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star_ocean_fanAnd, once upon a time, Mondays were for conversation topics, fanfiction writing tips, and convention talk. Of course, naturally, everything started to fizzle because of the following:
1 - I haven't played First Departure, Second Story/Second Evolution, or Blue Sphere. I'd have a wealth of more ideas if I'd played those games already. Sadly, I do not have the following to make any of this happen:
a convertor for the SNES - I own the original Japanese version of Star Ocean, but the cartridge doesn't fit my console. I also don't speak or read Japanese just yet;
a copy of Second Story - you might think I need the PS1 or a PS3 (if the game can be downloaded from the Sony website) but I don't. I'm pretty sure I could play the game on my PS2 as long as I have a PS1 memory card (which I do have) so all I need is a copy;
a copy of Blue Sphere - I could play this on my sister's Nintendo 3DS. Alas, like with the original copy of Star Ocean, I do not speak or read Japanese;
a PSP - I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but I own the PSP versions of the first two Star Ocean games. I just need a PSP to play, and I'm not required to speak or read Japanese to play.
2 - There are only so many fanfiction writing tips that I can write without me sounding like an overbearing, bossy brat on how to write an excellent fanfic. At some point, those who want to write fanfiction need to just start writing. Star Ocean fanfiction, as a whole, is only going to be moderately received, even with the release of a new game, if there is a release of a new game.
3 - There's only so much that can be written about conventions as well. I've not been an avid con-goer for the last several years so I'm pretty much new to the whole thing once again. I'll be learning as I go once more.
Now, with all of that said, time to resume everything once more.
*************************************************************************************
Fanfiction Writing Tip #6 - Trust Yourself and Your Instincts
Recently, through a different account, I had someone contact me about idea and character sharing (which I'm not necessarily interested in doing - I'll turn on my diva side here in a little bit). Some time passed, and the same person contacted me again about reading over the initial fanfiction idea to see if it passes whatever because I happened to be something of a Star Ocean something. (I forget the exact phrasing. It was a compliment, I'm sure, but I'm already wary of this person as it is.)
I am going to take this moment to reiterate another tip from last October: Do not compare yourself to someone who is already established as a fanfiction author, more than especially if you're going to run on the self-deprecating side instead of the more positive side of writing. I cannot press upon the importance of this enough. Yes, this author may have a great following of readers. Yes, that author may produce wonderfully written pieces that stir great emotion within your heart and inspire you to do the same thing. But this author and that author have done ONE thing that you, as a new writer, may not have done: they started to write. They trusted their abilities well enough to open that word document and start an outline, start the first chapter, or whatever approach s/he finds best. At some point, all of the best advice in the world is going to screw with your head, and you're going to doubt yourself and your abilities.
Just start writing.
If you're a review whore, here are some things to take note of: The Star Ocean fandom is small. You're not going to receive a crapload of reviews, no matter which fanfiction site you post your stories to, be it FFN, AO3, deviantArt, adultfanfiction, or your own website. There are also no guarantees that if you chose to write in a larger fandom - Hetalia, Final Fantasy VII, Inuyasha, Gundam Wing, etc . . . - that you will receive a crapload of reviews because of the volume of stories either being updated or added on a daily basis. You might get lucky and gain five reviews and two followers. You might not gain anything at all. That's just how fanfiction works.
That said, just keep writing. No one else is going to tell your story the way that you want it told.
Trust yourself and trust your instincts.
*************************************************************************************
The Diva In Me
Now for my diva side when it comes to fanfiction: Yes, I am something of a snob from time to time. I do not like being approached by others with things and characters they think will enhance my stories. I used to listen to others and politely reject their ideas because said ideas just didn't jive with what I was doing. Heck, I really don't even like people asking me to read their stuff because I often have a feeling I know what they're after from me: reviews of praise and glory and not necessarily the constructive criticism I tend to hand out if I review at all.
Will I accept ideas from others? No. I might adopt a plotbunny on occasion, I might do the occasional fanfic trade, or I might see something another has written and think I can do better than that. However, I do not accept ideas for my works or for future stories. Why? Because it will never completely jive with what the other person wants, especially if that person refuses to acknowledge I have creative license with any and all ideas and characters presented to me.
A lot of this is because I'm actually jaded when it comes to fanfiction. Yes, there is the possibility I may like this fanfiction or that idea or character, but there's also the chance I may not, and if you want my input, you'll get what you need from me, not what you want.
And it sounds very harsh. It sounds very standoffish on my part, and some of that I can't help. Granted, I wrote fanfiction in the 5th and 6th grades and a little throughout high school as well, but this was before the widespread use of the internet. I don't even have those stories anymore (though I wish I did.) I didn't resume writing anything until 2000. Yes, I've experienced some dry spells, but I'm still attempting to write. And 2000 is also when I started to share what I'd written with others. I've experienced the whole range for reviews, from a lack to a modest few to having a very popular piece where people like to say "f-cking update soon or ill kill you". I've also received "exuberant" reviews telling me how to proceed with a possible chapter to a one-shot. I've experienced it all, it feels like, and I'm sure the experiences will just keep coming.
The other thing, too, is something I need to remind myself of constantly: Be careful what you wish for. You may just get it.
To put it this way: Say, you ask someone (not necessarily me) to read your story or to listen to your wonderful idea and OCs, and that person accepts. What happens then when said person leaves a scathing review of your story or flat out calls your wonderful idea and OCs crap? You might feel offended and say to yourself, "Oh, well that person just doesn't know genius if they see it" . . . Remember, you asked the author for his/her honest input, and said person has agreed to do just that. Said person has just taken a great deal of time s/he could have spent on writing or reading something else s/he enjoys instead of on your piece. If you do ask, the inquiry accepted, you will receive what you've asked for: honest input. And here's where I will be truly mean and say: If you can't handle the honesty, if you can't handle that your story isn't the greatest thing to ever grace the internet or that your ideas and characters aren't the best things ever, get out of fanfiction writing now. There is no such thing as the perfect story for every reader. There is no such thing as the perfect character. There is no such thing as writing perfectly every single time. There are no awards and accolades for fanfiction writers - not unless the stories become officially licensed. When it comes to writing, there is always room for improvement. As a someone who has intimidated other fans for being so prolific and so vocal on things (and therefore been called a diva by a now former friend), I can say this with certainty. I took the prologue for Destinies Intertwined by Fate to a writer's forum that allows people to post fanfiction. I posted it for the critiques and found where I'd been lacking in certain parts of the story, and wow! Yes, I know I'm good, but I also know I can always keep improving. Believe me, honest input can be very hard to take, even when you know you thrive on the constructive criticism. So remember, just because you're not being told what you want to hear on your fanfiction, doesn't mean it isn't what you need to hear. Just take the time to improve your skills. Despite the amount of crap that gets glowing praise, other readers will thank you for it. If you can't handle that the person you've asked to read your story or to listen to your ideas doesn't like what you've written or doesn't want to use your ideas, you have no business writing. And trying to influence writers to do what you want and not what they want is just flat-out lame. (This goes back to today's writing tip. Just write it yourself if it's something you really want to see done.)
So if you plan on approaching me, or any other fanfiction author out there, about reading your fanfic or with ideas for stories, please do so with caution and expect at least one person out there to reject you right off the bat. It really isn't anything personal. We do have things in our real lives that require our attention. We have bad days. The only time it's personal is if you've left a really bad impression on us and have proven that you're more interested in what you can gain from us instead of understanding why we've rejected you in the first place.
This concludes my diva session, which I hope is really my only one. Because, really, I don't want to have someone recommend something to me, ask to run ideas by me, and then end up in another argument over why I'm apparently wrong or mean and why the other person is right to insist that things be the way they say. Been there, done that. Don't want to relive it. If being mean every so often is what takes to get that point across, then I'll just have to live with that. I don't like the fallout, but I'm very passionate about writing. I want fanfiction writers out there to do the very best that they can, to tell the best stories that they can, and understand that not everyone will like what they do. It's true what they say: You can't please everyone.
*************************************************************************************
Conversation Topic - Why Did It Take Symbological Genetics So Long to Become a Field of Study?
I'm not sure I've touched on this before (I really need to go through and compile a list of all the conversation topics I've done since 2012) so if I have, I apologize. But has anyone wondered why it took a little over seven hundred years for Symbological Genetics to become a field of study? Not just for humans but for the entire universe? Remember, Robert Leingod is the leading authority on the subject and the pioneer of the field. They establish as much in the game with the Vendeeni taking him (and Sophia) hostage and hunting Fayt from one end of the universe to another.
I bring this up (again, possibly) because symbology does appear in The Last Hope. The first human to (allegedly) use symbology is Edge. Now I understand why symbological genetics may not have taken off in the new calender year (by this, I mean the year ending in S.D. instead of A.D.) - with Edge as the only human capable of using symbology, he may not have told anyone about it. I don't think he'd relish the idea of being a guinea pig once more (though the injection of alien D.N.A. explains how he's able to use and learn Symbology). Not helping this is Lemuris being declared an underdeveloped planet along with Roak, the Eldarians forsaking their technology to live there, and the Morphus disappearing into space once more. It isn't for another three hundred years, when the stone sickness returns on Roak, that symbology even becomes an issue once more. (Ronyx apparently learned it when he's tossed back into the past to defeat Asmodeus - that's according to the Star Ocean wikia so if that's incorrect, someone please let me know.) The first three hundred years are covered, providing Edge and Reimi after their nuptials (yes - that's apparently canon if you get Reimi's ending) never have any children (and I have my doubts about her ability to conceive) and providing the human race doesn't encounter any more symbologically-inclined alien races.
But what about after those three hundred years? Yes, it is mentioned in Till the End of Time about books on symbology - if you talk with the flirt on the beach and either claim to not know Sophia or say she's like your little sister, you find out the title of at least one well renowned book because it's something Sophia is "lusting" after because Fayt offers to give his dad's copy to her - but still Robert Leingod (along with his wife) is the leading and only authority on symbological genetics.
Till the End of Time's in-game dictionary does give some insight as to why no one else has touched the subject of symbological genetics - religious and ethical groups. These are also the same people who are responsible for why Robert's experiments on Fayt, Maria, and Sophia are forbidden: They don't want "super" humans to be created and thus perhaps bring down the wrath of God/the Creator/what-have-you upon them. (The reason for their reasons, I'm inclined to believe, have nothing to do with the experiments done on Crowe, Edge, and Reimi as only a select few seemed to know about that. Those experiments were such closely guarded secrets, I'm surprised Reimi's parents had the courage to tell her when they did and under those circumstances.)
This isn't to say symbology wasn't studied over four centuries. The more space is explored, new races encountered, and new tech developed, the exposure symbology gets. All Robert really did was combine the study of symbology with genetic-engineering, which took a lot of years of studying, I'm sure. It just amazes me no one does it sooner.
Thoughts on how come this took so long?
*************************************************************************************
Convention Talk - Going it Alone
If you've never gone to a convention before but would like to, you may want to make your first venture to one a solo one. There are some good reasons behind this:
1 - You won't feel obligated to hang around the people you may end up carpooling with. This gives you the opportunity to explore the hotel/convention center where the event is being held without influence from others.
2 - You can talk to other people without feeling rushed.
3 - You can attend the panels you want.
4 - You get that newbie's first time experience without influene from others.
Now, this isn't to say you can't do that if you carpool with people you've known for a very long time or have just met over the internet. Because, really, you can. But traveling by yourself can free things up for you if you're unsure of what to do. Yes, there are risks to traveling alone, the least of which is incurring all of your travel and hotel costs. In this day and age, though, most people who are traveling tend to have cellphones.
Of course, how you travel to a convention is entirely up to you, the new con attendee. The size of the convention also makes a difference. Over the course of the next few weeks, I'll weigh the pros and cons of traveling with others for first time attendees as well as the larger vs. smaller conventions for first timers.
*************************************************************************************
The PS4 Release
One of the last times I mentioned a new release for Star Ocean, which is currently a mobile phone game for Japanese residents, I commented on how the release of the PS4 could mean a new Star Ocean game. This is something we've looking forward for since the last game's release. I know I am, but, at the same time, I'm experiencing some trepidation about the new system's release. Here's why:
According to what my brother has heard (and he's not heard any differently as of yet), it will cost players $5 a month to play the games for the new PS4 console. From the sounds of it, Sony is going to require all players to connect to their server in order to play any games, be they downloaded or an actual hard copy. This is in addition to paying for the console itself.
This isn't striking me as necessarily a good thing because gamers are already paying close to $400 for the console. This doesn't include the average price of $40-$60 of brand new games. (New consoles don't have used games out until a few months or so into sales.) If a player only earns X dollars per month, the cost of the console and the games are nothing to sneeze at. Add onto that another $60 per year just to play however many games a player decides to buy on top of the cost of the games? It does add up, and, for me, that $60 could go for something else - like a brand new game, the registration cost of a convention, etc . . . To me, it feels like gouging the customer, and no console is worth an additional $60 a year just for the privilege of playing.
*************************************************************************************
The Thirty-one Days of Halloween
This is very tentative on my part. As of right now, I would love to do something I'm calling the 31 Days of Halloween. What does this mean, you might ask? It means that, starting on October 1, I will post a Halloween-themed one-shot all the way through to the end of the month. I am not taking requests, and if I gift-fic a piece for someone, it will be posted as to who it's for in the author's notes. This is tentative and all dependent upon how much time I have to focus on writing as well as inspiration. Sometimes it's real easy to knock out a one-shot, sometimes it isn't. It really can be a hit or miss.
And that concludes today's entry! Have a wonderful Monday evening!
1 - I haven't played First Departure, Second Story/Second Evolution, or Blue Sphere. I'd have a wealth of more ideas if I'd played those games already. Sadly, I do not have the following to make any of this happen:
a convertor for the SNES - I own the original Japanese version of Star Ocean, but the cartridge doesn't fit my console. I also don't speak or read Japanese just yet;
a copy of Second Story - you might think I need the PS1 or a PS3 (if the game can be downloaded from the Sony website) but I don't. I'm pretty sure I could play the game on my PS2 as long as I have a PS1 memory card (which I do have) so all I need is a copy;
a copy of Blue Sphere - I could play this on my sister's Nintendo 3DS. Alas, like with the original copy of Star Ocean, I do not speak or read Japanese;
a PSP - I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but I own the PSP versions of the first two Star Ocean games. I just need a PSP to play, and I'm not required to speak or read Japanese to play.
2 - There are only so many fanfiction writing tips that I can write without me sounding like an overbearing, bossy brat on how to write an excellent fanfic. At some point, those who want to write fanfiction need to just start writing. Star Ocean fanfiction, as a whole, is only going to be moderately received, even with the release of a new game, if there is a release of a new game.
3 - There's only so much that can be written about conventions as well. I've not been an avid con-goer for the last several years so I'm pretty much new to the whole thing once again. I'll be learning as I go once more.
Now, with all of that said, time to resume everything once more.
*************************************************************************************
Fanfiction Writing Tip #6 - Trust Yourself and Your Instincts
Recently, through a different account, I had someone contact me about idea and character sharing (which I'm not necessarily interested in doing - I'll turn on my diva side here in a little bit). Some time passed, and the same person contacted me again about reading over the initial fanfiction idea to see if it passes whatever because I happened to be something of a Star Ocean something. (I forget the exact phrasing. It was a compliment, I'm sure, but I'm already wary of this person as it is.)
I am going to take this moment to reiterate another tip from last October: Do not compare yourself to someone who is already established as a fanfiction author, more than especially if you're going to run on the self-deprecating side instead of the more positive side of writing. I cannot press upon the importance of this enough. Yes, this author may have a great following of readers. Yes, that author may produce wonderfully written pieces that stir great emotion within your heart and inspire you to do the same thing. But this author and that author have done ONE thing that you, as a new writer, may not have done: they started to write. They trusted their abilities well enough to open that word document and start an outline, start the first chapter, or whatever approach s/he finds best. At some point, all of the best advice in the world is going to screw with your head, and you're going to doubt yourself and your abilities.
Just start writing.
If you're a review whore, here are some things to take note of: The Star Ocean fandom is small. You're not going to receive a crapload of reviews, no matter which fanfiction site you post your stories to, be it FFN, AO3, deviantArt, adultfanfiction, or your own website. There are also no guarantees that if you chose to write in a larger fandom - Hetalia, Final Fantasy VII, Inuyasha, Gundam Wing, etc . . . - that you will receive a crapload of reviews because of the volume of stories either being updated or added on a daily basis. You might get lucky and gain five reviews and two followers. You might not gain anything at all. That's just how fanfiction works.
That said, just keep writing. No one else is going to tell your story the way that you want it told.
Trust yourself and trust your instincts.
*************************************************************************************
The Diva In Me
Now for my diva side when it comes to fanfiction: Yes, I am something of a snob from time to time. I do not like being approached by others with things and characters they think will enhance my stories. I used to listen to others and politely reject their ideas because said ideas just didn't jive with what I was doing. Heck, I really don't even like people asking me to read their stuff because I often have a feeling I know what they're after from me: reviews of praise and glory and not necessarily the constructive criticism I tend to hand out if I review at all.
Will I accept ideas from others? No. I might adopt a plotbunny on occasion, I might do the occasional fanfic trade, or I might see something another has written and think I can do better than that. However, I do not accept ideas for my works or for future stories. Why? Because it will never completely jive with what the other person wants, especially if that person refuses to acknowledge I have creative license with any and all ideas and characters presented to me.
A lot of this is because I'm actually jaded when it comes to fanfiction. Yes, there is the possibility I may like this fanfiction or that idea or character, but there's also the chance I may not, and if you want my input, you'll get what you need from me, not what you want.
And it sounds very harsh. It sounds very standoffish on my part, and some of that I can't help. Granted, I wrote fanfiction in the 5th and 6th grades and a little throughout high school as well, but this was before the widespread use of the internet. I don't even have those stories anymore (though I wish I did.) I didn't resume writing anything until 2000. Yes, I've experienced some dry spells, but I'm still attempting to write. And 2000 is also when I started to share what I'd written with others. I've experienced the whole range for reviews, from a lack to a modest few to having a very popular piece where people like to say "f-cking update soon or ill kill you". I've also received "exuberant" reviews telling me how to proceed with a possible chapter to a one-shot. I've experienced it all, it feels like, and I'm sure the experiences will just keep coming.
The other thing, too, is something I need to remind myself of constantly: Be careful what you wish for. You may just get it.
To put it this way: Say, you ask someone (not necessarily me) to read your story or to listen to your wonderful idea and OCs, and that person accepts. What happens then when said person leaves a scathing review of your story or flat out calls your wonderful idea and OCs crap? You might feel offended and say to yourself, "Oh, well that person just doesn't know genius if they see it" . . . Remember, you asked the author for his/her honest input, and said person has agreed to do just that. Said person has just taken a great deal of time s/he could have spent on writing or reading something else s/he enjoys instead of on your piece. If you do ask, the inquiry accepted, you will receive what you've asked for: honest input. And here's where I will be truly mean and say: If you can't handle the honesty, if you can't handle that your story isn't the greatest thing to ever grace the internet or that your ideas and characters aren't the best things ever, get out of fanfiction writing now. There is no such thing as the perfect story for every reader. There is no such thing as the perfect character. There is no such thing as writing perfectly every single time. There are no awards and accolades for fanfiction writers - not unless the stories become officially licensed. When it comes to writing, there is always room for improvement. As a someone who has intimidated other fans for being so prolific and so vocal on things (and therefore been called a diva by a now former friend), I can say this with certainty. I took the prologue for Destinies Intertwined by Fate to a writer's forum that allows people to post fanfiction. I posted it for the critiques and found where I'd been lacking in certain parts of the story, and wow! Yes, I know I'm good, but I also know I can always keep improving. Believe me, honest input can be very hard to take, even when you know you thrive on the constructive criticism. So remember, just because you're not being told what you want to hear on your fanfiction, doesn't mean it isn't what you need to hear. Just take the time to improve your skills. Despite the amount of crap that gets glowing praise, other readers will thank you for it. If you can't handle that the person you've asked to read your story or to listen to your ideas doesn't like what you've written or doesn't want to use your ideas, you have no business writing. And trying to influence writers to do what you want and not what they want is just flat-out lame. (This goes back to today's writing tip. Just write it yourself if it's something you really want to see done.)
So if you plan on approaching me, or any other fanfiction author out there, about reading your fanfic or with ideas for stories, please do so with caution and expect at least one person out there to reject you right off the bat. It really isn't anything personal. We do have things in our real lives that require our attention. We have bad days. The only time it's personal is if you've left a really bad impression on us and have proven that you're more interested in what you can gain from us instead of understanding why we've rejected you in the first place.
This concludes my diva session, which I hope is really my only one. Because, really, I don't want to have someone recommend something to me, ask to run ideas by me, and then end up in another argument over why I'm apparently wrong or mean and why the other person is right to insist that things be the way they say. Been there, done that. Don't want to relive it. If being mean every so often is what takes to get that point across, then I'll just have to live with that. I don't like the fallout, but I'm very passionate about writing. I want fanfiction writers out there to do the very best that they can, to tell the best stories that they can, and understand that not everyone will like what they do. It's true what they say: You can't please everyone.
*************************************************************************************
Conversation Topic - Why Did It Take Symbological Genetics So Long to Become a Field of Study?
I'm not sure I've touched on this before (I really need to go through and compile a list of all the conversation topics I've done since 2012) so if I have, I apologize. But has anyone wondered why it took a little over seven hundred years for Symbological Genetics to become a field of study? Not just for humans but for the entire universe? Remember, Robert Leingod is the leading authority on the subject and the pioneer of the field. They establish as much in the game with the Vendeeni taking him (and Sophia) hostage and hunting Fayt from one end of the universe to another.
I bring this up (again, possibly) because symbology does appear in The Last Hope. The first human to (allegedly) use symbology is Edge. Now I understand why symbological genetics may not have taken off in the new calender year (by this, I mean the year ending in S.D. instead of A.D.) - with Edge as the only human capable of using symbology, he may not have told anyone about it. I don't think he'd relish the idea of being a guinea pig once more (though the injection of alien D.N.A. explains how he's able to use and learn Symbology). Not helping this is Lemuris being declared an underdeveloped planet along with Roak, the Eldarians forsaking their technology to live there, and the Morphus disappearing into space once more. It isn't for another three hundred years, when the stone sickness returns on Roak, that symbology even becomes an issue once more. (Ronyx apparently learned it when he's tossed back into the past to defeat Asmodeus - that's according to the Star Ocean wikia so if that's incorrect, someone please let me know.) The first three hundred years are covered, providing Edge and Reimi after their nuptials (yes - that's apparently canon if you get Reimi's ending) never have any children (and I have my doubts about her ability to conceive) and providing the human race doesn't encounter any more symbologically-inclined alien races.
But what about after those three hundred years? Yes, it is mentioned in Till the End of Time about books on symbology - if you talk with the flirt on the beach and either claim to not know Sophia or say she's like your little sister, you find out the title of at least one well renowned book because it's something Sophia is "lusting" after because Fayt offers to give his dad's copy to her - but still Robert Leingod (along with his wife) is the leading and only authority on symbological genetics.
Till the End of Time's in-game dictionary does give some insight as to why no one else has touched the subject of symbological genetics - religious and ethical groups. These are also the same people who are responsible for why Robert's experiments on Fayt, Maria, and Sophia are forbidden: They don't want "super" humans to be created and thus perhaps bring down the wrath of God/the Creator/what-have-you upon them. (The reason for their reasons, I'm inclined to believe, have nothing to do with the experiments done on Crowe, Edge, and Reimi as only a select few seemed to know about that. Those experiments were such closely guarded secrets, I'm surprised Reimi's parents had the courage to tell her when they did and under those circumstances.)
This isn't to say symbology wasn't studied over four centuries. The more space is explored, new races encountered, and new tech developed, the exposure symbology gets. All Robert really did was combine the study of symbology with genetic-engineering, which took a lot of years of studying, I'm sure. It just amazes me no one does it sooner.
Thoughts on how come this took so long?
*************************************************************************************
Convention Talk - Going it Alone
If you've never gone to a convention before but would like to, you may want to make your first venture to one a solo one. There are some good reasons behind this:
1 - You won't feel obligated to hang around the people you may end up carpooling with. This gives you the opportunity to explore the hotel/convention center where the event is being held without influence from others.
2 - You can talk to other people without feeling rushed.
3 - You can attend the panels you want.
4 - You get that newbie's first time experience without influene from others.
Now, this isn't to say you can't do that if you carpool with people you've known for a very long time or have just met over the internet. Because, really, you can. But traveling by yourself can free things up for you if you're unsure of what to do. Yes, there are risks to traveling alone, the least of which is incurring all of your travel and hotel costs. In this day and age, though, most people who are traveling tend to have cellphones.
Of course, how you travel to a convention is entirely up to you, the new con attendee. The size of the convention also makes a difference. Over the course of the next few weeks, I'll weigh the pros and cons of traveling with others for first time attendees as well as the larger vs. smaller conventions for first timers.
*************************************************************************************
The PS4 Release
One of the last times I mentioned a new release for Star Ocean, which is currently a mobile phone game for Japanese residents, I commented on how the release of the PS4 could mean a new Star Ocean game. This is something we've looking forward for since the last game's release. I know I am, but, at the same time, I'm experiencing some trepidation about the new system's release. Here's why:
According to what my brother has heard (and he's not heard any differently as of yet), it will cost players $5 a month to play the games for the new PS4 console. From the sounds of it, Sony is going to require all players to connect to their server in order to play any games, be they downloaded or an actual hard copy. This is in addition to paying for the console itself.
This isn't striking me as necessarily a good thing because gamers are already paying close to $400 for the console. This doesn't include the average price of $40-$60 of brand new games. (New consoles don't have used games out until a few months or so into sales.) If a player only earns X dollars per month, the cost of the console and the games are nothing to sneeze at. Add onto that another $60 per year just to play however many games a player decides to buy on top of the cost of the games? It does add up, and, for me, that $60 could go for something else - like a brand new game, the registration cost of a convention, etc . . . To me, it feels like gouging the customer, and no console is worth an additional $60 a year just for the privilege of playing.
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The Thirty-one Days of Halloween
This is very tentative on my part. As of right now, I would love to do something I'm calling the 31 Days of Halloween. What does this mean, you might ask? It means that, starting on October 1, I will post a Halloween-themed one-shot all the way through to the end of the month. I am not taking requests, and if I gift-fic a piece for someone, it will be posted as to who it's for in the author's notes. This is tentative and all dependent upon how much time I have to focus on writing as well as inspiration. Sometimes it's real easy to knock out a one-shot, sometimes it isn't. It really can be a hit or miss.
And that concludes today's entry! Have a wonderful Monday evening!
