"Man of Steel" Superman ditches his Disguise and how to Fix This!

How dare they. The criminals! They made Clark Kent, aka Kal-El, aka Superman, aka Earth-One (those are a lot of aka's) ditch his disguise and reveal himself to Lois Lane and the government? Whaaaa!!! How could they do this? They ruined an entire franchise an entire generation they pissed on our childhoods they they... they....

Ok, time to put the pitch-forks down and lets get serious now. How can this be fixed, perhaps say in the new upcoming film of Zack Snyder, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice? That is the question on some people's minds. The real question however when we look through all this is or should be: "Why does it need fixing?"

>> Scionia: New Site Updates...

Nothing too special this time around... well, special enough for me to have set out to design it I guess. Scionia now bears a new Welcome Screen, new Briefing Layout, and most important/evident change of all, new Header.

The Old....     and of course, the New.

A new loading screen has been included as well, from which access is given to two separate "sites" within the one. The first Scionia Gaming, for which nothing can be said for now. The site is under construction and simply needed to be added there for future use. Much too soon and too early for anything else to be said on that.

The second selection, Scionia Comics, leads on to the site as it used to be for the online web-comic Scionia: Guardian Angel (well, almost like it used to be).

The biggest change is simply an aesthetic one, the header. Truth be said, that old header was bugging me for way over a year now. I enjoyed designing it and liked the style, however needless to say it did not capture the feel I wanted and, well, I was brand new to digital painting.

It was time to give redesigning it a go, and indeed I felt how brand new to digital painting I was at the time. The new one was made in around under 1/5th of the time the old one took. The new overdue design was also such a pleasure to make, something shared with the whole comic as time goes on. It simply becomes more and more fun. Someone is getting used to digital painting at last I guess.

Head over to the site itself from the main link above, or by clicking right here:

Scionia: Guardian Angel

Stay tuned for more updates to come and the continuation of the saga.


EDIT:
Yeah, ummm... well there was one more change I had to do as well in the background. This is the final updated version to Scionia-

Star Wars - Plot Holes Everywhere #1

Plot holes, plot holes everywhere. Either that or people that watched the films simply didn't get anything from them or pay enough attention, then ironically play it out as being "true Star Wars fans"

This is the first small batch of "plot-holes" (as some like to call them) that I gathered here to debunk, and/or incorrect comprehensions with regards to the films that need some sorting out. Here goes.

>> Scionia W.I.P Poster

Working on a new poster for Scionia which will be available at 30" x 40" format, which means I have to design this thing at 9000 x 12000 pixels o.O

Fingers crossed the PC doesn't crash from such high resolutions, which are demanding on resources as they are from work.



Click here for source image

Zack Snyder and DCxSW Mashups... What if it isn't just fun and games?

A Crazy Thought. But what if Snyder is actually making 2 films, and Batman vs Superman comes earlier than 2016?

BATMAN and R2BIN

I know Snyder is teasing or simply trolling us for probably no reason at all with these Star Wars cross Batman/Superman photos... But here is a thought to humour our imaginations. What if they are actually shooting 2 films instead of one and are going through this Justice League cross Batman vs Superman mix-up phase (meaning that Batman vs Superman Dawn of Justice is a codename for both films) to surprise us and the SW mash-ups are their way of hinting it?

>>Scionia: More Sneak Peeks Chapter 2

I thought it be nice to release a couple more sneak peeks from Scionia - Chapter 2, as it has been a while since the project was going full speed. Of course the first (colour) is actually edited to humour the thought of Chapter 2 being so slow to the point that even the characters are bored of being drawn, but hey that is usually the deal with personal projects without a budget so no reason to beat myself over it, yet.

Metal Gear Rising - PC - So much Addictive Self Violation Never Existed Till Now.

Metal Gear Rising: ReVengeance. So many mind numbing decisions on this game that make it a pain to even think about or properly try to place into categories... My gripes with it are instant, constant, and they are frustrating indeed. So I will jump right into the bashing as I have rarely ever played a title that I waited for patiently for so many years that was as crap as this pile of junk! (Talking about the PC version here as always)

Buttons on the mouse that cannot be mapped, a variety of control options that cannot be controlled or changed, clumsy user interface, console port controls that make blade mode from being the strongest aspect of the game into the most annoying part of it, a grind fest that simply has you doing the same thing again and again... cinematic, voicecom interruption, get to point, kill enemies, rince and repeat with plenty more voicecomes along the way and changing the "get to point" objectives to "press the button" objectives.

Constant checkpoint interruptions, not just the score alone which gives a cool arcade feel to it, but stage limitations as well containing you into certain areas every few steps. The amount of these things is ridiculous, the score screen is so unrewarding as it is annoying, getting in your way to even moving properly disabling half of your controls, and instead of being an arcade like element reminiscent of the 90's, that feels like it pops up each time you achieve something, it becomes practically an overused annoying UI layout as if all the ridiculous voicecoms all over the place weren't enough.

The concept behind the game is so damn awesome, it still has hope for a
sequel to fix all things done wrong... So much gone wrong with such an
awesome concept in hand. They managed the impossible.

Combat itself? Combos work ok and pretty cool, auto aim ruins half of them, as does the still console like movement to it all the likes of "direction input attacking" instead of "mouse look" (even though this is among the most minor of things) yet my biggest gripe is that it all ends up being specific predefined repeatable combat mechanics as opposed to a fluent combat system.

A camera that has gone completely bonkers, the design of it so damn clumsy I felt frustrated the more I played the game. Poor execution of the best parts about the game (Blade Mode), making it ridiculously fun when it works right, ridiculously annoying since it barely ever works and barely ever controlled fluently as it ends up being an entire pile of messy mechanics and controls (fun factor being proof that the game could have been so much more).

Marvel vs DC: Box Office Numbers and Total "Scores" so far.

It's no secret that DC has fallen behind in the film industry in the last 15 years, and although it used to pump out more Superman films of old and what not, the last 15 years are enough to place it a distant second far behind Marvel. But how far behind is it really?

Well, I done the busy work for you all and crunched the numbers up to put them all in one place, keeping things nice and tidy. Lets see how much ground DC has to cover to reach its competition.

Starting from the year 2000 to now (July 2014), just under 15 years, we can easily see the difference between the two leading franchises of comics.

Windows 8 and 8.1. Should One Recommend It and Why?

So, is Windows 8 and 8.1 an

operating system worth
recommending?

The Short answer? Yes!

Why Recommend It?

"Why would they?" one would wonder. But I wonder, why not? Let's start there, the reasons why one shouldn't recommend Windows 8.

DOOM 2014 - QuakeCon Reveals New Classic Mechanics.

DOOM 2014 (previously named DOOM 4 and of late simply known as DOOM alone) is finally here...

Well not exactly, it's some corners away at least. Nonetheless sooner than we had hoped, since Doom 4 seemed for a long time a dead project that was sluggishly finding its way to late 2015 if that. When the teaser came out, I was excited to say the least but didn't heed much to expectations with regards to seeing it any time soon.

The teaser surely took me by surprise, news on development on the new Doom were till now elusive and covered in a haze of mystery and smoke. With the project scrapped and rebooted at least once that we know of, and id software making statements of the likes "we will reveal information on the game when we have something to reveal..." all hope of getting it any time soon seemed futile. Of course we also had the occasional "it is going to be great" comments and the tease of what it "might" include or be like. But all we could do is push back release dates in our minds and make empty speculations of what it might be like or when it would arrive.

Until now.

Doom is indeed closer than we think, and from the sounds of it, is shaping up into a great experience created around fun and plenty fan service unless I am mistaken. Fingers crossed, but the horizons look good with the latest reveals and sooner that we had hoped.

Fanboys! And the Michael Bay Hate Wagon

Fanboys will be Fanboys...

What's with this Michael Bay hate wagon? It's years already. Is it going to ever stop?

First off, I am not a Michael Bay fan boy. I am neither trying to stick up for him, excuse him, or whatever else one may think of. I am simply tired of seeing his films (and him along with them) being attacked for no other reason other than fandom rage. And let's face it, that is exactly the only thing it is.

Before Transformers, there wasn't really much hate to go around. But then a Transformer film is made and every geek, nerd or anyone else that either greatly or mildly enjoyed Transformers as a child found a chance to complain about and hate like no tomorrow on the film and the creative party as well. "He is ruining childhood memories".

Didn't that phrase get old already with George Lucas?

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2014 - Splinter, Shredder, and Ninja "Blings"

Saw the 3rd trailer to this TMNT "reboot" (it is a reboot isn't it? I'm guessing so) some days ago when it came out... and I couldn't be more hyped to see this than I already am. You should be too, and I'm going to help you find out why.

Being only a trailer there is usually not much to go on due to either the small amount of content that is shown or purposefully edited plot ambiguity, but in this case there is much that can be said indeed.

First of all, you need to be some form of TMNT fan in one way or another to appreciate some details, some more than others I guess (like Ralphs depiction in all posters, always facing in an opposite direction to the rest of them even when all that is shown is simply their hands and weapons).

(Check out the trailer bellow to get in touch with the points I am making if you have not already seen it)

Video Games: A Form of Art and Entertainment for the Future

Video Games are a form of Art

Well as the title itself says, Video Games are a form of Art.

"Games" is a title given and used far too lightly nowadays with some still clinging on to the impression that it means "child's' play" and other outdated notions that should have been left in the past by now.

We Gamers are not children with no responsibilities, neither people that have nothing else to do in their lives, neither individuals with no interests other than having fun and playing. Some cling to these notions and try to force gamers to believe that video games are for children and not for grown ups. Naturally they are prompting gamers to grow "out" of them eventually. Such beliefs couldn't be more wrong and couldn't be based on falser assumptions if they tried.

Believe it or not, there are indeed many people that still think like this. An arrogant and pretentious mindset knows no limits after all. Such people try to force their belief systems on others, judging harshly with some pretty ridiculous notions that can even lead to discrimination and cause more harm than good. Instead of understanding that they are of a different mindset and that each person has a right to chose which ideals and qualities they will warm up to in this world, these people that do not agree to gaming in the form it truly is find it fitting to try and make others that do not agree with them change by force and discrimination. Such childish behaviour.

Gamers and what are the defenders of this entire form of entertainment will have you know it is no less a child's game than half if not all the activities in our lives that we all partake in for entertainment. Like going to the cinemas, or playing cards, playing pool, bowling, and so much more. Pretty hypocritical to rule out what one does not understand or like as being childish when all these activities are of the same form.

It is 2014 and the time for such misinformed notions to come to an end is overdue.

To put it simply, Video Gaming is 1st and above all a form of Art and 2nd a form of Entertainment. The two intertwine and become ultimately one.

It's time everyone started to respect it as such, and further respect gaming as much as any and all other forms of entertainment and art out there. The same way films, books, paintings, music and other forms are here to express the inner worlds of creators so that they can be shared with hundreds of others, thousands or even millions, games are here with the same purpose and were established with this idea and need in mind. They simply just take things up a notch by comparison, making the experiences interactive and thus being the only difference with the other forms. At this point it is pointless to argue over the differences and further define each form to a specific target market alone (like that of children) as each form is and should be unique in its own way and is more than capable of being directed to any target market out there and of any age.

Art and entertainment takes any form it needs or requires itself to take, it is free of any boundaries and templates, and that is why it is both an artistic expression as well as entertaining.

>>Scionia Update: Site Update and Completion

Glad to announce that the Archives Menu for the site of Scionia, along with other changes, have been completed into what should be the final and completed layout for scioniacomic.com.

The Archive Menu serves as a lore index, as within it will be logged all the details of the story as they are revealed along with some extra back-stories that cannot be completely explained within the comic itself without ruining the immersion. Updates to the Archive Menu will occur as the story is revealed and they are divided into categories to make navigation simpler and easier.

Serving as the insight and collection of lore to Scionia aimed at both fans and newcomers, the Archives will also in the future include spoilers which will be of course pointed out as such to ensure the experience is not ruined for anyone.

New changes to the site itself include the complete chapter navigation for all 16 chapters, to be filled in time with the story itself, new loaders to make the site as real-time as possible and ensure that long loading times do not become a problem, and lastly new artwork released including the Crusader and teaser character artworks.

Chapter 2 is well into its production now.

Content delays are common and to be expected as the project remains unfunded and on a minimum budget, making it understandably a hard task to keep up with and thus creating larger delays than intended for obvious reasons.

Having that said, I'm looking forward and trying my best to keep on working on this project as it is also an enjoyable ride and a personal milestone of my own that is with time accomplished. Here is to hoping the journey is as fun and in the end as rewarding to all as it is to me and to future endeavours being accomplished along with hopes of different working conditions to allow for more time to be spent on Scionia.

Thank you all for the support.