insomnia.ac just got hacked

Trying to enter insomnia.ac redirects you to the new "Mindprobe" forums created by someone who hates icy's guts. I have to admit the hacking method was neat, but that's not the point.

On one hand, he made me angry with his attitude at times, and I think that someone with his attitude does deserve a lesson... but I actually happen to think that a good share of his writing was pretty damn logical and spot-on despite the attitude, I actually liked him. And to add insult to the injury, the hackers didn't just do a disservice to icycalm, they did a disservice to all of his readers. IMO, such a deface of his site is not proper.

I really hope icy can restore most of the important data, though. And do read the IRC discussions. He takes everything so damn calmly, LOL. He may be annoying as fuck when he goes all "I'm better than you" but I still liked him.

Here's to hope a new site will soon be made.

ERROR: Signature not loaded

The last thread on icycalm did not end well. I highly doubt this thread will end well either.

When Internet trolls wage wars...

Expergiscēre cras, medior quam hodie. (Awaken tomorrow, better than today.)

Someone who hates icy's guts? Take a friggin' number, pal... (I'm not one of them; I'm just sayin' that there are probably plenty more out there. I don't even read his columns. I like bring sane, thankyouverymuch.)

I hope you get tiny bits of eggshell in all your omelettes for the rest of your life!

who the hell is this "icy" guy?...

Anyways nice one I guess?

"That is not dead which can eternal lie, And with strange aeons even death itself may die."

Maybe this'll make him realize that he's not some sort of flawless invulnerable superbeing.

Infinite Tree: an experimental story

To answer , Anthony Zirbas, a.k.a. Icycalm, is a bit of an infamous minor internet celebrity, because of his incredibly misogynistic, racist, and elitist views, in addition to some really weird ideas about what constitutes a good video game.

edited 27th Aug '11 8:42:03 PM by TotemicHero

Expergiscēre cras, medior quam hodie. (Awaken tomorrow, better than today.)

I demand examples of his brilliant insights into game design.

"Sarchasm: The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person that doesn't get it."

I, as well, demand examples of this man's views.

"It's so hard to be humble, knowing how great I am."

Well, the website being hacked means I can't post links, really.

A rough summary of his views on video games:

• Any video game designed around any other goals than simple entertainment is a total failure.
• Anyone trying to get anything other than simple entertainment out of a video game is a total idiot. (I'm not going to quote what he calls people who do this.)
• All of this is because Nietzsche was super smart and said so.

Expergiscēre cras, medior quam hodie. (Awaken tomorrow, better than today.)

He must love Call of Duty then!

"Sarchasm: The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person that doesn't get it."

^^Okaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay O_o

What does he say about all those big companies who design games for no other goal than profit? I want him to meet Bobby Kotick someday.

See above.

edited 27th Aug '11 10:44:01 PM by Recon5

... What... does Nietzsche have to do with... what?

"It's so hard to be humble, knowing how great I am."

God is dead.

Videogames can't have an extra meaning derived from them.

Therefore, God is the deeper meaning of in videogames.

The emotions of others can seem like such well guarded mysteries, people 8egin to 8elieve that's how their own emotions should 8e treated.

^^He doesn't tend to explain it, as if you don't get it, you're apparently just an idiot who isn't worth talking to, just like everyone who doesn't agree with him.

edited 27th Aug '11 11:12:06 PM by INUH

Infinite Tree: an experimental story

So basically, if 90's Kid was a video game designer. "It's not an AWESOME video game unless you're SHOOTAN STUUUUUUUUUFF! because life is pain, and only inflicting more pain will help. OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, JUST AS LONG AS THEY'RE SHOOTAN STUUUUUUUFF!"

Okay, so being randomly philosophical is more Chester A. Bum's shtick. But I had to go for it. :D

edited 27th Aug '11 11:16:46 PM by lee4hmz

online since 1993 | huge retrocomputing and TV nerd | lee4hmz.info (under construction) | heapershangout.com

^No, if it were 90's Kid, it'd be more Crazy Awesome.

"Hipsters: the most dangerous gang in the US." - Pacific Mackerel

So, Pong is the highest level of art that video games are allowed?

"But don't give up hope. Everyone is cured sooner or later. In the end we shall shoot you." - O'Brien, 1984

Jesus, could you people stop brilliantly tearing down these ridiculous strawmen for one goddamn thread?

I've read some of his articles in the past and since the other summary in his thread is lacking, here's what I gathered:

He likes challenging and well-designed skill-based games (so Call of Duty is out), but doesn't understand that someone can enjoy a game for something other than its gameplay (and he hates that word). This is illustrated by the fact that he equates 'gameplay' the word with imaginary and redundant words like bookread and moviewatch, not understanding that gameplay is only one aspect of what makes a game (if the single most important one), much like prose or cinematography aren't the only aspects of writing or film.

He dislikes the games r art crowd, that is, video games that mimic the artistic elements of other media, e.g. Braid.

He uses a lot of ad hominems and is incredibly long-winded. Nothing incredibly profound but he occasionally hits some good points in a an articulating the obvious sort of way. This is drowned out by the noise caused by his personality. He has some philosophy stuff and misogynistic tracts but I'm not that interested in hearing what he has to say.

He REALLY likes Nietzsche, as you might be able to see from some of the quotes on the linked page, he has an ego the size of the fucking sun.

Personally I find him an interesting character, in the same way I find interesting the Time Cube guy. I'm not sure why the hacker is doing this (if there was an explanation in that thread, it wasn't apparent after one glance through) other than stroking his own ego/getting attention at the expense of some of Alex Kierkegaard's ego (not that he doesn't need a serious attitude adjustment). I've never been sympathetic to the hacker crowd (unless they do something cool) but this seems like a dick move even if there's an asshole victim.

edited 28th Aug '11 12:51:03 AM by Mammalsauce

Thing is, when he's right, he's so spot-on it's awesome. Like that "Flower" review when no one else could even name the genre of the game and he immediately said "flight sim" and I was like "oh wait... that's actually right".

His views on gameplay (although I still think the word has its uses) is kinda similar to my views on music, so it didn't take long for his ideas to stick. He thinks that, although games CAN have plot, music, graphics and stuff like that, they're all of secondary importance, because they do not DEFINE the game. You can have no story, no music, no graphics, and still have a game. (Case in point: Colossal Cave Adventure. There is a setting for you to interact with, and there's some very Excuse Plot to explain it, but that's it)

The gameplay (interactivity within a ruleset) defines a game, if you take that out, IT'S NOT A GAME. It's going to be a collection of plot, video and music. In other words, it's going to be a movie.

There are cases where a bad game is made good by having an AWESOME story, for instance, but he thinks that if you're reviewing a game and focusing on its story merits, you're not reviewing it as a game. Before his forum went paid, I saw him lamenting on that. "Are you reviewing it as a game, as a movie, as a book, as a musical CD, as a fucking hallucination, as a bed-time story?" Not word-for-word but you get the point.

If your game review focuses on plot, you're reviewing it AS A BOOK. If it focuses on plot+graphics, you're reviewing it AS A MOVIE. If it focuses on the soundtrack, you're reviewing it AS A MUSICAL CD. And since the "game" part in these cases is usually not just bad, but a Dethroning Element Of Suck that de-enhances the others by calling too much attention to itself... then fuck that game, I'd watch a movie.

Although I still think that such reviews have merits if you're reviewing a game as a PRODUCT first and foremost and then focus on a particular aspect, (plot, for example) but if you call it a game review, then review it AS A FUCKING GAME.

That is what I think he thinks on that. Well... I have to agree. Music is the same thing to me when I argue with someone who thinks that lyrics are the most important thing. It's true that sometimes very simplistic or even sucky music is made good by having AWESOME lyrics... but if that's how you're perceiving that song, you're not perceiving it AS music. You're perceiving it as musically-enhanced POETRY. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but critics should be aware of that and what they're doing. If musical critics suddenly start reviewing as poetry, if game critics start trying to be movie critics either because they don't realize it, or to deceive and delude themselves and the readers, there's a fucking problem.

Actually no, only a few. Ad hominem is "you're wrong because you're an idiot." and his is usually, "you're wrong because of this, this and this, therefore you're an idiot." Insult, yes. Ad hominem, no.

And most of his ad hominems that are there are only there because he thinks he already explained it many times and no one gets it anyway.

I'm not a huge fan of his attitude, and when he is wrong and has the same attitude, that's just grating. But when he's right, he's awesome.

edited 28th Aug '11 1:20:53 AM by Muzozavr

ERROR: Signature not loaded

The whole "games as art" thing is kind of a point of contention because, if I recall correctly, the last person who tried to claim that games had no art and therefore should be strictly monitored and regulated by the government was a politician who wanted to lump violent games in with pornography.

"Hipsters: the most dangerous gang in the US." - Pacific Mackerel

When did he say "games aren't art"? To me, he said "the art is not where you're looking, sillyboys". His reasoning is, at the very least, clean and simple: if a game is good (as a game) then it's art, that's it. There's also this whole "for its time" thing to make it possible to discuss the older games on equal footing, but that's it.

He even has this list of "Videogame Art"... or HAD that list, because the site is now hacked.

edited 28th Aug '11 1:54:46 AM by Muzozavr

ERROR: Signature not loaded

Gameplay may make games, but it does not make them good.

There are too many toasters in my chimney!

Except it does. Go check out Sokoban if you haven't. You know, that incredibly well-known block pushing game. No story, no music, and the graphics can be as primitive as you want as long as the objects can be clearly distinguished from one another: but give me a good, well designed set of levels (like the "cosmos" series by Aymeric du Peloux) and I can play on and on without getting tired.

ERROR: Signature not loaded

That's right. Good gameplay makes them good.