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CharlesReed

@CharlesReed@kbin.social

PI currently working out of Oakmont, Massachusetts.

Alt account on https://kbin.run/u/CharlesReed

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CharlesReed ,
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Back when I was on call, I had the bridge number set to this tune from Amnesia: A Machine For Pigs. It fit the mood I was in when answering, especially when it was 3 in the morning.

What celebrity has actually been a positive influence in your life?

Mine right now off the top of my head is Adam Savage, former co-host of Mythbusters years ago. I sometimes watch his Tested videos whenever he answers questions and he answers them very thoughtfully. A lot of his thoughts, takes and answers based on his experiences and point of view on life and career has helped me be more...

CharlesReed ,
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I really like Adam Savage as well. The tour he did of Grant Imahara's shop was very touching.

It seems like kind of an obvious answer, but Mister Rogers. I grew up watching him on PBS, and he was always so kind and gentle, and he always has good lessons and reminders to be had. I still watch his show whenever I'm feeling down and don't want to get out of bed. For me, they're motivating to get up and do something.

CharlesReed ,
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Have you been successful in obtaining ownership or moderation to any abandoned mags? I've requested to a couple that I occasionally participate in just in case they get targeted for spam, but I haven't heard yea or nay either way.

CharlesReed ,
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Mbin has a very similar look and feel, aside from a couple of cosmetic things.

CharlesReed ,
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Not from what I've seen, unfortunately. Getting new instances to federate, at least from smaller, non Lemmy instances, is a bit of a pain. In the past I've done some testing with the two mags I currently own, and it looks like things don't always properly federate.
I've also noticed the same goes for voting. There's been more than once I've seen differing upvotes/downvotes on a thread depending on whether you're looking at it from kbin vs mbin.

CharlesReed ,
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Well that explains why a couple threads I posted weren't gaining any traction. I hope the issue gets figured out soon, otherwise I'll have to use my Mbin alt for anything lemmy.world related.

CharlesReed ,
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This game gets a lot of (rather justified) flak, but I'll be honest, the first time I played this, it scared the bejeesus out of me. So much so that whenever I would play other games and the lights would start to flicker, my first thought would be "Fuck, the manpigs are coming."

CharlesReed ,
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I don't think I've ever been scared by a creepypasta, but there are some really neat ones out there.
The Smiling Man is one of my favorites.
Ted the Caver is a classic.
I have a soft spot for Slenderman. I think this is one of the reasons I'm enjoying the game Ghostwire: Tokyo so much right now; one of the common enemies throughout the game looks like Slenderman.
There's list of some sorts out there called "Serene Knowledge" that I read through every once in a while that has some dark surrealism woven throughout. None of them are full on stories, but definitely have the potential to be. Funnily enough, almost every time I have the urge to scroll through it again, I have to re-search for it because every site that I've saved with it has gone down for one reason or another.

CharlesReed ,
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Oof, that sucks, especially since a good chunk of my subs are to lemmy.world instances. I hope this gets sorted out soon.

CharlesReed ,
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Whitechapel's album Our Endless War. Currently on "The Saw Is The Law". Also the a/c unit running lol.

CharlesReed ,
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Wrestlemania is coming up in a couple weeks, and I've been weirdly obsessing over it.

CharlesReed , (edited )
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I'd really like to visit New Orleans. The rest of my family has been there except for me.
Or I would like to revisit Savannah, Georgia. I went there once when I was younger, and I absolutely loved it. I'd like to experience it again now that I'm older.

What does getting "delisted" off Steam means for games I already own?

Recently I've seen news about adult swim games going delisted probably off steam, one of my fav games is published by adult swim games and I want to know what will happen to it, will steam strike it off my list even if I have it installed? Will I still be able to back it up and restore its backups? Will I still be able to...

CharlesReed ,
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Alan Wake is actually back on Steam! Remedy was able to work something out with the music rights (the reason why it was delisted) that put it back on virtual storefronts.

CharlesReed ,
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I'm despising the growing trend of devs/publishers not offering a physical option for consoles (looking at you, Alan Wake 2). I like having the disc on my shelf, especially if it's a series.

CharlesReed ,
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Curious, how does that work? What makes one instance more valuable that another?

CharlesReed ,
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I've been wondering the same thing. I really like kbin's interface, so I'm holding out that he comes back before I think about trying another instance.

CharlesReed ,
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I'd probably opt for something instrumental. Ephemeral by Pelican.

CharlesReed ,
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I just really like the character.

CharlesReed ,
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⭐️⭐️⭐️
A little under the weather, but still managing to get stuff on my to-do list done. I might take a nap later as a reward.

Everyone's a nerd about something. What are you a nerd about?

I know it's an unpopular opinion given current circumstances, but I've always been a huge nerd about Russia. The history, the geography, the music, etc. And as an American, I've always found it fascinating how U.S.-Russian relations have fluctuated over time. We've gone from allies, to enemies, to frenemies. This doesn't mean I...

CharlesReed ,
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I always think I'm a nerd about video games until I come across someone who's played more than me. But I'll go on and on about certain games and franchises if someone lets me.

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    CharlesReed , (edited )
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    Nothing super crazy, but when I was in high school, my family lived in a big, newly built two story house that, to me, had some very weird and off vibes to it. There must have been something attached to the land, because 1) it was a brand new house, 2) the house we lived in before was also 'haunted', but in a different way, and 3) all the houses my parents moved into afterwards were fine.
    Often when I was home alone, I would hear doors open and close in other parts of the house, and stuff would move around a lot on their own. More than once I would set something down, leave the room for a few minutes, and then come back to the item being in a different spot.
    Once I woke up to breathing in my room. Very steady, heavy breathing, like someone trying to calm themselves or meditating or something. Even after I turned on my light and checked the other bedrooms, the closet, etc, I could still hear it, but only in my room (and no, it wasn't me lol). I weirdly wasn't scared or anything, I just couldn't figure out where it was coming from. After I laid back down to go back to sleep, I had what felt like a hand press up against my back between my shoulder blades. Not pushing or aggressive, but like someone just put their hand there.
    The weirdest thing that happened was one morning I got up to feed my cat, and while she was eating, the bowl slid across the floor and hit the wall with so much force that it knocked out a bunch of food. Scared the shit out of the cat, who ran across the room (while still eating what was in her mouth lol).
    Almost everyone I tell the story to says "Oh, obviously your cat was just messing with the bowl." Nah. She was a kitten at the time, and there is no way she would have enough power or strength to move a bowl a third her size and full of food with the force or speed that it moved at. When I say it hit the wall, it hit the wall. There were little kibble bits everywhere. Plus, she doesn't play with her food like that.
    idk what was going on with that house, but like I said, it had some weird vibes.

    CharlesReed ,
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    Oregon Trail on Apple IIGS.
    We also had Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego, but I wasn't as interested in that as much.

    CharlesReed ,
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    I'm really hoping Code Veronica is one. I tried to play the original, but I am just not made for those old school tank controls.

    CharlesReed , (edited )
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    Man, I was looking forward to this and Vampire the Masquerade Bloodlines 2, but after seeing both gameplay trailers today, I'm just... not anymore. Like wtf is this.

    CharlesReed ,
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    The licenses referenced likely have to do with the game’s music. During the The Line’s menu screen, Jimi Hendrix’s rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner” can be heard while the game’s soundtrack includes Martha and The Vandellas’ “Nowhere to Run.”

    The same thing happened to the first Alan Wake before they worked something out to get it back (even though it took almost a decade). Consequently, that's also one of the reasons they wrote original songs for the sequel. It's very much a gamble these days to license music for games. More or less puts it on a timeline to be removed at some point.

    CharlesReed , (edited )
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    If you have time for some reading, here's a really great article from a few years ago that talks about licensing in video games and how complicated it can be (the first half of the article is really the only relevant part). Depending on what exactly you want to do with the music in/with the game, a developer could be looking at having to deal with more than one license. I imagine it could get expensive very easily.

    CharlesReed ,
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    I must not hang out in the right magazines, because I usually check in at least once a day, but I completely missed that lol.

    CharlesReed ,
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    BioShock Infinite. Mostly because I hated all of the characters, with the exception of the Luteces, and even they were on thin ice, mostly because of Rosalind. And Elizabeth as a NPC companion? I would prefer Ashley from Resident Evil 4 over Elizabeth any day. It didn't help that every time I tried to listen to a voxophone, she'd start talking about some bs, so I'd wait for her to finish and start the voxophone over, only to have her start talking again. When it happened 4 times with one vox, I had to take a break from the game. I just wanted to listen to the damn recording.
    Gameplay is great though. I'll play the heck out of the Clash in the Clouds dlc. I get the fun action, and none of Booker and Elizabeth's constant whining.

    CharlesReed , (edited )
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    My friend who loves the game praises the multiverse aspect of the game the most, and to me it just doesn't make sense, exactly for the reasons you gave. And having Elizabeth be there at the beginning of Rapture's downfall (and actively taking part in it, even if she was blackmailed iirc) didn't really sit right for me, but maybe that's just because I didn't like her lol.
    I had totally forgot about the slavery aspect of the game. They absolutely could have handled it better. Like there's a million other ways they could have had an opposing faction who's also not 100% in the right, and that's the one you wanted to go with? Come on. Even BioShock 2 did that concept better with Ryan vs Lamb.

    “The only difference between Daisy Fitzroy and Zachary Comstock is how you spell their name!” - Booker DeWiit proving he is the dumbest man alive!

    Me every time Booker or Elizabeth open their mouths.

    CharlesReed ,
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    Even complete with a cast that you normally only see in Hollywood movies.

    CharlesReed , (edited )
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    I spent way more time than I should have playing Dice in Kingdom Come: Deliverance.
    Edit: I also just remembered the hacking system in BioShock had a very mini-game feel to it. I had a lot of fun with those too.

    CharlesReed ,
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    Festivus, for the rest of us.

    CharlesReed , (edited )
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    Forgive me if I'm not understanding this correctly, but that just sounds like a fancy nightlight?
    Edit: I understand now :)

    Many players have become "patient gamers". What are games people might miss out on by waiting for sales?

    Sales follow the tradition of supply and demand. Products come out at their highest price because of expectations and hype. Then, as interest wanes, the publisher continues to make some sales by reducing price to tempt the less interested parties....

    CharlesReed ,
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    It would be interesting to see how many 'patient gamers' are actually into multiplayer games at all because of this reason. I wouldn't call myself one per se, but I probably fit the criteria, and most of the games I wait to come on sale are single player campaign.

    CharlesReed ,
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    I'm sorry, the what?

    CharlesReed ,
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    Mine got this silicone steamer(?) brush. Not sure if it actually works or not, but I guess I'm going to find out.

    CharlesReed ,
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    Same here. It's content about a thing that I want to see. Even if I get little to no engagement, hopefully whoever stumbles upon it will be somewhat entertained.

    CharlesReed ,
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    I kinda miss the activity of r/BobsBurgers, since it's one of my favorite shows, but at the same time, it can be a bit circlejerk-y with users hating on the change in direction the show went in, especially after the movie not too long ago. I don't miss that lol.

    CharlesReed ,
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    Dang, I was really hoping this wasn't true. I was just talking with a friend a couple days ago about how great and iconic James is as Max Payne.

    CharlesReed ,
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    These are two that might be well known, but I don't really hear people talking about:

    • I use Map Genie quite a bit. It's just a bunch of interactive maps for a lot of different games, but it's really helpful when looking for that one item you're missing, or waypoints in general. It's mostly geared towards open world games.
    • I also use How Long To Beat if I looking to play a new game but don't really want to spend over a certain amount of hours playing. (Although I'm a bit of a slow player, so whatever completion times are listed I have to multiply by 2).

    The other reference sites I use like NeoSeeker and Game FAQs are pretty well known and have been around for ages.

    CharlesReed ,
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    The end of LA Noire got to me. I still can't play the last case without tearing up.

    CharlesReed ,
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    Very nice to see The Sinking City included so many times. There was so much weirdness surrounding its release that I feel like it gets swept under the rug a lot. It's incredibly underrated in my opinion, and while not the greatest, it has interesting characters and story.

    [Thread, post or comment was deleted by the author]

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    CharlesReed ,
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    Yeah, more often than not when I'm playing on my Switch, it's docked and hooked up to a monitor. Sometimes that little screen is not enough for me.

    CharlesReed OP ,
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    I cleaned and vacuumed it right before putting it down, but if this is her new spot, I'm going to have to vacuum it more often, haha.

    CharlesReed OP ,
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    Probably it has something to do with me posting from kbin. I sometimes get some wonky errors when specifically uploading photos.

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