Nightfall

A new Halo series has been showing once a week for a few weeks and I think I have the feel for what it is by now, and at this moment in time, my thoughts are, meh. I don't want to call it bad, because I've keep watching it once a week, but I am not going to call it good because I don't really care for it at the same time. Lets go through what Nightfall is doing right.

Nightfall is about Halo, which is about science fiction, boom, its already in the green. It has a pretty good plot. It also has decent characters, and the whole thing takes place on a Halo ring. Now we can get into what I dislike about it. At times the CGI is terrible. In the first episode there is and elite that just looks off and out of place, and every time I saw it, I wanted it to go away. I also don't care for the small, 15 minute chunks that it comes out in. Most likely I am going to watch the entire thing just at once in about a month because every time something ACTUALLY is about to happen, it ends, and then the same exact thing happens next week.

I don't want you to think that it is something a Halo fan wouldn't enjoy, but honestly if I weren't a fan of the series, I would not watch it; although how could you if you weren't a fan, you need the game to watch it... Well maybe you know someone who is a fan, nevertheless it isn't going to rope you into Halo like Forward Unto Dawn. THAT series was infinitely better than this, and that reason is why I'm most disappointed. Forward Unto Dawn was so great that my family who are not fans of the series, enjoyed and appreciated, but this isn't that. I cannot put a finger on what sets me off about it, it must be a combination of little things but when you go in with so much hype for something and it is, lackluster. So watch it if you are a Halo fan, but if you haven't seen Forward Unto Dawn, I can guarantee you will enjoy that better. Maybe it is the 15 minute bursts that ruin it. Maybe, watching the entire thing, start to finish, will shine some light on it. Another possibility is I am judging it to early. It's like I am sitting down and watching the first 30-35 minutes of a movie and then getting up, leaving, and declaring it lacking. If you have been keeping up with it maybe you already know the answer, or you are like me and have waited. I may come back to this subject at a later date, if my opinion differs then.

Virtual and Social Gaming

A virtual reality has really come close to becoming, reality. Virtual reality is basically what the title says, a virtual reality. It mimics real life but in something like a videogame or movie, anything virtual. Devices like the Oculus Rift which augment your vision so when you look around in real life, you look around in the game. Its just a helmet with a screen in it that displays the game, alone I dont see much of a future for the Oculus Rift because it doesn't quite blow television away, alone at least. But think of the possibilities if we combine that with a 360 degree treadmill. I'm honestly not quite sure what the actual name is for these devices but they are a treadmill you can run in any direction. Not much work has been done in this area, and it is really quite obvious. If you find pictures of it online it looks like a baby chair and I'm sure would feel equally ridiculous to use as is appears. So as long as nobody ever sees you using this it is the coolest thing ever...

I hope in my lifetime technology can reach the peak of virtual reality. I want to be able to go home from work and get immersed in a game literally. I could get sucked into the game and run around inside of another, more interesting, more engaging world. Not to mentions the benefits of this compared to modern day gaming. If the treadmill does end up being used, imagine the health benefits. Gaming sessions can last hours at a time and if your running around for hours it would make the ideal "gamer" much more fit, while at the same time making running and working out that much more interesting. Multiple studies have shown that videogames along with relieving stress, also help brain function and activity. Combine that with now physical fitness and gaming would be quite the recreational activity. That is probably the outcome I look forward to the most about this. Gaming has such a negative connotation with most people. When you say I'm a gamer to someone, the general population begins to think, "lazy", "stupid", "slacker", or/and "obnoxious". Although those stereotypes are true for some of the more, vocal gamers, it isn't true for all. My group of friends and I are all gamers and we are straight A kids with jobs, and although sometimes we wish games could be a priority it never is over our work. Gaming is growing and with that the stereotype will decrease, and if gamers become the majority, they also become the smartest and most fit aswell. I'm just waiting for the day when I can 'step out of the shadows' if you will and not hide behind my other interests in hope that people don't think negatively about my true pass-time. A time where all of us can come out of the dark and talk publically about the new Halo game or the unreal trailer for The Division or that incredibly card draw in Hearthstone, that will be the day...

More Star Wars

There has been a bit of new news to come out, yes even more. The characters in the teaser have been named. Im not going to go through them all because you can look it up yourself if you want, or you probably already have. Something interesting to point out about the names. All were named first and last name, all except two. Finn, the frightened stormtrooper at the beginning and Rey, the woman on the speeder bike that looked like a fridge. Not giving these characters last names leads me to believe that they are quite important last names, a certain Skywalker or Solo possibly? I suppose we will find out.

Something else I want to also jump back into is another possible plot to the movie. Now that the rebels are becoming the large power in the galaxy and the empire is becoming the underdog, planets may realize that the rebels are just as commanding, or places that are no longer under rebel control turn chaotic. Wouldn't it be cool, if we had to choose a side based on our belief of whats better? There isnt just a clear cut good guy vs bad guy, both sides have pros and cons. Just a cool thought i had, i would love that to be the actual plot just because it provides some almost necessary grey area that would fit into the Star Wars universe nicely.

Future of Warfare

Warfare on the modern battlefield has gotten quite technical. Think back just 100 years when the tactic was hide in a trench and suffer huge casualties. Think back 100 years before that when the tactic was charge each other and the side with more soldiers usually came out on top. Yes, now we can launch missles from the sky and use remote controls and robots to do some of the fighting. But man is still an integral part of warfare. But man is not alone, he is accompanied by quite a bit of gear and tech. Between his rifle, ammo, helmet, rations, boots, backpack and everything inside. Yes the soldier is quite over encumbered. In fact, multiple studies suggest just that. The modern day carries so much weight it just isn't healthy. Going to another topic I have hinted on and may be talking about more is the solution, a robotic solution. But not the replacement of limbs, just an exo suit. An exo suit is just an exo-skeleton. Something that would increase not only weight capacity, but speed, agility, most physical preformances. Plus it looks cool. A lot of video games have been showcasing exo suits, and we draw alot from science fiction while we move into the nonfictional future. Who knows, the next soldier could appear to be the same as a Call of Duty coverphoto.

Future of Sports

I love soccer/football and wonder what the future holds for sports in general. Will we have something like Podracing in Star Wars or something more chill and less... Dangerous?. Looking into news on sports lately, a lot of changes and questions revolve around the safety role in sports. The rise in safety concerns isn't due to these sports being safer, rather the reason is it's easier to detect problems or health damage. If anything sports have gotten safer over the years. Look at football uniforms from 20-30 years ago and compare them to now. They are much more bulky and padded than before. Over time, sports will inevitably get safer just because of better health practices and treatments. But with them possibly being a problem, could it lead to something else playing the sport. With robotic advancements possibly the future would have Robot fighting sports, like Real Steel. Without having to pay contracts to robots like human players, it would be cheaper, it also eliminates the health concern, plus it would be cool to watch. But if mankind devolves into madness or some economic depression hits us, leaving us to worry about more important things like food on the table and not about others bruises and scratches, then possibly we could get some interesting Jabba the Hutt mobster sports...

Interstellar

The movie Interstellar isn't brand new, but its still worth talking about. I recently saw it over the weekend and it was surprisingly good and made me wonder why not many people were talking about it. I knew hardly anything about the movie going in, but that wasn't a bad thing at all. It has a lot of plot twists, making mystery a big part of the movie. Hopefully Without spoiling anything, I'll talk about what Interstellar did right.

To start it off, it was actual good science fiction. All ships and wormholes were all based on science, well, at least scientific theory. In fact, some say Interstellar's black hole and wormhole are the most scientifically accurate ever portrayed, and I believe it. The visuals and effects in this movie were fantastic, nothing was cringeworthy CGI or unnecessarily added special effects. Not only that, but the planets in the movie are incredibly  believable. I almost wish that it was just a 3 hour movie of planet exploring because it was all so interesting seeing these really foreign planets. It was interesting seeing how different factors affect how a planet forms and what the weather is like, etc. every part of this movie seemed like they put a lot of work into studying the theories and making sure all scenes were spot on, which made the movie constantly engaging with surprisingly little slow parts throughout the 3 hour span of the movie. One sidenote thing about the movie that I really liked were the robots. They weren't the typical humanoid machine we are seeing, in fact they looked more like a vending machine or a refrigerator than anything. What makes them useful is the shaped they can turn into, becoming extra mobile in rough terrain or folding in to become a ships onboard AI in a way. The robots just like the movie were a refreshing switch up from the typical science fiction thriller we are all used to seeing.

Star Wars Teaser

Over the weekend, something dropped onto the internet. A certain trailer for a certain movie that looks to have high hopes. Yes the new Star Wars teaser trailer came out over the weekend and I have watched it at least 10 times. I knew it was coming but I had assumed only to those select few theaters and I don't live in those areas. But now anyone can see it online and I highly suggest that everyone does because it is fantastic.

If you had any fear about the direction that Disney was taking the new Star Wars movie than hopefully this clears that up. It is short but in about 5 or 6 twelve second long scenes it is clear that mystery and darkness are going to be key underlying themes here. It opens with the sprawling dunes of Tatooine and the a man wearing what appears to be Stormtrooper armor frighteningly pops up onto the screen from below. The man is sweaty and looks frightened by something, like he is running from something. He is either a Stormtrooper (which would be great to have a main character as a Stormtrooper,) or he is in disguise like Han and Luke in A New Hope. This fits with another part where a woman on a speeder that looks like a fridge quickly puts on her goggles and rides, 2 people in a hurry, both adding to the mystery. Another scene shows off the Stormtrooper armor a bit better. The scene seems to be Stormtroopers in a ship, most likely assaulting somewhere because they are experiencing turbulence and the lights are flickering, a door begins to open and then the scene ends. The rebels are also featured in this, some X-wings fly over a lake on what could be Yavin and the Millennium Falcon does a ridiculous spin move evading some Tie-fighters. But out of the whole thing, none of those were as controversial as the darkside scene. A sith-type character walking in a snowy forest and whips out what appears to be a lightsaber, but then two more beams come out the side. I have two different theories. One is that it is a hilt, preventing certain hand accidents that happen far too often in the Star Wars universe. The other is they are exaust ports for the saber itself and it is heat coming out. The saber looks unstable so it is possible he made it himself and it needs those modifications. I don't know what the uproar is about it looks fine. All in all I am very happy with the way this movie feels, after dealing with a lot of crappy Star Wars products over the last few years, its nice to see something Star Wars that lives up to the Star Wars name.