We chat about videogames and videogame accessories.

All geomancer run? Hard as shit on the later levels.

Woop! Soops! Happy birthday!

What is a shmup? Also what are you plans for your newly revived ps2?

Happy birthday, Supes! All of those are super-solid choices. (Can't comment on the Solid Snail Collection or This Is Probably French: The Game, but I played and loved the others.) Hope you have fun with 'em!

I'll send you a present at some point, but it may take some* time.

Oh yeah, i remember reading that in a magazine.

You'll not be disappointed with Okami. It's one of the best experiences i ever had with a videogame and it quickly turned into one of my favorite games of all time.

Also happy belated birthday Sups!

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Uplink has come onto the iPad! I think it deserves it - a touch interface is something Uplink sorely needs, and while there are touchscreen puters out there, most of them lack really high-end touch capabilities. I kiiiiind of wish they'd let it out for Android though, given that apps through Apple just make me uneasy (you have to think, how much of a cut are they getting? But then again Uplink is an old game, it can't have been selling much these days; barring the Introversion bundle of course, but that's charity so it doesn't realllly count also speaking of Introversion HOW COULD THEY HAVE POSTPONED SUBVERSION AAHHHHH ;A;).

Ramble ramble ramble.

:3

I'm playing some old school Goldeneye double zero seven. It has not aged well, but I knew that going in so I wasn't terribly disappointed. 00 Agent is something I had never tried before and boy its a doozy. Natalya can get impaled through the sex regions by a tree limb for all I care, she is so full of bullshit. Control level more like "I'm gonna die a lot" level.

If you do not have Quantum Conundrum buy it as soon as possible. It's from the same lead designer as Portal (and, though the commonalities are clear, it is distinct and still charming) and it manages to have a good blend of simplicity and horribleness in its puzzles.

The omnipresent voice isn't as funny as the scriptwriters thought he was though.

Oh, an actual videogame new that interests me.

Okami HD is gonna be a thing and i'm excited even if it's the same thing with useless trophies thrown in because my dumb ps3 can't play ps2 games and i just want to own the game and play it again ahh gosh i can't wait.

But i'm also kind of offended that it's just the same thing with useless trophies thrown in. I could just, you know, buy a ps2 and the original game. I couldn't care less for the HD tweaks. Oh it's also sad that the original staff won't see any of the money from the game, if it even sells well, that is.

What would really really be cool is if they made a collection sort of thing with the original Okami and Okamiden, and THEN release a sequel! Even if Clover Studios does not exist anymore, i can dream.

E: WAIT what if Capcom asked Platinum games to make the sequel?!?! I'd explode with happiness if that ever happened (is never gonna happen).

Man I was gonna sit down and play a nice round of wii based okami, which I've only seen parts from my old college roomate's ps2 run.

Turns out this wii can't read discs anymore.

Time to mod that sucker.

Mass Effect 3 Ending DLC out tomorrow.

If you expect the worst you can't be disappointed.

I am expecting the worst, yet I imagine it'll still be even worse than I can imagine.

Kai Leng returns from the dead as a Reaper Ghost, now it's up to Shepard and pals to put him down before he can reach the crucible and turn everyone into Double Reapers

Come ooooooooooooooonnnnnnnnnn Orange ending

No but seriously I hope its terrible so that people don't start thinking that they should change the endings of things just because they don't like the ending.

Double-hope that the developers roll out a troll ending

I would agree with you if I hadn't seen the Mass Effect 3 ending

30 minutes of aliens talking about the infallibility of fate.

Everyone sitting and nodding heads in agreement

Then 5 minute trailer for upcoming mass effect anime

I would watch any anime with Mordin as a character, not going to lie

Mordin is wonderful.

The DLC isn't going to please everyone, but surprisingly it addressed my largest problem with the ending (besides the very nature of the ending) and I am somewhere in the region of satisfied.

I legitimately cannot believe it.

Just finished playing Superbrothers: Sword and Sworcery today. It was a cool little game that I am glad that I played, not for the gameplay so much as the strange little self-aware world that it was a glimpse into. It was really cool.

That... is some reaaaally cruddy level design. The prize isn't even that /good/ either!

That... is some reaaaally cruddy level design. The prize isn't even that /good/ either!

If it were necessary to continue through the stage it would be cruddy level design

As it is its just a secret thing.

Besides Sonic Adventure has plenty of other places that are bad level design and are more deserving of shame.

But it's not a good secret! Secrets are just as important to be designed well, because it's partly the enticement of seeing something out of reach or being presented an object you don't immediately know what to do with, and partly the reward of being swift or cunning enough to work with what you got, learn how a game works and figure out a part of the game where it isn't gonna help you or show you the way, or even deliberately throw a very difficult curveball at you.

It's why I'm also not a fan of hidden items in RPGs if they're done as poorly as in final fantasy. Wallhugging every dungeon to find a secret passage is bad, while wallhugging a certain spot because you can see the place with the reward is cool.

Wait, you take time to look for secrets in RPG's instead of just going straight to gamefaqs?

I'm confused. I thought gamefaqs was part of level design.

I'm not sure I see the connotation, but I do have to wonder what nights wants with fuzing with all these kids?

Do...do the kids ever unfuze? Is she eating those kids?

But it's not a good secret! Secrets are just as important to be designed well, because it's partly the enticement of seeing something out of reach or being presented an object you don't immediately know what to do with, and partly the reward of being swift or cunning enough to work with what you got, learn how a game works and figure out a part of the game where it isn't gonna help you or show you the way, or even deliberately throw a very difficult curveball at you.

It's why I'm also not a fan of hidden items in RPGs if they're done as poorly as in final fantasy. Wallhugging every dungeon to find a secret passage is bad, while wallhugging a certain spot because you can see the place with the reward is cool.

I disagree!

Well, specifically, I disagree with the idea that a secret can be done poorly. Secrets are exactly what they say they are, they are secret. A little something that your skills at the game have no deciding factor in their discovery. Only hard work, sharp eyes, and luck help you in finding secrets, and that's perfectly fine because the game is not one iota worse because of it. It would be a lot worse if it were a side-quest, which is presented to you and you are supposed to be able to reasonably do it with your game knowledge and skillset, and it would be down-and-out horrid if the MAIN quest were uncompletable without knowing the secret because that's just mean-spirited (LOOKING AT YOU, SIERRA ADVENTURE GAMES). But when its just a secret, I mean, who cares? What you don't know don't hurt you.

EDIT: Oh hey I got an EXAMPLE oh boy

Super Mario Bros. 3, at what point are you supposed to KNOW that you can duck behind the stage and get the whistle? I mean, obviously shit like that was put in so you'd buy the GAME GUIDE (DOLLA DOLLA BILL YALL) but would not knowing that secret make the game worse for the person playing? I don't think it would. Especially since it forces the person to actually play the game cause he don't got no whistle and can't skip.

I guess sexual connotations tend to go over my head. Also I thought she was 12.

The subtleties that I typically infer are the potentially disturbing ones. Like, with Will: "oh this one looks interesting!" as if there have been many before him but they aren't there now. And the way the owl so casually greets them, as if he's done this before and is ready to invite them in. Like their words belie a sinister purpose that will harm the children in some way. Like some sort of sweet smelling pitcher plant beckoning to a fly.

Also I didn't realize I hadn't watched the video all the way through, so apparently those kids escape night's fusion thing.