Phil

[Phil]

Um! It ate my little heart!

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<3

[Phil]

http://www.theonion.com/content/news_briefs/chuck_berry_remembers_call

[Phil]

Yep! This is the preview included with my copy of BBS (a Best Buy store exclusive, evidently, which I think is pretty rotten…)

Looks great, doesn’t it? Here’s hoping the David Cross villain in this film has a bit more personality than the nudists in BBS…I’d hate to see Cross wasted like Bob Odenkirk was when he appeared. (Excellent though that episode was, why did they even bother to bring Odenkirk in for that? Save him for a character who actually gets to do things!)

[Phil]

I also would have accepted “Infinity Welcomes Audio Drivers.”

[Phil]

Regarding length, here’s the skinny from April Ford, the editor:

“The anthology is…210 pages, I think (105 double-sided). I don’t have it here in front of me, but it’s somewhere between 208-211 pages.”

Which is good to have confirmed. I’ll post more info when the issue is available for public consumption. I believe I’m scheduled to get my copies sometime before the close of the month, but I’m still not sure when it’s hitting news stands.

[Phil]

The only experience with Tin Tin I have is through a Kenyan guy I used to room with. He kept a bunch of Tin Tin books in the bathroom because he said it helped to laugh when he was having a difficult poo.

[Phil]

Also: it should probably be noted that Penny, when made aware of Andrew’s displeasure, DID re-edit the picture, and the autographed version is no longer attached to the Amazon listing.

So, regardless of what anyone might think about the original photograph, it was only up for a few days, and–let’s be honest here–probably not even seen by anybody outside of this forum.

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People, people, please. We should be uniting against our common enemy: the Judean People’s Front.

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I’ll definitely be picking it up, it’s only a question of when. I’d imagine next month is pretty likely. Though I do want that Metroid game, too…

[Phil]

You cock nugget. I don’t even think it’s out in the US yet (though it will be before the end of the month, if I remember correctly).

1) Get Smash Bros.

2) Regarding online multiplayer: I had heard that it was just going to be something corny, like one player races, uploads their ghost, and then you race against that player’s ghost.

Which sounds terrible.

Please tell me you actually race together in real-time, as though you were sitting in the same room.

Also: if that IS the case, I’m assuming it also holds true for battle mode?

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Really? You’d have written The Time Traveler’s Wife?

[Phil]

Nah, that’s not foolish, Danny (unless you were being sarcastic!). I think the enormous majority of emulations are just direct ports.

In fact, for the most part, I’d prefer that to mucking around with the game/program mechanics. In this case, however, it’s kind of neat to include some additional functionality.

I remember with Mario Paint, in my circle of friends at least, the musical composition feature got no attention at all. We’d spend a few minutes on it, get bored, and never really use it again.

I’m not sure if it was commonly popular outside of my small peer group, but either way it’s very interesting to see this one small feature of the game receiving such a resurgence.

[Phil]

>No, no, it?s not important

I’m curious now as well…I’ll check into it.

I haven’t read any of the other submitted stories (well, that’s a slight lie…I read an early draft of Austin’s) but it’s an interesting literary experiment they’ve got going with the rotating genres, and I think it’s going to be fun keeping an eye on them.

Do you write, Ridley? Or are you just more of a reader?

[Phil]

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=K3aJqJUN1Xw&feature=related

Probably my least favorite track from the Big Band folder I posted, but I think if anyone ever wrote a song about me and performed it live, I would shimmy and swing my fists next to the singer exactly like Mario.

[Phil]

http://www.zreomusic.com/listen
Zelda Reorchestrated, for those of you who’ve never seen it. (I was one of those people until about 30 min ago.)

Some misses, yes, but some lovely, lovely hits as well. Looks like I’ve got another mp3 CD to burn.

[Phil]

I don’t remember, to be honest, but since I had very little brainstorming to do, I’d imagine I got it “down” over the course of a weekend…maybe a little longer. After that I read through it, addressed what was missing from the story, and spent a lot of time filling out the gaps I didn’t notice the first time through. (Things are always more complete in your head than they are on paper.)

Taking into account rewrites, and fine-tuning, and things along those lines, I’d say the typing/reworking probably took me between 12 – 15 hours of just writing. I ended up with about 12 pages, typed, but I’m not sure what that translates to in magazine pages.

Not absolutely sure how thick the magazine will be…I’m guessing it’ll run about the same length as your average short-story magazine, which is generally in the neighborhood of 200 pages, but I can check with the editors if you’re interested in knowing that beforehand.

[Phil]

It’s been long enough now that I can’t remember if the title “The Ghost of John Hoare” came to me, and from there the story more-or-less-immediately came from that, or if I had the idea for the story and then decided to name the “ghost” after John.

But I do know that basically everything about the story happened at the same time…it just took me several years to get it down on paper. Which was probably for the better.

The character isn’t based on John (I feel obligated to assure everybody of that, if only to protect his fine reputation) but the name fit, in some odd sense, and as the writers here probably know, once you get a character and a name together, it becomes very hard to separate the two, and though you can rename her or she easily enough, it never feels quite as natural, and sort of reminds you that you’re working with words and paper–which, depending upon your approach to fiction–may not be the best thing to keep too strongly in mind.

My cowboy story is called “Cappsy’s Leather Chaps.”

[Phil]

I didn’t even realize whose signature that was. I assumed it was Doug’s or something…

To avoid confusion, Andrew, the next time you sign something, draw a little picture of yourself, too.

[Phil]

I’ve just re-read my above comment…apologies, Capps, if it sounds brash. It was just meant to sound logical. I didn’t mean to belittle your concern, just address it.

[Phil]

All we’re doing is convincing people that the book *exists,* something which could easily be disproven by visiting any other site on earth. Or googling the book, which without too much effort will lead to…this thread.

Also, I don’t see any real shots at Andrew being taken in the review…they’re shots at the movie itself. Which also doesn’t exist. And shouldn’t reflect on Andrew in either direction if it did.

[Phil]

WHY oh WHY is it so much fun to fuck with people?

Oh, and:
>But overall it’s a great work and you can tell he clearly enjoyed writing it. (It’s written on there).

Marvelous.

[Phil]

I think Arlene bought one and bit its head off.

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Holy barf.

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Just noticed the “submit a customer image” link on this entry. Anyone care to knock something up?

[Phil]

I am Wii-ing as I write this.

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Sony and Microsoft: taking other people’s technology, making it flashier, eclipsing the competition, then all of a sudden realizing they have no idea what the fuck to do with it.

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I just want to bone your Mii.

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John/Tanya! Add my console number dammit. It won’t let me send you inappropriate/threatening messages until you do!

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I’m up for Grim Fandango: Battle Mode.

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Who’s up for some multiplayer Space Quest III? Friend code 212908-390923478-12919-03420001.

[Phil]

>the music was so amazingly good?

Agreed. Honestly, so far I could probably just turn on the first-person view and listen to the music for hours while Mario gazes off into a starfield. If only I were a drug-addict.

[Phil]

Added you guys, Tanya. It says you have to add me in return before we can do anything, though.

My console number is 5805 4365 7484 5747. Which is different than my Smash Bros friend code in both length and content. Somehow I’d assumed that my “friend code” would be universal across all online games I choose to play on the unit…evidently that’s not the case.

Oh well. It’s a learning process. And I played some online Smash again tonight and it ran pretty well, actually. A few stutters, but not nearly as many as earlier. Also, it seems that the less “complicated” the battle stage, the better it runs. (And I mean MUCH better.)

Maybe they’d be wise to restrict the levels you can play online, since their servers can’t seem to handle long-distance data transmission when the level is so complex. Of course, that’s easy for me to say, as I much prefer the simpler levels anyway. The massive levels stay zoomed out too often to really see what’s happening, and the moving levels are preposterous…you spend all of your time surviving–fighting is the least of your worry. Part of the reason I didn’t like the Gamecube version of Smash was that it seemed like there were a disproportionate amount of levels that didn’t even encourage battle!

I like Brawl a lot, though. I think it feels more like the original Smash did. Melee was just a huge selection of experiments thrown together in the same game, and a lot of them worked, but a lot of them didn’t. This time it’s like they took the best of both games and just put it together without too much meddling. Which is exactly what should have been done.

Also: Mario Galaxy is FUCKING INCREDIBLE.

[Phil]

Will do!

I’ll have to experiment with this as I’ve never before HAD a console with online functionality. I’m not even sure what you can/can’t do with it.

Other than play Smash Bros., of course.

[Phil]

>Are you Brawling online yet?

Got it going as of this afternoon. Granted, most of my time has been spent salivating while browsing the virtual console (no more games til next month…I’ve promised myself…) but I did get in a few games of Online Smash.

And I can say this: laaaaaaaag.

Being as I have a brand new unit and an excellent internet connection (the strongest and fastest I’ve ever had!) I have to imagine this is the fault of the servers, or the something. In other words, I’d imagine that if I have the problem, EVERYONE does.

…correct me if I’m wrong. But, if I’m wrong, I will very likely cry.

It’s fun, don’t get me wrong, but it’s kind of frustrating when you’re all set to use Luigi’s firepunch, but the game slows down, your character isn’t responding, and then you leap spectacularly off the platform and into oblivion.

>Giz? ya Friend Code. Mine is 4811-6594-0070.

Nice. I don’t have a router yet so it’ll be internet connected or Wii–not both. But I do have my friend code so add me and beat the everloving fuck out of me whenever you see me on. I’m 3566-1610-3580.

Anyone else who has Smash and wants to make me so angry that I put my classic controller through the screen of my new television, feel free to post your friend codes as well.

[Phil]

Today I’m going to see if my local shop carries the LAN adapter, or whatever, so’s I can go online and beat tar out of everyone.

Though this time around, my two old-standby characters (Mario and Link) seem to be less effective. I wonder if they’ve been made less powerful. In the case of Mario I’d almost guarantee it. Whose bright idea was it to give him a complicated FLUDD attack that does literally no damage? Total waste of a move.

Anyway, the odds are pretty good I’ll be picking up Mario Galaxy today as well…it’s either that or Zelda…but I tend to get pretty engrossed while playing Zelda games so I may have to opt for something lighter.

Is Galaxy a nice and long game, does anyone know? Sunshine was fun (flawed, but fun) but way too short.

Also: Who wants to battle me (read: murder me) once I get this puppy online?

[Phil]

>Emohawk?s irritates me a bit now.

What a Hoare!

[Phil]

>Just as you think it is going to end it manages to last ANOTHER FUCKING HOUR!

Um…when did you think it was going to end? When Fry returned to the year 2000 and Bender showed up to murder him?

That wouldn’t seem to me to be a very natural sort of ending. In fact, if I didn’t know better, I’d say it was kind of…you know…a beginning.

[Phil]

I hate this.

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I don’t think the Inquisitor actually becomes them…I think they just see their own image reflected in his face as they’re being judged. Sort of like Camille–she didn’t become anything the Dwarfers took her to be; she just reflected their desires back at them.

She’s a GELF and he’s a simulant…both manmade. So I guess in the future they have the technology to show a person something other than what he/she is actually seeing.

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>Sorry, this programme is only available to play in the UK (why?)

Because you’re SHITS.

[Phil]

>now.

>richard the third

[Phil]

Marleen: thanks!

[Phil]

>I do love it when they make Leela a 50s/60s SF heroine.

It’s actually kind of funny that the show didn’t do things like this more often, since very early cinematic sci-fi is such a big part of Futurama’s pedigree.

Not that I mind even a tiny bit, since I’m glad the show was so good at finding its own identity to the start, and didn’t just become sci-fi parody, or Matt Groening’s Jetsons. Still strange, though, that you didn’t see this kind of thing more frequently in the merchandise or anything.

[Phil]

THAT’s the joke? Jesus Christ.

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>Don?t be a jackass!

Such an excellent, excellent reading of that line in the show. It’s one of those examples of performance making something about five hundred times funnier than it strictly should have been.

[Phil]

I just noticed Penny’s new avatar.

I’m in love.

(I’ll also be in love with anyone else who can identify it.)

[Phil]

Wow, that would have been smart to include, wouldn’t it? Sorry…here’s the actual link to the official site.

http://wunderland.com/LooneyLabs/Chrononauts/Default.html

In the upper right there’s a “Buy it” option.

I haven’t played any of their other games, but they all look fascinating (particularly the zombie card game, which will probably be my next purchase). There’s also a development history of Chrononauts on that page, and some musings on time itself and alternate versions of history…all great content (whether I agree with it or not) but probably best saved until after you’ve actually played the game a few times.

[Phil]

I made it 2:32 into that video, but I started frantically clicking “pause” around 2:29.

[Phil]

Nope, just at work and unable to get to youtube. :-)

[Author]

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