Arse-kicking in Arcas

Catching up with, yes, more pictures from The Callisto Protocol, this time from the mining colony; another part of the game where I always take time to really make the most of it. It's good fun squirrelling about the labyrinthine underground settlement, checking out all the lived-in details and kicking monsters. Of note, the Spitty Fuckers (scientific term) make a comeback here - I like those ones, they're fun. The Crunchy Creatures are my favourites, though - this is a important matter.

The two-headed gobshite also turns up again here and to be fair, this time 'round you've got more space to work with and an array of buildings to scramble through, which makes it an interesting encounter, even if that creature is a sodding nuisance.

Incidentally, I read somewhere that due to time constraints, a few varieties of enemy had to be cut from the game; it makes me curious to know what they were, and what might have been knocking about in place of some of the encounters with the two-headed tosser. Might that big snakey effort have been an active enemy at one point, and how would that have worked? That said, it's probably just as well that creature didn't kick off because, with the best will in the world, Jacob isn't exactly lightning-fast, except for that one moment at the end of the game when he takes off like an overstimulated cat. Our man there is not in a hurry, and I respect that. (Also, getting about with an injured leg, I don't do moving at speed either.)

Anyway, pictures!


Loving the moody lighting in this access tunnel here.



The shimmering ice in this little cave here is just so pretty!


On top of this workstation, there's a moka pot in among all the chaos and clutter. Throughout the game, there are endless ceramic mugs and travel cups strewn about the place, kettles, more moka pots about; there was even a bag of coffee beans in someone's locker at one point. Seriously, there is an aggressive caffeine presence here. Just thought everyone should know that.





Also bungled a stealth section and wound up embroiled in a colossal punch-up with a load of Crunchy Creatures in the loos. At first, there was just one of them but evidently the noise alerted all the others and next thing I knew, there were about five of them and chaos ensued.


Oh, and there's this contraption that looks a bit like a Philips VLP700!







On that note, it is Friday. Have a lovely weekend, everyone (or, y'know, at least a better weekend than these geezers 'ere.)
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Further rambling

Twa Thousand Corbies

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Going to start this post with an illustration, because of this blog layout, posts lacking images tend to look a bit pants. The art here is by G. Howell-Baker. A while back, I was joking about gathering together as many versions of Twa Corbies as possible, and finally, here we are. This is going to be a continually evolving list, so if you know of a version that needs to be included, or if you've recorded one of your own, then by all means, let me know. You can put a comment here or e-mail me at looksinnocuousnenoughchaps [at] gmail [dot] com. Let's begin! 1.  Folly Bridge - My personal favourite, performed completely a capella with some beautiful, eerie harmonies. 2.  Hamish Imlach - A live version, and a very close second favourite. Hamish's distinctive voice works wonders here and we're treated to some elegant sitar as well. 3.  Ayreheart - This one features the lute and a passionate vocal performance, it's quite pleasant. 4.  The Corries - Quite a brisk and e...
'Ave a gander 'ere

Some thoughts regarding Silent Hill Downpour

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Getting up at 3am for work is never a recipe for focussed and cogent thought, but it does seem to result in getting down some rabbit holes. On this occasion, after feeling an overwhelming desire to know what A Lyke Wake Dirge would sound like done in the style of Pookiesnackenburger (for the record, Alisdair Reynolds' version is my personal favourite) and weighing up whether or not to pursue a change of setting in an absurdist comedy script-in-progress because it feels like a repurposed shipwreck might provide more fertile ground than a haunted theatre, I got to thinking about Silent Hill Downpour for a bit. This game gives me some very mixed feelings; overall, I'd come down on the side of being fond of it, there's definitely a lot to love here but there's a near-equal measure of things that are frustrating about it. I guess the one-word summary would be "undercooked". It's got a lot of potential, and the green shoots of some really interesting ideas, but...
'Ave a gander 'ere

Revisiting Crapston Villas (while actually sober)

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So recently, I played the Silent Hill 2 remake (really enjoyed it, a nicely done update of an old favourite) and while scrambling about in the flats, something emerged from the dusty caverns of long-buried memories: namely this stop-motion animated cat, lurking in the sallow light of a knackered hallway with blood dripping from his jaws. Quite the sight. Look upon him!!! To be honest, if it were a toss-up between the cat and Pyramid Head, yeah, I'd rather take me chances with the Traffic Cone Twat, thank you. So as it was, the only other things I could remember about Crapston Villas were an homage to that one King Crimson album, a scene involving a horrific-looking fish, there was a lot of gallows humour and the fact that I was howlingly drunk on questionable ale when I watched it (this was around 2013.) Incidentally, it seems to be a running theme with people that I've talked to over the years, whenever the topic of Newcastle Brown comes up, someone always has a story about...
'Ave a gander 'ere