Author Topic: Blog Post Discussion  (Read 15224 times)

Brion Foulke

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Blog Post Discussion
« on: February 18, 2011, 01:03:57 pm »
You can use this thread to comment on my blog posts.  For example, if I have written something that pisses you off, and you think I am a big fat idiot, you are probably right and should post that here.  (It's okay to agree with me too, if you really want to.)

Ryuu

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #1 on: February 18, 2011, 01:07:21 pm »
i disagree with the smartest idiot comment, as i myself am the worlds smartest idiot!

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Brion Foulke

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #2 on: February 18, 2011, 01:15:20 pm »
Yeah, but you're not gonna have a podcast, that makes me both smarter and more of an idiot!

Ryuu

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #3 on: February 19, 2011, 02:46:52 pm »
well now you come to mention it, me and a friend...

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charles

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #4 on: February 21, 2011, 02:04:26 am »
I still go back to "Alone in the Dark - The New Nightmare" for my fav horror game.  Playing as Edward at least.  That run just managed to pick the right moments to flash a horror image on the screen or sound out a scream in the night for no reason.  Just really simple stuff done at JUST the right time and dark rooms that seem simple until your flashlight suddenly runs across a wall and you spot something horrofic.

I've been wondering about Dead Space for sometime.  I figured it would be a game based heavily on its storyline because of the two movies they've developed around it, but I must confess, even the movie seemed a little simplistic in its storyline compared to a lot of other games.

I still put "Vandal Hearts" as the game with the best storyline I've ever played... "Absolute Zero" is a close second.
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Brion Foulke

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #5 on: February 21, 2011, 11:48:22 am »
Never played Vandal Hearts, that was an early PS1 game wasn't it?

Dead Space's storyline is very simplistic, but that's not a bad thing.  The main problem I have with it is just that it has no good characters.  The main character that you play is functionally a mute, and you don't even see his face.  He's supposed to be a stand-in for the player, but I don't think that really works for a game like this.  There are 2 other characters in Dead Space that you interact with (so far, I have only gotten to chapter 3.)  One is a really annoying badly written female crew member who is supermodel hot and who's only dialogue in the game so far is to whine and bitch.   The other is the captain of the ship who sort of tells you what you need to be doing, and also has the personality of a pair of socks.

Never played any of the Alone in the Dark games.  The graphics always sort of turned me off, even back in the PS1 days.

charles

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #6 on: February 21, 2011, 03:33:12 pm »
Alone in the Dark 4 "The new Nightmare" was a bit of a turnaround on the art/graphics (PS2 game).  I don't know what the strategy/style/platform is called but its the still-image type with the character walking pathways.  Those still-images are very good quality though, even if some of the characters and enemy are a little less defined.

Vandal Hearts is PS1.  Graphics aren't fantastic. Its a turn-based fantasy game.  Quite long to play but excellent, excellent storyline.  I have Vandal Hearts 2 but am yet to commit myself to playing it through.
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Brion Foulke

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #7 on: February 21, 2011, 04:19:45 pm »
Yeah, I remember Vandal Hearts came out right around when Final Fantasy Tactics came out.  Maybe I will play it on an emulator one day.

Ryuu

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #8 on: February 22, 2011, 05:41:03 pm »
The main problem I have with it is just that it has no good characters.  The main character that you play is functionally a mute, and you don't even see his face.  He's supposed to be a stand-in for the player, but I don't think that really works for a game like this. 
metroid is a lot like this, samus is mute, and you don't even see her without the armor on untill the end of the first game. it works really well int hat context (however in think the bitching about samus getting humanised in other m is a little over the top as it perfectly describes her as seen in the manga (which is cannon))

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Brion Foulke

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #9 on: February 22, 2011, 05:53:55 pm »
That's true.  Well, lots of old school games don't try to have any sort of story, but are just fun on their own merits.  I think that Bioshock is a perfectly fun Quake style game as well, and I would probably play it for that reason alone.  However, when it comes to FPS games I think I prefer them as multiplayer games, so Team Fortress appeals to me more than Bioshock.

Also, games like Metroid also have amazing soundtracks, which is a huge reason why I play them.

The later Metroids do try to have a story, especially Other M (which I haven't played.)  I can't really speak to the merits of Other M's story, but in that game Samus is not a mute, she is a real character with lines and such.  That's the logical thing to do with a story based game, IMO.

Ryuu

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #10 on: February 22, 2011, 06:38:17 pm »
the thing is, prime 3 is also very story based, but she has no lines (and has her helmet on 99% od the time) yet it still works

i havn't played other m yet, but i wanna, and all the complaints i read just make me more interested

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charles

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #11 on: February 22, 2011, 06:51:42 pm »
I'm figuring Other M is like Twilight.  So many people hating it that we just have to watch it to see what all the hype is about *LOL*

The artist/writer of Sins Venials did a pretty good review on it recently and I'm pretty sure they work for a gaming company and have made a few themselves.  Suffice to say that it was a scathing review and while you normally get a list of virtues and sins about the game, this one had NO virtues. :-\
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Ryuu

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #12 on: February 22, 2011, 08:40:25 pm »
I'm figuring Other M is like Twilight.  So many people hating it that we just have to watch it to see what all the hype is about *LOL*
your argument fails because other m is good, people are complianing that samus is emotionally weak, but i mean, if your family had been murdered before your eyes, then you get adopted by bird people, only for them to be driven extinct, you'd kinda be a lil emotionally unstable too

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charles

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #13 on: February 23, 2011, 12:32:01 am »
Nah, Samus' acting was the one thing the Sins Venials author didn't compain about.  They agreed with you that she acted in character considering the past events from this and other games.
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Pwncho

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #14 on: February 23, 2011, 01:23:42 am »
Hey Brion, if you are still looking for a good horror game(and have a 360) Condemned is the only game that has ever scared me, and man did it ever scare me.
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Ryuu

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #15 on: February 23, 2011, 03:21:41 am »
Nah, Samus' acting was the one thing the Sins Venials author didn't compain about.  They agreed with you that she acted in character considering the past events from this and other games.
yeah, but everyone else bitched about it, 90% of the complaints are about samus acting out of character (she dosen't), being too emotionally weak (you try watching everyone you know getting killed, and then tell me your fine) and freezing when riddley shows up (you finally kill the mofo who kills your family and everyone you knew, after years of battles, now, tell me you wouldn't be just a tiny bit shit scared when your supposedly dead arch nemesis appears). the bitching about this game is highly unreasonable

oh and do you have a link to that review? i wanna read it

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Brion Foulke

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #16 on: February 23, 2011, 09:22:39 am »
Condemned, huh?  I don't have a 360, but I'll keep that in mind.  Does that game have save points?

Pozf

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #17 on: February 26, 2011, 11:27:41 am »
Did anybody else have to create an account to have to listen to the podcast? Because it gave me a "you need to be over 18".
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Brion Foulke

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #18 on: February 26, 2011, 12:03:02 pm »
Ah, it must be because I set the podcast to "adult."  Well, maybe I should change it to the PG level.

Pwncho

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #19 on: February 28, 2011, 11:02:48 am »
The save points are few and far between if i recall correctly.  and of course play on one of the harder difficulties to ramp up the tension while low on health.
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Brion Foulke

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #20 on: February 28, 2011, 12:11:36 pm »
The save points are few and far between if i recall correctly.  and of course play on one of the harder difficulties to ramp up the tension while low on health.

Well that sounds good.  Maybe I'll have to look into that game.

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #21 on: February 28, 2011, 03:05:31 pm »
of course play it alone with the lights off for better effect,  any horror game isn't as scary with wisecracking friends around... or the ability to see into the dark corner of your closet.
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charles

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #22 on: March 13, 2011, 04:12:34 am »
Quote from: Brion Foulke
3/11/11 So this chapter's almost over... what do you all think of the choice I made with it? In case you don't remember, at the beginning of the chapter I walked about how I was conflicted about which direction to take it... I could either take the long path, or the short path. Now that we're here, I can talk about what this means. The "destination" that I wanted to get to was this contest... the short path would've been to just spring the contest on her at the beginning of the chapter, and skip all of that poker stuff. However, I decided that the contest would feel a lot more important if I took the long path and really illustrate how much Maytag needs this contest if she really wants to make her dream come true.

So was this the right choice? For the integrity of the story, I feel very confident that it is. But I always have to balance that with the impatience of the readers. And that's not even a negative thing, I don't blame them for being impatient, but it does make things tough on me.

One complaint that has come up recently a couple of times is that people are wondering what the point of this whole soundstone arc is... which I probably should've seen coming. Ironically, the only way to solve that problem would've been to add some additional pages of dialog that'd spell out "hey, this isn't on a whim, this is something that is important for character development," but that would've dragged the story out. So instead, I choose to just have Maytag dive right in to this new passion of hers without a lot of explanations... I wonder if that was a good idea. The thing is, it makes complete sense for Maytag's character to be acting this way, but I haven't really given the reader a lot of clues as to why, yet... I'm saving that till the time is right. This current arc is a big character development arc, and the soundshow is a huge part of that... but it's tough to ask people to be patient when you're comic only updates 3 pages a week. Oh well. Anyway, as always, I will continue to think of ways to tell the story as fast as possible without making it seem rushed. There are certain things I am unwilling to do, like cram a ton of dialog into panels, or use really heavy handed exposition. But I am starting to re-think using narration as a tool for speed story telling. I would never use it like prose, because I believe the story should be told visually, and I don't want to make a habit of using it... but at the same time, for certain sections of the story I think it can be useful as a fast foward button. In case you don't know what I'm talking about, I've already tried this once before, in chapter 26. Gonna be trying something similar at the beginning of the next chapter, combined with flashbacks, to make the story as tight as possible and really kick the next part of the storyarc off fast.

Also, for those of you who've been wondering when Crest was gonna get some more time, pay attention next chapter.

It's very difficult to compromise manga cinematic style story-telling which is naturally page inefficient with webcomic storytelling which demands page efficiency. But I'm trying!
I think you made the right choice with this chapter.  I recally Maytag mentioning to crest that its a dream of hers to have an audience like this.  There's probably more to it that you'll reveal later.  All up, the Chapter also did well to move Crest along a bit and I did like how Maytag was brought down to a more human level.  I agree that she stayed true to her character through the chapter and it all worked quite well to get back to her less serious personality a bit.

The Narration worked well in Chapter 26 because thats also the first chapter for the next book.  It does well when you're skipping some time and need to wrap up a half-dozen points without dedicating 3-5 text heavy pages to the task.  It also does well as a quick intro to recap for the audience thats only just joining us.

You seem to have used internal monologue at times to get information across quickly and this has worked well IMHO.  Particularly with Crest who's probably stretched it to the limits but still stayed true to his character.
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Pwncho

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #23 on: March 14, 2011, 12:10:01 pm »
Dear Mr lobster.

Being a comic that does update 3 times a week is hard, as people want to come back every time and expect some amazing new development as if they are reading a new chapter everytime.

I completely think that taking the long route and not skipping over character development/explanation of a situation is important.  sure you might loose a few readers that have the attention span of a rock and cant handle two updates in a row where there are no swordfights or sorcerer chases. Honestly though, in the end when i reread the books or show them to friends i dont want them to be quickwinded and overwith. i want an epic sprawling storyline that i can get lost in.

The long intricate storylines are great for creating a longstanding involved world that you can pull much more out of than a simple straightforward actionfest.  How memorable would lord of the rings have been if it was simply "fellowship gets together, fights bad guys, walks, fights bad guys, walks, fights bad guys, destroys rings."  The small seemingly insignificant sidestories are what a truly compelling story needs to be remembered.

I can understand that you feel pressure from readers as you are posting page by page 3 times a week, but if you were only publishing Flipside in the books, taking such shortcuts would just be seen as lazy and bad writing,  they leave people asking questions(not in a good way, like an unsolved mystery, but like a joke with no punchline.)

Obviously, you cant write everything that comes to your mind as sidestories, and doing an entire chapter everytime you reference the old Iscariot.  That is not to say that narration or the like are bad, the way that you used narration in chapter 26 worked really well.  The journey was something that did not need to be documented and you wrote the narration very well as to speed the plot.  And just as in D&D as i'm sure you know, constant action gets tedious, having the characters attacked by kobolds at every turn gets old fast.  Leaving the characters some time to rest(such as a journey) is a great way to break up the overuse of action, And of course such a jouney does not have to be documented in detail A GM's narration can aliveiate the stress of combat and serve to draw the players into the game, as they realize they are in a whole other world, not just a dice-rolling combat simulator.

I could keep writing all day, but i should probabally focus my efforts on something that i get graded on.
So heres to you lobster man... stick to your guns, and the world of flipside will be better off because of it.
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Brion Foulke

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #24 on: March 14, 2011, 05:12:25 pm »
I hear ya.  But I'm trying to do both.  My thinking is that certain parts of the story need to be told slower, while other parts might be better off told fast.  Anyway, I'm scripting the next chapter now, and I think it's gonna be mostly quite fast, save for one part.  Let me know your opinions after you read it.

charles

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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #25 on: June 16, 2011, 06:56:12 pm »
Quote from: Brion Foulke
6/16/11 I was watching Naruto Shippuden the other day and realized I really don't like Naruto Shippuden, the anime. I love the original Naruto anime... I love the manga... but I dunno, I think Shippuden blows. It's way too slow paced, and I'm just really disappointed by it's soundtrack. I guess I'm used to watching anime with great soundtracks, so to watch one with a soundtrack that is only average is too depressing for me. Also there's the fact that it's on Toon Disney and the Azuma-Hidan fight is so ridiculously edited that you have no idea what the fuck is going on. Naruto and Disney is obviously not a good combination.

Yeah, Naruto Shippuden is a lot like Dragon Ball Z in that sense.  Simply repetition with the story taking forever to get anywhere from any single fight-scene or character show-off.
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Re: Blog Post Discussion
« Reply #26 on: May 02, 2012, 05:23:31 am »
I think your pacing is quite good really. You always leave me anticipating the next page.

I have another question, and I do not mean this in a bad way. You missed a page and say you're going to make up for it. No problem, you have a life as well. Some time back you missed 4 pages you said you were going to catch up on, and you caught up on 2 of them. While I love the prospect of potential 'extra pages' coming up (even if they are catch-up pages) I can understand if you do not see them happening anymore.