If you're tired of monster guts, you're tired of life

 

It's been a bit since there were any video game screenshot posts, and according to the information on Mariner, I haven't bothered with any games since March (although I have been picking up some of my personal desert island games on GOG and voting for numerous others to be added, for a bit of futureproofing.) Y'know what's not on GOG right now? Still Wakes the Deep. Seriously. This absolute banger 'ere is not on that platform and frankly, that is a travesty. If you're a member on there, please consider going to vote for it, and if you're inclined, lend your voice as to why it deserves to be preserved, to scare the shit out of, and to devastate, future generations. I refuse to accept any discernible risk of this gem being lost to the fleshy mass of a North Sea eldritch horror. This is an important matter.

Now, onto some pictures...

This scene, even several playthroughs deep, is still genuinely disturbing. Having grown up with horror films, books and games, I've got a pretty thick skin to The Scares but this moment, on the strength of its atmosphere, the natural performances from the cast and the refreshing willingness to let the audience fill in the blanks under their own steam, pulls it off superbly.

 

It's a bit difficult to get a decent angle in this area, but the shimmering light in the dark is compelling.

 Something tells me a lot of people will have got a shot during this scene, but here's (probably) another to add to the pile. I've already gone on an excessive ramble about this game a while back but seriously, this scene gives me a serious case of the Thoughts and Feelings. It's a surprisingly peaceful moment, even though you're in uncomfortably close proximity to this thing that can and will immediately assimilate/destroy anyone/anything it comes into contact with. It gives us a minute to sit with a more awe-inspiring perspective on this unknown entity; if you want to rummage deeper, there's some commentary on the human fear of the unknown quietly woven in there. I don't mean to be like those tiresome "Oh edgelawd he comin'" types who will go to something that is telescopically repulsive and go "Oh it's beautiful!" (wankers) satire but yes, the Siren does tread an interesting line between being objectively disgusting with the fleshy mess, but it has some beauty about it with the elegantly flowing fins and the undulating colours. But yes, back on track, there's just so much storytelling in this calm, quiet moment and I can't get enough of it.



In stark contrast to the moment on the lift, this is just plain grotesque.
 
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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. Part two, with versions 50-100 can be found here . 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 qui...
'Ave a gander 'ere

Some doodles from last night

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I went on a bit of a spree last night, trying out some different brushes in Rebelle 7, trying to work out what approach I might want to take for reviving Facts About the World, and here are some of the resulting doodles. First, a swoonicorn investigating Blarglflorp, the tiniest comet in the cosmos. Ara, done entirely using ink brushes with varying degrees of water. It's been a bit of running joke that their markings are different every time I draw them, and this time is no exception. (They were initially based on a striped dolphin but at this point, it's anyone's guess. Cynosure was a futuristic thing with cyborgs anyway, so what kind of dolphin Ara resembled wasn't exactly a pressing logical concern.) And one from the end of the night, which didn't end up being coloured because I'd been up since 3am again and needed to go to bed.
'Ave a gander 'ere

Fridayposting

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It is Friday, continuing the theme of the spooky video games, I'm currently revisiting Still Wakes the Deep and trying to finish up the blog post about that (it's a good job this isn't an audio effort because noone needs to hear yours truly going "Fuckin' 'ell, McLeary!!!" in an incredibly questionable Glaswegian accent whenever the mood so takes me.) Sod's law, I completely forgot to actually get the pictures off of Mariner... it was late at night. For now, it's time to return to the comfy slippers of The Callisto Protocol, not in chronological order and not really with a theme in mind either, just a bit of fun for today. Starting with these artfully arranged Crunchy Creatures, with a bit of an HR Giger kind of vibe. I also appreciate the elegantly flowing mist around here. Hmmm . (This one's off the PS4 version, I redid it on the PS5 but a big cloud of mist was obscuring one of the monsters and we can't have that.) This hexagonal effort...
'Ave a gander 'ere