MarkN

I'd seen this mentioned elsewhere, but hadn't realised it was Disney. I'm currently subscribed for the Mandalorian and Bad Batch, but this is a big old bonus. Will give it a go later.

Here's my latest. Going for challenging poses rather than detail. Obviously not right, there's notes on the thing, but her midriff is far too long and she's still not bent backward enough (and all sorts of other smaller errors). Fun pose though. I am burning through erasers, as you can see. Edit: Imagine a couple of swords or daggers in her hands. Haven't got around to them yet...

I haven't posted in here for a while, because my internet died and I lost my records. But today's was a \o/ moment of guessing what this son-of-a-bitch would do: Wordle 689 3/6 ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟩⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

The game idea is ENTIRELY about you getting them to waste their rewind, and you using yours strongly. It becomes a critical feature of the game. Am I bluffing by losing here, or am I luring you into a trap? Was this assault that hurt you badly but failed my main thrust, or just misdirection, hoping you'd rewind (because I need you to rewind, because all my forces are dead, and I have a plan for before that happened). The game becomes about playing this rewind system. It would be like a chess game where the players can rewind. You could do it after check mate and have another pop, but you could do it after the first few moves, once you know what opening they were planning on. You know now how to counter that, but they have to choose whether to stick or twist. It'll never take off, but as a game designer, it's a lovely idea.

That's what makes it fun. I mean, I've obviously not fully thought it through, and I'm not even applying it to any given genre, but can you imagine how a game would evolve over the first few months of it being played? The way people played after three months would be nothing like the way they played at the start. (In your example if Player 2 hasn't used their rewind, then if they lose their second attempt, they still get a third. Best of three.)

Hate quoting myself, but after a little more thought I really like this. Player 1 carries out Plan A that really hurts Player 2. Player 2 rewinds so that it never happened. Player 1 can now do Plan A again, and see if their opponent can do any better. Or they can carry out their Plan B, which was actually better. Or they can spring the trap that Plan A was leading Player 2 into. Or further still. Player 1 carries out Plan A that really hurts Player 2. Player 2 responds with a plan that makes Player 1 do something daft. Player 1 rewinds so that they didn't do it. Player 2 then rewinds so that Player 1's masterstroke never happened. Back to the drawing board, but everyone knows more about each other. I'm going to be thinking about this shit for days. Also ties into something I'm writing possibly, so good practice.

It's an interesting idea, and I'm all up for making games more accessible, and more player-friendly (more respectful of a player's time, for example). I think most gamers have got themselves into situations where they've deliberately suicided or let themselves be killed and this would be a way to address that. You could always add a cost to it, if the game could be cheated by doing it, which could be interesting (do I gamble on paying for a rewind, or stick with what I have now?) I can imagine multiplayer would be hard to implement, and it's not really my thing, but I love the idea of getting it in there somehow. Maybe give each player a rewind at the start of the match, then let them play normally. If one player does something critical the other is free to rewind it. But once they've used theirs it's gone, and the other now has a super-weapon in waiting.

Lovely following this @Sprite Machine. Thanks. Farscape is well worth a watch. It's nicely odd, and has a feel all of its own. I didn't watch it slavishly, but enjoyed every bit I saw. Is it on any of the major streaming platforms? Might give that a rewatch myself once I'm done catching up with my backlog if I can get at it.

It's amazing how this happens. The time just flies. I think I've only listened to her recently because when I accidentally go back to the base page of my MP3 player I then have to pick something to listen to - and quickly, because I'll be at work. So it falls on something in the A's or at the arse end of the alphabet which I can reach quickly from there.

I entered a competition that was posted on my Facebook page, with an excerpt from a side-project a couple of days ago. Has anyone else tried any of these? It costs money to enter, so I was wary obvs. but what I had fit like a glove so I thought I'd chance one for starters - see how it goes. I actually entered my least favourite bit, because I think it might actually be a story (I generally just write a series of events that might be fun to read, so ending up with something that stood alone as a story was new to me). It was for Uncharted magazine FWIW. Would be interested to hear if anyone has any previous experience with these competitions though...

I've had limited net access so haven't updated, but think a digest format is probably better anyway. So, went through: Bastion Soundtrack - as much as I love the game, I generally don't do soundtracks. I don't get them - for films or games. They are so tied to the thing they belong to that listening to the music in isolation just doesn't work for me. The music is great. Can't listen to it without the game. Belly - one of my favourite bands. Starts with my least favourite album "Dove", so I skip that and listen to the rest. Low Red Moon and Stay are still the highlights. Lilith's Garden from the "Best Of" too. Also the EPs are ace - Spaceman, Think About Your Troubles. Lovely. Black Sabbath - I only have a Best Of album. There are some corkers, but it's not my favourite stuff. Black Stone Cherry - not sure why I have an album of theirs. It's perfectly good rock music that does absolutely nothing for me. Again 95% there, but that missing 5% is critical. Brad Sucks - Oh I love this. Not sure what genre to call it, but it's got a lovely slacker vibe to it. No idea how I found it (it wasn't the film that a track was in), but I play this quite often (and sing along to much of it). British Sea Power - The Decline Of BSP (now just Sea Power IIRC which removes the whole point of their name IMO - I see why they did it, but maybe just rebadge entirely rather than keep a name that doesn't actually mean anything?) Should probably give this more of a go, but I think the first track is somewhat off-putting, so when I listen to Brad Sucks and it drops down to this, I switch away. I'll maybe give it more of a chance. Bush - I loved Bush back in the day. Still think Machine Head and Swallowed are belters. This starts with the album Golden State which was probably where I moved on to other things back then. Pretty good though. Cardiacs - best band ever. That is all. Thought I was going to get Cast after this, which I was dreading, but it's not on my MP3 player. I should probably listen to it on my PC to atone - I only have bad memories of it. Catherine Wheel - this is where I'm up to now. Love it - another of my favourite bands. I will listen to all of this. One of the two bands I would always nominate as the band I love that no other fucker listens to.

I gave them a go. Very nice. Sweetness level was spot on (not very). Lemon was subtle, but worked. Would have preferred a little stronger. (Would have preferred if it made me squint, tbh. I like aggressive lemon.) My sort of thing though on the cake/biscuit front generally though. No bells and whistles, just understated deliciousness. Those are really very good. I can't buy them any more, because I'd just scoff the lot in no time. The only reason I haven't scoffed all the lemon ones is because they're individually wrapped, which whilst keeping them fresh, also provides a mental barrier that is just strong enough to prevent me demolishing them.

The original is in the "Will watch if it's on" category. Doesn't matter how many times I've seen it. It's very watchable.

Day 5: A really good one. I skipped through AT The Drive-In and got to: Audioslave - I was late to this, but it's great. Chris Cornell rock music - hell yeah! Auf Der Maur - Melissa Auf Der Maur,s rock album (formerly bassist with Hole and Smashing Pumpkins. Pretty good stuff. Babes In Toyland - Fontanelle: I wasn't looking forward to this. I remember not being keen. I was so wrong. Angry girl rock. Loved it - possibly for the reasons I didn't like it when I was younger. Shows how your tastes change. Band of Horses - Everything All The Time. I didn't remember what this was when it came on - even when the glorious "The Funeral" came on. Had to look it up. Great stuff

Day 4: I skipped the other two Amen albums, knowing I'll be back for them later. Some days it's exactly what you need at 4am. So that dropped down into: Apartment 26 - Hallucinating. As Gandalf once said - "I have no memory of this place". I think I bought it because Metal Hammer promoted it, or possibly because they are from Leamington Spa where I live, but since that came as a revelation when I googled them just now I suspect the former. Had no idea what to expect, but hated this. I think this is a good candidate for the thing I like least on my MP3 player. I like some really odd stuff, but this connected on no level at all. It feels to me like someone created a boy band, then surprised them by telling them they were going to play nu metal, and so they made an album after looking up what that meant on the internet. Maybe just not my genre. However it did set me up beautifully for: Ash - 1977. I recently rediscovered this after maybe a twenty year gap, and have played it regularly since. From the opening Tie-Fighter scream on the first track it just makes me happy. Then you have tracks like Girl From Mars, Kung Fu, Oh Yeah, and Angel Interceptor - it's a cracker. If you've not given it a go for a while, I highly recommend a replay. At The Drive-In - all albums: I'm a massive fan, so just let it drop through them all for the rest of the day. Near the end now, so will skip to whatever's next.

Day 3: Starts with Alice In Chains and straight into one of my favourite tracks - Rooster. Down In A Hole is so good it gets played twice. Then on to: Amanda Palmer - 2 albums - Goes Down Under and Who Killed Amanda Palmer. I hadn't listened to either for a while. The first is mostly fun (look up the Vegemite song for a laugh), the second has some crackers on. Then on into: Amen - Amen. I wasn't sure I'd enjoy this. I didn't listen to it much back when I bought it, but found it surprisingly decent. I've got two more albums by them - at least one of which I've never listened to. Tomorrow's going to start loud.

Day 2: I skipped A Perfect Circle because I listen to it regularly anyway. So next up was: Aimee Mann - Lost In Space - I listen to this a lot too, but I was in the mood for her lovely songs. Also, it's a shining example of the issue with the auto-fall-through of my MP3 player, because after her dulcet tones we get: Alabama Thunderpussy. Proper rock. Can't remember the name of the album, but it's a jarring switch. I've never before listened to it beyond the first song or two - it's not quite my thing. It's about 95% right, but that last 5% (not sure what) jars somehow. But there is some excellent electric guitar noodling here (I chuckled at one point), so I'll give this another go. Alanis Morrisette - Jagged Little Pill - not listened to this in at least 20 years, possibly nearer 30. It starts off so angry - it's really very good, but then becomes tamer, and I got a bit bored. And then a treat to end: Alice In Chains - Dirt (the only album of theirs I own). Only got a few tracks in, but these will be a cracking wake-up call tomorrow.

Day 1: Sadly noticed I have a few gaps on my MP3 player, so should have actually started the day with 3 albums of ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, which would have been good. So instead I got these: 3 Colours Red: I only remember having two albums of theirs Pure, and Revolt, and they're solid Indie Rock stuff, if perhaps a little earnest, but with a few very good tracks. Turns out I also have The Union Of Souls. This feels like one of those I auto-bought, and then moved on from that phase to something new, so played it very little. This was a real find, and I enjoyed it more than the other two. Will be giving this a replay. Next I got 50-Foot Wave (the first of rather a lot of K|risten Hersch that I have. This is her punky-side project, where she sings angrily. I have a few albums of stuff and a couple of odd songs (the cover of her own solo song Your Ghost is lovely. After that I was disappointed to find A was missing - I was looking forward to the poppy A vs Monkey Kong. I checked at home later, and it turns out I also have Hi-Fi Serious by them. Can't remember a thing about that - I might not have played it. Something for later. So instead I got The first track or two of A Perfect Circle's Emotive - their album of cover versions of protest songs. Didn't quite get as far as the wonderfully bleak version of Imagine, so that'll be happening shortly tomorrow. A decent start.

Their song Beautiful Day pisses all over U2's by the same name. It's glorious.

The MP3 player I use at work drops down through albums - when it's finished one it moves on to the next, even if it's a different artist. Sometimes it's horribly jarring, but I tried turning it off and it's worse. I can't just stop and choose something new, because I have a picking speed to maintain. But it just occurred to me to try starting the very first album, and letting it play through the rest of my entire archive. There are albums in there I've never even played. Could be fun. I've limited internet access at the moment, but will try to report back. I do reserve the right to skip the nine hours of ambient sound of an Arctic Ice Breaker pushing through sea ice that I've used to try to get to sleep in the past. We'll start at 3 Colours Red and end on Yes (nice bit of prog to finish up on). No idea how long this will take...

I need to read through the rest of this thread, but this resonated with me. I used to work a game designer, and I've worked with other designers who did not share the way I think, and it does my nut in. I worked on Pac Man World 3 (not rated very highly tbh), but for my levels I think I can explain most stuff. Why enemies are where they are. Why things are like they are. There are a few things that might be a stretch but I could probably busk an answer that sounded half-decent. But most other levels make no sense at all. There are things placed in places no-one in their right mind would place them. Game-specific items placed blocking doorways. Enemies that are defending nothing etc. This is a pet peeve of mine. I had to do a presentation to the rest of the design team many years ago. I called mine "How The World Works", because I believe in order to make videogames believable they have to work in ways that make sense to us, and not do things that make us see they're wrong. (That last bit was my opening salvo, because I searched for "How The World Works" on the net, and found this book cover. Now I've watched a lot of wildlife TV. That camel in the desert in Africa belongs in Asia. It has two humps, not one. This is absolutely not how the world works. If I can spot that other people will, and it will break the fiction for them. This is incredibly niche, and only a few people will spot it outright like I did, but for some folk it will raise a tiny flag. They know this too, they just couldn't tell you why it's wrong, but deep-down they know it is. My theory is that basically as designers we're usually telling lots of lies. Magic exists, monsters exist, etc. - it's all lies. So what you really need is for everything underlying that to be as rock-solid as it can be. People will believe a few lies here and there, but they have to be built on a bedrock of stuff that makes sense. This is based on something I learnt from working with Microsoft's game department. At the time they had a philosophy called "The Elephant Is One". The basic idea is that an elephant is a weird creature - trunk, tusks, enormous ears, strange stringy tail, logs for feet, etc. If you try to draw a realistic picture of an elephant, you can maybe screw up the tail without anyone calling it out, but you've probably got most folks' spider senses tingling just a tad. Deep-down they know it's wrong, they just can't tell you why. If you mess up the feet too, then alarm bells start ringing. Most folk still may not be able to point out the specific errors, but they're starting to see it's not an elephant. The same works for game worlds. An enemy appearing where it shouldn't be needs explaining, or it's a lie. If the fiction allows it to just materialise (as in something like Bayonetta) that's fine. Ethereal beings rallying to a call - gotcha! But an enemy appearing out of nowhere in many other games makes no sense. An enemy waiting for you when it couldn't possibly have known you would be coming makes no sense. These are often tiny details that will get overlooked on their own. Little lies that add up, until you see the big lies, and that ruins things. And it becomes obvious nobody cared enough to hide this from you. That is what was needed (I think). To create fiction you need to remove friction (this might be the snappiest thing I've ever written). You have to take out the small lies that might jar with folk ever so slightly, so you can get away with telling them the big lies - that elves and dragons exist, and so forth. The really good games can spin really big lies well, because you believe all the stuff that lies beneath inherently because they got it right.

Yeah - it's just a vegan version of Feta cheese, so will mainly be scoffed as is, rather than cooked (I guess you could probably try frying it like Halloumi, which could be rather nice). Vegan Feta is generally one of the better vegan cheeses you can get in supermarkets. Without going to very expensive artisan stuff it's one of the few vegan cheeses I've had that I'd recommend. (Some vegan cream cheeses are quite nice too, FWIW).

The song with Bob is probably my absolute favourite moment in TM ever. I'd probably agree with Series 5. Bob shone, but they were all good, and I love Sally Phillips to bits (always have since Smack The Pony). Skip to 6.40 for the song. Bob's delivery of "that line" is sublime.

The best Thrust remake was Thrust Deluxe. It was spot on. Unfortunately, for some reason it runs as slow as arseholes on my new computer, so it's unplayable. If this works for you though, it is very good indeed. And free. https://download.cnet.com/Thrust-Deluxe/3000-2099_4-75451852.html

I haven't seen House Of Games in a long while, but I remember it was featured on (Edit) Moviedrome back in the day, and thinking it was brilliant. I should have posted The Sting though. It is my favourite movie ever. It's got such a great cast, such a good score, it looks amazing, and the plot is so good it got plundered for about six episodes of Hustle.