This trip was me going solo, but as you’ll read there were a number of friends I know from various parts of my life I would spend time with. I had the flexibility to be alone or not to be alone. What follows is part review, part personal reflection, of the places I visited.

This first one focuses on the first Meow Wolf installation, but in this series I’ll cover the second installation, Omega Mart, in Las Vegas. I’ll also cover some other attractions I experienced in further posts.

Albuquerque + Santa Fe, NM

I started my trip with the first permeant Meow Wolf installation in Santa Fe, “The House of Eternal Return”. While Santa Fe has its own airport, the costs would add +$400 to get there one way. I landed in Albuquerque to rent a car. I looked for more things to add to my itinerary, but there really wasn’t anything that piqued enough interest to add an additional day to my time there.

With every effort to rent a Mustang Mach-E, the electric car I drive at home, the Budget/Avis was incapable of understanding how to fulfill an EV rental. They were understandably preoccupied with a very creepy customer, which I also had to state boundaries with for being too close to me while at the desk. But in the end, I was told my car was a EV Kia, but it was actually a combustion engine KIA Sportage. At that point I gave up and took the loss.

The drive was an hour from the car rental center to the Courtyard Santa Fe, located less than five minutes from Meow Wolf itself. I choose Marriott/Bonvoy in part to maintain my gold status with late checkout, but also taking advantage of a close friend’s discount for friends. Sometimes this discount is the same or worse than AAA, but this trip that discount was very significant. I don’t have much to say about the hotel, which is not a negative! It did the job and nothing special.

Downtown Santa Fe

After settling in, I decided to drive to downtown and find dinner. For a Friday at 7pm, there were a lot of places closed for the day with few choices to make. This is a sanctioned tourist theme park of Santa Fe with so few things to do.

The pueblo revival-style felt more of a prop to a tourist area than serving an area’s current culture. Even though it’s construction may originally be for the community, it certainly isn’t now. Made me feel more of an outsider as this place was built for me to be an outsider, rather than experiencing the local culture. Especially with the clean and expensive pick-up truck blaring country-pop music while driving around.

I did manage to find a decent place to eat: Plaza Cafe Downtown. They had patio seating looking out to the park that marks as the symbolic center of town. After completing my role as tourist and posting my food, an old Boston friend sends me a message — reminding me that she has moved to Santa Fe! I knew this, but totally forgot about the move. *facepalm*

After dinner I walked around a little to see some of the state capital buildings, including this remarkable state supreme court building. There were also a few more places for dinner I would have gone had I known they existed and were opened, but I still stand by that the downtown closes down after 5pm. Having walked back to the car, I drove hope to the hotel to turn in for the night.

The next morning I first drove to Dutch Bros, a drive-in only coffee shop chain. I was the only one in line so I chatted with the order taker about my trip, my love for Dutch Bros, and how rare the treat it is. She kindly waived my coffee and I only needed to pay for the muffin top.

I then drove the three minutes to Meow Wolf’s parking lot about 30 minutes before open. I sat under the Robot statue to drink and eat. During which it dawned on me that I forgot my headphones! I use them to filter out the crowds when I want to feel like I’m exploring alone. Thankfully the hotel was 4 minutes drive, so I left and came back quickly.

When I came back, my friend was walking across the parking lot from a different cafe! After my time at Meow Wolf and resting in my hotel room, we hung out for the evening to catch up, but I’m getting ahead of myself…

Meow Wolf: The House of Eternal Return

The House of Eternal Return opened in 2016, a year after my experience with The Latitude and the early days of The Rathskeller — the venue I helped run until 2021. Meow Wolf to me is the success story I wanted for The Rathskeller or the evolution there of. Not carbon copy of what the House is, but an experience that people would travel exclusively for. Needless to say, this visit for me has a lot of emotions.

To get the high level out of the way: This place is special in my heart now that I experienced the space. There are problems I have with the space that are both lessons that should have been learned before it’s creation and lessons we now learned because of this space. I highlight these as both warnings and encouragement for better spaces. When I cover Omega Mart, you’ll see how some of these were learned while others not.

Before the Threshold

While I entered soon after showing my pass, I’d like to get the lobby out of the way. 

I bought “Portal Pass Supremium” online before travel. This is the top tier annual pass sold at a discount and valid for all Meow Wolf installations. The pricing being less than two visits between House and OmegaMart and includes discounted food, merch, and guest tickets. Very cost effective for me doing two locations in quick order. I still needed to place an order for a ticket with a timed entry, but with my login status the cost is zeroed.

Lining up had a crowd making entry a little slower, but less than 10 minutes. Entering the space was a lobby that was colorful, but not *the show*. The ticket counter, the store, cafe, and a long hallway to the only (but sizable) restrooms of the building. There’s also a separate meeting space for smaller events. During my visit was a cat adoption program, which ended early due to all cats getting adopted.

There is no re-entry to the space with your ticket, but that line is set to exiting the building. You can pop in and out of the installation and stay indoors. Which would be fine, except the cafe does not offer a meal for you to enjoy; only drinks and snacks. Which is frustrating with food truck(s) waiting outside.

Having the outside space but not voiding your access is greatly appreciated, especially as I spent a total of 6 hours. Not only for having restrooms elsewhere to uncomplicated the space, but taking a break and reenter with fresh eyes.

Act 1: The House

When approaching the entrance to the installation, a TV screen runs on loop positioning you with your role and the context of where you will start. For my visit, the audio was not loud enough to hear, relying only on the closed captions. Other guests passed me as I wanted to watch the full loop.

When the loop completed, I turned around to see “The Historian” character telling me to look in the mailbox for a message and to “Power On”. I know when the talent is clocking me as A Player. We will return to The Historian in a bit.

The House of Eternal Return is as close to a real-life Myst we have, for now. The House is not derivative of Myst, but rhymes with environmental storytelling through journals and set pieces. There is no stronger moment that I waited too long to visit this space than when I tool the above selfie. I felt welcomed as a guest in this space, as if the experience was a home for me. Not in the sense of living there or explicitly for myself; this is a space built for someone like me.

This is a different feeling than in a space I do artistic work in, like the Rathskeller was. Different than my connection to Disneyland Resort as both a guest and still aspiring to be one of the very many who place a mark. There are notes for Meow Wolf to make the installations welcoming to guests, but not a need to *contribute* directly to the Meow Wolf organization. My needs for Meow Wolf are to be something I visit to contrast to.

I do have aspirations for being part of a space like this. Even the structure of base plot and Act 1 space, providing the platform for other artists to expand. But my goals for a such an experience is too much contrast to Meow Wolf the organization. If my path were to make such an experience, the comparison would be “Meow Wolf but _____”. Expansive to something different and new, not derivative.

All of this [mostly] flashing in my brain, I finally checked the mailbox for intro storytelling for placemaking. Then entered the house.

A Puzzle, Almost

I won’t go too much into The Story, but I’ll play it safe in say these are spoilers.

The house and a “shed” location amount to 10 distinct scenes comprising of what I call “Act 1”. The living space for a family in Mendocino County; about 4 hours drive north from where I live in SF. Between these rooms, you get the story of a family of four, plus grandpa and uncle. Around the space there are three looping video screens, an interactive computer, and a device that will reveal audio recordings. The rest of the storytelling is classic environmental reveals and reading materials.

I utilized the Meow Wolf app with all features active, allowing you to read or view key elements of video and reading materials for after you leave the space. Which is a good balance of not feeling FOMO with the materials. However, it’s not a complete record and there’s no other way to tell what is or isn’t included in the app without looking if unlocked.

That app gives push notifications when entering certain rooms. Little nudges of the context of the room and giving trailheads for certain puzzle lines. A connection of other reading material to literally unlock a safe. This is the kind of gameplay I live for and was hoping to have more of these little moment to reveal other aspects of the piece. But sadly I didn’t discover much else to be revealed. The Shed had a computer and an audio puzzle, but the queue waiting for these single devices made the experience off limits for most. They just seemed to be too much to go into for one entry point.

Between pouring over the materials both in the space, through the app, along with an in-universe book they sell at the gift shop, there’s a rich story about each member of the family of this house. This works on different levels of engagement. From the surface “family gets disappeared when device goes wrong” MacGuffin of the whole experience, to the more nuanced structure of events for anyone paying attention, to the deep interpersonal relationships between the characters and what lead to the demise. If you seek a story, there’s a story to be told.

But I wished for more time to play in the game. Making connections and physical revelations in the space. There is a search for the different iterations of a hamster named “Nimsesku”, but it is literally the easter egg hunt.

Act 2: The Vibes

Once you venture out into a portal to a dimension outside the house, The Game is effectively done and it’s all just vibes. There are nods to certain experiences in the house that reference the rest of the space. There’s some screens that fill in different backstory about what influences the family. Finding the details of the story elements effectively ends once outside the house. You can always reenter any of the spaces at your leisure, but playing The Game is confined within spaces of the House.

The spaces you do visit are special in their own ways with a beauty in their own unique way. To many to list out all at once, but each having their own unique spin and never felt repeated. To my knowledgable eye, I experienced these spaces as first steps in building their empire. Some more effective than others, but all making bold choices to try out something wonderful.

Which of these spaces will hit for you will be different from others, but when you let yourself sit in a space, some hit harder than most.

A Personal Reflection

At one point I turned a corner, saw the pictured hallway, and stopped dead in my tracks. I know that neither copied each other, but I hope you can see the similarities between the Rathskeller’s entrance room. That’s when my emotions hit hard. For all the years working in the San Francisco immersive art scene, Meow Wolf was this goal of success to aspire to. Not to carbon copy the corporation, but to have a space worth traveling just to experience.

I miss having an immersive venue to do experiences in.

From that point on and for the rest of the trip, there was a bit of melancholy in both enjoying this work I was experiencing, but not knowing how to position myself to make immersive works again.

Entertainment / “Streetmosphere” Performers

On my visit, there were a total of four performers roaming the installation. Of which only one I had significant interactions with: The Historian.

As alluded to earlier, I was introduced to him before walking into the space proper. As I was visiting alone that day, he was the occasional anchor and only personality I could connect with in an otherwise crowded but narratively solitary space. While I didn’t have much time with him as a character, I did get enough encouragement to direct my attain in the right places. I also had a 1:1 interaction that was so good, I broke 4th wall to compliment his work.

Show Issues

There is one aspect that I found a jarring: The incomplete preservation of show elements. This goes beyond the general ware and tare of a highly busy space, though maintenance must always be priority for a physically engaging experience; as with any themed experience.

The House was a great example of good show. The paper goods will always be in some form of disarray due to guests, and the use of laminated and other longer lasting materials do falter away the lived spaces, but none of these are deal breakers. Everything felt apart of the space, including the weirdness of transitioning between the different dimensions.

Once you venture to Act 2, the adherence of show starts to break at some of the seams. My major complaint: Video projectors in plain view; wrecking sightline in small spaces. When I’m see a solid white box in an otherwise dark room, you sacrificed good show to not make a better solution. That visual quality is the whole point of the experience, and there are points where you’re let down.

The accessibility issues…

The House of Eternal Return is inaccessible unless you’re able bodied.

Stairs are the least of your worries. Spaces that are short stepped stairs, physically tight to move around, and a host of other issues that make the space rather challenging. There were some spaces I didn’t bother to venture as I was afraid of running into small children, if not completely biffing down a flight of “stairs”.

While technically you can navigate some of the major beats in a wheelchair, there’s large vast sections that are just a no-go if you’re not able to take stairs on your own.

Yes, but did you like it?

Absolutely!

I was nine years late in experiencing The House of Eternal Return, but at least now I have made the longing to visit a reality. I had a bit of background walking into the space, including conversations with various folks in Meow Wolf through the years and their eventual separation from the company. But all of the aspects together, this space is important to the immersive art scene and delivers something special to all visitors who are able to make the journey.

Ultimately The House was the start of an era of immersive where themed experiences could be made by groups that aren’t Disney or Universal. A mix of technology being cheaper and more powerful and a broader understanding of narrative storytelling with environments. But as you’ll read in the next chapter, this piece broke ground and made new lessons to learn in this art form.

For the longest time I had this thought it was blocked off because… fandom. And the 24-hour staffed gate at the parking lot. After a few times in the area with folks and not knowing how to get to the Yoda statue, I decided for my exercise last Sunday to go and figure it out.

In full honestly, I feel strange having any presence in the shadow of LucasFilm for working for the once removed cousin. Working at Telltale was working in the shadow of LucasArts (the gaming division) for all its strengths and all the weaknesses. I guess I don’t really know how to approach the space as not a fan, not a former employee, but also a distant part of the LucasArts story. Like Pixar formally the “Computer Division” of LucasFilm. But no one talks or documents the history of LucasArts.

That said, the only thing that signals the space as the home of the LucasFilm empire is that Yoda statue. Great pains are taken to insure the space isn’t obvious that the Star Wars and other works of media happens here. Not even viewing the office windows.

There are two non-Yoda statutes at the park. The “father of cinema” Edward James Mubridge and the inventor of television Philo Farnsworth. An obvious nod of appreciation to the forms of media that built the Lucas empire.

What strikes me is “father of video games” Ralph Baer is not immortalized. Which says a lot about how diminished video games are as a form of media and how LucasFilm, who paid for and maintains that space, sees interactive entertainment.

Or perhaps video games as a whole just aren’t as important in media after all.

The park is a very beautiful space. Wish I had known during lockdowns. During that time, I would go to the Main Parade Lawn near the Walt Disney Family Museum to be outside and away from the house. Construction for at Presidio Tunnel Tops was still underway, so this would have been a great spot without the construction.

That said: Tunnel Tops park is now absolutely breathtaking.

Having a background in both video game development and immersive experience design, I wanted to share thoughts on Nintendo’s first collaboration and venture into themed entertainment. The creator of Mario, Shigeru Miyamoto, and the team made some bold choices in themed entertainment that have great heart. These ideals are hit the reality of theme park operations with little accommodation to the reality. While I do think these ideals can still be achieved, as presented it presents bottlenecks.

I made the “North America” distinction as this is not the first Super Nintendo to open. Almost two years prior, Universal Studios Japan opened the first land and offers more than the Hollywood counterpart. I don’t want to get into comparing between the two as I haven’t been to Japan. Though I wish I could ride a Yoshi and the Donkey Kong expansion won’t join the Hollywood park.

We purchased the “Early Access” pass for $25/each on top of the park ticket. This allowed us access an hour before regular park open to enter the land. It also gave us “Universal Access” to the Studio Tour until 11am. Nothing against the tour, but this benefit is not useful for that timeframe. We also returned in the evening using the Virtual Line.

Seg’s Take

The greatest upset of Super Nintendo World centers around the same design style Miyamoto developed over 40 years not completely adjusting to a densely populated theme park.

All of Miyamoto’s work is based on exploration and discovery. By exploration and experimentation, you explore and discover experiences and learn how to play the game. An achievable goal for a theme park and what gives SNW it’s wonderful charm and great experiences.

The numbers the land technically supports is not what the land was designed for. When operations fills the land to fire capacity, the land is a sea of people with no room to explore the land and no place to wait. It’s a fault of Universal Creative that these problems are only poorly patched with an “early access” ticket and not fundamentally guiding the design of the land to accommodate for crowds while maintaining at least some of the charm. I don’t want to dismiss the land wholesale because of the capacity issues, but it’s impossible to separate the inability to enjoy the land past 10am for the foreseeable future.

I do recommend the experience of the land with at least one Power-Up Band per four members in your party. While it’s regrettable that half of the land’s experience is gated with physical DLC, one $40 band per party is doable.

The Details

I moved my conclusion up to the top to get to the point. Read on for my detailed analysis.

The Power-Up Bands

Before my proper visit to Nintendo, I picked up my season pass and the wristbands. They are intertwined with the land, so a general review of the $40 + tax bands and their use will come up in every aspect of the land and it’s activities.

The Fit / The Look

They’re slap bracelets! There’s a bit of finesse to adjust the band to your wrist AND keep it on. For my adult arms, I found the right fit that kept the band on, albeit with my long sleeve hoodie over it. It’s a large bulge with the NFC ‘watch face’, but I wasn’t bothered while at SNW as it was an active tool. Once outside the land, I put it in my bag for safe keeping.

There are six characters to choose which assigns you a “team”. Teams are only for scoring / bragging rights; There’s no difference between bands while in the land besides what team your stats report to. The saving grace for the $40 add-on is they double as amiibo. Allowing to use the Bands on your Switch. So far nothing unique to the bands are in any game beyond the identity of the character. Mario bands unlock “generic” Mario unlocks, Daisy with Daisy unlocks, etc.

If you plan on returning to Super Nintendo World, you can (and should) reuse the same band. I haven’t tested unregistering and loaning bands to other friends.

Registering the Band

You register the band in the Universal App, giving you a detail of your experiences in SNW. Registration unlocks reading the status of what the band has done allowing you to register after visiting the land. I did not test having more than one player/band registered in the app, but know this is possible for families with children.

On the back of the band, a QR code pairs the band to your account. Thankfully the band doesn’t keep a constant connection to your phone as it’s a simple NFC device. Pairing to your Universal account only shows your progress. Band do not need to charge and no power drain on your phone.

Registration was adding a Player, which included options of a select list of character images based on the band’s character, list of backgrounds, and a display name. The display name will be shown publicly on leaderboards, but does not need to be unique.

However, I came across that my name “Seg” was not appropriate. I suspect because folks attempts to use “seggs” as a censor dodging word for “sex”. Days later I was able to register my name as my own, so perhaps they learned of the Scunthorpe problem.

Group Play with Power-Up Bands

Without at least one band in your party, the experience at SNW is emptier. The band grants access to 5 mini-attractions and land-wide unlockables. Not doing them makes the land a thin experience. Which for an upsell, is pretty lame.

You can get away with one band in your party of four or less. Some activities allow group participation with a mix of folks with and without bands. The general “hit the blocks to do things” can be seen by anyone in the party. A lot of families we talked to had their children with the bands, but the parents were involved and happy with their group experiences.

Only the Bowser Jr. Shadow Showdown limits your party to the band wearer and one (or two if you’re lucky) guests.

Jeremy and I had our own bands as we’re adults with adult money. We still did group activities together and earned rewards at the same time as a team. More about that as I cover each activity.

Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge

The main “E-Ticket“, the only ride attraction of the land, and the only experience not gated with Power-Bands, Bower’s Challenge carries the weight of the whole land. It is a great interactive dark ride experience on par with or exceeds others in the ride genre with very good choices along with room for improvement.

The Universal Accessibility Problem

Universal Studios has problem with accessibility in their attractions. Ride systems are notorious for form-fitting seats and restraints to a narrow field of body types. Even to the point that an attraction excludes the target audience of the IP the ride features.

“The Secret Life of Pets: Off the Leash” is an omnimover dark ride that opened after pandemic lockdown with no elevations and calmer than the “Haunted Mansion“. Yet Pets has a 38” requirement with a form-fitting seat, where as Mansion is any height (with supervision) and a bench seat fitting 2-3 people. My guess the decision is for cheaper insurance premiums, but it makes the Disney Difference the ability for guests to ride most attractions, while Universal leaves many folks aside after you’re in the gates on almost every attraction.

Bower’s Challenge flirts the edge of not being accessible. While the seat is thankfully not as form-fitting as Pets, the lap bar has a lock-in range is not the same as the tester out front. While Jeremey and I were able to ride, there was an iffy moment when team members were debating if the restraint was “green zone”. The tester seat out front isn’t a guarantee you won’t be evicted at the loading platform.

Then there’s the stairs. In the course of going through any version of the queue, you will need to walk up and down two stories of stairs at least twice. There are elevators to help guests between the levels, which creates a mini Fastpass situation for both standby and Express lanes.

Universal Parks are making a very compelling set of moves to be an equal to Disney parks. Their pay and benefits to team members is vastly better than Disney’s pay and benefits to cast members. But what will always stunt Universal’s growth is the inability to make their parts accessible to the degree Disney is willing to accommodate.

Queue

This queue is one of the most fun and interesting looking queues I’ve experienced at a Universal Studios park! From the small details to the large, the queue is rich world building and a lot of deep cuts for folks looking. Universal queues have variable degrees of quality, but this queue shoots right to the top of the list.

The start of the queue is Yoshi’s land, which serves to remind everyone we don’t have the Yoshi ride. This is the ground floor of the entrance and mostly to sort between standby and Express lanes. While it looks nice, it also feels emptier as a creation made only for Hollywood’s unique layout.

Once you reach up the stairs, you make a brief outdoor queue and migrate inside Bower’s castle proper. The massive Bower statue is a delight of the queue. It’s only upsetting this starts mid-queue and not setting the tone at the entrance. Bowers’ “office and lab” one of the most delightful queues I’ve seen in a long time. So much to look at and a lot of little references.

When we first entered the land, we walked straight into the attraction and took some time going through the queue, waving people on as we wanted to see the spaces. Though true to my form, I didn’t take nearly as much photos of things I want to talk about. I want experience things, not record them on a device. Still, a few photos:

Pre-Show & Guest Preparation

Starting with the latest Mario Kart game, MKTV (Mario Kart Television) was introduced for gameplay record and playback functions. In Bowser’s Challenge, MKTV is featured in a serves as the first pre-show room in explaining how the game is going to go.

As you’ll see in the video, it’s devoid of voice acting, which makes for a strange emptiness in the presentation. While this removes language barriers, it looses style points and hard to keep paying attention to what is a unique set of instructions for an attraction. A lot of kids start to yell and get distracted for what is perceived as white noise in the presentation.

In the next room, you’re handed a Mario visor. Much like distributing 3D glasses in theme parks, there’s a constant rotation of freshly washed gear for guests to put on. As this wears like a hat, guests need to take the time to make a good fit on their heads. No electronics are on the visor; the technology is on the ride vehicle and clips on to the visor.

This allows guests to futz around with the visor to fit comfortably before getting on a ride vehicle. This makes loading more efficient and a comfortable ride experience. The only problem: You have to fit the visor and walk down two flights of stairs at the same time. If you’re towards the front, you don’t have time to walk down stairs and adjust the visor before you’re assigned a row.

Loading into the Kart

Load in was pretty easy if you recall the instructions. Sit down, pull bar towards you. The bar holds the AR equipment and is your steering wheel. Take the AR equipment and clip it into your visor. If you have a Power-Up Band, holding it to the center of the steering wheel registers your band to your gameplay.

I didn’t get a positive feedback when registering the band. I tried getting the animation to happen to no avail. My gameplay was properly recorded, so I think once registered, the confirmation animation doesn’t repeat. If the confirmation repeated while the vehicle was still in the loading area, it would reduce the worry. That said, I am glad the range works to catch folks forgetting to do the exact action.

The car is four passengers, two rows with two seats, with the back row raised higher than the front. With AR, someone’s head blocking the view is devastating, making stadium seating a requirement.

You can request to experience the ride without AR. You don’t ruin the scores of team activities for the three other players, but still experience the attraction. AR is much more accommodating to motion sickness than VR, but it’s great they have that path available.

The Ride & Gameplay

I prefer AR to VR as long as the practical effects are stellar, and Bower’s Challenge interplays between AR and practical effects flawlessly. Shooting shells at a screen will effect objects on a screen. Elements travel back and forth from AR to screens and back. The experience arguments reality.

The Ghost House scene does a masterful job of eerie rotating the hall with practical effects that bend into screens which give the bends motion. Rainbow road gives the finally of the ride with the iconic rainbow road lighting that goes away when “jumping” the tracks. The piranha plants are actually there and moving.

In gameplay, your controls are the steering wheel. Either of two buttons “throw” shells at the dead center of your AR view. You can get used to it, but it’s not forgiving especially for travel distance of shell-to-target.

You’re given UI prompts when you need to turn the wheel. Chevrons pointing left or right mean hard left or right turn. You don’t have direct control of the ride vehicle, but the arrows match when you’d make a turn. This is fairly easy if you remember to react as soon as you see the prompt. The chevrons display in fixed space, so you always seem them where ever you look.

As I alluded to in my take at the start, there’s a lot of emergent gameplay intended to be discovered in repeat plays. From how shooting shells work to how points are gained, the game design is about discovering, learning, and discovering again. There should be these discoverable aspects to an interactive experience. Where the ride falls short is too many aspects fall into “discover after a few games”. When replaying the game means waiting 30 to 250+ minutes, you don’t get the kind of feedback loop you normally have with video games.

Where the experience is not optimal was shell management. You are given a limited amount of shells which are replenished at fixed intervals. During unplanned ride stops, your shells are infinite mode until the ride resumes. The only way to know how many shells you have or unlimited is by looking down to see the UI. Since looking is also aiming, you don’t really know how many shells you have until you’re out. If the UI fixed the shell count display, one can always tell how many shells they have and be more efficient.

I’m curious if and when the ride systems will receive software updates to manage gameplay. Would be wild if there was a Nintendo Direct highlighting an upgrade to the attraction; with Japan and US release dates.

I also wonder when the attraction is ported to a Mario Kart game? Perhaps it will be the last drop in the Mario Kart 8 Booster Course Pack?

Toadstool Cafe

When it comes to food at Universal Hollywood, it’s no where but up. While most offerings are better than a regional roller coaster park, there a huge lacking to almost all offerings at Universal both in selection and quality. Thankfully Toad’s Cafe brings Universal closer to a better food offerings at the park. Sadly it now highlights Universal’s lack of operational efficiency.

Scenery

In a word: CUTE! This is all about Toads cooking your food and living their lives outside of the cafe. Each wall of the main dining room has large screens acting as windows. One into the kitchen, the other three at different parts of a toad village.

The setting is a fixed cycle that runs about 15 minutes, though I did not time it. There’s a day cycle with a few light cameos and small comedic events. But then the skies darken along with the lights of the dining room and Bowser air ships start reeking havoc in the town and kitchen. It’s especially funny when a bullet bill terrorizes the kitchen and staff.

I wish there was something more 1:1 on orders where the cooks are preparing your meals themselves, but I can understand how hard it is to add new dishes. With how long you’re there, I also wish there was more variance. Everyone should experience the basic day/night cycle, but it gets repetitive as you wait.

This leaves me wondering: When will Nintendo’s take on Overcooked! and create a multi-player cooking game with Toads as cooks?

Opperational Notes

There isn’t much queue line, but Jeremy thankfully snagged us a reservation window to return later. While our lunch was an early 10:30am, we weren’t going to pass up on the opportunity.

The first line upon entering is to get to a cashier to order. This took a considerable amount of time, which I realized why once approaching the team member. When we asked for the Mount Beanpole cake, the team member said they needed to check if they have it and walked (presumably) to the kitchen, returning three minutes later. I don’t blame the team member for this, but Universal needs to invest in ways the kitchen can mark items out of stock directly to the cashiers.

You order and pay for your meal, but only receive a tray, utensils, all beverages, and a buzzer puck. Walking with your tray, you approach the wait staff. There they will take your tray and take you to your table.

I want to be clear that all team members here were great. My complaints are of operations hindering the good work of the team members. And then there was Keegan.

While the interaction is brief, he was engaging within the lore of SNW and engaging on the adventures the guests went on. Overhearing him seat children and adults, his interactions give a visit to SNW meaning for guests.

At the end of the night, I waited at guests services to file a compliment for Keegan.

A few weeks later, a friend of mine went to Toad’s and suffered a 90 minute (!) wait for food to be served! Like me, she knew it wasn’t the staff themselves, but some unseen operational problem with the kitchen and setting expectations for the cashier and serving staff.

The Food

Our order was more about trying different dishes than attempting to finish them. The menu itself has fun items and we enjoyed what we had. The tiramisu ? block was about the only skippable dish we had.

I loved the mushroom soup and not just because of the presentation. While I would never dismiss having some safe dishes, Universal would do well to have interesting and not typical food choices. So far that’s only the mushroom soup, but at least it’s progress. Though I’m shocked they aren’t selling the bowls. I can’t imagine the stolen bowls…

Overall, Toad’s is a taste of a world in which Universal made food service on par with a Disney food service experience. When things are working marginally, the experience is the best in the park. When things go wrong, they go really wrong.

Power-Up Band Key Challenges

The story of the SNW is that Bowser Jr. has stolen the Golden Mushroom of Peach’s kingdom and you must get it back. To do so, you need three keys before unlocking Bowser Jr.’s hideout and defeat him. There are four key challenges, but you can play the 4th challenge before or after doing Bowser Jr.

The challenges fit into two single-player experiences, two team based experiences, and a final single-player boss fight. When I say team, only one member must have a band; the rest of the group doesn’t need a band to play together.

There’s no required order to do the challenges, only that you need to succeed in three to face Bowser Jr. The challenges will apparently get harder when you repeat the same challenge, but I wasn’t able to experience each more than once.

Goomba Crazy Crank

A single-player challenge with a simple task: Turn the crank fast enough to prevent the goomba from collecting your key.

Straight forward and not hard to beat the first easy level. Almost feels more a photo-op than a game, but the physicality makes the experience novel.

Koopa Troopa POWer Punch

A single-player challenge that’s I is the most challenging. A Koopa shell is bouncing between two walls, traveling within a upside down T pipe. The tall pipe has a key coin on top and a POW block is on the bottom. You hit a POW block, which hits two more POW blocks to make the shell hit the key coin.

It’s all about timing your one POW block hit. You have three chances to hit the block, otherwise you fail the challenge. My pro-tip is to spend time observing people play while you’re in the queue. While others may be at different difficulty levels, most are on easy.

Thwomp Panel Panic

This is a team challenge. Once activated, your team has to touch blue squares and make them gold. If you’re too slow, some of the blocks will reset back to blue. Upon success, all members with bands can collect the key.

This was the most video game activity in the park besides facing Bowser Jr. The tactile activity is hitting a touchscreen, albeit a big one, but doesn’t offer much else. Fun to do, but the weakest of the four activities.

Piranha Plant Nap Mishap

This is a team challenge with one band required to play. A large sleeping Piranha Plant is taking a nap. Once the challenge starts, all the alarm clocks start going off. You and your team must hit snooze as quickly as possible to prevent the plant form fully waking up. This is the best of all the Band activities, hands down.

The moment I started this challenge, my mind pulled out every thing I learned from watching Nickelodeon game shows. It has that kind of wacky physical challenge. Madcap fun and challenging.

I suspect team members tell the system how many active players there are, making it physically possible to accomplish with your party. Repeat plays also increase the difficulty.

Bowser Jr. Shadow Showdown

With your three keys, you now face Bowser Jr at his hideout. This is a game where a shadow of yourself is projected on the wall. Throw your arms to swat baddies away, jump for power ups, and defeat Bowser Jr.

As you enter the space, the only in-queue interactables are here, including the one Bowser Jr. item block. Be sure to take the time to find the M logo and hit your band, and you won’t be able to come back!

Of the land, this is arguably the “finale” of the land as a whole; resolving the story of Bowser Jr. sealing the golden mushroom from the kingdom. While it is a completely screen based attraction, the projection is a wide and tall wall with some practical effect theming to blend in the scene. While you’re in there with roughly a dozen other players, your gameplay is mostly independent of the others. I’m not sure there’s even a fail condition, but there are points and achievements you can strive for.

This becomes it’s own attraction and is pretty involved. It’s also limited to only folks with bands, so while you can bring a guest to watch, only folks with a band can play. That said, the experience is a wonderful end to the mission arc of the key challenges.

Power-Up Band Interactables

SNW has a bunch of small interactions with the Power-Up bands. Most are hitting question blocks but include other types as well. Most save coins to your account. Others make something display like 8-bit art versions of Mario and other characters.

This is where the original Shigeru’s design of play as discovery come to full circle. With exception of the Mark Kart queue, there are interactables all throughout the land. Thankfully they are all marked on the Universal app’s map, so you can see if you missed a whole area. And there’s one area that is hidden in plain sight!

They are fun to discover and do fill out the land’s experience. Some are fun, some are busy work, but they do offer some great fun with just exploring the land. I only wish some items did more reactions beyond a simple sound and/or lighting queue.

The Super Nintendo World Future

Universal Hollywood’s SNW is the second in a the total three planned recreations of the land. Universal Japan was the first and currently largest featuring an additional omni-mover attraction Yoshi’s Adventure and additional quick-serve food options. Hollywood is currently the only North American offering… for now.

Japan is actively building an extension based on Donkey Kong with at least one family coaster and other offerings. In 2025, Universal will open “Epic Universe” in Orlando as a copy of Japan’s version with Donkey Kong expansion at the start.

Sadly there’s no room for Hollywood to grow Nintendo. To build SNW, two soundstages were removed. The land does make Universal Hollywood a better park to visit as an addition to previous offerings. My hangups are mostly around operational issues that hamper the experience, but the experiences themselves are great and worth the visit… if you arrive their early enough to gain access to the land.

Andrew goes upstairs where Dominic is supervising the van. I’m alone in the Lounge, looking at the vacant space. Trying fill the empty space with memories. I’ll have the memories with me forever. This was the last time I could feel the textures.

I walk into the Bird room, moving my hands against the black walls, painted with flying birds in gold. I commit to memory the small differences in thickness where the birds fly. I look to my left at what remains of the pepper’s ghost effect, wishing I got that effect working again.

I move to the Velvet Corridor, but the curtains of the namesake are gone. Glaring in front of me is an open hole where Library Pod 1 was three days prior. Now a brightly lit floor of concrete punctures the hallway. To my left is a dark but still present Library Pod 2. I crawl in.

Seven years when I first entered this very pod, I was told a fable. A moment where part of my soul was healed and revealed a new artistic focus. My first experience of San Francisco form of psychomagic. I run my hands on the carpeted floor. This space is scared to many people as a place of reflection. Countless people have entered this space and the sister Pod 1 to find a new part of themselves. Or return to a self the once lost. I quietly say to the space: Thank you for everything. I crawl back to the Velvet Corridor.

I’m walking down the hallway we called Tunnel 3. Named as the third door bypassed the two doors of dark tunnels. Calling Tunnel 3 was inclusive for folks who didn’t take tunnels 1 or 2. Different experiences shouldn’t be less important. I run my hands agains the walls of the winding hallway and it’s gray-blue painted walls. Recalling the stories of the people who built this space. How they were torn apart in ways that rhymes with my own workplace abuse. I hope we reshaped the space to heal rather than harm. I raise my arms higher as I approach the end.

I’m in the Ticket Room. The original purpose to give each guest a claim ticket, and we couldn’t find another name for the room. The ticket window that was still there anyway. Now there’s a gaping hole where a wooden slide once deposited guests in the room. The other doors still exist. Once they opened into darkness, but now open to the brightly lit concrete floor. I approach the wall of black brocade wallpaper. If there is a texture that I most associate with this space, it is this wall. If I ever own a home, at least one room will have similar wallpaper.

The memories of the space flow through me again. Seeing the guests arrive and have a sense of wonder of this impossible place in The Mission. My own first entry where I stood in this room for longer than I’d like to admit, taking it all in. My work in house management for immersive making sure people arrived in this room armed with consent and ready to experience. I decided to lightly kiss the wall, as one would a close friend on the forehead. Strange, I know, but it was my way of thanking the room for it’s service.

I head down the emergency exit hallway, stopping in the monitor room one last time. The center of operations, this room controlled the technology that ran the space. The ephemera of past productions and various equipment, now reduced to the bare minimum. Many technical discussions about the work of crafting experiences occurred in this room. I take one last time opening the cubby window that connects to the Ticket Room. Grasping the brass handle on the wooden door and taking a look at the empty hole that was once a slide. I close the door.

I finish walking down the exit hallway. This area was originally considered back stage. In the need to make the second emergency exit more prominent, this hallway became an area of show. I try to run my hands on the right wall, but it’s too sharp. The left was a flat wall with chalk drawings of a skyline, some hash marks, and other markings from scenes long ago.

I pop into the kitchen, washing my hands in the sink one last time. The backside of the lockers, reflecting when actors would conduct 1:1 scenes with unsuspecting guests as heads in a box. Sometimes actors crawling out of the tiny spaces. The backside of the pepper’s ghost where Bryan’s ghost drawing in the glass’ dust still remains. This was the de facto greenroom at times, and sometimes show space to traverse guests to the hallway. I still feel guilty putting the wrong soap in the dishwasher.

Finally I’m back in the lounge. I’m next to the bar, running my hands across the smooth lip of the bar’s surface. I’ve shared drinks with friends, guests, and coworkers. For the high art that was the majority of the space, this bar represents the “third space” where all these points of my life intersected. Now I look out to an empty room.

Finally I put on my hoodie, walk to the exit door, and look across the room. I take it all in one last time. “Thank you, for everything you have done for me.” I say to the space. I exit the doorway and attempt to lock the door.

It takes me a number of tries to successfully lock. I push harder and harder on the door to get the deadbolt to catch. As if all the memories are pushing back at the door, not wanting to be left alone. Finally I successfully lock the door and walk up the stairs to what served as our guest lobby. I walk out onto Capp Street where Andrew and Dominic wait by the rental van. I take a deep breath, and I close the gate.

With the remaster of Sam & Max released, I decided to do act on an idea I’ve had for quite some time. I haven’t played most of these games form 8 to 13 years! My goal is to play each episode to completion for each streaming session. Though some of the non-episodic games may carry over to a few broadcasts.

I want to share these games and remind myself of the work I did in the game industry. I don’t aim to make streaming a part-time job. This is just a hobby to share with everyone and a sort of therapy for myself.

Where & When to Watch

Live on Twitch

Sundays, Tuesdays, and Saturdays at 7:30pm Pacific Time.

Though I reserve the right to change this when needed. I’ll Tweet ahead of time when I plan to stream. Interact with me during the broadcast and I’ll answer questions in the chat. The VoDs will also be available to everyone.

YouTube Playlist

Shortly after the live broadcast, I’ll post the video on my YouTube Channel under the “Games Seg Worked On” playlist. From my local recording, I’ll edit out any breaks I take, then put them on the playlist.

The Games

The games I’m including fit into this criteria:

• I had a paid role in any area of development with the game.
• Involvement can be during principal development, any official ports, or new localizations added after initial release.
• The order will be the original release date of the first episode of a season.

This doesn’t include are titles I’m in the credits for either by a Kickstarter reward or special thanks. If I got paid for the work I did, then I count it.

My early Telltale work included localizations and/or ports to other platforms after these games were initially released. Sometimes more than once. Rather than trying to make some convoluted order that made sense only to me, sticking to original release date simplifies everything.

There’s a few times were more a season overlaps other releases. Rather than bouncing back and forth, I’ll go with the release date of the first episode of a series and play that season to completion. However, I’ll play a different franchise between seasons. For example, I won’t do back-to-back Sam & Max seasons.

I’ll play remastered versions where available and very likely all Windows versions.

The Order

This is the order, assuming I’m able to play these titles. That’s 66 episodes, though some may carry over between broadcasts.

• Bone
  • Bone: Out from Boneville (Sept 15, 2005)
    • Twitch | YouTube
  • Bone: The Great Cow Race (April 12, 2006)
    • Twitch | YouTube
• Sam & Max: Save The World (Season One)
  • Culture Shock (Oct 17, 2006)
    • Twitch | YouTube
  • Situation: Comedy (Dec 20, 2006)
    • Twitch | YouTube
  • The Mole, the Mob, and the Meatball (Jan 25, 2007)
  • Abe Lincoln Must Die! (Feb 22, 2007)
  • Reality 2.0 (March 29, 2007)
  • Bright Side of the Moon (April 26, 2007)
• CSI: Hard Evidence (Sept 25, 2007)
  • Burning For You
  • Double Down
  • Shock Rock
  • In Your Eyes
  • The Peacemaker
• Sam & Max: Beyond Time & Space (Season Two)
  • Ice Station Santa (Nov 8, 2007)
  • Moai Better Blues (Jan 10, 2008)
  • Night of the Raving Dead (Feb 12, 2008)
  • Chariots of the Dogs (March 13, 2008)
  • What’s New, Beelzebub? (April 10, 2008)
• Strong Bad’s Cool Game for Attractive People
  • Homestar Ruiner (Aug 11, 2008)
  • Strong Badia the Free (Sept 15, 2008)
  • Baddest of the Bands (Oct 27, 2008)
  • Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective (Nov 17, 2008)
  • 8-Bit is Enough (Dec 15, 2008)
• Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures
  • Fright of the Bumblebees (March 23, 2009)
  • The Last Resort (May 5, 2009)
  • Muzzled! (June 15, 2009)
  • The Bogey Man (July 30, 2009)
• Tales of Monkey Island
  • Launch of the Screaming Narwhal (July 27, 2009)
  • The Siege of Spinner Cay (Aug 31, 2009)
  • Lair of the Leviathan (Oct 26, 2009)
  • The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood (Oct 30, 2009)
  • Rise of the Pirate God (Dec 8, 2009)
• CSI: Deadly Intent (October 20, 2009)
  • Broken Hearted
  • Coulda Been A Contender
  • Last Gasp
  • Extinguished
  • Crime Scene Impersonator
• Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse (Season 3)
  • The Penal Zone (April 2, 2010)
  • The Tomb of Sammun-Mak (May 18, 2010)
  • The Stole Max’s Brain! (June 22, 2010)
  • Beyond the Alley of the Dolls (July 20, 2010)
  • The City that Dares Not Sleep (Aug 30, 2010)
• Nelson Tethers: Puzzle Agent (Jun 30, 2010)
• CSI: Fatal Conspiracy (Oct 26, 2010)
  • Flash Baked
  • Planting Evidence
  • Tapped Out
  • All Washed Up
  • Boss Fight
• Poker Night at the Inventory (Nov 22, 2010)
• Back to the Future: The Game
  • It’s About Time (Dec 22, 2010)
  • Get Tannen! (Feb 17, 2011)
  • Citizen Brown (March 28, 2011)
  • Double Visions (April 29, 2011)
  • OUTATIME (June 23, 2011)
• Puzzle Agent 2 (June 29, 2011)
• Jurassic Park: The Game (Nov 15, 2011)
  • The Intruder
  • The Cavalry
  • The Depths
  • The Survivors
• The Walking Dead (Season One)
  • A New Day
  • Starved for Help
  • Long Road Ahead
  • Around Every Corner
  • No Time Left
• Dominique Pamplemousse in “It’s All Over Once the Fat Lady Sings!” (March 2013)
• Deception Force (Feb 21, 2014)
  • Note: I’m unable to play this game, so I may just show trailers and clips after playing Pamplemousse.

If you had the game via Steam from the original release, the remaster is 50% off automatically. If you bought directly from Telltale’s store all these years ago, there’s special instructions to do before Dec 31st, but you’ll be able to convert the old version to Steam and get the deal.

How the Remaster Came to Be

When my former employer imploded, where the IP will landed was an open question. All the games Telltale made are various degrees of licensed IP. The games themselves are an IP commodity, but you need to renegotiate rights with the original IP holders to go beyond the original agreement. The fate of some games were known (Walking Dead went back to SkyBound), but others were an open question for a while.

In the case of Sam & Max, some of my former coworkers and Steve Purcell pooled resources together to obtain the IP rights to all three seasons of Sam & Max. Their holding company, Skunkape, is the LLC entity that they do business as in regards to the games.

Skunkape is purpose built to be the stewardship for the three seasons of the Telltale series. It’s not involved with the new VR game, nor is it going to make new Sam & Max or any other game under the Skunkape label. And honestly, that’s refreshing. An employee owned company focused only about preservation of a series of games; spinning up and down as needed. Perfect!

Missing an Old Friend

I fell in love with Sam & Max: Hit the Road around 1993-4. The LucasArts title became one of the three games that convinced me to work in video games (the others are Myst and the Tex Murphy Series). I hold these characters very close to my heart and have the privilege to work with this IP in my video game career.

My start at Telltale was a week after the last season one episode released. While I missed working on principal development, I would go on to work on every release after the initial episodic releases. This includes the DVD mastering, the Wii and Xbox 360 port, and localizations in Polish, Hungarian, Czech, and Russian. The retail DVD of Season 1 was my first professional video game release in my career.

Parts of me wish I was involved in the remaster. Not for a path to reenter the game industry, but to work with the old code and assets. Revisit the happier memories working on this game. To put my hand in as I have done for every other release and platform of this game. Maybe even remaster the Xbox 360 theme into a macOS dynamic background.

But I do not hold ill will or other foolish notions towards my former coworkers about it. The number of people needed to do a remaster is very small, and the bulk of the required work is not my expertise to begin with. If I was included, what about my other coworkers? That gets way too crowded, and fast.

I’m very happy to have the game available and positioned to live beyond the business entity that created it. My name is still in the credits will continue, despite all that’s happened through the years. That’s the happy thought for me.

Streaming the Game

I’m considering streaming a playthrough of the game on my Twitch channel. If curious, follow me and hopefully you’ll be notified.

Don’t know if I have too much to offer on behind the scenes stuff, but maybe I’ll remember a few things playing though the episodes. The real question is if I remember the walkthrough after all these years…

Today, the city of Santa Barbara recorded a memorial service unveiling a plaque in honor of all the people we lost. It’s weird to have it video only, but these times are weird. At some point I hope to visit this memorial when we’re OK to travel again.

Dan & Yulia

The funny thing about Dan & Yulia is we didn’t meet in Boston. There were a few years where we were all living in Boston and in similar circles, but we were never introduced. Years later in the Bay Area that we met.

Most of my memories come from their New Years parties held at their home, the House of Trouble. It was also the chance for me to see the latest small-scale works Dan was working on. If you’ve seen a large structure consisting of LEDs at Burning Man, it’s very likely involved Dan in some way. If not designing the artwork itself, then for co-developing FastLED.

Carrie

Artist, programer, activist, and the person who helped me break through my struggles with technical testing interviews.

My first job after Telltale was working at an ad agency. I needed to find a different job that wasn’t contract, but my biggest struggles were technical interviews. By then I worked over 10 years in tech, but I never entered the world of technical testing beforehand and struggled to be successful at them.

Carrie had formally worked at Avenue Code and told me they were hiring. I applied, but also talked about my struggles with technical tests. To Avenue Code’s credit, their process was project based (not whiteboard), which was a welcomed first for me. Still, I didn’t know how to prepare or what to expect. Carrie helped me though that process and did more training for me than anyone had ever done for me.

I did get an offer with the Avenue Code job. That confidence also helped me with getting a job at my current employer, Traction. Traction gave the better offer. But I wouldn’t be successful in either interviews if it wasn’t for Carrie.

Tell the people you care about that you love them.

Remember how important it is to let everyone you care about know how they mean to you. Especially as we can’t physically meet each other, communication is even more important.

The Disneyland App

The Disneyland App covers both parks and is extremely useful in a number of ways.

Maps & Wait Times

The wait times are very accurate. The measurement is the amount of time it takes to get you in the seat of the main ride vehicle.

Mobile Food Ordering

Want to pick up a Dole® Whip on your way over to the Haunted Mansion? Buy it over the app, then pick it up on the way.

Showtimes

All the showtimes for shows, evening events, and other scheduled events.

There’s more to the app, but that’s the main basics that will make your visit more efficient without micromanaging your trip. Make sure you have a Disney.com account and log into the app before you get to the parks. iOS App Store | Google Play Store

Play! Disney Parks App

The Play! app will add more fun to your visit and is completely free. Yes, it’s a separate app, but trust me on getting it on your phone. Like the Disneyland App, make sure to log in and try it out before arriving at the parks.
iOS App Store
Google Play Store

Throughout both parks, there are activations that only happen with this app. Some are in the queues for attractions, others are walk-up installations.

There’s achievements for when you go on attractions and do some of the activities. A nice record of what attractions you went on and what days.

There’s also trivia games to play in spots where you’re waiting in line. If you’re an Apple Music subscriber, there’s playlists for every area and for the road trip to the resort.

In particular, visit Esmeralda, the Fortune Teller at the Penny Arcade on Main Street. She’ll give you a free fortune per day when you use the app.

There’s also a similar machine in New Orleans Square, telling the Tall Tales of Fortune Red.

For Star Wars Galaxies, the land was made with this app in mind and has a lot more to offer. Open the Star Wars Datapad for a preview! The Peter Pan activation is also really good (and what I wish to see more of in the parks).

MaxPass: One Person Should Get It

MaxPass is an add-on to a ticket that costs $15 per day per person. You buy it through the Disneyland App or in advance when buying tickets. Either way, you’ll be using the Disneyland App to use these features:

Digital FastPass Reservations

Without MaxPass, you can make one active FastPass reservation at a time, but you have to physically go to a corresponding FastPass booth for the attraction you want and scan your ticket. With MaxPass, you can reserve this same allotment on your phone. Sadly it doesn’t give you an additional FastPass.

Disney PhotoPass

When you visit the park, your photo can be taken at certain attractions and by cast member photographers at various location in the resort. With PhotoPass, all of these offerings are included for unlimited use.

In the past, Disney charged per photo or a pricy package to get these photos. Thankfully, Disney’s caught up with the modern era of digital photography and offers digital download with the PhotoPass, which is rolled into the MaxPass program. It’s currently priced at $20 per day & person.

Throughout the day, you’ll get codes for photos from attractions and cast member photographers.

For attractions, I find taking a quick photo of the code, then entering it later insures you get the image.

For photographers, the easiest is to have the QR code (“Show PhotoPass Code” in the screenshot). Even easier if you take a screenshot of that QR code and load up the photos in your phone’s photo viewer.

Seg’s Advice:

One member of your party should get MaxPass.

Establish one person in your party to activate MaxPass to get the photos. Send them the codes throughout the day, have them send you a screenshot of the PhotoPass QR code. After your trip, that person can send the group all the photos.

For other members of the party, it depends on how busy the day is. The $20/day/person gets expensive. After the first person, it’s about FassPasses for the rest of the party. On busy days, this is a big advantage. On not so busy days, you may want to skip it for the rest of the party. Thankfully you can make this call on-site via the app on a day-to-day bases.

The Inexpensive Entry to Pin Trading [Optional]

Disney Pin Trading is a thing. It’s a great way to get very unique gifts to friends if you happen to find the right pin. But buying a single pin can be… expensive.

The pin trading stores will sell a Mystery Bag of pins. Usually 5 count for around $27. Get one of these bags and hope you don’t like any of them. These pins are now available for you to trade around the parks.

Some of the stores will have a large Mickey Ears pin board with some pins. Ask the cast member to look at them, and you can trade one-to-one with any pins on the board. These tend to me more exotic as they’re usually characters or designs others didn’t care for, but may be your (or your friend’s) favorite. The Mystery Bags buy you into pin trading without having to make a hard decision to leave a pin you like behind.

Batuuan Spira [Optional]

Do you want to pay for restaurants or merch with a solid coin? You’ll want to get this Batuuan Spira at the start your visit.

The coin “costs” $100, but works exactly like a $100 Disney Gift card. Reloadable at the Disney Gift Card website or at any Disney merchandise store (including Disney retail stores).

The feel of the coin is a good metal coin. Much larger than any change you’d have in your pocket and has a good weight. It feels good to use it for a restaurant situation (like Oga’s Cantina) or to hand to a cashier at a store. And you can use it at any Disney entity, not just Star Wars land.

To obtain the coin, go to any of the Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge shops including Rebel Trading Post, Droid Depot, First Order Supply, or Doc Ondar’s.

I added the coin to this list so you can plan ahead. If you’re spending more than $100 at the parks, getting this early in the day allows you to do your normal spending and get the coin as a bonus.

I loved working at Telltale Games. I worked with a number of people whose work I grew up on. Worked with franchises I loved and lead me to working in video games. This is what happened to me for that dedication.

• April 30th, 2007:
  • Started at Telltale Games.
• April 2007 – July 2012:
  • Developed and released 64 episodic games across 11 franchises.
  • Roles including:
    • Build & Distribution Engineer
    • Content Programmer
    • Puzzle Designer
    • Special Projects Producer
• July 18, 2012:
  • One of three people laid off from the studio that day.
  • Given and eventually accepted severance package which included a reinstatement of a Non-Disclosure Agreement and a non-disparagement agreement / gag order.
• July 28, 2013:
  • Informed by lead management of Telltale Games of the list of companies where I “need not apply” to.
  • Later, some of these studios confirmed this status in various ways.
• November 27, 2013:
  • Found employment as a contractor in front-end web development at an ad agency.
  • 507 days since the Telltale layoff.
• July 18, 2014:
  • Gag order from layoff expired.
• July 18, 2017:
  • Non Disclosure Agreement, which technically covered gag order, expires.
• Late September 2018:
  • Telltale Games closes leaving 250+ employees without a job. Begins to liquify assets.

This does not begin to describe what I endured by these events. It doesn’t cover the isolation, the paranoia, and assortment of other forms of trauma and recovery from the last seven years. This doesn’t include the people who did make positive work to assist me though this time. If there’s interest in the deeper story, I’m willing to give further details and the few receipts I have. Though I confess that most of my information came from individuals who spoke to me and no recordings exist.

To be clear: I don’t believe that every studio had me on a list. I had a narrow set of skills that only a few places would find relevant. These places were actively closed to me. In other cases, recruiters of certain studios had blanket policies against Telltale content programmers as the skill set was seen as incompatible. That too was told to me in-person at a recruiting event. I was a narrative designer in a world where that wasn’t a title one could have.

At this point, it’s hard for me to see a path to work in video games again. Too much time has passed for my experience to be relevant in the eyes of the current state of the industry. The management of Telltale succeeded in their goals, for whatever their reasons, to remove me from the industry. Even with the closure of the studio, they won and I lost.

For today, it’s a big step for me to come forward. With the support of friends and years of therapy, I’m finally able to share this testimony with you. It’s not a complete, but it’s enough.

Video games. They’ll break your heart.

As 2018 came to a close, Netflix released Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, an interactive film exclusive to the platform. Black Mirror is our current time’s Twilight Zone where the genre allows for a deep dive into a single idea of fiction and allowing us to reexamine choices in our present time. And it’s time that the Interactive Fiction world to get their butts together and make pitches to Netflix.

In 2015, The Atlantic wrote about the process Netflix undergoes to improve the dataset for their recommendation engine. The company spent the resources to define every piece of media it could define, including media it hasn’t (or ever) released on the platform. Using this dataset, Netflix is able to obtain the value of the property by how many users the company believes will enjoy that content.

With that dataset and recommendation engine dialed in, Netflix knows the value of a piece of content. This dataset is absolutely instrumental to the development of self-published content. The pitch process for motion pictures is along the lines of tastemakers dictating if a project was financially viable. This was based more on subjective opinions of executives, mostly of white men.

What happens when you take a pitch, do the tagging work as if the piece existed, and see what potential viewership numbers come out? Now you have a more calculated guess to the financial viability of a project. This is how we got Orange is the New Black after their endless search and turndown across other media buyers.

I turn to the Interactive Fiction (IF) community and ask: Which of your works can be adapted to film and Netflix’s interactivity capabilities?

And if you have any recommendations for any IF I should read, reply to me on Twitter @TheSeg!

I’m trying to find the line between the sudden freedom I have in speaking about my time during and especially after my layoff in 2012, but not drowning the voices and needs of the 250+ souls who not only lost their jobs, but have no financial support. #TelltaleJobs is an important hashtag. It comforts me that the class of 2018 is able to say they were laid off without being questioned by it.

In the next few weeks and months, I’ll start opening up more. Till then, I sum up my time at Telltale with a few small bits:

And it’s really great to hear from the other artists I worked with.

Say a producer is having an event with Venue A. The venue maintains the Eventbrite account for the event. The producer needs to have access to administer an event. Great!

Venue A put in their email address producer@example.com as a sub account. Eventbrite errors: That email already exists in Eventbrite’s system. Producer bought tickets to some other event already, but now that e-mail address can’t administer an event that wasn’t explicitly created by that account.

Producer creates a new e-mail address, then asks the venue to use a different email address, user-eventbrite@example.com. Great! All good.

A few months later, the same producer is doing a different event at a different venue who has a different Eventbrite account. Venue B tries to add user@example.com, but it fails. User gives their Eventbrite email user-eventbrite@example.com… and it fails. The producer can close the account, but would lose access to that venue and their event happening next month. The producer needs to make an additional email address to get access to the Eventbrite. user-eventbrite-2@example.com…

That’s making a big leap that the producer can manage this on a technical side. Or the foresight to realize they can make irreversible decisions.

It’s 2017, and Eventbrite explicitly states you need to create a new email address for every venue account. That help page is a real gem of a document too. Besides instructing people to close accounts willy-nilly, they also advise users to exploit Gmail aliases as a fix:

How can software built in such a way where a user permission system is impossible? I really want to know what the irreversible decisions were made that support telling people to delete accounts and exploit email systems is the better option.

Now I have to mention that there are other ticketing vendors that have similar situations (looking at you, Brown Paper Tickets). So it’s not just Eventbrite, but it also doesn’t make it correct.

Besides a new ticketing system entering the space with proper user management built in, we’re going to be stuck with this forever. Should Eventbrite or BrownPaperTickets have in interest in making a system that works for event and venue professionals, I’m available for consultation.

The game is set in San Francisco — or an interpretation of San Francisco since depicting buildings may result to getting sued. One building that is safe for Ubisoft to depict is their own headquarters in San Francisco.

The game has a photo tagging mini-game and naturally the Ubisoft building is a location. I got there, took my photo, and looked around to see what I could find. There were two people standing outside the door smoking. SF bans smoking within 15 feet of entrances, but anyway…

The game allows you to view the private information of NPCs (non-player characters) with their name, profession, a factoid, and their annual income. You also commander resources accordingly. Naturally I turned it on to see what I’d find. That’s when things got real.

• Saadeh, Asha
  • Races cars
  • Software Engineer
  • Income $80,700
• Denver, Karl
  • Obsessed with health tracking
  • Programmer
  • Income $168,300

Same job, but the man in programming makes twice the income of woman software engineer. I find the fact this is in the game at this location fascinating.

I have no insight into how this came to be. It could be an algorithm of factors and I happened to catch this. This the Ubisoft headquarters, so something more curated is possible. I don’t have visibility to know how this went down.

My hope? This is intentional and perhaps a canary to put in such a powerful statement in the game. If this is the case, whomever put this in the game — and the people who allowed for this to stay — I commend you. It’s not easy to put this kind of statement in a very mainstream company’s game.

Let’s hope the bug report of pay inequality was filed on Ubisoft’s JIRA. And every other company’s bug tracker.

1. In-game screenshots by me on my XBox One as of November 20, 2016.
2. Raw image screenshots of each NPC: Asha, Karl.

There are a number of aspects of this show that were going right. The cast are all extremely talented delights who really show the depth of their abilities as performers. The content itself has very challenging questions posed both in content and to the art form. Sadly, the piece obfuscates all of that with significant consent issues.

I have serious issues with the safety and comfort of the audience of this show. As a professional house manager and immersive experience artist, there are conditions and policies that concern me. Conditions which, at best, prevent audiences from enjoying the piece. At worst, can cause emotional, if not physical harm. It comes down to providing constant and continuous consent throughout the performance. An audience that is well informed of what’s expected and how to opt-out of the space temporarily, if needed.

My concerns can be solved by the following:

• Clearly identified, accessible non-performing ushers in every room;
• Clearly identified, accessible non-performance audience lobby;
• An organized front-of-house experience.

I’m deeply concerned this production will leave a horrible experience to people who haven’t experienced immersive theatre. After my experience, I wouldn’t blame someone to cast off the art form completely. I’d rather not make a habit of saying other productions could improve respecting an audience. I want Boxcar Theatre to respect their audiences now.

Consent In Immersive Experience

My foundation for immersive experiences is built on continuous, constant consent from the audience. The folks at Foma Labs write on the topic of consent frequently. Most notably with the article On Responsibility in Immersive Experience.

“Immersive experiences often do not have these inherent safety barriers. Because of that, or rather the lack of that, emotions can be even MORE intense. If the immersive experience is designed well, the events of the story are REAL. While watching someone crawl through the dark in a movie can put us on the edge of our seat, crawling through the dark in real life can be downright unsettling in an unpredictable and sometimes unexpected way.”

Consent isn’t simply asking to opt-in at the beginning. Clear communication and permission to opt-out at every point of the experience is essential. Allowing the audience to self-serve their opt-out in a non-disruptive way is key.

The very foundation which we can allow our audiences to enjoy experiences is providing a foundation of safety. When the individual has a baseline of safety, they have the confidence to be a part of the piece and confront challenging material. When an audience worries about their safety, they’re unable to experience the piece.

Clearly Identified Ushers

At no point during the performance is a non-performer usher available to patrons.

I know this isn’t strictly true. I know the staff is watching from an assortment of cameras and non-performing staff flow throughout the space. To a patron, the only confirmed staff personnel are the performers. The personnel you’re told not to interact with unless they interact with you.

What if an action occurs that isn’t immediately visible on the security cameras? Someone starts to verbally assault a patron. Someone witnesses someone slipping a substance into a drink. Someone is about to have a panic attack and needs assistance. What are the ways in which a patron can express concern? A patron can’t ask for help because there’s no one definitive to ask.

Patrons are asked to dress as period and formal or risk denial of entry. This makes every person in the space look very similar to the performers. There is no one you can turn to if there is a problem.

Sleep No More tells patrons that any individual wearing a black mask is approachable at any time. Problems? Go to a black mask. You’ll find them quickly when you’re looking for them, but they don’t stand out to distract from the experience. This solves the problems you know you’ll have, and more importantly the problems you never knew you’ll have. Most of the time it’s where the bathroom is or where to find the lobby for a break. Sometimes another patron causing a security risk.

Every room needs a non-performing staff member. Clearly identifiable and always accessible.

This is a solvable without a complete break in costume aesthetic. Station usher staff in each room with yellow hats — the same hats used to get to will-call. They serve as matching the visual esthetic while uniquely distinct from a normal patron or performer. Noticeable when looking for assistance from across the room, but not distracting when enjoying the show.

Audience Lobby

Patrons need a way to temporarily exit the performance space and pause their experience. In traditional theatre, this is what the lobby is for. A way to excuse yourself from the performance without completely leaving the space entirely. For recorded media, we have pause and off buttons.

Among an assortment of documentation one receives for Speakeasy is this line:

No in-and-out privileges

Does it mean the marked exit doors you won’t be let back in? Now a patron is faced with the choice of having to find a place to break within the performance space, even when they want to pause their experience in the 4 hour show. There’s restrooms, but even they are performance spaces in the production. There is nowhere to opt-out of the show.

A non-performance lobby, clearly communicated to patrons, with access back to the performance space.

There is space within the building structure that is outside of the performance space and can be used for this lobby. It allows an opt-out space which someone can come right back into the piece when they’re ready. No punishments or judgements. Open to all, easy for anyone to enter or exit.

Front of House Experience

All of this ties into having a clear and welcoming front-of-house experience for patrons. Simplifying rules, simplifying procedures, and warming the audience up for what they are about to experience. Make them comfortable, excited, and ready for the experience.

None of these things will happen when you attend Speakeasy.

There are three different will-call check ins, each with a 5 minutes per entry time in the span of an hour. When you can check-in, you’re given one or two envelopes with some form of instructions written on them, but asked to go to a named place… that isn’t marked with signs. If you’re lucky to find the place, you’re asked if you need coat check, told again not to talk, and placed into the space. My personal experience was interrupted by an actor conducting a 1 on 1 experience that required me to talk. So… I guess I’m allowed to talk? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Tons of people are waiting outside on the sidewalk. Everyone got confused on where to go. Instructions that don’t mean a damn thing. It’s an unorganized mess that contributes nothing to the narrative.

I get they’re trying to present the experience of going to a secret space, but the logistics didn’t scale. This worked enough for the Club 1929 experience with one entrance and real will-call inside the space. This does not work out when moving in 250+ people within an hour over three different entrances.

The show needs ONE will-call area, regardless of entry point.

From that ONE point, you can lead patrons in groups to the entry points. At these entry points, conduct a performance purely about illustrating the rules of the space. This way the experience does start correctly within the narrative, supporting a positive experience.

Oh, and coat check? At the end of the night they roll out the racks in the middle of the casino room to find your own coat. Or take someone else’s stuff if you like. No one is checking claim tickets.

Boxcar Theatre: Please Fix This

Immersive theatre in this modern form is a new form of media. Mistakes will be made and situations will arise which no one will have ever predicted. Planning for the unknown means creating the environment where all participants know clearly when they can ask for help in a non judgemental environment.

The Speakeasy contains huge gaps in establishing trust with an audience. They are very fixable problems with minimal alteration to the piece itself. Communicate with your audience as welcomed and aid them in creating an enjoyable experience.

Don’t judge anyone for the needs they may have. Don’t dismiss anyone having issues as “not getting it” or other dismissive comments. Listen to your audience. Treat the audience as a part of the immersive production. It makes for a more immersive production.

Clearly communicate consent and opt-out for the audience at every moment.

This will be one of the last titles with the work of my friend, Jory Prum.

I first met Jory early on during my time at Telltale Games. The Nordic sound guy with his own studios, Jory was one of the most friendly people I have ever met in not only video games, but in all of the entertainment business. That’s the thing about talented sound engineers. They always take the time to listen.

The last time I saw him was January. I got him a bottle of Prager Port Wine as a small thank you gift and met for dinner with Scott Looney. The gift was for two reasons: Years ago, Jory hired my friend Amanda Rose Smith purely by my direct insistance. The other: Jory was one of the few people I worked with that reminded me of the work at Telltale was valued. During the darker periods after the layoff from Telltale, it was a beacon of light and hope. I was able to tell him why he was so importantly helpful to me. There’s a small comfort knowing he knew exactly how and why I valued him as a friend.

There’s a few times that video games deeply affected me emotionally. Even with the rise and fall of my career in video games, Ragnar Tørnquist‘s story remained to be the art I strove for. I’m even humbled that Dreamfall borrowed from my contributions to analytics in narrative based gameplay. It brought me further joy to see two of my friends working on game, Jory and Amanda Rose. I’m going to be in a very private space when I get to play the episode. There will be moments of sadness for all the endings it presents and joy that this work is celebrated.

As artists, the truest celebration of our lives is to experience the art we create. While we are deprived of what could have been, we have what is already out there. We are able to treasure every moment this beautiful person created.

Like most good art, this started as a Twitter joke between Bunny (the director), Aaron Muszalski, and Jonathan Pirro (Mercutio) of doing the balcony scene in the middle of Oakland, ambient noise and all. One and a half months later, we did the show.

Note: All of the photos are by Joe Carrow, our official photographer of the production.

My role was ‘usher,’ but much more involved in the immersive theatre context. Me and a friend were in charge of making sure the audience felt safe to enjoy the performance. We’re asking people to go out of a comfort zone with rules not normally placed in theatre. Therefor this role is a liaison between the show and the audience. Keeping the secrets about the show for the audience member, not from them. I’m working on a lecture that covers these topics and how that relates to experience and immersive arts.

An Invitation

As this show was not a commercial venture, the “payment” for the core cast and crew were four invitations to the performances. With four performances and a capacity of 16 people per performances, it was our only way to limit the show to 64 people.

For my invitations, I made an effort to invite people who weren’t in our normal immersive art circles, but whom would need to be apart of this kind of experience. I already have a list of people for these things, so it was me going down that list, going to the next person if someone wasn’t free that weekend.

The invitations themselves were in the physical form of a wax sealed letter from Mercutio. The letter containing registration instructions and the following:

• Wear formal goth or close to black as possible.
• Wear a mask to physically cover part of your face.
• Be very prompt to your performance time.

Once folks arrived at the house of Montague, I greeted them with a smile and a gray suit coat. While I was to wear a mask during the performance, I purposefully place mine on my forehead at the start. This is the part where people can ask questions about the performance and their concerns. Putting the mask up allowed me to communicate they were about to enter the performance space, but they weren’t in the space completely yet. I find this pre-show procedure as paramount in immersive productions.

As I welcome them in, I ask their name and present them with an envelope. Directing them to my compatriot, they would be asked to do the following:

• Turn off/silence your phone, place phone into the envelope and seal it.
• Do not talk during the performance.
• Always be in the same space as Romeo.

Audience members kept their phone-in-envelope. The best way to insure no phones are used while not holding on to other people’s stuff. We don’t want to deal with people’s stuff.

House de Montague

Once the audience secured their masks and sealed their phone envelopes, they walked up the stairs to the parlor of the Montague house. Mercutio (played by Jonathan Pirro) was silently preparing himself for the Capulet party as everyone waited for the performance to begin. When I arrived at the parlor, that was the sign for the show to begin.

Mercutio walked further into the house with the rest of the cast behind him to the living room. There Benvolio (Egan Hirvela) and Romeo (Ian Dawson) were waiting. I refered to them as “the boys” as the three were mostly together for the show.

The first introduction the audience has to Romeo whom they will follow for the rest of the show. Act 1 Scene 4. Jonathan did an amazing job with the Queen Mab speech and was uniquely situated for this particular passage with his mohawk (direction notes added by me).

This is that very Mab
[ Clasps his hands upon his head, squishing his mohawk hairs. ]
That plaits the manes of horses in the night
And bakes the elflocks in foul sluttish hairs,
Which once untangled,
[ Unclasps his hands, where the mohawk springs back into place. ]
much misfortune bodes.

During the performances, there were about two people in total who chuckled.

Traveling Show

At the end of that scene, Romeo would walk out of the living room and I’d see how many people would follow instructions. A few would stand up immediately which would cue the rest of the audience to move. I was the caboose behind the progression of audience members, making sure no one was left behind.

This movement involved walking out of the house which had a particularly hidden last step down the outside stair. Most of our work as ushers were using our hand torches to point out safe walking paths. Along with “the boys,” the audience crossed the street and down a few doors to a warehouse with music thumping louder and louder as they approached.

As “the boys” and most of the audience gather at the front door, Benvolio would say his line and lead people in:

Strike drum!

House de Capulet

Remember how all of the audience members are dressed in formal goth? This is what they walked into:

Full power pastel candy rave! For 17 minutes at the House de Capulet and 25+ extras partying with everyone, including ball pit and circus acts. It was glorious!

By the time I came in, the audience was in the space. At least four people would already know what’s up and partying (if not already in the ball pit). The rest would be wallflowering watching everything going on. It’s an honest assumption an audience would have that a part of a the production may happengoing on, so I understand people’s hesitation.

I had a mark to hit at the other end of the ballroom, so I used my cross to break through the wallflowers by politely touching them on the shoulder as I passed by them while dancing and gesturing them to move into the floor. It’s perfectly OK to be a wallflower, but this action gives the invitation for people willing to engage with the party to do so.

The only scene of the play that occurred during the rave was Lady Capulet (Erica Mulkey) introducing Juliet (Teaghe Yalon) with Paris (Colin Donkeyboy Creveling). A minor scene where you would get the idea even without hearing the lines spoken.

The real key moment of the show was individual to each member of the audience. Our cast of extras were instructed to initiate a moment where they would connect hands physically, then transfer a candy bracelet. This served two purposes. One is for the audience to have a physical object to take along home with them. The second was for later…

Back to the Shakespeare

At the end of the rave, we did a hard cut to Elder Cousin Capulet (Jonathan Fortin) and Lord Capulet (Logan Saltsman) greeting the party goers and continuing the play in act 1 scene 5. Glitter beards and all. From here we were back on the rails with the play as written.

Our Tybalt was performed by Elle Armageddon, seen here with freshly fetched saber. Elle channeled a lot of bratty raver for this performance which fit very well to Tybalt being the prissy thing that character is. That’s also a lightsaber with motion controlled sounds making for some great stage play. Especially when Lord Capulet shuts Tybalt down with an effective power down sound effect.

When Romeo & Juliet meet, it’s the scene we all know. But for this production, we had a moment that immersive theatre can bring to the audience.

Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much,

Which mannerly devotion shows in this,

For saints have hands that pilgrims’ hands do touch,

And palm to palm is holy palmers’ kiss.

With that, Juliet transfers a candy bracelet to Romeo and the audience has a personal connection with the scene. If there is nothing else important about this piece, this gesture makes the immersive arts worth doing. Connecting the audience with the narrative.

The rest of act 1 scene 5 plays out with the reveal of the houses the both are from and with a very drunk Mercutio & Benvolio. Mercutio getting out of the ball pit and putting his boots back on.

The “After Party”

As “the boys” leave the Capulet house and outside on the streets of Oakland. I do a final sweep of the ballroom of audience members with DJ Bootz-n-katz (Reese Brindisi) using her high perch above the ballroom to confirm I got everyone.

Here we get to act 2 scene 1 with Romeo hiding from Mercutio & Benvolio from behind the audience members. There’s a certain degree of magic when doing Shakespeare in a public space that isn’t normally a theatre space. Including passers-by who would also stumble upon and watch the proceedings. We didn’t have anyone mess with the show, though we did have a few very loud cars pass by from time to time. Not to mention Romeo using the audience as cover an a source of interaction.

The Balcony Scene

Then there was the balcony scene.

The reason for the production is for this very scene happen out on the streets of Oakland. The biggest issue I had as an usher was to guide audiences to not clump onto one side of the action, but be able to pull a few others to the other side of the action. Ultimately it was walking in front of Romeo while gesturing others to come with me. Then I’d hit my mark to protect Romeo’s marks.

Then I had to end the production with this scene. I thought I’d be able to think of a speech to close it up, but we couldn’t think of a fancy way of writing this kind of ending. So it was more practical of a closure than something witty and/or meaningful. The task was insurmountable, but I’m still feel let down with myself for not thinking of something better.

What did work was my magical device, the mini Lumio. Where a torch would light a specific area, the Lumio brings attention to me along with filling the space with light. This brings attention to me and away from Romeo and allowing me to close the night. From there we would stay out until every person had their safe ride home available to them.

Closing Thoughts

I have a new job title as “Immersive Theatre Usher.” Between this and HiNGE, there’s a lot of other insights I’ve made into what goes into welcoming an audience to an immersive show. The role is about making the people feel safe to explore the world presented to them. There are rules and safety issues to insure, but it’s about gaining and earning trust before and throughout the piece. Material I hope to turn into a lecture at some point soon.

I want to thank everyone on the cast and crew of this production. Despite my years in theatre, this is the first Shakespeare production I’ve ever been involved with.

For all the photos and cast/crew notes, check out the big old Facebook Album of Joe’s photos.

All of these features are free to implement. You’ll need to either register for an account on each platform and in some cases create a “Page” for the entity (organization, brand, etc) for the website you’re developing. Most of the platforms share the same if not similar settings. We’ll walk through all of the options in a combined view and how you can optionally customize to a particular platform.

The HTML Head

All of the information we need to define is in the <head> of the HTML. The order of the tags don’t matter so long as they are within the <head> tags of the document. When any user of these services posts a status with a new URL, that platform will look at the HTML <head>.

Note: The tags must be readable within the HTML source itself. Adding tags in via JavaScript will not work.

The Complete Set

Here’s the complete set of tags using my production company Space Between Studios as an example.

<meta property=”og:url” content=”http://spacebetweenstudios.com/”>
<meta property=”og:title ” content=”Space Between Studios”>
<meta property=”og:description” content=”An independent game studio of non-fiction games.”>
<meta property=”og:image” content=”http://www.spacebetweenstudios.com/dist/img/sbs_logo_512.jpg”>

<meta property=”og:type” content=”website”>
<meta property=”og:site_name” content=”Space Between Studios”>
<meta name=”twitter:site” content=”@SpaceBtwStudios”>
<meta name=”twitter:card” content=”summary_large_image”>

<meta property=”fb:app_id” content=”xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx”>
<link rel=”publisher” href=”https://plus.google.com/105806783098119777725″>

With the above, this is how Facebook presents the link:

How Twitter presents the link as a Twitter Card:

Assuming you haven’t simply copy/pasted the above, let’s talk about each element and how to extend each element for specific platforms.

OG:URL

This is the canonical url of the content and the trickiest parameter in the set. It must be the absolute location of the URL, including the domain, in order for the social media platforms to display content unique to the page.

To prove the point, let’s say you define og:url to this for all pages:

By doing that, any links shared in Facebook will resolve to https://www.apple.com/ when a user attempts to share http://www.apple.com/iphone/.

Why is this the case? Declaring a canonical URL will resolve any link shortener or URL parameters used to the same URL. That way a URL shared like this:

… will resolve and shared as …

This is important both for the media information and the analytics in sharing your URL.

OG:TITLE & OG:DESCRIPTION

The two most important tags: Title & Description. These strings fill in the title and description blocks on a rich media display. The two below will work for all social media platforms.

There are character limits to each of these fields. Up to 70 characters for title and 200 characters for description is safe on all platforms. If you do go over, all of the platforms will truncate these fields gracefully if you go over this limit.

Twitter Cards

If you want a different title and/or description for Twitter Cards, use the following tags. The OG tags will continue to work for Facebook, Google+, but Twitter will use these when either are defined.

OG:IMAGE

The absolute URL of an image you want to display.

By defining the image, Facebook & Google+ will use only this image when the link is shared. No user-selected rotation of images! When the image’s resolution matches specifications, the display will become richer as well.

The image itself should be at least 1200px x 630px with an aspect ratio of 1.91:1. It’s the Facebook specification that the other platforms take cue from. The platforms will resize and resample the image, so make sure to keep the compression lite on the image. The size of the file won’t effect page loads on your site.

Twitter Cards

Twitter will use the same image defined in og:image unless you define a different twitter:image.

This image should be at least 560px by 300px for the summary_large_image type, or 300px square for summary card type. Regardless, go as large as you can without going over the 1MB file size limit.

og:type

og:type defines the type of object the website represents. The value website is the default and should fit most of your needs.

There are other types including video, music, book, profile and article. Each of these types contains additional fields to further define these items, but these things are not required for Rich Media social links. If you want to expand on these, look at the Open Graph docs for more info.

twitter:card

Unlike og:type, twitter:card defines the style of Twitter Card to use. At the time of this writing, there are three types available:

Summary with Large Image

Displays a wide square image, title, description, and Twitter accounts you include in your tags. This is your ideal presentation. Use the value summary_large_image to invoke this card type.

Summary

Similar to the summary with large image, but with a smaller, square image display. Use the value summary to invoke this card type.

Other Types

There are other Twitter Card types including App, and Player cards. The player card is for music or video clips and must be pre-approved by Twitter to be enabled. The App card type allows for linking directly to an App Store for your app, or direct linking if the user has the app installed.

Site Name

og:site_name allows you to display the name of the website. This allows your website to have a real name in addition to the domain name.

Twitter Cards

Unlike the other fields, the Site name display for Twitter Cards doesn’t fall back to OpenGraph. Instead, you will need to define twitter:site using the Twitter account of the organization of the website.

If the page you’re viewing is authored by someone other than the account defined in twitter:site, you can additionally define the Twitter account of that user using this tag:

This displays the creator of the content’s Twitter handle in Large Summary cards.

Facebook AppID

Putting in the optional fb:app_id tag allows you to view Insights data for shares from your website. You will need to create a Facebook Application for this to work. Replace the x’s with the Application ID number.

This WILL NOT force users to install a Facebook app! It’s used to attach statistics to a specific Facebook App. From there, you can assign permissions to view the Insights analytics data from Facebook.

Google: “Publisher” tag

While not exclusively for Social Media, the publisher tag opens up a number of features on Google services including Google+ and Knowledge Graph on search.

If this is your personal website, use your personal Google+ URL. If it’s a company or product, use or create a Google+ URL for that product or origination.

Registrations

Each platform has a different setup requirements in order to either enable rich media or to extend with certain features.

Facebook

Facebook doesn’t require anything to enable rich display of links. Just make the tags.

If you want to have Facebook Insights, you are required to register a Facebook app. Don’t panic! Users don’t “install” a Facebook app! The app allows you to claim ownership to view Facebook’s analytics data within the domain.

Setup is pretty simple with your personal Facebook account.

1. Go to the Facebook App Dashboard.
   • Note: If this is your first time making a Facebook App, you may need be asked for some additional information.
2. Click the “Create New App” button.
3. Create the app!
   • Fill out the form with the name of your website and something similar for the namespace.
4. Make note of the App ID.
5. Make sure to add the domain of the website to the “App Domains” under the Settings section.
6. Add the following tag to all pages on your site, replacing the x’s to the App ID.

Twitter

You must register with Twitter after all your tags are publicly accessible on your website. Once approved, links to your site from all users will have Twitter Cards enabled.

You’ll need your Twitter account credentials to gain access. It’s OK to use your personal one or your organization’s Twitter account.

Twitter Cards Validator

Enter one URL for each card type used on your domain. After previewing the card, you will need to submit the card for approval, filling out additional contact information. Approvals take between 5 minutes to 48 hours.

Once done, the entire domain will be enabled for each type of card you’ve submitted. There’s no need to resubmit for every URL, unless you incorporate a new card type.

Google+

Besides defining the Publisher tag, there are no other registration steps required for Google+. However, it’s good to make sure your site is registered with Google Webmaster Tools.

Documentation & Tools

• Facebook:
  • OpenGraph
  • Facebook Open Graph Debugger
• Twitter:
  • Twitter Cards
  • Twitter Cards Validator
• Google+:
  • Snippet
  • Google Webmaster Tools
  • Structured Data Testing Tool

Amanda Rose Smith is one of my good friends. Someone I trust and care about more than most, and do a lot for. Amanda is a part of wonderful memories from my time in New England and though the years continues to be a trusted friend. I joke sometimes that I’m her agent as I’ve got her a few gigs though the years. Which is to say, I make sure the right people know about her. What Amanda is doesn’t need interpretation.

In Jan 2015, Amanda posted photos from wedding dress shopping and did not have a happy face. Just as I was about to message her, Amanda messaged me saying she was considering a corset for her dress. I booked the appointment with Dark Garden Unique Corsetry for the day after GDC.

Autumn (owner of Dark Garden) came into the shop early for the appointment. I know it’s her job, but I thanked her anyway for doing a wonderful job. She make sure Amanda was going to get the outfit she wanted. As her agent, I requested that I lace her on her wedding day. As many of you know, I am trained in these sorts of things and I sure as hell wanted it done right.

On the day of the wedding, I came early to help prepare. I’m important enough to care and not important enough to be in the ‘official’ wedding photos. I helped prepare the space, but I had one job: Lacing Amanda. Beforehand, I got dressed with the rest of the groomsmen when I realized something. I walked over to her husband Patrick and said “This is a bit strange, but trust me”. I unbuttoned one shirt button, then buttoned it back on. “There, now say I dressed both the bride and groom” and walked out.

I waited next to the brides’ room for when Amanda was ready to get laced. Needless to say, Amanda was starting to get into panic mode as they were behind schedule. Switching to my customer service voice, I gathered the dress and asked for some help from the bridesmaids. With two bridesmaids at each side holding a ribbon, I went to work in getting my friend ready for her wedding day. Making sure there was enough give for the rest of the afternoon and evening, but will still stay on. When I was done tightening, I dismissed the bridesmaids and finished the knot.

When it’s done right, wearing a corset is having a hug travel with you. Sometimes I’ll signal I’m done lacing by giving a hug. This time that hug meant more. I was preparing my dear friend for a wonderful day, proud of everything that this woman is. Imprinting that hug with the friendship of all these years we’ve been in our lives.

This photo means everything to me.

This photo.

Photo by Lesley Arak Photography.

This is my story of Nonchalance’s The Latitude Society.

There are a number of things written about the closure of the society. One of the best is from my friend Jessica. There are many others that tell the story as presented by Jeff Hull (both the money and owner), but without challenge. There’s a surface narrative in press that points not the failure of one business, but of the art form itself.

I completely reject this narrative. I’m here to tell my part in this wonderful experience in hopes that better lessons are learned. This will be the first of more posts to come, but this will cover an overall picture. These were once secrets not kept from people, but for them. With the secrets revealed, I’m now at a place to start telling my story.

A Special Gift

It was mid-January 2015 that my friend @giantspatula asked if we could go out to lunch, mentioning in passing that she had something for me. We went to Homeroom. She asked if I could keep a secret, which I was then presented with a small black card case with two words: Absolute Discretion. Contained within was a credit card looking object, a code, and instructions to make an appointment.

I didn’t know what this was, but I knew this was something very special. I trust Giantspatula, but this production value alone was the key to something much bigger.

It took me two months before I went to that appointment. Changed jobs and other unexpected twists and turns. Jessica also presented me with an invitation at GDC, and I declined saying I already received one. Finally on Sunday March 22 at 12:45p, I slid my invitation card on a reader at a door on Capp and 17th Street, and walked in.

The Missing Groove

When I was very young, I wanted to be a Disney Imagineer. I was very interested in creating narrative environments. Spaces that told stories at a pace set by the audience. I went into video games because Myst did that in a digital realm. The seemingly easier approach to use digital media to create unique and meaningful experiences. I went to two colleges to shape my education and after 7 years, I found a studio that I called home for over five years.

I haven’t talked about it publicly much, but my layoff from Telltale completely ruined me. A year after the layoff, the management told me I wasn’t going to get another job in games again. Some studios confirmed this. It took me over 17 months to get a job and I had to switch career paths to do so. Along the way, I lost people I loved, my livelihood, and the very foundation of my artistic abilities. By March 2015, my basic needs were met and I made significant progress of recovery from the previous two years. Still, I couldn’t find the spark to create again. My mentors specifically told me that my work with them was worth nothing to them and others. I know deep down it wasn’t true, but when all sides tell you otherwise… That damage is hard to repair.

When I found myself looking at a book — animating a fable on it’s pages — I was reminded about why I am a storyteller. Mystery. Good storytelling balances between enough mystery to be interested, but not too much to lose meaning. There is beauty in that space between the audience and the artwork. It’s not about graphics or engineering. It’s ultimately about the resonance the individual has with the art. If there is nothing else I gained from my experience with Nonchalance’s Latitude Society, I got my groove back.

But I gained much more.

Totally Not a Cult.

After completing the “appointment” known as “Book 1”, you’re allowed access to a community. At first glance this is an online forums from the society’s website, but there are other events listed as well. These events were called a Praxis. There were Greenhorn Praxes as the introductions to the society itself. There were other praxes with how-to activities such as bookbinding or storytelling exercises and a great many other things.

In all honesty, I never went to any of the Greenhorn praxis. Apparently it was a requirement, but I was so on board with the society and finally had a steady income, I was all in with due-paying membership. They didn’t account for someone going in for membership without doing a Greenhorn. My reasons for paying dues was to insure others who do not have the funds could also experience what the society has to offer.

Then there were the Speakeasies. Bi-monthly gatherings at the lounge (a clubhouse of sorts). From here, I found a new group of people, some of whom became friends with. People who also shared the ideals of creating meaningful experiences. Some (like myself) have a technical bent to experiences, where others provided different aspects and elements to creating experiences.

I joined the guild responsible for technology and magic in the society. This was the space for me to rebuild my artistic skills. Though work was more on the imitate needs, we were building a foundation for a platform. A series of devices made by systems guild, but easily setup by members of the society at large with little or no technical knowledge. One of the society’s tenants is “experiencial tithing.” Which is a fancy way of saying giving the gift of experiences to others. The devices we were planning would allow non-technical members to deploy devices to their own tithings to share with others.

There’s a lot of stories to tell. The Summer Gala especially, but other events and experiences that make up this crazy bunch of people. I’ll leave some of these stories for other blog posts, others to tell around beverages, and some kept only to the people I shared experience with. Because, you know, not a cult.

The Hulling

On Tuesday September 22nd, I attended a guilds members meeting at the newly acquired Oakland location. There Jeff Hull outlined a new plan for the society. The books would become public where one would ‘buy a ticket’ to experience. The society on the other hand would need someone to sponsor them into. While not preferred, the situation was workable.

On Monday September 28th around 3pm, the society’s website change to a short, notice that the Latitude Society had ended.

I was working from home that day, which was a good thing. This was literally the opposite of what Jeff said 6 days earlier. I was simply floored by the news and trying to gather what details I could get.

About 20 people suddenly lost their jobs.

After wrapping work up, I went to the Sycamore where many Society brunches happen. That evening was our season finale of French Tarot, and it was an open question if it would even happen. People were gathering as time rolled in. Word came out that the two praxes at the space would happen. One being a Greenhorn praxes, the last would be Tarot.

As Tarot came to a close, we prepared for one last experiencal tithing in the space. We gather people to come in, then lead to the library one last time. Holding space for everyone, we gave the chance for a few others to experience the space and tell stories. Many tears and stories were shared, including my own. I didn’t end up home until 2am that evening.

Before we let everyone in, I sat in the library alone for a while. Looking at this book before me.

This was the closest experience to a linking book I’ve ever had. Since I was a kid with the Packard Bell computer playing Myst, I wanted a gateway to a fantastic world with much to discover. I wanted to share that gateway with people, one at a time. But this particular experience is no more. Jeff Hull wasn’t able to continue this wonderful thing. So he took his toys home.

Think From the End to the Beginning

There is a saying I got from the entertainment business class I took at Emerson College: “Think from the end to the beginning.” Starting from the final delivery of a work, go backwards to trace all the steps needed to achieve that goal. I’ve been trying to do what I can to trace what happened from my albeit limited view as a participant.

While financials have an absolutely key factor, I think claiming it was too expensive covers up detailed reasons. There were plenty of people who were rewarded by this experience — even for “The Game” aspect, if not the actual society itself. The rise and continued existence for embodied curated experiences (like escape rooms or the work of 5-Wits) is a real demand. Once thought to only happen in video games, we’re all seeking experiences to happen in actual space.

I need to believe embodied experiences can work. Hard as hell, but I know they can happen even on limited resources. I need to believe that the kind of experiences we create in digital media — the space between a resonant work of art and the audience — isn’t limited to a screen or a small number of people. I need to believe this can still happen. If I don’t believe this can work, what else do I have left to dream?

Everyone’s doing it, so am I! These are the games of note for me, but I had to separate into categories of titles my friends or myself worked on. I haven’t been able to play many newly released games this year, but here’s a few released this year I’d like to note.

Games from the Home Team

Domonique Pamplemousse in “It’s All Over When The Fat Lady Sings”

by Squinky

The reason this title is special to me are very personal reasons for me. I didn’t make this game — Squinky did everything — but as the game was awarded nominations, Squinky trusted me with business and marketing of the title. The work got me though a lot of difficult times for which I’m forever grateful for. It’s also a very mild source of income for me, which at least gives solid proof that I’m still a paid game developer. Which reminds me: Get this game.

Dreamfall Chapters

by Red Thread Games

This goes into the ‘Home Team’ category as Jory worked on audio. The third entry from the Longest Journey series, the anticipation for this title was long before I backed it on Kickstarter. Playing this game was SUPER WEIRD for me for one set of features:

I haven’t played The Walking Dead since my layoff in season one, and I was caught a bit off-guard to see all the choice tech I contributed to at Telltale to be redone by someone else. It’s especially weird from the franchise that gave me the final push to decide to make games my career choice. Weirdest gaming experience ever.

The game is in episodic mode, so the released portion isn’t quite a complete unit, but it’s well worth the investment. Also, Jory works sound on it.

Roundabout

by No Goblin

A game where I keep seeing people I know in the LAV sequences. The game is Tokyo Drift Forever as a game mechanic. The limo is always driving in circles, and you control the position of the limo. It’s a game that can be hard for to 100%, but a fun stupid game to romp around in. Not to mention the LAV sequences and a LGBT relationship development that isn’t played up as a line item on the [virtual] box.

Games from the Away Team

Transistor

by Supergiant Games

The second game by Supergiant, Transistor made some bold choices for themselves with this title. The turn-based-but-live gameplay is an interesting balance. It’s not without things that could be improved on, but it’s a reminder that it’s OK to make big bold choices that may not work out perfectly in the end.

The audio work is haunting in a good way. Great voice direction hits the mark in a way that connects the player to the work in a way unmatched by many. It also contains one of my favorite moments in games this year: Red, who can’t speak, communicates with Transistor at points with typing into a terminal. So simple, but so powerful.

Munchkin: Adventure Time

by Steve Jackson Games, et all

I picked up this game at PAX Seattle this year and is my first Munchkin game. The branding of Adventure Time is matches perfectly with this game, making it one of the better cross-brand titles I’ve seen in gaming. If you never played the game before, you’d think this was made for Adventure Time.

If you already own Munchkin, there’s nothing new as it’s a stand-alone. But if you don’t own Munchkin, want Munchkin, and at least think Adventure Time is OK, get this version.

Tesla Effect: A Tex Murphy Adventure

by Big Finish Games

This game was the other long-time franchise rebirths and also a Kickstarter I backed. The Tex Murphy series is part of the tri-fecta of games that got me into video games (the others are Myst + Sam & Max). This game was a time capsule of an era of video games, for better and worse.

The game did a bit too much fan servicing for it’s own good. Not so much to require back story, but calling out that this game was funded by fans of the series. Sure, you have people who backed the project, but I don’t need to be reminded of that fact while playing the game.

On the good side, it continues a form of storytelling that was left unresolved creatively for the team. How mixing in LAV with 1st person gameplay is a tricky spot, but it’s good to see the past reintegrated.

Hitman GO

from Square Enix Montreal

This game is an absolute gem of an mobile game! It’s an engaging game where you’re solving a puzzle in reaching the goal point with bonus goals along the way. I never got into the Hitman series from which the IP is from, but it really doesn’t matter for enjoying this game. The art style is of a board game with figurines moving around but with no individual animation to the models. It makes for a very clean game that you can put away and get right back into.

Update: Crash Override Network’s tool C.O.A.C.H. is a great step-by-step guide you can also use.

There are two parts to how I protect my online accounts. One is free but available for a few services. The other is buying a piece of software. Together they do change the philosophy of how you create and manage online accounts, but you’ll be much more secure by doing it.

Part 1: Two Factor Authentication (TFA)

The idea is having not only a fixed password to log in (one factor), but a code which is either given to you or using a secret algorithm to generate a one-time code (second factor).

When enabled, your login process will be something like this:

1. Log in with your username & password.
2. Site asks for your TFA code.
   • Most will allow you to use an authenticator program on your phone.
   • Some websites may text or e-mail you this code.
   • A few gaming services (Steam and Battle.net) require using their own app.
3. Enter in this code.
4. Access!

As it’s nature, this is a per-service feature. The main services (Google, Facebook, Twitter) have TFA, but more and more services are incorporating this type of security. To make it all easy on you, TwoFacgtorAuth.org tracks what services implimented TFA and how to enable the feature:

Authenticator Apps

Some services require texting you, e-mailing you, or use a custom application to download to your phone. Most others use a set of standards that allow you to pick your own application. For that, you have two apps you can use on your phone:

• Authy
• Google Authenticator

I use Authy as it’s more robust and a better interface. Most sites will only mention Google Authenticator, but Authy will support all that support Google’s app. Either way, you’ll be asked to scan a QR code to enable TFA. It’s a standard protocol between them, so you have a choice on which app works for you!

Part 2: Get a good Password Manager

I use 1Password. It’s great, well supported, and you’re buying an off-line software. You can use Dropbox, iCloud, or whatever for cross-device file system to move the data between. The PC/Mac license is $50 and free for iOS & Android. The mobile apps have paid Pro features, but the free offering will fit your standard needs.

While that is ~$50 between your phone and computers, it’s one-time fee. This is the best solution in protecting all accounts that don’t do two-factor authentication.

I also recommend buying from them directly (not though the Mac App Store) for desktop. It’s the only way to get the cross-platform license now or to upgrade to the cross-platform license later. They’re also super good at free upgrades.

There’s also LastPass if you want a completely cloud based turn-key solution, but I’m going to explain 1Password as that’s what I use. AgileBites didn’t pay me, I just recommend what I’m using to great success.

Step 0: What am I doing?

You will be changing every password in every service to complex passwords. Each account will be unique and no one service will have the same password as the other.

You won’t need to remember them but rely on 1Password to store and use them. You will have one password to unlock 1Password’s vault. A PASSWORD YOU SHOULD ONLY USE FOR 1PASSWORD.

Step 1: Install 1Password

Install the software, then install all the browser extensions on every browser you have installed on your computer. 1Password supports Chrome, IE, Firefox, Opera, and Safari.

Do this for every computer you intend to use.

Step 2: Change them passwords!

This is a step you’ll constantly do. At first it will be a bit time-consuming to update all of your commonly used accounts. Once you go over the hump, then it will be apart of your regular use.

When you go to a site, this will be the workflow:

1. Login to the site and 1Password will ask to save that login. Do so.
2. Go directly to the change your password function for the service.
3. Instead of making up a new password, use 1Password’s browser extension to randomly generate a password! It will even copy the new password into the form twice.
4. Submit the change password form.
5. 1Password will ask to confirm the update to the account.

That’s it! You’ll keep doing that a lot, but you’ll eventually have a unique password for every account you have.

Final Notes

There will always be the looming threat of an account’s password getting leaked or discovered. Ultimately a leak of passwords will happen from some company stupid to store them in cleartext. But using these tips will prevent access to your other accounts just because one compromised account.

Changelog

When I make an update, I’ll note them here.

• Aug 21, 2014: Initial Post
• Oct 17, 2013
  • Changed pricing info for 1Password on mobile.

Our sales are particularly high in Europe and Russia. Shocking as the game is English only and no advertising to speak of. Steam is a good partner and everyone at Humble is wonderful! I figured adding Good Old Games would compliment the Eurozone in coverage. The only contact I had was a Submit Your Game link. I gave a little bit of info in the form, and named drop our festival destinations along with the fact the game is already released.

I wasn’t expecting this kind of response:

May 29th, 2014

Hi, Deirdra Kiai Productions,

Thanks a lot for your submission and your interest in GOG.

We’ve taken a look at Dominique Pamplemousse in “It’s All Over Once The Fat Lady Sings!”, it looks like a very interesting and unique concept that is not afraid of rising some hard and difficult questions. The form of musical in a video game is something you don’t see every day and looks like it fits the game perfectly, additionally the stop-motion animation is a really cool touch.

Unfortunately, however, we feel that the game would not be a good fit for GOG, as we think that it appears to be too niche and a bit too small in scale for our core users, which means that we aren’t confident in its sales potential on our site.

For these reasons I’m afraid we will have to pass on Dominique Pamplemousse in “It’s All Over Once The Fat Lady Sings!” .

If you have any other games in the future that might be a better fit for GOG, please let us know, and hopefully we’ll be able to work together.

All the best,
{{REDACTED}}

As Squinky so powerfully put it:
Making Games is Easy. Belonging is Hard.

Dom Pam isn’t a game for everyone. That’s totally fine and fair! GoG has absolutely no obligation to sell this or any other game. This response struck me as unique. GOG’s foundation comes from selling niche adventure games. Dom Pam is the most awarded adventure game in the 2013 release year. I can’t see the logic of not selling the game as being “too niche” for the premiere adventure game store.

I think it’s important for consumers to know the reasoning a storefront makes in choosing or not choosing a title. Especially when the costs of shipping a purely digital product is insanely low. Especially when it only reinforces the perpetual cycle of monoculture, rather than challenging ourselves in how we to experience media.

Going public with this is a faux pas of sorts. I know this runs a risk of potential partners feeling entrapped if I approach them. Not all deals will work out and not all potential partners can ship a product with effectiveness. For GoG to specifically call out the content in this way and reject the title is uniquely disconcerting and worth discussing openly.

Note: I removed the name and position of the sender. E-mail is otherwise unaltered.

Shipping the Empty Box
Releasing [string:titleOfGame] on [array:platforms]

Working on [string:titleOfGame], you need to release it on [array:platforms-0] and perhaps on [array:platforms-1] in the future. You have [int:NULL] time till release. Build engineer and programmer John “Seg” Seggerson (Telltale Games, John McNeil Studio, Dominique Pamplemousse) will help smooth the multi-platform release by outlining build engineering tips for platforms on desktop, mobile, console, and beyond. Increase artist, writer, and programmer efficiency with a set of core specifications and planning applied to existing platforms and future platforms. Skills and knowledge that will reduce release headaches for your [int:sizeOfTeam] team!

This is the build engineering panel I’ve always wanted to do and finally getting to do it. My experience with Dominique Pamplemousse was releasing a game without having to worry about making the game. I needed to create the empty box to ship to Steam & Humble. This clean-room process made me think about the build process in this perspective, and finally got me to apply for this lecture.

Talking with my game industry friends, we couldn’t think of ever seeing a build engineering panel offered. Not just PAX Dev, but GDC as well. My hope was to get accepted to PAX Dev to focus getting the content together in time to apply for GDC. I got my wish!

The lecture will be in two acts. The first act will be guidelines for a build system from my experience. Going into specifics isn’t helpful because game engines are too different for me to cover. Instead I’ll be going to broad guidelines. The second act will be releasing my master asset list, a core asset list, and the philosophy behind it. This list will contain all assets for every platform I can talk about. Then another core assets needed to convert over to these targets. If I have time, I may make a NPM/Bower app to do these conversations.

Over the summer I’ll be working on the details of the lecture and have everything ready for submitting for GDC 2015. I’m super excited to work on this and get to attend PAX Dev & PAX Prime!

When working in CLI (Terminal.app on Mac), you can hit tab to auto-complete a path. However, it’s case sensitive unless you set this up:

echo "set completion-ignore-case On" >> ~/.inputrc

There’s a lot I have to process in the experience which I will share later. But now I need to point the microphone to Squinky on a very important speech. The following link is the transcript to their talk at the #1ReasonToBe panel. Sitting in the audience, I cried as my dear friend had the courage to publicly share such a raw experience. I am extremely proud of them and honored to work alongside them.

Making games is easy. Belonging is hard. #1ReasonToBe

Developing my updated portfolio, I realized I had a lot of API development experience that was internal and can’t be disclosed in the public. While I’m accomplished in interactive narratives, I needed to supplement my portfolio with my technical design aspect background.

I decided to make a proposal to extend the Steam WebAPI with information missing from the current offerings. I’ve worked with WebAPI and Steamworks with Telltale Games; Particularly the global statistical displays for Jurassic Park and Puzzle Agent 2. Recently I started contributing to Steam Condenser and discovered the Groups info was still in an XML format announced as deprecated by Valve. Yet there was no WebAPI method to fill the gap. I decided to dust off my API design skills and get to work!

I’ll go though some of the more detailed background of certain decisions, but do take a look at the docs!

Rules to Propose By

Setting some guidelines for myself helps my focus. The proposal is building upon an existing API in production, so the additions needed to make sense in the existing environment. At large, these guidelines were:

• Use same variable names for exactly similar types.
• Use existing Interfaces & Methods when logical.
• Outputs should be similar to existing WebAPI returns in JSON, XML, & VDF.
• Don’t be afraid to create new interfaces, methods, and variable types when justifiable.

ISteamHub

Creating a way to obtain information from the communities around Steam. Until recently, these were called Groups in the Steam Community system. As this proposal is looking forward to the future of the platform, I decided using the new moniker of “Hubs” was more appropriate.

Official Game Hubs vs. Community Hubs

Steam Community Hubs fall into two board categories. Hubs created officially for specific products, and all other hubs anyone can create. I wanted to treat each type equally while allowing the unique attributes to be searched for and exposed.

Searching for a Hub

When searching for a hub, there are a few use cases I planned for:

• ISteamHub::ResolveVanityURL
  • Specific Group request via the vanity URL.
• ISteamHub::ResolveAppID
  • Any group related to a specific AppID.
  • The official game group of a specific AppID.

The method ISteamHub::ResolveVanityURL is a direct carbon copy of the existing method, ISteamUser::ResolveVanityURL.

For searching based on AppID, I found ResolveVanityURL too confusing to roll in. I could use the same method but a different input parameter for an AppID and official flag, but that’s overcrowding the function’s purpose. The method ISteamUser::ResolveAppID allows searching based on AppID. An optional official flag filters if the request wants to include unofficial hubs.

Hub Information

ISteamHub::GetSummaries is the workhorse of ISteamHub. The method contains all other information I didn’t push out to other methods. Most information is straight forward, but some decisions are made for ease of use for WebAPI users.

The inputs will take either a full Hub ID number — known as guid — or an AppID number. Adding the AppID number allows for instant pull of the official hub without adding the extra ::ResolveAppID call.

Regardless of input, the output is the same information as applicable. Some fields like `avatar` include entries that are for both Game hubs and community. Since the expectation of image sizes are different, the same field didn’t make sense. It’s a different image size, thus a different expectation of behavior. A “NULL” is much easier to work with than an image sized incorrectly than expected.

Hub Announcements

ISteamHub::GetAnnouncements is patterned directly after ISteamNews::GetNewsForApp as both offer similar returns of data. The unique aspect with Announcements is the privacy settings for groups. I made an assumption that one can make a WebAPI Key show or hide announcements based on the settings made.

Hub Events

I feel the event system needs a bit of tweaking in general and used the proposal to outline issues around event types. The existing ones feel irrelevant or even condescending.

As part of the spec, I included a rewrite of the type’s description text and added a new “OnlineEvent” title. “OnlineEvent” allows for events that refer to a URL for video streaming or other type of online event. For example, The International event for DOTA2 can be included as an event with a direct link to the online stream. This type also opens the ‘eventurl’ field for the event creator to include a URL.

Hub Member Status ISteamHub::GetStatus

The old Community XML stats included the number of members who were online, playing a game, and total membership. The refresh rate for this information is a lot more in flux than ISteamHub::GetSummaries information, so a new method made sense.

I also included playeroftheweek. While not as frequently changed as the other bits of info, Player of the Week is more frequently updated than summary info.

ISteamApps

The next phase was developing out information from the Steam store. There isn’t a way for applications to procedurally work with applications available on the platform. I would love to see various widgets and other fun things with this information!

Same Interface, New Methods

The ISteamApps interface already exists, so adding a few new methods to it seemed appropriate. I also didn’t have a previous method to base my designs on, so I went and made something new. I also threw every bit of information possible with a Steam App having filled out most of this information before for many Telltale Games titles.

Separating Media

I pulled media related to a call out from the omnibus that is ISteamApps::GetAppData, besides image URLs. Calling for screenshots and trailers of a project is a lot more request heavy, so pulling it out to a different method made sense.

Movies were a bit of a mystery as far as what data is available to share, so the given information is a bit basic but would function.

Pricing not included.

I’m not knowledgeable enough of the Steam platform to make a decent specification for pricing. While I could have made something, I like making a specification that closely pairs the existing implementation of pricing. I don’t have visibility on how Steam runs pricing so it’s a method I had to skip… FOR NOW.

I needed a home to showcase myself professionally, so I started working on this site. While this blog fits to my occasional musing of writing, this is a more professional site highlighting my career of the past few years.

It gave me a chance to play around with Twitter Bootstrap and Font Awesome, which are now my new BFFs. Not only do they make development easier, it also scales very well for smaller screen devices like mobile phones. It’s also hosted on GitHub Pages. I wanted to stick to basic HTML this time around since it’s been such a long time. I also used LESS for CSS. While I’ve used SASS before for Umloud.org, Bootstrap uses LESS which made the workflow smoother. Finally, I used CodeKit to compile LESS and minify JavaScripts. Such a wonderful tool that I even paid money for it!

This isn’t the only website I released over the weekend, but it’s certainly the most important! A special thanks goes out to the number of people who’ve gave a lot of feedback during my process. Thank you all so much!

A few weeks ago I stumbled upon the Steam Condenser project. It’s library to make sense of the Steam Community, Source, GoldSrc and Steam master servers information for PHP, Java, and Ruby. They’re still using the deprecated XML data which Valve replaced with the Steam WebAPI. I’m starting to work on converting the PHP library to WebAPI, when I discovered the community data was stuck in XML and no replacement.

So I made a public proposal to the Steam WebAPI.

I wanted a public demonstration of my API development work. I’ve done a lot of this stuff before, but it’s all private and can’t be shared. While this is just a proposal and lacks the consulting with Valve employees, it does demonstrate my skill under the limited circumstances. Course, I wouldn’t mind working with Valve on this. Or working at Valve on this.

I also found there’s no good way to get game information — including pricing and other data. There’s gameplay stats and the news feed, but there’s no way of getting the kind of data you’d get at a store page. That’s my next step!

First a quotable quote from me in case anyone wants the soundbite:

LucasArts in the 80′s and 90′s helped shape me into the interactive media artist I am today. My time at Telltale Games was as close to working in that environment, and I hope shaped positively the careers of future men and women of interactive media. – John “Seg” Seggerson

I am the product of the adventure gaming genre of the 90′s and squarely in the SCUMM engine camp. Besides Myst, Sam & Max and Monkey Island titles are the most influential titles in my life. They shaped how I created my career and thus my life itself. The news of the closure wasn’t unexpected, so I have already made peace with the fate that occurred. But this is a time to reflect on the importance LucasArts has made in my life.

My love for video games is rooted in an interactive narrative. I’m not one for shooting at things a lot. I’d rather be a part of the storytelling process than a hired gun. Growing up with the SCUMM engine games, I had a lifelong goal of working at a place like LucasArts with the likes of Dave Grossman, Tim Schafer, and Ron Gilbert. When the Star War prequels came out, the slow burn to the end of LucasArts began. The shutting of the successor of Sam & Max titles was a solid push in that direction.

However, I was able to find a home at Telltale Games, which in my opinion was a place for LucasArts ex-patriots like me to come to. Only Double Fine (and for a brief time Hothead) shared in that distinction. While working at Telltale, some of my coworkers who previously worked at Lucas would refer to it as “the other place,” mentioning stories of the slow and eventual demise to the very heart of LucasArts which fans and developers aspired to.

I guess it is poetic that my layoff at Telltale occurred within a year of LucasArts closure; a bookend of a chapter of my career as an artist in the wings of the people who came before me. Now I can state my own ground with my own endeavors. Still, there’s a large part of me that mourns the downfall of the company that inspired me so many years ago.

My hope now is that the rest of the back catalogue be re-released. Especially Grim Fandango. I don’t want our history to fade.

The live broadcast is at 6PM PDT, with a recording posted sometime later. Hope you can listen in!