HEAR THAT?
That's the sound of Edmund not being in the office all week. Sounds beautiful, doesn't it? I like the guy and all, but more often than not, he just doesn't know when to shut the fuck up. Always rambling on and on about shit I have neither the patience nor interest to listen to...gabbing like a schoolgirl hopped up on crack, never giving me a minute to relax, work, or, in this case, write. But now that he's gone and the buzzing in my ear has subsided, I figured I'd make the most of the week and get some thoughts down before they escape me.
Gaming is going good. I beat Fable 2 and sold it to Nikolai. I loved the social engine of the game and your ability to evolve in direct relation to the amount of law or chaos you embrace(I chose chaos, of course, and was rewarded with monstrous devil horns and neon blue blood veins. Dear god it was sick and cool and SO much fun running into a town, battle axe a swingin' and listening to the villagers cry out in terror as they ran from me, only to be hacked to pieces moments later!) but I was strangely disappointed with how light the plot was, and outright pissed off with its weak ending. It was so much a final battle as it was a series of cut scenes with minimal player participation. I dunno, I'd give the game a C+ if I had to grade it.
Dead Space, however, is MUCH more satisfying, setting a new standard in the survival horror genre. Drawing its influence from movies like Alien, Event Horizon, and The Thing, Dead Space is a bleak, atmospheric sci fi masterpiece that is both engaging and terrifying. Seriously, I would have loved to have been on the production team of this game, writing the backstory for this world. The game fully appreciates the trappings of its genre and knows how to work within and evolve them to create a terrific story. I don't know how long it's been since I've such a quality sci-fi story, but this game delivers.
I got a letter from Katie in the mail last week. I was originally quite excited and tore into it with anticipation, but when I finished I felt...I dunno, slightly let down. There was a noticeable sense of detachment and formality in her voice, like I was another name on a long list of correspondences she had to complete and not one of her oldest friends of (wow) fourteen years. She wrote civilly of cultural events she'd attended, the challenges and inspirations of work, and how her friends and family have been doing since she and I last wrote. Maybe I'm misinterpreting her tone, but after my reading, it seemed to lack that friendly familiarity that was otherwise commonplace in our letters. Has time and distance diluted our friendship? I don't *think* so, and I certainly hope not, but I was very disappointed to feel that way about a letter from someone I care so much about. Mustn't forget to write her back. This weekend, maybe?
I'm building up major motivation to do some creative writing. It comes and goes with me, depending on what other things in my life are taking up my time and attention, and right now there are very few of those things to bother me, which means I can cut lose and write! There are two ideas consuming me right now: The Tomorrow Man and Pantheon. I'm still thinking both through, but I'm at the point now where I'd like to write out some scenes that have been stuck in my mind for awhile...see if they would work better as prose or comic scripts. I'm also thinking about putting my ideas together in some kind of anthology again. Do some kind of super cheap production through Kinkos or something...4, 8 page story installments. I dunno, something like that. I feel this nagging urge to create and *produce* something physical, my ideas made manifest. Luckily, I've got enough time off coming up that I can get that ball rolling if I wish.
Phyllis is bugging me to take down the Christmas decorations. I thought she was nuts until I realized Thanksgiving is in three days. God, where did the time go?
Gaming is going good. I beat Fable 2 and sold it to Nikolai. I loved the social engine of the game and your ability to evolve in direct relation to the amount of law or chaos you embrace(I chose chaos, of course, and was rewarded with monstrous devil horns and neon blue blood veins. Dear god it was sick and cool and SO much fun running into a town, battle axe a swingin' and listening to the villagers cry out in terror as they ran from me, only to be hacked to pieces moments later!) but I was strangely disappointed with how light the plot was, and outright pissed off with its weak ending. It was so much a final battle as it was a series of cut scenes with minimal player participation. I dunno, I'd give the game a C+ if I had to grade it.
Dead Space, however, is MUCH more satisfying, setting a new standard in the survival horror genre. Drawing its influence from movies like Alien, Event Horizon, and The Thing, Dead Space is a bleak, atmospheric sci fi masterpiece that is both engaging and terrifying. Seriously, I would have loved to have been on the production team of this game, writing the backstory for this world. The game fully appreciates the trappings of its genre and knows how to work within and evolve them to create a terrific story. I don't know how long it's been since I've such a quality sci-fi story, but this game delivers.
I got a letter from Katie in the mail last week. I was originally quite excited and tore into it with anticipation, but when I finished I felt...I dunno, slightly let down. There was a noticeable sense of detachment and formality in her voice, like I was another name on a long list of correspondences she had to complete and not one of her oldest friends of (wow) fourteen years. She wrote civilly of cultural events she'd attended, the challenges and inspirations of work, and how her friends and family have been doing since she and I last wrote. Maybe I'm misinterpreting her tone, but after my reading, it seemed to lack that friendly familiarity that was otherwise commonplace in our letters. Has time and distance diluted our friendship? I don't *think* so, and I certainly hope not, but I was very disappointed to feel that way about a letter from someone I care so much about. Mustn't forget to write her back. This weekend, maybe?
I'm building up major motivation to do some creative writing. It comes and goes with me, depending on what other things in my life are taking up my time and attention, and right now there are very few of those things to bother me, which means I can cut lose and write! There are two ideas consuming me right now: The Tomorrow Man and Pantheon. I'm still thinking both through, but I'm at the point now where I'd like to write out some scenes that have been stuck in my mind for awhile...see if they would work better as prose or comic scripts. I'm also thinking about putting my ideas together in some kind of anthology again. Do some kind of super cheap production through Kinkos or something...4, 8 page story installments. I dunno, something like that. I feel this nagging urge to create and *produce* something physical, my ideas made manifest. Luckily, I've got enough time off coming up that I can get that ball rolling if I wish.
Phyllis is bugging me to take down the Christmas decorations. I thought she was nuts until I realized Thanksgiving is in three days. God, where did the time go?