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Today I am sharing my layout for this week's CSI:Color, Stories, Inspiration challenge. Sizzix is sponsoring CSI during March and there is a prize to be won. Some of my design team mates from Sizzix are also joining CSI as guest designers. Don't miss all the layouts. Since this is the second case file of the month, we have another great sketch from Page Drafts included in the case file:
This sketch was perfect for a series of photos:
I sanded around each photo to make them stand out a bit more, since they are pretty busy. I used different BasigGrey papers and some kraft-core cardstock. The background paper was stamped with Archival Vermillion ink, for a tone-on-tone effect. Did you notice that the layout is not completely square? I forgot to cut off the little name strip at the base of the patterned paper, and only realised it once I saw the photo of the layout in my computer.
Picture Wheel die, and just happened to have bought a viewmaster to my son recently. It was die cut from grey paper. The same day I made this we had gotten a parcel with this 'Alfons' sticker on top, which was perfect for the layout and fit right on top of the Picture Wheel. It had been torn so I had to piece it together. The two blueprint light bulbs were stamped on watercolour paper and watercoloured with Iced Spruce. The mini filmstrip was die cut from kraft-core cardstock and sanded a bit. The green paper was die cut with the Torn Notebook On the Edge die.
gears and stars were die cut from white mat board and inked with Citrus Adirondack and Squeezed Lemonade Distress Ink. Then they were coated with Glossy Accents, which gives them a really nice and finished look.
die cut from kraft-core and sanded. The title translates 'Laugh'.
Thank you for looking! I hope you have time to join us this week.
Enjoy your weekend!
Dies: Sizzix: Picture Wheel, Mini Filmstrip & Mini Tickets, Torn Notebook On the Edge, Mini Gears, Circle Framelits, Star & Circle set, Vintage Market
Stamps: Stamper's Anonymous Tim Holtz: Industrial Blueprint, Mixed Media, Mini Blueprints 3, Simple Sayings
Ink: Ranger Archival Ink Vermillion; Distress Ink: Iced Spruce, Squeezed Lemonade; Adirondack Citrus
Surfaces: BasicGrey patterned papers; Core'dinations Tim Holtz kraft-core cardstock, Sizzix Little Sizzles white mat board 6x13; watercolour paper
Adhesive: Ranger Glossy Accents


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Smith acknowledged that he wasn't immediately forthcoming after reports surfaced in August that his driver's license had been suspended multiple times or after reports this month that he hit a woman in the face at a 1993 college party.
But he also blamed The Oregonian for not asking more questions sooner. "Had you asked, I intended to answer," he wrote of the 1993 episode.
He also said his "reputation has been under some deep attacks" and acknowledged: "I don't know if I'll recover or not."
The email arrived as Smith faces the loss of endorsements and a dip in fundraising in recent days. Last week, local political observers said Smith's handling of unflattering news has hurt the campaign as much as the news itself.
The email also was not the first time Smith has sought to manage damaging information. With both the 1993 incident and his driving record, stories stretched out over days as Smith offered one version of events but then faced more scrutiny as public records with conflicting details came to light.
Smith declined through his campaign manager Tuesday to discuss the email or the issues it raised. But in two later emails, Smith wrote that the first message was intended to be off the record. The message, however, was sent to a reporter's work email address at The Oregonian and carried no request for privacy.
In that email, Smith blames the way coverage of the 1993 party unfolded in part on The Oregonian's failure to more closely scrutinize his years at the University of Oregon. A routine check of Eugene police records by The Oregonian before the May primary produced no results because the files had been purged.
"I don't think you ever asked me if I had been arrested or cited," wrote Smith, who is also a state legislator. "I never intended to hide if asked, even as scared as I have been to talk about it (and I'm not proud of that fear)."
On Oct. 1, the day reports of the incident surfaced, Smith hastily called a news conference and said the woman began hitting him at the party and was injured as Smith tried to defend himself. He declined to discuss the extent of her injuries.
The next day, Smith released the diversion agreement that allowed him to escape a misdemeanor assault charge. It revealed that the woman required stitches. A fuller picture emerged Oct. 8 when the woman's lawyer released the 1993 police report. In it, the 5-foot-3 woman said Smith "popped" her after she rebuffed his advances. Smith has said he doesn't recall making advances.
On his driving record, Smith said in Tuesday morning's email that he was "befuddled" that The Oregonian didn't get his full driving record after asking about it in September 2011, shortly after Smith announced his candidacy. At the time, Smith acknowledged one license suspension but offered no additional information.
This summer, The Oregonian asked Smith and opponent Charlie Hales for written permission to review their driving records. With some exceptions, these are not public documents because of a federal privacy law. Smith agreed, but the initial record obtained from Oregon Driver and Motor Vehicle Services on Aug. 16 went back only to 2004. Older infractions had been archived.
Asked repeatedly in an interview Aug. 16 whether he had more than four suspensions, Smith declined to answer. In the days that followed, he acknowledged a fifth suspension and then released his full record, which his campaign had obtained in 2011, showing seven suspensions. In the last of a series of stories, Smith acknowledged his "embarrassing" record.
In Tuesday's email, Smith in part blamed his campaign's communication consultant for his initial lack of candor. "My comms guy asked me to stick to a tight message (not exactly my style)," Smith wrote. "I wanted to show discipline to that charge. I should have just handed it to you, but it has been vexing and perplexing that you didn't already have it." He added: "In the general (election), you wrote story after story about it, as if I were trying to hide it."
Later in the email, Smith acknowledged that the newspaper did not have the full record when it questioned him about it Aug. 16. "I still think I got royally shafted in that episode," he wrote. "But now I have an impression that it was not entirely intentional on the part of the paper."
He also tried to extend an olive branch in case he does win the Portland mayor's race: "I hope that something can be done to build some small semblance of trust."
Here's the 1:32 a.m. email Smith sent on Tuesday to The Oregonian:


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Own this business? Learn more about offering online ordering to your diners.
Einstein Bros Bagels
Southwest Turkey-Sausage | Asparagus, Mushroom & Swiss
Chicken Caesar | Chipotle Chicken | Strawberry Chicken (*contains nuts)
Ultimate Blueberry Smoothie | Strawberry Banana Smoothie
Turkey Chili | Hearty Vegetable | Chicken Noodle
Tuscan Chicken Pesto | Garden Herb Turkey
Cheesy Turkey | Cheesy Chicken & Asparagus
Fruit Cup | Low-Fat Yogurt & Fruit Parfait (*contains nuts)
Turkey Breast | Ham | Albacore Tuna Salad | Chicken Salad (*contains nuts)
Turkey BAT (Bacon Avocado Tomato) | Tasty Turkey | Club Mex | Nova Lox & Bagel | VegOut
Chipotle Turkey | California Chicken
BBQ Chicken | Chicken Cuban | Italian Chicken | Turkey Club
Original | Asiago
Pepperoni | Cheese
Turkey & Cheddar | Ham & Swiss | Chicken Mozzarella
Plain | Honey Whole Wheat | Everything
Plain | Honey Whole Wheat | Everything | Pumpernickel
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Challah | Dutch Apple | Green Chili | Powerbagel | Six Cheese | Spinach Florentine
13 Classic or Signature Bagels with 2 tubs of cream cheese shmear. (*Additional cost for Gourmet Topped Bagels)
13 Classic or Signature Bagels.
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Bacon & Cheddar | Turkey-Sausage & Cheddar | Ham & Swiss | Spinach, Mushroom & Swiss | Cheese Only
Turkey-sausage, ancho-lime salsa, jalapeño cream cheese & pepper jack cheese.
Bacon, green chilis, swiss cheese, spicy red chili shmear.
Egg, smoked bacon, spinach, swiss & mozzarella cheese with spicy roasted tomato spread. Served on grilled ciabatta bread.
Egg, turkey-sausage, green chilis & pepper jack cheese. Served on grilled ciabatta bread.
Plain | Onion & Chive | Smoked Salmon
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Apple | Chocolate Chip | Mixed Berry
Cinnamon Twists | Cinnamon Walnut Strudel | Marshmallow Crispy
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Vanilla Hazelnut Latte | White Chocolate Mocha | Caramel Macchiato | Caffé Mocha | Caffé Latte | Cappuccino | Americano | Chai Tea Latte
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Caramel Blender | Vanilla Hazelnut Blender | Ultimate Blueberry Smoothie | Strawberry Banana Smoothie | Iced Coffee (Medium & Large only)
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Fountain Drinks | Fresh-Brewed Tea
Caramel Blender | Vanilla Hazelnut Blender | Ultimate Blueberry Smoothie | Strawberry Banana Smoothie
Reviews powered by
Kim H.(via Yelp)
July 15, 2018
Over the years I have been a frequent customer of Einstein Bros Bagels. Who doesn't love bread and there is plenty of it? I do not know. What I do know is...
Menu for Einstein Bros Bagels provided by Allmenus.com
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Royce Ellwyn Schlicher, 88, of Aiea, Hawaii, formerly of Atlanta, Mich., passed into eternal life on July 4, 2009.
Royce was born on March 24, 1921, in Laingsburg, Mich. He was a veteran of World War II and the Korean War. He married Mary Dieckman of Kansas City in 1950 and raised seven children. They shared five retirement years together in Hawaii until Mary's death in 1991.
In 2003, Schlicher married LaVona (Peintner) Stremel-Williams of Aiea. He was a man of faith and was most recently a member of the Pearl Harbor Naval Chapel.
Preceding Schlicher in death were his parents; his brother, Lynn; and his beloved wife, Mary of 41 years.
Royce is survived by his dear wife, LaVona; his sister, Allaire; many cousins; nieces and nephews; and his seven children and their families.


text:
Cooking with your own hands is a fun and fulfilling experience for all, whether you are having quick meal by yourself or a full meal with friends and family.
ABC Cooking Studio offers cooking lessons for all that allow you to experience the joys of cooking in a memorable and relaxed atmosphere.
We aim to bring smiles to dining tables all over the world.
ABC Cooking Studio started its business in a one floor building in Shizuoka, Japan, in 1985.
We are not only a cooking studio but also a social place.
Cooking can be a present gathering opportunity with your friends, and ABC Cooking Studio is the perfect place to experience fun and enjoyable lessons in a friendly and casual environment.
ABC Cooking Studio originated in Japan, and is quickly growing its business worldwide.
We have expanded our cooking studio in Asia since 2010, starting with China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia.
ABC Cooking Studio now has over 150 studios worldwide and over 1,000,000 members historically.
- Passport holders can take one regular lesson at any ABC Cooking Studio overseas for free of charge. Passport is valid for one year from issue date / valid while the member course contract is active in its home country.
- The definition of regular lesson may vary from time to time and between difference countries. ABC Cooking Studio Worldwide Limited and all its subsidiaries reserve the final decision on what kind of lessons are applicable to this offer.
- This offer cannot be exchanged for cash or its equivalent or used in conjunction with any other promotions or privileges.
- Upon attend the lesson, the passport holder must present his/her ABC Cooking Studio Membership Card as proof of his/her identity.
- We advice members to call overseas studios to make advance lesson reservations before departure from your home country. Reservations must be made only by phones calls in the local language of the destination studio. The lessons will be conducted also in the local language of the destination studios. No other language is guaranteed. For example, if you are going to take a lesson in Japan, you must book via phone call in Japanese, and must understand that the lesson will be conducted in Japanese only. For the reservation contacts please refer to the list below.
- Please keep this passport safe and clean. No replacement will be provided for lost or damage of this passport.
- ABC Cooking Studio Worldwide Limited and all its subsidiaries reserve the right of final decision in any case of disputes.


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May 23, 2018 @03:56 pm
Been a fan since I was 16, I'm 56 now. Still love the music, you're awesome
April 05, 2018 @09:29 am
Hi Peter Beckett and Player I was stunned to find your website - it's phenomenal. I've listened to you and your band since I was little - you were all so young then also. Now I'm musically educating my young 13 year old son Jonathan to your timeless electrifying soulful music - and he thinks its the coolest thing, including your YouTube RETRO videos. serious. The new generation must hear and know about you all. Thank you for your incredible contribution to the world. Keeps hearts and souls alive and inspired. Thank you for sharing your gift. You have no idea how many spirits and lives you've really touched and saved. Best Wishes to you all! Sincerely, Lisa from Brooklyn.
December 29, 2017 @09:10 pm
I have followed thou from day one. Your still as great as ever. Don't stop
© 2019 PETER BECKETT. All Rights Reserved.


text:
Sunday, July 12, 2009
the whole story
7 comments:
Hi Jenny and Joe ~ I love your idea and can hardly wait to purchase a picture!!!! I'm all registered!!! Love you!!! Love your art!!!ReplyDelete
Hey Dude, make something with skulls and guns and I'm in - I'm thinking black, red, white - mostly red, black images and white highlights, you know, a tattooey looking sorta thing. I'll hang it on my wall. RobbyReplyDelete
- AnonymousJuly 31, 2009 at 8:22 PM
Hey Joe and Jenny, I am looking forward to seeing what is presented. I have no doubt it will be awesome....I love zinnia's and flower...oh and bird....hint hint!ReplyDelete
I had to check this out I live in Minnesota :) I'll be reading, following, and cheering you on!ReplyDelete
What a fantastic and creative idea! I hope with all of my heart that you reach your goal. :)ReplyDelete
Your story is very inspirational. While I am unable to contribute this time...i will be praying for complete retrieval.....There needs to be more people like you who follow their hearts and dreams and take chances rather than those who live in bitterness and resentment each day by just living the 9 - 5.ReplyDelete
Joe and Jenny;ReplyDelete
Great Story - Not sure which one of you wrote it but its a very entertaining read - you should try write some children's books - Seriously.
My Wife and I and our three teenagers, moved to the Bay Area in 1991, then back to Minneapolis in 2001 - What a mistake. Were both originally from the Grand Forks, ND area so we thought it would be nice to be closer to family. Another big mistake - We would all love to move back there and I suspect we will in the coming years - Just need to figure out how to afford living out there again. Did you guys find a church once you got back out there or no? Thats always a problem for us.


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Our next "lead" sends us to three sister, old crones almost hags. Disgusting old creatures they care nothing for the truth and more about being in view of all the city for 5 minutes, I bet they still hope to land a husband. Narcy does his best but they are more interested in him then the truth, even if they are wrong they feel like the beast should burn. Stupid old bitches mother snickers if only they new where they where headed, I can only imagine but then again maybe I have already had a glimpse.
I ponder what the beast said as we ride out to the abandoned town, the corn fields have run rampant and its slow cutting our way through. If the beast made friend with a child maybe we need to start treating him as a child, is his mind just starting to develop or has he always been this way. Was he created to learn, or is this the reproduce of a miscalculation in the formulas and spells used to create him.
We find empty house after empty house, and then just as it seems we are alone a ghostly child trys to lure us into the cornfield where rusty traps are waiting. We dispatch the little wraith but it lacks the multiple eyes the beast had described. We continue to search looking for this hole the beasts little friend crawled into before dying, but its going to take all night with this damn corn.


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Video of me at the BC Supreme Court of Appeal for the courts decision regarding Insite, Vancouver's safe injection site, and then a radio interview on CKNW's Bill Good Show.
The full interview:
Video of me at the BC Supreme Court of Appeal for the courts decision regarding Insite, Vancouver's safe injection site, and then a radio interview on CKNW's Bill Good Show.
The full interview:
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Propaganda, that is FEAR propaganda. Kids only have access to illicit drugs because they are not in adult only stores. And there are no EVIL drug pushers trying to addict our children, just fellow students who sell to fellow students (and they do NOT think they are doing anything wrong, its culture). That is just ONE BIG RCMP LIE.
MisterGrean supports drugs in all the schools as its been for the last few decades.
As for respect, its the RCMP that need to earn respect, not the people. The RCMP work for the people, not visa-versa.
The illicit drug market is what it is because of our laws, bad laws.
The RCMP is not some gang of hooligans trying to impress their will and want upon the people they are tasked with protecting.
It's us, the voters, we elect the officials who create and develop the laws.
I ask of you; if some gang sets up a grow-op next door to your house, steals your power, your water, dumps their garbage in your yard, trying to sell drugs to your children and threaten you with a loaded firearm . . .
. . . who ya gonna call?
In fcat, here's a really big secret about the RCMP that very few people know of. RCMP Constables are people too. An even bigger secret; if you show they the respect they deserve for dealing with the horrors of society that most people can't even imagine, well, they'll show you the respect you deserve.
The RCMP have my respect.
"This misinformation pertaining to drugs is being promoted by special interest groups that are using the media to deliver their messages of HARM REDUCTION and decriminalization to a misinformed public. This lack of useful public information about drug use is lending momentum to proponents of another emerging health care issue — the use of illicit drugs for medicinal purposes. " RCMP Report.
The RCMP are blindly following a myth that society has EVER been drug free…EVER! Even with failed prohibitionist laws…NEVER EVER!
Like the prior poster said – the RCMP can go fuck themselves…
1 has to wonder where that 78% of funds spent on fighting the drug war really is going….
It is time for change….It is time to legalize and realize!
I would like to see a RCMP free Canada.
"Legalization/decriminalization and HARM REDUCTION theories, although seductive at first, are COMPLETELY INCONSISTENT with THE RCMP'S VISION for a drug-free society." RCMP report.


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The England captain, Nasser Hussain, flew from the Test series in New Zealand for his funeral, which was attended also by Surrey colleagues and Australian players, testimony to his immense popularity. "Ben was the most naturally gifted cricketer that I have ever played alongside," said Alec Stewart, who captained him for Surrey and England. Everyone recalled his easy-going approach to life and the friendships he fostered with his gentle nature and whimsical sense of humour; Adam, in his funeral address, described him as "a beautiful work of art, a classic sculpture". And in the game's collective memory, the picture of Ben Hollioake remained fixed on a spring afternoon in 1997 when, making his England debut at 19, this tall, loose-limbed all-rounder set Lord's alight with 63 in 48 balls against Australia to take the Man of the Match award.
Ben's selection for that one-day international was a triumph for style over content, for promise over performance. Given English cricket's innate conservatism, it was sensational. In only his second season of county cricket, he had played just five first-class and 21 one-day games; there had been no centuries, no five-wicket returns since he took five for ten in a Sunday League game against Derbyshire on his Surrey debut (Stewart, keeping wicket, said he hit the gloves harder than the established fast bowlers). But he had done well with Andrew Flintoff 's series-winning England Under-19 side in Pakistan in 1996-97, opening the bowling with Surrey team-mate Alex Tudor and scoring middle-order runs, and at Edgbaston in April he caught the eye with 46 not out and three for 22 for The Rest against England A.
England, already two-up in the three-match series against Australia by dint of Adam Hollioake's unbeaten half-centuries, and searching for a fast-bowling all-rounder, could afford to try his younger brother. If nothing else, the athleticism of Ben's fielding was worth the admission price. The captain, Mike Atherton, asked him that morning if he fancied going in at No. 3: "He shrugged and said, in his laconic way, he'd give it a go." Some go. Third ball he drove Glenn McGrath back down the ground for four, and he took 13 from McGrath's next over. When he went down on one knee and swept Shane Warne over mid-wicket, Lord's purred. The press didn't just wax their lyricals, they preserved them in honey. Here potentially was a hero for a game desperate to claw back ground lost to football in the national consciousness.
But inside a month McGrath was back at Lord's, taking eight for 38 to bowl England out for 77 in the Second Test. Having located an English length, he then kept them on the back foot until Australia retained the Ashes. England's whitewash in the one-day series and their nine-wicket win in the First Test could be seen for what they were: a glimmer of light in another false dawn.
A cry went up for the Hollioakes' Australian-bred brio to spark an English resurgence. Born in Melbourne, the brothers had travelled to England when their father's work took him there, and Ben played age-group cricket for England while at Millfield. Although he completed his schooling in Perth after the family moved back to Australia, Surrey had already lined him up to rejoin Adam at The Oval. Between England's heavy defeats at Manchester and Leeds, the brothers helped Surrey win the Benson and Hedges Cup. Once more, Ben's batting at Lord's was sublime. Again coming in first wicket down, he struck 98 from 112 balls, using all of his six feet two inches to drive the ball on the up off the front foot. Again he won the match award. Adam dedicated the victory to Graham Kersey, the young Surrey wicket-keeper, who also died following a car crash in Australia, just as he would dedicate the 2002 Championship title to Ben.
Once England went behind in the Ashes series, the Hollioakes' selection for the Fifth Test at Trent Bridge was the obvious last throw of the dice. They became the fifth set of brothers to play a Test for England, following the three Graces and the Hearnes in making simultaneous debuts, while Ben, at 19 years 269 days, became England's youngest Test player since Brian Close (18 years 149 days) in 1949.
But Test cricket allowed no quarter, certainly not against Australia in the 1990s. Ben had Greg Blewett caught behind in his eighth over, but his ten overs of springy fast-medium cost 57 runs. Batting at No. 7, he hit a few classy boundaries in his first-innings 28, but Warne had him lbw for two second time round and it was Adam (45 and two), rather than Ben, who kept his place for the consolation victory at The Oval. Perhaps he had that in mind when, accepting the Cricket Writers' Club Young Cricketer of the Year award with a gracious eloquence few of his peers could have emulated, he brought the house down by remarking that this would be one trophy with only one Hollioake name on it. The years of playing catch-up with a sibling six years older had fuelled an affectionate rivalry.
While Adam went to the West Indies that winter, Ben toured Kenya and Sri Lanka with England A. He opened the bowling and his first senior hundreds, 103 and 163 against Sri Lanka A, put him top of the first-class batting averages, yet there would not be another century, first-class or one-day, until he made 118 against Yorkshire in 2001 in his last match at The Oval. The brothers joined forces for the one-day series in the West Indies, when Adam captained England following Atherton's resignation, but Ben's 55 runs and two wickets were not enough to keep him in the team back home, despite useful form in the B&H. Instead, England mixed and matched Matthew Fleming, Mark Ealham, Chris Lewis and Ian Austin in their one-day games against South Africa and Sri Lanka. There was, however, a recall to replace Flintoff for the one-off Test against Sri Lanka at The Oval - where Hollioake was expensive again with the ball and made 14 and a golden duck as Muttiah Muralitharan took 16 wickets - and a place in Stewart's side to Australia that winter. Troubled by a groin injury early on, and never regaining form, he played only two first-class matches and a one-day international. "To watch him struggling to pinch singles from part-time bowlers in Hobart was painful," wrote Wisden's correspondent.
At least Ben was spared the subsequent World Cup débâcle that cost Adam his England place. Instead, his four half-centuries and 20 wickets in 12 games contributed to Surrey's Championship-winning season in 1999. He took five wickets in an innings for the only time in first-class cricket: five for 51 against Glamorgan at The Oval. But next year, while Surrey retained their title and finished top of Division Two in the one-day league, he was dropped in mid-August. His previous nine Championship games had realised just 138 runs and eight wickets. Gone were the days when Ben Hollioake made a complex game look childishly simple; compared with Martin Bicknell and Tudor, his bowling was medium-paced and soft.
However, that golden talent was too bright to be denied, especially as he grafted necessary disciplines to it. One-day runs and wickets early in 2001 brought an England recall for the one-day series, in which his nonchalant 37 against Australia at Bristol and defiant 53 against Pakistan at Headingley, after England had been 39 for five, kindled hopes that those 1997 innings would no longer be an albatross. There was also another Lord's match award, as Surrey dethroned the one-day kings, Gloucestershire, in the Benson and Hedges Cup final, and Ben, down the order this time, helped Adam rebuild their innings with a mature 73.
Would he have gone on to greater things? A record of 2,794 runs at 25.87 and 126 wickets at 33.45 from 75 first-class games, alongside 2,481 runs (24.98) and 142 wickets (28.22) in 136 one-day games, is no true indicator. His 309 runs and eight wickets in 20 one-day internationals, his obvious métier, give few clues. Simply seeing him play was the real measure: he gave genuine pleasure to all who watched, whether from the dressing-room or the stand. Perhaps the 2003 World Cup - he was there or thereabouts in England's thinking - would have brought out the best in him. He loved the big stage. But while the sense of unrealised potential added extra poignancy to his death, his life, as a character in Tom Stoppard's play Shipwreck says of another young death, "was what it was. Nature doesn't disdain what lives only for a day. It pours the whole of itself into each moment... Life's bounty is in its flow; later is too late." Still, 24 was much too soon, even for someone who insouciantly declared himself too cool to grow old.


text:
What Goes Up: An Interview With Adriel Wallick
Adriel Wallick–if you're going by Google alone–is best known as a participant of the ill-fated game jam reality show. A few entries for her organization of the Train Jam appear ...
Idol Eyes: A Review Of Hyperdimension Neptunia PP: Producing Perfection
Frankly, I wasn't even aware that idol simulators were "a thing," as they'd say, and as such Hyperdimension Neptunia PP: Producing Perfection represents my first foray into the realm. In ...
Baby Steps: A Reivew of Among The Sleep
I know that I can really get into horror games, so after my first playthrough I was curious to try out Among the Sleep on some friends. I had 'em ...
Taking the high road in the indie communityWhat Goes Up: An Interview With Adriel Wallick
Adriel Wallick–if you're going by Google alone–is best known as a participant of the ill-fated game jam reality show. A few entries for her organization of the Train Jam appear as well, and people seem to joke that she works on satellites, but by and large, it would be difficult to parse out who Wallick really is.
The truth? There are games and satellites! Our interview covered these topics and more, and it's hard to read her views on games and not come away inspired.
It's super odd, but interesting in the most academic wayIdol Eyes: A Review Of Hyperdimension Neptunia PP: Producing Perfection
Frankly, I wasn't even aware that idol simulators were "a thing," as they'd say, and as such Hyperdimension Neptunia PP: Producing Perfection represents my first foray into the realm. In it, the player acts as a manager guiding a fresh-faced ingenue in her efforts to become an international singing sensation. See, you're… you're simulating the career path of an idol. Someone's idol.
These kinds of games popular in Japan, as is the Hyperdimension Neptunia series that this game is based on, but I've never played one before. And for better or for worse, what I got was exactly what I expected.
What does it take to keep players coming back for more?Breaking Down the Destiny Beta
Reid and I have had plenty of time to sink our teeth into the Destiny Beta since it began last week. There was plenty about it that we both loved, but questions about how much the game's story will actually matter, and how much more complex enemy encounters will eventually get, still leave both of us with a handful of reservations. (more…)
Ethan and Mike discuss Golden Sun's writing.RPG Club Plays Golden Sun: Week 2
This week Ethan and Mike take a closer look at Golden Sun's writing, and whether the game's call and response dialogue gets in the way of players enjoying a simpler, less cluttered narrative.
RPG Club Plays Golden Sun: Week 1Reflecting on the road ahead.
This month, the RPG Club takes a look back to the turn of the century when a small game on a little handheld made a big splash. Mike shares his reservations about revisiting his first RPG love while I vow to make this encounter with Golden Sun a more fruitful one. (more…)
Got In My Head And Shook It Like A RattleBaby Steps: A Reivew of Among The Sleep
I know that I can really get into horror games, so after my first playthrough I was curious to try out Among the Sleep on some friends. I had 'em over, we set up the projector, and we waited until it was dark. The game doesn't have enough content to justify a second solo playthrough, but with a room of friends it's great to watch their reactions, hear their theories, and piece together what those chalk scribbles on the wall can actually mean.
Having played through again and watched my friends play and enjoy the game, I am now confident in saying that it isn't just me; this is a good game with an interesting premise.
Sometimes Less Is MoreUnnecessary Mountain: A Review of Battle Princess of Arcadias
Sometimes less is more.
It's an adage that can be applied to pretty much any creative pursuit, be it writing, cooking, or fashion. Videogames have begrudgingly acknowledged its importance due to technical limitations – the diminutive storage space of old school cartridges and other physical media a silicone vice on their lofty ambitions.
Then came the modern era, and with it games like Grand Theft Auto III and Morrowind, titles that both blew previously held expectations about size and scale out of the water. You see that mountain? You can not only go there, but you can build a summer house there!
Battle Princess of Arcadias got lost on the way up that mountain, trapped in a quagmire of seemingly arbitrary game modes and needlessly complex systems that do little to improve the otherwise solid experience.
RPG Club Plays Bastion: Week 4the quiet after the storm
After going AWOL for a week and a half, the RPG Club is back with some concluding thoughts to offer as we salute Supergiant Games' first masterpiece and reflect on some of the things that make it so wonderful despite any of its individual flaws. (more…)
Nothing To Lose And Everything To GainDeep Breathing: A Review of 1001 Spikes
There's something immensely comforting about 8bit Fanatics' 1001 Spikes.
For all its seemingly arbitrary 'masocore' trappings – a genre built on broken controllers and unvarnished obscenities, popularized by stuff like Super Meat Boy and deepcut I Want To Be The Guy – it's actually an impossibly fair game. Everything works according to a set a very simple rules, rules that are communicated not through blocky white text or cute little mice, but instead through blood, sweat and tears.
Sure, the first time you clear that series of vanishing Heat Man-esque platforms only to land on a spike trap that you couldn't have predicted, you might want to snap your controller in half like a very expensive Kit-Kat bar. But that's the beauty of it – next time you'll remember what those fucking asshole designer dickbags (you might shout if you're me) have in store for you.
You'll land, hear that tell-tale click, and leap out of danger…into another spike trap. But that trap? One square closer to the exit. You're making progress.
On The Eve Of Replaying Persona 4
I love Persona 4 like Nicolas Cage loves Pachinko. And I might love Persona 3 more. These two games were the most revolutionary Japanese role playing games to come out of Japan in the last decade; I'm the kind of person who could debate Persona 3 or Persona 4 for hours.
(There is no right answer to that question, by the way. Persona 4 is the better game, but Persona 3 hits you right in the proverbial feels.)
I've beaten both of them just once, though I've watched people go through both of them with absolute giddiness. There's reasons I've only played them once. For one, they are intensely lengthy affairs: my first playthroughs were ninety hours each, and I'm not the type to stop and smell the roses. With Persona 3, there's another obstacle: that game is so emotionally exhausting for me that just listening to "Memories of You" from the soundtrack destroys me. Just typing that sent a wave of something through me*.