TheJorro's recent activity
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Comment on What's a video game that you really want to exist? in ~games
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Comment on What's a video game that you really want to exist? in ~games
TheJorro LinkA proper AAA open-world Adventure Time game. As much like Breath of the Wild as possible within that spectrum where sidequests are found and not indicated, and exploration is rewarded. It's a...A proper AAA open-world Adventure Time game. As much like Breath of the Wild as possible within that spectrum where sidequests are found and not indicated, and exploration is rewarded.
It's a difficult sell for anyone not familiar with the show or the land of Ooo but basically we're talking about a huge, extremely fantastical and bizarre world with everything from a Candy Kingdom to a Hades-like underworld to a mystical frozen Ice Kingdom to dense jungles and ancient temples to alternate dimensions to a whole above-cloud world. I'd love to see a huge open world that is completely fantastical, with no real world basis, and an insanely diverse collection of biomes.
The show has all kinds of strange things the heroes discover about the world, and many of their storylines are found almost by accident. There's all kinds of mystical items and artifacts in the show that the heroes discover in the world, it wouldn't be much to invent many more of everything for the game. With the imagination of the show, the ideas are basically bottomless. I think having a BotW-style exploration game is key because having question marks thrust at you from all directions is actually against the spirit of Adventure Time.
I've thought about this since long before Elden Ring, but Elden Ring has certainly increased my appetite and hope that we can one day get an Adventure Time game that the show deserves.
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Comment on Queen Elizabeth II dies in ~news
TheJorro LinkThe Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon. The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow.The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.
The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow.
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Comment on Queen Elizabeth II dies in ~news
TheJorro Link ParentObama was born in 1961, but she became Queen in nine years prior in 1952.Obama was born in 1961, but she became Queen in nine years prior in 1952.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
TheJorro Link ParentSR4 is a fantastic game in many ways. SR3 was a good game but if it suffered at all, it was that it an iteration of SR2 with more polish but less stuff and wacky charm, and something of a more...SR4 is a fantastic game in many ways. SR3 was a good game but if it suffered at all, it was that it an iteration of SR2 with more polish but less stuff and wacky charm, and something of a more Ubisoft-style approach to the game world. SR4 is a fantastic iteration on SR3 because they take that baseline and then add in a ton of superpowers. Adding superpowers to the main character in that series in particular was such a great idea. One of the weakest parts of SR3 by that point was the floaty vehicle physics and that driving around the city was a bit dull. SR4 bypasses all that with superhuman speed and jumps. It was suddenly a lot less GTA and a lot more Crackdown.
Saints Row 4 is more than well worth checking out if you're interested in the series.
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Comment on What's an underrated, cancelled, or largely forgotten show that you really love? in ~tv
TheJorro Link ParentFunny thing: the main guy is basically the Doctor. Douglas Adams turned a few rejected Doctor Who scripts during his time on the show and turned them into Dirk Gently and Hitchhiker's Guide books...Funny thing: the main guy is basically the Doctor. Douglas Adams turned a few rejected Doctor Who scripts during his time on the show and turned them into Dirk Gently and Hitchhiker's Guide books (Ford Prefect in that one).
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Comment on What's an underrated, cancelled, or largely forgotten show that you really love? in ~tv
TheJorro Link ParentI really enjoyed this show because it was completely unpredictable but a really fun ride all the way through. Also it was clearly thought out, not just "lolrandom" even though it felt like it was...I really enjoyed this show because it was completely unpredictable but a really fun ride all the way through. Also it was clearly thought out, not just "lolrandom" even though it felt like it was going that direction sometimes.
Yet another cancelled Netflix property but this one at least has a pretty good justification behind it given who the showrunner was.
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Comment on What's your unpopular food opinion or idiosyncrasy? in ~food
TheJorro Link ParentI actively avoid ketchup, to the point of saying I don't like ketchup. But the truth is more that I don't like Heinz ketchup, which is extremely ubiquitous and all its closest competitors are...I actively avoid ketchup, to the point of saying I don't like ketchup. But the truth is more that I don't like Heinz ketchup, which is extremely ubiquitous and all its closest competitors are styled after it. Two problems:
- It's extremely sweet and not very tomato tasting
- It overpowers everything you put it on
I like fries, that's why I want to taste my fries. I dip in some Heinz ketchup and all I'm getting is Heinz ketchup. People refer to fries as a "ketchup delivery system" but that's exactly the thing that makes me avoid ketchup.
I've had house-made ketchup in many restaurants I've enjoyed, and I think ketchup is a great addition to many sauces or marinades. But by itself? I'll pass. I prefer any kind of vinegar on my fries, or aioli.
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Comment on What's your unpopular food opinion or idiosyncrasy? in ~food
TheJorro LinkMicrograins make me miserable. Like, emotionally. It's not a chemical imbalance or genetic thing, I just wind up feeling so disappointed that I circle back around to upset. Quinoa, couscous, pearl...Micrograins make me miserable. Like, emotionally. It's not a chemical imbalance or genetic thing, I just wind up feeling so disappointed that I circle back around to upset.
Quinoa, couscous, pearl couscous. They look like I'll have something to (literally) chew on but instead it has the texture of inconsistent mush. I like rice, I even like full on mash or mush like mushy peas or mashed potatoes or squash, or anything else. But the weird middle ground these micrograins come into is like an uncanny valley for my mouth.
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Comment on What's your unpopular food opinion or idiosyncrasy? in ~food
TheJorro Link ParentFunny, in Canada, they're the place to go to for coffee since they took over the old Tim Hortons supplier and now provide the nostalgic coffee Canadians remember Tim Hortons having growing up.McDs for breakfast, though their coffee is trash.
Funny, in Canada, they're the place to go to for coffee since they took over the old Tim Hortons supplier and now provide the nostalgic coffee Canadians remember Tim Hortons having growing up.
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Comment on Linus Torvalds is using an Apple Silicon Macbook running Asahi Linux in ~tech
TheJorro Link ParentIf we're counting some edge-case issues as full-blown usability problems, then every single piece of software and hardware is unusable.If we're counting some edge-case issues as full-blown usability problems, then every single piece of software and hardware is unusable.
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Comment on Don't blame Dostoyevsky - Culture, too, is a casualty of war in ~humanities
TheJorro Link ParentThere are three other commenters here besides you as of my reading, and only one of them is saying anything like that. One person. Not even one in three people on this site. One actual person. And...There are three other commenters here besides you as of my reading, and only one of them is saying anything like that. One person. Not even one in three people on this site. One actual person.
And they're not even disagreeing with anyone, they're just putting their own thoughts out there into the ether. Where's the intolerance of other people's opinions? How did you read the other comments from the other two people and get "You just want to censor Russian works!" out of it?
And lastly, how did you figure it was a better idea to complain about everyone on this site with hyperbole and disingenuous conclusions than to simply go and confront the one person whose statement you have a problem with?
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
TheJorro Link ParentAt some point when I went back and played Uncharted 4 and TLOU Remastered on the harder difficulties, I realized something rather odd and yet important about Naughty Dog's game's: the Normal...At some point when I went back and played Uncharted 4 and TLOU Remastered on the harder difficulties, I realized something rather odd and yet important about Naughty Dog's game's: the Normal difficulty is the cinematic difficulty.
On Hard or Very Hard, the games actually become games again, where all the mechanics are important and players have to master them to get by. It's no longer easy light stealth sequences or quick bursts of action to break the monotony. Uncharted 4 started feeling more in the vein of DOOM 2016 where every encounter was its own fight room with a unique layout, and required the player to be constantly moving and choosing their next move both on-the-fly and wisely. TLOU turned into a true survival challenge where sneaking around stopped being light stealth and started being your only option, and you had to choose when and where to apply your very few supplies most effectively.
I haven't quite seen another developer have this effect with their difficulty levels. I think it's worth trying to a lot of players once they complete the games on Normal but were hoping for more of a game out of the experience they otherwise enjoyed. I found myself liking their games a lot more after I noticed this. Uncharted 4 has (to my very great surprise) become one of my favourite fast-paced action games after I cleared the game on Crushing (though some of the fights are definitely bullshit on that difficulty, so Very Hard is probably the sweet spot).
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Comment on Reddit launches NFTs in ~tech
TheJorro (edited )Link ParentThis prompted me to run it again along with some more CSGO skins I've picked up in recent years. I now have $160 in my Steam Wallet, from $0 when I linked that to you.This prompted me to run it again along with some more CSGO skins I've picked up in recent years.
I now have $160 in my Steam Wallet, from $0 when I linked that to you.
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Comment on Reddit launches NFTs in ~tech
TheJorro Link ParentHere you go: Steam Economy EnhancerHere you go: Steam Economy Enhancer
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Comment on Reddit launches NFTs in ~tech
TheJorro (edited )Link ParentThat actually is the alternative I'm pointing out, yeah. It's Steam credit in dollars or a crowded video game inventory. I'll take the money. Further, I was also pointing out that NFTs are not...Surely it'd be better the other way; praising Steam for only allowing it being cashed as Steam company scrip only makes sense if you think the alternative is not allowing cashing out at all and seems weird to praise it in direct comparison to an option that is more open.
That actually is the alternative I'm pointing out, yeah. It's Steam credit in dollars or a crowded video game inventory. I'll take the money. Further, I was also pointing out that NFTs are not actually an alternative despite the immediate parallels because they are intrinsically tied to cryptocurrencies.
Basically: I like free money. That's all it amounts to. I play a round of CSGO because I enjoy the game, I get a fancy skin, I sell it for $3. Boom, I'm $3 richer in pure profit. It's not praise for actual company scrip, it's simply enjoying a discount for nothing. I bought a bunch of games off the back of this. Heck, last year I traded in all the Steam cards I built up over the past 10 years for $180 total. This cost me nothing except figuring out a Greasemonkey script.
- Sidenote: I've been collecting Air Miles rewards for 12 years. I've spent thousands of dollars with Air Miles points in grocery stores, gas payments, travel costs, and more. I've somehow only got enough saved for a $150 item. Freakin' Counter-Strike: Global Offensive has given me more return on my time and money than an actual, widely recognized, and legitimate consumer points program. Can you blame me for being pretty keen on the Steam Marketplace? I also loathe lootboxes and microtransactions (more than most people, I promise) but I've experienced the benefits of the Steam Marketplace distinct and indepdentently of those two poison pills. There is something good happening there.
This is not the same as returning something to Walmart for store credit because I would have had to pay for that thing in the first place. It's not profit. It's breaking even via exchanging cash for a gift card, and locking cash into company scrip. It's also not the same as NFTs because nobody's going around handing me an NFT for playing a video game. Instead, they're trying to sell me NFTs to use inside a video game. Sure, I could then trade it elsewhere but it's not pure profit. If a game is doing that and I'm unaware of it, then neat! But clearly I'm not playing that game, and the only NFT video game markets I've peeked at are all cash upfront to crypto, and then use that for your starter NFT.
I don't know if you're saying that A) ... Or B)
Neither. I'm saying Steam's the only game in town. If Epic was doing it with Rocket League, I'd be doing it there as well.
The linked video part talks for a while about the weird economics of pay-to-earn, which sure they only do work out in the seemingly weird case that there's enough speculative money flowing in, but that same type of system is exactly what you were just praising TF2 for doing and also criticizing NFT-using systems for supposedly not doing
No, there's very big difference: TF2 doesn't require you to put down money to start recouping dollars, whereas it is so required by the NFT game that players have created that "scholarship" for brand new players, a system that's basically venture capitalism. I linked that video to show that NFTs have always been designed to basically be another version of microtransactions (where you must put money down first) but using crypto whereas the Steam Marketplace was created to create safe trades between player inventories—and for actual dollars, not made up Steam Bucks.
Yes, this does mean that someone had to input dollars in in the first place for dollars to even exist in the system but the whole theory is predicated on the idea that there are people who legitimately want to spend their money this way. But yet it is not required to participate in earnest at all. With NFTs, an initial investment seems to always be required.
but given how profitable it is for Valve to operate the Steam marketplace, I don't think one has to ascribe any ulterior motives to a company wanting to do something similar in a way that looks easier and better to them (since they don't have to operate the resale marketplaces themselves).
Sure but my point is that they're not really doing what Steam Marketplace actually does, even though it seems like it at a glance.
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Comment on Reddit launches NFTs in ~tech
TheJorro Link ParentI don't think comparing NFTs and crypto to Steam Inventory and Marketplace is as good as a comparison as it initially seems, even though there are immediate parallels. They serve two rather...I don't think comparing NFTs and crypto to Steam Inventory and Marketplace is as good as a comparison as it initially seems, even though there are immediate parallels. They serve two rather different intentions and aim for a different result in the end, and the big thing about Steam Inventory/Marketplace is more the method than the product or asset. Even though lootboxes and microtransactions (note: I'm going to just refer to both of these as lootboxes for the sake of brevity) are nearly inherent parts of the conversation around it now, it's important to note that the Steam Inventory and Marketplace functions are actually another product on a level above even those things, and something that doesn't really exist anywhere else.
Steam Inventory and Marketplace introduced a net new ability for players to trade in-game items, even before lootboxes were introduced, and was designed as an official and secure alternative to grey market sites and trades that had already been going on. I suppose sort of in a similar spirit to how Steam was designed to combat Valve's theory on piracy: convenience trumps sketchiness.
Even though the funds come in as Steam company scrip (amazing, btw), it's still a result of you getting a dollar value where previously there was none to be had (unless you engaged in some shady dealings). Before, what would I have done with all my duplicate TF2 weapons? They'd just sit there. Now I could essentially get a retailer discount on buying new games. Neat. Even eventually the when lootboxes came into the picture, one thing that set CSGO apart from every other game with lootboxes was that I could sell the lootboxes directly for that retail discount. I used to buy the $15 battlepasses on launch in CSGO and then make my money back and then some within 2 hours by selling those lootboxes without opening them. Every other game made you sit there looking at it, prompting you to microtransact for a key before you could do anything with it. I have never been able to turn lootboxes into actual dollar-value rewards outside of Steam Inventory and Marketplace, there is simply no mechanism for it. Maybe there are a few games out there where it's possible but they're more exceptional than the rule.
With NFTs, it's not quite the same approach. Instead of being able to sell what you already have for a dollar value, they are instead asking you to purchase something for a dollar value with a chance that you can eventually turn it back into a dollar value. You start at a net negative and then go from there, hoping the value increases over time and you can turn it into a net positive. It's not using something you already had and giving you the ability to turn it into a net benefit for yourself, it's an investment. There is even an argument to be made that NFTs are a front to get dollars moved into crypto in the first place.
I have a lot of ill feelings towards lootboxes, microtransactions, and NFTs, but I do not towards Steam Inventory and Marketplace, and even the concept of cryptocurrency itself. If anything, I wish there were more things like Steam Inventory and Marketplace but it is very much a knife's edge walk to do it, as Diablo 3's Real Money Auction House showed.
I hope I explained this well but I'm getting the feeling I've thrown out a jumble of ideas and buzzwords.
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Comment on What's changed here on tildes? in ~talk
TheJorro Link ParentI think you should ask them directly. Such things should come directly from the source as anything filtered through another person would carry some level of hearsay or gossip. I don't agree with...I think you should ask them directly. Such things should come directly from the source as anything filtered through another person would carry some level of hearsay or gossip.
I don't agree with that group or how the situation played out but they had some personal grievances that is best coming from the source.
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Comment on Meta Quest headsets will finally stop requiring a Facebook account in ~games
TheJorro Link ParentI ended up getting a Quest 2 for free and for some reason expected that because I kept my account semi-active to retain full Messenger access that would be enough. But it restored my personal...I ended up getting a Quest 2 for free and for some reason expected that because I kept my account semi-active to retain full Messenger access that would be enough. But it restored my personal Facebook page automatically when I connected it, and it must have broadcast that out because I got a flurry of friend requests from people who I had befriended since I disabled it nearly a year ago.
I'm probably one of the narrow field of people who this is a huge and promising change for as it will let me be able to disable that profile page and continue providing Facebook with almost no more good future data.
This is going to seem a bizarre suggestion but this is what Paradise Killer mostly is. It's not actually an anime VN despite seeming like one, it's a British game that does take some heavy influences from anime VNs but it's a first-person exploration murder mystery game in a strange, alternate dimension where nothing is quite explained to you. It's a mystery among gods near the reboot of the universe so it's very out there. The gameplay consists of exploring a sort-of tropical island with superpowers just collecting evidence and items and talking to people, eventually putting together how the mystery unfolded.
It's not quite to the level of "clues are not marked vs. set dressing" but the mystery is entirely on the player to solve, and there's still room to totally miss the mark at the end if you misread or missed any key clues since the way the mystery is constructed can lead to a few false pathways pretty easily.