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Learn from my mistakes. I got a job, but it took me a year, 1100+ applications, and failing 11 final interviews. Here is what you don't do while job searching.
Sure, there are plenty of posts from people who applied to a job and got an offer 30 seconds later. Good for them. But if you're on this sub, you're probably running into more difficulty. I did. Job hunting these days is inherently pretty hard, but there are plenty of things I did wrong during my job hunt that could have saved me time and trouble. I'm a 35 year old in product marketing in the bay area, so this advice may or may not apply to you. Most of this advice is not new, you may have seen it elsewhere. Well, HEED MY WORDS! You should take that advice. Here are my don'ts of job hunting: e: Here's the real #1 piece of advice because someone brought it up in the comments: Don't Not Have A Network. The main reason I had such a hard time was I moved to a new city where I didn't have a professional relationship with ANYONE. I think if you're applying without a friend on the inside, it reduces your odds by 80-90%, based on random factoids we've all seen that say 80% of jobs are never posted publicly. I went to networking events and coffee meetups and blah blah blah, but COVID put a stop to that before I could make much progress. The biggest piece of advice (by far) is just to have a friend who can get you a job. But if you're reading this, you would have done that already if you could have. Don't try to get by without doing the standard "best practice" stuff. I spent a while thinking I could get away without making a customized resume for different jobs. I also thought I would probably have the right keywords naturally, and that I didn't have to worry about that either. WRONG. I wasted many weeks submitting poorly optimized resumes and getting few interviews. What you should do is have at least one version of your resume customized for each job title you're applying to. That means if you're applying for Sr. Widget Fiddler and Director of Widget Fiddling, you need 2 versions. Keyword optimize each resume version by copy-pasting 50+ job descriptions for that job's title into a tool like Voyant Tools, which will spit out all the most common words and phrases. Find the most frequent ones that seem important and relevant, and work them into your resume, even if it seems weird to refer to yourself as a "team player" or "entrepreneurial". Don't be bad at interviewing, not even a little bit bad. Being a good interviewee is a skill. Most of us aren't born with that skill, and most of us are rusty when it comes time to look for a job. I knew I wasn't great at interviewing, but I really didn't want to go through awkward practice interviews with friends, so I told myself people would understand why I was all nervous, and realize I was still super talented and experienced despite my 'rough edges'. WRONG. I blew it on a lot of interviews before admitting that I had to practice, a lot. I did a bunch of practice interviews, got feedback, and I even talked to an interview coach. The latter was expensive, but I think the dose of outside perspective really helped. YMMV. I practiced enough that I started getting to final rounds instead of washing out in the first couple rounds. It made a huge difference. Practice. Don't wing it during the interview. For 'behavioral' questions (i.e. "tell me about a time when..." questions) everyone says you need to have multiple answers memorized for every major category of question. Ugh! So much work. Greatest weakness. Success story. Failure story. Conflict story. Collaboration story. YAWN. I thought I could come up with good answers on the spot. It's "supposed to be a conversation", right? WRONG. I blew it on a couple interviews before realizing I was coming across as both unprepared AND inexperienced. Sit down and work out your bullet points for every answer, BEFORE you land an interview. Pain in the butt? Yes. But not as big a pain as getting an interview, blowing it, then ending up doing the work anyway. Don't apply to old job listings. If it's still up, they're still hiring, right? WRONG. I have found that job listings are good for about as long as fresh bread. You mostly want to apply the day they're posted, 2-3 days is OK, 5 days is pushing it, beyond that, it's literal trash. I started out applying to anything relevant that was less than a month old, and my app-to-interview yield was around 1%. Started applying to new listings exclusively, and my yield went to more like 3%. YMMV. Don't apply to listings that aren't on the employer's own site. It's become disturbingly common for 3rd-party sites to steal and re-post job listings they have nothing to do with. You click on a link on LinkedIn or Indeed, and you end up on Neuvoo or some random BS. Don't submit any of your info on those sites. Very often the jobs are expired already, but these 3rd-party scammers are still re-posting them to steal your info. Even if they're not expired, there's no reason to think they actually send your application to the employer. If you land somewhere unexpected, go to the employer's actual careers section on their site and find the listing yourself. Otherwise you're just giving your info to someone to sell, and the employer probably never sees it. Please report these listings as you go. Don't be too picky with job titles. Unless your resume precisely "fits the profile" employers are looking for, you're going to have to apply a lot. I had to apply a lot. At first, I was exclusively applying to one title, because although I didn't "fit the profile" I didn't want to compromise. I ended up getting a really solid job with a different title, after I loosened my criteria JUST a tad. Have a serious talk with yourself about how many months you're willing to apply before broadening your search, and don't talk yourself out of good jobs because they have the "wrong" title. Don't be too loose with companies you apply to. At a couple points in the process, I ended up with interviews at companies that I seriously didn't want to work for. I was playing the numbers game and I would apply to anything with the right title, even if I hadn't heard of the company. I figured if I got an interview, I would worry about the company later. Difficulty: If you are on unemployment, this can lead to a sticky situation - if you turn down an offer, you legally can't collect unemployment anymore in many places. It's also pretty hard to justify to yourself turning down ANY interview if you actually need the money. Have a loose idea of who the company is before applying, to avoid those awkward moments. Don't stop applying until the ink is dry on your offer letter. My advice is to apply to every suitable listing as soon as it's posted, which could be as many as 10-30 per day depending on your field and geography. If things are going well, you'll also have interviews going on during any given week, which also put heavy demands on your mental energy and prep time. It is tempting to stop applying for jobs if you are doing multiple interviews and they seem to be going well. You need the time, and one of them has to work out, right? WRONG. It happened to me multiple times - I'd get further along in an interview process, I'd be focusing on prep, and I'd let my application routine slip. Bad idea. If your application pipeline runs dry, it can be another 2-6 weeks before the interviews start flowing again. ABA - always be applying. Don't get your hopes up. (maybe the most important tip.) Your mental resilience to rejection and your self-regard are finite resources. They are resources you need to conserve to maintain your overall mental health and good job-hunting habits. Job hunting can burn through these resources like Joe Exotic through a bag of meth. Don't be like me and get emotionally invested in any given job before you get an offer. Don't start picking out all the stuff you're going to buy with the new salary. Don't start thinking of what doors are going to open up for you with this step in your career. Don't mentally pick out outfits for your new commute. Just don't. I consider myself a mentally tough person, so I should be able to handle the repeated rejection, right? WRONG. If you allow yourself to start caring about a job before you GET the job, you WILL be crushed to bits. Maybe not the first time, but after the 5th, or the 10th, it becomes hard to take. To some of the newer job hunters I've seen on this sub: Caring about a job from the day you APPLY? Sheer lunacy. You shouldn't even remember where you applied by the time you go to bed that day. Keep in mind: It's a numbers game. It's not personal. You WILL get the right job eventually, if you keep going. You have to maintain faith in yourself, but hold no hope for any particular job. In emotional terms, treat it less like a poker game, (where any hand can be a big deal) more like a slot machine (where you care zero until you finally win). No matter how tough you think you are, take care to maintain your mental state, especially during COVID where so many aspects of life are also wearing down our mental health. Don't be afraid to be a try-hard. The role I finally got was based largely on a "take home project" used to demonstrate my working style. It was paid, also really long, the minimum suggested time was 10 hours. Usually I put 70% effort into trial projects, because I don't want to bust my ass for a throwaway, and I don't want to look desperate. My thinking is "Well, we're all professionals, so as long as I mention a few of the right things, they'll know we're on the same level, right?" WRONG. On this one, I decided to go HAM on the project. All or nothing. I ended up putting over 20 hours into it, (the max time they suggested was 20) and came up with a total overkill amount of material, it was probably 20 pages worth, if not more. To give some idea, I spent like 4 hours just doing addressable market sizing, which everyone including me acknowledges is fairly pointless. Part of the project was also to see how we communicate about our work - they put me on their company slack, so I logged onto it pretty much every day to update them on my progress. It was firmly in try-hard weirdo territory. But it worked! So I guess my lesson from this is, if you're going to bother with these projects, be the one who turns in the blue ribbon material. NB: Be aware of "free work" scams where they try to get you to do the actual job without hiring you for the job. If it's pertinent to the actual job and it's more than an hour or two of work, it should be paid. Unpaid trial projects that don't relate to the actual business are OK, but you'll have to decide for yourself how much time you're willing to put in for free. Don't assume ***anything*** until it's final. In 3 instances, I got much further than I expected in a hiring process, and in one I was blindsided by a rejection where I thought I was a shoo-in. #1, they interviewed me for the role (up to the final round) even though the job called for an actual engineer and I have zero engineering experience. In #2, I blew an interview and got rejected. I knew exactly how I blew it, I got the yips and did poorly. So I sent an email reply explaining what I SHOULD have said, and that I really believed in the company's mission, and that I realize I was a poor interviewee, but I was working on it - they actually gave me another shot and I made it to the final round. In the last unexpected twist story, they actually scheduled a final interview, then CANCELLED IT. I have been rejected for about a million jobs, but I've never been cancelled on. They said that instead of an interview, they would just review my trial project. I couldn't imagine cancelling an interview with someone you intend to hire, so I assumed this 'review' was just a consolation prize and the job was going to someone else. On the day the cancelled interview was meant to take place, they offered me the job. Huh???? Later that day I rode to heck on a flying pig and bought a snowcone there. But I also got a job. On the other side of things, I was told directly I was the top candidate for a role, the only one who was really qualified, but because of COVID they were putting the role on hold. OK cool, I figured I was a shoo-in once they actually hired for it. Well, they re-listed the job about 45 days later. They didn't reach out to me. I messaged them. They told me I wasn't even going to get a phone screen for it. WTF? They lied to my face for no reason whatsoever? Yep. They did. The lesson: Do not assume anything! ANYTHING!
R/Bujo’s Top Tips on How to Plan When You Have Severe Depression/Impaired Functioning
Hey! So, after the amazing response I got on this post detailing my struggle with planning while severely depressed, I decided to use some extra energy I’ve been having to condense all the answers I got into a master list for easy reference. I was initially just going to make and keep this but then decided that it might be useful to share in case you
didn’t see the initial post and feel this info would help to you, or
did see the post but didn’t have energy or time to read through all the responses.
Feel free to browse the list and see what may work for you if you are in a similar spot. Things to note:
Some of the advice given here seems to contradict itself (e.g., DO use habit and mood trackers, DON’T use habit and mood trackers) simply because multiple people gave their perspective and some of the things that worked well for some didn’t for others.
I didn’t reference spreads unique to particular people and just focused on the general trends in suggestions – if you want to see descriptions/images of those unique spreads, I’d encourage you to read the original post.
This advice was in the context of my particular situation (which again, you can refer to here) so it might not work for you if you are in a different situation and have different constraints.
Lastly, if you have any ideas that you feel aren’t listed, mention them in the comments. Thank you again for all the support, and enjoy!
WHAT TO FOCUS ON
Prioritize celebrating what you do get done with Done Lists/Tada lists instead of just To Do lists!
Consider ditching traditional habit trackers if you feel they discourage you. If you engage in a positive habit, mark it down! Then you’ll have a total of all the times you did do something instead of a tracker with glaring reminders of when you didn’t.
Aside from habits, write at least one thing you did today, no matter how small (e.g., drank a glass of water)
Track goals in a way that shows what progress you have made even if you didn’t reach the goal
E.g. If your goal was to get to inbox 0, write down the number of emails you did get through even if you didn’t reach 0. Acknowledge progress!
Focus less on productivity or SMART goal setting, and more on taking care of yourself and tasks that contribute to/maintain functioning.
Once you have reached a baseline of functioning again, add goals and tasks outside of this
Have a basic list of tasks you need to do every day that enrich you/are self-care e.g. (medication, hygiene, food and water intake, journaling, fresh air)
Focus on ‘Did I’ goals instead of ‘How Much’ goals (e.g. 'Did I drink water > Did I drink 8 glasses of water?')
The bar for success then becomes when you did something, as opposed to only when you did a certain amount of something.
Can be a good precursor to tracking ‘How Much’ goals once you have reached a point where you are doing the thing consistently.
THE METHOD (SPREADS AND STRUCTURE)
Create simple easy spreads
Low set up time, takes little time to use, and don’t need to be kept up daily
Create/buy stencils of various sized squares, letters or lines that can make the process of setting up a spread easier and faster
Instead of weekly or daily spreads with initial set up, rapid log in your BuJo when you need to (even if that means your entries are scattered across the week or month and don’t have every day accounted for in chronological order)
In this vein, consider avoiding spreads that are dependent on you having accomplished the previous days tasks – this way you can miss days without feeling like that jeopardizes your ability to use the journal.
If relevant, note briefly in your journal skipped days, and why you skipped them.
Use a line a day spread that can give you an overview of your month
one positive line about your day, or
one line about how you were feeling that day
Gamify the structure of you BuJo or self-care tasks Make it so you earn something if you do your tasks e.g.
in-game ‘points’/XP
a win in a battle/increase in battle statistics
levelling up
real-life rewards
If games are nor your forte, structure it differenlty but implement a reward system to create incentive
create a tree for your habit. Draw it with no leaves. When you do the habit, add a green leaf. If you miss it, add a brown leaf. This way you are incentivized to keep the plant alive and flourishing with more green than brown leaves.
Like with trackers, if you know the brown leaf/green leaf approach might make you fixate on the number of brown leaves (times you didn't do the habit), just focus on adding leaves when you do the habit and when you miss a day or three, don't add anything to the tree. This way the reward is getting to add leaves, and there is no reminder of when you didn't do that habit. Just a beautiful display of when you did!
Create an undated master list of tasks to do, keep it in view, and slot them on to do on higher functioning days.
Break down tasks into their smallest manageable increments and tackle those Instead of ‘do laundry’, break down tasks into:
remove clothes from laundry basket
take clothes to laundry room
put clothes in washing machine and start cycle
remove clothes from washing machine
put clothes in dryehang clothes up to dry
collect dry clothes
fold dry clothes
hang dry clothes
Detach any routines you make from a set time
Focus on establishing the routine before you place it at a specific time or within a specific time frame e.g. do morning routine.
This way you are free to focus on getting into the habit of the routine first without feeling obstructed by having to do it with time in mind. If you do the habit but at varying or inconsistent times, it is then still a success.
Tackle time (when you want it to happen and how long you want it to take) once you have established this.
MENTAL HEALTH RELATED
Track things related to mental health
Start with a few simple basic selfcare things – once the habit is ingrained, add more.
Track mood, symptoms (when they occur, their severity) and try and identify any patters in when and why you may feel how you feel. Also be aware of what coping mechanisms do and don’t work.
If you complete a task while experiencing a symptom, write the symptom on a column on the side of the task – this way you might notice a correlation between a symptom and the tasks you are able to do.
If tracking your mood is too complex (multiple feelings at once) or discouraging (you mark 'sad' every day), stop!
Create a personalized resource on what to do when you feel at your worst (‘When I Feel Like Shit’ list)
Steps to take
Coping mechanisms that work
Self-care you need to keep up on (medication, hygiene, food and water intake)
Bad Thought/Good Thought list (The bad thoughts you are having, and corresponding good thoughts that give a different perspective – consider writing the good thoughts when you are clear headed and feeling good, so that you can reflect on them when you aren’t!)
Track what triggers particularly bad episodes or feelings
This can help you avoid, manage or prepare for the trigger (if it's inevitable)
Create ‘bad day’, ‘okay day’, ‘and ‘good day’ to do lists that correspond with the kind of day you are having
‘Bad day’ – the absolute bare minimum you need to do to take care of yourself
‘Okay day’ – the bare minimum + simple task(s) to get done
‘Good day’ – bare minimum + more tasks that require more energy (might be a good idea to do things that will help you on worse days – meal prep, do biggest cleaning tasks, etc.)
***What would be classified as a bad, okay, and good day is very dependent on your mental health and state of functioning. Some days when I’m really non-functional, a good day is doing the bare minimum. Some days it is just staying alive. So you might categorize this differently than done here! Forgive yourself for what you don’t or can’t get done – some days are just bad, and that’s okay! Involve a gratitude practice in your bullet journaling
Doesn't have to be detailed or long - it could be anything from a single word to a couple of sentences. It's a good way of reminding yourself of the bright spots of a particular day.
No standard about what qualifies. If it's that you got through the day, add it!
(Even if you don’t have it) CheckADHD related subsfor ideas on how to trick yourself into doing things!
ALTERNATIVES
Focus more on creating a stable routine and less on Bullet journaling and tasks.
Old Austin Tales: Forgotten Video Arcades of The 1970s & 80s
In the late 1980s and early 1990s when I was a young teen growing up in far North Austin, it was a popular custom for many boys in the neighborhood to assemble at the local Stop-N-Go after school on a regular basis for some Grand Champion level tournaments in Street Fighter 2 and Mortal Kombat. The collective insistence of our mothers and fathers to get out of the house, get some exercise, and refrain from playing NES or Sega on the television only led us to seek out more video games at the convenience store down the road. Much allowance and lunch money was spent as well as hours that should have been devoted to homework among the 8 or 9 regular boys in attendance, often challenging each other to 'Best of 5' matches. I myself played Dhalsim and SubZero, and not very well, so I rarely ever made it to the 5th match. The store workers frequently kicked us out for the day only to have us return when they weren't working the counter anymore if not the next day. There is something about that which has been lost in the present day. While people can today download the latest games on Steam or PSN or in the app store on your smartphone, you can't just find arcade games in stores and restaurants like you used to be able to. And so the fun of a spontaneous 8 or 10 person multiplayer video game tournament has been confined to places like bars, pool halls, Pinballz or Dave&Busters. But in truth it was that ubiquity of arcade video games, how you could find them in any old 7-11 or Laundromat, which is what killed the original arcades of the early 1980s before the Great Crash of 1983 when home video game consoles started to catch up to what you saw in the arcade. I was born in the mid 1970s so I missed out on Pong. I was kindergarten age when the Golden Age of Arcade Games took place in the early 1980s. There used to be a place called Skateworld on Anderson Mill Road that was primarily for roller skating but had a respectable arcade in its own right. It was there that I honed my skills on the original Tron, Pac Man, Galaga, Pole Position, Defender, and so many others. In the 1980s I remember visiting all the same mall arcades as others in my age group. There was Aladdin's Castle in Barton Creek Mall, The Gold Mine in Highland, and another Gold Mine in Northcross which was eventually renamed Tilt. Westgate Mall also had an arcade but being a north austin kid I never went there until later in the mid 1990s. There were also places like Malibu Grand Prix and Showbiz Pizza and Chuck-E-Cheeze, all of which had fairly large arcades for kids which were the secondary attraction. If you're of a certain age you will remember Einsteins and LeFun on the Drag. They were there for a few decades going back way before the Slacker era. Lesser known is that the UT Student Union basement used to have an arcade that was comparable to either or both of those places. Back in the pre-9/11 days it was much easier to sneak in if you even vaguely looked like you could be a UT student. But there was another place I was too young to have experienced called Smitty's up further north on 183 at Lake Creek in the early 1980s. I never got to go there but I always heard about it from older kids at the time. It was supposed to have been two stories of wall to wall games with a small snack bar. I guess at the time it served a mostly older teen crowd from Westwood High School and for that reason younger kids my age weren't having birthday parties there. It wasn't around very long, just a few years during the Golden Age of Arcades. It is with almost-forgotten early arcades like that in mind that I wanted to share with y'all some examples of places from The Golden Age of the Video Arcade in Austin using some old Statesman articles I've found. Maybe someone of a certain age on here will remember them. I was curious what they were like, having missed out by being slightly too young to have experienced most of them first hand. I also wanted to see the original reaction to them in the press. I had a feeling there was some pushback from school/parent/civic groups on these facilities showing up in neighborhood strip malls or next to schools, and I was right to suspect. But I'm getting ahead of myself. First let's list off some places of interest. Be sure to speak up if you remember going to any of these, even if it was just for some other kid's birthday party. Unfortunately some of the only mentions about a place are reports of a crime being committed there, such as our first few examples. Forgotten Arcade #1 Fun House/Play Time Arcade - 2820 Guadalupe June 15, 1975
ARCADE ENTHUSIASM A gang fight involving 20 30 people erupted early Saturday morning in front of an arcade on Guadalupe Street. The owner of the Fun House Arcade at 282J Guadalupe told police pool cues, lug wrenches, fists and a shotgun were displayed during the flurry. Police are unsure what started the fisticuffs, but one witness at the scene said it pitted Chicanos against Anglos. During the fight the owner of the arcade said a green car stopped at the side of the arcade and witnesses reported the barrel of a shotgun sticking out. The crowd wisely scattered and only a 23-year-old man was left lying on the ground. He told police he doesn't know what happened.
ARCADE ROBBED A former employee of Play Time Arcade, 2820 Guadalupe, was charged Tuesday in connection with the Tuesday afternoon robbery of his former business. Police have issued a warrant for the arrest of Ronnie Magee, 22, of 1009 Aggie Lane, Apt. 306. Arcade attendant Sam Garner said he had played pool with the suspect an hour before the robbery. He told police the man had been fired from the business two weeks earlier. Police said a man walked in the arcade about 2:45 p m. with a blue steel pistol and took $180. Magee is charged with first degree aggravated robbery. Bond was set on the charge at $15,000.
First it was called Fun House and then renamed Play Time a year later. I'm not sure what kind of arcade games beyond Pong and maybe Asteroids they could have had at this place. The peak of the Pinball craze was supposed to be around 1979, so they might have had a few pinball machines as well. A quick search of youtube will show you a few examples of 1976 video games like Death Race. The location is next to Ken's Donuts where PokeBowl is today where the old Baskin Robbins location was for many years. Forgotten Arcade #2 Green Goth - 1121 Springdale Road May 15, 1984
A 23-year-old man pleaded guilty Monday to a January 1983 murder in East Austin and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Jim Crowell Jr. of Austin admitted shooting 17-year-old Anthony Rodriguez in the chest with a shotgun after the two argued outside the Green Goth, a games arcade at 1121 Springdale Road, on Jan. 23, 1983. Crowell had argued with Rodriguez and a friend of Rodriguez at the arcade, police said. Crowell then went to his house, got a shotgun and returned to the arcade, witnesses said. When the two friends left the arcade, Rodriguez was shot Several weeks ago Crowell had reached a plea bargain with prosecutors for an eight-year prison term, but District Judge Bob Perkins would not accept the sentence, saying it was shorter than sentences in similar cases. After further plea bargaining, Crowell accepted the 15-year prison sentence.
I can't find anything else on Green Goth except reports about this incident with a murder there. There is at least one other report from 1983 around the time of Crowell's arrest that also refer to it as an arcade but reports the manager said the argument started over a game of pool. It's possible this place might have been more known for pool. Forgotten Arcades #3 & #4 Games, Etc. - 1302 S. First St Muther's Arcade - 2532 Guadalupe St August 23, 1983
Losing the magic touch - Video Arcades have trouble winning the money game It was going to be so easy for Lawrence Villegas, a video game junkie who thought he could make a fast buck by opening up an arcade where kids could plunk down an endless supply of quarters to play Pac-Man, Space Invaders and Asteroids. Villegas got together with a few friends, purchased about 30 video games and opened Games, Etc. at 1302 S. First St in 1980. .,--.... For a while, things, went great Kids waited in line to spend their money to drive race cars, slay dragons and save the universe. AT THE BEGINNING of 1982, however, the bottom fell out, and Villegas' revenues fell from $400 a week to $25. Today, Games, Etc. is vacant Villegas, 30, who is now working for his parents at Tony's Tortilla Factory, hasn't decided what he'll do with the building. "I was hooked on Asteroids, and I opened the business to get other people hooked, too," Villegas said. "But people started getting bored, and it wasn't worth keeping the place open. In the end, I sold some machines for so little it made me sick." VILLEGAS ISNT the only video game operator to experience hard times, video game manufacturers and distributors 'It used to be fairly common to get $300 a week from a machine. Now we rarely get more than $100 . Pac-Man's a lost cause. Six months ago, you could resell a Pac-Man machine for $1,600. Now, you're lucky to get $950 if you can find a buyer." Ronnie Roark says. In the past year, business has dropped 25 percent to 65 percent throughout the country, they say. Most predict business will get even worse before the market stabilizes. Video game manufacturers and operators say there are several reasons for the sharp and rapid decline: Many video games can now be played at home on television, so there's no reason to go to an arcade. The novelty of video games has worn off. It has been more than a decade since the first ones hit the market The decline can be traced directly to oversaturation or the market arcade owners say. The number of games in Austin has quadrupled since 1981, and it's not uncommon to see them in coin-operated laundries, convenience stores and restaurants. WITH SO MANY games to choose from, local operators say, Austinites be came bored. Arcades still take in thousands of dollars each week, but managers and owners say most of the money is going to a select group of newer games, while dozens of others sit idle. "After awhile, they all seem the same," said Dan Moyed, 22, as he relaxed at Muther's Arcade at 2532 Guadalupe St "You get to know what the game is going to do before it does. You can play without even thinking about it" Arcade owners say that that, in a nutshell, is why the market is stagnating. IN THE PAST 18 months, Ronnie Roark, owner of the Back Room at 2015 E. Riverside Drive, said his video business has dropped 65 to 75 percent Roark, . who supplied about 160 video games to several Austin bars and arcades, said the instant success of the games is what led to their demise. "The technology is not keeping up with people's demand for change," said Roark, who bought his first video game in 1972. "The average game is popular for two or three months. We're sending back games that are less than five months old." Roark said the market began dropping in March 1982 and has been declining steadily ever since. "The drop started before University of Texas students left for the summer in 1982," Roark said. "We expected a 25 percent drop in business, and we got that, and more. It's never really picked up since then. - "It used to be fairly common to get $300 a week from a machine. Now we rarely get more than $100. 1 was shocked when I looked over my books and saw how much things had dropped." TO COMBAT THE slump, Roark said, he and some arcade owners last year cut the price of playing. Even that didn't help, he said. Old favorites, such as Pac-Man, which once took in hundreds of dollars each week, he said, now make less than $3 each. "Pac-Man's a lost cause," he said. "Six months ago, you could resell a Pac-Man machine for $1,600. Now, you're lucky to get $950 if you can find a buyer." Hardest hit by the slump are the owners of the machines, who pay $3,500 to $5,000 for new products and split the proceeds with the businesses that house them. SALEM JOSEPH, owner of Austin Amusement and Vending Co., said his business is off 40 percent in the past year. Worse yet, some of his customers began returning their machines, and he's having a hard time putting them back in service. "Two years ago, a machine would generate enough money to pay for itself in six months,' said Joseph, who supplies about 250 games to arcades. "Now that same machine takes 18 months to pay for itself." As a result, Joseph said, he'll buy fewer than 15 new machines this year, down from the 30 to 50 he used to buy. And about 50 machines are sitting idle in his warehouse. "I get calls every day from people who want to sell me their machines," Joseph said. "But I can't buy them. The manufacturers won't buy them from me." ARCADE OWNERS and game manufacturers hope the advent of laser disc video games will buoy the market Don Osborne, vice president of marketing for Atari, one of the largest manufacturers of video games, said he expects laser disc games to bring a 25 percent increase in revenues next year. The new games are programmed to give players choices that may affect the outcome of the game, Os borne said. "Like the record and movie industries, the video game industry is dependent on products that stimulate the imagination," Osborne said "One of the reasons we're in a valley is that we weren't coming up with those kinds of products." THE FIRST of the laser dis games, Dragonslayer and Star Wan hit the market about two months ago. Noel Kerns, assistant manager of The Gold Mine Arcade in Northcross Mall, says the new games are responsible for a $l,000-a-week increase in revenues. Still, Kerns said, the Gold Mine' total sales are down 20 percent iron last summer. However, he remain optimistic about the future of the video game industry. "Where else can you come out of the rain and drive a Formula One race car or save the universe?" hi asked. Others aren't so optimistic. Roark predicted the slump will force half of all operators out of business and will last two more years. "Right now, we've got a great sup ply and almost no demand," Roark said. "That's going to have to change before things get- significantly better."
Well there is a lot to take from that long article, among other things, that the author confused "Dragonslayer" with "Dragon's Lair". I lol'd. Anyone who has been to Emo's East, formerly known as The Back Room, knows they have arcade games and pool, but it's mostly closed when there isn't a show. That shouldn't count as an arcade, even though the former owner Ronnie Roark was apparently one of the top suppliers of cabinet games to the area during the Golden Era. Any pool hall probably had a few arcade games at the time, too, but that's not the same as being an arcade. We also learn from the same article of two forgotten arcades: Muthers at 2522 Guadalupe where today there is a Mediterranean food restaurant, and another called Games, Etc. at 1302 S.First that today is the site of an El Mercado restaurant. But the article is mostly about showing us how bad the effects were from the crash at the end of the Golden Era. It was very hard for the early arcades to survive with increasing competition from home game consoles and personal computers, and the proliferation of the games into stores and restaurants. Forgotten Arcades #5 #6 & #7 Computer Madness - 2414 S. Lamar Blvd. Electronic Encounters - 1701 W Ben White Blvd (Southwood Mall) The Outer Limits Amusements Center - 1409 W. Oltorf March 4, 1982
'Quartermania' stalks South Austin School officials, parents worried about effects of video games A fear Is haunting the video game business. "We call it 'quartermania.' That's fear of running out of quarters," said Steve Stackable, co-owner of Computer Madness, a video game and foosball arcade at 2414 S. Lamar Blvd. The "quartermania" fear extends to South Austin households and schools, as well. There it's a fear of students running out of lunch money and classes to play the games. Local school officials and Austin police are monitoring the craze. They're concerned that computer hotspots could become undesirable "hangouts" for students, or that truancy could increase because students (high-school age and younger) will skip school to defend their galaxies against The Tempest. So far police fears have not been substantiated. Department spokesmen say that although more than half the burglaries in the city are committed by juveniles during the daytime, they know of no connection between the break-ins and kids trying to feed their video habit But school and parental worries about misspent time and money continue. The public outcry in September 1980 against proposals to put electronic game arcades near two South Austin schools helped persuade city officials to reject the applications. One proposed location was near Barton Hills Elementary School. The other was South Ridge Plaza at William Cannon Drive and South First Street across from Bedlchek Junior High School. Bedichek principal B.G. Henry said he spoke against the arcade because "of the potential attraction it had for our kids. I personally feel kids are so drawn to these things, that It might encourage them to leave the school building and play hookey. Those things have so much compulsion, kids are drawn to them like a magnet Kids can get addicted to them and throw away money, maybe their lunch money. I'm not against the video games. They may be beneficial with eye-hand coordination or even with mathematics, but when you mix the video games during school hours and near school buildings, you might be asking for problems you don't need." A contingent from nearby Pleasant Hill Elementary School joined Bedichek in the fight back in 1980, although principal Kay Beyer said she received her first formal call about the games last Week from a mother complaining that her child was spending lunch money on them. Beyer added that no truancy problems have been related to video game-playing at a nearby 7-11 store. Allen Poehl, amusement game coordinator for Austin's 7-11 stores, said company policy rules out any game-playing by school-age youth during school hours. Fulmore Junior High principal Bill Armentrout said he is working closely with operators of a nearby 7-1 1 store to make sure their policy is enforced. The convenience store itself, and not necessarily the video games, is a drawing card for older students and drop-outs, Armentrout said. Porter Junior High principal Marjorie Ball said that while video games aren't a big cause of truancy, "the money (spent on the games) is a big factor." Ball said she has made arrangements with nearby businesses to call the school it students are playing the games during school hours. "My concern is that kids are basically unsupervised, especially at the 24-hour grocery stores. That's a late hour for kids to be out. I would like to see them (games) unplugged at 10 p.m.," adds Joslin Elementary principal Wayne Rider. Several proprietors of video game hot-spots say they sympathize with the concerns of parents and school officials. No one under 18 is admitted without a parent to Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre at 4211 S. Lamar. That rule, says night manager David Dunagan, "keeps it from being a high school hangout. This is a family place." Jerry Zollar, owner of J.J. Subs in West Wood Shopping Center on Bee Cave Road, rewards the A's on the report cards of Eanes school district students with free video games. "It's kind of a community thing we do in a different way. I've heard from both teachers and parents . . . they thought this was a good idea," said Zollar. Electronic Encounters in Southwood Mall last year was renovated into a brightly lit arcade. "We're trying to get away from the dark, barroom-type place. We want this to be a place for family entertainment We won't let kids stay here during school hours without a written note from their parents, and we're pretty strict about that," said manager Kelly Roberts. Joyce Houston, who manages The Outer Limits amusements center at 1409 W. Oltorf St. along with her husband, said, "I wouldn't let my children go into some of the arcades I've visited. I'm a concerned parent, too. We wanted a place where the whole family could come and enjoy themselves."
Well you can see which way the tone of all these articles is going. There were some crimes committed at some arcades but all of them tended to have a negative reputation for various reasons. Parents and teachers were very skeptical of the arcades being in the neighborhoods to the point of petitioning the City Government to restrict them. Three arcades are mentioned besides Chuck-E-Cheese. Electronic Encounters in Southwood Mall, The Outer Limits amusements center at 1409 W. Oltorf, and Computer Madness, a "video game and foosball arcade" at 2414 S. Lamar Blvd. Forgotten Arcade #8 Smitty's Galaxy of Games - Lake Creek Parkway February 25, 1982
Arcades fighting negative image Video games have swept across America, and Williamson and Travis counties have not been immune. In a two-part series, Neighbor examines the effects the coin-operated machines have had on suburban and small-town life. Cities have outlawed them, religious leaders have denounced them and distraught mothers have lost countless children to their voracious appetites. And still they march on, stronger and more numerous than before. A new disease? Maybe. A wave of invading aliens from outer space? On occasion. A new type of addiction? Certainly. The culprit? Video games. Although the electronic game explosion has been mushrooming throughout the nation's urban areas for the past few years, its rippling effects have just recently been felt in the suburban fringes of North Austin and Williamson County. In the past year, at least seven arcades armed with dozens of neon quarter-snatchers have sprung up to lure teens with thundering noises and thousands of flashing seek-and-destroy commands. Critics say arcades are dens of iniquity where children fall prey to the evils of gambling. But arcade owners say something entirely different. "Everybody fights them (arcades), they think they are a haven for drug addicts. It's just not true," said Larry Grant of Austin, who opened Eagle's Nest Fun and Games on North Austin Avenue in Georgetown last September. "These kids are great" Grant said the gameroom "gives teenagers a place to come. Some only play the games and some only talk. In Georgetown, if you're from the high school, this is it." He said he's had very few disturbances, and asks "undesirables" to leave. "We've had a couple of rowdies. That's why I don't have any pool tables they tend to attract that type of crowd," Grant said. Providing a place for teens to congregate was also the reason behind Ron and Carol Smith's decision to open Smitty's Galaxy of Games on Lake Creek Parkway at the entrance to Anderson Mill. "We have three teenage sons, and as soon as the oldest could drive, it became immediately apparent that there was no place to go around here," said Ron, an IBM employee who lives in Spicewood at Balcones. "This prompted us to want to open something." The business, which opened in August, has been a huge success with both parents and youngsters. "Hundreds of parents have come to check out our establishment before allowing their children to come, and what they see is a clean, safe environment managed by adults and parents," Ron said. "We've developed an outstanding rapport with the community." Video arcades "have a reputation that we have to fight," said Carol. Kathy McCoy of Georgetown, who last October opened Krazy Korner on Willis Street in Leander, agrees. "We've got a real good group of kids," she said. "There's no violence, no nothing. Parents can always find their kids at Krazy Korner." While all the arcade owners contacted reported that business is healthy, if not necessarily lucrative, it's not as easy for video entrepreneurs to turn a profit as one might imagine. A sizeable investment is required. Ron Smith paid between $2,800 and $5,000 for each of the 30 electronic diversions at his gameroom. Grant said his average video game grosses about $50 a week, and his "absolute worst" game, Armor Attack, only $20 a week. The top machines (Defender and Pac-Man) can suck in an easy $125 a week. That's a lot of quarters, 500 to be exact but the Eagle's Nest and Krazy Korner pass half of them on to Neelley Vending Company of Austin which rents them their machines. "At 25 cents a shot, it takes an awful lot of people to pay the bills," said Tom Hatfield, district manager for Neelley. He added that an owner's personality and the arcade's location can make or break the venture. The game parlor must be run "by an understanding person, someone with patience," Hatfield said. "They cannot be too demanding on the kids, yet they can't let them run all over them." And they must be located in a spot "with lots of foot traffic," such as a shopping center or near a good restaurant, he said. "And being close to a school really helps." "Video games are going to be here permanently, but we're going to see some operations not going because of the competition," which includes machines in virtually every convenience store and supermarket, Hatfield said.
This article talks about three arcades. One in Georgetown called Eagles Nest, another in Leander called Krazy Korner, and a third called Smitty's Galaxy of Games on Lake Creek Parkway "on the fringes of North Austin". This is the one I remember the older kids talking about when I was a little kid. There was once a movie theater across the street from the Westwood High School football stadium and behind that was Smitty's. Today I think the building was bulldozed long ago and the space is part of the expanded onramp to 183 today. Eventually another unrelated arcade was built next to the theater that became Alamo Lakeline. It was another site of some unrecorded epic Street Fighter 2 and Mortal Kombat tournaments in the 90s. But the article written before the end of the Golden Era tell us much about the pushback I was talking about earlier. Early arcades were seen as "dirty" places in some circles, and the owners of the arcades in Williamson County had to stress how "clean" their establishments were. This other article from a couple of weeks later tells of how area school officials weren't worried about video games and tells us more arcades in Round Rock and Cedar Park. Apparently the end of the golden age lasted a bit longer than usual in this area. At some point in the next few years the bubble burst, and places like Smitty's were gone by the late 80s. But the distributors quoted earlier were right that arcade games weren't going completely away. In the mid 1980s LeFun opened up next in the Scientology building at 2200 Guadalupe on the drag. Down a few doors past what used be a coffee shop and a CVS was Einsteins Arcade. Both of those survived into the 21st century. I remember the last time I was at Einsteins I got my ass beat in Tekken by a kid half my age. heheh That's all for today. There were no Bonus Pics in the UT archive of arcades (other than the classical architectural definition). I wanted to pass on some Bonus newspaper articles (remember to click and zoom in with the buttons on the right to read) about Austin arcades anyway but first a small story. I mentioned earlier the secret of the UT Student Union. I have no idea what it looks like now but in the 90s there was a sizable arcade in with the bowling alley in the basement. Back in 1994 when I used to sneak in, they featured this bizarre early attempt at virtual reality games. I found an old Michael Barnes Statesman article about it dated February 11, 1994. Some highlights:
Hundreds of students and curiosity-seekers lined up at the University of Texas Union to play three to five minutes of Dactyl Nightmare, Flying Aces or V-Tol, three-dimensional games from Kramer Entertainment. Nasty weather delayed the unloading of four huge trunks containing the machines, which resemble low pulpits. Still, players waited intently for a chance to shoot down a fighter jet, operate a tilt-wing Harrier or tangle with a pterodactyl. Today, tickets will go on sale in the Texas Union lobby at 11:30 a.m. for playing slots between noon and 6 p.m. Players, fitted with full helmets, throttles and power packs, stood on shiny gray and yellow platforms surrounded by a circular guard rail. Seen behind the helmet's goggles were computer simulated landscapes, not unlike the most sophisticated video games, with controls and enemies viewed in deep space. "You're on a platform waiting to fight a human figure," said Jeff Vaughn, 19, of Dactyl Nightmare. "A pterodactyl swoops down and tries to pick you up. You have to fight it off. You are in the space and can see your own body and all around you. But if you try to walk, you have to use that joy stick to get around." "I let the pterodactyl carry me away so I could look down and scan the board," said Tom Bowen of the same game. "That was the way I found out where the other player was." "Yeah, it's cool just to stand there and not do anything," Vaughn said. The mostly young, mostly male crowd included the usual gaming fanatics, looking haggard and tense behind glasses and beards. A smattering of women and children also pressed forward in a line that snaked past the lobby and into the Union's retail shops. "I don't know why more women don't play. Maybe because the games are so violent," said Jennifer Webb, 24, a psychology major whose poor eyesight kept her from becoming a fighter pilot in real life. "If the Air Force won't take me, virtual reality will." "They use stereo optics moving at something like 60 frames a second," said computer science major Alex Aquila, 19. "The images are still pretty blocky. But once you play it, you'll want to play it again and again." With such demand for virtual reality, some gamesters wondered why an Austin video arcade has not invested in at least one machine.
The gameplay looked like this. Bonus Article #1 - "Video fans play for own reasons" (Malibu Grand Prix) - March 11, 1982 Bonus Article #2 - "Pac-Man Cartridge Piques Interest" - April 13, 1982 Bonus Article #3 - "Video Games Fail Consumer" - January 29, 1984 Bonus Article #4 - "Nintendoholics/Modems Unite" - January 25, 1989 Bonus Article #5 and pt 2 "Two girls missing for a night found at arcade" (truly dedicated young gamers) - August 7, 2003
With so many games releasing nowadays, I think it's easy for the good ones to get lost in the shuffle. I'm going to list 20 highly anticipated Indie/AA games. I'm sure there's many great ones I'll probably miss (like I said, there's so many it's hard to keep track sometimes), so please let me know what other ones I should look out for. I’m going to order them by release date. If the game does not have a tangible release date, I’ll place it in the list based on what I think is more likely to come out first, based on marketing material and release date delays. 1. Cyber Shadow
Description: This game looks like a cyberpunk Ninja Gaiden. It's very fast paced and has some huge enemies to fight. The player character looks to have a very versatile moveset which looks to complement both the platforming and the combat. This is apparently the work of one guy, making it all that much more impressive.
Description: TOHU has you exploring a variety of fish planets, solving puzzles and unraveling mysteries behind the protagonist’s mechanical alter-ego, Cubus. The musical score is composed by Christopher Larking, the same guy behind Hollow Knight’s soundtrack.
Description: Little Nightmares was a big indie success back in 2017, and the sequel looks to lean heavier into its horror elements. The game will feature two characters this time around - Six and Mono - as they brave the horrors in this larger than life world to discover the dark secrets of The Signal Tower.
Description: Crazy Taxi hasn’t had a new console/PC entry since 2002 (however there were two for handhelds in the mid to late 2000s and two for mobile phones in the 2010s). Taxi Chaos mirrors the formula of picking up customers and dropping them off in a race against the clock. Sega, the developer behind 1999’s original Crazy Taxi, gave developer Team6 Studios their blessing and are actually set to publish the game in Japan and other Asian regions.
Description: This is a vertical SHMUP with four different characters, online leaderboards, and large enemy encounters. Characters will have their own unique ships, weapons, bombs, and story endings. A demo for the game was introduced back in September, and the developer has rolled out steady updates detailing the development of the game.
Description: It Takes Two follows a clashing couple who have been turned into dolls. This is the second game to come from Hazelight Studios, creators of A Way Out. Like that game, this one is built around the co-op experience and is both online and local co-op. If you play online, only the host needs to own a copy of the game.
Description: This comes from the creator of Sonic the Hedgehog and Nights into Dreams. It's a 3D platformer with a dreamlike carnival theme. You'll wear a number of different costumes (80+ according to the game description) that grant different abilities. The game also has a Chao Garden-like feature for Sonic Adventure fans. The adorable little creatures in this game are called “Tims.”
Description: Garlic tells a less than romantic tale of an onion boy climbing the Sacred Tower to seduce the Cyber Goddess. This is a “1 bit platformer” with a monochrome aesthetic and an emphasis on one screen levels with lots of wall jumping and strange but catchy tunes to accompany the action.
Description: The original King’s Bounty released all the way back in 1990, which also spawned a board game in 1991. It wouldn’t receive a follow-up until 2008 when King’s Bounty: The Legend released. Four expansions would be released between 2009 and 2014. Progress and features of the game are continually updated on the Steam page of the game.
Description: This game has been in development for 10 years now and is clearly inspired by Banjo Kazooie. The game follows a tag team duo – a rabbit and a monkey – through 11 different worlds in a collectathon-style platformer. The two characters like act as one unit to perform certain moves, just as it was in Banjo Kazooie.
Description: After being evicted from his home, Turnip Boy sets out on a quest to topple a corrupt vegetable government. You’ll explore dungeons, solve puzzles, fight enemies and bosses, and find treasure along the way.
Multiplayer: 8 Player Competitive Local & Online Multiplayer
Description: The original Knight Squad first released in 2014. It was an arena fighter that took heavy inspiration from Bomberman, with eight player battles and a ton of different game modes. Knight Squad 2 will introduce even more game modes, better graphics, and more customization options.
Description: Hell Pie reminds me of Conker’s Bad Fur Day with its cutesy aesthetic contrasted with adult humor and lewd scenes. Hell Pie follows a demon named Nate through both open and linear levels, tethered to a plump angel called Nugget, who can be used as a weapon, a grappling hook, and a guide.
Description: Iron Meat is a retro inspired grindhouse game made by one guy, Ivan Suvorov. There is a demo on Steam with two of the levels currently, with eight total announced for the full release, and three difficulty settings to choose between.
Description: The game looks as bleak as the title suggests, with gorgeous pixel art and great enemy design. Big, epic bosses seem to have prominent presence here judging from the trailer, and combat animations look slick and smooth.
Description: 30XX is the sequel to 2014’s 20XX. This is a Mega Man X inspired roguelike with both local and online co-op. There were eight characters with different abilities to play as in 20XX, and it looks like a similar approach is kept for the sequel. Despite taking place 1000 years after the original, Ace and Nina at least, are still present in 30XX.
Description: Inspired by the works of H.R. Giger and Zdzisław Beksiński, Scorn is an atmospheric blend of horror and a first person shooter. You play as a skinless humanoid in a nightmarish world. The studio behind the game, Ebb Software, was founded in 2013 and first showed the game off in 2014. The game was announced for a 2021 release date in Microsoft’s Xbox Series X showcase in 2020 and will be coming to PC as well.
Multiplayer: 4 Player Competitive Local & Online Multiplayer
Description: Windjammers is a fast paced blend between pong and frisbee that originally came out in 1994. An updated version of the game was released for Steam and modern consoles with online play, and Windjammers 2 will be a new sequel 27 years after the original release. Players can choose between a multitude of characters with different stats, with a few mini games to boot.
Description: 2017’s Hollow Knight is one of the biggest indie games of all time, in both its popularity and scale of the game. Silksong was originally just meant to be a DLC for the original game, but the project expanded into a full-scale sequel. The original is probably the single most popular indie Metroidvania out there, so there’s a lot of hype for the sequel.
Description: This has been a very long time coming, but with all the gameplay footage and marketing material coming out for the game, it seems Psychonauts 2 will finally release in 2021. The first game released in 2005 – three PlayStations ago – and was a cult classic. The director of the first game, Tim Schafer (Grim Fandango, Brutal Legend, Broken Age, etc.) is also directing the sequel, so there is a lot of hope from the fanbase.
Description: Coromon dons a similar pixel art aesthetic that defined the fourth and fifth generation Pokemon games. When a Coromon gains experience points, you will be able to distribute the stat points as you see fit. Trainers are customizable, and there are also multiple save slots. There is a demo available on Steam.
Description: This comes from the same developer as Hyper Light Drifter. Solar Ash Kingdom has a lot of the same stylized aesthetics as Hyper Light Drifter, but this is a fully 3D over the shoulder adventure. You’ll engage with massive enemies, traverse the world at high speeds, and meet many characters throughout the adventure.
Description: No Place for Bravery boasts a low fantasy setting with Sekiro-esque combat and stories based on real life. The game follows Thorn, who – with his disabled foster son, Phid – seeks to find answers to his daughter’s disappearance from long ago. There is a demo available on Steam.
Description: Bushiden has you taking control of a cybernectic ninja in a futuristic world, on a quest to find his sister who has vanished. There are a number of unlockable traversal and combat abilities, as well as purchasable upgrades.
Description: This is an adventure following a young engineer on an island in the flying city of Gideon. The game boasts exploration, a heavy story, and the ability to build and repair “incredible flying machines.”
Description: This is a steampunk side scroller with narrative choices and a fast paced combat system. There are side quests, skills to level up, and secrets to uncover. Originally planned for 2020, the developers regularly post tweets on Twitter to keep fans updated with the project.
Description: Set in a cyberfunk universe (real word is getting the post removed by the automoderator), Jack Move follows a hacker who seeks to rescue her father from the evil mega corporation, Monomind. The combat system will allow for a number of customizable options both in and out of combat.
Description: Heavenly Bodies follows two cosmonauts in the 1970s who must work together through a series of physics-based challenges. While the game is built around the co-op experience, the game can still be played in single player. While this is only local co-op at the moment, the Steam page seems to suggest that the developer is looking into options for online play.
Description: This is technically a DLC, but given the wait for it, I think it’s fair to expect a fairly sizeable one. This DLC will introduce a new playable character, Ms. Chalice, who will have a double jump and possibly other differentiating moves. This DLC was originally supposed to release in 2019, but it’s been delayed a number of times. For reference, the original game released in 2017 and took seven years to make (though the two brothers responsible for the game had day jobs and a much smaller team up until 2014).
Description: This comes from Kayin, the creator of I Wanna Be the Guy. This is an NES Castlevania inspired game with three playable characters that have unique paths and differing abilities. The game will also feature cutscenes and over a dozen different levels. The game has been in development for years now and is near completion.
Description:Hazelnut Bastille actually has a 2-3 hour demo with a full dungeon included, which I didn't know about until just now as I was making this list! Heavily inspired by top down Zelda games, these games have some really beautiful looking art. Development for Hazelnut Bastille began back in April 2016. Dawnthorn, a prequel to Hazelnut Bastille, will also be releasing around the same time in 2021. Dawnthorn will emulate the look of an NES game, while Hazelnut Bastille will look more like an SNES game.
Description: The original Freedom Planet was initially conceived as a Sonic fangame before the the creator, Stephen DiDuro, reconceptualized it as his own IP. The sequel was announced back in 2015, a year after the original’s release, and will introduce new mechanics and make changes based on feedback from the first game.
Description: This game comes from the creators of Crawl and Regular Human Basketball, two highly acclaimed competitive local multiplayer games. Unlike their previous work, this looks to be a campaign/adventure game, but it also has a demonic narrator just like Crawl. They're also making The Drifter right now.
Description: From the creators of Lenna's Inception, Bytten Studio, which released on Steam in January of this year – a randomly generated Zelda inspired local co-op action adventure game with two art styles to switch between. The two guys behind the game have also worked on Starbound, Stardew Valley, and Wargroove, so they have quite a pedigree of games. Cassette Beasts in heavily inspired by Pokemon and includes 120 beasts that can be combined for a total of 14,400 fusions.
Description: Developer Dead Mage has won me over with both Shadow Blade: Reload and Children of Morta. Their new game, Tale of Ronin, focuses on the “human side of the Samurai,” and will feature a dynamic world to explore and allow for you to make story-based choices that impact the storyline.
Multiplayer: 6 Player Local & Online Competitive Multiplayer
Description: This is the spiritual successor to Stikbold. It’s a dodgeball game with wacky antics and multiple game modes. Players can do free for all or team based matches, and if it’s anything like Stikbold, it will also have a two player local co-op campaign with a few boss fights.
Description: Spark 3 will be the second 3D platformer in the Spark series. It’s no mystery where Spark takes its inspiration, but it does it well and mixes action sequences into the mix while removing a lot of the bloat found in most 3D Sonic games. Spark 2 is well regarded by the Sonic community, and the third game looks to up the ante with even more mechanics, like wall running.
Multiplayer: 2 Player Local Co-op/4 Player Competitive Local Multiplayer
Description: Samurai Gunn 2 is the sequel to the 2013 PC exclusive. The game is designed by Beau Blyth, the co-creator behind Hyper Light Drifter. The game plays similarly to TowerFall, in that you platform around a fixed screen and try to shoot the other players. The sequel will launch exclusively on Switch first, with a release for other platforms in the future. The story mode will allow for up to two players in local co-op, while the competitive mode will allow up to four.
Description: This comes from the creators of Wargroove. Witchbrook will allow you to experience high school as a wizard. A website for the game was launched back in September, so it seems progress on the game is coming along. The website seems to suggest you’ll be able to develop relationships based on your choices in the game.
Description: This comes from the same developer as The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, The Astronauts, but instead of just walking, you'll be walking and shooting demonic creatures. If this game reminds you of Painkiller from 2004, it's because director Adrian Chmielarz actually worked on that game. The game has been worked on for five years now by a team of nine full members and three contributors, so hopefully we'll see it soon.
What are some other upcoming indie/AA games you’re looking forward to? If you’re looking for more indie games to play, see my post here:
Train stop allows to set limit of incoming trains.
Features
The continue button now respects the last type of game played (single player, MP host, MP client).
Added support to use blueprints, deconstruction planners, upgrade planners, and modded selection tools from the map view.
Hovering the alert notification will show arrows on the edge of the pointing to alert locations.
Rich text icon selector.
Newly unlocked recipes are highlighted until hovered.
Spidertron remotes now allow to add queue commands and a command to follow any entity.
Added vertical/horizontal blueprint flipping.
Transport belt drag building is locked into a line, can be turned off by an interface setting.
Ghosts can be fast replaced and rotated.
Ghost build can be used to fast replace non-ghost entities, which results in an upgrade order with (optionally) a direction change order.
Minor Features
When editing blueprint: Added a way to specify relative grid position for blueprint that is snapping to absolute grid. Blueprint preview rendering box is updated based on selected grid size and position.
Inventory transfer works on empty equipment grid slot the same as on empty inventory slot (moves all).
Equipment can be placed by moving.
Cursor replenishes when placing into the equipment grid the same way as when building in world.
Spidertron item shows its color.
Added a way to reset spidertron remote.
Spider tries to move legs away when they are blocking robots construction.
Power poles/underground belts built by dragging logic works also with ghost building.
Power pole ghosts show connections.
Power pole connections are saved in the blueprint. They still auto connect to other poles outside the blueprint.
Entities marked for deconstruction show the target upgrade.
Added tags, worker robots, rail signal states and recipes toggles into the settings to what show on the map.
Added support to use the add-stop and add-temporary-stop controls for the train you're driving in the map view.
Added hotkey (F10) to switch between viewed player in replay.
Added support to reset mod settings in the "failed to load mods" startup GUI.
Expanded undo to work with fast replace and upgrade planner.
Added unique technology icon for Advanced material processing 2 (Electric furnace).
Changed postprocessing effect in zoomed-to-world view.
Added detailed night lighting of entities.
Optimisations
Multithreaded belt update logic.
Overall small entity update time reduction + statistics of how much update time is taken by individual entities.
Balancing
Productivity module 1 decreases speed of the machine by 5% instead of 15%.
Productivity module 2 decreases speed of the machine by 10% instead of 15%.
Changes
the Close GUI key-binding (default value is "E") was renamed to Confirm Gui. It works the same as before for many cases (just closing the GUI), but in a lot of other cases, it works as confirm, which generally means the same as clicking the "green button".
Renamed clean-cursor to clear-cursor on all the relevant places (locale, key-binding name)
Equipment placing now uses the build key-binding instead of the cursor transfer. The default same key-binding is the same.
Changed maximum temperature of all fluids apart water and steam to be the same as the default.
Poles built by dragging are now actually build on the maximum connection distance from the last built pole instead of the previous logic that was working weird in a lot of corner cases.
Underground belt build by dragging now accept the existing piece you start building on as part of the dragging logic.
Removed the (+/-) buttons for logistic requests, instead they expand dynamically when something is put in the last line.
Wave defense can now only be won by launching a rocket.
Invalid names of icons in preview icons of blueprint tools now load as unknowns instead of canceling the import string process for that item. more
Fluids in train circuit logic treat summed < 1 fluid values as 1 instead of 0.
Clicking non-empty quickbar slot with something in cursor sets the quickbar slot to the cursor value rather than selecting the quickbar value.
Invalid rail signals output no values into circuit network.
Added a confirmation message when loading saves with removed mods or changed mod settings.
The cut tool now properly includes trains. It showed trains in the selection preview, but ignored them.
Added alternate control locales for keyboard and mouse scroll control binds. more
Disabled loading of saves before 0.18.0 version (You can use 1.0 to load older saves and re-save them).
Adjusted the artillery turret collision box so it is possible to squeak through.
Removed the 'Rocket silos stats' GUI.
Arithmetic combinator 'Each' signal can now be used in either left or right parameter.
Gui
Added unique icons for technology effects.
Added list of affected entities to the technology effect tooltips.
Menu background now features various factory simulations instead of a static picture.
When entering vehicle, the vehicle window is shown next to the character gun window, instead of replacing it.
Moved the charactevehicle gun window to the left of the quickbar.
Removed the "Character" tab from the character window.
Changed the flat character screen option to be defaulted to true.
Added held stack item slot for inserter window.
Improved the tips and tricks window: it contains index, search and allows interactive text tags to be used.
Added search to loading/saving, settings, shortcuts selection, multiplayer host settings windows and rename stop.
Moved the ammo/used-up/health indicator of items down, so it is not obstructed by the number.
Added underline for hyperlinks.
Personal request button have custom text + red diode when it is out of network or when the personal requests are turned off.
Logistic/Trash request buttons show only one number when the trash and request count is the same.
Train elapsed time condition has confirmation button and only updates the time when confirmed.
Fixed styles for: browse games GUI, host game settings, opened character and select upgrade slot.
Tabbing into a textfield selects the text.
Removed tiles stay in the list of components in the blueprint setup GUI with 0, the same way as entities, so they can be easily enabled.
Added minimum/maximum temperature and heat capacity info to the fluid tooltip.
Added usage instruction to capsules/fish.
Fixed fish tooltip so it shows consumption/healing instead of shooting/damage.
Sounds
Added blueprint building sound.
Added undo sound.
Added sound for rail planner activation.
Added sound for copy/paste.
Added sound for opening items and armor.
Added sound for selection start and selection finish. Related to blueprint tools.
Added sound for pipe to ground as per the pipe.
Added sound effects and a specific music track to the main menu.
Assembling Machine 2 and 3 made less noisy
Robot repair reworked to sound more high tech
Removed dead space at the end of some sounds which may have stopped sounds playing
Ghost rail building now has the ghost building sound
Lowered volume on game won and lost sounds
Assembling Machine 2 and 3 made less noisy.
Robot repair reworked to sound more high tech.
Removed dead space at the end of some sounds which may have stopped sounds playing.
Ghost rail building now has the ghost building sound.
Lowered volume on game won and lost sounds.
Bugfixes
Fixed that copying the spider in the map editor while it had equipment crashed the game. more
Fixed a crash when trying to use different weapons in the spider. more
Fixed a crash when reading/writing blueprint icons through the Lua API in some cases. more
Fixed a crash when importing blueprint books in some cases. more
Fixed that the spidertron would still be marked as moving when it wasn't resulting in the 'enable logistics while moving' option not working. more
Fixed splitter behaviour when putting to it directly and it has the priority output blocked. more
Fixed that spidertron descriptions didn't show the custom name. more
Fixed building curved rails with damaged rails could duplicate rails. more
Fixed logistic request slot highlighting when they're changed through circuit connections. more
Fixed a game freeze when empty unit groups are told to build bases. more
Fixed LuaTrain::path_end_stop would return nil when train had path extended due to waypoint.
Fixed the spidertron preview box.
Fixed that the blueprint book preview disappeared after editing it.
Fixed that spidertron and its remote weren't swappable.
Fixed that players could be stuck in walls when building them.
Removed the possibility to specify alpha when changing player color by command.
Fixed LuaInventory::find_empty_stack would return only filtered stacks when filter is provided. more
Fixed that blueprint library slots padding was too big.
Fixed that some items didn't render properly in the world. Specifically blueprint like items, spidertrons and spider remotes. more
Fixed a crash when a modded fast train goes through junction occupied by another train. more
Fixed replay desync when existing save is given to a server which promotes or demotes a player based on its own admin list. more
Fixed train GUI instructions for translations that are long. more
Fixed interaction with the delete button in the blueprint setup. more
Fixed that map preview in the train window wasn't squashing its size when needed. more
Fixed that force-building blueprint from the blueprint library on top of an existing electric pole triggered wire removal instead of blueprint building. more
Fixed that the map editor spawn-items GUI didn't work with chat rich text. more
Fixed that deconstruction planners and upgrade planners wouldn't show the logistic overlay when used from the blueprint library. more
Fixed that rebinding rotate to middle mouse button caused conflicts when trying to rotate while modifiers were pressed. more
Fixed on_gui_switch_state_changed was not fired for custom switch elements in some cases. more
Fixed that entities were selected under the GUI on the right side.
Fixed that the key to activate tooltips didn't work outside game, or when the game was stopped.
Fixed Team production script error when building before any round starts. more
Fixed Wave defense error message would error due to trying to concatenate a nil variable. more
Fixed that it was possible to stay invulnerable after the crash site cutscene. more
Fixed train mini-tutorial script errors due to missing entity prototypes. more
Fixed tightspot script error when trying to restore invalid entities. more
Fixed that bonus research production could add progress even if no research could be done. more
Fixed that game.server_save() was able to write to locations outside the saves folder. more
Fixed that technology tooltip in the lab GUI wouldn't update when research changed. more
Fixed a bad message when using the permissions command. more
Fixed lights near right or bottom edge of the screen would render twice sometimes. more
Fixed that setting style properties on LuaGuiElements didn't work correctly for some widget types. more
Fixed that rails didn't have the building smoke.
Fixed that modded locomotives with void energy sources and equipment grids wouldn't show the grid in the GUI. more
Fixed that modded productivity bonuses in tooltips didn't always show everything. more
Fixed that unit groups could get stuck in the gathering phase. more
Fixed that negative damage stickers didn't work. more
Fixed that selection tool type items marked as mod-openable didn't work correctly in the quickbar. more
Fixed that train would not repath when possible due to being in chain signal section. more
Fixed GeneratorPrototype::scale_fluid_usage would cause non-linear scaling of fluid consumption based on energy demand. more
Fixed crash when storage tank was defined with too small fluid flow sprite with low priority and ended up streamed. more
Fixed rotating assembling machines with heat and fluid connections. more
Fixed that it was possible to hold ghost building + blueprint from the library at the same time. more
Fixed crash related to being possible to insert blueprint for re-assignment into the blueprint library. more
Fixed that previous technology key-binding focused search in the blueprint library. more
Fixed that ghosts created by destroying entities weren't upgradeable. more
Fixed that kick & ban commands broke replays. more
Fixed that spidertron would stretch its leg way too much in some special situations. more
Fixed offshore pump underwater layer being drawn over landfill tiles sometimes. more
Fixed decimal textfield would not take decimal point as input when selection would make it valid input. more
Fixed that train could get stuck within chain signal section when exit signal is requested to close by circuit network and train is forced to repath. more
Fixed that train would not immediately reserve signals in chain signal section after repath when there are no signals within braking distance.
Fixed that wrong slider position when requesting items in some cases. more
Fixed that rocket silo without fixed_recipe didn't save its recipe in the blueprint. more
Fixed that the total-raw list in the recipe tooltip for some translations. more
Fixed glitching sound loops: steam turbine and electric furnace. more
Fixed changing dawn property of a surface would create visual glitch in day-night cycle. more
Fixed misleading tooltip for disabled shortcut bar items. more
Fixed crash when organizing sprites into atlases when using "not-compressed" sprite flag. more
Fixed pipe-to-ground working sound would ignore flow rate. more
Fixed crash when calling take_screenshot with very small resolution values. more
Fixed that setting fluid wagon fluid through the Lua API didn't update the train inactivity value. more
Fixed various issues related to entities leaving gaps when building too fast.
Fixed a crash when setting specific fluids in the infinity pipe GUI. more
Fixed that the admin GUI didn't live-update the whitelisted field. more
Fixed crash related to migrating circuit network entities while loading the blueprint library. more
Fixed that artillery would keep shooting at something when it moved out of range. more
Fixed softlock in tutorial if the player took the iron plates too quickly. more
Fixed missing blueprint components scroll bar when there is a lot of components. more
Modding
New item flag "spawnable", every item has to have that flag to be creatable through the shortcuts directly. more
Renamed create-blueprint-item shortcut action to spawn-item and item_to_create to item_to_spawn.
Increased the total number of collision masks from 14 to 55. See the lua-api collision mask concepts page for which layers the game doesn't actively use.
Changed collision mask 'layer-11' to 'rail-layer'.
Changed collision mask 'layer-12' to 'transport-belt-layer'.
Changed loader to only connect to the front belt, not from side. This is to fix internal problems related to modded loaders with custom sizes and side loading of it.
Implemented NoiseExpressions::fromPropertyTree for the "offset-points" noise expression function.
Removed rocket silo rocket prototype property "result_items" because it did nothing.
Added draw_as_light and draw_as_glow property to sprite definitions. draw_as_shadow, draw_as_light and draw_as_glow are mutually exclusive and draw_as_shadow takes precedence.
Unified laser and beam related ammo categories to just "laser" and "beam".
Renamed technology "laser-turret-speed"->"laser-shooting-speed", it now affects both robots and laser turrets.
Removed the "auto-character-logistic-trash-slots" modifier and forceDataValues. The auto trash are now always enabled when any trash slots present.
Added direction to SimpleEntityWithOwner and SimpleEntityWithForce.
Constrained collision_box and collision_mask of transport belt connectable prototypes so it is not possible to build the entities in overlapping positions. more
Added optional draw_fluid_icon_override boolean to pipe to ground prototypes. Causes fluid icon to be drawn, ignoring the usual pair requirement.
Added fluid turret prototype properties 'enough_fuel_indicator_light' and 'not_enough_fuel_indicator_light'.
Added locomotive and car prototype properties 'front_light_pictures' and 'darkness_to_render_light_animation'.
Renamed logistic-container prototype property 'logistic_slots_count' to 'max_logistic_slots'.
The data stage files are no longer divided into demo and non-demo. This means the files with the demo- prefix were either merged into files without the prefix and/or the prefix was removed from the file name.
Scripting
Renamed the clean_cursor method to clear_cursor.
Renamed on_put_item to on_pre_build, as it is much more precise name for that event. It fires when anything is used for building: item, blueprint, blueprint record or ghost cursor.
Changed 'control_behavior.parameters.parameters' to just 'control_behavior.parameters' for LuaDeciderCombinatorControlBehavior, LuaConstantCombinatorControlBehavior, and LuaArithmeticCombinatorControlBehavior.
Changed LuaItemStack::active_index to return nil if the blueprint book inventory has zero slots. more
Changed LuaItemStack::count to return 0 instead of failing when the stack is empty.
Changed LuaControl for players in cutscenes so the character is still usable.
Changed on_player_cancelled_crafting 'cancel_count' to report the exact number of crafts cancelled.
Decoupled deactivation by script and deactivation by circuit network.
mod-gui.lua no longer defines 'mod_gui' as a global variable, it is now only available when required: local mod_gui = require("mod-gui")
Made LuaEntity::speed read work with spider-vehicle.
Made LuaEntityPrototype::guns read work for spider-vehicle.
A Comprehensive Guide to Breach Protocol Datamining (Code Sequence Mini-Game): Cyberpunk 2077
BREACH PROTOCOL: DATAMINES For anyone curious as to how BREACH PROTOCOL DATAMINES work on the technical end, this is a comprehensive guide put together through personal research and community feedback. Hope it helps! CHECK THIS OUT:u/govizlora made an app that can solve Breach Protocol Datamines by taking a picture of the puzzle with your phone! Haven't tried it out yet but check it out: https://www.reddit.com/cyberpunkgame/comments/kneej7/i_made_a_web_app_to_solve_the_breach_protocol/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3 "WHY SHOULD I PLAY THIS MINIGAME?" You may ask yourself: "Why am I playing this stupid mini-game?" After spending more time than I care to admit completing these datamining scenarios, even I ask myself this question at times. If you find no value in what I list here as "good reasons," I wouldn't stress giving these scenarios that much effort or attention: -Steady Cash -Quickhack Components -Legendary Quickhacks Code Sequence Mini-Game -DATAMINES: There are specific Breach Protocols referred to as Datamines. These "Breach Protocol Datamines" contain a code oriented mini-game that upon completion net you cash, XP and Quickhack Components. (There is also a perk that increase the chance of an actual Quickhack being dropped.) You initiate this specific type of protocol by jacking into an "Access Point." !! WARNING !!: If you are in a hostile area and you jack into an Access Point, enemies will be put on "alert" mode if you fail to complete the mini-game in that first try. Not that you can't take care of business while enemies are patrolling, but it might be annoying for you stealthy types when they leaved their fixed positions. Wall Module Access Point -ACCESS POINTS: These are devices you can jack into to initiate a Breach Protocol Datamine mini-game. You need to have a certain level in the "Intelligence" attribute to jack in to these Access Points, which varies upon location and difficulty rating of the area. So far, I have found Access Points in small mounted wall modules, certain vending machines, computer monitors, antenna consoles, a generator and a forklift. They have a red symbol that represents them, but it can be hard to pick it out sometimes from all the other hack-able objects they tend to be close to. If you snag the perk EXTENDED NETWORK INTERFACE this helps with finding Access Points. ( Credit: u/JoblessJim ) Datamine Access Point Symbol -JOB "THE GIFT": There is a job you can do early on called "The Gift." It seems as if this job was designed to introduce you to Datamine Breaching, as well as incentivizing the use of the Ping quickhack. However, it doesn't do too much in the way of a detailed tutorial. Side Job: \"The Gift\" -DAEMONS: In the Datamine scenario, there are three available daemons: DATAMINE_V1, DATAMINE_V2 and DATAMINE_V3. These daemons merit rewards when fulfilled. While you can extract one or two daemons for a successful breach, it is ideal you extract all three. How to do so will be detailed below! A successful daemon & a failed daemon -XP: Achieving a single daemon while failing the other two merits the same experience. At character level 2, this was 81XP for me. To clarify, if you only achieve datamine_v1 but fail the other two, you would get the same XP as only achieving datamine_v3 while failing the other two. You multiply the XP per daemon achieved, so if you win two slots then that 81 XP becomes 162 XP and so on. The amount of XP goes up with your character level and may be higher for higher level Access Points. -CASH: Each individual daemon has a specific cash (eurodollars) reward that combines respectively but would appear to hit a cap if all three daemons are achieved. Certain locations have higher difficulty Access Points which grant you more cash upon completion. Your cash reward can also be affected the ADVANCED DATAMINE perk, which when upgraded twice allots 100% more cash from successful breaches! The game has no rental properties or passive income so there are limited ways to getting rich. At max level when completing one of these datamines and achieving all three daemons, I would make anywhere between 3 to 4.8k depending on the location of the Access Point. Almost every mission, side-job and gig has one, if not a few Access Points. Often I would leave an area with three Access Points and make an extra 5-10k eddies from datamining alone. It's a lot easier to do if you get 18-20 Intelligence and take certain perks like HEADSTART and COMPRESSION. I wasn't a net-runner and my intelligence got to 15 before hitting character level 50, and I still banked ( if not frustratingly ) off of these scenarios. ( Secret Note: Now, we probably all know about how you can glitch your way to millions, but if you don't like exploits (or fear the exploit will be patched) this is a legitimate way to make money. Plus, if you invested in Intelligence you likely can make quickhacks. Legendary quickhacks sell for 700 eddies a pop, and if you net triples for your datamine scenarios you will have PLENTY of quickhack components. ) -QUICKHACK COMPONENTS: These are the materials you use to make your own Quickhacks. While achieving higher version daemons opens you up to winning higher quality Quickhack Components, the amount of components earned seems completely random with each success. (Note: From what I can tell, you CANNOT gain item/upgrade components for crafting weapons from these datamines; only Quickhack Components used for crafting Quickhacks.) You can grab a perk called DATAMINE MASTERMIND which increases the amount of Quickhack Components acquired by Access Point by 100% if you invest two points! The perk DATAMINE VIRTUOSO increases chances of acquiring an actual quickhack (not the components) by 100% after investing two points. It seems to more consistently drop full quickhacks when you are a higher character level. As someone who couldn't make my own quickhacks, this was the only way I got legendary versions to use for myself, if not pawn them. Quickhack Components -EVEN THE ODDS: If you fail, you can try again. If you succeed with any one of the three available daemons, the breach ends and you are stuck with the results. You can also forcefully end the breach and whatever daemons are green while doing so will reward you and end the scenario. ( Caution: Every time you cancel out of a breach, it takes away from how much time you have to complete the sequence when it starts and can put enemies on alert while in hostile territory. Not a big deal if you learn to plan your sequences. ) Seems like saving before a breach, then aiming for all three daemons in one attempt is the most lucrative approach; especially if utilizing the perks ADVANCED DATAMINE & DATAMINE MASTERMIND. Datamine Mastermind & Advanced Datamine Perks -BUFFERS: Buffers are the squares that your selected characters end up in, located under "SEQUENCE REQUIRED TO UPLOAD." The more you have, the more opportunity to net triples you get; that being said, upgrading yourself to get more buffer space is CRUCIAL. You start with four, but if you progress the BREACH PROTOCOL skill to 19/20 you get a fifth buffer square added to your breaches. This makes achieving triples a lot easier. There is also better hardware you can buy that helps with this. Breach Protocol Buffer -BETTER HARDWARE: You can buy mods that will help with your datamine breaches. Some do things like adding 100% more time to your Breach ( Credit: u/InfectedSanta ). To get consistent triples for example, you NEED to upgrade your cyberdeck chip. I purchased one from Vic in ACT II that gave me SEVEN Buffer spaces. It makes all the difference. Here it is below: Cyberdeck Upgrade -STRING SEQUENCE: For the best results, you want to achieve what I call "string sequences." You do this by picking one daemon to finish first and making sure the last character of that sequence is identical to the first character of another sequence. When done correctly, you save buffer space by not having to redo each individual sequence and all of it's characters; saving buffer space because the two characters will share it. If you are lucky, you may have daemons with several matching characters, which means you can save on even more buffer space when finishing them. ( If you hover over a character with your cursor, it will show where that character is on the Code Matrix to the left. Credit: u/pedanticProgramer ) Example of a String Sequence -IDENTIFY A WINNER: Work from RIGHT to LEFT! What you want to do is study the available sequences first, identifying where you can snag any strings and how many buffers it should take to finish all three daemon's sequences. Once done with the right side of the game, study the CODE MATRIX on the left to see if you can traverse the path of characters you mapped out. Right here you can decide whether or not the sequence and code matrix you're given is a winner. If it isn't, just exit the mini-game and jack back in! -HELPFUL PERKS: There are several perks within the Breach Protocol tree that should significantly improve your breaches:
ALMOST IN!: [ Level 5 in BREACH PROTOCOL skill required ] "Increases the breach time for Breach Protocol by 20%." This can be upgraded twice.
TRANSMIGRATION [ Level 16 in BREACH PROTOCOL skill required ] "Increases the breach time of Breach Protocol by 50%" This can stack with more points given. It's more helpful for people at higher levels who exit and enter the mini-game for better odds, as you lose breach time whenever you disconnect without finishing.
HEAD START: [ Level 18 in BREACH PROTOCOL skill required ] "Automatically uploads the first daemon in the list at the start of Breach Protocol." This means that you start your breaches with daemon DATAMINE_V1 already green, meaning you can focus v2 and v3. This is helpful for intelligence characters whose income relies on data-mining.
COMPRESSION: [ Level 20 in BREACH PROTOCOL skill required ] "Reduces the lengths of the sequence to upload daemons by 1. Cannot be reduced below 2." This means that under where it says "SEQUENCE REQUIRED TO UPLOAD" each available daemon should have one less character to worry about. Super helpful for people who bank off data-mining.
Compression Perk ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ HOW TO AVOID FAILING A DAEMON: Credit: khorrshr
"To successfully upload a daemon you have to feed its sequence flawlessly in that particular order taking no sidesteps/breaks/mistakes
If you take sidestep (like start/continue another sequence or make a mistake) - it executes a check\. If it passes - if there is still a theoretical possibility to do that daemon (like daemon length is not longer than remaining buffer and if they are of equal length checks that you have starting symbol in your currently active string) - that daemon is reset but remains available and you have to do it again from the very 1st symbol (daemon moves to the right, some whitespaces appear before it) 2a. Exceptional case: if your "mistake" contained same symbol as 1st symbol of that daemon - same rules as in (2) apply but you start over from 2nd symbol of the daemon.*
If your sidestep leaves no possibility to finish (check\ fails) - daemon fails completely and goes red.*
It doesn't matter if you started the daemon, if it has reset before, how far you got with it (unless you finished it green) - works every time.
Not sure if that check looks into possibilities in the matrix further than current turn. I have an impression that it doesn't. I think I had outcomes when at last turn daemon was still available with just 1 symbol to go but active string didn't contain it.
TLDR: Finish one daemon and only then continue with another. No fancy multitasking. The only choice we have in that regard - is their order and matrix moves ofc." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Credit: mjc_08 "Yes, I came to the same conclusion - you can't work on all daemons simultaneously - they have to be completed in order or they are reset. I bought a chip with 7 buffers (street cred 11, 25000) but its still not always possible. Edit: by not completing simultaneously I mean that you cant input a code from one daemon, then switch to a different one, then go back to the other daemon. You have to complete a whole sequence before moving on, taking advantage of any overlap." Credit: u/slamdotswf "Another thing to remember is that you can pick the same input over and over until you find the next one in the sequence. For example, if it's 1C 55 BD, you can type in 1C 55 55 55 BD and still get it. Helps if I screw up or didn't think it all the way through." My Own Experience: After building on what my fellow commenters gave as a breakdown to the game, I have found a consistent approach to winning all three daemons. Here is an example sequence to work with: Example Sequence: The Sequence This is a pretty easy sequence to net a triple with IF you have more than four buffers. Let's check for a string sequence... We got strings! Looks pretty promising right? Let's check the Code Matrix on the "left." Can't start with 55! Let's try a different sequence! How about... Will this sequence work? Congratulations! Remember; if the first sequence you recognize can't be pathed out through the Code Matrix, look for more options! If you can't find a path, exit the breach and jack in again for a new code matrix and set of sequences! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ SUCCESSFUL OUTCOMES: To get an idea of what exactly you are getting depending on which daemon is extracted, here are some examples of my own successful results while breaching at level 2; before I got the ADVANCED DATAMINE perk. My examples below come from breaching a wall unit Access Point in a shop (Urban Commando?) in Little China, Watson district. It's where one of the earlier "Assault in Progress" side tasks is; the one with three Tyger Claws gang members you have to dispatch. It's roughly NW (10 o'clock) from Dex's limo during the early main quest "The Ride." INDIVIDUAL: Achieving datamine_v1 daemon alone: XP: 81 $103 x0 Legendary Quickhack Component x1 Epic Quickhack Component x2 Rare Quickhack Component x2 Uncommon Quickhack Component Achieving datamine_v2 daemon alone: XP: 81 $206 x1 Legendary Quickhack Component x2 Epic Quickhack Component x2 Rare Quickhack Component x5 Uncommon Quickhack Component Achieving datamine_v3 daemon alone: XP: 81 $309 x2 Legendary Quickhack Component x2 Epic Quickhack Component x5 Rare Quickhack Component x4 Uncommon Quickhack Component DOUBLE: Achieving datamine_v1 & datamine_v2: XP: 162 $309 x0 Legendary Quickhack Component x2 Epic Quickhack Component x4 Rare Quickhack Component x9 Uncommon Quickhack Component Achieving datamine_v1 & datamine_v3: XP: 162 $412 x2 Legendary Quickhack Component x4 Epic Quickhack Component x7 Rare Quickhack Component x11 Uncommon Quickhack Component Achieving datamine_v1 & datamine_v3: (2nd Attempt) XP: 162 $412 x1 Legendary Quickhack Component x3 Epic Quickhack Component x5 Rare Quickhack Component x16 Uncommon Quickhack Component TRIPLE: Achieving datamine_v1, datamine_v2 & datamine_v3: (ALL THREE) XP: 243 $515 x2 Legendary Quickhack Component x2 Epic Quickhack Component x6 Rare Quickhack Component x7 Uncommon Quickhack Component DATA ENCRYPTION SHARD: There are shards you'll come across now and then that say they are encrypted. The shard's contents look like a mess of jumbled code and when encrypting them you will have to play the breach protocol datamine mini-game. It's typically tougher, sometimes having five daemons available with upwards of four characters each to fulfill! "GHOST" TRIPLES: Not sure what else to label this phenomenon. When you achieve a triple daemon success, typically you will see all three daemons highlight green and the CODE MATRIX area on the left will go green; it's a very obvious "confirmation of success" that you have to manually exit out of. There are times when I clearly see I am going to win the third and final daemon, but when I make my selection the breach ends without the "confirmation of success" and I snap out of it to see my rewards applied back in the real world. I do believe credit is being given, but it may catch you off guard when it first happens. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ FINAL THOUGHTS: After a few days of testing and you guys sharing your results, I have come to understand this mini-game rather thoroughly! Thank you to everyone who participated in figuring it out with me; it was kind of fun. Stay safe, CHOOMS!
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+++++++ Hi all - have had a lot of great tips from this sub. Hopefully this pays some of you back. I have been watching and researching this since 23 December when it first filed S1, awaiting the units to be listed - they are available today trading as ADERU Positions - 500 units @ 10.42 to start. Will be monitoring and building position below $15, especially if attention starts to build ahead of units and warrants splitting and shares coming available to Robinhood. (My other SPAC positions are OPEN, IPO-E-F, PSTH, FUSE, PIPP, ACTC, CCIV and DMYD, 100 to 1000 shares each mostly around NAV and numerous warrants and options around these.) As ever, this is not investment advice and do your own research +++++++
26 Capital Acquisition Corp or ADER is a 240m SPAC with usual terms - 10$ units, 1/2 warrants. Seeking a merger in "gaming and gaming technology, branded consumer, lodging and entertainment, and Internet commerce sectors". I think this is highly worth a play on the online gambling hype if you can get in at near NAV, based entirely on the management which is unbeatable in its knowledge of the gambling industry
CEO Jason Ader has held director level positions at Las Vegas Sands Corp. ($42bn one of biggest casino groups in world), IGT (£3.72bn multinational gambling firm specialised in software and slot machines) and Playtech (£1.4bn multinational gambling software firm) Before starting his own fund in 2013 he was regularly ranked Wall Street's top analyst on the gambling and leisure sector His fund, Spring Owl Capital, is a small activist fund focused on gambling and leisure. They are probably most famous for ousting the CEO of Viacom in 2016 and a crusade against Yahoo CEO Marissa Meyer in 2015. Ader knows the gambling - and online gambling - industry inside out. He drove bWin to a £1.1bn takeover by gambling giant GVC (now Entain) in 2016, and has been driving similar change and demands for improvement at board level at Playtech The fund mostly manages money for a select group of wealthy families, which could be a positive sign for the SPAC (although I don't know how much skin in the SPAC the fund has, if any) Here is a video of Ader from November talking about how he's excited about SPACs. He talks about how he has been advising certain States about legalising sports betting and how to maximise value and liquidity by linking up with European companies in the space (Playtech e.g.??). Ader is extremely bullish on US legalising online casino and more sports betting options, accelerated by need for revenue because of pandemic
Rafi Ashkenazi One of the most highly respected names in the online gambling world, including COO and CEO positions at major online gambling firms such as Playtech and Stars Group (a world leader in online poker and casino). At Stars he led the $4.7bn takeover of Sky Betting to create the world's largest publicly listed online betting firm in 2018. Most recently he led the £10bn merger between Flutter (biggest gambling company in world by revenue, market cap £26bn), and Stars Group (Ader also involved). Also has connections into the booming Israel tech space which is interesting
Joseph Kaminkow Special Advisor to the Chief Product Officer at Aristocrat, a leading gambling software provider and games publisher, previously Vice President of Game Design at Zynga Inc. This guy is a former video game / pinball designer who is credited with revolutionising the slots industry after moving into gambling software from video games in 1999. Regarded as a "legend" and "hall of famer" in this niche. At Zynga he designed so-called 'social casino games' which don't involve real-money gambling but are otherwise basically gambling apps (revenue from microtransactions etc). 130 patents on gambling/gaming design inventions
Greg Lyss This is a very interesting but extremely low profile person. He was Bill Ackman a.k.a SPACman's right hand man at Gotham Capital. Ackman respected him so much that when Ackman set up a personal hedge fund to invest the Ackman family's money, he put Lyss in charge of it. To repeat - Bill Ackman thinks this guy is such a good investor and trustworthy that he put him in charge of investing his family's money. Don't know anything more about him, but I like this association with Ackman, which suggests to me some integrity around management of this SPAC, especially as the gambling world can be very murky. The other member of the team is the CFO of SpringOwl with 20+ years' hedge fund experience and not notable (although clearly competent)
Thesis / potential targets Based on the above experience and many public comments by Ader over the past year, I would be very surprised if ADER is not looking to merge with an online gambling technology provider / existing online betting website / social casino app / possibly a supporting technology provider They are activist inventors, and specifically say in the IPO prospectus that they could look for businesses that can benefit from turnaround or are not being run well. I speculate that their deep knowledge of the European / global online gambling industry means they have a target in mind that they think would benefit from their expertise and US liberalisation of gambling legislation.
1) Ader believes the listing of UK-listed gambling companies in US is immediately big in terms of market cap because of the premium on online gambling stocks in US. He has pitched DraftKings to takeover Playtech and called on Playtech to spin off non-core business. This makes me wonder if he would spin off some element of Playtech to list in US to cash in on gambling hype. This might be Finalto.com / TradeTech which is an online financial platform owned by Playtech. Playtech has been trying to sell this for 200 - 240m since August so it fits. This company provides liquidity and trading to brokerages and runs markets.com a trading site. I wouldn't be that excited although apparently the business has been booming during COVID and there could be a decent pop just on fintech hype.
2) This could be a 'picks and shovel' type data/B2B betting software play a la DMYD, or something like e.g. Israel based CRM software Optimove which works with some of biggest online gambling cos and has links to Ashkenazi. This would be interesting but probably not a huge pop
3) Possibly - given Ader's links to Sands - an online gambling tie-up with one of the big Vegas casinos who are desperate to get into the online betting space (see MGM's attempt to buy Entain for $8bn last week). Interestingly, Sands' owner Sheldon Adelson, previously a major opponent of online betting, has just died. Ader predicted a few months ago that Sands would be moving in this direction.
“There’s no stopping online gaming,” Ader said [before Adelson's death]. “(Las Vegas Sands’) initiatives to stop online gaming, at this stage, are largely historic. There hasn’t been a lot of spending recently to do that, especially post-pandemic.” “I think the company will see the value created by DraftKings and FanDuel and Penn (National) Gaming and others. They’re not foolish,” Ader added. source
4) Ader is very confident that Macau will legalise online gambling in next year or two. Sands is big in Macau, the biggest gambling market in the world. A SaaS-type product positioned to capitalise on Asian gambling would be MASSIVE - at present however, China's attitude to gambling and local regulations mean this is unlikely
5) I also wonder if they might try to take legitimate one of the offshore bookmakers with big customer databases and brand recognition but which have been grey-area/illegal under US gaming legislation. For example, Five Dimes recently announced a settlement with the FBI to attempt to transition into newly legalised US markets. This might have the most hype potential
Potential upside This is entirely a play on management experience and the meme factor / hype around online gambling in the US. I think if they pick a good target - which given their experience and connections seems likely - and get the right publicity and attention from retail investors looking for the next DKNG this could easily 3x and maybe 5-6x if on DKNG-type hype levels. There is currently little spotlight on this and it is a good time to get in at NAV
Potential Downside
Ader has been vocal that he thinks US online betting is overvalued and in a bubble - why is he starting his own SPAC in the space then? Does he just want to cash in while the hype is at all-time high or does he have a legitimate business goal?
If he just wants to dump a part of Playtech which he does not like onto retail investors, this is a bad deal.
Other targets could be e.g. hotel industry or other leisure sector which would be zero sexiness to retail. Given Ashkenazi and Kaminkow's background this seems unlikely though
Usual SPAC caveats apply about potential difficulty finding a target, locking up your money for unspecified period of time, and the fact I may have completely misread the potential and my above thesis might be totally wrong
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