#indie news roundup

[avomagazine]

Every week, we bring you a treasure trove of captivating music videos from lesser-known, new and intriguing Japanese artists who deserve your support! Join us on this extraordinary musical journey as we shed light on the artists who often go unnoticed but leave an unforgettable impact. We also maintain a YouTube Music playlist

This week we highlighted music videos from: 🍙 cephalo 🍙 LaughTONiC 🍙 ゆれるこ (Yureruko) 🍙 LAUSBUB 🍙 Penetrate 🍙 タラチネ (Tarachine) 🍙 アクロバット★少年 (ACROBAT☆SHONEN)

Since 2020, AVO Magazine has been curating a list of seven music videos by Japanese artists and bands across various genres, from pop and rock to metal.

Enjoy the music!

[ginaraemitchell]

Fun Fall Friday Finds For 09-13-2024! #Books #Bloggers #Brownies #Beans #TriviaContest #IndieAuthor Announcements & MORE!

Fun Fall Friday Finds For 09-13-2024! #Books #Bloggers #Brownies #Beans #TriviaContest #IndieAuthor Announcements & MORE! Let me know what your favorite is this week! Don't forget to check out my reviews of your favorite author's books. You just might help them become my next Author of the Month!

Weekly Friday Finds | 09-13-2024| Welcome to the 09-13-2024 Friday Finds. Let’s see…what’s new this week? I saw the eye specialist again and was fitted for new tear duct tubes. So far, so good! This seems to be the best apple crop we’ve had in years. The pies have been plentiful and delicious. I’ll share my recipe and tips soon. This is not my pie! We ate ours before I even thought about taking a…

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Thinking the unthinkable

On SEPTEMBER 24th, I'll be speaking IN PERSON at the BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY!

Time and again, I find myself thinking about radium suppositories: specifically, I get to thinking about the day that the consensus shifted from "radium suppositories are great" to "stop putting radioisotopes up your ass."

The thing is, people really liked radium-based quack remedies. They drank radium-infused water, smeared radium cream on their faces and bodies, and yes, rammed radium suppositories up their assholes:

https://maximumfun.org/episodes/sawbones/radium-girls/

The fact that this made whatever ailed you sicker didn't deter the radium true believers: if you're getting sicker, then you must need more radium.

When I think about the debate over radium, I imagine that the people who understood that radium was really bad for you must have run up against critics who told them they were being unreasonable. "You can't tell people to stop using radium. Tell them to use suppositories with less radium. Tell them to use them less frequently. But you can't just tell people, 'stop putting radium up your asshole.' They won't take you seriously."

About 20 years ago, I started pitching various institutions that reviewed consumer tech policy on the idea that they should reject any product that had DRM. After all, DRM didn't just restrict how you used a gadget today, it provided a facility for nonconsensually, irreversibly field-updating that gadget to add new restrictions tomorrow. How could a reviewer in good conscience say, "Go ahead and buy this device if you need this feature," if they knew that at any time in the future, the gadget's maker could take that feature away and leave the buyer with no recourse?

Here's the warning I (half-seriously) suggested magazines run alongside such products:

WARNING: THIS DEVICE’S FEATURES ARE SUBJECT TO REVOCATION WITHOUT NOTICE, ACCORDING TO TERMS SET OUT IN SECRET NEGOTIATIONS. YOUR INVESTMENT IS CONTINGENT ON THE GOODWILL OF THE WORLD’S MOST PARANOID, TECHNOPHOBIC ENTERTAINMENT EXECS. THIS DEVICE AND DEVICES LIKE IT ARE TYPICALLY USED TO CHARGE YOU FOR THINGS YOU USED TO GET FOR FREE — BE SURE TO FACTOR IN THE PRICE OF BUYING ALL YOUR MEDIA OVER AND OVER AGAIN. AT NO TIME IN HISTORY HAS ANY ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY GOTTEN A SWEET DEAL LIKE THIS FROM THE ELECTRONICS PEOPLE, BUT THIS TIME THEY’RE GETTING A TOTAL WALK. HERE, PUT THIS IN YOUR MOUTH, IT’LL MUFFLE YOUR WHIMPERS.

https://pluralistic.net/2023/12/08/playstationed/#tyler-james-hill

No one took me up on my offer. Over and over again, magazine editors, managers of nonprofit review outlets, and indie gadget reviewers told me that it was unrealistic to publish a roundup of, say, this year's portable music players with the recommendation, "Just don't buy any of these. None of them are fit for purpose."

In other words: No one wanted to publish, "The correct amount of radium to stuff up your asshole is zero."

But the correct amount of rectal radium for you to administer is "none" and the correct car for you to buy today is none of the cars:

https://foundation.mozilla.org/en/privacynotincluded/articles/its-official-cars-are-the-worst-product-category-we-have-ever-reviewed-for-privacy/

This isn't the first time the correct automotive recommendation was "don't buy any of these cars." Back before seatbelts came standard in cars, the correct car was "don't buy a car." Sometimes, the correct answer is "none of the above." Even if that makes you sound unserious, the alternative is that you counsel people to put radium up their asses in a bid to seem "reasonable."

Today, DRM-infected products are routinely downgraded and bricked:

https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/5/24236237/ftc-software-tethering-letter-consumer-reports-ifixit

Even when companies face public uproar over these disastrous decisions and vow to reverse them, they can't, because these downgrades are one way:

https://www.stereocheck.com/news/music/unfortunately-you-cant-revert-to-the-old-sonos-app-anymore/

That's bad enough when it's your smart speakers, but what about when the company bricks your wheelchair:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/06/when-drm-comes-your-wheelchair

Or your $100,000 exoskeleton:

https://paulickreport.com/news/people/paralyzed-jockey-michael-straight-wants-to-keep-walking-but-manufacturer-wont-repair-exoskeleton

The reality is that we're living at the end of a catastrophic experiment in deregulation and its handmaidens, corruption and regulatory capture, and there are lots of "normal" things that we just need to stop doing. Not do less of them – just stop.

Like, the correct amount of collusion between realtors representing sellers and realtors representing buyers is zero:

https://www.latimes.com/business/real-estate/story/2024-03-19/realtor-rules-just-changed-dramatically-heres-what-buyers-and-sellers-can-expect

We got that one right, but there's plenty more that we're still engaged in this pathetic, denialist bargaining over. What's the correct degree to which White House officials should cycle back into working at the industries they oversaw? Zero. How many times should such a person come back to work at the White House? Again: zero:

https://prospect.org/power/2024-09-19-next-administration-can-stop-ethics-scandals/

When the Biden admin dropped its executive order on ethics just hours after the inauguration, they trumpeted that it "went further than any other towards slowing the revolving door and limiting conflicts of interest while in office":

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/executive-order-ethics-commitments-by-executive-branch-personnel/

And it did. But it was also full of loopholes, because banning these conflicts of interest altogether was viewed as politically unserious, so the correct amount of radium up the administration's asshole was set at non-zero. The result? Well, it's about what you'd expect:

https://therevolvingdoorproject.org/what-the-hell-is-anita-dunn-even-allowed-to-work-on/

Congress hasn't updated consumer privacy law since 1988, when it took the bold step of…banning video-store clerks from telling the newspapers which VHS cassettes you took home. Since then, a coalition of commercial surveillance companies and the cops and spies who treat their data-lakes as massive, off-the-books anaerobic lagoons of warrantless surveillance data has prevented the passage of any new privacy protections for Americans.

The result? Stalkers, creeps, spies (both governmental and corporate), identity thieves, spearphishers and other villainous scum are running wild, endangering every American's financial, physical and political wellbeing. The correct amount of commercial data-brokerage for America is zero:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/12/06/privacy-first/#but-not-just-privacy

In other words, we should order every data-broker, every tech giant, every consumer electronics company and app vendor to delete all their surveillance data. All of it. The correct amount of radium in that asshole is – as with every other orifice zero:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/08/07/revealed-preferences/#extinguish-v-improve

From the perspective of the radium pitchmen, the most shocking thing about the past four years has been antitrust enforcers – like Lina Khan, Rohit Chopra, and Jonathan Kanter – who refused to bargain about how much radium we needed to stick up our butts. Fearless of being branded as "unserious" and "unreasonable," they seriously, reasonably said the right amount is none, actually.

None. Which is why they're so mad at Khan and co. Which is why they're so bent on getting Kamala Harris to fire Khan – despite the fact that this would burn precious political capital in the senate. Some people just love the feeling they get from a radium suppository – especially the suppository salesmen:

https://prospect.org/politics/2024-09-19-lina-khan-doesnt-need-to-be-confirmed-again/

The paperback edition of The Lost Cause, my nationally bestselling, hopeful solarpunk novel is out this month!

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/09/19/just-stop-putting-that-up-your-ass/#harm-reduction/a>

Image: Museum of the Health Sciences https://www.uab.edu/amhs/

[cassandracalin]

It's been a month since the release of my debut graphic novel, THE NEW GIRL. During this time:

THE NEW GIRL received positive reviews, including two starred reviews from School Library Journal and Publishers Weekly.

It appeared on the Amazon Books billboard in NYC (still can’t believe this!)

It ranked #2 on the Indie Bestseller list for 2 weeks in a row, making it also the highest-ranking debut release and graphic novel.

It received a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection award.

BookRiot included THE NEW GIRL in their roundup of "10 of the Best New Children's Books Out in June 2024."

The French edition was announced, which will be released on July 16th. Les Éditions Scholastic have done a wonderful job on the translation!

Your support has been incredible, and I can’t thank you enough! ❤️

[monsterfactoryfanfic]

fuck Reedpop, fuck Ziff Davis, and fuck Consolidation

I wrote this back in November of 2023 for Richard Williams' "What's Hot in Indie TTRPGs" roundup. And though things have moderately improved with the launch of Rascal News, I'm still so heartbroken about the state of games journalism.

Anyone paying attention to games journalism over the last five years could tell you the earth is salted. But it’s been especially hard to see two mainstream outlets for TTRPG news suffer from corporate greed here at the end of 2023. First is the layoff of Lin Codega from Gizmodo, part of a 23-person restructuring that also shuttered the iconic feminist site Jezebel. Codega had received an Ennie Award only a few months prior for their work covering the fiasco Wizards of the Coast invited upon itself when it tried to revise its Dungeons and Dragons “Open Gaming License” in an attempt to squeeze competitors out of the economy. My favorite of their recurring features was “The Gaming Shelf,” which regularly highlighted indie RPGs. It is so rare to see someone with relatively mainstream media access discuss what’s happening on itchio, and to lose this chance to get more eyes on small projects is an absolute travesty. Codega themself puts it best: "I deserved better than this and G/O Media will be poorer for letting me go." The second, which is at this time a travesty-in-progress, is the auctioning of ReedPop’s “Gamer Network” portfolio of websites, which includes Dicebreaker. This news arrived the morning I sat down to write about media consolidation, the week of Dicebreaker’s second Tabletop Awards. Few other sites command the audience and prestige of Dicebreaker, whose journalists regularly feature games by indie creators who otherwise are forced to market their games through increasingly-fractured social media sites. I truly hope the “Gamer Network” portfolio is purchased, and all staff affected keep their jobs, but I’m not optimistic.   My mom was a journalist. She retired over a decade ago, when GateHouse Media swallowed a dozen local newspapers right before filing for bankruptcy. I’m genuinely sorry to see that ten years on, media companies are callous as ever, happy to ruin the lives of hundreds of brilliant people for the sake of a few points on a spreadsheet. Indie games deserve mainstream coverage. And the people who cover them deserve so much better than what they’re getting. 

[open-hearth-rpg]

“Why Do Your Actual Play Videos Look Like Ass?”

ROUGH BUT FAIR

I got asked this, albeit indirectly, back in January. At the New Year’s Open Hearth Community meeting someone relayed they’d heard this comment about our Actual Play videos. This referred to not just my channel, but our community collection of actual plays built up over eight+ years. 

It’s a lot of sessions. A lot of games. My stuff alone is over 1000 sessions over dozens of systems. 

And it’s a fair question. They might stumbled on to one of our video roundups or seen a session shared. I can understand their reaction, especially if they’ve watched heavily produced and edited videos like those from Critical Role or Dimension20. Or even if they’ve followed one of the many talented teams who stream on Twitch or elsewhere with seasons, transitions, and nice visual templates. They’re all great watches– especially streams featuring indie games and diverse casts.

So what’s up with us?

Answering that question takes a little bit of set up and explanation. 

The short answer: You know that reliable YouTube repair video recorded on a phone by someone in their garage? That’s us. 

The long answer…

WHAT THE WHAT IS OPEN HEARTH?

We’re an online tabletop rpg community. We’ve been around in some form since 2016. Game facilitators post series and sessions on our calendar and people can sign up there. Every game’s run under our code of conduct and has to use a layered set of safety tools. Our GMs teach any rules and while we lean into indie and storygames, we also have folks who love OSR and more trad-leaning games (like my runs of 2d20, GUMSHOE, Imperium Maledictum, 13th Age, and the like). 

We have a patreon which gives backers a 48 hour window to sign up for sessions before they’re open generally. But we also have folks running games specifically for new players which set that aside. We’re always looking for ways to get new folks into sessions– like the open gaming events we do a couple of times each year. After folks have played with us a couple of times, they’re welcome to post their own sessions and series. We also do irregular “Game Facilitator Camps” to help people learn and polish their online GMing skills. 

Since the beginning some of our GMs have videos of our sessions and collecting those on our YouTube channel. Game facilitators mention in their event description if they plan to record. Not all sessions are recorded and posted. It’s not a requirement. In most cases, players can say they’d rather not be recorded– and in all cases a GM needs to confirm before posting any session publicly. For example a couple of times I’ve had folks ask for me to trim out personal info or emotionally fraught moments from a session. 

All of these recordings are rough. They’re the raw play of the session: unedited and wysiwyg. I’m recording from Zoom, some folks use Streamyard, and a small group of the more technically savvy use OBS+. On occasion I remember to pause the recording over breaks or during character creation when everyone’s tooling away on their sheets. But generally it’s like sitting in the room while someone’s running a home game. They’re messy, mostly on topic, trying to get to grips with the rules, figuring things out together. 

And I love it for that. They’re not polished. A comment made in connection with that “why do your APs look terrible?” question suggested we were some kind of ‘elite gaming association.’ I fear that impression might come from my posting a lot of game thinking, history, and analysis in our social media feeds. 

The truth is that I post those things in a desperate bid to have content. In our community we mostly talk about what games we’re playing and what games we want to play.

Bottom line: we’re a bunch of folks getting together to play our elf-games, make silly voices, and try to tell fun stories together. We’re trying to do that in a way that’s inclusive, takes safety seriously, and evolves over time. 

So why post actual play videos in such a state? I have some answers, in order from most important or probably least important…

FIVE REASONS

First, these videos shows how a particular game actually works at the table. Our community plays a lot of different games– I’d argue one of the largest collections of different systems. It serves as a great resource if you’re curious about a game, setting, or system. Most of us who record include our session zero as well as play sessions. So you get to see what’s involved with that, how to manage set up, and the kinds of collaboration which happens. You also see, warts and all, the rough patches and stumbling blocks. 

For example, I love Hearts of Wulin, but building Entanglements takes a lot of work during character creation. Don’t get me wrong: it's also the most important. Entanglements up the conflicts and plots you’re going to explore. But it requires you to both do some heavy creative work and listen to the other players at the same time. Sometimes I manage that phase really well– sometimes I forget that it has a higher cognitive load. Then I have to lean in and help folks navigate creating those. 

In a similar way, our AP illustrate the flow of play. What does resolution involve? How long does combat take? Where do folks get bogged down? That’s useful and can tell you if this is a game you’d be comfortable playing or running. Beyond that you get to see how much people seem to be enjoying and engaging with it. We present the naked truth of the game. All the rough edges remain and I think that’s great. It’s not for everyone— especially if you like a more polished presentation.

Second, you get to see safety tools in action. If you want to know how GMs carefully present a layered set of safety tools, watch a couple of session zeros. Different game facilitators will approach this in different ways, but we stress that GMs explain and actually implement a couple of tools. In my case I use Lines & Veils as a baseline, the X-Card as a reactive tool for resetting & calibration, and Open Door so folks know they aren’t trapped in a game. You can see how these tools don’t present a burden, don’t get in the way, and do enhance play. It reduces some of the worry people may have about joining a group of strangers online. It isn’t perfect, but these tools offer a baseline. I’m a white dude with all the privilege that brings, but I wouldn’t join in a random online game unless I knew tools like those were in place. 

Third, like other online streaming games: curated, edited, or otherwise, you get to see good GMs and players in action. It’s a great way to learn and pick things up. Not necessarily the full-on art of theater and improvisational acting, but what good play looks like. How you move the spotlight around. How you work to bring others into your scenes. How you collaborate to build a setting and vibe. How you handle end of session debriefs and feedback. That’s useful and, I think, confidence building. 

Fourth, and more selfishly, these videos are a decent advertisement for our community. It’s a decent and cheap way for us to keep our name out there. Beyond the videos, as I mentioned above, people can listen to these sessions as podcasts now. It’s also a way for us to boost the work of designers. It’s not a review, comment, or five stars but it does show how much we’ve enjoyed a particular game. I always dig it when I see designers resharing sessions, I hope it helps them increase their audience. 

Fifth, I like having those videos out there because they celebrate our GMs. They’re the engine of our community: folks who enjoy running games and put in the effort to entertain and engage a group of folks. We have amazing game facilitators and what strikes me is how different their approaches can be. I learn something new whenever I play with another GM here.

But on a related note, I will admit that I like having cover for my vanity. By placing my sessions alongside others, I manage to conceal how much my posting these sessions is an act of ego. I’m more than a little vain about my GMing.  

STARS AND WISHES

Overall we hope to be a useful and accessible resource for folks playing ttrpgs online. We hope folks will find their place in this hobby. If someone comes and plays with us, that’s great, but we’re more interested in just getting people to play anywhere. 

If you want to check out our collection of Actual Play Sessions, like and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

If you’re interested in just listening to sessions, you can subscribe to our podcast.

If you want to see the Playabl calendar app we use for organizing

If you want to find out more about our community, see here. 

We have Discord we’re working to do more with.

[absolutefilthimsosorry]

Spoilers for DnP Incohearent!!!!

I’m having so much fun trying to solve these that I made a list to keep track! Message if you can help me fill in any I’m missing or if I’ve got any wrong!!!

Also lmk if you see any I’ve missed!! I’m going to keep updating this and have it unrebloggable but you can reblog this post to have a link to it!

These are all gathered from this post and this post so check the notes on those first to try to solve them then look here if you need answers!

Sow march cheer ray = so much cherry

Wee nay urn for uke oye yer tub = we’ve never fucked on youtube?

Ta fold in fig = the golden pig

Feed hay hid eho = vday video

Tat he won ape hit morse him he = daddy want a bit more simmy

Watt ken ice hay = what can I say

North key bus teabag king = naughty busty baking

Fool tie enter nit hobo / fall tie mint her nepo moe / fault aye mint earn are ohm owe/ foul thyme inch hermit hole mold = full time internet homo

Cumin mile aid deed or = come in my ladydoor

Hum hay zinc tan = amazingdan

Elven ower fug sedge own = eleven hour fuck session

An berry moth ribeye adam stir = and every month we buy a hamster

March rest array = Manchester eye

Cyst herding yell = sister daniel

Add a ding teps = editing tips

Cop dubai khaki luna = topped by kakuna

Late eat tore = ladydoor

Half tugger etch two eggs cyst = have the courage to exist

Perish she end wink = Parisian twink

Coal ten big/ goal then pick = golden pig

Cyst ordain yell = sister daniel

Train youth inks = try new things

Gay mean moss/ gain ink mass = gamingmas

Soften need = soft and neat

A wools lied = owl slide

Topper bought them hill = top or bottom Phil

Coat fit firenze = golf with friends???

Few ours pig meow fits = viewers pick my outfits

Read less tar = red lester

Eye eight soup igloo = I ate super glue

Insight youth era too walls = inside you there are two wolves

Mine amy stan = my name is Dan

Clap hella = glabella

Hiss teeth rent = hits different

Eel eyes apron kay kiss = Eliza pancakes

See pram haze ink bra jet = super amazing project

Feels lie yawn = phils lion

Fuel ease snot dawn fair = Phil is not on fire

Jaw shush ear son = josh hutcherson

Ball bull him tour food = bauble in your foot?

Sure eck = shrek

High ate dust = hiatus

Add a dink deps = editing tips

Ga hay shoom air age = gay shoe marriage

Pope eat plate aim = poppy playtime

Eat aches stu = it takes two

Goo gal few ed = google feud

Baze ick lee eye meg ay = basically I’m gay

Ko min yout ti ew = coming out to you

Ender knit subvert grew oop = internet support group

Phylis turn yar a sheen yes = PHIL LESTER YOU’RE A GENIUS

With Audi intern yet wean ed brr wood halve mat = without the internet we never would have met

Gum ban yins drool I’ve = companions through life

Reed sons wide answer flail = reasons why dans a fail

Ewan dam ah some are reed = you and Dan are so married

Denver sis fill/ Denver cis full = Dan vs Phil

Or lawn huffing = all or nothing

Dunk rye core raft = don’t cry craft

Mortal jester roam and thick/ Morph adjust row antic = more than just romantic

So wall how debris poll light = swallow to be polite???

Oar hinge art = orange heart

Foray virgo em = forever home

Chai reel loop/ share real oob = cherry lube

Cad boyd anne = cat boy dan

Far turf ill lip = father philip

Tess lit hen ink = the slittening

Forth house indie rolled or touches = four thousand year old tortoises

Hey moth swish roundup floating = a month without uploading

Jam march let pet tea an farms = Je mange les petit enfants

Day lion howl tour = Dalien Howlter

Ima let all kit = I’m a little kit

Feel pearl lays shell ter = Phil plays shelter

Fewer blue key app ending = viewer spooky happenings

Hell low iam tour reel = hello I am Toriel

Laugh tuh gey mile kuh = left to get milk

Villas eek wreck why vuh = Phil’s secret wife

Footy strain gin said dent = ___ strange incident????

Snow core play sum = snokoplasm

Nope puts cereal sleeping mage innit = no but seriously imagine it

Tear rip pulling flu hence = terrible influence

Jeff why eye aisle hike vague liner = fyi I like vagina

Eggs intense all cry cis = existential crisis

List of contributors

@fletthewreck @dandp @deadandphilgames @manchesterau @thephouseplants @awrfhi @jonsaremembers @rachosaurusrex @dapgolf @dan-whoell @dnphobe @dreamingalto @steveandscraggy @phanbeats @danandfuckingjonlmao @pepper-pastry @yonpote @un-interactive-introvert @spaniel-trowel @sisterdanieldyke @queerdnp @morganadelacour @amid-fandoms @spectral-kitkat @goingpheral @angelzonearth @wdapteo @2009phan @dansevilpianotea

[indierpgnewsletter]

Roundup: Itch Games from June and July!

(This was first published on the Indie RPG Newsletter!)

Welcome to the bimonthly round-up of interesting games released on itch.io. I find these games through the form linked below (where readers can submit their own games) or I just stumble across on twitter or while browsing itch (which I do, purely for this issue).

My usual disclaimer that I haven’t read or played these games. Usually, I have only seen their store page. But they look cool and sound interesting and they might be something you want to buy. Or you might give the creator a follow on itch. Go wild!

In no particular order:

The Fool’s Journey: One page game of imaginary cards, secrets, dramatic irony, a witch, and a wretch. Designed by anna anthropy, a game design scholar.

The Lost Bay: A horror game steeped in weird, 90s nostalgia. A mash-up of Cairn and Lumen, according to the description. Happy that Iko and the Lost Bay Studio have released their titular game (or the first look at least!)

Dolorine: A dark fantasy, solo journaling RPG about defeating death. According to the creator, it “turns pain into power and invites you to face suffering with purpose.” Designed by Sarah Goda of Open Story Games.

Curios: Albrecht Manor: “Part solo RPG, part mystery package experience.” This is a game where you read letters, compile documents, and uncover the fate of a creepy manor. Designed by Seb Pines/Good Luck Press.

Avatar of Gaia: Another addition to WH Arthur’s Superhero Cinematic Universe. This is one about playing a superhero that is trying to save the natural world.

Monsters and Maths: A one page game for high school kids about solving math problems to defeat the monsters. Can’t find any info about the designer except their handle, sapphictiefling (PWYW).

Nexalis: Cezar Capacle’s new optimistic fantasy game about exploring islands and discovering the secrets of a mysterious world. It’s got some neat, inventive mechanics that are Cezar’s trademark.

[redgoldsparks]

August Reading and Reviews by Maia Kobabe

I post my reviews throughout the month on Storygraph and Goodreads, and do roundups here and on patreon. Reviews below the cut.

Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb read by Paul Boehmer 

This was my third re-read of this book, and when looking back over my book list I realized that my first read was 20 years ago!! I believe I picked it up in a used bookstore based solely on the cover art, which is a bit funny in retrospect when looking at it, because it is very beautiful but not very accurate to the character descriptions in the book. Regardless, I'm glad it caught my eye because this remains one of my favorite fantasy novels of all time. It's a coming of age story interwoven with court intrigue, magic, politics, and a deep compassion for common folk, the kind of people who fish, farm, care for horses and dogs, who cook and clean around the edges of the lives of royals and nobles. This story follows Fitz, a bastard son of the royal family, from age 6 to about 14, as he learns and grows into what he might eventually become: a catalyst of immense change. The writing in this series is so good, so grounded in real lived details, neither fast nor slow paced but unrolling at a natural speed that draws the reader along and into this rich and complicated world.

Grace Needs Space by Benjamin A Wilgus and Rii Abrego

Grace lives on a space station with one of her moms, while the other is gone for long stretches of time working on a cargo ship. Grace longs to travel, to visit planets, to see trees and lakes. Finally she gets the chance to go with her space fairing mom on a trip to the inhabited moon Titan, but her mom barely has time for her, constantly delaying her requests for games, attention, or adventure. So Grace sets out on her own for the day on Titan with a group of kids she met the day before. This gentle family drama is resolved when engineering mom swoops in to remind Grace and cargo ship mom that working together and being honest is the best way to move forward. I loved the artwork; all of the characters had a cuddly quality and the space ship and station interiors were simple but very effect, especially with the lovely colors.

Witching Hour by Beth Fuller 

A short, beautifully drawn comic about a teen's journey into fairyland and what can be found there.

The Monster Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson 

The first book in this series was devastating, with enough content warnings and upsetting aspects that I was genuinely unsure if I'd go back for more. But my book club decided to continue with the series, so here we are. This installment is challenging in a different way. Originally, this book was just the first part of a 360,000 word manuscript that had to get chopped into two volumes. It suffers from middle-book problems; no distinct beginning and no conclusive ending. The majority of the story is a long drawn out chase scene, which is a story structure that works for some but not so well for me. I remain deeply impressed by the breadth of Seth Dickinson's world building. I enjoyed the new POV characters, especially the nonbinary Tau-Indi, who lives in a society that recognizes a third gender. Dickinson can craft a devastating turn of phrase, designed with precision to emotionally injure the reader. But overall I struggled with the pacing of this book, and the constant violence and confusion.

To Shape a Dragon’s Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose 

A wonderful new alternate-history series with dragons! Anequs lives with her family on the island of Masquapaug; her people have lived through the colonization and invasion of settlers from a white, Norse culture who now have cities, trains, universities, and industry on the mainland of the north-eastern part of America, though countries have different names in this story. Also, every region has its own dragons, though Anequs' people haven't seen one of their native dragons in 200 years, since the Great Dying. When Anequs finds a dragon's egg she initially plans to raise it at home, with all of the songs, dances, and stories of her community. But the Anglish have laws about dragons and one of them is that all future dragoneers must train at an academy; if they don't learn to control their dragon's breath, which can break things down to their elemental parts, the dragon will be killed. This is a very smart and thoughtful alternate history. I loved the indigenous lens, and the fact that Anequs sees through the bullshit rules of her school and doesn't let her self worth be judged by an outside culture. If I have one complain it's that the book had too many made up words; I'm fine with the fact nearly every place had two or three different names, but I didn't need made up names for the periodic table of elements. But I'm still very interested in reading the sequel and to see where this story goes!

Liberated: The Radical Art and Life of Claude Cahun by Kaz Rowe

Claude Cahun lived at the crossroads of masculine and feminine, of artist and activist, of blessed and cursed by the circumstances and time period they were born into. Rowe weaves together historical photos, direct quotes, and lyrical imagery to tell the tale of this brave queer icon to great effect. It's short but very informative, and really filled out my understanding of someone I previously only knew from a few fandom photos that circulate on tumblr. I had the opportunity to blurb this book; look forward to it's release in September 2023!

The Infinity Particle by Wendy Xu 

A beautifully drawn soft romance set in a utopian Mars colony, a community full of parks, public transit, and cute helpful robots. Clem booked a one way ticket from Earth to work under her intellectual idol, Dr Lin, who works on AI. Clem is initially wowed by her scientist boss, and intregued by her humanoid AI assistant, Kye. But soon the cracks begin to show in Clem's new life- PTSD from an abusive person in her past has followed Clem to Mars; Dr Lin has an ugly temper and doesn't treat Kye as a being with thoughts and feelings; and Kye himself starts to glitch. The color palette of soft reds and blues and the CLAMP manga aesthetic charmed me, as did the hopeful vision of biological and synthetic beings living in harmony.

The Last Session Vol 1: Roll for Initiative by Jasmine Walls, Dozerdraws, and Micah Myers 

When a group of five teens met in their high school's GSA and formed an impromptu D&D group, none of them suspected the game would last for more than four years! Now in college, balancing jobs, internships, partners, and moves, they have gathered again to play the very end of their oldest campaign. With a hitch: the DM wants to add a new person to the party. The art in this volume is excellent, strong character designs, clean page layouts, and beautiful coloring all support a story of friendship and fantasy.

Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb read by Paul Boehmer 

This is my second or third read of this book, but my first since high school. It's not as well paced as book one- sections in the middle definitely drag, and a few of the dynamics of central relationships feel repetitive especially after the wonderful unfolding of the first book. It also only covers about two years of FitzChivalry's life, as opposed to the eight years in book one. But it's still exciting, and the last third has more twists and turns that many books fit into their entire narrative. I'm so invested in this world and these characters, and immediately started book three because I want to know what happens!

[avomagazine]

Every week, we bring you a treasure trove of captivating music videos from lesser-known, new and intriguing Japanese artists who deserve your support! Join us on this extraordinary musical journey as we shed light on the artists who often go unnoticed but leave an unforgettable impact. We also maintain a YouTube Music playlist

This week we highlighted music videos from: 🍙 kinoe 🍙 梵 (Soyogi) 🍙 April After All 🍙 秘密のコペカチータ (Secret Copecachita) 🍙 Astral Rain 🍙 LUMiRiSE 🍙 ASANA

Since 2020, AVO Magazine has been curating a list of seven music videos by Japanese artists and bands across various genres, from pop and rock to metal.

Enjoy the music!

[ginaraemitchell]

Weekly Friday Finds | 09-06-2024 | Announcing a new Author of the Month and the latest trivia winner, plus #BackToSchool #Recipes #BlogRoundup #Crafts #Books #IndieAuthors 

Weekly Friday Finds | 09-06-2024 | Announcing a new Author of the Month and the latest trivia winner, plus #BackToSchool #Recipes #BlogRoundup #Crafts #Books #IndieAuthors  @Nancy_Stroer @mj_engels @kerrimcbooknerd @BlueMoodCafe1 @gwolmsted @CricketRohman #MapleOatmealScones #PotatoCakes #PizzaLasagnaRollUps #Knitting

Weekly Friday Finds | 09-06-2024 | Announcing a new Author of the Month and the latest trivia winner, plus #BackToSchool #Recipes #BlogRoundup #Crafts #Books #IndieAuthors  Welcome to the Friday Finds for 09-06-2024. This has been a celebration week for me. We are celebrating our 48th wedding anniversary all week. We started with an architecture and history river cruise through Milwaukee and a…

[thesoftboiledegg]

Homoeroticism is so inherent in Rick and Morty that even the bootleg merchandise can't get away from it. One of the local head shops has a new scale with a changing image. The first picture is just a screenshot from "M. Night Shaym-Aliens!" (incidentally, one of my least favorite episodes), but the second is a shot from Vindicators 3 with...Rick half-naked on the table?

Of all the countless scenes from this show, that's the one that they chose? Interesting priorities there. 🤔

Also, it turns out that Rick really loves Grape! 🍇

Anyway, @one--day-at-atime's post inspired me to check out the mall's Barnes & Noble. I found a talking Pickle Rick at an indie bookstore once--unfortunately, it was long before I was doing merchandise roundups, so I hoped that I'd find one again. I searched Barnes & Noble until I found the novelty gifts, and there he was:

And he had a buddy, a talking Rick bust:

Cartoon characters often look creepy in 3D, but that's actually a pretty good representation of Rick. Also, I love how the description calls him a "grandpa" instead of "sociopathic scientist" or whatever. Being a grandfather is more important.

Adult Swim needs to step up the merchandising. Season seven is a month away, and yet Charlotte Russe, Spencer's and Hot Topic had no new merchandise. In fact, Charlotte Russe was almost sold out.

Pickle Rick was smashed at the bottom of the cage, so I rescued him:

I checked out the smaller mall today, hoping I'd find more merchandise, but nope. Nothing new at Rue 21 or Hot Topic. Spencer's did have a new blanket, one that I saw online a month ago:

This location's Pickle Rick was luckily on the top of the pile.

Anyway, I'm normally a window shopper, but I came home with one item today: a Loki shirt from Hot Topic.

I already have several, but a couple of them have white backgrounds, and I don't like white T-shirts because they show stains easily, so I needed another Loki shirt with a black background. That's how I justified it to myself, anyway.

Say what you will about Marvel, but the Loki merchandise is pretty high quality. It's an effort not to buy everything I see. I'm glad that they finally realized who the best character is 🐍✨

[beardedmrbean]

Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett's administration is dealing with claims from multiple women who are alleging sexual harassment by some of the staffers in Hogsett's administration, including his former chief deputy mayor and right-hand man Thomas Cook.

An IndyStar investigation in July revealed that the mayor heard complaints about Cook's alleged conduct as far back as 2017 but kept Cook in his inner circle until 2023. Three women - Lauren Roberts, Caroline Ellert and an anonymous accuser - who worked under Cook have come forward to say he harassed them.

Since then, the fallout over the situation has led to an inquiry from the City-County Council, new HR investigations, at least one firing, and calls for transparency and accountability from survivors of sexual harassment and assault.

Here's a roundup of IndyStar's detailed coverage of the sexual harassment claims within Hogsett's administration.

'I kept saying no': Women accuse top Hogsett aide of preying on subordinates for years

Mayor Hogsett's right-hand man targeted younger women who worked under him, showering them with praise, poetry and gifts and promising career growth as he pressured them toward intimacy and unwanted sexual encounters, three women told IndyStar.

The women accuse Thomas Cook of abusing his power for nearly a decade while serving under the Democratic mayor.

Who is Thomas Cook? Hogsett's former right-hand man accused of sexual harassment

Cook, now 39, served under the Democratic mayor in a variety of roles for almost a decade, including five years as chief deputy mayor, the No. 2 position in city government.

Read the full story here.

Indy councilors want change, probe into handling of complaints against top Hogsett aide

Hogsett’s administration is trying to quell concerns about how it handles sexual harassment complaints in the wake of allegations related to Cook.

Hogsett’s human resources department sent a memo to all City-County employees reiterating the city’s commitment to “maintaining a workplace free from harassment” and its “zero-tolerance policy” for such behavior, following an IndyStar investigation detailing the behavior.

Read the full story here.

Indy councilor calls on Mayor Hogsett to resign over handling of sex harassment accusations

First-term Indianapolis Councilor Jesse Brown called for Hogsett to resign over allegations that his former chief of staff pressured at least three subordinates into sexual relationships.

Brown, a self-proclaimed democratic socialist who has previously butted heads with Democrats, also accused Hogsett of dodging discussions about the issue with council members. Brown so far is the only council member to call for Hogsett to resign.

Read the full story here.

Joe Hogsett apologizes; council moves to investigate response to alleged sexual harassment

Lauren Roberts and Caroline Ellert, two former Hogsett staffers who now live out of state, sat in the audience at the August City-County Council meeting as Hogsett acknowledged “I, myself, fell short” in his handling of harassment allegations against Cook.

“First, I regret that the two women who spoke up about this did not feel heard for far too long,” Hogsett said.

“We weren’t heard,” Roberts interjected, as she held up a sign.

Watch the video here.

Mayor Joe Hogsett to require sexual harassment training for Indy employees. Will it work?

Thousands of Indianapolis City-County employees will now be required to complete sexual harassment training as fallout continues over Hogsett’s handling of harassment claims made against his former top aide.

But experts in workplace sexual harassment issues said it remains to be seen if Hogsett’s actions after the controversy involving Cook will be effective in combating future instances of harassment.

Read the full story here.

Hogsett staffer fired amid Indianapolis' reckoning on sexual harassment

Indianapolis' #MeToo moment has led to a surge in reports of harassment and unwanted advances among current and former city workers, sparking internal investigations and one firing.

The city terminated a staff member in the Department of Metropolitan Development on Wednesday after an investigation revealed "overwhelming evidence" of sexual misconduct. The city's human resources department is also conducting six other investigations into current and former staff, officials confirmed to IndyStar.

Read the full story here.

Council may subpoena Hogsett administration

Members of the Indianapolis City-County Council could subpoena Mayor Hogsett’s administration as they move to investigate the sexual harassment allegations levied against his former chief deputy.

“Our priority is to restore trust in city leadership and to ensure that Indianapolis is a place where every employee feels secure, valued and supported,” Democratic Majority Leader Maggie Lewis said.

Read the full story here.

Indianapolis council votes to investigate sexual harassment in Hogsett administration

The Council overwhelmingly voted to hire an independent firm to “thoroughly investigate” allegations made against Cook and others. The council could subpoena the administration as they investigate how claims against Cook and others were handled.

"Our job is to figure out where the systems went wrong and fix those systems so this never happens again," said Council Vice President Ali Brown.

Read the full story here.

Hogsett official says 'I'm running from things' comment was a joke

In the brief clip, recorded at a Mike Epps concert, Hogsett said: "I want you all — look, I ain't on the ballot. I ain't running for nothing. I'm running from things, but I ain't running for nothing, but I want everybody here to make sure you get registered to vote at this election in November."

“He was making a joke," a senior Hogsett administration official told IndyStar on Sunday. "It was received as a joke. He’s not going anywhere."

Read the full story here.

Other IndyStar coverage of the Hogsett administration's sexual harassment crisis

IndyStar executive editor Eric Larsen weighed in on the situation, stating that "we still have too much evidence that too few of our leaders have taken firm action to eliminate workplace sexual harassment. That has to change."

"It will be of little comfort that an accused serial harasser is out of his latest job if the inaction of the past seven years persists," Larsen writes.

Read the full editorial here.

IndyStar columnist James Briggs tackled the mayor's leadership crisis, stating that "Hogsett only has himself to blame for the latest round of questions over whether he understands the gravity of the problems that have occurred under his watch."

Read the full column here.

[frogndtoad]

Do you have your favorite albums shared in a post somewhere? I've been trying to find new music and the only thing I wouldn't care to listen to are songs that tend towards vulgarity, so I'd really appreciate some recs if you've got some :,)

howdy anon! always happy to share new music - i don't have a post, but a few of my all-timers are:

Stars - Heart maybe my favorite album by my alternatingly favorite band; absolutely atmospheric indie pop mostly about love, for better or for worse (as in contextually. all of the songs rule). plus theres french horn!

Streetlight Manifesto - Everything Goes Numb the ska-punk album so good it took me over half a decade to get into ska fr because nothing else could measure up. absolutely epic horns quite good lyrics. wish i coulda made any of the anniversary shows this year

Clipping. - Splendor & Misery perfect afrofuturist noise rap concept album about a slave spaceship and the sentient ai that controls it and the human who breaks free. probably the least gory clipping album if thats an issue for u. i love listening to static dot jpg

The Mountain Goats - Beat The Champ if there is a theme in this list let it be my love of horns. other alternatingly favorite band, and if you havent checked these guys out what are you even doing sending asks to frogndtoad dot tumblr dot com. this is their concept album about pro wrestling - a lot bigger sounds than some of the earlier lofi stuff, plenty of lines still about getting stabbed or doing stabbing. but to a jaunty little horn feature! i have rotating top goats but this has been it for a bit

Willi Carlisle - Peculiar, Missouri one of my favorite if not my favorite finds of the year. truly truly beautiful folk album i dont even know what else to say here. absolutely so excited for Critterland next year

disclaimer also that i was taken a little aback by the use of the word 'vulgarity' here in my asks on tumblr dot com for a couple reasons but tried at the very least to take ur sentiment as best as i could and provide some good albums i stand by. might not meet your needs but its not esp gorey and its not esp raunchy and i hope that you enjoy

oh also!! i do keep an #album-log tag that i update periodically with roundups of what ive been listening to and how much; theres a few stats there. might try to keep a better maintained recs tag in the new year but mostly i do that at least for myself i just think its fun to share also

[theprojectreneblogger]

In Other News: InZoi, Tiny Glade and More

Welcome to another session of In Other News, a roundup of what has been going on with games you may enjoy if you play The Sims.

Here’s what you should know today and the games you should be paying attention to.

InZoi

These are going to be very interesting days for those looking forward to learning more about the upcoming life simulator by Korean developer Krafton. InZoi is confirmed to be presented during next week’s Gamescom—an important conference for the gaming industry held in Germany—and attendees will get to play the game. This Saturday, on August 17th, several content creators will also share their first impressions of the game after receiving an early copy. And last but not least, Krafton announced the release on Steam of InZoi: Character Studio, a free demo of their character creation tools. It will only be available for five days, from August 21st until the 26th, but all our creations will be saved for future use. Oh, and speaking of Steam, you can finally wishlist InZoi. The release date, however, is still unknown.

Paralives

The much-anticipated indie life simulator continues to share details about its development process. They just released a blog post about sound design, which also gives us a glimpse of what a neighborhood looks like (notice how close the houses are to each other? *Chef’s kiss*). They have also shared how the Paras’ aging process looks like.

Tiny Glade

The wholesome castle builder has a release date: September 23rd. Their free demo is also available again for download on Steam, and you can wishlist the game on that very same link.

Planet Coaster 2

And while we’re talking about wishlisting games, the upcoming Frontier park builder and management simulator can also be wishlisted on a variety of platforms. Planet Coaster 2 will also be availble to be played for the first time on Gamescom next week, so we’ll probably start reading reviews soon.