The End Of September

So here we are.  Literally at the end of September and more than a whole year with online classes with DeVry.  It's been a full year.  more than i can say about some of the previous years.  I know most people get sentimental at the end of December when the new year is rearing its face but why should i do that?  Shouldn't we take a look back at our own accomplishments a little more often then once a year?  I understand that there is a lot going on for most people, no reason not to celebrate or learn from what we have done.
So everyone lives in there own world this was more apparent to me last night when, with a couple friends had gone through our high school yearbook (campy and cheesy - I know), when our friend who hadn't graduated with us just pointed out how none of these people meant anything to him or mattered.  This struck me a odd - how could he not know that that guy was awesome, or that girl really did have an amazing smile?  This perception just jostled me into realizing that in all the things I've done - its all important.  It's just all important to me.  well it was important.

How can i make it matter to someone else?  how can i explain my point of view, my logic on a situation?  More importantly - why?  why do i want someone to understand me and my experiences? 

No one will understand all of me, or any of us for that matter.  We are all an accumulation of experiences and we all have had different experiences at different times with different perceptions, emotional and physical impacts that change us forever.  Whether we've been through the ringer with a crazy girlfriend or moved a lot as a kid - we are all different. 

Good news is that i don't want anyone to understand all of me.  It would be scary to think that someone could not only have the same thought process but the same emotional reaction to something.   Besides what could you possibly learn from someone who has had the exact same everything as you?  nothing. 

Now while I possibly got you thinking it's time to do some mindless locust eradication.

Which are you?

It's Wednesday and it's really early I'm not quite sure what I hope to accomplish with this blog. I like to think that there is a goal and end product to everything we do but it's almost always more complicated than that. A blog doesn't make any money and if it did it would be highly commercialized and easily accessible. I've come to the concession that only a couple different types of people will read this and with varying degrees of interest.

A close friend who genuinely appreciates my opinions and thoughts.

An acquaintance who could be swayed to care or not.

A total stranger who will form an opinion of me based on what is here.

The biggest reason I started this blog was to chronicle the journey from someone who plays games as a hobby to ideally someone who is creating or helping to create new and exciting gameplay for you.
As I looked back on my journal entries I can say with confidence that this journey doesn't exactly seem like a straight line. Life seems to get in the way. However the best thing is that progress is being made and I definitely know more now about making games than I did a year ago.

While I may not be sharing gameplay ideas or new worlds with you( at the moment) know that I will have something to show you in the future and that may be the greatest thing I can share with you.

My ideas

To augment or not augment.....?

Recently I've managed to put a decent amount of time (actually a lot of time) into Deus Ex: Human Revolution and one of the most paramount aspects of this title almost begs you to take a look in the mirror and ask yourself whether or not you would sacrifice your humanity in order to be augmented.  Now when i say augmented if mean being able to shoot explosives out of your arms or even punch through walls like the Hulk.  Bet you changed your answer from a couple second ago.  Adam Jensen, Our protagonist is the man who wields this crazy amount of power.

So this paradigm vividly reminded me of a gameplay device I used years ago in a DnD campaign.  The basic idea then was that people were getting these psionic gem implants placed in and implanted into their bodies to enhance what they can do like Adam.  In essence I had already used a system that is being used now but modified to fit the futuristic and cyberpunk themes.  I felt empowered that I had done this and went to my various notebooks and ideas jotted down on post-its and index cards (what can i say I'm low tech) to see what other ideas could have new life breathed into them from a twist and some fresh perspective.  I did come across a couple of ideas that made me really think and then i wondered what to do with them.  I updated some thoughts in a new and hopefully organized notebook of inspired ideas and left it at that.

Today I come across this this that semi renews hope and is semi serendipitous at the same time.  It really seems that I just need to take my ideas and start by applying them to what I know and love - Gaming.

The plan is now with my ideas in tow and the knowledge I have is to put them together like peanut butter and jelly. 

Before that happens I think I'll finish Deus Ex first......

What the hell happened?

It seems like forever ago I wanted to make a regular habit of posting my thoughts here.  However i believe that this is the first time in months that I've sat down and typed something out.  One could be making excuses as per why such a thing didn't happen.  While this didn't happen other things did.

"What things?" I can imagine you asking.  Since I set up this monologue this way the things that did happen was

• Re-applying for school loans and hammering out the financial details that bore and frustrate me
• Spending time looking at my current school schedule and pace at which I'll be accomplishing things and it honestly doesn't feel fast enough.
• Spending a good chunk of time at my new store making sure that awesome stays that way
• Reading The Omnivores Dilemma.  I don't like being preached to about how i should morally feel about food.  This book will make you take a really hard look at what you eat and where your food really does originate.
• Doing actual school work - a term paper on Obesity and American Culture (I'll give you a hint - we really don't have one)
• Going to Conference for a week in all this.  Conference is essentially a great time except for the minimum amount of sleep and lack of actual food.
• 3D TV event with Sony at my store
• Sony Training
• Started and Finished Shadows of the Damned

WHAT?!? I played a video game and finished it?! Since i've started working towards my goal of becoming a form of game designer and programmer I've found myself with increasingly less time to actually play games.  Kinda ironic and kinda moronic.  I can't promise consistency with the blog but i can promise that i will be busy and when i do manage to have time to sit and post - That i will have something to say.