Deus Ex Human Revolution EP29: Can I Haas Your Job?

By Shamus Posted Thursday Mar 1, 2012

Filed under: Spoiler Warning 107 comments

So yes, we’re back to the Haas puns. Sigh. This is why we can’t have nice things. Because of this.


Link (YouTube)

When Jensen returns home, the top floor of his building is patrolled by Sarif guards. Now, these guys are here because Sarif is here, and there are riots going on. But having spent enough time in videogame trope land, I was SO SURE this was the beginning of a doublecross. I looked at all these guards, and the fact that I was going to confront my boss, and figured this was the big betrayal moment. I figured there would be a cutscene, and then I’d be blasting my way through these guys to leave the building.

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The Witch Watch:Open Thread

By Shamus Posted Thursday Mar 1, 2012

Filed under: Projects 131 comments

So now some people have had a chance to read The Witch Watch (which you can buy here) and have been expressing an interesting in talking about it. The print version comes out tomorrow, but I wanted to make some space for the early readers.

So, the usual open thread rules apply: Talk about the book, and don’t worry about spoiler tags. If you have a question for me specifically, be sure to put my name in there so I can tell you’re asking me and not just opening up a discussion.

So…

“Shamus, is Darth Vader Luke’s father?”

…will get a definitive answer, and…

“Hey, do you think Darth Vader is really Luke’s father?”

…will be left alone so that readers can come to their own conclusions. And obviously I’m not promising to answer everything.

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Deus Ex Human Revolution EP28:
The One True Pairing

By Shamus Posted Wednesday Feb 29, 2012

Filed under: Spoiler Warning 181 comments

Management would like to apologize for the slash fic contained in this episode of Spoiler Warning, and for any personal injury or loss that the reading of this slash fic might have caused.


Link (YouTube)

About that earth / baseball motif…

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The One True Pairing”

 


 

Josh Plays Shogun 2 Part 15: Calm Before the Storm

By Josh Posted Wednesday Feb 29, 2012

Filed under: Spoiler Warning 28 comments

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Picking up from where we last left off, Nobuhide and his grand army has just crushed another Hojo force. What strength they have remaining is scattered and impotent, and it’s left Musashi province open for attack.

Still, there is that nagging risk of prematurely triggering realm divide, so for the moment, I pull Nobuhide back to Kai province to guard against any further Hojo aggressiveness.

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Also in Kai province, I’ve begun recruiting yari cavalry for use in Nobunaga and Nobuyuki’s armies when they attack the capital region. These are spear-armed heavy cavalry, powerful in a charge; and with their spears, they excel at fighting other cavalry. Once they’re locked in melee combat, though, their strength diminishes, so the general strategy is to charge at a unit and then retreat, and charge again. They’ll be excellent for taking out enemy generals and crushing katana-armed units.

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How I Learned: Free Amateur Audiobook

By Shamus Posted Wednesday Feb 29, 2012

Filed under: Personal 19 comments

Since we’re talking about my books this week, it seems like a good time to mention that Paul Spooner recorded himself reading How I Learned to his children. (Which is just a slightly expanded, proofed version of my autoblography series.) With my blessing, he’s put these recordings up so that others can download or listen to them. You can find these recordings here.

I suppose it’s only fair to warn that these were done in one take, and not for posterity. There’s room noise, and sometimes you’ll hear the baby chatter (which might be considered a bonus) or Paul might stumble over his words. So if you’re looking for a professional-grade studio recording as read by trained celebrity voice, then this is probably not your thing. If you’re willing to overlook these minor things, then I think this is a great way to enjoy the book while driving, jogging, or playing with your Nintendo Virtual Boy.

I like Paul’s performance, and his reading of my words often gives them a bit more weight and depth than I was able to impart with my keyboard. Thanks to Paul for putting this together. Enjoy.

 


 

Deus Ex Human Revolution EP27:The Icarus Funicular

By Shamus Posted Tuesday Feb 28, 2012

Filed under: Spoiler Warning 109 comments


Link (YouTube)

Language and literary references? What is becoming of this show? Can’t we complain about plot and obsess over lighting and level design techniques?

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Free Radical: Free Thread

By Shamus Posted Tuesday Feb 28, 2012

Filed under: Projects 94 comments

By request, I wanted to open up a thread for people to discuss my first book, Free Radical, which is still available for free. (Bottom of page.) There’s also a print version available at cost. You can also read the venerable webpage version that started it all.

He realized that he wasn’t getting out of there. He had come to this conclusion at some point during his run down the stairs. There was just no way he was going to escape though the net of police that was surely making its way up through the building. For him, it was no longer a question of how he would escape, but how far he would get before they brought him down. This gave him a kind of sick desperation that fueled him onward. He was no longer running for his life – he was already dead. Instead, he was running out of spite, out of sheer stubbornness and vengeance. They were going to get him, and he was going to make them work for it. He was going to see how far he could get before they stopped him. Nescio had been right after all.

So: Discuss the events of the book, the themes, the characters, the technology, or whatever else interests you. Feel free to ask questions if you like, although you might be surprised at how little I know beyond what’s already on the page.

This thread is intended for people who have finished the book, and the entire thread should be considered spoilers. No need to use spoiler tags.