[A Pleasurable Headache] actual updates; logging off; a hidden horror gem;
Updates
First up, Everfrost #1 drops in June from Black Mask Studio.
"All scientist-warrior Van Louise wanted was to retire and get off-planet as her society collapsed, but she’s unearthed a mystery involving the death of her son… and she can’t leave without discovering the truth first–even as war brews in her violent and fantastical world."
Words by Ryan K Lindsay, Art by Sami Kivela, Colours by Lauren Affe, Letters by Jim Campbell and edited by...me!
Sami is aces at spectacular and outlandish sci-fi. Here he is going to town and levelling up. I cannot wait for people to get hold of this, see the efforts of the team right there on the page and delve into Van's world.
Further details here and the pre-order code is APR211533.
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Next up...
The second issue of Creeper (Fiction, art and reportage from the frontlines of the future.) is live on Kickstarter. There is a whole heap of excellent contributors to this issue including:
Tim Grove, Nina Shack Kock, Mike Corrao, Lex Griffiths, BKV Industrial, Garth Jones, Valentina Schulte, Andrew Macrae, Mark Rogers, Maddison Stoff, Gui Machiavelli, James Straker, Dan Hill, Kokofreakbean, Tom Lynch, Unconscious Abyss, Nyx Land, Ryan K Lindsay, DC Barker, Solvent and Tyler Alexander.
Yep, I have a piece in this too. I have an essay in there on the Hitman games, architecture and how it aligns with political capital and power. The rewards on the Kickstarter are fantastic, with some really nifty stickers and some amazing looking t-shirts too. A few dollars (Australian) will get you the electronic copy of the magazine. What are you waiting for?
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Finally, a short story I wrote has found a home this week too. It's been one of those weeks where it looks like I'm productive as shit, but it's all just long-term things coalescing at the same time.
I shall share more details on this shortly.
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Links
On Twitter, You Can Never Log Off
https://studyhall.xyz/media-twitter-broken/
"The whole thing took on a level of seriousness and heightened emotion that seemed misplaced to me. The level of obsession with this stranger’s life — imagining what it was like based on a series of tweets — felt, for lack of a better word, unhealthy. I had a similar reaction when Twitter users joined forces to dunk on a column from a man bemoaning that his wife had been vaccinated before him, creating an imbalance in their relationship wherein she was more able to freely socialize while he remained confined to their home. It was intended to be humorous and hyperbolic, with the writer noting his wife will soon “be able to traipse off to a restaurant or a rave or an orgy or a national insurrection.” But these attempts at humor were branded as “deeply bizarre,” and more than that, Twitter users decided this man is bitterly jealous of his vaccinated wife and that their marriage is doomed."
How the West Lost COVID (via nothing.here)
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/03/how-the-west-lost-covid-19.html
David Wallace-Wells has written one of the better books on climate change, The Uninhabitable Earth. Here his NY Mag piece goes long and in depth about the absolutely woeful response to the Covid-19 pandemic in 'The West'.
Sankey Networks of Far-right Radicalization Pathways
https://marcusmann.net/post/radicalization/
An interesting visualisation of the various online gateways that lead people to become radicalised and embroiled with the far right. Some names will not shock you, Rogan, Peterson, etc. Some will - Jaron Lanier?!
The Empty Man Is the Next Great Cult Horror Film
https://www.vulture.com/2021/04/the-empty-man-is-the-next-great-cult-horror-film.html
Tres Dean at The Vulture singing it loud. I can't believe I slept on this one. My one line Letterboxd review "A slow burn descent into the abyss with neo-noir overtones and a Fincher-esque attention to detail and staging."
Get a life – The Sims
https://superchartisland.com/the-sims/
A great little piece on how the console versions of The Sims felt the need to introduce structure and progression in a game celebrated for its lack of such things.
Adam Curtis Explains It All
https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-the-uk/adam-curtis-explains-it-all
Adam Curtis has a new film out, so once again a longform interview appears, this time at The New Yorker. This one has some great nuggets about his work habits and how he selects/edits footage for his docs.
The World According to ContraPoints
https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/contrapoints-natalie-wynn-interview/
Immensely quotable interview with the excellent Natalie Wynn.
“People want to be told what to do. I think that’s part of the essential appeal of Jordan Peterson. People want a domineering life coach to step in and say, ‘Here’s what you’re going to do.’ I find this in my own audience. They call me Dark Mother. They want a six-foot transsexual to step on their throats and tell them what to believe. That’s what everyone wants.”
and
"I have no idea what the stock market is. I barely know what money is. To me, it’s more mysterious than astrology. It’s like witchcraft for rich people.”
you are capable of writing better horror stories
https://docseuss.medium.com/you-are-capable-of-writing-better-horror-stories-311ed334080f
A huge read on writing in the horror genre. The article talks mostly about video game narratives but the lessons being taught here absolutely apply to other mediums too. Fantastic stuff.
Six Days In Fallujah Is Just More of the Same
https://sidequest.zone/2021/04/05/six-days-in-fallujah-is-just-more-of-the-same/
After a long gestation period and a recent resurrection, it still looks like this game is going to be par for the course.
"Six Days‘ first gameplay trailer, released in late March, is a six-minute video focused heavily on the game’s procedurally generated elements and is interspersed with video interviews with U.S. Marines. The video focuses most on how the Marines never knew what would be behind a door, and thanks to the game’s procedurally generated map, the players won’t know what’s inside each building, either. That feature aside, Six Days in Fallujah looks like a standard realistic shooter, but again, I am interested in the framing of this reveal. Without explicitly saying so, the trailer is asking players to anticipate danger behind every door, even if the building contains civilians, and in doing so, establishes them as an “Other” and as a group to fear. Even if it’s true to the recollections of those who were there, the emphasis on the atmosphere of fear not only reinforces the idea that the American soldiers are exceptionally brave, but that their actions against the Other are justified."
The procedurally-generated aspects of the game interest me, especially in how they relate to the uncertainty of modern combat, but everything else just seems so very pedestrian.
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I'm off to welcome more small animals into our home. See you in two!
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This issue of APH is dedicated to Scully. Godspeed, my tiny truth seeker.