games

Road to Borderlands 3 [Video Games]

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Like most fans of the series, I am very excited for Borderlands 3. I mentioned in my last post about how I am actually on the way to getting all the Borderlands achievements in the Handsome Collection and GOTY edition of Borderlands.

Since my solo attempts on PC, I have started to play the series again on the Playstation 4, along side some fellow Groove Crusaders. At first, I was playing off of Daybreaker Rein’s console, until I finally got my own and had a new account. 3 of us (sometimes 4 is Gypsy was online) all played through the Pre-Sequel together. My dreams of playing Handsome Jack as a character were finally (almost) met with the Doppleganger class. Doppleganger is hands down my favorite Pre-Sequel character. Also is a plus he can get a Rhys skin and head mod from a Tales from the Borderlands shift code.

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“And the world just got twenty-five percent more handsome.” – Doppleganger Jack

Back at it again, I decided I would play through BL2 with Zer0 as a sniper build. I’ve never ever played a sniper character in Borderlands, so I thought it would be fun. And as I didn’t expect, playing solo sniper was easy mode. One shotting just about everything with critical hits and killing bosses in a few seconds. Starting to think Zer0 might be the best solo character without a minion/pet/turret.

After getting the first playthrough achievements, I went back and made an Axton who I have just recently gotten through True Vault Hunter Mode. He is my first level 50 ever. I built him heavily on his Gunpowder skill tree for headlining as much gun damage as possible. Wasn’t as much of a challenge this time around because I eventually found my first Infinity Pistol (a gun with unlimited ammo). Slapped on my Sheriff’s Badge relic to increase pistol damage, and went ham on TVHM. It was a fun experience.

With those two playthroughs, I’m just missing a handful of achievements as of today. Just Maya’s and Salvador’s (the Siren and Gunzerker respectively) achievements, the raid boss and side quests achievements because the raid boss quest is a side quest, and finally the challenges achievement. Waiting for some other Groovers to fight the raid boss with. Not too worried about the class ones, because I can easily do those solo. The challenges are what is taking me forever.

Here’s hoping I can get the rest quick and move on to the GOTY of BL1. Already have a handful of hours with a few friends. I decided to play Brick to resist my temptation to play Roland support.

Anyone else working on this personal feat before BL3? I’ve seen several reddit users on r/borderlands posting they had just finished it themselves. Would love to hear of anyone else’s experiences in achievement farming in this series or any other video game!

Farewell to Legion

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So not exactly my normal blog post, but I am a huge fan of World of Warcraft. It’s lore and dialogue have inspired me on many levels, especially when it comes to my writing.

So this is a blog to say farewell to Legion and hello to Battle for Azeroth. Legion was a really fun expansion. Still not my favorite, like Mists of Pandaria was, but still really fun.

I decided to take some screenshots and in game selfies to capture the place I enjoyed the most. Please enjoy.

 

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Here’s some early Legion screenshots that I took. Some were when my Monk Mistweaver was a Blood Elf.

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There were a lot of good times in Legion. From class-based questlines and class halls to beautiful regions of the Broken Isles, Legion provided a fun and exciting way to play World of Warcraft once again. Don’t even get me started on the awesomeness that was the artifact weapons. Each weapon with its own lore and reason to be part of the class-based stories and gameplay, they were a brilliant tool to use in Legion. Though I’m still holding out for fist weapons with Intellect on them so my “fistweaving” style will be at it’s most epic.

Blizzard did a fantastic job with this one. But now it’s time to say goodbye.

Goodbye Legion. You were great. Now it’s time to fight for the Horde in Battle for Azeroth.

Author Recommends: October 2017

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So I’ve decided to do a monthly recommendation on books and video games. Perhaps I can share the love I have for a current piece, or the eagerness I have for a piece about to come out!

Books

Old, but still a classic in my eyes: Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief

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You can find this book just about anywhere, but here it is on Amazon.

This is one of the series that I could not put down. I read it twice in a row! The description on Amazon sums it up pretty well: “After getting expelled from yet another school for yet another clash with mythological monsters only he can see, twelve-year-old Percy Jackson is taken to Camp Half-Blood, where he finally learns the truth about his unique abilities: He is a demigod, half human, half immortal. Even more stunning: His father is the Greek god Poseidon, ruler of the sea, making Percy one of the most powerful demigods alive. There’s little time to process this news. All too soon, a cryptic prophecy from the Oracle sends Percy on his first quest, a mission to the Underworld to prevent a war among the gods of Olympus.”

Rick Riordan will always be one of my favorite authors because of this series. I highly recommend it if you’re a fan of adventure, fantasy, and even have curiosity for mythology!

This one sounds really good: The Adventurers Guild

 

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I found this book on Amazon.

This was added to Amazon not even a week ago. The description makes it sound really good, so it is now on my to read list!

“Few ever asked to join the Adventurers Guild. . . . Their members often died young. In one of the last cities standing after the world fell to monsters, best friends Zed Kagari and Brock Dunderfel have high hopes for the future. Zed desperately wishes to join the ranks of the Mages Guild, where his status as Freestone’s only half elf might finally be an asset. Brock, the roguishly handsome son of merchants, is confident he’ll be welcomed into the ranks of the Merchants Guild. But just as it seems the boys’ dreams have come true, their lives take a startling turn . . . and they find themselves members of the perilous Adventurers Guild. Led by the fearsome Alabasel Frond, the guild acts as the last line of defense against the Dangers�hungry, unnatural beasts from otherworldly planes. And when the boys uncover a conspiracy that threatens all of Freestone, Zed, Brock, and their new allies�Liza, a fierce noble, and Jett, a brave dwarf�must prove their worth once and for all. This start of a thrilling new series is sure to be a hit with readers who like their fantasies clever and action-packed, with tons of humor and heart.”

 

Video Games

A game that got me hooked instantly: Stardew Valley

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Stardew Valley just got a release on Nintendo Switch and I’ve been falling in love with the game all over again. The game originated on Steam (PC gaming) until it got a release on Xbox One and PS4 (and now Switch!).

From the official wiki: “Stardew Valley is an open-ended country-life RPG! You’ve inherited your grandfather’s old farm plot in Stardew Valley. Armed with hand-me-down tools and a few coins, you set out to begin your new life. Can you learn to live off the land and turn these overgrown fields into a thriving home? It won’t be easy. Ever since Joja Corporation came to town, the old ways of life have all but disappeared. The community center, once the town’s most vibrant hub of activity, now lies in shambles. But the valley seems full of opportunity. With a little dedication, you might just be the one to restore Stardew Valley to greatness!”

It’s a fantastic RPG farming game! There’s so much to do and it has replay value for days. I highly recommend this!

 

The next big Mario game: Mario Odyssey

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There is a lot of hype around this game, and I believe it is well deserved. I grew up playing Mario 64 and falling in love with Mario Sunshine. I love the openness to those games. Even without a hub world, Mario Odyssey’s sandbox maps look so fun!

“Use amazing new abilities—like the power to capture and control objects, animals, and enemies—to collect Power Moons so you can power up the Odyssey airship and save Princess Peach from Bowser’s wedding plans!

Thanks to heroic, hat-shaped Cappy, Mario’s got new moves that’ll make you rethink his traditional run-and-jump gameplay—like cap jump, cap throw, and capture. Use captured cohorts such as enemies, objects, and animals to progress through the game and uncover loads of hidden collectibles. And if you feel like playing with a friend, just pass them a Joy-Con™ controller! Player 1 controls Mario while Player 2 controls Cappy. This sandbox-style 3D Mario adventure—the first since 1996’s beloved Super Mario 64™ and 2002’s Nintendo GameCube™ classic Super Mario Sunshine™—is packed with secrets and surprises, plus exciting new kingdoms to explore.” – Nintendo Overview

The game comes out at the end of this month and I am stoked! I’m so excited to play it, I just had to recommend it!

 

A Trip Through Virtual Reality

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So for anyone who knows me as the being I am, they should know that I am a writer and a gamer. I started gaming way before I started writing, but that isn’t by a huge gap. I started writing short stories about LEGO’s Bionicles in kindergarten, and had been playing video games since I was old enough to understand what was going on.

So as my 5th novel is being edited, I’ve been tossing around the ideas of the next story I will write. I was going to possibly write a story based in the TRON universe by Disney, but with recent rumors of Disney rebooting the series, I didn’t want to risk the investment. Writing a story like that could only be published by Disney Hyperion, so making it a possibly outdated story canon-wise just makes it harder.

So I’ve been tossing around the idea of writing the concept/genre of people getting stuck in video games. Several authors have done it already. Some off the top of my head are Andrew Klavan’s MindWar trilogy and John David Anderson’s Insert Coin to Continue. Though writing for different age groups, I believe this is a popular subject matter. Things like Sword Art Online wouldn’t be as popular if it wasn’t. One of my favorite series growing up was .Hack GU, where a virus in the game was causing people in real life to enter into comas. The main character, Haseo, was super cool! af212a1140143d5eafb35ebaf3200f2c0668cc7c_hq

As a gamer, I thought, what better thing to write about? Mixing fantasy and gaming, and the countless hours I’ve spent watching YouTubers game, I think I could create a pretty cool story.

Virtual Reality (or VR for short) is the hot thing right now in video games, and it might seem cliche, but it might be a great use of the bridge between the concepts of reality and gaming.  I can’t afford to buy a VR headset to test it out in person, but I have watched many let’s players on YouTube test it out. (That’s research right?).

A side note, as a gamer and fan of Disney, they are surely missing out not making the Grid Games a VR game. Just saying. discanim1

Might be writing a couple more blogs on the idea of gaming meeting writing. Figured it could be a good way to get ideas flowing for stories. It might even help some other writers out there!

Any gamers out there like to read about this concept? Or any writers currently writing this? I’d like to know how it’s going! Let me know in the comments! I’d love to know what kind of games inspire anyone out there, or even games you just like to play.

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And check the main site for other blogs: https://brandanchapman.com/

 

Writing in Video Games

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So just yesterday, I beat the game Quantum Break. It’s a Remedy Entertainment video game that does great justice to the company. Playing through the game, I realized how important writing can be for a video game. I mean, I’ve always know that for a fact (especially as a writer myself), but Remedy does storytelling so well that it really opened my eyes.

I’ve always been a sucker for lore and story in video games. I’m the kind of gamer that will read the quest dialogue in World of Warcraft, and even read the physical books based on the game. WoW is one of my favorite video games to have lore in it. I am completely enTHRALLed with the backstory of the races and the characters. It’s one of the reasons I would love to be an intern writer at Blizzard Entertainment (the company that made WoW). Fingers crossed that may actually happen one day.

Anyways, back to Quantum Break. This game has a great story. Remedy has always been great at making story-driven games that also are fun to play, like Alan Wake or Max Payne. Story-driven games are games that are usually highly dependent on the story they tell. Well, I wouldn’t say highly dependent exactly. More like the game is more centered around the story. Games like these are always catching my interest. As a writer and author, I want a compelling story. I want to be inspired. I want to feel what the characters feel.

Speaking of characters, Quantum Break nails them. There were characters that were (for the sake of giving spoilers) seemingly bad at the beginning, but then actually had redeeming qualities. There were characters I was rooting for, aside from the main character Jack Joyce, that faced just as many challenges.

One great thing about Quantum Break is that it entwines the video game aspect with TV show-like episodes at the end of each act. These episodes can change based on your decisions in the game. I wholeheartedly believe that these episodes really helped the gamer/watcher see the “behind the scenes.” From episode one, I was rooting for a character I thought was bad. At the end of episode four, I was nearly crying because of the connection the game gave me to the characters. Character development and connection are great aspects in a game.

I might be just a simple novelist and gamer, but I can always tell when the story in video games is done really well. If I feel the same thing characters feel emotionally, if I am at the edge of my seat wondering what will happen next, and if I still have a residual feeling after the game, the story and game were brilliant.

That residual feeling is something that makes me want to tell everyone to play the game for themselves. It’s something that needs to be experienced. Games like Quantum Break, or another favorite of mine, Life is Strange, should be played. So I highly recommend Quantum Break. Brilliant story, awesome characters, and the feels.

Steam and Twitch

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I’m a writer that loves playing video games. Loads of fantasy and science fiction inspiration can come from playing video games.

I’ve streamed a bit on Twitch, but I hope to stream just about everything I play. I play a lot of single player games and some multiplayer ones. Some games include: Borderlands series, Garry’s Mod, Alan Wake, Don’t Starve Together, The Forest, and more.

Feel free to add me on Steam to follow what I’m playing and check out my library, or follow my Twitch to see when I’m streaming.

Shattered Soul sequel novel now available, including no spoilers to the first novel: Amazon and CreateSpace

Get the first one, Shattered Soul: Elements of Lightning, here: Amazon and CreateSpace

You can find me on Facebook and Twitter too.