Peace Walker

Peace Walker is one of the greatest PSP games I have ever played. Its fun, endlessly entertaining, and relentless addicting. It somehow merges the “gotta catch ‘em all” mentality of Pokémon with the trademark tactical espionage action that Metal Gear Solid is renowned for. Kojima Productions tailored the series’ gameplay for portable play, with great results.

The game follows the story of Big Boss and takes place after the events of Metal Gear Solid 3. Big Boss and a cohort, Kazuhira Miller, are in charge of the Militaires Sans Frontières (MSF), an independent army. What follows afterward is an adventure into the jungles of Costa Rica to fight against invading forces that seem to be lead by the CIA. I won’t spoil the story since a large part of the MGS experience is watching the plot unfold through the comic-animated cutscenes. Although the cinematics are no longer in real-time, each character is still fully fleshed out with hours and hours of voice-acting. There are some real gems in the game from audio tapes to hilarious codec conversations, so there isn’t anything lacking from the production values front.

The gameplay is an amalgamation of past Metal Gear games. It incorporates the soldier recruitment mechanic from Portable Ops, a stripped down version of MGS3’s camo system, and the user-friendly controls of MGS4. The level design and enemy AI is modified to suit the mission-based, modular, and compact game design. This is further emphasized with the structure, by breaking the core game modes into Main Ops and Extra Ops. This allows the developers to integrate multiplayer (both competitive and coop) into the main game’s framework. By making the entire game mission-based, it encourages bursts of play and to get the best ranking for each mission (S-rankings as per Japanese custom).

Whereas past Metal Gear games stacked innovation on top of the core mechanics (such as first-person shooting, camo systems, etc), Peace Walker decides to go sideways. The innovation isn’t in the gameplay, which is decidedly simplified compared to its console brethren, but in the packaging of the gameplay. Kojima Productions has created a network of subsystems that work together to create an ecosystem of causes and effects.

Each soldier you recruit has ratings, and you can assign soldiers to different units from combat, R&D, and Medical based on these ratings. By placing soldiers with high ratings in their respective categories in the right departments, you can unlock new weapons and gadgets. In order to unlock the best gadgets, you have to recruit the best soldiers, which are in the hardest missions, which can only be done with the best equipment. Everything goes in a beautiful circle that encourages you to collect the best of the best in everything.

With Peace Walker bundled as part of the upcoming Metal Gear Solid HD collection, there is reason for you not to experience such an excellent entry in the Metal Gear Solid series.

Peace Walker is amazing.

Play it.

Paralell Processing

Computers are pretty neat creations that were designed with one idea in mind, "efficiency." A well-built machine can eat anything you throw at it, provided all the components work together in complete synchronicity. This means no bottlenecks. The processor isn't holding the GPU back, or the RAM isn't holding the system back, or the OS isn't holding the RAM back. To acquire such a beast of a machine that does everything well will cost quite some coin. That's why there are different configurations that meet different needs. Some people want a fast processor for video editing, some people want a cool and reliable machine for simple word processing and web browsing, and some just want the best of the best because they want to max out Crysis 2.

People are the same way. Replace processing with "thinking" and everything else with "skills." Companies look to hire specific skillsets. Some look for specialty machines designed to do one task really well, and some are just looking for well-rounded systems that can do a little bit of everything. There has been a shift in work philosophy however. Just like how processors have evolved from single core to multiple cores, so too have people shifted from specialists to generalists.

If you try looking for a single-core processor nowadays, it might be more expensive than you think, simply because they're out of production. The old-school experts are the same way. They make the big bucks simply because they're professionals in a small field, but this makes their expertise all the more rare.

When it came to my work, I used to do it in single-minded fashion. I grinded it out until I was done. Given that my time has now been split up in seven ways from Sunday, I can no longer afford the luxury of doing 5-hour marches. So I had to upgrade myself.

Ladies and gentlemen, I now possess the ability to work in projects in parcel-parallel fashion, which means I do a little bit of work on a different project each day. Instead of completing projects one after the other, I work on multiple projects in congruent fashion.

Computers don't have the ability to adapt themselves to different situations, fortunately, people can. That's why we can update computers with different parts and make them adapt to the different tasks we throw at them.

Ask yourself this: Do I need someone else to help me adapt, or can I do it myself?

The Freezeout

I went with my friend (now referred to as "S") to visit another friend (now referred to as "C") yesterday. C claimed that he was high, but I thought, "Hey, he might still be good company even when high -- after all, he was the most clever guy I knew." Turns out, being high is a conversational killer. Instead of a clever 3-way repartee, I got frozen out while S and C caught up with each other talking about mofos I never knew. I could try to jump into the conversation but what the hell would I say?

"Oh, that guy sounds cool. Oh, that guy sounds like a dick. Oh, I don't know that guy at all!"

I got the freeze. Funny thing is that it was my idea to visit C in the first place. S and C are in a full blown conversation and I'm just sitting aside like slab meat doing nothing but languishing. I guess the only solution to the freezeout is to get the hell out of there and don't look back.

I remember taking a test that figured out what each of our individual strengths are. One of the qualities that one could specialize in is called "includers." Includers are the kinds of people who feel like they need to include everybody in on the fun.

S and C are obviously not of this class.

I need to find some includer friends.

Trolls Be Trollin'

There are 3 types of trolls: The fun troll, the dumb troll, and the natural troll.

1. The Fun Troll

The fun troll just wants to mess around and f with your mind. There's nothing malicious about this brand of trolling. Unless you're Joe Pesci, you'll have a nice laugh at the end of the troll session. It's all in good fun.

2. The Dumb Troll

The dumb troll is a troll who persistently makes outrageous comments not because he's trying to be disingenuous, it's because he's too much of an idiot to realize that he has been duped. These are the types who stubbornly refuse to change their mind and regurgitate untruths. Feel pity for these trolls and move on.

3. The Natural Troll

The Natural Troll is a troll who is not trying to troll at all, it's just how he is. It takes a special kind of asshole to be constantly trolling every part of the day, but he's not trolling--he's just living. It might be best for your health to avoid Natural Trolls at all costs.

Everybody trolls. It's all a matter of what kind you are. As with all things in life, moderation is the best policy. Too much trolling and you'll find yourself stuck on an island with giant blood-thirsty crabs who love the taste of troll. Consider yourself warned.

Laid to Waste

I make things up as I go along. I find that it gives me more…adaptability. Now those with a plan, I can respect them. It takes a lot of time and effort to come up with a plan, and when they can actually execute it, there’s probably no better feeling. But plans don't always go the way you want them to. What if the plan was flawed from the start? What if the situation changes and what was once a good plan now becomes a bad one? That’s why I stay free. I don’t want to be locked down by the “plan” because the “plan” could be a one way ticket to nowhere.

Control

My family doesn't celebrate birthdays, and by celebrate, I mean nobody goes through the time and effort to set up a little shindig for our next step towards decay and eventual death. My 22nd was the first time that I actually celebrated a birthday and I basically did everything myself: buying the drinks, getting the food, and setting up the space. I did get some help courtesy of D and C, but I directed most of it. Even though birthdays are usually events where the birthee is supposed to do nothing save enjoy his time, there's something to be said about taking control of your own celebration. Never let it be said that I wasn't generous, accommodating, and way too mindful of others on a day when the only person I'm supposed to give a shit about is myself.

I'm reversing the trend. The birthday boy does something nice for everybody instead.

Happy 22nd you bastard!

Undue Attention

What is it about a birthday that gets everybody;s attention? Rarity? It's not that rare considering it happens regularly once a year (and in some cases, twice). Some people don't even celebrate birthdays but they're outliers. I think American culture instills in us, a celebratory streak. I think the more excuses we have to have fun, the better, and because we associate birthdays with fun, we have to go out of our way to congratulate somebody on their age level up. So just for today, I get birthday wishes for doing absolutely nothing. Nice to be congratulated on something beyond my control.

Love. Sick.

I see her face,

My chest gets tight,

I up my pace,

She remains in sight,

I look away,

And I try to flee,

To my dismay,

I can't get free,

My stomach turns,

My belly rumbles,

My insides churn,

And my legs stumble,

But I have learned,

That it cant be stopped.

I get dizzy,

And I get sweaty,

I hold my breath,

Cause I can feel death,

I feel it rise,

I feel it rising,

Its no surprise,

I know this feeling,

I take my leave,

Rushing to the stall,

And I heave, heave, heave,

Until I've heaved it all.

This problem of mine, is surely of mind,

But I can't accept, such nervous concept.

If a girl, is around,

I will make, retched sound.

I close my eyes, cause I am sick,

How I despise, such harsh afflict.

This my problem, I keep hidden,

The only way, I could fit in.

Between home and school, the sacred border,

Difference between, health and disorder.

Style of her hair,

Does not matter.

Color of her eye,

Is not factor.

The shape of her face,

Unimportant.

The width of her waist.

Mind discordant.

How her body looks, and how she appears,

Is of no concern, because of my fears.

Every woman, if so close they came,

My inside urges, I cannot contain.

And the end result, is always the same.

For this affliction, for who could I blame?

For how long have I suffered?

It's biological.

As long as I remembered,

It's physiological.

Is there any cure in sight?

It's pathological.

Only solution is flight,

It's illogical.

And impossible.

The only thing I know,

Learned from experience,

From past present go,

Lack of resilience,

Is if I'm close to chick,

My only response is

To get very very sick.

Love.

Sick.

Impulse

One of these days, I'm going to get over that little impulse that tells me at first glance to "bail out!" Knowing that a task is ahead of me, I allow my apprehension to make the decision: don't engage at all. This a particularly nasty habit of mine that might be responsible for a great deal of lost opportunities, how great I will never know. What I need to do is change this impulse from a negative one to a positive one. My first thought can't be "I'll do it later," it has to be "I'll do it now." If I can train myself to think that way, I do believe that my output would increase by an amazing 100%.

It's mental obstacles like these that threaten our potential. A lifetime of second-guessing and cognitive dissonance under the guise of calm rationalization only trains us to become self-satisfied sheep with no urge to do anything interesting outside of our zone of comfort. Ditch the zone, get uncomfortable and force yourself to do things that you wouldn't until you feel comfortable doing it. Widen your zone and become a beast.

Don't hedge, go ahead and bet the farm.