Soggy's recent activity
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Comment on What have you been listening to this week? in ~music
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Comment on New plastic dissolves in the ocean overnight, leaving no microplastics in ~enviro
Soggy Link ParentAnd we're still burning those trees, that's how much wood piled up before anything other than naturally-occuring fires could break it down. A big problem regarding engineering an organism to eat...Lignin (the bio-polymer that gives wood and bark its rigidity and durability), for example, is theorized to have existed for ~50million years before a fungus evolved that could break it down.
And we're still burning those trees, that's how much wood piled up before anything other than naturally-occuring fires could break it down.
A big problem regarding engineering an organism to eat plastic, and there are many, is that we've bled plastic pollution into every environment on the planet so a theoretical cleanup-germ would need to be very hardy. That makes it hard to control.
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Comment on The death of simple racing games in ~games
Soggy Link ParentMany people are deeply uncurious and do not read manuals or experiment with controls or mechanics. If it's not on the screen the first time they happen to look or a simple effect tied to an...Many people are deeply uncurious and do not read manuals or experiment with controls or mechanics. If it's not on the screen the first time they happen to look or a simple effect tied to an obvious button there's a high chance they will never know about it. They play games the way some people "watch" a show by turning it on in the background while they fold laundry or scroll Instagram.
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Comment on What are your goto cocktails? in ~food
Soggy Link ParentAnyone who likes tiki drinks should have orgeat but it's a pretty flexible ingredient whenever brown liquor is involved.Anyone who likes tiki drinks should have orgeat but it's a pretty flexible ingredient whenever brown liquor is involved.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Soggy Link ParentThis should keep me busy for a bit. Loved Obra Dinn, liked Golden Idol, blasted through Roottrees thanks to this thread, happy to see more recommendations in the same spirit.This should keep me busy for a bit. Loved Obra Dinn, liked Golden Idol, blasted through Roottrees thanks to this thread, happy to see more recommendations in the same spirit.
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Comment on What are some good stories told from non-human perspectives? in ~books
Soggy LinkWatership Down is pretty well known but worth mentioning regardless. Jonathon Livingstone Seagull is a quick read and admittedly more parable than "non-human perspective" but it's a good story...- Exemplary
Watership Down is pretty well known but worth mentioning regardless.
Jonathon Livingstone Seagull is a quick read and admittedly more parable than "non-human perspective" but it's a good story about freedom and inner peace regardless.
Perhaps closer to your brief is Empire of the Ants. Half the book follows a man discovering weird stuff in his late uncle's home, simultaneously there are chapters from an ant's point of view. It's anthropomorphized enough to tell a narrative but Bernard Werber did a good job making the ant sections feel alien. "A Bug's Life" it aint. And then there's two more books if you like this one.
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Comment on Fearing toxic waste, Greenland ended uranium mining. Now, they could be forced to restart - or pay $11billion investor-state dispute settlement. in ~enviro
Soggy Link ParentYou aren't exactly the first person to observe that the contrivances of a modern, western lifestyle are made possible by offshoring our suffering to places with fewer labor and environmental...You aren't exactly the first person to observe that the contrivances of a modern, western lifestyle are made possible by offshoring our suffering to places with fewer labor and environmental protections. And I'm not going to defend a position I don't hold, because I'm not advocating a return to nomadic hunting at 2% our current population.
My point is that governments need to be able to represent and work for their people without fear of retaliation by the worst members of society, and those jerks shouldn't get golden parachutes and the freedom to take another swing at building the Torment Nexus because Number Go Up.
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Comment on Fearing toxic waste, Greenland ended uranium mining. Now, they could be forced to restart - or pay $11billion investor-state dispute settlement. in ~enviro
Soggy Link ParentFuck em. I hope more governments shut down polluting projects and seize reckless companies with zero compensation to the greedy capitalists behind it all.Fuck em. I hope more governments shut down polluting projects and seize reckless companies with zero compensation to the greedy capitalists behind it all.
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Comment on Best "complete" anime you'd recommend? in ~anime
Soggy Link ParentWell then you might appreciate Afro Samurai: a hip hop infused, violent story of revenge featuring the voice talents of Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Hamill, Ron Perlman, Lucy Liu, and more. Just five...Well then you might appreciate Afro Samurai: a hip hop infused, violent story of revenge featuring the voice talents of Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Hamill, Ron Perlman, Lucy Liu, and more. Just five episodes of beautiful sword fights and atmospheric brooding. There's a movie sequel that I don't feel adds anything of substance (but it has tons of style so it's more of a bonus if you like the miniseries)
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Comment on I've been enjoying a few tropes in 1970s TV shows in ~tv
Soggy Link ParentHAL is actually a decent depiction of "garbage in, garbage out" in the book (which I recommend reading immediately before or after seeing the film. It's short but clarifies many things). The short...HAL is actually a decent depiction of "garbage in, garbage out" in the book (which I recommend reading immediately before or after seeing the film. It's short but clarifies many things). The short version is thay the government, in an abundance of secrecy, ordered HAL to conceal the mission objective from Dave and Frank but this was counter to his primary programming of accuracy and openness. This caused a fault (Hofstadter-Moebius Loop) akin to mental illness and HAL tried to resolve the fault by eliminating the source: no Frank and Dave means to secrecy.
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Comment on Do you have a game that you love from “before your time?” in ~games
Soggy LinkKirby's Dream Land is a delight, and Super Mario World (and all of the NES era Super Mario Bros games) holds up as far as 2D platforming goes. I revisit all of them occasionally. Breaking the...Kirby's Dream Land is a delight, and Super Mario World (and all of the NES era Super Mario Bros games) holds up as far as 2D platforming goes. I revisit all of them occasionally.
Breaking the rules somewhat: the Dark Tower electronic board game holds a very special place in my heart and remains a truly beautiful piece of gaming innovation and 80s fantasy design. In the unlikely event you get the chance to play I strongly recommend the experience. (The "sequel" Return to Dark Tower is excellent but is different beast)
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Soggy Link ParentI strongly recommend sticking with the main plot at least until the horse barn quest, having simple access to a mount makes it way easier to fuck around and explore. If you're fine being a...I strongly recommend sticking with the main plot at least until the horse barn quest, having simple access to a mount makes it way easier to fuck around and explore. If you're fine being a criminal then you can just steal horses instead, or just run around but obviously that takes longer and you're more vulnerable to bandits.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Soggy Link ParentYou just gotta do as you're told until the hunting quest with Hans. It's really not a "do whatever you want" open world like Skyrim, it's a "congratulations, you're slightly better than the...You just gotta do as you're told until the hunting quest with Hans. It's really not a "do whatever you want" open world like Skyrim, it's a "congratulations, you're slightly better than the average peasant and these people have legal authority over your life" situation so doing stuff like sneaking around or trespassing is very likely to get you punished or killed. (Especially in the early game)
If leaning into the historical realism isn't interesting, then yeah it's not your game.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Soggy Link ParentIV was bad? I thought IV had the most compelling protagonist and did a good job taking itself seriously while also satirizing US culture and the immigrant experience, and I liked the more...IV was bad? I thought IV had the most compelling protagonist and did a good job taking itself seriously while also satirizing US culture and the immigrant experience, and I liked the more realistic approach to driving physics.
As far as "GTA clones" not existing, what do you mean exactly? I think the Saints Row parody approach is dead because GTA V went so far off the rails (and SR didn't leave much ground to cover) but we've had stuff like Watch Dogs and Cyberpunk and the Mafia remake, Yakuza: Lost Judgement and the Just Cause series... The market may have cooled slightly but I think that's just because it takes so much time and money to make games of the right scale for this experience. They're still happening.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Soggy Link ParentIgnore any impulse to explore until the main story gives you a horse, then do whatever you want. Oh and do the combat trainings as soon as possible.Ignore any impulse to explore until the main story gives you a horse, then do whatever you want. Oh and do the combat trainings as soon as possible.
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Comment on You can change ONE thing about a game. What do you change? in ~games
Soggy Link ParentI like it when rediscovering the past is part of the setting. Dead Space: uncovering the mystery of what the fuck is going on here. Horizon Zero Dawn: what happened to Earth? In both cases it...I like it when rediscovering the past is part of the setting. Dead Space: uncovering the mystery of what the fuck is going on here. Horizon Zero Dawn: what happened to Earth? In both cases it would detract from the story to have people around that could explain it and dping it entirely passively like Left 4 Dead did with idle dialogue and graffiti doesn't work for deeper stories.
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Comment on You can change ONE thing about a game. What do you change? in ~games
Soggy Link ParentI love an atmospheric open world. Shadow of the Colossus is easily a top 5 game for me, and most of the game is riding your faithful horse to the next Colossus to resurrect your dead girlfriend....I love an atmospheric open world. Shadow of the Colossus is easily a top 5 game for me, and most of the game is riding your faithful horse to the next Colossus to resurrect your dead girlfriend. Give me breathtaking panoramic views, give me little game trails to nowhere in particular, give me a cozy glen or spooky cave or dramatic cliffside! I want to climb mountains far from the plot and be occasionally surprised by a little easter egg or lonely and unimportant setpiece.
I'm enjoying Elden Ring and barely played any of the other Soulsbornes.
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Comment on You can change ONE thing about a game. What do you change? in ~games
Soggy Link ParentThe point of doing things in gameplay is to tie the player to the experience, not just the character. Like in CoD4 when the nuke goes off and you slowly die, having it be part of the game is meant...The point of doing things in gameplay is to tie the player to the experience, not just the character. Like in CoD4 when the nuke goes off and you slowly die, having it be part of the game is meant to give it more impact. The Uncharted scene is done foe the same reason: you feel the struggle and inevitability more when you have input (even, or especially, when it's futile) Done well I find it effective and memorable. Done poorly, like your AssCreed example, it's frustrating.
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Comment on You can change ONE thing about a game. What do you change? in ~games
Soggy Link ParentNobody is asking for more cutscenes in a Metal Gear Solid game, trust me. And I love the things.Nobody is asking for more cutscenes in a Metal Gear Solid game, trust me. And I love the things.
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Comment on You can change ONE thing about a game. What do you change? in ~games
Soggy Link ParentKCD was going to be my counterexample because I think it works well with its brands of realism.KCD was going to be my counterexample because I think it works well with its brands of realism.
https://open.spotify.com/album/2AkszlufP2t2ZHfC8NKKvN?si=Of5-C6hOSA6zpU58t5z_fA
clipping. released a new album a couple weeks back and I'm really digging it. Experimental hip-hop, good mix of beats and varied flow, really solid writing. The album melts nicely into a whole experience and as the last track builds and crescendos I often find myself starting over at the beginning.