petegrammarman

[petegrammarman]

Late for work!!

My wonderful work setup under the cut

[petegrammarman]

from November 2021

[petegrammarman]

[petegrammarman]

Klumbo my beloved…

[petegrammarman]

i just want to put them in a banjo-kazooie situation

[petegrammarman]

tipping

[petegrammarman]

If you don't know what to play this weekend, give Fakutori's demo a try! It's a cute automation game that's very easy to pick up. You'll be surprised by how much content there is in the demo, with even more to come in the full game!

[petegrammarman]

This game is so fun and the tutorial is really funny!

Finally, Fakutori's demo is out! Combine element blocks, plan your production lines and chat with the wakas... Time to gather your tools and start automating!

Download the demo on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1459800/Fakutori/

Also, wow! A brand new trailer! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAj28k0jNIo

Hope you'll enjoy it! Have fun! :)

[petegrammarman]

"You Missed the Point by Idolizing Them" Starter Pack

[petegrammarman]

Silent Hill 2: The Demake of Art

I've seen some critics defending the censorship in Silent Hill 2 regarding the sexual assault, claiming that it isn't censorship. But in a game that explores the protagonist's sexual frustrations, (possible) sexual abuse of his wife, and (probable) infidelity to his wife, with an entire character's story revolving around her childhood sexual abuse, it absolutely is censorship. If media that explores these topics has to be painted over to be a more palatable product, then it's no longer art. It has nothing to say.

Some fans have backed this change, saying that the scenes were never meant to be read as sexual, based on tweets from Masahiro Ito.

I love and respect the guy, but he had nothing to do with the story of Silent Hill 2, nor did he direct the cutscenes. It's possible he didn't have full creative control over how the character was used. (ie. every example of PH being used in subsequent games/movies) However, Ito states that he animated Pyramid Head, and he likely knew how this character would be used and represented. Also, unrelated to the work itself, Ito's work caused him a lot of difficulties in his dating life. I believe as he's aged, he has backpedaled from these interpretations because of how it has personally affected him, and believes it reflects poorly on his character. But if you look at his portfolio outside of the game, he is the designer and animator for a short film called, "The Art of Silent Hill: Fukuro." It's a fascinating look at Ito's artistic impression and the driving sexual undercurrents that punctuate his style.

Moving on, Takayoshi Sato was the main driving force behind the games themes and narrative, with Hiroyuki Owaku primarily co-writing the games text and dialogue. The themes of sexual abuse and sexual horror are at the core of this game. To quote from "The Making of Silent Hill 2" documentary:

"The creative people pushed their analysis much further. This feeling of psychological terror, specific to Silent Hill 2, was the product of serious brainstorming about the human mind and heart." -Narration

"Psychological horror has to shake human's heart deeply...Shaking people's heart, deeply, means uncover(ing) peoples core emotion and their core motivation for life. Everybody is thinking and concerning about sex and death, everybody. And if we want to scare or shake or touch the users or spectators, we have to think about sex and death deeply." -Takayoshi Sato

(comparison screenshot of SH2 / SH2 Remake, mannequin scene) The remake cuts off this pivotal framing, and it's only through the players pre-existing knowledge about this scene that we know how to interpret it. It no longer exists within the realm of the media itself, and for players who only play the remake, this scene doesn't have that context. In this era where sensitive subjects are pruned for the sake of advertisers, a new player may not even know this exists.

(another comparison screenshot of SH2/SH2 Remake, lying figure/boss intro scene) This scene has been completely removed. In the remake, Pyramid Head tosses away the corpse of a lying figure before the boss fight begins. Unlike the mannequin scene, all implications of sexuality are absent. I think this scene in particular was heavily altered because it is the most damning evidence that this game/these monsters are meant to be sexually interpreted. For god's sake, Pyramid head is moaning, blowing out the back of another monster while it's folded up like a croissant.

"To make like a death scene, somebody died or monsters died, or, ya know, if we made that kind of scene we tried to mix erotic essence. This is kind of a visual, core concept." -Takayoshi Sato

"You can see it in these images of dead nurses, with their short skirts and low necklines. You can see it in the images of disembodied legs. Or this suggestive scene. Angela's tragedy. And of course, Maria's ambiguity. Icy cold like death, then suddenly sensual." -Narration

(illustration of Pyramid Head in a suggestive scene with two mannequin monsters, likely drawn by Masahiro Ito)

So why does any of this matter? I don't believe an author's word is law. But when one creator, who had nothing to do with the direction of a piece of media, has their word taken as canon law, we've given up our power as the audience to discuss, to think, to explore a work. We're well seated in an era where creativity has devolved into censorship for the sake of consume-ability. Swearing gets creators demonetized, we can't say murder or sex or suicide without being shadow banned, and talking about any controversial topic will get you categorized as anti-whatever and ostracized. The world is ugly and cruel and horrific, and we have to be able to acknowledge that and discuss it without our uncomfortable feelings making us shy away. I speak for myself when I say Silent Hill 2 felt like a comfortable home when I found it, a piece of media that helped me make sense of what happened to me, when every friend and adult in my life refused to engage with the topic, and still does.

There is nothing else like Silent Hill 2 in this medium, and its original intent is well worth defending. By flat out lying, Konami has suckered in a new audience who may never know the original and continues to make it inaccessible. The remake, marketed as a holistic and true shot-for-shot remake, is nothing more than a product, sanded down to be friendlier to a wider audience. When you financially support the remake, you financially support censorship of this nature. You support a company that has no interest in exploring such unsanitary topics. You support a company that disrespects video game preservation and artistic integrity. You agree that stories like mine shouldn't be viscerally, uncomfortably illustrated, because at least it comes in 4k.

[petegrammarman]

so i put my hands up theyre playing my song the evil skull flies away

[petegrammarman]

LATE HOMEWORK (2024) — developed by sodaraptor.

[petegrammarman]

[petegrammarman]

my 2024 poompkin carves

[petegrammarman]

halloween :)

[petegrammarman]

this song gives me the most uncomfortable and disorientated feelings, but I love it so.

[petegrammarman]

Here is a _um_kin I made of some guy