This update is going to be a grab bag of content I’ve been sitting on for the last couple of months. Sometimes there are interesting things that don’t really fit any type of theme, but also kind of go overlooked when lacking a clear classification. Let’s treat all this good stuff then like a clearance bin at your favorite store. Not exactly what you’re looking for but maybe there are some good deals to be had.
There’s a famous quote from Jonathan Swift that “Everything old is new again”. Retro handheld gaming has become really popular as of late and is turning into a large market for nostalgic gamers as well as young technophiles. With the introduction of devices such as the Steam Deck putting the power of a PC into your hands, it makes sense that other handhelds start hitting the market as well. Personally, I will attest that what makes or breaks a handheld device is not necessarily its raw performance but rather its ergonomics. I’m not sure everyone would agree with me, but there’s so many options out there at the moment (and growing) that it doesn’t really matter. If you like what you see already, there’s even more stuff on the way.
Ken Harris has a very down to earth YouTube channel that primarily focuses on cybersecurity. He does do other content from time to time as well, and one of them is the above in regard to YouTube. I promise you it's not a drama, profanity laced rant as the norm with these types of videos. I just think it’s a really good perspective from someone who states the obvious that no one really talks about at all on the platform.
For every single weeb out there, I’m going to assume this is common knowledge. However, not everyone who is into Japanese pop culture or video games actually cares about the “real” day to day life of Japanese people. This often leads (unfortunately) to folks being out of touch with societal norms in another country. Why I bring this all up is because sometimes, you read some pretty aggravating tone-deaf articles out there about this or that in a video game or comic. Had those folks actually just took the time to just learn a bit about what they claim to enjoy, they would have realized it’s just a matter of perspective. In any case, I highly suggest you check out Japanology Plus for an extensive (I mean that) deep dive into all things Japanese.
Who am I fooling with the last paragraph? You younger folks out there can’t stand anything longer than 10 minutes according to psychological studies made by various Anthropology groups. So, I found the shortest video possible that explains a lot of fun nuisances in Japanese culture by Japanalysis. Now get off my lawn and have a nice day!
It’s been six months since the death of my Synthwave section on the website. From time to time, I want to share a few songs here and there I think have more mass appeal of the genre. The above song from All the Damn Vampires is such a track. Don’t forget to check out the talented vocalist YOTA as well, as a lot of her work is pretty damn good.
Artist is Bluethebone
This artist has been mentioned in the past on my site, but only in passing in my older scattered method. So now in the “proper” format, I award Bluethebone June 2024’s artist of month. They do their style in a retro VHS subtitled video format that is extremely unique. This is the human touch most AI algorithms can only dream of no matter how much money tech bros throw down the toilet to develop them. It’s fitting that the picture depicts something rather recent as well, namely Shadowheart and Karlach from Baldur’s Gate 3 in glorious VHS subtitled fashion. Hope you enjoy their other works, and a fair bit of warning their portfolio is extremely NSFW!