And here I finally deliver the joke / point I wanted to make way back in strip #16. The rules as presented in the rulebook seem sensible enough: If someone enters a square adjacent to an enemy, that enemy gets a free swing at them, right then and there, regardless of who’s turn it is. I’m sure proponents of the system can give you a nice list of reasons for this, why it makes combat more realistic, or what exploit it is supposed to counter.
– Shamus, Wednesday Dec 6, 2006
So, ‘Little Girl’ officially comes out today, although Amazon has been a nightmare to deal with, and made the paper back available before final proofs were approved. This meant that an excited friend messaged me to let me know she’d been able to order it early, thinking I would be excited. Oh dear. Luckily, I was able to get into contact with Amazon and make sure no copies were sent out before the finally update had been made.
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Little Girl: Book Drop!”
This week I am…playing Cookie Clicker and Roblox. We’ve got some big real-life stuff going on so it’s pretty bare minimum while we work things out.
What are you guys up to? Anyone have any good news to share? I could use the pick-me-up.
The third part of the Batman home video game retrospective brings us to the modern, and arguably best, Batman video game and its sequels (except for Origins, I’ve heard). Shamus mentioned the Arkham series frequently in his writing, wrote up Arkham City and Arkham Origins, played Arkham Asylum on Spoiler Warning, and made many comparisons to the Arkham games on the Diecast. I’m pretty sure it was Shamus’ raving support of Arkham City that led me to finally purchase Arkham Asylum for PC.
As previously mentioned, I never made it past that opening slow walk down the main corridor, and the simple fight at the end. Pretty sure it was the weird (to me) camera placement, off-center to Batman’s right-rear. But I knew, as part of my craving to play Batman games, this was where it would end.
The Circle of Fantasy Roleplaying Life:
- Enchantment:You begin a new campaign. How exciting! As you play, you will eventually experience…
- Disillusionment: You notice all the flaws in the campaign. Loot distribution is uneven. The house rules outnumber the core rules, and the only person who knows these house rules is the DM. Some players (not you) are taking center stage. Some players greatly overpower others. The plot is on rails and none of the NPCs are likeable. You decide to cope with this through…
- Long Suffering: Deal with it – bad DMs happen. Give the guy a chance to learn. When the campaign gets worse it will be time to engage in…
- Sabotage: Try to run the campaign off the rails and kill off major characters, just to break free and do something that isn’t being imposed on you. If you’re still not having fun…
- Confrontation: Talk to the DM and let him or her know your concerns. If this doesn’t transform them into a great DM, then you may be obliged to resort to…
- Coup d’état: Get the players together and tell the DM that his work just isn’t cutting it. Appoint someone else to run the campaign. However, the DM might mange to retain power. If he owns all the books, all the dice, and you meet at his house, then kicking him out isn’t usually an option. If you can’t depose him, then the only thing left is…
- Exile: Make up some lame excuse about getting a girlfriend / boyfriend or a new job and find a new gaming group. Then the cycle begins anew.
– Shamus, Monday Dec 4, 2006
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “DM of the Rings Remaster XXXVII: Intervention Interruptus”
I have a book coming out!
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Little Girl: Release Date and Pre-Order”
This week I am mostly just playing Roblox with a little bit of Cookie Clicker and Slay the Spire on the side. It’s a time for idle games for me, I guess.
What are you guys up to?
Obviously they are. Right? Actually, is this another one of those sneaky hard-to-define things?
Fidget spinners are ruining education! We need to... oh, never mind the fad is over. This is not the first time we've had a dumb moral panic.
Two minutes of fun at the expense of a badly-run theme park.
What makes this borderline indie title so much better than the AAA juggernauts that came before?
Ever wonder how seemingly sane people can hate popular games? It can happen!
Some advice to game developers on how to stop ruining good stories with bad cutscenes.
The plot of this game isn't just dumb, it's actively hostile to the player. This game hates you and thinks you are stupid.
It's not a legend. It was real. There was a time before DLC. Before DRM. Before crappy ports. It was glorious.
A look back at one of my favorite games. The gameplay was stellar, but the underlying story was clumsy and oddly constructed.
This mess of dross, confusion, and terrible UI design is the storefront the big publishers couldn't beat? Amazing.
T w e n t y S i d e d
