Twig

http://penny-arcade.com/2013/09/05/some-clarification To be honest, I've lost all energy and motivation to talk about Penny Arcade, but I thought I'd drop this link for posterity. I haven't yet lost the motivation to read other people talking about it! TALK AWAY! SCREAM FROM THE HIGHEST MOUNTAIN!

Me too but I bet that author is a white dude like I'm also a white dude so that doesn't really mean much la la laaaaa. LA LA LAAAAA.

WAY TO GO JAKE

DAMN! SO HATE. I've never played a Wayforward game. I tend to like the art, but avoid playing them because people I trust always express opinions in line with shammack.

Still seems genuine to me but okay.

Hah, that's fair and probably true. That said, I wasn't always like that. Not that I would say I was a bigot or willfully ignorant, but I could be very bullheaded and unwilling to listen when someone told me I was wrong. My point is more that maybe you shouldn't give up on someone just because they're being an ass. Not that I blame anyone for giving up. It can be a chore. Worse. Speaking of Mike: why have I now seen two references to a "non-apology" in reference to his transphobic remarks? As I recall it, he basically said, "I'm sorry I hurt people out of ignorance, and I will try to be better." Maybe I'm remembering wrong. (That he is now failing at being better is a different thing entirely. His apology seemed genuine at the time.)

I'm a hugely stubborn asshole and I've changed my mind many, many times thanks to people calling me out on my bullshit. U: Though it sometimes takes a few days of reflection. Hence the "stubborn" part. ):

Well, she's definitely taking it seriously (or at least my dad is making her!), so I'm not worried in that regard. But yes you're right, I should say something.

Yeah. Friend aside, I'll probably finally have a new roommate by the end of this week. Seems to be proceeding according to plan. The only problem is... I still don't have a job. and I might end up with a job in another city slash state. In which case I would immediately be abandoning this guy. (I'd probably offer to pay for a month or two just in case he couldn't find a replacement for ME fast enough, but I can only do so much. Anyway. AHHH.) I don't really have a choice in the matter, obviously, 'cause I'm getting desperate for money. Hnnngh. Too much stressful shit going on at once I'm going to explode.

Nice.

Honestly, I don't know. I want to believe he'll change some day, but he's just as old as me, and I got over my weird mid-western-raised issues with Different People years ago. His dad's a preacher, and, well, ugh. I wish he was at least an all-around asshole so I could ignore him altogether! (I don't really wish that.) But he's just a super super nice person, always helping his friends, even when it's inconvenient for him. So I still hold out hope. But it's so strongly ingrained into his entire belief system that I worry my hope is misplaced. I lost a lot of respect for him the day that happened.

Jack Black was perfect as Eddie Riggs, so, you know, I was just as excited for him as for the rest. But yeah lots of cool dudes.

That's not what he said.

It's zero.

Everyone knows wizards don't have sex.

They don't really know, last I heard. In happier news, she just recently got a new job, and she sounds pretty excited, so there's that!

PAX was great and I can't wait until next year (when I'll hopefully be less stressed out over the complete lack of income)! Fun meeting all you PEEPS. I'm the thumbs-up in the back of that picture. I was like "I'm tall, I'll go to the back." MISTAKE. Also, I saw Greg Rice get off my plane earlier today, but he was like six rows ahead of me so I couldn't say hello.

Maybe you didn't, but other people did. (Dissonance, etc.) Your spoiler: actually that's a good point. I similarly rushed for similar fears. Believability in this game almost entirely lies within either the realm of realism or within the realm of narrative conceit. There's nothing unrealistic to the story - only to the storytelling. Which is why my original post brought up realism. You might not think that way, but I bet a lot of people do. Also, in regards to "a mostly silent player character"... The fact that Katie is almost entirely not a character is exactly why I think they're better able to get away with having random audio tracks from Sam's diary. If Katie was a real character, it'd feel inherently weirder (though I, personally, think it'd still be okay), but since she's just a cipher, what difference does it make if you, as the player, learn something that she otherwise wouldn't?

That's what I mean, though. If that sort of "dissonance" really bothered me, I'd never be able to enjoy any form of fiction unless it was incredibly straightforward description of a linear series of events.

Well I never said they did, so that's fine! Also, I never said the "audio logs" were "flashbacks", just that they are a narrative conceit LIKE flashbacks or etc. used to express parts of the story to the player. I don't understand how they break the narrative. They're just another piece of the puzzle. AND: What is "believable" if not "adheres to reality"? These diary entries are there as part of the story, deliberately placed to reveal information as the player progresses through the story. Why does it have to be "believable" that Katie the character would receive this information? It's a method of storytelling, not a strictly linear traversal of time. I'm sorry, I'm probably coming off as trying to be difficult, but I really don't get why it's a problem. The things you're saying don't really make sense to me. D:

Shots fired! ... Sorry, I just found the unintentional implication of that sequence of exchanges kind of amusing. Back to your serious discussion.

Del Tha Funkee Homosapien is a rapper that featured on a couple Gorillaz songs (including the ever-popular single Clint Eastwood). He's the dude rapping here. This is a collaboration between him, Dan the Automator (who produced the entire Gorillaz debut album), and Kid Koala.

FUUUUUUUUCK I've been waiting for this album for so long! AND NOW IT'S ALMOST HERE (OCTOBER 1ST ACCORDING TO WIKIPEDIA!!!) I love this single. I love this single.

Crocodiles are so funny-lookin' with their big ol' chin flaps.

DAMN! Harsh words from osmo! I loved Dead Space, but I don't play enough survival horror to rate it in the grand scheme of things. I will say I didn't think it was scary so much as tense. But I guess that's sort of how SURVIVAL horror works, as opposed to something like Amnesia.