Status Quo Sunday Is On Tour Fam

This week's jam is a goth jam:


Mega64 will always deliver.


Let's go day by day, 'cause I had another big weekend:
AT SOME NEBULOUS POINT BEFORE THE WEEKEND:
My cover of "The Hero (One Punch Man)" is on YouTube!


FRIDAY:
I went 4-0 at Friday Night Magic because I was sitting to the left of a kid who passed me a Reality Smasher, a Kailtas Traitor of Ghet, Thought-Knot Seer and Ob Nixilis, Reignited, A MOTHER FUCKING PLANESWALKER.

As of right now, that was $40-ish in cards, not including the packs I won, which so far have contained nothing special, but then again there are still 5 packs out of my original 10, I've yet to open SO WHO KNOWS!?!?!?
  
SATURDAY:

The sound system was probably the best HHC had, but the guy that went on before I did ran a little long, and since there was a little scheduling tweakage, my set went on shorter than planned. I was thrown off, but I still played well. Though appropriately, my set ended on "Hunting Bigger Game" where I throw Magic cards into the audience, so it was still a good song to end on.

After me were chipcore metal band All Hail The Mustache from Hollywood, FL who brought shit down and made it moshier than I ever could have.They're a 4-piece metal band that are backed by a chiptune-ist, the latter I couldn't see. I'll assume a Game Boy is haunting one of their amps. They opened up with a cover of the Airship song from Super Mario 3, a classic that doesn't get enough love.

After them were 8 Bit Wave, an orchestra that covered video game music, doing Super Mario Medleys, Mega Men Medleys, a funky version of Chemical Plant from Sonic 2 and a Smash Bros Medley. However the real capper was the Undertale medley they did for an encore, and their Hopes and Dreams/Save the World gave me the feels all over again.
Hero Hype Con and Omni Expo are the two cons I've been a part of since I've moved down here. While Omni Expo was always well backed, Hero Hype Con was done by some people who were like "hey guys u wanna start a con".

Last year was not a good year for the con, and GeekFest (more on that later) was the same weekend, but all things considered, it was a good turnout. It's been scaled back from the past couple years to one day, but the focus on one day helped a lot.

SUNDAY:
The mother of all cheat days, EASTER. But fuck that, I went to GeekFest!

I got there kinda late, and didn't stay too long, and it was Easter, but the place was bumping regardless. It was a packed vendors room, with plenty of artists to steal business cards from. I also brokered a couple deals, and played some Star Realms, which is always a huge bonus. Again, my big regret is that I couldn't stay longer, since them and Ultracon know what they're doing.

Either way I have a billion business cards to sort through, so see you all later!

Status Quo Sunday Thinks Out Loud

This week's jam:

I've been having Mega64's Twitch Stream on in the BG while I work and I caught this on the stream one day. There's a lot of older stuff they show sometimes that either I forgot about or never made it to the website proper.

For example, Rocco being super awkward at last year's E3.

This song was in the original Rock Band with a special mix where the lead synth was also matched with some kickin' rad guitars, and while that version's good (and clearly better), I loves me some Mega64. For the record this is the video they were referencing.



NEW SONG!
THE HERO (One Puunch Man Theme) Cover


Originally I wanted to do a cover so I had a sample project to work on when I was learning how to do mixing/mastering, but then I loved the song so much I decided to make a proper version. Still need to finish the rest of the episodes, but for all intents and purposes, GO WATCH ONE PUNCH MAN!

There might be another thing coming this week, but HHC practice comes first. I will be streaming that at least once this week.

HERO HYPE CON!
This weekend! I don't know if I'll have a table, but I will put on one hell of a show. Still want to check out some of the other cons though.

I'm also on the verge of confirming a show elsewhere and working on new material, so plenty more to come!


NEW MENTION?
Not quite.... It's from over a ,onth ago, but I got mention on The Cli3nt's show GeekOut! for my release of "Think Geek Is Not Nerdcore"!

PODCAST RECAPS FOR 3/19/2016: Things That Come From Asses

I'D RATHER NOT EPISODE 2
Our CatBox will appeal to both young people at Silicon Valley Startups and old people who don't want the indignity of wearing diapers. Our crowdfunding goal is $15,000.

The  rewards are as follows:
$5- You will get our sincere thanks, as well a free download of the app for CatBox: Shittr, where

$20- Everything in the $5 tier and 15 pound bag of cat littler.

$40- Everything in the $5 tier and 15 pound bag of cat litter that hasn't been used.

$80- Prototype CatBox and everything in the previous tier.

$250- You will be named Executive Producer and have your name in the Credits of Shittr.

$1,000- We will tattoo your name on our genitals

$2,500- We will tattoo your name on our genitals and you can keep them.

John, the example of "someone who had a debilitating condition and became a spokesman for it" you SHOULD be thinking of is Freddie Mercury.

INSERT QUEST HERE GODS AND MONSTERS RECAP

The entire damn thing!

ECHO CHAMBER EPISODE 160
Since I don't want to spoil anything about this episode, I'll do what Magic did, spoil key events on their cards:
 
 

StAtuZ Qo SuMdaE g0EZ to colleg!

FOR A LATE STATUS QUO SUNDAY ON 3/16 GIMMIE A HELL YEAH!!!!


This week's jam:

tEmm1e waNz tO geeV u LotZ of iTeMZ!

So, I'm going to have some #content4u later, but this week's jam goes out to Ben Briggs, fellow Florida music man. This Glitch Hop Mix makes an already happy song even happier and bringing wub wubs to all the children who fell down a hole.

Not a whole lot this week, because I will have cool stuff for you all at the very least by next week, mostly I'm working on preparation and other work. I'm also getting some good stuff from Omni Expo on the YouTube page!

UPDATED CON NEWS:

HERO HYPE CON!
Will be performing! I'm back for year 4!
Show will be at 3PM!

And here's the FaceBook Event!

GEEKFEST!
Not there, but will be networking. Maybe I'll cosplay! It's a total surprise if you haven't visited my Tumblr or Instagram. Or don't know me at all...

PAX EAST!
This is a vacation for me, just hanging out and partying with the Echo Chamber people! You can expect me Drafting some Magics.

OUTCON!
At the very least, I will have a table there. How dumb my cosplay is will depend on if I'm performing there, or how badly I want attention.

FLORIDA FANDOMANIA
I'm a musical guest, so YAY FOR ME! Lots of big guests,and it's run by Chibi Pa Alum, so it's looking to be pretty swell!

There are of course other cons not listed yet, but it's still only March.

As far as other stuff goes, I've been playing Dishonored, and I'm coming around to it. At first as I was a little resistant to it, but I'm enjoying the ability and the challenge of having to do a "pacifist" run of the game. Oh, I've been killing a LOT of people, but all the main assassination target have died by nonlethal means.



I've been streaming it on my Twitch and uploading the archives on my YouTube.


So check it out and *glass shatters*

OH SHI-

PODCAST RECAPS FOR 3/12/2016: NOPE STILL ON TIME!!!

Omni Expo happened, and I got caught up getting read. MY BAD EVERYONE!

Let's get right to it!
I'D RATHER NOT... TEMPLE GUARDS VS. ALLERGIES
New podcast from the Zone Cast family, and we talk about if we would rather live in constant anxiety of being attacked by a Temple Guard or live with allergies that change every hour,

Now, while you'll have to listen to the episode to hear our choices, I can tell you two things.
1. It is possible to e-mail a wrench into space.
2. This is what a temple guard looks like:
 
OH SHIT!

GODS AND MONSTERS: SLAYERS OF DECADENCE: THE FINALE

Unf. Dem feels.
I think it's only appropriate that this story ended the way it did, especially after Raymond and I put on the best acting in this campaign. Everyone involved in this campaign deserves a pat on the back. I don't want to spoil it for now.

ECHO CHAMBER EPISODE 158

---

COLD BEER ON A FRIDAY NIGHT
-Let's face it, I'd probably end up being the Warrior/Barbarian or some shit.


-Let's take a song that's about enjoying the simple things then tick off the rest of the Country Song boxes.
Throw some shit about Jesus and the Troops in there.

That and the radio up. Yeah, your radio has to be audible to listen to it. Fuck thesauruses and adjectives that might spice it up like "cranked up" or "shaking the windows". "The streets" has officially been unseated as Dumbest Phrase Used All The Goddamn Time In A Marginalized Genre.


-Brad Paisley, bitch:

Also, fuck you, he's way more handsome than all members of the Zac Brown Band put together,

-Mastadon, bitch:

This is the comic it goes to BTW:


-John Mulaney, bitch:

-America, my plan to have everyone Gay Married by Hipster Sharks:
First, we drop a bunch of Velvet Underground and Neutral Milk Hotel Vinyls into the ocean, then we move all the salt water sharks into freshwater areas so they can gentrify it.
This will help America somehow because if I'm doing it, then Donald Drumpf is not President and we can all say, as a country, "Dodged a bullet there".

-Here's the full list of Rock Band March changes:

Career Mode

• Career Mode scores now post to Leaderboards
• Downloadable content is now playable in all paths of the Career

Scoring Fixes

• Removed drum exploit where you could get extra points by repeatedly hitting the note at the end of a drum fill
• We will be wiping the Drum, Pro Drum, and Band leaderboards when the update is available. More info here!

New Rock Shop Items

• 5 new hair options:
  • Ponied Up
  • Shag Doll
  • Liberty Spikes
  • Fanned Mohawk
  • Frizzy Stardust
• 5 new hat options:
  • Snow Business beanie
  • Cold Soldier
  • Cold Comfort Hat
  • Viking Helmet
  • Sport-Related Head Protector

General Bug Fixes

• Fixed issue with “Somebody Told Me” had missing notes when receiving Overdrive on the final unison phrase
• Fixed issue where Player Stats display white square or yellow box instead of percentage symbol
• Fixed issue with full streak Stage Presence only occurring once per show in Campaign, now making it possible to get the “Locked In” achievement / trophy
• Dropping out and back in during a Freestyle Guitar Solo causes the Performance stats to give incorrect values
• Fixed issue where Freestyle Guitar Solo toggle option was grayed out during solos
• Fixed issue where achieving a streak and dropping out during an Freestyle Guitar Solo caused the streak meter to not increment during the solo
• Fixed issue where Longest Streak was incorrect if player did not break streak before entering Freestyle Guitar Solos
• Notes at the end of “Big Rock Endings” are now counted toward the Longest Streak stat
• Fixed issue where the Options menu in the Overshell would darken when selecting Breakneck Speed
• Fixed a camera cut where the guitarist would go through the camera
• Fixed an animation issue where the vocalist would walk out past the front of the stage
• Fixed issue where the audio for Dynamic Drum Fills was playing even when a Dynamic Fill was not present after the first successful Overdrive deploy
• Fixed issue with the Activity Feed for folks who have more than 30 friends
• Fixed issue where the same song could be suggested twice when selecting an Encore
• Random band name generator can no longer create a duplicate name of a previously created band
• Encore requests are now correctly factoring out non-applicable Stage Presence awards for Solo Harmonies or Vocal Freestyle for Easy/Medium Vocals
• Fixed issue where “Band Hub” music was persisting after returning to the Main Menu
• Encores now give bonuses in Career Mode
• Personal account preferences will now save when Xbox One is powered down, including:
  • Freestyle Guitar Solo toggle state
  • Dynamic Drum Fill toggle state
  • Breakneck Speed preference
  • Awesomeness Detection preference
• Band Multiplier will no longer briefly appear as 1x before disappearing
• Fixed issue that causes stand-in character to appear in Career if you dropped in/out during a show
• Fixed issue where players couldn’t back out of narrative Tour Choice screens
• Score thresholds for star ratings now adjust when switching difficulty mid-song in Career Mode
• Fixed incorrect audio effect prompt after quitting the song “I Will Follow” during the first show of the Career

-Innuendo Strudios on Smash Bros:

-For some reason, in the early 2000s everybody's brains hemmoraged at the same time, and we all thought voice commands were a good idea. That resulted in Nintendo trying the microphone thing twice. Once with "Hey You Pikachu!" and again on the Gamecube. Also it gave us SOCOM: Navy Seals and Lifeline.

"Hey You Pikachu" I rented, and remember being super excited the first time it worked, because I was fucking 12 at the time. However, half the time it didn't work, and it was ridiculous to control. Apparently it was calibrated to higher pitched voices. The only other game that used the microphone accesory was a train simulator.


The two Gamecube games, "Mario Party 7" and "Odama" were in Nintendo's HOLY FUCK WE'RE DESPERATE Era before the Wii made a shitton of money. "Odama" was created by the same guy who did Seaman, which makes total sense. You were to direct a group of soldiers out of the way of a giant pinball it seemed to get middling reviews, and impressed people. Mario Party 7 is a Mario Party game later than 4.
Then came Lifeline and SOCOM. Both at least tried, but the latter pushed the multiplayer and the headset more than the voice commands. I think you could get extra information about your mission via the headset, but that's all.


-DANNY DEVITO PIKACHU WOULD BE THE BEST THING EVER!

Though lets face it, Nintendo will hire someone who can do a good Danny Devito Impression, and make no references to It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia.

-Inazuma 11 was an anime that aired between 2008 to 2011. It's a typical sports anime with a fresh faced kid looking to put together the best possible soccer team. What I want to know is how Jeff knows about it...

ECHO CHAMBER EPISODE 159

---

CLICK HERE TO PLAY THIS AUDIO TAPE


-Paolo's wrong. Technically Hot Dog Day is July 23rd.


-Actually, the intended purpose of the car conversations in Deadly Premonition is to connect you, the player to the world of the game to its world, and make you think aboutthe game when you're not playing it.

-Everything new I hear about Quiet in MGSV makes Quiet's outfit the least dumb thing about her. Though Metal Gear Solid V gave us more Bowie-ness and made that shit concrete:


-Harmonix does have Rock Band 4 on Fig. 
Currently it's tracking to succeed, with 25 days to go 25% of the way there. I think I speak for the group that we're all excited about it, but are waiting for a concrete go ahead.

Paolo's also got the right idea, archiving everything from the old system. In downtime, I've been working on the rest of the Dino Hunter MD: The Sound Track album for RBN.

It's not too tough to implements the same requirements for the RBN (Peer Review/Demo Phases/Etc), but because of how the Steam Workshop works, the profits would go to the user. Meaning that there is significatly less Peer Review and the system would be way easier to game.

-This was the Fat Kid pitch video:

-Extra Plays Animation Playlist

-Metal Gear Solid Theme Done Right:

Status Quo At The Expo

This week's jam:


My favorite non-Megalovania song. The game's Pacifist Run was a very emotional experience and this song provided the right mix of desparation and uplifting to fill me with... DETERMINATION.

WHAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK?
Fuckin' Omni Expo was this weekend! which is why I didn't post up any recap shit on Saturday. Let me run through the whipdash of that day.


OMNI EXPO!
Left home at around 10-ish and got to the convention center at around 1. The shitty thing is that ConJure, another convention was taking place not too far away, so I think Omni Expo mioght have been a little more full, but it had good attendance.

Most of the afternoon was spent bumming around, taking pictures and the like. I bought some Magic cards to throw into the audience since I left my Fat Pack at home, and in one of my packs, I pull out this guy:


For those of you rolling your eyes and thinking "Oh fuck, he's talking about Magic again, nobody cares", guess what? As of March 6th, 2016, it costs:
$91.52


That's not a typo, I pulled almost $100 out of a pack of Origins. 

After that, I went to play a quick game of Remain Calm, an Zombie-themed RPG that involves surviving in the Zombie Apocalypse.  It's based on the D20 system used by Dungeons and Dragons, so if you're familiar with that, then you should be fine. 

One interesting thing about it is that it also uses your smart phone to log into a website where you get your character sheets and can set up your equipment. The pros of this system is that you can modify the game almost immediately and gives plenty of opportunity for expansion. The con is that the site isn't the best optimized for mobile phones. 

The scenario we played out was very straight forward: we're a group of survivors looking to get to the other side of a road. Fresh off the RP-heavy FATE Campaign I was involved in with [insert quest here], it was a nice break to see something with numbers. 

Two mechanics that help set it apart and make a lot of sense in the setting are infection and noise. If there is any contact with a zombie, you need to roll probability for how likely it is that you are infected with the zombie virus, an event that can take it's toll in a campaign. Noise came in to play a lot more frequently: As we performed actions and as the GM took his turn, there was a possibility that zombies can moan and attract more zombies, screwing us over more. At one point we summoned 83 zombies in a single turn.

Our team barely made it across, but it was a fun time.

However, it wasn't very streamlined, so a bunch of crazy combinations were able to take place, like a slingshot that threw lawn darts covered in spikes. There were a lot of options that weren't practical for a beta release, or wouldn't come into play during a con game. Also a lot of the pieces we were using we laminated stand ins. So a lot of stuff is still in beta.

With more time and money, the game can get a worthwhile package to sell to the masses. In the mean time, you can find out more from their website.

After that, I went to my show and drew a pretty decent crowd. I played some new stuff, some old stuff, and added older songs back into the fold. 

I also did the Stone Cold beer smash before I did "Hell Yeah" which is what I always wanted to do!



Aside from the technical issue of not having a PA System, I think it went over well.

Still thinking I might need a liason or someone in the back to collect e-mails for the mailing list and sell merch.

Just an idea I had. 

After that, while I didn't manage to have my post show booze, I did run into Frosted Gaming who hosted an impromptu panel in the middle of the hall. So in response, I threw a mini-concert playing a couple of my MtG songs, and they went over big! I should host more guerilla concerts in the future....

WHATCHA DOIN' NOW?
Setting up for Hero Hype Con, maybe working on a couple cover songs, some to release, some for "back pocket" reasons, I dunno. Also some arts and crafts for the future stuff.

Finally, getting everything ready for PAX East. That's going to be fun.