Roderick

Who would do that to themselves? I love the GIF, it's such a great thing, from the mechanical tilting of the head to the strangely shaped waterpot. When I first saw Toblix' ex-avatar, I thought it was shopped, because I couldn't imagine someone doing this.

I noticed in California that youth (especially so-called Valley Girls) tend to end their sentences, no matter what they are, by going up? It's as if they're constantly asking questions? And doubting themselves? It's really weird? As for the fucking comma, don't use a fucking comma before 'and' when you sum things up. The first comma is only there in the first place because you need a distinguisher if you sum up more than two words. It's basically a replacement for 'and' because putting two ands in there would look really goofy. I laughed at the JFK and Stalin joke, but that seems like a case for context. Put on the context signal, commissioner Gordon! We have need for context!

After watching the Giant Bomb look, I'm very curious for this game and would love to play it! However, I have no internet connection (so a possible demo I wouldn't be able to play) and I don't dare spend 60 Euros just to give it a try. I can see myself loving this game, but also really hating it.

I saw that and it is quite good.

You're joking. The first episode with Man-Bat is a noir classic.

Sorry, I have to add this. I think this movie suffered a lot from the 90s Batman Animated Series. Batman & Robin tried so hard to be 'a cartoon' and I wonder if they realized that the actual Batman cartoon running at the time wasn't cheesy or campy at all, but rather really dark, well-written, cliché-avoiding and serious. As such the movie didn't really reflect what Batman 'was' in that era. I think perhaps, ironically, right now, with the Batman The Brave And The Bold cartoon on, which embraces the funny again, it might have been more in tune with the lore.

Inspired by Comics Aliance's Remedial Batmanology series (thank you Subbes!) I rewatched Batman & Robin. Ho-ly shit this movie is so much fun! When I first saw it I hated it. I was a teen and I took Batman VERY seriously. Even Batman Forever was something I saw as really good and dark and Batman-y. Then came Batman & Robin. It was super camp, acted over the top and at no point did it take itself seriously. This isn't Batman! I thought. How dare they do this. Now I understand how insane these Joel Schumacher movies actually are. I've embraced the campness of Batman (even though I can take the character totally serious still when watching the Nolan movies or playing Arkham Asylum) and Batman & Robin excels in this. From the first, fantastic shot of Batman and Robin in the batcave (,,I want a car! Chicks dig the car." says Robin, and Batman throws him THE PERFECT quizzical 'did I just hear that?' look imaginable) to the subsequent scene in the museum where I can't stop wondering: WHO is up there in the rafters making sure there is a constant spotlight on Mr. Freeze as he walks through the exhibition? It's great. It's a half hour too long though, and there are boring parts. I never liked Poison Ivy and still don't like her here. Freeze, for all his insane oneliners (,,Tonight's forecast: a freeze is coming!"), is a character with actually a lot of potential and his demise at the hands of Batman at the end is genuinely touching. I wish they'd have scrapped Ivy and Bane (ugh) and explored Freeze a lot more. I've always loved Mr. Freeze as a villain and Arnold, campness and all, is fantastic in the role. There's also a superfluous motorcycle scene with Coolio that is, kind of baffling, and Schumacher at one point puts glow in the dark makeup on a bunch of squatters to the point that it becomes ridiculous. George Clooney gets a lot of guff for his Batman, but he's actually so good. Finally, there's a terrific swirly thingy in the Batmobile.

Maybe they assumed the iPhone 4 comes with the Diablo 3 beta? Perhaps Weird though, it's not like you can do anything with this phone that you couldn't on the earlier models, right? Like, I understand cueing up for a load of shit, but not an incremental tech upgrade that doesn't offer anything you're immediately going to waste hours of your life on, playing or watching. Or maybe it does, I don't know.

I played it earlier this year for the first time and what struck me was how unexpectedly varied and fun everything was. I was expecting a pretty dumb shooter, but the singleplayer has really good things on offer. The multiplayer is, in itself, grotesque amounts of chainsawing pleasure.

I'm knee-deep in the Far Cry 2 Cascade.

Nothing would please me in the whole world of video games as much as a Psychonauts sequel, possibly episodic. Despite everything Tim is saying in the iTunes-only podcast which I've not been able to listen to about there not being a Psychonauts 2 in the works, the idea is simply too strong to listen to that. No Psychonauts 2 being made, you say? Wrong, there is. There is because a world in which it is not so, isn't a world we should be living in. Conversely, I must become rich and finance it?

I love the first idea of a hub world with expanding, new levels, but I always thought the recycling in Telltale games felt a little cheap. I also love the idea of the hub world being 'persistent', that you could mess around in it for days before the actual new content comes out instead of 'finishing' an episode and then not playing. Can't find the mythological, new podcast on the DF site though.

Johnny English Reborn: an unassuming, fun sequel with a plot that slightly less interesting/over the top in comparison to the first but with highly enjoyable scenes. Rowan Atkinson's comedic timing is sharp as ever.

I don't even care if it's acted or not!

On a side note, I have heard that it's indeed really tough getting a stint as a park ranger. In the Netherlands that is a job you need to be highly qualified for and there are only a few of those around. Since you can remain one for pretty much a lifetime, it's impossible to get. It's very attractive too. I am certainly susceptible to that romantic idea of living in the forest and spending your days there. Disqualifier: I am completely ill-suited for this work. When I am actually in the forest I don't touch anything because I want to keep my hands clean, despite loving being there.

I AM CONFUSING CHRIS AND NICK! I have failed as a Thumb. Get me my cat o' nine tails! It's self-flagellation time!

I love this game's style. I'm sure it really difficult, but do you have to start over every time, or can you collect stuff and slowly work your way to the end with enough diligence?

Wow, expectations are going to be impossible to meet, I'd say. But who knows, there was such smart writing that I can't imagine it suddenly being dumb or anything. You still have a stellar cast and there is no way that Jeffrey Tambor will ever not make me smile whenever he's on screen.

Here's a thing that has helped me out tons in the last few years whenever something happens that is the typical, baffling stuff that happens in life. Just play this in your head and you can deal with anything:

Like was said in the other thread; it's pretty swell DF are supporting/developing for this game still. A sequel must be on its way!

I'm proceeding with relistening the whole podcast and it's certainly a weird experience to hear Chris in the earliest podcasts, specifically how many times he says stuff like 'fuck Bethesda'. I'd say even at this stage he's already playing hard to get. Well played, Remo.

That's a smile on my face.

I didn't realize the Broken Sword Director's Cut was so awful. To my knowledge they only added close-up windows for dialogue and an extra scene with Nico, right?

I didn't know those rumours. It certainly doesn't feel like a release that needs to come in under the wings of a console big brother. In fact it has this really cool, old school aesthetic. If you're an Alien fan this is worth checking out, it's clear the game loves everything in the movies and wants to incorporate as many things of it as it can.