#arrowhead video

[heliojip]

my limited edition arrowhead video dvd box set of Re-Animator came in the mail today!!! YIPPEEEE!!! pictures of them both under the cut!

they're so beautiful to me...i like how the theme for the first movie is white and green and bride is black and green!

[iwouldexistwithoutyou]

Me and the boys spreading managed democracy with the gentle touch of an iron fist.

[laurarolla]

Arknights Rainbow Six collab has a number of things going for it, not least of which is that it made me think about my feelings and perspective on the origins of Rainbow Six, Tom Clancy's troubling political ideologies, and how a lot of that history has been forgotten in the years since the franchise has been in the hands of Ubisoft.

It's a story about art, artists, capitalism, grifters, community, and how political and monetary power interact with all of those things. It also has one of my favorite antagonists in the game so far with Reynell, and gives all the Rainbow cast members a chance to be heartfelt characters.

Also makes fun of NFTs, which, while definitely dated by now, is still great to see. Shame it's in a gacha game, really.

[madame-helen]

[nnineteen84]

[1stprototype]

I think the democracy officer needs to have a long talk with Pelican-1 about his drinking problem. This is getting ridiculous.

[psicadetterra]

Uuhh, did anyone notice how Raz and Kitty broke the fourth wall?

[ask-zaukodar]

For those who don't particularly follow gaming, there's currently a hot new game out in the field called "Helldivers 2" and it is making hype train waves like very few games have before. There is also a lot of discourse about why it's doing the kinds of numbers and having the popular support that it currently has, and while I know this may not reach a lot of people I still want to drop my thoughts on things.

Just to recap briefly: "Helldivers 2" is the sequel to the titular PC/PS4 game "Helldivers" where you play satirical Starship Troopers waging a war of aggression pre-emptive strike on alien powers who were content to be left alone dangerous enemies of humanity and democracy in the name of subjugating these powers to steal their resources and technology liberty, freedom, and defending our way of life. It was developed by Arrowhead games, who in addition to the original Helldivers previously made Magicka (not Magicka 2) and Gauntlet (2014), and the devs very clearly knew what they wanted to make in regards to all three games and hyperfocused on making those elements work to make the game the best possible experience.

Yes, there are live services aspects such as a rotating armor shop and a "seasonal pass" in the form of something called a War Bond, but the game has gone to impressive lengths to ensure that you aren't pressured into buying stuff through old tactics like FOMO and the like. And yes, the dev team has been in crisis mode addressing the server issues and fixing bugs and (hopefully) addressing the cheater problems, but they have a clear vision and have been working hard to make sure everyone can enjoy it. But it isn't the no-pressure live service, or the on-the-up-and-up dev team in and of itself, or even the chaotic and satirical nature of the game itself I spotted after playing as long as I have.

Helldivers 2 is a perfect (and perfectly-timed) B-game.

For anyone who never owned a console before the seventh generation (Playstation 3, Wii, and XBox 360) I'll explain briefly: every console had its "big title" (later known as AAA) games: Mario, Zelda, Final Fantasy, Battlefield, Call of Duty, Metal Gear, and all of the other ones an elder millennial can name off the top of their heads. But there also used to be games that very explicitly weren't that big-named that were still amazing games in their own right, like the Legacy of Kain series or Jak & Daxter series or Wild Arms or Guitar Hero or Pikmin or Overlord or Saints Row, there's lots of examples of "great games that didn't have mega-bux budgets". These games were the backbone of any console you owned, ever, and some of the best times you had with friends. They were not priced or marketed like AAA games were, but were the kind of game that kept you going back to any video game store of your choice.

For reasons I still don't fully comprehend these types of titles started drying up in the seventh generation, I don't know if it's because of the always-online culture that started appearing in gaming or if it had to do with the emergence of "indie games" or if it was manufacturers wanting bigger slices of the pie or whatever, but for whatever reason these games eventually fell into obscurity, and everything started to fall into "indie dev" or "AAA studio" with little exception. The few games of this category from this time period that were saved in PC ports are old and clunky and not as enjoyable to play, so people don't appreciate just how satisfying these games could be.

The thing about B-games is that they were incredibly solid. Yeah they might have reminded you of other games that were more mainstream or older games that you played on lesser graphics, but even if you didn't always enjoy the game you couldn't deny that it was decently made and it was the kind of game the devs wanted to make so you could play it. They weren't always the flashiest, highest-poly-count, or biggest marketing budget titles ever, but it still left an impression on you that could make you think back to it even now.

Flashing forward back to the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand and Twenty-Four and the landscape has changed so radically that the concept of a mid-level game that sets out to do something it wants to do is almost alien. But this is what Arrowhead started doing back in the 2010's when they made a dopey magic game where spells were based on your controller input that could friendly-fire (or outright troll) your friends. They used to be indie, but now they've grown enough to be a legitimate mid-level developer making the kind of games they know they want to make.

And because the gaming community is starved for something remotely original or fun they piled on it like sharks on bloody meat and they are eating it up wholesale. Which is great for the devs! And hopefully great for the gaming community at large, because maybe we'll get a return of some of these "not quite AAA games but still very solid and definitely not basement-developed" games.

[youcansaveyourprogresshere]

You Know What Really Makes Helldivers 2's Satire Work?

The scene setting for the game insists to players that they will be defending democracy, that most hallowed of government institutions. But once you complete basic training, don The Cape, and report to your super destroyer (in my case the Distributor of Audacity), you'll see very little if any democracy beyond the Sol System.

Take mission selection as a first example. You and up to three other helldivers will deploy to alien worlds to complete your mission(s), but no one gets a say in what world you'll be liberating today, exactly. The host of your destroyer group has the first and last word on where you're dropping. There's no formal system or mechanic by which players can change their destination. Although players can make friendly suggestions about where to land once you're locked in ("how about here?") it's ultimately up to your host which quadrant will be blessed by that first charge of hellpods.

A case could be made that debate, an important component of many democratic institutions, is one system Helldivers 2 offers. However this requires you to be mic'd up, or use the keyboard for those so inclined. If you're not playing with friends you may need to appeal your position to strangers on the internet, whom you barely know and will almost certainly never see again. Ships passing in the night, as they say. Except these ships carry 500kg high explosive orbital bombardments.

Speaking of orbital bombardment, let's go to our helldivers in the field. Having just arrived on the planet's surface, you may find that the mission has quickly gone from a simple Search and Destroy to an unmitigated fracas of bombing runs and bazookas. I'm not a political scientist, but I think that an important component of democracy is the ability to censor, veto, or block certain policies from being put to a vote. Debating someone's humanity, for example. There's no way to turn off the mayhem your teammates are calling to the field.

In the wacky worlds of Helldivers 2, everything is permitted. If you were going to reverse engineer a design document for Helldivers 2, you might say that a core pillar of gameplay is that pretty much "Everything goes". All stratagems, all weapons, all upgrades, all boosters, are available to all players at all times. The game certainly gives itself permission to modify those stratagems, absolutely, but will never take them away from the player. It's truly, if anything, a Libertarian paradise. Where you can set whoever you want on fire, as long as you have the napalm for it. In Helldivers 2, you'll be defending a LOT of democracy. Just don't expect to participate in it.

[solaris-t]

I’ve been watching the downfall of helldivers 2 and it’s truly saddening. I expected to play this game for a decade at least but it just couldn’t be.

We should have seen it coming with the first Arch thrower nerf tbh. Arrowhead took accidental genius and pruned it like a rose growing un planted in a garden simply because its beauty was not created intentionally. The arch thrower was the first real harbinger.

Since then it’s just been a snuffing of joys sparks, taking any unintended or intended mechanic that added a sense of depth to the game and whipping it away, the eruptor shrapnel, the railguns armor piercing, the flamethrowers utility.

We used to fight for every little planet. Now when super earth falls, nobody will care.

[demifiendrsa]

Sony has backtracked on plans for Helldivers 2 PC players to require linking their steam accounts to PSN after massive outrage.

Helldivers fans -- we’ve heard your feedback on the Helldivers 2 account linking update. The May 6 update, which would have required Steam and PlayStation Network account linking for new players and for current players beginning May 30, will not be moving forward. We’re still learning what is best for PC players and your feedback has been invaluable. Thanks again for your continued support of Helldivers 2 and we’ll keep you updated on future plans.

[brongusthearcanist]

Helldiver's 2 is really dope, and I love the strategem input method. It's also really cool to see how much stuff is essentially exactly the same as the first game just more immersive. This game makes me hope that one day we will see Magicka is a similar fashion. Arrowhead did make the OG, though they don't own the IP. Something that I often feel is missing from Wizards in gaming is that it feels to easy, almost instinctual, and normally requires 1 input. When people ask what classes I choose in gaming it's always Wizard or Rouge. I like being fast, but I also like complexity. But many wizard options in games aren't complex, they are just glass cannons with some range, but normally the game isn't built around that style of combat. I want to feel like a wizard, and Magicka, and to a lesser extent, helldiver's, are some of the only games that have really nailed that for me. I want to have to memorize or at least have to type in complex inputs, I want the pay off of preparing a spell perfectly and executing it just in time. That rush, that wizard madness is what I crave, now give me it in 3rd person not over-head!

This is why I played a hunter in Destiny. Warlocks are just balloons and their powers are more wizard aesthetic, but functionally it did not make me feel like I was molding magic to my will. It felt like button go boom, which isn't that different from any other class, and you jump weird!

If you have any recs for games that nail the "Wizarding" part of gameplay/roleplay, drop em in the comments

[filipmagnuswrites]

Helldivers 2 Bucks Live Service Trends for Super Democracy! | Game Review

Super Democracy! You might call it a lie, you might call it filthy propaganda, you might suggest its striking similarity to fascism. If that’s the case, the firing line’s this way – let the bullets hit you on your way out. For all my fellow loyal citizens, I congratulate you: together ,we have done much to defeat the threats that surround our very own Super Earth. We’ve gassed bugs (without any…

[goodjohnjr]

Your Boyfriend Should Play Helldivers 2

Your Boyfriend Should Play Helldivers 2 What Is It? The YouTube video Your Boyfriend Should Play Helldivers 2 by the YouTube channel Girlfriend Reviews: Your Boyfriend Should Play Helldivers 2 Description: Use code GIRLFRIENDREVIEWS50 to get 50% OFF your first Factor box plus 20% off your next box at: https://bit.ly/3r2wZd5 Helldivers 2 is my new favorite game because I love the taste of…

[nnineteen84]

© mossa

[1stprototype]

Footage taken aboard the DSS during the bombardment of Mastia.