Conveniente – Penny Arcade
June 9, 2023
That’s because even if you are playing all by yourself, alone, there is no single player mode because Diablo isn’t a single player game.
One of the reasons I continue to love Warframe is they have this thought out – If you’re in a story mission, or any game mode set to Solo for grouping, you can actually, honest-to-goodness, pause by opening the menu. As a grown up with things going on with kids, cooking, etc. this is an affordance I use quite often and I bless the devs at DE for it.
Private Security Raids YouTuber’s Home Because of Unboxing
April 25, 2023
Private Security Raids YouTuber’s Home Because of Unboxing:
Wizards asked to have him take the videos down (which he did), but it was far more than that. According to the video, the private security firm known worldwide as “the Pinkertons” showed up at his house early in the morning, talking about jail time and other consequences if he didn’t hand over the products.
Once they left, they gave him the number of someone to call at Wizards to talk about the situation. He said they were friendly and offered some free products (possibly) or ways to compensate for the money he lost. They said they needed the products to find out how they got sent out and to “fill the gaps.” Because of this, he’s asking everyone using his footage also to take down their videos.
here’s a chance they knew that if he bought them legally, there was actually nothing they could do about it. So it appears instead of going the legal route (which could also take some serious time), Wizards of the Coast hired a private security firm to go and get the products back ASAP. This is also scary because they found his address in a couple of days and knocked on his front door.
It’s not legal to go and take something from anyone (aKA stealing), and sending out one of the most infamous groups to do it seems almost unfathomable. Even if someone stole your property, you can’t just go into their home and take it back. From the outside looking in, Oldschoolmtg basically got his home invaded without a warrant to take something he paid for…
Four-titude – DORK TOWER 24.03.23 – Dork Tower
March 24, 2023
Four-titude – DORK TOWER 24.03.23 – Dork Tower:
This exactly sums up my feeling about GenCon now that I’ve been away so long…
Warframe: 10 Year Anniversary
March 22, 2023
Warframe: 10 Year Anniversary:
We’re kicking off Warframe’s 10 Year Anniversary, culminating this August when TennoCon returns to in-person celebrations in London, Ontario, Canada! Earn new and returning Rewards with 10 weeks’ worth of Anniversary Alerts and new in-game events while we reflect on Warframe’s most memorable milestones – and the amazing developments yet to come.
Warframe has been, hands down, the most influential game in my recent existence, with thousands of hours committed across multiple platforms even before Cross Play became an option.
There’s no way I can summarize how cool I think it is, how great the community is… And as part of the mobile play testing, how versatile it is. I hope more of you will join me there.
Beware the Gifts of Dragons: How D&D’s Open Gaming License May Have Become a Trap for Creators | Electronic Frontier Foundation
January 13, 2023
According to leaks reported last week, the company that owns Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) is planning to revoke the open license that has, since the year 2000, applied to a wide range of unofficial, commercial products that build on the mechanics of Dungeons and Dragons. The report indicates that this wouldn’t simply be a change going forward, but would affect existing works that relied on the license. The old license would be revoked for existing uses, and people who have used on it will be forced to adopt new terms or renegotiate with the company, Wizards of the Coast, a subsidiary of game giant Hasbro.
Obviously, this would be a rude and unfair thing to do to people who have accepted the invitation of the open gaming license (OGL) to create new games and stories that build upon Dungeons and Dragons. But would it be legal?
Even more interesting, would revoking the OGL actually give some third parties more freedom to operate, given that the OGL forced them to promise not to do some things that copyright and trademark law otherwise permit?
Year in Review: 20 Best Tabletop Roleplaying Games from 2022
December 27, 2022
Year in Review: 20 Best Tabletop Roleplaying Games from 2022:
It’s been an incredible year for tabletop roleplaying games, from both large publishers and indie outfits. Crowdfunding has firmly established itself in the ecosystem, and both small indie games and massive core rulebooks are making the most of the model.
I didn’t have space for all the incredible games that came out this year, but here, for your entertainment, in no particular order, are some of my favorite games of 2022.
-via Boing Boing
Diablo IV developers allege mismanagement, crunch and disturbing creative decisions in new report | Rock Paper Shotgun
December 8, 2022
Employees also spoke about the “disturbing” creative decisions by Sebastian Stępień, the former creative director on The Witcher 3 and head writer on Cyberpunk 2077, who became creative director on Diablo 4 in 2019. Stępień allegedly undertook a rewrite of Diablo 4’s entire script, creating what multiple employees called the “rape version” due to repeated references in the script to the rape of a love interest, and to the script referring “to this female character as the raped woman as her primary description,” according to the Washington Post.
Two employees also told The Post of a line in the script which read, “And then she was raped, brutally”, and that employees would repeat the punctuation out loud to each other, “comma, period – alarmed by the direction Stępień had gone with the script.”
Maybe it’s time to just let Blizzard burn.
What’s new in tabletop gaming | Boing Boing
August 16, 2022
What’s new in tabletop gaming | Boing Boing:
Dungeons & Dragons: Journeys Through The Radiant Citadel (Wizards of the Coast, $30)
If there’s one compelling reason to buy this book it’s because of the racist reactions it has inflamed. It was written by people of color (and marketed as such). And it contains cultures and ideas not commonly found in Western fantasy literature and games like D&D. So, of course, that’s enraged snowflakey conservative players. I, for one, embrace our inclusive gaming future and especially appreciate the introduction of different cultures and mythologies to the game. The adventures in this anthology draw from Asian, African, Native American, Arab, Hindu influences. But, all great intentions aside, buying the book wouldn’t be more than a vote for greater inclusiveness if the content wasn’t good. It is. It all hangs around the Radiant Citadel, a hub-world on the ethereal plane that’s a crossroads and melting pot for diverse cultures from throughout the multiverse. It acts as a jumping off point for the other adventures in the book. There are 13 adventures in all, for levels 1-14, that are designed to be dropped into any adventure, or as a campaign setting. “From glittering night markets to undersea cities, from curse-afflicted villages to angel-ruled city-states—each adventure in this anthology takes inspiration from the writer’s personal connection to real-world mythologies and cultures, creating a rich tapestry of never-before-seen lands and stories for you to explore.” I haven’t played any of it, but reading through the handsome book, it’s definitely an excellent anthology and collection of usable content worthy of your support. And, for every copy sold, a Proud Boy gamer fails all of his saving throws.
Good enough reason for me!
Really – I haven’t delved into D&D at all during it’s recent revival, or any tabletop gaming really given the whole
GLOBAL PANDEMIC
but Wizards seems to be holding a cultural stride that I can’t help but love.
Nova Open Infuriates Hobbyists With Their Policies
August 9, 2022
Nova Open Infuriates Hobbyists With Their Policies:
tl;dr – Nova Open cares about it’s attendees more than the venue, and some people are really angry about it.
Pocket Realities 