---

Quote:

"Chet's a character they invented. He's not even real."

"Neither am I, but that doesn't stop you."

---

Heh.... i personally found the closing dialogue pretty freakin funny. And the PC Gamer comment.

Actually, it's Marvin that's invented. I have no idea why I'm posting this.

Marvin's not invented. He's just not born yet because he's from the future.

From the future, where zombies aren't so much of a problem.


(I just love that line...)

I wish I could make a site, update it once a month, and get popular. heh. Nothin against OMM, but it's the truth.

They had a year or two of very frequent updates once upon a time. I'm thinking about adding a "Flaming Martin head" icon to my portfolio site to point out when THEY update.

;)
-Andrew

Yeah OMM seems to have run out of gas. I guess it's a byproduct of not getting paid. :)

Still, it's too bad that a lot of sites that started as fan sites aren't content to be fan sites after getting a glimpse of gay Paris.

And for what OMM does, there's not really any kind of easy content they can add, like doing news. Everything they do has to be funny, and sometimes it's hard to be funny.

My favorite bit this time was drawing a parallel between Serious Sam and Gauntlet Legends. I've played both extensively, but the similarity never dawned on me. Now, of course, it seems blazingly obvious. This is why Tom's the critic, and I'm not. :)

Trevor is made up!?!?!?!
NOOOOOOO!!!!!!
I loved thinking that there was somebody out there like him. He is such a perfect amalgamation of the quirky qualities of so many people I know.
At least there's still a Sandy Claws.

Once again... Aszurom get's no credit. Three guesses who discovered Sam.

Tom, you realize that it's nearly "Jeep Week". Are you prepared?

SO... funny story. My buddy Shadus gets in a wreck and totals the car. I have to go pick him up from the side of the road. Well, there's something in his trunk he wants to get out... and he hauls out a bucket of lard. Then a thing of lye. I'm like "dude... what are you doing?" He explained that they were going to make homemade soap and were up here getting the stuff to do it.

Now, I'm wondering if Shadus is really my friend, or yet another Trevor. This would account for the missing time I had previously attributed to UFO abduction.

The only part that made me nauseous was when Tom's character "Tom" pointed out to his other character "Trevor":

"KISS Psycho Circus is like Serious Sam"

Of course he's right, but only in the way Call to Power II is *like* Civilization 2 and Klingon Honor Guard is *like* Half-Life.

I have a Cherokee Laredo Jim, but I'm not prepared for "Jeep Week". However, I am ready for "Take your daughter to work day"... she's in my office every day anyway.

-Andrew

---

Quote:

Of course he's right, but only in the way Call to Power II is *like* Civilization 2 and Klingon Honor Guard is *like* Half-Life.

---

No, Bub... you don't understand. My fee for building QT3 was that Tom take me party-hopping in his jeep this year. Last year, I got left on the street-side to walk to the Maya with Jason D'. That was bad, considering my vodka induced condition.

I don't think Sam is overrated.

Aside from the graphics engine and the (rather bold move to feature) bright shiny colors just look at the weapon balance and "feel". Note the pacing and note especially the monsters and how they attack. AI may not be present, I'd agree with that, but the critters never get caught on the walls and each one attacks in their own balanced and interesting way. The gang attacks have a flow to them unmatched in shooting since Robotron (which was a great observation Tom (likely) stole from Old Man Murray's Erik, given that Erik said it first on a message board we both frequent(ed)).

Not to mention sound FX like the Bull's roar or the stampeding skeletons, etc., Or the great scripted moments and the fact that no less than three of Sam's creatures are instant classics to the genre (imo - they are the headless suicide bombers, skeletons and most important the bulls).

No shooter has quite accomplished Sam's sense of exhaustive... er... shooting, before. KISS is just plain tiresome and rote by comparison. The only similarity is the shallow observation that both feature "lots of monsters".

Serious Sam is a simple arcade style shooter. That's a given but it's more than just "lots of monsters". It's pacing, mood and "frantic action feeling", as Roman himself so aptly put it.

That said, Sam is a step backwards for intelligent shooters and I can understand people who dislike it for that. For it's pure simplicity. But every time I play, I feel like I'm popping a quarter into it... and dammit, I like it for that.

-Andrew

Aszurom, so far I know of zero parties. I'm sure Sony will have one, but those invites are hard to come by. I don't think there will be as many parties this year. We'll have to make our own.

That's fine. I can buy some wild turkey if Tom gets some hookers. Preferrably, ones that can play poker.

Then again, I did manage to get into the GOD lot saturday bash last year. Maybe they'll be doing that again, dunno. I wonder if the booth babes in Kentia hall will be desperate for a date?

"Oh my GOD, THAT BITCH STOLE MY WALLET!!" - Buck

"The gang attacks have a flow to them unmatched in shooting since Robotron (which was a great observation Tom (likely) stole from Old Man Murray's Erik, given that Erik said it first on a message board we both frequent(ed))."

My observations are my own, Bub. Most of us don't rip off other writers.

-Tom

Don't be so touchy Tom.

The fact remains that Erik wrote it first on the UF board. And since you were a member there at the time.... Anyway, I remembered his comparison and avoided using it. It probably sank into your head and popped up again, innocently, later. As I said, it certainly is an apt description. I really didn't mean to insult you here.

I mean c'mon Chick, we've had our scrapes but I hope you realize that I have far too much respect for you as a writer to seriously accuse you of something like stealing.

-Andrew

"I have far too much respect for you as a writer to seriously accuse you of something like stealing."

Ah, so your accusation that I stole a no-brainer comparison was a joke? Glad to hear it. Next time, you might want to try working a little humor into your jokes so they're recognizable as such. Barring that, perhaps you should stick to emoticons. Like this. :)

-Tom

"Then again, I did manage to get into the GOD lot saturday bash last year. Maybe they'll be doing that again, dunno."

I've heard that they will have the parking lot thing going again, but GOD's under a bit of a tighter money leash these days. I wouldn't be surprised if they ration the booze in some way to save money.

"I wonder if the booth babes in Kentia hall will be desperate for a date?"

For those of you who haven't had the fortune to attend an E3 show, Kentia Hall is the ghetto of E3. It's the cheapest floor space and it's way off from the main halls, so it doesn't get much traffic. All the tiny companies have booths there.

As you walk the deserted aisles of Kentia you have to be careful to not make eye contact with the desperate PR people manning the booths, lest you be sucked into a 15 minute spiel.

Robotron was a classic arcade game and is basically synonymous for frantic shoot-em-up action to many old-timers.

What is this so-called "ROBOTRON" thing you guys keep bringing up?

wumpus http://www.gamebasement.com

"What is this so-called "ROBOTRON" thing you guys keep bringing up?"

Just a little something I plagiarized...

-Tom

Kentia Hall if the fifth circle of hell, I believe. Never go in there with an exposed press badge... you will never return.

"Kentia Hall if the fifth circle of hell, I believe. Never go in there with an exposed press badge... you will never return."

But...but that's where you get all those freebie joysticks and peripherals on Saturday. (nevermind how you'll never use them and how you curse yourself for mooching them when you pack your bags later)

I thought Robotron was a commercial welder. See www.robotron.com (which will not link correctly for some reason).

---

Quote:

I thought Robotron was a commercial welder.

---

Actually-- if you guys are interested, there is a PS-to-USB adapter that works great with the Sony Dual shock (PS1 or PS2)-- and it plays like a champ with Robotron under MAME. One stick to move, one stick to fire.

It also works with any other PS1 or PS2 controllers of course, but I was surprised how well they mapped the analog controls. It's very nice, and beats the crap out of any PC gamepad I've used.

wumpus http://www.gamebasement.com

Ah, but who remembers the infamous "LLAMATRON?"

- Alan

Actually I do, that was pretty good. It won a Voodoo Extreme contest back when 3Dfx mattered.

-Andrew

Ahhh... Llamatron. The days of C64 indeed.

Hey, I got my press badge today. Since it says "Gamepen" on it, I wonder if I can dodge the Kentia dungeonkeepers by saying "Sorry, my sponsor is defunct."

Also, the issue here is NOT about Erik and Tom. In my opinion, Erik is the guilty party... Raise your hands if you remember when I came on the message board singing praises of "Some kickass croatian game"... Erik never did give me credit for tossing him a cluepon.

So... I sicced the Secret Service on his ass :-)

(Still scares me silly that I guessed right about that phone call... and makes me really wonder why they'd call ME to find HIM.)

"Kentia Hall if the fifth circle of hell, I believe. Never go in there with an exposed press badge... you will never return."

In my first E3, the first year it went back to LA, I booked an appointment in Kentia Hall.

Ugh.

So I made sure to avoid such things last year.

What do I do when I get more responsibilities and a spiffy new job title?

I book an appointment at Kentia for this year.

I did it mostly as a favor for a friend. That, and I'll wear the Exhibitor badge instead of the Press Badge, to foil the PR people. For I am Sneaky Scooty.

-Super Stealth Scoot

I will actually back wumpus up on that PS to PC adapter. I bought one after reading about it on his site and it is nice. I like the PS gamepad better than my Gravis gamepad as it will take more of a beating. Plus the dual analog sticks make games like Robtron and Crazy Climber a sinch to play.

I'm a real big fan of the Gravis dual shock. It has served me well with Tony Hawk and MAME (SmashTV baby!).

However... my next purchase is:
http://www.hanaho.com/products/HotRodJoystick/

I think it speaks for itself.

Speaking of SmashTV... Since I've played Serious Sam, I can't imagine a game more begging for a SmashTV conversion. Bring on Mr Shrapnel!

"Speaking of SmashTV... Since I've played Serious Sam, I can't imagine a game more begging for a SmashTV conversion. Bring on Mr Shrapnel!"

You'd like XCom Enforcer then.
It's even more like Gauntlet/SMASH/Robotron than Sam is.

I remember a 10 year old friend of mine (I was 10 too) who was convinced the game was called Robot Ron. Ah well.

-Andrew

I don't know about anybody else, but I think that it's pretty amazing how "real" Trevor has become, being someone who is, in Tom's own words, "largely fictional." I have found references to him dating back as far as July 2000 -- which, I would guess to be about when Fight Club came out, knowing what I do about Trevor.

Tom, I'm dying to know how much is fact and how much is fiction. Did you go to Sundance alone?

"Did you go to Sundance alone?"

Murph,

I didn't go alone, but the person I went with wasn't anything like Trevor. In fact, it was a she.

I'm flattered you'd ask about the fact/fiction distinction, so I'll just give you the basic kernel for the Trevor stuff.

There's an openly gay writer named Paul Rudnick who writes a column in Premiere magazine under the pseudonym Libby Gelner-Waxman. By writing as Libby, a happily married woman with a husband named Josh and a few children, Rudnick can talk at length about how cute guys like Mel Gibson are without alienating heterosexual readers. By hiding his voice in a fictional persona with whom his readers can easily identify, he makes it more palatable. It also helps that he's a really funny writer.

Rudnick's column wasn't a direct inspiration for Trevor, but I gradually realized I was doing the same sort of thing. Trevor really is me. You'll note "Tom Chick" doesn't appear in any of the Trevor columns. There's a nameless narrator (a la Fight Club) who happens to be a game reviewer, but he's not really me so much as Trevor is. So I can say all the geeky, dorky, insecure things I want as Trevor and still be removed from it. I think Trevor gains some measure of sympathy from the third person perspective, and I get more freedom of expression, even to say things I don't necessarily believe and recall stupid things I've done.

As for the things Trevor does, most of it is in some way or another related to something that really happened.

That's far too candid for my comfort, but there it is. I hope no one is reading this...

-Tom

Wow. I knew he was at least based on reality, and figured him to be in part based on you (simply because I'd inferred as much from some of your other posts), but didn't know how far it went. I knew he was fictional, but he was so intwined with events that I knew unless someone said/did some of the things he did, the column would have been drastically changed.

Sheer brilliance. I applaud your creativity, as well as your blatant honesty in this post. Thanks.

So, Tom, when's Trevor going to bring Shadow Watch to Shoot Club? =)

I'm genuinely shocked by your candor Tom, since I've known you you've always played things close to the vest. I mean vest literally. Tom has at least one vest. And he wears it. This must be an LA thing.

Anyway,
I'm also rather proud of my insight. This is exactly why I wrote in an earlier post: "Tom's character 'Tom' says to Tom's character 'Trevor'"

-Andrew

I had my suspicions about Trevor's true identity after I finally watched Fight Club about a month ago. I always wanted to ask you about it Tom, but I was afraid that finding out the truth might spoil the fun of the whole thing. I think I was wrong about that, and I too applaud your creativity, honesty and sense of humor.

If anyone here hasn't seen Fight Club, you should, just to make reading Shoot Club that much better. Personally, I thought the movie itself wasn't that great, but I'm glad I watched it.