Worth Reading: 05/18/2012

Ew. The unsettling sexual undertones in Tera just get creepier and creepier the more you learn about it, don't they?

You can attempt to defend it as much as possible, but the fact is that 8-year old girls prancing around in underwear is creepy as hell. Unless you're into that sort of thing.... which is still creepy but I suppose you wouldn't see it that way.

Well, just a heads up - even if you don't find it creepy, be aware that the rest of us do, and we judge you accordingly. Also, I dare you to look at those images in public. I dare you. You won't get far. And you know the reason why.

@Brodehouse said:

@NoelVeiga: "Here's the tricky part, so pay attention"? Do you actually expect anyone to speak to you when you can't be bothered to show the simplest of respect? When you talk about 'online nastiness' you should reflect on your own behavior. And accusing me of being a bigot for not wanting to tell people they have it worse than me because they're not my race/sex/whatever? Too far.

The way you speak about your sisters, it fully brings into light what I was speaking about. Through no 'fault' of your own, you're better off because you're a man, men have it better than women, women have it worse (you're right, there is no transitive because there isn't a third comparison, it's simple greater than less than). Well I submit that it's that very thought that reinforces the inequalities of the world. Acknowledgement of inequality is the first step to moving to a new continuity, but those declarations (women struggle because they're women and that's how it is in this world) don't make anything better and in fact, makes it worse. I know it appears like that's the 'just' or 'fair' thing to do, to be empathetic, but it just roots us in the same inequality we've had.

It's not just the bigotry of assholes, it's this exact wretched pity that does nothing to help (and please don't explain how acknoweldging you have it better does not mean she has it worse, that's the only logical conclusion). I don't have sisters, but I have a girlfriend, and I don't think she's disadvantaged because of it, she shouldn't have to hear bigots telling her she's bad for being a woman just as she shouldn't hear people such as our article writer tell her that her sex is a cross she has to bear. She shouldn't feel like she's 'stuck in hard mode' and you shouldn't feel bad for her because she was born a woman. If I were to tell her that her life is worse because she's not a man, it is no different than the various forms of bigotry, and for the exact same reason; it distills all of her humanity down to her sex.It's no better when done with empathy than with hatred. Do you understand my point now? All this style of 'these people have it easy, these people have it hard' does is get us farther and farther from equality. Equality is the target we should be after, not emotional recompense for a trick of genetics.

It's strange that you would pin me with self-hatred and bigotry despite my entire point that no one, not you, not me, not your sisters, not any race, or sex, or orientation should feel bad because of how they were born. It may be a surprise, but as nice as it is to hear someone empathize and say 'you've been playing in hardcore mode', it only serves to reduce people down to the very base conditions we're trying to make irrelevant. I know it must seem like it's okay because it's supposed to convey some kind of 'respect' (the traditionally male contest of 'whose suffered the most') but it's not. Acknowledging the bigotry and problems in the world is good, but this kind of empathy does nothing positive. Do you understand where I'm coming from? Or are you just going to use more personal attacks and disrespect? Because I've tried so hard in this thread and it's completely disheartening to see you ignore my point in favor of 'an internet argument'. I don't care about it, I just want you to understand the point I'm making.

You are the greatest human being to ever grace the internet! Well fucking said!

I've always thought of the X race has it better than Y race argument as trash. If this is true, so what? There's always an exception to that rule, and throwing that blanket out there helps nobody. If you really care, do something about it and quit writing pointless, racist articles. That writer is such a prick.

@NoelVeiga: My only knowledge of Zynga games is purely second-hand, so I could be wrong. Eh, I could swear I read in one of those ex-employee rants that you could buy upgrades in Farmville in "packs" and never know exactly what you'd get, prompting some people (the "whales")to buy thousands of dollars worth of packs to get some coveted farm item.

Interesting bit about the pinball machines, I think I remember reading about that. Where were these people when I was sinking all my quarters into teenage mutant ninja turtles.

Need more video game soundtracks on Spotify

Racial inequality as difficulty setting is somewhat interesting to ponder, but I kind of have to wonder about the writer's process. Though semantic considerations were taken, ultimately the essay functions in part as an allegory for White Privilege, if in different terms. He refers to the negative, sometimes hostile response that some white people have when confronted with the concept of White Privilege. White Guilt is problematic as it can render a potential activist inactive. It may contribute to an overall "spirit of inactivity."

He then confronts white readers with the concept of White Privilege, albeit in different words. It's not without merit, and I think it's clear he has good intent. Most scholars agree that an ideal approach is to get a wide diversity of people to discuss these complexities honestly with each other. Studies indicate such an environment nurtures like-mindedness and cooperation. Interesting that user comments, and spin-off articles like Patrick's are a closer approximation of that ideal, yet were triggered by an essay that may not present the issues accurately.

Wow, that Journey Down game has got some STYLE! I want to play it, but then it will probably be over in an hour and I will be sad until they release the rest.

@Brodehouse said:

@NoelVeiga: "Here's the tricky part, so pay attention"? Do you actually expect anyone to speak to you when you can't be bothered to show the simplest of respect? When you talk about 'online nastiness' you should reflect on your own behavior. And accusing me of being a bigot for not wanting to tell people they have it worse than me because they're not my race/sex/whatever? Too far.

The way you speak about your sisters, it fully brings into light what I was speaking about. Through no 'fault' of your own, you're better off because you're a man, men have it better than women, women have it worse (you're right, there is no transitive because there isn't a third comparison, it's simple greater than less than). Well I submit that it's that very thought that reinforces the inequalities of the world. Acknowledgement of inequality is the first step to moving to a new continuity, but those declarations (women struggle because they're women and that's how it is in this world) don't make anything better and in fact, makes it worse. I know it appears like that's the 'just' or 'fair' thing to do, to be empathetic, but it just roots us in the same inequality we've had.

It's not just the bigotry of assholes, it's this exact wretched pity that does nothing to help (and please don't explain how acknoweldging you have it better does not mean she has it worse, that's the only logical conclusion). I don't have sisters, but I have a girlfriend, and I don't think she's disadvantaged because of it, she shouldn't have to hear bigots telling her she's bad for being a woman just as she shouldn't hear people such as our article writer tell her that her sex is a cross she has to bear. She shouldn't feel like she's 'stuck in hard mode' and you shouldn't feel bad for her because she was born a woman. If I were to tell her that her life is worse because she's not a man, it is no different than the various forms of bigotry, and for the exact same reason; it distills all of her humanity down to her sex.It's no better when done with empathy than with hatred. Do you understand my point now? All this style of 'these people have it easy, these people have it hard' does is get us farther and farther from equality. Equality is the target we should be after, not emotional recompense for a trick of genetics.

It's strange that you would pin me with self-hatred and bigotry despite my entire point that no one, not you, not me, not your sisters, not any race, or sex, or orientation should feel bad because of how they were born. It may be a surprise, but as nice as it is to hear someone empathize and say 'you've been playing in hardcore mode', it only serves to reduce people down to the very base conditions we're trying to make irrelevant. I know it must seem like it's okay because it's supposed to convey some kind of 'respect' (the traditionally male contest of 'whose suffered the most') but it's not. Acknowledging the bigotry and problems in the world is good, but this kind of empathy does nothing positive. Do you understand where I'm coming from? Or are you just going to use more personal attacks and disrespect? Because I've tried so hard in this thread and it's completely disheartening to see you ignore my point in favor of 'an internet argument'. I don't care about it, I just want you to understand the point I'm making.

You're right. Not about your point, you're still wrong about that, but you're right about my lack of respect for it. I'm sure I could calmly explain why I'm right and you're wrong and leave out the sarcasm and passive/aggressive tone and that would bring us closer.

But there are two very good reasons to not do that. First, I find you very boring, and the sarcasm makes it easier to have this conversation, which is otherwise completely irrelevant. Second, don't take this the wrong way, but I feel a very genuine strain of contempt for your position. I really, honestly feel it's a terrible position to hold that has made the world worse.

The problem is you clearly mean well. You are idealistic and have good will and want things to be better than they are now. You just happen to want to make things better by acting as if they were better and hoping that makes them better. You want to make the world better by being nice and hoping it takes.

Now, that seems like a not harmful position to take. It may or may not lead to inaction, but it certainly feels good and at least does no harm, right? Only it kind of does. Your girlfriend shouldn't have to feel her gender is a disadvantage, so we shouldn't be saying that her gender is a disadvantage. Great, let's do that. Now, what exactly do you propose we do with all the people making her gender actually be a disadvantage? What do we do about that?

Maybe I'm reading too much into this, but it sounds familiar. It sounds like some of my left wing friends (I do not mean to imply I have right wing political views, mind) who will very self-righteously refuse to vote for politicians who they feel have "compromised", that is, made concessions to reality or showed moral flaws. That is what you do in democracy, right? You vote for the "right" guy, for the guy that will make the world better and do what he says and all that. Only they always, always fail to acknowledge the millions of right wing people willing to vote for their guys. They will not compromise for something as drab and unfair as facts, resulting in the progressive but flawed guy getting the boot and the downright evil corporate shill getting the job.

Now, I don't have enough information to say that you do this, but I can tell you this is what you're doing about inequality. You're seeing the black person in the back of the bus and claiming that it's kind of racist to assume she doesn't prefer to sit there because she likes seeing the back of people's heads. We don't need to do anything "positive" about this issue. We need to grab the people creating the issue and very negatively shun them, insult them and ashame them until they piss their pants and, at the very least, feel enough pressure to keep their world view to themselves. Because their world view is full of hate, but it is genuine and sincerely held. It's probably not even their fault. But the way you make something change in society is you push against it in large enough numbers and showing such consistency that eventually the people who don't change their minds are too scared to speak up against the mass. You don't get there by being nice and showing silent empathy and pretending that the issue is already solved, you get there by speaking up when you see the problem in action.

So next time you see a guy online being sexist or racist or calling somebody a faggot, do us all a favour and tell him he's a shitface. Because he is, and being quiet about that helps nobody. And, while we're at it, acknowledge that the reason he told that girl to go back to the kitchen but not you is that she has a vagina. She shouldn't feel that vagina makes her a lesser person, but in that scenario, trust me, your white-kinghting is not the thing making her feel that way.

And that's my point.

Things that aren't my point, while I'm at it: That I pity people who aren't white, male or straight. That I think people who aren't white, male or straight should feel bad about who they are. That I think people who ARE white, male or straight should feel bad about who they are. That people who are or aren't white, male or straight should define themselves by any of these traits, or any other.

Good selection of scoops this week tricky. I have been listening to the indie game: the movie soundtrack and you were right about how good it was

Good lord, how much yammering can there be about those things in TERA? It seems like every site has to validate themselves by talking half an hour / releasing a long winded article about how creepy you think that creepy thing is. I find it creepy how much of an obsession it seems to be in gaming journalism.

It's not the first time scantily-clad women or girls have been in games, nor will it be the last. As was said before, there's far worse stuff on TV, like Toddlers & Tiaras and other crap like that.

Gaming is not going to get a blow to it's credibility because a South-Korean MMO has a race of googly-eyed girls. It might however get a blow because of how much time is spent obsessively prancing around that topic.

Doesn't help that Simon Parkin of Eurogamer found it necessary to comment on Jade Raymond's "slender frame" [sic]. Although putting one author's mishaps on the other would be of bad taste.

I feel they handled the situation really well in Tera. They made the official changes that rating boards needed to see but are not actively persecuting users for modifying the game files to have the original look. That sort of turning a blind eye to the situation is extremely clever of keeping up appearances in front regulatory institutions while at the same time giving a wink and a nod to the playbase saying "if you really want those skimpy panties, it's ok, just do it when were not looking" - and lets face it the Elin battle is a lost cause because there is no alteration that can change that specific races look. They look like little kids, are only female and have really sexy outfits at times - if someone walked in on you playing the game and changing outfits on your Elin you bet you'd have to start off with "uhh...no you see..."

I must get The Journey Down. Just bought Dream Machine, too. Walking Dead and Botanicula are great. Then Resonance in June, man great year for adventure games.

Here's my stance on Elins: If someone walks in on you playing as an Elin and one of the first things you have to say is "seriously, I'm not a pedophile", you've got some serious life decisions to make.

@Brodehouse: @NoelVeiga:

Interesting conversation. Though I think you shouldn't be advocating such polar opposites of the issue. Life isn't all black and white (see what I did there?). You can't quantify what the value of being white is. There is no metric you can use to measure the advantages and disadvantages that come with being a specific sex, race or sexual orientation. So a blanket statement like: "Being white is better than being black." is probably not the right way to go about it.

Stand-up comedy has a great way of making people think and lets us do so in a somewhat safe enviroment. So props for that Louis CK link. Here is another clip with a similar point, from Chris Rock:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-idd5KTFiM&t=27m29s

It's good to be aware of the issues and it's definitely good to stand up to assholes, be they sexists, racists or whateverists - but we, as human beings, are also perfectly capable of dealing with whatever shit life throws at us. Give help when asked, but don't force it on people.

Thank you Patrick. As always, an entertaining read for my hung-over Saturday mornOHMYGODDIDISEECAMELTOEONTHATPRETEENPRIEST?!

@golguin said:

@OriginalGman said:

I can't believe how much air time was wasted on the Bombcast about how much clothing this race is wearing in an MMO no one will remember by the end of the summer. And I can't believe I wasted time commenting on it. Moe-style shit is popular, and it makes some people uncomfortable. What else is new? If that's the kind of thing that sets you off, what the hell are you doing playing a South Korean MMO?

I don't think the Elin in Tera are sexualized children. They don't really look like children as much as anime girls. You know what does sexualize real life children? Beauty pageants. The tv show Toddlers & Tiaras is exactly the type of thing people should be raging about and yet that crap is allowed to exist.

Can someone explain to me how people decry the Elin in the US and yet Toddlers & Tiaras continues to air in the US?

They decry it because "gaming journalism" has turned into self-righteous horseshit.

Jeff judging E3? If a new Mortal Kombat is shown I guess he'll vote for that on everything.

I took to Kill Screen, put that on favs.

Alright, I don't really want to get into the race debate that the "Straight White Male" article is meant to stir up, but I am going to try attacking it from a different angle.

Why was that article even needed?

Is there some kind of serious racism or bigotry in the gaming community that I don't know about.

Don't point out to me the existence of the dude-bros on Call of Duty and Halo constantly using racial and homophobic slurs. They don't count. We all know they're less than human anyway, and they wouldn't be nearly as bold if we could actually confront them face to face.

I look at MLG and other large gaming events and I see a wide variety of races, cultures, and, well maybe not so much sexes, but I figure that's mostly because most women aren't hard-wired to enjoy gaming as much as men.

Or are women actively being pushed out of the gaming community and I just haven't been exposed to this possibility?

Maybe I'm just being naive here and the gaming community at large is just a bunch of racist, bigot, homophobic jerks,but...are we really?

Really?

Patrick, you and I both know that appointment bookings at E3 happens as close to last minute as possible. PLENTY of time.

@InsidiousBliss: Happy belated birthday!

Finished the McPixel demo, I'm defnintely interested in playing the full thing when it comes out. 

@NoelVeiga: This final argument is really well put, thanks. Took the words right out of my mouth.

@algertman: You realize that he has been a judge for years at this point right?

The whole situation with that Tera game is pretty bizarre.

@Irishranger: You haven't been to game forums much have you? Racism and sexism is pretty pronounced.

That Journey Down game looks fantastic. Surprised I've never heard of it before. Definitely want to play that.

@DarkShaper said:

@algertman: You realize that he has been a judge for years at this point right?

You realize I was joking right?

@NoelVeiga:

I'm glad you're at least acknowledging that you are treating Brodehouse poorly in this discussion. Unfortunately, I think your willingness to be hateful is a horrible shame, as you both seem genuinely concerned about the problems inherent with inequality in the world. Yet, while he seems willing to discuss it and even listen or consider what you have to say, you have simply been resorting to attacking him and speaking with contempt. Such overzealousness can certainly feed your pride, but it won't change anything. As you said, the interest in acting like a brute to others who disagree with you is not around changing a mind; the interest is in crushing a person.

It reminds me of the Cold War. That concept of -crushing- apparent evil, not working to find some kind of understanding. It's an inherently militaristic idea. The black and white of good vs evil that leaves no room for there being goodness in that perceived evil. Multiple times, Brodehouse tried to find common ground with you, and you instead spit at his offerings of respect and consideration. That kind of response doesn't help end inequality. All it does is drive bigger and bigger wedges between people. It is the fallacy of a George Bush-ian kind of decision-making. You're either with us or you're against us. There's no room for peace; only, as you put it, a method of choosing to "very negatively shun them, insult them and ashame them until they piss their pants and, at the very least, feel enough pressure to keep their world view to themselves." Crush opposition with contempt, even if, in your own words, it is "probably not even their fault". That is the zealousness of inhumanity. The idea that someone is inherently broken beyond consideration, and the only way to deal with them is to get rid of them or beat them into silence.

Using this strategy of unrelenting contempt, someone might consider a man like Martin Luther King Jr. to have been meaningless. A do nothing. You mentioned a black individual sitting at the back of a bus. Was Rosa Parks wrong to speak out and protest nonviolently instead of joining a group like the Black Panthers who believed violence was the only solution? Silencing opposition isn't the way to change things. MLK Jr. did not stand by and say nothing simply because he did not treat white people with contempt and disrespect. He spoke out, and people absolutely can speak out on inequality without needing to crush anyone who isn't 100% with them. A man like Brodehouse wasn't even responding to you with animosity, nor much real disagreement. He simply disagreed on -how- to bring the change we want to see in the world. Yet you would turn away and mock a man simply because he doesn't currently agree with you on how to improve things. It is that kind of thinking which maintains war and division in this world. The idea that sometimes you just need to crush anyone in your way. Many people want the same things that you do, but people won't always agree. Yet, we can still work with them if you give them a chance. Defaulting to contempt, sarcasm, and personal attacks does nothing but make an enemy of a potential ally on issues that need all the support we can get.

Even through our many differences, there is so much people can work together on, and we should not allow pride or contempt to make it even harder than it has to be. I hope you will reconsider this course and respond with more consideration for others in the future. Thanks for hearing me out.

@TruthTellah:

I don't frequent a lot of forums, but even the few I do frequent are virtually bereft of discourse this quality. Thank you, very, very much for posting; your post speaks of humility in an age where pride as a virtue is entrenched in everything; would that more people would see disagreement as a learning opportunity, an opportunity for discussion, and an opportunity for growth instead of a personal attack requiring base responses and macho posturing in defense of their pride.

The Kill Screen article by Michael Thomsen was fantastic to read. Thank you, Patrick, for this lovely column; it has become the reason I keep coming back to Giant Bomb.

(I am jealous that you're already playing Dragon's Dogma; my copy arrives Tuesday.)

Still, I’m intrigued by Wii U, and even if the tablet proves nothing more than a clever gimmick for a few games made in-house at Nintendo, that’s enough for me.

Is it, though? Is it really?

You have to laugh at Jade Raymond.

"Like, Activision should make more meaningful games... " - Why doesn't she? Why doesn't she make a pop game that doesn't suck?

That Tera footage is creepy.

BUT HOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Certainly worth reading that was.

@Irishranger: I'm very glad you told me there is no racism and sexism in the gaming community except the racism sexism that we all know is there because that doesn't count.

Seriously, though, I think you misinterpret the point of the article. It's not about journalists chastising the gaming community for being sexist or racist, it's the gaming community taking the public space back from the racist and sexist shit that was making us look back. The racist, sexist minority is loud and the polite, nice majority is silent. That is changing now. That is a good thing. I understand how some of the larger group might feel chastised as well and think that journalists talking about it and throwing the baby with the bathwater, but that's not the case.

@coribald: It's an attempt to validate game journalism as journalism. It's a legitimate attempt. I'm more suspicious of the complaining about it. It sounds really hard like "why won't they let me be dumb or wrong by myself?" I mean, who gave them permission to have opinions and write those opinions in editorials in the middle of your continuous stream of PR-driven hype, right? You come to the press for dumb stuff and game announcements, not criticism.

Look, I appreciate the fear of change, but it's part of the medium maturing. Does that mean that it's not for you anymore? Maybe. But maybe that's not a bad thing. Maybe it's not worth having such a large medium with so much potential just for the kind of people that wouldn't want to read about social issues in gaming or about the deeper meaing of games or about the intricacies of game making behind the scenes.

Plus, and this part of the attitude I just don't get, why do people go "this is not about gaming" or "what's the point of this article"? It's the internet, it's not like somebody strapped you to a chair and forced you to listen to the same record for three hours. You chose to come here and to click on the article, which was clearly labelled as what it is. What sort of seft-righteous attitude makes people not just want the information they are seeking but also ensure that any other information is not even written? That's a weird attitude to have.

@TruthTellah: Ah, but Martin Luther King did not shrug the issue off and refuse to talk about it. I bet if you walked to him and asked him "Do white people have advantages in life that black people don't have?" he would have said "Fuck yeah they do".

Well, maybe he wouldn't have been a dick about it, but he would have said that is true. He may have been all for peaceful resistence (so am I), but he wasn't for inaction, was he? How have we gone from "talking and compaining is better than setting cars on fire" to "talking and complaining is too aggressive, we should just silently wish really hard for things to get better"? That's quite the leap.

Now, have I been a dick about it? Yeah. Sure. Why not. I'm a dick about many things. Sometimes a person stops me to ask for directions and I tell them I'm not from here even though I totally know where they want to go. Sue me. But tell you what, if a guy is bleeding out in front of me, I'll stop and help. Things have different degrees of importance, and this conversation changes nothing, so being a dick about it is firmly into the realm of acceptable things to do in my book. I'm not even trolling or insulting anybody. I'm just sounding kind of dickish in making the point that we should be dicks to assholes. I'd say that comparing that with Cold War may be a tiny bit of an exaggeration.

That Journey Down game has an AMAZING sound track. Visual Style looks great too.

@nesagwa: @NoelVeiga: Well, this has been fun. Just like every other discussion about race I've been in, I end up being the bad guy for being slightly optimistic and trying to point out that the actual racists are outnumbered and are the scumbags.

Oh, well, I guess someone else will have this exact conversation in thirty years time because we still won't have solved a damn thing.

Good luck to all!!

*got tired of "dryhumping music"*

E3 seems to come by quicker and quicker every year.

I'm stuck on the first real puzzle in Journey Down. Feels bad. 
 
edit: Great, I missed some pixels. Fucking pixelhunting...

Thanks! Interesting read.

@Brodehouse said:

@NoelVeiga: "Here's the tricky part, so pay attention"? Do you actually expect anyone to speak to you when you can't be bothered to show the simplest of respect? When you talk about 'online nastiness' you should reflect on your own behavior. And accusing me of being a bigot for not wanting to tell people they have it worse than me because they're not my race/sex/whatever? Too far.

The way you speak about your sisters, it fully brings into light what I was speaking about. Through no 'fault' of your own, you're better off because you're a man, men have it better than women, women have it worse (you're right, there is no transitive because there isn't a third comparison, it's simple greater than less than). Well I submit that it's that very thought that reinforces the inequalities of the world. Acknowledgement of inequality is the first step to moving to a new continuity, but those declarations (women struggle because they're women and that's how it is in this world) don't make anything better and in fact, makes it worse. I know it appears like that's the 'just' or 'fair' thing to do, to be empathetic, but it just roots us in the same inequality we've had.

It's not just the bigotry of assholes, it's this exact wretched pity that does nothing to help (and please don't explain how acknoweldging you have it better does not mean she has it worse, that's the only logical conclusion). I don't have sisters, but I have a girlfriend, and I don't think she's disadvantaged because of it, she shouldn't have to hear bigots telling her she's bad for being a woman just as she shouldn't hear people such as our article writer tell her that her sex is a cross she has to bear. She shouldn't feel like she's 'stuck in hard mode' and you shouldn't feel bad for her because she was born a woman. If I were to tell her that her life is worse because she's not a man, it is no different than the various forms of bigotry, and for the exact same reason; it distills all of her humanity down to her sex.It's no better when done with empathy than with hatred. Do you understand my point now? All this style of 'these people have it easy, these people have it hard' does is get us farther and farther from equality. Equality is the target we should be after, not emotional recompense for a trick of genetics.

It's strange that you would pin me with self-hatred and bigotry despite my entire point that no one, not you, not me, not your sisters, not any race, or sex, or orientation should feel bad because of how they were born. It may be a surprise, but as nice as it is to hear someone empathize and say 'you've been playing in hardcore mode', it only serves to reduce people down to the very base conditions we're trying to make irrelevant. I know it must seem like it's okay because it's supposed to convey some kind of 'respect' (the traditionally male contest of 'whose suffered the most') but it's not. Acknowledging the bigotry and problems in the world is good, but this kind of empathy does nothing positive. Do you understand where I'm coming from? Or are you just going to use more personal attacks and disrespect? Because I've tried so hard in this thread and it's completely disheartening to see you ignore my point in favor of 'an internet argument'. I don't care about it, I just want you to understand the point I'm making.

Wow, finally, someone got it right. Congrats! Honestly.

@Brodehouse: Being a minority might have a very few disadvantages, but because of people like the article's author, who think this way, being a minority has alot of major advantages. Companies look for minorities to "diversify," so it can be easier to get a job at times. There are tons of scholarships that are only for minorities/women. Plus minorities can pretty much say what they want without being called out as a racist. Seems the author has it wrong.

The guy in red is really happy to see the dude in the white coat (once you see it, you can't un-see it)

Anyone else feel like the Kill Screen Article (while very interesting and thought provoking) was a bunch of shit at some points, namely:

“In its purest form, play is a creative act negotiated between two people without intermediary. I am not playing when I'm interacting with a videogame, I'm accepting someone else's rules and experimenting with them, allowing the designer to delimit my instincts for behavior. Doing this with another person feels like a waste of time, an inherent loss of the generative possibilities of play without intermediary limits.”

Everything in life is limited by rules and this paragraph seems like he's trying to tout his opinion as fact. On top of that, I don't see how playing a game such as Portal 2 with a friend is limiting.

Other than that though, I can see why one would be worried about the "free-to-play" model becoming more and more popular, but I still feel like we have time before that will set in.

Good read.