BW’s Saturday Article Link> Nintendo Games Vs Stories

So many video games today seem to focus more on their story than their gameplay. Now as a story fan it doesn’t bother me in theory, but an interactive story has its own rules, and that includes working the gameplay in so you actually feel like you’re part of the story, even in linear stories. Nintendo solved that problem, according to an article by Bounding Into Comics contributor Spencer Baculi, by putting the gameplay first and story…somewhere after that. This makes the game more important than the story…which does lead to the confusing Zelda timeline, but does it make for better games?

DC Heroes United: Dissecting The Creators’ Interview

Yesterday we looked at the first episode of DC Heroes United, a “massively interactive live event”, and went over the positives and negative, and why I’ve opted to not take part in the interactive side due to wanting to enjoy the story as it comes out.

Today I want to look at the creators’ interview, as I thought yesterday’s post would be too long with both the review and the interview. Specifically we’re reading the answers of showrunner Stephan Bugaj, and writers Martin Montgomery and Chris Schroyer. Doing an interactive novel approach is not something new to these three as they worked at Telltale Games before it collapsed. At the time one of the games they were working on was a Batman series that will never be finished. I don’t like the idea that Bruce never got to clear his father’s name, from what I hear as I didn’t get a chance to play the two games they managed to get done, but what can you do? I’m hoping the last game would have done so. Thomas Wayne having a dark past is so unnecessary to me.

Here’s the interview so you know I’m not taking things out of context, but for the most part I think they understand what they’re working with better than most people in comics or other media currently working with these characters. I still have a few notes, but for the most part it’s nice to see people understand what they’ve taken on. The story takes place at the dawn of heroes, if you missed yesterday’s article, with Batman just starting out, Superman still not revealing himself as anything other than a blur (so the Smallville treatment), and Wonder Woman…actually I don’t think we really know what her deal is. She basically just dropped exposition as a long-lived understander of the basics of magical things like Doctor Fate and his tower. So let’s see what they have to say for themselves.

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“Yesterday’s” Comic> Feature Comics #25

He left his “kick me” sign at home.

Feature Comics #25

Comic Favorites Incorporated (October, 1939)

The Amazing Mystery Funnies for this month doesn’t have a full scan up at Comic Book +, just the Fantom Of The Fair story. Had to get through a few collected comic strip ones before finally getting here. As it is this issue starts with two gag strips collection and a gag page before we finally reach our first story.

[Read along with me here]

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BW’s Daily Video> 765874 – Unification (Star Trek fan film)

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As of this writing this is oddly unlisted, though other sites have found and posted it. I guess they want to see how long they can hide it from Paramount, given the history with fanfilms, and this one featuring two actors reprising their roles, William Shatner as Kirk and Robin Curtis as Saavik.

DC Heroes United Episode 1 Review & Game Overview

DC Heroes United is an interesting storytelling idea. It’s been done before in comics, but this is only the second time I’ve heard of a game influencing the story of the show. The fact that I can’t remember what the other one is tells you how successful that was over time.

Requiring an Apple or Google Android device, the audience makes choices based on what happens in the episode. Their decision at the end affects what will happen in the next episode, like a Choose Your Own Adventure style book, but instead of just you deciding what happens next you vote alongside the audience and the winning vote determines where the story goes next. I’m assuming this means the episode is either already done or Genvid, the company producing this project, has a method to get the next episode written, animated, voiced, and out in a week or however long it takes until the next episode.

The first episode dropped on YouTube and DC’s website. I wrote this the night before it went live and couldn’t find it on Tubi despite they’re also saying that it would be up there. Let’s watch the first episode, and then learn more about this interactive storytelling experience. There are some…interesting choices made.

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“Yesterday’s” Comic> The Dark #1

If I see one “are you afraid” reference, I’m out of here.

The Dark #1

AAM Markosia (2013)

WRITER: Chris Lynch

ARTIST: Rick Lundeen

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BW’s Daily Video> That Time Stan Lee Reimagined Catwoman

Catch more from Casually Comics on YouTube