This photo is actually misleading. It's filled with water - not Coke. But it is a nearly empty Coke bottle. This photo is more to prove to you that these photos ARE taken day by day. Look in the background for proof of this.
It will not be long before I begin to make these photos more and more vague as time passes. needless to say, it'll become a puzzle at some point. :D This first 5 days are merely a warmup. Hehe.
Today - my studying went along fine. :D Quite satisfied with progress. Needless to say, this can of Coke Zero shows you how much I studied today. (Yep, I'm being as vague as possible.)
Guess what I did today?
(No prizes for guessing right. :( After all, I ain't some guy with stuff to give away. :( But you do know what's wrong with the photo right? :D)
Today is technically the first day of my studying period before the exam. Needless to say, I didn't get very far. Here's what I spent my day doing:
I know, I know - not all of us have bionic eyes that can see through the power of the flash of my weak camera, so for the benefit of those who do not wish to squint to see the game that was playing, here it is:
And yes, I am playing Gyakuten Saiban 2 on the DS. The photo also actually details exactly how I am even doing this. I did at one point try to play it in Japanese (the GBA version) - but to not much progress. Trying to scramble through with my horrible Japanese, the adventures of Naruhodou Ryuuichi was just too wordy for me to play through until I actually begin to learn Japanese.
As to why I'm using this not-so-legal method to play the game, I've been waiting for months. And I'm not so rich as to be able to express a game from Play-Asia. :(
(Oh yeah, the game rocks by the way - I expect to finish it maybe within the next day or so. :D)
I'd have to say that my tastes in RPGs have quite the tendency to deviate from stuff like the new age Final Fantasy series (meaning X and above). While I'd agree that Final Fantasy X was good, it was not as good and will never be as good, in any respect, as the one that came before it: Final Fantasy IX. That being said, I'm not a fan of FF12. I don't see how anyone could possible play something like that and say that it is excellent, give it 10/10 and so on. I don't know. However, what I do think is that the Final Fantasy series is beginning to suffer considerably in terms of storytelling. That being said, I would admit that my opinions will be biased. I haven't gotten much time to play it, and I'm sure that once I do, I might change my mind about the game considerably.
I'm quite sure I'll be a fan of the Gambit system. Needless to say, I will not lighten the load of Final Fantasy XII until I try this Gambit system for myself. However, while the combat system has taken quite an unfamiliar turn, I believe the storytelling has changed for the worse, seeing the first 30 minutes of the game or so. I will play the game and give it a fair review later on - but for now, you'd have to bear with my experience in the first hour.
The thing is - I (and many other people) determine whether or not we will finish a given game within the first hour of gameplay. Let's be blunt. The first hour of Final Fantasy XII is terrible. In fact, if it didn't have this name Final Fantasy on it, I'm not so sure I would have given it too much credit. If let's say I would to name it, The Adventures of Vaan, chances are you would put the game in some hidden corner for about several months before you come across some review that would convince you to come back and play it again. I'll say it like I think it is: honestly speaking - if you were to say that you enjoyed the first hour of Final Fantasy XII - to me, that is undeniable proof that you are a Final Fantasy fanboy beyond even reasonable doubt. I myself am willing to play on after that first hour - but I am realistic - the first hour didn't sell the game to me. I can't afford to play more - exams are coming.
I am a fan of the old Final Fantasy stuff. I was anticipating Final Fantasy III, although I couldn't care less about Final Fantasy XII. I am awaiting for my chance to play the last episode of the Xenosaga series, the first episode of the .hack//G.U. series and Disgaea 2. I will submit that a lot of people consider these three series inferior to the one I've been talking about for so long - but to me - these games take far higher priority than FF12 ever will get. I've been following the Xenosaga storyline for a long time - even if the game did suck, the storyline doesn't and the storytelling is top notch. It's that last book in the series you have to read just to know how it ends.
Then we have Disgaea 2. I play this game completely based on precedent. Disgaea was funny, had a pretty fun story, several endings and the battle system was classic. You can't fight a game like that. Then we have .hack. I would have to agree - a lot of people aren't big fans of the setting. However, you'd have to admit that the depth of the storyline is by far, in my opinion, quite unrivalled. I find difficulty in not liking a game whose storyline is told in so many channels over so many paths. .hack//G.U. is particularly taking great advantage of this and actually making the games more full length. I am a big fan of these kinds of storylines - and the game itself is pretty OK too.
What about other games I like? You'll just have to wait. This post is too long as it is! :P