Cyberpunk 2077: Legendary Crafting

Screenshot Composite Jan '21 w/30% Discount Perk

• Crafting Johnny's Legendary Tank Top costs = $104,625
• 1 Epic Johnny Tank Top ($60,525)
• 39 Rare Item Components ($5850)
• 89 Epic Item Components ($22,250)
• 16 Legendary Item Components ($16,000)

• Crafting Johnny's Epic Tank Top costs = $60,525
• 1 Rare Johnny Tank Top (mission item)
• 49 Uncommon Item Components ($3675)
• 99 Rare Item Components ($14,850)
• 132 Epic Item Components ($33,000)
• 9 Legendary Item Components ($9000)

    I was curious if building was cheaper than buying and the answer is not really. Economically speaking you get more bang for your buck if you sell for cash instead of disassemble into components, and save your perks. The crafting system in Cyberpunk is punishingly expensive.

    Once finding nice gear, trying to upgrade it to keep pace with level costs nearly every penny one could scrounge - for a single item. Then you find the exact item you're holding, for sale, at a higher level, for less cash than it would cost to upgrade or craft new. Adding insult, the vendor will offer to buy your hundred-thousand dollar investment for 1% of it's value.

The economy in Night City is so screwed-up, that it only makes fiscal sense to steal. Vendor prices are high to discourage shopping, but crafting needs a tune IMO. As a rule of thumb, you should probably be able to craft ONE Legendary before finishing the game.

 

Is This Super Mario 3 GBA Fake?

I recently got this old GBA cartridge from a thrift-store, and not only does it not work, but it looks super suspicious. After closer investigation, I see it has every hallmark of a bad bootleg.

• Missing Nintendo copyright visible above the pins.
• Game doesn't work after battery dies.
• The label doesn't resemble known retail cartridge labels.
• Tri-Wing screw is short, cartridge fit is much too tight.
• Unexpected Epoxy Blob.
• Soldering looks amateurish.
• Chips look ugly / recycled / un-readable.
• Incredibly inexpensive.

So what is this? The two large center chips look like Mitsubishi M6MGB SRAM memory. I'm guessing there's a storage controller under that epoxy blob, and various J & R pins are used to write/erase the thing. It looks more like a USB drive than a Nintendo game.

Will it work if I replace the battery? I think maybe not - SRAM data is eventually lost if the memory is not powered for a long time, sayeth the wikipedia. I might try replacing it anyhow.

The good news is the FBI goes after counterfeit goods everyday, however plenty of pirate flotsam remains long after a manufacturer is convicted. Estimates are that sales of fakes has increased to nearly $900B in 2018, and perhaps as many as one-quarter of people now admit to knowingly buy knockoffs (which is illegal btw).

I hope companies like Nintendo continue the fight to produce physical games that can be authenticated. As game buyers we want to trust what we're really getting, but this problem also extends to food and medicine where these trust issues become deadly serious.

Red Dead Objection

Ok fine. Red Dead Redemption 2 is a technical success, but it continues to bother me how flat this story is. Not just this one - we're spoiled for beautiful games with lame stories. I'm going to pick on RDR2 because it's a clear example, and I think they're doing this on purpose.

What's driving this guy - what does Arthur seek? It turns out he is remarkably unambitious. Our desire to see Arthur succeed is thwarted by the fact he's just fine. Imagine just how much we might improve this story by working his horse ranch for a chapter, then have it stolen. We need to be made curious, to become invested in something. RDR2 thinks you should hear about Dutch.

What obstacle is preventing him from achieving his goal? Nothing - there is no pressing threat. Imagine just how much better the story would be if the camera were to slowly pan to a bomb hidden underneath the camp - or a slowly approaching army. We must build tension like a python around Arthur.

RDR2 is remarkably safe compared to other worlds. The most dangerous animal is the controller in your hands as you try to chord various Rockstar button sequences. You will crash your horse.

Game companies don't hire famous aged authors. Looks like a dozen young teams made this. People should write what they know. It sounds rather ridiculous when young people try-on my middle-aged shoes. They don't realize this of course - perhaps imagine going back to read the serious concerns in your middle-school journal - now in the voice of the outlaw Arthur Morgan.

Dozens and dozens of characters written by committee. I understand it takes a team to build a world this ambitious. They dissect the story and various people work on each piece, hoping it comes together in the end - a few things get cut because someone fails to deliver. What remains are a series of interesting, if unrelated scenes.

I can't say for sure why lame story plagues these huge games. These problems have not hurt sales, so there is little incentive to fix it. Even the supposed "critics" have nothing critical to say. It's been getting worse as developers lean toward streamable content (whatever that is) and away from traditional stories.

My ridiculous dream is that games develop stories solid enough to sell as stand-alone books, or license an existing book like the movies. This isn't Elon level difficult folks.

The Real Open-World Sandbox Game

Perspective can make you happy or miserable. Sometimes, it's fun to think of life as a kind of game. Play is pretty great attitude, and I've enjoyed working with people that nail this.

Anecdotal evidence suggests gaming folks are happier, but it's still possible to compartmentalize real life and play. We have to translate game thinking into life thinking. These are a few patterns I see.

One trick is games make failure acceptable. This means be prepared to fail, dust off, and repeat. Break things down so the stakes are lower. Laugh about failures, ideally. Don't expect to win first try - that'd be too easy. Our stats are incrementally improving, probably.

Games don't take themselves too seriously. This is tricky - to appropriately respect a subject, yet keep things fun. New ideas require a touch of unexpected. It's ok to question rules, test edges, and do the experiment. Just keep a safety check on consequences.

Games let us cooperate, and celebrate others success. We spend hours problem-solving together in-game. More skilled friends spend hours teaching, and saving my ass. How great is that. People scream, "Help!"and we run to them.

Games let us celebrate diversity. Swap gender, and play as another race/culture - that's fine. It's interesting to see how differently people respond. I believe the lasting effects of role-playing, and diverse media exposure is positive.

SMBC by Zach Weinersmith

Cookie Cheater

Years ago, I was asked to design a puzzle solver for 7th Guest in an interview. It was remarkable how job-relevant that would be. They'd later ask me to automate browsers, email, phones, etc.

These scripts could hypnotize you - I'd turn the monitors so people could watch. Folks talked about scripts in conversation like these were rascal ghosts. The ghosts had higher security access than me.

I once automated Halo multiplayer - for some contest. I fastened the Xbox controller to a shiatsu massager, and made the worlds worst bot - it didn't win. Although it too was fascinating to watch as it randomly unloaded rounds and grenades.

This is my first AppleScript - I'd worked in Windows shops. Cookie Clicker, like Automation, is a game of escalation. One click, ten clicks, hundred clicks, thousand clicks... Eventually this capitalist escalation demands a change in approach. 

"Just make it click", they say. Clicks are the gateway drug of business process automation.

On Free Loot and XP!

Warthog!, a photo by Tuzen on Flickr.

After weeks of play, the game crashed and my friend’s character lost all his skills; you can imagine, he was upset. I prefer games where the skill is located outside the machine, preferably inside me. This game starts with terrible items that randomly miss, but you play long enough so that your character gets better. They fake skill improvement; fun, but still fake.

I think these kinds of games can make us a special kind of stupid. We can’t help but learn from everything we do. And what lessons do these games teach us? Things randomly happen, material items are important, and rewards come from time spent butt-in-seat. As a player, I don’t want to spend hours inside that kind of warped world view. I switched games.

The ideal game would store all skills inside the player. Digitally there would be nothing to lose. The lessons taught could be useful in the real world. That material things are just tools. Empathy. Teamwork. The achievements of others proves the possibility of your further success.

Can we imagine new games starting from life lessons?