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bitterkarella · 6 months

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Midnight Pals: Love on a Battlefield

Stephen King: guys did you hear there’s a video game campfire too? Mary Shelley: that sounds like some nerd shit King: no no there are lots of cool people there King: hideo kojima, sid meier, bob bates King: the 2 guys from andromeda Shelley: [cracking knuckles in anticipation]

Hideo Kojima: IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD 19XX, MERCENERY GASEOUS SNAKE IS BROUGHT OUT OF RETIREMENT TO FIGHT THE REMNANTS OF THE WOLFDOG UNIT... Kojima: INCLUDING... Kojima: ROPE CHOKER, POISON EATER, TORPEDO LAUNCHER , AXE GRINDER, BOMB DETONATOR, AND DIPPY DOG

Kojima: do you think that love can bloom on a battlefield? Kojima: Kojima: yes... Kojima: even on a battlefield... Ken Williams: hey my girlfriend roberta and I saw you from across the bar and we’re really digging your vibe Williams: Can we buy you a drink?

Kojima: the villainous traitor bad boy has kidnapped dr good scientist and forced him to help build the ultimate weapon of mass destruction... Kojima: the metal gear... Kojima: it’s like a tank... Kojima: but it can move... Kojima: Kojima: But wait... Kojima: not with treads... Kojima: with legs...

[at Midnight Society] Hideo Kojima: I have an idea for a new video game... Kojima: About you! Stephen King: oh wow a game about us? that sounds pretty ok! Poe: yeah I’d be curious about this Kojima: the game is called ‘the association of Fire Story friends’ Kojima: a hideo kojima game... Kojima: written by hideo kojima... Kojima: produced by hideo kojima... Kojima: directed by hideo kojima... Kojima: catering by hideo kojima...

Kojima: The fire story friend association members names are... Kojima: Bird Scare.. Poe: Kojima: Clown daddy... King: Kojima: Knife Stabber... Mary Shelley: Kojima: Little Friend... Dean Koontz: Kojima: Cat Bitch... Clive Barker: Kojima: and Silly Racist... Lovecraft: Lovecraft: w-which one is me

Kojima: SUBMITTED FOR THE APPROVAL OF THE MIDNIGHT SOCIETY I CALL THIS THE TALE OF THE STORY FRIENDS... Kojima: IT IS A GAME WHERE THE GOAL IS NOT TO FIGHT... Mary Shelley: what the hell is this shit Thomas Disch: sh let him cook Disch: mr kojima in level 5 is there a way to escape the dungeon w/o the wizard‘s key? Shelley: shut UP nerd

Kojima: In this game, you play as clown daddy... Kojima: bird scare has given him an assignment... Kojima: he must tell a story without anyone hearing King: wow! incredible! King: hideo, once again you’ve redefined a genre!

Kojima: this story is also about how war is bad... King: whats the theme tho Kojima: Kojima: uh, its that war is bad... King: Koontz: Poe: Lovecraft: Barker: Kojima: perhaps this three hour cutscene will explain better...

Kojima: now this next story will be my last ever... Kojima: for real this time... King: aw really? Kojima: yes... King: King: really?

#midnight pals #the midnight society #midnight society #stephen king #clive barker #edgar allan poe #dean koontz #hp lovecraft #mary shelley #thomas disch #hideo kojima #ken williams

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spilladabalia · 10 months

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The Electric Prunes - I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night

#the electric prunes #i had too much to dream last night #(annette tucker/nancie mantz)#james lowe #ken williams #james weasel spagnola #mark tulin #preston ritter #psychedelic rock #acid rock #garage psych #protopunk #7'' single #1966 #annette tucker #nancie mantz #Youtube

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kawaoneechan · 11 months

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The Curious Case of Ken

or

Ken and the Rabbit Hole

I don't mean Barbie's Ken, but Ken Williams. And I don't mean the actual guy either, but some of his appearances in the old Sierra adventure games.

There's something pretty silly going on, y'see?

Okay so here's the thing.

Part the First - Larry

Chronologically, we start at Leisure Suit Larry 1. The guy in the white shirt telling jokes in Lefty's bar is supposed to be Ken Williams. Looking at the original source code for the AGI version, he's just "the bore", but the SCI version explicitly calls him "Ken". He also visually matches the Ken who walks up to congratulate you at the end, save for the outfit.

In the sequel, we meet Chief Kenniwauwau. The code again confirms what the art suggests: this is a riff on Ken Williams. So far no foul, it's not like there's a law against two big men named Ken coexisting.

Leisure Suit Larry 3 has the Chief renamed to Chairman Kenneth, but he uses the same sprites as in the previous game so you know it's still him. So far so good. But then in the end Larry and Patti travel to the "real" world and Larry gets hired by Sierra to make the very trilogy you just played. Okay, that's fun.

And then in the sixth game you find the guy from the bar floating around in La Costa Lotta's pool, up to his old thing. He is explicitly identified in the text as the same guy.

Did Larry travel back to his home world at some time? Was it a side effect of whatever happened in Leisure Suit Larry 4 - The Missing Floppies?

Part the Second - Roger

Relatively straightforward, really. In Space Quest 3, Roger rescues the Two Guys from Andromeda, flies into a black hole, and ends up near Earth. He lands in Coarsegold, near the Sierra office, and the Two Guys are hired... by Ken Williams.

But there's also a Ken, white shirt and all, who works as a slave driver for ScumSoft™. Again, the code confirms it's him. Again, there's no law that says you can't have two of them.

The fact that Roger can just take the slightly longer way back and take a pit stop on Magmetheus implies to me that Roger's world is the "real" world that Larry ended up in. But at the same time, there's a set for Space Quest 2 at the end of LSL3...

Part the Third - The Rest of It

Also at the end of LSL3 are sets for King's Quest 4 and Police Quest 1. We even see (an actress depicting) Rosella try to climb the (fake) whale's tongue in that scene.

But if you press the forbidden button in Space Quest 1, you end up in King's Quest 1, meaning King's Quest isn't "just" an act. And as the Twitter thread linked above shows, King's Quest appears to share a world, to some degree, with Quest for Glory.

And if Space Quest 3 is set in the mid to late 1980s (local Coarsegold time) since that's when Larry and the Two Guys are supposedly hired, and is mostly set in the same universe as the "real" world if not several star systems away, how can there be a starship Enterprise docked at Monolith Burger?

On top of that, the backstory for Space Quest 4 states that everything involving Vohaul's return is because of an infected copy of LSL4, which was considered lost since forever, and the bargain bin all but spells out that the SQ10 - Latex Babes segment is set in the very far future, considering it has King's Quest 48.

So if Roger traveled to 1980s Earth, specifically 1984 Earth since Mark Crowe has to be there to help with King's Quest 1... well, six more Space Quest sequels isn't nearly enough time for King's Quest to get up to forty eight.

So yeah, very messed up.

#sierra #leisure suit larry #space quest #king's quest #ramblings #time travel #dimensional travel #ken williams #spoilers for old games

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tscnews · 1 month

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Roberta and Ken Williams on Colossal Cave, Sierra On-Line, Retirement

About This TSC Gaming Ent Interview: TSC News TV host Fred Richani interviews legendary video game designer Roberta Williams and video game developer Ken Williams about their incredible legacy in the industry, founding Sierra On-Line, the latest release of Colossal Cave, and traveling the world during retirement! Special thanks to Marcus Mera.

#youtube #ken williams #roberta williams #tsc news #tsc gaming #tsc gaming ent #fred richani #tsc #richani #colossal cave

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guy60660 · 1 year

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Ken Williams | Turnbull & Asser

#ken williams #turnbull & asser

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k00299471 · 5 months

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Inspired by Ken Williams ,Irish photographer.

I like the way the light catches the stones in its natural environment ,reflecting in different ways encouraged me to photograph a stone axehead that was found but my father in the 80s. It was authenticated by The National Museum of Ireland from the Neolithic ages.

#Ken Williams #shadows and stone

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fromthedust · 1 year

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Ken Williams (American, working in Athens, Georgia)

Roman Alphabet

Carrara Bianco Unito marble

1993

#art by others #other's artwork #lettercutting #alphabet #Ken Williams

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victusinveritas · 1 year

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A relatively rare ‘Fog Bow’ appears above ruined Neolithic passage tombs, just as the fog began to clear on the Loughcrew Hills, County Meath.

Fog Bows are sometimes called ‘white rainbows’, the white colour is due to the much smaller size of the water droplets in fog, as opposed to the larger droplets in rain.

The larger drops of rain refract light on the curved surface of the back of droplet, which helps break the light into its constituent colours. In fog, the colours are often too weak to be seen clearly.

Photography by Ken Williams.

#ken williams #photography #ireland #grave goods #holy ground #irish studies #winter #solstice

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plus-low-overthrow · 1 year

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VIDEO: Ken Williams - Sweet Music, Soft Lights and You (Cream)

arr. Paul Griffin, 1976. Flutes.

#video #youtube #ken williams #sweet music soft lights and you #paul griffin #soul #flutes #soul 45 #1976

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adventuregamesforever · 2 years

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Oh hey I’m very not smart and forgot this was happening this weekend AND forgot to post about it but here it is now and I’m HYPED

Honestly the most excited for Jane Jensen since I don’t think she’s spoken anywhere since like 2014? Also I’m not sure if Space Quest Historian is moderating anymore, I know there was some issues with him being removed but I’m not sure if he’s back on.

#pax west #pax west 2022 #jane jensen #roberta williams #ken williams #ron gilbert #dave gilbert #al lowe #space quest historian

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smbhax · 2 years

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Roberta & Ken Williams

#roberta williams #ken williams #sierra #sierra online #video games

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ultimacodex · 7 months

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Spam Spam Spam Humbug 160 - Games We Can't Go Back To

Spam Spam Spam Humbug 160 - Games We Can't Go Back To Oh, to wander some long-forgotten game worlds once more.

Subscribe on Zencastr | Subscribe on iTunes | Subscribe on Google Play | Subscribe on Spotify | Subscribe on TuneIn | Subscribe on Stitcher Podcast Topic(s) Cear Dragon, Cocoa, WtF Dragon, and Goldenflame discuss a bunch of games that they used to play, which they can’t ever play again for various reasons. Full show notes at spamspamspamhumbug.com. Community & Patronage As always, this…

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lonnewulf · 9 months

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Discover the seismic shift in the Chicago White Sox's leadership as Ken Williams and Rick Hahn step down, leaving fans and players in anticipation of a new era in baseball.

#white sox #chicagowhitesox #ken williams #rickhahn #baseball #leadership changes

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neoneggs · 10 months

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can I speak my truth

CAN I FINALLY SPEAK MY TRUTH-

#barbie is out now i can finally say it #AND THE MOVIE WAS SO GOOD #barbie #ken #cobra kai #ryan gosling #barbie movie #johnny lawrence #karate kid #william zabka

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pixelpoppers · 2 years

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Toonstruck, Telltale, and Ken Williams

Recently I was chatting with friends about this article: Toonstruck (or, A Case Study in the Death of Adventure Games)

It's an interesting retrospective, especially for people like my friends and me who grew up on Sierra and LucasArts adventure games but lacked the perspective to understand the genre's decline in the mid-to-late 90's. It pins at least part of the downfall on an adherence to a vision of games as interactive cinema, as championed by Sierra's Ken Williams. Toonstruck in particular was an overoptimistic overinvestment in this vision that went way past deadline and over budget (though this write-up also makes it sound pretty fun and makes me want to finally get it off my backlog and play it).

In our conversation, my friend asked me, "With some distance, what do you think about Telltale's attempt at a revival?" I turned out to have a lot to say about this.

I was going to start by saying I haven't actually played any Telltale games, but that's not quite true. I just haven't played any of the ones people think of. I played Poker Night at the Inventory (very much not an adventure game), Puzzle Agent and Puzzle Agent 2 (kind of adventure games but not really, closer to Professor Layton-style narratively-wrapped puzzle compilations), and the first two chapters of Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People (an early not-super-well-known-or-regarded part of the revival).

That said, there are a couple different angles to address here. First, one of the major flaws of the Ken Williams vision as described in the Toonstruck write-up is that at the time, making that kind of game was more expensive than making movies and had much worse-looking results. Neither of those things is anywhere near as true anymore. Tech has advanced on both sides so that kind of game would be much easier and cheaper to make now and people could more easily view it on nice big screens in high resolution with lots of colors and stuff.

There's a sort of rising-tide-lifts-all-boats effect from tech advancement in games. I think my friend said this before me, but as a rule of thumb, anything that's AAA today can be replicated by a small indie team in ten years and by a single person in another ten. So as games-in-general become more mainstream and it becomes easier to reach niche audiences, it's inevitable that things that used to be AAA mainstays and then declined get revived as indie/niche later on. I'd expect to see most once-popular genres eventually get reborn with proportionally smaller teams and lower budgets but similar (or even superior) levels of quality.

Adventure games absolutely did that, even aside from Telltale. Telltale just ended up being maybe the best-known studio for it. Which brings us to the second angle I want to get into: Telltale's specific approach.

The first few adventure games they made (Sam & Max, Strong Bad, etc.) got some notice because they were licensed IPs with built-in fanbases. But my understanding is that their gameplay, writing, and puzzle design was actually basically... standard/middling. The effect was just: here are some more adventure games. That genre you knew is back now. Not evolved over the intervening time, except in that the tech has improved and they used the episodic model. So the games were only ever going to appeal to the people who'd already liked adventure games as they'd previously existed. Which is very much a niche, especially in today's larger market with more alternatives. (Even I only played the first two episodes of Strong Bad.)

And then Telltale made The Walking Dead.

This was significant in a couple of ways - one, it was a currently popular property rather than a nostalgia one, so it got the attention of more new players. And then, those players (as well as reviewers/influencers/tastemakers) liked what they found and talked about it, because it also had a shiny new gameplay formula.

This is where it becomes relevant that I haven't actually played any of these games, because I can't speak from experience. But my understanding is that The Walking Dead moved its focus from puzzles to characters, relationships, and consequences. It was less about vacuuming up items and then clicking everything on everything else, and more about getting to know these characters and then making choices that have effects on them that you then get to see play out (which also meant that the episodic setup actually became beneficial instead of just a quirk of the business model). The writing was also quite good, as it would need to be to actually support that formula effectively.

The game was a huge success. And it was superficially similar to adventure games of yore, and Telltale was that company that makes adventure games, so it kind of got lumped in as one in the popular consciousness. But I feel like this is when Telltale actually pivoted from just "doing the old kind of game again" to pushing the format forward.

The Walking Dead looked around at what you could do in the modern landscape with modern tech and actually took advantage of it. It was like, "Hey, we can have voice acting and animations where you can actually see facial expressions and body language. We can actually tell emotional stories now and not just rely on jokes that work in text." (It also did some internet stuff on top, I think? I want to say there was a thing where when you finished a chapter you got to see how many people made the same choices you did, which was good for social media and helped the game spread farther.)

So, this is the game that made Telltale blow up... in both senses, as I understand it. What happened was basically the same thing that happened at Halfbrick after Jetpack Joyride, and probably at many small studios that had a sudden hit. The sudden success attracted people who smelled money rather than sharing the creators' vision who then pushed the company into going all-in on trying to catch that lighting in a bottle again and milk it before it ran out.

Telltale rode on a great reputation for a while just on the strength of that one game. While I haven't played them, my understanding is that Telltale then basically started churning out more games with the exact same formula as The Walking Dead for various other licenses, and there was a period where people assumed they'd be good because The Walking Dead was so good, but largely they weren't. I'm sure different people would give you different rankings but I've heard that basically the only other good game they made was Tales from the Borderlands. (And maybe The Wolf Among Us.) The later you go, the more universally their games were considered bad, and ultimately they shut down.

Telltale veterans are now at other places doing things like Star Trek: Resurgence. (From their FAQ: "Star Trek: Resurgence is created by Dramatic Labs, an independent collaboration of 20+ former Telltale writers, developers, designers, artists, and producers. Star Trek: Resurgence will be familiar to fans of Telltale's unique style of gameplay, but it also brings some welcome additions and refinements from Dramatic Labs." I'm really keeping my fingers crossed for this one.)

There are still standard-bearers for the Telltale-like evolution of adventure games. The most notable are probably Quantic Dream (Indigo Prophecy, Heavy Rain, Beyond: Two Souls, Detroit: Become Human), Supermassive (Until Dawn, The Quarry), and Dontnod (Life is Strange, etc.) These studios don't usually get lumped in with Telltale, for a few reasons, but honestly I think you could reasonably argue that the natural categories here are old-school Sierra or LucasArts point-and-clicks in one bucket, and Telltale/Quantic/Supermassive/Dontnod/etc. in another bucket that hews much closer to Ken Williams' vision of the future of adventure games.

It's also worth noting that there are other buckets here: hidden object games are another evolutionary offshoot that change up the emphasis in a different way and which have been thriving in their own niche for quite a long time.

So, Telltale brought adventure games back into the mainstream spotlight and then faded away, but the revival itself started before Telltale and has outlasted it. There are still other small studios making old-school adventure games, in that niche-rebirth way I mentioned before, and others making other niche offshoots like hidden object games. And other larger studios took notice of the ways The Walking Dead actually did evolve the formula and have continued to push that envelope in their own ways. Even if most people don't think of the results as "adventure games", I think they're showing that Ken Williams's vision was ahead of its time and is now coming to fruition with exciting results.

#adventure games #telltale #toonstruck #sierra #ken williams #the digital antiquarian

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ken-branagh · 5 months

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BEATRICE & BENEDICK MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING (1993), dir. Kenneth Branagh

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