Fallout 76: Atom_X

Today we have the wonderful work of Atom X. I first came cross Atom when he was prolifically shooting Skyrim. At the time I was solely shooting that game and his work inspired me. The softness of his shots and the dreamlike qualities really set the scenes.

Now he shoots a wide plethora of games but I decided to make his first showcase on here Fallout 76. A game despite its poor reception does have a rather large dedicated fan base. 

As you can see from these shots, Atom is not afraid to change the focus of his subjects or experiment with different styles of photography. I hope this work inspires others out there to try their hand at something new and bold. To see more of his work check out his Instagram page here.

Assassin's Creed Origins: Robert.mcb.Evans

Today we have the first in non-Days Gone Week showcases. I chose the virtual photography work of Robert.mcb.Evans and some of his shots from Assassin's Creed Origins. A real positive force within vp community on Instagram Robert always pays his respects to others, comments where comments are due and gives his support to other creatives. 

As a virtual photographer, like with any form of creativity, we all need a boost sometimes to get that rush of inspiration and positive energy. I have witnessed him not only do that with my personal work, but the photographs of many others too. 

Much like his outgoing personality, Robert's shots bring a tranquillity and honesty to the scenes he shoots. Above we see Bayek's humble beginnings and below we see the mighty Cleopatra contemplating her fate. To see more of his work check out his page here. 

Online Piracy risen by nearly 60%

According to the Guardian UK Piracy has risen massively during lockdown. It is during these times of self isolation and, for many, a lack of income that options become far more tantalising. This is not just a trend within the UK but worldwide as this graph from MUSO shows.

Films and hit shows such as Contagion and Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness have been huge draws for streaming services in recent weeks, and for illegal websites that host pirated copies.

“For the last three years of data, we’ve seen film and TV [piracy] in every single territory in the world spike at the weekends,” said Andy Chatterley, Muso’s chief executive. "The company now sees even more weekday film piracy by U.S. users than it previously did on weekends," he said.

Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness

The top pirate sites in the U.S, U.K, Germany, France, Italy and Spain served 50% more ads to users in the first quarter compared with the previous quarter, according to White Bullet Solutions Ltd., a London-based company tracking the advertising that supports intellectual property theft.

While Netflix and other streaming sites are having to reduce the quality of their streams to allow for the increased demand, many pirate streaming sites are still offering high definition viewing. 

"Netflix said it added more than double the number of subscribers it forecast in the first quarter, and Walt Disney Co. said it had 50 million subscribers to its Disney+ service on April 8, from 28.6 million in early February. It had told investors last year that it expected 60 million to 90 million signups by the end of fiscal 2024." - Wall Street Journal

In response to this increase social media companies have cracked down of streaming by banning certain URLs, while Europol warned customers that black market streaming can open you up to forms of cyber attack. Meanwhile police forces worldwide have been arresting people behind the piracy. 

With an increase in piracy and peoples desperation the chances of downloading harmful software has increased along with door to door and phone scamming of the elderly and vulnerable. 

Stay smart, stay safe. 

VP Interview: Kevin McAlister

As you know this week is Day's Gone Week over at  The Broken Road. For some time I have been an avid follower of VikingDad aka Kevin McAlister the man behind this community event. He is a virtual photographer and blogger who solely focuses on the Days Gone and President of the Mongrels community. I always admire such focus, having spent years and hundreds of hours solely on Skyrim myself. 

Throughout this article we will find what drives his ambition and vision.

Hi Kevin, I am thrilled that you took the time to answer my questions here for the virtual photography community. My first question is what makes Days Gone such a standout title, for you but also in gaming in general?

Days Gone stands apart from other games on a personal level because of the story. The story resonated with me because the characters felt real. They had real emotions, real tribulations and behind all the darkness and chaos of the world lied the core themes of family, hope and trust. When you play this, you start thinking about how you would react if the world became like this. What actions would you take? How far would you go for your loved ones? Its games like this that get you thinking outside of the game itself.

Days Gone was ambitious and moved toward a new way of storytelling by creating this brand-new world, interwoven story lines and interactive open-world that comes for you at every angle. There are story moments in the game that players will remember for a long time. The technical feat that Bend Studio pulled off by having 500 Freakers on the screen at one time is something that hasn’t been done before. Days Gone is the start of what could be a long living PlayStation franchise and deserves to be mentioned in the top tier of games.

What drove you to start a blog focused solely on Days Gone?

The simple answer is, I just fell in love with the game. When I first created the blog, I just wanted a place to write and share my short stories within the Days Gone world. I also noticed that there wasn’t another outlet that focused solely on Days Gone, so I thought creating my own little corner could fulfill my own hunger for more of the game. As the blog became more known, it evolved to more than just writing short-stories and I started to include topics on the game, interviews from the team at Bend Studio, a gallery displaying my virtual photography and more.

How have you found the reception to what you have done so far?

Let’s just say I never imagined that this blog would have gotten this far. When I created this last June, I didn’t have a following on Twitter (maybe 25 followers?) and I didn’t have an Instagram. I was writing for myself because I was having fun with it. Days Gone is also where I first started the virtual photography art form. With the mesh of the blog, photos and posting my love for Days Gone it grew to lengths I didn’t expect. So, in less than a year I went from 25 followers to now almost 2000 with a blog that continues to have people visit it daily. However, numbers are not the measure for success. I just appreciate people reading my stuff, liking my photos and talking about the game to other like-minded people. I am blown away by the support I receive from Bend Studio, the virtual photography community and people not getting sick of me posting about one game! Also, I hold a monthly Days Gone virtual photography theme called VPDaysGone and each month I receive 100+ photos from the community and even a year after its release, I just get so happy that people still participate in it. As long as I keep having fun with it (as I am) I will continue and that is the type of reception that I focus on.

Having read your blog I was drawn to your interviews with Jeff Ross, Nathan Whitehead and Paul Deakin. How did it feel to be talking to some of the talent behind the games creation?

It was so cool and a little surreal honestly. Jeff Ross was my first interview, and this was the start of my continued relationship with Bend Studio. Being a small creator, you get lost behind the big voices of the gaming world, but Bend Studio took time to respond to me and gave me a chance. That I am very thankful for. I do this out of pure love for the game, so when developers take time out of their busy schedule to answer some of my questions I really just appreciate being able to interact with them and learn more about the game. 

Within the communities that you are part of is there any one you would like to give a shout out to. Perhaps people that have been somewhat a pillar of the community or helped you on your journey?

The two big communities I am apart of and love very much is my Days Gone community and virtual photography community. Without the support of these two, my blog and photos would not be seen. They have all been so friendly and supportive of me since I began this journey last year and it makes social media so much fun. I have a long list of people I would like to give a shoutout to, but we could be here awhile! Instead I’ll just mention a few. One of the first virtual photographers I came across was @dotpone. I never knew virtual photography was even a thing until I saw some of his shots. From there, I explored a whole community of people who share the same interest. @musa_warrior_vp was another VP I came across early on. It was always a pleasure interacting with him and he always showed me nothing but support and love. In my Days Gone community, I must give a shoutout to my Vice President of the Mongrels, @sim_nell_vp. Its fun being able to nerd out together about the one game we love, ask for advice on each other’s photos and to have someone like me to help keep the Days Gone community together.

Like anyone who takes the time to look at your blog, I have read the short stories you have written so far. Do you plan on writing more and what is it that draws you to create your own narrative within the world?

After I finished Days Gone, I was captivated by the story and characters as I said before. The game does a great job at setting world-building pieces throughout the world from environments, NERO recordings, collectables, and a starting point of two years after the world went to hell. All of this creates a sense that there is a bigger world at play here than what you are just doing with Deacon St. John. It reminds me of The Walking Dead and how they are building their own universe by creating spin-off shows, novels, video games and even movies. There is so much that can be explored and told through stories in this brand-new world of Days Gone. I began writing a few years ago and fell in love with creating my own stories. The more I play the game the more ideas I come up with, so yes you can definitely expect more stories down the road.


What is next for The Broken Road?

The Broken Road is just getting started! I do have a long-term plan in mind for the blog to evolve and improve. I constantly come up with more ideas. Being a perfectionist, my mind never stops! One thing that can be expected for the future at some point are more videos. The written format plays to a certain group of audience, so adding in additional content for people to consume is always a bonus. I have a couple more ideas that I don’t want to share quite yet, but I can say that when Days Gone 2 gets announced you will want to keep an eye on The Broken Road.

You can follow Kevin on both Twitter and Instagram. You can also join the Discord where Days Gone fans get together and talk everything and anything about Days Gone. Hope to see you on the broken road!

Days Gone Week

Join The Broken Road as they celebrate the one-year anniversary of Days Gone! 

"Fans around the world get to share, connect, create and discuss the game we love. You can take part in the celebration by sharing your Days Gone virtual photography, photo edits, streams, videos, fan-art, discussions and anything else you would like to add to the week. There will be interviews, giveaways, fan-appreciation videos, streams, a photo mode contest with prizes and more! Let’s show Bend Studio how much this game means to us!" - The Broken Road

As part of the weeks celebration here at VP Vibrancy I am hosting any virtual photographer's shots of Days Gone in the form of a mini showcase.

I hope you enjoy the ride! If you have shots and would like to be featured, contact me here. 

For everything Days Gone, check out The Broken Road!

VP Interview: Svid.vp

Today's interview is with Yuri aka Svid.vp. In my opinion he is the most prolific and iconic photographer of Horizon Zero Dawn, but also is by no means a one trick pony, having proven his skill set in other games as well. During this interview we focused on his love of the game, what drives him and we touch upon difficulties he has had with the online theft of his work.

Yuri, what made you delve into the virtual photography hobby and what does the hobby mean to you?

Well I started my virtual photography adventure back in 2013 when Bioshock Infinite came on PC, so I started to learn all things and adapting some techniques from my real photography into the virtual world.
In 2014 due to lack of time I quit posting and made shots from time to time for myself as wallpapers but was quiet in social media like steam or twitter.
In 2017, a close person to me passed away and that person always enjoyed my shots and I started to post again, as a reminder for me that this person really admired and loved my pictures. Ever since I keep posting and thinking: does he like this up stairs?

Horizon Zero Dawn shot by Svid.vp

Now there is no escaping the fact that you are a huge fan of Horizon Zero Dawn. How did you come to be so connected with this game and why did it become such a personal passion?

A close friend introduced me to Horizon Zero Dawn back in July 2017 and I was pretty impressed with the game so decided to buy a PS4 Pro. Ever since I love and admire the game even more each day, discovering new things and opportunities for portraits/ landscaped and such.

Horizon Zero Dawn shot by Svid.vp

 My big weakness is of course, Aloy portraits which I really love and enjoy to take. In my opinion, Aloy is one of the most beautiful female characters in a game. I really admire her character and personality as well as her beauty.

Horizon Zero Dawn shot by Svid.vp

Out of all the subjects and scenes you photograph, which is your favourite and why?

There are a lot of styles out there but the most iconic for me is portraits.
Getting closeups, using depth of field and the environment in the world in your favour to create the ultimate portrait is always a joy. I really love taking the shadow versus light portraits that make the character really stand out to make the most out of it.

Horizon Zero Dawn shot by Svid.vp

Now being such a prolific and standout virtual photographer, you have drawn the attention of many. Sadly this means many of your shots have been taken and used by others. Can you tell us a little about this journey and how you dealt with it?

This is pretty complicated topic to discuss so i'll try to make it simple. Legally, I can't really do much about it as a virtual photographer. Involving lawyers and taking legal actions is time consuming and because in most cases, the action is international, there is additional costs for it.

The best and the easiest way to battle this situation is just to place a watermark on your screenshots on tricky places so they can't crop it. The problem is, it ruins the shot and sometimes can make it look ugly. I just place it on the corner and hope for the best. But I have to note the awesome vp community that cares about each other, report thieves and are supportive and for that I'm grateful.
People should be inspired from other's work, not stealing. Learning from each other rather than steal other's work and claim as your own.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider shot by Svid.vp

Now back onto a more positive question. How much would you say Horizon Zero Dawn has changed your life?

This is the game that actually made me start posting again, but this time even on Instagram and Twitter. Most of the time I used flickr but because it's the number 1 source for theft I prefer to use the others as Instagram's community and Twitter are much more friendly.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider  shot by Svid.vp

Thanks to this game I have also met some amazing people and partners and I'm thankful for.

The game also changed my point of view in regards to virtual photography and made me to pay attention to all details in game. Sometimes the smallest things can make a huge difference in terms of composition and the overall capture.

Horizon Zero Dawn shot by Svid.vp

Aside from Horizon Zero Dawn what other games do you like to take shots in and why?

Except Horizon Zero Dawn, I shoot on my PC in games like Tomb Raider, Metro series, Assassin's Creed Odyssey and games that have either Ansel by Nvidia or any 3rd party injectable camera (or mods for it) Keeping an open mind to test my skills in new games all the time.

Metro Exodus shot by Svid.vp

Finally the inevitable question: What are your thoughts on the rumoured sequel? What do you hope is contained within it and how could it beat the original in your eyes?

I'm really optimistic about the next game and I hope to see improvements like, bigger map, more weapons and outfits to fulfil my passion for Aloy closeups.

Horizon Zero Dawn shot by Svid.vp

Retrospective: The Last of Us

The third in my horror retrospective series is Brandon on the PS4 exclusive that took the gaming world by storm: The Last of Us. All of the photographs throughout the article were taken by him, to see more of his work check out his Instagram page. 

The Last of Us for me, was and still is one of my favorite horror games to date.  The game starts you off in such an eerie setting, that it's kind of indescribable, post apocalyptic maybe?  The raw emotions that were introduced in the beginning, eventually chaining themselves along with the many unforgettable npcs you encounter through your journey, is phenomenal.

I have followed this game from the first time it was announced to today.  It has been one of my go to horror games to say the least. The originality of the infected are also something to behold. From the recently infected humans , to the fully covered with 'no sign of humanity left' clickers and bloaters.

Fun fact:  The game's infection is actually a real life fungus, the same effect it has on humans in the game, it has on different species of insects and arachnids, scary right?  No worries though, there has never been any instances of the cordyceps fungus infecting humans in real life ever recorded.

The Last of Us will always be to me, one of the best games ever to hit the gaming market. If you have yet to play this game this you are dreadfully missing out.

Resident Evil 4 Remake 2022

Capcom have now announced that the work on the Resident Evil 4 remake is in full swing. Due to the overwhelming success of 2 and 3's re-imagining, the sequel of one of the most loved games in the franchise is due to be out in 2022.

This is not a new development though as the development is being led by Osaka-based M-Two, the new studio founded by former Platinum Games head Tatsuya Minami, which has been preparing for the project since 2018. The original games director Shinji Mikami declined the offer to lead the project but has offered his informal advice on the direction that should be taken. 

It is no secret that Resident Evil 4 is Capcom's most highest rated game of all time and has sales totalling a grand 7.5 million copies. It was the game that changed the mould, not only in terms of the Resident Evil series but the horror genre in general and it paved the way for many third person shooters that came after.

Building on the experimental Nemesis project and his parasite, we saw the Los Illuminados, a mind controlled horde of enemies that horded Leon wherever he found himself. This disposed of the slow paced tension and horror of the previous series and turned it into a different breed of fear. No longer were a handful of zombies a threat but instead we were faced with swarms of enemies, reminiscent of such films as Assault on Precinct 13 (1976) or Black Hawk Down (2001). The terror was far more frenzied and the horror more set in our real world fears. Surviving became less about item management and more about the fast-paced combat.

Resident Evil 3 shot by me

Many people seem to be excited that the new Resident Evil 3 remake is hinting at Resident Evil 4 through its references to parasites, but the original already had this content within the texts that could be found in the game and in the big guy himself. Nemesis is a T-Tyrant, much like Mr. X from Resident Evil 2 but bound to a Nemesis Alpha Parasite in a hope to increase the subjects intelligence. This gives him the ability to adapt and hunt the S.T.A.R.S. members with an efficiency other tyrants could not, while also harnessing weaponry. 

Capcom also still have Resident Evil 8 in the works, which is rumoured to be first person, follow on from Resident Evil 7 and have a more European medieval setting (much like 4). 

Resident Evil 7 shot by me

Retrospective: Resident Evil HD Remake

Here is the second post on the horror retrospective. These were originally going to be in one article like the International Woman's Day feature, but due to the quality of what I received I decided to post them separately,  giving each virtual photographer their space to shine. 

Here is Gaming_kweenz on Resident Evil the HD remake. A game that will also always have a special place in my heart. The addition of Crimson heads was terrifying and seeing my favourite series, original feature get a beautiful re-skin was beyond a gift. 

Resident Evil is definitely my favourite horror games. I feel that it is an underrated gem of the horror genre. It is a classic that really captures the true meaning of survival horror. The lighting is used perfectly to set the eerie atmosphere. Throughout the game you are constantly on the edge of your seat because of the unique fixed-camera angle. Due to the slow pace of the game the tension always slowly builds and enemies often catch you off guard. 

Resident Evil was one of the first games I ever played. It filled me with a range of emotions from excitement to being instantly terrified. 

Due to this I now have a little dark corner of my heart reserved just for the Resident Evil games. 

Retrospective: Alien Isolation

With the release of Resident Evil 3, I took some time to consider my experiences in horror gaming and contemplated knocking a post together about it. After some thought I decided that instead I would choose some standout people within the Virtual Photography community to share their favourite horror game instead. This is the first in a line of retrospectives from the VP community. Have a favourite classic, wish to share your memories? Contact me and I shall give you the platform to share your shots and tales here.

Today we have Rusty with his favourite horror game Alien Isolation. All of the atmospheric photographs throughout the article were taken by him, to see more of his work check out his Instagram page. 

I’m amazed it took until 2014 for us to get a survival horror game based on Ridley Scott’s classic 1979 sci-fi/horror film, Alien. After all, video games are the perfect medium for the genre, being more immersive than movies. Alien: Isolation not only manages to be a fantastic horror game, it also lovingly recreates, and adds too, the iconic retro-futuristic look of Alien.

The game takes place on Sevastopol Station, a world gone to hell due to the presence of something horrifying. We know that something is the Xenomorph and the game plays on this, expertly building suspense. When he finally shows up and begins hunting for you, the tension is immense. It remains that way for large sections of the game, although you do get moments of relative calm and safety that help avoid burnout.

None of this would work effectively if the A.I wasn’t up to scratch, as nothing kills tension like frustration. Luckily the Xeno comes across as intelligent, but beatable. If you’re careful, quiet and use your limited tools well, you can remain undetected and progress, in the knowledge that the alien won’t just pop-up out of thin air. The AI can be unpredictable too, which leads to some wonderful dynamic game play and unscripted jump scares.

I do have a couple of issues, the first being that no horror game has any business being this long. The section where you go for a space-walk certainly feels a lot like padding. Amanda Ripley is also a fairly bland protagonist, reacting to a series of increasingly horrifying events in a way that no rational person ever would.

It’s still a brilliantly tense horror experience, in a beautifully realised, lived in world, that’s dripping with atmosphere. I’d recommend it to any survival horror fan, but particularly those who love games like Amnesia: The Dark Descent.

A Demo With Photo Mode

Recently I downloaded Code Vein hoping to trial the photo mode. Half way through the demo I realised that it did not have one. A lot of games in this day and age do not have demos, let alone one that trials the games photo mode. I am not sure why, as we all know, photo mode makes for a great free advertising campaign. 

Bound by Wolfwithashield

Wolfwithashield recently started playing Bound (A PS4 exclusive) and uploaded some shots yesterday, which reminded me of the fun I had with the photo mode within it's short demo. The demo itself is not very long but showcases the games visual style, constant ballet action and unique dream-like quality perfectly. 

Bound Demo shot by me

If you fancy trying something new or just getting a few experimental shots off then I would highly recommend the demo. I bought the game soon after as it was on sale (and often is) but just the demo alone will be enough to showcase a few great virtual photography shots and mix things up a bit.

Bound Demo shot by me

If you are a PC owner I can also tell you that the new Resident Evil 3 demo not only has an injectable free cam, but also a huge amount of fan made mods. Possibly the most for any demo ever made. I have showcased and linked a bunch of them below. The time and energy the modding community put in the games is amazing. Resident Evil 2's mods made my game play experience stretch to a sweet 55 hours. Playing around with costumes, taking shots with the free camera and pushing myself to try some crazy hard challenges.

Not being able to play the game on release due to a lack of income, I have taken to embracing the demo with all of its mods. These shots are not edited, as to show you a true representation of the demos look. For fancier shots, check out my Instagram page. There are many mods beyond these, I just showcased some of my favourites. Browse Nexus Mods for more.

Resident Evil 5 Jill Outfit Components and Equipment.

by Puppet88

2B Model instead of Jill

by Vyaomo

Motivated VerJill + Katana

by Wiwilz

Jill's Classic Costume

by JTegh

Golden G19C Pistol

by SilverEzredes

Classic Nemesis has been removed 

but I am sure he will make a return.

Shirtless Carlos

by Tzarev

Bikini/Nude Jill

by AlphaZomega