ThunderPeel2001

Here's the first glimpse of the finished map... (click for fullsize) Taken from here: http://www.westeros.org/Citadel/Gallery/Entry/3949/ First reaction... a little bit too cartoony for me. The map does feature some extra details on it, though.

Woah. Second favourite in the series? I'm surprised. I've heard it's by far the most difficult to get through, as none of the "fan favourite" characters appear in it. A lot of people seemed to really dislike it, if I understand correctly. I'm amazed it's your second favourite!

Just to be clear, Thompson wrote several books that began with "Fear and Loathing..." I presume we're talking about Las Vegas? I personally loved FAL in Las Vegas and have often wondered where to go next. Hell's Angels sounds good! Did anyone see the Rum Diary? Thoughts?

Hence the need for the tweaking.

I'm about 75% through the first book and still loving it (yes, I'm a slow reader). Can't wait to get onto the second one.

Well spotted.

Contains spoilers.

That's because they only added it recently I believe

Being able to stop and think is one of the unique attributes of the written word. An author doesn't necessarily have to worry if the reader knows who a character is from their name, as the reader can always go back a few pages to refresh their memory, or the author can add an appendix (as in Game of Thrones). With a film or a TV show (or play), it moves at its own pace, and you have to keep up. If the viewer can't remember who a character is, then it's a major problem. Alan Moore described the above difference as being one of the reasons he felt Watchmen could never be successfully translated into a film: He wrote it to specifically take advantage of the medium's unique attributes. I can't imagine anyone reading and not stopping to think. Even if it's between when they put the book down to do something else and when they pick it up again. While I'm actually reading, I'll only stop if I don't think I've got everything. I hate the feeling Nach described, when you think get the nagging feeling you're not completely following what's happening.

You simply have build it up, like you would a muscle. Tim Shafer talks about his technique in the DFA forums: He simple writes for several hours in the morning. It doesn't matter what he writes... he just writes. Whatever is on his mind. Gobbledegook. Ideas. Whatever. This completely ties in with other so-called experts on the subject, too. You have to let yourself be creative, and learn to nurture that part of yourself. The more you do exercises like non-stop writing, the more you strengthen the connection to the creative side of you. William Gibson talks about his struggles to start writing in one of his essays. He finally found himself with a sentence, "Seated each afternoon in the darkened screening room, Graham gradually came to see the targeted numerals of the leader as hypnagogic sigils preceding the dreamstate of film". He had absolutely no idea what any of it meant, but that sentence opened a door into a world which he began to explore as a writer. Basically your sub-conscious mind is the creative part, and the noisy part often gets so big and powerful, we lose touch with that creative part. It's simple: The more you do creative things the better you get being creative. The problem is taking the time to do it. Don't wait for that "perfect moment", because it will never come. Just go for it.

Thanks for the feedback, guys. There's so many Asus Z77 mobos! I wish there was an easy way of seeing their differences. I'm mainly concerned about having a decent amount of SATA and USB 3 ports. Also some PCI-E 3 goodness. I couldn't care less about overclocking, I value stability over just about everything. I also don't really need many on board components. Certainly don't need on board GFX, for example.

Thanks, toblix!

I'm /considering/ upgrading because my new GPU isn't being used to the fullest capacity at the moment. Running GTAIV results in poor performance, for example, and really it shouldn't. I'd also like the machine to be faster and more responsive in general. Photoshop and media encoding through Handbrake are major things I'd like to see improved. As for budget... I'm not sure. Hopefully quite cheap. Since I'm only considering at the moment, it's more of a scout of seeing what I could get, and then thinking if it's worth it.

Not sure if I've posted here about the following before (and I can't be bothered to check): Dredd: Awesome, low budget, British styled, ultra violence. I'd never read the comic before I saw it, but I couldn't imagine that it wasn't faithful. The Master: Incredibly well made. Uses the same styles and techniques that PTA first used in There Will Be Blood, and it has the same sort of hypnotic effectiveness that that did, but it also seems to be lacking in any sort of... point. So much about the film to enjoy, though, including some astonishingly well drawn characters.

Ah, yes. I missed the bit where you said BS1. Yeah, they dropped the ball on the so-called "Director's Cut". Still don't think they ruined the opening of BASS, though.

I have no idea what you're referring to.

Revolution has had plenty of opportunities to try something new. I've been waiting for a BASS sequel for years!

Hmm. I LOVED GTAIV, and from this thread it sounds like I may also enjoy this? Given that "violent takedowns" excite me about as much Mortal Kombat "fatality" moves (which is to say, not at all), what is there here for me?

My problem is that Dan Houser's writing is all over the place... and unbelievably predictable (especially when he tries to do "twists"). It just fills me with frustration that a brilliant script could be added to this engine and make everyone happy. Especially me. The gameplay works, as far as I'm concerned.

Like you say, Toblix, it's basically become a genre now. I think there's not much wrong in doing that better. But "better" doesn't mean "bigger". I've been saying this for years, but I still think it's true: Get a decent scriptwriter in, and the GTA "genre" could be absolutely superb. Although, what do I know? Apparently GTAIV is better than Hamlet...

I think you're being too hard on the Shafes. Yeah, it *seems* like he's the cause of a lot of problems, but actually he's also the reason why the game will be great (in theory). He's been in the industry long enough, and been in enough development roles, to know where he can apply pressure and get away with it. He's well aware of what he's asking, but he's also remaining optimistic that his team is bright enough to figure out a solution to the problems he's presented. Making games is hard. Making an amazing game is downright brutal. We're seeing some of that brutality. Of course, I could be totally wrong (Brutal Legend went massively over budget in the end, didn't it?), but it's interesting to see someone put art over logistics. Whatever the outcome, it's a fascinating ride!

Wow... the latest documentary episode is definitely getting to the "warty sausages" they promised. Gripping stuff.

Jimmy Kimmel sent someone out onto the street with an iPhone 4S and told them it was the iPhone 5... Can you guess what happened? http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=rdIWKytq_q4

Seems like a good policy change to me, although I think the "no artist impressions of what something might look like" is a bit extreme. I can certainly understand why they've done it, though, and it may well be for the best in the long run. Hurrah for KS!