There are a few things that are a bit weirder than usual when it comes to augurs and signs regarding Titanfall 3 - odd dates in patch notes, a new playlist? - but having endured the last few years, years of psychological famine, belief can be hard work. For some, I guess. For others, it has roughly the same level of intent and exertion as respiration.

So, it's probably worth clarifying some things. When we say that we don't understand why Unity is doing the things they're doing, it's not that we don't literally understand. We aren't confused about the reason: it's money and control. That's not the confusing part. Here's where the confusion actually roosts: in seeking those things, they've undertaken a course of action that stands to lose them quite a lot of both, and the outcome is completely obvious. This is the kind of genius maneuvre you and I simply can't comprehend.

I think most people are familiar with what has been referred to broadly as "that fucking Unity shit," but just in case, Unity - a ubiquitous development platform among independent creators - announced that they'll be charging a twenty-cent fee in the most likely scenario for that cadre of developers. Dark rituals were begun at this time. Viral tweets and personal stories began to braid in lashing, whip-like beams. Then they answered some frequently asked questions and I don't know about anybody else but they managed to make it worse…?

I wouldn't say I'm bullish on gaming from the cloud yet, but I've had the kind of experiences with it where I have seen the thesis made manifest. For me, it's largely genre dependent - but If I squint I can absolutely see the proposition as a real thing that meaningfully happens for a lot of people in the real world.

I recovered from the novel Coronavirus just in time to take care of Brenna, who came down with it on Friday. I never had it before, and it's been just as novel as advertised. It's like we have two different illnesses: I had a "cold" so mild I was more or less fine in two days. Brenna is riding a horse made of bones in plaguelands, and she is pregnant with its dark gifts. It's not the same! So, I bring her soup sometimes.

Morak, being who he is, has suggested to me that Sea of Stars at this late juncture is probably his Game of the Year, or "goaty." That sounds like an adjective, and not a pleasant one - bare minimum, it evokes goats. But in this case, somehow, it's an indication of particular enthusiasm.

Today is the last day to feast on the riches available from our show store!  Come get it!

I’m back home and resting up after my first PAX since 2020. It was a great show but holy shit, I was incredibly unprepared physically for the amount of walking I ended up doing. 

I'm not like other girls.

At hashtag PAX West, since it starts on Thursday, Monday rolls around and the show is over. It's a new week. Because PAX West (though I suspect we know its true name) extends, yea, into the Monday after, it creates a very peculiar annual moment where I rise unsteadily on the last day of the show, my mind whipping and writhing like a wavy tube man. It is that precise moment that I greet you here.

Hey! I've got incredible news: you've still got time to shotgun the first season of Seattle By Night in preparation for Sunday's Vampire: The Masquerade game, which picks up immediately thereafter. It's one of the coolest stories I've ever been part of, and unless you're familiar with other Vampire streams I can guarantee you've never seen somebody run a table like Jason Carl. This is what mastery looks like. His meticulously curated filth commingled with the dark energy of the world, its system, and its legacy . These days, D&D is sort of the default - but this creature, and its wicked ways, are from a much more primordial era where the future hadn't been decided yet. Let's hang out there, this Sunday at 11:30am PST on Main Stage - which you can watch from anywhere at twitch.tv/pax.

Years in the making, Ziply Fiber has made the necessary municipal genuflections and now Gabriel is sending me screenshots of his Speed Tests. I assume this is something that frequently occurs on Dating Apps, also; incredible throughput must be seen as a tantalizing inducement.

PAX West 2023 arrives this week and unlike the last few PAX shows, I’ll be at this one!

I think that's what the designers would call it.  It's dangerous for me to even be messing around with terminology outside my ken; this is almost certainly called a Photo-Looky.  But, in any case: Lidija sent me these images to send to you, and I'm fucken doin' it!!!  It's all good, I love all of it, but those keycaps are happening. Like, on my own keyboard after the show. Bet on it.  As always, tremendous love and praise to the team on these.   

Mork was able to grab some Lorcana up by his place. I thought maybe he'd snatched it up at Over The Brick, largely a card/wargame shop, but I think that like a lot of small locals their entire allotment was sold alongside their first in-store play event. He ended up finding it at Snapdoodle, which is kinda fancy and features mostly toys and boardgames, which is probably why he was able to grab them off the shelf. I never would have considered Snapdoodle for a game like this; it probably has to do with the fact that they also carry a crazy allotment of Ravensburger shit generally.

We saw that our good friend Kris Straub, whose profundities defy easy categorization, had just set up shop on Cameo, which we saw as an excellent opportunity to make an impromptus commercial to bolster his ascent.