[S4]The Phantom

Sometimes it seems that the old cliche's never work, somedays it works like a charm. I'm finding it to be easier to appraoch with a more "casual" lines - and then work towards slowly, because then I can know whether I should stay on the boat or jump out during the slow process of what humans call socialization.

I never got their sense of humor. Any tips/hints/tricks?

Nope, looks like I still have a long way to go.

Suddenly I'm lost...

Such treaties are nothing but toilet paper once the real deal happens... so much for international relations I hear they are amending their constitutions again so that they can take preemptive action once they are certain of a threat outside of their borderlines, although I'm pretty sure China will put a good enough pressure on them so it doesn't happen too soon.

Japan DOES have an army. Their constitution Chapter 9, where it states they are supporters of peace and will not have an army, has been "amended" and no longer exists. That was about 2 years ago. Also they've had their "Tactical Self-defense Battalion" that has the third highest combat capability in the world. No nation other than United States Navy has many AEGIS cruisers and Patrol Aircrafts (despite the simple name, it is one of the most expensive and most required craft in the modern naval warfare) as Japan. Considering how Japan is an island with a close peninsula, naval force is the most important force - Air Force cannot operate without navy support, and it is the only permanant mobile force on sea which covers 70% of the earth. However, they lack the firepower to damage any land targets, since their land army is at the moment close to non-existant. Their warfare would mostly consist of surrounding the waterways and relying on their Air force to do bombing strikes - but unless Japan manages to get Nuclear submarines and Tomahawk-equivalent missles, Japan probably would not start a war - yet. Also, the right extremists have always lived in heart of Japan - in fact, most of the war criminals of World War II have survived the trials by trading their lives with their knowledge of biochemical weapons. The Japanese have set up a laboratory in the Mandarine plains they called "Maruta", which they used human subjects to test the effects of various primitive bio-chemical weapons. And no, this is NOT out of some conspiracy nut book, its been discovered and survivors still tell the tales, just perfectly silenced and cut from public. Another simple example of Japanese extreme right faction is right now the leader of Japan - Koizumi. How is he extreme right? Well, he goes to the graves of World War II war criminal's graves and bows. The Court of Japan declared it unconsitutional and he should stop immediately, but Koizumi ignored it by saying "I am only bowing to the great ancestors of our nation" - and of course, with the depressed economical state of Japan, the Japanese people mostly took Koizumi's side. As the nation falls deeper into the economic depression, the right extremists will once again have their chance to turn the nation towards fascicm - saying war is the only way out of the economic rat hole. And how do I know this? If your great-grandfather led the guerilla warfare against Japanese control over Korea, as a runaway criminal in China, you would know. Correct me if I've overlooked/mistook some facts

The Japanese Right extremists have always been fascists - my nation has always conflicted with the right extremists of Japan. The Japanese faciscm of expanding through Asia have been found in numberous Historical documents ever since the middle ages. Japan suggested they brought prosperity and industralization to the Korean penninsula during the 36 years of colonization, but it is much invalid as the Japanese took all the important technoledges and the people who could run the factories back home after their defeat. And for Japan, historically Korea is the only opening to the mainland of Asia, which leaves them with no choice but to attack Korea if they want to get out their island. Of course, the Koreans are not going to say "you need to pass thru here so we'll surrender whenever you need", so the ending theme is the never-ending conflict. I'm just thankful that Japan, although with superior weapons and economy, has decided to be smart and not start a war.

In any profession there's a place to start, and more often than not younger the better. If you are 14 you are not late, although you might want to start with the fundemental skills that lie behind all engineering(includes computer programming) - math. Plan to enjoy AP calculus by your senior year. Also you will want to take SAT II: Math II as well, as it is required by most engineering schools. Also, the career is quite harsh. In my country, S.Korea, most game developers don't hire programmers unless the programmers make a team and actually come up with a concept AND the fully coded program (game, with graphics and sound). I cannot confirm you if getting hired as a programmer in US is easier or not, but I do not assume it will be anything near fill-in-your-application-and-you-are-hired kind of thing. Also, contrary to what our would-be counselor said, you can do anything you want to do as long as you truly work for it. But, before you delve into any kind of narrow decision, I suggest you look back on yourself. If you are the person who would be happy if you just program without 3 meals a day, go for it. If you like games and programming up to a moderate "I like to do it" sort of 'vague interest', then you might not enjoy your career and your life as a whole. I know I used some extreme examples, but you get the idea - think again, for the time you spend from your age will not be given again: its by far the most important time of your life.

Best advice ever. You should look into a career as a counselor. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Ha ha ha!

Beautiful. I wonder what is next on the list.

Dunno, although the game speed was wierd. It was either too fast or too slow for me. Kirovs were awesome, though. But, mind-control still doesn't feel like RA universe in my opinion.

Sounds comical to me, but lets not have prejudice. Games must be viewed without blindness

Looks like I've been staying at your place long before you knew it

Actually K'Dash's statement is true, but I'm actually comparing this one to the last LOTR RTS they put out with the Battle Realm engine (one used for Warcraft III) which I did not even bother to... ever bother with. And nobody compares Red Alert with anything But General engine has proved to be quite eye-catching in my experience (with heavy feeling of gravity), especially since the emphasis of the game was on the flashiness of the movie - not for serious gameplay, especially when a common RTS + multiplay means "Mass <insert unit combo> strategy" Besides, since when did EA care about gamer's needs

The books are very different from the movie, as the following points: 1. In the book, Gandalf appears about 3 times. In the movie, he's basically the main character. 2. Boromir was a man in black hair, not blonde. 3. The Witch-King of Angmar never rode a Fell Beast as a Nazgul. 4. Gandalf's staff was never broken by the Witch-King. 5. Eowyn did not disguise up and ride into battle with the Rohirrim. 6. King Theoden asked Aragorn to take care of Rohan, not his daughter. 7. Witch-King of Angmar was never killed by lady Eowyn, which is inducted from number 3 and 5 nicely. 8. The "Oathbreakers", the ghost army, never helped the humans in their defense of Minas Tirith. The book only mentions their presence. The funniest thing is, I've never read the book. Just by talking to a few fantasy lovers... lol Anyways, I found the controls to be nothing of hindrance, any RTS fan should not really - because hotkeys are there to be used. Also, the part of failing to click on a tree or double clicking is a mere mis-click and not really a part of the game's flaws in my opinion, for that never happened to me. Although I am pretty sure that Rome:Total war and BFME is not comparable, I'm having enough fun out of it. And for me, more epic the better. What I find to be the major flaw is the lack of unit diversity in strategic point of view (Only the units in the movie made it to the game), and I find Balrog/Oathbreakers too powerful. Overall, great enjoyable game to relive the epic sensation of the movie (not the book), but nothing to be so seriously discussed about.