Ah yes the four Beatles

They're also a really useful metaphor in all sorts of situations. Like when I talk about how games don't need to be perfect to get a 10/10 (or whatever) score I say 'instead of thinking of scoring systems like a line where it stops at 10 think of it as a set of buckets'

I've been listening all week. But now it's out 'properly' and I think it's a really remarkable and strange and old and new and trippy and rewarding album. youtube.com/playlist?lis...

You know a game I think people interested in stories should play? Return to Monkey Island. After playing the first few games, of course. I think it's a wonderful exploration of who 'owns' stories, what that means, and whether 'canon' is a thing that is worth spending a lot of time fretting over.

Frank Zappa said that "writing about music is like dancing about architecture" and I always found that to be an odd thing for him to say. Of all people he should understand that while it might be hard to dance about architecture, it's worth a go and you might find something in the attempt.

One of today's tasks is to listen to the finished 'best of' soundtrack for the Double Fine box set. Although it's a pretty generous 4CD set it was hard to cut some of these soundtracks down to fit. But it's a mostly pleasurable task. Game music has always been a big deal to me.

Nice to read about Tim Smith in the booklet of the new Cardiacs album. Because of just how in his own musical world he was and how specific his ideas were you'd sort of worry that he'd come off insulated or aloof but it really sounds like he had so much time for other people and their ideas.

Tell me about a weird thing that brings you joy

I have a two word reply to anyone who wants to implement any trans exclusionary policies in any space I frequent

In my ongoing quest to focus on the things, people and communities which generate joy I just attended the listening party of new-old Cardiacs album, LSD, and it was spectacular, and absolute nonsense

I made a Hard Difficulty Mode Cardiacs playlist. I think actually a lot of these songs are pretty approachable, but I definitely think they're on the 'oh god what is going on' end of the Cardiacs spectrum. www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDV-...

I wanna try to sort out my feelings about Silksong. So, lunchbreak. Why do I like it but not love it?

A while ago, we posted a survey asking fans about the first 25 years of Double Fine. The responses were so interesting that we asked @kestrelpi.bsky.social to blog about it and share the data! Which era of @timoflegend.bsky.social's beard emerged victorious? 🧔🏻 www.doublefine.com/news/25-year...

There's no political blunder too basic for our wonder boy Starmer to avoid, is there?

Hippopoctopus

Never became as popular as "ET Phone Home" did it

OK here's my playlist of Easy Cardiacs. Beginner mode. 10 songs that are only a bit weird. Sound normal-ish within a reasonable margin of error. www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwD5...

I sort of want to make a series of Cardiacs playlists organised by difficulty

This won't work. If you make crime illegal the only people who do crime will be criminals.

If we're doing difficulty discourse again then I feel somewhat qualified to comment as someone who bounced off Souls games many times but has finished Elden Ring (and nightreign) this year and has previously finished Hollow Knight and is currently in the midst of Silksong...

Silksong has occasionally been juuuuust on the wrong side of demanding too much precision from me. Precision isn't a thing I'm interested in, generally. I've been playing a few days now and today I broke through a part giving me trouble, but my goal is usually to end a session excited to play more.

I will watch these for as long as they keep making them

The plural of needle is needles The plural of needles is needless

what would jesus do in the shadows is that anything

Tommy Lee Jones in The Fugitive saying "I don't care" dot gif

The longest palindrome I ever wrote that sort of makes sense is: "Revel at a mist? Never ever! I revere vents - I'm at a lever."

Silksong so far: hmmmm hmm hmm. I'm enjoying it, but this diagonal dive thing it really wants me to get very precise at is gonna make me angry, I can tell

Funniest ad I have ever seen

Question to Zach Polanski at the leadership announcement: "Q: How can you take on Nigel Farage when your policy on immigration is so different?" Everything wrong with British politics and media summed up so succinctly in a single absolutely unhinged question.

One way of thinking about difficulty in games, a way that I struggle with, is more difficult = the game gets close to requiring perfect execution from you. I find that kind of difficulty personally a little boring most of the time.

Okay but how do you not call this 'Par for the Corpse'

Linehan is somethin', huh? I mean we knew he was a piece of shit but you have to be on a whole different level to be so transphobic you get arrested for it in the UK in 2025. If only that kind of energy could be harnessed as a cheap, renewable fuel source.

My Steam account is old enough to vote, and neither of us are voting Labour ever again

Right about now The funk soul brother Check it out now The funk soul brother Any second now The funk soul brother With you in just a moment The funk soul brother Terribly sorry about this The funk soul brother Your call is extremely important to us The funk soul brother

Hmm, interesting, yes... though if I may make just one point

Nightreign is Good Actually. I'm not enough of a sicko to play single player for anything more than practice but I've been doing a lot of duos and they're definitely onto something

I want to explain a few things and then it might be clearer why UK trans people are upset. In 2001 I married my wife, Sylvia. In 2005 I started medical transition. (1/13)

Whoever gets this job will be working with me a lot so get this job and work with me a lot?

My job has become very varied in a way that I really do thrive on because it's sameness that kills me, but also I now sometimes look back at the range of things I did during a work day and think "that is ridiculous you are a ridiculous person"

Whoever gets this job will be working with me a lot so get this job and work with me a lot?

Nightreign, which I've wanted to play since getting into Elden Ring is sort of like 'What if Elden Ring was like Supermarket Sweep?' Everything is fast, often comically so. Need to get down that cliff? Just jump, don't worry about it. Campfire? Just run by it. Button mash if you need to level.

she'll tease you, she'll unease you All the better just to please you She's precocious and she knows just what it takes to make a pro blush "Okay but should we give her the job?"

I think the worst kind of clickbait is the ones that are like "You've been wearing shoes wrong" because all the make me think is a) no I haven't and b) even if I have that ship has sailed

I beat Elden Ring and have complicated feelings about Souls games still. This is the first one ever where I've wanted to see it through, but damn there were still a lot of moments where I wasn't sure about that.

drew the lord of the ring

"butt naked" is one of my favourites of what Dave Gorman would call "cat phrases" Like "I'm naked but also I want to emphasise that you can see my butt"

The Warhammer Dawn of War trailer said "Whilst even one of us lives, we fight." I heard: "While Steven Oneofus lives, we fight."

I look a bit younger than I am and occasionally someone will ask me what my secret is and usually I just sort of shrug and mumble I don't know just lucky I s'pose. Next time I should give them a wary look, say "...Nothing. There's no secret. Don't worry," then glance furtively at my closet door.

Anyone remember Geri Halliwell's subtle union jack dress?