Didn't think I'd be experiencing temperatures rising to almost 30C, but here we are. Partly been the reason why I haven't said much recently, but I have slowly been working on remaking an old NES mock-up of mine, that being the Sectonia boss fight in Kirby:Triple Deluxe

My aim is to Make arenas for both the standard and flowered fight with the possibility of maybe doing something like the secret phase in the true arena. I doubt it'll end up being a 1:1 recreation as I've already had to take some creative liberties, but I hope it'll look a lot better than when I tried doing it a year or so ago

Small preview of what I have so far

Almost a year ago, I had a bit of a nostalgia trip and began the hobby of collecting Gogos; Small plastic figurines which acted like jacks but you could use and collect them for other games. My primary goal was to collect all the official most-wanted variants, and as of early May, my mission had finally been accomplished

However, despite completing my childhood dream, I realised there was much more to be done, so as of now, I've decided to pursue a new game+ of some sort; Casually collecting Gogo's which I have never seen before such as the Mega trips, Groovy, and other series that aren't native to the UK

I'd really like to talk about them sometime; Probably the best way to do that would be something like a storytime-esque sort of video; Something brief and simple since Gogo rabbit hole is insanely deep x_x

Decided to ask a proper question this time as I've had an idea to make a Mario Kart video in preparation for the new one coming in the next few days, specifically Mario Kart: Double Dash!! However, that was shortly followed by the realisation that I suck at writing stuff like that

I have a few solid ideas; It's the cohesion that throws me off; Something to combine them together and make it feel natural. I was wondering if anyone has any good pointers or know some sources that could help with video essay writing?

Gives me an excuse to draw a thumbnail to distract me from the fact that I've struggled to design an OC for weeks

Decided to sell my 2 previous monitors to upcycle for a new one with significantly better specs, mainly the screen resolution and one with much more customisability. Delivered today and I'm very pleased with the results so far (minus the few initial issues on setup x_x)

With that, I should pretty much be sorted with tech as I've gotten myself into a comfortable position and don't feel the need to upgrade further, and I'm looking very forward to making the most out of it via my hobbies and the upcoming NS2

Speaking of, I found out that my constant issues with line weight could be fixed via some hidden settings for the brush. Goes to show how new to digital art I still am @_@

Currently been enjoying an extended birthday since my parents arrived from their holiday yesterday and wanted to celebrate. With my 21st concluded, the next question is what's next for 22?

It's something I've not done before, but it would be interesting to have some sort of resolution/goal to motivate me through the year, and to start simple, I think it would be cool to try and get to 100 followers on either Newgrounds, YouTube, or BlueSky...

I hope to also use my drawing tablet every day, but more so for practice and not pressuring myself to always make a full product. I can barely draw as it is, so burn out is something I don't even want to think about

Audio is a thing I'm strangely passionate for but can get a little overwhelmed and become a perfectionist pretty easily. Most of my attention has mostly been towards stuff for my microphone but I have also gradually been collecting samples and effects in hopes that I may one day properly pursue music/audio stuff as a hobby

The issue? I get paranoid as fuck about it!

It's partly to be expected as I had not followed music academically and has comparatively been the youngest of my hobbies, but the self-doubt soon kicks in as I make a few small loops but it's the cohesion and personality that my confidence struggles with

I'm sure I'll get it eventually; It's always starting a hobby that's the motivation killer. Either way, I have gradually been collecting samples and effects (most on offer, because why tf is it all so expensive!?) to help me get a better idea on what is it that I would like to create

On another note, I've also been excited about my impending birthday on the 10th and closing my time as being 21. Probably been the more enjoyable years of my life with a lot of my childhood goals resolved, so I guess the only thing to do now is look forward!

Been house-sitting for almost a month with my schedule mostly being reserved for irl matters, so I apologise for the sudden ghosting...

Fortunately, I've taken this opportunity to clean up obsoleted accounts/emails and attend to my other hobbies, and on that topic, I am happy to definitively announce that I have officialy completed my collection of Wanted/Most-Wanted Gogo's!

It's taken me just shy of a year since starting the hobby, but I think I did very well despite how arbitrarily rare some were. Either way, I can rest happily knowing I can officially retire collecting Gogo's

Apologies for the sudden disappearance for the past few days. Haven't been able to touch art for a while due to being a little stretched for time and energy from house-sitting and also getting used to being solely on my own for a little more than 2 weeks. I've been enjoying the independence though and finally been able to clear my room out a little

I've been able to draw a little as well as finding an old pixel art piece that I hope to remake, but nothing's been finalized yet. However, I am close to working on a redesign for my self-oc since their initial version felt a little too rough around the edges. The idea is a creature that exists in the realm of abstract thought, and thus, consists of simple shapes and cannot stay in a consistent form for too long

Clothing is the one thing I need to work on since I really such at trying to come up with something unique. You can tell my wardrobe in real life is a little shallow x_x

As a first-time player of the series, I can definitely say I've had an absolutely awesome time playing Pokémon Black & White! While the few days of grinding I did prior burned me out a little, it was well worth the wait against the final bosses. For now, I'll probably take a break in favour of changing the scenery with a different franchise, and I then hope to try out the sequel (B&W 2) and maybe the 3DS games

Overall, while I still have a lot of learning to do regarding the intricate systems of Pokémon, I'm glad everyone recommended me a game that was very helpful with introducing me to the series

And as a Dorkly fan, you know very well what I was going to nickname my Reshiram

It's funny because music is the one of the few things that I've had a consistent interest in through games such as Club Penguin, My Singing Monsters, and Incredibox, but just never ended up becoming a hobby for some reason

That partly changed last year when I was inspired to try it out through a YouTube channel by Levi Niha who made a lot of cool mixes using sounds from video games which lead me to learn a lot about music, VSTs, and just audio engineering in general through self-teaching and a ton of YouTube videos. At the moment, I've recently been trying it out again and starting off with simple BPMs and time signatures, and from my observation, I'm definitely into the more fast-paced, energetic feeling tracks but also calmer genres like Lofi

My current goal (which might also be a good video idea) is to make a small track using samples that I had ripped straight from that DJ minigame from Club Penguin; The game that probably started my interest for music in the first place.

Hopefully, it won't suck