• Hard day's work
• Cadences everywhere
• Human Applejack
• Dog Spike
• Sketchy business
• This library has everything
• QT brand Cutie Marks. Accept no substitute.
• It's HIM!
• Pills are kicking in
• She's got it going on
• SOON
• Delicious
• Like a record, baby
• Drink more radwater
• It was nothing
• Rarity
• This is not age-appropriate
• Button's mother's real name
• Sombra is best waifu
• Human Twi
• Short manecut
• Falling
• Shouting match
• Outfit swap
• Hammock

Giant pink Everfree butterflies aren't anything to laugh at, man. I've heard horror stories about those things.

So that's where Pony Joe's donut place is! That explains why he was in Ponyville in the train episode.

So, Fluttershy is Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo?

RD: "Algebra?! NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

It's the Flim Flam Brothers' new invention. And just in time for spider season, too!

I must sleep now. See you guys later.

Their polls have come a long way from trying to 'guess' the ending of CMC. Or not.

So SyFy just premiered a new show about cosplay, and two of the ladies spent part of the episode hanging out at a convention and then going out to a bar in their Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie costumes.

That's cool, but it also provides a great example why that channel is a piece of clop these days.

@Wryte Cue "What the fuck is this shit" looks from other bar patrons. Or however they react.

@Storyyeller Don't worry it was a Young Ones reference in my last post. I'm gonna guess ya don't watch it then? Reference wasted, but hey ho that's life so whatever.

Nah, there were a bunch of other cosplayers there in costume from the convention, too.

^^ Not that I disagree about the state of the channel these days, but what makes you say that?

Ah that makes sense. By the way speaking of conventions, the MLP ones I mean, I've been meaning to ask this: What exactly do you do at THOSE conventions? I know what you do at MCM or the London Comic Con but is there any difference from those conventions or is it the same just not much to do or something?

/shrug. The only con I've ever been to was the 2005 Cascadia Writer's Con.

Well, yes and no. When most companies have applications for writing positions, they tend to ask for 'examples of published work', or a similar wording of the same concept. Larger studious will only take published authors, but in theory you should be able to do it with a short story or script. Demonstrating proficiency in scriptwriting is good, since that's the format you'll be working in, but it rarely seems to come up in job postings.

Overall, I think this is actually a mistake in the hiring process, because it leans on talent with traditional storytelling, which doesn't work for video games. It can, of course - To The Moon, Persona4, and many other games have much more solid, traditional story structures and are very good both as games and stories. Nevertheless, too few authors, I Think, really understand how to get the player invested in a playable story, which is why you get things like Gameplay and Story Segregation, and games with 2 minutes of cutscene to every minute of gameplay. Ideally, the story in a video game is incredibly subtle, and largely crafted by the player. It's told through dialogue and the environment.

Interestingly, video game storytelling has a lot more in common with musical theatre than movies - in a musical the bulk of the story is told in big pops, through songs, and the times that aren't songs are usually just kinda there to string the songs along. Video games tend to do it the opposite way when they have large stories - the levels are just there to bridge the cutscenes. It should be the opposite though, with levels being the big pop moments, and the cutscenes, if they even exist, bridging the levels together.

But yeah, most companies will ask for traditional writing experience, despite that not really being what they need.

...you know, I was about to actually say "like Persona 4? ", but then I realized that I'm not actually sure what the gameplay/cutscene ration is for that game.

yes, there's hours of cutscenes, but there's just as much actual gameplay...

I guess it depends on if one considers the social linking to be cutscenes with some player input or actual gameplay.

...and despite the first Xenosaga game falling squarely into the above description, I still love it.

edited 14th Aug '13 5:11:35 AM by Blissey1

There are certainly exceptions. I mean, I adore P4, but There's still a shit-ton of cutscenes in there. The JPRG genre is slightly different though, in that it at least is aware of it's status as a story-driven game, as opposed to like... Metal Gear Solid 4, for example. There's also the fact that I do kinda consider the cutscenes in P4 part of the gameplay - partly because you need to make choices occasionally, and partly because the cutscenes contain information you actually need to pay attention to if you want to finish the game properly. I actually consider it a good example of video game storytelling because of that - because you need to pay attention and make choices based on the cutscenes, they become interactive by proxy.

That's always been an aspect of the Persona series (or really any game in the Mega Ten franchise), though the last two also require you to sort of plan out which cutscenes you want to take (for lack of a better word) in order to facilitate the rest of the gameplay.

If you mean the Social Links, they're most of the reason I'm playing this game right now. Like, let's get this dungeon over with so I can get back to bonding with my friends, dammit!

The social links and the other "day to day" stuff are the unique selling points of P3 and P4 that make them popular. Makes me feel kind of sad since I think that Persona 2 has a better, but also is damned by the fact that it's a very traditional JRPG in terms of gameplay (though at least it's readily recognizable in it's gameplay rather then being just wonky like Persona 1).

These past few days I've been sent out to an Officer's School for my deployments. It's actually kind of disappointing

What a fitting song

human!Pinkie

Friendship is better than loot.

Short maned Fluttershy :3

edited 14th Aug '13 7:00:24 AM by AceOfScarabs

Of course. After all, friendship is magic.

The social links were definitely the best parts, due to(most of) the links actually being likeable people.

Hell, even some of the more unpleasant ones still got interesting near the end, like the I Need And Adult nurse.

@Kyler: Well said

@Shortmane Fluttershy: Poor Fluttershy. Who cut her mane that short? -brandishing comb of steel-

Saddle Arabian EQG style

Why just why, Microsoft

@Kegi: That was one of the more interesting Devil Arcanas I've seen.

@Nes: It's a reference to her regular blindbag minifig, which is a shortmaned repaint of Dashie's minifig.

edited 14th Aug '13 7:06:40 AM by AceOfScarabs

the short mane actually looks pretty good on her.

Ahoy hoy.

Today I saw 'Matilda', the Special Collections Truck. Big doesn't even begin to describe it. It was about 18 feet tall, or around the same height as one of the city's double decker buses.