My Last of Us Multiplayer Review

Last of Us is an amazing game by Naughty Dog. It has amazing graphics, pretty awesome gameplay, touching story line and believable characters... and the AI doesn't suck too much, which is nice considering it's a giant escort mission.

But enough about that. This is about the multiplayer. It's entitled Factions and you chose to play as either the Fireflies (the group fighting against the military's martial law while trying to find a cure) or the Hunters (the group that randomly kills people on site, no questions asked, just to take there stuff... how nice). I normal play as Firefly, but we're not here to talk about that either.

First off, the basics. After choosing your faction your basic mission is to increase your population by playing though either Supply Raid or Survivor(s), while also gathering supplies to maintain your clan. You can collect in either game and it can get a bit tough as you'll get missions from time to time witch either increase or decrease your clans population depending on what mission objective you get.

The ultimate goal is to complete twelve weeks. At that point you've "won" and can start the process over again... if you wanted to.

Second, the good. I don't know what it is about this multiplayer, as your just running around killing off your enemies till you win/lose/or run out of time, but I like it more than the other multiplayers I've played or seen. Maybe it's because I normal don't play multiplayers and this one isn't much of a challenge. It's addicting, as you get all the weapons from the story line and you can customize your equipment and skills as you see fit. Mostly I play with a silent hunting rifle, silent 9mm with Explosives Expert, Marathon Runner and Crafter (at level 3), but once again not about me. I also like that you can make your own logos and the one time bonuses you get from missions are nice to. Plus I just like to beat people

And blow them up on occasion.

It's also nice that you can hear enemies, because if they have a shiv they can, and will sneak up on you and shank you... in the neck... it's not fun. It also helps with bombs and stuff too, but normal I just booby trap the tool boxes and wait for the fireworks.

Now for the bad. Most of what I don't like about the multiplayer has to do with the customization or should I say the lack of customization.

Hats, Helmets and Mask... that's it. That's all the customization you get. You don't even get to pick your gender! You play as one of the twelve or so generic avatars they already have programmed into the game. And of those only about three are female. If full customization Skyrim style is too much at least let us pick from the avatars. That way I can play as a chick all the time. I'm a gamer girl, I want to play as a girl. All I'm saying.

Another thing I have an issue with is the settings for the battles. Not that I have a problem with the settings themselves, just the way it's handled in multiplayer... I'm not making much since so let me explain. Once you choose with of the two games you want to play (Supply Raid or Survivor(s)) your placed in a loading screen to wait for seven other players (It's normal played 4vs4). After all the players have entered in (of the game gets bored) you vote on two arenas. Personal I think this is kind of backwards. Shouldn't we be able to choose our arena first? That way we can play in the setting we like so that we enjoy playing. I'm a sniper mostly and I would like to play in arenas were they're are decent spots to snipe from. The Dam, The University and Downtown are the worst for snipers as there are no good snipe spots. I hate getting stuck playing in these places goes I always lose.

Last thing I'm not to crazy about (and it's not a big thing, just something that should be looked at) is your skill point cap out at thirteen. This is suppose to be so players don't become over powered. The problem I see with that is, players will choose the most powerful weapons (mostly silent burst rifles, shorties and military snipers or flamethrowers) and top it off with a one maxed out skill and be overpowered. This seems to happen a lot with the Hunters. It makes it seem as if they have an aggression bonus or something. Maybe if the cap was at around twenty instead, player could balance their characters a bit better. I'm not saying this will solve the douchebag problems... I just expect those at this point,

But at least it would make it a tad more enjoyable. Not that it's not enjoyable now it's just... you know what, you guys get what I'm saying. Overall it's a good game and I love playing it. My team just needs to get it together. 

 NOT WHAT I MEANT!

     

       

 

Calmer Now

Wow I went off earlier didn't I? Just want everyone to know, that whole thing about fast food and high school drop outs... sorry. That came off kind of harsh. It's just that I don't want to work in fast food or really any restaurant. I found that I don't do well in high pressure jobs and while there aren't too many jobs out there that don't come with some kind of stress I'm looking for something that I can somewhat enjoy despite the stress.

I thought that working at a movie theater would be my thing, and it was okay until management made poor decisions and made the place a nightmare. And it really was just the one manager and he's plaything. Most of the other managers I got along well with. I could see most of the other managers being really cool to hang with outside of work had I not had all the theater stuff going on as well as school (for awhile) and my families car situation at the time.

I've come to term with the fact that I'm a horrible person, but I at least try to be nice for the most part. I'm an odd duck.  

Blogger Rant

It's not so much a rant as just something that must be said.

For the last year I have been unemployed because my last employer; who will remain unnamed because it'll only make me want to go blow something up (in a video game... not really in to serving jail time), decided to fire me for being sick. Okay so it was a no call no show, but I was still sick, I did see a doctor and I did try to explain things to him, but his mind had been made up to find a way to fire me since I made it know that I didn't find it okay for him to promote his girlfriend to manager over me (background, i had been working for these people for about three years when she got hired, four by the time she was promoted and he was married at the time they hooked up. And they were and as far as I know still together despite what they will try to tell you).

So I've spent the last year working in theater, on my media art stuff and now writing and blogging trying to find my niche. Some of the theater work does pay and I know it's not a steady job, but it is work and when I do have money I help out where I can. And with any luck my blog will start making money as I write and maybe once my skills are a little better I'll start writing a book or something. Point is I never stopped looking for a job all this time and I have been doing things that will bring money in every now and again.

But it's tough going as most of the positions I've seen open are management positions and I've had no management training. I could have, but well I've alright explained why.

However, the way my parents and my sister talk all I do is play on the PS3 and on my computer and laze about doing nothing at all. I heard my mom and my sister talking about it again like I wasn't in the house and couldn't hear them. And they wonder why I get all pissed off when they bring it up. I'm trying, I'm doing everything I can think of and all you can do is assume that I just don't care.

And they are always telling me that this place is hiring and that place is hiring, but it's always crap jobs at fast food places. I'm not a damn high school drop out. Look out for stuff I care about, things you know I'll half way enjoy doing.

The live theater stage here in town, The Paramount, that I work shows in all the time is talking about updating their lighting system. I'm going to be reapplying there in hopes to get on as one of the lighting technicians (with any luck at all). I just reapplied today for the Home Depot here in town. I'm not a lazy good for nothing and to be treated as such is more than a pain in the ass.

Maybe I'm not out everyday begging on hands and knees for any old job that come available, but I don't spend every hour of every day playing on the computer and the playstation. I have an older computer, I have three games on here and I can't get near the playstation unless my sister is at a friends or at work. So in the mean time, I'm keeping my eyes and ears open for stuff and applying for the things I think I'll enjoy while working on theater, media arts and writing.

Maybe It's not "fair" for me to still be unemployed a whole year later, but I'm not getting a lot of support either. So who's really to blame here?

Nintendo Direct for E3

Okay now for my first love. Had to watch this one on youtube because the Direct thing was streaming while I was still asleep.

First of news of Pokemon X and Y. We're getting a new pokemon type... Fairy! Sylveon is a part of this new group and they are effective against Dragon types. Also mini-game called Pokemon Amie. This will let you do stuff like pet and feed your pokemon to strengthen the bond between you and your pokemon. We also got a release date of October 12th. I can't wait!

Next is a new Mario, Mario 3D World. This ones is going to have multiplayer where you can play as either Mario, Luigi, Toad or Peach. We're also getting a new power up. Two words... Cat Mario. This ones due out in December.

We also have a new Mario Kart. Number 8 is going to feature anti gravity and have gliders and motorcycles as well as underwater sections. Also online multiplayer. Due out in spring of 2014.

Games in development, Wii Party U and Wii Fit U have been pushed back to October and December releases respectively. They want more time to work some stuff out with both games.

Miiverse is also getting some upgrades. A new Art Academy is in the works and Nintendo will be releasing some of the tools from the game for the Miiverse. This came about because of the artwork people where putting up on the Miiverse with the drawing tools there. Kind of cool, more interested in the Art game though.

They then showed some games from 3rd party studios. Some of which have already been shown for the other two systems at E3. 14 new games there for Wii U and 3DS. Also 11 more games are coming to the eshop for Wii U and 3DS.

Wii U is also getting a version of Legend of Zelda Windwaker with a few updates. One of which is a trade out. Instead of the Tingle Tuner your now getting the Tingle Bottle that will connect with the Miiverse. All and all I don't know how I feel about this, but it's never stopped Nintendo before and I will always love them so...

New game: the Wonderful 101. This looks like a superhero version of Pikmin so it you like Pikmin you'll like this game most likely. It's due out September 15th.

Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze will be coming out on the Wii U in November. This go round DK, Diddy and Dixie are up against Vikings. There's a two player multiplayer and although being a side scroller,  the camera will be able to move in some cases as you get shot around in those barrels. Like I said Dixie is back and she will be a playable character.

Next up was a look at Bayonetta 2. It's looking good, still looks to play a lot like the first game just on a bigger scale. Bayonetta also has a new look. She's cut her hair and has a new outfit so... yeah. She's coming out on Wii U in 2014.

New game: X? I think that's what it's called. Looks like Final Fantasy with robots to me but it's due out in 2014 so maybe the more I know the more I'll want.

Super Smash Brothers is coming back people! Thank you Nintendo. All the characters from the other games are back plus a citizen from Animal Crossing and... Mega Man. Oh yes Mega Man is joining the crew for this new battle and he is looking sick! Can not wait, this one also due out in 2014 for both Wii U and 3DS.

So my predictions for the holiday season are this... Nintendo will be back in the game with it's new line up. I do think they need a price drop before the holiday season to be a real contender, but they're looking good. The XBox One will sale, but it will be mostly the XBoners who don't care about all the issues the SpyBox has and will love it till it explodes on them and then they'll run out and buy a new one. But the real winner this year will be the PS4. Being not only a hundred bucks less then the SpyBox, PS4 is looking to have the better game selection and there are more games coming out for the PS3 and the Vita to give Sony the real win this year. I don't know if Microsoft will care enough to deal with their issues, but knowing that Sony isn't putting any restrictions on the PS4 a lot of people will be turning from Microsoft for Sony.

It's been quite the E3 and my hopes are next year, I can be reporting from E3. Stay Shiny readers and keep playing. Lots of Love, Ashira.      

The PS4 is Here!

And now on to the one true love of my live... okay second love, but never mind that. Sony delivered tonight!

We started out with a rock star entrance because they can, then they announced that Vita's not going anywhere. That bad boys got 85 games lined up to come out by the end of the year.

As for PS3 we've got Last of Us coming up this week I think, Puppeteer which kind of confused me but it still looked cool, Rain which is also confusing but cool looking, Beyond Two Souls, and Gran Tarismo 6 (sorry if that spelled wrong, went by kind of quick).

Also Batman Arkham Origins, GTA 5 Bundle with a headset and 300 other games by the end of the year. A lot of which I think will be indie games, but we'll get there in a moment.

Now for the PS4 and may I say, Baby is looking good!

Sony Entertainment said they were working towards unlimited music and video available day one with the PS4 (Can't remember if we have for PS3 but this is awesome).

They are also bringing Redbox Instant, Live Events Viewer for Pay Per View, and Flixster to the PS3, Vita and PS4.

There are 30 PS4 games in development as I type this, 20 of those with be out first year of PS4's life with 12 of those being brand new ideas. One of which is a steampunk game by the name of The Order 1886. Looks to be about Werewolves and it looks good.

Next was the first person shooter Killzone: Shadow Fall. Now I'm not normally into first person shooters, but this bad boy looks to be worth my time. Also Drive Club... yeah racing still not into it.

Then Infamous Second Son which was just... yes please.

Knack was the next game they showed. Kind of cutesy, but I like so I will try it out.

Killzone and Drive Club will be available at launch while Second Son and Knack will be out in 2014.

They then showed a clip from a game in production to show off the new super realisticness, cool but I could have got that from the previews and gameplay. It was a funny little clip though.

Supergiant Games showed off there new baby: Transistor. The artwork alone is worth it to me for this one. It's a 2d one proving once again that we don't always need real.

They talked about self published games a bit and showcased some indie games which I was really happy about. I like when the little guys get to show off at big events and some times even show up the bigger dogs. All of the games previewed would be PS4 exclusive.

We also get Diablo 3, nough said.

And then Sqaure Enix made my night. Update on Versus 13 oh no wait we're Final Fantasy 15 now kids (my sister called this one from four miles away). And Kingdom Hearts 3 is in development (Sploosh!) They showed a really shot in game preview and I can't wait, It's going to be amazing. They did say that FF 15 would be on PS3 and 4, yay!

Assassin's Creed Black Flag Demo: It plays like all the other Ass Creeds it's just now your a pirate. Still can't wait to play.

Watchdogs Demo: Yes please! This game looks so just, I can't even it was that good. And I know I'm using that a lot but I don't know what else to say. Sony just came out and made sweet sweet love to us, cuddled a bit and then loved us some more... Yes I know I'm a fan girl leave me be!

Anyhoo, NBA2K14... that is all.

Elder Scrolls Online: Beta coming to PS4, can't wait. Big fan on Skyrim so...

Mad Max game. Yes you heard me right, there is going to be a Mad Max game on PS4. Looks cool, no demo just a trailer, but it's something.

There are 140 games in development for the PS4 and they all look good so far. During the demos there was some lagging, mainly in Assassin's Creed and the last one (getting to it) but they have time to work it out. I believe in you Sony.

And then the big news of the night... wait for it... No Restrictions. None, zero, zip. Sony took out it's much bigger dick and slap Microsoft silly with it. None of this need for an internet connection, no online auto check-ins keeping your system on all the time, none of that. They're working the make the PSN better with more stuff and PS Plus is carrying over to PS4. That's right, if you have PS Plus your not going to have to pay anymore it's just going to be there for the same price it's always been.

They closed out the with a demo of Destiny. Once again not really a first person shooter kind of gamer, but I'd play this in a heartbeat. I love during the demo the two guys playing... they got new weapons during the play right and one of 'em got a sniper rifle (my weapon of chose). And the first dude was all "I like the long rifle. What's it's name?" and the other guy answered "Shut up and get behind me." I do love fan boys sometimes.

After that it was a quick chat about the Cloud. Sony not loving the Cloud as much as Microsoft but not denying it's a good idea. Using it as a backup which I feel like is what it's suppose to be used for but maybe that's just us. To top it off Sony dickslapped Microsoft again by putting a $399 price tag on the PS4. My sister already has plans to preorder. All and All the day went to Sony and Microsoft dug its self even farther into the hole. EA pulled its self back up and Ubisoft... yeah what did Ubisoft do again?

Anyhoo tomorrow Nintendo Direct takes the stage and after that I kind of don't care. Good Night gamers!

Ubisoft... Kind of

I actually had things to do so I didn't get to see much of Ubi. From what I read online there wasn't much gameplay just a lot a trailers.

I did kind of get to see Watchdogs. Rabbids Invasion an interactive tv show coming to Nick. Assassin's Creed Black Flag which looks very nice. And Trials Frontier on moble with Trials Fusion for the consoles. Not much more, going to write up a quick chapter for Life with Sephy and then bare with bad internet connection so I can watch Sony's press con. Laterz

EA Download at E3

One word: SPLOSH! Oh my god, EA pulling themselves up. I'm really impressed.

They kicked of the con with Plants Vs Zombies Garden Warfare, a third person shooter. It looks so amazing, I can't wait. The only issue is it sounds like it's only coming to the XBox One and 360 after. I hope they put it cross console and not just One and 360. Popcap also teased Peggle 2. Way to kick it off EA! Start things off right.

Next was more on Titanfall. Other than learning it was multiplayer or has multipalyer I'm still not all that impressed and I could do without.

Then they talked a bit about their software engines, EA Sports Ignite and Frostbite 3. With Frostbite they teased Star Wars Battlefront and Need for Speed Rivals.

I'm really impressed with Need for Speed Rivals. It looks good and the multiplayer jump-in runs seamlessly. They showed how you could start a race as a racer and then have an online jump-in with the cops and there was no start over, no "new player has entered" it just ran smoothly. Not much of a racer gamer, but I'm looking forward to this one. Also Need for Speed movie... that is all.

Next was a trailer for Dragon Age Inquisition... still a Skyrim girl, just saying.

Then EA Sports came out. We have NBA Live 14 (yes NBA Live is coming back), NFL Madden 25, FIFA 14 and UFC. The only one I care about even a little is the UFC game and even then I could live without.

More talk of smarter AI... Having trouble with this one. Don't know how I feel. If the AI gets smarter can we not call it AI anymore?

Next: Multiplayer Battlefield 4! Yeah, the whole 64 player multiplayer thing there doing... I still don't care.

And then the big news. Hold on to your seats people... Mirrors Edge 2.

That was it, EA looking good for the most part. Glad to see them picking themselves up a little. Next up we have Ubisoft and then at nine... SONY! Thinking I'm going to have to stream those online, but as long as the weather here in my part of North Carolina doesn't knock the power out I'll be back to let you know what's up from E3.  

Microsoft at E3

Two words for you... Technical Difficulties. I counted about three times the sound cut off on these guys. Don't know if I can really say they pulled the trigger, putting themselves out of there misery after dragging themselves with both feet and a knee cap blown out. But overall I don't think it looks good for Microsoft or the XBox One.

First off they showed three 360 games, A new Metal Gear (wasn't really paying attention. DBZ Abridged episode 35 was more important =^_^=), Max curse of Brotherhood that looks really cool, and something else... no wait I think that was it never mind moving on.

Now on to XBox One... Starting off Ryse looks like a super realistic CivRev with quick time events. There's a little Dynasty Warrior mixed in there too. Not feeling it at all, I'd rather play CivRev.

Sunset Overdrive... yeah I don't even know.

Forza 5: Very pretty car, not into racing games so I kind of tuned out. And I don't care what you say, if you call it AI it's going to be the dumb. Game AI is just dumb, it's a thing.

NO MORE MINECRAFT!

Quantum Break looks really cool, but turned off because of being an XBox One exclusive.

D4: My sister seems to think it'll be cool. She likes the artwork. And I have to agree, not everything has to be realistic. But other than that I'm kind of confused by it.

Project Spark: Oh My God! I wish that we can get this baby on PC with Windows 8 or on a Windows 8 tablet because this one... I want I really really want! It's amazing, my inner game designer was sploshing everywhere. I love the idea, I love the graphics, it's amazing. However, if it's an XBox One exclusive... I don't even know what I'll do besides cry for a week.

They presented a fighting game next... I tuned out. XBox is for shooters, that's just how I feel. Then they said they were going to ditch the XBox gold or whatever and were just going to switch to real money for XBox Live. Good for you.

And then... Dead Rising 3. Oh Microsoft... it's the Dead Island engine, they black out between FMV and gameplay and it's beyond unrealistic. It's kind of sad really.

The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt... yeah Skyrim did it first. That is all.

Oh yay Battlefield 4...

Journey rip off called Below.

New Studio: Black Tusk... don't really know what to say.

Here's what happened next. Me and my sis were watching this together and she was trying to figure out what this game was. Her first guess was a Realistic Journey. Then she guessed War of the Worlds or some kind of mix of the two... Nope Halo (lol, she started fake crying. It was hilarious.) Then they said something about a Halo TV Show with Steven Spielberg.

BTW gods forbid the servers crash because these people... they love the Cloud. Worship the Cloud. Good luck with that one kids. XBox One is like 2013's VCR or something.

They ended the confreres with Titanfall. To me this looks like Uncharted+Star Trek+Final Fantasy+Halo. Why? That's all I can really say is why? And the screen set up inside the bot (Titan) I couldn't do it. It's a messed up set up and it gave me a headache just looking at it.

The big thing though... Five hundred bucks. They are charging five hundred dollars for a system they just showed games for today. They said nothing about the system-lock or the fact that you have to always be online or anything else people were having issues with after they announced the stupid thing. They were just like, "This game and that game and here's five new studios were teaming up with. Oh and It's five hundred dollars." No thank you Microsoft, you should have pulled the trigger. You would have been better off.

In short, I am no more an XBox fan then I was before today. But without a doubt there are XBoners out there who are all, "Ermahgerd XBox One, Halo, Battlefield 4, Have to get!" And that to me is sad. I however am a Nintendo/Sony girl and I will be ready to see the Sony con later today. Be back then, Laterz!

P.S. Lego Marvel... New Trailer during preshow on Spike... WANT Want Now!              

Zemyx Day and E3

Happy Zemyx day everyone! Aren't Demyx and Zexion just the cutest couple in gaming history... besides every other hot coupling...

Anyhoo, tomorrow in all the E3 conferences so don't be surprised if I'm posting like everywhere tomorrow. Here, facebook, twitter... everywhere! Now Nintendo isn't till Tuesday, but Microsoft and Sony are tomorrow. Everybody is tomorrow... Microsoft, Sony, EA, Ubisoft... everyone but Nintendo.

That's okay though, cuz I've heard that Square is going to be announcing their new Final Fantasy at E3. My hope is that during the Sony conference that they are going to have some news on Versus xiii (maybe renamed FF15, maybe not) and Kingdom Hearts 3 (oh please let there be some news on KH3).

So have a wonderful Zemyx day and write ya tomorrow on E3.

P.S. If you want to watch the live streams, Spike is going to have them and the schedule is:

Monday, June 10, 2013

Microsoft Press Conference - 1 PM Eastern / 10 AM Pacific

EA Press Conference - 4 PM Eastern / 1 PM Pacific

Ubisoft Press Conference - 6 PM Eastern / 3 PM Pacific

Sony Press Conference - 9 PM Eastern / 6 PM Pacific

Kingdom Hearts Trolls

Today I think I'll chat Internet Trolls. Why? Well there fun to mess with for one and two, I just want to. I really don't have a reason beyond that.

So recently I was watching though some videos about KH3 (Yes I realize I have a problem) and I posted this:

TheDoctorIchigo 2 days ago

Go on... bash me if you want. Call me a fangirl, but I'm done with Kairi. Beyond done with her. I don't want her to end up with Sora. You want to talk about someone who should die it would be her. If you must have any sort of romance make it Sora and Riku. It's clearly what a lot of us want, plus to me, that's a more believable hook-up. At this point in the story, for me anyway. Hooking up Kairi and Sora would be like hooking up The Doctor and Kristen Stewart. It just doesn't work for me.

And I got a few replies:

Noah Hannaford 12 hours ago

Man are you fucking retarded or something? They're not going to have any homosexual relationships in a game revolved around the Disney universe.

JJForeverOrdinary 1 day ago

Hooking up The Doctor and Kristen Stewart... Compared to Sora and Kairi... I respect your opinions, but come on. Most everyone expects a romance between Sora and Kairi in KH3. If not, their will most likely be no romance between the main characters... At least not visually.

JJForeverOrdinary 1 day ago

Who the fuck wants to see a romance between Sora and Riku? That's the most retarded thing i've ever heard. I seriously doubt they'll introduce homosexuality in a game that is almost completely based around Disney characters.

Oh Internet! I just love how you like to play innocent and seem so close minded at times. Okay so maybe the Doctor Who/Kristen Stewart thing was a bit much, but I think it got my point across. That point being that Kairi has had next to no character development since game one and Sora has been to hell and back (maybe not literally, but close).

And who are we to say that Disney would never do something. Ten years ago when this whole think got started did we ever think that Disney, makers of family friendly movies and shows, would ever team up with Square Enix to develop a game that meshed there two worlds? I mean come on guys, Disney just bought Marvel and Star Wars there is nothing they won't do. To quote my sister: "Disney has come a long way on there views on homosexuality. I mean did you see High School Musical?"

And here's another thing. Kingdom Hearts is not just Disney. There Final Fantasy characters in there too.

I did post back to my loving fans though:

TheDoctorIchigo 4 hours ago

It doesn't have to be hard care or anything! And look up Sora x Riku on google. There are plenty of people who put them together in one way or another. They don't even have to kiss okay, I would be fine if it was just implied. And you can't say Disney would never have or support a gay couple! There are plenty of ways to imply that and keep it G rated.

So lets look at Sora and Riku:

When you search them on Google you get 1,420,000 results. Now that's a mix of general information. 

Search Sora x Riku yaoi and its About 185,000 results. 

Search deviantART and the results are 4841. Most of which show them in a homosexual way.

Fanfiction Search yields 468 results. 468 stories involving Sora and Riku. Narrowing that search down to Romance Rated M its 76 stories, most of which are smut.

I know I seem to be going on and on about Kingdom Hearts lately. It has a lot to do with the fact that we have a PS2 and KH one and two here at the house. Also the announcement of Kingdom Hearts 1.5 and 2.5 has got me really excited as well. It's a nice way to bridge the gap and get everyone caught up before 3 final comes out.

But do people like these two guys really think that the core audience of this game, the people who grew up with these characters, would really have a major issue if Square Enix and Disney decided to make Sora and Riku gay? I would like to think that most of us are open minded enough to accept them it they were. Maybe it's just me, maybe I was the only one who saw Kairi take Sora's hand and put it in Ansem/Riku's hand and thought "Oh she knows what's up. She's trying to hook them up! She knows she's got no chance with either of them and she's cool with it." Except I'm not the only one who thought that.

But you know, that's cool. You Kairi x Sora supporters just keep right on believing that what Sora and Riku share is just a Bromance, just brotherly love. At the end of the day, my real hope is Square and Disney will tell us all to SHUT UP! There is no love story. Sora was only friends with Riku and Kairi and could never see either of them in a romantic light cuz his too busy being the hero! And then Riku and Kairi will get all pissed off and a giant cat fight will ensue and the only two characters to actually hook up are Zexion and Demyx's Somebodies. Wouldn't that be a twist =^_^=

Demyx

I'm I the only one who wants to know what happened to poor Demyx after his defeat in KH2? I think KH3 should explain that. I for one want to see his Somebody, find out why his Nobody was the way he was, and I want to know his name once and for all!

Lot of speculation about what his Somebody's name was. The most popular is Myde (so don't know how to pronounce that), but there have been others. I know a few of the Nobody's names were just there Somebody's name spelled backwards with the X added. Lea and Sora for example (Axel and Roxas respectively). But that doesn't really make since with Demyx cuz then his name would be Ymed and I'm pretty sure there is no way to pronounce that. I did see someone say that his name could just be Demy, but that seems highly unlikely.

I wish there was some sort of pattern to the Organization's names (besides the added X). Then maybe I could figure it out. I think I like Myde the best though. And I'd like to think that he was a musician before becoming a Nobody. I just don't see what Xehanort would want with a musician unless there is something about Myde... Demyx that we don't fully understand yet. And that's something I'd like to know.

So what do you guys think?

Favorite Fanfiction Pairings

Favorite Fanfiction Pairings

I was bored, so I made this poll on fanfic pairings.

Writing Again

My muse hit me like a ton of bricks last night. It's great to be out of that slump. I think my problem was I was trying to do to mush at once. I get that way sometimes. I wish I could be one of those people that can write like four different stories at once, but I'm not.

I am thinking about doing a song challenge of sorts late in the summer once I'm just writing Life with Sephy. Just to keep me writing and my creativity going into the new theater season.

Speaking of which, during tech week I may not be able to write everyday. So Sephy may end up being an every other day thing. I'm going to try very hard not to let that happen as I enjoy having something to write everyday. It just depends on how much goes into the two musicals tech wise as I plan to be working both of them in some way. It most likely won't effect things to much, but if my Muse runs off again I'm going to have to send the search party out after him and that's never fun.

But that's neither here nor there... and I really like saying that today for some reason. Anyhoo, head on over to fanfiction. There's a new chapter of "Hannah Monroe" up and "Life with Sephy" is up on both fanfiction and my other blog. Happy Reading!

Kingdom Hearts III

So recently a friend of ours let us borrow her PS2 and my sister bought her Kingdom Hearts. The retro trip only served to remind me that IT'S BEEN EIGHT YEARS AND NO KINGDOM HEARTS 3! Dream Drop didn't help because well... I hated the game play. Whatever moron thought that auto drop system was a good idea should be wrapped in bacon, lit on fire and shoved off a cliff. I have no issues with playing as Riku and Sora, on the contrary I liked that idea. It's just I would have liked to finish though a world with one before playing though as the other, not being forced to drop out into Riku's story line mid battle with Sora. That was stupid.

But I digress, this is about Kingdom Hearts 3. I read a post on IGN last night... early this morning... like 2am... about Thing Necessary for KH3 to be Great. I have to say I do like some of the things brought up while others were... less then... I'm going to need a lot of bacon. So lets go through this piece by piece.

Gameplay:
I agree the 3-combo button mash can get annoying and from what I played of Dream Drop and what I understand of the other handhelds this has been KH's go to system. Yes things have chanced up a bit... like that stupid drop system... but overall it's been the same. I would like to see a happy marriage of the Kingdom Hearts Attack/Magic/Item/... Menu with a Final Fantasy battle system. I'll explain... For all it's faults, I kind of liked the battle system in FFXII. And it would work well with the system already in place with KH. I would love to have more control over my teammates in Kingdom Hearts as you could never get Donald to heal you when you needed cuz his sorry magic using butt could not stay up for more than four seconds! No offence to my magic users, but using a similar system to FFXII would fix the AI issue in KH. It would also be nice to see Kingdom Hearts with a Four-Party system, but I'm not holding my breathe for that one.

Dynamics:
This is where the youtube vid I found today really hit's home (I think it's point three) and the post makes mention of this too. It's time to grow up Kingdom Hearts. I'm not knocking the default "Friendship is Magic" story line you've been drumming away at, I'm a Brony for crying out loud. But the series is ten no... going on eleven... ELEVEN YEARS OLD NOW! Your main character is fifteen/sixteen years old and your main audience is in it's mid/late teens to late twenties now. Time for the story to grow up too. Take some risk, make it a little darker. Disney owns Star Wars now! It's okay, go a little crazy. We'll still love you... well...

Plot:
Okay, overall I dig the plot line in the post. It really brings the story full circle, but there are a few things... just a few... that need to go. Okay, fanfic time... here's what I think should happen...
Dream Drop leaves off with Riku named Keyblade Master and Sora going off to do his own thing. But is Sora really happy with Yen Sen's chose? Going back to Destiny Island, we see Sora in the secret cave. Here we see that he is a bit sour. "After everything I've been though? How is it Riku's better than me?" Sora decides that he must get stronger if he's to be any help in upcoming events and begin's a solo journey to become stronger, but he quickly learns that maybe Yen Sen, Riku and Co. are playing into Xehanort's hands.

After learning this and meeting Aqua. Sora makes the tough call to fight both for light and dark, to be a warrior of balance instead of just light (like Riku and Co.) or dark (like Xehanort). This is what truly begins the healing that Ventus' heart needs. Sora and Aqua team up to protect any and all world's under attack, causing Yen Sen to think Sora has strayed from his destiny. This will lead to a show down between Sora and Riku. Unable to chose between her friends, Kairi stays out of the fight while Sora insist that Aqua let him handle this himself. 

Here is where I will... not apologize! Sorry kids, but this needs to happen. During the battle between Sora and Riku, Riku seems to gain the upper hand. But right as it looks as if Riku will prevail, he stops himself. Unable to hide the truth any longer he admits to Sora that he has always been in love with him. Sora is taken back by this information, but is unable to answer Riku as Xehanort arrives and the two parties flee (Kairi taking Riku back to Yen Sen as Sora and Aqua retreat to the next world or whatever.)

After making it safely to the next destination, Aqua tells her full story and Sora has a revelation about Ventus... however that needs to play for Sora to understand he hold Ventus' heart. Sidetrack for a sec! Sora's a freaking heart collector! First Ventus, even if he doesn't realize it, and then Kairi? What the heck Square Enix! The only way this could get more confusing is if you let whoever developed X-2 finish off Kingdom Hearts. On second thought don't you dare. Back to the story...

After a few more worlds or whatever, play that whatever flows best. We see Riku trying to convince the other Keyblade Wielders that maybe Sora is right about the balance between light and dark, however Yen Sen is just not having that and Riku leaves to find and help Sora and Aqua. Kairi is just confused, because she's had about as much character development as a brick wall... scratch that, a brick wall has more character development. Let's go with Kristen Stewart. Lea on the other hand sees where Riku is coming from and leaves with him.

This leads to the final battle at The Keyblade Graveyard. Everyone shows up, Xehanort and Yen Sen do there good guy/bad guy monlouges, the fight begins and then sometime mid battle Ventus wakes up... or his heart anyway. Using Sora as a puppet he talks about not being afraid anymore and is magically there at the battle! He and Aqua have a moment and then he just gives in and the legendary keyblade (x-blade, whatever they're calling it) is forged. Riku, the keyblade master, and Xehanort, the bad guy who wants to cover the worlds in darkness, both go for the blade at the same time. But it chooses Sora. The final showdown starts and Sora is the victory. 

Yen Sen learns the error of his way, Sora was right along, Kairi goes back to her castle where she belongs! Aqua goes to find Terra, or just bring him back in somewhere. I don't really understand, I never played Birth By Sleep. Mikey and Co. go back to there castle and here we have it. Sora and Riku on there own, the two keyblade masters. Sora explains that while on his journey to bring balance he did some soul searching and finds that he loves Riku too. They kiss. The End. End credit scene shows Sora and Riku back on that Island sharing a Paupu.

I know, I know. It's an overview. I could go full fanfic, but not here. Not what I'm getting at. Point is, I agree that any attempt to put Sora and Kairi together after everything just doesn't fit, but neither does Aqua and Sora which is what the post I read said they should do. I really do feel like they should just put Riku and Sora together, give the fangirls what they want. Plus it would make more since because like I said, Kairi has had about as much character development as Kristen Stewart. Play up her princess thing a bit, throw in some explanation as to why she can wield a keyblade and then send her home. Enough already. Sora and Riku however share so much through both there journeys, both going though equal amounts of challenges and hardships while still being opposite of each other in so many ways. At the end of the day, it comes down to Riku and Sora becoming Keyblade Masters. One via Dream Drop (whatever happened there... yes I never finished it) and one via KH3.

Overall:
All this boils down to Square needs to get there priorities in order. I've got nothing against HD Collections, I would kill for an HD of Final Fantasy 7,8, and 9. But here's the thing guys. Your losing money, we're tried of hearing "We'll get to Kingdom Hearts 3 when we're to a point with Final Fantasy Virus XIII." That's great, except your not working on Virus XIII, your working on Final Fantasy XIII Lighting Looks Like Bayonetta and HD Collections of two of the worst Final Fantasies Ever! I don't want slut Lighting and zero personality Tidus, I want Kingdom Hearts 3. So let's get to work on what's going to make you money Square Enix, your  not EA.

http://www.ign.com/boards/threads/things-necessary-for-kingdom-hearts-iii-to-be-great-spoilers.452582985/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbdkB37KjzA

P.S. I know Brony is suppose to be used for male fans of My Little Pony, but us chicks use it to. And I'm proud to be a Brony, so suck it.

3-Party vs 4-Party System

Look who hasn't posted in a few day =^_^= Sorry guys, Life with Zelda's been kind of rough... and no that's not some new fanfic I'm working on. I've put a hold on all my fics except Life with Sephy until summer. That gives me time to deal with my theater stuff without having to rush the stories.

But on to what this blog is really about. Today my sis and I got into an entrusting conversation and I wanted to know what you guys thought.

Which is a better party system in RPGs... Three or Four?

My sis and I think Four Party Systems are better. This gives you a nice even number where you can have two fighters or a fighter and a thief, a black mage and a white mage. The two fighters are obvious. You need the heavy guns to do damage, this can also be done with just the one fighter and a thief while also giving you a way to get extras such as items or magics or whatever. The black mage is a good third member because you can do damage to enemies with a high defense for physical attacks. You could get the same effect if you trained your thief in magic, but I've never been partial to doing that. And last, but not least, your white mage... I don't think I need to explain why that's a good idea.

Than again there is the Final Fantasy VIII way of doing things where your magic is used for stats. It may not be everyone's favorite Final Fantasy, but it did make things easy for a three party system. It allowed you to only need two fighter and a white mage, or in Selphie's case, Fighter, White Mage and Completely Useless!

So what do you think? Three Party or Four Party?

Jinkx Monsoon!

It's Monsoon season kids! I could not be happier right now. Rucap for those of you who have no clue what i'm talking about. Miss Jinkx Monsoon won this season of Rupaul's Drag Race. You should have seen my sister, our friend Rebecca and I. We went a little crazy... but just a little.

For my readers, I'm going to try very hard to do a chapter for each of my fanfics tomorrow. That includes final finishing Act Two of Final Fantasy Father of the Bride. After that it maybe another week before I write anything besides "Life with Sephy" as we are in tech week for the Zelda musical. So I'll be spending a lot of time outside the house... in the real world... scary...

Once again, condragulations to Jinkxy, I love you so much and you so deserve this girl. And I'll see you in the fictional world. Stay Shining!

May the 4th Be With You

How's it going? Hope your all having an awesome day. It's May the 4th, geek out! Although I have no Star Wars wear... kind of depressing... but that's okay because there was a new Doctor Who on tonight! This was a good one, had some mother/daughter drama but it was still awesome and next week looks to be the return of the Cybermen and some weird Borg referencing maybe. I don't know, all I know is Hell Yeah Matt Smith! Sorry... I love Tennat I do, but Matt has a special place in my heart... being my first Doctor and all.

Anyhoo, new Life with Sephy. Things are getting fun. I'm loving writing, I'm glad I got back into it. I quit writing for a good while after high school. I mean I wrote kind of, I came up with plots and stuff but never really amounted to anything... I'm sure those notebooks are around here somewhere. There's also a new chapter to "Hannah Monroe" as well as a smut chapter to "Sephy" over on fanfic. Links in the description to the blog itself... I'll post it again tomorrow. Lots of writing planed for tomorrow.

Happy Reading and May the 4th Be With You!

New Chapter

I'm posting a little early today than I normally will. Today was just a good day =^_^= got a new chapter of Life with Sephy up so you can go check that out. Also got a little more writing on my Final Fantasy Father of the Bride fanfic. That ones taking some doing, lot of stuff that needed to be cut, reworded and researched to make since with the world. Hopefully I can get it finished up and posted along with a new chapter of "Devil Trigger" and "Hannah", but no promises... I never know what's going to from day to day lol. Hope you enjoy the new chapter of "Sephy" Happy Reading!

Shameless Self Promotion!

Hello every one. The name's Ashira, how's it going? I started this blog just mainly to help promote my fanfics, but I'll be posting other random stuff here as well. So let's get to know each other better =^_^=

For starters... the shameless self promotion part! Lets go ahead and get that out of the way...

FanFiction:  http://www.fanfiction.net/~ashiraroseleigh 
My Other Blog: http://lifewithsephy.blogspot.com/
Deviant: http://ichigobanana87.deviantart.com/#
And last but not least... Polyvore: http://ichigobanana.polyvore.com/

Yes I am kind of all over the place. When I'm not chilling out on any of those places, I'm working with many local theater groups. Currently gearing up for a Zelda musical! You can check that out here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/413242782026400/  and here's and article just cuz I love you guys... and girls: http://teensandtwenties.com/comic-book-lovers-unite-free-comic-book-day-preview-of-legend-of-zelda-planned-may-4/

Let me know if you have a topic you'd like me to blog about. Or just say hi, I love that too :-) Thanks for watching and stay shining!