Gaming
Of the digital, video- sort.
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
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
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
July 2021
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
May 2021
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
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
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
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
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
February 2016
Takeaways from the GG Network meeting
Start of a beautiful partnership.
Originally posted on Reddit. Just realized it might be easier for everyone if I posted an update to this in its own thread, instead of chasing each person down individually. My takeaways from the meeting are these: the guys behind GG Network in the New Media department of TV5 are either super serious, or fucking crazy, or both; and, they have honestly, earnestly, and painstakingly done their homework. I was naive to assume that they were feeling around in the dark, not really knowing the community or our wants and goals.
3 minutes
June 2015
Bit of an ARKoholic looking for other survivors
Never found any.
Originally posted on Reddit. Day 1: Washed ashore on some strange island. Can’t remember how I got here. Can’t remember who I am. There are creatures here that I have only seen in books and movies. Too many questions. I must survive to find the answers. Day 3: Some of the animals show signs of intelligence. I’ve domesticated a small yet terrifying creature, reminiscent of those long-extinct birds from the old world.
3 minutes
The ARK is just a game, but the pain is very real
Life finds a way… until server maintenance happens.
Originally posted on Reddit. Last night, I suffered a great loss. After server maintenance, I logged back in and went for a routine fly around the western area to pick up supply drops. Unfortunately, mid-flight I was caught by a sudden server outage. I frantically tried logging in again, and 2 minutes later the server was back up. My character awoke to Petra the pteranodon being slaughtered by a flock of raptors, and I shortly thereafter suffered the same fate.
3 minutes
August 2014
I’ve never played a rogue(quite)like this.
Also, this was my first Reddit post ever.
Originally posted on Reddit. I’m at the SSS branch in SM Aura and they’re playing Chrono Trigger music over the PA system. Needless to say, it caught me by surprise! I remember a few years ago during the televized UAAP games they’d play Final Fantasy battle music between commercials. Does anyone else have anecdotes about hearing game music out of the blue? I was at my Uncle’s farm and he asked me to deliver some chickens to trade for some fish, a couple of houses down by the farm.
2 minutes
December 2013
10 Videogames That Changed My Life
Reflections on my gaming history.
There’s this list meme that’s going on in Facebook lately, and someone asked me for my own. I’ve had a hard time putting this together because frankly I’ve played a lot of games in my life, and 10 seems to be too few to list. It took a while to distill, but here’s what I’ve come up with. Super Mario World If I recall correctly this was the first videogame I played.
5 minutes
Gaming on-the-go is still gaming.
The currently ongoing Steam sale is making me realize something I’ve been too reluctant to admit. As my PC game backlog grows into an increasingly unmanageable length, I have to come to terms with the fact that my old gaming preferences and habits no longer fit the lifestyle I’ve adopted. I’m no longer primarily a PC gamer; instead, I tend to reach into my pocket, pull out my phone, and switch on an app whenever I feel the urge to play.
7 minutes
November 2013
Depictions of violence against children in videogames.
There’s been some heated discussion lately about the practice of using children as characters in violent videogames. While I don’t particularly care, I do find some of the arguments coming from both sides quite interesting. A little bit of background on the topic: a game called No More Room in Hell was recently released on Steam Greenlight, and it contains zombie children. Players can attack these characters, just like they can attack the zombie adults, and they’re encouraged to - because both the big and little zombies will kill the players if they’re allowed to roam.
3 minutes
Top 5 Weirdest Videogame Afterlives
Death is only the beginning.
Maybe it’s the Halloween festivities, the All Souls Day solemnity, or the fact that recently the Legend of Korra has been dealing with tussling spirits and weird dimensions. Whatever the reason, I feel like bringing up an old article I wrote for Game! Magazine back in 2010, about the way some videogames have portrayed their versions of life after death. Granted, this list is almost three years old by now and many many new games have come out since then - some dealing with the topic in their own special way.
6 minutes
September 2013
Playing games is the norm.
Here’s a picture of someone you may or may not know. On many levels, she’s just a girl who enjoys the occasional game of Super Mario, Pokemon, and Fable. In the photo, taken by the guys at roboticrice.com (awesome site, btw), she’s playing DOTA 2. Just so you know, she’s not a “hardcore games or bust” elitist either; she totes around an iPad ready to play Dumb Ways to Die at a moment’s notice.
4 minutes
Have you stopped playing a game because of an SO?
Breaking up with games.
Originally posted on Reddit. I used to play loads of games with her. Diablo II, Terraria, Borderlands, Left 4 Dead, lots and lots of point-and-click adventure games (sometimes she’d take the controls while I watched, other times I’d handle it while she criticized), and probably a bunch more that I’m forgetting at the moment. Ever since the breakup, I’ve never even started those games up again. Initially it was because of the feels associated with her, but after picking myself up and moving on, I’m not sure why I don’t play those games anymore.
1 minute
August 2013
Dark and twisty humor required.
I completely missed out on Cards Against Humanity and have thus been denied the guilty pleasure of laughing like an idiot over forming nonsensical subject-predicate pairs, hilariously unexpected direct and indirect objects, and generally making fun of impossibly silly situations. So apparently this little indie card game is a viral hit. I completely missed out on it, and have thus been denied the guilty pleasure of laughing like an idiot over forming nonsensical subject-predicate pairs, hilariously unexpected direct and indirect objects, and generally making fun of impossibly silly situations.
2 minutes
July 2013
On quitting due to cancel culture.
Let’s take a small step outside of gaming for a bit. Don’t worry, it’ll just be two paragraphs worth of text, and it’ll only be to set the stage. Last June, former Boston Fire Chief Steve Abraira resigned from his post following public criticism about his response to the horrible Boston Marathon bombings, summarized in a letter signed by every other fire chief in the city department. The baseless attacks by the Deputy Chiefs, especially their actions of making this a matter of public debate by leaking their letter of April 26 to the press, has made it impossible for me to continue to do my job.
5 minutes
Gamers are the worst (and best) people
On gatekeeping and harassment.
I was very hesitant about posting this article. An anti-gamer rant on a blog that praises games? Blasphemy. Still, I ended up hitting the “Publish” button because being able to love something completely means to look at its ugliness along with the good side; and to accept the reality of its imperfection, while at the same time helping it achieve that impossible state in whatever way one can. It’s true. The vocal majority of people on the Internet don’t think very highly of those who self-identify as “gamers.
7 minutes
Repackaging Done Right: Tomb Raider 2013
Introducing Girls Got Game.
If you haven’t noticed, Girls Got Game just launched their website recently. Not to be mistaken as merely a feminist take on games and the videogame industry, Girls Got Game aims to provide a voice for the traditionally underrepresented half (and yes, it’s about fair to say half) of the gamer demographic; a voice that, unlike many others, is worth hearing. One of their first articles explores the character of Lara Croft - her whole being and what makes her tick, not as a heroine or even as a female, but simply as a (virtual) human.
2 minutes
System Shock as one of the golden standards of storytelling in videogames
Jed from OMGeek.net talks about System Shock as one of the golden standards of storytelling in videogames, and rightfully so: the game heavily inspired the Bioshock franchise (indeed, it’s considered to be the spiritual successor to System Shock) and also influenced the direction of Deus Ex - yet another PC game classic. More than any other game before it, System Shock let me experience a well-written story at my own pace, and let me put things together and fill in the gaps with my own reasoning and imagination.
1 minute
Sarcia, Cube World, Owlboy, Starbound, Project Zomboid
I have a soft spot for indies, be it in the fields of film, music, or—of course—videogames. And luckily for us, in the past few years there’s been a dramatic rise in the number and quality of independently developed games. There’s hundreds of thousands to choose from across practically any platform you can think of gaming on, but in this article I’m going to shine the spotlight on just five upcoming indie PC games that I feel are worth keeping an eye out for.
3 minutes
This is how we get excited for games
A dialog between two friends.
So Marc and I were having a completely rational conversation about games, particularly of the space sim genre. It started out logically enough, as most of our dialogs do, but then it got weird. So yeah, that’s how we hype up games for ourselves. In other news, Star Citizen is an awesome space sim that aims to bring back all the classic elements of the genre and more. It’s amassed $12 million since it started its crowdfunding campaign, and rightfully so; the team making it is headed by Chris Roberts, best known for creating the excellent Wing Commander series.
1 minute
Horse armor’s a given.
You’ve definitely heard about them, and maybe even bought some. I wouldn’t blame you. But somehow, somewhere, a line must be drawn when it comes to downloadable content, to prevent abominations such as the six DLCs enumerated by Nathe of SeraphimGarden.co. Here’s an excerpt from his article: Possibly the newest contender on the list comes from the already infamous SimCity by Maxis and Electronic Arts. The facelifted franchise recently put up a new piece of DLC that features balloons.
2 minutes
No, this is not Minecraft in Space.
Miner Wars: 2081
Miner Wars: 2081 is a six degrees of freedom (6DOF) space simulator with free-roaming sandbox elements. You operate an advanced mining ship in a fully destructible and open-world environment, which remains persistent as you complete missions or play online with others. It’s been a while since I recorded this footage, but it remains one of my favorite Let’s Plays that I’ve done so far. Unfortunately I never got to continue playing the game, but hopefully I’ll get the chance to come back to it soon.
1 minute
June 2013
Recollecting my earliest gaming memories.
The earliest gaming experience I can remember is of me sitting in front of a TV, connected to which was a Super Nintendo Entertainment System. The SNES is definitely not the first videogame console to hit the consumer market, nor was it the first console I played. But for whatever reason, it’s the one that sticks most fondly to the most basic recollections of my gaming nostalgia. Yoshi leaping for coins.
3 minutes
December 2012
I’ve never played a rogue(quite)like this.
Also, this was my first Reddit post ever.
Originally posted on Reddit. This game. This. Game. I bring it everywhere; to work, to dinner, to the bathroom, walking on the street, riding in the car - only when at a full stop! - on the bed, on the phone, on and on and on… It’s crazy how hooked I am, and I don’t even know how to play! I mean, how to really play. I’m no Nethack veteran - my roguelike of choice was ADOM way back when - so I don’t know all the little things that can be done in it yet (like, can you pour potions into other potions?
2 minutes
August 2011
In my biased opinion.
We’ve all played games that we will remember for the rest of our lives. Call them hits, killer apps, classics or whatever else you want. The fact of the matter is the impacts these games make on their audiences go deeper than any honorific some arbitrary organization can decorate them with. Here are some of the games that, in my mind, surpass GotY and secure their place in history for the years to come.
7 minutes
July 2011
Do the extraordinary.
Square Enix and Crystal Dynamics are delivering the latest Tomb Raider title, which aims to show players a new side of Lara Croft; one tinged with the green shade of inexperience, inability, and fear. A young Lara, shipwrecked and stranded on a mysterious island off the coast of Japan, must learn to adapt and survive. It’s a completely new adventure for this Lara, who had previously only just graduated from academy.
2 minutes
June 2011
Free Frags For All.
Team Fortress 2, the critically- and popularly-acclaimed team-based multiplayer FPS by Valve, is now free-to-play, with no strings attached. Valve recently announced this at the end of its Uber Update, a week-long chain of patches which added to the already monumental amount of content in the game. Players who have already purchased the game received a decorative proof-of-purchase hat, as well as a ‘premium account’ status. This grants players who bought the game - be it through retail or Steam stores, or who were gifted the game before it went free-to-play - increased backpack (item storage) space, access to all item blueprints (full crafting options), and the ability to give items to other players.
3 minutes
Sorry, editor, for the headaches!
City of Heroes goes Free-to-play Free liberty and justice for all City of Heroes, the first superhero MMORPG to hit the market, is forgoing its former monthly subscription fee in favor of the free-to-play model so popular with every MMO that isn’t World of Warcraft. It’s getting a name change, too. “City of Heroes: Freedom” will still offer a subscription to players who want access to all the features of the game.
5 minutes
PlayStation Vita is the Life of the Party
PS Vita announcement.
Sony PSV. Doesn’t quite roll off the tongue as easily as NGP did, and neither sounds as good as their predecessor, the PSP. Vita is what we’re calling Sony’s new handheld, and considering all that we know about it, the finalized name might just fit, as silly as it sounds. Its technical features are nothing to scoff at. Sony has already confirmed two analog sticks (not nubs), a 5-inch OLED multi-touch capacitive touchscreen, a rear touchpad, Bluetooth 2.
2 minutes
Still won’t stop screen-peeking.
So you’re playing your favorite FPS with a friend. It’s a versus deathmatch mode, and you’ve managed to stalk in from behind. Just before you pull the trigger or stab the knife, though, he controls his character to immediately turn around and manages to score a lucky headshot. Admit it, every one of us who’s ever tried splitscreen gaming has at one point during a match looked at our opponents’ part of the screen.
2 minutes