Blog – Page 189 – Appliances catalogue

30 Nov

Blog

Immortals Fenyx Rising Review: Sleeper Hit of 2020

November 30, 2020
Posted by Samson

Immortal Fenyx Rising

"Immortals Fenyx Rising brings together the best and worst Ubisoft games with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild."

Beautiful design
Excellent fight and puzzles
Great script
Funny characters

Identical in structure to Breath of the Wild
Tiring marking system

Immortal Fenyx Rising may not be a perfect fit with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild organic exploration, but it more than makes up for its shortcomings with beautiful design, a witty script, and an excellent fight.

This is Ubisoft's third major open world game in two months. It's the only thing that isn't part of an established franchise, but it doesn't mean it's worth less of your time.

Its structure is all breath of the wild

Earlier this year, a gacha game (which employs a mechanic for capsule toy machines) developed by miHoYo came onto the stage. Called Genshin Impact, it was instantly compared to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which it mimics very closely. Immortal Fenyx Rising is even more of a clone of this popular game than Genshin Impact.

Immortal Fenyx Rising Flying

You play as Fenyx, a customizable ancient Greek soldier who wakes up after being shipwrecked on a small island. You won't be able to access the rest of the map until you've completed a few goals that will ultimately give you a tool for sliding off the peninsula. Once you get to the mainland, you will have to visit four powerful deities to gain their power and defeat the enemy in the center of the map. That enemy is Thypon, whom you can face from the moment you arrive if you wish.

Immortal Fenyx Rising more than makes up for its shortcomings with beautiful design, witty script, and excellent combat.

If you swap Link for Fenyx and Ganon for Tyhpon, it's a nearly identical structure to Breath of the Wild. All over the world there are hidden puzzles to be solved that you traverse with your glider. You also have the option of climbing anything – as long as you have the stamina. There are resources to collect, new armor and weapons to wield, and numerous vaults to explore that contain even more puzzles that will reward you with an item that can be used to improve Fenyx's skills.

Immortal Fenyx Rising Open World

The world will have to get used to games that borrow the formula for Breath of the Wild. It's the new Metroidvania, and much like these games, its design is too appealing to just leave behind. The good news is that immortals capture almost the same magic, except for one glaring flaw.

The exploration is more based on checklists

Breath of the Wild had an incredibly natural discovery. As a link, players made their way from one divine animal to the next and were pulled away from their unique path when their shrine sensor beeped or a certain topography was detected.

Immortal Fenyx Rising Puzzle

It meant that you always felt like you were pushing forward, even as you naturally doubled back. Immortals don't have that.

In the classic Ubisoft way, Fenyx can mark certain elements on the map, similar to what the player could do in Assassin's Creed Origins and Assassin's Creed Odyssey. This was one of my least favorite aspects of these games, and I was so grateful when they removed it in Assassin's Creed Valhalla.

You can be in place for minutes marking endless puzzles or resources and you will never get done. Granted, you could do without this ability at all, which I ended up doing, and you're going to run into something interesting anyway. But Immortals is much more focused on improving Fenyx and improving their skills. The more I refused to use the tagging system, the more I realized that the game was explicitly designed for that.

Hence, it rarely feels like you're pushing your search forward, and more like flipping from one marker to the next, even when you refuse to dig into the system.

Immortal Fenyx Rising Card

While Link acquires all of his skills within the first few hours, Fenyx gradually acquires them as the game progresses. Just climb a cliff? You have to unlock it, and the traverse feels incredibly disjointed without some of these key elements. This can be remedied by obtaining resources fast enough to upgrade Fenyx. However, this is just another barrier to organic discovery.

It's a difference from Breath of the Wild, which feels small on the surface, but changes the feel of the game a lot from moment to moment. Thankfully, the game's map is much smaller than other Ubisoft open-world titles, and the list of activities doesn't feel nearly as bloated.

Here's what immortals do differently

I'm happy to report that the rest of the variations from Breath of the Wild are fantastic, and that starts with writing. While Link & # 39; s adventure can feel a little empty and dry, Immortals is bursting with character and humor.

Immortal Fenyx Rising Zeus and Prometheus

The game is narrated by Zeus and Prometheus, two godbrothers who play off each other with jokes and jokes that kept me laughing throughout the game. Mixed in with their comedy is a refreshing glimpse into the stories of Greek mythology.

It creates a healthy balance that extends to the nature of the jokes themselves. Writing feels a lot like classic episodes from The Simpsons which were fun when I was a kid, but I only appreciated the full scope as an adult. A lot of elements of the story feel that way, with a really dark and smoky humor that is masterfully masked by snappy innuendos.

Immortal Fenyx Rising Hermes

Normally I would toss a podcast to the background when exploring an endless open world game like this, but the interjections of Zeus and Prometheus were so entertaining as Fenyx was moving around the map that I ultimately passed up on doing so do to pay attention to their narration. Additional characters, like the gods you encounter along the way, including Hermes, who is often by your side, also add to the brevity and texture of the world.

While Link & # 39; s adventure can feel a little empty and dry, Immortals is bursting with character and humor.

One aspect that Immortals enhance through Breath of the Wild is combat. Link wasn't a sucker in his game, but Fenyx is on another level with their weapons and skills. With a sword for light attacks, an ax for heavy attacks and a bow for ranged attacks, it is always fun to face the various mythological creatures, especially as you develop your skills and become more powerful. Monsters that prove difficult early on can be easily pushed aside later in the game, with new beasts taking their place at the top of the food chain.

Immortal Fenyx Rising Minotaur

One of the key elements of Breath of the Wild was its shrines, and while the discovery of the vaults in immortals isn't as robust, the puzzles and combat challenges contained therein are.

You can also find yourself on a scale unmatched by anything in Breath of the Wild, especially those that revolve around main quests that have multiple levels and objectives and that give the player a reason to even after receiving the bolt from a vault to return Zeus' lightning at the end.

The various mythical creatures are always fun to face, especially as you develop your skills and become more powerful.

The need to unlock skills can be annoying as I sometimes wonder if a hidden chest is only available when Fenyx gains a new power, or if I haven't solved the puzzle yet. This problem subsides as the game progresses as you may have all the tools at your disposal but you may have a bit of a bad taste in your mouth for the first few hours.

Immortal Fenyx Rising Vaults

Our opinion

Immortal Fenyx Rising brings both the best and the worst aspects of Ubisoft open world games into the DNA of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. While the flaws can occasionally interfere with enjoyment, the game is so extensive and colorful that the more I played, the more forgiving of these flaws the more I played. Ubisoft has a fantastic new franchise in their hands that feels sonically unique and will undoubtedly get better with future installments.

Is there a better alternative?

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild still has one of the best-realized open worlds, and Assassin's Creed Valhalla has a more refined battle.

How long it will take?

Simply following the story content results in around 30 hours of playtime, with playtime doubling to around 60 hours if a healthy portion of the side content is included and even more balloons are created for completers.

Should you buy it?

Yes. It's a colorful, charming open-world game, although players who have already grabbed Watch Dogs: Legion and Assassin's Creed Valhalla could understandably be burned out on the formula by this point.

Editor's recommendations

30 Nov

Blog

How to Start Calisthenics Training

November 30, 2020
Posted by Samson

With the amount of information we are exposed to, it is easy to complicate our training. When it comes to calisthenics it seems unsafe because we see the end product of the best athletes, but calisthenics is for all levels.

There are several forms of calisthenics / bodyweight training that you can do depending on your goals.

It's important to keep things simple. You need to ask yourself, "Is my training in line with my goals?" I often see that people don't train specifically for the goals they want.

They say they want apples, but they plant orange trees.

This article aims to make calisthenics training easier, take you from beginner to advanced, and show you how all levels can use the body as a brush to create a masterpiece.

General Strength – Beginner to Advanced

I know the temptation to move forward as quickly as possible is substantial, but will only result in injury, massive weakness, burnout, and frustration.

If you haven't already done this style of training, start with the basics. Work on the big six:

Pull-ups
Dips
Rows
pushups
Handstands
Is it

These are the pillars of calisthenics training as they cover the muscle groups that are used in many advanced skills. Do this for 3-6 months.

It may seem long, but it's the fastest way to get ahead.

If you skip this important stage in your development, you will still have to come back to it as the cracks in your armor will show and progress will be slow.

In this phase the goal is to learn your first pullup.

For example, get familiar with 12+ reps. As you move on, start implementing different variations of these movements in the free beginner calisthenics program, Bodyweight Strong.

Use this time to improve your mobility and flexibility so that you are no longer restricted later.

Remember, less is more. More time in the gym and more days of training won't produce better results.

As a beginner, train 2-4 days a week. An hour per session is enough to do a good, quality job while giving your body plenty of time to recover.

Specific Strength – Intermediate to Advanced

In this moment, you focus on specific goals like static skills, freestyling, and rings.

Choose 2-3 goals that you want to focus on::

It really depends on what you want and where you want to do your workout.

Design your program in blocks of 4 to 8 weeks, with all of your training lasting 3 to 6 days per week.

Mon	Tuesday	Marry	Do.	Fr.	Sat	Sun
High intensity	Low intensity	High intensity	Low intensity	High intensity	Rest	Rest
traction	Handstand balance grip	traction	Handstand balance core	traction

For example, if your goal is the muscle building and handstand pushups, any exercise you choose for your program should improve one aspect of achieving those specific goals.

I see too many people trying to cover every movement pattern and working on every weakness.

Less is more. You can always change your focus in the next program.

Build strength

The word strength is used too loosely in fitness, so let's define it. When I mention strength, I refer to absolute strength as maximum repetition and maximum strength (85% to 90% of 1RM).

The stronger you are, the more calisthenics skills you can use.

Understand that your body has three energy systems that it uses independently or simultaneously to contract your muscles.

Creatine phosphate lasts 1-12 seconds and is used for high intensity and demanding tasks like heavyweight or difficult body weight exercises that you can only do for low repetitions.
Glycolysis and the oxidative system are used for muscle building, conditioning and endurance.
The anaerobic system lasts 10 seconds – 2 minutes. The aerobic system is low-intensity and long-lasting. This is your endurance training or for daily tasks.

How to start calisthenics training - fitness, max. 1 repetition, training, endurance training, body weight exercises, calisthenics, mobility, flexibility, rings, handstand, energy systems, static balance, pull-ups, handstand push-up, rows, L-sit, hand strength, body weight training

Strength training puts a strain on the nervous system and requires at least 24 hours to recover between strength exercises.

Exercise 2-4 days a week.
Training your absolute strength to the point of failure should be used sparingly to test your current level or to achieve this motivational boost.
You can't exercise like this all the time because your nervous system won't recover between sessions and will ruin your progress.
Instead, exercise your maximum strength and leave 1 rep in reserve. If you know / think that you can do a maximum of 3 reps of an exercise (e.g., building muscle), do 2 reps for all of your sets.
This strengthens without overwhelming the nervous system.
Do high sets of 4-8 and 1-5 reps.
For isometry (during contraction, the muscles do not noticeably change length, and the affected joints do not move) 1-12 s.
Eccentric (contraction by muscle lengthening) 1-5 repetitions, each repetition for 7 seconds.

Remember, if you feel the pump or your muscles burn, you will stop exercising.

build muscles

Run away from anyone who says, "You can't build muscle with calisthenics."

Your muscles don't know the difference between bodyweight exercises, weights, or a table.

It cannot be determined whether you are lifting a 6 kg, 20 kg dumbbell or a body weight. Your body feels the resistance, the intensity and the stress of a movement.

What does the training look like? A rep range of 6-12 reps (at 65-85% of 1 rep maximum) is the most effective way to stimulate muscle growth.

Instead of increasing the weight, you increase the difficulty of the bodyweight exercises.

Choose exercises that challenge you in this rep range.

When pull-ups get easy, do a harder variant, such as B. Close-grip pull-ups. Use the same muscle building techniques as you would with weights such as mechanical tension, eccentric damage, metabolic stress, push-pull splits or drop sets.

Current culture wants to create a rivalry between calisthenics and weights when the reality is you can use both.

Gymnastics is a body weight sport and they use weights in their workouts.

Many sports, soccer, basketball, athletics, use weights to improve performance, calisthenics is the same.

Weighted calisthenics like weighted pull-ups and weighted dips are great ways to build strength and muscle.
Bodyweight exercises and weights are great for training compound movements (multiple muscle groups and joints).
There are a variety of isolation exercises (multiple muscle groups and one joint). Isolation exercises allow you to target specific muscles, which is great for improving aesthetics.

The lower body is inherently powerful, so bodyweight training can only go so far. Because of this, weighted squats, deadlifts, and hip kicks are great for building muscle.

Game training to goals

I always say there is no perfect way to train. It depends on your skills and goals.

Make sure your training is in line with your goals, and train specifically with those goals in mind.

Train like a power lifter if you want to do these advanced calisthenics skills.

Train like a bodybuilder if you want to be in the best shape of your life.

Train like an athlete when you want to go crazy or do some freestyling.

30 Nov

Blog

Empire of Sin Review: Crime Pays in Clever Strategy Game

November 30, 2020
Posted by Samson

Kingdom of sin

Empire of Sin Review: Crime pays off in a clever strategy game from the era of the prohibition

"Empire of Sin is a clever mob management game with a strong environment but some notable technical problems."

Updating setting
Clever management system
Strong role play elements

Missing options for battle speed
Failure and instability

The pairing of the 1920s prohibition story of Empire of Sin in the left panel with high-level strategy game tactics works so well that it's almost a surprise nobody thought of it before. It turns out that the world of bootlegging fits perfectly into a genre that is about managing operations and carefully planning every move. Who would have thought that?

The creative strategy game is a kind of wild passion project for Romero Games, an indie studio run by the married duo John and Brenda Romero. According to John Romero, the inventor of Doom, game director Brenda Romero put the idea into practice for over 20 years, and those two decades of conspiracy are evident in the end result. The game is as carefully planned as its criminal operations.

Despite its rough edges and the desperate need for battle speed options, Empire of Sin is a confident history lesson from the time of the prohibition that brings together some of the best elements of RPGs, as well as strategy and tactical games, to create a memorable mob management game. Create experience.

The roaring 20s

Empire of Sin is set in an alternate version of 1920s Chicago, in which the real world’s greatest gangsters of the time have gathered in one place to battle for supremacy. It's almost like Super Smash Bros. for jazz-era nerds when familiar faces like Al Capone and Stephanie St. Clair are embroiled in a city-wide turf war. The goal of each playthrough is to be the last gangster to stand when the smoke from the gun goes away by executing each rival.

This setting is rarely used in the video game world, and it's instantly enjoyable to dive into here. The bars are full of people dancing, jazz music is played during the brawls, and there is enough cigar smoke to suffocate a horse. It's not shy to offer a romanticized portrait of the era, but it doesn't sacrifice its dedication to historical detail to do so. At a time when video game worlds are getting bigger and fancier, there's something refreshing to stroll through the humble streets of Chicago.

The historical backdrop is not only used for aesthetic staging. While the 1920s presented gameplay challenges for a flashy action game, Empire of Sin took advantage of the slower pace of the era. At its core, the game is the most rampant city management game in the world. Players set up various rackets such as speakeasies and casinos and must carefully monitor them. Increasing the word of mouth of a brothel can make more money, but it can just as easily encourage a police raid. This constant balancing act makes building an empire a series of decisions that will have a real impact on any playthrough.

Thanks to simple menus, it's surprisingly easy to keep track of everything that's happening. This is a godsend for a complex game of its kind that could easily overwhelm players with options. I always knew exactly how to build a gang trade, bribe the Chicago Police Department, or change the alcohol my bars serve.

This constant balancing act makes building an empire a series of decisions that will have a real impact on any playthrough.

The game does an excellent job of rewarding efficient planning and money management. I felt like a true mob mastermind when a rival gang showed up at a high quality casino, only to be wiped out by the increased security I had invested in. Moments like this are usually reserved for big strategy games that deal with giant wars, like publisher Paradox Interactive's 2020 hit Crusader Kings III, but that style of play translates perfectly into the shabby intimacy of brawls and personal vendettes.

Mob hits

The management aspect is only part of the game's DNA. Combat follows a tactical approach to play à la XCOM and places mob members on a grid in turn-based shootouts. Each recruit receives two actions per turn that allow them to move, shoot, use an item, or perform a special ability.

The known system works on two different levels. For one, this reinforces the notion that the player is a mob leader who literally has the say by directing each of his subordinates. It also resists the urge to turn the 1920s into a modern day action movie by keeping the brawls a little slower and sloppier, making it feel truer to the clumsy guns of the time.

Kingdom of sin

This deliberate pace doesn't come at the expense of fun. There are still plenty of tricks for players to play around with as each recruit has their own skill tree and weapon skills. Some characters can offer defense by attracting shots, while others can throw axes at enemies. These quirks keep the fights fresh as players work to assemble a perfect crew of minions to cover up each other's weaknesses.

While the tactical element goes well with the theme, there is one major problem: there is no way to automate the fight or fast-forward it. Every time a player enters the fight, they must see it through to the end, unless they choose to escape via exit points. This results in longer fights when characters begin to miss out on direct shots.

At some point I stopped declaring war on rivals just to avoid getting caught up in a wave of protracted grunt fights.

This isn't a huge issue with missions and raids on enemy safes, but it does become a major pain point when gang wars break out. While engaged in major brawls, enemies attack a player's clubs at random. Players have to go through each fight manually and control the low-level security guards who don't possess any of the fun skills and perks that the right crew members have. In some cases I have been involved in up to seven indistinguishable encounters in rapid succession. At some point I stopped declaring war on rivals just to avoid getting caught up in a wave of protracted grunt fights.

It doesn't help that the game has some rough edges that weigh the heaviest in the fight. There are plenty of bugs, like the game getting stuck in the middle of a character move, crew members suddenly disappearing, or allies sliding across the battlefield as a living corpse. Most of these issues seem fixable (and many will hopefully be fixed in the game's first PC patch), but the current instabilities make for a somewhat unpredictable experience that can lead to unintended comedy or frustration.

Know your role

A game of this nature lives and dies because of its role-playing potential, and that is one aspect that puts Empire of Sin to shame. Playing through feels different as each gangster has their own set of skills, perks, and core storylines. Although the overall objective and side quests remain the same each time, the way a player approaches them can be determined by their style of play on a given run.

Kingdom of sin

On my first try, I chose Angelo Genna and played as brazenly as possible. I made enemies with everyone I crossed with and ended up being gunned down in a high-spirited attack on a safehouse. My next playthrough was far more successful as I used Stephanie St. Clair's persuasive skills to charm allies and enemies alike to lead my battles for me. In a complete change of pace, I turned Daniel McKee Jackson into a political sucker who refused to say no to a one-way deal a rival would make on his way to becoming mayor of Chicago. All three runs felt unique and satisfying in their own way, which made me want to try more gangsters.

A game of this nature lives and dies because of its role-playing potential, and that is one aspect that puts Empire of Sin to shame.

The RPG aspect is supported by some light but effective dialog trees and skill checks. Statistics like persuasion and intimidation come into play and can completely change the outcome of missions. In a quest I was assigned to take out a rival's group. Instead of killing his lackeys, I convinced everyone to join my cause and left them defenseless. Such story beats pay off for players who pursue a consistent vision of their gang leader.

The crew members have their own narrative depth as each has a back story and traits that shape their personality. On my successful run with Stephanie St. Clair, I developed a real bond with my self-proclaimed right-wing man, Grover Monks, a former carnival worker fearful of explosions after he accidentally blew up a concession booth as a kid. This level of detail makes each recruit feel like a consummate character playing a role in the Empire.

Much of the fun of Empire of Sin depends on one's own imagination and the willingness of the individual player to play the role of a gangster. The game offers a wealth of systems and details that make the role-playing game an inviting perspective. When all the genre pieces come together it's a fascinating historical fantasy that is easy to get lost in.

Our opinion

Empire of Sin offers a clever experience that fuses the genre and perfectly blends the world of 1920s organized crime with strategy game. Mistakes and a lack of combat speed or automation options can stall the pace, but it does an excellent job of putting the player in the mindset of a mob mastermind (or a fool at gunpoint) with streamlined speakeasy management.