I've known that Elevations is a dickwad for a very long time. He's a whiny crybaby that DDOS attacks small private servers because people won't play his shitty version of the game.
I've also warned people on many occasions not to download anything that Elevations has touched. If Sausage's code is historically AIDS (though he's cleaned up in the past few years) then Elevations is AIDSx1000 with no hope of a cure.
Don't download his shit. Don't play fallen-evolution. And if you ever run into him in real life (unlikely since he never leaves his mom's basement) then kick him in the shins and say Wikky says fuck you.
And for your reference:
Monday 29 September 2014
Thursday 25 September 2014
Wednesday 24 September 2014
Tuesday 23 September 2014
Monday 22 September 2014
Tuesday 16 September 2014
It's been a few days...
Real life trumps e-life every day of the week. That is a good life maxim. So this past weekend I had a pretty good time. Caught a concert. Drank some very fine wine. Laid down some sick bass riffs. All in all I got a chance to relax.
It's good to relax like that. Get away from the grind especially when your work is consistently calling on you to be creative.
I've worked at a ton of different jobs. I've done service, office, labor, management, executive level leadership. All of them have their joys and concerns. The hardest and most rewarding job is the one that I'm doing right now.
Writing seems like an easy thing. It is insanely hard because you are constantly tasked with being creative. You are taxing your brain constantly in the generative effort of new thought. I'm not complaining - just descriptive of the work.
Then you have to go back and edit (which is why I love blogging so much - because it tends to be stream of thought for me and one takes often generate more ideas that I can translate into my work life)..
All of this is mentally taxing. This is why time off is so important for the writer. To go and do something different, new, uplifting, inspiring, embarrassing, legendary...so that your brain taps into new sources of experience and somehow turns them into something worthwhile and awesome.
Or at least passable enough to get past your editor's desk!
So it was a good weekend. YouTube is being all "read-only" bitchy right now so I'll have a Minecraft video up at some point. I'll do a Bones one when I'm up to it. I'm still waffling on Sims4.
Also - I will have some song vids up soon. I just haven't felt inspired to record much. I'm sure I'll get a rainy day somewhere.
Have a good one.
Wikky.
It's good to relax like that. Get away from the grind especially when your work is consistently calling on you to be creative.
I've worked at a ton of different jobs. I've done service, office, labor, management, executive level leadership. All of them have their joys and concerns. The hardest and most rewarding job is the one that I'm doing right now.
Writing seems like an easy thing. It is insanely hard because you are constantly tasked with being creative. You are taxing your brain constantly in the generative effort of new thought. I'm not complaining - just descriptive of the work.
Then you have to go back and edit (which is why I love blogging so much - because it tends to be stream of thought for me and one takes often generate more ideas that I can translate into my work life)..
All of this is mentally taxing. This is why time off is so important for the writer. To go and do something different, new, uplifting, inspiring, embarrassing, legendary...so that your brain taps into new sources of experience and somehow turns them into something worthwhile and awesome.
Or at least passable enough to get past your editor's desk!
So it was a good weekend. YouTube is being all "read-only" bitchy right now so I'll have a Minecraft video up at some point. I'll do a Bones one when I'm up to it. I'm still waffling on Sims4.
Also - I will have some song vids up soon. I just haven't felt inspired to record much. I'm sure I'll get a rainy day somewhere.
Have a good one.
Wikky.
Friday 12 September 2014
Thursday 11 September 2014
Microsoft to buy Minecraft for 2 Billion Dollars
Just typing the headline made me point up my pinkie finger and do a Doctor Evil pose. 2 billion dollars is an incredible amount of money and I'm sure that Notch never in his wildest dreams ever considered it a possibility for his life.
But to put it in perspective that turns out to be about 37 dollars per user. I've already paid $27 for my copy. I have a Minecraft poster on my wall that cost 10 bucks. I'm in the market for a new laptop that will have to have a dedicated processor and will come with a copy of Windows 8 on it all because I want to play Minecraft on it.
And! The Little Wikkies all are starting to want it so I'll have to buy an Xbox, and a copy, and subscribe to the online shit.
By the time my Minecraft adventure is done I'll have spent a few thousand on the game. At $37 that's a pretty good return on investment.
Of course, this announcement will break the internet. Or perhaps it would have a couple of years ago.
Microsoft isn't the evil empire it used to be. That's Apple and Facebook now. Most of us (with the exception of those Linux nerds who spend too much time getting Ubuntu to run on their toaster to matter) recognize that Zuckerberg is the antichrist and that Apple would make us buy it on iTunes and squelch any independent development.
And Mojang isn't the little indie darling it used to be. It's worth 2 billion dollars. The game has become bigger than Notch, the company, or it's free spirited ideals. Quite frankly Minecraft is too big for Mojang. If it remained there it would probably die a horrible death from a lack of corporate infrastructure.
Today it's good news. Microsoft is already invested in Minecraft through the Xbox platform. They have teams of programmers and engineers they can put on the team to deal with those performance glitches and bloated engine that Notch developed. We're going to see faster updates, more features, different game modes, and a solid marketing team that will ensure that Minecraft will be with us for a long time.
There are fears and concerns: will it lose its indie feel and flavor if Microsoft gets its hands on it. Will we have to shell out for Minecraft 2 as Microsoft finds ways to further monetize the property (thanks EA for the shitty Sims business model). Will Minecraft continue on in perpetuity with the single lifetime payment that we made to Mojang being honored (class action anyone?). Will private servers still be a thing?
Will they let Bukkit and independent modders continue to do their thing or will that aspect of the game that made it popular die out. Or, perhaps, will it open up opportunities for those modders to work for Microsoft and get paid for the good work they do.
Lot's of questions. It's easy to get emotional on the issue. Our game is getting bought out by the man. But in the end it's a good thing because it means that Minecraft is going to go on for a long time.
But to put it in perspective that turns out to be about 37 dollars per user. I've already paid $27 for my copy. I have a Minecraft poster on my wall that cost 10 bucks. I'm in the market for a new laptop that will have to have a dedicated processor and will come with a copy of Windows 8 on it all because I want to play Minecraft on it.
And! The Little Wikkies all are starting to want it so I'll have to buy an Xbox, and a copy, and subscribe to the online shit.
By the time my Minecraft adventure is done I'll have spent a few thousand on the game. At $37 that's a pretty good return on investment.
Microsoft isn't the evil empire it used to be. That's Apple and Facebook now. Most of us (with the exception of those Linux nerds who spend too much time getting Ubuntu to run on their toaster to matter) recognize that Zuckerberg is the antichrist and that Apple would make us buy it on iTunes and squelch any independent development.
And Mojang isn't the little indie darling it used to be. It's worth 2 billion dollars. The game has become bigger than Notch, the company, or it's free spirited ideals. Quite frankly Minecraft is too big for Mojang. If it remained there it would probably die a horrible death from a lack of corporate infrastructure.
Today it's good news. Microsoft is already invested in Minecraft through the Xbox platform. They have teams of programmers and engineers they can put on the team to deal with those performance glitches and bloated engine that Notch developed. We're going to see faster updates, more features, different game modes, and a solid marketing team that will ensure that Minecraft will be with us for a long time.
There are fears and concerns: will it lose its indie feel and flavor if Microsoft gets its hands on it. Will we have to shell out for Minecraft 2 as Microsoft finds ways to further monetize the property (thanks EA for the shitty Sims business model). Will Minecraft continue on in perpetuity with the single lifetime payment that we made to Mojang being honored (class action anyone?). Will private servers still be a thing?
Will they let Bukkit and independent modders continue to do their thing or will that aspect of the game that made it popular die out. Or, perhaps, will it open up opportunities for those modders to work for Microsoft and get paid for the good work they do.
Lot's of questions. It's easy to get emotional on the issue. Our game is getting bought out by the man. But in the end it's a good thing because it means that Minecraft is going to go on for a long time.
Wednesday 10 September 2014
Wikky PWNS at Bones (Episode 6)
Let's expand on some chatter - you'll hear in my video the complaint that I would offer for most independent MMORPGs. A lot of energy is often devoted to game engine and mechanics which is significant in terms of game development.
Graphics, mapping and sound are a major part of the process as your artists are feeding of the energy of creating new and wonderful things for the world to appreciate and this is important too.
What often gets lost in game development is the importance of good writing. This is the thing that separates good games from everything else. We tend to think: throw down a few maps, let people run around, and the game will succeed.
They won't. The failure of most games comes in the lack of dedication to telling a good story. MMOs are more than just games - they are narrative, storytelling, art. What you're trying to do is immerse a whole bunch of people in the grand drama that you're trying to tell. You want them to find their place within the story and the community.
To do this you create narrative arcs. You don't have to have one stream for every player (in an RPG that's okay but in an MMO it's bad). You have to write out the story you want to tell and then give players the opportunity to be overwhelmed by it.
Bones drops you in a bunch of maps and the story is meta. Kayfabe breaking. There is no fourth wall. The story is how I have more stuff than you. How I'm better at vidya games.
Timmy's in the well - but I don't care. All I care about is the reward at the end to put on my paperdoll.
If BU is going to be amazing: make me care about Timmy. Not about how I can't find Timmy. Not about getting lost in a clusterfuck of maps that serve too many purposes so I decide to forget Timmy.
Tell the story of Timmy - and then let me find myself in it.
Then you map.
Graphics, mapping and sound are a major part of the process as your artists are feeding of the energy of creating new and wonderful things for the world to appreciate and this is important too.
What often gets lost in game development is the importance of good writing. This is the thing that separates good games from everything else. We tend to think: throw down a few maps, let people run around, and the game will succeed.
They won't. The failure of most games comes in the lack of dedication to telling a good story. MMOs are more than just games - they are narrative, storytelling, art. What you're trying to do is immerse a whole bunch of people in the grand drama that you're trying to tell. You want them to find their place within the story and the community.
To do this you create narrative arcs. You don't have to have one stream for every player (in an RPG that's okay but in an MMO it's bad). You have to write out the story you want to tell and then give players the opportunity to be overwhelmed by it.
Bones drops you in a bunch of maps and the story is meta. Kayfabe breaking. There is no fourth wall. The story is how I have more stuff than you. How I'm better at vidya games.
Timmy's in the well - but I don't care. All I care about is the reward at the end to put on my paperdoll.
If BU is going to be amazing: make me care about Timmy. Not about how I can't find Timmy. Not about getting lost in a clusterfuck of maps that serve too many purposes so I decide to forget Timmy.
Tell the story of Timmy - and then let me find myself in it.
Then you map.
Sunday 7 September 2014
Bless you if you got here through the Treos.org story thread.
The forums are, obviously, back up. Thanks Luke for spending your valuable time keeping us together.
I've got new episodes of Minecraft and Bones uploading. The higher level recordings begin tomorrow for Bones so there's that to look forward to.
Just check the twitter or the facebook and you'll find links for today's episodes. I'm uploading them and going to bed rather than waiting to post them here. If you really want them here - on the blog - on demand. Simply click the series you want to watch up top and then click on the latest episode in the playlist. You can also watch all my back episodes there too.
Have a great night and a pleasant tomorrow.
I've got new episodes of Minecraft and Bones uploading. The higher level recordings begin tomorrow for Bones so there's that to look forward to.
Just check the twitter or the facebook and you'll find links for today's episodes. I'm uploading them and going to bed rather than waiting to post them here. If you really want them here - on the blog - on demand. Simply click the series you want to watch up top and then click on the latest episode in the playlist. You can also watch all my back episodes there too.
Have a great night and a pleasant tomorrow.
Saturday 6 September 2014
TREOS.ORG is experiencing technical difficulties
So it seems. I'm not sure if anyone else is having issues connecting with the forums but I've been timing out for the last little while.
All is not lost as I'm sure Lucian will have everything up and running when it's possible. If you are in need of some instant gratification you can always use the comments section below for some quick and dirty conversation.
Or the tweets.
Or the Facebook.
I'll have a new Bones-Underground video uploaded in the next hour and episode 23 of Wikky Island. I'll add them to this post as they come online.
MORE FROM ME.
I had a couple of hours to kill from an unexpected change in my schedule so I got to playing around. You'll notice in the videos that the quality of video is not particularly awesome. I've been using Debut Video Capture for years and while it's been sufficient it hasn't been amazing.
No longer.I just picked up some new software to capture with. It gives me outstanding capture quality recording directly from the window and much better sound capability. The sound is going to be huge - instead of recording everything through the speakers I'll be able to patch game sounds directly into the video and voice-over synching should be spot on.
On top of that if I ever decide to do twitch.tv play (like when the lads get their minecraft server started) I'll be able to stream direct. Awesomesauce.
It's going to take a few episodes to kick in and you'll notice the difference when it happens (Bones will be first because I've only got one more episode recorded in advance. It'll be Thursday for Wikky Beach because I had a marathon session that had a lot going on.)
So enjoy.
All is not lost as I'm sure Lucian will have everything up and running when it's possible. If you are in need of some instant gratification you can always use the comments section below for some quick and dirty conversation.
Or the tweets.
Or the Facebook.
I'll have a new Bones-Underground video uploaded in the next hour and episode 23 of Wikky Island. I'll add them to this post as they come online.
MORE FROM ME.
I had a couple of hours to kill from an unexpected change in my schedule so I got to playing around. You'll notice in the videos that the quality of video is not particularly awesome. I've been using Debut Video Capture for years and while it's been sufficient it hasn't been amazing.
No longer.I just picked up some new software to capture with. It gives me outstanding capture quality recording directly from the window and much better sound capability. The sound is going to be huge - instead of recording everything through the speakers I'll be able to patch game sounds directly into the video and voice-over synching should be spot on.
On top of that if I ever decide to do twitch.tv play (like when the lads get their minecraft server started) I'll be able to stream direct. Awesomesauce.
It's going to take a few episodes to kick in and you'll notice the difference when it happens (Bones will be first because I've only got one more episode recorded in advance. It'll be Thursday for Wikky Beach because I had a marathon session that had a lot going on.)
So enjoy.
Friday 5 September 2014
Wikky PWNS at Bones
I finally got around to checking out Bones-Underground (AFTER ALL THESE YEARS). I was just going to play it - and then I got it into my head - why don't I record it?
So I did.
Now I have two Let's Play series on the go between Wikky Island and Bones-Underground. More of my dulcet tones to soothe your stressed out soul.
If you haven't played BU then join in. http://www.bones-underground.org and the link will always be on the private server page (above).
Hope to see you there.
W.
So I did.
Now I have two Let's Play series on the go between Wikky Island and Bones-Underground. More of my dulcet tones to soothe your stressed out soul.
If you haven't played BU then join in. http://www.bones-underground.org and the link will always be on the private server page (above).
Hope to see you there.
W.
Wednesday 3 September 2014
The Responsibility of Intellect
Feeling Zen today. Pardon me while I knock on the sky and listen for the sound.
I'm a smart guy. IQ in the mid-150s. A few quality sheepskins on the wall. A long and profitable real life career based on the fruits of a laborious mind. I don't say any of this to brag. It just is.
What I have learned along the way is that even though I am statistically likely to be smarter than 99% of the people in any room I walk into I am no better than anyone else there. I am not intellectual royalty. The ignorant plebeians should not be required to bow down in fealty to me, their omniscient feudal lord.
They say that I am a genius by rote measure.
Genius is a term concocted by modernists hoping to categorize and prioritize some to the exclusion of others. It is not a reason to lash out with the whip of the tongue against those who can't comprehend 14 dimensional space.
I have learned this and as with much wisdom I have learned it the hard way.
The whip serves as an instrument of fear against those who have already succumbed to it. To those who feel inferior, dumb, or stupid it simply reinforces a conditioned response. Shy away and resent the wielder.
This creates a three-fold response. The resentment is then often transferred either to the less powerful creating regimes, castes, and systems of further oppression or it is transferred to the fruits of intellect itself thus creating ignorance and fundamentalism.
Or...and we'll come to this in a moment...rebellion.
White towers. Intellectual elitism. These are our residences or our prisons. Take your pick. We create them for ourselves each time we look down an artificial distance created to impress upon our fragile egos a sense of superiority.
The truth is that we're just clamoring along the same rock everyone else is hoping for the light of the sun to rise on us each morning.
What do I know? A little more trivia to make me sound interesting? How to game the economic system we've created for ourselves to have a nicer car? The easiest way to manipulate people into my bed?
I know these things.
There is so much that I don't know.
That is the deepest, darkest secret of genius. As smart as we are: we aren't that smart.
But we'll crack the whip as long as it works. We'll look down on the bullies and the fundamentalists with disdain and convert the world to our own system of oppression and our fundamentalism of the mind.
Until someone grabs a rock and realizes that it's stronger than the whip.
Rebellion.
That is the way of the world as we jockey for power and turn our gifts towards selfish gain. The mind. The arm. The struggle for dominance.
The pendulum swings.
I have learned this.
I have also learned to serve. This is the true calling of the mind and of the arm. Not to bow in fear to one another but to honour with hospitality.
When a person willingly sets aside their need to dominate and embraces the good of another. When a person takes the gift of intellect and combines it with the strength of the hand in mutual submission. When I walk into a room and realize the diversity of talents and experiences in the other 99% of the other brilliant and amazing people there.
Then amazing, beautiful, marvelous, world-changing, life-giving, wonderful and magical things can happen.
I have learned this: set aside the whip and embrace the hand of others. It is better to walk together than to shake your fist in rage when the rebellion passes you by.
This is the responsibility of intellect.
I'm a smart guy. IQ in the mid-150s. A few quality sheepskins on the wall. A long and profitable real life career based on the fruits of a laborious mind. I don't say any of this to brag. It just is.
What I have learned along the way is that even though I am statistically likely to be smarter than 99% of the people in any room I walk into I am no better than anyone else there. I am not intellectual royalty. The ignorant plebeians should not be required to bow down in fealty to me, their omniscient feudal lord.
They say that I am a genius by rote measure.
Genius is a term concocted by modernists hoping to categorize and prioritize some to the exclusion of others. It is not a reason to lash out with the whip of the tongue against those who can't comprehend 14 dimensional space.
I have learned this and as with much wisdom I have learned it the hard way.
The whip serves as an instrument of fear against those who have already succumbed to it. To those who feel inferior, dumb, or stupid it simply reinforces a conditioned response. Shy away and resent the wielder.
This creates a three-fold response. The resentment is then often transferred either to the less powerful creating regimes, castes, and systems of further oppression or it is transferred to the fruits of intellect itself thus creating ignorance and fundamentalism.
Or...and we'll come to this in a moment...rebellion.
White towers. Intellectual elitism. These are our residences or our prisons. Take your pick. We create them for ourselves each time we look down an artificial distance created to impress upon our fragile egos a sense of superiority.
The truth is that we're just clamoring along the same rock everyone else is hoping for the light of the sun to rise on us each morning.
What do I know? A little more trivia to make me sound interesting? How to game the economic system we've created for ourselves to have a nicer car? The easiest way to manipulate people into my bed?
I know these things.
There is so much that I don't know.
That is the deepest, darkest secret of genius. As smart as we are: we aren't that smart.
But we'll crack the whip as long as it works. We'll look down on the bullies and the fundamentalists with disdain and convert the world to our own system of oppression and our fundamentalism of the mind.
Until someone grabs a rock and realizes that it's stronger than the whip.
Rebellion.
That is the way of the world as we jockey for power and turn our gifts towards selfish gain. The mind. The arm. The struggle for dominance.
The pendulum swings.
I have learned this.
I have also learned to serve. This is the true calling of the mind and of the arm. Not to bow in fear to one another but to honour with hospitality.
When a person willingly sets aside their need to dominate and embraces the good of another. When a person takes the gift of intellect and combines it with the strength of the hand in mutual submission. When I walk into a room and realize the diversity of talents and experiences in the other 99% of the other brilliant and amazing people there.
Then amazing, beautiful, marvelous, world-changing, life-giving, wonderful and magical things can happen.
I have learned this: set aside the whip and embrace the hand of others. It is better to walk together than to shake your fist in rage when the rebellion passes you by.
This is the responsibility of intellect.
Tuesday 2 September 2014
Episode 21 is Online
Took a quick trip to the ocean for a few days. Always good to find an excuse for surf and sun. Flight was, well, a flight - but the view was spectacular.
By the way - TREOS folks who are wondering why you should consider University or College - later in life when the money you make far exceeds what you would have without a degree: you can fly to the ocean for a few days.
Or you can get high now.
Whatevs.
Anyways - Episode 21 is up. Hope you're enjoying. In the comments if you feel like chatting: should you go to college?
W.
By the way - TREOS folks who are wondering why you should consider University or College - later in life when the money you make far exceeds what you would have without a degree: you can fly to the ocean for a few days.
Or you can get high now.
Whatevs.
Anyways - Episode 21 is up. Hope you're enjoying. In the comments if you feel like chatting: should you go to college?
W.
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