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It's the three hole problem. Sometimes hearing a bad idea just gets it stuck in your head, and despite knowing there is a better alternative, you just can't think of it anymore.

But has it made our overall lives that much BETTER?

Never could someone have thought that the little project to protect defense networks against Nuclear attack would have so far reaching an impact.

The sheer quantity of funny cat gifs and sad puppy pictures is unprecedented! The value to humanity is almost equal if not greater than the risk to life and sanity created by giving direct access to everyone to marketers, scam artists and salespeople.

The best thing is that we have learned, through myspace and facebook and twitter, what we long worried.

Most everybody is boring.

And now that we've been able to look long into that selfie of despair that is the Internet of People, it is up to us to decide what to do with it.

Or go watch it all go down in a 409 scam.

If you'll excuse me, it's Monday morning and I've not had my Grumpy Cat for the day.

Also, does anyone lose their way going into a tunnel?

Yes, yes he does.

Can't help but think about this particular piece during elections. Thank you Brian. http://www.nuklearpower.com/2004/08/26/episode-455-self-fulfilling-stupidity/

Does anyone else think of "Doctor Dinosaur" from Atomic Robo when reading this article?

http://www.nuklearpower.com/2009/07/24/free-comic-book-day-2009/

Yes. But for pixel comics, that wouldn't necessarily be the case. Hence why I wanted to clarify.

I am reminded of http://www.nuklearpower.com/2006/03/23/episode-676-supernatural-selection/

One thing I never got: Why hasn't Brian Clevinger been sued off of his ass yet?

Rob

Actually, I've seen this. Fortunately, it's in the guise of a running joke over at 8-Bit Theater about the weird shit Brian's cat Charlie eats: http://www.nuklearpower.com/2009/05/16/what-youve-all-been-waiting-for/ . In all seriousness, it can be quite amusing when it shows up.

Y'know, I wonder why SE hasn't come after Brian Clevinger for 8-Bit Theater.

"Oh, dear ever-handsome elf-gods, are we actually stupid enough to have voted on nothing at all?"

Really?

E.g., like this?...

That's probably the plan - overcharge so much on a per-text basis that people will be happy to switch to (still overpriced) flat-fee plans. Kinda like today's 8-bit Theatre.

If these so-called invisible rootkits are so effective, why aren't we seeing them everywhere? Huh?

http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=080103

Awesome as it may be... Sword-chucks, Yo!

...anyone remember the 70's and 90's "Captain America" movies?...

The Roger Corman version of Fantastic Four?

Marvel should stick with comic books.

When will you people learn that the ability to wave a stick around offers endless gameplay possibilities?!? You can pretend it's a sword or a bat or a racket or a longer stick or some bat/sword hybrid. A bword, if you will.

Sword-chucks!

Just saying...

I read your comment as "I think implicit in the system is causality" which seemed like an amusing response to the GP's post. I'm pretty sure the detection system doesn't resolve around paradoxes in causality, but if it does, then this robot is even more impressive than I had originally thought.

Are they gonna tell me next that http://www.nuklearpower.com/ isn't really about Light Warriors trying to save the world?

Outside of the occasional typo, there are no mistakes or plot holes. If you think you've found one and you can't figure out how to get around it, it's because a wizard did it.

http://www.nuklearpower.com/8bitfaq.php

I doubt so, though the idea is similar. Thing is 8-bit theater uses in-game sprites only for characters and little more - the backgrounds are mostly hand-drawn. The scenario idea - a parody of the original scenario - is about the same, but "machinima comics" use the game engine to create the scenes. 8bt just uses the sprites.

Anyway, both comics are definitely worth reading (for the lazy: 8bt link) and contain the same kind of twisted humor. (Giant cannon = a cannon that shoots live giants at the enemy :) - hard to tell if Concerned is a knock-off of 8bt but if it is, it's a good knock-off.

Giant kung-fu battles are everywhere! http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=060202

Now some of you are probably saying "Oh Brian, you're just stupid because you are so obviously biased against 3D games!!!!!!11" Nope. For instance, here's a quote from Craig, an avid FF7 and 8 fan who e-mailed me about the FF series. In fact, our correspondence became the basis of this very essay. Craig says, "Indeed. FF6 was so bright and shiny and expansive and pretty compared to FF4 that nobody really realized that they were playing the same game in a lot of respects. Now, of course, many people have twigged to it. Ever since FF4 or 5, combat and interaction in FF has sort of been in a lull; whereas other series try to shake things up a bit (like Xenogears or Vagrant Story), FF seems content with same-old same-old gameplay. that is the problem." I'm inclined to agree with him. If a fan of those games can speak out against them using the same sorts of criticisms I am, then I'm not very biased. Also, I love MGS and the entire Mega Man Legends (MML) series specifically because of their 3D elements. It's games that apply 3D graphics for no other reason than to look pretty that I'm biased against. I know a lot of people enjoyed FF7/8/9. Good for you. If you can enjoy them despite the fact that they use 3D graphics for no real reason, then more power to you. Have fun. Seriously, don't let me and my opinions stand in the way. Playing games you enjoy is a blast, that's why we do it. Personally, I can't stand the recent FFs. Maybe I'm harder to please, maybe I expect more from my games. All I know is that when I play those games, all I see is what the developers didn't do; what the developers didn't try at the expense of making a pretty looking game. Am I being unfair? Maybe. But considering there are games out there that do push the envelope of storytelling in video games, I think it's fair to point out when a company that's supposed to be on the cutting edge isn't.

Now some of you are probably saying "Oh Brian, you're just stupid because you are so obviously biased against 3D games!!!!!!11" Nope. For instance, here's a quote from Craig, an avid FF7 and 8 fan who e-mailed me about the FF series. In fact, our correspondence became the basis of this very essay. Craig says, "Indeed. FF6 was so bright and shiny and expansive and pretty compared to FF4 that nobody really realized that they were playing the same game in a lot of respects. Now, of course, many people have twigged to it. Ever since FF4 or 5, combat and interaction in FF has sort of been in a lull; whereas other series try to shake things up a bit (like Xenogears or Vagrant Story), FF seems content with same-old same-old gameplay. that is the problem." I'm inclined to agree with him. If a fan of those games can speak out against them using the same sorts of criticisms I am, then I'm not very biased. Also, I love MGS and the entire Mega Man Legends (MML) series specifically because of their 3D elements. It's games that apply 3D graphics for no other reason than to look pretty that I'm biased against. I know a lot of people enjoyed FF7/8/9. Good for you. If you can enjoy them despite the fact that they use 3D graphics for no real reason, then more power to you. Have fun. Seriously, don't let me and my opinions stand in the way. Playing games you enjoy is a blast, that's why we do it. Personally, I can't stand the recent FFs. Maybe I'm harder to please, maybe I expect more from my games. All I know is that when I play those games, all I see is what the developers didn't do; what the developers didn't try at the expense of making a pretty looking game. Am I being unfair? Maybe. But considering there are games out there that do push the envelope of storytelling in video games, I think it's fair to point out when a company that's supposed to be on the cutting edge isn't.

Now it will be so much easier to make a cold fusion reactor.

Now it will be so much easier to make a cold fusion reactor.

I'm not saying shut down all the media, I'm saying shut down the media ego. Yes, thank you for playing the game long before I can. Yes, thank you for telling me the quality of the graphics and sound. No, thank you, I'd rather not read a fourteen page blowout of Halo 2/DOA Ultimate/Fable. No, thank you, I don't need you to fill half the rag with opionions from editors about what it was like to be at E3. And so on...

http://www.somethingpositive.net/index.html http://www.schlockmercenary.com/ http://www.gpf-comics.com/ http://www.reallifecomics.com/index.php http://www.crfh.net/ http://www.nuklearpower.com/ Random shameless plugs. Read them and enjoy.

... come in 8-bit format!.. :-P

This comic is hit or miss but when it gets it right it shines like a million stars exploding in a pretty redhead's vagina.

ObLink for any pre-ff7 Final Fantasy:
http://www.nuklearpower.com/

Sluggy has sucked for awhile. I used to be a big sluggite: it just doesn't interest any longer, it has lost its flavor, its appeal. I read a lot of other comics too, both gaming and not gaming, and I find new ones all the time. Except for 8-bit theater, which has remained funny over a suprisingly long period of time, everything has had its ups and downs: especially sluggy. People lose interest in what they're doing, they don't know where to go next, they get sick of characters, they feel like changing the plot, or the style, and thus the comic changes.

Penny Arcade is like none of these things. Tycho and Gabe aren't going to lose interest in the industry, it's what they love. The comic isn't long-running and plot-based; they try new things all the time, but that doesn't change what it is: a look into the mind of two very talented gamers.

Red vs Blue isn't that great. Sure, it can be funny in a stupid sort of way. But there are far better methods of entertainment out there. Hell, I'd rather read an online comic strip.

8-bit Theater
Ctrl-Alt-Del
Van Von Hunter
Cup of Suffering
Elf Only Inn

Enjoy.

The most terrible spell of all (ICE-9) :
http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=041028

Here's how it works:
http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=041125

And seen in action:
http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=041102

The most terrible spell of all (ICE-9) :
http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=041028

Here's how it works:
http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=041125

And seen in action:
http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=041102

The most terrible spell of all (ICE-9) :
http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=041028

Here's how it works:
http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=041125

And seen in action:
http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=041102

Although it states the obvious, it is still nice to read...
http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=050621

That's why I said "otherwise rightfully". It's like a two-person project at school where one person does 90% of the work and both get 50% of the credit. The understanding before the project starts is that they'll share credit equally, but the one who put more effort into the final result ends up feeling kind of bitter.

Keenspot makes money off of advertisement (and maybe other things, but I only know of the advertising part), but they need good webcomics to lure advertisers.

All I meant by that comment is that I recall that some of the webcartoonists have felt like the guy doing 90% of the work.

Beyond that, I wholly concede your point.

And the "ideally" comment was more a shot at people who start webcomics only because they've seen the success that a few have attained and want to achieve the same success. It happens a lot, and the general concensus amongst webcartoonists (based on various rants I've read and webcomic panels I've attended) seems to be that if you're doing it solely for the fame, you're doing it for the wrong reasons.

I usually fall on the side of "love of your craft," but I can certainly appreciate the other side too.

I've really got no problem with a webcartoonist who runs his webcomic like a business, because art supplies, bandwidth and hosting do cost a lot of money. And if you're making a living off of your strip it costs that much more.

A few artists who live off of their webcomics:

Penny Arcade
Sluggy Freelance
MegaTokyo
8-Bit Theatre
Player vs Player
Schlock Mercenary
Something Positive
Ctrl-Alt-Delete

And those are just some of the ones that I read and can remember.

Anyone into creating a connect the dots puzzle?

Red Mage? Is that you?

Riker: "Does something seem... I don't know, different to you guys?"
Troi: "Yeah. But it also feels correct somehow. Like a horrible mistake was corrected in an instant."

Episode 300: The House Always Wins

You don't know many, eh?

Some of them make the fact that they're gaming comic websites a bit more known, sure. But all those sites I go to primarily for the comics. All of them don't have the full comic on the front page.

Now, clanbob (specifically the life of riley) comic ISN'T the entire focus of the site. it's just a bunch of friends, one of them happens to draw a comic. The others use it for whatever they want, as far as I can tell. But penny-arcade has a link to the comic in each of tycho's posts about it, and a 'Latest Comic' link right at the top. It's fair to include all of these as being similar, I think.

The majority of free content created is, of course, subpar. The tools still need to be wielded by skilled artisans to created above average content. Regardless, as the bar continues to be lowered for entry into the field, more and more people with some degree of talent will find new outlets for their creativity.

I don't see there being any sort of mass uprising anytime soon, as the content cartels still have a lot on the distribution outlets, but the rise of the Internet has changed the playing field dramatically. The major counter-argument has been that the content cartels can merely buy up the few quality titles to maintain their advantage, but my theory is that there is enough latent creativity waiting in the wings they won't be able to stem the tide.

Well... I can dream, can't I?

You sound like you're describing the cast of 8-bit Theater. :-)

I roll a natural twenty.

Schlock mercenary
Sluggy Freelance
Megatokyo
PvP online
8-bit theater
Red vs. Blue

A lot of content is produced that way. Some of it even good one. Just beacause it's not video doesn't mean it doesn't count.

And let's face it, most of us would rather read a comic with a pile of crap fighting psycho-bears than see some bald guy parading in front of a camerafor half an hour, no matter what he actually did.

King Steve Singlehandedly Solved Starvation

Seek other King Steve references as well...

If you want to see a picture, you check it out here, linked at the bottom of this post on 8-bit Theatre, which also has (below the comic) a long in-character account of WoW fandom.

If you want to see a picture, you check it out here, linked at the bottom of this post on 8-bit Theatre, which also has (below the comic) a long in-character account of WoW fandom.