Star Wars: Midi-Chlorians EXPLAINED?

Midi-Chlorians, the worst thing ever. They destroyed Star Wars. They ruined our childhood. They.... well... did they? Really?

Lets keep this short as not to beat around the bush.

The problem is not what the Star Wars Prequels brought to the table, the problem is peoples short sighted perspective. Which then means it is their problem and not the lore, as they are the ones that never understood it to begin with. So lets get to it.

1) Midichlorians are in everyone and everything, they bind the universe. Some have more, some have less.

Is this is no different to the classics?

In the classics the force is in everything, but only some are strong in the force.

"The force is strong in you" and other similar remarks, with a stretch even the notion that Luke is their last hope points to the simple fact that how strong the force is does not reside to chance alone or training, but also the individual.

Some are stronger, some are not. Such notions as "the force is not biological and anyone can train in it" that have fans upitty wapitty flaky funky cranked are more from conceptions created in games and other lore aside from the films that some could not be justified or compared to the lore in the classic films. Hence, should be as much debunked as the prequels but apparently are not.

Not that this is not true, but it also does not in any way reduce the fact that some simply will be born stronger in the force. The notion also some have kept, that Luke trained from nothing as a nobody into the force hence anyone can do it is also wrong (although a good inspiration for children looking up at a reachable hero on a symbolical level). Clearly, he was not some nobody.

"The Force is strong in my family, my father has it, I have it, and my sister has it".

Have what exactly? Call it what you will, they have something that others do not!

Even in the classics people are born with it. We clearly see that just because Leia and Luke are Anakins' children, they are force sensitive and strong in the force. Is that not biological? Is that any different to what Midi-chlorians explained?

2) The Jedi order was centuries old, it had archives, an established foundation and an entire force sensitive populace that was involved in nothing more but the force.

This is translated into reality and science. What the ancients called "we are all one" could easily be described by today's scientists as "we are all made from the same stuff, and once we were all but 1 or 2 elements when the Big Bang occurred".

One does not contradict the other. On the contrary, the second supports the first. It is evidence from a far more advanced human race by comparison that is able to research beyond the limitations experienced prior to that period.

End of the day, people that cannot accept midi-chlorians are no different to those cave people that can't accept a scientific theory simply because it makes things "too real" for them. On the contrary, those scientific theories or experiments can prove the very existence of their own beliefs and add to them.

This can translate just fine into Star Wars as well. The prequels and the classics add to the same structure of the force. The Jedi order were simply much more advanced and had been able to accumulate actual proof of the force, not just "a feeling" of it.

Maybe this was a little too evolved for some people? In all seriousness I personally put two and two together on the go so it baffles me as to how it was such a huge issue, hence now I am here to keep it short and simplify things for some to wrap their logic around something so simple.

From the go, as soon as we knew that we are going into a film were the Jedi are an established order of generations, I expected to see as much and their technological or scientific prowess in all things around the force did not surprise me at all.

On the contrary, I would be really angry if they depicted them as some dogmatic religion with people in robes that had little depth in what their teachings were about.

As promised, I kept it short. I can go on and on, but really whats' more to say? Midi-chlorians can really be explained from these 2 points. The one point justifies its existence due to different time periods (and technology) the other proves it works the same way in both classics and prequels.

I only hope that, as George Lucas said, the force isnt turned into some googly goop going forth.

Not one bit happy about this, but I can let it slip by in a sense that the technology of the
Jedi was lost and hence we really don't have midi-chlorian references any more.
End of the day, no matter what film studios claim, the Prequels are canon,
and that wont change any time soon. Thank the force...

Sure, I can understand that some might be annoyed that "too much is explained" about something they considered mystical and what not. But that is a matter of personal opinion really, and not something objective, hence not something wrong with the Prequels neither the logical fact that the Jedi knew more about the force even on a scientific level.

As far as subjectivity goes, there are also those of us that like all this exactly for that reason. The Force is no longer something mystical, it becomes something more real in this world of sci-fi-fantasy. I would assume in a world of people that prefer scientific facts over hocus pocus religions, that this would have been truly appreciated.

Evidently I was wrong.

Do Skills Belong in a Classic arenaFPS Shooter?

Recently we got a peak at the reboot is it? of Quake 3 Arena... Quake Champions.

The footage showed us what is possibly, evidently, the use of skills in this classic shooter from 20 years ago. Needless to say people lost their shit over it.

As an old time gamer myself, here are my thoughts on all this which started to develop and unfold the more I looked into it, and so I chose to share them in hopes that people start looking from the brighter side of things rather than the cliche hating mentality that we have been (rightfully so as well most times) accustomed to hearing these last many years.

Right to it. The question is simple. Do skills belong in a classic FPS shooter?

Operation Hellstorm FPS - A Crowd Funded Indie Project

As some of you already know, we have been working on bringing you a concept and showcase teaser trailer for our dream FPS title, Operation Hellstorm.

This trailer has been released, and although only a glimpse into the direction we are going and the greatness we hope to achieve, I believe it is a good start to get you all into the feel of one of the aspects we are aiming towards.

For those of you that have not seen it yet, enjoy :)

Coming the following weeks we are going to launch a Crowd Funded campaign on Indiegogo in hopes to raise a budget towards the materialisation and completion of this game.

Kickstarter unfortunately only cooperates with a limited amount of countries. We are situated in Greece, Athens, and our only viable option for a crowd funded campaign is through Indiegogo.

The simple and quick answer is that we do not currently have the budget to pull us through without any help.

We are a small team and aspiring to grow. At the moment game development in Greece is rather new, and we are starting from the ground up.

There is a collective and average experience of over 15years in our team from various fronts of the graphical industry and smaller gaming development projects. Team Leader and Game Designer for now is none other than the one writing to you right now. Me. Jim Soufrilas.

I have been involved with 3D graphics for over a decade, and 2D graphics (including traditional) for 2 decades now. Born in 84' and have been a dedicated gamer and content designer on small personal projects for the entirety of my life, with scope of reaching the point of both expertise and comfort with undertaking the direction of a complete game project of my own.

At the moment the budget is very limited (if at all present to be honest) and all content that has been made thus far has been done around the clock whenever possible and without the entire team being able to put in the work hours needed. Both a result of the limited budget.

You may also find us on Facebook, for a more detailed look at a released portion of this said content.

Operation Hellstorm FPS Official Facebook Page

The teaser trailer is just that, a teaser trailer. Within it the content is a showcase of the direction we are aiming towards. In this instance, all content within the trailer is 1 of 3 things.

1) Completely made for the purpose of the trailer alone and only a simple reference to the game (the level design and some effects).

2) Concept designs that will evolve and posibly make their way into the final versions (the HUD and again some of the effects).

3) Content created directly for the game (the character model and the weapon).

Even as a small studio, we are boasting quality over quantity for now. And with the help of crowd funding, we will be able to boast of quantity as well.

What you can expect from us, at the very least, is a constant dedication to improving this title and making it the best it can be. Furthermore, the trailer, although a showcase, was designed by one person alone (aside from the music, composed by Steve Cupani and further proof of our ambition to make each aspect of this title of both quality and its own). The team was working on tech testing and solving some engine workflows that are not on a visual level as of yet.

This can be used as a direct comparison for the quality and quantity of future content, as the trailer was achieved with no budget, with only one member (me) assigned to it, and with little time available.

The results of what can be achieved with a budget, and a larger team all working full time around the clock towards the title, will be a significant improvement on all levels.

Aside from this, our dedication despite all the current budget difficulties is a show of our determination and passion for making this title. Giving up on the project you all supported is not an option!

As lead Game Designer and Lead Artist, I will be overseeing all design elements to the game. Having experience in both Visual Graphics and FPS games for over 20 years (and as far back as the very first Doom), you can rest assured the ship is in good hands. Add to this the feedback from the community, you, that we are able to easily gather in our time and age, and the project is capable of being shaped into something that can truly stand out in the F2P FPS front.

You are the most important cog in this sci-fi fps machine we are building. We need your help to get the word out there for Operation Hellstorm so that like minded FPS gamers that could be interested will know where to find us and that we even exist.  Your support in Founders Purchases from there on is the backbone to our new company and our endeavour to making Operation Hellstorm. This will further become the foundation to our Game Dev studio that we seek to enrich with more titles in the future.

Founders' Purchases range from as small as $3 all the way up to $150, to give you the flexibility with supporting the title with whatever seems right to you!

We are starting an "aggressive" push of information here and on our facebook page to release details on the direction of our title and what we hope to include and achieve in it.

This content will come in the form of Blog Posts and if possible also YouTube videos (the later will probably simply be a video version of the Blog Posts as an easier and more direct way to explain/spread more information on our upcoming title) and will be posted here and on the Facebook page.

For direct access to the videos as they come, you can also subscribe to our YouTube channel right here:

Official Scionia Games (DCF - Digital Creative Front) YouTube Channel

We are looking forward to meeting you all and together bring to life the title that can change the Free To Play First Person Shooter genre towards the better.

Stay Tuned, share, and as always, thank you all for you support.

Jim Soufrilas

Scionia Games

Street Fighter 5... Another Example of Casual Gaming Killing Franchises

The moment has finally come, Street Fighter V is out (well almost a week now) and the question is-

"Is it worth purchasing?"

After all the "controversial" reviews, the question of is it worth purchasing is even more common than before. Fear not, I have your fast and true honest answer to that question right here, right now.

Snoke is Plagueis Reborn from Vaders Ashes? - Another Star Wars Theory

Ok, so it came to my attention (mostly from watching Jedi Council on Collider where it was brought to my attention there) that there is a theory among some that Snoke is Vader.

Although I too dismiss this idea, as that would completely go against the story of redeeming Vader and it would really in all sense be a big finger at all Star Wars fans ever. We even saw him in a Ghost Form "redeemed". I will go to say that it got me thinking of another theory that kind of mixes many things together into one.

Who is Snoke is the question every Star Wars fan is asking (well, after another question of who is Rey). In my Spoiler Review I mention how I believe that he is indeed Darth Plagueis, you can read that there (Under the "06. Snoke. Is he Darth Plagueis?" bit) were I explain my reasons and all the things that point to him being Darth Plagueis.

Now with this new theory, and imagery from Vader, Snoke, Vaders helmet, and some other ideas out there, I found myself thinking of a new theory that although could be wacky on the one hand, on the other stranger things have happened in the Star Wars universe.