#blizz-interview

[sipthegossip-if]

SIP THE GOSSIP! is a slice of life IF rated 18+ for explicit language, skippable sexual content, substance abuse, extra marital affairs and more. Best to be avoided if romance, drama and angst are not your cup of tea.

✭ DEMO (TBA) ✭ FORUM (TBA)

You have had everything in the palm your hand since birth. Success kissed your feet, the billboards sang of your symphony and the public chanted your name.

Until they didn't.

After years of a blockbuster after a blockbuster— ignoring the fact they were all your uncle's productions— you found yourself tangled up in allegations that left your reputation in shambles.

You lost thousands of followers across all your social media accounts, all your endorsement deals and the industry turned it's back on you.

But you persisted. After things were resolved, you tried getting back on your feet. Starred in movies that had no connection to your dearest uncle.

But here's the thing : they all flopped. Badly, at that.

And you found yourself, once again, at the rock bottom. After some time of having disappeared from the public eye you have decided to make a comeback and do what you were always good at— use your connections to gain a spot in the upcoming romantic drama TO THE MOON AND BACK.

You will do anything to get your stardom back even if it means getting your pretty hands a little dirty.

✭ Play as male, female or non binary. Straight or queer. Customise your brand and appearance.

✭ Choose the article that destroyed the reputation you spent years building.

✭ Engage in a scandalous & fiery romance off and on set!

✭ Use whatever means you can to avoid being teared to shreds on the internet.

✭ It's been long since you have acted. You haven't forgotten how to bring those tear ducts to use, have you?

✭ Give interviews. Because isn't that what the blizz and bling all about baby?

✭ Engage with your fans. If they still haven't forgotten about you, that is.

✭ Escape or annoy the unrelenting paparazzi.

✭ Customise your public persona. Do things that transpire behind cameras differ from on camera?

✭ Choose the plot of T2MAB.

✭ THE BODYGUARD : Kai D'melio. [he/him or she/her]

Single and in early 30s. Stoic and all business. It's hard to get a read of them. They are a constant in your life.

Tropes : Bodyguard romance, extremely slow burn, quiet yearning from distance, "crush" route, steel armour— soft core.

✭ THE VETERAN ACTOR : Shiron "Shay" Hill. [he/him or she/her]

Married and in mid 40s, they continue to be a social media sensation to till this day. A friend of you and your uncle. They are the one who introduced you to the director and producer of To The Moon And Back and helped you score the lead role.

Tropes : Extra marital affair, steamy, age gap, forbidden romance, "married in name only," wedding band that feels like a chain and accidental touches that burn.

✭ THE DIRECTOR/PRODUCER : Victor/ia "Vic" Alvarez. [he/him or she/her]

Single, former actor and in mid 40s. An incredibly close friend of Shiron. They have been attached at the hip since the two first began working together in the industry. All their works have proved to be the public's favourites and you hope that is also the case with T2MAB.

Tropes : Work romance, steamy, commitment issues, power imbalance, age gap, says "We can't do this," and does it anyway.

✭ THE M/F LEAD : Alexis "Alex" Sinclair. [he/him or she/her]

Co-actor and in late 20s. Charming and titled 'Industry's Budding Star' by People's Magazine. They seem to have a tendency to flirt with whatever that breathes. It would serve you best to not get involved with them, judging from their messy dating history.

Tropes : idiots in love, hurt/comfort, emotional intimacy, himbo/bimbo, friends/co-workers with benefits, "I will break your heart or, will you break mine?"

✭ THE SECOND M/F LEAD : River Fox. [he/him or she/her]

Co-actor, singer and in late 20s. After having caught their now ex partner cheating on them, they seem to have a hard time trusting people. The fact that they dislike you for the means you used to get the role and the consequences it led to, doesn't help either.

Tropes : Slow burn, enemies-to-lovers, melting the ice king/queen, forced proximity, kind guy/gal who's mean to only you. "Your hurt recognises mine," in some instances.

✭ THE CAMERA(WO)MAN : Arlo Kent. [he/him or she/her]

Single loyal to you and in their early 20s. They get all starry eyed and overly enthusiastic at the sight of you. More often than not, you have caught them not so discreetly keeping an eye you. You can only hope they are merely star struck and nothing more.

Tropes : Stalker/yandere fluffy romance. "I have always been watching," that somehow turns romantic. "You'll love me eventually," kinda horror romance.

[wardensantoineandevka]

very often I feel despairing that I take a very long time to finish projects, often never finishing them, but then I remember that I have a better success rate than Mark Kern aka gruumz, who has not finished anything since he left Blizz in 2005 and yet is harassing every single person who exists anywhere near games space. it took me five years to finish a screenplay, sure, but that's still a QUARTER of that time. I've published TWO articles and conducted a published interview in like a tenth of that time.

[itgetsbetter]

HOST REVEAL!

Our vodcast Perfectly Queer IS BACK for Season 2, streaming every other Thursday on Twitch to:

🟣 Talk all things queer in the news and gaming

🟣 Interview special guests

🟣 Watch It Gets Better videos together

And more!

Watch Thursday, July 27 at 6pm ET/3pm PT to say hello, join this safe space for LGBTQ+ youth, and get to know our new hosts blizz and ashleyroboto! So so excited to welcome them to the show.

Gonna be a fun season, y'all - see you all in chat Thursday!

twitch.tv/itgetsbetter

[snoid]

so because i keep track of every sizeable mmo that is going to exist, ive been seeing stuff about the as of now unnamed riot mmo and seeing some embarassing fucking interviews about what its gonna be like, and im 98% sure its gonna be a wowclone based on whats been said.

previously, back when i was posting on twitter, i thought that the game was most likely just gonna be a flop aside from the weird niche that encompasses riot fans who for some reason arent playing wow and ff14 is too cutesy and nice and not horny enough for them. but uhhh. then wow shut down in china lol.

i think if blizz cant get wow back up WITH ALL SAVES IN TACT then riots wowclone will probably find decent success there. which is a shame because id like to see riot fail for making the mistake of thinking the mmo industry is willing to tolerate their whole schtick of "copy another videogame but make it more horny". it worked for valorant because theres no real alternatives aside from csgo, but making another fucking wowclone is such a fucking ancient tactic that youd never be able to compete in a country with both wow AND the single wowkiller online

[thehiphopunderground]

Interview with rapper Blizz Vito

Interview with rapper Blizz Vito

[southernvangard]

(Southern Vangard) Episode 372 - Southern Vangard Radio

BANG! @southernvangard #radio Ep372! We’re riding high off the feedback we got from our all vinyl set last week - if you missed it, make sure to go back and check out Ep371. This week, we’re back with tons of new joints per the usual, including WORLD EXCLUSIVES from CASHUS KING X APPLEJAC (big up DJ POCKET for the connect), as well as CUT BEETLEZ X KURIOUS! These folks all have full lengths dropping soon, and you get a sneak peak now. What’s that? THAAAAANK YA? Well dagnabbit YOU WAAAAALCOME!!!!! #SmithsonianGrade #WeAreTheGard // southernvangard.com // @southernvangard on all platforms #undergroundhiphop #boombap #DJ #mixshow #interview #podcast #ATL #WORLDWIDE #RIPCOMBATJACK

Recorded live Aug 20, 2023 @ Dirty Blanket Studios, Marietta, GA

southernvangard.com

@southernvangard on all platforms

#SmithsonianGrade #WeAreTheGard

twitter/IG: @southernvangard @jondoeatl @cappuccinomeeks

Talk Break Inst. - "Dice" - Pitch 92

"Green Thumb" - Cashus King (prod. Applejac) ** WORLD EXCLUSIVE **

"Praise The Seven" - Recognize Ali x Soul Chemist

Smokey Robinson's Hands (Theory Hazit Remix) - Libretto & Vitamin D ft. Planet Asia

"Survival Mode" - Halfcut & Reks ft. DJ Deadeye

"Whiskey All You Want" - Kurious & Cut Beetlez ** WORLD EXCLUSIVE **

Talk Break Inst. - "Saudade" - Pitch 92

"Dirt" - Nems & Scram Jones ft. Peedi Crakk

"Cream Soda" - Cashus King ft. Blu (prod. Applejac)

"Flavors" - Recognize Ali x Soul Chemist ft. Swab

"Sabado Night Live" - Eff Yoo ft. Homeboy Sandman & Spit Gemz (prod. Deep)

"High Speeds" - Kurious & Cut Beetlez ** WORLD EXCLUSIVE **

"Brooklyn Basquiat" - Danger Mouse & Jemini

Talk Break Inst. - "Many Miles" Pitch 92

"Wild Times" - OSVN ft. Rod Da Blizz

"Really Tho" - Illien Rosewell x Bank$

"Bloody Money" - Spanish Ran ft. Al-Doe & Tree Mason

"Disintegration" - Certain.Ones

"Farm To Table" - Mick Jenkins ft. Vic Mensa

"Up Again" - WateRR & Work Scorsese ft. Rufus Sims

"My Brother" - Elcamino & King Ralph

Talk Break Inst. - "Metrô" - Pitch 92

*** TWITCH ONLY SET ***

"A Mansion And A Yacht" - Kurious ft. Sadat X (prod. The Groove Merchantz)

"I'm Kurious" - Kurious (prod. Pete Nice & DJ Richie Rich)

"Jorge Of The Projects" - Kurious (prod. Stimulated Dummies)

"Baby Bust It" - Kurious ft. MF Grimm (prod. Stimulated Dummies)

"Walk Like A Duck" - Kurious (prod. The Beatnuts)

"Rice and Beans (Freestyle)" - Kurious ft. Prince Paul

SOUNDCLOUD

https://soundcloud.com/southernvangard/episode-372-southern-vangard-radio/

https://on.soundcloud.com/KYcJg (SHORT LINK)

APPLE PODCASTS

https://itun.es/us/QyyX9.c/

SPOTIFY PODCASTS

http://bit.ly/svrspotifypodcasts

YOUTUBE

https://youtu.be/EUWHDCm1pCQ

GOOGLE PODCASTS

http://bit.ly/svrgooglepodcasts

TWITCH

http://twitch.tv/southernvangard

MIXCLOUD

https://www.mixcloud.com/southernvangard/episode-372-southern-vangard-radio/

#SouthernVangard #DJJonDoe #EddieMeeks #Pitch92 #CashusKing #Applejac #Recognize #Ali #SoulChemist #Libretto #VitaminD #Halfcut #Reks #DJDeadeye #Kurious #CutBeetlez #Nems #ScramJones #PeediCrakk #Blu  #RecognizeAli #SoulChemist #Swab #EffYoo #HomeboySandman #SpitGemz #Deep #DangerMouse #Jemini #OSVN #RodDaBlizz #IllienRosewell #Banks #SpanishRan #AlDoe #TreeMason #CertainOnes #MickJenkins #VicMensa #WateRR #WorkScorsese #RufusSims #Elcamino #KingRalph #SadatX #MFGrimm #PrincePaul #TheGrooveMerchantz #TheMightyVIC #GodfatherDon #PeteNice #DJRichieRich #StimulatedDummmies #JohnGamble #GeebyDajani #DanteRoss #TheBeatnuts #PsychoLes #JuJu

[flushthethrone]

(Southern Vangard) Episode 372 - Southern Vangard Radio

BANG! @southernvangard #radio Ep372! We’re riding high off the feedback we got from our all vinyl set last week - if you missed it, make sure to go back and check out Ep371. This week, we’re back with tons of new joints per the usual, including WORLD EXCLUSIVES from CASHUS KING X APPLEJAC (big up DJ POCKET for the connect), as well as CUT BEETLEZ X KURIOUS! These folks all have full lengths dropping soon, and you get a sneak peak now. What’s that? THAAAAANK YA? Well dagnabbit YOU WAAAAALCOME!!!!! #SmithsonianGrade #WeAreTheGard // southernvangard.com // @southernvangard on all platforms #undergroundhiphop #boombap #DJ #mixshow #interview #podcast #ATL #WORLDWIDE #RIPCOMBATJACK

Recorded live Aug 20, 2023 @ Dirty Blanket Studios, Marietta, GA

southernvangard.com

@southernvangard on all platforms

#SmithsonianGrade #WeAreTheGard

twitter/IG: @southernvangard @jondoeatl @cappuccinomeeks

Talk Break Inst. - "Dice" - Pitch 92

"Green Thumb" - Cashus King (prod. Applejac) ** WORLD EXCLUSIVE **

"Praise The Seven" - Recognize Ali x Soul Chemist

Smokey Robinson's Hands (Theory Hazit Remix) - Libretto & Vitamin D ft. Planet Asia

"Survival Mode" - Halfcut & Reks ft. DJ Deadeye

"Whiskey All You Want" - Kurious & Cut Beetlez ** WORLD EXCLUSIVE **

Talk Break Inst. - "Saudade" - Pitch 92

"Dirt" - Nems & Scram Jones ft. Peedi Crakk

"Cream Soda" - Cashus King ft. Blu (prod. Applejac)

"Flavors" - Recognize Ali x Soul Chemist ft. Swab

"Sabado Night Live" - Eff Yoo ft. Homeboy Sandman & Spit Gemz (prod. Deep)

"High Speeds" - Kurious & Cut Beetlez ** WORLD EXCLUSIVE **

"Brooklyn Basquiat" - Danger Mouse & Jemini

Talk Break Inst. - "Many Miles" Pitch 92

"Wild Times" - OSVN ft. Rod Da Blizz

"Really Tho" - Illien Rosewell x Bank$

"Bloody Money" - Spanish Ran ft. Al-Doe & Tree Mason

"Disintegration" - Certain.Ones

"Farm To Table" - Mick Jenkins ft. Vic Mensa

"Up Again" - WateRR & Work Scorsese ft. Rufus Sims

"My Brother" - Elcamino & King Ralph

Talk Break Inst. - "Metrô" - Pitch 92

*** TWITCH ONLY SET ***

"A Mansion And A Yacht" - Kurious ft. Sadat X (prod. The Groove Merchantz)

"I'm Kurious" - Kurious (prod. Pete Nice & DJ Richie Rich)

"Jorge Of The Projects" - Kurious (prod. Stimulated Dummies)

"Baby Bust It" - Kurious ft. MF Grimm (prod. Stimulated Dummies)

"Walk Like A Duck" - Kurious (prod. The Beatnuts)

"Rice and Beans (Freestyle)" - Kurious ft. Prince Paul

SOUNDCLOUD

https://soundcloud.com/southernvangard/episode-372-southern-vangard-radio/

https://on.soundcloud.com/KYcJg (SHORT LINK)

APPLE PODCASTS

https://itun.es/us/QyyX9.c/

SPOTIFY PODCASTS

http://bit.ly/svrspotifypodcasts

YOUTUBE

https://youtu.be/EUWHDCm1pCQ

GOOGLE PODCASTS

http://bit.ly/svrgooglepodcasts

TWITCH

http://twitch.tv/southernvangard

MIXCLOUD

https://www.mixcloud.com/southernvangard/episode-372-southern-vangard-radio/

#SouthernVangard #DJJonDoe #EddieMeeks #Pitch92 #CashusKing #Applejac #Recognize #Ali #SoulChemist #Libretto #VitaminD #Halfcut #Reks #DJDeadeye #Kurious #CutBeetlez #Nems #ScramJones #PeediCrakk #Blu  #RecognizeAli #SoulChemist #Swab #EffYoo #HomeboySandman #SpitGemz #Deep #DangerMouse #Jemini #OSVN #RodDaBlizz #IllienRosewell #Banks #SpanishRan #AlDoe #TreeMason #CertainOnes #MickJenkins #VicMensa #WateRR #WorkScorsese #RufusSims #Elcamino #KingRalph #SadatX #MFGrimm #PrincePaul #TheGrooveMerchantz #TheMightyVIC #GodfatherDon #PeteNice #DJRichieRich #StimulatedDummmies #JohnGamble #GeebyDajani #DanteRoss #TheBeatnuts #PsychoLes #JuJu

[dragonheart-swtor]

Companion Interview

I was tagged by @sleepswithvillains​, thanks so much!! this looks like a fun one :O No pressure tags: @sith-shenanigans​, @swtorcompanionsgoofin​, @sunsetofdoom​, and an open tag for anyone who wants to!

Pick three companions who know your OC/muse well. Answer the questions from at least one of their companions’ points of view. Replace anywhere it says ‘Reykal’ with your OC’s name (and appropriate pronouns). Name the three companions who will be answering here:

1. Mako 2. Torian 3. Blizz

Are they ready to be candid with their responses? Don’t worry, this is totally private. Reykal will never read it.

1. First Impressions. What was the first impression you had of Reykal?

Mako: After “Oh, wow, she’s tall”? It kind of surprised me how friendly she was - I mean, she kills people for a living, you kind of expect a certain kind of personality from that, right? But right off the bat she was just... nice.

Torian: Technically it wasn’t the first time we met, but I’ll never forget the first time we really talked, on Taris. Never had someone manage to disarm me and flip me over their shoulder onto the floor in the same move before.

Mako: It was because she flirted with you first.

Torian: I - it was not!

Mako: Please. You were blushing as soon as you hit the floor. You practically had stars in your eyes as she held you at blasterpoint. (She snickers and kisses him on the cheek.) You Mandos are ridiculous like that.

2. Reykal walks into a bar. No, it’s not a joke - what does she order? If you give her a credit for the jukebox, what kind of music would she put on?

Torian: It varies. She’ll try just about anything once, even if it’s practically poison. Learned that the hard way.

(Mako groans at the memory.)

Mako: She was in sickbay for almost twelve hours after she tried one of Blizz’s concoctions. Never again.

Blizz: Blizz not know! Drinks are fine for Jawas!

Mako: I know, I know. Just maybe check with Poison Control first next time? As far as music goes, she likes cantina music and jizz well enough, but anything that gets too loud drives her crazy. Togruta hearing, and all that.

3. How does Reykal spend a day off from work?

Mako: Board or card games, sightseeing, shooting practice with Torian. She’s teaching me how to shoot, too.

Blizz: Boss the best at cards! Smacked Gault’s head once because he cheats. Fun to watch!

(Gault, in the background: Cards isn’t supposed to be a spectator sport, y’know.)

Mako: She’s always doing something, though; make her sit still too long and she starts getting antsy. I think the longest I’ve seen her sit down at a time was when we marathon TV shows together, and even then she has to get up and pace around the ship for a while every couple of hours.

4. What silly superstitions or funny traditions does she observe?

Torian: I don’t know that I’d call it silly, but she’s always barefoot around the ship - and planetside too, if she can be. I asked her about it once; apparently it’s a Togruta thing, something about staying connected to the earth. For her I think it just makes the ship feel like home.

Blizz: And the lucky credit! Hangs on the wall by the airlock door so boss can touch it on the way out. Blizz not understand what it does, has no moving parts.

Mako: (laughing) I don’t think it works like that. It’s just a good luck charm.

5. What does Reykal wear to bed? And just how do you know that?

Mako: Boxers and a really big T-shirt. Button-down, of course, since that’s the only kind she owns. Hard to pull a shirt on over those montrals. And everybody on the ship knows; she sleeps in the crew quarters with the rest of us. The captain’s quarters are pretty much just storage and meditation space for her.

Torian: I think she just doesn’t like sleeping alone. To be honest, I’m pretty sure she’d rather sleep in the same bed as someone else, given how she always ends up wrapped around me somehow when we’re camping out on a hunt. I almost stabbed her by accident the first time that happened.

Blizz: Huh. Blizz thought that was just because Blizz small and furry. Boss does to you too?

Mako: Yeah, she’s grabbed me in her sleep a couple times too while we were out on a job. I don’t mind, honestly; the warmth is kinda nice.

6. Your favorite memory of Reykal?

Mako: I think... I think after we figured out the truth about Coral and she tried to kill me. Reykal saved my life. And afterward, she didn’t push me to talk about it before I was ready, she just bought a pint of ice cream on the way home and sat on the couch with me while I cried. It wasn’t exactly the best day of my life, don’t get me wrong, but it was... nice, to feel like I still had a family after that.

Torian: We went hunting once, on Dantooine - not a bounty hunt, just a regular hunt. I finally worked up the courage to ask her advice about what I should do about Mako and my feelings for her. (He laughs.) She teased me relentlessly, of course. But she also gave me some good advice.

(Mako smiles and takes his hand to squeeze it.)

Blizz: Boss took Blizz to Nar Shaddaa once! Many pretty things. Blizz got many new things to add to collection!

Mako: And boss almost got three days of jail time.

Blizz: Blizz never lives mistakes down on this ship.

7. A time you very nearly almost kissed her?

Torian: We got mutually drunk in a cantina on... I forget where, honestly. Some sleazy Hutt world. Probably would have regretted that if Gault hadn’t interrupted by almost getting killed because he cheated a Wookiee at gambling.

(Mako raises an eyebrow.)

Mako: You never told me about that.

(Torian blushes.)

Torian: It was before we started dating. Like I said, we were drunk and celebrating, probably would have regretted it if it had gone anywhere. Which it didn’t. So.

Mako: Well, for my part, we’ve never really gotten close - which is weird, because she’s definitely my type, but it just never happened for some reason.

Torian: Oh, really? What’s your “type,” then?

Mako: (grinning) Tall, strong, handsome, and kicks ass with a blaster.

Blizz: Blizz takes a pass. Next question before Mako and Torian get sappier?

8. Vacation time! Where do you take Reykal for some R&R?

Torian: Hunting, probably. Real hunts, I mean, not bounty hunting.

Mako: You two are ridiculous. Pick Coruscant to see the sights, or some place with seedy cantinas and a good brawl to get into, or something different.

Torian: We’re simple people with simple tastes. What can I say?

9. Reykal’s sense of humor - is it dry, immature, sarcastic, self-deprecating, physical, witty, dark, or…?

Torian: Are we picking from the list?

Mako: Immature, sometimes, maybe. Only if you give her the opportunity, though. She can turn anything into a joke if she tries hard enough.

[teamwinterofficial]

(@solosissupposes) sup! I was reading through your mission statement and I’ve got to say I really agree! I personally think I look best in winter clothing, so making the world cooler would def be a plus for me. where do I sign up?

from a quick look at ur blog ur in unova rite? that means ur connecting w me ^v^

i can give u more details in private messages, but basically ull want 2 find one of our bases n give them a passcode, then theyll take u 2 the interview room (its not 2 hard of an interview dw) -blizz

[theam-cjsw]

The AM: January 23, 2023

Jeremy Klaszus of the Sprawl joins in the third hour to talk about Calgary's civic identity—a topic that's endlessly engrossing to folks who live here, and hopefully tolerable to those of you who don't. If you're here for the music, you'll be well-served, too. We've got an eclectic mix, from Quebeçois chanson to psych-pop, Danish ambient tunes to Dylan-inspired blues. All the better to start the week with. Enjoy!

(image by www.instagram.com/outrunyouth/)

Listen on Soundcloud

Sprawl Interview

Stream from CJSW

Spotify playlist

Other links

Hour One:

Felt Drum & Lace • Frost

Vespers numün • Book of Beyond

Jet Jespers & Anders • Boredom is Deep and Mysterious Vol. 2

tecnologia Brad Allen Williams • œconomy

Impasse Bristol Manor • A Distant Urban Forest

Diamond Rain Lee Paradise • Steady EP

No Interest Project Pablo • Come To Canada You Will Like It

7O4 Popp • Blizz

You Know Picnic In The Well • Few Less Ravens

Emerald Sea London Odense Ensemble • Jaiyede Sessions, Vol. 2

Hour Two:

Le chat du café des artistes Jean-Pierre Ferland • Jaune 2005

September Weather Christian Kjellvander, Tonbruket • Single

Once Upon a Time in the Northeast Kid Koala • Once Upon a Time in the Northeast

Colour Me In Broadcast • Maida Vale Sessions

Tamalpais High (At About 3) David Crosby • If I Could Only Remember My Name

Music is Love David Crosby • If I Could Only Remember My Name

Spot Thirteen Rozi Plain, featuring Alabaster dePlume • Prize

Aselestine Yo La Tengo • This Stupid World

Summer Jennifer Castle • Castlemusic

Mother Tongue Silver Moth • Black Bay

Hour Three:

Moving Sylvan Esso • No Rules Sandy

Blues in Bob Minor Robert Wyatt • Shleep

This City Belongs to Us The Reverie Sound Revue • Reverie Sound Revue EP

Azeda Booth The Consonant C • Capes and Crowns

Halve Benoît Pioulard • Eidetic

In Between River Tiber • Dreaming Eyes

Bite the Invisible Hand Zacht Automaat • P Is For Progress

Starlight The Exorcist GBG • Single

[unpopularly-opinionated]

I don’t play WoW but I used to play Overwatch and Diablo and this touches on just the general issues that are inside of Activision Blizzard right now regarding the major decline of World of Warcraft and how they’re losing to Final Fantasy XIV, how if the latest WoW expansion or Overwatch 2 flop as they’re projected to do then Blizzard’s most definitely going to pivot almost entirely to mobile games, and how the differences in age demographics are actually dividing the company into multiple camps.

It’s important to note two things: 1) this could be fake but also 2) the link came from Grummz, a former team lead on WoW and producer on Diablo II and Starcraft. It still could be fake despite this, but if he’s sharing it then I feel like there’s at least some measure of truth in this.

Transcription below in case this gets deleted and/or you don’t wanna click the link. Warning, it’s fairly long.

“I’m dropping this here after getting chewed out for three hours over shit the chewee did at work so fuck it. Assume larp and let me vent.”

>Shadowlands is a shitshow. Critical response, Player drop off and just about every engagement metric outside of cash shop have been catastrophic. No higher up expected this because of their “we are too big to fail, if we built it they will come” mentality. They refuse to accept their focus on the world being a begrudged mechanic to funnel players to raiding is not appealing to the player base at large because it appeals to them. They have spent the last 4 months trying to course correct but there is no solid direction and the response to 9.1 has only made things worse.

>Sylvanas is planned to replace the Arbiter despite so many people in the company and god knows how many online saying this would be a total replication of Kerrigans storyline in Starcraft 2 that killed none competitive interest in the brand entirely and you can only go “no, no they WILL like it eventually” for so many real world years before its time to change course. Thus far that has not happened.

>The elephant in the room is FFXIV. To the people in charge they are acting like this came out of nowhere and don’t even seem to understand why its drawing players away in their tens of thousands. We have all tried to highlight things it is doing that are clearly appealing to an mmo audience and not, in my opinion, focussing more on mobile game style retention traps to keep MAU users and habit forming personalities logging in. Its not that they don’t care. They just seem so pig headed and digging their heels in with their fingers in their ears thinking all the problems will go away because WoW is “too big to fail”, there will never be real competition and “they will keep coming back”. But they aren’t coming back anymore. Not in the numbers they used to.

>The people making the spending choices know this. The new model for WoW is market the hell out of a expansion pack for a huge quarter then use 6 month lock ins to pad numbers for the quarters after that. Even if corona had not happened 9.1 still would have been dropping after the initial 6 month subs expired to “keep the chain holding”.

>The mood in the company is tense but also very much “its just a rough transition period”. Activision has been pushing hard for Blizzard to release more regular product and to generate more income per user. As far as i know this is going to be a transition over the next 5 years to a much larger mobile/tablet gaming focus. By all accounts not just WoW but Overwatch was intended to be the moneymaker in the interim but once again someone had the bright idea to kill a game casual players loved on the alter of e-sports hoping for another Brood War. From what i hear the “told you so’s” were loud and a lot of people walked beyond Kaplan.

>The sentiment that was shared quietly in private but being spoken more often is simply that the leadership at Blizzard are not bad people, nor incompetent people but people who had to fill seats left when the old guard jumped ship wether they were suited for it or not. Brack is a genuinely good man out of his depth, Ion is a fantastic raid designer put in charge of designing a virtual world he has no interest or real ideas for and so on. They have been taking form the roles they excel at to be put in positions where they get to do far less of that purely because there is nobody left with the experience to do so and the trickle down is a lack of concrete direction, ambition and focus.

>2021 has seen the playerbase, media and gaming at large “turn” on WoW to a degree i don’t think the leads in their “positivity dojo” bubble considered possible. Its gone from people going “This is how Blizz needs to fix WoW!” to “WoW is no longer salvageable, time for greener pastures” and i think on some level this was never considered as a possibility so there have never been any major plans beyond the usual “try and minimise player drop off by arranging releases around competitors launching updates/products”. The official forums being filled with talk of FFXIV and worse “why do we actually pay a sub?” hasn’t helped.

>There have been some testing the waters lately from certain higher ups if we can remove the line “No King Rules Forever”. Read into that what you will.

>There are still arguments going on about the Kael’thas Voice actor shitshow. I don’t know much about it but i know its heated, wouldn’t be the first time a knee jerk reaction only seemed to generate bad press. We lost a noticeable amount of pvp engagement after the Swifty thing.

>The Preach interview was treated as a disaster and there was talk of more strongly vetting interviewers for “bad actors” and only engaging with a list of questions Blizzard provides. Some pointed out that could just be used to create some form of Fireside Chat akin to the FFXIV “Live letters” but that fell on deaf ears.

>The two sentiments right now among the team are either “we really need a win” or “theres a dedicated cabal of internet trolls out to kill WoW”. Right now we are crunching hard to get 9.2 ready to wrap up the jailors storyline so we can get an expansion out early 2022. If that doesn’t happen there are talks of major shakeups coming down from Activision that have been threatened for a few  years now. Its an all hands on deck feeling thats been around to some degree since the “Is this an out of season April Fools Joke” Blizzcon. A make or break deadline is coming closer and things like Diablo 4 were not planned before then. Blizzard needs a significant win not just in initial profit but consumer goodwill. Nobody likes working at what the public now seems to see as “the bad guy” of the mmo industry.

>This has also made new hires decline. Not significantly but the “you WANT Blizzard on your resume” line doesn’t seem to have the appeal it used to. This has lead to more hiring via friend of a friend, to some rumblings about nepotism, and people severely lacking in experience “because they get great twitter optics”.

>On the topic of Twitter we are not being told to “disengage” from it. Multiple employees like Nervig and Holisky publicly attacking paying customers because they got too heated and couldn’t keep quiet is bad press that could have been avoided. A email reminder has gone around more than once lately stating “if you are not customer relations you should not be representing the company to customers, especially if you cannot remain professional”.

>Lastly the biggest elephant in the room is “yo’ boy” Asmongold. The newer hires cannot stand him. They have used terms like “toxic masculinity” and “dogwhistles to dangerous males” while some of the oldest crowd still remaining have called him “based” or “telling it like it is” which has lead to friction to put it mildly. People are told not to talk about him and the recent FFXIV stuff only made it all worse. The idea that an outside element can have such an effect on the product genuinely upsets people. Like Zach is engaging in some malicious act of cyberwarfare. Many of us have point out the now famous quotes by Naoki Yoshida about understanding that players will drift and we need to make something worth coming back to because they want to but some people for lack of a better word see out customers -or “consumers” as they refer to them nowadays- as some kind of antagonistic relationship where the goal is not being an entertainer putting on a show for a crowd but some kind of game hunter trying to trap a large, profitable kill. I wish i could blame Activision but this is a sentiment from more of the younger crowd than the “tech boomers”. Which personal opinion is probably why so many folks like Metzen and Morheim left.

>Before you ask, yes the topic of “wokeness” has shown up in group talks. Its not all some grand sjw conspiracy, people really do want to feel welcome and represented. However the “we need everything veto’ed by people not working on it to see if its inoffensive and bland enough” rubs some of us the wrong way. Like anything in life you can take something too far and lose sight of the core ideals and with everything gone on since Blitzchung it feels like people are forming little factions to pull people in different directions to decide “What Blizzards identity is now” and how to appeal to new players. There has been some drop offs with “go woke go broke” as the only answer in the survey when unsubbing but honestly we are losing subs in unforseen numbers anyway and still making more money than ever through cash shop “heavy users” so it honestly doesn’t make an impact.

>All in all things are rough right now. Blizzard doesn’t have the love of the customers anymore, is no longer treated as an industry giant and while D4,D2R and Immortal aren’t going to kill Diablo even if they fail the sentiment for World of Warcraft and Overwatch 2 are a lot more tense and stressful. The phrase “it might be good to brush up on your mobile development portfolio if we get another underperformer” has been doing the rounds a lot. If Shadowlands continues its stark decline and Overwatch 2 is looking to underperform like its current projections suggest i think the Blizzard of a few years from now will be imitating King a lot more than trying to learn any lessons from Square Enix’s mmo division.

[ask-ssec]

SSEC 3RD HUNGER GAMES!

HAPPY SSEC ANNIVERSARY MONTH! MY NAME IS DON, AND I WILL BE YOUR HOST FOR THE SSEC HUNGER GAMES!

AND I’M BOW! Don’s co-host for this time!!!

The author of SSEC is currently dying from homework, so, there sadly won't be a ton of big stuff this anniversary for you guys, but, we’ll try to entertain you with the 3rd SSEC hunger games!

Also the Author is working on some other ssec projects on the side, so, they might be posted this month if they get done on time!

So, without further ado,here are the contestants!!!

Blizz, Vay, Dusk nii-san, Night, Bolt, Flame, Dawn, Eve (heh), Miku, That Playpoke magazine guy, Shane, Jed, Charlie, Juanita, the amazing and super cool Clef, Wiz, Stella chan, Dawn cardboard cutout, Devin, Kevin, Mommy, Aunt Melody, Lem, and Rick! Hey Don, who do you think will win?

Lem... I really hope he’ll win.... or at least die painlessly

Well I bet Clef will win!!! HE IS AWESOME!!! Or maybe Shane or Dusk Nii-san!

Um... well. *turns to audience* We will have interviews with Previous winners and interview the winner when all is said and done! Unlike last year, because of our segments, things will update two a day. You can also ask us questions, and we can answer them! 

There will also be a button on the Ask SSEC site so you can see everything that happened in chronological order!

This has been your hosts Don and Bow! See you in the next post!

[greencrusader13]

Too Much Information Character Interview - Cirak Kiht

It has been far too long since I have responded to being tagged, and boy did this one stack up haha. Thanks for tagging me @dingoat @the-sith-in-the-sky-with-diamond @a-muirehen !

Gonna tag @winterfrostlegacy @melissagt @chubbyooo @starrealis @made-of-starr-dust @darthbadguy @verbose-vespertine​ @lovonne​ @moonlitalien​ @tinybuggyart​ @cinlat​ @kunoichi-ume​ @insufficient-focus​ @sheyshen​ @aeternalegacy​ @terrelian-inquisitor​ @anchanted-one​ @haospart​ @darthsiha​ @limegreendice​ @ghoullist​

(Art by @lolbatty)

► Name ➔  “The name’s Cirak, Cirak Kiht.”

► Are you single ➔  “And ready to mingle, if you know what I mean.”

► Are you happy ➔  “As long as I’ve got credits in my pocket, sure, yeah I’d say I’m a happy guy. Life’s too short to get worked up about the little things.”

► Are you angry ➔  “Outside of jobs, not really. It’s always good though to have a bit of fire in ya when you’re out shooting people for credits. Keeps you focused.”

► Are your parents still married ➔ “Well they’re both dead, so who’s to say?”

NINE FACTS

► Birth Place ➔ “Technically space itself, but my parents settled on Nar Shaddaa a couple weeks after I was born.”

► Hair Color ➔  “Silver”

► Eye Color ➔  “Red”

► Birthday ➔ “Sometime thirty-two years ago or something.”

► Mood ➔ “Is ‘wanting credits’ a mood?”

► Gender ➔ “I’m a guy.”

► Summer or winter ➔ “Summer. You kidding with this one? Nothing beats summer on a beach, sunbathing in my swimsuit and a drink in my hand. Can’t do that in winter.” 

► Morning or afternoon ➔ “More likely to be hungover in the morning, so I’d say afternoon. Besides, how often do people say ‘I had a slow, relaxing morning.”

EIGHT THINGS ABOUT YOUR LOVE LIFE

► Are you in love ➔ “Not at the moment. Haven’t been in a long time.”

► Do you believe in love at first sight ➔ “I don’t think it’s love most people are feeling when they describe that.”

► Who ended your last relationship ➔ “I did. Or, maybe it was her. I dunno. When you end up getting double-crossed during a job and you have to end up shooting the one you were in bed with earlier that day, it’s a little complicated.”

► Have you ever broken someone’s heart ➔ “If I have I’m not aware. I try to make my intentions clear so that there’s no hurt feelings.”

► Are you afraid of commitments ➔ “Afraid? Pssshhhhh, n-no. I can commit just fine. I just choose not to.”

► Have you hugged someone within the last week? ➔ “Nope. I’m not the most huggy guy.”

► Have you ever had a secret admirer ➔ “Probably. I’m a charming guy.”

► Have you ever broken your own heart? ➔ “...I don’t feel like talking about this anymore.”

SIX CHOICES

► Love or lust ➔ “Lust is fun and simple and has no expectations beyond just one thing. Much better fit for my line of work.”

► Lemonade or iced tea ➔ “Lemonade. Especially if it’s a hard lemonade.”

► Cats or Dogs ➔ *Gestures to self.* “Take a guess pal.”

► A few best friends or many regular friends ➔ “Many regular friends. I like to keep things friendly, but again, this is a line of work where anyone could turn on you for enough credits. Best to keep things at a bit of a distance.”

► Wild night out or romantic night in ➔ “Let’s hit the town! Maybe with luck it’ll hit back.”

► Day or night ➔ “All the fun stuff happens at night.” 

FIVE HAVE YOU EVERS

► Been caught sneaking out ➔ “Once, early on in my career when Taelros was still looking out for me. We were on Coruscant for some bounty, and since we were so close to the Jedi Temple I thought I might try taking his speeder for a ride over there to see Tyar. I was just starting to hotwire it when I felt something sharp in my neck. Stun dart. Woke up a day later back on the ship and no credits to show for it. Taught me a good lesson about sneaking off.”

► Fallen down/up the stairs ➔ “...it may have happened once or twice when I’ve been drunk.”

► Wanted something/someone so badly it hurt? ➔ “Yeah, there was this guy. Long time ago. I hated him when we met, and as I fell for him I wanted to keep hating him to make it easier. When the hate went away I couldn’t think about anything other than him.”

► Wanted to disappear ➔ “There’ve been moments where I’ve wanted nothing more than to take a ship off to some corner of the galaxy and live an enjoyable-but-unimportant life. They’re brief, but I’ve considered it.”

FOUR PREFERENCES

► Smile or eyes ➔ “Smiles can lie. Eyes don’t.”

► Shorter or Taller ➔ “Depends. Short is cute. Tall is sexy. Both are good.”

► Intelligence or Attraction ➔ “If I were looking for something long term then I’d want intelligence. But, since most of the time I’m just looking to fool around, attraction is much better.”

► Hook-up or Relationship ➔ “Hook me up baby!” 

FAMILY

► Do you and your family get along ➔ “We did, back when they were around. Dad taught me how to shoot and drive, sometimes both at once just in case I ever needed to, and my mother was an absolute sweetheart. Tyar was such a smiley kid and so full of enthusiasm. I miss them all. I should’ve done more to protect that kid. I never should’ve sent him to the Jedi.”

► Would you say you have a “messed up life” ➔ *Counts on fingers* “Dead mom, dead dad, dead kid brother, I kill people for a living...I’d say so.”

► Have you ever ran away from home ➔ “Nah, never.”

► Have you ever gotten kicked out ➔ “Nope.”

FRIENDS

► Do you secretly hate one of your friends ➔ “I’m either someone’s friend or I’m not. I don’t see the point in holding secret animosity.”

► Do you consider all of your friends good friends ➔ “Only a few. Mako I’d count, same with Torian, Gault, and Blizz.”

► Who is your best friend ➔ “Mako. I can really on that kid for anything.”

► Who knows everything about you ➔ “Again, Mako. Some of it she looked up on the web, others I’ve told her.”

[flushthethrone]

(Southern Vangard) Episode 289 - Southern Vangard Radio

BANG! @southernvangard #radio Ep289: COVID-19 Edition 87! Take heed, that dandy duo of Doe & Meeks are back this week with more Smithsonian Grade for your earholes! We have gobs of brand new screw-face inducing music this week per the usual, and head north for our Thursday interview session to rap with PRO DILLINGER, who’s been on the warpath with his ONE NINE label and THE UMBRELLA collective he co-founded with PNC SNOTTY. Interview snippets are at the end of the mix to tide you over until the full drops on Thursday. Get right Vangardians it’s that #SmithsonianGrade #TwiceAWeek #WeAreTheGard // southernvangard.com // @southernvangard on #applepodcasts #stitcherradio #soundcloud #mixcloud #youtube // #hiphop #rap #undergroundhiphop #boombap #DJ #mixshow #interview #podcast #ATL #WORLDWIDE #RIPCOMBATJACK

Recorded live April 18, 2021 @ Dirty Blanket Studios, Marietta, GA

southernvangard.com

@southernvangard on #applepodcasts  #soundcloud #youtube #spotifypodcast #googlepodcasts #stitcherradio  #mixcloud #SmithsonianGrade #TwiceAWeek #WeAreTheGard

twitter/IG: @southernvangard @jondoeatl @cappuccinomeeks

Talk Break Inst. - "H2-OH" - Idryis Da God

"Squeeze Da Mac" - Lunatic ft. Pro Dillinger & Stack Skrilla

"Glowing Mics (Founders Remix)" - Gang Starr ft. Big Shug

"Doomsday Kids (The Apocalypse)" - Singapore Kane  (prod. D.R.U.G.S. Beats)

"Outsiders" - Plex Diamonds (prod. Damn Dave)

"Tell Me" - Hus Kingpin  (prod. By Prynce P)

Talk Break Inst. - "whatnow" - Idryis Da God

"Street Gospel" - Bronze Nazareth & Recognize Ali ft. Salute Da Kidd

"Like This" - King Author

"Beaumont" - Doza The Drum Dealer ft. Ill Bill & D. Goynz

"Failure = Death" - The Quarter Inch Kings x Zagnif Nori ft. Bugsy Da God & Dj Enyoutee

"The Shutdown" - Nivek Boogeezi X Craig G ft. Zagnif Nori

Talk Break Inst. - "ISSAVIBE" - Idryis Da God

"Fire Diamonds" - John Creasy ft. Mickey Diamond (prod. The Prxspect)

"Social Distancing" - Snotty ft. Hus Kingpin (prod. Shaolin Luciano)

"Last Place You Wanna Be" - Ty Farris X Machacha

"Nostalgic Zaza" - Jae Haze ft. Gzus Piece

"Bruiser Brody" - Conway the Machine (prod. JR Swiftz)

".40" - Asun Eastwood & Finn ft. Flee Lord

"Schism" - Blizz From Juice ft. Eto & Lord Goat

"Phone Tap"- John Creasy (prod. The Prxspect)

Talk Break Inst. - "Spazzmadik" - Idryis Da God

** INTERVIEW SNIPPETS - PRO DILLINGER ** FULL INTERVIEW DROPS THURS 4/22 **

SOUNDCLOUD

https://soundcloud.com/southernvangard/episode-289-southern-vangard-radio

APPLE PODCASTS

https://itun.es/us/QyyX9.c/

SPOTIFY PODCASTS

http://bit.ly/svrspotifypodcasts

YOUTUBE

https://youtu.be/jqbaNpoH5_E

GOOGLE PODCASTS

http://bit.ly/svrgooglepodcasts

MIXCLOUD

https://www.mixcloud.com/southernvangard/episode-289-southern-vangard-radio/

#SouthernVangard #DJJonDoe #EddieMeeks #IdryisDaGod #Lunatic #ProDillinger #StackSkrilla #GangStarr #BigShug #SingaporeKane #DRUGSBeats #PlexDiamonds #DamnDave #HusKingpin  #PrynceP #BronzeNazareth #RecognizeAli #SaluteDaKidd #KingAuthor #DozaTheDrumDealer #IllBill #DGoynz #TheQuarterInchKings #ZagnifNori #BugsyDaGod #DjEnyoutee #NivekBoogeezi #CraigG #JohnCreasy #MickeyDiamond #Snotty #HusKingpin #ShaolinLuciano #TyFarris #Machacha #JaeHaze #GzusPiece #ConwayTheMachine #JRSwiftz #AsunEastwood #Finn #FleeLord #Blizz #Eto #LordGoat

[blizzregensburg]

Gertrud Maltz-Schwarzfischer: Pragmatisch, flexibel, legitimiert

Nach langem Wahlkampf und einer spannenden Stichwahl führt sie nun seit einer Woche die Domstadt als Oberbürgermeisterin: Gertrud Maltz-Schwarzfischer. Mit großen Krisen hatte sie schon während ihrer Zeit als Stellvertreterin von Ex-OB Joachim Wolbergs Erfahrung gesammelt. Jetzt schifft sie Regensburg durch die Coronakrise. Doch eine beinahe ebenso große Herausforderung ist die Bildung einer tragfähigen Koalition im Stadtrat. Woran es bisher scheiterte, erklärt sie im Blizz-Interview. Von Claudia Böhm Einen „sehr schweren“ Auftrag hat die Oberbürgermeisterin von den Wähler/innen im März gestellt bekommen. „Der Stadtrat ist sehr bunt geworden, es sind jetzt 12 unterschiedliche Parteien und Gruppierungen vertreten. Eindeutige Mehrheiten gibt es nicht“, erläutert Maltz-Schwarzfischer die Situation. Die bisher geführten Gespräche seien an „nicht zu vereinbarenden grundsätzlichen Haltungen, unterschiedlichen Einschätzungen der Zusammenarbeit und Zuverlässigkeit“ gescheitert. Voraussetzung für ihre Wunschkoalition sei vor allem, dass man in wesentlichen Sachfragen und persönlich gut zusammenarbeiten könne. Zu Spekulationen darüber, wer ihre Stellvertretung im Bürgermeisteramt werden soll, hält sich die SPD-Politikerin bedeckt. „Die Personalfragen werden geklärt, wenn Einigkeit über die Inhalte einer Vereinbarung besteht.“ Bis Redaktionsschluss (7.5.) stand noch nicht fest, in welcher Konstellation die neue Oberbürgermeisterin in den kommenden sechs Jahren regieren könnte. Doch spätestens am 14. Mai – dem Tag der konstituierenden Sitzung des neuen Stadtrats – muss eine Entscheidung her. Trotz Krise an die Zukunft denken Neben aller politischer Zwistigkeiten ist es die Coronakrise, die die Regensburger/innen derzeit am meisten beschäftigt. Hier blickt Gertrud Maltz-Schwarzfischer nach vorne: „Die Stadt darf nicht in der Krisenbewältigung hängen bleiben. Wir müssen auch aus der Krise heraus in die Zukunft denken.“ Eine gute Infrastruktur für die Wirtschaft wie auch für den sozialen Bereich ist ihr Ziel. „Das bedeutet Digitalisierung, zukunftsfähige Mobilität, bezahlbares Wohnen und Aus- und Neubau von Schulen und Kinderbetreuung. Das alles vor dem Hintergrund des Klimawandels, denn der stoppt ja nicht wegen Corona“, stellt sie ihre Absichten klar. Investitionen und pragmatische Lösungen Einsparungen allein hält die Oberbürgermeisterin jetzt nicht für zielführend; die öffentliche Hand solle vielmehr investieren, um sich nach der Krise wieder gut aufstellen zu können. Auf pragmatische und kreative Lösungen aus dem Alten Rathaus können Gastronomen mit Freisitzflächen hoffen, denn unter der neuen Führung wird in Krisenzeiten nicht auf starren Regularien beharrt.

Die Fläche des zukünftigen Interims-ZOB am Ernst-Reuter Platz im April 2020 Interims-ZOB soll wie geplant kommen Ebenso wie die lokale Wirtschaft leidet auch die Stadtverwaltung unter fehlenden (Gewerbesteuer-)Einnahmen. Ohne Neuverschuldung wird es nicht gehen, selbst wenn alle Projekte aus dem letzten Investitionsprogramm auf den Prüfstand gestellt werden. Bereits angelaufene Projekte, wie die Stadtbahn, werden aber fortgeführt. Auch der Interims-ZOB am Ernst-Reuter-Platz ist eines der Projekte, die für die Zukunft Regensburgs entscheidend sind. Im Herbst soll die Fläche an die Stadt übergeben, noch vor dem Winter soll sie aufgefüllt werden. Bis dahin hat sich bestimmt auch das neue Bündnis im Stadtrat gefestigt. Interview mit der frisch gebackenen Oberbürgermeisterin Direkt nach ihrem Wahlsieg stand Frau Maltz-Schwarzfischer ebenfalls für ein Blizz-Interview zur Verfügung. Worum zobes ging, lesen Sie >> hier. Lesen Sie den ganzen Artikel

[dallasfuelmaintank]

The Blizzard bullshit really is getting better and better. There was a college Hearthstone event on tonight, and during the interview with American University's team, AU players had a sign that said "Free Hong Kong, boycott Blizzard." In response, Blizz just decided to...stop team interviews entirely. Fucking cowards.