Is Final Fantasy XIII Too Difficult?

Hey there.  Have you had a chance to play the latest game in the Final Fantasy series, Final Fantasy XIII?  I received it as a gift for my birthday but because I recently purchased a new XBOX 360, I haven't had a chance to dig into the game.  Until now, that is.

I've been having this week long discussion with my compa in regards to the difficulty of the game.  He's played it a lot longer than I so he's farther along in the game.  We're both die hard fans of the series and have been through the majority of the games.  I've missed out on some of the DS and PSP titles.  Anyways, he's had some quips about the difficulty of the game and the battle system that it introduces.

FFXIII introduces a new battle system which emphasizes on strategy more than the accustomed "menu-select action-wait your turn- Active Time Battle" system.  Since the days of the NES version, fans grew used to having an enemy wait until you've inputted your commands before the battle starts, and with FFXII, they introduced a more "active" battle where you were allowed to move your character during battle, but the stopping of the action was still present while you were allowed to access the menus and select commands.  In FFXIII, there is no stopping of the battle while you select commands.  This is a huge shift for most Final Fantasy fans and from what I see, many are having a difficult time adjusting.

Because the action is continuous, you must be quick in selecting commands.  Another aspect that makes the game more difficult is that you no longer can control the actions of your party members.  You are responsible for your own character and hope that your team will take the appropriate actions during battle.  Now...  not all is left to chance.  You do select a paradigm (which is the equivalent of jobs) for each character and that character will take that role and act accordingly.  A three paradigm set can include a medic, commando, and ravager (other paradigms are also available but to simplify things, I'll only mention these three) which would be the equivalent of a white mage, knight, and black mage respectively.  The difference in FFXIII is that you'll only be able to command one of the characters and hope that your party members fulfill their roles.  This method involves more strategy than just being stronger than your enemy and pummel it to death and in my eyes, it creates a more realistic battle where your team goes in for the attack with specific roles.

Now, I'm still in the "honeymoon" stage of the game where the battles are not too hard, but not are easy either.  I'm not at the level where gamers are complaining of the difficulty.  Nevertheless, I feel as if the shift in the battle system is what irks them the most.  They can no longer go into a battle and then act accordingly.  FFXIII forces you plan your method of attack BEFORE you head out into battle.  If the game does get difficult in the up and coming chapters, I'm looking forward to the challenge!  But until then, later!

I Apparently Was A Jerk to my Future Wife when we First Met Club

Hey there. The ideas rush in, but you don't know, or simply can't put them down on paper... That's where I stand right now. I don't go several days without posting something, but I've found myself doing it more and more this past month. I don't know if it's because I'm not spending as much time on my site as I have in the past or because I over think my posts. I have many things that I would like to write about, yet I can't seem to find the way to express them. A friend's wedding on a boat this weekend was a cool event. Blogging gold for most, yet I can't find the right set of words to express that experience to the world. If anything, I do want to congratulate the groom for joining a pretty prestigious group of husbands. Welcome to the "I apparently was a jerk to my future wife when we first met" club.

When I heard the story during the wedding, I laughed to myself and I got a look from the wife. Similar story, slightly different situation. Nevertheless groom, you were a jerk in your bride's eye and that label will forever stick with you til your dying day. lol So right now, the club has two members, you and I... but I'm sure that wives across the world are saying that club members should be in the millions. Tell me your "jerk" stories. Here's mine.

When I first started working at my place of employment and met my wife, I was new to the office game. Never really worked in an office environment before (filing doesn't count) and I was still working my way on learning how to use the equipment. One day, while out at the copier... I was struggling to make what seemed to be a million copies. My soon to be wife approached me and asked if I needed help with the copier. And that point in time, I gathered all the romance in body and said, "I think I know how to use the copier." Bam! Sparks flying everywhere... So much so that the soon to be wife had to leave the room it was soooo electric! lmao! So yeah, I got the cold shoulder and the silent treatment for the next couple of weeks, if not months, but before you know it, we were on speaking terms again, living together, and then married.

Yup, that's MY jerk story. Would love to hear yours. Until then, later!

PS Congrats you two! Wish you guys nothing but the best!!!

Camping with Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson decide to take a break from solving mysteries and decided that they needed to go on a camping trip.  While at camp, they drink up and have a hearty meal before packing it in for a relaxing night under the stars.

Some hours later, Sherlock wakes up and nudges his trusty friend.

"Watson... wake up.  Look up at the sky and tell me what you see."

Watson, still in a slight daze stares up at the sky and says, "I see millions of beautiful stars."

"And what does that tell you, Watson.", Sherlock pressed on.

Watson thought for a second and looked at Sherlock and said, "Well...  Astronomically, it tells me that there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets.  Astrologically, it tells me that Saturn is in Leo.  Horologically, it tells me that it's approximately a quarter past 2 AM.  Theologically, it tells me that God is omnipotent and we are all small and insignificant.  Meterorolgically, it tells me that w may have a beautiful day tomorrow.  Why?  What does it tell you?"

Sherlock looks at Watson and takes in all that he has said.

"Watson, you never cease to amaze me.  You were able to gather all that information yet you missed the one thing that is right under your nose."

"And what's that?" Watson asked.

"Watson, you idiot!  It tells me that someone has stolen our tent!"

Don't Throw Away that Broken Camera/Camcorder

Hey there.  Ever dropped a camera or camcorder and then it stopped working properly or stopped working altogether?  It's happened to me and it sucks.  You dish out a couple hundred bucks for a quality machine and then have them go down the drain when the camera jumps out of your hand and crashes to the floor.  Luckily for me, my camera just needed a few days to recover and then it started working again.  For others, though... I feel your pain.  That's why I just wanted to share a site where you guys can go and get your camera or camcorder repaired.  Go to Teleplan for all your camera repair needs.  It's pretty cool since you can track the status of your repair online and before you commit to sending it there, you can get a free quote to make sure you're more than happy with the price.  You can't go wrong by shopping around and it's better to get your camera repaired than to spend another couple hundred on a new camera or camcorder.  Later!

Top Commentators for the Month of May

Hey there. Thanks for all you guys that stop by to read and comment on the nonsense that I post on a somewhat daily basis. I missed more than a few days in May but that didn't stop the comments from coming. For those of you not familiar, I run a monthly contest here were the top 3 commentators receive a cash prize (via PayPal) for leaving relevant comments. $5 USD for the #1 spot and $2.50 USD for the remaining 2. So, let's get to it!

$5.00 - Silvergirl
$2.50 - Enigmageek
$2.50 - Alison

Congrats, guys!  You win money!  You also get a month free on my blogroll so you'll get additional exposure for you site/blog.  Keep the comments coming friends and you too can be $5.00 or $2.50 dollars richer!  lol  Later!

IZEA, Inc. Introduces WeReward

 This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.

Hey there friends.  IZEA has done it again!  From the guys that brought you SponsoredTweets and SocialSpark, they bring to you WeReward.com
The innovative way to earn rewards to do the things that we love to do best, go out and enjoy the town!

You simply Download the App via iTunes or your iPhone and browse for tasks.  WeReward will display tasks that can be done within your neighborhood.  If you're in the mood for sushi, you can browse the tasks on the application for participating sushi locations.  You take on the task and then you eat at the location.  Snap a pic of yourself enjoying it and rate the establishment.  That's it!  This particular task could be worth, let's lay, 500 points.  Where 1 point is equal to 1 cent. So technically, you just made $5 eating lunch.  Sweet!  And you can cash out once you have accumulated 1000 pts ($10.00)  After hanging out and accepting tasks, you'll have enough points to convert them into cash (paid via PayPal) in no time.  It's really that easy.  Going to the movies?  Look for a task.  Amusement park?  Look for a task.  Shopping at your local retail chain?  Look for a task.  And since you can't take a pic of you eating a movie ticket (unless you're that kinda person, lol) you can snap a pic of your receipt as proof of your visit.  This would also be considered as "checking in".  This is one of the only user generated communities where people, just like you, are rating the same establishments that you're about to check out and you know that the reviews are legit since they will be verified by the iPhone's GPS record and the photo that you take.  There is no hearsay, these users actually went there to check it out!

So, what would you need to cash in?  Well, first and foremost... the application is only available for the iPhone so you must have one of those.  The account will also need to link to Twitter or Facebook so an account there will also be necessary.  Lastly, since we are in a tech savvy world, you will need a PayPal account to get paid.  That's it!  It's free to check out so why not Download the App and check it out.  With over 15 Million businesses involved, you're definitely going to find a task available in your area or a retail store where you can check in too!  Now go and get those rewards!  Later!