Day by day

Not sure where should I begin. Hmm, perhaps the Forum Nokia Code Camp would be a good starting point. Last week, Nokia and Maxis held a Forum Nokia Code Camp on Wednesday and Thursday for free. Yep, registration was free and apart from free lectures on developing applications for Symbian OS, we got free breakfasts, lunches and tea breaks as well. I am not into Java programming but well, it was a good start for mobile phone application developers like me to get to know about it better. I eventually got to meet with Flavert guys and not forgetting about Your Brother, a clan member of Your Clan (erm yeah I know the clan name sounds weird but that’s our clan name >:3 ).

Oh btw I have something that Hangmen might envy.

Street Fighter 4 and Killzone 2

Street Fighter 4 and Killzone 2

I got my copies of Street Fighter 4 and Killzone 2 on the last Friday. I tested SF4 with Sora on that night after work. I had problems connecting to Warzone with KZ2 though. Perhaps because I bought the Region 1 version. So meh. Then again, I haven’t finished yet my game of Valkyria Chronicles. More over I got emoed halfway through the game because my favorite character died ;_; nooooooooooo…. At the time of writing, I still have one more episode left to go. Maybe I shall finish it tonight.

Saturday was an unfortunate day. My mom was being admitted to the emergency ward at Serdang Hospital. She fell ill and her body’s weak. For the whole day I was at the hospital. Eventually doctor said that she can go home to rest after giving some medication and also several hours of examination. The even pretty much shocked me. I became less motivated to do anything and I had a presentation on the next day. So I skipped the next day classes at Malacca after I got headache as I was doing some works on the previous night. My mom still not fully recovered though. Most of the time she’s resting at the bed and do some light chores.

Monday’s an off day. The celebration of Prophet Muhammad birthday. I did nothing much and most of time doing chores at home. Eventually I played Valkyria Chronicles a little. Then Shah called me on the phone asking me to go along with him and his wife to Nilai 3. Well for those who don’t know, Nilai 3 is a place where most stuffs are directly from manufacturers and you can bargain there. The first thing that came in my mind was remote control. But in the same time I was thinking about brithday presents for my dad and my mom. Whatever. So I went there in the late afternoon and I bought Panzerkampfwagen III RC. The turret is operable and can shoot too. Back home I played around the tank with my gashapons and figmas.

Strike Witches (not sure about her name because this character wasn't in the anime)

Strike Witches (not sure about her name because this character wasn't in the anime)

Yuki Nagato as Tank Commander y/n?

Yuki Nagato as Tank Commander y/n?

Sexy Tank Commander Natsuki Kuga

Sexy Tank Commander Natsuki Kuga

Sakura Matou as Panzer Command

Sakura Matou as Panzer Command

Lucky Star's Panzer Crews

Lucky Star's Panzer Crews

Konata having fun with Kagamin

Konata having fun with Kagamin

It was tempting to get the tank as it was priced at RM 180. Since it’s made in China and it’s not a Tamiya, it’s supposed to be cheap. However, this is bloody cheap as the shopkeeper dude really wanted to sell it off because it’s the only one left. Plus, people prefer the normal version more rather than the more expensive ones that have artificial smoke. For example, the Panzer III that I got is priced at RM 180 while the same model with artificial smoke is priced at RM 230. There are other models like Panzer IV which I prefer more than Panzer III but it was priced at RM 250 and has artificial smoke. If you’re wondering what’s the artificial smoke do, it is actually appeared when the tank shoots. At other shop, there’s Panther model and also an American tank model. But they’re priced higher. The model that I really wanted was Tiger I which was sold out (and priced far more higher). Apparently my purchase came with a freebie, another RC. Just a simple RC stuff which I think I may give it to my niece as birthday present since her birthday is on the next month too. Back to my initial point, I supposed to find some presents for my parents’ birthdays. Hmmm… Maybe I should get something else.

Valkyria Chronicles

Finally, I got my PS3. I bought it last Saturday from Bernard for RM 1630 (Console + Dualshock 3 + HDMI-to-DVI Cable + one game). I went to Bernard’s shop near Pertama Kompleks there with shah_ho_nam and linkinstreet. Actually, we went there for about 3 times; first, it was too early in the morning and we decided to go elsewhere first, second, it’s in the noon but Bernard wasn’t there as he had to get some console stocks, and finally, we went back there around 8:30 pm just to get the PS3. I wanted to buy Killzone 2 but since I didn’t make any preorder, I have to wait for some days as all the copies he currently have are for those who already preordered. So, I bought Valkyria Chronicles instead.

Valkyria Chronicles

Valkyria Chronicles

I have already knew about the game long time ago. Since I subscribe Comp Ace tankoubon, I got to know about the series as a manga. From the tankoubon also I knew that Senjo no Valkyria: Gallian Chronicles was pretty popular. Reading through previews and some character designs included, I happened to be sceptical about the story as most war theme series always had typical I-don’t-want-to-fight-but-I-had-to syndrome. Plus, I don’t really like the heroine’s appearances; twin tails with feminist headscarf girl wielding a rifle. Well, that’s my preliminary thoughts of the game.

I bought Megami magazine too along with PS3

I bought Megami magazine too along with PS3

Installing...

Installing...

Apparently, I got some guesses wrong for the game and the story itself is pretty much acceptable for me. Oh btw, the title for English version is called Valkyria Chronicles (easier to remember compared to Senjo no Valkyria: Gallian Chronicles). It’s a squad turn based combat game which is bombastically called BLiTZ (Battle of Live Tactical Zones). The story starts with Welkin Gunther being arrested after drawing some natural and environmental images by Alicia Melchiott for mistaken him as a spy of the Empire. Instead, he is actually the son of a renown First Europa War veteran general who doesn’t really like war and prefers to be a teacher (this is what I called as typical war stories). Similar like Welkin, Alicia wanted to be a baker instead of carrying around a rifle and killing enemies. Welkin’s non-blood related sister, Isara, looks like a girl with frail body and naive. However, the first chapter of Valkyria Chronicles simply explained who they really are.

Alicia and Welkin

Alicia and Welkin

Isara

Isara

Both Welkin and Alicia understand that their country is under attacked by the Empire. Both knew that they have to fight and it’s not the time to think about their peace time ambitions. Despite their own preferences, they are determined to take arms against the invaders. Alicia is surprisingly adorable. Marina Inoue, her seiyuu, simply brought out her character within which I simply like it. Isara on the other hand is not entirely naive. Her late father designed a modern combat tank that wasn’t mass produced due to it’s complexity. She secretly follows her father’s footstep by becoming an engineer (at least to her brother, Welkin). She pilots Edelweiss, a tank left by her father, which she had some training previously. She suggested her brother to become the tank commander of Edelweiss and eventually her brother became the leader of Squad 7 with a rank of lieutenant. Basically, these main characters are not some teenagers who don’t know shit about war as the country of Gallia has already conducting yearly military training at schools all over the country.

Selvaria Bles

Selvaria Bles

The Empire or the East European Imperial Alliance was not short of surprises as well. The most notable character is Selvaria Bles who actually from a bloodline of legendary Valkyrie warriors that capable of wielding ragnite spear and shield for superhuman strength. Apparently, the seiyuu of her, Sayaka Ohara, was also the seiyuu of Alicia Florence of Aria the Animation and both characters of hers were totally different (Selvaria isn’t as easy going and relaxed as Alicia Florence lol). Another thing worth mentioning that the crown prince of the Imperial Alliance is Maximillian, voiced by Jun Fukuyama. He reminds me so much about Lelouch Lamperouge of Code Geass. Plus, with royal stuffs and nobility, again I can hear ‘Yes, My Lord’ and ‘Yes, Your Highness’ again with Jun Fukuyama. With the upcoming anime series of Valkyria Chronicles, I hope it won’t be suck. Currently I like this game very much. As much as I like its story.

Siegheil!

Siegheil!

That’s all for today.

My PSN ID: darksteno (MY), stenolovesyou (UK).