10 Phases

   Formally known as NGP the PS Vita is Sony's next handheld device.  Sony hopes to gain a larger share of the handheld gaming market.  A market that is currently dominated by the Nintendo DS.  Does Vita have what it takes to pull it off?  First lets see what it has to offer.  First up is PS3 integration.  There is nothing more annoying than being in the middle of playing your favorite game only to be interrupted by having someone tell you they need something from the store.  With PS3 integration that is a thing of the past.  PS3 integration allows you to play games from your PS3 on your Vita and vice versa.  Nearly all games created for the Vita will have PS3 integration.  Simply save your game and upload it to your Vita and continue playing exactly where you left off.  No more game interruptions thanks to milk and bread runs.
   The next feature I will discuss is  dual analog sticks.  Now this may seem like a small feature to non PSP owners but let me tell you something.  Playing with one analog stick is a pain in the ass.  Playing first person shooters with one analog stick simply doesn't cut it unless you enjoy being shot repeatedly.  PSP fans have been practically begging for Sony to release a handheld that has two analog sticks and now they finally have.
   The last "feature" I will' discuss is the price.  Now Sony is not known for charging cheap for their products.  The PS3 was $600 on the day of release.  So of course everyone is expecting Sony to charge an arm and a leg for the Vita right?  The Vita starts at $250 and you only need to pay $50 more for the 3G version.  That's right people the Vita cost the same as a 3DS.  The Vita which is superior to the 3DS in every shape, way, and form cost exactly the same.  I myself am a 3DS owner and I almost died of laughter at this news.
   Bottom line is Sony looks like it has a very good chance to finally claim the handheld market.  As long as they produce quality games to go along with the Vita there is no doubt in my mind Sony will finally have a victory in this never ending console war.

Kristen Perry is one of the lead character artist at ArenaNet.  A character artist is an artist who is responsible for the overall design of a character.  They are responsible for making characters visually and aesthetically pleasing.  Here is a blog by Kristen which talks about a character she had to help redesign.  Kristen does not only work on characters.  She is also responsible for managing other artist at conventions, making sure art books are ready to be seen by fans and the press, and designing the staff t-shirts.  She recently introduced the dye system of Guild Wars 2.  A blog explaining the dye system can be found here.  Kristen also has her own website.  Kristen spends most of her free time playing first person shooters and finding foods to mix peanut butter with.  This is one of my favorite works by Kristen.  A character by the name of Pirogoeth.

Ah Comic-Con the breeding ground for anime, comic books & manga.  Any nerd/geek worth there salt attends Comic-Con at least once.  Cosplay is also a very prominent feature of Comic-Con.  Cosplay is the art of dressing up as you're favorite fictional character & representing them to the fullest of you're abilities.  Here's an example of someone cosplaying a very popular fiction character named Yuna.  Think of cosplay like Halloween instead with more creativity, more flare & of course more fun.  Comic-Con also helps bridge the gap between Americans & Japanese (as far as animes, comics & mangas are concerned).  Japanese comic book fans get all of the latest info on they're favorite comics & American manga fans get all the latest info on they're favorite mangas.  Of course they're are always people debating about which is better comics or manga (I personally prefer manga) but all in all most try to get along.  Up & coming comic book/manga artist use Comic-Con as a means for publication and publicity.  Hoping to get there work noticed by the public & hoping to find a publisher willing to publish they're work.  Comic-Con is an amazing event & I recommend everyone go at least once even if you're not into it.  Who knows you may just become a fan.

My Comic Life project is about a battle between two Pokemon.  One is named Mewtwo the other is Darkrai.  A human girl named Nagisa who was there friend was killed by a group of people from a town called Sinnoh.  Now Darkrai wants revenge but Mewtwo is determined to put a stop to him.  Without further ado here is a link to said comic.

My experience with Comic Life is a good one.  I really liked all of the customization options they have available.  I was a little saddened that I could only make a short comic but my teacher said she didn't want to read a 100 page comic lol.  I look forward to trying out Comic Life 2 in the future since comic life 1 was a lot of fun.

Every game designer hopes to showcase at E3 at least once in there career.  But what is E3?  E3 stands for Electronic Entertainment Expo & is the greatest event of the gaming industry.  You can think of it as the super bowl but for gaming.  Having your game showcased here means you have shown you have the creativity & talent to excel in the industry.  E3 can be a curse as much as a blessing however.  Game designers who have showcased here are expected to maintain the kind of gaming quality that got them there in the first place.  A lot of game designers buckle under this pressure & end up never being showcased again because there newest creations aren't up to par with what's been expected of them.  E3 isn't just about games however it's also about electronics.  Inventors come here to show off there latest gadgets in hopes of gaining much needed publicity or even better potential investors.  I hope to one day grace the E3 stage with a creation of my own.

   People often ask me why I decided to take Digital Media Arts as my major.  There are many reasons but I guess the main one is that I feel that I'm creative.  I have a very active imagination & I often write stories to express my creativity.  However I would like to take it a step further & let people see my creativity from a visual stand point.  Sure writing stories is fun but there's something about taking an image from my head and turning it into a visual masterpiece that intrigues me.  I hope to learn how to use the tools of the design industry so I can make my imagination a visual reality.

  I find games creatively interesting because it takes a very imaginative group of people to create a game.  There are a lot of different aspects that need to be worked on.  Someone has to create the story while another person works on the sound involved.  My favorite aspect is the art.  Creating art for a game requires a lot of creativity & imagination because you have to create visuals that the majority of people are going to find interesting.  If the game doesn't look interesting then people won't bother with it & the story & everything else won't matter.  I hope to work for ArenaNet someday because they pride themselves on creativity above all else & that is the mot important quality for someone working in the designer industry.

  I guess I'll begin with chapter 1.  Chapter 1 talks about how college differs from high school, The mentality that high school students have going into college & how students need to effectively manage there time.  Teachers in college differ from the ones in high school.  For one they're a lot friendlier (at least mine are) & that's a good thing because when my teachers are jerks I tend to be one as well.  The amount of work is also different.  In high school we wrote notes but nothing like what we have to write in my college English class.  One day of notes in my high school is equal to one class of English in college.
  My mentality in college right now is "I need to get this done so I can start my career".  I dropped out of high school at grade 11.  Not because the work was hard but because I found school to be the most boring thing I had ever experienced.  I had a whole bunch of classes that I could careless about.  In college I'm very eager to start my classes (except English) because they are about things that I'm interested in.
The time restrictions are also more severe in college than in high school.  In high school I went to class from 8 to 3 & maybe had to spend 2 hours on homework.  I had much more free time during the week as well.  Now I have no free time during the week & it's been hard for me because I'm use to having free time.  For example I just bought a game today called Brink & I have not had a chance to play it yet.  I go to school Mondays, Wednesdays & Thursdays.  Tuesdays & Fridays are spent doing homework or projects.  Saturday is my only free day since Sunday I'm getting ready to go back to school on Monday.

Now I'll move on to chapter 2.  Chapter 2 talks about the services available to students & where they need to go for help.  When I first started TCI I had no idea where the other campuses were located.  Instead of going to the main office & getting directions I decided to find the buildings myself.  I was late to my second class on Thursday (which is speech) by 2 hours.  Needless to say that's not a very good first impression.  After that I decided to go to the main office & they were kind enough to give me a map.
   TCI has labs that students can use if they don't have a computer or the software required at home.  The learning center is there for students who need extra help with work they don't understand.  All in all since coming to TCI I have had to make a lot of adjustments.  For one I have put myself on a sleep schedule since I was use to going to bed whenever I felt like it.  I have also had to get use to sitting in the front row since some teachers don't want students to sit in the back row (Mrs.Hutchinson).  I plan to make a lot more changes like my study habit for one.  These changes won't happen over night but there changes I will have to make if I want to succeed in TCI.