Hermie

North Korea's leader has a baby daughter: Rodman

Definitely don't ask me about Blender, I'm still reading tutorials about how to make a gingerbread man move. Nah, I don't use any apps at all. I tried a couple when I first installed, but all of them feel way too adapted to tablets, so I get way more functionality and usability with mouse and keyboard if I use the web/software equivalents.

I use Windows 8 the exactly the same way I used Windows 7, just with a bigger start menu. As long as you ignore the apps in preference for real software, then it's basically identical. That goes for legacy software too, it runs everything, and if it doesn't, it runs it in compatibility mode. Blender is smooth sailing, even on my i5-3570.

It's been one year and some months since I did my big uprooting and moved to another country to be with my girlfriend. It's been ups and downs, and I don't regret it, but we have had a hard time making proper friends. We're both kinda socially awkward, so meeting new people or joining things always stops short for reasons like "but what if they're weird? Or we are the weird ones?". That in addition to neither of us speaking the language fluently, means we rarely meet people outside of work. My girlfriends' office mates are cool, two of them are nerdy, one a gamer, so we hang out with them occasionally. But they already have their own existing social circles, and they're both heavy into Trance music and that whole scene, which kinda leaves us out of it. As for my office, the only guy I have anything in common with also has a really... annoying personality. It might be in part because moving here was always a temporary step, as we want to move back to Norway eventually. (Immigration laws are tricky) But yeah, we're definitely not very happy in terms of social interaction, other than each other. (Sorry Argo, hope I didn't scare you)

Moral quandary: Should you, and will you, boycott Child's Play?

Please give me Coke! Do you have Coke? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1GiAWLDIBE

I just got the latest Kickstarter update for Massive Chalice and they mention Chris completely without his title. I find this highly disrespectful. My suggestion is to kill their wives.

Agree that it is quite cool, and definitely a concept you should explore further. =) What strikes me about the question "where to take it", is to think about if you want to go more towards portal or dishonored when it comes to escalation. That is, do you want this ability to be as-is through the whole game, and only ramp up the puzzles/level design, or do you want to escalate with more and more abilities/upgrades? Or something in between? A little more specific feedback: I found it hard to judge the distance the ball had traveled, and frequently over- or undershot my target. A longer "tail", might fix this, but that's just a theory. As you're making a similar game, I'd suggest you go play through Portal again with developer commentary, even if you have already. They do some really clever things to alleviate these kinds of problems. For example, whenever you need to eyeball a distance in depth, there's usually a checker pattern around, making it a lot easier to see the correct perspective and distance. That's not to say you should do exactly that, but there are other ways to integrate the same solutions they arrived to, without becoming "just another Portal derivative", as is your fear.

Argh, I was talking about Flipping Burgers in Stockholm. Sticky Fingers is indeed in GTB. Somehow I keep confusing those two names. SciFi Bokhandelen exists in both.

What those guys said about Stockholm. In the middle of Gamla Stan/Old town there's a great geek store called SciFi Bokhandelen. Fantasy/Sci Fi books, obscure movies, TV shows and cartoons/anime, and a full floor dedicated to board games. Worth a visit. There's a place called Sticky Fingers that supposedly has Swedens best burgers, but there's always a wait to get a table, apparently, so I've never bothered going. I did however go to a place called Oliver Twist in the southern part of town, that also has fantastic burgers, and a big selection of proper beers. Worth a visit if you're in the area. Do you have a hotel yet? The one we usually use is called Hotel Micro, they built a bunch of budget rooms in the bottom floors of a "proper" hotel, so you get linens and proper beds for hostel prices. =) Also yeah, if you're ever nearer the Gothenburg area, let me know, and we will hang out. o/

I agree with Patrick's sentiment that the journals and all were a bit game-y and/or over-explanatory at points. That might be because for us Thumbs, this game has had a much longer "press cycle", allowing me to get much more excited about the unique elements about the game long in advance, mainly the environmental storytelling. I remember Steve saying (on the podcast?) that you can play without the audiologs, and for some audiences, it would be better. I played through with everything default, but in hindsight, I wish I had left them off the first time, to make sure I was drawing my own conclusions. A good example is the pillowfort in the TV room. When I first came in there, and saw this otherwise neatly decorated room in a mess, with a pillowfort and empty pizza boxes and soda cans, it was made very clear that the parents left before Sam, and that she at least had a weekend to her self. I found it a great little set piece, and a perfect example of environmental storytelling. [showing, not telling.] Yet there was still a note from school that explicitly said "my parents will be gone, let's make a pillowfort and watch X-Files" or something like that, and I felt kinda dissapointed that they felt the need to point it out. As for how I first explored the house, I purposefully went around through each room giving them a glance, making sure no one was actually home (as most would do?). This proved both immersive and slightly jarring when I came to the upstairs bathroom, when...

I would be interested in this, I've always had a casual interest in amefuto, and been curious how fantasy football works.

You probably know this already, but if you're "basically" the manager, you should probably BE the manager, and thus they should make you less poor.

What about jobs that would live your mind and hands idle for periods? Parking lot attendant or such?

I will already pledge to backing this Kickstarter based on three reasons: -You're a cool guy -You make cool art -I dream of someday making a similar move, and I would use you as a canary in a goldmine to see if it's wise or not.

Awesome TED Talks (and similar enlightening lectures)

Is your pet human leaving hair strands all over your recharging chamber? Install a vacuum chest unit today!

From what I understand, that's Stricly For Tax Purposes, no? routing Steam payments through that office gives them better rates than elsewhere in Europe, I think.

I feel similarly. In my dayjob I work with customer service for an electronics chain, talking to customers, and also following up warranty repairs that have taken a long time. This is all based on individual cases, but I tend to be better than my colleagues at pinpoint patterns and weaknesses in the system, and working out how to improve this. I recently realized I'm using the same analytic brain process I use when starting a new mechanics-heavy game, or even when watching someone else play it, like Nick & Remo with CKII, or Brad Shoemaker with Dota II. As you say, I don't know if it's the fact that my brain likes doing this has led me to games, or if playing games growing up has sharpened this, but it was an interesting little epiphany.

(PS: Revive the photography thread and post your pictures there.)

It's interesting how board game adaption of licences are forced to simulate the mechanics of a story, rather than the narrative. I wish more video games would attempt to do the same. Game of Thrones, Star Wars, and Lord of the Rings are all prime examples. For GoT, the CKII mod (and it sounds like the board game) gives a way more interesting look at the world by leaving some variables open, and you get to see how the world reacts as those are manipulated. THis is, at least to me, a lot more appealing than the game on shelves labeled "Game of Thrones" that's a hack'n'slash 3rd person action game, that promises to let you play through your favourite moments of the show (or rather, look at them remade in polygonal cutscenes). It's the same as the LotR movie games for the PS2 10 years ago (oh god those movies are 10 years old now). The strategy game Battle for Middle Earth did way more for me to look into the different races of the world and how they do battle, than hitting square to get Aragon to hit a bunch of orcs with his sword. It doesn't have to be strategy games either, just look at any Star Wars game that takes you away from the main characters and let's you play as just another soldier (X-Wing series, Battlefronts, Republic Commando, etc). Now if you'll excuse me, I need to trawl this Livejournal for choice Breckon quotes.

So are we talking strictly idioms? or more common phrases? Are any pop-culture related?

I'm trying to make a sigil for house Vanaman. Does anyone know what "kill their wives" would be in Gaelic?

A poem called Rape Joke. (Not really posting this to start a debate or anything, but I wanted to share this moving text, and it's the best thread I could think of.)

Man, there is a phrase customers say all the time that reminds me of a Thumb Thing, but I now I can't remember what it is.