T w e n t y S i d e d
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “#50: Ramgar Returns!”
#50: Ramgar Returns!
Achilles and the Grognard: Flight from Candlekeep
I had titled these posts “Baldur’s Gate III: Subtitle,” but their primary subject is the original Baldur’s Gate right now, so I’ve changed the title.
Achilles: It’s time to set off on our grand adventure. One day, you’ll look back on this and say “I knew Top Hat Guy back when he was just level one, nothing but a quarterstaff to his name.”
The Grognard: Speaking of which, you should probably buy some new gear. The inn behind you is a good place to start.
Achilles: It seems a little strange for an innkeep to have such a wide selection of weapons. Is there something about this “Winthrop” I should know about? I guess it’s fine, this is an RPG’s tutorial area after all. But I don’t notice any wakizashis for sale.
The Grognard: Fortunately, you can buy a scimitar, which uses the same proficiency.
Achilles: It’s good to know all that wakizashi practice won’t go to waste. This Candlekeep joint is supposed to be a library, a center of learning, isn’t it? It seems to be where they teach NPCs how to break the fourth wall. All these robed guys are telling me how to use the UI.
It should be 'anything OF that sort,' shouldn't it? I've noticed this weird sentence every time I've started a new character.
The Grognard: Tutorials in games are rarely graceful things, but they’re necessary. You don’t want to just throw new players into the deep end. Plus, it’s good to get a sense of place from Candlekeep. This is where you grew up. It should feel peaceful, tranquil.
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Achilles and the Grognard: Flight from Candlekeep”
#49 Melodrama, Part 2
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “#49 Melodrama, Part 2”
Spider-Man Part 25: Webbing Up Loose Ends
Spider-Man brings the Devil’s Breath antiserum back to FEAST. The scientist tells him that they need the entire sample to synthesize it in bulk for widespread distribution. On the other hand, Aunt May is on death’s door.
Now he has a choice: Use the cure to save Aunt May, or let the doctor have it to save New York. We know he’s going to do the right thing, but we can see how bitter this moment is for him. He has the power to save May, and he has to let her go for the greater good.
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Spider-Man Part 25: Webbing Up Loose Ends”
Steam Backlog: Fract OSC
A few weeks ago on the podcast, I mentioned that I’m a sucker for abstract shapes, neon lights, and electronic music. I have a large collection of 2D platformers that contain these elements. I don’t really care for 2D platformers and I’m actually terrible at them, but I keep buying them anyway because I like the music and visuals.
It’s entirely possible that I have a problem.
In the comments, someone suggested that I give FRACT OSC a look. I tried to buy it on Steam, but discovered that I already owned it. No doubt it fell into my cart during a Steam sale of years past and I never got around to playing it. According to my email archives, I bought this thing back in November of 2014.
Five years later, I’m finally getting around to playing it. I’ve spent about two hours with Fract OSC so far, and I have to say this is a very strange title.
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Steam Backlog: Fract OSC”
Procgen Everything
I promise we’re going to finally get to actual programming in this post, but first a huge aside.
When I started this project, it was 2010, and my wife had just purchased me the Star Trek Enterprise D blueprints. I was inspired. But it was an odd kind of inspiration. The kind that starts building connections into other parts of your life and making you think strange thoughts.
It began innocently enough. I noted, as I was pouring over the plans, a certain similarity to the masonry script I had written a few years prior. I was feeling the need to get back into coding, and this seemed the perfect opportunity! Just re-purpose the old code to make starship floorplans! How hard could it be?
They are practically the same already. Good work everyone.
It didn’t hurt that I had some experience making space ships from floor plans. Back in 2007, I started working on a 3D model of a spaceship based off of some bitmap floorplans designed as headquarters for a Starwars fan-fiction group. The project was never really “finished” because there was never really a goal. It was mostly motivated from “wouldn’t it be cool to have a 3d model of this whole spaceship that we’ve been writing stories about? Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Procgen Everything”
Diecast #269: Crazy News Week, Social Media
By sheer accident, I’ve brought Heather back to the show almost exactly a year since the last time. This one is a little more personal than most shows and you even get a little glimpse at how our weird family works.
Hosts: Heather, Shamus. Episode edited by Issac.
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Diecast #269: Crazy News Week, Social Media”
From The Archives:
Programming Vexations
Here is a 13 part series where I talk about programming games, programming languages, and programming problems.
Linux vs. Windows
Finally, the age-old debate has been settled.
Stop Asking Me to Play Dark Souls!
An unhinged rant where I maybe slightly over-reacted to the water torture of Souls evangelism.
Do It Again, Stupid
One of the highest-rated games of all time has some of the least interesting gameplay.
The Best of 2018
I called 2018 "The Year of Good News". Here is a list of the games I thought were interesting or worth talking about that year.
Why Batman Can't Kill
His problem isn't that he's dumb, the problem is that he bends the world he inhabits.
Tenpenny Tower
Bethesda felt the need to jam a morality system into Fallout 3, and they blew it. Good and evil make no sense and the moral compass points sideways.
Resident Evil 4
Who is this imbecile and why is he wandering around Europe unsupervised?
Mass Effect Retrospective
A novel-sized analysis of the Mass Effect series that explains where it all went wrong. Spoiler: It was long before the ending.
In Defense of Crunch
Crunch-mode game development isn't good, but sometimes it happens for good reasons.