Delicious LiveJournal Links for 7-29-2008

[andrewducker]

• The origins of Superman's enemies, told as if they were Little Nemo stories
  Absolutely delightful
  (tags: comic illustration superman)
• How the pro-lifers clinched the SNPs Glasgow Victory
  Meanwhile, Lord Alton of Liverpool said: "Not everyone who voted for John Mason in Glasgow East did so because of the HF and E Bill but, with a majority of just over 300, pro-life votes were the ones that made the difference."
  (tags: rights politics scotland)
• Back to the Grind in WoW & and Loving Every Tedious Minute
  A theory on why MMO players grind - it's because it gives them predictable results for their effort - unlike every other part of life.
  (tags: games psychology)
• Why Monetizing Social Media Through Advertising Is Doomed To Failure
  Fascinating trilogy of essays.
  (tags: advertising business dreamwidth economics internet livejournal)
• CGI furnishes filmstar with fur
  Film fans are reeling from the latest Sienna Miller outrage, as studio sources reveal that technical wizardry is bestowing upon the actress a CGI-merkin.
  (tags: funny movies)
• Neil Gaiman's Journal - After Clarion
  QOTD: I just called my Visa card to fix something, and found myself being asked if I was the Neil Gaiman. I said yes, I was. "So," said the Visa person, "Are you going to be writing an episode of Dr Who?"
  (tags: NeilGaiman DrWho Batman)
• On swear words and their usage in popular culture
  Very, very funny. And with a damn good point at the end too.
  (tags: swearing language comics)
• Blood Bowl - the computer game
  If you were a teenager during the late eighties or early nineties then this will make you very happy.
  (tags: gaming computer_games BloodBowl)

Comments

[cairmen.livejournal.com]

Predictable results - yep, absolutely. I've described part of WoW's interest for a while now as an "achievement simulator".

[khbrown.livejournal.com]

On the grinding thing, I said something similar a couple of months back when Cairmen posted about WoW.

The article also provides me with a clue as to why I've never been interested in these games compared to traditional roleplaying:

"There are several obvious explanations for why we grind. Partly, we know that the game gets interesting only once you're powerful enough to fight the bad-ass monsters. We'll endure whatever hazing necessary to get there."

Wherea a good traditional RPG experience can be had with low level / powered characters who can have to think with their wits and play to their strengths rather than being gung-ho. (Is there any online game like Cthulhu, where the players have to play more intelligently BTW?)

[andrewducker]

That would require computers to manage decent plots, which is pretty much unheard of.

[khbrown.livejournal.com]

In one way yes, but we're also often told that a structual analysis of most nonselfconscious narratives suggests there are a fairly limited set of functions and permutations, such that these could be pseudo-randomly combined to create 'correct' fictions. Maybe the devil is in the details?

[andrewducker]

It is indeed - as you'll know from watching films, the basic plot can be almost irrelevant - it's how the tale is told that keeps the viewer enthralled.

[khbrown.livejournal.com]

On the by-election: perhaps the difference between these anti-abortion, anti-feminist types and other swing votes is that they are more organised and / or vociferous. Those who are against ID cards or the recent legislation on extreme porn might also have 300 committed voters, for instance, but maybe don't get the same publicity / have the same media savvy / sympathetic faces? Maybe those who are pro-choice and pro-women need to be more active, less passive?

I feel like saying "life is a privilege, not a right," but that might make me seem a fascist...

Now going to don flameproof clothing...