Projections need to be...
[message notification]
Tornado?
[message notification]
Next Thursday?
I can't do Thursday,
but I can do Friday.
[arguing over each other]
NARRATOR: Disasters
don't plan ahead.
You can.
Talk to your loved ones about
how you're going to be ready
in an emergency.
For more infomation >> PSA: Tornadoes don't plan ahead, but you can (15 seconds) - Duration: 0:16.-------------------------------------------
Đồng hồ nữ Olympia Star OPA28025DLK-T mạ vàng đính đá sang trọng - Duration: 1:03.
For more infomation >> Đồng hồ nữ Olympia Star OPA28025DLK-T mạ vàng đính đá sang trọng - Duration: 1:03. -------------------------------------------
Demain nous appartient : pourquoi le personnage d'Arthur Lazzari-Moiret a-t-il changé d'interprète ? - Duration: 2:58.
Demain nous appartient : pourquoi le personnage d'Arthur Lazzari-Moiret a-t-il changé d'interprète ?
Si vous avez regardé Demain nous appartient ce mercredi 29 août, vous avez sûrement remarqué que le personnage d'Arthur Lazzari-Moiret n'est plus le même.
Ce dernier n'est plus incarné par Jean-Baptiste Lamour. Voici pourquoi.
C'est un personnage plus que secondaire, mais le changement a sauté aux yeux de nombreux téléspectateurs.
Ce mercredi 29 août dans Demain nous appartient, un acteur s'est volatilisé. Jean-Baptiste Lamour, qui interprète le personnage d'Arthur Lazzari-Moiret,
a été soudainement remplacé par l'acteur et humoriste Théo Cosset.
Une véritable surprise pour les fans du programme qui ne s'attendaient pas à un changement de casting pour l'un des deux fils du couple formé par Sandrine et Laurence,
incarnées par les comédiennes Juliette Tresanini et Charlotte Valandrey.
Mais pourquoi les producteurs de la série ont-il changé l'interprète d'Arthur Lazzari-Moiret ? Allociné a contacté TF1 qui a expliqué le départ de l'acteur Jean-Baptiste Lamour.
Celui-ci a quitté la série quotidienne pour une bonne raison : il a été admis à Science Po Lille. Avec son emploi du temps d'étudiant et la distance – le tournage du programme se déroulant à Sète -,
le jeune homme a préféré laisser sa place. Une décision d'autant plus réfléchie que son personnage, tout comme celui de son frère Lucas également très discret à l'antenne,
va beaucoup plus apparaître à l'écran. Allociné révèle que dès le mois de septembre, Demain nous appartient proposera une intrigue autour de la famille Lazzari-Moiret.
Ce n'est pas la première fois que les producteurs de Demain nous appartient changent d'acteur en cours de saison.
En janvier dernier, Coline Belin avait cédé sa place à Sylvie Filloux pour le rôle de Judith Delcourt,
la fille de Chloé et Alex, les personnages principaux joués par Ingrid Chauvin et Alexandre Brasseur.
-------------------------------------------
Does God exist? The answer of Albert Einstein - Duration: 1:21.
Him7 translation
I will prove to you
That if God exists it is evil god
Did God create all things
If god created all things
He also created evil
It means that god is mean
Excuse me professor
The cold you have
What question
Of course, there is
Have you ever had cold
In fact, sir cold does not exist
According to the law of physics
What we consider cold
In reality the absence of heat
Professor darkness exists she
Obviously what exists
You are wrong sir
It's just the absence of light
We can measure the intensity of light
But not darkness
The evil does not exist
It's like cold and dark
God did not create evil
Evil is the result that happens
when you do not have the love of God
present in his heart
Albert Einstein (1879 - 1955)
-------------------------------------------
choose - Why Don't we (Lyrics/Lyric video) - Duration: 2:57.
For more infomation >> choose - Why Don't we (Lyrics/Lyric video) - Duration: 2:57. -------------------------------------------
[HUMOR] BTS "You don't have this now !" - Duration: 2:58.
For more infomation >> [HUMOR] BTS "You don't have this now !" - Duration: 2:58. -------------------------------------------
ÇİRKİNDEN GÜZELE DÖNME MUSİCALLYLERİ | DON'T JUDGE CHALLENGE - Duration: 11:48.
For more infomation >> ÇİRKİNDEN GÜZELE DÖNME MUSİCALLYLERİ | DON'T JUDGE CHALLENGE - Duration: 11:48. -------------------------------------------
Is Caffeine Why You Feel Like S&#T? - Duration: 6:46.
all right so let's speak about caffeine and why it really may be the reason
you're feeling like crap feeling tired you know paradoxically caffeine actually
makes a lot of people tired and many people don't realize this many people in
fact don't realize how strong caffeine is because it is a drug it's a stimulant
it has profound effects on the brain but it's something that people underestimate
just because of how widespread its use is I think it's somewhere of upwards of
70 to 80 percent of Americans at least have at least one cup of coffee or some
sort of a beverage that contains caffeine a per day so it's extremely
widely used but misunderstood so basically how caffeine works is that
when you ingest it it blocks something called adenosine which naturally builds
up as you get more tired so basically it blocks this so it prevents you from
getting tired and increases things like cortisol the stress hormone and this
also leads to you being more alert as well as increasing things like
catecholamines like norepinephrine increasing ketone bodies caffeine
actually mobilizes fat too so you know caffeine is great it helps with your
physical performance it's been shown in studies to help with
the working memory but the problem is that these benefits are short-lived
after you become dependent on caffeine because once you're actually dependent
on caffeine and it only takes about a cup of coffee per day for this to occur
all you're doing by giving yourself that boost physically or mentally or both is
alleviating the withdrawal symptoms you experience so you go to bed you wake up
you feel tired you feel like crap because you're having withdrawals from
the caffeine you have your coffee and the cycle continues as you continuously
think that you're getting a benefit from caffeine but in fact if you were to go
off caffeine if you were to allow receptors in the brain to re sensitize
then over time you would feel just as good if not better without a dependency
on something like caffeine what caffeine is actually doing in the body isn't
creating energy right it's basically giving you an advanced on energy it's
giving you energy and then it's gonna take that away late
as you crash your ballroom energy and once you get in the cycle of
continuously borrowing energy and never using any of your own you're gonna feel
it with some negative side effects of caffeine there are some other negatives
of caffeine increased risk of anxiety especially if you're already prone to
that it's going to exacerbate that because of the increase in cortisol that
it causes and now let me be clear I'm not saying it's bad I'm not saying that
having a cup a day is as bad if you can manage with that and that's perfectly
okay even to I mean there are many correlation studies which link caffeine
to a decreased risk of degenerative brain disorder disorders like
Alzheimer's there's even a correlation with a longer life for those who consume
more coffee up to four cups a day generally teens tends to be optimal for
life expectancy when looking at correlation studies these are just
correlations but you know certainly caffeine isn't something that's
dangerous to the extent of other narcotics obviously but um what I am
saying is that we are in general drinking too much and I don't advise
that you drink it to the extent where it becomes something you're dependent on
that's never a good idea to be dependent on something it's always good to have
your baseline your normal self where you're not stimulating yourself with
caffeine or nicotine or alcohol and then use it as a boost when required for
example before a workout or on a day where you feel particularly tired
rather than utilizing it as a crutch everyday in order to get up and live
your life now again I'm not saying that that's a bad thing you can do that but
if you personally have been feeling tired and you're not sure why maybe even
anxious maybe even your performance in the gym isn't as you want it to be and
you've been consuming caffeine on a regular basis for a long time and
gradually building up the dose of it as you become more tolerant to it then I
would highly recommend decreasing it not permanently not I'm not saying that's
the best course of action but if you haven't and you've been doing it for
five years and you might as well give yourself a few weeks where you go off
the caffeine just to see how your body responds now do be warned that you will
experience withdrawal symptoms from stopping the use of caffeine especially
if you go cold turkey and you completely eliminate it you're probably going to be
bed bound if you've been reliant on several couple of coffee per day for
several years so you know a good idea it can be to slowly kill it cut it down by
drinking decaf mixing it with decaf you know reducing the cups of coffee from
three one week to two the next week to one the next week or you could just call
go cold turkey and brace through those first few days of feeling like crap but
you know through my own personal experience and other anecdotes I've read
online after you do quit caffeine you're going to have much more stable energy
instead of having that cup of coffee in the morning feeling that energy and then
crashing a few hours later the energy that you do have although it may not be
as intense and exciting and euphoric the moment you wake up will be much more
gradual and you'll be more productive overall paradoxically as you have more
stable energy to take you through from morning to night so that's definitely
something you want to consider the best part about reducing your caffeine intake
and you know ideally eliminating it almost completely is that when you do
use it when you want to use it for example if you're very tired and you
still want to go to the gym but you really need a boost when you do use it
in that circumstance you're actually going to feel the positive effects of it
and get a real benefit rather than just alleviating the withdrawal symptoms you
were experiencing so that's probably the best part so I
highly advise that you form a relationship with caffeine more similar
to the one most people have with alcohol you know wake up and have a drink you
know you have a drink on the weekend to have fun with your friends for example
if you do that if you don't it's fine and just like that it's good to have
that relationship with caffeine where you use it once in a while for a workout
once in a while when you need to do an all-nighter for a project you're working
on that's kind of the relationship I think you should have with any sort of
stimulating substance which does have profound impacts on the brain so that's
it for the video leave your thoughts down below on caffeine and I'll I'll see
you guys later
-------------------------------------------
Don't be fooled to buy starbucks at low PE! - Duration: 2:24.
Hi guys, this is Jonathan. Today I'll be sharing with you
the stock called Starbucks.
So right now, I'm outside a Starbucks coffee chain.
What has happened to Starbucks recently? It's stock actually tumbled by 20%
And this is because the founder CEO actually resigned and also a
long time CFO actually resigned as well.
IM QUITTING!
1, 2
3, 4
And this sparked panic in the stock market.
Not only that, they actually closed down many of
their US stores because they were all clustered in one location
and they were cannibalising each other's revenue.
Right now Starbuck's PE ratio is only 16
and you might think that Starbucks is actually a cheap stock.
But the truth is, it is not!
Right surprise surprise right why is that so?
right because they recorded two
one time gains in fact. So one is actually by
selling off one of their chinese tea subsidiaries for
500 million dollars and also they recorded a one time
gain from buying off a chinese east venture for
about 1.5 billion.So they had two one off gains that amounted
to about 2 billion dollars
So if you were to look at Starbuck's net income right now, you look at
its earnings for the trailing twelve months, it's actually about
4 billion dollars right now but if you
were to account for all these one time gains, the earnings
would be about around
2.7 billion. Right so actually the real P/E ratio is actually
30 right now. So if you're buying Starbucks
right now. You're not actually buying it for P/E 16 right.
it is only P/E 16 right now because they recorded
two one time gains , which caused the earnings to spike but it's only for this
year and it's non-recurring right. So if you were to
use P/E ratio and just use it blindly. You're actually being fooled
into thinking it is cheap right. So this is one tip for you
to look out for one time gains and one time losses
when you buy into a stock.
Ok so that's the end of the sharing,
So if you found this video useful,
please like the video below. And if you have friends
who are interested on how to invest in the stock
market or how to look at Starbucks as a stock
please share this video with them.
So this is the end of today's sharing
and I'll see you next time.
Peace out!
-------------------------------------------
After Network Claims They Don't Lie, Don Jr. Kicks Them Back To The Fake News Factory - Duration: 4:18.
For more infomation >> After Network Claims They Don't Lie, Don Jr. Kicks Them Back To The Fake News Factory - Duration: 4:18. -------------------------------------------
Steve Large - DON'T WATCH UNLESS YOU WANT TO RELAX AND FEEL GREAT *POWERFUL* - Duration: 10:20.
Hi my name's Steve Large I'm just gonna
do a video on relaxation and to just
stay calm and to help you take that
moments for yourself in each day just to
follow on from your last video about
recharge and this is one of the ways I
recharge so if you've got a moment to
just be a piece to sit down relax just
take a moment now wherever you are
whatever you do and just take a moment
to just breathe all the way out all the
way in and hold
and all the way out like all your
muscles feel relaxed all built up Amity
anything else just let it go are your
muscles take another deep breath in
that's it hold it and all the way house
maybe just allow your eyes to shorts
maybe not shot by himself or as I've
asked everything's just fine and she
starts relaxed to feel all the muscles
in your body just starts or likes to of
each breath as you breathe in or
actually breathe out you may notice the
muscle starts relax more and more you
that all's fine maybe all have little
muscles in and around your eyes now
we're starting to relax you feel more
and more at peace that relaxation
feeling might start to run down your
face down your Jordans your neck and
into your shoulders down your arms and
your hands and fingers down your body to
your torso you're not feeling that relax
just yet
it'll catch up maybe catch up right now
as I say or maybe in a moment time
that's all up to you and everything's
pay effect you may notice now that your
legs are starting to relax and you call
down to your feet in your toes you may
even notice yet your mind starting to
wander and drift away as you start to
focus and listen to my words you may
notice you're going more to more relaxed
listening to my words or maybe the pause
between my words everything you're doing
is just perfect taking that time for you
taking that time to recharge is you
deserve this you deserve to be a piece
all the way a nice deep breath then all
the way else just allow your mind and
imagination to wander off
wandered off to somewhere peaceful maybe
on a beach
sitting looking out of sunsets maybe on
a mountain look at our own sunset any
way that feels peaceful for you is just
firing why are you sitting wherever it
is you are feeling at peace to take your
moments just like everything calm down
just relax
this is your time this is your moment
you've chosen to take the time for you
to relax to be charged that's it
now way any thoughts just to drift away
let's say it does pass you by
like clouds floating in the sky coming
through and passing by that's it
nice you're the Luxan I want you to fail
yourself at calm and eggs peaceful
maybe you're floating now and a nice
gentle breeze on a warm summer's evening
just floating down looking below
whatever suits you is just fired feeling
calm and relaxed as you doing this I
want you to start feeling an energy you
may want to do that now you may want to
do that later everything is fine in your
own time and when you're ready when
you'll allow yourself to feel this
energy just allowed to feel it build and
off this is you this is your essence
this is you connected to the universe
you may notice your feet are tingling or
maybe your legs or arms starting to feel
energized
I should breathe in you Mon notice more
and more energy comes through your
fingertips and for your toes reaching
every breath that energy you start to
grow more and more
this is your strength this is your
connection this is our connection this
is where we take our strength from the
energy around us as a build more and
more feeling stronger and stronger
filling you with hope filling you with
optimism ready for that new day ready to
get up and go again feeling powerful
feeling strong feeling fantastic knowing
that you control you you have the
strength to overcome anything that comes
your way
they are just challenges challenges we
choose to embrace and to grow from you
have the strength you can feel the
strength you are strong you asked when
you are connected to all the universal
strength you are one with it you may
notice that the strength and the energy
builds up more and more now as you feel
stronger and stronger more and more
positive more and more optimistic more
and more hopeful each and every day from
this moment forward you will feel more
and more positive you will notice this
daily you will feel more and more
energized you will notice this daily
because you choose to connect because
you are connection this is who you are
beyond thoughts connected with
everything in the universe and all
living beings
you are strong you are impressive you
are awesome know this don't think miss
know this beyond thought
fearless let that energy grow allow it
to build up inside you imagine yourself
standing tall looking out over the cliff
looking on to the world ahead knowing
that you are above it all you are strong
enough to conquered it all you have to
strengthen you have the power feel your
heart beating strong as you take in each
and every breath feeling the strength
circulate shoulders back chest off head
held high that's it
you're gonna feel great more and more
every single day
please take this moment whenever you can
for yourself to recharge it's not even
ten minutes a day just to know who you
are your strengths your beauty you love
your compassion your empathy this is who
you are you are one with all just allow
yourself now to start noticing your
thoughts coming back a little bit more
as you start bringing your attention
back I'll just count off from one to
three and on three just feel the fresh
feel fantastic feel ready for the world
knowing now that you know how to be
charged and to protect your entity and
you know who you are one starts feeling
around you two feeling fantastic knowing
who you are and ready for the day ahead
ready for those challenges positive
hopeful optimistic
feeling fantastic three I hope you don't
realize now I hope you feel fully
recharged and you're smiling and you're
ready because you've got this you are
strong
thank you for taking this moment to
listen to me and thank you for taking
this moment for yourself
love and light stay blessed stay strong
keep getting up don't let the bastards
grind you down we've got this together I
have a great day morning evening noon
and night wherever you are whatever
you're doing thank you bye
-------------------------------------------
DON'T DO THE SAME THING I DID ! - Duration: 10:47.
Can you find a nicer spot to piss ?
Welcome to the lac of Moiry
Moiry
Not "Mory" but "Moiry"
We will try to climb all the way up there
on the glacier
Ok we'll try to reach the glacier first, it would be good already
I took the dirt scoot with me
and we see if there are any places where I could ride
Sush as big rocks, banks, etc
it's going to be my challenge for today and tomorrow
because we're sleeping here
I am with Michael Goumaz, a scooter OG
he's an alpinist expert...
- "Yeah right..."
Say yes, say yes !
so we got 2 amazing days ahead of us, dirt riding, glacier, lac
it's gonna be a crazy weekend
and you're coming with me
let's go !
We just found a spot that could be perfect for a photo
maybe a footjam on top of the rock
I think it could look very cool, especially with the glacier in the background
the break is over, let's get back to our climb
beautiful right ?
Look at this little wall here and then I'll drop from the rock
could be funny
Mika is a bit too fast
I don't know if you can see him, he's over there
it's the little dot with two legs
Ok, we're trying something quite dangerous at the moment
I have never done this before
we're gonna try to walk on the glacier
I strongly advise you never to do it without a guide
I believe I saw a path, so we'll follow it as much as we can
and if it's becoming to risky, we'll turn around
I should've taken the snowscoot, I knew it
Volcanic erection
oh yeah that's good
See what I was talking about, everywhere around us is ice and rocks
it looks quite strong
for now
let's continue with a light foot
let's meet on the glacier
and here we are
don't try this at home !
if you have a glacier in your garden
we arrive on a very dangerous part of the glacier
we can't really see it now but over there, there are some massive cracks (crevasses)
your turn
(We just heard a loud deep cracking)
What the hell guys, I don't know if you can hear it in the video
but we heard a massive cracking
a loud deep cracking
it's scary
we can't stay here
and it sounds like it's getting closer
it's shaking under our feet
bad idea
it was a bad idea
just to give you an idea
this one is really deep
we don't see it well with the Go Pro
but it's a thin and very deep crack
look at this
it gives you an idea of how deep it is
this one was at least
20 meters deep (66 feet)
and that's just how far I could see
but it does turns so it could easily be a lot more
probably more than 50 meters (164 ft)
don't forget, if you want to walk on glaciers, go with a guide
I won't do it again without one
I wouldn't take this risk a second time
Mika is still over there
it's the dot over there
I just heard crackings again
in his area
he heard it too, he's changing his course
he's gonna try to take the same path I took to come back
I feel the adrenaline
I'm happy you're back
beautiful
we're not done yet
we gotta climb this
if some rocks are falling, we're dead
I can't believe Hobbits did that barefoot
what you see over there is rain
I guess we have to go down a bit quicker
to avoid the rain
but it should pass next to us
Nope... We got it anyway
Our goal now
is to camp up there
You see, this is the bad point of beeing a video producer...
You got one bag for the camping stuff
and one for the camera stuff
I'm carrying 4 times more weight than usual
I am dying
it looks like these spots over there are quite good
because we really want to have the view on the dam, the lac and the glacier
Isn't it the best place in the world to camp ?
we see everything !
Let's set the tent before it gets dark
You give me a tour ?
- "Sure, come in !"
yeaa looks comfy
with a view ! Watch this !
- "With a sausage !"
... and a sausage
The sun just rised, let's have a look outside
let's go
I've just found a super strange groundhog
If you like photography, go watch my instagram account : @benjfriant
it's an account where I post my shots of epic landscapes
go have a look you might like it
the end of this session will be the downhill there
I'm not sure you can see it very well
I'll meet Mika down there
Behind this
there are millions and millions of litres
if it breaks
no more BenJ
I'm gonna wall ride a dam !
Ok it sucked...
but you have to admit, the spot is insane
Mika has to go, actually I have to go
he's getting a knee surgery in two weeks
so it was the last time we could go before the surgery
thank you so much man
and now let's meet in my new local park in 3-2-1
here we are in Blonay
with the locals
that was landed !
Unfortunately you're not gonna get more riding clips
because I'm just coming back from a 2 days climbing (yes it was the same day)
so I let you imagine how dead I am, and I can't feel my left leg
and with that a crazy migraine
comment with the hashtag #glacier if you like icecreams
and I'll see you soon for a new video
ciao !
Where are we ?
Where are we now ?
- "Yes"
wtf ?
-------------------------------------------
We Don't Talk Anymore - [YM] ✓ ғᴍᴠ - Duration: 3:47.
For more infomation >> We Don't Talk Anymore - [YM] ✓ ғᴍᴠ - Duration: 3:47. -------------------------------------------
The Filmmaker's View: Mo Flam – Lighting that you don't see - Duration: 3:50.
I am Mo Flam, gaffer from the US.
Basically I became friends with a guy who was a gaffer.
At that point I would take any job.
That period of time I started working with Michael Ballhaus.
Tthe first film, it was actually not a film, it was a TV movie for German television.
Peter Lilienthal was the director.
And it was very simple. Like very low budget, not many lights.
We just shot in an apartment in New York.
And it was like, suddenly this is me,
three years out of film school, I am working with the cinematographer
who did films that I kind of idolised and admired, impressed me.
I was best boy at that time.
And just evolved. Then I moved up to be gaffer.
Michael had a very simple approach, they would tell the story.
Just very simple, on location.
Bounce a light here and one there. So it was not like
lighting every centimeter of the image.
It was more expressionistic to stylise.
By the stylisation it was more real because it was not overly lit.
It did not look like a studio, it looked like a location.
Michael just had that approach and I was lucky
right after the end of my period with Michael I worked with Haskell Wexler.
Which is the same thing. Again an idol of mine
and suddenly I am working with him as a peer.
This guy has won two academy awards.
But in some ways Haskell never wants to
do this like I did the other film. That is a process of discovery.
He almost is like somebody lost in the woods
until he kind of feels what this particular project
has to be. It is finding that kind of direction.
He is discovering. But he is like starting anew.
And that was so inspiring to say we approach every film differently.
For me good lighting is lighting that you do not see.
Maybe will enhance a story. Add a mood or maybe
we won't make it more contrasty, because we don't want
to draw attention to the lighting.
Observation is a key to good lighting.
Basically you observe reality and you reproduce it.
But you kind of enhance it, you get rid of the bad parts.
What I have to say is, I have a long history with ARRI.
I have worked with ARRI and its people for 35 years, 37 years.
So it is about a third of the history of the company.
Part of it, for me, is the people at ARRI.
I think it is part of the DNA of the company. It is amazing.
All the people they get to work there
helping you create your dreams. Find the tool
and helping you achieve what you are after.
I want the best tools and ARRI has been making the best tools.
Just because they are constantly evolving, innovating, listening, supporting.
All those things. It is just the whole combination of things.
I feel like they are not trying to sell me stuff. They are just presenting it
and creating things that help our craft.
-------------------------------------------
John Legere: The Craziest Fortune 500 CEO In History (T-Mobile) - Duration: 8:34.
- [Alex] I'm Alex Berman
and you're watching, Selling Breakdowns.
One of the most dominant mergers ever in business
is taking place between two clashing personalities,
Sprint and T-Mobile.
Behind the brains of this merger was Marcelo Claure
and more notoriously known, one of my favorite
business people in the entire world, John Legere,
or as I call him, the craziest CEO in the world.
- You know, I mean, look, look at the CEO of AT&T.
That guy on the side though
is a little scary though isn't he?
- [Alex] A lot of people didn't see this merger coming
and most of 'em are still unaware as to
how exactly it's gonna play out?
Regardless, this video isn't about
the Sprint and T-Mobile merger of 26 billion dollars
this video is about the force of nature behind the deal,
T-Mobile CEO, John Legere.
On the surface John looks a guy who just wants
to chill out, have a couple beers
and watch the sun go down on some sunny beach in Thailand,
however, if you look past all of that
you have one of the most extraordinary brains in business.
Don't let those looks and that strange personality,
that I find endearing, don't let that deceive you.
- Right now everything that made sense a year ago
makes 10 times more sense right now.
My theory is our industries, by the way,
they're defined by the infrastructure that you built.
You build a cable, you're a cable company.
You build a wireless, you're a wireless company.
Customers don't care.
- [Alex] Coming from Massachusets John started
a career in telecom with New England Telephone.
From there he went to AT&T where he learned
about the telecommunications industry
from nearly two decades working with AT&T
under the mentorship of its previous CEO, Daniel Hesse.
John spent most of his career climbing the corporate ladder.
By no means was he a natural at the job.
As you can see he spent 20 years just learning
the basics and trying to find his ground.
It wasn't until 1994 that he was appointed
the Chief Executive of AT&T Asia.
For the next three years John spent his time
looking over all the operations as chief executive
before reallocating in November 1997.
For a little while he spent time looking over
the AT&t global strategy and business development,
then from 1997 to 1998 he served as president
of the worldwide outsourcing subsidiary
of AT&T, AT&T Solutions.
A lot of AT&T in his background which is interesting
because now he hates AT&T referring to both them
and Verizon as dumb and dumber.
- Obviously we compete with AT&T and Verizon
but they're very easy 'cause they're distracted.
They're dumb and dumber.
They don't care about their customers.
- [Alex] Despite all of John's current charisma
and overall charm and the way he entertains an audience
he was, by no means, an overnight success.
If anything his salesman-like personality
was only one of the traits that helped him progress
up the corporate ladder.
However, he knew that he needed to know more
about the industry and its operations
to succeed so he kept learning and he kept trading up.
He bounced around for a bit becoming
the Senior Vice President and COO
running Asia, Pacific, Europe, the Middle East,
and Africa for Dell and then he ended up
as the CEO of Global Crossing where he helped
the company get out of bankruptcy and led it
to an acquisition by Level 3 communications.
Then in 2012, finally, he joined T-Mobile
as the Chief Executive Officer.
One of the most admirable, and what people say
is despised, I love it, the most admirable trait
about John is that he's able to be both rebellious
and goofy and still have the audacity to get away with it.
You could see him evolve as he became the CEO.
Here's the announcement video that we filmed of T-Mobile
employees when he was first hired.
Notice how he has slicked-back hair,
he's even wearing a collared shirt
and the way he's talking is so boring and drab.
- Thank you Renae, thank you everyone for welcoming me
and thank you for those kind words.
I am so thrilled to be here at a very pivotal time
and I'm ready to bring my experience in telecom
to one of the most important and innovative companies
in the United States.
- [Alex] Compare that to his recent TV appearance
to talk about the Sprint merger and you get
a much different Legere.
- And this is what's happening in America.
They either need to kick their customers off LTE
and then use it for 5G which you know they can't do.
- [Alex] How's he get away with acting like
a total maniac?
It's because he always delivers the best service
to his users.
His salesman-like personality is only one of the factors
to his success within the industry; however,
he knows exactly what his customers are looking for
and he consistently overdelivers.
And it's not just his customers,
his employees love him too.
Glassdoor consistently ranks him as a Top CEO
and 95% of his employees approve of him.
Compare that to the CEOs of AT&T and Verizon,
only 73% approve of Verizon CEO, Lowell McAdam
and an even lower 61% of employees approve
of AT&T CEO, Randall L. Stephenson.
Despite that fact he does worry his investors
from time-to-time with his behavior,
but, that's kinda just who he is.
Since he joined T-Mobile he's more than doubled
the market cap for the firm.
In fact, you have John to thank for the now
common-place offers from other mobile carriers
like unlimited data, no contracts, and the ability
to upgrade whenever you want.
All of these types of promotions
stemmed from an original campaign that T-Mobile ran
called the Un-Carrier marketing campaign
which is one of the pillars of T-Mobile's success
over the years.
The add campaign ran for a lot of years
and you know I'm gonna show an ad featuring
our favorite guy, our main man, DJ Khaled.
- Introducing T-Mobile Tuesdays.
Major key alert.
- [Alex] Many people often question John's character
and his ability despite the fact that he's proven himself
time and time again.
In an interview with Ad Age he was questioned
about his persona.
They asked, is there a different John Legere
then the one we see online?
And his response was, for the first time in my life,
I have no multiple personas, which is
a really wonderful thing.
I was almost a professional athlete,
I have a lot of education.
I was an aspiring young executive with a suit,
tie and hair like Michael Douglas and I was
a young dad who had friends on the side.
Those were all multiple personalities
you would move between, but right now I am all in, just me.
In fact he later goes on to claim
that he loves to play the hero and treating other companies
as the villains.
He said, I love to be hated.
Just to step it back a tiny bit, when I started here
and when we started the journey of the Un-carrier,
there was no possible way we were gonna get
our message through the noise.
I needed us to be seen and heard so I declared an enemy
AT&T, Verizon and I declared a hero,
which is me, Batman, and I did something that is good
for all consumers.
So I taunt AT&T and Verizon and I go after them
to create a dialogue.
And then when the timing's right I go right
into their face with a move
that ultimately changes the industry.
Interestingly when customers of theirs benefited
from some change they made because of us
those customers would thank me.
To me, what that is, is a future customer.
They're watching and they send me emails
so it's only a matter of time,
that one thing happens and they move over to T-Mobile.
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention John Legere hosts
a cooking show every Sunday called Slow Cooker Sunday.
God I love this guy.
(hands smacking)
- Happy Slow Cooker Sunday.
Well, today there's no Chrissy and no Dave,
it's just me.
- [Alex] Over the years his personality
has kept T-Mobile in the spotlight of the general public.
Some have regarded him as
the companies best marketing tool.
For instance in 2014, at CES,
the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas,
John crashed the AT&T after party.
The story made news the following day
and resulted in free publicity for T-Mobile.
Here he is being talked about on The Young Turks.
- So John Legere is the person who is the CEO of T-Mobile,
he goes to the party and they find out
that he's a CEO and they kick him out.
- [Alex] So many of the CEOs today try to live up
to the expectations of the investors.
They think they have to behave in a certain way,
they have to meet objectives and present them
in a way that's appealing to the stockholders,
they think they have to run the company in a certain way,
but John does none of that and it works.
Does that mean he's wrong?
Does that mean they're wrong?
What is going on, right?
I'm of the opinion that John Legere
is the Elon Musk or the Steve Jobs
of the telecommunications industry and will be regarded
as one of the greatest CEOs of all time.
If you use one word
to describe John Legere, it's authenticity.
John could've conformed to the opinions
and obligations of investors and bosses many years ago
but do you think he would have made it this far if he had?
Thanks for watching the video.
Be sure to subscribe
for more interesting content like this.
I'm Alex Berman, thanks for watching.
-------------------------------------------
Countdown to T-Zero: ICON Satellite to Study Space Weather - Duration: 3:10.
Where does Earth's atmosphere end and space begin?
In a mysterious region of space scientists call the ionosphere - a volatile place where
terrestrial weather from below meets space weather from above.
It's also where our astronauts and critical space assets orbit.
Without a proper understanding of this dynamic region in space, the technology and communication
we rely so heavily upon could be at risk.
That's why NASA is launching the Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON – to give us
answers.
"The primary goal of the mission is to gain an understanding between the weather here
in our atmosphere, and the ionosphere in space.
We don't quite have a handle on what's going on up there in the ionosphere, so this will
give us an opportunity to understand that."
The ICON spacecraft only weighs 364 pounds so NASA's Launch Services Program chose
Northrop Grumman's air-launched Pegasus launch system to deliver it into a 360-mile-high
orbit.
"We selected the Pegasus XL launch vehicle.
It provided an excellent combination of mission performance and flexibility for the mission
design for a spacecraft of the mass of ICON."
"What's unique about the Pegasus rocket is that it is an air-launched vehicle, and that
allows us to launch from anywhere in the world."
The challenge with processing Pegasus is that it's a flying solid rocket motor - solid
fuel ready to burn as soon as it's ignited.
(Launch countdown nats)
It requires special attention - an explosion-proof
processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California – where the spacecraft
must be mated to the rocket and sealed inside its protective fairing.
It's one of the few launch systems in the world where the payload is attached to the
launch vehicle before it's encapsulated.
Once complete, Pegasus is free to launch from anywhere in the world.
"Once we've established that we're ready, we then transport our entire launch team and
hardware to another part of the world so that we can insert ourselves into the proper trajectory."
But to get there, Pegasus still needs to be strapped to the belly of the L-1011 Stargazer.
Strapping 55,000 pounds of solid rocket fuel to the bottom of an airplane is tricky, but
these rocket scientists and engineers are up to the task.
Once ICON and Pegasus are locked and loaded, then it's up to the pilots to fly the Stargazer
into its drop zone.
-------------------------------------------
Novo SUV da Volkswagen, T-Cross mostra interior em teaser - Duration: 2:29.
For more infomation >> Novo SUV da Volkswagen, T-Cross mostra interior em teaser - Duration: 2:29. -------------------------------------------
Mega Man X8 Review - Quickies Don't Cut It - Duration: 57:33.
It is here!
It is finally here!
The long-awaited take on Mega Man X8!
Why has it been so long-awaited, you ask?
Well, not only because this is the last X installment as of publishing this video, but
also because it is considered by many to be a return to form, a last hoorah, after the
catastrophes that were X6 and X7.
A good deal of fans even seem to list X8 as one of their favorites, if not their number
one favorite, of all the eight titles.
That sounded promising, I had to admit, however, there is a peculiar man in green who threw
a wrench into things by coming out and basically saying X8 sucks.
And by no means is he the only one with this opinion, either; in spite of all the love
for X8, you can also find plenty people who think it's meh or at least overhyped.
Who's right and who's wrong?
I can't tell you that, but what I can do is share my perspective, so in good ol'
fashioned Quickies Don't Cut It style, we're gonna crack this son of a bitch wide open
and analyze it from top to bottom.
Remember how X7 tried to bring the series into 3D and it could suck a fart outta your
butt?
I'm sure you do: the level design and enemy placement did not account properly for the
added dimension, the developers implemented a very generous lock-on mechanic that made
shooting stuff a bore, and the camera was often restrictive and incompetent.
Well, X8 tosses all that out the window and fully goes back to side-scrolling action,
with only left and right and up and down to worry about.
It does so in a 2.5D style, so everything is 3D modeled and stages may bend you around
corners, but all the gameplay elements are locked to the typical two axis.
While a part of me would've liked for X8 to take the 3D aspect of X7 and improve upon
it (and drastically I might add), I'm also totally fine with X8 going the safe route
and sticking to what's proven to work.
Sometimes ya gotta know your limitations, and considering how many of X7's problems
are no longer even a factor in X8, the decision to go entirely 2.5D in and of itself already
makes X8 the better game.
Admittedly, that's not much of a compliment, but X8 also corrects many other of X7's
mistakes.
One of these is the controls and movement; while the controls were responsive as always,
the characters in and overall speed of X7, for some reason or another, felt noticeably
heavy and slow compared to the rest of the series.
X8 addresses this and perfectly recreates that ultra tight control and fast, satisfying
movement that the first six games had: from the dashing to the wall-jumping, fans will
feel right at home here and there's not a single shitpick I can think of.
We're back to how the simple act of moving around can be a lot of fun, and once you've
mastered the mechanics and stages, speeding through various setpieces sicknasty is pure
bliss.
I've even heard people say these are the best controls and movement physics period,
and while there are nuances between the SNES and PS1 generations and now X8, I found X8
largely handles very similarly to the rest of the series pre-X7.
In other words: it plays very well.
I think Zero in particular benefits from this.
His combat was about as sluggish in X7 as the movement in general, which took much of
the excitement out of his playstyle and made him a bit of a handicapped twit compared to
Axl and X in many cases.
Seeing Zero back to his free-flowing and effective self in X8, as he was in X4, 5 and 6, yeah
that's sweet; I actually wanna play as him again, and he's more useable on bosses,
since his improved speed and mobility over X7 makes it more manageable to get out of
the way and avoid attacks.
Due to the similarities with X4, 5 and 6, though, there isn't much else I can say
about Zero in X8: he can double jump like usual, and his techniques, unlike Axl and
X's secondary weapons, are seamlessly integrated into the controls with intuitive button combinations.
The new techniques are cool, especially that mid-air rotation spin -- that one's sick
-- but they're also kinda been there done that, and more of a stylish factor than anything
else.
Axl, on the other hand -- where in X7 he played just like X only with a couple different abilities,
in X8 he has been altered quite a bit.
He is no longer capable of running and shooting at the same time like X still is, but as a
result of that, he can freely circle-aim with his rapid-fire gun.
This is great for taking out targets at various angles, though you're only limited to eight
directions.
Bullets do go off in between, so flicking between two directions to hit misaligned enemies
does the job, but I dunno why the limitation is even there.
Perhaps it was to equalize the D-pad and the analog stick, but if so, that's just dumb
-- can't make much more of that.
Regardless, there's also Axl's roll move, which no longer grants him invincibility frames,
making it kinda pointless now.
That said, since it's mapped to down + dash in X8 instead of a double tap dash like in
X7, at least you won't be fucking rolling into pits anymore by accident.
Credit's due where credit's due, right?
Finally, the copy shot doesn't need to be charged anymore and foes die a helluva lot
quicker from it, so experimenting with the copy ability is a more efficient process.
You can even hold onto a reploid's DNA and enable or disable it at will, allowing you
to conserve the energy, and inversely, turn back to normal if you became some useless
wanker.
Trust me, this'll still happen most of the time -- Axl himself is simply more versatile
in combat -- but at least the puzzle applications of the copy ability are a little less obvious
this time around, so that's something.
Of course, that leaves us with our good boi X.
What's rad as hell about him in X8 is that we can now mix and match armor pieces on him
between two sets: red and blue.
Each set has four pieces, making for sixteen possible combinations, and I have to say:
I found myself actively swapping around between stages.
For example, when I am facing many or tough bosses, I'd want 50% damage reduction over
being entirely invincible to weaker enemy attacks, and I'd want a faster dash with
invincibility frames over a higher jump.
However, when I'm merely hunting for collectibles, I'd prefer that higher jump, and I'd prefer
a jump that damages foes upon contact over decreased charging speed for my weapons.
Sometimes you may even face a bit of a dilemma, like do I prepare myself more for a level
itself or the Maverick fight that ends it?
It's a really natural evolution of the armor system with a degree of customizability we
haven't seen yet, and it completely fixes the X5 and X6 nonsense of being unable to
wear an armor until you gather all its pieces.
The only thing I found a little unnecessary is that a new armor piece replaces the equipped
one for the rest of the stage.
This is not a huge issue, but sometimes it's like: yo, give me that other piece back, please.
I will say, though, that I personally found X is initially somewhat outclassed.
His lack of a double jump or hover generally makes him less favorable for platforming segments,
as Zero and Axl can correct mistakes more comfortably and extend airtime, and only being
able to shoot straight ahead also proves to be a hinder at times.
With ducking removed in X8, especially, dispatching of tiny toddlers along the ground as vanilla
X can be a bit of a hassle.
By the way, I don't know why they got rid of ducking -- it made for some cool, if minor
extra depth -- but whatever.
Many opponents are now rocking shields, as well, which are shattered by Zero's third
combo slash, Axl's repeated, concentrated shots and X's full charge shot.
X is fine and can even be advantageous for this with certain enemy arrangements and bosses,
since you can charge while standing out of the way and during attack phases respectively,
but breaking shields on enemies that pop in front of you as X can mess with your gameplay
flow.
Thankfully, he does even out with his mates as you obtain armor pieces and secondary weapons;
perhaps not always in the same attributes, but in the bigger picture?
Yeah, I'd say so.
As such, preference of playstyle becomes the most important factor in picking your Hunters,
and that's exactly how I like it.
I'm glad to see X, Zero and Axl are now substantially differentiated, unlike in X7,
and that I find them all fun and worthwhile to use in their own right, unlike in X7.
I'm sure you could list more pros and cons they have under different circumstances, but
with so many variables to consider, I find that sort of thing hard to properly analyze.
Too many variables is also part of the reason I've always had trouble finding meaningful
stuff to say in all these reviews about the special weapons you gain from the Mavericks.
Unexpectedly, X8 is no different.
Like, the Drift Diamond is an ability I used to freeze strong enemies, occasionally I used
the Green Spinner to kill larger threats swiftly, but beyond that I got nothin', much less
so to go in-depth about it.
What doesn't help is that the X series has expanded ever so much with new mechanics and
features, and granted you more mobility and moves from the very beginning than Classic
Mega Man.
What was once a big deal in Mega Man 1 and 2 due to their simple and limited number of
mechanics is something that's grown largely irrelevant as far down the line as X8.
At this point, why should I go out of my way to experiment with a truckload of Maverick
abilities when I have to shift through them and possibly take potshots in doing so?
Why should I feel the need to use Axl's secondary guns when his primary one is powerful
enough and the only one that can break enemy shields, anyway?
I mean, more power to the people that see practicality in many of these tools, but me?
I'd be down for some serious streamlining done to the secondary weapons.
Reduce the number of them, for Christ's sake, and design dope, thoughtful challenges
and puzzles around that smaller pool of weapons.
Sometimes less is more, y'know.
It's not an X8 specific criticism by any means, but this is the last opportunity I
get to mention it, and being able to carry two characters into a stage at once further
accentuates the issue.
Obviously, don't take that as me dissing the duo feature, because I enjoy it just as
much here as I did in X7.
Actually, I'm lying -- I enjoy it even more in X8.
Now that the three heroes are better differentiated and balanced, it further enhances that experience
of going bitch hunting in a team effort, and you now only lose a life and thus return to
a checkpoint when both characters have run out of health.
I never thought it was a major flaw that X7 didn't do the same, as I usually switched
over before my current character was about to die, but X8 doing this switch automatically
upon a character dying is a nice luxury.
It would have been swell if the same applied to touching spikes and falling into pits,
but I'll take what I can get, I suppose.
X8 also added this Tag Assist malarkey, where you can switch to your partner to free yourself
from enemy clutches.
Sounds chill, but there's literally nothing to this at all.
It could've used like an element of risk vs. reward, and I think quick time events
would have been an excellent fit: succeed the QTE and the captured Hunter is released
without any damage, or fail the QTE and the captured Hunter is released but both Hunters
take damage.
As is, I always just swap back and forth as soon as I get caught and move on as if nothing
ever happened.
Alright...
Lastly, there is the new Double Attack.
See this meter at the top left?
That one grows by grabbing these red-blue diamonds, as well as by racking up combos.
Combos are lost either when you take a hit or when you don't deal damage for too long,
and the higher the combo the further the meter fills.
Once it's full, you can summon a spherical matrix around your character, and if this
sphere touches an opponent, your pair joins together for an orgy of bullets and saber
slashes.
This usually wipes out all regular foes on screen and bosses lose a decent chunk of their
health.
Naturally, this is the type of move you mostly reserve for the bosses.
It's a neat and flashy gimmick, for sure -- it's sick to finally see a team move
of sorts -- though I wish there was more of a punishment for failing the activation; if
you mistime or misplace the sphere, you can try again indefinitely, as the energy bar
refills over and over in next to no time.
Now, I'm not saying the entire bar should drain instantly, but I think 25% of it or
so would be sufficient to have a little more consequence to messing up.
This by extension discourages players from spamming attempts at triggering Double Attacks.
All that being said, I can appreciate how X8 improves upon ideas that were introduced
in X7, and adds some new ones on top of that.
The developers could have easily played it safer and gone back to the simplicity of X4's
mechanics, but outside of the 3D, they decided to go forward instead and I think they did
it well overall.
The opening stage, Noah's Park, is also a good tutorial for all the new play mechanics,
as well as the movesets and controls of all three characters, while managing to be fun
and natural at the same time.
Some of the more complex concepts like the enemy shields do rely somewhat on dialog from
the tutorial bitch to be explained properly, but I don't mind that for an opening stage
and you can ignore navigator calls like in X6 and X7.
X8 even allows you to disable Alia and the other pointlessly added navigators altogether,
so no more of this.
Relish in that sweet, sweet silence.
Once Noah's Park has been cleared, the eight main Maverick stages open up, and this is
where things get interesting.
Detractors of the game have their reasons for feeling the way they do about it, and
the level design is typically among those reasons.
I think it's accurate to say that X8's selection of levels is the most gimmicky of
the whole X series.
In a gaming context, however, gimmicks are not necessarily bad; in fact, when used right,
they can enhance a game's variety and help in setting stages apart from one another:
think of having to avoid security lights and traps in Central Computer in X2, and clearing
an obstacle course against a timer to achieve the highest rank in Cyberspace in X4.
It's important, of course, that these gimmicks are fun and engaging, mesh well with the flow
of the gameplay and are generally well-executed.
This is where X8 doesn't quite hit the mark for me.
I should start by talking about my favorite stages and why I like them the most: Booster
Forest and Pitch Black.
These are pretty standard Mega Man X affaires in many ways: side-scrolling running and gunning,
making your way around various hazards, and setpieces that allow you to show off your
platforming and wall jumping prowess.
What differentiates them, then?
Well, the gimmick of Booster Forest is that you can carry a Ride Armor all the way from
the start of the level to the end.
In order to do that, though, you'll need to place it on conveyor belts and pick it
up again before it falls off the stage, bring it to higher ground with raising platforms,
and not lose it to pits or combat along the way.
By no means is the Ride Armor necessary -- you can finish the level totally fine without
it -- but the further you bring it along, the more items and secrets you can reach and
find, and you can brutally murder enemies.
As for Pitch Black, the enemy facility you're infiltrating is covered in darkness by a good
bit.
This means you need to be cautious of where you're going, keep enemies that act as light
sources around to be able to see, and at one point sneak around security lights to avoid
encounters with guards.
There's even a possibility of passing through the security lights without causing trouble,
as well as turning on the lights for the entire facility, making the second half fully lit
and thus easier.
I have no idea why J hates Pitch Black (alright, let's not play fools... 'cause he needs
to git gud), but in my opinion, it and Booster Forest are quality stages; both deliver on
the Mega Man X gameplay flow you'd expect, while creating their own identity through
their unique, competent gimmicks.
Unfortunately, the remainder of the six Maverick stages…
I think they fall short, to various degrees.
Most of us can probably agree that the worst of the bunch has to be Dynasty, where you're
chasing Gigabolt Man-O-War through a rando city.
The more complex core mechanics have made place for the Ride Chaser's simpler mechanics,
and beyond that, there isn't much going on.
The stage is functional: you dodge or blow up holographic signs and traffic to prevent
damage and a loss of velocity, snag Booster pickups to gain bursts of speed, and it controls
better than the highway garbage in X7, but it just isn't eventful or satisfying.
If you fall behind too far in, it becomes a pain to catch up as Booster pickups appear
less and less, and often when you do boost, it sends you slamming into obstacles.
On the other hand, if you do well early on, you'll likely stay right on Gigabolt's
tale and finish in under a minute.
At least in that case the level doesn't overstay its welcome, but either way there
isn't much to master here.
The next example of a stage I don't care for, which does use the core mechanics, actually,
is Troia Base.
Here, you go through a series of... mini games, for lack of a better term -- kiiiind of inspired
by Gunstar Heroes, I think, for the two of you that have played that at least -- in which
you fight off enemies in a dedicated room; the better you perform, the harder subsequent
mini games are, and the more rewards you get by the end.
It's a novel shake up the first time you do the stage, but the appeal of it is lost
about as quickly as a 100 minute long Jak and Daxter review…
Oh wait.
The first mini game takes a minute no matter what -- no way to end it any earlier -- while
most others can be over in ten seconds, if that, almost as if they might as well not
exist.
Seriously, what was that?
A few seconds of holding fire and we're doneso?
I guess the stage can be considered more engaging if you aim for perfect ranks across the board
every time, but it says something about your mini games and how entertaining or satisfying
they are, when I found some of these extremely short bursts of platforming and wall jumping
in between more fun to revisit.
And that's really the crux of the issue with much of X8's level design: it's not
that I found it bad or broken -- far from it -- I just didn't find it very replayable.
When it isn't really gimmicky like Dynasty or Troia Base, I noticed there's more auto-scrolling
than usual.
Inferno springs to mind first, with the majority of it made up of sections where the camera
is panning down, and you have to stay in between the top and bottom of the screen by using
the platforms.
The first time, I enjoyed myself with this level, since I wasn't familiar with the
patterns and enemy placement, and so the speed of the scrolling was a threat.
Naturally, on every subsequent playthrough, it turns into more and more of a snorefest,
because my experience diminished the challenge, yet I can't control the pace accordingly.
The result is that I'm waiting for the game to catch up with me instead of the other way
around.
This is one of the main reasons people often don't fancy auto-scrollers too much.
Don't get me wrong, I did still die in Inferno every now and again on later playthroughs,
but the stage contains about four minutes worth of this stuff -- it's simply not compelling
for so long.
The climb at the end in particular is so repetitive and devoid of stimulating activity that it's
a mind numbing waste of time.
Granted, Inferno may be the most egregious example, but it's not the only one.
In Metal Valley, you're chased by a berserk Mechaniloid across a deserted metal quarry
field.
You can outrun it, but you'll be waiting for the Mechaniloid to catch up once you reach
the level's dead end.
Then, after clunking its head three times with a crane, you're going through the stage
backwards, where all you can do is follow the poor guy as it stomps through the level.
While not as long as Inferno, Metal Valley is more boring, if you ask me, if only because
it's never even challenging to begin with; you just sorta get pulled around like a dog
on a leash, and attack stuff on flat lines of level design.
Barely any intricacies here, and right before the showdown with the Maverick, you do the
Mechaniloid's head in with a crane again.
Back and forth, back and forth to hit the switches with no escalation...
Did I mention Metal Valley is boring?
There's also Central White, which is more Ride Chaser shenanigans.
You can dash to your heart's content, so do that as much as you safely can, but there
are still multiple segments where you're going straight on flat terrain and shooting
incoming waves of enemies.
Woohoo.
The mini bosses also drag on with extended periods of time where you cannot hit them
at all, and overly long introductions and explosions.
No joke, the first one explodes for like twenty seconds.
What's wrong with a boom and moving on?
Even the first of the final stages, Jakob, is more auto-scroller: an elevator ride during
which you kill foes for close to four minutes until you reach space.
That's all she wrote.
Now, if the combat had some depth and was engrossing, I perhaps wouldn't bat an eye
so much, but no -- you'll be taking out most of these enemies with little to no effort.
As a matter of fact, that leads me to another one of X8's annoying habits in general:
locking you into a room and having you fight waves of enemies.
All I ever do during these segments is stand in a corner and blast away as Axl, or use
the Z-Saber and its giant hitbox to wreck whatever spawns in.
This shit is in Noah's Park, three out of the eight Maverick stages -- two of them being
Booster Forest and Pitch Black, meaning even they are bogged down to some extent -- and
in all of these levels, there are not one, but two of these dedicated enemy rooms.
Sure, none of them should last longer than half a minute, but all the same it's mindless
busy work.
Integrate foes and combat with the platforming and other hazards; y'know, make more actual
level design -- not this crap.
Or do it like Pitch Black's searchlight section, where fighting guards is a punishment
for getting caught.
Add up all the complaints and you have a mix of stages that don't sport the best pacing
and lasting appeal.
Variety and each level being distinct is great, but outside of Booster Forest and Pitch Black,
I don't think X8's stages bring the best kind of variety to the table.
I'll repeat: on the first playthrough this doesn't have to be an issue at all; in fact,
I was enthused by the constant variation and shake ups.
It was like: damn, look how many unique mechanics and ideas they've crammed in.
But then as I played the game more and more, I realized many of the gimmicks are shallow
and there was a lot of time spent kinda waiting around or doing little of value.
I suppose it's subjective, of course, as I suspect not everybody will be bothered by
what I consider ''shortcomings'', here.
I mean, we all enjoy games for different reasons; perhaps you love the gimmicky approach and
auto-scroller sections, and don't find it hampers replayability.
I have no intention of taking that away from you, and I have to give X8 credit, as well,
for being pretty light on the cheap enemy placement and such.
I was expecting Central White to contain that typical, unforeseeable Ride Chaser bullshit
found in X4 and X5, but to my surprise only one or two unfair deaths occurred on my first
playthrough of it.
Beyond that, I didn't really have any trouble here because I could see what's coming up
fine.
Sometimes you'll need to be fast on the reflexes, but you can always slow down if
necessary.
You're not told you can slow down, which maybe contributes to some people having bad
experiences with Central White, but uh yeah, I was happy to see an actual decent Ride Chaser
stage for once.
Primrose is also an example of a stage with a gimmick that can kill you instantly, but
it teaches its layout flipping mechanic very naturally by employing the typical progression
of: mechanic introduced in a safe environment, mechanic combined with potential for damage,
mechanic used in an advantageous way, and then building more demanding and complex scenarios
around those fundamentals.
The escalation is a bit slow, in my opinion, and I would've liked to see more precision
and timing heavy set pieces designed around the layout tilting toward the end, which is
also the reason why I don't find the level as good and replayable as Booster Forest and
Pitch Black.
Another reason is this fucking spike room that comes straight from hell and misleads
you into death.
Combined with a harsh checkpoint, this part severely pissed me off on my first playthrough,
but it's about as unfair as the level design ever gets, I think.
Still, Primrose is probably my third favorite stage in the game for not being an auto-scroller,
and having an interesting gimmick with cool possibilities.
And pro tip: if you do this level as your third, a battle with Vile takes place in the
infamous spike room instead.
Don't know why, but you're welcome.
Unfortunately, while the level design may be fine, if flawed, there's an aspect of
X8 that can make said flaws stand out tremendously.
I'm not referring to Retry Chips, though those certainly don't help -- no, it's
100% completion...
Fuck me sideways with three mega dildos, I hate 100% completion in X8.
Let's start with the little things, shall we?
Zero and Axl cannot acquire X's armor pieces, a shittacular design choice carried over from
X7.
This is pure padding and also means that a team of Zero and Axl is a no go if you're
out for armor pieces.
The fact there are eight of them in X8 only adds insult to injury.
Secondly, four of the Rare Metals are conjured into existence using a charged up Crystal
Wall from X.
As far as I know, the game doesn't tell you you can do that, and even if you know
to do it, break a leg finding all the digging spots, dude.
Like, without outside assistance, how was I to know there's an item in front of this
power generator?
The ones in Primrose and Booster Forest are at least in suspicious locations, to be fair,
but on the whole, do you really fancy wankering around like a dumbass, digging places for
stuff?
Some clues or hot and cold pointers would have been much appreciated.
This isn't even mentioning the backtracking potential it creates; you'll need both the
correct boss weapon and one of two capable armor pieces to charge said weapon, and the
chances of a newcomer missing either before playing stages containing underground Rare
Metals are very high.
Sadly, armor capsules only opening for X and underground Rare Metals are merely the tip
of the iceberg, because will you be doing a lot of backtracking without a guide, believe
you me.
I actually don't even know where to begin with this, so let's just examine a few examples.
The worst one has got to be at the very end of Central White: you need Zero's double
jump to climb this ledge, then you need Optic Sunflower's weapon to melt these ice cubes
-- fire doesn't even work, so shoutouts to artificial solutions -- then you need X
for the armor capsule, and you'll probably need Axl to cross this gap to a Rare Metal.
You can reach it with vanilla Zero and very precise timing (or spamming characters swaps
if you're a dirty, skanky little cheater), but it's plausible somebody would resort
to Axl's hover instead.
Of course you probably won't run into all four possible roadblocks, but frankly, redoing
the entire stage once is tedious enough, let alone four times.
Booster Forest is no slouch, either, with three out of four items requiring the Ride
Armor in some capacity.
Seems harmless, except when you lose the Ride Armor or die anywhere, you have to redo the
entire level because there are no Ride Armors at checkpoints.
The last of these items can choke on my balls especially, because it took me three attempts
to figure out how to pass this series of spikes.
That's three Booster Forest revisits in full in trying to obtain the last item alone.
There's also Axl's Copy Ability and how it's mandatory for an item in three stages.
This is a double-edged sword, because I do like that the Copy Ability is used for some
clever puzzle-solving -- not the obvious rubbish as seen in X7 -- but anytime Axl isn't in
your team, that's even more backtracking to add to the list.
Normally, I'd suggest all items should be obtainable with at least two of the characters
to tackle this problem, but since the Copy Ability is so limited in use already, I can,
under this special circumstance, see why that wasn't done.
Now, those are examples of retreading of ground you can avoid by planning your stage orders
and characters, however, X8 also has some of it you literally cannot escape.
Inferno, for instance, has three items that each require a different character; if only
Zero and Axl could obtain armor pieces, we wouldn't be having a problem.
Metal Valley has an underground item, even though the boss of this stage is the one to
grant you the Crystal Wall.
Why not place that underground item in another level?
Heck, even the opening stage, has three items only reachable on a second visit.
It's for arbitrary reasons, too, like this door that wasn't open initially but now
is?
The point of this, understand I do not.
The stupidest case of the bunch, though, is Troia Base, which has one Rare Metal for perfecting
all missions in one flawless run (this is a giant pain in the gonads, by the way, but
I'll spare ya the details), and another Rare Metal for perfecting one specific mission
only.
Problem is, both rewards spawn in the exact same spot, so do the flawless run and it overlaps
that mission specific Rare Metal, forcing you to replay the entire level to get the
latter.
Are you kidding me?
They couldn't program the two items on top of each other?
You're toying with my patience, game.
Perhaps I'm beating a dead horse, but the chore that is 100% completion, particularly
the first time, is legit.
No other X title has made me reach out for the internet nearly as frequently as X8, and
the amount of possible backtracking involved is insane.
You see now why the shallow level gimmicks, auto-scrollers and combat rooms got on my
nerves?
Honestly, the ability to warp between checkpoints once a stage has been beaten would have been
sweet as far back as X1, but it was damn near essential for X8 and it's still not here.
Imagine how wonderful it would be if you could just teleport to the desired area when you
needed to bring Axl's Copy Shot somewhere.
Imagine how wonderful it would be if you didn't have to redo all of Central White every single
time you couldn't get an item.
I'm sure somebody would think of an argument against fast travel, but as far as I'm concerned,
it could never weigh up against the advantages.
It's a bummer, 'cause the substance of a fun 100% quest is there, and you can finally
see how many remaining items a stage holds again since X3.
But eh, we're not quite done, because I'd argue 100% completion doesn't even stop
with amassing items in stages.
Save files technically say it does, but there's also the R&D Lab.
Those Rare Metals I've been mentioning?
Outside of X's armor capsules, they are the only collectibles in X8's stages, and
basically what they do is put up actual upgrades and items for purchase in the lab.
Some of these upgrades and items can even be bought off the bat.
All combined, the shop goodies range from expanding character Health and Weapon Energy
bars to expanding Zero's Z-Saber combo, and from Health and Weapon Energy tanks to
one-use items like a shield that prevents you from dying on spikes instantly.
This is all done to introduce a new concept to the X series: currency, which are Metals
in this game.
Metals can be earned throughout stages by checking out nannies and crooks and simply
defeating opponents, and the higher your combo in those lame-ass combat rooms specifically,
the more Metals you're rewarded with.
For them two elements mentioned above alone, I think the shop system is a welcome addition.
It also gives options in how you buff up your team at any time, which is a nice bit of player
freedom.
Don't expect to buy everything, though, because you won't stash nearly enough Metals
by normally going through the levels.
This can be seen as a positive, considering it imposes limitations on the player, but
it can also be seen as a negative if you go out of your way to amass Rare Metals, only
to discover afterwards the stuff they unlock is simply too expensive.
You can farm normal Metals if you want, a process most efficiently done through these
Intermission Stages of which I have no idea how they actually become available, but this
is ludicrously boring busy work that I do not have the patience for.
At least the option is there for those with the will and the time to kill, so it's kind
of like an RPG in that sense, where grinding equates to better stats.
The R&D Lab is also where you buy your Retry Chips, and not maxing these before heading
out, is asking for trouble.
So, the Retry Chips, what are they exactly?
Well, X8 decided to make lives something you must buy instead of something you can find
in the stages, and something you can only bring a total of five of at once.
We're back to the rules of running out of lives, potentially right before the end of
a level, and then having to restart it from square one.
To be honest, I can see a certain appeal in having to do an entire level with a limited
pool of lives, and if that's the type of skill and endurance testing the developers
wanted to derive challenge from, I don't think that's inherently wrong.
The reason it sucks harder than Ryan last night in many '80s and early '90s games
specifically is because their design was often unfair to begin with, so the further you're
sent back as a result of cheap bullshit, the more frustrated and cheated a player will
feel.
X8 is thankfully pretty fair in that regard, as I've said before, however, it does still
have its moments: some boss attacks can happen too fast for a new player to read in time,
and on the whole, the game has a bigger fetish for pits and spikes than Exo does for GameCube,
HDMI-modded, flicker filter disabled, 4K integer scaled Enter the Dragonfly footage.
Now, outside of THIS... the majority of pits and spikes are placed fairly, so dying from
them is usually the player's fault -- unless you count the sides of spikes killing you
-- but it's so human to make tiny slip ups from time to time, and I can't be the only
one who felt agitated in those moments.
Combined with Retry Chips, it gives off a sense that the developers had trouble creating
complex and thoughtful challenges, and decided to resort to a bunch of simpleton, instant-kill
hazards and limited lives as a substitute for difficulty and longevity.
Technically not unfair design, but I wouldn't blame anybody for calling it lazy and frustrating.
So, what happens is that X8, in my opinion, is not all that hard in terms of the actual
content presented to you to overcome, if you get what I'm saying, but that it's very
punishing and unforgiving of player error.
Maybe some people dig that, but me personally, I prefer games where the moment to moment
gameplay is tougher yet more satisfying, while being able to practice endlessly; I believe
it to be a more resourceful source of challenge than being sent back to redo previous shit,
because you ran out of lives on something that may not even have been that difficult.
All of this is to say X5, 6 and 7 did good in making lives meaningless, and that the
Retry Chips seem regressive to me, especially in conjunction with the by now well dissected
level design flaws.
You can play on Easy mode, which has infinite Retry Chips, but the game in general is easier,
everything in the shop is unlocked so there are no Rare Metals to collect, and the credits
suddenly kick in before the two final bosses.
I despise when a game flips you off like that; if you can't even finish on Easy mode, who
would bother picking it?
It's a trap, man, so play on Normal mode.
You may not appreciate the Retry Chips, but I don't find X8's overall design problematic
enough that the experience is ruined by them.
Again, J is a bit of a cry baby and should bow to his master RZ.
There is one exception that irrefutably crosses the line, though: Sigma Palace.
This last stage has a Vile mini boss, many screens wallpapered with spikes, and three
bosses in a row before you win.
Sheesh, you think that's enough?
That's too bloody much to do on one set of Retry Chips, and they show no mercy with
those final bosses.
It's not like X1 or whatever where you have two shorter, less dangerous phases before
the last phase -- no, three lengthy, full-on bosses with multiple phases therein, and zero
health replenishment between any of them.
And the grand motherfucker of cheap-ass bullshit is that the last phase of the final, final
boss sports a not so obvious timer that, once it runs out, is a 100% guaranteed death.
Oh my God...
The timer isn't that strict, but why is it there at all?
Just to try everything the devs could to skim you of Retry Chips at the last possible moment?
Screw you, that's garbage!
There should have been a split between the level itself and the three final bosses, seriously.
It's left a sour taste in my mouth about Sigma Palace, which is regrettable, because
the final bosses themselves are some of the better ones in the series.
The Sigma encounter is brutal with a wide range of hard hitting and quick attacks, really
requiring great reflexes and anticipation.
It's very fast-paced with little down time, and all the telegraphs are there to be learned,
which is how I like my bosses: fair and satisfying.
The first battle against Lumine is also quite cool.
It's slower than the Sigma one, with Lumine often dancing around invincible and not doing
too much between assaults, but the premise is that he cycles through attacks from the
eight Mavericks.
This makes for a diversified fight that comes together to see if you still recognize the
various telegraphs and know how to act upon them.
The last battle against Lumine is my least favorite, however.
I'll be forever salty about the timer baloney and beyond that it isn't particularly remarkable.
We're not talking about a complete push-over, but the attacks aren't all that threatening.
I kinda like how you have to remember the positioning of these vertical spears for when
they rise back up from the ground, but the rest of it is pretty predictable.
Sigma's honestly the hardest and most fun boss of the three, if you ask me.
The good news is, the Maverick fights are solid overall in X8.
The bosses have this quality to them where every attack is telegraphed, meaning that
avoiding damage should always be possible, but on your first time you're likely not
going to notice or react upon all these tells; some of them are quite subtle, while others
are followed up by the attack very shortly.
This is the good type of trial-and-error -- so not cheap hogwash X6 is plagued with -- although
as mentioned before, this can still lead to some frustration due to the Retry Chips.
That's not a flaw of the bosses, though, because where's the challenge in a fight,
or stage for that matter, if you can master everything the first time; there's nothing
wrong with catching newcomers off-guard, so long as the tell and reasonable chance to
avoid a negative outcome was always there.
What I also enjoyed about the bosses in X8 is that all of them have three phases they
go through: the first is calm and simple, the second ramps things up a bit and the last
is where the fellas go ham with a dangerous attack.
Bamboo Pandamonium, for example, starts out only shooting a rocket and summoning these
poles from the ground, then he adds the tossing of bombs into the mix, and finally he'll
gain the ability to perform this forward supercharge that does hella damage.
I don't think I need to make much of an argument for why this is cool: having a fight
escalate multiple times progressively ramps up the intensity, and it prevents the whole
affaire from becoming repetitious.
Not every overdrive phase is as exciting as the others -- Earthrock Trilobyte summons
these crystal walls for a while, which are really easy to manoeuvre through -- but I
appreciate the attempt at spicing up the boss encounters this far into the series.
And taken together, I had a fun time with the Mavericks here.
Yes, even Earthrock Trilobyte, which in spite of his lackluster overdrive, is decently challenging
with these projectiles bouncing around the room, demanding you to adjust your positioning
as you try to sneak in hits.
My favorites, however, were probably Dark Mantis for how unpredictable he can be and
therefore requiring onpoint reflexes and anticipation, and Burn Rooster because his kick ricochets
him back and forth between objects and walls, which becomes trickier to dodge as the arena
becomes more cramped for space.
That's all fine and dandy, but there's one design choice that may put people off,
and that's how the bosses become temporarily invincible at set health percentages.
It could be seen as bogging down the pace of the battle, and I think this state of deflection
could have used some clearer visual communication to prevent any and all confusion for newcomers.
I'll accept that for what it is, though, for the benefit the boss deflection provides:
it forces players to deal with and take the various attacks of bosses seriously.
This handled itself naturally in most of the X titles considering you're a one-man army;
after all, you've only got one health bar, and so bruteforcing posed a significant risk
of dying.
With the advent of X7, you've got two characters and thus two health bars against one opponent,
so balancing measures were in order.
The game did this by simply giving bosses a boatload of health, which works, but as
a result, fights usually took forever, which made dying and starting over especially soul
crushing.
X8's bosses, by contrast, really don't have that much health, but because there are
intervals where you cannot inflict damage, you have no other choice than to learn their
attacks and patterns to some extent.
This approach, while maybe not the most elegant, is at least superior, since it reduces the
length of the Maverick encounters -- they are shorter in X8 than in X7 -- while simultaneously
tackling the problem of X6 where you could often hack or shoot away blindly without consequence.
And you didn't even have two characters there.
Oh, but don't say that, though, because X6 wasn't unbalanced or unfinished -- it
was supposed to be hard!
My dick's supposed to be hard...
Now anyway, despite the improvements, the balancing is not perfect in X8 -- not even
close.
When a character takes damage, you see these red bars, which steadily regenerate to green
if you switch over to the other teammate, or steadily disappear as long as you don't
switch.
This is not a poor mechanic at all, incorporating some small, strategic, on-the-fly decision
making, but the reality is there are so many resources available to restore health already:
you can fully upgrade each character's lifebar to max through the R&D Lab -- no dividing
Health Containers between the Hunters here -- and assuming you found all the corresponding
Rare Metals, we're back to being able to carry four Sub Tanks.
Why?
You can even refill these Sub Tanks for pocket change in the shop, and pickups within stages
still refill them, as well.
I don't think I need to spell out what this means for the boss encounters, and it's
even worse if you use their weaknesses on them.
X8's boss rush, in particular, is an absolute joke for these reasons.
Truthfully, they should have gotten rid of Sub Tanks altogether and perhaps even reduce
your possible max health; we already have two characters -- sufficient, as is -- and
it would make that health regen swap mechanic thing truly meaningful instead of extremely
redundant.
Self-imposed challenges is really the only way you're gonna get the most out of these
bosses, and even the Hard difficulty doesn't do enough to solve this; it limits max health
and throws bosses into overdrive sooner, but all Sub Tanks are still present.
Hard also reduces the number of Retry Chips you can carry to three, so that just makes
the stages with their pits and spikes more nerve-wracking to play.
Another opportunity for the game to rebalance itself was the New Game Plus mode; think of
the Ratchet & Clank titles and their challenge modes, how the difficulty is increased to
account for all your amassed upgrades and weaponry.
Unfortunately, X8's New Game Plus is not adjusted: it's entirely the same shit as
before, only with all your upgrades and items transferred over.
You can unlock the three navigators as playable characters, which is admittedly a cool bit
of bonus content they didn't have to include, but they're incredibly expensive, so I couldn't
be arsed.
Honestly, you're better off printing out this image of Alia, Palette and Layer in bikinis,
if you're craving navigator action.
This is official art in the X Legacy Collection, by the way...
Not sure I find that awesome or concerning…
So, you may have noticed I haven't brought up the story yet, and there are two simple
reasons for that: I don't like starting reviews with the typical stuff, and X8's
story was mostly one ear in out the other for me, anyway.
The basic plot is fine: there are these mass produced, new-generation Reploids that can
copy the DNA of other Reploids, which Axl was actually the prototype of.
Their ability to change their shape according to a task makes them the perfect workers for
the Jakob Project, an effort by mankind to research and colonize the moon through the
use of an orbital elevator.
This operation is ultimately an attempt to escape the ever continuing Reploid rebellions
that have been taking place on Earth for years.
All is well and good, until the leader of the project, a Reploid named Lumine, is for
unknown reasons kidnapped by Vile, who hasn't seen the light of day ever since X3.
The Maverick Hunters set out to rescue Lumine and collect information about what's going
on, and then the story just kinda grinds to a halt.
The team chit chats between every level, but most of it is filler that has little bearing
on anything: X repeats his disappointments and concerns about war for the millionth time,
Axl acts like a tryhard and the new navigator, Layer, has a love interest for Zero.
Zero's feelings for her aren't explored, though, so that relationship goes nowhere.
In fact, there isn't any sort of character development to speak of, and perhaps I wouldn't
be bothered by that, and the lack of real plot progression, if the actual dialog was
better.
Ugh, what are these lines?
Not all the small talk is bad like this, but I found none of it particularly entertaining
or thought-provoking.
The only new, relevant information that's revealed during these Hunter Base conversations
is that the copy chips of all new-generation Reploids closely resemble Sigma's DNA, however,
this falls into the background and isn't elaborated on until you reach the final bosses,
meaning more dead air until then.
Once you do reach those final bosses, Sigma tells you that he's been out for the Jakob
Project all along.
He plans to wipe out humanity and all the old-generation Reploids that don't contain
his DNA, and start a revolution with the new-generation Reploids in space.
Who'd have thunk.
But then, when you beat Sigma, Lumine steps in as the top leader of the evolution and
thereby becomes the true villain of X8.
A lot of fans really like that, and while it is nice to have Sigma not be the ultimate
bad guy for once, I found Lumine rather boring; freaky af, no doubt about it, but a forgettable
character otherwise, I suppose in part due to the severely limited screen time.
The opening also clearly communicates something's fishy about Lumine, so the plot twist he's
evil wasn't nearly as much of a plot twist as the fact he's a guy and not a chick.
Anyway, it's confusing shit, because why would Vile, who confirms to work under Sigma's
orders, kidnap Lumine?
Was the kidnap like a collaborative trick from Sigma and Lumine to lure out X, Zero
and Axl?
If so, why risk getting them involved?
That clearly wasn't the smartest of ideas.
What's even weirder is that, after defeating Sigma, Lumine says to the Maverick Hunters
that the plan has gone smoothly thanks to them…
What?
How are they advancing the plan by interfering with it?
Did Lumine want Sigma dead?
Don't see why he would, but then kill him yourself!
Like, is there something I'm missing here?
When the story is finally going somewhere after so long, it doesn't seem to make all
that much sense.
Lumine also explains new-generation Reploids sport the power of going Maverick at will,
since their copy chips were derived from hundreds of older Reploids.
This included Sigma and his philosophy of evolution.
So Sigma's DNA is part of the mix, fine, but going Maverick at will?
Isn't one of the key features of the new-generation Reploids supposed to be that they're resistant
to the virus?
After all, X4 shows Sigma getting the virus from Zero, which I assume is why he goes Maverick
later -- not his own DNA.
Perhaps what happened is the virus inside Sigma triggered the development of new code,
and the copy chips didn't read that developed code as a product of the virus...
I'd buy it, but the game doesn't answer the question, neither is it, to my knowledge,
ever defined anywhere in the series what exactly the virus does to a Reploid's mind and how
quickly it takes effect.
It's messy storytelling, which is a shame, because the lore of the X series is intriguing
in concept with a lot of potential; the execution just couldn't deliver.
Oh well, Lumine gets asswhooped, and in his dying breath he breaks Axl's crystal.
Axl's knocked unconscious and we end on a cliffhanger for what actually happens to
him.
Too bad the X series stopped after X8 and we never got an answer.
Oops.
As for X and Zero, they share a little conversation about continuing to fight the Mavericks and
their evolution, even if that goes against their own destiny, ending the game on a pretty
badass and inspirational note.
Besides that little moment, though, can't say I gave
a monkey's about X8's story, and the presentation doesn't quite pull me in, either.
Now, I'll be reasonable -- the voice performances stomp and pound all over what was in X4 and
X7.
For the first time (not counting Command Mission), we've got some acting in the X saga that's
actually competent.
Some of the Mavericks are ridiculous... and Alia sounds stilted and pronounces words
with ''L's and ''R''s in them in a weird way... but for the most part it's
all palatable and not too distracting: Lumine sounds appropriately mysterious and freaky...
Sigma has that delicious, hammed up villain quality to him... and the
heroes themselves can finally be taken a bit seriously.
X's actor, Mark Gatha, in particular, managed to deliver a confident, yet compassionate
and caring sound that fits the type of character he is very well.
Lucas Gilbertson also does a good voice for Zero, although I find his delivery is kind
of off.
It's as if he's losing his mind at the end of many of his lines.
Lastly, we have Jeffrey Watson for Axl, and I definitely like him better than the whiny
brat voice we got in X7.
It's a bit too arrogant and forced sometimes, the dialog also being part of that... but
it's fine otherwise.
Overall, the acting isn't special or anything, but I wouldn't mind seeing most of this
cast return and improve for a potential X9 in the future with better direction.
Won't happen, I'm aware.
Sssshhh.
The in-engine cutscenes are also not totally laughable, how about that?
You see the developers experimenting more with cinematic camera movement and angles,
and all of the Mavericks enter the scene in their own unique fashions instead of just
being there already.
Characters are animated more believably with more detail and their mouths actually open
when they talk.
It's doesn't classify as lip-sync, though, and choreography remains limited, with the
peeps standing in place as they banter back and forth.
We may have gone a step up from X7, but compared to something like Sonic Heroes, which isn't
even impressive presentation-wise for its year or release, X8 is still clearly a couple
ticks below that.
Makes me wonder what the budget for the game was, when you take into account, as well,
that all the Hunter Base conversations are presented in Game Boy Advance style with a
handful of 2D images of different expressions for each character.
The 2D assets aren't even scaled well: text, menus, character portraits, UI -- it's all
soft and uneven, some of the worst I've seen in a sixth generation title.
The X Legacy Collection version of X8 does polish this over somewhat, but the results,
while even, are a bit jagged, so not ideal.
As for the graphics themselves, I don't think they've aged well and even for the
time they left a lot to be desired.
What first stuck out are the character models; they're all so tall and thin and the faces
look... malformed and derpy.
It's not as jarring during most gameplay itself, but when viewed from a short distance,
they are not a pretty sight.
Dive a little deeper, and only more shortcomings come to light, like circles for character
shadows...
I mean, c'mon, this isn't the PS1, guys; for a late 2004, sixth generation title, the
absence of shadow mapping or something in that ballpark is pretty bad.
Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex did it in 2001 and has more stable performance to
boot.
Sometimes X8 doesn't even draw a shadow underneath vehicles or characters at all when
it should, like in Central White here, or in the middle of this elevator in Booster
Forest.
It looks unfinished, almost, and then you move to the sides and your circle shadow magically
poofs back in, like what?
Particles can be noticeably pixelated, even from a moderate distance, and, I'm sorry,
but as soon as the game starts in Noah's Park, you see this ugly-ass, 2D foliage in
the foreground, and these ugly-ass, 2D trees and leafs in the background.
That's not a promising first impression, and the environments in general just don't
do it for me.
Many of the levels look drab and uninspired, like Metal Valley, Pitch Black, parts of Inferno
-- smeared with dull greys and browns and lacking in memorable aesthetic design.
It's even worse when in one of these levels, you have blatant pop in that the Alchemist
from Spyro 2 would be able to see.
Seriously, we're not pushing a ton of polygons here on this linear, restricted path, and
there's still staggering slowdown.
Ai...
I'll admit, a couple of the stages have good eye-candy, like Troia Base, sporting
nice art direction, as well as decent particles, various moving parts and lights, and this
neato effect when walking along the ground.
It's not so generic or boring; it's a bit lively and vibrant, and along with Primrose,
I'd say they're the two most appealing areas in the game.
On the whole, though, while I've certainly seen worse and can take it for what it is,
X8's visuals are plain underwhelming.
And no, as far as I could tell, the X Legacy Collection port doesn't enhance most of
this; it removes all the slowdown and bumps up the resolution to native 1080p, obviously,
but the rest of the graphics shebang goes untouched.
It's the version I recommend regardless, though the original is also a perfectly fine
option if you must.
It has 480p support, so with the aid of Component cables it can look pretty presentable on a
modern TV.
The 480p mode is also botched, however: the gameplay itself is flawless, yet the pre-rendered
cutscenes are off-centre with cutoff as a result, so pick your poison between that or
everything in 480i.
It really baffles me such a glaring problem was never fixed.
Another reason the XLC version is superior is the near non-existent load times, but if
I'm honest, the loading isn't that obtrusive in the PS2 original, anyway.
For one, it's only once per level (boss rush included) so that's already a massive
improvement over X7, and stuff is actually being loaded during the Maverick intros now,
which is an obvious, but a good optimization trick regardless.
Man, X7: a game so awful I'm still shocked a year after ripping it to shreds.
I guess that leaves us with the music, but what do I say?
I mean, I liked it, but broadly speaking it had a tad too much electric guitar for my
tastes and that buttrock sound to it that reminds me of Sonic Adventure 2.
Jeb's gonna murder me for that...
After seven or so playthroughs of X8, I'd be hard pressed to remember half of the tracks,
as a bunch of them are rather bland and forgettable.
There's even some ambient guitar shenanigans going on in Pitch Black, and though it fits,
it's really boring.
That said, not everything is electric guitar, and some of the buttrock stuff is pretty sick
and memorable with good composition.
X8 definitely has one of my least favorite scores of the eight titles, but nonetheless,
here are a few pieces I found myself returning to after finishing the game.
Mega Man X8 is a fine experience and I enjoyed it for what it was: from the great controls
and core mechanics to the balanced characters, and from some of the nice stages to the solid
boss fights, I can see myself picking the game up again from time to time in the future.
I think it's got quite a bit of heart with many cool unlockables and references and such,
and I'd be down to see a potential X9 build and improve from here.
On the flip side, X8 definitely is not the return to greatness I was hoping for: with
a lot of questionably executed level design, annoying Retry Chips, terrible 100% completion
and a mediocre story and presentation, the total package still bears the marks of second
stringers.
Like X5, I see a great game in here, but for me it simply lacks the consistency and timeless
addictive quality that the X series' best titles have.
There is certainly more wiggle room for X8 to be loved by players than X6 and X7, but
I'm left wondering if that's one of the main reasons it's loved to begin with.
Alright...
There we have it, the X8 review.
Thank you for watching and I hope that the video lived up to the hype.
Special shoutouts to all the lovely folks scrolling by on screen, and if you like my
endeavours on this channel and wanna support them, consider backing my ass on Patreon -- it'd
be much appreciated.
Have a fantastic day and take care.
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