The other day, I woke up at five thirty in the morning to the sound of someone singing opera. Badly.

You think to yourself, what an absurd way of waking up. And then you think to yourself, will this guy ever shut up?

Apparently, I wasn't the only one thinking that thought. Others were more heartfelt -- and vocal -- in their disapproval. Some idiot decided that the best way (keep in mind: 5:30 AM) to hush our resident opera-singing guy would be to blast the stereo. At, yes, half past five in the AM. In return, Mr. Opera started banging a piano. Not playing. Banging. At least I think it was him. Who else would have a piano?

And then, after awhile, someone -- I don't know who; could be the people with the stereo, could be Pavarotti, could be someone completely different -- began playing the electric guitar. We're closing in on six in the morning. Not the best time to rock out, methinks. Not when I'm desperately trying to catch some shut-eye.

Twenty minutes, half an hour later, it's quiet again...for a few moments, until the crew working on the building showed up and started making noise.

Neat-o. I was not a happy puppy, lemme tell ya.

Oh, and tomorrow I get the game I've been waiting for all year. Sweeeet. What is it? You'll have to wait for my review to find out. But feel free to take a guess.  ¶ 23:46   

  Hullo.

Coming up with character names isn't always as easy as it sounds. Not when you have to come up with plenty of new names every single day, and they all have to be 'interesting'.

What's an 'interesting' name, then?

"John Smith" usually isn't particularly interesting, unless you're trying to make a point. A man named "John Smith" is probably not who he claims to be, or else he's burdened with the most clichéd name there is, and people continuously make fun of it. It's a name that sticks out, despite (or perhaps because of) its presumed anonymity. I'm using the name "John Doe" in something I'm working on (a way-off-future something), but in that particular case it's very suitable.

(Think about it.)

Most of the time, you'll want to avoid a name like John Smith or John Doe, however. It lacks character. It's not 'interesting'.

"Seamus McDougall", however, is what I'd call an 'interesting' name. So's "Nigel Nobbs". And "Enora Denoon".

You might not want to name your children Seamus or Nigel or Enora (then again, why not?), but they sound good. They roll off the tongue. They're descriptive. You can visualise the man (or woman) behind the name.

Coming up with names that are both interesting and appropriate -- because having silly names is just no good, nor are names that are pure fantasy; they need to be grounded in reality, at least in this case -- is quite a challenge. A fun challenge. But not as easy as it sounds. Because after a while you do start repeating yourself, and coming up with names that don't sound alike or look alike requires attention to detail, and tons of research.

Research? Think about it. Write a list of all the names you can think of. Okay, so you can probably write hundreds of names, first and last; friends, family, celebrities, historic names, and so on. But those names are probably limited to your own nationality, plus the usual selection of English-speaking names (because, after all, those are the names we hear the most). How about Arabic names, male and female? Indian names? Chinese names? Gaelic names? Latin-American names? Finnish names? Russian patronyms?

So research, then, and plenty of it, because a made-up Japanese name may sound fine to you and me, but may be utterly ridiculous to someone from Japan, or someone familiar with Japanese culture.

Even coming up with 'interesting' English names isn't all that easy, not when you've exhausted (or refuse to resort to) your bog-standard Johns and Jennifers. So research is always good; research into the history behind, and meaning of, different names. It's all right to give a character a name like "Deirdre", but wouldn't it be better if that name actually fit the character in question? And knowing that "Deidre" means "sorrow" in Irish-Gaelic, and that this name is shared with a tragic heroine from Irish mythology, you'll be in a better position to apply that moniker to a suitable character.

Names have power, even when the reader (or viewer, or listener, or player) doesn't really know, or care, about what a name means or where it comes from. Ignorance will never reduce that power, nor your responsibility to the character and to the name.  ¶ 22:35   

  Spirited Away's release in the United States hasn't gone very well at all.

Blame Disney. They had the best reviewed film of the year, and they still couldn't get anyone to see it. Why? Because they didn't believe that it had the potential to reach, or entertain, a broad audience, particularly kids. They opened it with little fanfare, no marketing to speak of, no big banners or trailers or TV commercials. After all, it's foreign "art", and not something the average American could possibly be expected to digest...right?

So now Japan's biggest-grossing movie ever has become another lost opportunity in the US.

Disney's good at a lot of things. They're good at making animated movies, they're good at marketing them, and they're good at understanding and catering to a broad audience -- both kids and adults, domestically and internationally. So why go screw up such an important film? Why not put their considerable weight behind something as original and beautiful as Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi?

To their credit, they did make some kind of effort. They put John Lasseter in charge of "converting" the film to the American market, including dubbing the voices (usually a no-no, I agree, but young kids can't read subtitles; it's an understandable and necessary concession for a wide release of an animated movie, and as long as adults still have ready access to the Japanese version, I don't have a big problem with it), and clarifying some plot-points that may be apparent to a Japanese audience, but not to an American one. They made sure that the film was reviewed by the press well in advance of release, and that it was sold in to the media and to the audience as the year's singular masterpiece.

But they didn't follow up on it. They opted for a platform release, opening on few screens and expanding (in theory) to more as time went on. But, as of today, Spirited Away is only showing on 150 screens -- a paltry number. It's as if Disney, having come half-way, just gave up and dumped it. Shame on them.

What can you do about? Go see it, if you haven't already done so. Tell your friends, your family, and your colleagues to see it, too. I already have the movie on DVD, but tomorrow it's showing on Oslo's largest screen, and I'm taking a few people to see it again. Tellingly, the screening -- a one-off -- has barely sold twenty-five tickets (when I purchased my tickets about thirty minutes ago); that's for a theatre with almost 1,000 seats. If Disney doesn't make it a hit in America, they're decreasing the chances of the film becoming a hit in Europe, because the distributors and theatre-owners look at the US numbers when they make their bookings.

At the very least, get the DVD when it's made available (you can get the Japanese version now, if you're willing to pay a premium or order it from Japan -- try Amazon.co.jp, for example). You won't regret it, but hopefully Disney will regret their oversight, and put more effort into what's arguably the year's best film.  ¶ 11:18   

  Cold and wet today. It's getting sucky out, like winter's coming. Hey, wait a second...

I just started reading the third Harry Potter book, "...and the Prisoner of Azkaban", and as always I'm impressed by how easy Rowling makes it look. These aren't brilliant books, but they're brilliantly entertaining. And while the stories aren't original, they feel original...simply (or not so simply) because of the attention to detail. She cares about her world, her mythology, and her characters, and that's what makes the Potter novels work. I look forward to reading the rest of them.

I have about twenty-one vacation days left this year, and I need to waste eleven of them before the New Year. Doesn't sound too difficult, does it? Well, uh, it is. When you're struggling with deadlines, it definitely is. I've had continuous deadlines for the past, oh, eight years? And taking out that much vacation-time feels like a freakishly alien concept to me. But I gots to do it, and I gots to do it cheap. Usually that means staying at home. But it'd be nice to actually go somewhere. Still, taking a week out to just write might be a good idea. Not the best way to relax and kick back, perhaps, but I'd like some time to focus on work other than work. If you know what I mean.

It's highly unlikely, however, that I'll actually be able to take any time off whatsoever, at least until we're getting closer to Christmas. I might be able to pull off a week in mid-December, but I don't count on it. There just ain't enough days in the week to get everything done.  ¶ 23:37   

  By the way -- as an addendum to the previous post -- it's not entirely true that people aren't talking about the story. Check out the official forum's story discussions for a dose of real, passionate, extremely well articulated (for the most part) discussions from dedicated players about the ins-and-outs, ups-and-downs of the storyline, often -- but not always -- from a role-playing perspective. It's really, really encouraging to see people spin their own tales and theorise about what's going to happen...especially when they're often freakishly right. Maybe they have a spy. I dunno. But they're good. They don't get everything right, but when they do...damn! The story team has even "stolen" ideas from them in the past.

Good place to go if you're interested in discussing the story with like-minded players. And the annulment of the Tir Accord seems to have gotten them all fired up. As it should. Because it's the first step on the road to...but nah, that'd be spoiling it.

(By the way: Sol Banking Corporation is evil! Evil, I tells ya! No two ways about it. Evil!)  ¶ 20:47   

  A yawny day today. Not that I'm bored. I'm just being especially prone to the yawn. It's gape-wide-and-exhale day at the office, much to the chagrin of my office-mates.

It appears that a lot of people are waiting for the comments I promised on Saturday, so here they are:

"I have no response to that."

Well, no, that's not entirely true. Love it or hate it, I always have a response. But I'll keep it vague and short, because anything else will get me in trouble. Suffice it to say, this journal (or site) won't ever be a source for AO-related news or official comments, just so everyone's aware of that. This is strictly personal stuff, and I have to stick to the issues that aren't hush-hush. Anything else is marketing and PR's domain.

In general, I think the thread is intelligent and thought-provoking, but although I agree with a lot of it, I also disagree with a lot of it. Not because it's not true, but because one person's dream is another person's nightmare.

It boils down to subjectivity, especially in terms of what players expect from an online game. Some love the story and the role-playing bits; others don't. Some prefer to spend their time killing monsters and gaining experience-points; others don't. There's no right or wrong, and the ideal game would support both groups equally. Heck, lots of players enjoy both the role-playing as well as the more "standard" MMOG gameplay. And some enjoy neither, but like the social aspects of an online world. What's AO's focus? That's up to the team management, based on the feedback they get. They're always aiming to please the maximum amount of players, logically enough, while still maintaining the tone and "vision" (a loaded term, to be sure) as outlined by the game director. Again, though, this vision is very much affected by player feedback.

Someone said that they feel as though the story is dictated by content development...and that's true. But it also works vice-versa. The content that's added to the game is added because of the story, like the Shadowlands. This is a natural progression of the story-as-planned, going back to the novel and to the pre-history of the universe that we came up with a looong time ago. But the most important thing is the content, the game. What people do, each and every day, inside the game world. The "mechanics", if you will -- although I don't want it to be that cold. Still, this is what the majority of players seem to be discussing; the mechanics, the balancing, the professions, the PvP. They're not discussing the story. Yeah, I know that this is mainly because there isn't all that much to write about on a regular basis, but if people don't talk about the story, the people in charge of AO won't make it a priority.

Thus, this thread is an important one, because, if nothing else, it's balanced, insightful, and interesting. Empty words, perhaps, but that's all I can offer in this journal, speaking as a "civilian". Will things change? Content-wise, AO has definitely picked up, as I'm sure you'll all agree. Lots of new stuff to do, lots of new stuff to make the game accessible to starting players (something that benefits everyone), and lots of new stuff in the pipeline, with the forthcoming Notum Wars and Shadowlands. Does this have anything to do with the story? Yeah, it actually does. It's all tied together. But it's not the be-all-and-end-all of stories. It won't sate your appetite for that great dream of the Story with a capital 'S'. I would have liked to see that happening, but that's not the focus. The focus is the game, the content, and the daily goings-on in the world. And that focus is probably the right one for AO, and for the majority of players.

Again, keep in mind that this is my personal view. My role on AO is basically as a sometimes-advisor to the story. I don't write it. I offer my "expertise" (as it were; some may disagree on that point), and the story-team uses my feedback and ideas as they please. They're sticking with a number of the threads I begun weaving long ago, and they're coming up with a bunch of their own to complete the (ta-daaa) great tapestry of Rubi-Ka. I think they're doing a great job, an excellent job, given the time they have and the pressure they're under. As far as I'm concerned, it would've been fun continuing doing what we were doing a year ago -- remember the show? -- but that wasn't to be, for lots of reasons. And back then, most players weren't very happy with what we were doing either. Lots of reasons for that, not all of them tied to the story itself (frankly, it took a while for the game to settle down and be good), but there you are. The criticism was taken into consideration, and changes were made. As a game, AO is lightyears away from what it was a year ago, and the story...well, it's happening. It's developing. It's the basis for content additions and gameplay changes, and that was always the most important thing. To have a foundation and a reason for what's going on.

Right. My two cents. Don't make a story of this, 'cause it ain't. That'll make it look as if it's "Funcom talking", and it's not. These are just my personal thoughts, and they're no more valuable than yours. I could be completely, awfully wrong. I often am. Point is, what you, as fans, are doing is important, more important than what I think. You need to keep discussing the game, bring up issues, make your arguments, and present them in a forum that's accessible to everyone; both fellow players and developers. People read what you write, and they listen to your thoughts and ideas, and in the end that's the basis for everything that happens to AO. Really. Strange, but true. So go, talk more, have opinions, care about the game, and never, ever stop asking for more! Go team!

Phew. Tired now.  ¶ 18:21   

  Blah. Haven't had time to write anything today (obviously), and we're fast closing in on bedtime now, so...tomorrow? Right, then. Or the day after. Life's happening, and it's all so very busy. Yes.

It snowed tonight and today. Lots and lots of snow. White, most of it, surprisingly enough. Bugger that pollution theory.

Right. So there we are, then. Ahem. Good night, all.

(And, with Halloween right around the corner, I have to admit that I actually liked those pumpkinheaded chaps. Good times.)  ¶ 23:48   

  A very interesting thread going on at the Anarchy Online fansite AO-Basher, discussing the ups and downs of the AO storyline. Good stuff, and I agree with a lot of it. I'll write some comments and thoughts in the journal later on today or tomorrow.  ¶ 14:08   

  Briefly.

Did you know that I harbour a secret ambition to make the world's first interactive musical? In other words, a game that's also a musical. A real game, and a real musical. Where you participate. Not just where the other characters sing, but where singing -- picking the right words, the right timing, the right beats -- is an integral part of the game. And not in the goofy, silly, cartoony way of something like King's Quest. No, a serious, big-budget, beautifully orchestrated and visualised real-time interactive musical game. But with the funny turned on. Because, you know, po-faced musicals is a hard thing to pull off.

I'll probably never get to do it. It'd be a tough sell to the audience, but a much tougher sell to the investors. "They sing!" "No guns?" "There will be violins..." "You're fired!" Etc. But if I ever get enormously rich, after I've built a luxury resort on the dark side of the moon, I'll do it. I'll make my very own super-great musical game.

How would it work? Trust me when I say that it would, and very well at that, using an adventure-game and RPG framework. Of course, you'll have to have an appreciation of musicals to even get remotely excited about the idea, but come on: Moulin Rouge, Beauty and the Beast, Little Shop of Horrors, West Side Story, Grease, Once More With Feeling...man, how can you not love the idea?

Sigh. Dreams: what life's made of. And kittens, too.  ¶ 00:12   

  Tonight was the night I was gonna get some serious sleepin' done. It's getting a little too late for anything but the normal 7 1/2, but I'll be brief, and jump into bed the second I plonk down that last period.

I see that people are responding well to the latest changes in Anarchy Online, and that's great! The new NPC multiple-choice dialogue system is finally on its way into the game, and although I personally ended up scripting only four or five of the characters (which have subsequently been rewritten by other people -- I'm not entirely sure how much of my text is left in there), I'm still really happy about the way it turned out. It's a lot more fun to converse with NPCs in this manner than to try and come up with the correct keywords -- more like an adventure-game than a, uh, guessing-game. And that's the way it should be.

Props to designer (and also musician) Bjørn Arve Lagim, who's worked his ass of to get this thing done right. Too bad I didn't have time to write more characters, 'cause I loves my dialogue (as players of TLJ know too well), but c'est la vie. There's a big & talented team of designers and writers on AO now, they're passionate and hard-working, and it's all theirs. They're running with the story, and all I'm doing is giving them feedback when they ask for it. They're doing a really good job.

In a few weeks, I'm off to Seattle, Washington for a bit, and that'll be fun -- I've never been that far north-and-west in the US, but I've always wanted to. I'm guessing there will be a lot of rain, but that's all right. Rain is good. More on that trip later.

Lots of questions and comments about my TLJ 2 postings these past few days, so thanks to all of y'all...and keep 'em coming! I'll be posting some or most of them in the days to come, together with my answers...or non-answers. I read all your e-mails, though I may not have the time to answer all of them, so keep writing. There wouldn't be a journal without you.

Last but not least, I'm finally getting somewhere on my long-delayed screenplay, currently entitled "The Dark Places". I had an epiphany of sorts earlier this week, whilst doing some research for another project, and I found just the inspiration I needed. I was heading in the right direction, but I really needed the nitty-gritty details in order to get out of the hole I'd dug for myself. At this pace, I'll be done with it before Christmas, and I'll post a bit more about it later; story, characters, themes...that sort of stuff. What's it for? It's something I'd like to put together, and I'll be showing (or shopping) it around, either to get funding or to secure representation. My main focus right now is games, and there are things happening on that front also, but this is certainly something that I want to keep on the back-burner until it's hot enough to move to the, uh, front-burner. So to speak.

Don't worry, though, I ain't about to abandon the games. Games is where I'm at. There's TLJ 2 to look forward to -- maybe -- and...something else. Always something else. But this may turn out to be a Big Something Else. Really. I don't kid. Hopefully. Keep all those fingers crossed, as usual. Nighty-night.  ¶ 00:27   

  You mentioned you have been playing "The Thing"

Hows that going? I have seen it in the shops now a few times picked it up and put it back, but then you say you started to get into the game, can you give us an update on what you think? If that is you have had time to set aside to play it that it. Seems like you are forever busy with work and other things.

I'm horribly, wonderfully busy. It's a blessing and a curse. I do take time out to play games as often as I can, but that's not nearly often enough. Lately, I've been completely engrossed with Star Fox Adventures, an excellent GameCube action-adventure with stunning visuals, great controls, and lots of neat-o little touches. Pick it up if you can.

As for The Thing -- I've played it a bit more since last time I wrote about it, and, aside from some decidedly average graphics, it's pretty good. It doesn't quite feel like an adaptation, or continuation, of the movie, but it's a decent game in its own right. Some nice set-pieces, a few scary scenes, and interesting gameplay mechanics. The fact that you have to take care of and watch out for your team-members (in addition to being suspicious of them; they may be things themselves) add a neat and original dynamic to the game. Is it great? No. Is it worth picking up? If you like survival horror games, if you're a fan of the movie, and if you have time to get into it...sure. I'm going to keep playing it for a while, although I probably won't try to finish it. Too much to do.

Star Fox Adventures, on the other hand, I will finish. It's sooo much fun. Yup, my inner child is very much alive and kickin'.  ¶ 14:13   

  yo

for someone from norway, i can't spell norwegian, you use a lot of expressions familiar to the english speaking peoples.
wonky for example. i'm a bartender. when i say someone is lookin wonky it is time not to serve the aforementioned person drinks. i needed to share that for some reason.

oh and can the mexican beauty be the espanic lady from mulholland drive..............

muchos gracias

'Wonky' is a great word. It really is. There's no better way to describe something as unsteady, awry, or just slightly off. Wonky. Beautiful.

English comes quite natural to me, especially since I've spent about, ooh, twenty percent of my life living in English-speaking countries, and ninety percent of my life reading, writing, listening to, and speaking English. Nothing magical about it. I really like words and languages. That's why I became a writer. I'm a hell of a lot better at this than I would be at something useful and practical like, say, plumbing. Or carpentry.

As for the Mexican beauty, she's in her early twenties, athletic, slim, and sexy. And very much virtual. I'll get back to her at some point in the near future.  ¶ 18:43   

  Someone pointed me in the direction of this thread, and I read the following:

cold shivers run down my spine thinking about console-tlj...

Ragnars idea of relaxing includes vast amounts of fast food, dvd-films and console games and he even considered tlj-mmorpg an option, so come to think of it, how seriously can you take this guy?

I eat vast amounts of fast-food? When did this happen? Eh, whatever. It's that console thing I want to talk about.

PC gamers can be such snobs sometimes, and act as though console games in general are beneath them. What's up with that?

The times have a-changed, boys and girls. While in the past, console games may have been simplistic and "childish" compared with the heavy-weights on the PC scene (not always a bad thing), that's definitely no longer the case. All of this generation's consoles have a diverse library of games, and genres that were one exclusive to computers -- like first-person shooters, strategy and war-games, RPGs, even adventure games -- are crossing over "to the other side". One of the best FPSs out there is currently only available on the Xbox: Halo. The GameBoy Advance has Advance Wars, one of the best turn-based strategy games I've ever played. Shenmue and Shenmue II (soon to be released on the Xbox) are both excellent adventure-games. Maybe not point-and-click, but (dare I say it) all the better for it. They're immersive, smart, complex, with a great story and interesting characters, and, like it or not, this is where the modern adventure is going: Direct control, fully explorable 3D world, and new forms of interaction. Final Fantasy VII and IX are two of my favourite RPGs. And there are tons of other examples.

Fact is, consoles have matured, they're capable of doing pretty much everything a PC can do (particularly the Xbox, with its hard-disk and soon-to-be-released online service), there's a huge variety of games of every genre available, and it's much more comfortable to sit on the couch in front of the TV with a controller, than to sit thirty centimetres from a PC monitor on an Uncomfortable Chair, with a mouse and keyboard, for hours and hours. At least as far as I'm concerned. And this is my journal.

So when I say that the sequel to The Longest Journey may very well find its way to the Xbox, I think that's a Good Thing -- both for the developers and for the players. I'd still like to see TLJ2 on the PC as well, of course. I don't want to cut off those players who don't have, don't want, or can't afford an Xbox. Heck, the PC version could even be superior to the console version: higher resolution, more polygons, and so on. But I know which one I would rather play (hint: it starts with the letter 'X').

Right. That should get everyone fired up.

And, yup, you're right. We did briefly consider a TLJ MMOG. A few months ago, I wrote a concept called "The War of the Balance", and we discussed the possibility, but we've decided not to go in that direction, which is just as well. It could have worked really well as a game, but it just wasn't right for TLJ. We'd rather do a proper sequel. And we will.  ¶ 18:41   

  Cold today, and in about a half hour I'm off to a family birthday party -- the birthday kid's first one, actually. What do you give someone who really doesn't care about gifts, or has any clue about what's going on? Leather briefcase? Plush toys? As far as he's concerned, anything he can pick up and stick in his mouth is a toy, so I guess I could get him...a cigar? That would go over well, I think.

Did I mention that it's cold? It really is. I dread going back out there.

I'd better freshen up and get changed.  ¶ 14:18   

  Regarding The Longest Journey, from The Divide:

the story will be about someone in nowhere mexico, a female, is chosen to shift around by cortez to aid april in her battle to do something fancy with the balanace and keep the vanguard at bay...eh?

No. The "Mexican beauty" mentioned earlier has absolutely nada to do with TLJ. I am, in fact, not writing or working on anything TLJ-related, nor is anyone else. Well, that's not quite true. I have been asked to put together a new one-page proposal for a TLJ sequel. More on that soon.  ¶ 01:05   

  Today's "big journal-entry"...not happening. Inspiration has struck, and I must write. Well, now I must sleep. But before... You know what I mean. Let's try again tomorrow. Until then. Oh, and my laptop's cursor thingy is all wonky. Just thought I'd mention that.  ¶ 01:25   

  About halfway through my Spanish course -- course number one; I'll probably sign up for the next course in February -- and I speak about as much Spanish as my cat (i.e. very little, despite the fact that my cat's name is Felix. That's Spanish, or at least Spanish-y, isn't it?). All right, so I've only done the required homework and little else, but for the money I'm paying, I want to be able to carry on a conversation by now, dammit!

I am not the patient type.

Actually, I am getting better, but it's sooo slooow. I need to be pushed and prodded by a native speaker. After all, one of the lead characters in a project I'm working on is a Mexican beauty, and she needs words. Written by me. That are Spanish. In-between all those English words. As it were. Yes.

What is this "project" of which I speak? Right now, it's just words on paper (well, virtual paper), but it's going to turn into something else. Not a lot I can say about it presently, but that'll change. It's definitely fun, and definitely original, so it's worth keeping an eye out for it.

By the way, check out the latest information on the Anarchy Online Booster Pack -- The Notum Wars. Cool name, huh? I think so. Very dramatic. The team's doing some great work, and if you haven't played AO lately -- or at all -- this might be a good time to come back or try it on for size. I'm sure you'll be impressed. And, hey, new customers! Never a bad thing.

So. Now. To bed. Expect a big journal-entry tomorrow.  ¶ 00:07   

  About something you recently wrote in your journal about April in the TLJ sequal. Ok, no April in the prequel i can understand. But the last few lines that April said are what got most people interested in a sequel. Let me refresh your memory..... "So that's the end of that. Funny. I feel almost... melancholy. Despite everything that's happened. I'm actually gonna miss... this adventure. After all... what am I doing now? Going back to school? Live like nothing has happened? ....Like I'm just a... a normal person? Well... It's a long way home. I'll figure it out before i get there. Wherever there is...." Well Ragnar, I want to know where she went and what she did when she got there. Maybe in a flashback when whoever you play in the sequel talks to April. But I think I speak for a large amount of the TLJ fans when I say that we want to find out what happened. I don't mind playing as a different character but can we at least have that resolved for us? If not as the main plot, at least as a prologue or flashback.

Keep in mind that the details of any sequel (or prequel) are up in the air, and if and when we do begin development on the next chapter, those details will most certainly change. But, like I said in yesterday's post, of course April Ryan's fate will be explained -- or at least be elaborated upon -- and she will still be an important part, a very important part, of the story. Issues will be resolved. Questions answered. Not all of them, but some. The most important ones.  ¶ 11:37   

  It's actually Wednesday. Wheee. I missed out on Tuesday. I don't actually think Tuesday ever happened. It was one of those lost days, where the Men come and wipe the slate clean. These Men paint over the cracks in reality, and make us forget. Tick-tock, time moves ahead, and there we are -- it's Wednesday, and Tuesday never even happened.

Either that, or I just didn't have time to post anything yesterday. Anthony had the following to say:

Oh, by the way, if you don't do a sequel to TLJ, without the charming April Ryan, I will make sure that I get employed as the Game Director of every single MMORPG that ever goes against anything Funcom does! I will single handidly destroy Funcom.

Yes, all right. That's how it works; the game director has sooo much power that he (or she) can sink the unsinkable Funtanic. Oops.

April Ryan will, of course, be an integral part of a TLJ sequel, though you will probably not be able to play her. That's right. The story, as planned, warrants a new lead. Or leads. Whatever happened to April after she left the Guardian's Realm, it's part of the mystery that is...the longest journey. Oh, yeah.

No, but seriously, the (proposed) sequel takes place some time after the end of the first game...sort of. I can't say too much, because I hate spoiling stuff. But you won't be playing April for most of it, that's pretty certain. We're going to stick with the female protagonist(s), but other than that -- keep watching this space.

As for what's happening to the sequel? No news. But there's a definite push to get it made, so I'll keep y'all updated.

I sent you an e-mail a while ago telling you about a formatting problem on your webpage when viewed with the Mozilla or Galeon web browsers. I haven't gotten the page to load properly in either of those browsers yet, but I recently found that it works fine in Konqueror, another popular Linux web browser.

Thanks for the update. I just haven't had the chance to fix the HTML code for my journal, and I lost the fix I was given, so for those of you running Mozilla and Galeon, my sincerest apologies. I just use the tools that Blogger gives me, is all.

There's so much reader mail I still haven't had the chance to answer -- both for time- and technical reasons -- so for RaMa, Jane, Eric (your suggestions are being brought forward to the People In Charge!), David, Anthony, and all the others...I don't forget, and I will answer, I'm just completely overworked at the moment!  ¶ 20:19   

  My journal got a mention in the November issue of PC Gamer UK. Wheee! It was referred to as (and I paraphrase, because I left the mag at home) "the webpage of the guy responsible for TLJ" (that's me!) by our Man on the Inside, John 'Johnny' Walker, who's been kind enough to praise The Longest Journey in pretty much every issue of PC Gamer these past couple of years.

His reviews, by the way, are great fun to read, especially whenever Cryo releases another one of their "adventure games" (also known as "turds", or "human feces"). Of course, Cryo is now bust, so they will never again have the chance to spew their pestilent vomit (also known as "interactive entertainment") on the land again. But at least Mr. Walker got the chance to slaughter Hellboy in the latest issue, and it's worth a read just to witness the carnage. Shame (not the review; the game), 'cause Hellboy is such a strong character with the potential for much gaming goodness. Ah, well. Spilled milk and all that.

Of course, there was no link to my website in the brief aside, so it was more of an inside joke than anything else, but maybe that's for the best. We all know what happens to this neighbourhood when we get too many visitors. That's right; it goes to hell. In a handbasket. With no handle. And much sticky goo. Yes.

Anyways. Fame. Always good. Huzzah.  ¶ 20:20   

  Sunday. Cold but dry. The sun has peeked through the clouds from time to time, but it's getting dark now, and it's good to be back inside. I wish I could light a fire, but there's no firewood. I'll have to get some next weekend. In the meantime, I'll settle for the hot cocoa to keep me warm.

I'm watching Buffy 7.02 tonight (for those not well-versed in teevee-speak, this means episode two of season seven) -- I've had it for a week, but I just haven't had a chance to see it yet. Yeah, yeah, I know; for a professed Buffy-fan, I'm quite patient. Remember, living in Norway means that I'm used to seeing episodes weeks, months, even years after they were first broadcast. This year (and last year), I get the episodes before they're shown on TV in the US. I haven't yet adjusted to the luxury.

If my source for US TV on VCD ever dries up, I'll get major withdrawal symptoms. I never want to watch regular TV -- and plan my evening around it -- again. It's so much better to just pop a disc into my DVD player.  ¶ 19:13   

  It rained heavily this morning, and I think it's still drizzling outside. I feel like sitting inside, curled up with the cat, drinking hot chocolate with whipped cream on top, and watching a funny movie. Or a scary movie. Any movie, really.

I have a number of DVDs lying around that I haven't yet seen, like Changing Lanes with the Affleck, and the new version of The Count of Monte Cristo (I count sixteen different movie-versions of Dumas' novel). I also bought The Mummy Returns earlier today -- I've seen it twice before, but it's a guilty pleasure of mine; simple, cheesy fun -- but the disc had a few deep scratches in it, so I have to return it. Bummer.

I've had trouble getting my reader mail lately -- and answering it; stuff keeps bouncing and I have no idea why, so if you've been expecting mail from me, there might be a very good reason why you haven't received it -- but here are some recent comments:

Congratulations! You are now welcomed into the select few who have actually gotten what the makers of South Park have been doing for 3 years!

You're right, very few people "get" what Trey & Matt have been doing. Some of us realised that when the show launched -- it's the rest of the world that needs to catch up. I do think that the show has gone through an evolution, though. In the beginning, it was enough to gross people out, and to offend absolutely everyone. Now they're not only going a lot further in raising heckles; they're also raising issues. Like Buffy, South Park has matured with its audience. That's great, but all too rare.

Don't know if you've seen this but it's new to me.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00006J3WH/qid=1032915815/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_1/002-8534471-7898437?v=glance&n=507846

Yum.

I second that 'yum'. I'm definitely buying this, even though I've heard the soundtrack, oh, about fifty times now? Thanks for pointing it out to me!

I've been debating this issue with friends (and my ex-girlfriend, who probably broke up with me for this), the fact that there should not be a sequel for The Longest Journey.

The fact that TLJ leaves us with quiestions is one of the points why there should not be a sequel... Anyhow, I'm not going to sit here and gripe about it.

All I want to know is what are the chances of a sequel being created?

You may be right. Some things are better left alone, and part of the appeal of TLJ is also the mystery of TLJ, at least as far as I'm concerned. Thing is, most people seem to disagree. They want to see the rest of the story, and they weren't satisfied with things being left up in the air. I'd guess the chance of a sequel is currently at about 50/50, and increasing. Why? Can't tell you yet, but at least something's happening.

That's it for now.  ¶ 16:02   

  All right, just a few bits & pieces. Just a few, mind.

I'm constantly and continuously amazed by South Park. Not simply in terms of what they get away with -- especially for a show on a mainstream cable channel -- but for what they're doing, and what they're saying. "Saying"? South Park isn't "saying" anything...is it? Why Virginia, I'm glad you asked! (What?)

Out of the three episodes I saw tonight (yes, three; I was on a viewing-spree), one was a biting and, uh, slightly over-the-top commentary on recent revelations of child molestation amongst Catholic priests, and a look at the general, and ongoing, loss of faith in the Church as an institution. Some would see this episode as blasphemy, but that's far from the truth. The show actually presents real issues, and real solutions, and it's not being blasphemic -- it's presenting two sides to every topic, and letting the viewers figure out what's right and what's wrong. It makes fun of absolutely everything, yes, even issues that are considered completely forbidden -- case in point, the second of the three episodes I watched, where infanticide was a plot-thread. In a comedy. An animated comedy. But the rest of that episode offered, again, a really topical and interesting commentary on the trend of directors changing their films for the "better" (Spielberg's reissue of E.T., for example), and how art, once it's made available to the public, no longer belongs to the artist, but to the people. Good stuff. Wrapped in a really, really absurd wrapping. But brilliant. Absolutely, freakin' brilliant. See it. Support it.

Forget about the "bits & pieces" -- that's the only bit and piece I have time for. G'night, all!  ¶ 22:57   

  Posting to say...I'm not going to post anything. Eek. Sorry. Been too busy, so check back tomorrow!  ¶ 22:29   

  Feeling a bit under the weather today, so pardon my brevity. I just want to curl up on the couch again and watch the telly. Wait -- actually, I want to go to bed. It's late.

What's going on? Not a whole lot. I mean, yeah, lots and lots of work -- nothing's changed there, not for eight long years. Ack. I need a break. Well, nothing's changed except that everything has changed, since I'm doing different things than I used to be doing. No less work, of course, just different work. Good different work.

Aside from work...? Uh. Lots of work these days. Yup. It's all work, work, work.

I really need to get more of a life.  ¶ 23:34