BruceVC

Okay I'm not sure how to take this. Was there a "previous member of the porn industry" requirement before posting here that I didn't know about or do Avelone, Urquhart, Sawyer, et al have a much more varied career than I first thought looking at their public CVs? I do think its judgemental to look down on people who work in Porn industry. Are they breaking the law? Also Porn actors provide an important service on different levels. I understand the moral view people have of the porn industry. And I wouldn't like my 22 year sister doing it as a career choice but I would absolutely support her if she understood the risks and wanted to do this. ( Plus I'm sure I would get to meet her friends ) Just so I'm clear what is the issue people have with Porn actors?

Nah, we enjoy taking about Romance and its relevance in PE

Sometimes those unspecific road trip destinations are the best, I like the way your husband thinks

I understand how you communicate with people and I think its great but that doesn't change the fact its weird to see you and Hurlshot at odds with each other. I suppose I hold you two to a higher standard than most us. I seldom see you guys getting annoyed or insulting people and you don't seem to get emotional ( of course this doesn't mean you don't have these feelings but your posts don't demonstrate it) Which is ironic, really, because I'm a total wanker. I still love you Walsie and I enjoy your emotional antics that at times we see. This is what adds character and I feel your good far outweighs your bad

This will change when you have a job or at least a sales orientated job. You can't SMS customers to make appointments or discuss prospective deals or meetings

You say you can understand why a lot of people loathe them, but then you proceed to make a bunch of assumptions and equivocations that are, quite frankly, very ignorant. Perhaps you do not understand that well why a lot of people loathe them. It is realistic to ignore the attractive and available person you spend months around. It happens all the damn time in real life because of many reasons, of course it's realistic. What isn't realistic is that the presence of someone attractive and available around you should inevitably lead to something. The reason why it happens so many times in movies and games that want to be movies is precisely because it's unrealistic. Romances can harm a game instead of enhancing it. The arguments for this have already been made, in this thread and in others. Sex is not integral to life. It's a very good addition to it, but it's possible to go on without it. Especially if you're an adventurer running for your life, and thus you and your party have concerns of higher priority. This does not mean roleplaying an eunuch or an asexual, it means roleplaying someone who can keep it in their pants. Roleplaying and romances are not linked. Romances are just a tiny subset of roleplaying options, but they are not a worthier option or better or deeper or anything like that. If the rest of options are well done, it turns out that most of the player base does not miss romances that much. And if you can't conceive of a game that does provide deep roleplaying options without romance, perhaps it should be you the one who has to broaden horizons, instead of expecting all games to fit this narrow view. Romances should not mean a deeper understanding of NPCs. There are plenty of couples that confide things to their close friends that they wouldn't to their partner, after all. And there are plenty of stories of people in the military that confide to their comrades incredibly personal things that they would not tell to other people, including their lovers. It's just a different kind of relationship. Besides, it's not fair for players who wish to know their companions to deny them that content because they're not attracted to them, when there should logically be a way for them to get that (with a close friendship, for example). The game should not force the players to go through a romance in order to get that. Project Eternity is not a JRPG. Common tropes and themes found there should not be expected here. Also, I'm fairly certain than in the west, otaku means "fan of anything Japanese", not obsessive fan in general. If one is an obsessive fan but not of Japanese games/comics/whatever, then the person in question is not an otaku. And the biggest one of all... Romances do NOT equal interpersonal relationships in general. Having no romances does not mean that NPCs will lack personality or motivations or reactivity. Seriously, this one is so stupid that I shouldn't see it repeated time and time again. And each time I see it, it convinces me a little more than perhaps some game out there should demonstrate this truth by making awesome character interactions that fulfill nicely the emotional wants of a player, but without resorting to romances to fulfill them. Perhaps Project Eternity should be that game, considering everything. I like you Lurky as you always spend time and effort to articulate your point and I appreciate that, I just find myself sometimes disagreeing with what you say at least around our Romance discussions In response to some of your comments It is realistic to ignore the attractive and available person you spend months around. It happens all the damn time in real life because of many reasons, of course it's realistic. What isn't realistic is that the presence of someone attractive and available around you should inevitably lead to something. The reason why it happens so many times in movies and games that want to be movies is precisely because it's unrealistic. I dispute this. Why would you argue against human nature? If you spend months with someone and face challengers and death on a daily basis and you have an emotional connection and are attracted to each other Romance would naturally develop? For example forget fantasy RPG for a moment and lets discuss RL and relationship dynamics. I have never ever heard of a scenario where 2 people are attracted to each other, want to have a relationship, there are no obstacles to this relationship and don't at least try to develop the Romance. Human beings are gregarious creatures by nature and once again I would argue that Romance is the normal and expected direction people follow if there are no obstacles Romances do NOT equal interpersonal relationships in general. Having no romances does not mean that NPCs will lack personality or motivations or reactivity. Seriously, this one is so stupid that I shouldn't see it repeated time and time again. And each time I see it, it convinces me a little more than perhaps some game out there should demonstrate this truth by making awesome character interactions that fulfill nicely the emotional wants of a player, but without resorting to romances to fulfill them. Perhaps Project Eternity should be that game, considering everything. Of course you don't need Romance to have a party member interact with you on a deep level. But in all my Romances in all the games I played like Morrigan, Viconia and Isabela I did have a softer spot for those characters above other party members. And the reason was obvious, I imagined this physical relationship with them and how that would effect the emotional strength of my bond with them. So in my RPG experience and how I perceived the game and overall experience this did make the relationship dynamic deeper. Even if it didn't effect my overall game or the primary choices available to me with the exception of a few lines of extra options in the dialogue choices this was important to me and some of the choices I made. I want this choice in PE

I have a fun day planned, I am having some friends over for another braai (barbeque). I haven't had an alcoholic drink for 2 weeks so Im looking forward to a few drinks, some laughs and some good food. I also make a killer potato bake that's only going to add to the yummy food that will be available Oh and then we'll go listen to some live music afterwards at one of the Sunday live music venues

The Nexus website offers a much wider range of Mods that are generally supported by a more skilled group of people with some impressive coding skills Also you can't get Adult mods on Steam @ Deathdealer I would also recommend the Monster Mod, it adds hundreds of new beasts to the game. I'll be using that Mod definitely when I play Skyrim http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/35631/?

A damn shame. I think that making any suppositions about the motives of people who want something different from you is not good at all, and reeks of a strawman. I think that discussing why you want/don't want something in the game is good, but when doing so you should try to analyse what the person actually says instead of launching an attack on what you want them to say. By attacking strawmen and being hypersensitive to everything, you are making these forums closer to the BSN than X>10 regular posters talking about romance ever could on their own. Back on topic: There are three positions in this. 1. You want romance because you believe that it is worth the resources to implement and is something that you will likely enjoy 2. You don't want romance because you believe that it is not worth the resources to implement and is not something you will likely enjoy 3. You could live with or without romances in PE I personally take position 3. I trust that Obsidian will make the right call when it comes to what is best for their game, and am sure that all relationships will be well written and integrated into the "story" of either the main plot or companion in question. If there is romance(s) I highly doubt that they will be Bioware-like virtual **** dolls. Does anyone else here trust that Obsidian could deliver with PE, even if something you don't like is included? Good post, I would obviously go for option 1. Also you have asked an important question " Does anyone else here trust that Obsidian could deliver with PE, even if something you don't like is included?" Of course I would hope that everyone see the future of PE in this regard. There will always be features in the game that people complain about that hopefully shouldn't detract from them financially supporting the PE franchise. I always see an RPG as having to deliver on many levels and the fact that optional Romance\Sex is included should make no difference to other aspects of the game that will offer entertainment Oh and one request from me and I understand it will probably be ignored. Can we stop using the BSN as an analogy around what a fan base hell on earth is. There are many positives on that website and we can't write off millions of fans due to the fact you disagree with a few hundred hard core fans and there perception of Romance and how they choose to discuss it

Interesting post, I do several things around phone etiquette I'll be honest I have a wide range of people that tend to phone me from good lifelong friends to people that I met on some all weekend party the previous week and I react differently to them depending on the nature of the phone call and how I feel at the time I always phone my good friends and family back, sometimes it may be a few hours later. I generally ignore any missed call I see if I don't know the number and they don't leave a message If I know a number but I really don't want to speak to the person and they leave a message I'll phone them back the next day I don't respond to unwanted SMS until I feel the need to, this can be 24 hours later. The most serious calls are generally when someone tries to phone you and then sends an SMS explaining why they are trying to reach you This doesn't apply to work hours where I answer all calls if I can

That book does look good, I have 2 types of favourite personal reading books. Fantasy books and anecdotal historical accounts of people in military conflicts. I've mentioned this before but World War One is the conflict that I am most fascinated with and I collect as many books around that war as I can, the problem is I have many excellent autobiographies written by the likes of Robert Graves and Sigfried Sassoon but very few books that represent the German side of the war and life in the trenches. Almost all the German perspectives of the war are written in German so purchasing them wouldn't help as I can't read or speak German

As an agonistic, I do not believe that science and divine work need to be exclusive. Without wishing to specify your beliefs, I think you mean 'agnostic'. Gigantic keyboard failure. Although antagonistic works too Hurlshot! Yaaaay good to see you and Hurlshot back on good and normal terms again. Its weird to see you guys having the odd word like you did over that lady gaming journalist with the tattoo's

Okay that gets the much desired and sought after BruceVC "most humorous post of the week award " Good one

I don't know about Alan, but I'd close my curtains and tear out my webcam from the computer. Funny

I do not, and I would definitely need more than your word alone to convince me otherwise. Okay let me position this differently with you, I consider you an intelligent person who has a good understanding of the world you live in and an excellent ability to rationalize the things around you. But what would happen to your perspective of the world if I could tell you right now on these forums what you had for breakfast and what shirt you are wearing. Is this something you would want to know as surely this would turn on its head many preconceived ideas you have as a person and ultimately our views on life are what define us. Is this something you could mentally deal with? It would be like going down the rabbit hole.....

Alan do you believe in psychic abilities? Lets say I told you I was psychic would you believe me?

Fair enough but haven't I researched the issue enough to say you are correct. For example what about Uri Geller and his abilities? EDIT: Actually I just did some research on Geller and it appears most of his "psychic" abilities were cons or sleight of hand tricks, so you it looks like you may be right about authentic psychics

I feel I need to update my previous comment, this lady isn't someone who decided to make her first career choice in the gaming industry. She is an ex-porn star who decided to change her career. My previous more critical post should be ignored. I respect her decision and wish her good luck as she will have more than enough criticism from people just from her past. I admire people who want to change there lives if they feel there jobs aren't fulfilling, I actually feel guilty about my previous view on her

Personally I can accept the possibility of someone having enhanced perception or some sort of psychic ability. I don't know enough about it to factually debate it but there are numerous cases of people doing extraordinary things with there minds so why not being able to find a hidden body?

Yep, porn actress. Her filmography is as long as my forearm. Sad, really. Okay so she was in the Porn industry, that's not a bad thing in my opinion. In fact now I would now say her tattoo's make more sense. I like to watch the odd adult entertainment. Do you know her stage name ?

To be honest, while I noticed the tattoos I didn't really give them much of a second thought until you (and others) decided to focus so incessantly on them. At some point, in my opinion, the problem becomes less and less hers. My question for you is "Why do you care?" followed by "Why does someone doing something like this bother you?" when it's effectively a stranger and someone that you have literally no obligation to do anything towards. What you are doing, although I don't suspect with any sort of overtly malevolent intent, is shifted the conversation away from what the author is saying and focusing more on what the author looks like. To draw an analogue, and I understand it's a bit different because tattoos are voluntary, but in my eyes it's not that far removed from focusing more on the colour of someone's skin than is really necessary. You find her decision to place tattoos on her a decision that makes her less attractive. Which is fine. They are probably at a point of having enough that I consider them less appealing as well. We're allowed to feel people are or are not attractive. What that has to do, however, with her topic is something that is somewhat lost on me. Coupling it with "Also I hope I don't die when my daughter is 15 because that might cause her to go get terrible tattoos that distract from her natural beauty" then comes across as something exceptionally antagonistic and downright disrespectful. If getting tattoos helps her deal with the loss of a parent in a reasonably healthy way (from a mental health standpoint). I lost my brother when I was 13, and effectively didn't really get over it until I was 20. If getting some tattoos had helped in some way, I'd be pissed at my parents for judging me for doing so. I agree with Hurlshot on this one but I am going to be even more critical. Firstly I don't dislike this lady( what is her name?) but let me comment on the perception that her tattoos create in this context We are not being petulant in our judging of her because she has put herself on the Internet for public scrutiny and obviously doesn't think her tattoos are an issue as he could easily hide them if she was concerned about them. Therefore if you ask for people to comment on what you say they are naturally going to also base that opinion on how you conduct yourself and what image you project. Its hard to separate the person from the message in most cases There are dozens of gaming bloggers, websites and people trying to offer an alternative opinion on games and break into the gaming discussion market. Its very competitive and I imagine doesn't offer much financial incentive until you are really well know. Like Jim Sterling ( who annoys me but he does have his fans). What is lacking is the type of reviews and opinions that we see on Forbes and Gamasutra around gaming. These target an older segment of gaming society but generally with more spending power. In other words business people who like to game get there updates from these websites. Now I would think the objective of gaming journalist is to progress in there careers and eventually get to work for websites like this? This lady is very good looking and is intelligent. She also wants to get opinions on the topic. She raised some interesting questions but here is the problem. She is only going to be able to work for certain companies because those tattoos really create an image of her that would be unacceptable for most corporations. I can't comment on the work conditions of Bioware but I know very few companies that would allow customer facing staff to look like that. Business people who want to discuss gaming don't want to see that type of person representing there hobbies. Now imagine if she looked like she did, asked though provoking questions but didn't have the tattoos. It would be a winning formula Now you can easily say " I am over analysing this whole thing, she doesn't care about representing companies that cater for business men or even earning decent money. She is doing something she enjoys and follows her own path irrespective of what people like me think". That may be well and true but someday she would more than likely have to answer certain questions about her career progression and at the moment she is actually doing herself a disservice for future prospects. We are going through tough economic times, people are unemployed or work in jobs where they are not earning what they should be earning and companies can and will fire as they see fit. Why would you not do everything in your power to ensure that you are as marketable as possible? Finally I have no issues with tattoos as I feel they are a personal choice and at times they could represent something sentimental for a person but in the case of this lady they are really overdone and unfortunately don't create an image of her that as time goes on she would really want? Of course I may be wrong but this is just my perception of her

You can't blame EA for the bad and shoddy products that EA Phenomic produced. This is a result primarily of EA Phenomic having bad development skills and releasing an unfinished product to the market. That's business and I know this is unpopular but we should be saying thanks to EA for closing a company that can't deliver a game that is worth paying for. I am starting to get a little tired of how we seem to be constantly make allowances for developers and how its always the publishers fault that the game is bad. When do the developers take responsibility for the actual product that ultimately they are the architects and creators of ?

Keep us updated, I'll send you a PM of someone on these forums who I'm sure can help you if you ask

Busty elven women in chain-mail bikinis? That's just part of it

Interesting idea but it wouldn't be my cup of tea