Finally, a SSS!

At last, the brutal finals are done! Therefore, I am officially a SSS (second semester Senior)~ Surprisingly, this is by far my best finals so far!It was surprising because it definitely did not feel that good when I was taking it...but I guess things are always better than they seem ^_^

With that done, now I can squeeze in a lot of times to do what I must do within the next few hours: coming up with a satisfying raving routine and music for Midnight Rave's coming up performance in the Hinsdale Central Variety Show 2K9. Since the end of the show last year, we have been talking about how we want to make this coming up variety show our absolute best because it is our final year. However, with college applications and a lot of other senior stuff, we were unable to invest enough time to make it happen. Really, I have been really stressed about this coming up performance because I really want to make it the one performance that will have lasting impressions to the rest of the school.

With that been said, this second semester really is something to look forward to.

A Stressful Week

With finals scheduled next week, and the Variety Show soon after, It has been extremely stressful week. And many things have turn for the worse, if it's even possible. I can only hope that things will resolve before graduation.

Trans-Siberian Orchestra Concert on 1/3/09

To begin the new year, I went to the concert of the infamous Trans-Siberian Orchestra Concert. Not exactly familiar with the group, I joined my friend Julian Coltea along with his girlfriend, Anna Hesley, to have a musical explosion. We stop by Oakbrook shopping mall to pick up some food to fulfill our hungry souls. To our surprise, we met Li Cai along with 3 other friends. To me, that was a good sign for the what's to come.

Without too much trouble, we arrived at Allstate Arena. The place was PACKED. I was afraid that we wouldn't be able to get a parking spot. But thanks to the massive area of the place, parking was like a walk in a park. We quickly situated ourselves for the concert by grabbing a quick bite of this pebbly ice cream...it was quite tastey...

The concert began with astonishing amount of fireworks and laser-like lighting effects. The musicians exploded from their seats and played the violin violently as if they are beating up some poor children with impunity. The guitarist showed their expertise on the matter by demonstrating a few killer solo's that would be considered as inhuman achievement in Guitar Hero. To end the concert, various colors of flames, fireworks, and flying platforms were all utilized. It was cacophonically fantastic.

This is the first concert that I attended. I had quite a nice experience with the idea. Looking forward to more in the distant future =)

Game Review #5 - Fantasy Tennis Online

I would have never come across this game if not for the excessive amount of advertisement of this game on its release over the summer on TV in Taiwan. What attracted me at first was not the game play. Rather, it was the atmosphere established by its background music. Amused, I immediately googled the game and set out to experience its world. It was then I discovered an epic game of epic proportion.

Trust me, I am definitely not a sports game type of gamer. In fact, I usually find those kind of games somewhat pointless. However, this game completely changed my perspective on the matter. Fantasy Tennis Online offers two type of game play: Normal mode and Battle mode.



In normal mode, one would play it just like a normal tennis match. But then you would ask: Why is it called "fantasy" then? Well, the answer lies in the mechanics of the game. In normal mode, one would not experience the "fantasy" part of the game as much as one would in Battle mode. However, the mere thrill of using or defending against the SS shots ( available by using special in game rackets which players can buy when players save up enough in game money from playing ) is exciting on many levels. Below are the current known SS shots available in game:

Power Shot - ball travels at 2x the speed.

Eagle Shot - extremely fast lob.

Snake Shot - ball travels in "S" pattern.

Mole Shot - My personal favorite, the ball goes underground and pops up near the end of the court.

Dragon Shot - ball travels in such a way that it resembles a dragon ascending.

Return Curve Shot - Defensive shot, returns the ball from anywhere on the court and saves it by returning it in a curvy pattern.

Return Straight Shot - Defensive shot, returns the ball from anywhere on the court and saves it by returning it to midcourt.

( On a side note, there are two types of SS shot, offensive and defensive. Offensive shot can only be used when a players are within the hitting range of the ball. Defensive shot, on the other hand, can be used anywhere and anytime as long as the ball is on the player side of the court. Hence the name, defensive shot. )

Some racket may have one or two of the above mentioned special shots. However, most racket with two would require real money to obtain. However, having two special shots doesn't necessary give a better advantage. What really matters is the skill level of the game players. If one knows the shot very well, one can fend off anything. Players can purchase rackets in the in-game game shop as well as other avatar items to customize their own characters. Most items will provide stats bonus. Stats?! YES!!! This game isn't just your average sport game! Each character have stats which can be improved by leveling your character or utilizing the items' bonuses!



LEVEL?!?! WHAT??!?! That's right! Fantasy Tennis Online is a combination of sports game and RPG. There actually is a storyline in the game to help players advance the story. Players will gain money and experience regardless of win or lose per game. The amount gained also depends on the players' performances. As character advance a level, it will gain an ability point which can be allocated to enhance a stat.

In the beginning, players can choose between one of the two beginning characters: Nikki and Lunlun. To simply put, these two are very balanced and are basically good at everything. As players eventually save up enough money, one can purchase one of the 4 specialized characters.

Are stats really that important? YES!! ESPECIALLY IN BATTLE MODE! Battle mode is the purpose for the word "fantasy". In battle mode, players do not obtain victory by simply winning points. In fact, there is no points in the game. In place of it, there are the players' HP bars. When one side scores, the other side will suffer hell flame damage for a set amount of HP. Players can also decrease opponents' HP by obtaining crystals during the battle and use the provided items such as homing soul missles, mines, flame balls, blizzard storm, or even turn opponents into CHICKEN so they can't return the ball for one turn!

One can also choose to play Battle mode against a npc. That is known as the GUARDIAN mode. The first 4 maps' guardians are fairly simple. However, anything after that is nearly impossible to solo without a team of experienced players. However, it IS doable, just will cost a lot of game money. Above is a video of the Guardian mode battle, just a little taste of what it is like!

This is my evaluation of the game.Keep in mind this is out of 5 stars, with 5 being the best.

Rating: *****
Extremely entertaining game. Never gets old.

Grinding: ****
There really is no grinding in this game. If you really want me to name one, I guess that would be the need to level. Items have level requirement too. Hence, players would feel the urge to play the games in order to level faster. But is that really grinding? I call that playing!

Fun: *****
Really really fun game. Every match I play, I experience something unexpected. This game really keeps me on top of my toes. However, there is a downside. The server in the US does not exist. Hence, if you play now, it will automatically link you to the EUROPEAN server. Hence, you don't really see a lot of players on because it's working day light for them. You don't really see a lot of people that can speak English very well either. But hey, let the game do the talking!

End of the Year 2008 Review

Another year has ended.
Another year of my life has passed.
Another year full of sorrow and joy is experienced.
Another year arrived.
Another year of wisdom under my belt.
A new year, a new beginning.

That basically summed up my thoughts on this particular year. Looking back, this year really has helped me grow as an individual. Through several mental trials, I have strengthened both mentally and physically. I honestly feel like I can face anything and I won't shatter into pieces.

College applications are completed a while ago. I was quite surprised for accomplishing such feat that early. Usually, I would procrastinate until the very last minute before I switched to WORK MAX gear and pump out completed works like a maniac. However, I got everything done before the month of December, which is quite nice. Props to the new goal-oriented self.

School work is actually going pretty well too. Loaded with AP classes, I expected this year's workload to surpass the previous year. To my surprise, however, the workload is nowhere near as intense as junior year's. Probably because I don't have to read and memorize all those miscellaneous facts for AP US or bust my brain open trying to understand Physics. Looking back, I feel bad for those juniors that I know...but hey! just pull through the next 6 months and the rest will be a smooth ride!

Mentally, though, I feel like there is a lot of room for improvement. This past year had provided a lot of mental challenges which dealt several fatal blows to my emotional state. It was really hard to give it in one piece, but I somehow managed. With the end of high school approaching, I really wish that I can start a lot of things anew and piece my mind together before I face any other mental challenge. Some of the things still hurt a lot, but I guess what doesn't kill you will only make you stronger eh?

With the finals approaching, it is REALLY REALLY REALLY hard to squeeze in time for the variety show. Currently, we are REALLY screwed, because our routine is not complete and we don't have sufficient time to perfect it before the variety show. I can only pray to God to lend us his power during the performance to bring the best experience to the both the audience and ourselves. Really, God, save us.

My team and I also earned top 8 placement in the recent Nationals. Really, it was a fun experience. Although somewhat painful to the bodies and stressful, it was really a lot of fun. I want to thank you all for making it possible.

Basically that's about it. This past year had been wonderful, really, and contributed greatly to who I am as an individual. I feel like I have matured a lot and am no longer the childish me a year ago. I feel like I have finally raised the tolerance level of my body in many aspects ( maybe not a good thing, but still it is a good thing in a lot of ways). I want to thank you all who is a part of my life in the year for making it the way it was. Thank you all and Happy New Year!!