Nettle

(Link: https://aftermath.site/games-journalism-game-development-ign-kotaku)

I can't help but think how true this is for the internet as a whole. We've proven so conclusively over the last 10 years, it feels like, that armed with the proper tools and language, marginalized groups will instantly turn those tools and language on their own in a misguided attempt to maintain the moral high ground, or to cynically attempt to self-protect by socially ousting anyone less cynical than they are.

and of course this leads to exactly what you'd think it would - social spaces where to hope is to be a contemptible fool. Easier to write long, lecturing posts about why everyone else should have expected failure from the beginning. Idk. I can't not tie this all together in my head, from puritanical tumblr sex-policing to twitter brigades over "problematic" writing because evil characters aren't explicitly punished, to, yes, the almost eager way many other marginalized people and queer devs now seem to root for the failure of each other's communities now that we're all split apart. I can't not see it all stemming from the same sort of vibe. It's been with us for a long time.

I think, more than anything else, it's a good reminder to me that cynicism isn't an end-all be-all. That it may keep me apart from bad actors, but it'll also prevent me from ever seeing - or supporting - the good ones. I fall into this trap a lot! But I really feel that all-consuming negativity is something to be worked against, not a coherent life philosophy.

The narrative work in Sable was really underrated. The side stories are playful but always grounded in the world and it has such a consistently gentle and humane tone. I think that's so interesting for a big adventure type game in a fantasy setting!

It was such a smart move to make it a coming of age story about a character trying to find their place in the world because it dovetails so well with an open world structure and provides a hook for getting the player to engage and be curious.

To expand on that a little, I wish we had more games that put you in an immersive setting where the goal was to explore and learn about it, rather than master it. Games in this space tend to have a kind of pioneer mentality or else hang a lot on big, hard to relate to genre tropes like unlocking your hidden powers, building up to facing a big evil thing, prophecies. etc. It's refreshing to have something with fun worldbuilding and a wide horizon feeling that's also focused on something like: 'what's it like to live here.'

Misericorde: Volume One (and the soundtrack!) is on sale once again, for 40% off. That’s a lot of visual novel for not many dollars! And Volume Two is on the way………….