Become Tier 1: A Failed Experiment With Promise - GGDB

Who are we? Ask the Somalian pirates, ask the men who hide in Pakistani compounds, they'll tell ya. We are the ones hunting the hunters. SEALs, SAS, Delta, GROM. We're the best in the world. We fight the worst the world has to offer.... We are Tier 1

— Mother

Introduction — GGDB:

Welcome, this is Gaming's Genesis Data Banks, a series of video games mechanics, history and more. A series of articles - and potentially future YouTube series - that I aspire to build where I hope to look back at certain video game franchises, genres, and beyond and extract certain topics and ideas for discussion.

This is the first GGDB, as I have come to call this series as an acronym for its production, mostly choosing Gaming's Genesis because of the emphasis on GG, as well as aspiring to build something similar to that of NakeyJakey and Mark Brown from Game Maker's Tool Kit's content; but I digress as I am running on a tangent.

Today, I wanted to look back at the Medal of Honor series and more specifically the reboot series and examine and dissect some parts and pieces from the late series and try and figure out what went wrong and document the rise and fall of the Medal of Honor reboot series from the commercial success that was Medal of Honor [2010] to the commercial and critical failure that was Medal of Honor: Warfighter, looking at all their controversies, story, multiplayer and providing my thoughts about the series as part of my conclusion.

As well as comparing some of it to today's franchise. But, without further ado, let's get on to this!

PART I

Thirty Seconds Out

Medal Of Honor — A Historical Beginning:

Medal of Honor 1999-2012

1999 Medal of Honor 2000 Medal of Honor: Underground 2002 Medal of Honor: Allied Assault 2002 Medal of Honor: Frontline 2002 Medal of Honor: Allied Assault Spearhead 2003 Medal of Honor: Allied Assault Breakthrough 2003 Medal of Honor: Rising Sun 2003 Medal of Honor: Infiltrator 2004 Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault 2005 Medal of Honor: European Assault 2006 Medal of Honor: Heroes 2007 Medal of Honor: Vanguard 2007 Medal of Honor: Airborne 2007 Medal of Honor: Heroes 2 2010 Medal of Honor 2012 Medal of Honor: Warfighter

This was a series that began with the breakthrough of Steven Spielberg's Direction and Production of the World War II classic Saving Private Ryan, with DreamWorks Interactive (Now known as DICE Los Angeles and previously, Danger Close.) at the helm of the project, they would come to release their first game in 1999; Medal of Honor.

From there, this series surely became a behemoth of the FPS genre, each one aiming to reach the hearts of the players like that first fated game did in 1999. But of course, one could not forget the fact that its biggest competitor, Call of Duty, was created as a big fuck you to EA and Medal of Honor when Infinity Ward and Respawn's co-founder Vince Zampella and the team of 2015 Inc were brought in-house for the creation of Medal of Honor: Allied Assault which released in 2002. During this, Zampella and some of his peers stormed off to Activision, where they would found Infinity Ward and create the Call of Duty franchise.

However, the history of Medal of Honor is filled with historical ramifications to the gaming industry, from strong-arming the creation of its biggest competitor from 2002 on forward, to creating some of the most compelling video game experiences with Pacific Assault, European Assault, among others, as well as creating some of the best orchestral scores.

But where did they go from here? From the World War II setting, beyond 2010 and the release of Airborne? Well, to the modern era after all. To compete with its smallest son; Call of Duty.

That Was Pretty Fucking Ninja — Campaign:

"... To our brothers past and present - This is a dedication to America's servicemen. A dedication to the debt we owe to Warriors lost, and to all of our military forces who continue to defend freedom around the world. Men and women who have honourably served throughout our nation's history - who stood and continue to stand fast in the face of a determined enemy and defeat them with unwavering discipline.

Most Americans do not know what our Special Operations Forces community experience. They do not know what these Warriors endure in combat, nor do they understand the selflessness and love of the brothers beside them. Men within this community bring the fight to the enemy, engage aggressively, and stand their ground.

Born into a different cloth, these men could have chosen a life of prosperity and chased every opportunity afforded by our great nation. Giving life as they live it, they chose to leave these pursuits behind and devote themselves instead to a higher calling, living with indomitable purpose - by simple truths - Brotherhood. Honor. Sacrifice. Words moulded into their character, exemplified by their actions.

It is their final hour we celebrate - our fallen brothers who shine a light on the greatest attributes of dedicated men. With their sacrifice, legends are born and will live as examples to inspire the heroes that will lead our nation to victory in the years ahead; making our founding fathers proud and acting as a promise to America's next generation.

This is to our fallen brothers. You will be honoured in our community's history as the greatest heroes. As men who shouldered our nation's burdens, you will remain as beacons for our heroic ideals. Taught to be proud and unbending in failure and humble in success, there are no greater examples for which this nation stands for and of which this nation is built from - the ideal of service to country and to others.

To our community and all who wear the uniform - Thank you for your service to the nation. And, to those in this hour who are in the fight and keep our enemies awake at night."

— Ending Quote

Medal of Honor [2010] is arguably the best of the two reboot instalments, that either way, they would already work within the confines of the already existing series, just as a different era.

Ultimately the Medal of Honor series was created to show war. And war it did show through its own means and conventions of it being a Video Game and not a movie. Meaning, it had to take away with a few liberties, more than movies and series get away with in the War Story style of storytelling. However, Medal of Honor is separated into three chapters separated into Days where the team would operate in the Paktia Province in Afghanistan during Operation: ANACONDA. An Operation that would take place during March 1st and 18 of 2002. Specifically the seizing of the Bagram Airfield, Battle of Shah-i-Kot and the Battle of Takur Ghar.

The story is broken down into 10 missions which are named and separated into the aforementioned days of the Operation at hand along with that, Medal of Honor [2010] does not hope to bolster any intimate or deep story, just the story of a few brothers, warriors in arms overcoming odds together through these missions undertaken in Afghanistan.

Prologue:

First In, Breaking Bagram

Day 1:

Running with Wolves..., Dorothy's a Bitch, Belly of the Beast, Gunfighters, Friends from Afar, Compromised.

Day 2:

Neptune's Net, Rescue the Rescuers

Something that is important to mention as well is who you'll be playing as:

AFO Wolfpack

Deuce

AFO Neptune

Rabbit

75th Ranger Regiment

Dante Adams

Gunfighters

Brad Hawkins

The game follows the journey of these characters, for the most part, Dante and Rabbit as the rest are not seen as much, but ultimately drive the plot forward and offer significantly interesting missions in terms of gameplay and storytelling.

It should also be mentioned that the story struggles with some side plots, mostly the plot with Colonel Drucker and General Flagg. A political stand, if anything, showing that people outside the field of duty should not have operational control of soldiers and powerful assets such as Reaper 3-1.

Reception:

On October 19th, 2010, the late GameSpy would report that the game sold 1.5 million copies in its first week and went on to sell 2 million copies in its second week.

It was a record setter for the franchise despite being lower than Medal of Honor: Frontlines and Rising Sun. The game saw a bigger success in the United Kingdom, becoming the number 1 on the UK sales chart, while also becoming the most t pre-ordered Medal of Honor in the franchise.

On February 1st, 2011, it was reported that Medal of Honor was a commercial success, racking up over 5 million copies sold from October to November of 2010.

The game was also generally received in a positive light from critics praising the game's multiplayer and audio direction as well as the voice acting.

At this very moment, the customer reviews on its steam page sits Mostly Positive with 1,607 reviews as for Metacritic it sits at a tight 6.4 user score based on 530 ratings, it certainly sits at a mixed spot.

Despite this, it would be enough for EA to warrant a sequel.

The Road To Warfighter:

The road towards the second instalment of this 'soft reboot' of the franchise is one that is certainly filled with an echo chamber.

Similarly to the treatment Dead Space 2 would receive, Medal of Honor: Warfighter would make a turn from the realistic and barely absurd, to the bombastic and completely absurd, turning these Task Force operators into almost spies of sorts, of course, there's plenty of times the game remembers its identity, but it is obviously squandered in hopes of retaining those Bay Moments that someone certainly keeps thinking that they lead to more buyers.

"We don't think it's a genre problem, it's an execution problem. We don't think Medal of Honor's performance speaks to any particular bias in that space against modern settings or World War II or any of that. It's much more than that, we had some things we should've done better."

— Rich Hileman EA Creative Director [2013]

Ultimately, EA would come out and cite 'It was an issue of execution', as just like all their games in that time, Warfighter would prove to be a monetary and creative risk. Choosing Battlefield over Medal of Honor.

It shouldn't be mentioned the fact that they opted to take the franchise away from the purely Military operational system to an AFO only style of story, which, in my honest opinion severely hindered some of the credibility and cohesion of the story, as much as I enjoyed the story, myself, it never held a candle to the more cohesive and operational story of Medal of Honor [2010].

Become Tier 1 — Warfighter Campaign:

"Real life superheroes exist; they walk among us every day, ready to defend our great nation and its citizens at a moment’s notice. They are husbands, fathers, brothers and sons capable of staring death in the face and still come home to rock their newborn infant to sleep on the same day This kind of warrior cannot be manufactured or purchased. They are born into this life, blessed with a higher sense of purpose, and the understanding of exactly what their fate may hold. We chose to share this life with them because we would rather love an extraordinary man for a brief moment than spend a lifetime with a man far more ordinary.

You can never be prepared for certain events in life, they change you, and their consequences turn your world upside down. Meeting your husband’s casket as he makes his final journey home. The prospect of raising your children alone. Living the rest of your days without the one person that loved you unconditionally and never let you down. In truth, these men never let anyone down, which is why they are no longer here today.

These amazing warriors chose to spend their brief but amazing lives with us. We raise their children. We honour and remember them, we live in the present and we look to the future. They knew we would have the strength to carry on in the face of tragedy and to become stronger, more amazing versions of ourselves. They knew we would never be defined by their passing but inspired by their memory to live more fully and to make each moment we are given count."

— Stacey's Ending Quote

Here comes Warfighter, a game that chooses to reenact real-life events instead of taking place in any specific given battle like it's predecessor, for the most part taking advantage of the repertoire of operations that the SEALs embarked upon in the 21st Century, the Campaign is divided into 13 missions taking place all over the world, while also seeking to showcase the life of the military men behind the scenes.

Mostly focusing on the lives of Mother and Preacher back home with their kids and wives. A noble intention, serving to build the relationship between these two men.

The Campaign takes an effort to showcase different kinds of operations that Special Ops units such as these would undertake, going deep into Sarajevo, dealing with Somali Pirates, Hostage Rescues on the Philippines and even VIP tracking in some - In my opinion; as I have always been an advocate for the driving mechanics shown in Warfighter - expertly crafted drive sequences such as the one in Dubai.

Ultimately, Warfighter follows a far more intimate story than Medal Of Honor [2010] despite all the big ass action set pieces that it has, the story in itself is a noble one that is dragged down by the greedier, Michael Bay esque game. Additionally, Medal of Honor: Warfighter is the first Medal of Honor to portray a Non-US Special Forces regiment with Task Force Atlas with the Polish GROM unit along with the NAVSOG from the Philippines.

The story revolves around the pursue of the terrorist known as Sad Al Din and ultimately the hunt of The Cleric. But beyond that, the story takes a focus to Stump, Mother and Preacher, for the most part as the game goes along, Preacher and Mother's relationship with each other becomes fleshed out, before ultimately leading to Mother's death by the hands of Sad Al Din.

Medal of Honor: Warfighter is a story of sacrifice and revenge, for Mother and Rabbit.

The game is divided into three chapters, that I will lay out below.

Chapter I - Flashforwards:

Unintended Consequences, Through the Eyes of Evil, Shore Leave, Hot Pursuit, Changing Tides.

Chapter II - Getting that OGA Bling:

Rip Current, Hat Trick, Finding Faraz, Connect the Dots, Hello and Dubai.

Chapter III - For Rabbit; For Mother:

Old Friends, Bump in the Night, Shut it Down.

In this campaign you will be playing as Preacher and Stump, of Task Force Mako and Blackbird respectively, but you will also see Task Forces Grizzly and Atlas operating with you in several occasions. Preacher and Mother initially take part in Task Force Mako, but after they retired and went back home after a failed operation, they're contracted by Dusty to work as OGA contractors for Task Force Blackbird.

Task Force Mako:

Preacher (Transferred) - Stump

Task Force Blackbird:

Preacher

The story struggles several times with not making it clear that it is going back in time and back to the present, it might've contributed to the bad rep it got, since the story takes place in the present but looks back in time several times, for example the mission in the Philippines being a flashback of sorts while the main timeline of the game happening between the bombing in Madrid, the failed mission at the start and the hunt of Sad Al Din being the present with some backstory sprinkled across.

Most of the missions with Stump and Mako happen at the same time as the main plot, but you would be excused if you thought they didn't as the game never really makes it clear enough to the average player.

Reception — The Rush That Broke It:

"Warfighter is one of the worst video games we have ever played"

— Metro

I think that saying that Medal of Honor: Warfighter released to massively mixed and negative reviews would certainly be an understatement, something that would leave a lot to be desired, and even leave a lot of people's mouth with a sour taste.

It was the fad to throw Warfighter down the rabbit hole, and I cannot say it didn't deserve it. However, looking back at it, I don't think it deserved to be the rush that broke the deal.

"Warfighter is down with everything that makes modern shooters fucking despicable"

— Zero Punctuation

EA, as it always is, rushed the deal and it came out botched in both execution and performance, but one can certainly say that this was obviously the beginning of a dark time for gaming. We had the signs but we never saw them.

Ultimately, the only figures that would be released for Medal of Honor: Warfighter's sell counts would be the 300,000 that it would sell in its first week in shelves.

Medal of Honor: Warfighter currently sits at a 5.4 user score with mixed or average reviews based on 616 ratings.

Multiplayer - MoH™/Warfighter:

The Multiplayer for the first instalment would be developed purely by EA DICE in a class-based style akin to that of their past successes with Battlefield: Bad Company and Bad Company 2 that would fuel the experience in which you get to play EA's own spin on the arcade killstreak shooter that they would've hoped to become their own CoD killer.

Despite all this, the gunplay and the mechanics were solid, the maps would retain a feeling of familiarity that would be welcome to those that would be starting out and the game wasn't punishing but welcoming enough that you start racking up kills on your first go.

Medal of Honor [2010] was not an out of the ordinary shooter in its multiplayer, nor something to take notes from, but it was fun.

Unlike 2010, Warfighter would be developed and built entirely by Danger Close Games using the new Frostbite 2 engine. In Warfighter, you would be involved in a global battle choosing the country you would defend.

With 13 tier one units to choose from with each one having different perks and weapons and styles along with a limited edition exclusive for the use of the US Navy SEALs Sniper equipped with a McMillan TAC-300.

In addition to all this, the player classes would make a return, and instead of having just three the player would have six different classes to choose from, some of which would have unique and specific benefits and abilities depending on the nationality.

Some of which would contain the SAS-R, SFOD-D, SAS, JTF-2, KSK, SEALs, among others.

But once again, Warfighter would prove to be nothing more than it's predecessor, while, still being dumb fun.

PART II

Wiyar — Style & Controversy

Oh, You Clone — Call of Duty:

One of the largest - at least from my perspective at the time, - controversies surrounding the games were the fact that they were 'copying' Call of Duty games instead of being their own thing.

With the fleeting mention that they were also copying the Battlefield series. At a simple glance, though, maybe they are right, both employed a modern era, killstreaks, arcade-y shooter mechanics, among other things.

But at a closer inspection, you realise that the Medal of Honor games were close, but with their own inventions and interesting ideas including a secondary type of ammunition in the form of Full Metal Jacket in Medal of Honor: Warfighter that you could use at any given notice if the situation called for it, Warfighter also contained a shift for face cover, amongst other things in a somewhat in-depth ability system. This also includes the fact that Medal Of Honor [2010] pioneered the buddy mechanics for shared ammunition between your teammates that would later be used in the new Call of Duty WWII and Warfighter built upon several iterations of the breach system built from games such as SWAT 4, Rainbow Six Vegas, among others. - even if the mechanic was dumbed down to a certain extent and it was glossed over with a slow-mo effect each time which hindered the idea more than it actually helped it. Something something, sense of pride and accomplishment.

Point being, Danger Close had great ideas for Medal of Honor, some that got hindered in execution either because of higher ups or other external factors that destroyed certain ideas in execution and concept.

But of course, this wouldn't be the only point of contempt for EA when it came to controversies. Several different points would remain, amongst players not receiving their Pre-Order DLC for Warfighter, the Code never working and support not helping - myself included in this tedious effort of a back and forth between support and myself for a Zero Dark Thirty themed map. - Amongst many other things the most, arguably, important of which I will mention below.

Talibans? In My Game?:

Perhaps one of the dumbest controversies to ever show up at the doorstep of the gaming community was the decision to pull the plug on the showcasing of Taliban factions in Medal of Honor [2010].

Creating controversy when the Multiplayer mode was revealed, showcasing the fact that the players could play as the Taliban, something that would be a non-issue if you could play as the Nazis in a World War II game, you could certainly play as the Taliban.

Despite this, the controversy persisted, up to the point where Danger Close was forced to change the name of the Taliban to 'Opposing Force', they would remain the Taliban, but at least not by name.

Greg Goodrich responded to the change saying the following:

“While this change should not directly affect gamers, as it does not fundamentally alter the gameplay, we are making this change for the men and women serving in the military or for the families of those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice.”

— Greg Goodrich Danger Close Executive Producer

Disciplinary Course — Navy SEALs/DEVGRU:

Seven US Navy SEALs would be reportedly caught and placed under investigation for revealing secrets while working on Medal of Honor: Warfighter as paid consultants.

Some of which would've reportedly taken their gear and equipment that would be considered sensitive as to the highest accord, as such they were reprimanded by the Navy.

"We worked really closely with more than two dozen operators on the mission objectives, operations, manoeuvres and various elements in the game that helped shape our single-player campaign, things like the weaponry, the gear, the way these operatives perform door breeches,"

— Luke Thai, Producer of Danger Close

Thai would also note that the developers and the military personnel of the Navy SEALs Team 6, were cognizant regarding the detailing of information keeping it closed to a minimum.

Ultimately, while the reprimanding could certainly be warranted, I would believe that this controversy should not have happened, at the very least, there were some attempts at keeping the game realistic and personal as well as respectful to certain events. Despite the bombastic behaviour of several scenes in Medal of Honor: Warfighter.

PART III

All Rounds Expended

An Unexpected Future:

"Consumer feedback has been strong to suggest that we've got a franchise now, once again, that we could successfully and effectively sequel in the future."

— John Riccitiello; EA CEO 2007-2013

The Medal of Honor franchise has since been put on ice, mostly for reasons that I would only make a guess that the franchise was doomed from the start.

From deciding that Battlefield would take over as the flagship franchise instead of allowing Medal of Honor to flourish in its own right and segregating Danger Close into a smaller position and dissolving it into EA DICE's division.

"We're telling a story and we have a point of view, a book doesn't pay for saying the word 'Colt,' for example."

— Frank Gibeau EA Labels President

To EA outright deciding to not buy the rights for weaponry names from this point forward.

Perhaps the decisions were not meant to be really dissected, at this point, we all know the behemoth and vehement devil that a company like EA is, perhaps Warfighter was to be the last nail in the coffin anyway.

"We're disappointed with the critical reception. Internal testing and mock reviews indicated that the game is better than the score we have right now. We believe it is. However, we are seeing folks out there that just don't like the game"

— Frank Gibeau EA Labels President

If the statement above doesn't ring any bells. This certainly sounds similar to a certain downvoted comment that goes along the lines of: The intent is to provide players with a sense of pride and accomplishment for unlocking different heroes.

In my own opinion, I think Medal of Honor was meant to be put on ice, given its position as the pioneer of the Frostbite 2 Engine for Battlefield 4 and the position the Battlefield franchise had over it.

Medal of Honor didn't fail... It was deliberately and calculatedly murdered by Electronic Arts and company.

Confusing Identity:

Despite all of the bad press and all the awful scores, I truly think that the Medal of Honor games are great, why? Well, they dared, and sometimes who dares wins.

But in this case, I think Medal of Honor suffered a lack of thought when creating the identity for the longevity of the games, in this case, I'm gonna speak about the Multiplayer of both the Reboot games, while previous instalments had more focused Multiplayer experiences to their main mechanics - Such as Airborne's Parachuting, - Medal of Honor [2010] and Warfighter simply didn't do this.

They focused too much on competing with Call of Duty for the crown of the deathmatch arcade shooter instead of creating its own identity and competing that way, something that would further the separation between Medal of Honor, Battlefield and Call of Duty.

And this is honestly derived to the fact that EA wanted a CoD killer rather than a different game, they wanted a game to compete and to show off their prowess in visual fidelity with the Frostbite 1 and 2 engines. At which point, they did show some prowess, especially with Warfighter pioneering Frostbite 2. But when this is all said and done, it leaves nothing but a corpse of what could've been.

A game with a dedicated squad mechanic such as this could've been so much more than what it is now, a more dedicated multiplayer with a Co-Op experience, focusing entirely on the Tier 1 units of the world. If I'm being completely honest, they could've had an R6 Siege or a SWAT 4 ahead of its time. The breach mechanics were ingenious, to say the least, satisfying to use, the buddy helper system was also a good idea and if fleshed out more it could've become a better idea.

Ultimately, though, even if Warfighter was fun, even if 2010 had a good campaign it suffered from the decisions and the choices made beforehand for the game by a greedy and shameless company.

2018 — How Well Did It Hold Up?:

Visually, gameplay wise and mechanic wise, I would say that arguably most of this is objective, I think that the games do hold up well for the year, especially one like Medal of Honor [2010] which for the engine used and the year it came out when EA was still figuring out how to do pretty visuals, Danger Close very much nailed the essence, visuals and style taking complete advantage of the already dated Frostbite engine used by Bad Company 2.

Despite all this, and other shortcomings, namely the slow-mo sequences and the somewhat dumb AI - That is still leagues better than the ones used in Battlefield 1, 3 and Battlefront II, which is a statement in of itself. - and some bugs here and there that wouldn't potentially break your experience.

In my honest opinion, if you were to pick up these two games, I would tell you to go ahead and get them in a heartbeat, even if the Multiplayer sections may be dead or otherwise, the campaigns hold enough content to be enjoyable. And it asks nothing of you, just to sit down and enjoy.

Unlike many games in the current Gaming Industry, even if these were part of the problem and the start with the DLC model of business, they still remained true. Despite certain intrusions, the developers still wanted to make good games more than just money.

PART IV

From Here

Conclusion — Final Extraction:

"I think a key part of this is having the right amount of high-quality production talent, and we didn't have the quality of leadership we needed to make [Medal of Honor] great. We just have to get the leadership aligned. We're blessed to have more titles than we can do well today. That's a good problem, frankly. In the long term, we have to make sure we don't kill those products by trying to do them when we can't do them well."

— Richard Hilleman EA Creative Director. [February, 2013]

I think that as far as it goes, gaming has changed an incredible length from just a few years ago, we stand here in 2018 with a plethora of amazing games that we have left behind and some that we have even forgotten and tossed into the rubble.

Medal of Honor was one of these gaming franchises that have turned for the worst with the use of amazing concepts and ideas and rushed, poor execution, with the company leading their development long dead and stagnant below EA DICE and the franchise almost, if not already forgotten.

Medal of Honor will always hold a special place in my heart, and I'm sure it will hold a special place in the hearts of many, growing up as a World War II shooter and maturing into a modern shooter following in the footsteps of more commonplace shooters out there, Medal of Honor has written itself into a corner with botched execution for many and amazing ideas to never be revisited again.

Despite controversies, despite it being used as a footstool for Battlefield's growth and success at the expense of its own soul. I think we owe it to the franchise to at least remember it for what it was.

And please, EA, leave the corpse to rest. We are at the doorstep of 2018, and I have grown so detached from many franchises that you have led into the ground, with your royal bullshit of 'Make Players into Payers' you can at least, leave Medal of Honor. You have already killed it, along with Mass Effect, Dead Space among others.

Semper Fi, see you around, old friend.

Author's Notes:

And that brings an end to this article, I'd like to thank everyone that has been supporting me in the last year or so, even if it is just supporting my art by sharing it, my writing, donating, following me on Twitter and any other project that I have been working on.

Thank you.

I mean it, from the bottom of my heart, I wouldn't be here if it weren't for each and every one of you, I wouldn't be in the position I am, and I wouldn't be in a position where I am able to leave at the turn start of the year to a better place, to live a better life.

I will continue the flow of content and I will continue the flow of quality as best as I can possibly manage. That I promise, and when I make the jump to any other format, I will continue to push forward and drive forward the control of quality and content that I keep here and in my art and in everything else I do in my life.

I am proud to call myself your friend, your entertainer, your rat. I am proud to be who I am with all of you that support my work.

2018 is going to be wild.

I'd also like to give a huge shout out to my brother and my boy, Josh, for the header art and the GGDB art! And Howard for helping out with the revisions and editing of the articles since my Reach article.

Los Patrones:

As for my patrons, you know each and every one of you who you are, I love you, I love your support even if it ain't much, you have helped out through the hardest of times and we're about to make it out the other side.

And for each and every one of you, and most importantly for myself, I will not only continue to bring you the content you desire but strive forward and to hope to bring everyone a little piece of happiness, I will never conform, I will never stay in one place, I will never remain in one medium.

Strive, Survive, Adapt and Succeed. That's what we do. That's what we'll continue to do.

Semper Fi. Love you.

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