It's time for me to talk about the experience known as the Houston Auto Show. Now as I type this, I'm still looking at photos to share online. I am also thinking of what to feature in my hopeful YouTube video.
Basic Overview. The 2010 Houston Auto Show marks maybe my tenth-ever Houston Auto Show. This is where I had the opportunity to see lots of cars, trucks, SUVs, and more. Everyone is having their opportunity to get into cars and possibly shop for their next new car. It was a day with highs anticipated in the mid-40s. Meaning that the prevalent fashion look (at least for ladies)... was sheepskin boots tucked into jeans. Staying warm was the name of the game. I went out in a Houston Texans' sweatshirt, a warm jacket, my Texans cap... all to try to stay warm. But really, the warmth of knowing there are lots of cars from many of the world's top manufacturers was enough to keep me warm. That... and the beautiful ladies both selling cars and walking around the floors of Reliant Center.
Meeting Kind Folks. When I was at the Mercury section taking pictures of the Mercury Milan, a woman stopped me asking about the camcorder I use. I told her as much as I could about the Insignia NS-DV1080P. She was very kind. I even shown her where my online blog is. Very sweet person. I had two makeshift business cards sent out to people whom I've contacted. I added the link to my blog (which you're reading right now) on the backs of these pieces of paper.
That's one thing I love about the Houston Auto Show- you meet lots of people from lots of places. All of which, love cars as much as you do or even more than you do. I still didn't get to see any friends of mine at the show. I was unlucky... :(
Meeting Heidi Van Horne. Among one of the beautiful ladies was Heidi Van Horne of the Houston Chronicle. Heidi Van Horne was both beautiful and friendly. Heidi is a columnist for the Houston Chronicle and a classic car lover. She signed a poster with my name on it as well as her signature. I even asked to have a picture taken with her (which costs nothing). I even complimented Heidi Van Horne's appearance, as she had a pin-up girl look. She wore a lovely red camisole, some dark blue skinny jeans, and some cute platform peep-toe pumps. Very much 1960s pin-up style in these modern times.
UPDATE (2/2/2010): Here is a picture of myself and pin-up girl, Heidi Van Horne: ^ courtesy of: Houston Chronicle
Meeting the Hostesses. What's more beautiful than a lovely car? A beautiful lady on a turntable telling you more about the car, of course! I feel that as a gentleman, I think the easiest way to make an impression is to compliment the hostesses and models. It isn't a cold day as long as there are lovely ladies to warm things up. The Toyota hostesses were dressed in some beautiful red coats, gray career pants, and black boots. There was one hostess that talked about the Jeep Rubicon. She was dressed in a chocolate brown cropped jacket, a T-shirt, and some dark blue jeans tucked into a lovely pair of brown boots (I even told her she was wearing some cute boots). Maybe the award for "Most Fierce Models" would be the Mitsubishi ladies. They were dressed in these leather jackets (I like to call them "bad girl" jackets), these black legging pants, and some flat or kitten-heel boots.
I didn't get to sit in too many cars because I was mostly trying to take pictures and do a few videos. The official number of pictures I took at this year's show was 169. That's more than my previous record, 131 pictures taken. I did about 16 videos. All of which, not even past one minute in length. I don't think I look right in a lot of my videos, and so I decided to only share a few of my favorites in a future YouTube video.
Best Moment! Maybe the most fun story of all was that this one Asian girl gladly helped me film a small video. For once, I felt a bit popular doing my video. I talked about the Audi R8 V10. A guy asked me a quick question, "what would you do with the car if you had it?" And I answered... "drive all over I-45, maybe pick up a few girls along the way!" The guys were laughing, and I felt special. Maybe these guys didn't know that I have my own YouTube channel.
I'm uncertain as to how I'm going to share my Houston Auto show experience on YouTube. I will do my best regardless. Part of me wants to combine my favorite video clips and compile them into one video. However, another part of me wants to do a relevant slideshow where I talk about the cars in question. What will I come up with? You'll see in the future. For now, feel free to subscribe to my blog via FeedBurner if you love my material.
Here's a fun little fashion-themed entry. All of the following are items that have either sweet themes or certain flavor themes. I guess the premise to this is on femme fashion that has some kind of sweet influences to them. These can relate to putting pieces together, certain multi-colored garments with sweet influences, and more. The title is on candy-inspired fashion, but this also pertains to some other cute looks.
There are two retailers I think of in regards to sweet fashion influences. One is Dylan's Candy Bar. (from Wikipedia) Dylan is the daughter of Ralph Lauren who sells clothing and other items inspired by candy. Shoppers can even get their own candy at Dylan's Candy Bar. I believe we have still have the Dylan's Candy Bar at the Houston Galleria shopping mall. The flagship store is in New York City along with two other DCB stores in the New York City area. The only other line truly with sweet influences is the Pastry Kicks line of shoes. This line, started by Vanessa and Angela Simmons, is a casual footwear brand with lots of sweet influences. The most popular shoes of theirs are their Glam Pie high-top sneakers with lots of colorful accents to them.
So let's talk sweet fashion! :)
NOTE: This blog entry contains links to Amazon products. You are welcome to click on images and links to learn more about each item or even purchase these items if you so choose. Please see "An Important Amazon Note" in my blog's sidebar to see more information on any Amazon items shown.
Here's a sexy picture I found online to set the mood:
^ from: healthychocolateinfosite.com - a true candy girl- this girl is made of chocolate as opposed to sugar and spice!
--- Setting the Mood... ---
Before I begin, here is a quote I want you to kind of keep to heart as I try to showcase some more tasty fashion influences. This is kind of a quote I will use to set the tone for this blog post:
"Every girl deserves to look as sweet as her personality is or as her favorite sweets/desserts are." -(quoted by me; just a quote to remember as you read along)
I do admit that I am quite a sweettooth. I think every girl is sweet in their own way. Perhaps that's why I take the expression "eye candy" a little to far sometimes. I often say that a girl is "eye candy with tasty good looks." So with these different tasty fashion influences, I will use this time to discuss certain edibles and any relevant fashion inspirations that can be taken away from such edibles and sweets. I want to dedicate this blog post to all my female readers who want to look and feel as sweet as certain edibles. This is for the girl who is as sweet and indulgent as a chocolate candy bar. This is for the girl who is sticky and sweet- like honey. This post is for the female who has such sweet fashion influences to compliment her sweet personality. However you express your sweetness through fashion is up to you. Regardless, you are sweet inside and within. Therefore, some fashion influences from sweets and other edibles will suffice.
It's time to let creativity run wild and offer up a sweet taste of fashion goodness! There's one important thing to remember in this blog post- not all items in this blog post are sweet edibles. In fact, I have one section devoted to other edible fashion influences... including alcoholic beverages. The majority of the blog post is still on edible sweets.
---Vanilla Fashion Influences ---
One of my personal favorite ice cream flavors is vanilla. Vanilla, as a color, is an off-white color with an extremely pale yellow hue to it. This creamy white color can be fine as a color for shoes, some dresses, outerwear, or things like that. About the only clothing line I know of with vanilla in its name is Vanilla Star, a feminine denim brand. I think you would most see vanilla colors with intimate apparel (which I will not feature in this blog entry). Here are some vanilla-colored garments I've found on Amazon.
What to Extract? So the key for any vanilla-inspired looks would be to go with a nice off-white color with a hint of very pale yellow.
--- Strawberry Fashion Influences ---
Strawberry fruits are very luscious and full of flavor. So can your clothing. The strawberry influences are not just relegated to Strawberry Shortcake-style fashion. The name of the game here is on pink colors, both in bright pink and in bold dark pink colors (like magenta). So let's talk about some strawberry fashions!
What to Extract? Strawberry colors are all about pink. That includes lighter pink colors as well as bold magenta colors. A variety of different garments adorn these shoes. There are also some other strawberry influences, primarily paired with brown. I'll get to that later in this blog entry.
--- Chocolate Fashion Influences ---
Here's a sexy picture I found online to set the mood:
^ from: healthychocolateinfosite.com - Get a taste of chocolate
It's easy to misconstrue chocolate colors. Often times, any dark brown color can easily be seen as chocolate, even browns like mahogany brown. Chocolate brown is actually a very dark brown color. I eat chocolate a whole lot. The one really good for me is chocolate milk.
From a fashion influence, you normally see brown colors associated more with accessories and shoes than in most fashion pieces. I hope to offer a little diversion. I think chocolate may be the most versatile of all the sweet inspirations.
What to Extract? Dark brown. Darkest brown. I think chocolate is maybe the most versatile of these tasty influences since so many items (even for males) are in chocolate.
--- Other Sweet Fashion Influences ---
We've covered vanilla, strawberry, and chocolate... still have a sweet tooth? Here are some more sweet-inspired items and looks to try out. These incorporate certain fashion cues based on tasty and sweet foods. Check these descriptions out:
Chocolate Strawberry.
^ from blogs.citypages.com - Chocolate strawberries. Red and brown (or even pink and brown) is a good way to incorporate a chocolate strawberry-inspired color combination.
As I mentioned earlier, you usually see a combination of a dark brown with some light pink. There are two ways to go chocolate strawberry. One way is to wear a magenta or pinkish-red top with dark brown pants. Or just go with red and brown. A nice fashion example would be to go with a chocolate brown shirtdress or regular mid-length dress, and wear a light pink or magenta belt or sash below the bustline. There are also other items with brown and a bright pink, like swimwear, for example.
Mint Chocolate.
^ from: about-recipes.com - Mint chocolate- indulgent chocolate with a refreshing touch of mint. Your fashion can be both sweet and indulgent with a refreshing touch of mint, if you know what I mean.
Mint chocolate calls for dark brown along with a light pale green. Rather than light pink, light green colors will suffice for mint chocolate.
Chocolate Caramel or Chocolate Peanut Butter.
The cue here is on a combination of dark brown and some kind of camel or tan color. This can mean anything: chocolate brown T-shirt + dark blue jeans + caramel-colored boots tucked into jeans. It can be a dark brown top with tan-colored jeans and dark brown sneakers.
Cheesecake.
^ from: images.fanpop.com - Some girls prefer their style to be as tasty as cheesecake.
This calls for a dark (but not very dark) red top with vanilla white bottoms. Maybe think of a fitted red blouse paired with some a vanilla white high-waist pencil skirt and white pumps. A red shirt with white jeans is also not bad to look into.
Iced Mocha.
^ from stevenelphick.com - Wake up your style with some iced mocha influence.
I can think of only one possibility here: think of a lace top paired with a knee-length brown satin skirt.
Popsicles.
Popsicles usually call for some multi-colored outfits.
The rest of this blog post includes a lowly-viewed blog post that was merged with this one. That's why this post is larger than it is. Keep reading to see my former post, "More Tasty Fashion Influences," if you are not reading the full post.
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--- More Tasty Fashion Influences ---
What used to be its own blog post is now merged with this one. Because of poor views for the blog post of the same name, this is now merged with this primary blog post as an all-in-one.
It's time to let creativity run wild and offer up a sweet taste of fashion goodness! There's one important thing to remember in this blog post- not all items in this blog post are sweet edibles. In fact, I have one section devoted to other edible fashion influences... including alcoholic beverages. The majority of the blog post is still on edible sweets.
In this section, I will attempt to discuss certain other foods and sweets, and then try to find some fashion items or pictures to demonstrate the look. I must use my creativity to make certain looks and styles based on various desserts and other things. I can assure you that these are all creative visions based mostly on sweet foods and desserts. It would be impossible (and gross!) to base fashion influences on T-bone steaks, for example. I'm just here to make you sweet girls look sweet! :) So let's begin.
What you will see are headings accompanied by pictures (if I can find any good ones). The main point is to give some inspiration. I will then try to find certain ways to make a certain look come alive based on certain foods or sweets. So let's begin!
--- More Tasty Fashion Influences: Condiments and Flavors ---
This is a look at fashion based on certain tasty influences. It is a continuation of my past blog post but with many more inspirations.
Honey.
^ from: www.bewellbuzz.com - Honey is sticky and sweet. If both words describe you and your style, you can be as sweet as honey fashionably too!
Nobody wants bees being around them. However, it can be sweet to have some honey influence. Honey is either a golden color or a tan-like brown depending on how you look at it. The actual color can either be golden or sort of a dark brown (but not chocolate brown). Honey is a common color for work boots. Here is a pair of honey brown work boots below:
^ from: www.cloggs.co.uk - Honey-colored work boots.
But to me, honey is sweet. Work boots are tough. I am not saying that wearing work boots (or some other tough boots) that are honey in color is a bad thing. I mean, feel free wearing honey-colored work boots for a casual outfit. Don't let me stop you. That's a tough influence; here are some sweet honey influences:
^ from: lasplash.com - honey-colored fashion pieces from Venexiana from their Fall 2006 collection. The jacket on the left lady and the stole (the huge scarf) on the right lady are honey-colored.
If you're into movies, you may have remembered/seen the movie "Honey" with Honey herself played by the sweet Jessica Alba. Besides clothes, there are also honey influences in makeup and in skin care.
Caramel.
^ from: sp.life123.com - Get a taste of caramel and indulge in its sweetness.
Caramel is a bold brown like honey. However, I think caramel is more of a darker brown than honey. It's something to look out for if you're considering wearing something of a caramel brown color. I hear about caramel ranging from caramel-colored fashion garments to caramel-colored hair to even caramel skin complexion. A number of celebrities, like Leona Lewis, has caramel-colored hair.
Here are some caramel fashion inspirations:
^ from: www.hotreplicahandbag.com - a caramel-colored handbag.
^ from: stylehive.com, by way of anicaboutique.com - Caramel-colored ankle boots. These are the "Porch" boots from Rachel Comey.
Peanut Butter.
^ from: www.mentalfloss.com - Peanut butter is creamy and with a tan color.
Peanut butter can be great to have. You know you can't enjoy Resse's Peanut Butter Cups or any other sweet peanut butter treat without... peanut butter. You know you can't have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich without peanut butter. The real key color for this is a tan or some other muddy brown color.
^ from: sneakernews.com - a pair of Nike sneakers colored in peanut butter.
^ from: eshoespot.com - men's casual hiking boots in a khaki or tan color. Just take note of the color of these boots for some peanut butter inspiration.
--- More Tasty Fashion Influences: Sweets, Dessert, and More ---
The items in this section all pertain to various foods and sweets. You're here to look sweet, right? Well, the inspiration provided by these items will be my own explanation of various delicious foods and dessert. Each heading will be accompanied by a picture and a few thoughts on pulling such inspirational looks along (at least, as I see each inspiration). I will even mix things up by including drinks. This will be a fun project for me to present to you females out there! I hope you enjoy my content here.
This is all about fashion with inspiration from foods and drinks. I'm trying to present all of this without sounding like I have some kind of food fetish.
Banana Sundae.
^ from: www.foodchannel.com - a banana sundae. This is a combination of a banana, ice cream, and pouring of chocolate syrup and caramel.
(key inspirations: yellow, white (can be off-white), dark brown or caramel/honey brown)
Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich.
^ from: - The sweetest sandwich one can ever indulge- a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Commonly, a sandwich with grape jelly and peanut butter is the most common peanut butter and jelly sandwich. If this is what you're going for, here is a casual look based on peanut butter and [grape] jelly: grape jelly-colored camisole or tank top with peanut butter-colored cargo pants and rugged tough oxford shoes (like the Club lace-to-toe oxfords from Dr. Martens). You'll probably want to go with some other kind of colored top to resemble whatever color jelly you want your peanut butter + jelly color to be inspired by.
(key inspirations: purple with tan (for peanut butter with grape jelly), but tan is the key color)
Neapolitan Ice Cream.
^ from: - Neapolitan ice cream- because pink, white, and chocolate never looked (or tasted) so good together!
Neapolitan ice cream is the combination of strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate- all as a tricolored ice cream package. These three colors can all be worn as part of an outfit if you are creative enough. The only dark sort of color to neapolitan is chocolate. Therefore, you'll have to find light pink and white garments accompanied by some kind of dark brown outfit to complete the neapolitan look.
Here is an outfit idea: why not pair a pastel pink cardigan or shrug with a white shirt, and wear some chocolate brown pants or a chocolate brown skirt? I would probably have light pink and white on top and wear some brown bottoms to go with them if I was trying to pattern a look based on neapolitan ice cream. One of my fictional character concepts, Abbie "A.J." Garcia wears a pink shrug, a white camisole, brown gaucho pants, and some pink wedge sneakers. The pink for her, though, is more like a dark pink. That's an example of neapolitan.
(Key inspirations: pastel pink, white, and dark brown)
Strawberry Banana Smoothie.
^ from: nikadon.com - Strawberries are luscious and bananas are tasty. Put the two together, and you have not only a very tasty drink, but a very tasty fashion influence!
Usually, the combination of yellow and pink is what you'd probably see little girls wear. You might see a little girl in a pink top with yellow shorts, or you may see a little girl in a yellow shirt and wearing pink overalls. Grown-up girls can lovingly wear yellow with pink too! Mixing together strawberries with bananas leads to a light pink color. If you just want a strawberry banana smoothie look, either a light pink garment or accessory will suffice. Strawberries and bananas together would mean wearing either light yellow with light pink or light yellow with a bold pink. Think of wearing a light yellow dress with bold pink accents or with a bold pink ribbon/sash.
(Key inspirations: light pink with light yellow)
Ice Cream Soda.
^ from: foodbeast.com - a timeless beverage is that of a root beer float.
Novel beverage idea- put some scoops of ice cream on top of a soda for a tasty experience. Most popular of ice cream sodas are root beer floats. Root beer is accompanied by scoops of vanilla ice cream for a delicious and creamy taste experience. Whatever inspiration of ice cream and soda you have depends. Since I know root beer floats best, you'll likely need a white top paired with a brown or dark brown pair of bottoms. Your combination will vary depending on what kind of ice cream and soda you want to inspire your looks on. So experiment away!
--- More Tasty Fashion Influences: Others ---
They deserve their own individual attention. These are just inspirations from other edibles. Some of these items may not necessarily sweet.
Watermelon.
^ from: chicstories.com - Vans done up like watermelons.
The inspiration is simple as long as you have a dark pink along with something green.
Possible inspiration: • red or dark pink top with black polka dots • dark green bottoms
Cherry.
^ from: www.lesliebeck.com - Cherries are every bit as luscious as strawberries.
Cherries are every bit as luscious as strawberries. Cherry red involves a bold red color. The color can be exceptional in fashion. This can be for makeup or for lovely garments like this:
^ from: www.prlog.org - a cherry red evening dress.
Lime.
To me, I usually think of lime sherbet. Lime is somewhat a pale green, but a bold pale green. A bold pale green would really resemble sherbet lime ice cream.
Raspberry.
The best way to think of raspberry color-wise is a dark pale magenta.
Butter.
Butter in fashion would mostly be noted by either a pale yellow or somewhat a bold yellow. Butter yellow, however, is less pale than lemon yellow. NOTE: I was unfortunately unable to find any good butter yellow garments to demonstrate butter.
Peaches and Cream.
Peaches have a yellowish-orange color. My idea of peaches and cream would be a yellowish-orange blouse paired with creamy white pants. You could also go with a yellowish-orange shirt with white jeans and some yellow or white sandals.
Strawberries and Cream.
^ from: www.wasabimon.com - Strawberries can be as equally luscious in whipped cream as they are in chocolate.
The sweetness of strawberries along with whipped cream can equal a delicious and delightful treat. You can be delicious yourself if you dress up with a cue of strawberries and cream. For example, a magenta shirt with white jeans is an example of strawberries and cream. You may even go with a light pink blouse and a creamy white skirt.
Coffee.
Ahh, yes. That cup of joe. Coffee beans are essentially dark brown in color. I usually associate dark brown with chocolate, but the same dark brown can be associated with coffee. If you want to talk about coffee with creamer, then you're talking about tan-like colors once you fully add and stir in creamer with coffee. Like chocolate, the best garments for coffee-style fashion would be with shoes or formal dresses. Introduce some kind of creamy white garment to offer the impression of coffee with whipped cream. You want to be as sweet as coffee with whipped cream now, do you? :)
Wine Red.
Now for some tasty influence of a different kind, especially if you are a wine drinker. Wine red is usually noted as a burgundy red color. Wine red is especially appealing for formal wear
(Any Alcoholic Drink).
Cocktail dresses are usually inspired color-wise by certain cocktails. These usually make certain cocktail dresses so fun to wear. Read my "Party Time!" blog post for more regarding cocktail dresses (and other party fashions).
Well... that was a lot of tasty fashion inspirations! Can you think of any other fashion tasty inspirations? I may add a few more tasty inspirations in future edits.
Some designers and such specialize in sweet fashions. I'll pay some tribute to the ones who offer such sweet fashions in this section. Click on the headings to visit the sites mentioned to visit their sites or shop for things from these sites.
Dylan's Candy Bar was made for the girl who is as sweet as candy. A plethora of candy-inspired fashions and items are offered. Even candies themselves are offered here. It was founded by Dylan Lauren, the daughter of world-renowned fashion designer Ralph Lauren. Dylan says that she wanted to "merge, fashion, art, and pop candy culture." The flagship Dylan's Candy Bar store is in New York City. There are also DCB stores in other cities including two other cities in the state of New York (East Hampton and Garden City), Orlando, and right here in Houston. The Orlando location is the only DCB that does not have a cafe among the DCB stores in the United States. For a preview of what Dylan's Candy Bar has to offer, check out this video:
(For Houston/Galveston area readers only) If you live here in the Houston/Galveston area, Dylan's Candy Bar here in Houston can be found at the Houston Galleria shopping mall. More information on the Houston location of DCB can be read at the Dylan's Candy Bar Store Locator - Houston site.
Eat Something Cute! specializes in fun items for women that are nothing short of sweet. Women with a sweet sense of style can showcase their sweetness by reminding people to... eat something cute! Are you cute and edible (not literally, of course!)? Well, Eat Something Cute! has you covered.
Pastry is a Junior-oriented company that was founded in 2007 by Vanessa and Angela Simmons (daughters of Reverend Run from Run DMC). They mostly offer shoes that have a sweet sense of style. Indulge in the sweet-inspired styles of thier shoes. The majority of their footwear offer high-top sneakers that have a lot of influences on desserts and sweets. However, they also offer other sweet-inspired shoes as well as some sweet-inspired clothes. So this is really for those teen girls who have a sweet sense of style and want some sweet shoes and clothes to express their sweetness. In addition to teen fashion, they also offer their sweet fashions to children ranging from toddler girls to tween girls. The line devoted to girl children is called "Cutie Pies."
(More resources will/could be added in future edits.)
This blog post has concluded. Here are some more resources on tasty fashion influences of many kinds: • Trend Alert: “So hot It’ll melt your popsicle!” Katy Perry's "California Girls" song has inspired a candy-inspired fashion trend. Read more about candy-inspired looks and even find a few featured items with the link above.
(More resources will/could be added in future edits.)
Maybe the most fun and imaginative aspect of fashion is how there are so many ways to find inspiration. The initial impression I had for this blog entry was on "eye candy." A lot of these items are sweet in both looks and in design. It was a very long blog post filled with lots of sweet fashion inspirations. I must say that I had fun looking for some fashion garments for you femmes out there. I wanted to come up with something in the realm of feminine fashion while making it all fun.
People... if you love my material, let me know. Send me some replies to my posts. Subscribe to my blog via FeedBurner. To subscribe, check out my FeedBurner feed at: feeds.feedburner.com/JohnsBlogSpace. Let me know how I'm doing! Let me know if I'm doing a great job. Let me know if I can do much better. Just get on and interact. And if you love my blog, share my blogging madness with people you know. Maybe they'll love my material too.
Oh, if you want more of Dylan's Candy Bar and Pastry Kicks from my introduction, check out these recommended products:
For Dylan's Candy Bar on Amazon:
For Pastry on Amazon:
I have set up an alternative blog post where you can shop for various fashions on Amazon based on this blog post. Click below to visit my alternative blog post on this topic.
Rise of the Triad may be at least 15 years old, but this DOS game is a very unique first-person shooter experience. You represent a counter-terrorist group known as HUNT exploring San Nicolas Island. You and your team were set to investigate an old monastery on San Nicolas Island. Reports indicated that a cult was hellbent on destroying the world. As you found what you were looking for, the boat was blown up. Now the only way out... is in. So begins your mission to kill the cult leader, El Oscuro, and all of the many minions that inhabit this crazy monastery. Here is a look at the game (NOTE: This blog entry contains links to Amazon products. Please see "An Important Amazon Note" to see more information on any Amazon items shown.):
There are about 30+ stages consisting of many obstacles, a few puzzle elements, expansive levels, and loads of surprises. You will be faced with loads of challenges. ROTT has about four different episodes to it. The first episode has you taking on lots of the goons defending this monastery. The second episode takes you deeper into the monastery with more complex surprises. Episode three is a mechanical nightmare with lots of automatons not afraid to attack you. The fourth (and final) episode has you dealing with unrelenting monks and ultimately, El Oscuro himself.
Characters.
There are five characters to choose from. Each character has their own advantages and disadvantages. Take a look: * Taradino Cassatt - fairly average in all departments. * Thi Barrett - the female equivalent of Taradino. * Doug Wendt - built like a tank, can take a beating, but is very slow. * Lorelei Ni - very quick and speedy, but she is very fragile. She is not good at taking beatings. * Ian Paul Freeley (yes, I.P. Freeley) - fairly average character overall. Can't really tell what makes him much different from the other five.
Weapons.
To save the world, you have a handful of weapons. The coolest aspect of this game is that you don't have to go around picking up ammo from dead enemies just to have enough bullets left. Your bullet ammunition is UNLIMITED! You are armed with simply a pistol to begin with. You can pick up an extra pistol for two-handed goodness. The best bullet weapon is your MP40. It will save you lots of trouble when you don't have any missile weapons. Speaking of which... there are a number of them. Here are some of the missile weapons for you to pick up (others you'll have to find out on your own!):
* Bazooka - a straight-shooting missile weapon. You get ten shots with these. In the hardest setting, some enemies use bazookas that you can pick up if you kill them. * Heatseeker - a homing missile weapon. You get only seven shots. This can come in very handy when trying to hide or attack from a fixed distance. * Drunk Missile - a weapon that shoots several heat-seeking missiles at once. You have up to seven shots. * Flamewall - a weapon that shoots a wall of flames. A heavy missile falls to the ground, leaving a trail of flames upon impact to the ground. You can also fire the Flamewall at the ground to quickly take care of a pack of enemies. You get only five shots. * Firebomb - a straight-shooting missle that explodes a cross-like pattern of flames. This is by far the most powerful missile weapon. You only get five shots with this weapon. Absolutely NOT recommended for close-quarters combat!
Items and Powerups.
There are a number of items and powerups to help you out. Here are some or all of them: * Monk Meal - recovers one unit of health. * Priest Porridge - recovers two units of health. However, there if you find a way to heat up the porridge, you can recover much more health. * Healing Basin - drink water from these basins to recover energy. However much energy you recover varies. * Asbestos Armor - temporarily projects you from fire and projectile attacks. * Bulletproof Armor - temporarily projects you from gun fire. * Ankh - every Ankh symbol collected is good towards adding extra lives. There are four different ankh symbols- the basic silver one with a ring outside of it grants one life point. A bronze ankh with a granite background grants five life points. A bronze ankh outlined with beated accents grants ten life points. Finally, a red ankh with two rings encircling it grants 25 life points.
Now some (or all) of the powerups... * Mercury Mode - allows you to float into the air. * Blue Ankh - gives full health. If already with a lot of health or full health, it grants an extra life. * Green Ankh - gives full health. If already with a lot of health or with full health, it grants three extra lives. * Elasto Mode - you bounce around the level! It sounds fun until you realize you're in a room filled with dangerous obstacles... * Shrooms Mode - your vision shifts wildly, and your accuracy becomes distorted. On the other hand, using this powerup can help you get some hints about getting through a level. For example, some of the columns you can push while in Shrooms Mode will be highlighted to let you know what to push. * God Mode - temporary invulnerability, and you can fire blasts that home in on enemies and kill enemies on impact. * Dog Mode - you are invulnerable, and also pretty powerful. Use this fierce power to viciously rip apart your enemies. You can also use this mode to access narrow openings.
Hazards.
Many hazards (besides the enemies themselves) get in your way in kicking El Oscuro's butt. Here are some (or maybe all) of them:
* Fire Jets - flames shoot up from the ground or from the top. Run through it, and you'll become barbequed on the spot.
* Flame Walls - run into these, and you get burned up. Simple enough? Funny thing is, some of these flame walls can be pushed as push walls. Some of these walls even move randomly, making the trail through each level even more treacherous.
* Spear Rack - a rack of spears shoot up from the ground, piercing into you upon arrival. They may also shoot downward from a ceiling.
* Spinblades - run into these to get your own complimentary flesh wounds. Some of these even shoot up from the ground or ceiling.
* Lava pits - avoid these at all costs! Stepping on these hot coals will slowly chip into your health.
* Boulders - rolling boulders fall from the ceiling, down to the ground, and rolling over.
* Pits - running over these areas will cause you to fall in. It takes a keen eye to find the pit areas on the ground. It isn't too hard to find these pits on the ground once you really notice the floor.
Enemies: Basic.
In this section, you will be introduced to some of the enemies in this game. This a description of some of the enemies you will be facing. They will be described by their appearance:
* a basic grunt that carries a pistol, wearing a gray jacket and black pants. Some play dead and awaken when the player draws near.
* an enemy in a dark green coat that carries a pistol. On the hardest setting, some fire bazooka rounds at you. Some may beg when they're about to die. If so, finish them off quickly! Some may drop their bazookas if there is still some ammo left in them (only on the hardest setting).
* a bearded enemy in a dark green coat that carries an MP40. Waste them quickly because their MP40 shots can do some damage.
* an athletic enemy in a beige outfit, carrying a pistol. They can roll out of the way of missile fire and can be pesky to take down. It's best to take them down quickly with your MP40 (if you have one).
* a robot enemy that shoots drones. It can only be destroyed with missile weapons.
* a man in a gray/grey suit with a chaingun. It takes many hits to take him down. He also attacks by throwing grenades. Rely on missile weapons to defeat him quickly.
Here are a few more in the full game: * an officer in a black outfit. He fires a pistol but also can shoot nets at you. If caught in the net, you'll need to have a knife to cut your way through or find some other way out.
* a gun turret that rises up and quickly attacks you with relentless gunfire.
* a mechanical pillar that fires missiles at you. It is invulnerable to all kinds of attacks.
* a small monk that fires energy at you. Kill them quickly.
* a large monk that steals your life by grabbing onto you. Take these monks down quickly to prevent massive damage against you.
Enemies: Bosses.
You can only damage these bosses with missile weapons. I'll just describe them for the most part. Don't expect any advice on beating them here.
* A boss in a green jacket and white pants that totes a bazooka.
* a man that rides in some sort of motorized chair.
* a formidable and large robotic enemy that is very quick with powerful attacks.
* El Oscuro. Yes- that's all I'll say about him!
A fun fact is that each of the enemies are actually Apogee employees that lend their image as enemies in this game.
Multiplayer.
The game features lots of modes ranging from Deathmatch to various triad-collecting modes. There is support for as many as 11 different players.
--- My Opinions ---
Rise of the Triad is a fantastic game. And from a guy who's played two different Shareware versions, it was a great joy to play this full game after years of not getting this game in the past. A lot of people say that this game wasn't all that spectacular for one reason- 90-degree walls. This game can be thought of as Super Wolfenstein 3D the way everything is executed. Instead of wasting Nazis in World War 2 at Castle Wolfenstein, you're trying to eliminate a religious cult and its minions at a monastery on San Nicolas Island in the future.
Rise of the Triad. It's an oldie, but a goodie. If my opinions of this game help you, feel free to get this game on Amazon by clicking on the image below this paragraph. But before you do, this is a DOS-only game. So you need to download DOSBox if you have any Windows operating system that isn't Windows 95 or Windows 98. Enjoy this classic game! Get it now on Amazon!
What do you get when you have an artist that combines some of the hard-hitting beats of American hip-hop and R&B, an artist who sings beautifully, and give it that Japanese 'twang? SLOW is a Japanese artist that delivers music that's a cross of both worlds. I first was introduced to SLOW's music after I became friends on Myspace with Japanese rapper, B-FRESH. I am not sure what the first song of SLOW's that I've heard, but I love this newer song of hers called "Slow Down." When you listen to this song, listen to the American style of beats and instrumentals in this song. You can check out this YouTube video of "Slow Down" here:
Really, the beats and flow of the music reminds me a bit of "In This Club" by Usher and Young Jeezy.
If you want to hear more of her music, I invite you to visit SLOW's Myspace page to hear more of her music. I have no doubt that you'll love her music if you love the hard-hitting style of American hip-hop and R&B. I have no doubt you'll enjoy her music.
Here is another song from SLOW if you enjoyed the previous YouTube video I supplemented:
I hope to blog on B-FRESH in the future. His music is as awesome as SLOW's music.
The beautiful young artist named EmyLi is a Japanese pop star whom I've first heard of for the song, "Tekito Lover." Her music is an exciting blend of bold vocals and some bumping beats. It all began with her first album called "Flower of Life." The 21-year old (as of the date of this blog entry; born April 23, 1988) has some exciting style. EmyLi has the baby face and cute looks of a Selena Gomez, but some sweet dance moves and bold style like a Janet Jackson. More people closely associate her music more to be more like Japan's Christina Aguilera. She released her first song at the tender age of 15. "Tekito Lover" is the first song of hers I heard, but I had to make sure to hear other songs of hers to really talk about her music. You are free to click on these links to learn more about the young JPOP sweetheart known as EmyLi. But first, here's your look at EmyLi:
^ from: maniadb.com - EmyLi.
"Tekito Lover" was the first song of hers I've heard. Here's your chance to hear this song if this is your first EmyLi track if you've never heard her sing:
Due to popular demand, Fire Pro Wrestling Returns was created even as Fire Pro Wrestling Z was told to be the final installment of the Fire Pro Wrestling series. FPW has been around since 1989. While many have criticized that Fire Pro Wrestling just isn't as graphically impressive and amazing as the SmackDown! vs. RAW games, what many true wrestling fans love about Fire Pro Wrestling is that this is a proper wrestling title. There is a bit of fighting influence as a whole, but, at least from Fire Pro Wrestling Returns, this series can really be something special if they can enhance a number of elements. What would a future Fire Pro Wrestling bring? What can be improved? I'm going to go on the base of Fire Pro Wrestling Returns to discuss what all can be improved in any future titles.
--- Enhancing FPW: Match Types ---
Some of these matches may need to be named something else if there are any copyright infringement issues in play.
Ladder Match. A ladder match consists of having something suspended above the ring. The winner is the one who pulls down the object (usually a championship title) suspended above the ring.
Table Match <<< just updated! Put your opponent through a table to win the match. Falls Count Anywhere. The name of the game is to beat your opponent senseless. Pin falls can be counted ANYWHERE. There are no disqualifications and no countouts.
I Quit. You have to beat your opponent so badly that he/she has no choice but to utter the words "I Quit." Once "I Quit" is said, that person loses.
Gauntlet Match. For a wrestler to win, that wrestler must defeat a series of opponents. The match is usually in one-on-one fashion, but one wrestler must defeat all opponents in succession.
TRUE Lumberjack Match. The concept of a Lumberjack match is that wrestlers surround the ring. When a wrestler is knocked out of the ring, the wrestlers outside of the ring put that wrestler back into the ring. However, the lumberjack wrestlers can also wear down an opponent. There may be alliances that may try and attack the other lumberjacks.
Three Stages of Hell. This concept features a maximum of three matches. Settings can be made to determine what kind of match each one includes. The winner is the one who survives a best-of-three series. Usually, the third match (if needed) is the most extreme.
Mix Tag Match. Men wrestle the men, and women wrestle the men. This is a tag match usually for two-on-two competition. There must be a male wrestler and a female wrestler in tag-team action.
First Blood. This match is simple- the winner of the match is the first one to make their opponent bleed.
Iron Man Match/Ironman Match. This is a match of great endurance where two wrestlers battle against each other for a duration of time. Decisions are earned based on pin fall, submission, and count outs. Disqualifications mean a point to the other wrestler. The one with the most decisions after some duration of time is the winner. Criticals may have to be disabled for this match.
Inferno Match. The ring features flames around the ring ropes. Each hard slam makes the flames rise higher. The object of this match is to burn your opponent. This match is literally wrestling in Hell. There are no rules, no pin falls, no submissions... just burn the other wrestler.
Stretcher Match. You need to beat your opponent so bad that you have to put them on a stretcher. Then, you must push that stretcher with your opponent's body on it across the line to win.
Elimination Chamber(may need to be called something else in FPW) This is a match where as many as six wrestlers can compete. The ring is surrounded in steel with no means of escape. Flying out of the ring has you dealing with a wall of steel links. The Two wrestlers will be in the ring initially, but after a certain interval of time, one wrestler will be released from his/her chamber at random and enter the match. When a wrestler has been defeated, they will return to their chambers and never be a factor in the match again. When all five have been eliminated, the last wrestler standing wins.
Hell in a Cell.(may need to be called something else in FPW) Hell in a Cell is all about torture. The cage can be used as a weapon, and you can even climb to the very top of the cage. Unlike in the SmackDown! games, you don't need to be at the center at the top of the cage to slam your opponent through the cage. This match can also be dangerous if on the top of the cage. You could throw someone or fall several feet from the top of the cage to the mats below. This will inflict serious damage and can be just as damaging as a Critical.
Triple Cage (War Games).(may need to be called something else in FPW) There are two Triple Cage match types. The Triple Cage format instituted in WCW's WarGames features two rings and a huge cage containing both. A match can take place in one ring, but the fight could be taken to the other ring. Since there are two rings, there are two referees in both rings, in case Two wrestlers will start (at least the real WarGames match) for five-minute intervals until another randomly-entered wrestlers come in. Then after that, more wrestlers enter at random two-minute intervals until all wrestlers are entered. The winner is the first one to score pinfall or submission.
Triple Cage (Ready to Rumble).(may need to be called something else in FPW) From the motion picture, "Ready to Rumble," comes this special Triple Cage format. The movie has three cages stacked on each other. The bottom cage featured the ring. Wrestlers had to climb to the top of the bottom cage to enter the smaller middle cage. The middle cage features weapons that can be used to deal further damage to other wrestlers. You had to break out of the middle cage to scale the top cage. The top cage is the smallest cage. You simply need to scale the top of the small top cage to grab the title latched onto a hook, and you win the match. On the September 6, 2000 edition of WCW Monday Nitro; the concept was changed up a bit. Two wrestlers would enter initially. Both of them can go right now to to the middle and top cages before anyone else can come out. But the difference is that on this edition of Nitro, you had to go from the bottom cage to the top cage, get the title, but then come back down and escape the cage with the title belt.
A Fire Pro Wrestling version of this match would have a match start with two wrestlers until as many as eight have shown up. You have to reach the top, get the title, then come back down and escape the cage with the title belt.
Boiler Room Brawl.(may need to be called something else in FPW) The boiler room of the arena is the battleground. A battle between two (or maybe more) wrestlers will battle it out until a wrestler or team successfully escapes the boiler room. You'll need to basically incapacitate your opponent to successfully escape. Anything goes, and anything is legal. You can only win by escaping the boiler room.
Other concepts are similar and have their own match type in Fire Pro Wrestling. For example, you can do tournament play (think King of the Ring) or even Survivor Series (8-wrestler tag match). Can you think of any other great matches that would enhance the Fire Pro Wrestling series if a proper new title were released in the future? Comment away!
YMCK is a Japanese pop trio that makes their music completely with NES-style sounds. I love YMCK as a video game enthusiast because they do a lovely job of using NES sounds. Their music is modern while retaining old school charm. They don't try to be ultra-modern with their music. On the other hand, their music sounds so great, you almost wish most NES games back in the day sounded this good.
Think YMCK to stand something along the lines of "Yellow Magenta Cyan Black," an inverted version of the CMYK color model. The trio consists of Midori (the vocalist), Yokemura (music, lyrics, and arrangement), and Nakamura (videos). When you listen to YMCK's music, almost pretend you're playing a classic NES game while enjoying the modern sounds of Japanese pop. You're not going to find anything along some of the other JPOP stars I've mentioned in the past in my blog. What you're going to get is peppy and fun Japanese tunes with NES nostalgia. I think you really need to appreciate NES music to really appreciate what YMCK does. As for the song lyrics and such, I don't know them too well since I don't know/speak/understand Japanese all that well.
Here is where I send you some links for you to learn more about someone I just mentioned. Well, I'll let YMCK introduce themselves to you. So here you go:
And here is more of their music (recommended: right-click on these links to view these videos in another window or another tab):
While MUGEN is great, it can be better. I've expressed a few ideas inspired by other fighting games to prove a point. I have about three interesting concepts I'd like to throw out there.
NOTE: This blog entry contains links to Amazon products. Please see "An Important Amazon Note" to see more information on any Amazon items shown.
--- Making MUGEN Better- Contest Types ---
All inspirations are based on games I've either played or seen.
Tournament Fighting. Inspiration(s): Super Street Fighter 2 (SNES), Super Smash Bros. Melee, Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution
The concept of tournament play is for the ability to compete in a tournament to show who the best fighters are. The concept is simple- as few as 4, as many as 16 or 32. You can set up a tournament to decide on who the best fighter among a certain set is. You can even control who you want to control in the tournament and even set up simulated matches to determine next round opponents. You can even set it to where a Third-Place match is determined.
Endurance Fights. Inspiration(s): Mortal Kombat (SNES), Street Fighter EX3
In the later stages of the very first Mortal Kombat, you would fight against two different fighters. When one is defeated, the other person immediately checks in. MK required you to beat both fighters in one round twice to advance. My Street Fighter EX3 experience shown that if one fighter fell, the other fighter checks in to try to beat the enemy. In the final battle in Street Fighter EX3, if you have a team of four, all four fighters will be used to try to beat Bison. A new fighter will check into the match when one team member is down.
There are two types of tag team fighting- two fighters fighting at the same time, or a system where fighters tag and out to stay fresh. The Tekken Tag Tournament means that the team loses if either fighter of a certain team is defeated. MUGEN even gives you an option to end the match if one team member is down. I personally don't like this. Street Fighter EX3 has you fighting until the entire team is down. The Marvel vs. Capcom series lets you tag in fighters. When one is down, another will take over and try to win for his/her team. Some MUGEN characters have their own kind of tag system pre-made, but I want it to where you determine the method in which a tag team battle is executed based on tagging characters in and out.
Besides this, there is also the ability just to go have all fighters on the screen at the same time (especially two-on-two or two-on-one matches).
There are two methods to team battle- either assemble a team to compete in individual rounds, or have it like Survivor Series where the match continues until the other team has been completely defeated. A nice feature to King of Fighters '98 is that all fighters on the team are on the screen at once. Another nice feature is that you can determine the order of fighters for each match. Fighters that are defeated basically go to the sidelines cowering in defeat.
KOF '98 has a format where individual rounds are determined by the fighting order. You can't tag in fighters. The model I'm looking at has you tag in fighters while resting fighters rest up. I just wouldn't know if you would want to how you would want to tag in specific partners to your team. I wouldn't mind seeing as many as eight fighters in one match to join a fight. If it were also possible, I wouldn't mind a five-on-five (meaning a maximum of 10 fighters) compete in one match for both teams.
That's a lovely system to use. Do you have your own ideas to make MUGEN better? Comment at will!
MUGEN (Japanese for "unlimited," among other words) is one of the best freeware games of any kind. It allows you to come up with your own dream fighting matches. A majority of fighting game fans create MUGEN characters from other peoples' games. The really dedicated MUGEN types make their fighters from scratch- not using ANY characters as bases. If you want to learn more about this lovely fighting game, visit the home site of Elecbyte, makers of MUGEN.
Elecbyte is currently releasing RC (Release Candidates) of this series. They are not new versions, but rather beta versions released to the general gaming public. It hasn't been until recently (as in September 2009) that Elecbyte has gone back to try to renovate MUGEN with some newer versions. Newer versions now support high-definition resolutions.
UPDATE (2/12/2010): I have unveiled a MUGEN project I was working on in this blog entry. It concerns a number of characters I've conceptualized.
--- M.U.G.E.N. at a Glance ---
MUGEN allows you the opportunity to put fighters against each other. You can compete in one-on-one battles, have handicap (two-on-one) matches, or even have two-on-two matches. There are also options to try Survival. Survival simply tests your ability to beat an endless wave of oppenents. If you're defeated in Survival, the game is over. For most modes, you can choose between Single, Team, and Turns. Single is basically about taking on just one fighter. Simultaneous battle allows you to choose two characters to compete in a match at the same time. Turns is about putting as few as two and as many as four in a single match. You cannot change the order of your team, so pick opponents in the order you want them to follow.
The fighting dynamics themselves are simple. You have your basic big health gauge followed by a Super gauge for more powerful moves and combos. Many fighters have their own fighting systems, like Street Fighter Alpha 3 characters for instance. So this game can consist of a convergence of different fighters with different fighting systems.
If you just have MUGEN at its most basic from the most recent full version, you get only one character and two stages. The iconic fighter of MUGEN is Kung Fu Man, also known simply as KFM. His moves are fairly basic. There was even supposed to be a boss character called Suave Dude, whom KFM is looking to beat down to save his girlfriend. However, he was never finished (I believe). But if you REALLY want to enjoy going with a wide variety of characters and stages, you'll need go get many more characters. The site I recommend you get characters from is MUGENation, which features lots of characters and stages and is usually the first source to look to for new characters and stages.
You can download screenpacks to turn the dull default arrangement of graphics to more interesting ones. The most popular is EVE (Everything vs. Everything) Battle. I have BROKEN and use Kamek's Super Mario Bros. Melee-inspired screenpack. Screenpacks come complete with graphics, sounds, life bars, in-game fonts, and more.
--- How I Use MUGEN ---
I mostly set up AI matches. What I like to do is rate fighters by their fighting skills in AI battle. I use a system of seven different grades. Each rating is based on how they are in AI battle, since that's all I usually use them for. The ratings are as follows:
* E - The weakest fighters. They either get beaten very easily or don't have as much firepower to contend with stronger fighters. Good Angel is an example of an E-Class fighter under my scheme. * D - Stronger than E-Class fighters, but not good enough to be among elites. * C - Middle of the road. Not good, but not great either. * B - Very talented fighters with great fighting skill. However, they aren't good enough to compete among the elites. * A - The elite class featuring the strongest fighters and the most intense competition. Chiho Masuda of the Variable Geo series is an example of an A-Class fighter. * Superlative - Fighters whose capabilities are so strong, that they are almost unfair to fight against. A Superlative ranking is NOT an honor. It just means that the fighter is immensely strong and very difficult to beat. Characters like Ella, Ultimate Rugal, and God Orochi are examples of Superlative-class fighters. * Experimental/Independent - Fighters that don't belong in any sort of performance index, or fighters that aren't among anyone I use often. Two characters I've deemed part of this class include Rose of the Street Fighter Alpha series and Dark Arcueid because their level of competitiveness is difficult to actually gauge.
I enable the Debug keys in my MUGEN runs. I have three-round matches that last for infinite time. If there's some kind of situation where a glitch happens in the match or something (like a character that jumps too high in the air and doesn't ocme back down for over five or ten seconds), I immediately call for Time. If a three-round match goes to the Final Round or a match series (like Best-of-Seven) goes into the Final Round, I set the Final Round to be All-Out. All-Out meaning all fighters will be at full health and full Super strength for the Final Round. This makes for that exciting Final Round to determine who wins it all. I even set all fighters at full strength (a term I use to mean "full Super strength") if a fighter wins by a Super Combo Finish. The negative to this is that some fighters are immensely powerful at full Super strength, so I have some exceptions as to who gets set to full Super Strength.
Rankings. Now on to how I determine rankings. The rankings I discussed are not permanent. I have a system in which fighters can be promoted or demoted to different classes. If a fighter of a lower class beats an opponent of a higher class, then the lower-ranked fighter will have the chance to be promoted to a higher class. The way that is accomplished is that he or she must fight against a team of four fighters of the higher ranking class. If he/she beats all four, then that fighter is promoted to the next level. If a fighter of a higher class stumbles to beat fighters of a lower class, he/she may be demoted. To avoid being demoted, the fighter must beat four opponents within his/her own class to avoid demotion. The fighter will be demoted to a lower class.
Among each class of fighter (excluding the Superlative and Experimental/Independent classes) are Class Champions. They are determined by the fighter within each class that is the best of all fighters in their respective class. A #1 contender is determined by whomever is the strongest fighter who is good enough to contend for the title of Class Champion for each of the five eligible classes. Each class champion is eligible for one chance at promotion.
There are also sub-classes based on game series. For example, I have characters in my MUGEN roster from the Asuka 120% series and Variable Geo series that comprise their own classes. My Variable Geo roster has three classes- VG2, VG1, and VG-Super. Characters within each sub-class have both an overall class rating as well as ratings within their respective sub-classes. Within sub-classes, there is a ranking system. The rankings for each fighter can be increased or declined with victory against higher seeds. A sub-class championship is determined by whomever #1 and #2 are. Championships can also be decided by tournaments. I set up a three-round series where multiple fighters have the chance to compete for class champion. There's even a 3rd Place fight to determine third place in the tournament.
--- Making Fighters (Basics) ---
This section covers some of the basics of making fighters for MUGEN. A lot of work goes into making new fighters for MUGEN. The easiest way is to make fighters by (this is not legally recommended unless you properly give credit to where you got the characters from, by the way) ripping them from other games. Because making a completely unique character takes a lot of work, most people simply make their fighters by basing their moves and looks from other fighters. Be warned that some character creators won't allow you to use their characters as bases for your own fighters.
I'm actually trying to create my own fighters, but all from scratch (or mostly from scratch). I haven't made any real progress because that's a lot of work for me to try to create characters from graphics to moves to things like that. At the most, all I've done was come up with palettes I think they'll use. I announced on Twitter that I'd come up with a new category called "Fictional Characters." The reason why I haven't come up with it is because I haven't made any characters (or at least drawings of them) to use in describing my characters. Most of the ones I want to create come from a concept I've had lined up for MUGEN dating back to the Summer of 2008.
Overall, I enjoy MUGEN for all it's worth. It's a great deal. Greater deal since Elecbyte has come back on to dust off MUGEN and give it some new blood. I can be sure that MUGEN will only be better when the latest full MUGEN is unveiled. So give MUGEN a try!
UPDATE: 5/5/2010 - If you want to learn more about Suave Dude, "Suaves" was just released on Elecbyte's blog.
Florida sportscar racing fans, unite! This is a battle between two of the finest endurance races in the United States (let alone Florida)- the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring. One lasts 24 hours; the other for 12. One is the premier twice-around-the-clock endurance in the United States while the other is a once-around-the-clock classic where Le Mans invites are up for grabs. The 24 Hours of Daytona has been called as the Super Bowl of sportscar racing in the United States. Likewise, the 12 Hours of Sebring is the Super Bowl of the American Le Mans Series (excluding the Petit Le Mans). Which is the better endurance?
--- Daytona vs. Sebring: Daytona is Better! ---
In 2000, Grand-Am was established. I remember watching the very first race on ESPN with the cars and stars of the series then. Three years later, they'd bring out a new concept- the Daytona Prototype. In a colossal upset, a lowly GT-spec Porsche won outright in the Daytona Prototypes' grand debut. Over time, the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona has been seen as a "24-hour sprint" because of how hard-fought the racing is from start to finish. These cars are all very competitive. Many who criticize Grand-Am say that the Daytona Prototype is the NASCAR-ization of sportscar racing. Truth is, Grand-Am is a series that has its own character and style of racing. There are many who think Daytona Prototypes are absolutely ugly and can't handle worth anything. Many others likely miss the feel of this endurance being one of the most important in the world considering the past history of the 24 Hours of Daytona. Think back to when marques like Porsche, Jaguar, Alfa Romeo, and others were contesting for victory around the high banks of Daytona. Today's GTP to Grand-Am is the Daytona Prototype.
But on the grand scale, even if you don't like Daytona Prototypes or the new style of the 24 Hours of Daytona since 2003, at least appreciate that these cars are very good for what they are. Credit Grand-Am for establishing its own unique character with these cars. Some call it the NASCAR-ization of sportscar racing. But to many Grand-Am fans, at least there's more competitive racing in this race compared to the 12 Hours of Sebring, which many feel is just a no-passing race.
--- Daytona vs. Serbing: Sebring is Better! ---
I tend to like traditional sportscar racing more than the Grand-Am formula. Sebring, like Daytona, has a great deal of history. Maybe since I love the 24 Hours of Le Mans, I feel that winning or doing well at Sebring nets you the chance to race at Le Mans in June. You're racing mostly for national pride at Daytona. For Sebring (not that there's anything wrong with national pride), I think the best way to make a statement is to prove yourself on a world stage. The best way to get some international love is with a solid performance at Sebring. Sebring is always a stern test of driver and machine on the bumpy former airfield. Another aspect of its allure is how this is a hot spot for college students on Spring Break. Some go to South Padre Island for a raunchy Spring Break fun. Some racing fans on Spring Break enjoy some racing action along with the American Le Mans Series.
There have been some great races at both Sebring and Daytona, but I don't think you can argue about THIS epic Sebring moment (the lovely voices of Leigh Diffey, Dorsey Schroder, and Calvin Fish have the call):
Being a Houston native, I'm obviously proud of Houston's own Risi Competizione. :) Who said sportscar racing can't be as exciting as NASCAR?
So which Florida sportscar endurance race is better? Is the 24 Hours of Daytona better, or is the 12 Hours of Sebring better? Comment at will!
I guess I'd like to share what's been bothering me. Part of my motivation to join Myspace and Facebook is to connect with new people and try to reunite with old friends. What has worried me is when I try to connect with an old friend (or maybe someone I do remember from the past and try to re-connect with). My attempts to re-connect with people have either been successful or unsuccessful. There are times where I'm truly disheartened. I'll try and tell all in this blog entry.
This is a lot of reading, but at least this is all completely real. You don't even have to respond to this or "like" it on Facebook... this is just me sharing my heart and feelings in a stressing way. To make it simple, I've divided this blog entry into several sections. Take a look:
Table of Contents for this Blog Entry: * Reuniting With Old Friends * The Quest to Reunite * Secret Agendas * That Unloved Feeling * Conclusion
--- Reuniting With Old Friends ---
Part of having fun of making friends on social networking sites is in wondering if certain people have profiles. Here's a personal story. I've had so few resources to try to reconnect with old friends and former classmates. I've never had a yearbook to where I could easily recognize people by their faces from the past. I try not to forget people. I have a strange memory in trying to remember old friends and former classmates. Starting in my high school years, I entered a phase of my life that would define my current struggle. I became depressed, unloved, feeling like every day was a funeral with nothing to ever live for. It was even where, in 1998, I had planned suicide. I felt like I had nothing to live for anymore.
I've gotten to know and become friends with lots of people ranging from middle school to high school and to the only two colleges/universities I've ever attended. In 1999, I was no longer a student of Milby High School here in Houston thanks to a dark fate I've suffered. My chance to graduate along with lots of friends of mine was taken away from me. I've done some dumb crap that has gotten me basically expelled. I would go to three different high schools in one year. I spent the next two years of my high school life in Hell. I would graduate as Most Improved Student in my lonely 15-Senior graduating class. Then I entered college. I went to Houston Community College-Southeast to try to up my GPA to enter Lamar University. I needed a 2.0 GPA, and I got a 3.0 GPA. I then went on to Lamar in 2002. My dream was to enter the realm of Computer Animation. I wanted to try my hand at making my own 3D graphics like in the Toy Story movies and such. Trouble is, I lasted only 11 weeks at Lamar. People whom I thought I could trust as friends all of a sudden gave up on me. The common thing was about people feeling uncomfortable in my presence. So amid my unwavering sadness, I returned to Houston after my computer art dreams went bust. I would get to meet many more people the world over as I went to HCC-Southeast. I would eventually earn my Associate's in the Arts.
I then try to reconnect with old faces and former classmates. I do know that not everyone has social networking accounts. Not everyone uses the Internet religiously. So I try to find as many old friends as possible and try to stay connected. All I ever want is to continue to stay in touch with old personal friends of mine. Even at times, I try to meet people whom I've never personally met. Certainly on Myspace, I go on what I call "tours" in which I try to find some people from around the world to be friends with. It's all to show my extended appreciation to many more people around the world instead of just here in Houston.
Not everyone uses Myspace. Some are only on Facebook and are happier on Facebook. I've felt like I could connect with people better on Facebook as I started to become more active on Facebook. But even still, I can only do so much on Facebook. Granted I have much fewer friends on Facebook than Myspace, I still feel like there are those past friends of mine and former classmates that just wouldn't give me the time of day or any kind of hope.
So any attempts to try to reconnect with people whom I've personally known or briefly known have either been successful or have been failed attempts.
--- The Quest to Reunite ---
Because of my big heart, I feel like I still am able to reconnect with people. There are even former chatting buddies of mine on AOL in addition to people I've known personally. Because of the goodness within me, part of me says that old friends of mine either from school or online will eventually want to connect with me again. It's so simple to accept someone as a friend- just approve as friends and all is well. My quest to try to reunite with people online has taken me to try to connect in many ways. You're allowed about a full month for someone to accept you on Myspace while time seems almost endless to accept an invite on Facebook.
All I try to do is try to reunite with some people. Sad news is that people whom I thought were friends of mine or that I had a loving trust with somehow just put me aside- re-reminding me of the depressed state of mind I've once lived endlessly in high school. The biggest slap in the face is that for some people I've tried to reconnect with online, if I attempted to request them as friends again... I get blocked. That's right- BLOCKED. Like I'm just an insignificant nobody or that some people don't want to reconnect with me EVER again.
Another minor issue to this is knowing that when I try to connect with some people online, they kind of drop me as they are probably unsure as to how I remember them so well by their name or their image. That's kind of a shocking deal. It makes me wonder if I should have sent a friend request, or maybe some people are stunned as to how I know some people have accounts on Myspace and Facebook. That's happened before, but I feel sad or guilty for sending a friend request to someone as some wonder how I was able to find out how some people think I know them.
--- Secret Agendas? ---
I wonder if some people have secret agendas on Myspace and Facebook. I'm thankful when I get to meet new people and reunite with old friends. But sometimes, I get dropped by certain people, usually thinking that I've violated the level of trust and respect I thought I had with people. Now I'm not going to say that there are people that stab me in the back because I don't think like that at all.
Sometimes, I've became friends with some people online... only to be dropped from friends later. It makes me wonder if I got accepted as friends just for temporary happiness. But let this be said- when I give a friend request, it's because I have the greatest of respect for someone and want to continually show my loving respect to others for as long as I and the social networking site is around. I want to be friends with people I meet in real life because I want to show my loyal respect to others for as long as I have life in me and for as long as life doesn't pass me by.
I try to show happiness and love and respect to other people to show I'm a better person. Some think I'm trying to make friends just to be more popular. I made the effort to try to make myself more popular (and even transparent) through videos and blog entries. Problem is, as much as I wish that people would just give me a chance... I wish I probably could have done more to earn their respect. I don't think I'm a bad person at all. I may do some stupid things at times, but I'm human. Not perfect. I don't believe in expectations, but I guess some people have higher standards to be friends with them. Either that, or I'm not genuine enough to some people. It hurts me more with people I've known personally. The one thing I hate most is for people to stop caring about me without giving me a reason why they don't like me anymore.
One thing I do realize is that people read some of my blogs or watch some of my videos and decide to cut me as friends. Maybe since I say that I like or dislike things other people either love or loathe. Thing is... people will love or hate things. Don't just base all friends like they have to like everything you do to be friends. I think I've lost a friend when I said that I was not really a rock music person or a country music person. And I mean, I'm not the ONLY one who thinks the same way! There are people who hate hip-hop music and want nothing to do with it, but does that mean that because someone likes hip-hop music that they aren't worthy of being friends? I'm ashamed to admit that "Party in the USA" by Miley Cyrus is a song I like. Am I a terrible person just because I actually listen to and like that song? There are people that love and hate many things. If I've lost your trust because I like certain things that you may not, it's called life. I am popular with people, but it doesn't mean I'll be completely popular with everything. Everyone is different in their own way. I just hate when some people just stop caring about me when I have no problem with other people.
--- That Unloved Feeling ---
Time for another emotional outpouring... I feel like I can't make friends anymore. I've sent lots of different friend requests on Myspace, and very few of them are approved. There are some people whom I try to show love and support for on Facebook, and I get denied by most of them (or don't get approved or denied for weeks to months). Maybe it's that certain profiles are more personal. But I have an open heart for lots of respectful and kind people. When a trustful friend extends his or her hand to someone else, he/she is expecting a handshake. Maybe a hug. It becomes disheartening when if after extending a hand in friendship, that you get nothing in return. Someone's kindness is lent to someone else, and that someone else declines your offer.
The reason why I feel so sad about this is because I don't think I'm any kind of bad person. I give friend requests because there are people whom I feel happy to know and meet. I'm trying to stay in touch and show my continued support. But... I get denied. It makes me wonder how people honestly feel about me and if it's enough to even be acceptable. For the reasons that very few people truly care about me and my work, it's the reason why...
* ...I can't convert any Myspace friend requests into meeting new friends. Either requests become unanswered (and eventually dropped) or denied. * ...there are people I can no longer seem to connect with via Facebook. Making me wonder if people still care about me anymore away from the computer (especially with people I've known personally). * ...hardly anyone wants to view my YouTube videos or subscribe to my channel. I struggle to get views and subscribers. I joined YouTube on November 8, 2008. I didn't get to 50 subscribers until June 2009 and didn't get to 100 subscribers until August 2009. * ...hardly anyone wants to visit my blog and comment and actually help me to prosper in blogging as I aspire to do. I want to try to prosper as a blogger, so that's why I joined Adsense and Amazon Associates. I even tried to get followers through Google Friend Connect and NetworkedBlogs. And up until earlier this year, I've had no followers of any kind.
So I've come to a point where I feel like crying to myself and feeling like life will never get better for me ever again. I feel like I'm having my midlife crisis at 27 years of age. All I want to do is connect with people and show my continued kindness to others. But in essence, there have been some whom I really consider special and truthful who refuse to give me a chance. I've had to deal with depression and feeling like nobody cares. That's why I try to be kind and respectful to others because I see the goodness in people and that I know I can make a positive impact to others. And if I do something people don't like, it was probably unintentional or that I had an idea of consequences for my actions.
That's what I believe in. I feel sometimes that we live in such a negative world where people no longer believe in the concept of "forgive and forget." I feel that some people never want to be great friends with others anymore. Nobody wants to get married anymore or have children together. It's why I'm thankful there are friends of mine who show me that there is hope and promise and happiness in this world. But every friend I lose and every person who no longer cares about me (at least on the Internet) makes me feel more and more like I'm no longer of use to anybody anymore. I don't want to feel like that, but some people make it seem like I can't be trusted or loved anymore.
As I noted in the past, I love meeting new people. I love showing my continued support and love to people. I hate feeling like I can't meet anybody new. I hate feeling like I can't connect with a past face. Now if an old friend completely forgets me, that's acceptable. But if an old friend completely forgot me and doesn't want to at least friend me, I become worried. I am a person who has felt like I'm the only person who loves me (and besides my family and God). I love meeting people, especially those willing to show their support and kindness to me. I hate it when people whom I consider friends or think of as friends won't return the favor through accepting me as friends or keeping me as friends. On Facebook, when I posted a comment from my Twitter feed that I can't seem to make new friends anymore, I got an outpouring of support by some of my friends, which really helps me to feel loved and feel that people DO care about me. Some people just want nothing to do with me despite the fact that I have no intent to present a bad image of myself to others. Someone even said that I have a better idea as to who my true friends are by knowing there are people who still care. Thing is (again), I have a heavy heart knowing that there's still goodness in people that people still care about me.
When I had my birthday back on January 15 of this year, I've gotten over 40 comments on Facebook wishing me happy birthday. I felt so loved that about 20 to 25 percent of all of my Facebook friends wished me a happy birthday. I admit that there are those few people who really get to me. I feel like everyone has to regard me highly to feel happy personally.
Thinking about this issue has gotten me to feel like I can't do anything right anymore. I've even felt like doing a video on this, but I didn't feel positive enough to do a video on my problem. So I went to blogging. I'm thinking of doing a video project at the Houston Auto Show this weekend, but I've doubted that I can make that quality video because I still haven't found a decent way to make a quality video with my new Insignia NS-DV1080P. Or at least, trying to successfully upload videos from my camcorder to my PC. I'm doubting myself and feel like nothing is going right for me. And I'm still stuck at 232 YouTube subscribers as of this blog entry. I have only three followers on Google Friend Connect and NetworkedBlogs. I've plateaued online with no positive progress or hope for me. It's happened to me before, and this time is no different. I just hate continually bumbling along and not making any further positive progress. If I make something for the online public, it's up to the people to help expand my personality. And when the public is stagnant, so does my material.
Well, I've discussed as much as I could. I just feel terribly unhappy. Like as much as I try to feel important and loved, there are some people whom I've respected who doesn't respect me anymore. No forgive and forget. No reconciliation. It's just, "there's the door. Don't let it knock you on the butt." Sad there's no medicine to cure this disease. But at least... I've shared my most recent struggle in life and in online media. I'm not asking for help... I'm just asking for love. I feel so unloved and feel like I can't make any positive progress anymore. Some people just don't seem to care about me anymore. Not everybody, but some people. And it's sad. TRULY sad. No one seems to care about me anymore...
" at a Glance ---
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