Backup

A lot of the time people let the fear of striking out, keep them from playing the game. I struggle with this a lot. I always have these great ideas, but I feel like I have to have people to pursue it with to be successful. People are different and want different things. You may have common interests but it's hard to expect someone to follow you blindly on something your passionate about. My wife is one of the most supportive people I've ever met, but even she doesn't always want to do the same things as me.  Sometimes I just feel I will be more successful if I have more people believing in what I push for, but in the end all that matters is if I believe. I think sometimes I'm seeking the confidence that others bring but sometimes you just have to go with what your guy is telling you. 

   Confidence can be a double edged sword. You have to know the difference between confidence and arrogance. Just because your good at something doesn't mean you have to gloat. You have to have hunger in your life, and I'm not talking about food. Hunger for your dreams, hunger for your passions, and a all out hunger for happiness. It's nice to have people to fall back on, but evens followers need to be their own leader sometimes. I've had a sponsorship to produce videos for three years now and done nothing with it....yet. That isn't anyone's fault but my own. I didn't have the hunger that I needed. I turned 28 yesterday and did a lot of thinking. 2015 is gonna be hungry hungry year, and I hope whoever reads this follows suit.

Time to Push

  I have been fortunate to have a very blessed life. Some could argue that I have been through a lot, but in my opinion that is what makes you stronger. I am currently sitting in my car at work thinking about how much more I need to be pushing towards my dreams, and I find myself running in place. Goals can be as big as you make them but you have to keep in mind that they don't always happen over night. Sometimes it sucks waiting, but the journey is part of growing.

   I have had way too many opportunities pass me by that would have taken me closer to my dreams, but I'm happy where I am at. I finally feel like I have a strong enough footing to go wherever I want in life and it feels nice. If you start to think too much about the past you will get lost in regret and self loathing. You have to be confident in yourself before you go anywhere. Whatever path you take in life, just be true to yourself, but also be real with yourself. Be in control of your own destiny, and hold the reigns while it unfolds. It's okay if opportunities pass you by, because others will present themselves. Everything happens for a reason.

   Thanksgiving just passed and it got me thinking a lot about the progress I've made lately. Anyone that reads or contributes in any way is helping me more than they know, but at the same time I don't ever want to do things JUST for views. I want to share my experiences with people, and not force them to view anything. I've decided it's time to push towards certain goals.

Brand Jockeys

    If you have two bricks sitting in front of you, and you paint one red and one white, then you still have two bricks just like when you began. The color of the bricks may have changed but they are still in fact bricks. People have become too concerned with how things look or what label is stamped on top of them. Don't get me wrong, people are allowed to be creative and have their own opinions but its when you choose to judge others for their choices. I have this one friend who shall remain nameless...cough Milan cough..... who refuses to play anything other than xbox. Now I have a xbox, partially due to heavy influence from Milan, but I also have the other game systems and really place a lot of emphasis on diversity. If you don't have a open mind then your going to miss out on a lot of things, not just exclusive games. Life really isn't about judging, its about accepting things and the sooner you come to terms with that, you'll get a lot more excitement out of things.

     They taught me in school that if you point the finger at someone you have four fingers pointing back. I remember there was this kid in class that had no pinkie and always frowned when they said that. Point of the matter is that no matter how adamant you are about what YOU like, you should leave others free to make their own choices. I reccomend playing all types of games and giving yourself a true chance of enjoying all the things the gaming world has to offer. As they say haters gonna hate, but keep doing you booboo.

Thanks

    With the holiday coming up, it makes me think a lot about what I am thankful for. This post isn't really about gaming and will be aimed more at just life in general. The upcoming holiday is meant to be about being thankful. A lot of people think its about eating a lot of food or going black Friday shopping, but I think a lot of people have the wrong perspective on things. We may not always get what we want in life, but we should be thankful for the things that we DO have. You may not get the dessert that you wanted this Thanksgiving but be thankful for the fact that you have anything to eat. I think with today's society, we are encouraged to want more and more regardless of anything. I see a lot of my friends pursue unrealistic goals because they think they have to chase what makes them happy. You may end up succeeding in what your searching for but it develops a habit of always looking for something in order to be happy. You have to be happy with who you are and what you have to begin with. It's like in all these adventure movies, the main character goes on all these adventures to find the treasure and save the day, but in the end once everything is said and done, hes bored because there isn't anything left to do. Life isn't always about how flashy the adventure looks when everyone is looking, as its also important to be who you are behind closed doors.  People are so eager to look or act a certain way, yet in reality they are nothing like their pseudo counterpart. You've all seen that person on Facebook who appears one way yet acts another way. Stop wasting your time trying to be something your not and start looking at what you have, not what you want. When you stop needing things and start appreciating things, you'll be much happier. I know I'm starting to ramble here but I feel its important to be thankful. If you are not happy to begin with, money and fancy things aren't going to make you happy. They are only going to cover up the wound, but over time the unhappiness will peak back out. Give thanks to those who gave you the chance to be, and anyone who does or has done something for you. Even if you don't appreciate it., a lot of people have done groundwork so that you can have a good life. There is always someone less fortunate than you, so keep that in mind this Holiday.

    Writing is a way for me to express myself and share my views with those who read them. I am thankful for every read I get and sincerely appreciate it. Have a happy Holiday and be safe!

Rage

    I just got done with a match in a competitive game and close to the end I got into a really close fight. I play a class that isn't very good at the moment but I enjoy playing it because I like it so I don't
play whats good at the moment. I was facing off versus a class that is really overpowered. They call it faceroll because you could roll your face across the keyboard and still win. I end up keep up with this guy and holding my own, I play it smart and don't go balls to the wall and play defensively. I get this guy to about 10% health and go for the kill only to be interupted by another guy playing the same overpowered class, and so they proceed to gangbang me until I die. I figured oh well, that was a close fight but hey no sweat. The guy threw a cheapshot but it happens. The game ends and I go about my way working on whatever and I look at the chat and the guy had spit on me. Playing like a jerk is how a lot of people choose to play and their only real purpose in the game is to troll people and try and cause trouble.  This kinda struck a nerve with me as it just showed really bad sportsmanship. I logged over to the dude's realm and sat there on the edge of getting into it with him but I calmed myself down and realized it wasn't worth it.

    There seems to be so many people these days who get mad at gaming. Yes its frustrating sometimes but its meant to be a challenge. Yes I know you can choose to not play with other people, but at the same time you shouldn't try to ruin someones  experience just because you are unhappy. Keep your calm and keep your negativity to yourself, you aren't helping anyone by acting like that. Just because I can beat the snot out of someone, doesn't give me the right to go around taunting them and bragging about it. Being selfless is a rare trait these days, and in a society where a lot of gaming is broadcasted I feel like this scares off people. There has been a lot of bad things said on my stream but you just have to take it in stride and move on. Keep on keeping on and avoid the negativity not just in gaming, but also in life.

Overwhelmed

   

   Have you ever had the feeling that you simply had too much to do with not enough time to do it. Gamers feel this all the time. There are simply way too many games out there with too much time to devote. Most people work as well as have families that they devote their time to, but that usually leaves minimal time to game. Most people use gaming as time to unwind and time to get away and just relax. I like to play a lot and devote a lot of my time because its something I'd one day like to do for a living. No matter what kind of gamer you are, it simply doesn't add up sometimes especially with how many key releases are going on this time of the year. I can literally name about 5 titles I'd really love to be putting time into right now but I have to choose where my time is spent. My wife is and always will be my first priority but she is very supportive of what I do and wants me to push as much as I can. Even with how things are, gamers can often feel that they are overwhelmed, especially with new releases. It is important to remember that there isn't any reason to rush through games or feel pressured to play them in any way other than the reason you want to.

     Rushing through anything is going to get old quick and dry out any fun you have in a game. I have a buddy at work tonight that was bugging me to get the new GTA release on next gen. Now I could go buy it now, but I would be setting aside too many games that I am already playing. I think its important to always have control over what you do. Only YOU know what you want and only YOU know what is going to make you happy. I think having a good backbone in life will really help you from getting pushed around. A lot of that can help in gaming as well because gamers are very opinionated. There are many people who only play one certain console or just one certain genre of games, and I think its best to have your own opinions in this area. Just because someone else enjoys something, does not mean you will as well. Games are meant to be enjoyable and I think if you let people make your decisions for you, then you will end up being more overwhelmed.

   Just like in real life, setting goals can help ease the pain. Remember to be realistic and never sacrifice anything. If you don't hit level 100 by the end of the weekend, the game will still be there and most games are designed with catch up mechanics. Keep yours goals reasonable and also remember to take a breather in between your game play. If you end up treating games like chores, then you wont be gaming long. Take time and enjoy the little things while working towards your goals and if at any point you ask yourself why your doing it, then stop.

   You have the rest of your life to enjoy things, so don't hassle too much over being the first to do something. World first achievements can be really cool but once the serenity wears off you find yourself right back where you were. If you desire to be in that type of gaming lifestyle then by all means pursue it but know that you have to sacrifice certain things to obtain it. No matter what type of gamer you want to be, always have fun and remember why it is that you chose to game.

Game Review: Borderlands the Pre-Sequel

       In the last few years, Gearbox has become one of my favorite gaming companies for one reason: Borderlands. The elements they choose to include int heir games are so well thought out that these games end up being instant classics. When my wife bought her first PS3 we sat there in Gamestop with my buddy Brett for about an hour trying to find the best possible game for her to start with. We went back and forth between many titles, and ended up going with Little Big Planet which ended up becoming her second favorite game ever, but one game Me and Brett kept going back to was Borderlands. We knew nothing about it, but something about the art style and game box kept drawing our eyes back. To this day I have played every installment multiple times and been at midnight releases patiently awaiting a quench to my borderlands thirst. This is the third game in the series to be released and appears to be something for borderlands fans to sink their teeth into while waiting for Borderlands 3 and Battleborn. For those of you looking to buy this game, I think you should definitely check it out. There are enough new features to keep you enthralled for hours.

      At first I wasn't too thrilled about this release, because I thought it was a cop out while waiting on B3. I actually didn't research this one too much, due to the fact that at first I wasn't really interested. I was pleasantly surprised with what they added to the game play that spiced things up a little.  The first change I noticed was the addition of a new type of weapon: the laser gun. At first look I responded with a Meh! because in these games I mainly run assault/combat rifles because I like accurate yet constant damage. I played through most the game until I got about 75% of the way through the campaign. You end up getting a gun from Moxxi that is a laser gun. I am not kidding when I say I used this gun all the way to the end and carried it over to next play through. At times the guns can be a little jumpy because some of them are a continuous stream like in Ghostbusters. It isnt a gigantic game change, but it is enough to break up the monotony of shuffling through the same gun types.

    There also is a introduction of Oxygen tanks. At first I didn't even really notice this change due to who I was playing. When you get to the outside environments in Borderlands TPS, you have to have a constant supply of oxygen to survive. Now I know what you are thinking: Why does it run out so fast? That is because they also added a boost mechanic to your jumps. Me and my wife would take off running from one side of the map towards the opposite time, while talking and enjoying the game, and we would be shocked when I ended up at the objective 2 times as fast as she did. Well it turns out that we weren't paying attention when they explained the oxygen tank. When you jump and hit the same button again you will get a short boost in whatever direction your going. Now I always just spam tap jump when I'm traveling somewhere so I didn't really notice but it really started to come in handy once we tried using it skillfully. Sometimes there is that need for a little extra boost to make it to that weapon chest or even safety, and now you have that little boost you need. Of course this is all only possible if you keep your oxygen topped off which can be done through many different ways and honestly isn't too hard to keep up with since dead mobs drop oxygen as well. The last thing about oxygen is the smash. If you hold down crouch when in the air, you will slam down on the ground inflicting damage to anyone in the immediate area. Eventually you are given unique O2 kits and even a legendary one through a quest chain. These kits can sometimes have elements on them which really come in handy, especially if you get the freeze element. I think gearbox took a really cool realistic angle in making O2 work in making it necessary for human enemies to have it as well. Shoot a bandit in the face and pop his O2 tank and he will slowly chose to death. Also, fire wont be set to anyone unless they are in a oxygen bubble since we all know oxygen is a big part of fire, so I felt they really put a lot of through into this aspect. The O2 tank is different to start with, but eventually you will get used to managing it and hardly notice the downsides, although I feel if I go back to a previous game, I am really going to miss it.

      

   
      Now this is the first game to be done by 2K Australia, and within minutes of playing the game this is very evident. I loved having the new dialect and accents of everyone in the game but I found myself lost sometimes in what people were talking about. A couple of months ago, I ordered Cards Against Humanity and without paying attention, ended up with the UK version. Yeah the game is still fun, except for the fact that I don't really understand about 10% of the cards in the deck. I feel the same way about this game sometimes. I still feel it is funny and unique in its own way but just a heads up on what your going to be hearing. I found myself googling a lot of terms in order to know what the quest givers were talking about. I feel 2k Australia really knocked this one out of the park in so many ways. They really made enough changes to keep the game fresh but at the same times making it feel like a classic Borderlands game. After 30 minutes of playing I found myself asking: Why did we kill Jack? He isn't that bad at all! Well, as you go through the game, you start to see him unravel and crack at the seams. They made the story interesting enough and left the game wide open for Borderlands 3.

  
        Like in most games in the series, you will find yourself looking for the rare legendary weapons. This game introduced a new element to the game in that respect: The Grinder. You take 3 weapons and you toss them into the grinder with hopes of creating a legendary or simply a gun better than what you put in. You have the option to put in Moonstones as well, which is the eridium equivalent in this game, and increase your chances. I quickly found that if you put 2 legendaries in with a purple of whatever gun you like, a legendary of that gun type would pop out. This was a great way of farming weapons because in this installment, legendary drops aren't similar to other games. Some legendaries are drops from certain mobs but most of them are farmed from either vending machines or the raid boss. The grinder is nice because it gives you more options with legendaries. I feel that the grinder, paired with drop locations like the previous game would have made this game much better. Maybe I'm just spoiled in knowing certain mobs drop certain items.

    One of the new elements in the game is the freeze element. In most games, I feel there is a must have element. Freeze replaces slag but it isn't a must have like slag was. this is the first game where I feel the elements are pretty equal. Sometimes one element is going to be better but in most situations it doesn't really matter. I like it when there aren't cookie cutter specs in games and players are gives real freedom over how they play. With elements, this game is really on the mark. Freeze is by far my favorite element in the series so far. I played Willhelm and was specced into the improved melee ability, so I ended up being able to freeze a badass mob and kill them in one punch. Freezing can be using for damage or just pure crowd control and is a must have on your O2 kit. Slamming 10 mobs around you and watching them all turn into ice cubes really is a beautiful thing to see.

   The characters in this game are really interesting and have some familiar elements to them but with a lot of new options as well. Probably the most appealing choice in the bunch is Clap. Fans have been waiting for years to be able to pilot the most iconic character in the series. When me and my wife first started the game, I picked Clap and spent time customizing how me looked. Take note that there is a timer in this part because funnily enough, before you make your selection there are several warning messages trying to talk you out of choosing him. Although I think he is more of a team player rather than a solo player, I still feel like most of this part was just a joke to get you laughing as you start this awesome game. My wife went with Athena, and prior to this game she had always played Sirens. She took a while to get used to Athena's shield because you have to charge it and aim and throw it but soon she got a hold of it and was killing things before I could even get to them. She also found solitude in the fact that you can throw it and revive friends on the fly which is a nice reminder of phaselock ressing in the previous game. My sister chose to play Nisha and for the first week told me how powerful she was. It wasn't until I actually played her that I really got to see what she was talking about. Nisha is the powerhouse of this game, and it very reminiscent of Salavador. If your looking for a dual wielding guns blazing class then she is your match.  Lastly Willhelm, which is the class that I picked for my "Main." Willhelm is the pet class and kinda reminiscent of Axton/Roland. He has a tree that actually alters how the character looks and starts to turn him into a robot. This is the tree I went with and all around he is a really strong choice for a character. All characters are fun and I am very eager to see what they add in the future.

In closing, I think this game is a very good option for returning veterans as well as new players. They added a lot of new things to the game and even though at times it may feel like a rehash, there is more to it than that. The new creatures, weapons, zones, vehicle, and bosses all are really refreshing. There is some really cool story elements at play and a lot of answered questions. I think the game will be popular for a long time to come because there is a lot of re playability to it. My advice is take it slow, there will be plenty of time to see everything and do everything. Burning yourself out i'snt going to lead to a fun experience.