gewgaw

Not too long ago, Souris snapped some great photos of her 5 year old cousin enjoying Katamari Damacy. My idea: print the series out, fold it up, and stash it in your wallet. That way, when people ask you about the game, you can just *show* them how it feels to play. So cute!!!

Seeing these photos made me want to play again – so I’ve been trying to get the largest bear on the Ursa level. Woah, is it hard! I am forever bumping into the medium sized “Bear Man” – the one with the balloons? I have a pretty good idea of how to get about large-bear sized… but the meta-game of avoiding cars becomes really difficult, and I get bonked! The worst is when the giant-bear-with-rocket-in-ass knocks me into some tiny toy bear. Thwarted! By bears!

I have to say – I think Jason is a smart guy, but he is soooo off base with that whole Pac-Man analogy. Thankfully this kind of slapdash review is not considered part of the new games journalism! Maybe when KD2 comes out, he’ll actually play the whole thing?

—

In the big picture sense, Souris’ post reminded me that it is *joyful* to play games – and I’ve been missing that. Not because I’m slogging through some bad game – but because I’ve been working so hard that I haven’t had any time to plug in (let alone clean my house or go grocery shopping). In fact – it’s gotten so bad that my therapist insisted I take a vacation day. “Tomorrow is your day. Spring clean, treat yourself to a nice dinner… anything you want. And then, GO TO BED EARLY. You need a break!”

Apparently, I am not alone. New research from the National Sleep Foundation (I love that – NSF!) indicates that we could ALL benefit from a little more shut-eye. Sleeping at the wheel, too pooped for sex – what are we? A nation of drones? At least we’re faithful. Sort of.

“There is no question, religion is becoming the new brand,” said Jane Buckingham, the president of Youth Intelligence, a trend-forecasting company. “To a generation of young people eager to have something to belong to, wearing a ‘Jesus Saves’ T-shirt, a skullcap or a cabala bracelet is a way of feeling both unique, a member of a specific culture or clan, and at the same time part of something much bigger.”

Hrm. Let’s don’t tell them about World of Warcraft, shall we? Check out one small clutch of WoWers here (also courtesy of Souris). An interesting (if short) piece that actually says quite a bit. I found the player descriptons of their characters especially interesting. Like it just *made sense* that that one dude was a rogue, you know?

Wouldn’t that be a fun study: side-by-side comparison of people and their WoW avatars! I wonder if they resemble each other – like dogs and their owners?

The other day I had a great chat with man-made-lion, Matt Toshlog. He’s thinking about working on a game desigin curriculum, so we were discussing the old IGDA committee stuff as well as current trends in game education. Then, predictably, we go to chewing the fat about design and the industry and so on.

The conversation touched upon a bunch of my post-GDC ‘big thoughts’ – as well as some things I’d been discussing with Darius and Mark about how game design is (or isn’t) taught these days. But I’m too busy to take on all of that so I’ll let Mark do some of the heavy lifting and focus on another topic: bitterness.

—

I admit that when I first posted Chris’ comments, I was being kind of lazy. I followed up with a few jokes and asides – but I didn’t really bother stating why I’d highlighted this bit of the dialog. Honestly – I was too tired.

So here’s me fessing: reading his words really gave me pause. First because… it’s… Chris – who has always been a huge source of inspiration (he is heavily quoted, for example, in the first chapter of my thesis). Second because he has always seemed so…. incredibly, inhumanly stubborn and focused – at times, despite his own best interest. Reading such a frank account of his doubts and struggles was just… a bit disarming.

But after the initial shock had faded, I realized that it all sounded familiar somehow.

I have not done the legwork on this yet (other things on the boiler guys, sorry) but I really believe that if you look across the disciplines and ages – you will find that this kind of feeling is a natural outgrowth of age. In fact – I’d go so far as to say that this kind of surrender is almost unavoidable when you’re doing creative/inspired/change-oriented work.

Ok, skip the mystics – they are a special case. But for most everyone else, I think this kind of realization is just par for the course. A healthy (if painful) letting go.

We’ve done a lot of talking about quality of life in the game development community over these last few years. And generally, when the experienced professionals stand up and speak – they have plenty to angst about. After a while, it can feel like there’s not a lot of positive energy left… and wonder “What’s the friggin point?”. Worse, it can feel like this angst is fundamental to our industry and impossible to decouple from the problems of game design…

What if it’s just part of the process of maturity – an artifact of age, a sign of wisdom and understanding? I’m not sure, but I bet we could get a little perspective on our angst, and in doing so – transform it into something really powerful.

—

Anyhow – I was (and still am) being pretty lazy about all this – but thankfully Jurie has taken up some of the slack. Not only has he offered some personal insight – he allows comments!

:)

• Exhibit A (via Matt)
• Exhibit B (via Robb)
• Exhibit C (via Brian)

On B… WTF???? This seems like a sign that McDonalds is really, truly doomed. Or on to something HUGE.

C will take an hour of your time, but it’s worth a listen – even if you don’t make or study games. A transcript can be found here but it has more impact over headphones (preferably in the dark). Extra impact if you’re working on a big project and feeling kind of overwhelmed by it all.

Yesterday was the first warm day here – 54, sunny and perfect for biking. Sadly – I’d left my bike shoes at the office… and at some point over the winter, lost a bike glove. So I took the train up to Evanston, but I went to the bike store to find some replacements.

I have been thinking a lot about buying a new bike – a road bike, for when I graduate and move to warmer climes (ha!). I’ve been drooling over some Specialized, Lightspeed, and Merlin frames… Way too much bike for me (especially that Merlin), but they sure are sexy!

I never thought I’d say this – but for me, bike porn works! I can spend an hour surfing around, just admiring. Afterward, I feel degraded (so much I should be doing) but relaxed. And then, I sleep.

Why didn’t I start doing this a year ago?

—

Of course the best thing to do when you’re considering a new cycling purchase (or trying to integrate one) is to ask the experts. But that isn’t always easy!

Me – I get all nervous and anxious at the bike store… kind of like I used to at record stores as a teenager. It’s that strange combination of tons of esoteric knowledge (bike mechanics!) and hot guys (bike mechanics!)… it just turns my mind to mush.

“Can I help you?”

“Uhhhh… IJUSTNEEDSOMENEWBIKEGLOVES.”

*cough*

“Um, ok. We’ve got some right…. here.”

*blink*

“Let me know if you have any questions.”

*blush*

I ended up trying on like 20 pair – which I’m sure looked really silly. After much deliberation (and sweating – Jesus, hot guy, go away!), I stayed with the Specialized Comp gloves because they have a great pad right over your ulna, designed to provide extra cushion and keep nerve pinch to a minimum. As a carpal-tunnel trooper, this matters to me a lot.

However, I switched from a women’s M to a men’s S… because the men’s came in red.

All my gear is white, black or red, see?

(matching bike gear makes you go faster)

–

After I’d paid for them, I did walk around the store a bit and check out the stock. Some of the 2004s were ok, but nothing really struck me. And even if it had – what then? It’s not like I can just *ask to see one*. I’d go into cardiac arrest!

All in all, not a big loss. I won’t invest till I rent a few – and even then, not till I’ve moved. That way I can start a healthy relationship with a new shop, right?

*gulp*

Although domestic bread-making techniques have changed very little over the centuries, the proportion of bread baked in the home has fallen off drastically. In England around 1800, most bread was still being baked in domestic or communal village ovens. But as the Industrial Revolution spread and more of the population moved to crowded city quarters, the bakeries took over an ever-increasing share of bread production. This trend did not go unnoticed, and was hotly challenged on economic, nutritional and even moral grounds. The English political journalist William Cobbett wrote in Cottage Economy (1821), a tract adressed to the working class, that it is reasonable to buy bread only in cities where space and fuel are in short supply. Otherwise,

“How wasteful, then, and indeed, how shameful, for a labourer’s wife to go to the baker’s shop; and how negligent, how criminally careless of the welfare of his family, must the laborurer be, who permits so scandalous a use of the proceeds of his labour!

Give me, for a beautiful sight, a neat and smart woman, heating her oven and setting in her bread! And, if the bustle does make the sign of labour glisten on her brow, where is the man that would not kiss that off, rather than lick the plaster from the cheek of a duchess?”

To quote the young jedi… “Oh, Snap!”

I suppose we have always been, on some level, a culture of strife… though it doesn’t make this any less painful to watch. Why are women so often at the center of these moral malestroms? Would a male vegetable (or servant) inspire such outrage and self-righteous bile?

Quote from The Origins and History of Bread in Harold McGee’s On Food and Cooking.

Yes, the years of failure have sapped my energy. I don’t have the energy to work 10 hours a day on it as I once did. I work for a few hours, then my mind wanders. It takes enormous discipline to sit down and force myself to continue working on a project that the entire world – my wife included – thinks an utter waste of time. I take no creative joy in my work, nor any optimism that it will ever produce the results I hope for. I work now out of towering stubborness, and out of desperate fear of the thought that my life’s work – and therefore my life itself – has been an utter waste of time. I’m like a shipwrecked sailor in a rubber dinghy thousands of miles from any possible rescue, stubbornly paddling forward because there’s nothing else to do but die.

I remain absolutely certain that interactive storytelling can and will be achieved. Many of the arguments I witness on the topic no longer excite my attention, as I have long answered most of those questions to my own satisfaction. First among these is the “plot versus interactivity” debate. I solved that problem 15 years ago, published the solution, and nobody seems to have noticed it. Fine. They’ll figure it out someday. There remain serious problems to be solved, but I no longer consider any of them to be killer problems. They are what physicists like to call “engineering details”.

So when others say that they are losing interest or getting discouraged, I can surely second that emotion. This is not an easy problem. It will not be solved by a few brilliant strokes of genius. It demands the solution of a number of gigantic problems. I believe that I have found one approach that solves those problems. I can see others making progress on very different strategies that seem promising. This is going to be a long, hard struggle. But make no mistake, someday we will plant our flag at the top of this mountain. If my role is to be the dead body holding down the accordion wire far below the summit, so be it.

Chris Crawford, on the feasibility and trauma of interactive narrative research, from Michael’s less-than-optimistic post-GDC commentary on Grand Text Auto.

Hrm. Maybe it’s a resource problem? IF/IN might do well with a few more leet haxxors. Or perhaps it’s time for a retreat? S’mores, singalongs… idea swapping and inspirational exercises… maybe some quality time with drums, dancing, a peace pipe and a talking stick?

Hey – you never know. Sure – it could be better… but, it could also be worse. Though, admittedly, not much worse than this.

I must say that Banksy has some yarbles!

4 of Banksy’s fine works were hung in 4 of NYC’s most prominant museums, by the artist himself (in disguise, of course).

“This historic occasion has less to do with finally being embraced by the fine art establishment and is more about the judicious use of a fake beard and some high strength glue.”

“They’re good enough to be in there, so I don’t see why I should wait.”



For more on Banksy see his excellent graffiti books.



(arty links galore, courtesy of DC!)

Glass beads in the shape of Katamari – $3 each, get ‘em here (thanks Souris)!

ps: congrats, Ludicorp!

As I reported yesterday, I’m sick. Sick, and fretting over deadlines… cruising through the day on coffee and decongestants, with water to compensate. If I were a robot, a random slice of today’s high-level trace would look something like this:

…
State:WIRED
plan task
begin task
>PEE!
resume task
>DRINK WATER!
finish task
choose task
begin task
>PEE!
resume task
finish task
State: DROWSY
>DRINK WATER!
>TAKE MEDS!
plan task
begin task
>PEE!
resume task
>DRINK WATER!
resume task
State:WIRED
finish task
>PEE!
…

I got home at 6:30 after an afternoon full of meetings. I’d intended to stay at the office but they took the CS servers down for maintainence, so there was no way to print, read email (or blog, even). Sadly, home was no better. Net has been flaking for days now – some crazy upgrade that has an indeterminate endpoint. Couldn’t ping anything at all – and was feeling incredibly beat – so I decided to crash and start fresh in the am.

Dream on! My sleep was fitful and freaked out – a reflection of the medicinal roller coaster I’ve been on these last few days. My dreams were full of equations and text from meetings and thesis, Excel charts and scatter plots. So now I’m up again. State: WIRED.

The good news is: my net is, too (thanks, RCN guy)! And in its vast, wonderful depths, I found this great page on bubble charts which helped solve my problem (unlike Excel help, which is beyond ass). The bad news is: I’m totally hacking it, feeding the third parameter in manually. Anyone have a VB or Excel script handy that scales a bubble based on the number of samples at a given point, given two sets of variables?

Lemme know. I gotta pee!

Remember how I said I’d avoided getting a cold at GDC?

I was wrong.

: (

Remember that crazy moving LED sign at Sony’s E3 2002 booth? Now you can use the same technology to anthropomorphize your dog (thanks Ian!).

Just picture it: the dog devouring a postman’s pantleg, while his tail flashes “I missed you!”

I suppose it wouldn’t be untrue….

… to freak the fuck out!

Lucas sez:

“Check out the second spot under Namco!”

Woot! Woot! More here.

Also….

Souris has posted some fly photos from GDC …

…and the world’s best birthday party!

Rock!

and finally…

This game/idea is kind of cool, but also kind of broken.

Inquiring Robin wants to know: Why do artistic endeavors in this area always have such bad feedback? With just a few more hints.. I might have stayed immersed in that place, and kept playing. I wanted to – if mostly for the music. So much ambiance comes from sound!

PS: I listen to that record almost every time I fly in a plane.

Do you own it? You should. It is heavenly.

While the rest of us were busy stomping around SF and attending the GDC, Jurie went to the Miyazaki Moebius expo in Paris and saw Howl’s Moving Castle.

*jealousy*

Also – Ron has a great piece up on GrumpyGamer about the role of marketing when it comes to indie game distribution. I remember those early Humongous games. My old grad school pal Ben is working there now – partly because of the games (which inspired him)… but mostly because of that marketing cash (which, in the long run, helped pay him).

Cash rules everything around me,
C.R.E.A.M.
Get the mo-ney,
Dollar dollar bills, y’all.

Been inside all weekend working on this paper. For some reason I just can’t get it right. I’m slow with ideas, and revising quite a bit. Distracted, or tired – maybe both?

Inspired by Mark’s recent post I decided to take a walk to the grocery store (at midnight) to clear my head. I had all the fixin’s for a burrito – except cheese. Pretty good excuse…

And you know what? I discovered something! My Katamari cap is the perfect late-night shopping disguise. Everyone stares – but no one cat-calls or begs change! It’s like a really goofy looking, super-obvious cloak of invisibility.

If only I had these to go with it!

Yesterday, I woke up late. I’m still on California time, and when my alarm went off, I jumped out of bed… convinced I had some appointment or interview to attend, shaking like the White Rabbit. But I was home, and it was sunny, and Sabine was cuddled up next to me. Relief!

I took a long shower, luxuriating in my own space. I fed the fish (the babies are growing up, and the white fish is rapidly approaching 10 inches). Then, I checked the snail mail for birthday cards!!! Nama’s was in a trademark sticker-encrusted envelope, and inside was a photo!! Surly but so cute – smiling for the camera at Sears. Such a great present.

Paul gave me a ride to work. I spent some time walking across town and watching the students (on break – and so happy!). Drank a nice cup of coffee and chatted with some people about various projects, wrote Keita a thank-you note, caught up on some email. And then, before I could blink, it was 9pm and I needed to go home. Woosh!

I guess after 3 weeks of nonstop activity, my brain needed to take a field trip.

—

I arrived at the train station just in time to hear the tracks rumble overhead. Had to put money on my card – then, nothing to do but hurry up and wait. A group of giggling, rag-tag high school punks stumbled onto the platform. Entertainment!

I plugged in my headphones, watching with great interest as they danced and laughed all around each other like a tiny circus. Remember when you were that way – so full of hormones that you couldn’t even sit still? And the eyeshadow! The tights! The creepers!!! It was like looking back in time at myself.

Eventually, one of them gestured at me, falling all over herself with smug nervousness. I unplugged my earphones.

“Excuse me. Do you know what a… a… normalist is?” (giggling)

“Hrm. Not sure. I … can guess?”

“Ok. Guess!” (more giggling)

“Well – with “ist” as a suffix, that would mean.. someone who is a fan of normal.”

“Oh – so.. Wait!! He said he was a normalist so that means..”

“Yeah… probably not a fan of bored, suburban teen punks such as yourselves.”

“Ha! She called us PUNKS! Oh my Gawd! Ha Ha Ha!” (much laughter and giggling)

They were an interesting bunch of kids – probably drowning in ETHS which has a student body larger than the undergraduate population at U of C. One self-identified as a graffiti writer – he studies Japanese. I asked his friend if he studied a language, and one of the girls snorted. “He’s Gay!!” Apparently, he wants to organize parties for rich people and celebrities when he grows up. We discussed this, and then, his jacket. It was from Urban Outfitters.

The girls were like drunken giraffes – colorful and shockingly uncoordinated. Two of them were fairly chesty and trying hard to manage this new information (lots of layers, patterns that didn’t quite match, fishnets and big shoes). The third was more of a waif, rocking an incredibly short skirt (white denim!!), studded hardware and godzilla eyeliner.

And they really examined me – asking all sorts of questions, complimenting me on dye job and screaming out loud at my “feminist tattoo”. Partly I think they wanted something to poke at – something to talk about with each other later. But they were also a bit surprised, I think, to meet a non-normalist like me.

32 going on 14! And how!

As we rode south, the fancy lad pressed my arm, shyly. “Were you like us when you were younger?” I nodded, and explained that I’d been a bit more of a goth. He wanted to know what made me change. “I don’t know that I have. Besides the makeup, that is. It was such a pain!”

Their stop came, and they tripped out of the traincar – laughing and waving. Alone with a paper-thin cast of evening commuters, I searched the car for a glimpse of something bright. Trio of sorority girls in matching flares and mini bags… exhausted resturant workers nodding off in time to the train’s shuffle… a few drunks and late-night singles with briefcases. Slim pickings.

But man, it sure made me appreciate my youth!

Time to check in on my favorite little guy!

• I’ve posted a small set of GDC photos (Design Workshop pix TBD) which feature Keita accepting his award and giving his talk…
• Geek on Stun has a waaay cool writeup and link to the ImpressGameWatch pix. I summarized the talk in English here using said pix.
• Resident nerd-chic genius Blackbelt Jones pointed me to Momus’ recent post on katamari and superflatness…
• Local reader Espelina notes that the new issue of Gamer’s Quarter has an article on KD and consumerism (previous issue had a KD cover!)…
• This blogger links KD to “fractal business issues”…
• Last but not least (sorry – couldn’t help it)… our green man was recently spotted playing with the prince of peace. Best comment: “I wonder which of the Apostles you can pick up first once the Katamari has finished with the dishes… “

3 weeks away is a long time. Especially when you spend most of that time thinking about moving to a new place and starting over again. Flying in to Chicago, riding in the cab to my house, unpacking my things – I almost felt like a visitor. Soon, this will be where I *used* to live.

After putting away all my clothes and shoes (8 pairs – and I wore all but 1!!) I went to the kitchen. Hardly much to eat – just some bad leftovers, salami and bread. I put the bread in the toaster, ate a few slices of salami and started to clear out the leftovers. Then I got rid of some ancient condiments: pickled ginger from 2 years ago, 1/10 a bottle of capers, mysterious sauces from the Asian grocery… old jams, curry pastes and salsa… spicy bean dip (March 04!) , half a bottle of chardonnay, tired garlic cloves. For a long time I’ve been telling myself these things would come in handy… but now that seems silly. Why didn’t I get rid of them sooner?

I cast an eye about the kitchen. Microwave, toaster, pans, dishes… spices, plants, fighting fish in a bowl. How much of this crap am I gonna take with me? Chances are, Paul will stay here and get a subletter for the summer while he’s at Mitre. I have a feeling that they’ll be using a lot of my old stuff.

It is hard to imagine a time when I cared about matching napkins to placemats or setting the table for 12. I remember huge dinner parties, years with live-in boyfriends, homemaking. But it’s a distant memory, and I find it hard to really *care* much about the stuff I’ve collected in this last decade or so. Like shedding a skin, I guess.

What will I take with me? Books, video and board games, CDs (tho I’m tempted to rip and ditch them), art, knick-nacks… shoes, clothes… bedding? I could probably just leave most of my room here too – take a few pillows, my favorite chair… and be done with it. Even the plants and fish seem like part of this place – better left behind.

Honestly, what I missed most was Sabine. I came in to get ready for bed, and she curled up with me… purring and licking my fingers as I pet her. I didn’t think about her much when I was away, but it was so nice to feel her soft belly and prickly teeth… play with her padded feet and whiskers. I’d forgotten just how much I enjoy that.

This year’s GDC was full of emotional moments for me.

It was my last year as a “student” and my first year as a mentor. I saw presentations that made me cry, giggle, and sigh with appreciation. I helped organize several large events, met up with old friends, and read from a teleprompter for the first time ever. It’s been 5 years since my first GDC and for the life of me I can’t remember how I got on without it!

The industry is not without its problems. Innovation is hard and creativity is often ditched in favor of predictable schedules and (hopefully reliable) sales. Women were still about 1 in 10 – a fact that became especially obvious at late-night hobnob gatherings. Several of my favorite game jammers had to bail in favor of milestones – and many who did show up were tired from overwork (including yours truly).

But there were a lot of highlights, too. Seeing people stump for autographs after Keita won his awards… introducing him to designer after designer and hearing them say “I love your game!” – that made me so happy. I think back to that moment at TGS when I first saw kids lining up to play it… this crazy demo with so many crude-poly objects. It was a curiosity! Now, it’s a symbol. From TGS to EGW to E3 to EB… in small but special way, I helped bring a meme to life.

At this year’s EGW, the stealth hit was definitely Rag Doll Kung Fu. Minutes after Mark’s presentation, the Valve guys were at the stage, wooing him. At my birthday party he grinned thickly and shouted over the music. “I leave for Seattle tomorrow!”

To borrow his phrase, that’s bloody cool. Each of us has the power to make games better. Each of us can contribute – designing and building games, helping distribute them, talking them up to friends (or on a blog). One game at a time, we shape the future of this medium.

Researcher, developer, ranter or fan… grant me this birthday wish: Focus some of your energy and attention on experiemental games. Run it like a little program in the background – a SETI search for innovation. If you’ve got the cycles to complain, you can spare a few to explore, expand and evangelize.

Really! It can’t hurt – and it just might make a difference.

Ian and I both really dig comics. Over the years, we have spent quite a bit of time talking about the medium, and how it expresses narrative concepts. While I’ve spent most of my money on independent comics and local artists (Chris Ware being the favorite), he’s invested in manga and anime from Japan.

While they are often emotionally raw to the point of absurdity, I have a thing for post-apocalyptic, sci-fi anime (Neon Genesis Evangelion, Ghost in the Shell, Akira and so on). Their frantic, operatic plots (focused on post-humanism, interpersonal alienation, robotics and artificial intelligence) really get to my inner goth. Same as with cheesey but mesmerizing horror-genre games.

This comic (from the Serial Experiments Lain universe) is an especially good example. Even for those of you unfamiliar with the backstory – I bet it’s pretty creepy. On the opposite side of creepy – new photos of my favorite girl, Clementine, are here. Thanks to Checker and Jen for all their hard work on IGJ, and the post-GDC party!

My birthday is coming up this Tuesday, on the Ides of March! Because I’ve been in school so long, I rarely have a proper “party” (exams are right around the same time). In the past, I’ve made birthday trips to the House on the Rock in lovely southern Wisconsin – taking advantage of their free entry policy for birthday visitors.

But this year I ended up out here in the bay, so Lulu (check out that invite!) and Souris combined forces to throw a fabulous post-GDC bash that celebrated, among other things, my birthday. I don’t have all the photos yet, but I’ve posted just a few so that everyone can appreciate Souris’ amazing skills as a cake decorator. Holy crap, you should have heard me scream!

In addition to the amazing cake, Freezepop played a live set in the living room. I think it’s safe to say that they made video game history by playing live to their own level in Harmonix’s Amplitude – starting over when the player “died” and everything! When “You Win!” flashed on the screen (third time’s the charm), the whole crowd shouted and clapped to celebrate a collective victory. It was truly awesome.

Muchas gracias to all the wonderful people who made the party happen – and to all the great people who showed up to dance and laugh and play. I can hardly wait till next year!!

It’s official: I survived GDC ‘05!

The jam, design workshop and EGW all went pretty well. I didn’t mess up my lines when presenting during the Choice Awards (Technology and Visual Arts) and I met a ton of new, interesting people (no, I didn’t win a Microsoft TV). However:

• Keita’s talk was excellent… humble, honest, and thought-provoking. He was worried no one would show up (it was early) – and ended up with a standing ovation!
  
  
• Spore was (finally) officially announced. The talk was by far my conference highlight (and that’s saying a lot, given that Keita spoke). I’m looking forward to the dialog this creates re: development process and design constraints. Congrats guys – it really did look beautiful!
  
  
• Clint was robbed. I loved the idea of a Emily AI who haunts USB memory sticks, but it was Clint’s vision of her works and inspirations that really moved me. Someone (CMU kids – I’m looking at you) should build that game.

Other than these three points, I’m not sure what to say. I’m totally sleep deprived – averaged 5 hours a night. I think I’ve managed to avoid catching a cold – but my feet, legs and back are fried. In 5 years, I feel like I’ll need a walker by the end of the week.

I’ll be thinking a bit about the overall conference experience, posting pictures and so on over the next couple of weeks. The big takeaways this year were deep, and I think they’ll take a bit of time to unravel. But hopefully it will lead to some good ideas for everyone who attended.

But first things first. I need a nap!

*snore*