Just in Case...

It’s no secret I’m really fond of Apple’s various iOS devices. Ever since I got the original iPod touch, it’s become an integral part of the way I work, consume, and interact with the bits and bytes I love.

Something I’m less fond of is Apple’s penchant for cladding its iPods in a stainless steel back. Oh, it’s beautiful for sure, but it’s a malicious and ephemeral sort of beauty, the kind of mirror finish that attracts scratches if you so much as look at it the wrong way. It’s a lesson I learned quickly with that first iPod touch, and one I rectified out-of-the-box when I replaced it with the fourth-generation model some years later. I chose the case from SwitchEasy because it advertised itself as the thinnest case on the market. Having been used to using my previous one naked for all these years, I really wanted the case to be as unobtrusive as possible.

It certainly was thin, and unobtrusive, but it was also a fragile thing, and after a year of use it began to fracture in the corners. I guess there’s a reason other cases weren’t this thin.

So long story short, I needed a new case, pronto. But I wanted it to last, so my preference for a barely-there case was no longer a top requirement. And if I’m wanting it to last...well! I better make it something I want to look at, right?

So that’s how this came to be:

Uncommon prints custom made-to-order cases based on whatever art you send them (like this great combined effort with Niko Geyer). The price may be a bit on the high side, but they take great strides to treat your order as a premium product. The case ships in a nice resealable bag, along with an Uncommon sticker and two $5 discount cards for future orders.

The case itself is definitely tough. It's a solid piece of plastic that won't flex under pressure and just feels solid in the hands. Maybe a little too solid. A thin case it’s not, and it takes the iPod touch’s almost impossible thinness and converts it to a heft more akin to the iPhone line of products. But we saw what thin got me, so I'll give it a pass in this regard.

This is the "capsule" case with a design that separates into two parts. This is ostensibly for easy docking in any matter of peripherals you might own that don't support the case, but doing so casually isn't really possible. Rubber-like strips on the inside of the case hold it firmly in place, making removing either portion a bit of a work out. At least you don’t have to worry about your case coming off accidentally!

Most importantly though the art looks great, with a few caveats. Lines aren't as sharp as they could be, with a ever-so-slight fuzziness to everything. This is almost certainly due to Uncommon’s much-advertised 3D-Tatt® technology. So while you may sacrifice a bit of clarity, the art is embedded deep into the plastic, making it impervious to flaking, surface scrapes, or other things you might normally expect from a printed surface. The art is there for the duration!

The colors are also off a bit, in general having a more yellow cast. Karis's hair also came out an almost bubblegum pink shade. But the colors are close enough that you probably won’t notice without a direct comparison.

That nitpicking aside, I’m really pleased with it. Having a customized case makes it really feel like your own, and I’m infinitely happier with it than a generic solid or pre-printed pattern.

An interesting aside is that the case is completely odorless. Most people probably don’t get what I’m saying here, but for those of you that are starkly aware of every new piece of electronics they buy, the Uncommon case is a pleasant surprise. I really expected a real painty-smell from the custom ink process, but really, there’s nothing. Even the flimsy SwitchEasy case (which was clear) had a stark plastic scent that lasted for a month — even transfers to your hands. It’s a small note, but a real exception to the rule in products like this.

As a final footnote, Uncommon's customer service is great. I was always able to get a live person on the phone, and they adeptly answered questions I had about bleed and such without having to play telephone relay with me. And when my first case shipped with the art between the halves not aligned, it only took a quick email to rectify the issue. I received a nigh-immediate response assuring me this was a rare error and a new one was shipped to me immediately. No returns. No additional shipping costs. Just a very pleasant experience.

I'd recommend Uncommon if you have an iOS device you want covered. In fact, remember those $5 discount cards I mentioned? I’m willing to give one away! Just leave a reply with the kind of case you want to make, and I'll send one lucky person the code. Feel free to pass along this post to anyone you think might be interested!

Far-Off Promise

A new year lay ahead, and the promise of a new set of days inspires the best intentions. The world echoes with countless commitments to work harder, be healthier, to care for each other, and to change in ways we hadn’t the year before. The sentiments are as often enough as vague as they are well-intentioned, the sort of positive thinking that we can stretch and contract to the size we can make room for.

But I want to do more than that this year. I want a game plan, as much for myself as for the accountability saying it outright provides. That’s not to say 2011 was empty of accomplishments. After all, I helped Minion Games ready no less than six games for sale in a single year -- no mean feat! And I took part in a graphical overhaul for DriveThruRPG and its sister sites that will be rolling out soon. Yet, for 2012, I want to get my things done.

So, here it is, my plan for the year. (Split up for your convenience and mine.)

My Blog 
I’ve been moving to a new computer, an iMac, for the past month or two — the lengthy travails of which I'll have to detail one or these days — but I fully intend to get this blog back on track. Besides my usual excursions of fancy, I'm launching several bi-weekly columns.

You’ve seen a taste of the first one with the Digital Gameboard. I’ll be making a point of covering all the gaming apps I come across, especially those involving euro-style board games and their kin. I stand by that the iPad is a great platform for classic board gaming fun and can use all the coverage it can get.

I’ll also be penning my foolhardy quest to play every console rpg ever. It's something that’s become ever more difficult as my list of unplayed and unfinished games grows longer. But maybe by adding you all to my party, this quest may become less of a foolhardy one.

And for those of you wondering, yes Minion Monday will eventually finish out its run. I’m waiting on my own physical copies of the games so I can better show off the components. It’s just taking a little longer than expected.

My Games
While there’s a certain anime-inspired elephant in the room, I have up my sleeves a plethora of games I've tinkered on in perpetuity, and I’d really like to finally get some of them out the metaphorical door and into the light. While finishing, much less releasing, all of them in this revolution of the sun is a unlikely accomplishment, I do want progress, and I want to share that progress with you. Here's a highlight reel of what to expect.

OVA — Yes, the oft-promised return of Wise Turtle's flagship product is still very much in the works, and I’ve made a commitment to its release in the early half of 2012. Long-time fans may have dim memories of several supplements that I hope to talk more about and bring closer to release. You can see a sample of artwork for a sci-fi-themed supplement on the left of the header, done by feguimel.

Legendary! — While I love all my work for Minion Games, and all its games are special to me, they’re still not mine in any true sense of the word. Legendary! is a fantasy dungeon-crawl of a board game inspired by fond childhood memories of Dungeon, but with enough twists to the formula that I believe in its ability to give something new to a crowded and often trite set of games. It’s infused with lore from a lifetime of love for console rpgs, and the very talented Honoel Ibardolaza certainly brings it to life. That trio of numbskulls in the header is his handiwork.

Last Legend — Before OVA, I was a devoted follower (and sometimes contributor) to the Returner Final Fantasy RPG, an attempt to capture the spirit of the eponymous video games in pen and paper form. Eventually I left that community over a difference of opinion...whereas most were concerned with copying the actual game mechanics and number crunching of the video games, I felt the rules would be better served trying to approximate the feel of rpg battles and leave the math for the CPUs that spawned it. Last Legend is my on again, off again take on the subject. You can see some art from it in the header, this time the inks in the background that are once again provided by Honoel.

iOS — Tied in with all these is a general interest in the iOS platform. Now that I have an iMac (more about that in a future post), exploring the world of iPads and iPhones is a real possibility. While the likelihood of me gaining enough prowess with programming to create a game of any decent measure is not good, having access to the tools does open other interesting opportunities. OVA-dedicated apps to aid with dice-rolling, character creation, and even easy rules reference would be a great resource to provide players, and iOS versions of the various Minion Games would be cool indeed.

My work for others
While I said I wanted to make 2012 a year for my projects, there is at least one outside job I'm really excited about. If you follow Ewen Cluney's blog, you may already know what I mean. If not...well, be sure to check by Tuesday for my own official announcement!

Come as QR

You’ve probably seen them somewhere, bizarre blocks of pixels that appear something between Conway’s Life and a Rorschach ink blot. These QR Codes actually encapsulate small bits of data encoded into their zebraic patterns of white and black. A two-dimensional barcode. While originally created in Japan — isn't everything these days? — to manage part numbers in factories, QR codes are now used for all kinds of things. The one here contains a URL link to this blog. Not strictly the most useful of applications since you are presumably already here...

The Japanese have been scanning and using these things with their futuristic cell phones for years, but then Japanese cell phones have always been a little ahead of the curve. I still remember nights spent watching Serial Experiments Lain and thinking how out-of-this-world text-messaging seemed. Good ol’ Japan.

But now that the smart phone has become nearly as ubiquitous as the cellphone itself, the potential practicality of QR codes is hard to ignore. Print advertisements are taking advantage of its ability to link to websites and products, and the recently released Little Big Planet 2 can contain data for entire player-made levels in that pixel-parqueted patch.

But the QR code could hold great potential for tabletop gaming, too. Sure, there’s the obvious uses. Codes could link to the publisher website, to up-to-date errata documents, or even to printable character sheets. But take it a step further. Table-side apps to handle character sheets and dice rolls have become regular guests at gaming groups. But what if one of these apps could not only hold an entire character sheet, but could scan another player’s? A quick wave of the iPhone and a Game Master could have up-to-date data on the entire party. While browsing the latest Monster Manual, when that Game Master sees a beastie they like, zip, a quick scan and all the essential stats are imported. Players could perform complicate dice rolls and calculations by scanning a specific location on the character sheet.

As these things tend to be, it’d be an obscure novelty at first. But in the future, we could really see true integrative gaming, with the old and the new shaking barcoded hands. Those QR codes kind of look like cool monsters anyway, right?

If you’re looking for a QR reader on your iPhone or iPod Touch, I recommend I-nigma. It’s the software that’s been featured on countless Japanese cellphones for years, and it shows they've had the practice. Of five apps I installed, it had the quickest response when presented a QR code, as well as a great set of sharing features. Tweet it, Facebook it, even recreate any code you've scanned for others to scan right off your device. If you prefer a Swiss army knife approach, RedLaser is a decent scanner of all kinds of barcodes and automatically compares prices online. Both are free.