Welcome to my monthly Let's Play series, in which I tell you all about the games I've picked up and been playing over the last 4 weeks. You can check out my previous Let's Play posts here. This part of the year is always pretty good for new game releases, plus I also picked up a Nintendo Switch last weekend so you can expect some initial impressions on that over the next few weeks. I actually found quite a bit of time for gaming during April so here's where I've been spending my time...
Far Cry 5
I'm to to say this right off the bat.. Far Cry 5 is already one of my games of the year for 2018. It perfectly combines the freedom of a massive fully destructible open world with great gun play and player progression. I've not played anything like it so far this year.
The story isn't great so I would advise ignoring the majority of it right from the outset and concentrate on the awesome gameplay that seeps out of every inch of the huge playable map. You'll find random events happening constantly, which keep you engaged in the action rather than the story. There's just so much to do beyond the main story thread so don't worry about running our of side quests and collectables to find. Sneaking your way through all the various outposts eliminating the enemies that guard them are some of the best moments in the game.
Buy it here > https://amzn.to/2J9xv1i
Sea of Thieves
Now from one of my games of the year to one that has really disappointed me, even after the incredible hype that seemed to surround it right from when it was announced. We haven't had a decent pirates game for ages now and i was really hoping that Sea of Thieves was going to start a new trend, but unfortunately this empty "go here and grab this" simulation feels more like the awful No Man's Sky than the start of a cool new genre in multiplayer console gaming.
Sea of Thieves’ opening hours are a magical recipe of wonder and mystery. It never explains much, but figuring out the subtle, multi-layered functionality of everything from a compass to your sails is fun and surprising. Jaw-dropping lighting works in harmony with the deep, rich waves of the open sea as clouds puff in and out of existence. However, from then on it turns into an extremely repetitive buggy experience, which proves to be especially boring when playing solo as there's seemingly no AI to fill the world with so you're just left to your own devices.
Random matchmaking works fine, but real friends are best because if you get people without mics or a cooperative spirit you might as well set sail with a hole in your boat. Sea of Thieves works well when treated like a chat room or a party game, where it serves as catalyst for having a good time with the people you’re with.
Buy it here > https://amzn.to/2INnQOP
Check out the rest of my Let's Play series:
January 2018 - http://www.theguyontrend.co.uk/2018/01/lets-play-january-2018.html
May 2017 - http://www.theguyontrend.co.uk/2017/05/lets-play-may-2017.html
March 2017 - http://www.theguyontrend.co.uk/2017/04/lets-play-march-2017.html
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Podcasts have certainly made a massive comeback over the past couple of years, with tens of thousands of them now available across a wide variety of platforms. Hosted by everyone these days from your favourite bloggers to politicians and footballers, there's so much choice and you're bound to find a podcast to suit you. I can completely understand the fascination with them nowadays thanks to Apple creating a standalone Podcasts app in 2014 as part of iOS 8, which really put this rather stale platform right back under the noses of millions of users around the world.
I thought I'd share a couple of the podcasts I'm addicted to right now..
Wrestle Me
If you're a fan of WWE or wrestling in general then this weekly podcast really is a must listen. It's hosted by two guys, Pete and Mark, but only one of them has been a life long fan of WWE and really understands the sport whereas the other host is brand new to it. The weekly shows are basically reviews of each Wrestlemania event since the early 1980s and filled with hilarious comments and trivia about the history of the "Showcase of the immortals". A fascinating look into the world of pro wrestling whilst hearing a perspective of someone who has previously been on the outside looking in. A really enjoyable show with well researched background info on some of the biggest names in WWE, as wells some of it's little known jobbers. Check it out here
Stephen Fry's Great Leap Years
Now this is a brand new podcast that only actually launched a week or so ago but you need to download it RIGHT NOW. Hosted by the wonderful Stephen Fry, these incredible hour long episodes dive into some of the inventions that have changed the world over the past 400 years or so. I won't ruin too much but the first episode delves into the dawn of language and written text. The depth and detail of the research that Fry and the team have clearly conducted is breathtaking. You're sure to learn a lot here. It's a really insightful listen and the perfect way to spend a morning commute.
How I Built This
Now this is my current podcast obsession. The How I Built This series has actually been running for a couple of years now but I only recently discovered it and have listened to literally hundreds of episodes already. It's basically a series of interviews with the creators of some of the worlds most recognisable and respected brands. Inspirational listening for anyone running a small business or dreams of making it big. Some of my favourite episodes include the fascinating stories behind Dyson, Toms, Instagram and AirBnB. It's incredible listening to the entrepreneurs behind some of the world's biggest businesses, who often started out broke in their college dorm rooms, describe their journey to making hugely successful brands. Give it a listen you really won't regret it, and if anything you'll probably arrive at work feeling inspired!
What are some of your favourite podcasts?
We recently took an Easter city break for the long weekend and decided on a trip to Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic. There's lots to do (especially if you're a fan of beer) so I thought I'd get all the top things you need to see and do into one post, as well as some tips on where to stay. Enjoy!
Visit St. Vitus Cathedral
For me St. Vitus Cathedral had the biggest wow factor for me out of everything in Prague and the outside is absolutely stunning with such a gothic feel and you can choose to climb up the tower to reach the views at the top. Now considering the cathedral already sits on a pretty tall hill climbing up gave absolutely amazing views even if I did feel like I was going to collapse when I reached the top. Sometimes I regret walking up attractions as I don’t feel the view is worthwhile but this is one which certainly was.
Walk along The Vltava River
One of my favorite moments of this trip was our morning stroll along the Vltava River. It was still quite early, and while there were some tourists already, it was far from the mass we usually encountered during our stay. There are loads of great spots to take some pictures of the Castle across the other side of the river and some incredible artists doing paintings of passers by and landscapes of the city. You can pick up a couple of these for around £10 each.
The view from Prague Castle
If you choose to venture across the river you must head up the 200+ steps and visit Prague Castle. Once you arrive there's quite a number of courtyards and buildings to explore, as well as museum about the history of the castle if that's more your thing - but we just preferred having a wander. Make sure you catch the changing of the guard every day at midday. Once you reach the far side of the castle grounds you'll find a hilltop which offers hands down the best views of the city on a bright day like we were lucky enough to have....
Walk across the St. Charles bridge
This is perhaps the most well-known monument in the city! The huge bridge connects two sides of the Vltava river and is a great opportunity to have a panoramic view of the city. We visited the bridge early in the morning and snagged some great photos while avoiding the droves of tourists that came later in the day.
The bridge was originally constructed under King Charles the IV in the 15th century as a primary connecting point between the Old Town Square and Prague Castle. Lining the sides of the bridge are baroque sculptures depicting religious saints and figures. Most of the current statues have now been replaced by replicas, but are nonetheless still very striking.
As we walked across we were constantly distracted by entertaining street musicians and bands that really made it an enjoyable trip across the river. Just make sure you watch out for pick pockets if you do decide to visit during a busier period of the day as the bridge gets absolutely packed.
Do you have black, brown, or blond locks atop of your head but still play host to a touch of ginger in your beard? Don’t worry, orange tones often appear on the face either as a ginger tint in the beard or even as the domineering colour of the facial hair in men of a different hair colour but the question is – Why?
Your DNA and genes determine the pigments you have and the quantities of them and it is these pigments that dictate what hair colour you have. In essence your hair colour is decided by a multitude of gene combinations which can express themselves differently in different people.
The wonderfully complex nature of hair means that not only does so many peoples’ seemingly change over time (and we don’t mean turning grey that one happens to us all) but it can be a different colour in different places. This doesn’t mean you will necessarily have a black mop on top of your head, rock a ginger beard and boast blond eyebrows but you know what we are getting at.
when you think about it, it is unsurprising that your head hair can differ in colour to your beard. Beard hair is very different to our head hair. It looks different and feels different and as such it abides by different rules including what colour it takes on.
Here we can see a family tree showing two parents with three children together. Each member of the family has the two alleles for hair colour displayed. The children’s alleles are all a combination of one from each parent. As shown the first child has received ginger alleles from each parent and she will have ginger hair. The second child has received two brown alleles and so will have brown hair. The third child has one ginger and one brown allele, the singular ginger allele will not be enough to produce ginger head hair meaning his hair will be brown but this child could potentially to grow a ginger beard thanks to this lonely ginger allele.
The Science
Whilst not a lot of research has gone into hair colour it is understood that you require two recessive alleles to possess ginger head hair, one from mam and one from dad, but it only takes one of those ginger alleles to have an orange beard. Whilst you were probably never told you only need one for a ginger beard the rest is basic science that is taught in school. But despite what you may have been taught in biology class hair colour is not strictly determined by one gene from mam and one from dad. It is in fact a lot more complicated than that – as science often is but we will do our best to explain it.Your DNA and genes determine the pigments you have and the quantities of them and it is these pigments that dictate what hair colour you have. In essence your hair colour is decided by a multitude of gene combinations which can express themselves differently in different people.
The wonderfully complex nature of hair means that not only does so many peoples’ seemingly change over time (and we don’t mean turning grey that one happens to us all) but it can be a different colour in different places. This doesn’t mean you will necessarily have a black mop on top of your head, rock a ginger beard and boast blond eyebrows but you know what we are getting at.
when you think about it, it is unsurprising that your head hair can differ in colour to your beard. Beard hair is very different to our head hair. It looks different and feels different and as such it abides by different rules including what colour it takes on.
The Simple Science
Unfortunately, we cannot give a better answer than that, that is all that the research into hair colour can tell us. Having a ginger beard is not associated with an illness so it is not a priority when it comes to research. But we know a thing or two about the science of rocking an awesome beard so here is some of our research around ginger beards. Ginger beards are best flaunted, if you have orange facial hair don’t be a baby face express yourself with an awesome red beard. As with all beards, ginger beards love to be groomed, they also love beard oils and beard balms and above all they demand respect. Having a kickass ginger beard is a privilege and is sure to make some others envious of your awesome face fuzz but remember with great power comes great responsibility so it is your duty to treat your beard right.
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