multiple steps of painting including primer, dip, and clear coat, and I had to line up in their job queue). So for anyone looking to customize the look of their keyboard case on the cheap in the Philippines, I highly recommend this vendor.
1 minute