i made this. you play this. we are enemies
December 1, 2008 7:13 PM Subscribe
i made this. you play this. we are enemies - A new game by Jason Nelson (previously). Featuring Metafilter's own, uh, everything!
Feels like something that should be in one of those "This is what autistic/schizophrenic/whatever people see everyday" posts. Crazy, but intriguing.
posted by Chan at 7:21 PM on December 1, 2008 [3 favorites]
posted by Chan at 7:21 PM on December 1, 2008 [3 favorites]
I remember once in the 60s there was this place and I went there and saw all this stuff. It was glittery and loud (violence-wise) and I didn't know what to make of it until I saw little Edmond and his rocket hat. Then, it sensed that I understood it and we fell in love. "I am not Apple Juice," I told everyone but all they could say was, "Whatever I wish, whenever I want, whoever I desire." And I didn't really understand the context so I asked, "Even October?" and they said, "Only in the spring, but absolutely."
Ah, the salad days.
posted by Manhasset at 7:27 PM on December 1, 2008 [8 favorites]
Ah, the salad days.
posted by Manhasset at 7:27 PM on December 1, 2008 [8 favorites]
I can't tell if it's tongue in cheek, or if it's sincere art.
posted by hellojed at 7:29 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by hellojed at 7:29 PM on December 1, 2008
hellojed: I can't tell if it's tongue in cheek, or if it's sincere art.
(During some levels, you can click on a starburst to play a video. Watch the potato one and tell me if you think it's tongue in cheek or not.)
posted by flatluigi at 7:41 PM on December 1, 2008
(During some levels, you can click on a starburst to play a video. Watch the potato one and tell me if you think it's tongue in cheek or not.)
posted by flatluigi at 7:41 PM on December 1, 2008
It is brilliant.
posted by Turtles all the way down at 7:45 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by Turtles all the way down at 7:45 PM on December 1, 2008
Wow, funny story, one of my very few friends in high school was a guy named Jason Nelson, and he mostly sat around and wrote goofy game programs, invented crazy fictional worlds, and did insane things. He went to school to major in computer science, but then switched to linguistics. He went to Taiwan briefly and became very fluent in Mandarin. I've lost track of him since.
And yet, the bio page doesn't quite match up. Weird. It's almost him.
posted by Xezlec at 7:51 PM on December 1, 2008
And yet, the bio page doesn't quite match up. Weird. It's almost him.
posted by Xezlec at 7:51 PM on December 1, 2008
Watch the potato one and tell me if you think it's tongue in cheek or not
The strainer, apparently, represents society.
posted by hellojed at 8:14 PM on December 1, 2008
The strainer, apparently, represents society.
posted by hellojed at 8:14 PM on December 1, 2008
This made my brain hurt but I kept playing until my eyes started bleeding.
posted by fenriq at 8:29 PM on December 1, 2008 [2 favorites]
posted by fenriq at 8:29 PM on December 1, 2008 [2 favorites]
the person who made this will marry me, right?
posted by unknowncommand at 8:32 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by unknowncommand at 8:32 PM on December 1, 2008
I don't know what it's like with native sound, but playing it to the Solaris soundtrack is... strangely meditative.
posted by Durn Bronzefist at 8:32 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by Durn Bronzefist at 8:32 PM on December 1, 2008
I beat the final level, but the explanation was in another castle.
posted by shadytrees at 8:43 PM on December 1, 2008 [9 favorites]
posted by shadytrees at 8:43 PM on December 1, 2008 [9 favorites]
It's pretty because it's ugly.
posted by Nelson at 8:43 PM on December 1, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by Nelson at 8:43 PM on December 1, 2008 [1 favorite]
That's it! Someone hold me or I'm disconnecting from the intarweb.
posted by Lukenlogs at 8:54 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by Lukenlogs at 8:54 PM on December 1, 2008
Loved it.
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 9:01 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 9:01 PM on December 1, 2008
Holy cow... that was weird...
posted by JoeXIII007 at 9:22 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by JoeXIII007 at 9:22 PM on December 1, 2008
What does not destroy me makes me hungry.
posted by kid ichorous at 9:38 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by kid ichorous at 9:38 PM on December 1, 2008
I got a 42.
The Metafilter page made me happy. Then Boing Boing made me sad.
posted by Pater Aletheias at 9:40 PM on December 1, 2008
The Metafilter page made me happy. Then Boing Boing made me sad.
posted by Pater Aletheias at 9:40 PM on December 1, 2008
The first video on the end screen explains the internet better than any history book could.
posted by shucksitsjeremy at 10:00 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by shucksitsjeremy at 10:00 PM on December 1, 2008
I get it.
posted by dirty lies at 10:05 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by dirty lies at 10:05 PM on December 1, 2008
What the fuck!! Don't post stuff like that man. Just don't.
Jeez.
(My head broke trying to "get it").
(I made 42.)
You.
posted by salishsea at 10:10 PM on December 1, 2008
Jeez.
(My head broke trying to "get it").
(I made 42.)
You.
posted by salishsea at 10:10 PM on December 1, 2008
Things like this remind me that the internet is scarier than my worst nightmare and somehow my best friend, whom I occasionally make out with.
posted by piratebowling at 10:16 PM on December 1, 2008 [6 favorites]
posted by piratebowling at 10:16 PM on December 1, 2008 [6 favorites]
I like video prize #3. He keeps laughing at what he's saying as he trots out the doll parts, and it's making me laugh.
posted by wells at 10:54 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by wells at 10:54 PM on December 1, 2008
Have I mentioned that I dislike art?
posted by bicyclefish at 11:03 PM on December 1, 2008
posted by bicyclefish at 11:03 PM on December 1, 2008
I see the future of art in this, and it is a bleak future indeed.
posted by tehloki at 11:12 PM on December 1, 2008 [2 favorites]
posted by tehloki at 11:12 PM on December 1, 2008 [2 favorites]
So...the internet is made up of basically meaningless content and we are all sheep for having had the information given to us, rather than going to search it out ourselves?
I bet this guy hasn't doesn't own a TV OR an iPod. Wow, what a rebel - we should all strive to be just like him.
posted by cerulgalactus at 11:39 PM on December 1, 2008
I bet this guy hasn't doesn't own a TV OR an iPod. Wow, what a rebel - we should all strive to be just like him.
posted by cerulgalactus at 11:39 PM on December 1, 2008
MetaFilter: Then Boing Boing made me sad.
posted by Eideteker at 11:40 PM on December 1, 2008 [3 favorites]
posted by Eideteker at 11:40 PM on December 1, 2008 [3 favorites]
Metafilter: text text text link text text link text text text text text link link text pithy comment text text text link cleaver notation link text and then other people say things
posted by Rhaomi at 12:01 AM on December 2, 2008 [3 favorites]
posted by Rhaomi at 12:01 AM on December 2, 2008 [3 favorites]
I just kept getting stuck in that little hole on the first level, which was dispiriting. This is maybe the first time I've ever wished I knew how to play computer games.
posted by jack_mo at 1:21 AM on December 2, 2008
posted by jack_mo at 1:21 AM on December 2, 2008
4. stop trying to "get it"
Sound advice for so so many circumstances.
posted by mandal at 1:23 AM on December 2, 2008
Sound advice for so so many circumstances.
posted by mandal at 1:23 AM on December 2, 2008
I played it to the end. I guess I'm not cool enough to think it's awesome. It is however, interesting.... like a car accident, or a mime.
posted by gryftir at 1:57 AM on December 2, 2008
posted by gryftir at 1:57 AM on December 2, 2008
Rule #1: Things that look like crap but are made by kids are good because kids are innocent and sincere and idealistic.
Rule #2: Things that look like crap but are made by adults are bad because adults, while possibly sincere and idealistic, are not innocent.
Rule #2 Special Escape Clause #1: Unless they have brain damage, in which case the adults are judged as kids.
Rule #2 Special Escape Clause #2: Unless they are artists, in which case we tentatively tiptoe around whether it is good or bad because we don't know if there is some hidden statement or purpose that will bite us on the ass or maybe a deep meaning or whatever. These special items are called "interesting".
posted by DU at 4:33 AM on December 2, 2008 [17 favorites]
Rule #2: Things that look like crap but are made by adults are bad because adults, while possibly sincere and idealistic, are not innocent.
Rule #2 Special Escape Clause #1: Unless they have brain damage, in which case the adults are judged as kids.
Rule #2 Special Escape Clause #2: Unless they are artists, in which case we tentatively tiptoe around whether it is good or bad because we don't know if there is some hidden statement or purpose that will bite us on the ass or maybe a deep meaning or whatever. These special items are called "interesting".
posted by DU at 4:33 AM on December 2, 2008 [17 favorites]
AM I ON TEH GAME YET?
posted by not_on_display at 4:41 AM on December 2, 2008
posted by not_on_display at 4:41 AM on December 2, 2008
I pave this, Fast save this, everybody smile. . .
And act gracious
posted by kcds at 4:53 AM on December 2, 2008
And act gracious
posted by kcds at 4:53 AM on December 2, 2008
stop trying to get it
but... but... that unpossible! I'm german, don't you understand?
maybe that's why I keep failing miserably at this game.
posted by krautland at 5:25 AM on December 2, 2008 [1 favorite]
but... but... that unpossible! I'm german, don't you understand?
maybe that's why I keep failing miserably at this game.
posted by krautland at 5:25 AM on December 2, 2008 [1 favorite]
Finally, convincing evidence that I'm not a hardcore gamer.
posted by box at 7:56 AM on December 2, 2008
posted by box at 7:56 AM on December 2, 2008
Jason Nelson's games remind me of what life would be like if your day-to-day experiences played out like House of Leaves. Mind you, not the actual story, but the presentation and perception.
posted by SpiffyRob at 8:08 AM on December 2, 2008
posted by SpiffyRob at 8:08 AM on December 2, 2008
When I was in art school we had a 'clean-up' day at the studio spaces. Everyone who had a studio had to go in and help tidy up. The professor in charge got everybody together and said, "OK, everybody, we need to get everything out of the walkways. If something's sort of half-in and half-out of a space, don't throw it away - it could be somebody's project. Remember, if you can't tell whether something is trash or art, then it's art."
This is kind of like that.
posted by Pecinpah at 8:09 AM on December 2, 2008 [3 favorites]
This is kind of like that.
posted by Pecinpah at 8:09 AM on December 2, 2008 [3 favorites]
I finished the game, but it feels like I did something illicit that shouldn't be broadcast to the world. What a curious find.
posted by Phire at 8:46 AM on December 2, 2008
posted by Phire at 8:46 AM on December 2, 2008
wow, at last i feel like somebody has finally spoken directly to my soul about my soul. this is a momentous & epiphanic occasion.
posted by UbuRoivas at 8:57 AM on December 2, 2008
posted by UbuRoivas at 8:57 AM on December 2, 2008
i can make out Kattullus, chunking express & WCityMike on the mefi page.
posted by UbuRoivas at 9:30 AM on December 2, 2008
posted by UbuRoivas at 9:30 AM on December 2, 2008
I want you to picture the scene:
quin is strapped to a medical table, there is a doctor in a lab-coat behind him. The top of quin's head is opened revealing his brain, there are several wires running from it to a large mainframe computer. Hanging above quin is a computer screen.
Doctor (speaking to camera): Ladies and gentlemen, this is the future of gaming development. Here we have the subject isolated and tranquilized with a mild psychotropic. We are currently feeding him a web page he seems to enjoy called, I believe it is called "The Metafilter", based on his reactions, the sensors that we have placed in his cranium are pulling his feelings and fears... transcribing his nightmares, parsing them with our patented computer the DreamRaker 2000, and outputting them as a playable level on a web page.
We can do this with any input! Show them Slashdot, or Fark, or pictures of cats, each produces a different result! It's amazing! We will never have to pay another programmer again!
Now, I know that some of you have objected to our use of involuntary subjects like this one, but it's for the greater good! Self-actualized gaming represents is the future. We can either be a part of it, or crushed underneath it. The choice is yours.
On the table, quin groans and begins to stir. The doctor turns to a machine and twists a knob to increase the hallucinogens.
Doctor (to quin): Your fevered dreams will pave the way to the future. You may rest poorly, but you are building a far more surreal tomorrow for your fellow man.
posted by quin at 9:57 AM on December 2, 2008 [1 favorite]
quin is strapped to a medical table, there is a doctor in a lab-coat behind him. The top of quin's head is opened revealing his brain, there are several wires running from it to a large mainframe computer. Hanging above quin is a computer screen.
Doctor (speaking to camera): Ladies and gentlemen, this is the future of gaming development. Here we have the subject isolated and tranquilized with a mild psychotropic. We are currently feeding him a web page he seems to enjoy called, I believe it is called "The Metafilter", based on his reactions, the sensors that we have placed in his cranium are pulling his feelings and fears... transcribing his nightmares, parsing them with our patented computer the DreamRaker 2000, and outputting them as a playable level on a web page.
We can do this with any input! Show them Slashdot, or Fark, or pictures of cats, each produces a different result! It's amazing! We will never have to pay another programmer again!
Now, I know that some of you have objected to our use of involuntary subjects like this one, but it's for the greater good! Self-actualized gaming represents is the future. We can either be a part of it, or crushed underneath it. The choice is yours.
On the table, quin groans and begins to stir. The doctor turns to a machine and twists a knob to increase the hallucinogens.
Doctor (to quin): Your fevered dreams will pave the way to the future. You may rest poorly, but you are building a far more surreal tomorrow for your fellow man.
posted by quin at 9:57 AM on December 2, 2008 [1 favorite]
quin: you may have just stumbled upon the genesis of timecube.
posted by UbuRoivas at 10:00 AM on December 2, 2008
posted by UbuRoivas at 10:00 AM on December 2, 2008
krautland, I feel your pain. I really don't get it either.
However, I can now see the fnords.
posted by Schlimmbesserung at 11:06 AM on December 2, 2008
However, I can now see the fnords.
posted by Schlimmbesserung at 11:06 AM on December 2, 2008
I liked this about as much as that previous (and suspeciously similar) game the guy did, which is to say, not much.
I'm pretty sure that is Metafilter's theme song, however.
posted by JHarris at 3:10 PM on December 2, 2008
I'm pretty sure that is Metafilter's theme song, however.
posted by JHarris at 3:10 PM on December 2, 2008
But, very soon the houses figured out: "Heck, these roads, they're slow. Look at the cars, the cars get stuck, the people die, all sorts of crazy things happen." So they decided to come up with... the internet!
posted by soundofsuburbia at 3:31 PM on December 2, 2008
posted by soundofsuburbia at 3:31 PM on December 2, 2008
This isn't some internet version of "The Ring" is it? Cause I'm worried now that's what it is. It seems like that might be what it is....with a circle of red squiggles coming for me instead of a creepy dead girl.
posted by Salmonberry at 5:16 PM on December 2, 2008
posted by Salmonberry at 5:16 PM on December 2, 2008
Reminds me of playing arcade games in the mid eighties, on Lake Shore Drive. Nice soundtrack.
posted by Flex1970 at 9:02 PM on December 2, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by Flex1970 at 9:02 PM on December 2, 2008 [1 favorite]
The fact my user name figures quite prominently on the first level scares me... but it's like that for everyone, right? RIGHT?!?
I have to go hide now.
posted by 1f2frfbf at 11:22 AM on December 3, 2008
I have to go hide now.
posted by 1f2frfbf at 11:22 AM on December 3, 2008
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