CptBluebear's recent activity

  1. Comment on Europa Universalis V review – even hardened grand strategy veterans may be startled by the intricacy of this historical simulation in ~games

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    Without going too in depth, yes market prices are dynamic and you can manipulate market prices like you can in Victoria. That, plus Pops, and their latest Clausewitz engine just starts choking.

    Without going too in depth, yes market prices are dynamic and you can manipulate market prices like you can in Victoria.

    That, plus Pops, and their latest Clausewitz engine just starts choking.

    2 votes

  2. Comment on Europa Universalis V review – even hardened grand strategy veterans may be startled by the intricacy of this historical simulation in ~games

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    It's certainly not a new concept. Playing as the spirit of the country was a common enough response. I feel like it's also irrelevant? You can't manage your country for several centuries if you...

    It's certainly not a new concept. Playing as the spirit of the country was a common enough response.

    I feel like it's also irrelevant? You can't manage your country for several centuries if you aren't the spirit. If anything, the direction it's going with EU5 where the portrait of the ruler is always visible diminishes this element. It specifically places you as the ruler rather than the guiding hand.
    A certain level of abstraction would've been for the better.

    I've been one of the more skeptical voices on Tildes about EU5 and the more I think about the comment Johan made -We did not want to make EU4 2- the more I think I would've liked a EU4 2 instead.

    2 votes

  3. Comment on Europa Universalis V review – even hardened grand strategy veterans may be startled by the intricacy of this historical simulation in ~games

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    The performance issues mentioned offhandedly are worrisome. Victoria 3 still feels like a slog to play and it's in large part because the game itself doesn't run well. It doesn't bode well for the...

    The performance issues mentioned offhandedly are worrisome. Victoria 3 still feels like a slog to play and it's in large part because the game itself doesn't run well.

    It doesn't bode well for the longevity of the game when Paradox inevitably tacks on more and more baggage to an already struggling system.

    I've never been fully convinced by EU5 and this review, while an 87 isn't bad, also doesn't help their case. The problems with performance and the AI are exactly the things that frustrate and chafe the longer you play.

    I'll likely wait a week or two for user reviews to settle.

    5 votes

  4. Comment on Cyclist falls down 130-foot ravine in France, survives three days by drinking wine he had in shopping bag in ~life

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    Probably on his biweekly tour de France when this happened. Old French dudes cycle till they die.

    Probably on his biweekly tour de France when this happened. Old French dudes cycle till they die.

    11 votes

  5. Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    As far as I can tell it's just normal Python with a few bits and bobs stripped and predefined calls to mould it into a game. Though the basics are the same, you could call it Python(Simplified)...

    As far as I can tell it's just normal Python with a few bits and bobs stripped and predefined calls to mould it into a game. Though the basics are the same, you could call it Python(Simplified) when you reach the advanced stuff.

    Since it uses an unlock progression system it allows you to slowly absorb relevant information without being or feeling overwhelmed. I wrote something in the first five minutes using a simple operator and it turns out even those are locked at the start. Not annoyingly so, it takes less than five minutes to unlock those once you look at the tech tree, but it goes to show just how simple it starts. It then introduces new concepts such as variables and lists piecemeal so you can integrate them one by one into the existing code.

    Genuinely, this is an interesting and engaging way to teach someone the nuts and bolts of coding and you hit the nail on the head. It presents me with a problem that I have to think about and resolve with a limited set of skills and abilities, which then iterate on themselves by presenting me with another challenge. It doesn't make me do rote memorization or try to bash me over the head with the definition of object-oriented programming.. it just makes me do the object-oriented programming.

  6. Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp

    CptBluebear
    Link
    I don't feel like this is entirely the right place but even so.. it's something. I have no real coding skills to speak of, though I can read a script (whether CSS or others) and vaguely understand...

    I don't feel like this is entirely the right place but even so.. it's something.

    I have no real coding skills to speak of, though I can read a script (whether CSS or others) and vaguely understand what it tries to do. So when I need to automate something for work I rip a script online somewhere and adapt to my needs.

    But I've started The Farmer Was Replaced(). A game about farming various items with a drone from a grid-based farm and the only way to make that drone move is by coding in a python adjacent (though very close to actual python) coding language.

    Which is to say that I've started learning by doing. And it's real good to see the instant feedback of the code working in real time.

    8 votes

  7. Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    You make it sound like this is a problem, it can be and for NMS I agree, but Stellaris is also just spreadsheeting in space and that's awesome. Similarly, Satisfactory is just a fancy front-end...

    "it's just a fancy front-end to an Excel spreadsheet, don't do it!"

    You make it sound like this is a problem, it can be and for NMS I agree, but Stellaris is also just spreadsheeting in space and that's awesome. Similarly, Satisfactory is just a fancy front-end for Visio backed by an Excel pivot table and I've spent hundreds of hours on that.

    1 vote

  8. Comment on The goon squad. Loneliness, porn’s next frontier, and the dream of endless masturbation. in ~life

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    YMMV I guess. I have it under control now but I had to frequently start with a relatively fresh front page on YouTube for.. adblock reasons, and a fresh YouTube is wildly out of sorts to begin...

    YMMV I guess.

    I have it under control now but I had to frequently start with a relatively fresh front page on YouTube for.. adblock reasons, and a fresh YouTube is wildly out of sorts to begin with.

    At this point it's all about making sure I don't accidentally scroll and autoplay something I don't want.

    2 votes

  9. Comment on Can you get a Star in Super Mario 64 using only one button? in ~games

    CptBluebear
    Link
    Wait this one is new?! The "but first we have to talk about parallel universes" video of pannenkoek is legendary. This video will be about as absurd as that one won't it?

    Wait this one is new?!

    The "but first we have to talk about parallel universes" video of pannenkoek is legendary.

    This video will be about as absurd as that one won't it?

    6 votes

  10. Comment on The goon squad. Loneliness, porn’s next frontier, and the dream of endless masturbation. in ~life

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    That's a part of it, sure. But the algorithms can get a little overzealous. When I look at an interesting video on YouTube that also happens to have a pretty lady host, the YT algo goes bonkers...

    That's a part of it, sure. But the algorithms can get a little overzealous. When I look at an interesting video on YouTube that also happens to have a pretty lady host, the YT algo goes bonkers and decides I want those weird wet try-on clothing videos too. Which I truly don't, I just want to watch funny or interesting economics or defense economics videos.

    Opening my YT app right now shows rather skimpily clad cosplayers in my YT Shorts. For starters, I don't watch shorts, but the algorithm probably decided that a 30-35 year old male wants to see these porn funnels.
    Because let's be real, they likely have a linktree or something similar in their video description.

    9 votes

  11. Comment on In the early 1990s, Sweden faced one of the worst economic crises in its modern history – the lessons for other countries, especially France, deep in its own budget crisis, are simple, if not easy in ~finance

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    I didn't mean to kick the stool from under your feet. You were entirely right with your post, I meant to add on to it with the subsequent explanation that yes this would work but no France doesn't...

    I didn't mean to kick the stool from under your feet. You were entirely right with your post, I meant to add on to it with the subsequent explanation that yes this would work but no France doesn't want it.

    4 votes

  12. Comment on Suggestions for a new Steam Deck user looking to make Desktop mode pleasant to use? in ~games

    CptBluebear
    Link
    Plug in a mouse and keyboard. The steam deck is lovely for staying in big picture mode. The moment I need to drop to desktop mode I get frustrated and twitchy almost immediately because of the...

    Plug in a mouse and keyboard.

    The steam deck is lovely for staying in big picture mode. The moment I need to drop to desktop mode I get frustrated and twitchy almost immediately because of the finnicky controls. I bought the Deck Dock almost exclusively to plug in KBM.

    It otherwise should let you do what you need to do. Barebones isn't a knock per se since it's fairly customisable. I remember being impressed how much it felt like a pocket laptop.

    3 votes

  13. Comment on Microsoft pushes Xbox studios to hit higher profit margins in ~games

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    Good connection. I think that CFO's MBA angle is at odds with not just Microsoft's old policy, it's at odds with the gaming industry itself. An industry that by default has incredibly slow...

    Good connection. I think that CFO's MBA angle is at odds with not just Microsoft's old policy, it's at odds with the gaming industry itself.

    An industry that by default has incredibly slow turnarounds on product that turns it into an even more unstable seasonal cadence than an ice-cream parlour cannot be managed the same as a growth sector in, say, an apparel brand.

    You can't just say you want 30% more! And then just leave it at that. It's a fundamental misunderstanding of what games are.
    It's the entire reason you see these triple A companies struggle across the board.

    2 votes

  14. Comment on In the early 1990s, Sweden faced one of the worst economic crises in its modern history – the lessons for other countries, especially France, deep in its own budget crisis, are simple, if not easy in ~finance

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    This reads like blaming the eurozone for the shortcomings of France's debt policy. This is entirely a problem of their own making and their unwillingness to change anything about the current...

    This reads like blaming the eurozone for the shortcomings of France's debt policy. This is entirely a problem of their own making and their unwillingness to change anything about the current system.

    Yes, minting would help alleviate the debt -and cause some to a lot of inflation-, but it doesn't solve the absurd lending spree and debt trajectory that France is on.

    I feel your targeting of the private financial sector deserves more focus and you likely have a point there.

    7 votes

  15. Comment on In the early 1990s, Sweden faced one of the worst economic crises in its modern history – the lessons for other countries, especially France, deep in its own budget crisis, are simple, if not easy in ~finance

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    Sure but changes to the pensions are so unpopular it's one the reasons they've had 5 kabillion prime ministers in such a short time. Any and all of the proposed financial changes, especially to...

    Sure but changes to the pensions are so unpopular it's one the reasons they've had 5 kabillion prime ministers in such a short time.

    Any and all of the proposed financial changes, especially to pensions, in France just tank and collapse the government.

    The issue isn't entirely that their financial plan is heading straight for disaster, nor that all of the proposed ideas are bad, it's that they're so partisan they can't change their trajectory. There is no support for any of the changes and it's already spiralling out of control, their credit rating is dropping while their debt to GDP just balloons.

    5 votes

  16. Comment on US kills three in second strike on alleged drug boats in the Pacific in ~society

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    There's a degree of uncertainty for sure. What is clear to me is that none of the options are good options.

    There's a degree of uncertainty for sure. What is clear to me is that none of the options are good options.

  17. Comment on US kills three in second strike on alleged drug boats in the Pacific in ~society

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    I understand that is the message, I allude to it in my other post. It's even overkill for the attempt at overkill. Carrier groups are rare even among super powers. Admittedly, the regime change...

    I understand that is the message, I allude to it in my other post. It's even overkill for the attempt at overkill. Carrier groups are rare even among super powers.

    Admittedly, the regime change angle is something I didn't consider. He has an ally in the Nobel peace prize winner so that makes sense.

    I do disagree with US involvement being a good thing, even posturing, when it's about a regime change in another country. Their history with South American regime changes is sordid at best. Yes, Venezuela would probably be better off with a change of leader -preferably one that follows the democratic process and steps down afterwards- but no the US needs not be involved.

    4 votes

  18. Comment on US kills three in second strike on alleged drug boats in the Pacific in ~society

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    Big man uses big stick. It's all smoke and mirrors. Appearing to do something has always been very effective. Quietly stripping everyone of their livelihood while fighting the state agreed upon...

    Big man uses big stick.

    It's all smoke and mirrors. Appearing to do something has always been very effective. Quietly stripping everyone of their livelihood while fighting the state agreed upon Boogeyman makes your constituency ravenous for more.

    Or if it is meant to do something, sending aircraft carriers to (alleged) drug traffickers to bomb them without recourse is definitely going to win him his Nobel peace price next time when those traffickers inevitably arm up or take their business over land.

    3 votes

  19. Comment on The goon squad. Loneliness, porn’s next frontier, and the dream of endless masturbation. in ~life

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    I think the veracity of the claims are rather easily confirmed by joining and lurking those Discord servers. It does indeed sound like the reporter did their due diligence and went in the deep...

    I think the veracity of the claims are rather easily confirmed by joining and lurking those Discord servers. It does indeed sound like the reporter did their due diligence and went in the deep end.
    Perhaps some overstating with regards to the importance of the "goon state", but otherwise these porn parties and PMVs are verifiably there.

    Your highlighted quote also jumped out to me. I thought it was very well reasoned, by comparing it to other short form content they immediately humanized the gooners.

    I didn't think I'd read it until the end but I kept getting back into it. Like @R3qn65 said: it's a very well written article.

    Thanks for sharing.

    21 votes

  20. Comment on US kills three in second strike on alleged drug boats in the Pacific in ~society

    CptBluebear
    Link Parent
    That's such overkill wow. Aircraft carriers are to project power over long distances, something the US doesn't actually need in the Americas.

    That's such overkill wow.

    Aircraft carriers are to project power over long distances, something the US doesn't actually need in the Americas.

    7 votes