thelastaxolotl

12 years ago the best indie game was released

FTL: Faster Than Light is a roguelike game created by indie developer Subset Games, which was released for Windows, MacOS, and Linux in September 2012. In the game, the player controls the crew of a single spacecraft, holding critical information to be delivered to an allied fleet, while being pursued by a large rebel fleet. The player must guide the spacecraft through eight sectors, each with planetary systems and events procedurally generated in a roguelike fashion, while facing rebel and other hostile forces, recruiting new crew, and outfitting and upgrading their ship. Combat takes place in pausable real time, and if the ship is destroyed or all of its crew lost, the game ends, forcing the player to restart with a new ship.

The concept for FTL was based on tabletop board games and other non-strategic space combat video games that required the player to manage an array of a ship's functions. The initial development by the two-man Subset Games was self-funded, and guided towards developing entries for various indie game competitions. With positive responses from the players and judges at these events, Subset opted to engage in a crowd-sourced Kickstarter campaign to finish the title, and succeeded in obtaining twenty times more than they had sought; the extra funds were used towards more professional art, music and in-game writing.

The game, considered one of the major successes of the Kickstarter fundraisers for video games, was released in September 2012 to positive reviews. An updated version, FTL: Advanced Edition, added additional ships, events, and other gameplay elements, and was released in April 2014 as a free update for existing owners and was put up for purchase on iPad devices

Synopsis

The player controls a spacecraft capable of traveling faster-than-light (FTL). It belongs to the Galactic Federation, which is on the verge of defeat in a war with an exclusively human rebel faction, simply called the Rebellion. The player's crew intercepts a data packet from the rebel fleet containing information that could throw the rebels into disarray and ensure a Federation victory. The goal is to reach Federation headquarters, waiting several space sectors away, while avoiding destruction from hostile ships or by the pursuing rebel fleet

Development

FTL is the product of the two-man team of Subset Games, Matthew Davis and Justin Ma. Both were employees of 2K Games's Shanghai studio, and became friends during their tenure there, playing various board games in their free time.

Davis had left 2K Games early in 2011, and after biking through China, returned and joined Ma, who had also recently quit, and began working on the core FTL game. They agreed they would spend a year towards development and if their efforts did not pan out, they would go on to other things. Following the success of the game, the pair began work on their second game, Into the Breach.

The idea for FTL was inspired by tabletop board games, such as Battlestar Galactica: The Board Game, a 2005 space roguelite computer game released by Digital Eel, Weird Worlds: Return to Infinite Space, and non-strategic video games, such as Star Wars: X-Wing, where the player would have to route power to available systems to best manage the situation.

Unlike most space combat simulation games, the beginning idea was the player being captain rather than a pilot according to Davis, and to make "the player feel like they were Captain Picard yelling at engineers to get the shields back online", as stated by Ma. The intent of the game was to make it feel like a "suicide mission", and had adjusted the various elements of the game to anticipate a 10% success rate of winning the game.

The permanence of a gameplay mistake was a critical element they wanted to include, and gameplay features such as permadeath emphasized this approach.

Only as they neared the August 2011 Game Developers Conference in China after about six months of work, where they planned to submit FTL as part of the Independent Games Festival there, did they start focusing on the game's art. The game was named as a finalist at the IGF China competition, leading to initial media exposure for the game.

The additional attention to the game forced them to extend development – what would be a two-year process – and thus they turned to Kickstarter in order to fund the final polish of the game as well as costs associated to its release, seeking a total funding goal of $10,000. Subset games was able to raise over $200,000 through the effort. FTL represents one of the first games to come out from this surge in crowd-funded games, and demonstrates that such funding mechanisms can support video game development.

With the larger funding, Subset considered the benefit of adding more features at the cost of extending the game's release schedule. They opted to make some small improvements on the game, with only a one-month release delay from their planned schedule, and stated they would use the remaining Kickstarter funds for future project development.

The additional funds allowed them to pay for licensing fees of middleware libraries and applications to improve the game's performance. Additionally, they were able to outsource other game assets; in particular additional writing and world design was provided by Tom Jubert (Penumbra, Driver: San Francisco), while music was composed by Ben Prunty.

Prunty wanted to create an interactive soundtrack that would change when the player entered and exited battle; for this, he composed the calmer "Explore" (non-battle) version of each song, then build atop that to create the more-engaging "Battle" version. Within the game, both versions of the song play at the same time, with the game cross-fading between the versions based on action in the game.

One of the highest tiers of the Kickstarter campaign allowed a contributor to help design a species for inclusion in the game. One supporter contributed at this level and helped design the Crystal.

FTL: Advanced Edition

FTL: Advanced Edition adds several new events, ships, equipment and other features to the existing game. This version was released on April 3, 2014 as a free update for FTL owners, and as a separate release for iPad devices, with the potential for other mobile systems in the future. A new playable species, the Lanius — metallic lifeforms that reduce oxygen levels in any room they are in — were introduced.

Subset Games has stated that they would not likely create a direct sequel to FTL, though future games they are planning may include similar concepts that were introduced in FTL. Their subsequent game, Into the Breach was not funded through Kickstarter and it is unlikely that they will use the platform in future, as they have raised enough money through sales of FTL to fund future projects.

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Aid:

• 🌈 LGBTQ+ Resource Post
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Theory:

• ❤️Foundations of Leninism
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Tuitto

Imagine getting outflacked from the left by a normal green socdem when you call yourself a democratic "socialist"

🚨The Vote Socialist campaign is putting socialism on the map!🚨

Thanks to the hard work of thousands of volunteers, the majority of people in this country will see socialism on the ballot this November! Additional official write-in states are still to be announced!

The two-party system makes it incredibly difficult for third party candidates without huge financial resources to access ballots in some states. No matter what status your state is, we encourage supporters to get involved and help build the movement for a future by and for the people beyond the ballot box!

Whether you can donate your money your time, or both — we need your help.

Visit 🔗http://votesocialist2024.com/volunteer to learn how you can get involved!

Twitter

Doom is crying because the Planes missed the Baxter Building.

Also Magneto why are you there?? you are supposed to be death from the Wild Sentinel attack on genosha

link to the comic

OWYHEE, Nev. (AP) — The family placed flowers by a pair of weathered cowboy boots, as people quietly gathered for the memorial of the soft-spoken tribal chairman who mentored teens in the boxing ring and teased his grandkids on tractor rides.

Left unsaid, and what troubled Marvin Cota’s family deep down, was that his story ended like so many others on the remote Duck Valley Indian Reservation. He was healthy for decades. They found the cancer too late.

In the area, toxins are embedded in the soil and petroleum is in the groundwater — but no one can say for sure what has caused such widespread illness. Until recently, a now-razed U.S. maintenance building where fuel and herbicides were stored — and where Cota worked — was thought to be the main culprit. But the discovery of a decades-old document with a passing mention of Agent Orange chemicals suggests the government may have been more involved in contaminating the land.

“I don’t know if I’m more mad than I am hurt,” Terri Ann Cota said after her father’s service. “Because if this is the case, it took a lot of good men away from us.”

Owyhee is the sole town on the reservation, where snow-capped mountains loom over a valley of scattered homes and ranches, nearly 100 miles (161 kms) from any stoplights. The area is bookended by deep Nevada canyons and flat Idaho plains. For generations, the legacy and livelihoods of the Shoshone-Paiute tribes have centered around raising cattle year-round. And many still use the same medicinal plants and practice the same ceremonies as their relatives buried there.

Full article

Bluesky remains highly popular among Brazilians as an alternative to X, that got banned in the country last week. Bluesky has added 3 million accounts since the ban went into effect just over a week ago. When I reported on it last week Bluesky had added 1 million accounts. Of these new accounts, around 85% are from Brazil. The popularity of Bluesky in Brazil also shows up in both politics and the media: President Lula, his party PT Brazil, the Supreme Court, and House of Representatives all have their accounts validated by using their domain as their handle. The media is also paying attention, one of the most popular news programs in Brazil, Jornal Nacional, showed their Bluesky handle during the show. Some of the biggest newspapers such as Folha de S.Paulo and Correio Braziliense covered Bluesky as well.

masterfull gambit mr musk

Sorry Mexico/Colombia/Bolivia, you d for the bad dude you drop to Hybrid Regime

Link to the Full Document

Democracy Winning and Losing at the Ballot

• The level of democracy enjoyed by the average person in the world in 2023 is down to 1985-levels; by country-based averages, it is back to 1998.

Since 2009 – almost 15 years in a row – the share of the world’s population living in autocratizing countries has overshadowed the share living in democratizing countries.

The wave of autocratization is notable. Autocratization is ongoing in 42 countries, home to 2.8 billion people, or 35% of the world’s population. India, with 18% of the world’s population, accounts for about half of the population living in autocratizing countries.

• Elections are “critical events” that can either trigger democratization, enable autocratization, or aid stabilization of autocratic regimes.

71% is regime-pilled

A plurality – 44% of the world’s population, or 3.5 billion people – reside in electoral autocracies, which include populous countries such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Russia, The Philippines, and Türkiye.

Closed autocracies with sizeable populations include China, Iran, Myanmar, and Vietnam. This regime type accounts for 27% of the world’s population, or 2.2 billion people.

COUNTRIES AUTOCRATIZING VS. DEMOCRATIZING, 2023

Peter Cushing’s resurrection 22 years after his death for the spin-off film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is at the centre of a legal battle over control of his image.

Special effects were used to digitally recreate Cushing’s character, Grand Moff Tarkin, from the original Star Wars film.

The makers of Rogue One are being sued by a film producer who was one of Cushing’s oldest friends. Kevin Francis claims the actor agreed not to grant permission for anyone to reproduce his appearance through special effects without his authorisation.

The Disney group, which made Rogue One, failed on Monday to have Francis’s claim for “unjust enrichment” dismissed at the High Court in London. Cushing died of cancer in 1994 at the age of 81. Special effects were used to recreate his appearance with the British actor, Guy Henry, 63, performing as his body double.

Francis’ company, Tyburn Film Productions, is suing the Disney subsidiary Lucasfilm, which owns the rights to Star Wars, and Lunak Heavy Industries (UK), the producer of Rogue One. He also brought claims against the executors of Cushing’s estate, who have both died, and Associated International Management, the agency that represented Cushing until his death.

Cant to see the future corporate wars over who owns the rights to Keanu Reeves likeness

Tweet link

By tann on the apartheid site

Its Power from Chainsawman and Kenjaku from Jujutsu Kaisen by the way

3,060,000 German military personnel were taken prisoner by the USSR and that 1,094,250 died in captivity (549,360 from 1941 to April 1945; 542,911 from May 1945 to June 1950 and 1,979 from July 1950 to 1955)

"My innocent Aryan warriors"

Wehrmacht was not a Nazi organisation. Members were free to join the party but they were not under any obligation. The SS was an explicitly Nazi army but completely separate from the Wehrmacht.

Very cool clean Wehrmacht myth

Good to know world isnt a leftist echo chamber, you can share nazi propaganda too

Building implosion

In the controlled demolition industry, building implosion is the strategic placing of explosive material and timing of its detonation so that a structure collapses on itself in a matter of seconds, minimizing the physical damage to its immediate surroundings. Despite its terminology, building implosion also includes the controlled demolition of other structures, like bridges, smokestacks, towers, and tunnels. This is typically done to save time and money of what would otherwise be an extensive demolition process with construction equipment, as well as to reduce construction workers exposure to infrastructure that is in severe disrepair.

Building implosion, which reduces to seconds a process which could take months or years to achieve by other methods, typically occurs in urban areas[citation needed] and often involves large landmark structures.

The actual use of the term "implosion" to refer to the destruction of a building is a misnomer. This had been stated of the destruction of 1515 Tower in West Palm Beach, Florida. "What happens is, you use explosive materials in critical structural connections to allow gravity to bring it down.

The term "implosion" was coined by my grandmother back in, I guess, the '60s. It's a more descriptive way to explain what we do than "explosion". There are a series of small explosions, but the building itself isn't erupting outward. It's actually being pulled in on top of itself. What we're really doing is removing specific support columns within the structure and then cajoling the building in one direction or another, or straight down.

•  Stacy Loizeaux, NOVA, December 1996

Building implosion techniques do not rely on the difference between internal and external pressure to collapse a structure. Instead, the goal is to induce a progressive collapse by weakening or removing critical supports; therefore, the building can no longer withstand gravity loads and will fail under its own weight

Numerous small explosives, strategically placed within the structure, are used to catalyze the collapse. Nitroglycerin, dynamite, or other explosives are used to shatter reinforced concrete supports. Linear shaped charges are used to sever steel supports. These explosives are progressively detonated on supports throughout the structure. Then, explosives on the lower floors initiate the controlled collapse.

A simple structure like a chimney can be prepared for demolition in less than a day. Larger or more complex structures can take up to six months of preparation to remove internal walls and wrap columns with fabric and fencing before firing the explosives.

Megathreads and spaces to hang out:

• 📀 Come listen to music and Watch movies with your fellow Hexbears nerd, in Cy.tube
• 🔥 Read and talk about a current topics in the News Megathread
• ⚔ Come talk in the New Weekly PoC thread
• ✨ Talk with fellow Trans comrades in the New Weekly Trans thread
• 👊 Share your gains and goals with your comrades in the New Weekly Improvement thread

reminders:

• 💚 You nerds can join specific comms to see posts about all sorts of topics
• 💙 Hexbear’s algorithm prioritizes comments over upbears
• 💜 Sorting by new you nerd
• 🌈 If you ever want to make your own megathread, you can reserve a spot here nerd
• 🐶 Join the unofficial Hexbear-adjacent Mastodon instance toots.matapacos.dog

Links To Resources (Aid and Theory):

Aid:

• 🌈 LGBTQ+ Resource Post
• 🍉 Resources for Palestine
• 🐌☕ Zapatista Coffee

Theory:

• ❤️Foundations of Leninism
• ❤️Anarchism and Other Essays