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Doom was one of those games that I wasn’t allowed to play when I was a kid but I did anyways. It was dark, atmospheric and kind of scary. The games were unique at that time and basically laid the foundation for future first person shooters. Since then Id software tried to recapture that magic with various other games like Doom 3 and RAGE but were never really were able to reach the heights of Doom I and II…until now.

There was some hesitation from fans when the new Doom was announced since the market was oversaturated with first person shooters and it would take something special for the new Doom to make a dent. The development history of the game was troublesome, Id Software had completed a Doom game, didn’t like what they had created and then restarted the development process from the beginning. So there were a lot of questions that needed answering, would the new developers be able to design levels as good as John Romero and co.? Would the new developers be able to create the same fast-paced action that were present in those original games? Would they try to create a more immersive narrative even though those older games didn’t really rely on one? Even then, would a first person shooter with a reliance on gameplay over narrative even succeed nowadays when narrative seems important to the consumer and the players?

I was able to get my hands on Doom a few days before its official release and even though the multiplayer beta was disappointing, I was really looking forward to the single player campaign. As the games release date got closer, it was revealed that no review copies were sent out to any of the major websites so many people were expecting the worst. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting when I put the game in, I hoped for the best though. Thankfully what I got was nothing short of incredible. The game has incredible visuals and art direction, the environments look great, the monsters look extremely detailed and the animation is top notch. The music and the sound design are also fantastic and suit the game perfectly. Another aspect of the game that adds to its value is it doesn’t take itself too seriously. The developers built a ridiculous and amusing lore surrounding Doom-guy. They took this generic guy and turned him into this legendary warrior that demons fear. He has a personality even though he doesn’t say a word, it’s all in his actions. The game plays fast, it’s brutal and the music accompanying the action is memorable. The way the game starts is brilliant and probably one of the most memorable introduction to any game I’ve played.

The developers were successful at modernizing Doom in a couple of ways. First off is you can now upgrade your weapons, thankfully it’s not convoluted. Each weapon has two upgrade paths and the manner in which they’re presented is simple and straight forward. Your armor can be upgraded as well and like your weapons, the process is simple. You can also upgrade the amount of health, armor and ammo you can carry. You’ll also come across demonic runes that present a challenge and if you complete the challenge you’ll unlock a rune that you can equip that will also help you out in some way.

Other ways the developers were able to modernize Doom is the games level design. The original Doom games had complex level designs that were maze like and contained plenty of secrets to discover. The developers were able to take that feel and successfully modernize it. Levels have a lot of verticality to them and you’ll be jumping around quite a bit. It sort of feels like a Metroidvania kind of game in some ways. You’ll get lost in the levels the same way players did in the original game. The levels have secrets and even when you know where they’re located, some secrets are still tricky and challenging to get to.

The game also features two other modes besides the single player campaign mode which are multiplayer and Snapmap modes. Multiplayer is self-explanatory and I haven’t really touched it since release because I’ve been spending all my time playing through the campaign while the Snapmap mode is where all the user-created content will be. Snapmap lets you create and share your own levels and challenges. I’m actually impressed by how much content Doom has to offer.

Its been a while since I’ve enjoyed a first person shooter as much as I’ve enjoyed Doom. It might just be the best single player first person shooter I’ve played. It’s memorable, it’s fun and it’s very violent. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fast-paced action game that doesn’t take itself very seriously. I’m relieved it turned out this good since I chose to play Doom before Uncharted 4. I don’t like giving out perfect scores (I’ve only given 5 games perfect scores), but Doom deserves it.

Score: ★★★★★

Post by Patrick

Last Thursday I felt like playing a new video game but didn’t feel like heading to Hawalli to pick up a new game. So I decided to order a game online but wanted a place that would deliver in an hour. I mean if you can order food, have it prepared and delivered in under hour, I figured it shouldn’t be difficult to find a place that would have a game delivered that fast as well. Turns out nobody delivers video games in an hour and with some places like Blink who offer express delivery, they charge you a premium for it and you need to order before a certain time. Plus by express delivery they mean under 4 hours which is just too long. I was losing hope until I remembered a reader telling me about an instagram account called @alfuhod. They sell games for prices cheaper than the rest of the market and they offer free delivery. So I called them up and ordered Uncharted 4, they told me they’d deliver it within 2 hours. It was 7:50 when I placed the order so I was expecting to get it by 10PM.

A friend ended up coming over to watch a movie and time flew by and I completely forgot I had ordered a video game until I get a phone call at 11:44PM from a driver asking directions for my house. Nearly 4 hours since I placed the order so obviously I was upset and told the driver I didn’t want the game anymore since it was too late. Next day I got a message from them asking me if I received my game, I told them no I canceled it because the driver was 2 hours late. They didn’t apologize or even respond to me so I’m not ordering from them again.

Which brings me to my question, where do you guys order your games from and who has the quickest delivery time? I’m gonna create a list of all the online places you can order video games from and this is what I have so far:

3Rood Q8
Blink
Digumz
Digumz Store (not related to Digumz)
Game Center
GamesQ8
Mr Babu
ProGaming
Q8 Complex
Taw9eel
Tawsel AlFuhod
VG Gurus
X4 Games
Xcite

Like the Lotus Exige S which I recently wrote about on the blog, theres a lot to love and hate in the Evora 400. I actually ended up having the car over two weekends so I got to spend a pretty good amount of time with the car. I’ll get all the good stuff out of the way first, then talk about a few negatives points before telling you what I think.

When I first got into the Evora 400 and drove off I was really surprised at how civil the car was. Unlike the Exige S, getting into the car didn’t require any acrobatics since it’s like a normal car, you just open the door and get in. The interior was also a lot more fancier with leather all around, beautiful center console with controls for the AC and gear box, and with seats that were super comfy. The Evora has a Supercharged 3.5L V6 producing 400hp but you wouldn’t be able to tell when the car is in regular touring mode. I thought the Evora was too quiet, like nearly electric car quiet since you couldn’t hear the engine or exhaust, just the whine of the supercharger. The car felt too civil which was starting to feel disappointing since the reason I’m in a Lotus is because it’s a sports car and so I wanted it to sound like one. Luckily, the Evora has a cool trick up its sleeve. On regular touring mode, the car doesn’t sound any louder than a Toyota Camry, but as soon as you hit the exhaust button on the dashboard, everything changes. The Evora suddenly comes to life and the sound becomes brutal and violent. If you’re in an indoor parking lot and roll down your windows, you won’t believe how beautiful the Evora can sound.

I think that was my favorite aspect of the Evora, it can be super silent and an unassuming daily driver (just don’t go with bright orange), or it can be the loud in your face track car. Daily driver is how I kept describing the car to my friends whenever they asked me what I thought of it. Then you have the looks, god damn it’s a super hot looking car. Like the Exige S, everywhere I went people wouldn’t stop staring, it’s such an eye catcher.

But, not all is great. As I mentioned earlier in the post, I had the Evora 400 over two weekends. The reason for that is the first weekend I ran into issues with the gearbox. Something was wrong with the programming and so when I would give the car a hard kick down, the car would sometimes shift from 1st gear to 2nd to 3rd and then just get stuck there instead of continuing to shift up. On one occasion it even got stuck on 2nd gear. Then one night on my way back home, the gearbox, engine and traction control lights all came on and the car wouldn’t shift anymore and just stayed stuck on 3rd gear. I dropped the car off back to Lotus the next morning and got it back again this past weekend. I guess they reset the software or something but all the issues I had with the gearbox the previous weekend disappeared. Putting that bit of bad luck aside though I did have more issues with the car, ones that a software update couldn’t fix. One of my issues with the Exige S was the lack of storage space, not sure how it’s possible but the Evora has even less space than the Exige. There is a small pocket on the door that might or might not hold your wallet depending on how big it is, and there is also a small glove compartment that can hold your sunglasses, but other than that there is nothing. I had to keep my phone in between my legs or on the passenger seat because there was no room anywhere to put my phone. I should mention there is a back seat in this car that supposedly can hold two passengers, but unless those passengers don’t have any legs I’m not sure how they’ll fit there. The back of my seat literally touches the rear seat so there’s no way anyone can sit behind me thats for sure. Finally the last issue with the car is one that I find mind boggling. I took the car to get it washed and it leaked in water from both doors in the exact same location. If it was one side you could say it might have been a defect or whatever, but both sides? Thats just poor design which is why I don’t understand how Lotus didn’t catch this.

The Evora 400 starts at KD34,000 which puts it right in the Porsche 911 turf. But the question then becomes, do you want a car that everyone has? Or do you want a car that is less common and unique? If I’m paying that much money, I don’t want to blend in so then it becomes about how much issues can I put up with. Personally, with all the issues I had with the more affordable Exige S, I’m in love with that car. Maybe if I ask nicely they’ll let me take the Exige S back out for another weekend.

If you’re interested in test driving a Lotus then pass by them, they have both the Exige S and Evora 400 available. Here is a link to their instagram account @alghanimlotuskw

Last night when I got back to Kuwait from a quick trip to Doha I noticed they changed the queue system at passport control.

When I came down the escalators I noticed majority of the immigration counters were practically empty which was a relief since I really didn’t want to spend an hour in line. But then as I got closer I noticed something odd. On the far left was a large crowd of expats, when I looked carefully I noticed all the empty counters were for GCC nationals and that expats needed to enter a queue on the far left.

So I got into the queue which truthfully was moving fast. It was one long queue that served all the expat counters which is something I prefer over having individual queues for each counter. It’s actually been proven to be more efficient which is why it’s used in other countries. There was an officer at the end of the end of the queue who was directing the expats to available counters as they free up. It’s like finally, a proper system.

But, I had a major issue was with the visual appearance of the passport control area (put aside the floor tiles that wouldn’t look out of place in a bathroom). My big issue was how they had the large wide open space for GCC nationals and then had all the expats squeezed into the far left corner like cattle (check below illustration for an overhead look).

I don’t mind there be more counters for GCC nationals over expats, but at least have the expats queue wider and take up more space. Right now the expats are squeezed into 25% of the space while the other 75% is left open for GCC nationals. It really looked degrading the way we were all squeezed off to the side and it’s definitely not a great first impression for visitors on arrival.

Last week I was going through my instagram explore page and found a video of a new indoor skate park, turns out it was part of “Trampo Extreme”, the new Trampo location in Murouj. So I got in touch with them and headed over to check the place out.

The new Trampo location is HUGE with a lot of different activities to try out. First you have the trampolines area which takes up around 1/3 of the whole space. There are different kinds of trampolines to choose from including a dodge ball trampoline court for competitive action against friends. Right next to the trampoline section you have a leap of faith tower and a vertical slide, both of which are meant to test your courage.

Now the other areas of the new Trampo location is where I think things get interesting. First you have a large area on your right once you walk in filled with really tall climbing walls. This is my favorite area in the whole arena since it’s one I’ll probably go back to try.

Right in the middle of the arena but raised above ground is a cable climbing area. It’s a obstacle course in the air which you traverse and once you get to the end of it there is a zip line that takes you to the other side.

The last activity at the new Trampo location is one I think a lot of teenagers are going to love, a skate park. The skate park is divided into three main areas with the first one aimed towards intermediate skaters. This area is composed of a large shallow pool on one side and low rails and ledges on the other with small quarter pipes.

The second area behind the intermediate one is the main skating area and consists of two large quarter pipes connected to each other with volcanos in the middle. This area is a lot more difficult but to help make things a bit easier, there is a third area where you could go to and practice your tricks.

The training area consists of a slope down to a quarter pipe which has a foam pit behind it. This way skaters and riders can practice their tricks without having to worry about getting hurt. And yes, BMX riders can use these facilities alongside skaters and if you don’t have a skateboard or bike, they have them available for you to use.

I got the price list from Tampo and it’s as follows:

Jump: KD6.5/hour
Climb: KD6/hour
Skate’n’Ride Junior: KD7/hour
Skate’n’Ride Pro: KD5.5/hour
Leap: KD1
Slide: KD1
Zipline: KD4

Trampo Extreme just opened this past weekend and their hours are Monday to Thursday 2PM to 10PM, Friday 10AM to 10PM, Saturday 10AM to 8PM and Sundays they are closed. The skate area doesn’t require any bookings but the climbing and trampoline areas do. To book your spot you can do so online from their website [Here]

Yesterday afternoon I dropped my Datsun to Omid’s Garage in Shuwaikh to have a few things worked on, mostly installing an AC system as well as replacing all the car’s bushings among other things. After dropping the car off I walked to the main road to find a cab and then not sure what got into my head but I tweeted that maybe I should just walk home since I was already in gym gear. I wasn’t planning to go to the gym, but since my car didn’t have AC and I was expecting the weather to be warm, I figured I would wear my gym gear since I wouldn’t mind sweating in it. I opened up google maps just to get an idea if it was actually doable and it gave an estimated time of around 2 hours and 44 minutes. It was around 6PM then and I was invited to an Audemars Piguet event at 7PM, but other than that didn’t really have any plans for the evening. So I was like fuck it, I’ll ditch the event and walk home. A friend on twitter replied to me saying it would take me three hours, I replied back that I would make it in 2 and a half and so the challenge was on.

I left the garage at 6:06PM with just a small bottle of water, my wallet, my keys and my phone. The garage is located in the Shuwaikh Industrial area which is the area across from Al Rai and on the other side of highway 60. I started walking towards Canada Dry street cuz I decided I’d take the 3rd Ring Road down towards the Gulf Road and then take the 35 towards Salmiya. Although Canada Dry Street takes just a few seconds to get from the start to the end by car, it took me 20 minutes to walk. I thought that was just too slow of a pace so when I was done from Canada Dry and crossed into Khaldia where I spotted a walking/running track, I decided I would try to run back home. Although I was in my gym gear I didn’t have running shoes on, I had my crossfit ones (Nike Metcon 1) which barely have any padding and are terrible for running. But I’d figure I’d give it a shot since walking was just going to be too slow for me.

I hadn’t really gone running in over two years and I’ve barely been doing any cardio but I just wanted to get home in under 2 and a half hours. I had already run out of water but luckily kept finding public water fountains to keep refilling my bottle (I didn’t get sick!). By the time I got to road 35 in Hawally, I realized there was a big chance I could make it home in under 2 hours so I pressed on. Mentally I was strong but physically I was just starting to break down. Half way down the stretch of the 35 my right foot and right knee were in pain. I wasn’t out of breath even though I was tired but my legs were just not prepared for this. By the time I got to the end of the 35 and crossed into Maidan Hawalli I could barely run and I knew I wouldn’t be able to get home in under 2 hours. It was demoralizing but then I just went back to my original plan of trying to get there in under 2 and a half hours. I tried to run but by the time I got to Salmiya I was limping, my right leg was in so much pain. But once I saw my building I somehow managed to sprint the last 20 meters or so. I ended up making it home in 2 hours and 14 minutes. A total distance of 14KM. Kinda disappointing since I ran a 10K once in 57 minutes, but I did train for that. On the other hand I did get a better time compared to when I walked home from my work in Kuwait City.

I still don’t know why I decided to do that yesterday, this morning I can barely walk up and down stairs due to how sore my legs are. The weather was great yesterday which might have been what pushed me but in any case I did it and I’ve got a few observations I want to highlight.

Kuwait isn’t really a pedestrian friendly place but I was pretty surprised at how the route I took was fairly pedestrian friendly. From the start of the 3rd Ring Road till highway 40 there are proper walking/running paths all along the main road. The only issue is the fact these paths aren’t connected to other paths in adjacent areas. Meaning to cross from Khaldiya to Adailiya wasn’t easy. Not only aren’t the walking/running paths connected, but the normal sidewalks aren’t even connected. In some areas I had to walk over greenery or climb over barriers, and then when there were paths like the one pictured above, they led to the middle of the road instead of the other sidewalk. Each area is isolated from the adjacent ones which is pretty annoying. Then once you pass the 40th into Hawalli, the paths start disappearing. By the time I got to Salmiya I was basically running in the streets trying to avoid cars. Such a contrast to how my run started, even the public water fountains disappeared after the 40.

Still, I was expecting it to be a lot more difficult to make it back to Salmiya on foot so I was actually impressed by the experience. I just wish Kuwait was more pedestrian or bike friendly, I’m sure there are a lot of people who wouldn’t mind walking to places if the weather was good.

This weekend is surprisingly busy and there are a few interesting events taking place. I’ll personally be trying to connect to my roots by attending the Armenian Dance Show on Friday night. Been wanting to go to one of their shows for some time now but they used to be held in Mangaf which was too out of my way. This Friday though they’re going to be at the Salmiya Theater which is close to where I live. The comedy show Urban City Tour was supposed to take place this weekend as well featuring Marlon Wayans, but it sadly got canceled. Anyway, check out the full list of events take place this weekend below:

Thursday
Exhibition: It’s a Mad World
Exhibition: What’s Your Location?
Japanese Modern Art Exhibition
Exhibition: F160 – Only Byrds Move The Skies
Exhibition: Tensile Modulus By Omar Khouri
Mindfulness for a Healthy Mind Workshop (Meditation and Yoga)
The Divan Movie Night: Sherlock Holmes
Spinal Dance
Rooftop Movie: The Elephant Man

Friday
Japanese Modern Art Exhibition
Urban City Tour – Kuwait
Taichi in the Park
Yoga at the Park (Hatha Yoga)
Catomania (Cat Quiz Night)
Armenian Dance Show

Saturday
Japanese Modern Art Exhibition
Yoga with the 3
Guided Tour: Grand Mosque
Reclaim Your Voice; Reclaim Your Life
Mental Health Movie Night
Walks at the Park
Rooftop Movie: What We Do in the Shadows

If you’d like to share an event on the blog [Email Me]
For a full list of upcoming events click [Here]

Sometimes events get canceled or have details changed so double check info with organizers.

This accident took place yesterday in Hawalli. Super nasty, no idea why that guy took the turn so fast. On the other hand with dashcams becoming prevalent, we’re bound to see more WTF videos like this.

Back in March while driving on the 40th I nearly ran over a body lying in the middle of the road. It was a scary moment which I was able to capture on my dashcam. You can watch that video above, it’s not graphic, but there is a dead body involved so you might want to skip it if you’re squeamish.

via Frankom

Looks like opening up an Indian restaurant is going to be the next new thing for small Kuwaiti businesses. After the success of places like Namaste and 12 Chutneys, a lot of people seem to be jumping on the Indian cuisine bandwagon. I know of at least 4 new Indian restaurants that are opening up soon with the one pictured above opening up next to Slider Station (where Atari used to be located).

I find this pretty annoying.

Since it’s a holiday tomorrow I figured I’d share this list today. The standouts this weekend are the AlSalmi Meteor Shower Trip, Matilda the Musical, the Kuwait National Triathlon Championships and the Cross Cultural Diwaniya. Check out the full list of events taking place over this long weekend below:

Wednesday
Conference: Women in the Corporate World
Exhibition: It’s a Mad World
Exhibition: What’s Your Location?
The Art of Yoga 2

Thursday
Exhibition: It’s a Mad World
Exhibition: What’s Your Location?
Profoto Light Shaping Seminar
AlSalmi Meteor Shower Trip
Aim High Toastmasters Club 4th Anniversary Celebration
Kuwait Vape Festival

Friday
Matilda the Musical
Taichi in the Park
Toastmasters Division “I” Annual Speech Contest

Saturday
Matilda the Musical
Kuwait National Triathlon Championships
Cross Cultural Diwaniya

If you’d like to share an event on the blog [Email Me]
For a full list of upcoming events click [Here]

Sometimes events get canceled or have details changed so double check info with organizers.

Over the weekend the gaming expo GX2016 took place here in Kuwait. I was going through the hashtag #gx2016 on instagram and was pretty impressed at how good some of the cosplay was.

Cosplay, a contraction of the words costume play, is a performance art in which participants called cosplayers wear costumes and fashion accessories to represent a specific character.

It’s pretty impressive mostly because it’s taking place in Kuwait, you wouldn’t expect for there to be a scene like this over here. And I’m not talking about just 10 or 20 people dressing up, based on the photos I’d say there were at least 50 cosplayers who passed by GX2016. Just check out all the photos [Here]

Photo on top by UrbanQ8 Films

I’ve been a Lotus fan for sometime now and a few years ago when a friend of mine sold his, I regretted not buying it off him myself. The fact that there’s a dealership now makes me even regret it more but I got over it, or at least I thought I had until this weekend. Thursday morning I picked up a brand new Lotus Exige S from the dealership to use over the weekend, and after giving it back yesterday my feelings on it haven’t changed, I still love and want the car.

Let me get this out of the way first, this isn’t the car for you. Well at least 99.9% of you and I’ll explain why.

Notice I use the side pillars in the car like a bookshelf for my phone and wallet.

As a regular car the Exige is horrible and I don’t even know where to begin. The seats? The most uncomfortable seats I’ve ever sat in and you can’t adjust them. The car is super tiny on the inside, I mean my Datsun is tiny but it’s actually huge compared to the Exige. It’s so tiny that the passenger seat is stuck to your seat, I actually kept buckling my seatbelt into the passenger side seatbelt accidently because they’re so close. It can be pretty awkward on a first date but you know whats even more awkward? Getting in or out of the car. There is no way, and I really mean no way to get in and out of the car gracefully no matter how hard you try. This mostly has to do with the fact that there is a huge pillar you need to climb over to get into the seat and the fact the car is so low it makes the whole process very awkward. There are even videos online that show you how to get in and out of the car! Watch [This One] and then [This One]. The fact you need to watch a video to show you how to get in and out of the car should give you an idea that this isn’t a normal car. Also when I say this is a low car I mean this is a LOW car. I drove by a mini cooper on the Gulf Road and all I could see was the mini’s door handle. The Exige is so low it can drive under parking gates.

But wait I’m not done yet! There is so much more that doesn’t make sense in the car. To turn the lights on at night you press one button, to turn it off you need to press two different buttons. Why?? Before getting the car I thought the AC might not be good enough for Kuwait’s weather but my issue with the AC this weekend was that it was too much for the Exige. For a car thats slightly larger than an iPad I don’t understand why it has 8 AC vents, 4 in the front, and then 4 right behind you facing the front. At the lowest fan setting there was still too much AC for the size of the car. I spent most of the time closing vents and opening the window to balance the temperature inside the car. If there is a place I want to be in the summer its the ice skating rink and the inside of this Lotus. What else did I find terrible in the car? The stereo, easily the worst sound system in any car I’ve ever driven, it’s slightly better than my Datsun’s sound system from the 70s and that’s because I could plug my iPhone into it. I really need to go back and talk about the size of the interior again, the car is so small that without moving from my seat, I high-fived a friend who was standing outside the passenger side window. I’m not exaggerating, that incident actually happened. Interior glove compartment? Nope. Trunk space? It’s big enough to fit a backpack… maybe. The steering wheel also isn’t powered so I hope you’ve been working out since parking this car is a workout. Speaking of parking, the visibility out of the rear window is terrible and there are plenty of blindspots all around. Reversing from my parked position back onto a main road involved so much back and forth head movement, to a passerby I must have looked like I was having an epileptic seizure.

Thats how close the seats are!

But, with all that being said, when you buy an Exige you know what you’re getting into. You wouldn’t get into a Formula 1 race car and then complain that it doesn’t have a cup holder. You’re not expected to be able to pick up your visiting relatives from the airport in an Exige or even doing something as simple as dropping your mum off at the hairdresser (she either won’t be able to get in or won’t be able to get out).

The Lotus Exige S weighs only 950KG 1175KG but has a 345HP supercharged engine. It does 0 to 60mph in 3.7 seconds and a top speed that is electronically limited to 233km/h. It’s small, it’s very fast and most importantly, it’s a ton of fun. This weekend I had a blast with the car and I wish I could do it again the next weekend and the weekend after that. It’s all the negatives in the earlier paragraph that makes this car so great. Sure I would have loved a better sound system but I’d rather have a shitty sound system and keep the car small and simple, than an amazing sound system that would add weight, need a larger interior and add complications to the car. Every decision in this car was made not to sacrifice performance and performance is what you get here. Just ask Chris Harris. The car is really easy to drive fast which makes it very driver friendly.

The interior is very barebones, all you will get is 3 knobs for the AC, an Alpine stereo, 3 buttons for the lights and then buttons for changing gears. That’s the whole interior. Even the speedometer cluster doesn’t contain any information other than your speed, RPM, a digital read out of your speed and a few warning lights. It’s going back to basics which is something I’ve started appreciating because of my Datsun. You don’t need a large touch screen, you don’t need 12 cupholders, you don’t need automatic folding mirrors or interior mood lights, you don’t need majority of the stuff in your car. With the Exige, it’s just you, the car and the road. No distractions.

Visually the car is a work of art. From all the cars I’ve ever driven, none got me as much attention as this one did. Everywhere I went people were checking the car out. Even hotel valets who’ve come across everything where checking the Exige out. Actually pulling up to valet in an Exige was fun, I was like I want to park here and they just moved a car for me and I parked in it’s place right at the front of the hotel entrance. Park an Exige next to a Ferrari and more people will likely check out the Exige just because it’s such a rare and over the top looking car.

With all the misgivings of this car I actually loved it and I now more than ever regret not getting if off my friend. The only thing I really would want them to improve on is the seat but other than that I didn’t mind all the weird issues the car had. The price? The Exige S starts at KD27,000 which I think is a fair price… if it was a car I could drive everyday. But it isn’t which makes this price difficult to swallow. This isn’t a daily driver, it’s barely a car you want to drive even just on weekends. This is a track car first, road car second which is why it would be perfect in countries that have race tracks like Bahrain and UAE. It’s a car you can take to the track on the weekend, be competitive and then drive it to work the day after. But sadly for us, we don’t have a race track here so it’s hard to justify the Exige. But, I’ll be test driving the Lotus Evora soon which is supposed to be everything the Exige is except with the extra amenities that make it a better everyday car. So I’m looking forward to that.

For more information on Lotus cars or if you’d like to test drive one, check out the local dealers instagram account @alghanimlotuskw

Looks like all my posts today will be car related which I guess is appropriate since theres a Formula 1 race taking place today. There are renderings of a Kuwait racetrack that are being circulated on whatsapp, supposedly of the proposed Kuwait International Circuit. The following text is attached with the images:

تم اعتماد حلبة الكويت الدولية كحلبة للجائزة الكبرى GP للفورمولا ون.
موقعها بيكون على جون الكويت بالقرب من محطة الدوحة للكهرباء. طولها 6.3 كيلو وتتكون من اربع مسارات:
GP Track
West Track
East Track
Outter Track
تتكون من 20 كورنر في الGP
نقطتين DRS
وبتكون عكس عقارب الساعه.
تتضمن مجموعه من المنعطفات التتسلسله ذات التقنيه العاليه..
جميله هذي الحلبه.. بإذن الله نشوفها قريب..

The Arabic text basically talks about the location of the circuit which will be near the Doha power station and the different specs of the race track. Sadly though, these renderings aren’t official nor is the information. This track design was actually done by a Reddit user who goes by the handle Cssnsm and who just likes creating race circuits for fun. In fact, you can check out his original post of this circuit along with a fictional story he created to go along with it [Here]

If you just want to see the renderings, here is the [Link]

I hope we do actually get a race circuit some day, last year a circuit design was finalized and presented to proper authorities for approval but since then haven’t heard anything about it.

Update: A contact just passed me a video of Kuwait Motor Town which supposededly is set to start construction in September. I couldn’t find any information on this online other than this video so not sure how accurate this information is.

Lots of quality events taking place this weekend. First of all you have the mega gaming event which my brother posted about yesterday, GX 2016 Gaming Expo. That’s taking place from Thursday through to Saturday. Cinemagics is playing Snowpiercer this weekend, a great movie if you haven’t already watched it. Also tonight Staged in Kuwait are holding their improv comedy night which is always hilarious (only 22 tickets left as of this post!). Check out the full list of this weekends events below:

Thursday
Exhibition: It’s a Mad World
Exhibition: Sibeel Water by Ammar Al Attar
GX 2016 Gaming Expo
Red Bull BC One – Kuwait Cypher
Japanese Movie Night
Traditional Kuwaiti Food and Dishdasha Night
Sirdab Lab Movie Night: Donnie Darko
What makes Kuwait giggle? The IMPROVengers!
Rooftop Movie: Snowpiercer

Friday
GX 2016 Gaming Expo
Beach Fridays at Al Kout!
Taichi in the Park
Yoga at the Park (Hatha Yoga)
ShutterXpose Photography 101 Workshop

Saturday
GX 2016 Gaming Expo
Yoga at the Park (Vinyasa Flow – Women Only)
Madeenah Tour: Salem Almubarak St. Salmiya
Unleash – Color Therapy
The Debate Tournament
Rooftop Movie: The Look of Silence
Peak Vertical Marathon

If you’d like to share an event on the blog [Email Me]
For a full list of upcoming events click [Here]

Sometimes events get canceled or have details changed so double check info with organizers.

This weekend gamers in Kuwait are going to be treated to two events revolving around video games that will be taking place simultaneously at the Millennium Hotel & Convention Center. The first event is GX 2016 which is a general video game convention where people will have stalls selling video game merchandise and where you’ll also be able to check out cosplayers (famous cosplayer Tali xoxo pictured below will be there) and take part in some competitions to win prizes. The big news here is that two renowned video game companies will also be taking part: Tecmo Koie and Square Enix. Both will be holding mini-press conferences to announce some important news for this region and Square Enix will also have a special video message for us.

The other gaming event taking place will be the Kuwait Battle Royale. The Kuwait Battle Royale is a local video game tournament featuring 7 of the biggest current fighting games: Street Fighter V, Super Smash Bros Wii U, Mortal Kombat X, Pokken Tournament, Dead or Alive 5, BlazBlue and Guilty Gear Xrd. The cool part about this event is that the organizers have flown in the official EVO commentators to take part and the contestants will be a mix of regional and international talent so it should be pretty fun to watch.

The event will start on at 5PM on Thursday and end on Saturday. The full schedule can be found on the organizers website.

Post by Patrick