Mission Revival 2019 - A New Year's Miracle!

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! 🎆

A post shared by Rendy Andrian Y (@tsukasa_kadoya) on Dec 31, 2018 at 2:11pm PST

After my long struggle against the final paper I've been working and all the hiatus decisions I have to make due to that, plus all the procrastinations that came with it due to exhaustion in between my paper works, I have finally finished it just before 2019 came, and actually ended the year in a high note (in this case, 2018). I'm really glad that things have turned out well despite all the mess, and I can't wait to return to my old life with a new wisdom I've developed during the course of the paper work.

As I set my sights for the graduation this year, I'd like to revisit things I once did prior to my struggles (or those I did in between). This blog is just one of them; the last post I made was about ripping the PSX textures, but I haven't managed to kick the activity (yet again) after that post, despite having a couple of topics I'd like to visit. I know I've focused everything on my fandom blog in terms of content, resulting in not only a number of articles revolving around award shows and fandom competitions, but also some spreadsheets that came with it, mostly related to the latter.

The work in question for the past year and a half.

As for the future plan for this blog, I have plenty to talk about which also includes what kind of topic that caused me taking years in completing it now that I've finished the paper. The topic in question is basically about an artificial intelligence-based controller that drives a car in a racing game. Yes, the final paper topic is in fact the controller for The Open Racing Car Simulator (TORCS), an open-source game that works not only as a game but also as a research platform for driving/racing controllers. Harnessing the sensor models provided by the software extension of Simulated Car Racing Server (SCR Server) and emphasizing on the research purpose of the game, combined with the fact that I haven't recalled TORCS being taught in the AI class I've taken years ago and came across zero papers in my college (let alone my country, I think?) that discuss the topic, this made a great idea to mash up my interests into play, despite having to pay a hefty price for that.

Earlier on, I also announced myself to return into Turbo Sliders content making as well. The improved Nippon Highlands track raced during the second season of F1 World Championship was a brief sign of activity in the community, but I didn't thought about a full-time return until revealing a new road map for content creation focusing on strictly sports car racing. The project, in the form of an online document right here, details a proposed model for the physics as well as the car list and tracks to be made. To be honest I've been stuck in the physics part still due to the fact that I'd like to incorporate all the endurance elements to online racing, hopefully. This would mean racers will have to not only conserve fuel in the race but also the tires as well with the supplied handling model, adding a deeper strategy element.

Zoom this picture, because you're seeing Super GT on Turbo Sliders!

To top the good news above, two new cars are confirmed for the project: the Nissan GT-R GT500 and the Toyota GT86 GT300 MC (Mother Chassis), two Super GT cars. Yes, that's right! The first time Super GT cars are finally represented in their top-down perspective! Once again, the cars are scratch-made by hand which means that I am the one responsible for the shading in the car designs. This workflow might not be as fast as taking 3D models and take the roof shot of them but not all cars in the project have their 3D models already (has the MC car already a playable mod somewhere?). Speaking of 3D models though, I would explore such an option as an additional reference material in case picture reference don't seem to work well. More about this will follow in a separate blog post (like the TORCS controller above as well).

Outside those plans, I have plenty of things planned out as long-term projects. For instance, I can be known as the one who did the Ready-To-Wear Fashion Week spreadsheets in some circles, and I kinda stepped back on doing the Spring/Summer 2019 season due to paper commitments among others. As the Fall/Winter 2019 season is on the horizon, my work shall be doubled in gathering both the data of the Spring/Summer and the Fall/Winter seasons. Another one would be preparing another spreadsheet project, this time for the fandom competitions. In preparation of the nearest competition which would be held in February, I've taken measures to have better approaches on data acquiring, probably using this script using PowerShell or similar, while the rest is ready to run (in terms of design of course). Last but not least would be a couple of forking out more content for this blog, perhaps visiting a new mall or revisiting those I've already visited a long time ago given the stark difference, maybe new game articles (or any random ones on that matter), or perhaps new game contents. Anything to kick back activity to the blog, while balancing it with my other blog of course. Again, it's a long-term plan laid out for this year.

I'm calling it right now: 2019 is the year of my revival, after two years of struggles (though I take 2018 as the year of recovery which sort did its purpose...). Let's see how this goes for the long run!

~[R]