On July 8th 2004, I once wrote I wanted to be a video game developer. And now, a little over a year, my aspirations have finally come true…

In fact, I’m actually settling in pretty nicely at Surreal. As a kid, I never imagined I would ever be in this industry. A hybrid of tech and entertainment is just perfect for me. Maybe I was never ought to be at one of those corporate powerhouse (a la Citigroup, Merril, and all those names). It never occured to me when I was a kid I’d be work at an office with game consoles are all over the place and toys at my desk. Making video games was always one of those don't bother to dream about type things.
The hours are longer than average, but they are flexible and the environment is easy going enough to feel like you are just hanging out. I like the corporate owned start up environment. We have weekly massage sign-ups, pizza and beer on Fridays, and alcohol induced meetings. Talk about getting drunk with your colleagues and then skipping work for the rest of the day. As long as I get my work done, I am free to do what I want. I can freely surf the web, chat, read a book/magazine, play poker or video games casually at work.

After basketball at Archstone last night, it struck me during my way home how we easily often forget and dismiss the fundamentals. I had choked during my first game; put all my efforts into it, and failed miserably. The reason was not because I was slow, didn't have the skills, tired, or not in shape like I had originally thought. It was because I had forgotten about teamwork. I've been playing basketball for 11+ years, yet I dismissed the fundamental notion of teamwork. Instead of trusting your team members to share responsibility and maximize abilities, I tried to take it all upon myself. It really struck me how it took less grunt effort to win the next 7 games in a row because I had trusted their abilities. Gifts differing. I wonder how often I forget the other fundamentals in my life.

Whats with all the ad/spam/yuck comments on my blog?

~~~ Jimmy Eat World - Bleed American ~~~ Staple band. Nuff said.

Working at a video game company has really gotten me to think about how creative work is accomplished in the real business world. Especially since video game development is steering towards the US$10-20 million production budgets. On one hand, we want the logistics to keep the people and work being done by them under control, yet on the other, we want to encourage creativity. Finding that balance between freedom for creativity and bureaucracy is not easy at all.
In addition to having to search for the right balance between freedom for creativity and bureaucracy, being able to maintain it is just as much of a challenge. The development team are not robots, they are human. Humans with emotions, needs, ego, and baggage. They don't act upon your commands (even if you are paying them). I'm not sure I have an answer to the problems at hand, but I will say people need be dealt with on an ad-hoc basis. There is no consistent solution.
Oh, and of course, creativity (even at its best) doesn't necessarily equate to financial reward.
This is probably why I'm attracted to game production.

We <3 Katamari

The sequel to the unexpected cult-hit came out today. I can't say I'm a fan of this series (mainly due to the motion sickness), but I can say its uber simple game design really hits the spot. Musicians often mention they would come across songs/lyrics that they wish they had wrote; I think I'd say the same for this game concept.
Its definitely cool when the members at the studio gather around to check out the latest titles during work.

Lenard and I worked on this set of two towards the end of the summer. The painting with the orange is called X, the painting with the purple is called Y. Together, they are X&Y. They are both 36"x48" each. I don't want to sound artsy and all that; and am not going to talk about the inspiration and story behind them. Batman and I, however, have agreed that it would be interesting if somebody wants to guess what it is about. Add it as a comment if you'd like to do so.

Finally a better digital camera

Shades of Bellevue


E3

A-Track
~~~ James Blunt - Tears and Rain ~~~

Its been busy...why?
- Work at Surreal Software
- Approving work visa!!
- Bumbershoot
- Pigfest @ Hansville
- Searching for an A3
- Royksopp Concert =]
- Erh...naked chicks.

A-Tracks
~~~ Anberlin - Naive Orleans ~~~
~~~ Embrace - Gravity ~~~
~~~ James Blunt - You're Beautiful ~~~
+++ Kanye West - Late Registration (Album)+++

B-Tracks
~~~ Kaiser Chiefs - I Predict a Riot ~~~
~~~ Pinback - This Red Book ~~~
~~~ Cake - Never There ~~~
~~~ Kings of Convenience - Misread ~~~
~~~ Buckcherry - Lit Up ~~~

4/9

HK Goods

So far I've accumulated a Patrick Cox wallet, white Nintendo DS, Parman no.1 figure, and a pair of AKG K-240 studio headphones.

I've been incredibly busy lately. Both on and off work. Lenard came to visit Seattle and we've been out and about.

My 2.5 week vacation begins today. Gonna fly back to Hong Kong next week (after Coldplay @ White River!) to enjoy the rest of the summer. Yeah, working at Surreal Software now. I'm pretty excited about that; it's another step closer to achieving my goals =]
I never expected things to turn out the way they did. But I'm glad it turned out this way. Its a big fat confirmation to my beliefs; with perserverance and effort, there is no impossible.

Oooooooo~~~!! Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 dev kits at work! No pics for nobody tho.

FAHRENHEIT / INDIGO PROPHECY

I don't normally try video game demos, and haven't ever rated/promoted one. But today it's going to be an exception. Fahrenheit or Indigo Prophecy's demo (two different names depending on location) oozes with cinematic style and narration. I give the demo a 9.5 out of 10 because I think the game has shown much potential to become the next mega hit. The game seeks to add excitement to the narrative process through a range of action events and in depth player involvement. It gives the player the chance to choose how puzzles are solved and also create the story/experience for themselves. I don't think words can describe what I mean by this well produced and innovative simulation. If you like adventure games, take the time to check it out! Trust me!

Fahrenheit/Indigo Prophecy certainly has enough innovative features to grab my attention and it will be interesting to see if it can breathe new life into the adventure genre as a whole.

A-Track
~~~ Story of the Year - In her bedroom ~~~
~~~ the killers - jenny was a friend of mine ~~~
~~~ Phantom Planet - Always on my mind ~~~
~~~ Howie Day - Falling in Love ~~~

On a side note: Nutella is a gift from the Gods.

"group is full, we have a better priest for this instance"

People who don’t stick to their word annoy me. More often than not, people loosely accept invitations to events and end up ditching last minute because they’ve found better things to do. I find that frustrating to cope with because it’s like indirectly saying ‘I’m a selfish bastard’ and ‘I’ve now found a better thing to do now, you’re just backup’.

I went to see my first Mariners game this week. And Ichiro sucked.

A-Track
~~~ Foo Fighters - What if I do? ~~~

B-Track
~~~ Moby - Sunday (the day before my birthday) ~~~
~~~ Nova June - Another Try ~~~
~~~ Fall Out Boy - Grand Theft Autumn ~~~

An excerpt I came across in Han Fei Tzu's writings..
The Way is the beginning of all beings and the measure of right and wrong. Therefore the enlightened ruler holds fast to the beginning in order to understand the wellspring of all brings, and minds the measure in order to know the source of good and bad. He waits, empty and still, letting names define themselves and affairs reach their own settlement. Being empty, he can comprehend the true aspect of fullness being still, he can correct the mover. Those whose duty it is to speak will come forward to name themselves; those whose duty it is to act will produce results. When names and results match, the ruler need do nothing more and the true aspect of all things will be revealed.

I've been playing a lot of basketball these days. Averaging ~3 times a week, which is pretty good compared to zilch times a year ago from now. Its been pretty chill; a way to release all the stress I accumulate at work. I'm also finally losing my rust and getting both my game and my body back ^^;
Three months ago, when I was still taking classes during the spring, I told myself I had to get back into the routine of doing sports. I'm finally here. As long as I don't get injured (which happens ALL the time), I'm going to keep up this healthy routine. I think it'll be good for me in many different ways.

A-Track
~~~ Howie Day - Falling in Love ~~~
~~~ Iron and Wine - Such Great Heights (cover) ~~~
~~~ Grandaddy - The Crystal Lake ~~~

B-Track
~~~ Lazyboy - Facts of Life ~~~
~~~ Gorillaz - Dare ~~~

Pink Floyd, Stevie Wonder, and Greenday @ LIVE8!!

Double Header

I made this collage aroung a month ago (click on it). It's 60"x30", and it's called 'E3'. I used a 1.2 megapixel camera to take a picture of it so you can't see all those little extras on it (theres a lot more in it than you can see from the pic =/). It definitely took a while to do. Maybe someday I'll use a better camera so I can hyperlink it to a bigger high-res picture.


I made this 'pollack' style painting this past weekend. It's 48"x36", and it's called 'Shades of Bellevue'. It was fun as hell to make, I can see myself do another acrylic painting soon. God damn why are art supplies sooo expensive!!

I'm a fan of "end of the world" genre movies. It’s not so much wanting to see everybody get killed and die (or is it??! ^^), but the aftermath of the story I am usually attracted too. It’s the effects of the what ifs…such as the societal, political, and human consequences. I think ‘28 Days Later’ and ‘Cube’ are good examples of such movies.
I saw ‘War of the Worlds’ yesterday, and found that similarly entertaining. Never mind the fact that the ending is too positive due to various Hollywood-management issues; I liked the raw emotion of the film. It felt immersive. I could understand why the background and its characters behaved the way they did. ‘War of the Worlds’ is no doubt an entertaining movie on the big screen. The energy throughout the movie is balanced just right so that the slower parts of the movie give the audience enough breathing room but not so much that it becomes boring or slow. The movie is intense throughout.
This is the first summer blockbuster I’ve seen so far this summer.


+++ L'Arc en ciel - Awake +++
+++ Royksopp - The Understanding +++

Now I want a DS too

Kirby Canvas Curse is one of the first platform games to rid traditional control over the on-screen character, yet at the same time give players an entirely new way of maneuvering around the world. Here, players must guide the spherical hero using nothing but the Nintendo DS stylus and the wonders of the touch screen technology. And believe it or not, it works incredibly well; the game is among the few titles on the system that could never be done without the touch function because it's been integrated so well into its design. What's more, it makes the game incredibly unique and amazingly fun to play.

Kirby Canvas Curse as another one of these successful departures from the usual Kirby offerings. It's an outstanding design that captures what the Nintendo DS platform is all about: unique and creative gameplay, and speaks volumes of the potential this system can offer gamers down the line.

- Craig Harris

I now have a monkey on my desk

Sympathy for the Record Industry

SAN ANTONIO SPURS.

Last Week I said I'd make put together Jessica Simpson's 'These boots are made for walking' video together with Watashi Wa's song 'How She Sees'. So here it is. Who thinks it works?
Download Jessica Simpson x Watashi Wa Music Video

Battlefield 2

This is just a beautiful game overall, especially when everything around you is in motion. Tanks and vehicles are rendered with astonishing detail, such as swaying antennas, while the environments themselves are simply beautiful. There are so many tiny details at work, from the concussive effects of nearby blasts blurring your vision to the clouds of dust that appear when tank cannons fire to the tiny fountains of dirt that kick up when rounds land next to you...
The best thing that we can say about Battlefield 2 is that even when it's at its worst, it can still be as much fun as its illustrious predecessors. However, when you experience Battlefield 2 like it's meant to be played, with everyone working together and using real-time voice chat, the game quickly becomes unlike anything else that you've played before. When it's at its best, Battlefield 2 elevates online gaming to whole new heights. Put simply, this is a thrilling and revolutionary game that just has to be played to be believed.

- Jason Ocampo, GameSpot

Agreed.

Also, Robert Horry is sick.

Walalalalalalalla

A-Tracks
~~~ Morcheeba - Women Lose Weight (feat. Slick Rick) ~~~
~~~ Butterfly Boucher - Life is Short ~~~
~~~ Foo Fighters - Best of you ~~

B-Tracks
~~~ The get up kids - close to me ~~~
~~~ Hawthorne Heights - Life on Standby ~~~

The Spurs beating the Pistons on Game 4 is worth $15.

~~~ Luna Sea - Shine ~~~
~~~ Beck OST - I've got a feeling ~~~

I just watched Jessica Simpson's video 'These boots are made for walking' while listenning to this song called 'How she sees' by Watashi Wa. It seemed like it fit well. Haha. I think it would be an awesome music video for a band like Watashi Wa. It would be the perfect Marketing scheme to get their name out there. If I was a music video director, I'd totally try to get the rights to do that. It would catch a lot of attention; a video that wasn't made for a band like Watashi Wa in mind. Seriously, the next thing you know, everybody will have heard or seen it.
I'm going to do that. I'm going to make the video so we can all see what I'm talking about and whether i'm just bullshitting (yes, it is definitely a possibility..)
Download Jessica Simpson x Watashi Wa Music Video

So yeah...I ended up 3rd place in the RiffRumble contest. I got pwned (wuhaha...). I had 107 cheers compared to 1st and 2nd place of which got 515 and 473 cheers. My song obviously wasn't a match. I apologize for spamming and wasting the time of all those of you who 'added' me a cheer =/