Robot Fighters Return!

Robot Fighters Return!

One big disadvantage that dissidents labor under is a strong individualist streak. This affinity for rugged self-reliance is often bandied about as a virtue, but in a social climate where the dominant opposition's M.O. is to isolate, polarize, and freeze targets, that virtue becomes a vice.A few of the more…
March 8, 20212 Comments
Time Machine

Time Machines

Did you know that you own a time machine? As a matter of fact, you probably own several. Even if you don't have all the necessary components, any missing parts of your homemade time machine will be relatively easy and cost-effective to obtain. In this post, I will tell you…
January 20, 202111 Comments
Trains and Traditions

Trains and Traditions

Say what you will about the MAGA movement. A necessary premise of its core argument is that America was once a great nation, but somewhere along the line we lost our way. The fact that this message resonated with half the country should sound alarm bells. An older thread from…
December 8, 202012 Comments
Fun and Games

Fun and Games

 The crowning feather in Vampire: The Masquerade's cap has always been its rich and extensive lore. Its video game tie-ins' forays into SMRT stories aside, VtM boasts an immersive setting that deftly synthesizes a broad spectrum of influences from Bram Stoker to Anne Rice; from Slavic folk tales to Genesis--which…
December 7, 20201 Comment
Combat Frame XSeed: Pocket War

Combat Frame XSeed: Pocket War

Over the weekend, I attended a special three-day workshop organized by fans of Combat Frame XSeed. Soc Con wasn't your typical convention intended to lavish praise on the IP creator. All of the organizers and attendees are serious subject matter experts who convened with one goal and one goal only:…
November 23, 20202 Comments
Rehabilitating E.T.

Rehabilitating E.T.

You know that a new medium has come into its own when its subculture bleeds into pop culture. Old media still defaults to treating video games like some novel fad, even though they've been around for half a century now. Yet gaming rivals Hollywood as the most influential force in…
October 26, 202026 Comments
Terra Incognita

Terra Incognita

Like a lot of people, I've been on a nostalgia trip lately. The accelerating societal collapse seems to be the catalyst for this phenomenon, so it makes sense that much of today's nostalgia revolves around the High 90s--when most entertainment media sang their swan songs prior to hitting cultural ground zero. For…
July 23, 202035 Comments
Paging Dr. Uckmann

Paging Dr. Uckmann

The ongoing clown funeral that is The Last of Us Part II has officially descended into self-insert Gary Stu onanism. Now, who could have inspired TLOU2 character Dr. Uckmann, whose BRAINS we are informed bury the needle at 100? Someone should ask the game's director Neil Druckmann. As usual, Jim's…
June 19, 202017 Comments
Starts with T and Ends with Witch

Starts with T and Ends with Witch

The gaming scene acquired a rep as the last untaken hill in the culture war. These days it's more like the Death Cult's test market, as each day brings a fresh enormity inflicted by the industry upon its customers. Today's gamersphere fracas concerns the inauguration of a Safety Advisory Council…
May 19, 202031 Comments
Victory Defeated JRPGs

Victory Defeated JRPGs

Besides writing best selling books, I've kept myself occupied during the Corona-chan lock down by going back and playing some classic games. Mainly I've been revisiting celebrated titles from console gaming's 8 and 16-bit golden age. To say it's been a trip down memory lane would be an understatement. I've…
May 12, 202055 Comments