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Raid the Tombs for [steam]!

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Posts

  • CorpekataCorpekata Registered User regular
    Drovek wrote: »
    Corpekata wrote: »
    Derrick wrote: »
    So... all these crazy anime games keep being put in my face on Steam. Are they just that popular or have I somehow wandered my way into an anime hellscape algorithm? No matter how many times I tell Steam I'm not interested, it keeps putting more of them in my discovery queues and recommended lists.

    [edit] Holy shit this thread is heavy. I was not prepared.

    I was in this phase in recommendations during the winter sale. I think owning anything remotely anime or Japanese makes Steam think you want all the games about fucking catgirl maids and shit. No matter the amount of not interesteds I'd push, I'd even get sequels to those games recommended to me after.

    Part of it is that they have extremely dedicated fanbases so that means lots of very positive reviews so they seem to be flagged as well reviewed and popular.

    Well, maybe you didn't want the one with cats... what about the one with dogs?

    Yeah, anime VNs are all over the place. (And I say this considering that I've liked some VNs in the past.)

    At least when Danganronpa gets released there will actually be a good Japanese VN on Steam.

    And when I buy it I'll get to go through this all again.

  • ZxerolZxerol for the smaller pieces, my shovel wouldn't do so i took off my boot and used my shoeRegistered User regular
    Even outfits like Amazon and Netflix, who devote lots of engineering man-hours figuring this stuff out, gives you goofy-ass recommendations all the time.

    No, I don't want to watch Adam Sandler's The Ridiculous 6 just because I watched Jessica Jones what the hell.

  • MuddBuddMuddBudd Registered User regular
    Zxerol wrote: »
    Even outfits like Amazon and Netflix, who devote lots of engineering man-hours figuring this stuff out, gives you goofy-ass recommendations all the time.

    No, I don't want to watch Adam Sandler's The Ridiculous 6 just because I watched Jessica Jones what the hell.

    My roommate got that for Parks and Rec. I think they just are spamming it to everyone right now.

    There's no plan, there's no race to be run
    The harder the rain, honey, the sweeter the sun.
  • KalnaurKalnaur I See Rain . . . Centralia, WARegistered User regular
    Has everyone been playing the Human Resource Machine or something?

    Dark Souls, myself. And yet I find myself smiling in the dark and oppressive world, knowing with the right tools and approach, I can take on anything and win.

    Sort of like life, actually.

    I make art things! deviantART: Kalnaur ::: Origin: Kalnaur ::: UPlay: Kalnaur
  • akajaybayakajaybay Registered User regular
    Houn wrote: »
    vamen wrote: »
    Petesalzl wrote: »
    MuddBudd wrote: »

    This is weirdly comforting to me.

    I don't wish ill to any of your friends or anyone who tries to better themselves... but I went to film school and then ended up a QA tester with not a lot of prospects. The idea that no matter what choice I had made for college, I might be screwed... is somewhat soothing.

    i too went to film school and all of the jobs anyone ever offered my were none paying jobs (we're paying you in experience) and so the only paying jobs flexible enough to work around my film jobs were call center jobs and after a few years i slowly just took more hours doing that and less doing film work.
    i still feel like i got screwed though, but i can see where youre coming from. it could always be worse.

    That sounds like the exact tale of how my music dream died, right down to the call center.
    Granted I've been trying to revive it lately after realizing I stopped pursuing my dreams in my 20s (which bummed me out). But I'm 35 now sooooooo...not looking good =p.

    I'm 43. I stopped pursuing most of my dreams a long time ago. Now that I'm looking down the barrel at the end of a 17-year relationship (with all the chaos that that entails), I find myself questioning a lot of life choices. And in that is a growing desire to start picking up where I left some of those dreams in my 20s. I figure I've a few good decades left.

    You're 35. Plenty of time. Don't give up.

    Alternately, give up on your dreams, accept your place as a cog in the machinery of society, spin better than the cogs around you, get paid to spin spin spin. Trade your soul for quarterly bonuses and merit raises: dead inside, but materially comfortable. Transform that wealth into steamgifts.

    There's a certain depressing liberation in accepting your own unremarkableness in the grand scheme of things.

    I'm 38 (ugh soon to be 39) and I came to that realization over the summer. I finally settled into a job I like and realized I'm somewhat happy just living my life.

    Yeah I ejected out of a high academic expectations youth like a flaming nvida card out the back of a case. Somehow never did manage college, had some tough work years of retail or cs and eventually found myself in position I'm pretty comfortable in. I don't generally get super stressed over work apart from the occasional bout of impostor anxiety. I make what to me is plenty of money to get by on, not really looking to climb the ranks any more or make more. Been doing it for over a decade now. I'm generally pretty content with how things have ended up and have been grateful for that. I'll be 40 later this year, so fingers crossed everything remains exactly the same...and that my body maybe starts falling apart at a slightly slower rate.

  • DrakeDrake Edgelord Trash Below the ecliptic plane.Registered User regular
    Haha y'all are killing me.

    50555641ecdc038d85f7300d35df2cc4.jpg

  • KarozKaroz Registered User regular
    Kalnaur wrote: »
    Has everyone been playing the Human Resource Machine or something?

    Dark Souls, myself. And yet I find myself smiling in the dark and oppressive world, knowing with the right tools and approach, I can take on anything and win.

    Sort of like life, actually.

    Making some more progress I hope--steering clear of dinos in your life? :wink:

    Replaying it myself and just finished with the bells but detoured to Darkroot to kill the Hydra (a lot easier this time) but I think you're far enough ahead you won't have to worry about me catching up.

  • FirebirdFirebird Harbinger....of.....~something. Registered User regular
    edited January 2016
    akajaybay wrote: »
    Houn wrote: »
    vamen wrote: »
    Petesalzl wrote: »
    MuddBudd wrote: »

    This is weirdly comforting to me.

    I don't wish ill to any of your friends or anyone who tries to better themselves... but I went to film school and then ended up a QA tester with not a lot of prospects. The idea that no matter what choice I had made for college, I might be screwed... is somewhat soothing.

    i too went to film school and all of the jobs anyone ever offered my were none paying jobs (we're paying you in experience) and so the only paying jobs flexible enough to work around my film jobs were call center jobs and after a few years i slowly just took more hours doing that and less doing film work.
    i still feel like i got screwed though, but i can see where youre coming from. it could always be worse.

    That sounds like the exact tale of how my music dream died, right down to the call center.
    Granted I've been trying to revive it lately after realizing I stopped pursuing my dreams in my 20s (which bummed me out). But I'm 35 now sooooooo...not looking good =p.

    I'm 43. I stopped pursuing most of my dreams a long time ago. Now that I'm looking down the barrel at the end of a 17-year relationship (with all the chaos that that entails), I find myself questioning a lot of life choices. And in that is a growing desire to start picking up where I left some of those dreams in my 20s. I figure I've a few good decades left.

    You're 35. Plenty of time. Don't give up.

    Alternately, give up on your dreams, accept your place as a cog in the machinery of society, spin better than the cogs around you, get paid to spin spin spin. Trade your soul for quarterly bonuses and merit raises: dead inside, but materially comfortable. Transform that wealth into steamgifts.

    There's a certain depressing liberation in accepting your own unremarkableness in the grand scheme of things.

    I'm 38 (ugh soon to be 39) and I came to that realization over the summer. I finally settled into a job I like and realized I'm somewhat happy just living my life.

    Yeah I ejected out of a high academic expectations youth like a flaming nvida card out the back of a case. Somehow never did manage college, had some tough work years of retail or cs and eventually found myself in position I'm pretty comfortable in. I don't generally get super stressed over work apart from the occasional bout of impostor anxiety. I make what to me is plenty of money to get by on, not really looking to climb the ranks any more or make more. Been doing it for over a decade now. I'm generally pretty content with how things have ended up and have been grateful for that. I'll be 40 later this year, so fingers crossed everything remains exactly the same...and that my body maybe starts falling apart at a slightly slower rate.

    I am more or less the same.
    Went to college for an associate's, graduated, and never did anything with it. But still, I found a job that's completely unrelated to my degree, yet is still quite fulfilling to do while simultaneously paying the bills and the loan I currently have on my new house. So everything outside my dating scene is going relatively well from my perspective...

    I also have the added benefit of being almost 30 years old, yet looking like I can pass for 20 since my body is 80% preservatives.

    Firebird on
    steam_sig.png

    STEAM ID: Firebird
    XBOX Live: FirebirdLR
    Playstation: FirebirdXR
  • KalnaurKalnaur I See Rain . . . Centralia, WARegistered User regular
    Karoz wrote: »
    Kalnaur wrote: »
    Has everyone been playing the Human Resource Machine or something?

    Dark Souls, myself. And yet I find myself smiling in the dark and oppressive world, knowing with the right tools and approach, I can take on anything and win.

    Sort of like life, actually.

    Making some more progress I hope--steering clear of dinos in your life? :wink:

    Replaying it myself and just finished with the bells but detoured to Darkroot to kill the Hydra (a lot easier this time) but I think you're far enough ahead you won't have to worry about me catching up.

    Dinos? Why whatever do you mean?
    *taptaptap*
    *inject ARK*
    Ahhhhhh, that's the stuff . . .
    I can quite any time I want to.

    I make art things! deviantART: Kalnaur ::: Origin: Kalnaur ::: UPlay: Kalnaur
  • cooljammer00cooljammer00 Hey Small Christmas-Man!Registered User regular
    edited January 2016
    Existential dread? My favorite game.

    But in all honesty, you hear so many stories of older people who end up starting in their fields relatively late and end up doing pretty well. Diamond Dallas Page started wrestling when he was what, 35? Jack Black didn't play guitar till he was older, Alan Rickman didn't start doing movies till he was older.

    My brother is transitioning into a career in entertainment, and he was telling me about this one elderly woman who he does stand-up with who has a walker and is escorted to the stage by her family members. Apparently she's very good and this is just something she enjoys doing for herself after decades of being busy with other things.

    Edit: I guess I didn't really have a point to this. I'm just a 26 year old guy who dug his useless diploma out of a box the other day, who I guess needs to know things don't always work out like you plan but they usually kinda work.

    cooljammer00 on
    steam_sig.png

    3DS Friend Code: 2165-6448-8348 www.Twitch.TV/cooljammer00
    Battle.Net: JohnDarc#1203 Origin/UPlay: CoolJammer00
  • CorriganXCorriganX Jacksonville, FLRegistered User regular
    Xxslxma.png

    @Halfazedninja strikes out of the blue! This game looks super interesting and trippy, can't wait to get into it. <3 Thanks so much.

    n1woEHJ.png
    CorriganX on Steam and just about everywhere else.
  • CantidoCantido Registered User regular
    edited January 2016
    There is a thoughtful and intriguing community guide for Pinball FX2 that explains why I have lost all ability to perform death saves (or bangbacks or whatever they're called. If my balls hit the side gutter, I was fucked.)

    They essentially "nerfed" D-pad nudges, which were superior to analog nudges, not so much because they were OP, but because people were scripting their execution. They even replaced the entire leaderboards. I've played the franchise for years. Retraining my thumb suuuuuucks.

    Cantido on
    3DS Friendcode 5413-1311-3767
  • HalfazedninjaHalfazedninja Author of Jake Howard: Multiverse 101! Behind YouRegistered User regular
    @Pixelated Pixie apparently thinks it's time to gift me because I'm leaving for PAX South...

    dqrwzu8lnm4j.png

    Thank you!

    My debut novel, JAKE HOWARD: MULTIVERSE 101!
    Switch FC: SW-7588-7027-0113, Steam/PSN: Halfazedninja

  • HalfazedninjaHalfazedninja Author of Jake Howard: Multiverse 101! Behind YouRegistered User regular
    edited January 2016
    And the friend request @UseR2006 was, in fact, a trap...

    j74dijclinyc.png

    Thank you!

    **EDIT** HE STRUCK AGAIN!

    7bp5i7nds0tb.png

    Halfazedninja on
    My debut novel, JAKE HOWARD: MULTIVERSE 101!
    Switch FC: SW-7588-7027-0113, Steam/PSN: Halfazedninja

  • Santa ClaustrophobiaSanta Claustrophobia Ho Ho Ho Disconnecting from Xbox LIVERegistered User regular
    What is even happening in here?

  • MuddBuddMuddBudd Registered User regular
    What is even happening in here?

    Don't ask, just keep your head down.

    There's no plan, there's no race to be run
    The harder the rain, honey, the sweeter the sun.
  • chuck steakchuck steak Registered User regular
    Cantido wrote: »
    There is a thoughtful and intriguing community guide for Pinball FX2 that explains why I have lost all ability to perform death saves (or bangbacks or whatever they're called. If my balls hit the side gutter, I was fucked.)

    They essentially "nerfed" D-pad nudges, which were superior to analog nudges, not so much because they were OP, but because people were scripting their execution. They even replaced the entire leaderboards. I've played the franchise for years. Retraining my thumb suuuuuucks.

    Speaking of pinball, I need more people on my leaderboards! Especially for the new Star Wars ones (which are pretty great), as I am all alone on my leaderboard for those. Add me!

  • StollsStolls Brave Corporate Logo Chicago, ILRegistered User regular
    Berylline wrote: »
    Petesalzl wrote: »
    just realized in massive chalice you can have a keep with two same sex rulers and they can adopt. bonus points massive chalice

    I'm kind of addicted to the new Harvest Moon clone that just came out, World's Dawn. When you first start playing, the character creation lets you choose gender*, hairstyle (not even color), and then which gender you are interested in dating: Male, Female, or Both. I thought that was pretty awesome. The fact that the creation was so simple and limited, but that they made that choice and those options available was so great.

    As addictive as it is, it's not perfect. The controls are pretty bad (keyboard only, arrow keys instead of wasd), and the graphics options (screen size) are non-existent. Also, your farming plot is pretty small and doesn't seem like it can be expanded. It's more about the town as a whole than just your farm though. Anyway, despite that, I've been having a lot of fun with it. I'm thinking it should tide me over until Stardew Valley finally comes out!

    *
    It even defaulted to female. It's so rare to see female as the default choice going into a game that it really stood out to me. And no, games shouldn't always have female as the default choice all the time. It was just quite refreshing to see.

    Regarding your spoiler, now that you mention it I'm hard pressed to think of other games that do this.
    The only one that comes to mind is actually the first Unreal, of all titles. Granted, it was just a model swap and different player grunts, but it was still cool to have a major FPS with a range of character designs, and if I recall right the Gold edition defaults to one of the female models. The expansion even gave them voices for between-mission monologues, and the voices changed depending on who you selected. Really, that game was ahead of its time in many ways.

    World's Dawn sounds neato, and it's been a while since I sank my teeth into a Harvest Moon-a-like. To the wishlist with you!

    kstolls on Twitch, streaming weekends at 9pm CST!
    Now playing: Teardown and Baldur's Gate 3 (co-op)
    Sunday Spotlight: Horror Tales: The Wine
  • SkutSkutSkutSkut Registered User regular
    Cantido wrote: »
    There is a thoughtful and intriguing community guide for Pinball FX2 that explains why I have lost all ability to perform death saves (or bangbacks or whatever they're called. If my balls hit the side gutter, I was fucked.)

    They essentially "nerfed" D-pad nudges, which were superior to analog nudges, not so much because they were OP, but because people were scripting their execution. They even replaced the entire leaderboards. I've played the franchise for years. Retraining my thumb suuuuuucks.

    Speaking of pinball, I need more people on my leaderboards! Especially for the new Star Wars ones (which are pretty great), as I am all alone on my leaderboard for those. Add me!

    I'm lazy you add me.

  • JazzJazz Registered User regular
    MuddBudd wrote: »
    jclast wrote: »
    jclast wrote: »
    You heard it here folks, send Pixie both games _and_ essays!

    10 years of college.

    I wrote enough essays, tyvm.

    Are you a doctor? I took 8 total and have a Master's and a friend is entering a PhD program. His descriptions of the program have assured that he hates both his time and his money.

    ~* never get a PhD the academic market is collapsing *~

    God I hope my friends can ever get jobs.

    This is weirdly comforting to me.

    I don't wish ill to any of your friends or anyone who tries to better themselves... but I went to film school and then ended up a QA tester with not a lot of prospects. The idea that no matter what choice I had made for college, I might be screwed... is somewhat soothing.

    The guy that designed the telvanni architecture minored in architecture and majored in political science.

    In his own words, basically, "The end of the cold war left little opportunity to help start a new country, so I made mushroom castles."

    Oh God. Morrowind is older now than the end of the Cold War was when Morrowind came out.

    Aaaaaagh... *whimpers*

  • MadicanMadican No face Registered User regular
    I'm 26 going on 27 in May and I'm currently in what I'd probably call the "resource gathering" stage where I'm accruing skills, money, and experience as I draw cards from the deck and ready to attack my current goal. Once I think I've got a good shot, for example when my goal is trying to get an IT position in state, I let everything loose in the biggest combo I can manage. And unlike actual card games, I don't need to tap a lot of my cards and I can keep swinging for the face as often as there's opportunities.

    The problem is when I go into the resource gathering stage in games I often stay in too long because I don't see an opportunity. Long past the point of no return I finally figure out that I need to switch gears and by that point whoever my opponent is has generally steamrolled me because the plan didn't come together. Trying to recognize and avoid that mentality now, so I have applications out even though I haven't yet gotten A+ cert (that is fucking expensive what the hell) or studied beyond the basics. But I'll hit for the face, and if it doesn't work I can get a few more cards down then try again or switch tactics.

    Talking about tough topics like "geez I have done NOTHING productive with my life so far" is easier for me when I can distance it with game metaphors.

  • Pixelated PixiePixelated Pixie They/Them Registered User regular
    Stolls wrote: »
    Berylline wrote: »
    Petesalzl wrote: »
    just realized in massive chalice you can have a keep with two same sex rulers and they can adopt. bonus points massive chalice

    I'm kind of addicted to the new Harvest Moon clone that just came out, World's Dawn. When you first start playing, the character creation lets you choose gender*, hairstyle (not even color), and then which gender you are interested in dating: Male, Female, or Both. I thought that was pretty awesome. The fact that the creation was so simple and limited, but that they made that choice and those options available was so great.

    As addictive as it is, it's not perfect. The controls are pretty bad (keyboard only, arrow keys instead of wasd), and the graphics options (screen size) are non-existent. Also, your farming plot is pretty small and doesn't seem like it can be expanded. It's more about the town as a whole than just your farm though. Anyway, despite that, I've been having a lot of fun with it. I'm thinking it should tide me over until Stardew Valley finally comes out!

    *
    It even defaulted to female. It's so rare to see female as the default choice going into a game that it really stood out to me. And no, games shouldn't always have female as the default choice all the time. It was just quite refreshing to see.

    Regarding your spoiler, now that you mention it I'm hard pressed to think of other games that do this.
    The only one that comes to mind is actually the first Unreal, of all titles. Granted, it was just a model swap and different player grunts, but it was still cool to have a major FPS with a range of character designs, and if I recall right the Gold edition defaults to one of the female models. The expansion even gave them voices for between-mission monologues, and the voices changed depending on who you selected. Really, that game was ahead of its time in many ways.

    World's Dawn sounds neato, and it's been a while since I sank my teeth into a Harvest Moon-a-like. To the wishlist with you!

    Yeah, it sounds pretty cool. I've had an eye on it for a little while now. Happy to hear it doesn't suck.

    To the spoiler'd part (and why are we spoilering that anyway?):
    I vaguely recall that Dungeon Lords (an easily-forgotten little RPG from around 10 years back that I rather enjoyed) defaulted to female. Maybe I'm misremembering though. I definitely remember loving that it was one of the only games that I knew (or still know) that gives you the option to make your character left-handed, though! That had a lot to do with why I still have a copy of it sitting here. :D

    ~~ Pixie on Steam ~~
    ironzerg wrote: »
    Chipmunks are like nature's nipple clamps, I guess?
  • RoyceSraphimRoyceSraphim Registered User regular
    All this existential dread reminds me of the voice that says I'm too late to find love and start a family at 32.

    Then I remember that my skills, talent, experience, and intelligence are currently dragging my mother and siblings to a better life.

    Then I remember my nieces and the complete BONE collection I purchased for then many years ago.

    Then I remember that I get to be the cool tech uncle.

    Then I remember that I wasn't forced to this path, that I chose it by might and by skill.

    Then I cackle in my mind, invigorated.

    Bwa ha ha ha ha ha!

    Bring on the day, mother fuckers!

    Also, @Scratchy sent me a steam controller last month because that's how they till. I've been too busy having fun with this gift to remember.

  • AntoshkaAntoshka Miauen Oil Change LazarusRegistered User regular
    Well, this place is terrifying, in entirely new ways.

    In steam related questions,has anyone else been getting wish list on sale notifications super late? I got one now for something on sale since, I think, Monday?

    In existential dread related topics, I'm older than some here, but young enough compared to some others that I dont feel all is lost. So thanks, I guess?

    n57PM0C.jpg
  • FirebirdFirebird Harbinger....of.....~something. Registered User regular
    edited January 2016
    Antoshka wrote: »
    Well, this place is terrifying, in entirely new ways.

    In steam related questions,has anyone else been getting wish list on sale notifications super late? I got one now for something on sale since, I think, Monday?

    In existential dread related topics, I'm older than some here, but young enough compared to some others that I dont feel all is lost. So thanks, I guess?

    It's always been happening to me as far I know, and it only notified of one or two select games. This is particularly noticeable during Winter and Summer Sales.


    Not anymore though since I cleaned out my wishlist since the year started. Figured there was no point due to it...

    Firebird on
    steam_sig.png

    STEAM ID: Firebird
    XBOX Live: FirebirdLR
    Playstation: FirebirdXR
  • jclastjclast Registered User regular
    My own dread is that I have a job interview in a couple of weeks. The job sounds right up my alley, but I am super nervous about potentially being employee number 3. My current company has a couple hundred people (though most of them are on the east coast while I am not), and my first company employed thousands. Three is a very small number. :(

    camo_sig2.png
  • AntoshkaAntoshka Miauen Oil Change LazarusRegistered User regular
    jclast wrote: »
    My own dread is that I have a job interview in a couple of weeks. The job sounds right up my alley, but I am super nervous about potentially being employee number 3. My current company has a couple hundred people (though most of them are on the east coast while I am not), and my first company employed thousands. Three is a very small number. :(

    Three may be a small number, but all of them start somewhere. If it looks well run, it can be super fun to help build something up, and you'll likely learn a lot outside of your technical responsibilities, some of which you may even enjoy.

    n57PM0C.jpg
  • DerrickDerrick Registered User regular
    jclast wrote: »
    My own dread is that I have a job interview in a couple of weeks. The job sounds right up my alley, but I am super nervous about potentially being employee number 3. My current company has a couple hundred people (though most of them are on the east coast while I am not), and my first company employed thousands. Three is a very small number. :(

    I've worked for large multi-nationals and in very small team "mom & pop" environments.

    I VASTLY prefer the smaller employee set up.

    Steam and CFN: Enexemander
  • RoyceSraphimRoyceSraphim Registered User regular
    edited January 2016
    I found the article on the internet wayback machine, posting it here.
    Mark Bullock, Artist

    Hello boys and girls. My name is Mark Bullock and I am currently serving my sentence here at Bethesda as an Artist/Designer-type person. While strictly here on the Witness Protection Program, (some Federal Marshall chuckle-head handed me some Zip-disks and a pair of combat boots and told me to act like an artist.), I do have some talent to make my cover believable.

    I began my career in the game industry about six years ago and completely by accident. Having recently graduated with degrees in Political Science and Criminal Justice, and a distinct lack of Third World governments to overthrow (end of the Cold War and all), I found myself sorely in need of work. I had stopped formally studying art years before, but a chance encounter with an old friend led me to a game company looking for artists.

    The company, Saffire, was a small art-house staffed with a handful of very talented individuals. Perched on plastic patio furniture in a flooding basement, I became a pixel-pushing monster. Training was a voyage of self-discovery (not in the good way), and payment was piece-rate. Working on content for several titles at once was not unusual, and often times you didn't know exactly which game your current piece of art was for. You were just handed some brief parameters, a palette (sometimes) and away you went! Essentially we became Mercenary Artists, "Have brush, will travel" and all that good stuff. While there I created content for games such as "Rise of the Triad," "Monster Truck Wars," "Enemy Nations," "Hardball '95," "NFL Legends," and a host of others. Having become a master of Deluxe Animator and Deluxe Pro, most of my duties consisted of creating original tile sets and sprite animations and overseeing art teams…eventually working more towards design.




    My next gig came in the form of Leaping Lizard Software. I had made contact with them while at Saffire when we had contracted with Mindscape to create art assets for the "Warhammer 40K: Dark Crusaders" title. There I began my foray into the real-time 3D game world in earnest. We produced a number of titles, including "Centipede" for the PC and Dreamcast, and "Monopoly Casino," both for Hasbro Interactive.

    I came aboard the Morrowind team last August, eager and excited to work on a project with the magnitude and style Morrowind offered

    Mark Bullock, Artist

    One of the first assignments I received was the design and construction of the Telvanni architectural style. Whenever I approach a design issue such as this, I prefer to examine or construct the culture, history, social morays, economics, and climatic conditions of a community (Aha! All those anthropology and history courses pay off!). You never know which bit of insight might create the key element, which pulls a design together and provides a cohesive style.
    Early design called for a strong organic element and I wanted to continue with this theme. Studying the existing documents and through discussions with Ken Rolston, our lead designer, I developed the basic character of the Telvanni style: Nature Derailed.
    The wizard-lords of House Telvanni -- being the megalomaniac, manipulative, xenophobic, power-freaks that they are -- appear instinctively disposed to the flagrant twisting and manipulation of nature. I wanted to evoke the notion of traditional ties to nature, but with the Telvanni as the masters: Zen-gardeners on a genetic bender. Therefore, sinuous, intertwined root and vines, horned growths and spikes, and a general malevolent atmosphere marked the Telvanni architectural mode

    With these notions in my mind, I created a series of simple sketches, focusing on silhouette and form. I wanted to avoid simply creating "large" plants. I brushed up on my Mycology. I drank a "tasty beverage." I looked to artists such as Barlowe, Giger, Mathews, Bosch, and Friedrich. I sat on my front porch, drinking a "tasty beverage," looking at the bushes. I pulled out my Anime. I drank more "tasty beverage."

    Whenever a new tower and community was to be "built/grown," I envisioned a powerful wizard, or wizards, planting a special magic seed, dancing their dances, singing their songs, and just looking plain silly and menacing while focusing their germinating magic on the specially prepared spore. From this seed would grow the large central "trunk" which contains the main tower. From this hub, roots, feelers, tendrils, and runners would snake out, forming the basic skeleton of the supporting village or metropolis. From these would bud the pods and growths used by the general population as homes and businesses. Through this organic connection to the community, a wizard-tower could easily dominate the citizens. I imagine vengeful masters cutting off resources to certain structures, thus "killing" off a pod-house or causing a great root to burst from the surface, destroying some offensive structure.

    Now that I had my "take" on the basics of a Telvanni community, I needed to go from the sketch to the model. This initially worried me, taking into account poly-counts and textures coordinates for all these organic shapes. Even the most simple of curves can add up face-counts quickly and are sometimes a nightmare to map. My savior came in the form of the "Loft."

    Essentially, a loft is an extruded shape along a path. Loft parameters allow for control over the number of "Path and Shape Steps." Basically, this gives me some control over the number of sides and the number of faces along the length of the new object. These settings remain available during the deformation. The Loft also generates mapping coordinates along the length of object, making mapping the object much easier. Wheeee!! Happy day! Don't lock the doors I'm coming home loaded!

    I create a line in Max, Loft a circle or other similar shape, set my mapping repeats and begin my Loft deformations and other modifiers until I achieved the shape I desired. Once I grew accustomed to the controls and could anticipate the effects of the deformations things went much smoother. Mapping was a bit difficult when applying multiple textures to the object, as was necessary for the towers, manors, and some of the root pieces. But with judicious use of the Offsets in the Material Editor, most maps could be aligned. Another bonus in using Loft was in the creation of the collision geometry. By Cloning the Lofted shape, I could go back in the "Stack" and reset the Path and Shape Steps. This way a nearly perfect, optimized mesh would result, avoiding the usual "clone and select/collapse vertices" method often used.

    One of the nice things about organic forms is the fact that they can be combined into more complex shapes fairly easily because there are no obvious structures or supports, which must be aligned. The same pieces can be used in many different combinations. The greatest danger is in creating an exterior, which the interior pieces are unable to mimic. Because the interiors snap on a grid as opposed to the exterior set, I had to make a number of specific interior pieces for some of the more distinctive exterior parts. It didn't take long to find the those structures which I had created which were nearly impossible to match with an interior, (usually brought to my attention by a disgruntled designer/map builder-type person). We worked out the kinks with very little blood lost and I'm pleased with our results.
    Now I continue building environments and towns, confident that you will be pleased with the notorious Telvanni Towers and hope you find them as entertaining as I have. I hope I haven't bored you, many apologies if I have…and people, let's be careful out there.

    Mark

    https://web.archive.org/web/20030113030120/http://www.elderscrolls.com/index.php?url=/codex/team_teamupdate.htm&bg=03

    Look for "telvanni architecture" off to teh side, with a picture of their doors.

    RoyceSraphim on
  • KoopahTroopahKoopahTroopah The koopas, the troopas. Philadelphia, PARegistered User regular
    Jeez.

    In happier news, The Witness is awesome guys.

  • an_altan_alt Registered User regular
    I always felt a bit out of place in that I went to college right after high school, started working at the bottom of my field during the first summer break, and kept working part time when I was in school. Most of my college bound friends wound up getting like three unrelated undergrad degrees. The ones who skipped post-secondary started working. Both sets attended way more Tuesday night parties and had a lot more fun than I did. I was jealous.

    It worked out well though. In my mid to late twenties, I got to focus more on my hobbies and having fun instead of on my career. Dating was way more fun as people were more mature. Now it's tough getting enough gaming in because I like to spend so much of my free time on music, art, and sports. Plus that whole marriage thing.

    Many people who took the way-too-much-education path and the skip college path have a great life. The common denominator seems to be appreciating what they've done so far, but still working at what they want. I think they key is to not stop moving forward if you're not where you want to be.

    Pony wrote:
    I think that the internet has been for years on the path to creating what is essentially an electronic Necronomicon: A collection of blasphemous unrealities so perverse that to even glimpse at its contents, if but for a moment, is to irrevocably forfeit a portion of your sanity.
    Xbox - PearlBlueS0ul, Steam
    If you ever need to talk to someone, feel free to message me. Yes, that includes you.
  • SmokeStacksSmokeStacks Registered User regular
    All this existential dread reminds me of the voice that says I'm too late to find love and start a family at 32.

    It gets worse- Anna Nichole Smith was 26 when she married J. Howard Marshall, a billionaire oil baron who was 89 years old at the time. Everyone accused Smith of being a "gold digger", but what if she and Marshall really were in love? What if they had found true happiness in each other, regardless of the amount of years the world had placed in between them?

    What I'm saying is, Marshall was 63 years older than the woman who very well may have been his dream girl. If you're 32 right now, that means it might be another 31 years until your soul mate is even born.
    Jeez.

    In happier news, The Witness is awesome guys.

    The Witness screenshots on the store page make it look like an HD remake of Proteus. That is to say, they're gorgeous.

  • FirebirdFirebird Harbinger....of.....~something. Registered User regular
    What in the world prompted this!?

    @Antoshka You got sum 'splainin to doooo~♪

    Capture51_zpsbx5lyzmb.jpg~original

    I will burn rubber for the sake Imperator Antosh!

    This is made rather appropriate since I am setting up this Friday Night Gaming for Rocket League this week. (If possible)
    But really this is too mu-

    What in the bloody-?

    DUDE!!

    Capture52_zpsu1kfszol.jpg~original

    *15 minutes later*

    I can't think of anything witty.
    I am at a loss for words.

    steam_sig.png

    STEAM ID: Firebird
    XBOX Live: FirebirdLR
    Playstation: FirebirdXR
  • KarozKaroz Registered User regular
    edited January 2016
    Here you go: Expand is a fun game with a very nice soundtrack that is a really engaging experience for such a simple premise.

    Antoshka gifted, Karoz approved. :+1:

    Karoz on
  • Undead ScottsmanUndead Scottsman Registered User regular
    Good grief. Did Steam start handing out Arby's coupons or something?

  • baudattitudebaudattitude Registered User regular
    Corpekata wrote: »
    Derrick wrote: »
    So... all these crazy anime games keep being put in my face on Steam. Are they just that popular or have I somehow wandered my way into an anime hellscape algorithm? No matter how many times I tell Steam I'm not interested, it keeps putting more of them in my discovery queues and recommended lists.

    [edit] Holy shit this thread is heavy. I was not prepared.

    I was in this phase in recommendations during the winter sale. I think owning anything remotely anime or Japanese makes Steam think you want all the games about fucking catgirl maids and shit. No matter the amount of not interesteds I'd push, I'd even get sequels to those games recommended to me after.

    Part of it is that they have extremely dedicated fanbases so that means lots of very positive reviews so they seem to be flagged as well reviewed and popular.

    As the thread's resident perv, and a person who owns multiple games involving fucking catgirl maids, I am equally disturbed by the sheer number of terrible VNs. I have a very low bar for quality, and most of the ones recommended to me can't clear it with a running start and a springboard.

    I guess I'm trying to say, I feel your pain bro.

  • DarkPrimusDarkPrimus Registered User regular
    As the thread's resident perv

    Let's not get ahead of ourselves there, buddie.

  • HounHoun Registered User regular
    Good grief. Did Steam start handing out Arby's coupons or something?





    I really want to give Witcher 3 a try, but I haven't played 1 and 2 yet, and skipping just wouldn't be right.

  • chuck steakchuck steak Registered User regular
    Houn wrote: »
    Good grief. Did Steam start handing out Arby's coupons or something?





    I really want to give Witcher 3 a try, but I haven't played 1 and 2 yet, and skipping just wouldn't be right.

    I played 3 without playing the first 2. Enjoyed it immensely. There are too many great games constantly coming out to spend dozens of hours slogging through worse versions of the latest and greatest. Instead spend an hour or two reading up on the plot of the first 2 then dive into 3, I'd say.

  • SoundsPlushSoundsPlush yup, back. Registered User regular
    edited January 2016
    You know how producers hawking the latest game in a narrative franchise always say "oh, this game is the perfect time for newcomers to hop on!" and they're always full of shit?

    Well, W3 might be the exception.

    W2's plot leads into a major background event of W3, but not in any important way that you couldn't just summarize with a sentence. W2 also shows you some of Geralt's crew, but the two most important characters in his life from the books don't show up until W3. W1 is pretty painful to play, and its main virtue—doing a better job of showing witcher work than W2—has been rendered irrelevant by W3 doing even better. The stories of each game are pretty separate.

    You're not missing much by skipping, so I guess the biggest reason to play them is that W3 is lightyears ahead so you'll never finish them afterwards.

    SoundsPlush on
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