Game Review: 400 Days (The Walking Dead DLC)

Genre: Point and Click

Developer: Telltale Games

Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC, iOS, Mac, PS Vita

Release date: 02/07/2013 

One of my favourite games last year was one that crept up on me suddenly. I wasn't a particular fan of Telltale Games or the comic/TV series 'The Walking Dead', so the game was not on my radar at all. I was oblivious to its existence and even if I was aware, I wouldn't have cared. Zombie games didn't have much appeal to me. I only took an interest once other people had started talking about it so positively. After reading some reviews and having played a small amount of Telltale's previous games, I bought the game during the Steam holiday sale. Boy was that a great decision. The Walking Dead turned out to a fantastic game, emotionally hooking me and provide a satisfying and meaty cast of characters.

Recently DLC was released for The Walking Dead; 400 Days. As opposed to the events of the main game, which plays out through the actions of a single character, the DLC features 5 different characters in a nonlinear story. Each character’s episode starts at a different time during the zombie outbreak. The diverse range of characters include a lone wanderer who meets a stranger on the road, a sibling who finds herself and her sister in ever increasingly isolationist community, an older hippy and his friend being chased at gun point and 2 others. The episodes intersect each other, and if you’re paying attention you’ll notice the consequences of other characters stories.

Food Narrative: Yoshimaru Ramen Challenge

This post doesn't fully fall into review, as I barely had time to savour the food, since I was desperately trying to maintain my pride and save myself $40 for a single meal. This oddity was the Yoshimaru Ramen Challenge, in which you must finish a bowl of ramen in 15 minutes. Simple right?

Cuisine: Japanese

Price: $20 per person

Location: 31 Lorong Liput, Holland Village, 277742
Website: http://www.yoshimaruramen.com.sg/

I'm smiling at the absurdity of it all

My interest in Yoshimaru, a chain of Japanese ramen bars, was aroused when I saw a banner advertising an eating contest. Finish a bowl of ramen and you eat it for free. So a couple of weeks after seeing that poster I found myself in the restaurant signing a contract, which among other things required me not to sue if I ended up seriously hurt, or dead. The posters made the bowl of ramen seem tiny, but when the bowl I was served was anything but. It was wider than my chest (as you can see in the picture), filled with rich broth, lots of noodles, 6 pieces of fatty pork, 3 eggs (cut in half) and some seaweed. I had 15 minutes to eat it, all of it, every single drop of soup, and I couldn't spill anything. I thought it would take me an hour to eat the entire thing, simply to prevent myself throwing up. If I lost then I'd have to fork over $40 for the bowl. The pressure was on.

Food Review: Durian Lingers

So every now and then I’ll be posting food reviews. Not necessarily restaurant reviews, as there is plenty of great food in Singapore which you won’t find in a wine and dine setting. Additionally when it comes to food I care very little for décor, ambience or presentation. I've been too many fine dining restaurants which served mediocre food, at exorbitant prices, for me to care about that any more. Obviously these features can add to the overall experience, but it’s the icing on the cake per se. At the end of the day I'm focused on the taste. So without further or do, here is the first 'review'.

Cuisine: Fruit

Price: $20 per person

Location: 833 Bukit Timah Road, Royal Ville, 279887
Website: N/A

If you haven’t heard of durian then a primer is order. Durian is a fruit native to South East Asia (Malaysia primarily). The skin is covered in thick spikes with the edible portion; the flesh, surrounding large seeds.It has an extremely pungent smell, to the point that it is often banned from public transport and taxis. To some the smell and taste is delectable, to others it reminds them of animal shit. It’s a love or hate it fruit.

So despite Singapore’s proximity to the largest producer of durian in the world, it can be rather hard to purchase and find yourself eating durian at home. Enter Durian Lingers, a fruit shop that specialises in durian, which you can eat right on the premises  They have at least half a dozen varieties ranging from $20-40/kg. I chose one on the cheaper side, which came to $30. Outside the shop itself are a few stools and tables. Its not fancy but it was serviceable  As we sat on some stools outside the shop, the owner cleaved the fruit and left us to eat it.

I was suitably impressed. Obviously I'm one of those that loves durian. It has a delicious creamy texture with an indescribably sweet and inviting smell. I ate it like a child, getting durian flesh all over my hands and face. I could quite happily eat 2-3 durians. Expensive but something I would love to do more often. 

While the 'dining' environment was as basic as you could get, the durian itself was excellent as was the stores other range of fruits. If you are struggling to find a place to eat fresh durian, this is the place to go.

7/10

My Top 4 Travel Destinations In South East Asia

I'm going to be in Singapore for a while and one of the things that attracted me in the first place was its close proximity to amazing locations. So here's my most sought after travel destinations.

4. China (Hong Kong)

Hong Kong seems like the more culturally rich version of Singapore; with unique Chinese food, bustling city life and attractions like Victoria Mountain. I can’t forget to mention foods like dim sum which is famous in Hong Kong. This city is also the perfect place to get an introduction to Chinese culture.

Journey Into Modelling - Part 5

As we arrived on the fateful day we were treated to make up by Roland and hair styling by Easa. We had a long time before the show started; we arrived at 10:30 am for it to start at 2:00 pm. So we practiced the routine for one final time and then got lunch. It was a good opportunity to spend some more time talking to the guys, some of us exchanged numbers. Despite the impending show, we all seemed pretty relaxed.

We returned from lunch to prepare for the show. The first act was the simple group catwalk which was performed well, no mistakes. Next came group poses. Jude wanted us to take off our shirts if we were slim enough. I said I wasn't, I had about three kgs of fat too many for me to look good topless. Between acts we were all desperately trying to change outfits before the next act began. We felt extremely rushed because if you didn't get dressed in time you couldn't go on stage, and the transition times were extremely short. Despite this potential pitfall we were all able to get dressed in time. The solo catwalk came next and I messed it up slightly. I was so focused on smiling at the judges that I was walking too fast. Half way through the catwalk I realised this and slowed down. Finally the dreaded TvC was approaching.

Journey Into Modelling - Part 4

When it came to the upcoming show one of the biggest challenges would be changing fast enough between acts. We would have one lesson to learn the routine, one lesson to practice and then the real run the following week. The real run would have an audience as well as experienced models as judges. We were all focusing intently during the lesson. We were only shown the routine a couple of times then expected to remember it.  There was a lot of confusion and hesitation at first, but everybody seemed to have picked up the routines reasonably well by the end. I was still dreading doing the TvC but luckily we didn't have to perform it that lesson, though it would be a required part of the final show.

My Amazing Room Concept Sketch

Edit: I was threatened with legal action and anal violation since I apparently did not own the picture. Here is a picture of my foot instead.