Break Free

A week ago, I had a tattoo on my right wrist.
"A man chooses, a slave obeys" reads the tattoo, that has a chain in the middle, the one the main character from Bioshock (the videogame that inspired my tattoo) has, but with a broken link instead of the original intact chain.

















                                                                                                                                                                   I love Bioshock, mostly because it's not just a game. It makes you really think at a degree no other game does. It mixes gameplay with narrative in a way no other game ever has; it makes both equally enjoyable, so much that one can argue that it merges them. It really makes you think about choices, in a way only a game can. The point here is not the videogame and especially since I don't want to spoil anything (All three Bioshock games are more than amazing, you should definitely play them) I will not continue to talk about the game.

Here's what I wanted to share with you. I decided to tweet a picture of my tattoo, along with an obvious pun ("here's what you made me do"), to the writer and creative director, Ken Levine, who retweeted it

RT @CostasDetroit: Here's what you made me do @IGLevine pic.twitter.com/sWGgTWz4Rx
— Ken Levine (@IGLevine) July 30, 2014

The tweet really took off, with hundreds of retweets, favorites and people were tweeting about it and it was also retweeted by Irrational Games, the company behind Bioshock.

RT @IGLevine: RT @CostasDetroit: Here's what you made me do pic.twitter.com/X4vL3ZaTMd - Share your #BioShock & #BioShockInfinite ink
— Irrational Games (@IrrationalGames) July 30, 2014

People started tweeting at me, saying they liked it and wanted to have exactly the same tattoo, with the exception of the occasional assholes who tried to say something smart and hateful.

Let me stop what I am saying for a bit to explain a point that you need to understand in order to continue reading. I always wanted to have a tattoo on one of my arms/wrists, but I was afraid to do it. Afraid of what other people would think of me if I had a visible tattoo, afraid that I wouldn't be able go get a job, etc. That was the story I told myself. But as time passed, the idea became more compelling to me. I was afraid to do it. So I had to face my fear. I vowed to never have a tattoo without a special meaning; and this one was the perfect example. Not only because I wanted to show love to the Bioshock universe, but most importantly because to me it symbolizes my ultimate freedom and my choices. Facing my fears. And what better way is there to display such a thing, if not for the fear itself? That's why I chose to have that exact tattoo, in that exact spot.
Again, the point in this post is not the tattoo or Bioshock or Twitter or anything of the sort.
The point is that we are all so afraid of being who we really are, so afraid to do what we want, because the world wants to keep us small. The world, our society, our family want us to be a certain way. So, we end up spending our whole lives, being afraid, letting people belittle us, letting them guide our decisions. We choose to live in fear because we don't feel we got what it takes to face it. I'll tell you the same thing I told someone on twitter who wants to get the same tattoo, but is scared.

@IrrationalGames @IGLevine @CostasDetroit I like. I was half tempted to get something similar.
— Oliver Gettings (@ogettings) July 30, 2014

@ogettings go get it brother
— Costas Orfanidis (@CostasDetroit) July 30, 2014

@CostasDetroit I don't think work would let me get away with it. :p
— Oliver Gettings (@ogettings) July 30, 2014

@ogettings just know that who you really are isn't displayed by whether you have tattoos or not
— Costas Orfanidis (@CostasDetroit) July 30, 2014

Again, this is not about tattoos. It's about us. Who we are. Where we are going, as people. It's 2014 and people still see things as small as tattoos as something that show who you are, if you're a nice person or a killer or something. They still think that getting a job is a matter of having tattoos or not.  They still let things that are outside of themselves seem too important, instead of realizing that all valuable things in our lives are within us.
What I want to say is that we don't get to live forever. We have a journey. I believe that on our journey, we must decide to take our own paths, make our own choices. No matter what anyone says or thinks. If you are living a life just to please everyone else, you won't ever be happy.
Stop being afraid!
Are you afraid? Go do the things that scare you; it will make you feel more powerful than ever.
What I hope to do is help people break free of what's holding them back, in order to really live the lives they want for themselves. This is what I want to dedicate my life to, helping people, inspiring them, making them think for themselves, as the game that inspired this tattoo makes you think about choices.

The tattoo is not important to me. I didn't have it just so I can show it to people. I did it because I want to be who I truly am. Whether I chose to have it as a tattoo or not, it doesn't matter.
What matter is what I really believe, deep inside of me. Not what is showing on the outside.
Thank you for reading this and remember;

"We all make choices, but in the end, our choices make us."

~Bioshock~

Poem : Cor Leonis

Hello, once again, dear reader!!!!! I wrote this poem, which is the first free-verse poem I've ever released and wanted to share it with you! If you really want to find out the meaning behind the poem I think you must (!!!!!) check out the poem on PoetryGenius with verified annotations by myself.

I suggest reading it here while you play the song I've embedded here and then going HERE to read the explanations and really understand it. The title is in latin and it means "heart of a lion".

Go on, read it below!

"Look At The Stars" by TsaoShin

He walks proud,

his head tilted upwards,

pointing to the periwinkle blue sky,

the roof of his kingdom.

And as he walks,

the earth shivers and shakes,

the trees fold in half,

the mountains wither, 

the bones of all the lost souls

dance underneath the ground,

as if to salute him.

And they all bow, oh,

how they bow to his divine presence.

The world around him shrinks, 

as if his intimidating presence is the sole reason 

this petty world exists.

The air pushes against his mane,

who is darker than the darkest night,

and his paws, 

stronger than a lightning striking a tree,

move and craft a path anew.

So he moves, exerting his majesty,

oozing power and confidence.

His breath is like fire, 

burning everything it touches,

burying it into infinity.

The crimson red of his fiery eyes, 

whose stare threatens everything it touches,

as if even fear itself is afraid of him,

seem to light the world on fire.

His gaze is fixated on the sunset that is falling over his land

and yet its' greatness does not belittle him,

as if the gods give him praise 

by painting the greatest of all paintings, 

only to entertain and cater to the needs of his fierce soul.

And in all the chaos of the universe,

the only sound that can be heard 

is the beating of his powerful heart,

which seems to give melody to the world,

as if it's a theme to march to,

nothing but his heart, 

that holds infinite power and wisdom.

And yet, as one day his presence will be gone,

not all will be lost, he will never be forgotten,

for his existence leaves a mark upon the world,

a mark that eyes can't see, that ears can't hear,

a mark that is left only in the bravest and most sincere of hearts, 

and that will exist only as long as bravery and courage 

flood the hearts of men,

those who have infinite power, 

yet choose to lead others to no harm,

who have the option to hurt and destroy, 

but choose to stray from such choices,

only to lead others to freedom and love and happiness and power and knowledge,

only to free others of their burdens and show them the path to greatness.

And only men who choose to lead their own path,

only men who choose to risk it all, no matter the consequences 

only men who fight with passion,

only men that look fear in the eye but don't lose their minds,

men that proudly move against the crowd,

will ever know what it feels like,

to have the heart of a lion.

If you liked this, share it and come back once in a while for more (also, become a follower of my blog below!

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Hit me up on Twitter @CostasDetroit to tell me what you think!

Reading And Writing Books : Present vs. Past

Image from venturegalleries.com

Books. Who doesn't love books? I probably can't answer that, because I don't actually know if you do. But I do. I love books. I love writing. I love laying down on a beach and reading a good book as the sun is slowly being buried inside the sea and the moon rises. I love going on vacations and spending time observing my surroundings, learning new things and possibly writing about/integrating some of the ideas/knowledge/inspiration that a trip may offer me into my own work. I love going to coffee shops with my laptop, sitting down and writing or reading for hours on end. I love meeting new people at book events. I love sharing things that I write with other people and I love it when they tell me their own opinion on what I write. I love listening to music and using it as fuel for the fire of inspiration.

I write about many things, ranging from reviews about places, books, videogames etc. to poetry and literature. I love reading and writing wherever I am. 

In my opinion, it's a great time to be alive for someone who loves reading/writing. Technology is really making everything much easier to access.

Now, let me start from the beginning of my story.

I love reading a physical copy of a book. A year ago, I didn't exactly understand why anyone would pay for an ebook when the physical copy is much more amazing (nothing better than smelling the pages of a new book, right?) and it is so much better for a collection. You may be able to relate to that. 

Image from Amazon.com

When I actually bought my first Kindle book, my whole view on ebooks changed. Yes, I had read more than 20 ebooks previous to buying my first kindle, so I wasn't new to this kind of reading experience. Or so I thought.

Let me explain why I think Kindle is SO unbelievably amazing. 

Image from kateevangelistarandr.blogspot.gr
























1. The prices of the books are so good. Daily and monthly deals, updated versions, collections, special offers and many other things make kindle books so tempting and affordable. You can literally buy a book with 50 cents.
2. You get it immediately! You buy it and within seconds you can start reading it. Many of you won't see how that is so much different from buying a physical copy (even though you can buy an ebook without having to actually go out of your home). The reason is that I, for example, read books in english. Here in Greece, although many bookstores sell books in english, some books are hard to find or you have to order them. Kindle has put an end to my frustration of finding a book I want to read. I actually had to wait months at a time before my order arrived through the bookstore.   
3. One of my favorite features : it can sync across all your devices! That means, if I am reading a book on my laptop and I have to go out, I open the app on my smartphone and I can continue reading exactly where I left off! It also syncs all of your notes and highlights. It's really simple to use. It doesn't matter what kind of device you have; a tablet, a smartphone, Macbook, a desktop PC, Android, iOS, OS X, Windows etc. because you can download the free Kindle reading app on all of your devices and have all your ebooks synced across all of these devices.
4. Another amazing thing is the cross buy. That means that you can buy a physical copy of a book and an ebook and audiobook. 3 or 2 in one. What I usually do is buy an ebook and buy the audiobook (which is very very cheap if you already own the ebook of the same book) because I love this feature called Whispersync for Voice. This feature lets you switch from ebook to audiobook or read and listen to a book simultaneously. It syncs to the last page you've read so, if you are sitting on your couch and you are reading an ebook on your laptop and then you have to go to the gym, you plug in your headphones and just listen to the audiobook on your smartphone! You can switch between audiobook and ebook so smoothly and it's a pretty amazing feature, because you can get the best of both worlds! That way it's easy to highlight and take notes (which is pretty useful to me, since I re-read all of my books a lot of times and I want to be able to do that) because you can have them on all of your devices.
5. The magic of technology. Tap on a word you don't know and it will give you its' definition.

The 2 apps you will need for this are Kindle and Audible. You can download both of them for free. If you sign up for Audible, you get one free book of your choice (click on the link above) and then you pay 15 dollars/10 euros per month for a Audible Listener Gold Membership which gives you :

• one credit/free audiobook every month
• 30% off any purchase 
• a free audio subscription to The New York Times or The Wall Street Journal.

If you want to switch between ebook and audiobook you have to make sure the book you want to read has an available audiobook. First, you buy the ebook and click Add Narration. You will pay a small fee for getting the audiobook (it's usually less than 5$) or get it for free if you haven't spent your monthly credit.

Image from Wikipedia

Now that we got the topic of reading books covered, what about writing books? Technology made writing a lot easier, too.

I am currently working on many different projects (a book, multiple poems and sort stories, reviews etc.) and I use some of them on my blog, but I keep most of them to myself (I don't want to actually share everything I write, not because I don't want people to read it, but because I don't want to simply give away all of my efforts for free). 

I use the yWriter app for my PC, Pages for my Macbook and Writer on my Android phone. 

Image from : shevdon.com

yWriter is a free app (created by a writer) which is magnificent for writing a book. You create characters, give them descriptions, goals etc., you create locations, choose viewpoints for each scene and you really have a lot of tools at your disposal. Chapters are divided into scenes which you can easily move to another chapter and you can see how many words you have written, set a daily writing goal (for example : 5,000 words), back up your projects and export them. It's a cool app, but I don't use it that much anymore because I use my Macbook. 

On my Macbook, I use an app called Pages (it costs 18 euros). It is a very good app, with a lot of features but it's a lot different from yWriter. Pages is an app mainly for creating publishable books and ebooks, so it has a lot of designing features. It's simple to use (although I'd advise you to read the manual before you start to use it.) and you can have creative control over everything; from whether the pages will be numbered with numbers or symbols, to exactly what the header and footer will look like! 

In my opinion, the best way to write a book is use yWriter for writing it since it helps you be more organized and focused on the content of the book, then export and copy-paste it to the Pages app to create your book, add a cover etc.

Writer for Android is a simple, dumbed-down writer app. You basically just write. There's nothing more to it than that. The reason I like it is you can transfer your files from you phone to other devices and its' very simplistic interface makes writing childs play.

Since I covered both reading and writing, I will finish this post with publishing.

We live in 2014. It's easy to publish a book. Amazon lets you upload your ebook and makes it available on the Kindle store within a matter of days. Blurb is also a great app that lets you design and publish both physical and digital copies of your book but you actually pay for every single book, while with Kindle Self Publishing, you don't pay anything, but a percentage you and Amazon agreed upon will be extracted from your book sales. What I like about KSP is that you can also make physical and audiobook copies of your book available for sale. Although both options are great if you want to make it all alone,  it surely doesn't give you the coverage that a publishing company does.

Thank you for reading this and I hope you enjoyed it. 

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Happy New Year!!!!!

I wish a happy New Year to everyone! 

I decided to write a post in order to wish the best to everyone! Let's hope 2014 is better than 2013 was.

I am not going to wish the typical things everyone wishes on a New Years Eve, like "I wish 2014 brings the best to you". I hope YOU will do your best to make the most out of it! I hope YOU will take action and change everything you don't like and become better in 2014. 

That's my goal and my piece of advice to you! 

Be a little better every day! Learn as much as you can! Listen and understand more than you talk! Think more! Be yourself! Don't be afraid to take risks (in the end, we only regret the risks we didn't take)! Don't be afraid to go against everyone for what you want! Do what you truly love and have a passion for and everything else will eventually fall into place!! Always keep your head held high and you feet steady to the ground! 

To all the people that were there for me, that helped me become a better me, that showed me the way every time I got lost, that truly cared for me in 2013 I wanna say: 

Thank you for being there! I promise to always do my best so I can give back to these people, inspire them to be better and help them through their own struggles. I really can't express how much it means to me that you were there for me! I appreciate everything you have done and I hope I can be to others what you were to me!

To all the people that doubted me, that tried to hurt me, that tried to make me go against everything I stand for, that really made it hard for me this year I want to say:

My biggest thanks go out to you! You helped me become stronger, better, happier and smarter than ever! You helped me figure out a lot about myself and who I really am! You helped me become irresistible to pain!

You helped me know who to trust. You helped me grow up a lot and understand so many things better than before; you made me the man I want to be! Because, let's face it, you are the ones that deserve the most 

thanks. If it hadn't be for you, I wouldn't be writing this. I would be sitting on my ass, complaining about everything I don't like! You helped me gain more than I lost in 2013! And that's why I want to say that I appreciate it (even though I know no such person wanted it to have this outcome)! I wish all the best for you, too! 

To all the people I may have hurt or disappointed in some way:

I hope to learn from my mistakes as much as I can. I know that I did many things that I should have done in a different way... but I was always me. So I hope you understand. Sometimes, you may hurt others simply by doing what it is that you want. I don't apologize. I don't want to be better so everyone can like me. I just want to do as many good things as I can and as less bad things as I can in 2014. I am trying to learn from all those times I was wrong this year.

2014 is just a step away. Throw away everything that is holding you back. Sail to new seas. Discover new things. Change. Become better. Help others. Learn from others and teach to others. Give and get back. Love and be loved. 

Don't be afraid of anything. Fear exists only in the mind.

May this year hold the best that are yet to come for all of us.

From my heart to yours,

Costas Detroit!

Poem : Το Μισοτελειωμένο Ποίημα.

Σε όποιον λέω ότι γράφω, σχεδόν πάντα, η πρώτη ερώτηση που δέχομαι είναι "γιατί δεν γράφω στα ελληνικά". Και αυτό γίνεται γιατί α) είμαι πολύ καλύτερος στα αγγλικά και β) δεν ξέρω γιατί, αλλά δεν μου "βγαίνει".

Αποφάσισα όμως ότι αξίζει να προσπαθήσω, τουλάχιστον μία φορά για να δω τι θα βγει. 

Το αποτέλεσμα είναι αυτό που θα διαβάσετε παρακάτω...

 

Σαν το φως του ήλιου που σβήνει

και το ηλιοβασίλεμα απαλά φιλά τα βουνά,

στο τέλος μου φτάνω, τίποτα πιά δεν έχει μείνει

και η καρδιά μου θα χαθεί, σαν πλοίο σε πελάγη μακρινά.

Σαν την βουή του πλήθους, ένα βράδυ στην Αθήνα,

όλα γρήγορα τρέχουν, μες την τρέλα του κόσμου.

Κι ίσως όλα τελειώνουν σαν τα βράδια εκείνα,

χείλη πικρά, μάτια υγρά, χέρια αδειανά στο τέλος του δρόμου.

Σαν τις μέρες του καλοκαιριού, σε ένα νησί, μακριά,

γέλια ταξιδεύουν στον αέρα, χαμόγελα ζωγραφίζουν την σκηνή.

Λέμε πως ξεχνάμε τον πόνο, μα πονάμε βαθιά,

γιατί η χαρά ενός αιώνα, είναι ο πόνος που νιώθω για μοναχά μιά στιγμή.

Σαν τα πουλιά που πετούν περήφανα στην αγκαλιά του ουρανού,

κάθε μέρα γρήγορα χάνεται με μια κενή ιαχή.

Και όπως τα κύματα, που με δύναμη χτυπούν την βάση ενός βράχου,

έτσι με συναισθήματα πλημμυρίζει η δικιά μου η ψυχή.

Και σαν ποίημα μισοτελειωμένο,

που για πάντα αίνιγμα θα παραμείνει,

για εμάς χάνεται το τρένο

και το τέλος, στο στήθος μου επάνω, για πάντα σαν φυλαχτό θα μείνει.

Poem : Nothing Lasts

If you want to read this poem with full explanations click here : Poetry Genius
(click on a line to read the meaning behind it)

Nothing lasts, no warm summer or cold winter can stand the test of time.

Nothing lasts, you have no recollection of a deed, whether it's charity or crime.

Nothing lasts, because even the beauty of a rose is diminished after a while.

Nothing lasts, no cry of pain or broad smile.

Nothing lasts, no excruciating pain and no overwhelming happiness.

Nothing lasts, no memory remains, no scar or sign of hopelessness.

Nothing lasts, because everything is gone, as soon as it comes.

Nothing lasts, not even a sharp wound upon my hands.

Nothing lasts as long as we wish it to.

Nothing lasts, especially when life is like a dream come true.

Nothing lasts, that's what life has taught me until now.

Nothing lasts, and life is like a maze without a map, no one can tell us how.

And even though nothing lasts and I know this for a fact,

I see that only my strong heart is left intact.

I see everyone around me living a devious lie,

and I know in my heart that I want to live a truth until I die.

Maybe nothing lasts, nothing but my soul, going against all odds,

fighting for a change, ready to face whatever challenge life holds.

Maybe nothing lasts, but my soul will live forever,

because I know that happiness and sadness go together.

Maybe nothing lasts, that's why my fears have disappeared,

I can finally see, my vision has cleared.

It's because of this that I fight, because nothing does ever last,

and I know that, either way, my life will be gone fast.

Nothing lasts.

Review : Burial At Sea Ep. 1 (Bioshock Infinite DLC)

Burial At Sea Episode 1 is the 2nd piece of DLC from Bioshock Infinite (It's the first story-based piece of DLC).

While it was released in the US 2 days ago, it became available to Europe yesterday. I didn't pay for it, since I have already bought the Season Pass which gives you all three pieces of DLC and "The Early Bird Special pack" for just 19.99 euros. I was really looking forward to playing this, since Bioshock Infinite is one of my favorite games of all time and it seemed to be very interesting that the series was returning to the world of Rapture from the first Bioshock game.  

Watch the trailer of Burial At Sea Ep. 1 below.

If you are a fan of the Bioshock series or Bioshock Infinite, you definitely have a pretty good idea about how the story and gameplay mix in Bioshock games. All three of the previous Bioshock games have a huge influence on this DLC, making it sort of a combination of all three. Although Burial At Sea Ep. 1 is short, it does deliver a good amount of content (I have finished it twice since yesterday; on my first playthrough I explored a lot, got every trophy/collectible and many times, I stood for a lot of time in some places, staring at the beautiful enviroment and it took me 2 and a half hours to beat. I played a second time just to see how quickly I could beat it without exploring and looking around and it took me no more than 1 hour and 40 minutes.) but Irrational Games has already expressed that it values quality over quantity, so I think they have achieved their goal. 

• Story

Even though it's too short, BAT Ep 1 manages to give you that "Bioshock" feeling. It doesn't do it to the point Bioshock or Bioshock Infinite does and that is not only due to the fact that it's short, but the fact that it just emphasizes on themes already used in previous games, so they seem familiar. But that was probably Irrational Games' intention; to create a story-based DLC with a lot of elements from previous Bioshock games, but with a different approach. Yes, the story is rushed and it doesn't really let the mystery built up like previous Bioshock games did, but it sure does a hell of a job at twisting the Bioshock Infinite plot. Though it may seem weird that it's set in Rapture (the place where the first 2 Bioshock games took place) and not in Bioshock Infinite's Columbia, there is an actual connection in both the ending of Bioshock Infinite and at certain points in the BAT Ep. 1. There are many references to both Bioshock and Bioshock Infinite and many fans will be at awe when they hear lines like "Constants and variables" or "I am in the debt collecting business" in the DLC. The main theme here, as in Bioshock Infinite, is the relationship between Booker (you) and Elizabeth, even though in BAT Ep. 1, it's not as crystal clear as in Infinite, because the story is focused on a little girl that is lost, Sally. Here, we see a much older, much more experienced and mysterious Elizabeth than we did in Infinite. She refuses to clearly state what she wants from Booker and even though all those who have played Bioshock Infinite will surely understand the story and many things Elizabeth says a lot better, she comes off as more of a mysterious woman. In Infinite, we see a weaker and more "dreamy" version of Elizabeth, whereas, here she is more strong and confident and in contrast to Infinite, she seems to be leading Booker towards the story's outcome, instead of being passive and submissive, like in Infinite. What I really liked from BAT Ep 1 was the return to a pre-fall Rapture. We get to see a lot of what was happening in Rapture before the original Bioshock. We get to see Cohen (he's as crazy as ever) and he does play a big part in the story. We get to see a lot of Rapture at its' peak era and that made me feel quite nostalgic, in a weird sort of way. And I think that is the biggest reason why I liked playing this DLC. The ending is like every other Bioshock game, a jaw-dropping, plot-twisting but much more predictable one. It's not as good as Infinites' and it's mainly because they almost head towards the same direction, but with a different approach. Its' short length is, in my opinion, what really kills the storys' impact, because even though I own and have played all of the Bioshock games and DLC, I think I would be more intrigued by Ep 1 if it was longer, because it would get to expand on the story and mull over various themes and that wouldn't damage the suspense of the story like it does now.

• Gameplay

The games' combat mixes both styles from the original Bioshock and Bioshock Infinite. Even though the combat rakes place more dark and smaller spaces like in Bioshock 1, the return of the sky-hook (which is named air-grabber in BAT) and tears from Infinite spices it up a bit with Infinites' all-across-the-area battles. Ammo and supplies are a lot scarcer than in Infinite, so you will use stealth and melee a lot more often than in Infinite. Vigors are called Plasmids now, like in Bioshock 1 and there's a new plasmid called Old Man Winter, which is reminiscent (but not identical to) the Winter Blast of Bioshock. There's a new weapon, and all weapon skins from Infinite have been re-textured to fit more the Rapture era and feel. Voxophones and Kinetoscopes return, though there are very few to be found. The combat is exceptional, like in all the previous games, but it also feels different. To make it short; BAT Ep 1 is like a splicing (double entendre here!) of all previous Bioshock games, both in terms of combat and atmosphere.

• Enviroment (Graphics, Sound, Atmosphere)

What is there to say about the exceptional environment of BAT Ep 1's version of Rapture? It's amazing. The graphics are great, like in all Bioshock games. At the beginning, the game has a more noir-like and jazzy atmosphere, mixing bright colors with great 50's design and beautiful NPCs. A lot of times, I found myself  just staring at the beauty and "shine" this world has. The world is full of details and there are many visual references to previous Bioshock games, which made me want to play Bioshock 1 again. The game merges the dark and scary enviroments of Bioshock 1&2 with Infinites' lively atmosphere. The music in the DLC isn't as great as in the previous games (Bioshock Infinite had an amazing soundtrack) but it's justified, considering its' shortness. The voice acting is as great as ever, with both Courtney Draper and Troy Baker delivering exquisite performances and with a cameo of T. Ryder Smith as Sander Cohen.

• Bottom Line

The DLC is great and even though it's short, it does deliver what we can expect from a Bioshock game. The story is good, but not great. Visually, it reaches perfection, with great sound and voice acting making for a very good atmosphere. In terms of combat, we get a very different approach that mixes everything we've seen in previous Bioshock games to make a great combination.

I believe that it's a DLC worth playing, especially for Bioshock fans. It's short, but good and  Ken Levines' team does a great job at delivering a good, quality product to the fans once again. The DLC had me begging for more and I can't wait to see what happens in episode 2. It costs 15$ on the PSN Store, but you can get all three pieces of DLC (plus a special pack for the game) for 19$, which is more worth it, in my opinion.

Rating :

4/5

Pros : Amazing atmosphere, good combat and the classic feel of Bioshock games.

Cons : Short and, at times, predictable story.

Be Different, Be Yourself.

Hey there, world. Been a while since I posted anything. I feel ready to break my silence, even though "sometimes silence makes a sound".
Silence may be golden, but I really felt like I needed to write down my thoughts, since, sometimes, it's the only way I can express myself.
My life has been a mess lately and there's only one thing that keeps me from breaking down; being happy about who I am. I bet that sounds weird, but it's not.
All these months, I didn't stop writing as much as I used to. But I felt like all the things that I was writing about were not something I want to share. I get a feeling when I know that I have to post something while I write it, but I haven't felt like this in months. Not until now that I just felt like I wanted to share some of my thoughts.
You see, some times, you have to get to lowest point to really understand what matters. To fully realize what keeps us standing. What keeps us from breaking down, from going crazy.
It's 4 am and I am standing here, writing, so technically I am a tiny bit crazy, but you know what I mean.

Two years ago, I was a totally different person. I couldn't realize that people could be different from me. I used to think that anyone that was different was crazy or abnormal. I used to see things in a totally different and sort of "tunnel vision" way. I didn't realize many things.
But people change and I hope mostly for the better. Because since I don't believe in any religion or any god, I think believing in people is vital for me.
I remember that I used to believe atheists and gay people should be crucified. I remember feeling hate so vigorously that I still laugh at my own self. I thought "being different" meant "being wrong" not "being yourself".
Now, two years later, I am an atheist and a huge supporter of Frank Ocean, an openly bisexual artist. I learnt that I can appreciate and support things without having to be what I support.
I support being different, being honest. I support things I am not. I support pursuing dreams. I support making something from nothing. I support being creative. And I don't need to label it as something as long as I feel it is honest. My point is : I don't need to like football to support someone doing everything in his power to become a football player.
But people don't get that. People can't think outside the box. People are not inspired by something "different". People would rather hate a gay artist without any real reason and miss out on the great art he is creating. But these people won't really live until they open their minds.
In the end we're all the same, no matter how different we are; we're all human, we all make mistakes, we all love and want to be loved, we all need things, we all believe in something. Why hate anyone that's different, when you really are more alike than different? Why disdain someone for being something you're not? It doesn't make sense to me. But then again, it once did.
All these months I realized that the only thing that helped me stand on my own two feet and continue was this; being myself, supporting people that are different and not letting hate poison me. If there's one thing I am happy about is the way I am and the way I see things. I see everything crystal-clear. I see the world as it is.
To me, if someone kills a man, it's not wrong because he is black or Asian; it's wrong because it's an act of hate.
I realized that this motivated me. I motivated myself. Frank Ocean motivated me by risking his career just to be honest and different, not caring what others might think. In the homophobic world of Hip Hop and RnB, that was a first. But it was an act of freedom that inspires me to this day and will inspire me for the rest of my life.
Thanks to some people that are pushing the boundaries every day, others live more easily. More free. More different.

I think "being free" or "different" is mostly a thing that can be expressed through art. Artists are the most free human beings. I hope I can be a great artists one day. A great writer. But the only thing that will get me there is being honest, being free, being me. Because the people I admire the most, fought against all odds to get where they're at. I hope to be like that one day; to make my dreams come true by being who I am, even if it means going against all odds. I hope to be an inspiration to people as some people are to me. 

Now, I can finally understand that, sometimes, the world is not "wrong". Our perspective is wrong. The way we look at things. 

I hope you enjoyed reading this and I hope you understood my points.

 Thank you for reading. But mostly, thank you for being yourself.

Poem : Jamais Vu (In My Dreams)

The flames are here, but where did the fire go?

It's winter, but why isn't there snow?

The world is crowded but I'm still feeling alone.

We're all different, but I still feel like a clone.

The people are empty, where did our souls go?

Is anyone happy or do we all put on a show?

How did we become so vacant, without a soul?

How did this happen? How did we lose control?

I look around, everyone's empty and sad,

looking out only for themselves, always selfish and mad.

I talk to you, but you can't seem to hear me.

Don't you want to hear me? Do you fear me?

I reach out to touch you, you're colder than ice.

Every time I think of this, a part of me dies.

I dream of a day when the whole world will change,

when we'll gain control, when we take over lifes' reins.

I dream of unconditional love, a world full of sisters and brothers,

a world where we'll treat ourselves as we want to be treated by others.

A place where we won't need to hide anymore

A place where it's not a mistake to let you see through my soul.

People won't be blind no more, they'll see the truth.

In a place full of love, a world that's bulletproof,

a world where hate doesn't exist, where we respect each other more than ourselves

where we'll be free, we'll get out of our cells. 

A place where money doesn't matter, because love is not for sale.

A world full of realness, a world where there's no shame.

A world full of difference.

A world full of change.

Maybe I am a dreamer, maybe I don't know what I'm saying,

maybe I'm crazy, maybe I'm insane.

Maybe I despise hate and fear because I am out of my mind 

or maybe I am really dying inside.

I hope that this world will become a better place.

I dream of the day everyone awakes.

Maybe you disagree, but you'll never bring me down.

I'm so happy in my dreams, I feel like I'm dancing on a cloud.

You're in my dreams now, where every day is sunny.

You're in my dreams now, where everyone is happy.

Maybe I'm a dreamer, 

but you're in my dreams now.

Welcome.

(I linked some lines to a song that inspired me to write this.)

Poem : Rise

How many times do we think that it's all over, 

how many times do we say that we'll quit?

How many times do we feel like an impotent rover?

How many times do we think that we can't make it?

But still, through all the hard times that we face

through all the hurt, pain and disappointments in our lives,

we rise, stronger than ever, feeling like the winners of this race,
even if we feel like we're trying to balance steak knives.

How many times do we feel that we live in vain,
how many times do we feel lost?
How many times do we say that we're the only one's to blame?
How many times do we feel like we should pay the cost?

But still, we rise like a phoenix from the ashes,
we rise, walking tall against the rain.
Against all odds, we find light in the darkness.
We rise once more, 'cause it's our time to reign.



(The line "balance steak knives" was inspired by a song, so I thought I should put a link there)

Keep Hope Alive

This is something I wrote as a part of a blogging team a while ago and I decided to post it here, too.
Here you can read my post on how to keep hope alive. Special thanks to all of you who read my posts! My last poem got hyped a lot more than I expected!

Poem : The Castle In The Mist...

Here you can buy and read the description of one of my favorite books "ICO : Castle in the Mist" which is the theme of this poem I'm writing. I hope you like it, cause I've put my best into making it a really good poem. The story of this book is based on a videogame. It sounds weird, I know.
The theme song is also a masterpiece and one of my favorite songs.
Here it is :

Above : The boy and the girl of the story, Ico and Yorda, holding hands. In the story, when Ico doesn't hold her hand or if he is not near her, the souls of the sacrifices try to take her back to the cage through dark wholes that appear on the floor. The painting above was inspired by "The Nostalgia of the Infinite" by the painter Giorgio de Chirico and it was painted by the director of the videogame, Fumito Ueda. The painting depicts a part at the ending of the story, where Ico and Yorda try to escape the castle.

I first played the videogame when it came out, in 2001-2002. To this day, it's still one of my favorites.

There's nothing like this place, this castle in the mist

a scary place, a place of pain, but no one can resist.

It's a ripple in the ocean, yet, it is the whole world

an empty place,  it can't be explained by no word.

Nothing can define this empty castle sitting on this hill, next to the sea, but so far from this world, from this galaxy

abandoned, vacant, empty, lifeless, blank , like a little cavity.

Oh, Castle, are you real, or are you a mirage?

Am I your slave, your friend, or am I in charge?

I do not know, but I do know that within you, there lies death.

Are you my rebirth or are am I to leave here my last breath?

I am a sacrifice, born for you

but I can't find a way to get through to you.

The sarcophagus broke in half, like it was made of dust

it's late now, it's the time of dusk..

No one knows where you are, oh, Castle, you're forbidden,

only the priests and kings know your location, the place where you're hidden.

A priest and two soldiers brought me to you, but they closed my eyes

not wanting me to see the way, not wanting for me to see through your disguise.

They all fear you, so they give you sacrifices, us, the horned children,

we're born once even one or two hundred years and we're considered villains,

'cause once, a horned knight tried to destroy your kingdom, your mighty Queen,

and since then, sacrifices are all you've ever seen.

But I am different, because I was born to bring you down,

that's why I fear you castle, I am the first to be capable of bringing you down,

but I'm only a child, not a wise warrior, so I'm afraid

'cause I'm abandoned, like a little cade...

I was supposed to die and give my soul to you, but I'm free, running through your hallways. 

I was supposed to be here, with you, always,

to be a part of you, like the crumpled souls of the other sacrifices that live within your walls

but I am different, I'm born to bring an end to your existence, I'm stronger than those souls.

Once I began roaming through your corridors, I found a huge cage

and in it, I found the whole world... I found a girl, at first, it seemed strange

but there she was, her beauty overshadowing me, her pure soul lighted the room. 

She was afraid, too, she must've been here for a long time, you're her mighty doom.

I freed her and when she touched me, my heart was filled with light, 

a light so pure, it blurred my sight. 

Oh, mighty Queen of the Castle, she's you little daughter,

yet, like a prisoner you hold her.

That's because, you have no body of your own, oh Queen, you're the Queen of darkness 

and you want to kill the light of the world, dear Queen, that's why you bring her sadness.

You both have lived for thousands of years, but haven't aged a day,

'cause you're only a spirit and she's your vessel, you're the hunter, she's the prey.

She once wanted to destroy your deathly plans, alongside the horned knight

but you brought an end to it, guarding her from the light.

You made her you prisoner, forever to be here, 

to serve your purposes. She's just a child, but she's your heir.

She wishes she could be gone, 

but she doesn't even know, if she'll see another dawn.

But thousands of dawns have passed, but she did not notice, 

'cause you've forsaken her, you broke another promise.

She forgot how to speak, she can't communicate, but she gives me visions,

memories of this place. I see its' glory and that it's vicious,

but tell me, Queen, why, oh why, did you want the God of Darkness to rule,

why do you deprive the world of the Light and treat it like a tool?

Me and her, your little daughter, we're born to destroy you, don't you know?

It has been your destiny, and it's happening, right now.

Can't you feel it, creeping upon you like the morning sun?

I forgot that light can't touch you, you can't feel it, none.

Every time that I touch her hand, I see another memory

another story of her life, which you've coated with emery.

I feel something that you can't, that's why I'll defeat you, it's love

but you're as gloomy and caliginous as the mist that twirls and swirls above.

The Castle is dusty, old and destroyed, 

yet that is only a disguise, to make it seem void.

We face each other, Queen, and you try to kill me,

but your daughter and all those spirits, help me 

to avoid your deadly curse. I want to leave the Castle and take your daughter away

to make us disappear, like a needle in the hay.

It's hard but we can make it, I fight with all my will

we're trying to escape, get away from this hill.

The Light fights the Dark and soon the end will come,

to either your whole army, or maybe of them, some

but surely, we'll escape, I have no doubt of that.

Many people that tried to do it, you've turned them to stone, I can't forget that,

but the knight comes to my sight, his ghost gives me his sword

"and with it, you'll defeat her" is all I'm told.

As we fight, I pass out and wake up in the sea

and your daughter is all that I can see,

she holds my hand, but I don't know if we defeated you

as soon as she could speak, she told me " I believe in YOU". 

But my strength gives up on me, I pass out once more

I wake on a beach, left without her, the one that I adore.

I don't know where I am or what to do, so I try to return, back to my home

I travel fast, through forests and next to seas, under a sky painted orange, looking like a dome. 

Days begin and end and soon I found my way back,

back to my village, while the sky's black.

I tell them all about our story and how we defeated her,

but I can't forget about you, oh, how I wish you were here..

I'll come back for you, now that the Dark is lost

I hope that when I come, I'll find you by that coast.

I still feel you, you mean so much to me

your beauty is something that's way beyond me.

I am on my way to find you, just to see

if you're there or if I lost you at the sea.
I hope you're well, now that your doomed days are over

but what if I don't find you, will all of it be over?

I dream of you, but we're apart, 

but soon, I'll find you and I'll give you all my heart.
The journey's long, but I can't wait to live with you by my side,

it's sad, the way I'm so messed up inside.

I'll come, my love, I'll find you,

and then, I wish to live my life beside you.
Sweet Yorda, where are you? Are you somewhere safe?

I hope you'll be there, so I see your face again.. One day.. 

There must be a few mistakes in this poem. Either way, no one's perfect, right?