News for today's 2018

BlizzCon 2013: Initial Impressions

7:15 AM Tukiyooo 0

There was much goodness revealed at BlizzCon yesterday.  An expansion for Warcraft, cinematics for Heroes of the Storm, Hearthstone open beta announcement. Beta sign-ups are live for all expansions or new games, so sign into your battle.net account and join the fun. Where to begin?  Diablo II first, The <a href="http://us.battle.net/d3/en/reaper-of-souls/" target="_blank">Reaper of Souls</a> expansion.  Adventure mode: play where you want, when you want.  It is a separate mode from campaign mode, designed for players to freely move between modes and enjoy the game anyway they wish.  The game play looks amazing and I’m interested in the Crusader panel today discussing the upcoming class and changes in greater detail.  I admit I haven’t played Diablo III yet more than the trial but I am itching to, specially because the transmogrification system coming in the expansion is something that has peaked my interest greatly.   <div id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:277c9891-fc7c-42a3-8d42-61dac8963811" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" style="float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px"><div><object height="480" width="853"><param name="movie" value="//www.youtube.com/v/Cb7QJwQ58T0?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="//www.youtube.com/v/Cb7QJwQ58T0?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="853" height="480" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div></div> World of Warcraft, the <a href="http://us.battle.net/wow/en/warlords-of-draenor/" target="_blank">Warlords of Draenor</a> expansion looks to have the potential to revitalize and aging MMO in a competitive marketplace.  UI improvements are coming (true Bind on Account Heirlooms!), popular add-ons being integrated into the UI (random mount, battleground timers), and NEW and stunning character models.  Oh yeah let’s not forget Blizzard’s take on player housing is coming too! <div id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:6791a1b4-4487-497b-a7f4-9dcb2e7b3919" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" style="float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px"><div><object height="480" width="853"><param name="movie" value="//www.youtube.com/v/OYueIdI_2L0?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="//www.youtube.com/v/OYueIdI_2L0?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="853" height="480" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div></div> Initial reaction here was meh, but digging deeper I’m deeply interested because let’s face it, I’m a lore junkie.  I think they took the easy way out and reworked old, familiar favorite characters from past Warcraft games but at the same time, they are bringing the past to bear on the present.  I didn’t play the RTS games but I know that the MMO I play today is based on what happened in those previous games and thus I’m looking forward to meeting the current day iterations of those beloved characters from RTS games.  Do I think they need to clear up some of the time travel that isn’t time travel confusion, oh yeah.  I think the potential is there, especially on the lore front.  Orc history, Draenei history, Ogres, and the incredibly juxtaposition of Thrall and Garrosh going back in time to meet their parents with affecting the timeline that we all know. <a href="http://www.heroesofthestorm.com/en-gb" target="_blank">Heroes of the Storm</a> is the Blizzard entry into the rapidly expanding and incredible popular arena style of multiplayer game. <div id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:fe368bc6-2ab0-4348-b295-a6b451310ff0" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" style="float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px"><div><object height="480" width="853"><param name="movie" value="//www.youtube.com/v/lpjNhZsSh10?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="//www.youtube.com/v/lpjNhZsSh10?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="853" height="480" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div></div> Heroes is all about your favorite Blizzard multiverse characters into the same game.  Models for characters are familiar but different and game play looks fun, like a fast paced RTS with friends.  <a href="http://us.battle.net/hearthstone/en/" target="_blank">Hearthstone, Heroes of Warcraft</a> is the online card game that is set in the Warcraft Universe.  It has been in closed beta since August and open beta hits next month. <div id="scid:5737277B-5D6D-4f48-ABFC-DD9C333F4C5D:2f002524-810a-4486-8607-d8104831f218" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" style="float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px"><div><object height="480" width="853"><param name="movie" value="//www.youtube.com/v/QdXl3QtutQI?hl=en_US&version=3"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="//www.youtube.com/v/QdXl3QtutQI?hl=en_US&version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="853" height="480" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div></div> I’m in closed beta for Hearthstone, although I haven’t yet fired up the game.  It looks fun but at the same time I can’t seem to find any excitement on interest for an online card game.  Maybe I’m too old?  Also announced was the game will be coming to apple and android phones in beta form sometime next spring.  Overall, the first day left an overwhelming impression that Blizzard has spent more time listening to the player base and is more focused on creating games that their players want to play.  Hopefully, the trend continues and they follow through with that potential.  <div id="scid:0767317B-992E-4b12-91E0-4F059A8CECA8:f96b92d1-8857-4320-a917-b6fff8d3cc2a" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" style="float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px">Technorati Tags: <a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Blizzard" rel="tag">Blizzard</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/World+of+Warcraft" rel="tag">World of Warcraft</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/WOW" rel="tag">WOW</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Diable+III" rel="tag">Diable III</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Heroes+of+the+Storm" rel="tag">Heroes of the Storm</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Hearthstone" rel="tag">Hearthstone</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/World+of+Draenor" rel="tag">World of Draenor</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Reaper+of+Souls" rel="tag">Reaper of Souls</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/player+housing" rel="tag">player housing</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/PvP" rel="tag">PvP</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/transmog" rel="tag">transmog</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/lore" rel="tag">lore</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/UI" rel="tag">UI</a></div>

Blizzard Diablo 3 Hearthstone Heroes of the Storm Housing MMO mobile World of Warcraft WOW BlizzCon 2013: Initial Impressions

There was much goodness revealed at BlizzCon yesterday. An expansion for Warcraft, cinematics for Heroes of the Storm, Hearthstone open bet...

Housing problems still not solved, 50 years later

2:39 PM Tukiyooo 0

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9PX6qY0mepF__1IF0wh05ry4BN3rc83euyJSrSPIa7X1Lo9cMVtzRDdyfOw8YT2P8fauD0T_fFOpXNSvT4MbfsWoEgDgBBFuP1zk6CW7O5dyDrH6bz-6iRuau_ZIZVCUKBAuu43pph8d/s1600/kids+in+bad+neighborhoods.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9PX6qY0mepF__1IF0wh05ry4BN3rc83euyJSrSPIa7X1Lo9cMVtzRDdyfOw8YT2P8fauD0T_fFOpXNSvT4MbfsWoEgDgBBFuP1zk6CW7O5dyDrH6bz-6iRuau_ZIZVCUKBAuu43pph8d/s320/kids+in+bad+neighborhoods.png" width="279" /></a></div>Today is the 50thanniversary of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.  Marchers, including Teamsters from across the country, gathered in Washington, DC to call attention to civil rights issues, especially the need for good jobs for all people.  This series focuses on how well (or not) our society has met the 50-year-old demands of the marchers. So far, we’ve discussed <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/08/minimum-wage-lower-today.html">the decline of the minimum wages</a>, <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/08/port-drivers-regressed-since-1963.html">gaps in labor law protections</a>, <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/08/march-on-washington-jobs.html">underwhelming federal focus on job training programs</a>, and <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/08/education-goals-not-met-after-march.html">the impact of continuing segregation in schools</a>. Between the struggle for better jobs and political freedom was a fight that hit closer to home. Marchers demanded access to equal housing opportunities, as African-Americans across the country struggled to find affordable and safe housing equivalent to the options that white households had. They demanded that the president sign “an Executive Order banning discrimination in all housing supported by federal funds” and that decent housing would be guaranteed to all Americans in a “comprehensive and effective civil rights legislation from the present Congress.” Discriminatory housing was so prevalent across the country that a satellite protest for the March on Washington in Seattle <a href="http://www.seattle.gov/CityArchives/Exhibits/Housing/panel7.htm">focused exclusively on expanding open housing</a>. In response to public pressure, both demands were met – and exceeded. The Civil Rights Act was expanded in 1968 <a href="http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/programdescription/title6">to guard against racial, sexist, religious, and other forms of discrimination</a> in all sectors of the housing market. <a href="http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp/FHLaws">Various executive orders</a> have also strengthened the federal government’s commitment to ending housing discrimination. Today, the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Fair Housing Program focuses on providing equal access to housing for all Americans. Although housing discrimination is now illegal, segregated communities are commonplace, especially in denser areas. Cities have been devastated by the housing crisis that began with banks' predatory lending and concluded with aggressive, often illegal foreclosures. The <a href="http://www.ncrc.org/images/stories/pdf/research/ncrc_foreclosurewhitepaper_2011.pdf">National Community Reinvestment Coalition</a> reports that more than 10.5 million properties went into foreclosure in the 53 months beginning January 1, 2007. And, <blockquote class="tr_bq">...up to 12 million more foreclosures were projected from the fourth quarter of 2008 to 2014... .As of December 12, 2010, 1,762,694 borrowers were seriously delinquent (i.e., over 60 days delinquent, or over 30 days delinquent in case of bankruptcy) ... The total equity lost by families with recently foreclosed properties is estimated at $5.6 trillion... In addition, an estimated $502 billion in property value has been lost due to nearby foreclosures.... The effects of the economic crisis have been enormous, both nationally and globally, and the confidence Americans once had in homeownership as a path to wealth has been shaken. Current and future generations will be impacted for decades to come.</blockquote>Fifty years after protesting for an end to housing discrimination in the city, a 2011 fair housing test in Seattle found that <a href="http://www.seattle.gov/civilrights/Documents/2011FairHousingTestingReportfinal.pdf">over half of the properties tested showed evidence of illegal discrimination</a>. Two-thirds of properties gave better terms to white homebuyers and renters. The US Department of Justice says on its website that: <div><blockquote class="tr_bq">Race discrimination in housing continues to be a problem. The majority of the Justice Department's pattern or practice cases involve claims of race discrimination. Sometimes, housing providers try to disguise their discrimination by giving false information about availability of housing, either saying that nothing was available or steering homeseekers to certain areas based on race.Because potential homeowners are often not aware of the manipulation, it becomes very difficult to fight the discrimination.</blockquote>Regardless of how illegal housing discrimination has been for decades, <a href="http://www.s4.brown.edu/us2010/Data/Report/report0727.pdf">race is still more predictive of housing status than income</a>. African-American, American Indian, and Latino children are <a href="http://www.aecf.org/~/media/Pubs/Initiatives/KIDS%20COUNT/D/DataSnapshotonHighPovertyCommunities/KIDSCOUNTDataSnapshot_HighPovertyCommunities.pdf">between six and nine times more likely</a> than white children to live in areas with a high concentration of poverty. Forty-five percent of black children live in areas where over one in three people live in poverty, while only 12 percent of white children live in similar areas. The effects are very clear. Neighborhoods with high levels of poverty have <a href="http://www.aecf.org/~/media/Pubs/Topics/Economic%20Security/Asset%20and%20Wealth%20Development/TheReEmergenceofConcentratedPovertyMetropolitanTrendinthe2000s/reemergence_of%20concentrated%20poverty_kneebone_nadeau_berube.pdf">fewer educational opportunities, higher crime rates and higher costs for private investment and businesses</a> – exactly where families do not want to live. Continued housing discrimination, especially a generation after the government supposedly solved it, is a disgrace. It is time to march again. </div>

foreclosure crisis Housing March on Washington Housing problems still not solved, 50 years later

Today is the 50 th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Marchers, including Teamsters from across the country,...

What keeps me long term interested in playing & coming back to ANY game?

8:50 AM Tukiyooo 0

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfNgxXcSOlQJLtVsx0gtMFOM_GLQnKHEYW88ecBy8DKINDUSEMOpDtTLRcY1HmiiGhmKIwRL9kBhvBd7DM1E0j_qn72K6X52a8G-uJxVvivmN-jKFnc4YHViWBBZr38o6r5RhyeLfFPxlC/s1600-h/ScreenShot00015%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img alt="ScreenShot00015" border="0" height="476" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-6271Xe66qNw/UbnqQ6PtIHI/AAAAAAAAC90/ok5x-J7xVt4/ScreenShot00015_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline" title="ScreenShot00015" width="844"></a> I’ve thought about this a lot recently and we will completely discount story for this posting because if any game doesn’t have a great story then there is no chance of keeping me interested for any length of time. Games must have housing and wardrobe appearance slots.  These two items alone make all the difference in my long term interest in any game. I played <a href="http://www.elderscrolls.com/oblivion/" target="_blank">Oblivion</a> eons and ages ago on the XBox 360, heck it was my introduction to the Elder Scrolls IP.  It may not have had the detailed customization options that <a href="http://www.elderscrolls.com/morrowind/" target="_blank">Morrowind</a> had, which my husband still laments to this day, but I knew I could log-in and my character had a house where she could catch a nap, brew some potions, or just spend the rest of eternity safely.  <a href="www.everquest2.com" target="_blank">Everquest II</a> has done housing and housing customization the flat out best I’ve ever seen in any game.  The options for housing are seemingly endless and the developers, and now the community, continually add to the housing diversity.  All of my EQ2 characters share one house, which I must admit I love.  They’ve all got their alters to their particular gods and their trophies from questing.  I love the pillows strewn about the floor and the critters that roam the home.  <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9J1NyNxM-DdVoeiK8pwyiYXVd_AlrhxebUmFiK6I13lJNdnzQ79RLcLdV5yIrhcFYXSzH0-WmUrzfTAZ9JtoQ4MNacvbLlTlf0y2xKyBxggwOMb-m9FmAVaC2uWnqC_rnJwaC-T99sd_d/s1600-h/EQ2_000013%25255B3%25255D.png"><img alt="EQ2_000013" border="0" height="476" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-Uauz2zSn-cc/UbnqRlQWLFI/AAAAAAAAC-E/WmNSUCY2Wsg/EQ2_000013_thumb%25255B1%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline" title="EQ2_000013" width="844"></a> <a href="www.lotro.com" target="_blank">Lord of the Rings Online</a> has a good wardrobe system as does Everquest II (appearance clothing).  However, neither game does it perfectly.  Both have stunningly beautiful armor and clothing models that my characters drool over but they both suffer from the same flaw.  No game offers enough wardrobe space to make it expansive enough to switch outfits as often as I’d like.  <a href="www.thesecretworld.com" target="_blank">The Secret World</a> has a pretty good wardrobe system which is perfect for a game set in the modern world with modern clothing, but a lot of their clothing is geared to a much younger player and none of my characters particularly want to walk around in what I consider slutty clothing.  <a href="http://www.riftgame.com/en/" target="_blank">Rift</a> now offers a decent amount of wardrobe slots for in-game currency or real life cash.  Problem is none of my characters are that rich in-game and I’m not spending real life money on wardrobe slots. <a href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-m_fjHBrtWi4/UbnqSKhK_LI/AAAAAAAAC-I/4UY8EhsvmOI/s1600-h/EQ2_000124%25255B4%25255D.png"><img alt="EQ2_000124" border="0" height="364" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-4y7YWZhAWlA/UbnqSozGe8I/AAAAAAAAC-U/LAX_BCb0Nnc/EQ2_000124_thumb%25255B2%25255D.png?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline" title="EQ2_000124" width="644"></a> I love the look of this NPC in Everquest II. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB5FCAPbDtrxll1vamAdiBCBMNWlCp_X27WN7zVpWOLVdRzj3p1z8xQedPrgd-_xNAGdlAcuBYFdP1aGmKJ9Zg8XUow0f-m_QbacJpn8AnAWL5em931DFrt2YsxVYXaNxgwMRPz5Mwpprh/s1600-h/ScreenShot00022%25255B3%25255D.jpg"><img alt="ScreenShot00022" border="0" height="364" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-1JZWt6-fgHs/UbnqTedsaII/AAAAAAAAC-k/plmjso8brig/ScreenShot00022_thumb%25255B1%25255D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; display: inline" title="ScreenShot00022" width="644"></a> My Guardian Hobbit in LOTRO never wears shoes but she does love a jaunty hat and on this fine day in Rivendell she was sporting her favorite hauberk. The one thing <a href="www.guildwars.com" target="_blank">Guild Wars</a> and <a href="www.guildwars2.com" target="_blank">Guild Wars 2</a> do better than any of their competitors, and the only thing in my opinion, is the dye system.  Collecting dyes and not having them be consumed on use is brilliant and perfect system.  Other games need to adopt this model.  Yes they might lose out on some revenue but they would undoubtedly make up that revenue from players like me that won’t purchase a single use dye. No game, to date, gets housing or wardrobe perfect.  Rift has a goodly number of wardrobe slots but dyes are consumed on use and they don’t have pink dyes.  Rift does have housing but it has yet to make an emotional connection with me.  The Secret World has a decent wardrobe closet but the clothes are too revealing and cannot be dyed.  Guild Wars 2 only has the dye system in it’s favor.  Everquest II has phenomenal and extensive housing but no dyes and limited wardrobe to one outfit.  My characters NEED many, many more wardrobe slots in <a href="https://www.everquestnext.com/" target="_blank">Everquest Next</a>!  The clothing and armor in the Everquest franchise is so well done and so varied texturally that limiting appearance clothing to one slot is simply criminal.  Lord of the Rings Online has beautiful clothing but dyes are consumed on use and wardrobe storage and slots are too limited.  LOTRO housing is also lacking in comparison with Everquest franchise.   <div id="scid:0767317B-992E-4b12-91E0-4F059A8CECA8:3353e5ee-7e96-4e8f-bb47-a725ef2d36e4" class="wlWriterEditableSmartContent" style="float: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin: 0px; display: inline; padding-right: 0px">Technorati Tags: <a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Everquest+II" rel="tag">Everquest II</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Everquest+Next" rel="tag">Everquest Next</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Lord+of+the+Rings+Online" rel="tag">Lord of the Rings Online</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/LOTRO" rel="tag">LOTRO</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/EQ2" rel="tag">EQ2</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/EQN" rel="tag">EQN</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/The+Secret+World" rel="tag">The Secret World</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/TSW" rel="tag">TSW</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Rift" rel="tag">Rift</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Guild+Wars+2" rel="tag">Guild Wars 2</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Guild+Wars" rel="tag">Guild Wars</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/housing" rel="tag">housing</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/clothing" rel="tag">clothing</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/wardrobe" rel="tag">wardrobe</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/dye" rel="tag">dye</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Oblivion" rel="tag">Oblivion</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Morrowind" rel="tag">Morrowind</a>,<a href="http://technorati.com/tags/Elder+Scrolls" rel="tag">Elder Scrolls</a></div>