Author Archives: bcarr

Upgrade anxiety.

Well, I was going to order ye olde iPhone 11 from my wireless provider this week, and then I saw a MacRumors post reporting on the latest iPhone 12 rumors.1

I know I should be able to look past something that’s not going to be on the market for another nine months, but sakes alive, I’ve forgotten what it means to be in the tick-tock product cycle that Apple has been in for the longest time.

For context, I have an iPhone 7 Plus with a battery that should be replaced. I would have already done this, but my screen has a nice-sized crack in it, running from slightly left of the center bottom edge to the volume rocker on the upper left edge of the unit. It otherwise functions normally, aside from the odd barcode being a pain to scan from time to time thanks to an abnormal crack running through any given representation of the binary language.

Sadly, the damage excludes my device from being serviced officially, unless I replace the glass front of my screen.

And so, after holding out for as long as I could bear with the battery, I decided that I was going to take advantage of my carrier’s interest-free financing of a new iPhone 11. I haven’t been a fan of being beholden under contract to a carrier for awhile, but I can’t really see anything wrong with this payment plan–especially when I can pay the whole balance off at any time without a penalty.

Of course, Apple offers a similar plan, but I feel even more like I’m leasing a device in that case, instead of owning a device.

Maybe I’ll just get over it and commit to getting a new device.

Here’s to hoping I remember to buy a case for it.

  1. MacRumors: iPhone 12 Lineup Expected to Feature Up to 6GB of RAM ↩

This is not Destiny 2 FOMO, I swear.

Destiny 2’s development has been rather infuriating to watch form the sidelines. I played a fair amount of the game in its first year, but became disenchanted with it as the weekly grind grew in scope to require a full-time commitment.

I noticed a sad not about the descent into microtransaction madness on Kotaku that cited some insane numbers. 30 hours to grind for one set? Being paywalled out of the others?

So much of the new content seems locked behind the microtransaction marketplace. Or locked behind player decisions (which isn’t completely horrible, but it’s still a drag to earn all three rewards for an event which is otherwise insignificant to the game world).

Meanwhile, The Division 2’s sets are part of seasonal events that can be (relatively) easily grinded out over a period of a couple of weeks—because these goals are designed to be achievable.

I wish more people played Divvo 2.

CDL upends format weeks before debut

ATVI recently announced a shift in the Call of Duty League’s format—or so they would have you believe.1

Originally, the CDL intended to run a series of events internationally to facilitate league matches. These events—a sort of CDL World Tour, if you like—would also play host to a amateur system’s tournament series.

In a statement published this past Christmas Eve, ATVI announced it would replace these league matches with what it calls “pro tournaments.” The CDL is quick to point out that this change means more professional matches will be played at each event and, as a result, it will build more hype for its on-site spectators and stream audience.

The CDL World Tour remains a huge risk for ATVI’s latest esports venture, but there are more warning signs in the statement that suggest the CDL might not be what fans expect (especially in the context of the Overwatch League).

If watchability is truly a focus for ATVI, you’d think you’d be able to cite OWL’s operation as an example of success. This is not the case.

However, CODXVI is, thankfully, simpler than its previous iterations. By abandoning a class-based meta preferred by previous series iterations, the game’s mechanics and weapon selection will have a chance to shine in the spotlight. Personally, I have concerns about the frantic pace and sheer complexity of a typical COD match being too much to digest in a single stream for the uninitiated viewer—especially on respawn-enabled game modes. This fundamental issue is something that most team-based esports struggle with the most, and OWL is no exception.

And what are “pop-culture infusions,” anyway? Concerts? Raves? A Call of Duty-meets-Ingress clone? Gimmicks like these might not turn out to be total train wrecks, but it’s hard to guess at what ATVI have in mind.

On the other hand, fan-first experiences have tremendous potential, though these might be as straightforward as announcements of new content for CODXVI. These experiences will more than likely mean on-site playable demos of new multiplayer content and new weapons. Though it’s a shame that those lucky enough to make the pilgrimage will earn this privilege, the hype it could generate will help maintain the stability of CODXVI going forward.

I, for one, do hope we are getting an expansion of what turned out to be an impressive re-telling of the early beats of Modern Warfare’s namesake.

The CDL remains something to keep an eye on, regardless of the turmoil currently embroiling ATVI’s other franchise-based esports venture—no—especially because of that other venture currently in meltdown mode. If the CDL took any lessons learned from OWL, I hope they found committed staff with fresh ideas on creating watchable content instead of relying on a sheer mountain of cash to attract the hype it needs to maintain critical mass.

Not changing games every year would be a start.

  1. https://www.callofdutyleague.com/en-us/news/call-of-duty-league-adds-pro-tournaments-for-2020-season ↩