Mawd

I set up a hang out with a mate I hadn't seen for a while and I ended up asking if I could bring some veges over and cook a roast I'd been planing to do for myself. It ended up being a great idea! It felt so much more fun than the standard "lets heat up some frozen junk/takeaways" way I usually doe when caching up with people and I'm kinda going over how good it would be to set up more impromptu dinners in future. There's a few people I haven't had much to do with for a while despite being really close with in the past and I'm just mulling over the idea of using cooked meals as a way to reconnect with people. Anyway I can't wait to move into my new flat next weekend so my boyfriend and I can stop having to live with my family members and actually spend more time with our friends. It's felt too weird to really have anyone over but moving into a house with chill people we both know super well makes ideas like that so much more inviting.

Bump? I had the most ridiculous dream last night. I started smoking my boyfriend's cigarettes and I got super addicted to smoking. I bought like a million packs and everyone got really concerned with how much I was smoking. Even though it was starting to really affect me I said that I had to keep on doing it because I was helping him smoke his cigs. Most ludicrously funny dream I've had for a while.

Introducing Thumbsland with Thanks Nick! I guess I do tend to remember more mechanics bosses than narrative bosses. It also can't help that of the few SP games I do play these days, many of the ones that weren't Dark Souls have this trend of dealing with bosses through QTE's or simply firing all the dakka at them until they die. Another bunch of games just bait and switch you right at the end. When I think of really good narrative boss fights I appreciate most of them come from the Metal Gear series, whether it's the final showdown with The Boss, the cheesy punch out with Liquid Ocelot, or the showdown with Solidus at the end of Sons of Liberty. 'Fighting' Dr Breen in Hl2 or GLaDOS in Portal are another couple of good narrative boss fights. I still think a lot of these have good room for mechanics showcases but they're definitely sequences where the narrative payoff was far more important to me than the gameplay elements. Oh well listening to the entire podcast made me realise I just fully lost it and went on some giant tangent. My favourite Dark Souls 3 narrative boss fights are either the Undead Legion for the kind of drama of them being so infected with the abyss that they're forced to just sit around and fight each other forever and Oceiros the Consumed King for being this mad old transformed father who's gone insane and is constantly looking out for this child he cares for but can't seem to track down. Having him fight you while he's constantly distracted by the well-being of this child, Ocelot felt kind of touching on a personal level not usually found in Dark Souls. Some of the other boss fights that involved partnerships were also more interesting than others, the fight with one of the NPC's who had descended into madness or the fight with world weary Prince Lothric or the fiercely protectionist boss of the DLC as well as one of the other boss fights with the knight in the same dlc just felt more satisfying? I guess. It just seems like, in a game where you're mostly fighting these faded monstrosities that have completely sunken to despair and subsequently forgotten themselves more important that you meet and combat some of the few remaining somewhat sane people in the land. it's like it's touching that these people are still forming relationships despite all the horrible bullshit that's happened around them. I think one of the most touching points of souls would be how the thief Greirat chooses to help you after being crushed by grief at knowing that his friend Loretta has died, how he ends up giving up on life by taking increasingly dangerous risks but still chooses to do so in a way that helps people, and also how despite almost everything to be said about the character of Patches his respect for Greirat moves him to attempt to possibly save his friend's life albeit while disguised as an onion knight. Also getting even more meta about Dark Souls for a second I absolutely do think it fits into the world that a character that is retaining their sanity would choose to avoid conflict. In a world where people are trapped in endless cycles of war someone waking up and saying "fuck all the small time fights, I need to get shit done" just seems to fit for me. This means that people who speedrun and Nick Breckon may be some of the only characters in Dark Souls who are woke by choosing to not waste their time in eternal combat instead racing ahead to accomplish the mission of keeping or disrupting the endless status quo that is lighting the bonfires.

My partner and I really liked The Expanse season one but we're a little tentative on s2 after seeing the trailer. Idk I just hope it stays a sci-fi noir political drama.

Well it's my glib read anyway. Kvothe treats her like a deer or some elemental power that slips away at the slightest gaffe and he seems to think the great error most of the other men commit is being forward to her as if that makes them get brushed into some lower category of her opinions. So instead of being active in courting her he'll switch to passively charming her in every way possible, which kind of makes me think of how certain people act when they're 'friend-zoned'. He often seems to forgive her for the way she acts because like him she's an itinerant traveller and like him needs to find many ways to financially support herself so he sees a lot of her relationships with other men as financial arrangements up until the point she either tires of them or they do something hurtful. But he thinks she doesn't always have the ability to leave the hurtful relationships so he sometimes wants to step in and help. It's been a while since I read the books so maybe I'm miss-remembering things. I'm sure their relationship somehow kicks off a world ending tragedy because that's just the kind of scale the books seem to be working on but it also seems to be about how Mr. Almost Perfect's greatest foil is that Mrs. Almost Perfect is in no current position to be with him. I don't really remember her being consciously cruel to him. I think that maybe it happens between the lines. When I really enjoyed these books it was because I did end up reading in between the lines a lot, but I seem to have forgotten most of what I thought for how I felt. Personally the version of this story I like the most is when Baast and Kote are a domestic couple where one of them wants the excitement and danger back in their lives and the other is happy to simply be at peace.

It feels perfectly fine if games fall off the radar here. I mean since you all still work in the games space surely they'll come up now and then so it's not like they'll be gone altogether for too long. Your offtopic talks are fantastic so y'know, it's always great to have more coming.

Currently trying to read the dense Rebooting the Regions: Why low or zero growth needn't mean the end of prosperity - Edited by Paul Spoonley. It's a collection reasonably long articles all detailing the structural problems of the regional economy of New Zealand (as well as other countries) as demographics shift to completely favour the national economic centres while the smaller, rural populations face the problems of ageing populations (30% of many towns will be over 65 in the next few decades), and some of the solutions to those problems. I'm really enjoying it and you can find a short summary interview (about 20 minutes) here. Core topics include how to manage depopulation, how to innovate living spaces as businesses close and transit networks age, how to address youth underachievement, how to re-empower local Maori Iwi in shaping their communities, and how some towns have already emerged with success stories in future proofing the coming changes. It's a good book but I'm feeling a bit too distracted to really let my mind settle down for the seriousness of the discussion. It's written by and for people who are already studying population management and policy planning so don't go in expecting a light read; I only found it because I was browsing an airport bookstore in the political heart of NZ. Anyway in the fiction world I found out that Lian Hearn has come out with The Emperor of the Eight Islands (The Tale of Shikanoko) a new prequel series for her fantasy Japan series: Tales of the Otori. I loved this series when I was just a young sprout and this new series goes further back in time to a more mystical era of her fantasy Japan. In a lot of ways this book's setting feels like a much, much more feudal Princess Mononke, just in terms of how the super and the natural tend to coexist. I've only read the first book but it's the story of a lord's son who is raised by his uncle after his father loses a game of Go to a group of Tengu. Events happen and Shikanoko becomes wrapped up in sorcery as an eccentric practitioner takes him up and gives him an enchanting mask that connects him to the power of the forest and the spirit world before Shikanoko is plunged into the politics of an emerging civil war and a dying emperor. A lot of it does feel like a standard empowerment focused YA novel but it does take interesting turns here and there with how Shikanoko truly learns his power by experiencing brokenness. The story is a sight darker than most YA you'd expect to read so maybe the readers are expected to age with the books. In any case I found it to be an enchanting story that'll soon have me going back to Takeo and his adventures Across the Nightingale Floor just as soon as I'm finished with yet another(!) Warhammer Horus Heresy Novel. Trudging my way through Nick Kyme's Vulkan Lives! at the moment, it's decent for WH:HH but I'm not really in the mood atm.

Yeah it's super self inserty but I ended up really liking this as comfort food writing. A lot of the other fantasy I really like tends to be slice of life like the Recluce Saga and most of those are about the one person at that point in history who became super powerful and changed the world. It's not perfect and its super contrived but I just like how aimless and comfortably paced this sub genre is. There's plenty of stuff to annoy of course, too many characters feel vague and cut out, most of the women are just faint impressions, Ferulian went on and on and on, Getting super granular about Kvothe's budget issues dragged on for a while, sex monks, etc but most of the time I felt carried by the writing. Slow Regard of Silent Things is a lot better than most of the series but since it lacks the series' true best character, Baast, it gets an A. I'm fully with Rilen here on the novella, but I haven't read The Lightning Tree yet. I do wish Kvothe had more checks and balances to his personality. The books do show him with faults but it gets really sensitive around any of his character traits that the author values. It's super weird/bad that Kvothe ends up being a super idealised Nice Guy whose waiting for [dream-like perfect girl] to get herself out of her dependency on [rich asshole] so they can finally be together.

I definitely read it as him killing the guy to not expose the network. As soon as the guy complained about how he couldn't climb I figured he'd be a goner and I think from the way Luna was fiddling it looked like he was just getting ready to do it. Anyway I posted some thoughts on another forum and I mostly still stick by them. I do think that however one dimensional characters are now, they're generally a little more likable than before. The Prequels and Original series of course had likeable/enjoyable characters like Han, Leia, Droids, Palpatine, Vader, Mace Windu, etc. but it just seems like we're seeing that even the smaller characters have more personability to them. The movie did end up wheezing from all the changing plot points and fixes to The Plan but idk it's still largely enjoyable. From here on out I'd love for more stories that aren't dedicated call backs to previous trilogies and for all the fan servicey stuff to be toned wayyy down. Fingers crossed that a Bobba Fett movie ends up being like a predator or some other man-hunt movie rather than say.. Deadpool. I'd love it if the Han Solo movie ends up being a caper filled heist film with all The Force stuff kept to a minimum Eventually I do just want a movie that's all Force and is placed on some sith or jedi planet somewhere and just ends up being an antihero journey or something, buut I've certainly had that already in the games. P.S. since most of you haven't seen any of the Star Wars Rebels animated series I'll just let you know that Thrawn is making appearances in season 2 so he might be in a future film at some point. And now that I think about it I do agree that it would have been wayyy better if Ben Mendleson was more of an authoritarian peacemaker or someone who did think they were largely empathetic to the common person but went and got all twisted. If they just played up that Forest's character, a downright bastard, was the actual target rather than a taxed upon city verging on disgruntled unrest, it may have done more. Or if he punished the scientists in a way that didn't end in mass murder to show that there was some kind of human side to him. As it was he pretty much pantomimed the estranged friend in the opening scenes and went back to being a standard evil dude for much of the film. Anyway I hope we get more interesting actors in SW. It'd be cool if we saw an evil Martin Freeman or a decadent Jeremy Irons.

I think young people do end up knowing about Alien in the same way as Warhammer and what else just generally diffuses through pop culture. Also I like Alien 3 so sue me. Having a future Aliens franchise that yo yos between tense personal horror and cheesy Starship Troopers action-horror works for me. As to this one, idk. I think Ridley might've lost his touch but I have to believe for the sake of this. Maybe it's just Fassbender idly looking on as all the humans die around him and he works at maintaining his perfect hair..

Well that makes much more sense. The narrative around the movie in the first place is that the director was so struck by the chef that he focused what was to be an ensemble project into a solo act. So his own regard of Jiro might be playing into it as much as wow factor. I think I got carried away after the emotional high that was thinking about watching Cooked again.

Hey just thought I'd mention two absolutely wonderful food documentaries. Cooked is on netflix and it follows an author's journey through the primary elements of cooking, Fire (roasting), Water (boiling), Air (baking), Earth (fermentation). Through following the stories of people from all over the world and all types of classes and backgrounds he builds a picture of a world where everyone innately knows the love and joy that comes from cooking and being cooked for. However many of us exist in a world where the food industry has gradually eroded our motivation to cook for ourselves and our loved ones. From ancient Aboriginal bush methods to the high concept kitchens of a 2 minute noodle laboratory. I've lost track where I'm going with this but it's a series I outright love in a landscape of television and movies that usually promote infatuation at best. I actually started to cry watching the trailer after seeing the series. It's just. Idk I just get lost in this whole cuddly wave of human compassion when I watch it. Also from the director of Cooked is Jiro Dream's of Sushi. Jiro is the best sushi chef in the world and the only one (or the first one) with a Michelin 3 star rating. You'd think he would run some crazy restaurant on a mountain top somewhere but his cozy sushi bar is in a subway station with his 50 year old son apprenticed to him and another branching out with his own restaurant. Guests pay some hundreds of dollars and are treated to a sushi train's worth of dishes. Just a real good look at family legacy and craftsmanship.

Wooo he did it! https://clips.twitch.tv/idlethumbs/VastWolfCoolCat It all starts 2 hours into this Planet Coaster stream if you want the full journey. https://www.twitch.tv/idlethumbs/v/104410772

Been loving Young Thug The refrain on this song might be annoying to some though Vince Staples' Primma Donna was pretty nice too, just really solid, nothing stood out though. David Byrne popping up on this De La Soul track was super neat DJ Khaled Major Key is real good too. Sick Prog rock R&B track

The fourth episode of season 3 Black Mirror was pretty sweet and one of the best, for me anyway. Even of you don't like BM's usual thing it's probably worth a watch.

I'm Mawd over there too but I'm ungraded and from OCE so playing together might be hard

I've been enjoying the game but I haven't really given it that much. I feel a bunch of pressure to always be on my game so I like to devote a bunch of time for practice modes before playing a couple of intense fights vs real peeps. That said this game is so intense that when you are on the ball and doing everything right, there's very little else that gives you as much of a rush. It's like clearing a new best time in Devil Daggers, only you might still have 8 minutes of rounds to go. If people still aren't sure what this game is, it's also a lot like playing arena bg's in wow. One of the reasons why the game is so intense is that every time you take more than 40 damage your maximum health pool shrinks until you die

I finished it and really enjoyed it. I have a strong itch for more Doom in my life so I might go back and play this, brutal doom, and snap map campaigns later. Next time i want to work on getting the achievements you get for weapon mod benefits since I ignored all of those. Half the late game levels felt really formulaic to me so i hope to see what they come up with next time. I got really bored of some levels just being rehashes of cacodemons into pinkys into mancubus into cyber mancubus into baron demons. Those stages of the game did feel quite hard too until i remembered i had the BFG and powerups. It felt like a great game but most of Necropolis through to Argent Dnur felt boring from a fights perspective. I loved the story and environments though The Hell Guards fight ended up feeling fantastic once i figured it out (felt super.unfair before then).

Just mentioning that Ash vs Evil dead is pretty fun. But it's pretty dumb and the way it handles all the leads is even dumber. Ash is condescending and gross in a Chevy Chase/Pierce Hawthorne way, the mexican sidekick is dim and dependant for most of the time, of course the girl needs saving. But if you have a need for more evil dead stupidity then the show has you covered. I never finished the whole season but i think there is an undercurrent of tongue in cheek self awareness. It just might not be enough to satisfy many people.

Starting the third season of Banshee and it's feeling really strong. Plot lines and events many shows would spread out seem to resovle in an episode with a lot of crazy memorable moments packed in the same ep. Yet each new ep there's something else ready to go and drag you in. Two things especially the show has going for it are just how emotional & heartfelt the show does let its characters be sometimes. When i first tried watching this my Dad had recommended it to me but it didnt take because I'd had just about enough macho bullshit in my life. Yet for all the dumb bro action and the problem solvoing in the show essentially boiling down to beatkhg the crap out of someone in an MMA fight; there's just enough of something else to pull me back in. This is a show where confrontation, violence, and aggression are either seen as the correct tools or the best of a bad situatio but unlike other shows there's a different sense of gravitas to it. The characters arent beibg lionused for their actions, they're allowed to break down, they can show just how broken they are and what the consequences of their actions are doing to them. It's still a show about a small us town with mostly punchy men who like their guns but there's still a heart to it that is usually lost in most other action films/tv. It might be a small difference but a grizzled violent man might say in another show: "you might not like me but I'm here to do the only thing you wimps won't do" But Banshee usually manages to change the message to: "you might not like me but here I am doing the only thing I can do, trapped in a way of my own makihg, and its destroying me". The other thing the show has going for it in a really pulpy way is really good villains. From the Amish Kingpin, the Ukranian gangster, the Kinaho tribe 'freedom fighter', to the interstate trucking crime baron. Whether yoyre with then for a season or a side story you get to see the pathos of each one, part of their inner tragedy, how they continue to choose their own destruction even if its ultimately their way of redemption. Few shows really get more than one great villain, or even just more than a handful of good characters. Yet Banshee is spoiled for choice and it feels kind of amazing. Its not the best show you've ever seen. But what it does is usually super good.

Im a big fan of Caesar 3 too and Im really missing a modern successor. Banished is pretty fun but I wish the ai came with a bit more personality like in DF, even kust a sierra style thought blurb would be nice. DF is a super rewarding game when/if it finally clicks but honestly I think of you want to play something like the older greats then revisit Pharoah or Emperor. I think they're just a little more refined than the others. Sigh I really wish someone madea decent meld of the sierra style city builder and Black & White. Pretty sad that C4 was so meh as well.

I like the idea of Seth Rogan in this but I'd also take Mike Birbiglia (Orange is The New Black's 'warden'), Anthony Star (Banshee's Hood) or David Harbour (Stranger Things cop) as leads; or you could do like an older Danny Glover as henry or one of the Two Dope Queens for Delilah; heck just cast both of them and have one of them play Henry's role. Michael Shannon would make a nice Ned. Actually Aziz Ansari would be a cool Henry. If they shot it kind of like The Revenant it'd be pretty great. Just as long as it wasnt all shots of clouds and god analogies like those ones were.

Paper's Please sounds like it could be good but it has grainy pixel nudity (edit: which you can toggle off). You play as an immigration officer in a fictionalised Eastern European state trying to balance bribes, your family's health, and the official immigration policy. In terms of absolutely free and short there's probably a few gems out there on Itch.io If you want an engaging story driven walking simulator then maybe Gone Home? It's at the higher end of things at $20 but it's looking at some pretty relatable teen things like Another one would be something like Firewatch which is more about people in their thirties looking at their lives while walking through a gorgeous national park. It's $20 again but it's also really special. Just an idea but if you wanted to discuss some of the more expensive/difficult games in your class you could maybe find a low commentary lets play to show snippets and springboard from the themes that way? There's a more expensive spreadsheet game called Democracy (but you could use an older game from the series) where you choose a country and make policy decisions that balance different factions in your electorate. Most of the time you're trying to please your core base and avoid being assassinated by radicals. Undertale is a $10 game that while being a longer rpg is pretty huge with young teens+ and deals with things like friendship, non-violence, etc. Dragon's probably helping you a lot more with those excellent free games but those are just my few cents Oh and if you didn't want to just do video games there are some smaller board games that could encourage learning through play. There's The Quiet Year an $8 indie game where a group of people sit down and act as town planners while trying to rebuild things before an ominous calamity comes at the end of the year. I was also going to mention Dog Eat Dog which is a confrontational simulation of how colonial oppression steadily erodes the identities of the aboriginal peoples. However it doesn't seem to have reached it's funding goal and is missing payment information from the creator's site :/ .