Ready Player Geek

Recently, I picked up a new book called “Ready Player One” by Ernest Cline. It was recommended to me by a close friend whom I depend on for most of my literary recommendations. The book caught me by surprise. I had read a lot of books on video games. I had read a lot of books based on a dystopian world. I had also read a lot of books on the 80s culture. But Ernest Cline managed to somehow meld all the three genres together. And none of it seemed out of place.

The book is based on a dystopian world, caused due to energy crisis. In this world, people spend hours on the online simulation called OASIS created by James Halliday, the greatest geek to have ever lived. This simulation, which started off as a Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO), escalated to include all kind of real world experience from schooling to shopping. It had several original and all the virtual reality world ever created put together in a single universe. So great, that one could finally travel from Tatooine to Middle Earth. It was everything an all-round virtual reality could hope to be. Then, one day James Halliday passed away. And suddenly a few billion dollars was up for grabs. And the genius that Halliday was, he declared to the world that he had hid an egg in the game in a room which could be opened by 3 keys found on OASIS. Whoever found the egg would gain those few billion dollars. As is wont from humanity, a group of corporate cheaters started to take the game by storm. The egg hu8nters, also called gunters, were divided into two sides. Sixers, from the corporate company, and solo gunters who would make alliances sometimes. And their best clue was Halliday’s Alamanac, which consisted every minute detail of Halliday’s life. Yet, even after 5 years, no one had found even the first key. Interest in the competition waned. Until a school boy called Wade Watts found the copper key. And suddenly, he was on the run online, as well as offline. A race to the egg began.

Interesting, right? A thrilling plot, virtual reality, treasure hunt, and a LOT of 80’s reference. What more could one want. The entire story rose up to it’s reputation. It had a brilliant ending. It was one of those books that, when you finished it, you had an empty feeling in your heart. And then I went online.

Although many reviews were good, some were against the book. 2 major complaint. One was trivial, saying that the 80s reference looked forced. I did not pay attention to this one. The other one caught my eye. It was headed on the lines of “Do we really want to have such a future as described in Ready Player One”.

It asked whether we really wanted to end up in a world where people spend hours online in a virtual world. And end up forgetting the real one. Do we really want a world where people escape from reality, and lose all social skills?

My answer to that is, haven’t we already? Here we have a world, where you can be anybody you want. Doesn’t even have to be human. Be an elf, if you want. This world includes schools, and other facilities that you can have on websites, with a 3 dimensional effect to it. And if people spend hours online, it is because they want to escape reality. And why should we deny them that, when it is us as a race who has created such a world that humans themselves need to escape from. Why is virtual universes treated as such a taboo, especially when it is in a near-dystopian world? Virtual reality provides relief to the brain, along with an outlet of frustration. The lack of such outlets have given rise to crime in the human society. In a virtual world, you may be killed, maimed even, but none of these will reflect on your real world body. Isn’t that a safer way to live? Also, the only people who will lose track of reality are the people who have nothing to tether them to reality anyways. So isn’t it better they have a place where they can recreate their personalities and live a fruitful life.

The effects of living virtually can be argued. The pros and cons may be weighed. But as far as the fate of our world and humanity is concerned, it certainly doesn’t deserve the disdain it receives now.

Gotta Catch 'Em All

The internet is abuzz with a certain piece of news. The merging of the virtual and the real is scheduled to take place in early 2016, and the burden is taken upon by 2 of the highly dependable companies associated with the virtual space.

When I was in middle school, my evening TV shows had a certain quality. Whatever happened throughout the day, one could always find me in front of the TV at 5 in the evening. That would be the show timing for the famous anime Pokémon.  Created by Satoshi Tajiri in 1995, Pokémon hugely gained fan base. The series is about a guy named Ash Ketchum (not Ketchup), in an alternate universe called Poke World, filled with species called Pokémons. Humans have created devices called Poke Balls to capture and tame Pokémon. Some study the species, some battle other trainers using them. In such a world, our 10 years old protagonist dreams to be the best Pokémon trainer in the whole wide world, and sets out on a journey, with his first Pokémon Pikachu by his side, to visit different cities, defeat the city’s gym leader in Poke battles, and gain the gym badges, which gives him access to the Pokémon tournament of that district. On the way he meets different Pokémons and humans. Some, he manages to befriend, some he antagonizes.

A few Pokemon games through the years

Till date, 721 species of Pokémon have been discovered, divided into 6 generations. Although most of us were introduced to this franchise through the TV show, the franchise actually began as a Nintendo game called Pokémon Red/Blue. The protagonist Red/Blue would travel across the given district collecting badges, training and taming Pokémon and finally winning the tournament, all while being pestered by Team Rocket, trying to rule the world using Pokémons. This game hit all the correct chords and quickly rocketed to the top of the bestselling list, and for, 20 years, Nintendo managed to keep the franchise there, using their formidable skills as business managers, exceptional story telling skills, and an unnerving ability to bring something new to every new installment of the franchise, whether it be the TV show, or the new video game. Since 1995, the franchise has spread from Nintendo Gameboy and TV shows, to online MMORPGs, Wii, Xbox, PS, PC, 3DS, NDS, and several other platform. But now, Nintendo has taken this franchise to a whole different level altogether.

Since the airing of the show, most passionate viewers such us myself have wished, at some point in their life, that they lived in the Poke World. Nintendo took the words “Dream big, and make it come true” too literally. Come Spring 2016, Nintendo is set to release Pokémon Go, an app that simulates Pokémons in the real world. Point your camera at the street and you will be able to see if there is a Pokémons there. You will be able to catch them, battle them, and also battle other trainers. It will be like a virtual simulation that will meld the poke world and our world into one. Feeling bored on a journey? Whip out your phone and check for any Pokémon around, or play with the ones you caught. See a trainer nearby? Fight him. Trade Pokémons with your friend. Or just use their cry to escape class. Nothing like Ekans’ hiss to get you and your friends out of class.  All in all, if Nintendo and Niantic (not a part of Google anymore!) can pull this off properly, this will nearly double the Pokémon fan base, which even though is pretty huge, has since Pokémon Platinum decreased in number marginally, as a small percentage of the fandom feel that they are stretching the series too much. Pokémon Go Plus has an added device which will vibrate if there is any wild Pokémon nearby, and has a few buttons preset to do stuff like call on your favorite Pokémon or throw a PokéBall. Set to release this spring, it wil bring about a revolution in the fields of gaming, and virtual reality, as well as bring in new concepts to the fields of artificial intelligence and graphic designing.

Phone-shot of the alpha version of Pokemon Go

Screenshot of prototype of Pokemon Go

Virtual Creation 2015-16

Some choose greatness. Some have greatness thrust upon them. Here are some games which fit into either category. These games, while they may belong to popular series, are just odd enough to make their way to greatness. For games that are not brave enough to think out of the box only make it good. It's the ones that are odd, and think outside the box, make it to greatness. The following games will be released in 2015-16, and we hope have enough oddity in them to make them great.

Need For Speed

The franchise is back with another hit. EA has suffered heavy criticism for their games, but NFS is undoubtedly the king of car racing games. It has everything from graphics to gameplay to attractive cars. The gameplay mechanics keep changing and improving with every release. Though it has taken a hit in recent times, it is trying hard to recover it’s image, and considering the trailer, this game might just be what EA needs!

FIFA 16

EA might be taking heavy hits in all other sectors. But FIFA remains undoubtedly the perfect virtual realization of football. This game keeps improving every year, with updated teams and reformed gameplay. Career modes get constant updates and the online features are managed well. This new edition introduces women football. Players can now control female players in the game, and educate themselves about the female side of football!

AC Syndicate

Ubisoft is back with two more assassins, new weapons, new cities, and another gripping tale. This time, the story plays out in the Industrial Revolution era. During the revolution, the street of London is alive with gang wars and different mob bosses fighting for power over the city.  The game concentrates on the single player experience and brings back the crew system in form of gangs. Roam London during the strife and play through a gripping story.

Hitman

The series which put Square Enix & IO Interactive on the map is back with the sequel to the tale of an engineered assassin with a conscience. The trailer reveals nothing much, but implies that Agent 47 is back in the Agency, and is out with vendetta on his mind. The tale shows what an engineered conscience becomes when it comes in contact with human emotions.

Rise Of Tomb Raider

Square Enix is back with our favorite female character, and her origin story. If one’s image of Lara Croft is not already tarnished by Angelina Jolie’s portrayal of the character, then one might actually get to see how the creator actually meant this character to be like. The game delves into a number of mystical incidents in far off locations, and introduces an inquisitive mind in the virtual world. Ms. Croft is not only curious and sharp, but also has a way with bows, guns, flares and other primitive weaponry. This game brings us variety, a good plot, and action. It also shows people it’s not bad to be curious, for not all cats are killed by curiosity!

The Creed Relation - Part III

Historical Models

Part 1 spoke of gods and men---------------->link

Part 2 spoke of the representation of history---------->link

In this blog post, I will show you some of the historical characters in the game.

William Kidd (AC IV: Black Flag)

                                                

This infamous pirate was shown to be an ally to the assassins, although for personal gain. In real life, this prodigy was feared by the world as one of the most dangerous pirates of all times.

Benedict Arnold (AC III)

 

This fearless general was a high ranking traitor in Washington's side, acting as a spy for the british in the american revolution. He was found out ultimately and executed by Washington himself (or by the assassins, as shown in the game).

Benjamin Franklin (AC III)

This great man, a known freemason and a free thinker, was shown as an initial neutral party but later sided with Washington. He was put in charge of the Boston area after it was captured by the blue coats.

Edward "Blackbeard" Thatch (AC IV: Black Flag)

                   

This character is the most feared and notorious pirate that ever sailed the seven seas. Blackbeard has been shown as ruthless as he was, and as an ally to Edward Kenway, and in turn the assassins.

George Washington (AC III)

                        







The fearless leader of the blue coats and america's first president, George Washington lost all his battle until he won it all. His first major victory after a series of losses was in the battle of Bunker Hill, after which the blue coats completely dominated the war.

Thomas Jefferson (AC III)

                            


One of the founding fathers of America, this character was shown as an ally to Washington and the assassins. He was the principle author of the declaration of independence.

Leonardo Da Vinci (AC II, Brotherhood)

         


            





The maestro was portrayed exactly as a man of his reputation deserves. He sided with the assassins and was instrumental in the fight against the Templars, and Ezio's other escapades. His virtual self was as brilliant as his real self.

Rodrigo Borgia [Alexander VI] (AC II, Brotherhood)

            

Born Roderic Llancol, later taking the name Rodrigo Borja, he was the leader of the Templars during the renaissance, and elected pope in 1492 as Alexander VI. His name was forever associated with the defamation of papal power.  He was the most controversial of all popes. His character was kept intact in the video games.

Niccolo di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (AC II, Brotherhood)

Machiavelli, known as father of modern politics, the most underrated minds of Renaissance, was a diplomat, playwright, philosopher, musician and foremost, a Florentine civil servant. He was the political catalyst for most of the happenings during the Renaissance. He is shown as an ally, and later the leader of the Assassin Order, helping Ezio in his escapades, all while consistently taking Florence to greater heights in free thinking and radical changes. He was later arrested and stripped of power by the Church and deemed an Heretic because he dared to challenge the beliefs of the Church.

Rashid ad-Din Sinan (AC I, Revelations) 

          


Rashid ad-Din Sinan, also called Al-Mualim, and The Old Man of The Mountains, was the actual leader of the Hashshashins in the Syrian town of Masyaf. He was twisted by greed and power, and betrayed his own order by using them for his own ill-gains. His own students put him down, although they gave him a fitting cremation. He was extremely learned and experienced in the secrets of life and death. The character in the game was shown exactly the same, including the name and the location of the creed. He was shown to have submitted to the Templars and had been working for them secretly. He was the main reason why the Order went underground for a long time, having been responsible for the death of a lot of members.



These are some of the historical figures that Ubisoft used in the games. Some of them were recreated exactly as the real-life characters. Some were moulded a bit to fit the story. But all of them had a hand in creating the world as we know it.

The Creed Relations: Part II

History In Your Console

Last part I talked about how Assassin’s Creed series had a compelling hypothesis as it’s background. 

Read Part I here: The Creed Relations Part I

That is not the only interesting part about these video games. It is not even the most interesting part. If you talk to great authors, directors or script writers, they will tell you about the extensive research they do before they publish their projects. It has been seen that the more research they do, the more interesting the series is. Video games generally follow the same pattern. Through extensive research, the designers of Ubisoft have copied the housing style, the city plan style, even the architecture and road designs perfectly.

From the first game till the most recent, they have already copied the styles of:

The Assassin World

Most impressive of these were Italy and France in the respective times. They not only portrayed the cities and buildings perfectly, but also the people and their livelihood. From the begging streets of lower Paris to the free thinking people of Florence to the feared pirates ruling the seven seas, every aspect of the time periods have been portrayed perfectly.

The city wasn’t the only thing they used from history. Two other things were used directly from history. Historical events and a bunch of famous people.

The first game was entirely based on the crusades. It was not only based, but was intricately linked with each of the events happening during the war. As is known now, most of the war happened behind the scenes. An assassination here, a robbery there. These events were linked to the bigger picture. However the game did not use much of the historical characters that were important to the time, mainly because nobody stood out. The story in itself was pretty repetitive till the end, which held a really great plot twist. This game featured a Master Assassin called Altair Ibn La-Ahad. The assassins held a neutral position during the war. The game showed cities like Masyaf, Acre and Damascus.

Altair in AC I

The second part of this series has 3 sub-divisions: Assassin’s Creed 2, Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood and Assassin’s Creed Revelations. All three features Ezio Auditore da Firenze as the protagonist. The first part is based in different parts of Italy: Florence, Tuscany and Venice. The second part is based in Rome. Both these portray Italy during late Renaissance. The third is based in Istanbul during the downfall of the Ottoman Empire. It shows Ezio’s journey from joining the assassins to becoming their Il-Mentore (The Mentor). It mainly deals with the ascension of the Borgia family to the position of Pope. The entire series was cast during a time of peace (military-wise). The Ezio story arc is widely accepted as the best Creed game throughout the series and the best games of it’s time. This storyline featured characters like Leonardo Da Vinci, Nicolo Machiavelli, Rodrigo Borgia, Cesare Borgia, Lorenzo de Medici, Stefano de Medici, to name but a few. The story made them side with the Assassin’s or the Templars. None were kept neutral. Da Vinci especially was shown a lot. So were his gadgets and methods. Seemingly, Ezio was the first one to use Da Vinci’s flying machine. Revelations takes us to Istanbul where we see Ezio trace the story of Altair after he gets the piece of Eden, and enlightens him to the real meaning of his life and journey.

Ezio in AC II

Ezio and his band in AC Brotherhood

Ezio and Altair in Revelations

The third part was simply called Assassin’s Creed III. It was based during the American Revolution. This game, unlike it’s predecessor, kept most of the characters neutral. It showed people like George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Charles Lee, and many other historical figures critical to the revolution. Seemingly, the assassins supported the revolution, while the Templars were using the British to gain unlimited access to the American soil. The cities of Boston and New York were portrayed with the highest amount of details. The story in itself was intricately linked to the revolution. George Washington and his exploits were followed pretty closely. The protagonist of the story is a Native Indian by the name Ratonhnhaké:ton who takes the name Connor Kenway after his father Haytham Kenway. This story shows an Assassin born to a Templar, and explores the gray area of which faction’s ways are correct.

AC III Connor Kenway in Boston

The fourth part was Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. It was based during the Golden Age, when fearsome pirates sailed the seven seas and no cargo was safe from their hands. It had cities like Havana, Kingston, Havana and a ton of other locations. The Caribbean was built to reflect the time to the smallest details, including the ships and weaponry. It also contained a few Mayan ruins to explore. The game showed fearsome pirates like Blackbeard (Edward Thatch), Rackham, Anne Bonny and Charles Vane. Most were neutral tending to side with the Assassins. The protagonist of this story is a pirate named Edward Kenway, grandfather of Connor and father of Haytham.

Edward Kenway, his ship The Jackdaw sailing the Caribbean

The fifth part was Assassin’s Creed V: Unity. It was based during the French Revolution, and unlike the other Revolution story, it was only partially linked to the events of the actual revolution. Showing characters like Francois-Thomas Germain and Napoleon Bonaparte as critical characters and ultimately revealing Germain as the main antagonist in the story, the game also shows the hunger stricken pot-belly and the upper society of Paris. It was portrayed in such a way, that one can truly feel the need for the revolution. The main protagonist of this game is Arno Victor Dorian, son of an assassin, adopted by the Templar grand-master after his father’s assassination.

AC Unity Paris view from a View Point

The sixth part is set to be out this October and will be based in London. The game will be called Assassin’s Creed Syndicate. Waiting to see how they portray London during the gang war time.

AC VI: Syndicate

Upcoming: Part III: A journey in pictures through the different worlds created by Ubisoft.

Part III coming up!!

The Creed Relation- Part I

                   The Background Connection

Chariot Of The Gods, written by Erich Von Daniken explains a hypothetical that those we consider Gods are actually aliens from another planet, technologically advance from the human race. The Hypothetical goes as follows:

Till now we have discovered an amount of thousands of galaxies. Let’s say k-thousand. In that no. of galaxies, we have one planet that can support life. Simple maths states that in the next k thousand no. of galaxies, there will be another planet that can support life. This amounts to a total of thousands of planets that can support life. Some of these planets might have life who are more advanced than humans, and may have visited us when we were still in the early stages of evolutionary process. Daniken then shows prove that in the past humans have achieved such targets which would be impossible without modern technology. He shows more discrepancies in the historical timeline and says that the aliens had come to earth with their advance technology and helped us in our livelihood. Since their technology looked so mystic, we came to consider them as divine, something which was beyond the reach of humans. So, the aliens came and helped us to survive, then promptly left. Although the theory needs more working on, the basic theorem is thought-provoking.

Chariot Of Gods

Precursors in Assassin's Creed

The reason I mentioned the book here will be clear when I tell you the story for Assassin’s Creed.  It states that originally there were 2 alpha species on Earth. One was the race of humans. The other alpha race was referred to as “The Ones Who Came Before” or “The Precursors”. They were technologically much advanced and were dominant among the two alpha races. Much research says they used humans as slaves. Two humans grew tired of this arrangement and stole some of the precursor technology, and escaped. They established their own colonies. However a catastrophic event hit Earth. About half the human race and most of the precursor race was destroyed. After the event the precursor race went into hiding, leaving behind their advanced technology which humans called Pieces of Eden. 

Piece Of Eden

Some researchers say that humans and precursors sometimes mated and those who were born had precursor DNA in them leading to some paranormal powers. In the medieval ages, it was rumored that the Templars found some of the pieces of eden and used them to slowly dominate the world. The Assassin’s Creed was built to stop them. When the Templars were turned to public enemies under the rule of King Phillip IV, they went into hiding, still seeking the pieces of eden, till the modern day. The assassins who worked against the Templars are the ones with precursor DNA. They worked to gather the pieces of eden to protect the world from the catastrophic event by using their power with the help of the surviving precursors, while fending off Templar attacks.

Worlds of Assassin's Creed

 Another research stated that memories were integrated in one’s DNA and were hereditary traits. So both assassins and Templars built machines to access the memories of the ancestors of the people with precursor DNA to locate the pieces of eden which were in the ancestors possessions at various points in history. They named the machines Animus. This leads the story to the last crusades, renaissance, American Revolution, French Revolution, the age of the pirates, the ottoman attack on the Roman Empire, and the Industrial Revolution. The games speak as if all the gods belong to the same species and were seen as having different characteristics according to different civilizations. The game uses the names of the Roman gods and goddesses like Minerva and Juno in their story line.

Animus

Although the theorems in both the cases of the book and the game are flawed, the underlying thought and the alternative view to our origins are thought-provoking. There have not been any real-world studies that can reject this alternative outright. Erich Von Daniken may have been called a mad-man and a heretic, but so was Galileo, and we all know how that turned out. Even now, maybe the “Gods” are trying to make their way back to us, and they will maybe reach us within a few decades. It’s an interesting perspective, isn't it?

A video to summarize the history as the series proclaims:

The Beautiful Game

The new season awaits!

FIFA, the game series, also sometimes known as FIFA Soccer or FIFA Football, is probably the most played video game ever created. This illustrious video game series started in the late 1993. It was noted to be the first game to hold the official license from FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association).

Back when we was 6 years old, the 2002 World Cup took place, and we were completely mesmerized by the players, the great football dribblers and shooters of our time. We would imitate Gerrard, Roberto Carlos, Ronaldinho, Robinho and all the other heroes of the football world. Then we got computers. And we did not have to imitate them anymore. We could actually control them on our computers, and not only them, but control our favourite teams and win matches, all while looking at a 800x600 pixel screen(That was the presiding resolution in those days).

Since 1993, EA Sports have released a game of FIFA yearl. The general nomenclature is "FIFA <Last 2 digits of the year of release>". Introducing difficulty levels so that the advanced as well as the newbie can enjoy a game of football, FIFA soon broke all records of previous games of that genre. As the years passed, the gameplay became more smooth, the movement of the ball varied with bounce and force, and the players themselves moved with more likeliness with real world players. The game evolved to increase more game modes, namely tournaments, manager mode, player mode and goalkeeper mode.

Then EA took a bold step, namely FIFA Street. From our childhood, we played football in the back alleys and grassy playgrounds. Walls instead of boundary lines meant that a player could just hit it off the wall to evade a defender. No throw ins. The game would go on and on. Corners and kick-offs were taken from the same spot. And now, all these had been immortalized by EA in this risky endeavor of their's. Kudos! Lucky for them, this series was an immediate hit with the FIFA fans, and EA moved on to be one of the most revered game developing companies.

As the fan following grew, the users themselves got more better at playing. The credit goes to EA Sports to increase the base difficulty of the game to adjust with new and old users. Then came the multiplayer options. Now players could play against other players. This increased the amount of competition.

Sidenote: They introduced an interesting new concept called Custom Celebration, where the users get to choose how to celebrate their goals! This was like adding illustrations to books. A nifty accessory which intrigued the gamers.

Now after years of evolution, the game is at a better stage and has a better fan following than ever before. And even if someday great players like Pele, Maradona, Messi, Ronaldo, and Casillas are not with us anymore, they have forever been immortalized in these virtual realities!

All Hail EA Sports!!