2022 Hindsight

It’s time to reflect on 2022. From a computing angle, my rural area FINALLY rolled out fiber internet. Social media’s demise seems to have accelerated this year. And in a gaming letdown, the Breath of the Wild sequel was delayed until next year. On the upside, 2022 was surprised with JRPG Xenoblade Chronicles 3, which released to rave reviews and later got three nominations in the annual Game Awards. As for blogging, there were vexing WordPress shenanigans.

USB-C All The Things

You may have heard news that the EU is mandating that digital devices use USB-C ports for charging. Basically, all tablets, phones, laptops, cameras, etc must have a USB-C port to charge, as opposed to something like Apple’s Lightning port found on iPhones. And you know what? I’m ready for it!

Need For Speed

In one of those Nintendo eShop sales — thanks, Christmas! — I grabbed a non-JRPG title. It’s a racing game, Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered. But why?

New JRPGs In 2023

As the year closes and we look towards 2023, I can already see several video games on the beckoning horizon. Brand new JRPG releases are slated in the coming months, including one that may be the biggest impending adventure since Breath of the Wild. Of course, I’m talking about Tears of the Kingdom, the next mainline RPG-like title in Nintendo’s Zelda series. But even before that, I have my own backlog to look forward to, eyeing yet more Xenoblade awesomeness.

Merry Christmas 2022!

 "And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." - Luke 2:10-11

Fight Magic Items Review

Done! I finished reading Fight Magic Items and gave it 5 out of 5 stars on Goodreads. Bottom line: if you like JRPGs, it’s a must-read. Pause your game on occasion and grind out some of the pages; it’ll be worth your time. Let me share why and also sprinkle some of my favorite quotes throughout.

3D TV Comeback?

By now, maybe most people have upgraded their TV sets from HD to 4K; I finally did last summer. So to get consumers to buy more TVs, maybe the industry wants to try 3D again? Recently, Wired published a piece reasoning 3D could return but this time succeed. My take? I doubt it. Seriously. Though the tech looks cool, is it really? Here are some reasons why I don’t think so.

Big Finally For iPhone?

Can I FINALLY just buy a Kindle book (or see its price) in the Kindle app or Amazon app!? That’s all I want to really know after learning that Apple may soon fundamentally change its App Store rules and the like on iPhone. The change could mean more convenience for the average end user. Sounds good to me.

iPhone 11 Thoughts

After turning my iPhone up to 11, I have some thoughts. Yes, it was the upgrade I wanted, substantial enough. All around, it’s a quality smartphone one would expect from Apple. Below are some things that stand out to me most.

Game Awards 2022 Winners

At first, I wasn’t going to watch the 2022 Game Awards, but I mostly ended up doing so. I hoped somehow that Xenoblade Chronicles 3 would win at least one of its three nominated categories. But as I figured, most awards went to its competition. Oh well. Being nominated three times says a lot by itself. Besides, I was happy to see Nintendo score plenty of awards.

A Xenoblade Adventure

One of the greatest JRPGs to grace gamers in modern times is Xenoblade Chronicles. The definitive edition on Nintendo Switch was on my backlog. Now, I’ve finally — FINALLY — started on this adventure. It’s my first playthrough and, so far, I love it!

Bravely Default II Review

Sweet victory! I finally finished Bravely Default II this past weekend, rolling credits at nearly 79 hours of playtime. And by default, I’ll brave some thoughts — I use the term ‘review’ loosely.

Fight Magic Items

This new book by Aidan Moher was an instant purchase for me! I read a few words of the synopsis and skimmed a couple reviews and — boom! — I clicked Buy Now and sent it directly to my Kindle in a flash. It’s said to be “unputdownable” for someone who likes JRPGs and grew up playing them in the 90’s. Oh yeah. Pause game…read book…resume game.

macOS Stage Manager Impression

Stage Manager is a marquee new feature in macOS Ventura, which released to the general public this October. I updated my MacBook Air right away, eager to try it out. After several weeks of using it off and on, I’ve been reminded of the already impressive multi-tasking capabilities with good ol’ fashioned windows on the Mac. Exiting the stage, I’m happy to manage apps and their windows myself.

Social Media Twilight Years

Do you want a good long-ish read? This great piece from The Atlantic was right up my alley. The end of social media? Imagine that. Sure, this has been said before, and I think that’s because the life of social media has been dwindling for years. We’ve seen more signs of it in recent months with Facebook earnings dropping and the company pivoting away from the social app towards the metaverse. And lately, we’ve witnessed Twitter being run into the ground in quick fashion.

Fully Rendered In Dark Mode

A quick update for the blog. My site www.jasonmcfadden.com now has an official new blog name, “Fully Rendered.” It’s also now sporting a dark theme.