pabosher

Seems like NBC still didn't understand what was going on though, dogg.

It gets so much better. Keep watching!

You are wrong. It started slowly and only got better.

So the Olympics Opening Ceremony just finished here in the UK, and it was utterly phenomenal. If you haven't yet seen it, watch it. So goddamn good.

Maybe it's just shitty English coffee?

Now that I've had a chance to listen to the episode: Thanks guys for answering my question. It was super rad - I rarely write in to my favourite media outlets, even fewer times get mentioned - and so to hear you discussing what it is about video games that makes you tick was super awesome. To Chris: I'd just like to clarify something I said in the e-mail, regarding my interest in developers even during times of disinterest in the video game medium. As I mentioned in the episode of Buried in the Credits with Steve, I'm a student studying Anthropology. I love people. I think they're weird, wonderful and amazing, and the art that people produce is an extension of that. When it comes to my personal preference and what I find interesting, I just want to talk to people and find out more about them. It's why I created Buried in the Credits which, in my opinion, is actually pretty different from the vast majority of video game journalistic outlets. Talking to Marek Ziemak from CD Projekt RED about why he thinks Eastern European games are so bleak and depressing compared to typically 'western' games is so much more rewarding to me than pretty much anything specific about The Witcher 2. I think that a lot of video game enthusiasts - at least, those I listen to and find interesting - will talk about a game's themes or mechanics and ask 'Why?' that mechanic works well or doesn't. 'Why does The Walking Dead forsake traditional adventure game solving, and instead focus on the story and player-choice mechanics?' That is an interesting question, don't get me wrong, but to me it's more interesting to ask 'Why did Sean, Jake, whoever it was, decide to make Lee a black character? Why choose a little girl to be the one he's looking after? What is it about them and their past experiences that led to this decision?' I think there's a good example of that in the Steve Gaynor episode of BITC, wherein we're discussing why the themes of Minerva's Den are as they are, and he talks about his real life; his then-new wife, etc. Even if I hadn't played MD (which I have, and loved) then I still would've found that interesting. PS: Thanks Sean for the plug; I will be in LA in early September and may be hopping by SF if you want to sort something out?

I was hoping for The Idle Thumbs Video Game Podcast Episode One.

The joke from elmuerte is a reference to the recent Dead Space 3 quote shenanigans.

I don't like Al Murray's humour.

Yep. And as well as having a large penis, he came across as a giant dick as well.

In my experience, that much actually IS easy on Kindle. Just tap the indicator for the footnote, and then once you've read it, hit the back button.

When it comes to novels - I'm currently reading the Song of Ice and Fire series - I love using my Kindle. In my opinion it's just perfect for what I want. It's the case of textbooks where I want to flick back and forth, scribble unintelligible notes and generally LEARN that digital becomes impractical.

That's criminal.

This makes me sad. When it comes to science, history books etc. I honestly believe they should be as near to free as possible - information shouldn't be restricted only to the wealthy, and cheaper books would encourage more to read I think. Obviously I know it's financially unviable to have such a system in place, but urgh. I just want to read interesting books, honest.

With Hitchhiker's though, it's now £7.99 for just the first book on its own. As you say, all the major fees will have been taken care of long ago - books are just getting way more expensive, and it bums me out.

a) sweet. Didn't mean to sound pushy/asshole-ish if I did; just genuinely curious, and I respect your opinions. That's a fair enough point to make. I think that the vast amount of praise that TWD has received for being different (and, dare I say, 'better' in some respects) definitely appears as the result of intense inspection of the medium. I think the reason I feel bummed about the state of video games, without the shining light that you guys have, is because I have no way of changing things right now. When I start up my podcast again and try making it bigger, maybe I could feel more empowered, but right now I don't feel like there's anything in video games for me anymore. It may be as a result of my age - just finished my first year at Uni, surrounded by people far more intelligent than myself, a lot of whom are cultured, funny, interesting etc. I want to spend my time doing something that I feel is worthwhile, like reading a really astonishingly good book or watching an incredible film -- experience some form of story that makes me into a better, more interesting person. I don't think there are any games that have done that for me yet, and none that exist that will do that to me.

So if you dislike all these aspects of games, don't really like the future it seems to be striving towards, why do you still like and play games? (Yeah, it's totally the question I sent in that you almost answered. I probably asked it less douchily in the email too, and so I apologise here)

I am bummed this wasn't The Idle Thumbs Video Game Podcast Episode 1, also that there wasn't a new intro theme. Other than that we are cool.

I loved this episode. Great work guys! (Although the reader mail section was cruel: Sean: There's a reader mail here I'd really like to read. It's from Phillipe... Jake: don't set up expectations! It's the first episode! Sean: Oh, k, right. Travis Touchdown writes... I may be misremembering the exact words, but that was the jist and it made me super excited and then sad. (I'm phillipe))

Yes, TTG have confirmed there will be more seasons after this one.

I really am so excited for the return of the Full Cast now. I even sent in an e-mail and everything! Madness.

"Man is born free; and everywhere is in chains." Jean-Claude Rousseau No idea why that's stuck in my head all the time, but I do like it.

That was amazing. Loved it. Next stop: emailing a question to [email protected] (who thought killzone 2 was a little bit dumb).

I had a ticket for the Friday, but couldn't make it in the end due (mostly) to monetary issues and (partially) to Uni-related stuff. Bummed I couldn't make it though - it looks like it was a fantastic time.

And then, in the final climactic cutscene, it shows you a quick cut of every minor decision that led to that moment, relating to the character about to help/hurt you.