Posts by Izuno

Good call on praising Animatrix. I think I actually have a DVD of that laying around somewhere.

Anyway, I remember seeing the first Matrix movie in a theater on opening night in Kansas City, MO back in the 20th century with my cousin.

This trailer is the first piece of Matrix anything I've been excited about in a long time. I also see how the song choice may not have been the best being so on the nose, but I dunno I guess I've built up so much respect for Keanu Reeves that if he does a half decent job in this movie I'm optimistic I'll like it. I guess it may come down to directing and editing...

Quote from Furyo

52 minutes ago, Furyo said: The one on LinkedIn about the Zelda talk at gdc? Yes this was me

Haven’t seen you in some time now! E3 2018 right?

Yeah E3 2018 I think...we met up outside Take 2's booth in South Hall.

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Don't worry everyone. Truth eventually makes the kill.

For $5 I decided to hedge in case I end up getting pumped for this.

https://www.steamdeck.com/en/

https://www.theverge.com/2021/7/15/2257…ing-handheld-pc

Quote

Quote Valve just announced the Steam Deck, its long-rumored Switch-like handheld gaming device. It will begin shipping in December and reservations open July 16th at 1PM ET. It starts at $399, and you can buy it in $529 and $649 models as well.

The device has an AMD APU containing a quad-core Zen 2 CPU with eight threads and 8 compute units’ worth of AMD RDNA 2 graphics, alongside 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM. There are three different types of storage: 64GB eMMC storage, 256GB NVMe SSD storage, and 512GB of high-speed NVME SSD storage, according to Valve. You can also expand the available storage using the available high-speed microSD card slot.

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1) yes...it's derivative...but so is everything.

2) They put thought into their art design and ran with it. Personally, not my thing. However, I can't deny the level of effort and respect for the medium on display.

3) Seems like familiar-ish enough gameplay concept...it's from FROM afterall...so fuck yeah sure.

Overall impression: this isn't really what I'm into but I can see the potential. Hope it delivers.

Quote from ┌HP┘

7 hours ago, ┌HP┘ said: Graphically, it definitely is impressive, great lighting. great sound quality as well and I'm surprised by how good the facial animation is.

If the AI is decent, and the game is relatively low on bugs, it could be a good sequel.

Agreed. I'm deeply hopeful for this despite not having real analysis of the gameplay quality yet. Bugs and quirks aside, the original is still one of my all time favorite games on any platform but especially PC.

Quote from dux

On 1/24/2021 at 7:00 AM, dux said: Controversial opinion: Adding HD to old games to "improve" their appearance in-fact makes them look worse.

Support for 4k, FOV options, better input and key mapping. Done.

The only remaster I have seen done right is the command and conquer remaster.

Agreed.

While I am biased for obvious reasons, take DoD Source vs. the original Day of Defeat. The original had a dirtiness to it. It just felt better and was actually more immersive despite the lower poly everything and blurry textures compared to it successor. The grit just made your mind do more of the suspension of disbelief. DoD Source felt too much like a game as opposed to an experience.

Pretty sure someone put a long video explaining it better than I can.

Quote from Buddy

2 hours ago, Buddy said: Lol, they are promoting this like a mod

1)Yeah I do get that feeling particularly from this most recent video. However, I am still hopeful for this without really knowing how development is coming along other than little glimpses from videos like this. It does feel earnest at least. I do agree with a lot of the analysis in this thread, particularly on the discussion of how Unreal 4 could lead them to make a very polished game that lacks the grit. And "epic story" and "biggest open world"...eek...I hope that is really just temp marketing word salad but them just saying that does have me worried. Keep in mind, back in the 00s GSC was telling us basically the same kings thing of things (most realistic game ever, best gameplay ever, best graphics ever, best story ever, most non-linear ever, most open world ever...) and despite not quite living up to their hype the game ultimately was still a gem.

2) After playing rough, early versions of the original game back in 2003 when I was a wee youngling in games marketing I saw the potential in the setting. We all did. Even the younger Q/A testers who previously knew nothing about what had happened before they were even born were blown away about the concept and suddenly became experts in the subject from reading historical books/articles on the topic from whatever sources available back then. We'd overhear them debating the merits of nuclear power to how much Chernobyl accelerated the collapse of the USSR.

3) HBO's mini series Chernobyl made the reactor into a character...almost like a silent demon or interdimensional monster that was just sitting there, slowly threatening death to the planet unless the people solved the problem, in part by paying for all the lies that led to the disaster in the first place. The original game, long before HBO did Chernobyl, had touches of that idea and even though it was not the same it still was a powerful intangible hook

4) Thus, I will ultimately judge S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 on whether it can deliver on enough of that same hook.

And by my math, this year on April 26, it will be the 35th anniversary of the disaster.

Quote from blackdog

21 hours ago, blackdog said: Unfortunately for me wasn’t as fun as the pandemic chapter, but hey.

Yeah we started watching it and it's on point but not as funny as the Pandemic special. I guess just not enough Randy in the first 10 minutes (that's all we watched cause we have kids and fall asleep quickly when watching TV after 10 pm). Is there more Randy later in the episode? Wait don't tell me.

Meanwhile:

<rant>

We know a lot of people in 20s/30s/40s gaming the system saying they are in critical IT services or childcare or something to get them eligible for the vaccine in various parts of California and other states when in fact they are not in those fields nor do they have any other condition that would make them eligible. Or they know people and are getting sneaked in the front of the line. Around where we live all the pharmacies are being very strict about verifying claims of eligibility so my wife and I can't get vaccine yet. So we are a little pissed off that people we know are gaming the system and being total douches. I mean, if I can get it in the next few weeks anyway I'm not going to care that much but it just rubs me the wrong way. My parents got vaccinated which is great but goddamn I really want to hang out with them in their house and have a meal with them already. My mom has legit cooking skills and is bursting to cook for us again. (My parents have some underlying risk factors for severe covid and FFS we are not taking any chances of accidental exposure even if they got the vaccine so we all agreed not to get together indoor without masks until my wife and I get vaccinated.)

Yeah I know...first world problem here.

</rant>

This is the best thread on Mapcore.

I feel for everyone who has lost friends or family due to...all the the things that 2020 was and still is now that we are into 2021. I consider myself lucky that only a small # of my extended family got covid and none of them went to the hospital, but they all said it kicked their asses and are worried about the long term impact to their health.

I am in a different part of SoCal (just outside LA) and home prices here are crazy. We lucked out and bought at the bottom of the last housing crash. Otherwise at the time we would not have been able to afford it. California is awesome...and incredibly frustrating and terribly run all at once. My wife and I talk about moving but everywhere...on the planet...feels like is fucked in one way or another.

As for me, I've actually gotten into better shape during the pandemic. My wife got us to join a gym in 2018 and since dropping that in March 2020 we've (thanks to her) really upped our home exercise game. We have a 3rd empty spot in our garage (why I wanted this house) and now that is a legit workout center with a JKD trapping dummy, TRX system suspended from the heavy bag stand, a Favuke grappling dummy, large gym mat area for both me (grappling/movement drills) and the kids to do tumbling/dance/gymnastics. And lastly, I got really into this rope exercise thing that has helped my upper body so much. A trainer at our old gym got me into it...check it out: https://www.octomoves.com/ (Free EU shipping!)

Lastly, my kids are crazy about Minecraft. It's fun to play with them and my oldest reads all the books and watches the youtubes on how to do all the stuff. She's said to me "When you make a plan in Minecraft, it works out a better. I bet life is like that." Praise Jesus.

I mean....you know.....well....in theory if it had pacing that...ok so yeah Aliens Colonial Marines had a lot of problems which...and...well the thing that worked about about Alien Isolation...what I'm really trying to say...........so look if this game can....

Meh nevermind. I'm too cynical to pull together a coherent thought...but if...

Quote from ┌HP┘

2 hours ago, ┌HP┘ said: They expected to get away with it, like they did for decades, specially in '08.

Truth.

Quote from ┌HP┘

On 1/15/2021 at 10:21 AM, ┌HP┘ said: Holy smokes that's a narrow FoV... Second video made me feel nauseous, it's narrower than RE7 and even that was right at the line of what I find tolerable.

Looks good from what I saw though.

Sorry I'm only quoting you to call out your WSB avatar. Not sure what to say but the hedge funds shorted GME to ~ 150% of the # of shares outstanding. WTF did they expect?

Back on topic: that's some impressive indie horror action. How big is the team? Maybe someone who banks a few millions from fighting the hedge fund guys can help fund this game!

I'm about 3ish hours in on Xbox One...still running okay enough. No serious bugs. Definitely not as pretty as on PC or next gen, but whatever still enjoying this.

Merry Christmas!

Quote from blackdog

On 12/18/2020 at 1:36 AM, blackdog said: We’ll never know for sure, but you put together the most awaited game of the decade, a game that shines on new hardware, millions of preorders… maybe it really went like in the article I linked above, despite how impossible it seems

Yeah I'm still scratching my head on the double certification fails on last gen between Sony and Microsoft. I'm sure there is much more going on behind the scenes than we'll know in the near term. Somewhat related, and fwiw IGN's poll as of today:

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https://www.ign.com/articles/cyber…tation-4-review

One of my work colleagues got a few boxed copies...was kind enough to send to me for Xbox One so I guess I'll just wait it out as my 2019 Surface Book 3 is probably not quite up to it. <sigh>

Quote from ┌HP┘

34 minutes ago, ┌HP┘ said: No argument from me there. Problem is exacerbated by the gigantic lack of dialogue, I'm seeing that everywhere including in our own circles. The polarization is palpable.

We're not going to get out of this until we bring back some old fashioned "agree to disagree", in my view.

Yeah a giant shit sandwich.

Quote from ┌HP┘

11 minutes ago, ┌HP┘ said: Those god damn European colonists, bringing with them society, free market, medicine, sanitation, education and infrastructure....!

No denying that part either...and they aren't mutually exclusive. And while all those things are great, a lot of what is holding those things back from reaching their full potential is the fantasyland component of our political system.

Quote from Buddy

On 12/9/2020 at 4:16 AM, Buddy said: Let me guess, 500 years of short term thinking adds up to a long term disaster?

SHOCKER

Not exactly. The premise is that before there was even a United States, the colonists, then settlers before them, brought a way of magical thinking that has carried on to the present day. Cults? Check. Conspiracy theories as to why things are the way they are? Check. Assumption of settlers/colonists/Americans' divine right to commit mass genocide and slavery? Check. The communists have taken over the post WWII government? Check. Pizzagate? Check. Windmills give you cancer? Check. Moon landing was fake? Check. Coronavirus is a liberal hoax and not real it's all fake? Check. Bush was behind 911? Check. Trump actually won the 2020 election in a landslide? Check.

Fantasyland