Tag Archives: Microsoft

February 17, 2022 · 18:00

The game you hope for

This comes one sleep away from the game Horizon’s forbidden west (PS5), the sequel from Horizon Zero Dawn. It was a great game, a great journey and as I see it, this game put the Dutch firm Guerrilla Games on the map as a top tier developer. The game was new, original and the story was close to amazing. The first game was a good journey into awesome IP and of course the people who got hooked on the first game want to jump into game two (that includes me). Yet it also reminded me of others, what had been. You see, I remember a game called Steep, as 

I was getting into winter sports, this game had appeal, which fell to zero almost at the point of arrival. You see beyond the claims is the engine, and the engine was made for people who like ‘turbo’, so there is no stage where someone just enjoys training downhill, it has to accelerate (all the time) and the game shows this, the moment you go down, the acceleration is off the wall, and in real live it never is like that. In the end one (of several) views were “Simply put, Steep is average at best” and that is a shame because that 71% game could have been an easy 85% if the makers did the numbers and especially did not charge another $20 for extra game modes. You see it matters and Horizon Zero Dawn gave us the whole enchilada and that was quite the trip. Now, comparing these two games to each other is like comparing coconuts and pineapples. So I am not comparing games, I am comparing effort and as I personally see it Guerrilla Games has it, Ubisoft does not, or had it and lost it is perhaps more precise. But there is another side too. It has been my experience that too many YouTubers are trying to appeal to the software houses too much. There are of course the ranters, but they will always be there. That being said watching a review and then a ranter tends to show a few settings you might not have considered. And in the end it is about finding the right game, especially as a budget is getting more and more towards one game every other month at best. It is at that point that Microsoft shows its Game Pass and the deal you have. But consider this one view gave us “Yet, currently totally free with Xbox Game Pass, Steep is still worth a quick backflip or two. Find out all there is to know about one of Ubisoft’s worst” and hidden there it shows the problem. A pass that allows us to be happy with a 70% game, why is that? The game pass needs to show us that you can play 12 90% games in 2022, but that is not really the case is it? We want to play Ratchet and Clank, Ghosts of Tsushima, Horizon Zero Dawn, Horizon Forbidden west and 8 others, but the Game Pass cannot give us that, can it? Although, it will give you the flight simulator and that is truly a 90% game. 

We hope for that next 95% or better game and my hopes are with Horizon Forbidden West. 2022 will bring at least 5 more games to PS5 and we all hope for the best, we have good hope on what came before but there will always be a sliver of doubt until the game arrives, it is in our nature and in this I am no different, we have all seen decent games, decent games that could have been 90%+ games if only a little more effort was taken. We want to blame Ubisoft and they are a clear example, but they aren’t the only one. The problem is that the game pass has the ability to make the choice field smaller and soon it will be just Ubisoft for some consoles. It is one of the strongest reasons to see Streaming consoles (Amazon Luna) grow faster and stronger. It will soon be the best path to the games we hope for, we want to embrace Sony and Nintendo, yet the clarity is that it will not be enough, we need a new generation of game makers, the list looks impressive, but these are games that were coming for some time. You see the games you never saw coming (like Ghostwire) are coming less and less, gaming is moving from the wild west into corporate west and that leaves us with dwindling choice, have you not noticed that?

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February 16, 2022 · 14:29

Gift for militant wench

OK, not my finest hour in diplomacy, but it was the only way to give the path to people thinking ‘another Amazon story’. I woke up this morning with a new IP, an IP based on Google technology, but they do not create software, so their loss. And this is freeware only for Sony and Amazon products, just another way for me to say to Microsoft “Screw you!” So in my sleep I was racing through the street, there were paths, obstacles and my mind was making sense of it all (which took a few seconds) and I was seeing the brilliance of that Nintendo kart game that can take place in your home. A good idea, but I gave it steroids and turned it into something serious. You see, there are the F1 people, who love the F1, want to race on their tracks, want to be an F1 driver and this is not for them, There are good products and they are happy there. No, this is for the people who want to race in the real world. So consider a setting where the game has 10 circuits. They can give their address, or one they wished to live and the system will design a racetrack from 2500 metres up to 5500 metres (for now) based on real Google Map data. So you get a game that will soon have thousands of tracks, and the nice part is that there is racing (just the street) and challenge where the system adds obstacles, ramps (looking like it was fake and inserted) to give that goofy feeling for when you go all out. As far as I can tell, it has NEVER been done before and there Amazon gets the inside track, because as you race what is, the system with Machine learning and deeper machine learning will try to make you a map you requested based on the area, or location you gave and adds the track for you personally to your account. A setting where a game can grown into a massive behemoth of racing fun. A setting where you can race where you always desired to race, your hometown (wherever that is), Tokyo streets, Monte Carlo (every racer wants to be there one day), London, Berlin, Amsterdam and the list just grows. I am actually amazed no one in Google was that alert, but there you have it. So I say (still lacking diplomacy) “Militant wench, have at it”, we could include boat racing, but I reckon that a place like Rotterdam will give Amazon all kinds of problems. 

A simple idea boosted to a real challenge, and should you wonder why Microsoft cannot come up with it. Well that is simple, they can buy creativity, they merely lack the ability to create something. For that they have Mojang, Bethesda and Blizzard. Those who buy are limited to their knowledge of Excel (or so they say).

Enjoy this midweek! The weekend will be 68 hours away for some. 

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February 5, 2022 · 00:07

Is the MetaVerse a Meta or a Verse?

That is not the question, it is a mere thought and we need to ponder it. You see, I do believe that Meta is close to launching a new dimension in social media, in advertisements and through that we will see a new opening in the approach to marketing and advertising. Google is not ready but could be ready in time, the same could be said for Amazon. Microsoft is however not making that setting with their 5% in Bing, it will die and awkward death. Awkward because the people they approached will leave them. Meta will not offer the handle and handshake that Bing (or Chrome) requires and Bing has nowhere to go. Or as someone in the 90’s once said “All dressed up and no one to blow”, I giggle as it applies more to the outdated marketing tactics then it does the ladies on 42nd street (if you catch my drift). 

So when I see ‘Facebook parent company Meta plummets 26 per cent, loses $332 billion in worst one-day company drop’ (source: ABC). There is no opposition, this is what happened. Yet what is noticeable that the drop is due to “well below analysts’ expectations for the current quarter, a disappointment for a company that investors have become accustomed to delivering spectacular growth” There are two sides here. On the one side either the investors have no long term goal and no comprehension on what Meta is ready to achieve, in that regard the analysts are equally in the dark on what is about to happen. So even as Marky Mark of the book of faces can hold onto what he has now as the next wave will increase his fortune by well over 300% (a personal rough speculation), so the term ‘disappointment for a company’ is the setting of a person who has no clue what is about to unfold. Or it is a person with the narrow focus on the now regardless of what tomorrow will bring. The second setting is seen with ““The downgrade in the earnings outlook by Meta and other companies took markets by surprise,” said Kenneth Broux, a strategist at Societe Generale in London” I am not sure whether this is a repetition of the other fellows view or if it is set on parallel yet not equal measurements. I am not an economist. The Amazon idea (at least one of them) could be applied to Meta, yet it would limit my revenue and I am kinda set on getting my $50,000,000 (post taxation) in the first wave. The second wave would bring me more but there is no way in hell a person like Jeff Bezos would shell out that kind of money without clear numbers (no matter how rich he is) and what I am about to do has NEVER been done before. So there is the turmoil for me. There are a few other reasons why pushing Amazon to higher levels are more rewarding for me (there is the option to kick Microsoft in the balls) a thought that is massively rewarding all on its own, yet it could optionally hurt Google and I have nothing against Google. They are about to get hit by TikTok and the impact of HarmonyOS is getting delayed but it is not out of the way yet, so Google has to face that too. Yet Meta is a drive that Google could benefit to if they resolve locality in their products, because that will be a given. It slightly opposes the 4 clusters that Amazon will gain but it will not hurt Google, Amazon on the other hand would strengthen their clusters through Meta and could optionally several smaller clusters too, Microsoft has close to NOTHING there, all lost marketshare. 

So as we look at the second article That gives us ‘Facebook owner Meta sees biggest ever stock market loss’ (source: BBC). There we see “Meta also warned of slowing revenue growth in the face of competition from rival platforms including TikTok and YouTube, while advertisers were also cutting spending” the lack of ‘temporary’ is a little astounding. There is reduced spending by advertisers yet with the labour lack they have they will have to create a pipeline soon enough and that means advertising and spending, interesting how the BBC overlooked that. And yes TikTok is a threat, but more to YouTube than Meta and the deployment of Meta will take care of that. The question is how Meta will deal with the lull in technology that they face. Let’s give you an example.  You are in the MetaVerse. In that life you have the house you could never afford, you watch TV on a screen you could never afford and you watch the things you love. There we see advertisements and Meta cashes in. Yet over time you get billboard digital screens on billboard (perhaps the three in Ebbing Missouri), but all those elements require new technology and Meta could create them and lose a lot of time or they could set a partnership with Google and Amazon and set a might higher bar. Google and Amazon have their terrains and Meta has an advantage in partnerships, opposing those two will drag the issues in too many dimensions (literally) and it opens up a massively large bag of worms. None of those matters are seen and they will come in 2022/2023. When Google and Amazon set out THEIR plan it will need to be one that embraces Meta. Zuckerberg was one clever cookie when he did the change he wants. The covid issue worked FOR him a little but in this setting (loss of revenue) it works against him. The nice part for him is that those who walked away will have to negotiate new contracts in MetaVerse so that will make his gains a lot better than the losses he has now.

No matter where I look I see everyone parroting the loss story and it is true, he lost (for now) and no one has a clue what is about to happen and hows social media will change the face of both marketing and advertising and when those with their clever little API realises that it stops working in MetaVerse we will get some watchdog howling on behalf of the exploiters who suddenly get the notice that their well is now dry. All revenue belong to Zuckerberg again. A setting none of them seem to realise. I am just happy that my 5G IP is still safe and MetaVerse will not hinder it. It might benefit me, but it is too soon to tell, it could if Amazon gets the proper idea on where marketing and deployed advertising goes, but there are a few if’s in that setting I get that and I am pretty sure that the CTO of Amazon (Werner Vogels) is that clever as well. 

So whatever Meta will become, it is not a verse, perhaps according to the journalists who look at the now and rhyme to yesterday. Yet I am certain that they are utterly in the dark about tomorrow and in most dimensions tomorrow never rhymes, perhaps to borrow and sorrow but not to the tile of style that tomorrow brings, because the rhyme depends on what is, not what might be and what might be will be illuminating to say the least, not the hallucinating of a beast. That is what we face, when Meta deploys we will face an entirely new beast, one advertisers and marketing departments never faced before and as they run from training to training the first 6 months and try to comprehend that they suddenly had to learn a new beast for months, those who were ready will have the entire field for the better part of 6 months at the very least, it will change the game for years and as I see it Google and Amazon have the options, Microsoft falls away like it always does, shouting Azure whilst the never learned the blues.

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February 3, 2022 · 15:37

You are cordially rejected

Yes, we can be cordially invited and it happens on many occasions, although the cordial part tends to be for weddings and official events like that. So what happens when you are cordially invited to shove off? You see, the Reuters article (at https://www.reuters.com/technology/facebook-owner-meta-forecasts-q1-revenue-below-estimates-2022-02-02/) gives us ‘Meta shares sink 20% as Facebook loses daily users for the first time’, yet this is a mere dip even as the numbers are rising (increased loss) the people at Facebook (aka Meta) are not worried, because they figured out what I saw coming close to half a decade ago and I wrote about it a few days ago. Marketing will change it will evolve as anything will. So the liber facierum people are not worried they are about to change hears in a race where 80% is nowhere near ready and they will be too late, it will be a race that ends up having 4 players Meta, Amazon, Google and TikTok these 4 players are about to own 90% of all advertisements and in the new world Meta will gain a chunk of the other three to some degree. So the 20% loss is a joke compared to the billions they will make from 2023 onwards when Meta deploys, the people who want to be part of that race will be a year late and they will content with the crumbs. So the fun of reading “Dave Wehner, told analysts on a conference call that the impact of Apple’s privacy changes could be “in the order of $10 billion” for 2022” is a little entertaining, it seems like a fun fear setting but the gain that comes the year after will have Apple on the ropes, their losses will be not something they can contemplate at present and they will try to get back into the race in a Apple minded field, but the Apple minded field will change because its environment will change a lot more beyond what Meta is, it will need to adjust its foundations and that is something Apple was never good at. When Meta goes live, it will take up to a year to gain the momentum and they will end with a massive chunk of all advertisement. There is a decent chance they will close to equal what Google was making, so Google will take a hard hit, but their foundation is strong so in Meta they could regain some of their losses. Amazon and TikTok have their own environments, they will loose but keep what they already had in their atmosphere. Microsoft with Bing who only had about 5% will lose close to 50% of that and keep whatever their surf tablet has and it was close to clear for 3-5 years, the changes were in the works and I predicted it and my IP solutions anticipated it in a new direction, but there is no denying the setting Meta will be a much larger player so the 20% loss they have now is one they will get back well over twice over and that is basically the mere foundation. All the other players who are trying to skim off some of the cream that Facebook and Google had, they will be lost. They cannot compete or adjust, they will go to some watchdog and cry like the little chihuahua’s they always were, iterators who do not understand innovation. They will cry unfair and waste the time of as many people as possible whilst they will try to find reason after reason and never looking at their own failings. 

And for me? I just howl and laugh on the sidelines, what I predicted 3-5 years ago, as far as I can tell. The first mention of Neom was in ‘Liberalism overboard’ (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2018/08/23/liberalism-overboard/) which I wrote on August 23rd 2018, that was the moment I realised a new marketing system was required, so almost 4 years ago. I finished the concept less than a month later. And that was long before Meta was announced, Meta did not create what I had, but it showed that the alterations were a lot more powerful than I initially contemplated and when that gets added to either the Google or the Amazon system that change will not be a simple alteration, it created the setting for a new powerhouse, no less powerful than Meta and I did it by giving essential choices back to the people, that was the change no one looked at and it was merely the first wave. When it alters and adds to Meta it becomes something more, but that becomes too much speculation because what we are shown is the end result and the Meta system has a lot more and that is still (in the end) an unknown factor but the system I created will allow for adjustments because the power is back with the individual and where ever they want to go the system will adjust (to some degree), yet in one setting meta will force both Amazon and Google to implement a much larger change to locations and localities. That much is a given certainty and there those who want to hijack keywords will be limited to non-location keywords. Meta will force it and if Amazon and Google do not comply they end up losing market share. 

As such, the future is bright, the noise of 20% here, or there does not matter 2023 (optionally 2024) will set in motion a tidal wave of changes and outside of the largest companies none of them can adjust, it is not feasible or achievable. No matter how quick the Google or Amazon systems adjust. Meta is about to get the home field advantage and the visiting team will not be at the 50 line, they will start on the 30 line as the football reference go, the home field advantage will be that big.

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February 1, 2022 · 00:12

Vein tapping

Yes, I do that at times. It is not a junkie term, it is a data term and it comes from mining. Tapping the vein is to see if anything is up yet. With my 5G IP in place there is still a setting that I can tap and like many other people I would like to tap that vein, especially as retirement is approaching. So as I was watching and seeking certain top line sources I stumbled upon “wireless internet will be faster and more abundant, even in rural locations. This means that digital ads could appear in more areas, providing a seamless and consistent branded experience for your customers. The visuals and media in each ad could also be improved, advancing due to high network speeds”, it is the mot iterative version of delusional. It is not a lie all what you see is true, but it is for the people who look towards yesterday. Those who look to tomorrow will see a massive shift in the approach towards marketing, as I personally see it, the mass approach is close to over, it will last, but those who look towards tomorrow see that marketing will b a very different beast, it aligns to the one, it aligns to retail and to the shopper. In the 90’s SPSS brought a program called AnswerTree. It was a good and direct idea to marketing. You see, if we are to approach 4% of the people we need to market to over 15%, that was the old way and the people at SPSS already saw that to market to more, you either spend a linear amount more, or you market more efficient. The second one was ALWAYS better, the researcher pruned their marketing tree and a smaller bonsai version of marketable people remained. This has served a lot for close to 20 years, but that time is gone now. You see, you can use that approach and seek the largest clusters, yet over all smaller clusters are lost and why? Tomorrow will be about location and that is a different kettle of fish, at least two of my IP address that and the stage is rapidly getting larger, and the largest station hit me with some surprise. It seems that Google is not on that page yet, or if they are they are playing that card very very close to the chest. 

It is my believe that they are not completely on that page and for me that is a great feeling. It should be for Amazon too, they have a few lines out and I doubt Microsoft has a clue. You see Amazon marketing and advertising is set to Amazon and that is a fine run, yet I believe that they can reach more, as can Google. If they change the dimension of WHERE they are, they could approach the location of where everyone WANTS to be and that is all about tomorrow. Google and Amazon have the inside track and that is illuminating for a few reasons. You see, for 20 years it was all Google and now another is getting close on the next setting, neither are there yet but they could be. For me (and my IP) it is good news, because when they launch, I could release my IP and suddenly see 6-8 clusters there and it matters because it makes my IP a lot more valuable. 

Amazon will give you “Ad solutions to help you reach and engage millions of Amazon customers at every stage of their journey” and that sounds nice in the industry of today, but that is about to change and that system will not accomodate, not in time at least. Google has its system and has a few more options, but not the one they both need and that makes me happy (actually very very happy). So as I see the designs and failings (like Bing) I see a set of players all going in a similar direction, whilst they are all looking in the wrong direction. You see, the definition given earlier is good, but we should realise “wireless internet will be faster and more abundant, even in rural locations, offering a much larger pool to scammer and spammers”, and until the funnel is inverted that problems remains, and will remain to a limited degree after that and the stage is set to shopkeepers, that change will the stage completely and I am already ready with that IP. So when Neom in Saudi Arabia launches, certain players will suddenly realise what they missed and that is when my solution starts gaining traction and value fast, just as I hoped. The question is will it be in 2023 or will I have to wait until 2024 to make it all public domain. Such exciting times coming my way. Yummy!

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January 25, 2022 · 17:56

daemonis more

Yes, from one we go to the other and it is time to look towards the setting of protection. Armour if you want. You see the games all have their take on it, and so do I. We have cloth, leather and…..

Yes, you are roaring to name dozens of armour, all from other games, Blizzard and Bethesda did their work, yet I believe we need to go back to the basics. You can have 60-200 forms of armour, but what does it serve? The basics are what some call undergarments, the armour and the cloak. Yet be not deceived, the undergarments can be fur, cloth, thin leather or chainmail. Each their protection, each their weakness. Try walking through the winter scape of Scandinavia or Canada and try doing that wearing chainmail UNDER your vest, you soon will learn that col travels and Chainmail holds onto the freezing cold like nothing you have ever experienced. Yet chainmail has properties that we need. So we could go chainmail coated fur. You see, each benefit will have a drawback and it becomes a much larger puzzle when you imbue the armour with magical properties. I do not believe that there are only upsides. Like magnets, what pulls on one side, pushes on another. Any natural product is like a small balance, upside and downside go hand in hand, but overall the larger benefit is found. The cloak might have stealth magic, yet the iron armour imbued with strength or poison magic will negatively impact stealth. It is not completely set in stone yet, but I believe that a lot more can be done on balance instead of merely adding percentages here or there. 

And as armour is stronger, it tends to be less stealthy, still stealth will have a side that benefits all, it will have options making it worth having and so begins a new water table of balance. 

As I personally see it, we get a lot more puzzles and joy by having the three elements of armour in the personal screen and work our way from there. Three elements in stead of a combination of 8. Three elements and each having its options instead of X*Y*Z armour settings you have to program ahead of release. There is of course more to be done, but I just handed three separate sides (including the previous two articles) to get you going and become a new and competing Blizzard. Let’s not forget that there are several systems where Microsoft is not welcome, so you have options in the long run and this was handed to you without charge so you can design your version of a slicer and dicer on Sony and Amazon systems at no charge. When was the last time you had an offer like that? You still have to do your dues and your perseverance in making the game, but you have a head start now. I will try to add a few more sides to this all giving you more to work with and let us remember that we want a better set of options for gamers in total. You see Microsoft is about removing choice, they have the largest companies and you get to play those games as long as it is on a Microsoft system. An inferior system that betrayed its gamers (as I personally see it) more than once. Do  you really want to be part of that, or do you want to be the new wave of game designers in a setting where the gamer gets to choose and they choose you? Now they will choose Microsoft because there is no other system that has it, how is that freedom for gamers? 

And freedom is where it is at, so I design the IP for you all so you can oppose a Microsoft dictatorship for gamers. It is merely my way of fighting that technology usurper. At least that is how I personally see it.

So feel free to agree or disagree, yet those who disagree when choices fall away, you better realise that you were part of that limitation of choice.

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January 23, 2022 · 18:07

As I slice and dice

Yes, if you are a Microsoft lover and you thought the previous article named ‘In the beginning’ (at https://lawlordtobe.com/2022/01/21/in-the-beginning/) was all there is you are in bad luck. I needed time to get the next part in chime. You see, the antagonists are important, but so it the way we deal with them. Weapons matter (in all kinds of occasions) as such I wanted a new setting, not some Diablo copy and it helps setting up the gaming IP, the more unique an IP is, the easier it is to get a nice exclusive IP for Amazon and Sony. 

So in this setting I wanted a whole new direction. A direction that we seemingly forgot about. In the first setting we start with a dagger. The dagger can be imbued (needs to be) to be a more efficient weapon against a major demon class, and as we upgrade it from level one all the way to level 4, the weapon will get a whole lot more powerful. Yet there are also gradients here. I wanted to set the first level to 5 demons, so 5 demons will have to shed something, or we cut it out of them and in level 2 we need more, there is an idea to get 5-25-30-55. I also wanted to reward tenacity, so if you go in one stretch, the cost would be a little higher, but you can go from 5 in level one to 35 to level 4 and skip levels 2 and 3. It is but a simple thought and it ups the gameplay too. 

You make money by selling items and I wanted to avoid to a larger degree chests (not completely), so the kills will give you items that you can sell and in that premise the alchemists will be more important. So this is the first demon class. What about the second demon class?

In this I thought that upgrading a level 4 dagger to a level 0 Dirk might be an idea. 

As such we get the balance of Dagger – Dirk – Short-sword, and after that we need a second weapon. 

I am still considering versions of a morning star, a roman Pilum and a few other weapons, yet in the end, you will have 2-3 weapons, so there are two parts, you need two weapons and you need to think strategically, which Diablo took from the equation (it never really had any clear strategy). As such we have a new environment, we have different enemies and we have the need for different skills. I personally believed that support skills were where it was at. Healing, tracking and vision skills are the path to nice powers that aid in the challenge to finish the game. More important, as each level (area) is better cleared, the towns will open up more stores and more options. 

There is a secondary need to set the stage in a few more ways, in one part as I hate linearity, in the second part if we have more challenges the game would end up getting a much wider acceptance. I want to create a game that honours Diablo, not copy it. Diablo was a game I loved forever ever since the first one came out in 1997, there was Diablo 2 and Diablo 3 broke the mould, so I want to honour it, not copy it. We honour what we love, and I am merely making sure that Microsoft learns the hard way what a total of 68,000,000,000 can cost them. Especially when independent designers use my ideas for free mind you, and only when it is for Sony and Amazon Luna releases. Even if little old me can make sure that Microsoft realise that there is a larger station outside Microsoft, it would have been worth it. Like I stated in the previous article, Microsoft can only win if there is a dartboard and I fail to hit 180 points 470 times, only then would they optionally win, and I have a few more ideas coming. So take notice of this new approach to weapons and I will also give an alternative consideration to armour. In the first there is the idea that leather and pelts make for much stronger protection, in the second I would want to set the stage that imbued metal in the armour would hurt them, but that comes at a price as it would only protect against one major class and two minor classes attached to the major class (see previous article), you see we cannot make it too easy and as you might want to get all protective at the first class, the larger station is that you can never protect against all (a military certainty discussed by Julius Caesar at length). And we must respect the classics, should we not?

So here is the idea of weapons and a little about armour. I will try to come back soon and give you the larger setting of the environment and how levels are set, you can figure out how to program it, I will not do all your work, but the ideas might help set the station, so good Luck and may the one using this find and gain great fortune (and piss of Microsoft in the process).

Enjoy the day!

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January 21, 2022 · 22:40

In the beginning

It is not a new line, it has been used so many times, but it is a decent start to any story. As I was contemplating yesterday’s story and yesterday’s actions, my mind wandered al over the field. You see creating a hero is easy, you look in the mirror and you have a (delusional) hero. You see, it is the antagonists that shape the story. Would Hercules be anyone if his deed was stopping bullies in a bar? Would the bowie knife existed if it was tasted on vagrants? Nope, we need antagonists!

So I wanted to create something new, yet there are only so many antagonists you can create, gaming has existed for decades, people have used nearly all the antagonists that myth, folklore and history allows for. So we need a new setting of a story. And then it hit me, what if (a setting I personally believe in) the enemy is all around us, we start in a place with one enemy, but from there, then what? That is the only weakness that Diablo has, the story is set to some degree and then we see that our powers are created because we know what comes. So what happens when we take that away?

So consider the pentagram above (a coincidence, honestly), We see the 5 points (A-E) when you start a new game, Demon class A is the first one you meet, you will gain powers from killing that demon, but there is no way telling what class it is, it might be vampire, it might be a ghoul, Incubi, Ifrit, there are too many to name, but that makes the setting fun. As you kill more of that kind your power in point A rises, so at some point you will encounter a new demon. Killing the first one is a challenge, but like Demon A you gain the ability to kill it easier. Now the hard part, the small points are not assigned, If demon A is coded blue, and the second demon is Red, then whoever you meet is assigned purple will be easier to kill, but you will have a max of 50% advantage (can’t make it too easy) and every game the wheel changes, every game will be a new challenge, you can (to some degree) consider the main points, but the minor points cannot be determined until you face them. A setting that (as far as I know) Blizzard never considered and now I have come up with a new challenge. And every game will have up to 8 main types, so against 3 of them you will have to fight for your life. to a smaller degree with minor classes too. And with up to 25 main classes and 30 minor classes, there will be new and unique playthroughs for some tyme to come (spicy enough for you).

This is merely the antagonists. There is more, towns will need to be created and they all have a smith (weapons) an attacked armour maker, and inn (food and drink). And as we see these elements evolve we get a better handle on who and what to kill. A setting that has been done before but not to this degree. So Microsoft spend billions on goods, and I countered the first move (free for Sony and Amazon developers). So consider how angry gamers will become and create your own fortune, let’s show Microsoft not to mess with gamers through their sanctimonious BS. So there is a lot more to do, but consider that we have a larger population dedicated to keep the quality of gaming high.

Enjoy the weekend!

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January 21, 2022 · 00:32

Is there a difference?

That is the question that overcame me. I was considering a new IP on gaming and it is actually going well, but about that soon. Leave it to me to create a Blizzard contender but now as public domain (for Sony and Amazon). And I do need a hobby so it might as well be sawing the chair-legs away from the Microsoft board of directors. Anyway, as I was contemplating a new path in IP, the Guardian gives us (at https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/jan/20/tower-twice-grenfell-height-planned-single-staircase-urw) with the title ‘Tower twice Grenfell’s height planned nearby with single staircase’, so the initial example on June 14th 2017 was not enough, construction and architectural companies in the UK as vying for the title of who can kill the surplus population the fastest. A few small details, the Grenfell tower was 67 metres high and became a coffin for 72 people. Now we see that the mistake is overtaken by to buildings, one of 130 metres, one 174 metres and again the singular stairs. I reckon that cladding will not be a problem either, there are always ways to avoid cost overruns. So when we are given “A planning application for a 51-storey residential tower in Docklands with one fire escape has been paused after a safety outcry”, my initial thought was “At what point will Mayor of London Sadiq Khan wake the fuck up?”. Not only was once not enough, we now see two plans, one in Docklands and one close to Grenfell, so the people will not see this nightmare, once, they optionally (if they are lucky) see it twice, what a joy greed makes!

So when the guardian treats us to “Grenfell United, a group representing the survivors and bereaved, said: “After half a decade of campaigning for safer homes, it’s shocking to hear that a new tower block, a stone’s throw from Grenfell, rigged with a fire safety defect before it’s even been built, is being planned.” It considers a single staircase inadequate for use by residents and firefighters if an evacuation is needed, even though it is allowable under building regulations.” I am left with the cornerstones.

  1. Why is this still allowed under building regulations?
  2. Why did the Guardian and Grenfell United need to bring this to the people attention?
  3. What on earth is the Mayor of London doing by allowing this targeted killing of London citizens under his watch?

You think that point 3 is overreaching? Consider the Guardian, yes I have had disagreements with them, yet they are giving us a while places like the BBC people (and others too) seemingly have nothing. So at what point will the BBC wake up, when will the larger news take this up and asks loudly the serious questions that should be asked? 

I know, only 72 died, London has roughly 9,000,000 people, so it is nothing. If this upsets you excellent! You see, we saw all the trial shenanigans. Now consider the video (from a firefighter) that some might have seen (at https://youtu.be/QM4RJE81fh4) and now consider and wonder how these two plans were set in motion, moreover we get to hear “a 51-storey residential tower in Docklands with one fire escape has been paused after a safety outcry” at what point will you consider ‘has been paused after a safety outcry’. This required an outcry? This was not stopped from the moment the plans were submitted? It would have been long before the people and in particular Grenfell United would have been aware. 

So when we see the video with the response from a firefighter ‘How is that even possible?” and now the Guardian informs us that two more apartment buildings, buildings that are even higher are planned, I reckon that a lot of people want to know who is at the helm of these folly pieces and a list of civil servants that are seemingly asleep at the wheel of city governance, because as I personally see it heads will roll on this one. So we might be drawn by “as some safety experts call current staircase rules ‘madness’”, I would be much more interested on the setting that someone signed off on this, because we see “has been paused”, this implies that someone gave the signal to go ahead on this, or not?

So when the Guardian gives us “as part of a complex of 1,760 new homes being planned by the owner of the Westfield shopping centre in west London.” I merely wonder if that Westfield complex has an undertaker on the spot, because for them business will be booming with up to 3,500-4,000 new customers soon enough. You think I am too blunt? Consider that being soft seemingly did nothing and the fact that someone was optionally willing to repeat the 72 deaths with up to 4,000 souls for bartering in a second attempt. I believe we need a sledgehammer, not the subtlety of tweezers. We did that in 2017 and it seemingly led nowhere. So as the Guardian gives us “but it will rely on the same “stay put” strategy that failed on 14 June 2017 contributing to deaths, according to planning documents.” I feel anger, but mostly because there is some logic in the ‘stay put’ setting, yet it cannot be denied that is failed completely in Grenfell, so why were ALL London building plans not stopped to investigate the logical sanity of that procedure? And moreover, why is that setting as well as the conclusions of that not in EVERY newspaper in the Commonwealth? 

I will let you ponder on this whilst I continue on the idea that gives Blizzard a run for their money, mostly it is me having a go at Microsoft for buying an ice-cream cone for $37,000,000,000 whilst the supermarket 253.4 meters away sells them by the bucket for $50,000,000. It is only a mere factor of 740, and if I get a decent result on my first attempt Microsoft stock would go straight to the basement, and that is before they get a clue on the other issues that Activision might give them, which makes my attempt a lot easier. Ah well, I hope to give you the news soon. 

When a hobby give that much satisfaction, it is almost criminal to be on an income (I would still take it), and the better case for laughter is that one in 740 implies that statistics would fall towards me no matter how it goes. Consider a dartboard. How many darts will it take for you to throw 180? Microsoft can only win if I fail 740 times any success hit sooner becomes a massive cost for them. And there is the rub, only if I fail more than 740 times will Microsoft win, now you try on a dartboard and see how many times it took you to get 180. That is the folly Microsoft started and I am about to rain the size of a blizzard on their parade. Life can be fun and rewarding at times, unless you live in an apartment building in London.

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January 20, 2022 · 07:18

Supporting Sony and Amazon

There is a time when it is not about the dough (aka money), there is a time when it is about the principle of protecting the game and the gamer. And when it is supported by a civic duty to kick Microsoft in the mouth (for civic duty and personal pleasure) the money issue does not add up to much. You see, we can toss and turn over. Few coins now, but when gaming is slaughtered by Microsoft, what does that add up to in the end? 

So in support of what I wrote yesterday in ‘At it again’ I have decided that all gaming idea’s on my site are now free to use for both Sony and Amazon. I do hope that they will give me a bonus if the 50,000,000 consoles for Amazon becomes a reality, but that is not out of bounds is it? So I already created the foundation of an entirely new RPG (as I wrote earlier), so now I need to come up with an idea for something to counter Blizzard. I reckon that the Activision problem will solve itself soon enough.

This is seen in a few articles like ‘CoD Vanguard players expose ‘pay to win’ Double Barrel Blueprint after nerfs’, as well as ‘Call of Duty Acknowledges Problems With Warzone and Vanguard’, a setting that shows that with “The publisher released a statement on the official Call of Duty Twitter account, acknowledging the struggles these games have had, and its intention to move things in the right direction. Activision plans to fix as many of these issues as quickly as it can”, this indicates that the troubles brewing are not resolved, more important, they have been going on for some time and that tends to be disastrous. Even as game makers ‘hide’ behind ‘best selling in the US’ we see another flavour of “most powerful console”, which was done away easily enough by Nintendo and its “weakest of all consoles” to bash it, surpass it in sales in almost half the time. Now with Microsoft buying software houses for a total of $37,000,000,000 (most of it for Blizzard and Activision), we are introduced to “The bigger worry is that Sony is no match against its far-larger rival as gamers look beyond consoles” (source: Reuters), yet but the statement is not correctly given, is it? With “as gamers look beyond consoles”, we see the article catering to Microsoft and its advertisement budget, but the truth is that gamers always look beyond consoles, they look for the best gaming experience and so far Microsoft has disappointed too much and too often, as did Ubisoft, as did a few others. Looking beyond consoles makes sense, there is a case for both the Google Stadia and Amazon Luna, but Google does not develop games. As such the Amazon Luna has the better advantage and handing them (as well as Sony) free access to my IP works for me as a gamer and works for gamers in total. And I have always been protective of gamers. Not to mention that there is a surprisingly satisfying feeling if my RPG idea gains traction, when Microsoft Paid $7,500,000,000 for Bethesda, only to see that Sony and Amazon can bring a new competitive RPG at a fraction of the cost, not to mention the undisclosed option for Amazon to sell an additional 50,000,000 (or more) consoles on an idea Microsoft never saw coming in the first place. The idea to surpass Microsoft left, right and centre on their shortsightedness is massively satisfying and as I am considering now a Diablo like game where the stage is a combined Gauntlet like game, as well as a first person action slice and dice game, we see (in the earliest stage) that they got an additional lemon at $27,000,000,000. A stage that makes me laugh. Microsoft has the ‘lets throw money against the shortcomings we have’ and I countered it by handing over IP to Sony and Amazon that is new, fresh and optionally grows to be the equal of what they paid for at top dollar. It might not make me rich (never a priority to me), but I can fall asleep with the biggest grin knowing I pulled the carpet from under the feet of one of the biggest software companies on the planet. 

So when we look at “Microsoft will be looking to gradually lure PlayStation gamers to its own console with new content down the line.” We see subterfuge. And I feel 98.3245% certain (roughly) that my creativity can trump their subterfuge. So when we see the two parts namely “the huge bet on Activision signals the company is serious about building a virtual world beyond a console or device”, as well as “Sony is doubling down on games exclusive to PlayStation. It may have the air of a David and Goliath match-up, but Microsoft looks to be on a whole other level.” We see the courtesan move towards advertisement. Consoles have for the longest time aimed for exclusives, the Sony exclusives have proven to be exquisite masterpieces again and again. You see, THEY might tell you that gamers want “a virtual world beyond a console or device”, yet it is not gaming, it is a world of cheats, cheating and hacks and in that world there is a larger benefit for the maker to set the ‘pay to win’ environment by selling weapons and other micro transactions to fill the war-chest of its board of directors. At some point (sooner than anyone expects) the gamer will have had enough and dump these games. With the Sony games, with gaming on a console, the only cheat you get is on yourself.  But that part will not make the media, will it? Gamers will too often feel the need to chill and play the story, enjoy the world they are in, a setting that the Microsoft games will not offer. They will make lofty promises like “Activision has announced the worst punishment yet. In short, if you’re caught cheating in Call of Duty: Vanguard, you can be banned from every CoD game in the franchise.” A statement made in
November 2021. This in response to “Numerous players reported running into blatant cheaters on Vanguard on the very first day of the release.” And no one is asking the question why cheating was made so easy, so easy that it was ready on the first day of release. But I cannot find any media asking that part, and then the response ‘you can be banned’, not ‘you will be banned’, a subtle but unmistakingly difference that they are considering action, not promising that action will be taken and when the gamers get a few more of those issues, they will walk away. A good spending of 27 billion. So whilst we cannot deny that there will be a desire for virtual world combat, until you deal with the cheaters that world will be as appealing as a tax form. In this with the cheater active from day one, it seems to me that a lot more fixing is required. Darn and I was having so much fun surpassing Microsoft with creativity, all whilst common sense might defeat them before that. Because in the end it will be common sense. The common sense that gamers want to have fun, they want to exchange blows on an honest field so that s gamers they feel enabled and the last time I checked in a game filed with cheaters no one feels enabled, merely insulted and attacked on a false premise. 

So I do not disagree with Reuters on “Microsoft looks to be on a whole other level”, especially when that is set to the stage that the Microsoft level is an inferior one. Now, you are free to disagree, but consider if you go into a virtual world and there are a dozen cheaters waiting for you, how much fun will you have as a gamer? Not that much I reckon.

Enjoy the day! I am going to mull the new Diablo station a little more, the idea is taking form, but I do know it will not be easy to offer a Diablo alternative, that franchise is a really solid one. 

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