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Red Dead Redemption 2 Review

For eight years, a large group of designers, developers, and writers at the studios of Rockstar games set out to make a well thought-out prequel to the award-winning predecessor, Red Dead Redemption. And, as expected from a studio such as this one, the prequel did not disappoint.

Red Dead Redemption 2 follows the infamous Van Der Linde Gang as they fight to keep both their freedom and their criminal ways from being stripped away from them by the law. The story is told in the perspective of Arthur Morgan, one of the oldest and most trusted members of the gang, as he traverses the Wild West either killing or helping folk as he tries to support his ragtag gang of a family. From a story standpoint, the game passes all expectations with flying colors, providing an experience no cowboy movie could ever dream to accomplish. The transition from gameplay to cutscene is smooth and allows for a more fluid experience. The story molds to how the game is played, incorporating an honor system that is affected by actions made by the player. If the player decides to go on a mass killing spree and act out their most outrageous Wild West fantasies, they will be treated with a different ending than that of the one players who play honorably and peacefully did. This also allows players to shape Arthur in their own image.

If the player doesn’t want to jump straight into the story, they can still take their time exploring the fictional world provided to them by completing one of the many side missions provided to them, such as locating lost treasure, hunting legendary beasts, or even helping a lost tourist find his way back to the small town of Strawberry. Players can also find many hidden easter eggs scattered throughout the world, ranging from finding mutilated bodies that tie into a serial killer to finding a hobbit-esque home tucked into the side of a hill bordering the mountain range that spans the length of the map.

Players can also tell that a lot of love and effort was put into the smaller details. For example, the games built-in passage of time. The player can cut their character’s hair, but unlike other games with customizable characters, the player must let their hair grow out in order to style it differently. If you kill an animal and leave the body, the corpse will decay over time.

The npc’s and the interactions that the player can have in regards to them are also a fascinating component to the overall immersive feeling of the game. The player can interact with and antagonize the members of the gang while leaving either a positive or negative impression on these npc’s. The player can also interact with many other characters throughout the game that will remember the way they were treated. Take the homeless Veteran Mickey for example. Mickey spawns in the small town of Valentine, the first town available to the player upon the completion of the prologue. At first glance, he appears to be a nuisance, and the player can choose to interact with him accordingly. If the player chooses to be kind to him, he will regard the player with fondness at the end of the game but if the player doesn’t and chooses to be cruel to him, then he will regard them with disdain and will refuse to interact with them further. The game also features a handful of different kinds of dogs throughout the towns the players visit and, if treated well, will remember the player and will happily trot over to them every time they visit. But, like Mickey, if they treat the dog cruelly, they will attack the player.

There’s also the environment and weather conditions that the player has to keep in mind. The game offers players a large map to explore, each different area containing its own weather conditions; the player must dress their character accordingly or their overall health will be affected. 

The controls are a tad bit touchy; while raiding a home for supplies, the player has to be exact with the character placement in order for the in-game prompt to be triggered. And the online multiplayer is not nearly as perfect and accepted as the studios acclaimed GTA V’s online mode, but besides this, there aren’t many concerning problems with the game. 

Overall, Red Dead Redemption 2 is a masterpiece of a game. From the amazing storytelling to the amount of detail put into the game, Red Dead Redemption 2 has truly succeeded in standing out in a gaming world dominated by the battle royale genre.

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Avengers Endgame : A love letter to the fans

The lights of the theater dim, everyone takes their seats and the faint smell of popcorn wafts through the air. Metal clanging can be heard from the surround sound speakers following the infamous Marvel logo and the theater goes silent. This is the end of an era; this is the end game.

For the past 11 years, Marvel Studios worked tirelessly to bring the world of comic books to the silver screen, starting with Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal of the titular character Tony Stark in 2008’s Iron Man. Within this past decade, Marvel fans saw the likes of Iron Man, Captain America, Ant Man, Thor, and many others grace the screen, defending the Earth from the many perils of the galaxy as the producers masterfully intertwined the individual stories into one consistent universe. Marvel set the bar high for extended universes and it is no surprise that their latest installment, Avengers End Game, lived up to the standards set by both the critics and the fans alike.

End game follows the events of last year's Avengers Infinity War, with Stark and Nebula stranded in space as the remaining hero's on Earth are left to wallow in their sense of grief and loss. The Avengers have lost, being completely powerless to stop the mad titan Thanos from killing off half of the universe in a self-righteous attempt to save civilizations from destroying themselves. A sense of failure clung to the air as the knowledge of defeat weighed down heavily on both the characters and the movie goers. That is, until Ant Man returns seemingly from the dead bearing a solution to right what has been wronged.

Endgame is the epitome of what a Marvel movie should be; a perfect conclusion to the studios cumulative 22 movies. And, at the heart of it, it is quintessentially a love letter to the fans who remained loyal to the studio from day one. Scenes scattered throughout the movie were very reminiscent of scenes seen in prior movies, from the way it was filmed to direct mirroring of a shot. Die hard fans would notice both these very subtle nods and the more direct call backs while more casual fans could notice the overall significance of the scene. As a whole, the filming style was very fluid and appealing to the eye, having a darker, more colder tone to go along with it’s more pessimistic tenor in the beginning while introducing more and more vibrant colors into the later scenes to represent the swell of hope. The music also plays off of the tone, having more grave sounding music playing softly in the background in the first act of the film, buoyant-esque music played in the second, and a triumphant march in the third. The filming, the pacing, and the music help drive the film forward, preventing the astounding runtime of 3 hours from feeling as though it’s dragging the story on.

The story itself, though a bit confusing after the initial viewing, is that of a true comic book tale, having both heart and action mixed cleverly while the writing team incorporates the characters they so lovingly crafted throughout the past decade. And, by creating Endgame, the studio in turn thanks the viewers for investing 11 long years into these characters and stories. The ending was a bittersweet conclusion to the Infinity Saga but one that felt only natural for a series of it’s calibr. The directors showed their love for both the fans and their characters by giving the viewers a marvel of a movie while introducing new, younger fans to the series. It was a melancholic send off into adulthood for the children who grew up with the series while setting up for a new era of films perfect for the newer generation of fans. Marvel truly made movie history with this universe; allowing for comic book movies to have a chance within the film industry.

At the time of writing this, Endgame has made 1.2 billion dollars in the box office worldwide within just its opening weekend, shattering previously set records, and is predicted to haul in a staggering 3 billion dollars at the end of its theatrical run. 

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The Portrayal of Satanism and How it Affects the Youth of Today

Preface

Growing up, I always had a pretty decent idea of what was good and what was evil. I knew that cops were the good guys and the robbers were the bad guys and I knew that Batman was the hero and the Joker was the villain. But I guess the most prominent example I knew of regarding the power struggle of morality was the battle between God and the Devil, with God being the bringer of life and the Devil being the evil incarnate. But, in more recent times, with society becoming more open when it comes to one’s belief, the idea of Satan or, more appropriately, Lucifer, being a misunderstood bringer of justice has become a more accepted concept among the younger population. This is only because of how he is presented in works of fiction like the Fox television show Lucifer, which is, in turn, based off of the DC comic series of the same name. The show follows Lucifer, the archangel who was cast out of heaven for refusing to follow his father’s orders,  as he sets out to bring justice upon the criminals of L.A. This backstory can also be seen in the television show, Supernatural, where he is still a villain of the story but is given a sense of humanity for the pain he feels for being cast out by the father he loved. 

Background

The Church of Satan, which is one of more the commonly referenced branches of Satanism, was founded in 1960 by Anton Szandor Lavey in the United States.  Laveyan Satanism has the core belief of more humanistic values, which prioritizes the betterment of oneself. Satan, being the symbol of the religion, represents self assertion, rebellion against unjust authority, vital existence, and “undefiled wisdom.”

Lavey learned much about the occult and ritual-magic teachings during his time as a carnival worker and, in 1966, incorporated them in the tenants of the church he founded on the Walpurgisnacht, or April 30th (which is referred to as May eve). In 1969, he sat down and recorded these beliefs and teachings in the Satanic bible. They also participated in rituals designed to encourage members to develop their sense of self-importance and to cast away their past lives full of submissiveness.

But what appeals to people the most are the Satanic Commandments that Lavey conjured up within this bible. The 11 Satanic commandments are:

Do not give opinions or advice unless you are asked.

Do not tell your troubles to others unless you are sure they want to hear them.

When in another’s lair, show him respect or else do not go there.

If a guest in your lair annoys you, treat him cruelly and without mercy.

Do not make sexual advances unless you are given the mating signal.

Do not take that which does not belong to you unless it is a burden to the other person and he cries out to be relieved.

Acknowledge the power of magic if you have employed it successfully to obtain your desires. If you deny the power of magic after having called upon it with success, you will lose all you have obtained.

Do not complain about anything to which you need not subject yourself.

Do not harm little children.

Do not kill non-human animals unless you are attacked or for your food.

When walking in open territory, bother no one. If someone bothers you, ask him to stop. If he does not stop, destroy him.

Not only do these promote a more open religion for the impressionable gen z, but it also appeals to a more open society as a whole. These commandments are comparable to the ideals that have been seen more frequently within this evolving society, especially with the obvious disdain for sexual assault, child abuse, animal abuse, and being an overall nuisance.

Interview one (Axel Garcia, 17)

I was on the phone with my first subject, Axel Garcia, when the matter was brought up. Me and him have discussed both religion and the existence of an afterlife many times before this. Upon beginning the interview, I noticed that he was at ease and the topic itself did not bother him.  1

What is your Religious affiliation?

“I’m not a very religious person, I need evidence in order to believe in something so I’d say that I’m agnostic.”

When you hear the terms Satan and Satanism, what comes to mind?

“Evil and the flames of the hell for Satan and people who do not like God.”

How do you think media portrays Satan and Satanism?

“Some portray him as the king of darkness and the prince of all evil, while others portray him as this cool, chill guy who’s trying to become good.”

Would you say that this portrayal have affected the way you view them?

“As a kid, everytime he was mentioned, I thought, ‘Holy Crap, it’s the devil, he’s gonna punish me if I don’t behave,’ but as I got older, I started to think for myself and with shows like Lucifer and even kids shows sometimes painting him out to be just another person doing what he needs to do really impacted my views.” 

Interview two (Matthew Krug, 17)

The next person I interviewed was Matthew Krug. I asked him first if it was okay to interview him on the matter and, to my suprise, he was excited. The day of the interview, he kept texting me about how excited he was regarding it and how he could not wait to do it. 

What is your religious affiliation?

“I was born Roman Catholic but up until a couple years ago, I have not been as religious and I now recognize myself as agnostic.”

When you hear the term satanism, what comes to mind?

“When I was younger, Satanism was just...Satanism; they worship the devil, sacrifice babies and all that. But now, with the more that I have learned about them, I see them as more independent as anything else. The whole thing about Satanism is being independent from religion or God and that is really being a service to yourself than to a higher power.”

When you hear the term Satan, what comes to mind?

“Well, because of popular media and stuff like that, the term Satan and the Devil will obviously be coincided with evil and bad, but right now, Satan is just...Satan, I don’t really feel a certain way about the word or have any negative or positive connotations with it.”

How do you think media portray Satan and Satanism?

“Obviously, since the world is run by religion, Satan and Satanism are portrayed as the bad guys and evil.”

Would you say that this portrayal have affected the way you view them?

“No, because I know it’s just pop culture; it’s just media putting their two-cents in.”

If you had to stereotype a Satanist, how would you describe them?

“The stereotypical ones are the people who draw pentagrams in lambs blood and sacrifice virgins and babies. But, as I see them now, they’re just people trying to believe in and follow a certain ideological standpoint and deity just like everyone else. I’m not going to persecute them for that.

Interview three (Christopher Dellinger)

The next person I decided to interview was my father, who is active in the music scene. Having played in numerous rock and alternative bands for the past couple of decades, I decided to speak with him about the matter. When the topic was brought up, I noticed that he was passionate about it. The questions for this interview went more in depth than the other ones.

What is your religious affiliation?

“Christian.”

When you hear the term Satan, what comes to mind?

“The Devil, a two-horned man with red skin and a goatee. The father of evil, the one who crushes the universe.”

When you hear the term Satanism, what comes to mind?

“A group of impressionable people who made up their views based off of a fictitious book written by Anton Lavey (Satanic Bible) in the 1960 who don’t really have a clue on what goes on.” 

How would you say that Satan and Satanism is portrayed in media?

“It’s glorified, to make Satan seem like a superhero and is portrayed as something spooky, yet cool, which is not a good interpretation. Unfortunately, if there is a good and an evil, Hell is not going to be a party. If you go to Hell, you’re screwed; there is not this big rock and roll party in the streets where you get to hang out with your bros and jam out to Ozzy Osbourne and eat barbecue. So the portrayal is misguiding.”

Would you say that this portrayal has affected the way younger generations see him?

“Yes, because they blur the lines between good and evil and they glorify satan by thinking that Satan is actually good and could be something possible when it’s not.”

Would you say that this portrayal have affected the way you view them?

“Kind of, because it makes me dislike the fake Satanists, the people that believe in Anton Lavey, that do not have a good understanding of good and evil and think that they could have created a religion in the 1960’s. They claim that they are their own God and that they don’t believe in it while denouncing the bible.”

How do you feel about the younger generations viewing Satan as this anti-hero, in a way?

“Unfortunately, they’re just misguided, and don’t have a proper understanding of the religion or what Satanism actually is.”

Since you’re in the heavy metal scene and have been for awhile, how would you say that this portrayal has affected rock and roll?

“There’s a funness about it because there is rebellion such as ACDC’s Highway to Hell. Heavy metal has been associated with Satan. Members of Slayer have actually said that they’re catholics and it’s all for show. Marilyn Manson has had a career on being a priest at the Church of Satan and using Satan as a platform. But, in the end of the day, it’s all theatrics and, in that aspect, it’s fun for Halloween and shock rock. It’s fun as rebellion, but as long as the lines aren’t crossed and someone doesn’t commit an act of evil, then it’s fine. Partying with the devil seems like a great idea, but at the end of the day, as long as those lines aren’t blurred, it’s entertainment and shouldn’t be taken more than face value.”

Would you say that this portrayal is affecting the way kids see religion?

“Yes, it’s changing to an extent but there is always been young people that have rebelled against their parents. It’s just comes in different forms and now it might be more open, but it is what it is. Kids will always rebel against what their parents want for them until they are parents and the cycle just repeats itself.”

Conclusion

Going into this topic, I initially thought that Satanism and Satan were prime components of society that affected children but, the more research that I did, the more I realized that this issue could actually be viewed as an overlying theme and broken into a cluster of smaller pieces meant for a grander puzzle; glorification, societal acceptance, the change of religious importance, and rebellion.

With glorification and societal acceptance, which can both be tied into each other, one could infer that this type of response only happens when society allows for it. The idea of living in a society in which has become more accepting to unconventional practices, allows for this newer generation, who are leading members of this more liberal movement, to find an interest in a ideal that has previously been found as ludicrous and taboo. This, in turn, creates a worldwide mindset where people can, in a sense, exist in a moral purgatory; where life and, more specifically, morality, is not so black and white. Where something that should be inherently evil can have the possibility of being viewed as something else. And Laveyan Satanism caters to that by turning Satan into a symbol of acceptance.

As for teenage rebellion and religious importance, which can also be tied into each other, Satan is only an example of an outlet for children to rebel against an ‘unjust authoritarian figure,’ aka their parents (which correlates to the very symbolism this figure has within the religion). With Satan being such a prominent figure for being on the opposite end of the spectrum of conventional thinking and beliefs, teens are drawn to him for shock value. Plus, with how he is portrayed as this symbol of freedom, free thinking, and a live-for-yourself mentality, it is no surprise that teens wouldn’t see him as something entirely evil for they see a piece of themselves within the illusionary mask of the devil. And, if religion plays an important role within their upbringing, it is more likely for them to follow this path in order to spite their parents and drift away from family-set expectations.

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The Inevitability of War

The Deadly Safety Blanket

When He broke the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come.” And another, a red horse, went out; and to him who sat on it, it was granted to take peace from the earth, and that men would slay one another; and a great sword was given to him.

In a perfect world, governments wouldn’t have to create weapons of mass destruction to act as a tool of consolation. But this world is far from perfect. The concept of war is an ideal conjured up to define a period of violent unease. This state of unease is often thought to be a natural response embedded into the code of human nature; the fear of war and the need to prevent it. Mankind is destined to find war even in times of peace and, as pessimistic as that may be, there might be a hint of truth behind it. 

To understand why war itself is inevitable, the leading cause must be found first. And, despite paranoia being the fundamental reason, the true fuel to the fire is the creation of weapons of mass destruction. These weapons, created with the intent of inflicting mass casualties and destruction, often utilize biological, chemical, radiological, and nuclear materials and typically come in the form of bombs. Countries create these weapons in fear and preparation for war. 

The world, though, is as close to being at “peace” as it has ever been. Perhaps it’s wrong to assume that these kind of weapons would be used during a “time of peace” for war can be prevented with the very instruments that could cause it. For 200,000 years, humans have had the power to create weapons but yet, they have only been used for the past 13,000 years. Wars in general have only taken up 1 percent of Humanity’s time on Earth. Humans, by nature, are naturally peaceful. For decades, the United States have had atomic weapons yet, they haven’t detonated one since 1945. Yet, mankind is ruled by both power and fear.

In the midst of WWII, as Adolf Hitler and his Nazis threatened to tear apart the very foundation of society, the Manhattan Project was founded. Under the direction of General Leslie Groves and nuclear physicist Robert J. Oppenheimer, the project, a research and development program, was designed to produce the first nuclear weapons and, more specifically, the atomic bomb. From 1942 to 1946, research, which had been performed at several sites around the United States, from the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico led to the creation of the first atomic bombs. Shortly after Franklin D. Roosevelt died and Harry S. Truman took the mantle of President, the two atomic bombs created by this project were released; one detonated in Hiroshima on the 6th of August 1945 and the other in Nagasaki on the 9th. These weapons, having been created due to the discovery of Nuclear Fission, were a product of fear from the idea of mass death and destruction. In turn, the United States created these bombs in retaliation; December 7th, 1941, Japanese fighter pilots release a surprise attack on the Naval base Pearl Harbor, killing more than 200,000 people. When a child is scared of the dark, the first thing they do is arm themselves with a flashlight; a safety blanket of some sort. The United States was the child in this situation and the weapons were their flashlight.

Regardless of the situation, the world is full of trigger happy politicians waiting for the other shoe to drop and, once it does, life as we know it may be over. Whether it be North Korea’s failed attempts at creating a nuke with a long enough range to hit countries such as the United States or President Trump’s threats of response if one of those nukes were to hit home, tension is high in this world and it seems to be worsening as time goes by.

The biggest threat that arises from the creation of these weapons, though, is the possibility of a Nuclear Holocaust. What these politicians don’t understand about the weapons they so carelessly wave around is that these weapons can spell out the end of times. The theory of a Nuclear Holocaust is one often seen in most fiction regarding post-apocalyptic scenarios, but it’s closer to reality than one might think. Although the current arsenals don’t have enough weapons and power to eradicate all of mankind, the fallout still affects the climate and could bring about a nuclear winter. A nuclear winter is an environmental devastation that is caused when the damaging effects of the light, heat, blast, and radiation caused by nuclear explosions create large amounts of nitrogen oxide and deplete the layer of the ozone in the stratosphere that shields living things from much of the harmful ultraviolet radiation. Large amounts of dust are then kicked up into the atmosphere, which also blocks the sunlight from reaching the surface of the Earth. Several hundred million tons of soot and smoke would then form a uniform belt of particles encircling the Northern Hemisphere from 30° to 60° latitude. This black cloud will then plunge the Earth into darkness for a period close to several weeks and could thus destroy Earth’s vegetation and animal life. On top of widespread livestock death and the failure of crops, it is believed that a combination of the extreme cold, high radiation levels, and the destruction of industrial, medical, and transportation infrastructures would kill off most of Earth’s population, leaving it at merely a fraction of its previous size.

Despite this very possible threat, war is still inevitable. The only true way to prevent it is to put a halt on weapons manufacturing. Despite how peaceful humans are, there is always that fear and paranoia that will pull at their actions and, if acted upon without caution, the world as we know it could be lost. When push comes to shove, and things get too heated, they can act either impulsively or responsibly, and, sadly, it isn’t the latter. Humans have done many great things; created technological feats, but they have also created the very weapons that will destroy life. Humans are the rider of the red horse and the sword is the nuclear weapons they created.