Roderick

So, here's my take on this film. I liked the bits with the cowboys. I hated the bits with the aliens. There you have it. Maybe I've become way too involved in this, but what the fuck is wrong with storytellers who don't understand the basic premise of an alien race? If a species is capable of building artificial space ships, then they are by definition highly communicative and live in a stratified society filled with specialists. They will have a hierarchical system of economics and politics supporting them. This is why I can't fucking stand it when 'aliens' could indiscriminately be replaced by 'monsters'. Spacefaring Aliens are not scary animals who go RROOAOAAAHHHWWRRR!!, that is insane and if you think that please don't write stories.

Again, this is not about entitlement, this is about 'if you're going to do something, do it right instead of half-assed'. If someone gives you a present, and it turns out to be a turd in a box*, then you should most definitely be quite cross with them. (* NES games are not a turd in a box. This is an exaggeration.)

Once every few years I am caught by the acute need to see The Life Aquatic and it never fails to enthrall. Holy shit this movie is so much fun. It's the perfect package with the great cast, Bowie and Devo soundtrack, wonderful details and touches and Henry Sellick animation. I always tear up during the submarine scene at the end. ,,Son of a bitch, I'm sick of these dolphins."

On a scale of 1 to Libya, how fucked up is your country of birth right now?

You are technically correct, but that is just not how consumer relations work, and Nintendo have acknowledged that by deliberately saying: you have been kind to us and here is a reward for being 'ambassadors'. Under these specific circumstances, it is not strange to assume/expect that there will be quality. That's not about entitlement.

You are correct that Wrecking Crew is pretty fun. But you are incorrect in your assessment of 'free, therefore no demands on quality'. Technically, we didn't have to pay for them, but they are meant to act as a balm for customers who otherwise would have felt really cheated by the incredible price plummet. i.e., Some quality is absolutely expected to make up for that. It's a shame Nintendo can't/won't roll out the GBA titles sooner than start 2012, since one can reasonably surmise those to be of much greater value. Getting those GBA games to work must be a pain in the ass? Especially seeing as how the NES games are half-assed too. No save states possible? Now how am I supposed to play Metroid? Surely not the way it was meant to be played, that's ludicrous.

Wow, those NES games... are pretty bad. Bros 1, Zelda 1 and Metroid are super, but the rest is kinda awful.

This should almost be in the Big Dog thread!

That is really good

Look, the trousers are already half on. Everything you say now will only harm your case.

Actively not following news isn't giving up, it's realizing that it's a giant waste of time. If something were to happen that is relevant to you, people in your environment would very efficiently inform you of that event, in a succinct and pithy manner. Also, this is not about closing yourself from world events. I will gladly read in-depth articles and books about important happenings. But news generally sucks at connecting dots, and you have to wade through thousands of worthless snippets for every one thing of mild importance that will probably have no effect on your life anyway. Why submit yourself to that ADHD stream of consciousness? Choose substance and depth over generally useless trivia. Also, live in a cave! is what I'm saying

And by fruit flies you wouldn't happen to mean negroes, would you, hmmmmm? I deleted my Facebook account, which is one of the many things I've delightfully removed myself of in recent times. Other such things that I no longer am burdened by are in no particular order: Television, The News, Meat. If only I could find a way to cut back on The Internet. It's vital to my work, but it's almost impossible to not let it invade your life completely.

Geoffrey! Get me my fighting trousers!

You're misreading his words. Toblix --and I know this because I live inside his head-- means that spoken dialogue can't pull off the certain contrived charm that old Lucasarts lines can have.

Other fascinating terrible additions are blinking animations for the Ewoks (an obvious oversight in the original movies) and a significantly enlarged door for Jabba's Palace. For this particular bit of ingenious storytelling they once again have had to resort to unnatural panning and zooming techniques, fitting the original material into new CG models.

Such a great scene. See this? This is bone.

This is so depressing. George Lucas needs to fuck off. Make something new, George, instead of tinkering with and lessening movies that don't need it, never did and never will.

A high-tech forum, I'd like that.

Kotaku has a surprisingly candid opinion on Catherine: http://kotaku.com/5835886/catherine-poses-questions-about-mature-relationships-most-games-are-afraid-to-ask. I love reading these stories as they speak volumes about how Catherine is resonating with a group of gamers increasingly ill-represented as they mature. Catherine appears to be something that can be really special if it arrives at precisely that time that you're struggling in your late 20s, early 30s.

Fuck, Sleepdance, that is great. Been listening to it for the second day in a row. I'm not really well-informed about music by a long shot, so it's actually fun to accidentally discover old stuff like this that everyone would regard as a classic.

Brkl, that is Nazi murder science for fruit flies!

Good job, my fellow Thumb! Thanks for letting me know.

So you didn't break through some flooring in a library only to end up on a sundappled terrace a mile further?

Hey does anybody here know this adventure game called Grim Fandango? It was made in 1998 by Lucasarts.

So, you're already passing through Schiphol today, so there's nothing more I can say than you can't do or see shit in one hour in Schiphol. Though they have a lovely park area nowadays!