Kerbal Space Program V1 REVIEW!

I can't even begin to tell you how excited I have been to play the official Version 1.0 of KSP. Having sank over 800 hours into Kerbal since I started in .18 it's been one hell of a journey to where KSP stands today. So was the anticipation worth it? Was the hype train worth the wait? In a couple words: Hell Yeah.

Right off the bat there's some really fantastic big changes to KSP. First and foremost an proper atmospheric drag model has been implemented into the game. You'll notice it as soon as you launch your first rocket. But to really feel the effects, you only need to wander into your space plane hanger and construct a winged vessel. There are a number of things about the atmosphere that create a more compelling experience. For one, parachutes finally seem to work in a realistic way. While I was cruising around at 300m/s in an early space plane (that admittedly was more plane than space.) I found myself taking off using nothing but the forces of air pressure under my wings and slowing due to drag after launching parachutes will gliding to a stop. It's subtle, but the changes make for a brand new set of experiences to play with. Space planes in general have been boosted with various new parts including landing gear, winglets and air intakes.

But the new areo model is really only half the recipe. The new implementation of heat has been a serious game changer. Previously your craft would harmlessly catch on fire as it re-entered the atmosphere or broke supersonic speeds. But no more. Now heat- or friction has turned beautiful spires of fire into horrifying moments of nail biting experiences. As I discovered dozens of times (and I mean dozens) friction really turns on you in multiple ways. It's not simply a matter of entering the atmosphere as perhaps the classic 'movie-esque' belief goes. Friction is a relation to how your craft moves within a dense atmosphere- it's like swimming. This all relates back to the parts your craft are built from. Sometimes you can get away with making your ship more aerodynamic, so it slips through the atmosphere like a knife or other times you can use a heat shield. Each situation has its pro's and con's and even then things don't always go as planned. For instance, I've used a heat shield on a top heavy vessel, but without SAS it spun and flipped me upside down- rendering the shield useless and ultimately turned my ship into a fireball.

But it's not all big changes that make a difference. The 'advance to next day' button outside your space center is a welcomed addition, making it far easier to launch during the day. Other elements like additional parts, engines and connectors have helped bridge the gaps the previous versions fell short on.

The biggest and perhaps most profound element to KSP is mining. However, I haven't advanced far enough in the game to properly review it yet. I will gladly offer a second Review as I've advanced further in the game. However, after the first few hours in KSP, I'm a solid believer.

8/10 - Can't wait to see what they do next.

Star Wars Rebels meets The Force Unleashed?

If you're avoiding spoilers, turn back now. However, if you've managed to watch the entire first season of Star Wars: Rebels come with me to bask in it's twist and turns. To really appreciate SW:R you have to rewind the clocks to the days of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. In my opinion Dave Filoni can be credited to reviving the SW prequels as actually entertaining. While many have expressed their opinions over the movies, there's really no denying that Filoni took a shamble of storytelling and made sense of it all. Of course he had help, but Filoni pioneered The Clone Wars in a way that mended broken Star Wars fans and brought them back to the prequel table. I was one of them.

Then the day came- Disney took over and suddenly the expanded universe was shattered, it was like as if a thousand voices screamed out at once... Needless to say I was pretty nervous, but I was happy to hear that The Clone Wars series along with the films would be be canon moving forward. While many of the story arcs remained unfinished, such as Asajj Ventress, Darth Maul, Ahsoka Tano and numerous others. We're now starting to see a ray of sunshine in what many fans considered a disservice by canceling the show. There's already reports of novels being written that will close the arcs on characters such as Asajj Ventress and season one of Star Wars: Rebels started a new arc for one very important character: Ahsoka.

As fans of The Clone Wars will tell you, Ahsoka started as the young, whiny kid nobody wanted following Anakin around. But as time went by and her character developed into a young woman fans started to grow fond of her character. In a sense, she complemented Anakin. She grounded him like most kids ground and mature normal people here on Earth. Suddenly Anakin had someone to take care of, to show what was right and wrong- and why. Things weren't always easy and Anakin learned a lot about himself along the way. But their relationship came to a sudden end when Ahsoka, disillusioned by the politics of the Jedi Order, left to follow her own path. It was a heavy blow to Anakin, but honestly I don't think anyone could blame her for leaving. Doing so however, saved her from the Jedi Purge and Order 66.


By the finale of Rebels (14 years later for those who are counting), we learn that Ahsoka is back and a member of the still fragile Rebellion. What position and if people even know she's a former Jedi is unclear. But we know that the spark has been lit. It's important to note that Bail Organa was there too and seemingly in a leader position. This is important, as Bail previously in the old canon- was a founding member of The Rebellion. It's also rather interesting to see that they decided to bring back Ahsoka at all, rather than simply finish her storyline in a novel or comic. Not to say that any of those sources have less merit, but simply because Rebels has a much larger audience at the end of the day. Bringing her back was certainly not an oversight, it's a very calculated move.

What's even more exciting is to see Darth Vader's arrival on the scene. With the Inquisitors exit from the show (or at least we're led to believe), it means bringing Darth Vader into a much more prominent role for the show and much grander scope to the Rebellion movement. Truthfully, I don't see the Inquisitor returning. While it's possible he may return as a supporting character of some sort, perhaps rebuilt like Darth Maul- his death marked a transition in the show. The Ghost Crew wasn't a real rebellion force, nor was the Inquisitor a real Sith. But the finale changed all that- suddenly what wasn't, now is. Which brings me to the future of the series.

We're moving into pretty touchy old canon territory. The formation of the Rebellion has already been covered through numerous sources, most prominently in The Force Unleashed. While many fans disdain the overpowered abilities of the central character: Starkiller- I still loved the narrative. While an overpowered character such as Starkiller does seem a bit much for today's new narrative, that doesn't mean there couldn't be a restructured telling of the old canon and this is why I think we're about to.

For those who don't know, Starkiller was Darth Vader's secret apprentice. Promised to rule the galaxy with Vader once they overthrew the Emperor, things went terribly wrong and Vader was forced to turn on Starkiller, using him as bait to bring the enemies of the Emperor together to be exterminated.

First, there's this rumor that has emerged, in which actor Sam Witwer (Starkiller) is interested in playing a role in season two. The article points to him voicing the Emperor. A good choice, considering his experience voicing the Emperor in The Force Unleashed, but I think it's a little odd he's been overlooked as reprising his role as Starkiller. There's really two reasons beyond the rumor that could make sense. For one, the return of Ahsoka is too good of an opportunity for her to reunite with Anakin- now as Darth Vader. As his former apprentice, this just begs for a very uneasy confrontation between the two. Something I'm sure the writers will drag out for a while.

More importantly, Starkiller was Darth Vader's secret apprentice. It's important to note that this notion of a secret apprentice was created before Ahsoka's character was ever conceived. But from a story telling perspective, it would make for a really amazing narrative to see Darth Vader, now evil- with a new apprentice, one in which he tortures physically and mentally as a dark reflection of his relationship between Anakin and Ahsoka.

The best reason to bring back Starkiller is because the writers killed off his character at the end of The Force Unleashed. While his character returned for the sequel, I'd be just as satisfied if they left that story to 'legends'. But it means no loose ends to worry about down the road.

So is any of this possible? Discuss in the comments!

The Gentle Weekend

This weekend has been one of those dream like weekends that can only be accomplished by not having children and the proper application of ignoring responsibilities. Yesterday was dominated by nearly an 8 hour House of Cards marathon which left me shocked and yearning for more as the final episode of Season 3 ended.

I was overall fairly happy with the third season, however I felt it very jarring to see Francis struggling to keep things together. Unlike previous seasons, it felt like things were constantly unraveling and just barely being held together by clinging bloody fingers. That's not to say the season wasn't good- but I left the season feeling unaccomplished. While season 2 left Francis taking control and achieving his dream, Season 3 was more of the struggle to keep what he had earned. So the ending wasn't nearly as grand as the previous season, but led to what should be a very interesting Season 4.

Today however, I decided to actually get up and take care of a few things. Which ultimately led to me to Starbucks where I met up with numerous friends and old coworkers. I was really happy to speak with Ronnie, who I spent close to two hours talking about the grandness of the universe, politics and sci-fi movies. It was really encouraging to talk to someone else who understood the largeness of it all and yearned to know more, like myself.

There's been a lot coming up, in regards to game updates and movies. I'll be writing more in depth reviews soon. So keep an eye out for those-

Open World to Open Thought - Future of Gaming?

I figured I ought to show off my character if I'm going to bitch so much about his experience. So, introducing Yogota; Jedi Guardian and all around asshole. I like to think he's seen some heavy shit in his upbringing, hence all the facial scars- possibly a run-in with street gangs on whatever backwater planet he comes from. The addition of the mechanical eye only is meant to supplement this notion and in my own way, it's a small nod to Metal Gear Solid's- Big Boss, a hero turned villain. Much in the same way I see my own character turning to the dark side given enough time. While you can't see it here, Yogota is bald as well. Though to be fair I saw some killer chops and mohawk combo I've been digging for a while now- perhaps next go around I'll play as an Imperial Agent with some serious Irish influences haha. There's a certain character from Prometheus I've really wanted to emulate... maybe when I grow up one day I'll be that cool.

I've been reminded more than anything from this game, how much I love choice. But how difficult it can be to offer the player true freedom of expression. For example, the game offers three responses to choose from  with numerous points in which I can respond throughout the conversation. The problem is, three responses often aren't enough- or worse yet, my characters possible reactions don't fit within my personal reactions as a player. While the characters response may be simply 'I don't have time for this.' in reality my thinking may often be much more complicated and rational. That's hard to emulate in a game- and in a world with strict light side/dark side values, this would probably prove impossible. Though that's not to say I couldn't think of a few creative ways to judge a person's light/dark balance.
But all this talk of 'free will' in gaming got me to thinking, and the truth is free will doesn't mean the same thing in gaming as it does in real life. There are always limitations, whether it be the edge of the map, or context of the story. But in this case when we're talking about conversations, they're ideas- and ideas don't need to be visually displayed to be real. They're as real as you thinking them into existence (or typing them in this case). There's a positive- and negative side to this however.

This line of thought lead me to wonder if the next evolution in open world gaming, was an open thought AI. Much like how CleverBot adapts to your conversation and draws upon a database of information to fill in the gaps of conversation with various elements that make CleverBot feel real. I imagine open world games, or MMOs like The Old Republic would benefit from a system where you can stand toe to toe with a NPC and argue your point. Better yet, what if the NPC could avoid giving your a quest based on your responses? It would offer the player an even deeper level of emersion into the world.
Now, an obvious catch would be how difficult it would be to craft a response to the player. Text to text conversations are simple. But in today's world where the NPCs are expected to speak to the character directly using Voice Actors- it would be difficult, if not feasibly impossible to hire hundreds of Voice Actors and record the number of responses required for a full AI system across an open world game such as this. But, who knows- the future leads to a lot of surprises.

But if I could dream a bit: I would be really encouraged to play any game where part of the drama isn't just the action of gunfire and chaos- but the human element. Where people aren't nearly as predictable and your character is forced to deal with not just the situations, but the NPCs emotional state, intelligence level and even factors such as racism, sexism, or personal beliefs.

From Mars with Love

I had the good fortune to speak to someone today about the prospect of colonizing Mars. It was an eye opener to realize not everyone is as passionate about space science as myself- or even knowledgeable about the basic workings of the world around us. Worse yet, he's moderately Christian and from what he mentioned- a creationist at that. But it was a fairly engaging conversation and I've been working pretty hard for the past couple weeks to keep my snarky pissed off comments to myself when it comes to Religion or Science. You can't change the hearts of the people by acting like an asshole- even if it's what half of these people deserve. Here in the South- the ignorance runs deep like Georgia clay tsk tsk.

So here I am explaining how the Mars One project has selected 100 people from the thousands of applicants who want to voyage on a one way trip to Mars- when this guy asks the fateful question 'why should we colonize Mars?' I really thought this was a simple question and answer scenario, but he really was having trouble wrapping his head around why humanity should ever leave Earth to colonize- anywhere.

I really don't want to get into all the reasons why Mars is a great opportunity because what I really found interesting is his inability to understand the logic behind what I was saying. It's really my problem with religion- and you see it all the time around here. He's a good sport at least and we engaged in pretty in depth conversation about biology and physical limitations of humans. But you could tell there was a lot he simply didn't agree with. Such as the fundamental understanding of the age of our planet- our solar system, or even how biology evolves to adapt over time.

That's a pretty big issue in itself. This guy isn't dumb- he's probably sharper then I am truth be told. Which is all the more reason it baffles me when I see him- and others like him- close the box around themselves. The age of the Earth for instance. This hasn't been a fact that's been disputed in years- we've found the physical evidence and tested it using proven methods. Methods that have been determined to work by not just our nation, or members of Western Faiths. These are methods that have been determined to work globally- and together as a global society we've tested the same experiments repeatably to conclude: Earth is at least 3.5 Billion Years Old. Perhaps tomorrow that age will change with new evidence- but as of today this known fact fits very well into the model of the solar system, that is supported by thousands of other facts that have proven themselves against opposing theories.

Point is, to tense up during a conversation because you choose to believe the world is 2,500 years old is ridiculous. How can anybody of any religion- insist so many conflicting facts are wrong, then call up their buds on their iphone's which utilizes or works in tandem with so many facts they just called bogus? There's a great irony in religious folk that they just don't see. The world around them has changed and in my opinion it's the beginning of the end for religion.

Technology will be the end of the religion- or force it to change into something none of us can predict. Who would have thought that the Pope would have made all of the world shattering statements he did over the course of 2014? And what will come of religions everywhere when we finally find life on another planet, asteroid or comet? The point is, religion is being forced to adapt to a ever changing and expanding world. The church's of the world are being forced to plug as many holes as they can on a sinking ship. The avalanche of science and reason is quickly sweeping over them- and this doesn't become more apparent than when we look at Church statistics across the US, where we find church attendance plummeting across the board. Perhaps to no surprise, we're also seeing an increase in two opposing directions. Atheism and Evangelicalism.

But it's the fatty middle of Religion that is taking the biggest hits. While many Americans are still willing to call themselves spiritual, the curtain is slowly dropping as the lie is fading on their own lips. The problem is how explosively expansive the world has become to billions of people across the planet, such as with the introduction of high speed internet. This article in fact, makes an amazing case to that exact point.

So where does this leave our Mar's colony conversation? I'm not sure he really understood why it was important for us to go to Mars. It didn't matter that it meant a second chance for humanity, or an extension of our reach across the Solar System- or even just the technology we'll invent from invitations we'll only find on the Red Planet. Truth be told- it seemed a lot like a conversation someone might have made when talking to Columbus prior to his voyage to the West Indies. There's plenty of reasons not to go boldly into the unknown- and history has taught us how hard colonization can be even on our own planet. But when we look ahead and see how America, Australia or the hundreds of other colonies have fared over the years we see there's hope of a larger positive impact.