Overhaul

I thought I was going to do some super cool things with this blog over the summer, but, as you can see, that didn't happen. Instead, I'm going to use this for my random musings, cool Internet finds, and generally whatever I feel like writing. Once upon a time I heard a great way to build your writing skills is by keeping a diary, so I suppose this will be it!

Please feel free to look through my old posts and visit randomhavok.com for video game news and reviews - seriously, go there.

Here are some goals I have for myself:

• Learn Japanese
• Consistently write for this blog
• Make a video game
• Participate in NaNoWriMo
• Read "Atlus Shrugged" 
• Finish "The Last of Us" 
• Make Random Havok super popular 
• Get an internship this summer 
• Move to San Francisco 
• Become a better writer 

I'll end this post with this silly picture from today's Lunar Moon Festival that was put on by the University of Oklahoma's Vietnamese Student Association. 

Me and my friend Tomo

Reboot

Hello, friends.

If you came here from some RSS feed notification or something of that manner, you are the best. You are the best for checking back to this very slow website that crumbled under my demanding schoolwork and normal work. But you checking here means there is hope. Hope that this little blog will one day thrive again!

And it will, but as something different than before. This time, this blog is personal. If you were hoping for more of my video game feature writing and news, head over to randomhavok.com - that's where I'll be posting all that work. But if you were hoping to read and see more about my shenanigans, hopes and dreams and latest video game endeavors, keep it here.

I'll be leaving all my old content up so feel free to browse through that as you please. And for news you really should check out randomhavok.com. So now that's out of the way, lets get this thing started.

I'm Miranda. I love to play video games, I have a fashion sense that is something close to Kyary Pamyu Pamyu's "New Kawaii" - though not nearly as intense - and I love to write. I just finished my second year of college and I recently fell in love with San Francisco and all it has to offer. I write for not only this, but also for randomhavok.com - go check it out. I started it up with my best friend who I'm incredibly lucky to be working with.

I have a few posts planned for the coming weeks, so keep an eye out for them.

Thanks for stopping by the site!

And the award goes to...

In 2012 our world survived one of the many predicted apocalypses, Master Chief woke up and we gamers were given beautiful new titles like Dishonored and Journey to satisfy our anti-sequal appetites.

During the final days of last year and the beginning days of 2013, video game websites and magazines have taken time to reflect on the video game accomplishments of 2012. Ultimately, they end their analysis by honoring a single title the Game of the Year award.

Here' s who won this year:

IGN - Journey
GameSpot - Journey
Nick.com - Power Rangers Samurai: Super Samurai ... :)
GamesRadar - The Walking Dead
Spike TV's VGAs - The Walking Dead
Edge - Dishonored
Kotaku - XCOM: Enemy Unknown
X-Play - Borderlands 2
Game Informer - Mass Effect 3

As it is with almost every year, no one game ever stands on top of all the lists. For us gamers, that's a good thing. It means that while we wait for the big games of 2013 to be released, we have a nice list of games to play that are guaranteed to satisfy.

Dishonored cover via Wikipedia

Although I have not had the opportunity to play all the fantastic games that were released this year, I can confidently declare Dishonored as my Game of the Year. It was the first game that after I had completed the campaign, I immediately wanted to play it all over again. Oh the choices! The moral conflicts, hidden items, objectives and side quests beckon you to play the levels over and over.

I've played other stealth games such as Assassin's Creed, but there was something special about having the option to engage the target in combat, murdering him in the shadows or knocking him out and disposing  him in a nonlethal way that drew me in.

Sure, there were some glitches because no game is  perfect, but ultimately Dishonored was the best game I played all year and has earned a place on my favorites list.

If I had the opportunity to play Journey or The Walking Dead, maybe my choice would be different. Too bad I don't have all the time or money to invest in these award-winning games. Time to wait for the markdowns.

What was your Game of the Year?

P.S. Sorry about the absence. To see what I was up to click here!

Nintendo Pulls the Plug on Nintendo Power

As a journalism major with a focus on magazines and feature writing, I often pop into the magazine isle of the grocery store or book store. I remember the days when Game Informer was sold in all local stores, when all three major consoles had their magazine on the racks and when the video game section rivaled the wedding section. Now, finding a variety of video game magazines on the shelf is rare.

This week, the our options just became more limited.

According to IGN and G4, Nintendo is stopping production of it's official magazine Nintendo Power. Like the Official Xbox Magazine and Playstation the Official Magazine, Nintendo Power was not only an exclusive news source for the company, but also an easy marketing tool.

via Nintendo Power

Nintendo was the longest running official gaming magazine of the big three. The magazine was originally published by Nintendo, but those responsibilities were handed over to Future Publishing in 2007.

What could this mean for the rest of the video game magazines? Much of print media is already on it's last threads. Game Informer doesn't offer a print version on the shelves. Other gaming publications like GamePro have already called it quits, so who will be next? Will publications be purely online like IGN or will the print publications simply die out? As much as I love IGN, no one likes a monopoly.

On a positive note, Dark Horse Comics announce last week that it is releasing an official english copy of the The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia. This book was released for the 25th anniversary of the Zelda series in Japan and is finally making it's way to the US. It will include information about the entire series including the popular timeline that puts every Zelda game in order.

via Dark Horse

It will be released January 29 and is available for preorder now for $20.99 on Amazon.

What are your thoughts on Nintendo Power closing? Will you miss it?

Yours truly,
HavokRose

Absence

I apologize. My absence from the blog was due to the fact I was bettering my journalism skills at a camp these past two weeks. On the plus side, I wrote an article for you all about Smartphones and console games. I know its a little rough, but I hope you enjoy it!

Your's truly, 

HavokRose