Quote of the Day

"Everything that is written merely to please the author is worthless." - Blaise Pascal

This guy has some great quotes, including this little gem which is the key of all game design. Frivolous, self-indulgent rules are not worth a damn - let the rules serve the game, not vice versa. Game books, like magazines and other short-form non-literary writings, are tools meant to be applied in practice. Coincidentally, Pascal was also a mathematician as well as a philosopher, which means he'd be an excellent game designer. Rock on with your French self!

2 other quotes I keep taped to my monitor as reminders to keep the day job in perspective:

"There is no course in life so weak and sottish as that which is managed by order, method, and discipline." - Montaigne

"A lot of people confuse bad management with destiny." - Anonymous

Ain't that the truth.

Gather Round the Campfire...

Working in the industry, you build up gripes. A lot of gripes. There's a lot of stupidity, pettiness, and insanity involved, and as a small man on the totem pole (ie a creative) you are at the lowest point where all the shit rolls down. Sometimes, you consider quitting. In other darker times, you consider abandoning gaming altogether. In the most extreme cases, you start to sympathize with postal workers who've shot colleagues. But then, you read stories like this and feel like a whiny little bitch:

Archon Games' tale of horror
In the mouth of madness at Palladium
Bone-chilling responses from Palladium freelancers
"You're cutting HOW much from my manuscript?!?"
Why the Last Unicorn died


Granted, my game industry experience has had its problems (particularly in getting paid...for God's sake, does EVERY payment have to be 1 full quarter or more late?), but I've been real lucky. I've had great partners to be working with on Spycraft and a tight team that stuck up for each other and, when the chips were down, could affect change. But Pat can tell you tales of AEG that would make your toenails curl. And this is why Crafty exists.

Please, Lord, give us the strength to never treat people like this. EVER.

Resurrection!

Yes, I survived my wedding, honeymoon, the explosion of our new forums, and a return to work. Hooray for me! Now to find out what I was in a past life. When I enter "Game Designer" I get:

In a Past Life...

You Were: An Obese Despot. Where You Lived: Korea. How You Died: Suicide.

Who Were You In a Past Life?

Kim Jong Il...I am your father. Though starving oneself to death trying to make a living on the game industry could be classified as suicide...