It's Fashionable to Be An Asshole

I get it, man. There was that one tremendously well-written horribly negative review of that one game, and it was hilarious. That's always stuck with you. Not only was it a genuine piece of art, but it gained a lot of attention, and the writer was showered with praise. You wanna have one of those in your portfolio. I feel ya, dawg.

Combine that with the need for internet users to pile on and belong to that club that everyone's joining. Again, I understand. I've worked for years to break myself of that habit, and I'm mostly successful, but I may have piled on with the others on Sean Spicer. For the most part, though, I don't really try to belong anywhere. But I totally understand the impulse.

Here's the problem, though. Your shock tactics, when you try really hard to apply them to a product that may not really fit the mold, cost you credibility, and ultimately makes you part of the problem.

Let's take Iron Fist, for example. It's got problems.

Halt. I want to state now that I'm not linking back to any of the offending reviews because I don't want to give them clicks or views or any warm feelings.

Anyway, Iron Fist has problems. Totally. The first episode was not terribly enjoyable. It's got pacing problems, the action looks slow and weird, especially relative to the other three Defenders shows that are available right now, the bad guys are mindlessly BAD, and none of the characters really pop in any way during the first episode. It was bad.

And then, in the second episode, it starts to get better. I actually really wanted to watch the next episode right away. I didn't, because time is precious, but I plan to watch it tonight.

But, it has problems, at least two episodes in, and I'd guess that these don't totally go away. Absolutely address the issues, but stop trying to crucify it in an effort to make a name for yourself. You're a talented writer, but a lousy fucking reviewer.

What's interesting is that some of the extremely over-the-top negative reviews got their facts wrong. The writers were so hell-bent on writing a bad review, and more specifically, writing a gloriously bad review, that they either misunderstood or intentionally fudged facts that were specific to the plot.

Let me add, too, that I don't have a dog in this fight. I've never read an Iron Fist or Defenders comic, I'm a casual MCU fan, and thought Jessica Jones was the only absolutely amazing Netflix/Marvel series so far. I thought the first season of Daredevil was very 'blah.'

The action in the first season of Daredevil was extraordinary, D'Onofrio as Fisk was Emmy-worthy, the supporting characters were OK, but Matt Murdock is bland as hell, and the story was ... meh, as was the pacing.

As a side note, the most interesting part of the second season of Daredevil was The Punisher.

Anyway, what's most disturbing is the tone, in these cases, in which the writer conveys joy and excitement at being able to whip the product.

Hell, I saw some of this same behavior, to a lesser degree, with Mass Effect: Andromeda. In the reviews, at least. We saw the same orgy of hate regarding the animations stuff on Twitter and in comments sections, but the reviews, occasionally you'd come across that random outlet that, in the text, was really stoked to just take a giant shit on the product.

It's weird. I don't know if this is specifically American behavior, but it seems like we can't wait to murder our heroes. We can't wait to start hating what we once loved. I don't understand it, and it's actually a behavior in which I can't remember ever taking part, but I see it all the fucking time. It's a terrible habit, and I wish we'd stop pouring so much of ourselves into hating something.

What I would've rather seen in negative reviews of Iron Fist (which, based on two episodes, it looks like it deserves some criticism) is less hyperbole, more constructive criticism, and why you liked what you did, and why you didn't like what you didn't. Be chill.

Some day, you may get to review a licensed 3DS game that is an absolute turd, but until then, focus more on being reliable and trusted than jerking yourself off over a minor disappointment.

Also, I'm 12 hours into Mass Effect: Andromeda and very much enjoying it. I'll do a fuller write up on the early parts of the game this week.

Last, don't forget: I'm starting my stream series for KotOR tomorrow night over on my Twitch channel. I'd love it if you'd join me.

-Blaine

Whoah! Cool stuff hit the internet today!

First, the incredibly vague Squenix - Avengers thing.



I'm intrigued by what this could be, if it ever comes out, since Eidos Montreal and Crystal Dynamics are working on it, but there's absolutely no details now, so let's move on.

Second, this hit around 11AM today, and paired with all the gameplay and details we've seen already for Mass Effect Andromeda, I'm super-hyped about this.



This game looks great, and it's gonna be a cluster-fuck when MEA, Torment, and Horizon: Zero Dawn are all fighting for my free time.

Third, and this was the pinnacle of my day, Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire hit Fig today, and I am over the fucking moon. I threw down money on it, and I cannot wait to see more as the year goes on. Check out the Fig pitch video below.



I adored Pillars of Eternity, and cannot wait to do a full streamed playthrough of it for my second playthrough. If you've not played it, if you love games driven by story and character, give it a try. It's among the best I've ever played.

Also, I'm finally adopting a regular streaming schedule. I'll get more into it in another post, but today, I'll be streaming on my twitch channel from 1630-1800 and 2000-2130 (central). My first stream will be a bit of a chat and variety stream. I'm thinking about showing ya'll some Torment: Tides of Numenera, because it's fucking awesome.

See ya'll in a couple hours.

-Blaine

Some Cool Things On My Radar

I just wanna pass along a few cool things this morning.

First, Squenix announced some partnership with Marvel about which there are no details, and thus I am not hyped at all, but some people I respect are, so there's that. It has to do with the Avengers.

Big News: @SquareEnix and @Marvel announce a multi-game partnership leading with The Avengers project. #Reassemble pic.twitter.com/DS87Iuzk7G

— Square Enix (@SquareEnix) January 26, 2017

Second, there's an awesome Kickstarter going that I've backed. Apocalypse Now. A first-person survival horror RPG. No shit. It's Francis Ford Coppola + a bunch of devs from CDPR, Obsidian, and other awesome studios. Seriously, give it a look. It's worth your time.

Third, BioWare is dropping another Mass Effect trailer today. I'll post it later. Keep an eye on their Twitter or the Mass Effect YouTube channel.

Last, the thing about which I am the most hyped, is the pending reveal of Pillars of Eternity 2 at noon (central) today. It'll be on their main site.

Anyway, I'll post some stuff later today once details and awesomeness solidifies.

Word.

-Blaine

Is film inherently shallow?

So, I watched both Ant-Man (fun) and It Follows (pretty, but dumb) yesterday, and it took me back to a familiar internal argument I've been having for years.

Video games, novels, comics, and serial television all have the ability to take their time and tell full stories. Films do not.

Marvel has done a good job of designing and repeatedly executing on a formula for giving the sense of a 'full story' in their films, even if they're mostly just fun spectacles.

In the case of It Follows, I was pretty damn let down. I really enjoy the horror genre, and while this technically falls into the genre, and despite being beautifully shot and using sound and music really well, it was dumb. The characters and story were both excruciatingly shallow, even with a cool concept in play, and the ending was one of those that implies the filmmaker just gave up.

Man, I was really hyped for that one, too.

Games tell stories through immersion, player agency, and have a nearly infinite number of ways to approach the conveyance of story and the conveyance of the player through the story. It can be used really well.

Novels. Duh. This is probably still my favorite medium for storytelling.

Comics have come a long way, and they actually seem to somewhat be the model for modern serial television.

And on that note, serial television is at a high point right now, and I'm really enjoying it. This has really stolen a lot of film's thunder for me, since it's a much deeper experience, whereas film has become, for me, more about the spectacle than anything. Film is dumber than ever, but prettier than ever, and both films yesterday really hit that home. Funny enough, Ant-Man had more character development and actual story than It Follows, which is hilarious.

The problem is that film, by it's limited running time, and higher costs, is severely limited in both the kinds of stories it can tell, and how it can tell them.

What say you?