The Red Knight

Yay, finally catching up on backlogged content~ :D

This video shows the fight scene at the Dungeon Entrance, featuring the first appearance of the Infected Wargar.



The Infected Wargar gets its strength from a silvery liquid that it drinks. It casts fireballs and has the ability to teleport, so the best way to fight it is at range. This fight scene shows a nice combo that you can do with Caddoc while playing E'lara. When Caddoc uses Wind of Wrath to lift enemies, their defenses are automatically down, making it easy for E'lara to pick them off one by one.

There's also a scene with Seraphine that I included at the end of the video, and let's face it, she's always nice to have on video. :P

New video featuring the town square siege and destruction of the Dyfed bell tower.



On this scene, E'lara and Caddoc finally make their way to the town square, only to find it beseiged by the wargar. The town's own bell tower has been taken over and used by the wargar to rain down arrows on the town square.

See my gameplay video of E'lara as I take out the enemies from cover positions and advance to seize the ballista and take down the tower.

And watch out for the awesome headshot I did against the wargar manning the ballista. *evil grin*

Quick gameplay video I recorded showing the first appearance of the Menacing Ruin monster.



On this scene, Alice acquires an umbrella that serves as a defensive tool to deflect enemy attacks. When timed correctly, the umbrella can also reflect the enemy attacks back to the source. This becomes useful with the appearance of the Menacing Ruin as the monster can block all incoming attacks while his defensive arms are up. When you time your block correctly, you can reflect the monster's own fireballs to destroy his defensive arms. After this, he becomes vulnerable to your attacks using the Vorpal Blade and Pepper Grinder.

Later on in the game you can acquire a Hobby Horse that can directly damage the Menacing Ruin by smashing through his defenses.

This is the scene in Dyfed where you have to blow up the bridge to prevent the wargar from taking more townspeople captive.



On this video I did a classic Elven archer one-shot-one-kill scene while playing E'lara. You'll see enemies drop dead one by one as they rush towards her. And of course, some cover shooting action all the way to the objective, which is blowing up the bridge.

The final scene here actually gives a hint about the next part of the mission (also my next Hunted video) where E'lara and Caddoc takes control of a ballista to take down the bell tower that's being used by the wargar to rain down arrows on the town square.

Uploaded a new video for Alice: Madness Returns, showing the part where Hysteria is activated for the first time, as well as the Mad Hatter's first appearance.



Alice becomes invulnerable to damage once Hysteria is activated, and she gains a massive bonus to attack damage. This mode can only be activated when Alice's HP is critically low, at 1 rose. The combat scene here was really quick so I decided to include the subsequent scenes all the way to the Mad Hatter's first appearance as well. Wouldn't hurt to show a decapitated head talking, would it? lol.

Another one for Hunted: The Demon's Forge. I included a simple puzzle scene, one of the first you'll encounter in-game.



It's a very simple puzzle to solve and the glowing hints are a dead giveaway. Still, I like the overall darkness in the environment. This is how dungeons, tombs, and caves should be. Combat in tight spaces also nice as even the normal mobs will really hurt you if you're not careful in how you position yourself in battle.

Here's another one of the videos I recorded while playing Alice: Madness Returns. This one features the scene where the Eyepot monster first appears.



There's actually a much faster way to kill Eyepots, which I realized only after the initial encounter shown on this video.

First, use the Pepper Grinder to shoot it in the eye and stun it, then quickly close in and follow up with your vorpal blade combo. If it doesn't die right away the first time it goes down, just blink away when it gets up and does its melee attack. Then stun it again with a Pepper Grinder shot to the eye, and close in quickly for the kill once it goes down.

Ok I still have shitloads of backlogged content to share and this is one of them. This is a video I recorded during my initial gameplay of Hunted: The Demon's Forge.



This is another great game to break away from the grind. A very nice co-op, highly reminiscent of the mechanics in RE5. I love the dark setting of the game, the generous amounts of blood and gore, and the overall dungeon crawling experience. Not to mention E'Lara is smokin' hot. lol.

I haven't updated posted in almost a year, lol. I guess now is a good time to start posting again since I have a ton of backlogged content that I want to share.

To start off, here's a video I recorded from my initial gameplay test of Alice: Madness Returns last weekend.



This game is a great sequel to the original American McGee's Alice. It's a lot more combat oriented than the previous, while preserving all the puzzle solving elements of the first game. (Incidentally, this is most likely what would happen if you let GM Excalibear play with a knife. :P)

After doing a few finishing touches on my custom stock extension tube for the APS SR-2, I waited an extra day for the painted parts to dry before proceeding with the installation of the PRS adjustable stock to the rifle.

Here's a quick peek at what the finished mod looks like.


Before we get to more images of the results, let's go over the installation process.

To start off, here's what the finished stock extension tube looks like after sanding it with 320, 600, 1500, and finally, 2500 grit sandpaper. And yes, it reminds me of the days when I lapped CPU heatsinks for overclocking. lol.










Here are a few more shots of my APS SR-2, in full view of the rifle, with the PRS stock installed. The total length is now 50 inches, and although I haven't exactly weighed it yet, it feels like carrying a 50 cal. around. Well, almost. lol.






I'm quite happy with the outcome of the mod. In fact, it turned out great. :D

My next mod would be fitting a PSG-1 style sniper grip to this rifle. And again, having non-standard parts, that would require machining a block of tempered aluminum to make the rifle compatible with the grip.

A more immediate concern though is sourcing out the sniper grip itself. I seem to have a knack for requiring things at a time stores are mostly out of stock. lol.

Sourcing out an A1 buffer extension tube can be a big pain in the arse over here, and even if I was able to get one, it would have required some considerable modding just to get it to fit securely on my APS SR-2. Why I would want to do such a thing is, of course, to be able attach the Precision Rifle/Sniper (PRS) adjustable stock that I got last week to my SR-2 (also known as MB06 and ASR in other manufacturers).

After considering the effort involved in sourcing out the tube and modding it, along with the potential complications posed by attaching two parts that are not meant to, I decided to make one from the ground up instead. And that's when I went to the machine shop with my design and had it fabricated.

This is what I got.






Overall I'm very pleased with the results. And after the quick installation test that I did, I dismantled everything again and worked on giving the tube a chrome finish and a zero black camo paint job on some parts.

Right now I'm waiting for the painted parts to dry, so I will post pics of the finished mod probably tomorrow.

Yesterday I got my Precision Rifle/Sniper (PRS) Stock in hopes of a fairly easy mod to get it installed on my APS SR-2. True enough, it was easy to install, using a few tweaks. But after some brief testing it felt like the connection wasn't solid enough for field combat use.


So earlier today, I went to a trusted machine shop (the same one that did the copper spiral evaporator for my single stage phase change cooler) to have my custom stock tube fabricated from T6 aluminum. It's gonna be one of a kind, and totally different from the way the Japanese installed the PRS on their SR-2s. Since my rifle isn't going to be for an APS cup competition, I made sure that my design and materials were all field combat worthy.

And well, seeing my rifle "butt-less" I had the sudden urge to disassemble it and paint the suppressor and polymer parts with zero black camouflage paint so it becomes closer to the flat black finish of the metal parts.


Hopefully I can keep myself busy enough until the machine shop finishes my custom stock tube next week.

Earlier today I picked up my APS SR-2 from EdGI Custom Works, where I had it upgraded. The great thing about EdGI is, first, he offers world-class custom parts (and by that I do mean world class - high end airsoft snipers all over the world use his upgrade kits). Second, he offers upgrades for virtually non-upgradeable rifles like my APS SR-2; thus turning my field rifle conversion project into reality. And yes, he's Filipino, woot!

Though I don't exactly have the time to do in-depth testing right now, I will as soon as possible. I already tested the rifle on stock parts before, and it seems to be accurate up to 50 meters or so; using .32g BBs at roughly 370+ fps (450+ fps using .2g). So yeah, I'm bloody excited to see what this beefed up baby can do. now that it fires at 550 fps @ .2g. lol.

For now, here are the current specs and images.

• EdGI 5.98mm ID 650mm Length Inner Barrel
• EdGI Barrel Extension (Silencer Type)
• EdGI Piston and Spring
• EdGI Spring Guide
• EdGI Piston Sear

For Phase 2 I'll be doing external mods, namely the PRS stock and sniper grip, along with whatever ideas I am yet to come up with. lol.

Last week I bought an APS SR-2. It's a bolt action springer designed for the Air Precision Shooting (APS) competitions in Japan, where shooters mostly aim at short range and emphasize on accuracy. Unlike most Airsoft rifles, this one has no hop up system, focusing on consistency between shots rather than extending range. Being that, most people say it's not exactly a field rifle, which is true. But that doesn't mean you can't turn it into one.

And so I set myself on a quest to transform this competition rifle into a field sniper rifle. Accuracy and consistency is already there, I just have to enhance it, along with range. Something I plan to start this weekend or early next week (whenever my free time permits), as I take this rifle to EdGI Custom Works - a world renowned maker of custom upgrade kits for Airsoft guns, who happens to be a Filipino as well.

But that's another story. For now, I'll be focusing on my first impressions on this rifle as well as its performance on stock parts.

With the rifle, the package contains two 30-round magazines and a BB fastloader. I bought the scope and bipod separately.

The rifle extends from 976mm to 1073mm long using the 6-position expandable stock. It has a picatinny weaver rail for mounting the scope, and is compatible with a ball joint type bipod.


The rifle is cocked by lifting the bolt handle by 33 degrees, followed by a very short 85mm bolt stroke.


The stock inner barrel is 6.00mm inner diameter, 445mm length.


I took it out for testing the day after I level-mounted the rifle scope. And after I zeroed in the scope at 20 meters (I was limited by the length of the driveway.. lol), I did a five-shot test to see the grouping.



It was a fairly quick test since I had to go out of town later that day. But I'm quite pleased with the results, given how this rifle performs on stock parts.


Can't wait to see what this baby can do once upgraded. :D

Leveling a rifle scope is fairly simple, though it requires care and focus to be done properly. It's one of the things that have to be done when mounting to ensure accuracy on your shooting equipment. This holds greater significance to Airsofters using a hop up system in their rifles.

The hop up system basically creates a backspin on the BB, which in turn, generates some lift. This allows the BB to follow a relatively straight flight, as opposed to its natural parabolic trajectory, for as long as it can maintain lift. And that's why it's more important for hop up enabled rifles/guns to stay leveled. If you tilt the firing angle left or right, you also change the direction of lift from the hop up, thus veering your BB off target left or right.

To start, we'll be needing a solid base to hold the rifle in place. A gun/rifle vise would work great, but for those who don't have it (like me, lol) you can always improvise. You'll also need small levels, which you can buy at your local hardware stores.

First attach the mounts on your rail interface and adjust it with the scope to see the position you'll be using the scope at. Once you find the position you'll be using the scope at, secure and fasten the base of the mount. Then remove the top rings as well as the scope to start leveling the rifle.

Place the level(s) on the rail mount of your rifle and adjust until the bubble centers.

Here you can see I used two. I was also making sure the the rail itself is precise so I put two levels on different sections to check. I actually did this on multiple sections to verify the quality of the rail.

Make sure the rifle is secured once it's leveled. It's absolutely important that the rifle will not move when you do the next step, which is leveling the scope.

Place the scope on the base of the mounts and adjust it to the position that you wanted earlier. Then loosely fasten the scope with the top rings. Tight enough to hold it in place, but loose enough to effortlessly rotate the scope in its place.

Then place a level on the top turret and adjust until it centers.

After it's leveled, fasten the scope by carefully tightening the screws on the mounts. Make sure the scope does not slide out of its leveled position while doing securing it in place.

You now have a leveled rifle scope and you should be ready for the next step, which is to zero in your reticle.

After weeks of planning, screening qualifier entries, and preparaing for the live event, we're finally done! :D

Hosted by Laila Chikadora and myself, the year's biggest overclocking event in the country unfolded as the best of the best in the Philippine overclocking community battled it out for hours, over four (4) different benchmark tests.

In between bench periods were various mini-games facilitated by Laila, and performances by Cookie Chua, as well as DeLara.


During the event, the finalists dubbed themselves the "GigaBoys," whose highly competitive overclocking skills ensured that the event was a big success.

And thanks to the organizers and sponsors the finalists were able to push these high end toys to the limit:

• Intel i7 860 (ES)
• Gigabyte P55A UD3P
• Transcend AxeRam 2000+ 9-9-9-24 DDR3
• HIS HD 5750 iCooler IV 1GB
• Samsung Spinpoint F1
• Gigabyte Odin 1200 watts
• RedFox 24-inch Display, Gaming Keyboard and Mouse

Here are their pictures:









Of course, in the end, there can only be one.


Congratulations to Ronaldo M. Bejarin for being the first GO OC Philippine Champion! Good luck, and do your best in representing the country on the Pan Asia finals. Show them what pinoys are made of! :)

Among the creatures in the game that can give the player a good scare are the abominations. They are fast moving, unpredictable, and somewhat reminiscent of Lickers from Resident Evil. These things are guaranteed to get your heart rate up, specially if you're fully immersed in the environment. Watch these scenes as Sgt. Becket fights through the abominations on his way top side.


This video is part of my F.E.A.R. 2 Project Origins HD Gameplay Series.

Recorded in full resolution using Fraps, center-cropped to 1920x1080, and encoded in 1080-30p h.264 using Sony Vegas 9.0.

My tutorial on optimizing h.264 videos for upload to YouTube HD can be found here.

Power. Speed. Precision. Performance.

1. Hardware and software are provided by GIGABYTE and official sponsors.
2. No brands other than GIGABYTE and approved official sponsors will be allowed.
3. The Philippine Finals will be an air-cooling limited event. Contestants are allowed to bring their own cooler(s) though, which includes memory coolers, chipset coolers, and the like.
4. Custom made air coolers are allowed, but brand stickers for third-party parts used must be removed/covered.
5. Other brand coolers are allowed, but brand stickers must be removed/covered.
6. If the contestants don’t have coolers for the competition, GIGABYTE will provide them with one, along with needed auxiliary fans.
7. GIGABYTE will not provide hardware replacement if the original one dies or fails.
8. No graphics card modification is allowed, including removing the standard cooling fan.
9. HDDs are pre-installed and configured with Windows XP SP2, drivers, benchmark and utilities.
10. No outside software, non-GIGABYTE prepared thumb drives, optical devices, etc. are allowed.
11. USB thumb drives will be provided by GIGABYTE to save scores and screen shots.
12. Contestants may bring their own multi-meter or digital temperature meter.
13. Contestants need to bring their own paper towels, thermal paste, scissors, cable ties, and other related materials.

Scoring

There will be dedicated GIGABYTE Technical Staff Referees to verify the score and screen shots.


Live Competition Mechanics

1. Points will be awarded based on the results of each bench.
2. Points will be totaled and posted at fixed intervals.
3. Contestants can update their results continuously within the valid set period of time set up by GIGABYTE.
4. Benchmark scores submitted after the allotted time will not count.
5. Contestants should take a screenshot, then save the results to GIGABYTE thumb drive and raise their hand to submit a score. GIGABYTE judges will then verify and take down the score.
6. Failure to submit a score for a round will not lead to disqualification.
7. The contestant with the highest points at the end of the competition will be declared champion. Judges should be informed of results challenges before the champion is declared, with the head judge to make the final call. Once the winner is declared, all results are final.
8. GIGABYTE judges may ask contestants to run benchmarks again to verify scores.
9. Every contestant needs to save screenshots of their result. Otherwise, the score will be invalid.
10. In case of a tie, the contestant with the highest Pifast will be declared the winner.

To view details on how to qualify for this competition, click here.



** GIGABYTE reserves the right to modify/amend in any way the Rules and Regulations at any time without prior notice.

Bullets flying everywhere. Chapter 3 - Discovery kicks off with guns blazing as enemy forces immediately come in to storm your location. These scenes show numerous encounters right after escaping the T.A.C. lab in Chapter 2. Not much of my beloved Alma here, but there's still considerable amount of blood, and well, more blood.


This video is part of my F.E.A.R. 2 HD Gameplay series.Recorded in full resolution using Fraps, center-cropped to 1920x1080, then encoded in 1080-30p h.264 using Sony Vegas 9. My tutorial on how to optimize h.264 videos for YouTube HD can be found here.