Hey and welcome to another Channel Update. In these blogs, I want to give you an update on what has been going on in my life and on the website as I strive to create a kickass resource for you.
Table of contents
Personal
- Mike’s chicken pox are almost gone. There was an area that got infected so he needed some meds to combat that. However, the liquid antibiotics he was prescribed tasted awful, and therefore it was a challenge to get him to take his meds.
- I have been learning new web design skills and hope to implement them in the upcoming site. These new tools allow me to do a lot of new stuff but there is also a journey of learning how to implement that.
- We finished the story of Lego City Undercover but now we are trying to find all the secrets. So we will be busy for a while.
- I have a small vacation coming up because my wife won a €250 coupon during a previous vacation bingo so we are going to use that.
Website
MentalMarsV4: There have been some setbacks but also some huge upgrades. Creating this new website has challenged me to rethink the way I have always built my sites. In order to see if I could achieve this new level of web design I chose to work with a Freemium Plugin.
This Freemium Plugin allowed me to experiment and see if I had it in me to build this massive project. However, when the time came to upgrade to the Premium version I discovered that the company doesn’t accept Dutch payment cards or Paypal.
So I looked at my options and did some math, therefore, I chose to purchase the full package from another software company. Their plugins allow me to do the same and more. The upfront cost is way higher but since they have a LifeTime Deal, it’s a one-time $750 purchase. I would have had these costs and more if I went with the other plugins as those have a yearly subscription. Even cherry-picking the plugins I needed from the new development company would have stacked up so the “All-in-One” deal was cheaper.
Having this new “All-in-One” suite also provides me with features that weren’t planned or planned to obtain from another plugin developer. All-in-all these are expensive upgrades and I have to redo some of the work but I’m excited for the end result as these investments allow me to build something awesome for you!
| Tools | Cost |
|---|---|
| New Theme + Builder | $45 |
| Upgrade to the Pro version of the Theme Builder | $59 |
| Custom Upgrades to the Theme | $375 |
| New Push Notification Service | $343 |
| New Premium Plugins to extend the capabilities of the site | $750 |
| Total | $1518 |
Yes, I’m investing heavily in the new site because I plan to do this for many more years! I also recently paid for the hosting so that is secured for the next 3 years (the hosting provider doesn’t allow more years). Yeah, this isn’t a free platform like YouTube where you simply upload your video and it works.
Borderlands
- New SHiFT Codes are still being added quickly I notice I’m often faster than other outlets.
- The Black Market Location still gets updated each week. In the last several weeks you are also able to watch a video guide where I show you the location and the loot.
- The cover image of the novel; Borderlands Debt or Alive has been revealed.
- The Borderlands Movie was presented at CinemaCon, I did a breakdown of all the news I could find.
- I have a bunch of Borderlands topic ideas for new articles written down, however, I would love to finish the new site first.
Others HUBs
- Immortals of Aveum:
- Immortals of Avuem is now Free with PS+, therefore, I enhanced several articles because it helped answer questions I saw pop up on Social Media.
- Ascendant Studio updated the game so I Updated Patch Notes here on the site.
- Added an Immortals of Avuem Secret Ending Guide as questions popped up.
- The quest marker sometimes doesn’t appear after escaping Seren leaving players lost. Therefore I added an article to help lost players find Glaivegate.
- Best Talents that I recommend for this game.
- Seeing folks wonder if you can Romance Kenzie during the optional mission when she is waiting on your bed.
- Also seeing players wonder if there will be DLC for Immortals of Aveum.
- Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands:
- Keeping up with SHiFT Codes and Loot Room updates.
- Tiny Tina is getting a Graphic Novel.
- Redfall:
- Nothing new. Someone has spotted a new Branch in the Redfall SteamDB, so they are cooking something up but nothing is released yet.
- Battleborn:
- I helped out Lowlines who is working on a new Launcher for Battleborn Reborn. Fun project and I’m happy to see we still are much in sync 🙂
- I big update to Battleborn Reborn is coming soonish.
