Articles & Content Archives

Corruption is the X-Factor

Opinion, Politics | 14 May 2022

While watching a YouTube video on South Africa, discussing how it’s on the cusp of a civil war due to its geography and demographics throughout history, I looked at the YouTube comments and related Reddit thread. I saw how the South African viewers didn’t like how the video avoided the elephant in the room, which was corruption. I then saw that it’s the common theme in the comments of that video series in that channel. While many countries seem to have all the geographical and historical odds stacked against them, what really holds them back is persistent corruption in their governments and societies. (more…)

Keychron K2 V2 Keyboard Review

by: Sonny Go

Peripherals, Reviews | 22 April 2022

One day, I bought beef noodles for takeout. I later spilled some of the hot soup over my old keyboard and my hasty attempts at remedying it left me with a useless (but not completely broken) keyboard and a need to replace it. While browsing Shopee, I found what I thought would be a suitable replacement. It was a 75% keyboard that will give me more desk space and a hotswappable board to try out different switches. After some thought, I got myself a Keychron K2 V2. (more…)

Nip the Problem in the Bud

by: Sonny Go

Opinion | 15 April 2022

Welcome to yet another rant post. It seems like I should just write more rant posts to have more regular content on this blog since they’re a lot easier to write. All jokes aside, I felt that this rant was worth posting due to how important it is to talk about the seldom-discussed topic of eliminating toxic people from a group, the criteria for considering them toxic, and if and when it’s right to do so. It’s a sensitive topic that most would rather not think about, but it’s one that’s important enough to set aside misgivings for. (more…)

Amir Khan: Glass Cannon

by: Sonny Go

Boxing, Features | 17 March 2022

If boxing is a role-playing game with character stats, wherein you can make any boxer you want by min-maxing their stats, you can put all of your available points into hand speed and nothing else for that sweet DPS. Doing so gives you one of two guys — Ryan Garcia or Amir Khan. The latter is our focus in this blog post due to his now advanced age. Let’s look at the reason why Amir Khan is likely the greatest glass cannon we’ve ever seen in boxing. (more…)

Tecware EXO L+ Mouse Review

by: Sonny Go

Peripherals, Reviews | 17 March 2022

This is the first “gaming” mouse I’ve bought in years that’s more than ₱500. The last “expensive” mouse I bought was a second Logitech G102 with yet another wonky Omron microswitch in its left button which went on a fritz after six months. After that, I bought a Rakk Alti for ₱350 and took out the lead weight inside it to make it lighter. However, that wasn’t light enough for me to keep using it, so I bought the Tecware EXO L+ upon a friend’s recommendation. (more…)

Elden Ring Surprised Me

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games | 14 March 2022

There are three popular things I haven’t been able to catch up with — JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, The Witcher, and Dark Souls. I’ve been aware of the first one since the 2000s, but never really got into it as I barely watch anime since I got more into combat sports. I missed out on playing the second one, as I have with plenty of other games, so that’s not unusual at all. As for the third one, I had plenty of chances to get into it, but never caught the bug until now with Elden Ring. (more…)

My Six Pillars of Fight Analysis

by: Sonny Go

Combat, Guides | 13 March 2022

I was listening to the Lex Fridman Podcast Episode 260, where he interviewed Georges St-Pierre, John Danaher, and Gordon Ryan. Most of the talking was done by Danaher, who is one of the most cerebral coaches in MMA and submission grappling today. Lex asked the question of who would win between GSP and Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Danaher broke down their strengths and weaknesses. This blog post is the result of an epiphany I had while listening to his analysis on how I can formalize the foundation of my own analysis. (more…)

Learning About Modding Mechanical Keyboards

by: Sonny Go

Guides, Peripherals | 11 March 2022

Keychron K2 V2 and Rakk Pluma with custom PBT keycaps

After a couple of years of coveting, I recently got into custom mechanical keyboards, which I’ve avoided due to lack of funds. But now that things have opened up for me and I got some extra cash to spare, it was time to invest in my keyboard, which is the main tool of my trade. I work as a freelance writer, which means I type a whole lot. Therefore, it’s important for me to have a good keyboard that I enjoy typing with, especially since I’m trying to get better at it. (more…)

Not Your Usual Streaming Gear Guide

by: Sonny Go

Guides, Peripherals, Streaming | 29 January 2022

This blog needs more guides, so here’s the first one of 2022. For this streaming gear guide, I wanted to recommend gear that most other guides don’t. The problem with those guides is they’re usually written by freelance writers who are just trying to hit their quota so they can get paid. Their sources of information tend to be all the other run-in-the-mill guides you’ll find out there, so they just parrot the usual. Not this guide. While I can’t say my recommendations are the absolute best out there, but they may give you a better perspective on how flexible you can be with your choice of streaming gear. (more…)

I Made a Big Mistake by Starting Final Fantasy XIV

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games | 26 January 2022

That’s right. I gave into temptation and joined the fray. The last MMORPG I took seriously was Ragnarok Online, which I played way back from May 2003 to January 2006. While I would try out other MMOs later on like Tantra Online, Risk Your Life, RF Online, and so on, I never took it as seriously as the game that interfered with my college life. But this time, there’s no pressure for me to keep up. Final Fantasy XIV is known to be an MMO that actually respects the player’s time, but I’ll only believe it if I see it. (more…)

The Stupid Non-Argument of Technique vs. Strength

by: Sonny Go

Combat, Opinion | 16 January 2022

An illustration from Championship Fighting by Jack Dempsey

One day, while scrolling through Facebook again because it was just one of those days, I came across a post on a boxing training group that brought about an age-old argument. Someone posted a YouTube video on how muscles are not important in boxing at all. Context may be skipped over in my description of it, but the whole discussion does just that anyway. I’ve written about the dichotomy of technique and conditioning on this blog, but let’s look more closely at the arguments against it. (more…)

Disco Elysium Took Me Some Time to Get Into

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games | 15 January 2022

When I got gifted Disco Elysium by a friend during the Holidays, I knew I had no other choice but to give it a go. However, it took me quite a while to actually get into it, even though it’s the kind of game I’d be into. I’m not sure why. Perhaps it’s the period of time in which I chose to start playing it. To be fair, I also haven’t managed to finish its spiritual predecessor, Planescape: Torment. It does take a good bit of effort to play these games. (more…)