jay pettitt
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Posts posted by jay pettitt
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I thought Mitt did pretty well as it happens. That's not to say that I don't think he's a psychopath and a liar and would be a unmitigated disaster not just for America but also for the entire world - but he held it together in the debates well enough to make the right noises to woo someone who might consider voting Republican. But generally I thought the debates were pretty poor. Enough to put anyone off politics really.
Romneys public appearances have improved over time (watch the first presidential debate) but still, what they see in Romney i don't understand. It is quite obvious that this man has no interest in the wellfare of the general public.
I think most conservative types would probably consider that the best way to care about the welfare of the general public is for government to get out of the way. I think they equate taxes with creating hardship. I think most conservative types need slapping, but it's a sort of plausible narrative if you enjoy sleep walking.
e doesn't even want to explain how he wants to pay for his 'plans' (because he can not). He is just saying what his campaign team thinks is expected of him to say. On other topics he remains vague, so either he has no plan or worse, has some plans he doesn't want to tell.I've listened quite hard to Mitt, and that's not actually what you need to watch out for. His tax breaks are paid for from the rapid growth which he assumes he'll magic from thin air once he takes office and waves his American flag really hard. He does actually have a plan. But if the US economic woes are deep set and more difficult than he imagines - then his plan to balance the books goes out the window. In fact, Mitt is counting on not just growth but record growth.
What you need to look out for with Mitt is that he's a disingenuous lying bastard. Giving tax breaks to help small companies sounds fantastic. But Mitt has redefined small companies to include large wealthy companies. His tax breaks are aimed at those. Most small companies as we know them - those that are starting out or are small local employers - are of all things too small to qualify for Mitt's tax breaks.
Same with breaks for the squeezed middle class. With Mitt it's households with high incomes (redefined by Mitt as middle class) that will get the tax breaks. Households with median incomes won't qualify - but will be squeezed because those with high incomes will be paying less. His figures actually add up here. He's just lying about who will benefit.
Same with Obama care. It really is more expensive than before - oh noes. Trouble is, every projection for every sort of medical cover in the US sees costs going up and rapidly too. Obama care goes up less than everything else and provides more health cover and short of ideology is thus a good deal for Americans. Mitt is torturing innocent words for effect.
What is comedy is his plan to cut programmes by his simple test 'if we need to borrow Chinese money, I cut the programme'. It plays to people's fears, but it's vaccuous dribble otherwise. Seriously, what the fuck sort of a policy is that? Actually it's got a name. Beggar your neighbour. Last time it was tried it lead to a world war followed by a cold war.
Oh and there was the Government doesn't create jobs Government doesn't create jobs Government doesn't create jobs mantra. Tell that to a teacher or the ladies and gents of the armed services or a policeman. Perhaps Mitt just means that an educated workforce, the defence of trade links for oil and exports and security on the streets at work and at home so you don't live and work in fear of theft and violence doesn't contribute to economic well being and thus they aren't proper jobs.
He's a good salesman though. He makes that lot sound very seductive.
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So... should I buy it or will I get frustrated by art design and too many open world options again?
Now there's a question.
I'm only a little way in, but so far it's not as good as Thief and I've got some small grumbles and some actual proper sizeable grumbles too (faux open world stuff included). But that said, I'm having a blast and I'm loving being in the world and soaking up the vibe, the art, the atmosphere and all that. I can't remember the last time I could say that about a AAA game. Ok I can. It was 13 years ago and it had Looking Glass Studios' logo on the box.
Yes, you can turn almost everything annoying off.
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Sure, but you need to have a sliding scale and a sense of what matters and what doesn't. Indecision isn't free. Things devalue over time. Missed opportunities amount to losses.
And it's not like we're not talking about rolling out a major feature here, something with the potential to break stuff.
But yeah - there's no reason to think that missing the Steam Boat this time round will be terminal.
Maybe a thing that could be done is some of us put together a press pack in time for the next 1.0something release with some screens and words and stuff that folk are generally happy with - and keep it updated. So when opportunities do float by, TDM can react and get stuff out that bit quicker.
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Dont be so negative.. Ive played a loth of mission recentl and one thing is sure: TDM is awesome. And awesome stuff will always find a players.
And collecting 100 bucks? That will be no problem I believe. I can donate, and collect, if you find me trustworthy. But we will talk about it before going standalone, not now.
You're right $100 isn't a lot of money. If you're going to fund raise, it's so little money that you might as well sit down, have a think about what you really want to do and fund raise for a good chunk more for a similar amount of effort.
The cash is less the problem than the time and the effort which is a goodly sight more involved than sending out a press release. We can have a long chat amongst ourselves about the details, but heck, the mockup you did was actually pretty damn good and would have been fine.
So while I'm minded to think that we should have got something done and thought about details and evolutionary improvements after the fact - if you're going to go to the extra trouble to fund raise, it's probably worth taking some time and having a think.
You're also right that TDM is awesome.
If/when TDM standalones it will in all probability be the biggest, best, grandest, most impressive, free open source game out there bar none and by quite a margin. I'm more worried that folks don't really appreciate just how awesome TDM is, and are hiding its light under a bushel.
In one sense of course it's kind of endearing that TDM is bumbly and humble when it comes to PR. But I do think a collective round of face slapping is needed here for missing the boat. And then move on, with lessons learned, to the next thing.
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If we can't get it together to send a fucking press release without being crippled by indecision, there's not a lot of chance of doing some fund raising. (And semi seriously, fund raising $100 probably takes more than $100 worth of effort - so it's probably something you'd want to think about biggering.)
I suggest we forget Steam for now, but instead do a fun thing, like get some materials together (and if there's need perhaps a new video project) in time for the new 1.08 (is it .08 this time?) release so there's something ready to send to RPS, Sneaky Bastards, Face Book etc etc etc.
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This works in our favor in the end. $100 is something we can raise among ourselves, and like it says, it weeds out the fluff so people will be less likely to just look at a screenshot & skip us over. They'll expect each entry is respectable enough to give a look at.
No it doesn't. If we want to be seen on Steam in the future we're going to be $100 poorer out of a budget of $0. And we'll miss out on the months/years/eternity of missed opportunity and exposure. Neither will we have learned lessons or refined our (proverbial) game through practice. And the 'opportunity' to submit again with a fee at a later time would still have existed.
It's a damn shame is what it is.
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Arse.
When the sun shines. Make hay. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. Etc. etc. etc. etc. etc.
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TDM is what it is. If it's not ready to be promoted yet it never will be. It is a Mod/Total Conversion that's aiming for a stand alone release. TDM's origins are nothing to be ashamed of. I'm not sure Greenlight is right for promoting TDM as a mod - but for letting the world know that the standalone project is happening, that's a not to be sniffed at and the fact that there's a playable version right now in the form of the mod - that's a good thing.
If some ttlgers still think of TDM from several versions/years ago, maybe it's because there hasn't been sufficient promotion. They'll catch on given enough time.
@Sotha The rush to greenlight would be to take advantage of the shiny new thing that's there to be taken advantage of. There will be other things in the future of course. But once you've made a decision not to do something, in my experience it's unusual not to carry on not doing things. It'd be better, I'd argue, to get in the habit of promoting when the opportunities exist, rather than waiting for the perfect opportunity. That way you'll be ready when it comes. Especially when there are people happy to do the doing.
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What about
as a tool to attract potential gamers on Greenlight?I get dodgy sound popping on that. Springers will hate the idea, but the blackjack instructional video ain't bad.
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Ah, weighting. I see.
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Most of the team members wants to wait till TDM will be standalone.
This is a behind the scenes team member decision right? And not from this poll. Because I'm seeing 9 10 votes for instant greenlighting and 7 for delaying - it's just that the 9 10 are split between two options.
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"not meant for mods"
That's a big red light right there.
How would you feel if any of the dozens of other projects that started life as a mod before setting their sights on a standalone release (Air Buccaneers HD perhaps?) pimped themselves on Greenlight?
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9 images plucked from ModDB
No effort was made to find the best, to show variety or to be fair to different mappers. Just the first pics that came up that were good enough until I thought - coo that's way too many.
http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-dark-mod/images/crucible-of-omens-teaser#imagebox
http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-dark-mod/images/dragons-claw-images6#imagebox
http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-dark-mod/images/dragons-claw-images2#imagebox
http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-dark-mod/images/let-sleeping-thieves-lie-images9#imagebox
http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-dark-mod/images/let-sleeping-thieves-lie-images6#imagebox
http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-dark-mod/images/the-phrase-book-images#imagebox
http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-dark-mod/images/in-remembrance-of-him-images9#imagebox
http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-dark-mod/images/in-remembrance-of-him-images1#imagebox
http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-dark-mod/images/rightful-property-images4#imagebox
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Some remarks:
* I'd remove the "purist" (its for everyone!)
Good point, I think *we* all know what I was intending by that - it's not a shooter with some token sneaking bolted on - but no one else will. I'd argue that it's not for everyone (nor is it trying to be), but you're right - we shouldn't be quite that exclusive
The Dark Mod is a deeply immersive stealth game in the mould of classic PC titles...
* Also, not everyone (esp. the younger ones) will know what "Looking Glass Studios" is. Mentioning LGS can come later in the text.I can't think of where else to shoehorn it in that wouldn't be stupid. Maybe drop it, come up with something else or accept that it's imperfect and roll with it anyway.
* In light of non-native speakers, replace guile (I have actually no idea what it means and I consider myself not bad at English...where your cunning, wits/ingenuity and the shadows are your tools?
Actually, there are 57 FMsYou'd better get mapping then. Maybe, as 57 isn't quite as impressive sounding as 100 we should say "...with over 50 fan made adventures already available." - which is probably fair, as they're usually a whole bunch more involved than, say, a death match map. More than 50 is a lot of adventures, even if it's not a lot of maps.
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Though there should probably be a link to the website on there or something.
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Absolutely - just getting the exposure is a win.
I don't know if it's in any way useful, but I penned some blurb.
The Dark Mod is a purists' stealth game in the mould of classic PC titles from the likes of Looking Glass Studios. An adventure where cunning, guile and the shadows are your tools, The Dark Mod is set amongst the squalor and wealth of the medieval city of Bridgeport where you ply your dangerous trade as a thief across the rooftops and through dark alleys.It is also a toolset with a unique version of the popular Radiant level editor (Quake 3, Call of Duty etc) for creating your own missions and stories and sharing them with the world, with close to 100 fan made missions already available.
Originally an ambitious modification for Id Software’s Doom 3, we are taking advantage of the recently open-sourced Id Tech 4 game engine and working hard on finalising a stand alone release as an open source title, free to download and play.
The Dark Mod is available to play now as a mod for Doom 3 on Windows, Mac and Linux, and as a stand alone title some time in 2013.
I'm in no way proud, so feel free to ignore, or bastardize or whatever.
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Wheyhay. We have Zombies.
Semi seriously, we shouldn't be months of strategy away from doing what is effectively a press release. You already have words and pictures and even some of those newfangled moving yoututbe pictures. They might not be the most up to date or as slick as you'd like - but punters aren't going to be the same sort of hyper-critical about that sort of stuff. (they'll be hyper-critical about other stuff).
In fact, some of what TDM already has on show is genuinely quite nifty. You should show it.
If the opportunity to greenlight is now, then can I suggest that the best of what can be cobbled together quickly (and some of it is genuinely quite nifty) is cobbled together. Hell, you could probably grab a bunch of stuff from the MODDB page and call it job done.
And you can build on what you do for greenlight now when it comes to pimping TDM standalone proper and the campaign and other future things.
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It's not mentioned here, but I'm still thinking that the intersects between VR, neuroscience and psychology are pretty interesting. And by interesting, I suppose I mean to say that there might be some wacky ethics about leveraging VR as an entertainment device that haven't really been considered.
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JC mentioned (somewhere, I've not sat through the vid above yet) that the plan was likely to switch to an HD screen as soon as they became available (which apparently is soonish) and then do something funky with the optics so that pixels were concentrated in the centre of your view - resolution would be low around the periphery but reasonably good where it matters.
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Possibly not K.I.S.S.I.N.G. after all.
I'm sure everybody already knows, but there's a new PC rehash of Doom 3 around the corner with the original content running on quite a lot of the newer idTech5 (not the original idTech4) code base and apparently isn't mod friendly - ie it seems likely that TDM won't run on it.
I'm hoping that this is a good thing in a round a bouts sort of way and JC will manage to work it so the Open Source Tech 4 engine ends up getting a working renderer. But that's nothing but idle speculation and wishful thinking on my part.
In the mean time it's possibly not the smoothest thing for TDM.
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My avatar is the letter 'J'. Because that's the first letter of Jay.
Funnily enough though, it's not any old 'J' - it's the illuminated first letter from the Kelmscott Press telling of Jason and the Argonauts. Funny because my real name is Jason. Oh and I happen to be a bit of a fan of Arts and Crafts think, hence the Kelmscott Press thing. And Mr Morris who actually did the actual illuminating (or at least oversaw some minion, Morris always gets credit for everything but it's not clear what any of the many minions he employed were for) was my uncle's great-grandads' sister or something.
None of which has anything to do with anything Dark Moddy. The forum software just latched on to my gravatar from elsewhere. One day I'll work out how to make it a bit smaller so it's crisper and not so blurry about the edges.
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We've been in contact with lawyers who have been looking into our specific case, so we have a pretty good sense of how we're going to proceed from here.
Out of interest, are they saying anything objectively different to what I'm saying?
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I'm not suggesting copying the assets. I'm talking about copying what the character looks like. D3 can't copyright basic headshapes or hairstyles. Otherwise, Jonathon Frakes might want to have a word.
Jonathon Frakes' head isn't an original creative work. D3 and TDM assets are (or aren't as the case may be).
Copying matters not a jot whether it's done from scratch or alters a digital copy of the original. To be sure I don't actually think it matters here for such a tiny thing (certainly US law requires that you demonstrate some harm from the copying ~ or at least allows a defence that says that there's not ~ and harm is pretty doubtful here) - but it's arguable you're better off writing a brief that says TDM wants heads that look like a medieval Jonathon Frakes, rather than heads like the D3 assets - because one of those is covered by copyright law and the other is not.
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My understanding of copyright is that effort or slight differences that arise from using an alternative methods or media count for nothing.
For the purpose of going standalone, if we're copying D3 assets (to the extent that they're intentionally recognisable as D3 assets), then we're copying D3 assets.
I'm sure neither Beth or Id would actually lose sleep over anything so trivial, but if there's a principled motivation toward creating an original creative work that's clear of copyright issues then some minor discontinuities with D3 generation missions might be the price that's paid there.
Random science stuff...
in Off-Topic
Posted · Edited by jay pettitt
Mwah!
'Strict liability' is the thinking man's equivalent, though I prefer your version. The idea that if you do something that's known to be risky, if you fuck up and hurt someone it's assumed you should have been more careful - it's for you then to prove that you weren't at fault, not for the victim to prove beyond reasonable doubt that they didn't throw themselves under your car.
Here's what the Danish Road Traffic Act (ammended 1986) has to say.
All civilised countries should do it. Those that do have impeccable records for road safety. The UK isn't amongst them - here they just let you run over cyclists, pedestrians, kids, you name it - it's all fair game. Hell, the current tour de france champion and the Olympic cycling coach are both currently hospitalized - it's like fucking dodgems out there - only with consequences.