"Eorzea Here I Come!"

And so, the day has finally come to get involved with another MMORPG. Had lunch with Wifey at Funan Centre today and right after that, it was on to the game store to purchase the latest Final Fantasy adventure to hit town, FINAL FANTASY XIV Online! Spent about 3 hours downloading all the latest patches to ensure that my gaming experience will be an enjoyable one. However, there was one big problem. My graphics card was so ancient that it didn't even meet the minimum requirements (I thought I had that covered when I bought the game. Realized I mistook my GC as meeting the requirements). So I did a 5min research on the internet and decided to plonk down almost $400 on a Nvidia Geforce GTX 460 1GB card. Pretty retarded, but thats besides the point (btw the game only cost $70 >.<). And then I had another issue, my power supply was not that "power" afterall. Sooo, I have to head down to the store again tomorrow morning to get a new power supply and at the same time get the kind folks there to help me install everything. Anyway, I managed to run the game on my crappy card and I am still amazed at how good the game looks.

Check out some screenshots:

The packaging

Screenshots from the opening movie of the game

The character I created

Do note that my 256MB card was running these graphics! I really can't wait to see the difference when my new card is up and running.

Will post more in-game pics in due time!

Final Fantasy XIV Online

I have not been keeping up to date with video games ever since my little princess was born. Was just aimlessly surfing the net recently and realized that a new MMORPG is going to be released this week (30 Sep). Yup, as the topic heading shows, its FINAL FANTASY XIV! I believe the collector's edition is already out in the market but being the "cheapo" me, I will just go for th e regular version. Gotta say, I am pretty excited about this release as I love MMORPGs. Been a huge fan of Final Fantasy XI online as well as World of Warcraft. Even though there is a monthly fee involved, it is a little sum to pay compared to the endless fun the games provide (as long as you have the time to play it). I have not really done much research on this game but if it is somewhat similar to FF11, I'm sold! The only nitpick I had with FF11 was that you need to form a party before being able to take on most of the monsters in a certain area after level 10 onwards. The time spent to set up a proper party can be excrutiatingly painful at times. Hopefully, Square Enix has made improvements in this aspect. Looking at the in-game screenshots allows one to appreciate how beautiful the graphics are and judging from the games Square Enix churn out, they are not lacking in that department. Now, I need to decide if I should get this game when it is released on Thursday, or wait for further reviews by gamers before taking the plunge. Decisions, decisions!

I am unable to get proper screenshots but do visit the official website (http://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/) if you are keen to find out more about this brand new adventure!

Sideshow Clone Lieutenant Figure

I will be posting on my recent purchases from Hong Kong. The first figure to be presented is the Sideshow Clone Lieutenant figure that I bought from Toy Hunters. What drew me to this figure was the eye-catching blue armor (which indicates its rank), as well as the fact that this piece is a Comic-Con 2010 exclusive. Similar to the 501st Legion Clone Trooper that I mentioned in a previous post, it comes with the standard clone trooper blaster, the long rifle and two extra hands. I got this on Day 1 in HK, as Toy Hunters was located within walking distance from my hotel. I actually went back to the shop two days later to do an exchange as the Carbine Blaster I received was defective. Toy Hunters did the exchange for me without much hassle and I am very happy with their service. Do enjoy the pics I posted below:



Communicating with the Jedi Generals for further instructions

Holding the Long Rifle

Armed with the Carbine Blaster, ready to take out any droids in the way.

A very exciting figure and one that certainly enhances one's display cabinet. I am very happy with this purchase and it is a great addition to my Star Wars collection.

Will be posting on other holiday purchases soon. Till then, may the force be with you!

Disappearance

Guess I have not been updating my blog for some time. I have been busy with work lately and also went on a short trip to Hong Kong. Just got back yesterday with some new add-ons to my toy collection! Will try to put up pics within the next few days! Till then, cherrios!

Something to Ease the Pain

Recently, I have been selling some of my Hot Toys collections so as to ease the congestion in my display cabinet. I am very surprised at how well Hot Toys figures manage to hold their value, as I was able to sell them at the same prices I bought them for, even after displaying them in my cabinet for more than a year. The speed at which my items were snapped up is also testament to how popular Hot Toys figures are. Now, I seriously thought long and hard before selling them and to be honest, sometimes, I wished I didn't. So, in order to release some of the pain from this sincere collector's heart, I bought myself the following:

Sideshow's Star Wars 501st Legion: Vader's Fist Clone trooper

An elite unit of clone troopers, and later stormtroopers, that came to symbolize the might of the Galactic Empire, the 501st Legion were the soldiers under the command of Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Sith. Also known as "Vader's Fist," they continued to enforce order and Imperial rule well after the death of Vader.

The 501st began just as any of the other initial clone units that blazed across the rocky deserts of Geonosis in the first historic battle of the Clone Wars. They seemed identical to the other clones that infiltrated the Separatist stronghold and pushed the Confederacy forces off-planet.

The 501st Legion was split into special mission groups, often to supplement other clone missions. In some cases, they operated independent of the command structure already in place. There were 501st troopers protecting the skies over Coruscant during General Grievous' bold strike against the capital. Other provided support to clone units on worlds such as Felucia, Mygeeto, Utapau and Kashyyyk.

(Above extracted from Sideshow)

This is my first clone trooper figure from sideshow and I must say I am pretty impressed with it. It comes with two weapons, a long rifle and a shorter blaster, which seems to the standard clone trooper weapon. Also included are extra hands (for additional poses) and a figure display base. The detailing of the armor is pretty realistic, with tinges of dirt and scratches all over, to illustrate that being a clone trooper ain't an easy ride. The blue colour on the shoulder pads as well as the helmet and chest plate stands out well, making it easy to identify which clone unit this trooper belongs to. All in all, I am very happy with the purchase, at less than half the price of a standard Hot Toys figure!

Its Not The Same Again

Just put up two of my most precious collectibles for sale today. They are the Hot Toys Ironman Mark I and Mark II. I have proudly displayed these two gems for about a year before finally deciding to part with them. Reasons for doing so include the lack of space in my display cabinet, and the possibility of selling them for double the price I bought them for (due to the fact that demand outstrips supply for these two figures). I tried very hard to justify selling them and even now, I am still sorely missing them. I believe whichever lucky buyer that obtains them will not regret it. Still feeling the pain and hopefully, the arrival of the Hot Toys DX04 Superman and the Hot Toys Ghost Rider with Bike set will ease it away. Till then, my Ironman Mark III (battle damaged version) will be a very lonely figure in my cabinet.

Deep Thoughts

Recently, I was going through my whole collection of figurines that I purchased over the years and trying to improve on making my display more impressive and noticed something interesting. I am quite sure that seasoned collectors will have already known this by now but for someone who just started collecting about 4 years ago, it only hit me recently. The size and number of the figurines are inversely proportional to how impressive your collection will be. Let me explain, if you have collectibles that are scaled 1:6 and above, having just a few pieces in a display cabinet (with the correct poses) will be a treat to the eyes for many a collector. If you happen to put too many figures together, the display becomes too cluttered and one will not be able to pose them well, resulting in them just standing in 'default' poses (most likely straight up with arms at the sides). This causes the display to somehow lose its grandeur. Alternatively, having too few smaller figures (3 and a quarter inches - 6 inches) will leave too much gap in between the display cabinet (taking into account the same cabinet mentioned earlier). This will result in the display looking too 'hollow', like as though the figure was randomly placed, not fitting into the setting at all. So, to make the display more impressive, collectors tend to purchase more of such figures (usually the whole series) to 'bulk' up the display. Many people baulked at the higher costs of larger figures, but if you think about it, getting a whole series of smaller figures almost equates to the same cost. I guess the only fun in purchasing smaller figures is that one can purchase a few of them (meaning there is variety) instead of just having to look at one figure. On the other hand, larger figures tend to be much more detailed and are more articulated.

As a collector, it is almost impossible to collect every single toy available (unless money and space is not an issue). I always have to balance between getting small and large figures to ensure that my display cabinet is able to accomodate them. I think the fun comes in trying to pose them in a variety of poses to try and achieve the 'wow' effect. 4 years on, I believe that I am a more experienced collector and will not purchase anything on impulse, only to regret later on and have difficulty selling the items. Having said that, sometimes, I cannot help but buy something I like, even though I know it does not fit into my collection. Ahhhhhh, its so beautiful, I can't help it!

Hot Toys Ghost Rider!!

Woooaaahhhh...right after announcing its DX-05 Superman figure, Hot Toys announced another fantastic product, The 1/6th scale Ghost Rider Figurine with Bike Set. This is just stunning and I can already feel my wallet getting lighter. Pls check out the pictures:



1/6 scale vehicles are hard to come by and they usually cost a bomb but this set seems to be much more affordable. I received the Dark Knight Batpod as a birthday gift and that piece was and still is awesome. I believe this bike is going to be another amazing vehicle and it will be great if I can display it with my other collection. Hopefully, I will get it in the form of a gift! Dear wifey, are you reading this??!!