Monthly Archives: September 2017

I’ve been playing with a girl in Ukraine

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For reals.

Haha, it’s not what you think. It’s actually a lot more sombre, sadly.

Early on into my Warframe journey (it’s a free game and it’s taking over, download it here) I met a girl. Always refreshing in a shooter but over time I’ve realised Warframe’s community is 50% female/gay guys just as much into customising their frames to look good as well as kill efficiently!

Anyways, the game is super social. And just like The Division, sooner or later you end up talking a lot more about life than the game itself. Turns out this girl I’ve met lives in Ukraine and earns $120/month. In this game you can either grind for gear, or you can fork out cash for it. She’d been after this frame for months, farming hard, and one of the really nice things about this game is that when you’re in the shop, you see a little gift box icon which allows you to essentially buy anything for anyone in the game.

I gifted her Volt Prime, which costs 100 Platinum (in-game currency) which equates to about $8. Nothing for me, but something to her so that’s cool.

She’s since told me more about where she lives. She’s a developer looking to get out. The view out from her window is horrible, yes she can see those stacks and she tells me they glow at night.

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So I made a life choice yesterday

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#lessismore – Gross right? But hey it is a part of me!

I cracked a tooth on my (not so) recent trip to Japan and I’ve been meaning to see a dentist since, but I’ve also been meaning to design more stuff for ZEN Garage, and logo design work for mates, and WTAC and renew my passport and check my email… you get the idea.

Nek minnit I get the sharpest most excruciating pain from the fucking tooth. My bad! I couldn’t sleep the night, but booked in with a local dentist the next day for 4PM (thank goodness they were willing to squeeze me in).

I got there an hour early, not smart as I could hear the fucking high pitched whirring of the dentist drill and that fucking hose sucker thing the assistant shoves in your mouth from the waiting room. I’ve only been to the dentist a handful of times since I was a little kid because I am fucking scared of the dentist. Tattoos? No worries! Dentists? They can go get fucked!

So I finally get ushered into this tiny room. The leather chair is all ripped up, like something out of The Matrix’s Nebuchadnezzar. This little old man says stuff but I don’t hear a thing. I’m pretty much paralised. I lye down, lady hands me some sunnies to wear, which was somewhat of a relief! I explain the cracked tooth, he says I’m a very naughty boy, and proceeds to give me 2 options:

1 – For $1300 I can have root canal surgery which would take 2 days. IE: Today and tomorrow.
2 – For $250 he could rip it out.

OK… so in the state I was in I didn’t understand either option. I had no time to think. It wasn’t the money that was an issue. I asked about health issue for pulling it out, whether there would be further complications down the line etc. He assured me there wasn’t and that my X-Ray showed I do have another tooth under there that could come out.

Not wanting to go through any more pain I opted for him to rip it out.

I tried to read his and her reaction, but I couldn’t read anything. Did I make the right decision?! Before I knew it the assistant handed the Dentist a shiny set of shiny steel pliers that look much like shit we use to work on cars with. He grabbed the tooth and started applying huge pressure, then started twisting the fucker clockwise, anti-clockwise until it came out.

That’s a real life horror movie right there.

So instead of cabbing it home I walked home as I felt fucked up and had to walk it off. The long walk (maybe made worse because of all the blood I was swallowing) had me thinking all sorts of shit. I felt old. Like the gummy oldies in The Simpsons. I was gummy, and this tooth in my pocket was spinning me out. I mean, shit, WTF is that?! It’s so alien. I love it. It’s even got nerve endings on the end of it the little bastard. And now it’s out the pain has gone? What a trip.

/rant.

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Xbox Elite Wireless Controller

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The New.

Darth Vader NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! The world is surely trying to tell me something…

My sexy Lunar White XBOX controller has died. It lasted a little over a year (I have been gaming pretty damn hard). And now I’m kinda glad I didn’t get the MUCH more expensive Elite version of it, as it turns out the issue is a common one (it’s all over the net with dodgy fixes DIY fixes, the left thumb stick creeps forward on it’s own).

I wondered if the premium version would last any longer, or whether I should just buy a bog stock no-frills, non-wireless replacement. I went to Facebook and more than a few people really recommended the Elite, that and it was on sale at EB right now so I pulled the trigger!

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Warframe – All Quests completed

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562 Hours in. I’ve clocked it.

I’ve always been a lucky person, and that’s a good thing when it comes to RNG! Quite a few veteran Warframe players haven’t finished all the quests, mainly because a few things needed in order to advance in some of these quests have as little as a 2% drop rate, which wouldn’t be so bad if you didn’t have to do a shitload of hard work just to get a crack at the drop (in my case it was hunting down and killing at least a few infested Juggernauts a day, tough motherfuckers, until one would finally drop a blueprint).

This one last quest, The Jordas Precept had been driving me up the wall for weeks as the game kept on spitting out reminders that it was there, beckoning me to finish it. Being a bit of a completionist when it comes to games I just had to get it done. When I finally got the blueprint to proceed in the quest I was faced with having to defeat a Juggernaut Behemoth, and then an Archwing mission to kill a mega boss to make matters even worse (where your Warframe is flying in space, thus super frustrating clunky flying/X-Wing/Star Wars style gameplay).

The quest is one of the few that let you squad up, so I sent messages out looking for help but not one person had done the quest, and not one person had their Archwing gear up high enough to even attempt the mission, so what did I do? I tried to tackle the hugest boss in the game so far solo, and despite many on the forums screaming about the quest being too hard, or impossible in a squad of 4, I persisted and finished it all by myself.

Sense of accomplishment? Yeah, sure! I leaped off the couch, massive fist bump and yelled out all sorts of foul words, but sadly unlike other hobbies there’s really nothing to show for it. That’s the one thing about gaming that doesn’t quite sit well with me (this needs more thought!).

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Warframe Rhino Statue

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So I’m obsessed with Warframe. I’d wear it on my chest but I’m a less is more kinda guy with what I choose to wear so instead I bought the Rhino limited edition collector’s statue as I’ve been a toy collector my whole life. 

The package got to Australia really fast, just over 2 weeks. First thing I noticed was the model was a lot heavier than I thought it would be be. You’d think it was made of metal, but is in fact some sort of hard resin (very nice). The hand painting is awesome (can’t help but feel sorry for the person/s who had to paint all of these!). The weapons all come separate so you have to put him together to display, but glaringly obvious to me was that his sidearm is on the wrong side!!! They must have gotten confused with the moulding process? IE: Similar issue with people who have shocking Asian words tattooed on their skin in reverse as the tattoo artist put the transfer on without first ‘mirroring’ the design.

The site listing suggested that I get some digital freebies with the statue but nope, nothing in email. I contacted the shop and they suggested I look in the box, nope, then they suggested I contact DE direct as the shop support was separate to DE support. I did just that, but then DE told me I should have gotten the email. Once it was made clear I had waited the right amount of time, and that I didn’t get the email, DE then sent me some codes to get my digital freebies (helmets and a noggle!).

So all is good in the hood!

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Captura

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My dog ZEN.

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My latest frame: Loki Prime.

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Then, from out of nowhere, a player I met recently invaded my Captura session! CRAZY! Freaked him out too as he had no idea you could do that (IE: Have screen grab sessions with your mates!).

Turns out Warframe has the best in-game screen grab app I’ve ever seen in a game (they call it Captura). I’ve only just started playing with it, but you get to choose a scene, and shoot in real time, controlling camera angles and progressing in movement frame by frame (if you like), not to mention lots of camera adjustments too.

I then realised that if you progress far enough with a faction you can unlock a green screen for Captura hells yes I’ve unlocked it! Think the construct in The Matrix, it’s fucking awesome!

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400+ Hours into Warframe


I’m with these guys… scarily.

Go hard. Son. My little feature is up on ZEN Blog: http://www.zengarage.com.au/2017/09/warframe-ninjas-play-free/

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Project Cars 2

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Hey all, the full feature from my day playing the latest build of Project Cars 2 is up on ZEN Blog: http://www.zengarage.com.au/2017/09/projectcars2/

Awesome timing as this image just got sent to me last night!

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Legends!

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Raijin Fujin Shop Updates

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How much is that Zaku in the window?

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Signed by Andy Kubert!

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I dropped in to Kensington, to see how the Raijin Fujin guys were going with their new toy shop and man it’s come a long way since I last swung by! They’ve got these awesome huge display cabinets in there loaded with just as huge sculptures. The shop is off to a great start!

I’ll let the pictures do the talking. Be sure to follow them for updates on when the shop will be opening!

Follow: http://raijinfujin.com

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Nanami painting live at Wintergarden

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Spent the day supporting Nana, who was live painting at Wintergarden in the CBD (for aMBUSH Gallery). She’d never done live work before, and she killed it! Check out more of her work on her new site: https://nanamicowdroy.com/

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