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JOE HARMON
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"Ender Quartet is one of my all-time favorite works of fiction. When I found out about Card's reactionary political beliefs and bigotry toward homosexuals, I was disappointed. However, at the end of the day, an artist's personal beliefs can, and in my opinion should be separated from their art. I still hold Ender's Game and Speaker for the Dead among my favorite novels, and I don't see any reason to pretend I wasn't moved by these works simply because their author is a homophobe.
The same holds true for Shadow Complex. I haven't read Empire, and don't intend to, as the subject doesn't interest me. I'm not aware, however, of any overtly bigoted themes in the novel, or in Shadow Complex. I will judge SC on it's story, gameplay, music, art design and overall atmosphere...not on the political and social beliefs of those artists involved in it's development. If those beliefs shine through in the criteria I just mentioned, then obviously they will influence my enjoyment of the game. Otherwise, I see no problem in enjoying a work of art for what it is, and engaging the artist (or artists) in debate and discussion directly if I have some problem with them perso"
Sunday, August 23, 2009
"Alex,
Sounds to me like you're writing music already. These compositions are very cool.
The best way to start teaching yourself how to write music is to find an instrument, any instrument, on which to write. It can be a guitar, a piano, a trumpet, a violin...whatever you like. You don't need to master it, you just need to be able to play it enough to get basic song ideas across, to get them out of your head and into the real world where you can hear and adjust them.
It seems you've found your instrument for that in the KORG DS-10, but if you begin to find it limiting, try a cheap keyboard/syth (if electronic music is the direction you want to go).
It's a good idea to get some kind of recording equipment as well. This can be anything from a basic tape recorder to a MacBook laptop with Garadge Band or Logic installed...whatever fits your budget. This will allow you to record any song idea you may have rattling around in your head on the fly. When I'm at work or away from home and I get an idea I don't want to forget, I sometimes even hum it into my voicemail on my phone. The more you do this, the more you'll accumulate little pieces of songs that you can work with later, putting ideas together to form more complex music.
There are plenty of books released every year from various people in and around the music industry teaching beginner songwriting and the like, and one of them may help as well. Just go to your local bookstore and look through their music section.
If you have the time and money, or if you're in school already, take a Music Theory 101 class at a local community college. These classes are very basic, so it really doesn't matter what school you choose (so choose the cheapest one that best fits your schedule). Having a better understanding of the basic structure of music is something that you'll benefit from in 1000 little ways down the line without even really realizing it.
Most of this stuff you're already doing on some level. & honestly, you seem to be doing fine, I really like the songs you've posted so far. Just keep working at it, because the more you get used to writing music, the more you start to get new ideas for songs, even when you're not focusing on it. It becomes a natural part of your day, and you'll start to catch yourself more and more often humming a melody or playing an idea in your head over and over.
Keep at it Alex"
Monday, July 20, 2009
"d idea, I hope you do this once a week or so, as I only ever really have time to check the front page on wee"
Monday, June 22, 2009
"lexei: Wow that's funny!!! Well done.
@ Jay: I think a working relationship is a pipe dream, but I'd welcome a more cordial, mutual respect type of relationship between the 2 companies...rather than the juvenile, snide comments they've exchanged over the y"
Thursday, June 04, 2009
"word on whether or not Camelot has any involvement in Golden Sun DS?
The Golden Sun games contain some of the most brilliant dungeon design in gaming history, but if Nintendo is developing this one in-house, without Camelot's help, I'm skeptical it will live up to my expectations. To be fair, my expectations are extremely high regardless, as those (first) 2 games (which are really one long, expertly crafted RPG) are the most underrated, overlooked RPGs of all time in my opinion, and I'd given up hope they'd ever be revi"
Tuesday, June 02, 2009
", I'm much more impressed with Natal than I thought I'd be, especially after the Lionhead video. This is going to evolve not just the way we play games, but the way we interact with media in general. Very cool.
Now, does it wor"
Monday, June 01, 2009
"the shoe fits"...
Dan, the first issue of EGM I ever read was the 100 best (and 25 worst) games of all time issue, and I subscribed the next day. From the clever (and often hilarious) writing, to the personalized tone of the coverage, to the credibility and sincerity of the reviews (reinforced by your editors notes, which often spoke of how other magazines would trade exclusivity for review scores and whatnot, something you vowed to never allow)...your work at that magazine commanded a trust from its readers that to this day has no equals in the business. When you left and Mielke took over, that credibility and trust were maintained to a large extent, but the magazine as a whole never felt the same.
I sincerely hope you are considering working, in some capacity, for this new generation of EGM. Your voice and direction were a large part of what made me love that mag"
Saturday, May 30, 2009
"e,"
Friday, May 29, 2009
"background blur is excessive, and there's very little detail in some of the textures (like the black car). Good lighting effects and very good motion capture. The voices don't match the characters very well, and the dialog sucks...and no, I'm not just trying to scare you with my big talk...it really sucks. Also, they use the exact same sound effect (a grunt) when he climbs out of the car and when he jumps off.
Not very impressive, but I enjoyed Indigo Prophesy, and I respect David Cage as an artist enough to at least check i"
Friday, May 22, 2009
"what were the topics discussed, and will any of them (those that proved more interesting) be revisited in later p-"
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
p.s. On a more personal note, I'm sorry to read of the break up, I miss CutScene. I hope all is well with the both of you."