babypuncher's recent activity
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Comment on Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection used modder's work without credit in ~games
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Comment on The end of the MrBeast era in ~tech
babypuncher I easily watch more YouTube than you do, including some pretty big names (like Linus Tech Tips and Mark Rober). Enough that I happily pay for Premium and primarily watch YouTube on my TV. I have...I easily watch more YouTube than you do, including some pretty big names (like Linus Tech Tips and Mark Rober). Enough that I happily pay for Premium and primarily watch YouTube on my TV. I have have never seen Mr. Beast recommended either. Everything I know about him is through non-YouTube sources like this article and these comments. It's kind of wild to me.
Nothing I've heard about his style of content interests me though, so I'll echo the sentiment that YouTube's algorithm seems to work.
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Comment on How evangelicals use digital surveillance to target the unconverted in ~tech
babypuncher If there is a Hell, I'm pretty sure these people are headed straight there.If there is a Hell, I'm pretty sure these people are headed straight there.
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Comment on The small company at the center of ‘Gamergate 2.0’ in ~games
babypuncher At the end of the day, the Gamergate movement made itself a welcoming place for the worst kind of bigots, and they took over all the discourse. Any legitimate arguments they had were nullified by...At the end of the day, the Gamergate movement made itself a welcoming place for the worst kind of bigots, and they took over all the discourse. Any legitimate arguments they had were nullified by the fact that so many members were clearly there for bigoted reasons. An unwillingness to root out these elements doomed the entire cause.
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Comment on Death of nonbinary teen Nex Benedict after school fight is ruled a suicide, medical examiner says in ~lgbt
babypuncher The superintendent should be sent to prison. What a despicable human being.The superintendent should be sent to prison. What a despicable human being.
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Comment on Some thoughts about Starfield's world in ~games
babypuncher (edited )Link ParentBethesda games always had elements that were dated next to their peers. Morrowind for example had that awful real-time combat that was governed entirely by hidden dice rolls, years after we had...Bethesda games always had elements that were dated next to their peers. Morrowind for example had that awful real-time combat that was governed entirely by hidden dice rolls, years after we had already seen action RPGs with fun combat.
Bethesda has always compensated for this by being really far ahead of the curve in other areas. Morrowind's combat might have been terrible, but no other RPG had such an expansive and thoroughly realized open world.
I think it's more useful to ask, what is Bethesda doing in their newer games better than everyone else? Without some big marquee feature that really stands out, it's harder to keep the more dated elements from dragging down the rest of the game.
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Comment on An opinion on current technological trends in ~tech
babypuncher That's my take. They want me to work on this stupid heavily restricted machine they've bogged down with obnoxious tracking and antivirus software? Fine, they can fix it whenever something...That's my take. They want me to work on this stupid heavily restricted machine they've bogged down with obnoxious tracking and antivirus software? Fine, they can fix it whenever something inevitably doesn't work right.
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Comment on Copilot can't stop emitting violent, sexual images, says Microsoft whistleblower in ~tech
babypuncher You could always go back to making pictures the old-fashioned way.You could always go back to making pictures the old-fashioned way.
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Comment on A Max password-sharing crackdown is coming in ~tv
babypuncher (edited )Link ParentI think most people doing it felt that password sharing was an abuse of the system and didn't throw much of a fit when Netflix cracked down. It kind of reinforces the idea that social media is a...I think most people doing it felt that password sharing was an abuse of the system and didn't throw much of a fit when Netflix cracked down.
It kind of reinforces the idea that social media is a bit of an echo chamber. It seems like every thread on the topic from Reddit to even Tildes is full of people saying they cancelled or will cancel their subscription because of the change, but it's clearly working out in favor of Netflix out in the real world.
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Comment on A Max password-sharing crackdown is coming in ~tv
babypuncher I agree, it's a situation where it's better to have a few false negatives than any false positives. Making things harder for legitimate customers is never good.I agree, it's a situation where it's better to have a few false negatives than any false positives. Making things harder for legitimate customers is never good.
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Comment on What irrational video game requirements do you have? in ~games
babypuncher I did the exact same thing for nearly 20 years, for almost the exact same reason. WASD didn't become the de-facto standard until around the turn of the millennium. ESDF and eventually WASD were...I did the exact same thing for nearly 20 years, for almost the exact same reason. WASD didn't become the de-facto standard until around the turn of the millennium. ESDF and eventually WASD were popular control schemes among pro Quake players for a while, but Quake 2 still shipped using arrow keys by default. Half-Life finally set the standard in 1998 shipping with WASD by default. 12 year old me knew none of this though, didn't own Half-Life, and invented ASDX independently to make switching weapons in Quake easier.
About 5 years ago I finally put in the effort to acclimate myself to WASD. It took surprisingly little time, 2-3 days playing shooters a couple hours each evening, and the effort has been worth it. On modern keyboards, with my adult-sized hands, WASD is more ergonomic. I also find that X is a more valuable key for non-movement bindings than W, since I can hit it with my index finger without losing access to forward or back.
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Comment on What irrational video game requirements do you have? in ~games
babypuncher This is why I love PC gaming! I used to have some very unconventional preferred binds as well (ASDX for movement keys, though I've since come around on WASD). You have me moving my middle finger...This is why I love PC gaming! I used to have some very unconventional preferred binds as well (ASDX for movement keys, though I've since come around on WASD).
You have me moving my middle finger between W and X while trying not to remove my ring and index fingers from A and D. I feel like I'm playing Twister with my hand. I imagine it's a little easier on a keyboard with an orthogonal layout. I find X much easier to hit with my index finger, but losing access to a strafe key while backpedaling is a problem for me.
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Comment on What irrational video game requirements do you have? in ~games
babypuncher (edited )Link ParentHow would you integrate lock picking more organically into an action-RPG like Elder Scrolls or modern Fallout? Lock picking in Morrowind was especially obnoxious though because it was so heavily...How would you integrate lock picking more organically into an action-RPG like Elder Scrolls or modern Fallout?
Lock picking in Morrowind was especially obnoxious though because it was so heavily based on RNG. I find more modern implementations like the one found in Starfield a lot more engaging.
I'm also curious what you think of the lock picking present in the early Splinter Cells. There, it is a thematically relevant, core mechanic of the game, but still presented similarly to a lot of modern lock picking "minigames".
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Comment on A Max password-sharing crackdown is coming in ~tv
babypuncher Frankly I think the biggest mistake Netflix and everyone else made was not cracking down on this right out the gate. It's dumb that people think 20 people sharing one $15/mo account for all their...Frankly I think the biggest mistake Netflix and everyone else made was not cracking down on this right out the gate.
It's dumb that people think 20 people sharing one $15/mo account for all their movies and TV is sustainable, but the streamers themselves are to blame for letting that slide for over a decade. Of all the ways internet services have found to enshittify over the last couple of years, this one doesn't even register to me.
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Comment on Disney has “killed a few projects” amid studio overhaul, says Bob Iger; “We’ve not been that public about it” in ~movies
babypuncher He's sticking around as producer on Ares as well. As a big Tron fan (especially Tron Legacy), I'm worried it won't be very good...He's sticking around as producer on Ares as well.
As a big Tron fan (especially Tron Legacy), I'm worried it won't be very good...
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Comment on Disney has “killed a few projects” amid studio overhaul, says Bob Iger; “We’ve not been that public about it” in ~movies
babypuncher this announcement last week has made me the most excited I've been about new live-action Disney content in a very long time.That was greenlit by the now ousted president (who was the one that loved relying on old Disney IP) and replaced by the former head of Searchlight (likely due to the box office success of Poor Things) who’s been given a new mandate to try to create new IP.
this announcement last week has made me the most excited I've been about new live-action Disney content in a very long time.
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Comment on What is the most reliable and affordable form of storage medium to use as a backup drive for your computer? in ~tech
babypuncher LTO drives cost thousands of dollars, I think you would need to get to hundreds of terabytes of backups before they start to seem feasible.Greater than a few terabytes is into tape backup land.
LTO drives cost thousands of dollars, I think you would need to get to hundreds of terabytes of backups before they start to seem feasible.
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Comment on Join me on the path to Twilightenment in ~books
babypuncher 6 half-hour episodes, every time. I'm surprised how many YouTubers go against the algorithm on this point. It's better for the creator, because an episodic format lowers the barrier to entry for...6 half-hour episodes, every time. I'm surprised how many YouTubers go against the algorithm on this point.
It's better for the creator, because an episodic format lowers the barrier to entry for viewers. How many people do you think see a 3 hour video essay and just skip over it because they aren't sure if it will be worth the time investment? I sure as hell do, all the time. Cutting it up into episodes makes that initial engagement more likely. It also gives you more total views, since people are now watching 6 videos instead of 1.
As a viewer, an episodic format is more digestible. I'm never going to watch a 3 hour YouTube video in one sitting, but 6 half-hour episodes give me natural stopping points and make it easier to come back to where I left off later.
It seems like a win-win
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Comment on ‘Dune: Part Two’: How sci-fi space worm epic reared head to $81.5m opening after strike release delay in ~movies
babypuncher The film went through extensive reshootsHow the Marvels cost 270m is anyone's guess.
The film went through extensive reshoots
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Comment on ‘Dune: Part Two’: How sci-fi space worm epic reared head to $81.5m opening after strike release delay in ~movies
babypuncher It's not so much the amount of CGI as it is the filmmakers knowing how to work within the limits of CGI and play to it's strengths. The reason Davy Jones from Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's...It's not so much the amount of CGI as it is the filmmakers knowing how to work within the limits of CGI and play to it's strengths.
The reason Davy Jones from Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest still looks so good is because he was carefully designed to avoid common CGI problems, and the scenes he shows up in were also written with those limitations in mind.
The tentacle beard is one of the smartest elements of his design. Because Davy Jones is essentially not human from the nose down, any defects in how he is animated from the face down go largely unnoticed by the viewers whose brains are not accustomed to looking at a talking octopus. This let the animators put much more attention into his eyes and brow to get them just right.
Giving him wet mollusk skin, and setting him in dark or harshly lit scenes was another smart trick, as it lets them do away with all the complexities that come with animating human skin in brighter or softer lighting conditions.
I will never understand changes like this. Isn't it less work to just leave the original as-is? It's like they ruined it on purpose. I almost wouldn't be surprised if this was the product of a story in JIRA that said "As a user, I want the loading screen sound effects to be shittier".