Blake ([info]greypaw) wrote,
@ 2008-03-17 17:59:00
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Current mood: hungry
Current music:Alexander Brandon - Conspiravision

NO! WE'RE OUTTA BEAR CLAWS!
This morning, I started thinking about an old collection of short stories that I read when I was much, much younger, around the 2nd and 3rd grade or so. The anthology revolved around lycanthropy and was aptly (and simply) titled "Werewolves". The stories ranged from the dull to the interesting, and on several occasions in my life, I've attempted to track down said anthology, but to no avail: Either it's out of print (which is entirely possible given the age and deterioration of the copy I had read) or the information I recall was too vague to go off of. That said, I DO remember, in some detail, several of the stories, which I may brain-transcribe and post on here, once every so often. Four of them stick out clearly in my mind, and I'll try and reproduce them as accurately as possible. Of course, I'll be relating the stories as a third-person storyteller describing a sequence of events, and so I may lack the finer details (names, physical descriptions, etc.). What I can remember, I will reproduce, if anyone is interested.

I'm working on updating all my comic archives so I can burn that whole folder and (hopefully) free up another few gigs. I just got all the updates for Naruto since The Pirate Bay stopped putting the files up for whatever reason. The ones I'd been missing encompassed the final Sasuke vs. Itatchi fight and all I can say is, that's going to be awesome when they animate it...

This was on 60 minutes, and was pretty cool: A documentary about an individual who has PERFECT memory recall of his past. This is one of two guys that was featured on 60 Minutes: They remember each and every day of their lives perfectly. So far, they haven't posted a release date on the film, but it's currently in production.

I'm pretty jazzed up about my wizard for Pat's game. This second incarnation is much better than the first one I'd come up with we had that level drop at the last minute (resulting in the character being scrapped), and has quite a few handy tricks up his sleeve. He even is starting to get a personality, though I dunno how long he'll exist to develop it... If we have a delay on Thursday (for Bri to make a character or what have you), I'd like to RP an encounter to get at least one servant before the campaign technically "starts", and power-level him up to at least 6th or 7th level. I can always improvise as we go along, but I'd just as soon do it beforehand to save a lot of in-game hassle.

I'm also puttering along on my own campaign that I can run whenever Pat ends his, though it'll take me a little while to get all the monsters and whatnot done.

EDIT: Some new stuff. Apparently Cable & Deadpool is officially over as of issue 50 (this month). Cable will be returning to his own Cable comics, and Deadpool will be returning this summer in Marvel Comics Presents: Deadpool. HAIL HYDRA!

Also, apparently there will be a crossover between The Authority and Teen Titans? It was previewed in issue 5 of Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash, and the sub-series is being called Dreamwar: A crossover between the DC and Wildstorm universes. Here's an article about it. Dunno when it's coming out, though.

Meghann wanted anyone willing to raise awareness about this to do so: A film adaptation of Myst in the works. Here's an article and a blog dealing with the film's progress. I only ever played (seriously) the first game, and even that I beat with the help of a walkthrough book. I played the ridiculous 5-disk set that was Riven, and I blame that game (and others like it) for making me wary of puzzle games. That said, the books weren't bad (I've got the first three, only two of which I've read, and a long time ago at that). The back plot/setting is pretty cool: A lost civilization of people who could create and seal away entire worlds in books through ancient wordcraft. I remember the first book or two made me glee with fantasy joy. I might go back and read those again some time soon...

Alley just faceplanted into my knee after she fell asleep trying to keep her head up. :( Poor little angel.

timeline13



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[info]tenieldjo
2008-03-18 12:18 am UTC (link)
:D I remember when I was in Kindergarten, my two favorite books were Adalaide and Stellaluna. The former was about a flying kangaroo, and the latter was about a bat that was raised by birds. I read my first chapter book, then, too, it was called "The Minstrel in the Tower" about two children whose mother was dying of illness in medieval england while their father was away for the crusades (presumed dead). Surprisingly, it had a happy ending! I kinda wonder what happened to those books. Which is a long-winded way of saying, I am intrigued by these lycanthrope stories. Do tell.
Also: did he change the level of the campaign again? Should I be re-making my character? O.o

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[info]greypaw
2008-03-18 12:43 am UTC (link)
The question was answered on the phone, but for everyone else that might read this: No, it's still 9th level. Last time Pat was going to run, he started off having us make level 7-8 characters, but then dropped it down to 3-5 afterwards.

Also: I'll work on typing up the old stories whenever I have free time (read: whenever I feel like procrastinating).

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Myst isn't the worst game I've ever played, just the most boring
[info]tenieldjo
2008-03-18 04:24 am UTC (link)
I read the first myst book, but I don't remember much about it. It wasn't one of those stories that stuck with me, but I did read it through so it couldn't have been TOO bad, just kinda dull. Not entirely unlike the games, to be honest. The scenery was great, but I had no drive to finish the puzzles, and the puzzles seemed forced, illogically placed, and unnecessary. Apparently, the people in myst felt the need to put in security such that a robber COULD break into their homes, but it'd take them a few hours. of course if they forgot how to do it that could lead to some problems too. "Honey? I forgot. How many times do I rotate the upper right hand statue in the courtyard before it unlocks the keypad puzzle to open the bridge to get to the symbols puzzle on the front door?"
I liked adventure games when I was younger, a lot. The Longest Journey, Beyond Atlantis, etc... the thing about those was, it was more than just scenery, it was compelling, and the puzzles felt like they belonged there. There was context for everything, and direction, and driving force. Everything the Myst games lacked in scores. I think they're considered "the greatest adventure games ever!" the same way that the Final Fantasy games are supposed to be "the best RPGs ever"; they got there first, and sort of defined the genre, then people took that idea and improved upon it, whereas Myst and FF were content to stay as they were; to me, tedious. I got to like the 2nd or 3rd disk, and I couldn't figure out why I was there, where I was supposed to be going, or what had possessed anyone to make such worthless, repetitive puzzles. But who knows; I played these games when I was 12, maybe I just wasn't "mature" enough to appreciate them. But if the movie is anything like the games, the main character will be nameless and faceless, he/she/it will be thrown into a bizarre, COMPLETELY unoccupied fantasy world with little to no explanation as to why, and will spend about 3/4 of the movie poking symbols to try to get a hidden door to open. On the bright side, they won't have to hire any actors, just a camera-man who's willing to push, poke, pull, and other various "p" words one can use to describe interacting with an otherwise static environment.

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Re: Myst isn't the worst game I've ever played, just the most boring
[info]greypaw
2008-03-18 05:53 am UTC (link)
The games, I was never really blown away with. I look back fondly on it, mainly, for the experience (it was really the first PC game I ever played) and for the visuals. The scenery really was quite pretty, for its time. I'm kind of surprised no one has ported the original Myst to a flash animation since it's so undemanding of the processor...

The books I remember a little better, though mainly just the first book, which I read... In the 7th grade? 8th? Something like that. Back when I had art with voodoo tree kid and Autumn. I wonder what they're up to these days... Anyhoo, I guess I remember it fondly because I'm an English major and the story has an overarching theme (like that of The Sandman and The Dark Tower and such) that sings Hosanna about the work of writers to produce "magic" "worlds" in their writing. Of course, the setting of the book itself was pretty nifty too...

I never read the second book because I read the first, then the third (accidentally) and then bought the second, but trying to fill in the chunk that I'd worked so hard to try and circumnavigate was too jarring and I put it aside.

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Re: Myst isn't the worst game I've ever played, just the most boring
[info]tenieldjo
2008-03-18 03:47 pm UTC (link)
I remember liking the first Myst book well enough at the time, and the lore behind it is interesting, but usually I can do a decent plot synopses of any book I read that I really liked a lot. Myst was easy enough to get through, but I wasn't left thinking about it afterward. It *was* a long time ago, of course. I downloaded Myst to give it another go, see if maybe I just wasn't old enough to appreciate it, but from what I remember and what I read I'm thinking my original impression was pretty accurate. Random, trial and error button pushing puzzles.

Also, when someone says, "ok start writing a script to a five minute movie and give me a few pages in about 2 hours" it doesn't mean I am capable of doing it... one of the curses of quarter long courses is they feel compelled to expedite the process, which is understandable but I still have no more than a vague impression of what I'm going to be doing... I have a feeling it's going to turn out a bit crappy XD
Also, I might need to borrow you and anyone else that is willing to shoot the movie. I'm thinking sort of a cheesy old-batman-tv-show-esque superhero short, which is a good start, and doable, but at the same time I have no idea where I'm going with it. BLEH.

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[info]tenieldjo
2008-03-18 05:34 am UTC (link)
Also: I found the Sword of Shannara! Among other books thought lost, so I am very pleased. If you don't mind that it's a bit ragged, I can lend it to you whenever.
Also also: faceplanting kitty? adorable.

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[info]greypaw
2008-03-18 05:56 am UTC (link)
Mad skills. I'll have to borrow that from you some time. I'm hoping to finish Socrates Cafe sometime before then (and, at the very least, get Dreamfall installed), but unless you're planning on rereading it sometime soon, I'll borrow it anytime.

She'll just be sitting there, motionless, for a while, and then suddenly you'll feel a hot weight on your knee and her whole body goes a little slack and she slowly starts oozing into a completely rested position. Poor kitty...

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Myst Movie
(Anonymous)
2008-03-23 02:49 pm UTC (link)
The Myst Movie, from what I've heard, actually has Hollywood attention...

I doubt they'd make a movie like that. Apparently, Cyan thought it was very "out of the box" thinking for a Myst movie. You'd have to check the site for updates (http://www.mystmovie.com), the guys writing the script said they'd eventually put the trailer up that they showed Cyan Worlds.

Myst as a series is pretty defined in it's audience. It makes you think. Many people today don't like doing that _--

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Re: Myst Movie
(Anonymous)
2008-03-23 03:08 pm UTC (link)
"But if the movie is anything like the games, the main character will be nameless and faceless, he/she/it will be thrown into a bizarre, COMPLETELY unoccupied fantasy world with little to no explanation as to why, and will spend about 3/4 of the movie poking symbols to try to get a hidden door to open."

The Myst books were about more than people poking puzzles to see what happens, so why do so many people assume a movie would be that much different? The movie will not be a film version of watching someone play the game; it will be an actual story based on the actual backstory of the game.

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(Anonymous)
2008-03-24 08:06 pm UTC (link)
i love myst dearly, but i've always been a little annoyed that myst island has no beds on it. i guess the family took turns sleeping in the planetarium...

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(Anonymous)
2008-04-16 02:22 am UTC (link)
I believe Atrus rewrote the Myst Age at some point (it is the only logical conclusion, having a cabin turn into a basement of conductors, eh?).

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(Anonymous)
2008-04-26 02:14 am UTC (link)
Actually, it's been said that the tower elevator can also go down to living quarters, just not in the game.

I hate how so many people think a Myst movie will be boring just because of its genre, as well. Countless movies have been adapted into video games because they have had stories. Now don't tell me 3 novels = no stories.

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