5 ms·

I’m a fan of Alan Hazelden and Draknek’s work but stating upfront that he a) wasn’t involved with the work directly but b) agreed for it to be used years ago, w

I’m a fan of Alan Hazelden and Draknek’s work but stating upfront that he a) wasn’t involved with the work directly but b) agreed for it to be used years ago, while then going on to write what seems to read as a light hit-piece for Blow himself, and then using that to launch into a point about how his politics and Blow’s don’t align (not relevant for puzzle game progeny) feels like more like him using the trailer for Blow’s game as a trampoline for his own personal beliefs and politics. He also used the same thread to mention his own grant fund while not acknowledging that Thekla (Blow’s company) also has (or had at some point) a similar scheme [1] Meanwhile the various accusations about Blow’s politics beliefs are mysteriously missing, or at least seem to be large extrapolations from other Twitter comments also not cited. Is there something in the thread I missed? [1] https://www.gamesindustry.biz/thekla-raises-grant-money-for-underrepresented-devs-to-usd100k https://www.gamesindustry.biz/thekla-raises-grant-money-for-...

johnnyanmac 10mo ago
>Meanwhile the various accusations about Blow’s politics beliefs are mysteriously missing He sort of went mask off during COVID, so I believe it. I also believe Blow is a smart dude and would try to erase that history right before a PR rally for his game. I'm not even on Twitter but I hear about such events in the gamedev scene for years.
- sunrunner 10mo ago
  Also not on Twitter and try hard to avoid the easy source-less Internet drama, though I recall some comments about the vaccines being rushed out and not going through the standard trial processes and periods. It doesn’t seem untrue, though given the environment at the time justified, but that comment was extrapolated to “He’s a hard-right anti vaxxer”. No citations of my own though, so this is just memory. Either way, this is why I try to stay off Twitter.
  - wahnfrieden 10mo ago
    You are picking a small comment among a mountain of them and giving the most charitable possible interpretation of it. Strange for you to join conversation to defend the guy as you admit you have no sources to cite.
    - sunrunner 10mo ago
      A mountain of comments that you or others are able to provide, I’m sure? You’re right, I don’t have any, I’m simply asking others that are making bold claims about so-called extremist views to provide appropriately sized sources.
tom_ 10mo ago
https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713018435458495 https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713018435458495 > The funding for underrepresented creators was a condition of my involvement in this project, so doesn't represent his values so much as mine. He was at least willing to do it though, which I'm not sure he would be today. (https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713018435458495 https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713018435458495) > ...his company was the public face of that grant, my involvement in it isn't common knowledge. (https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713113473398888 https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713113473398888) Seems like this was all sorted out by early 2019 - and nearly 7 years have passed since! Plenty of time for a person to change from somebody you'd be happy to associate with to somebody you might not. > Some people have mentioned they couldn't tell from this thread whether these games are used with permission. For clarity, yes, we agreed to this in mid 2016 and signed a contract in late 2018/early 2019. (https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115707937686651789 https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115707937686651789)
- sunrunner 10mo ago
  > The funding for underrepresented creators was a condition of my involvement in this project, so doesn't represent his values so much as mine. He was at least willing to do it though, which I'm not sure he would be today. Interesting, and thanks for the sources. I was under the impression that it was the same fund as that announced in 2010 [1] but the date in [2] plus the apparent timeline does align. "I'm not sure he would be today" is a strawman and just Hazelden's own current views of Blow, but I doubt there's going to be a direct quote (or even better, a new grant from Thekla) to back it up. But yes, 7 years is a long time and the political landscape has changed "somewhat". [1] http://the-witness.net/news/2010/03/announcing-indie-fund/ http://the-witness.net/news/2010/03/announcing-indie-fund/ [2] https://www.gamesindustry.biz/the-witness-studio-offering-usd20-000-grants-to-underrepresented-developers https://www.gamesindustry.biz/the-witness-studio-offering-us...
  - tom_ 10mo ago
    That specific quote feels to me like a strange one to complain about, given that it's so obviously his own subjective opinion. Even if you're English, perhaps inclined to employ this sort of phrasing to state something that you are certain is incontrovertible fact (and will be so to everybody listening), the subjective nature has hardly been downplayed!

johnnyanmac 10mo ago

>Meanwhile the various accusations about Blow’s politics beliefs are mysteriously missing He sort of went mask off during COVID, so I believe it. I also believe Blow is a smart dude and would try to erase that history right before a PR rally for his game. I'm not even on Twitter but I hear about such events in the gamedev scene for years.

sunrunner 10mo ago
Also not on Twitter and try hard to avoid the easy source-less Internet drama, though I recall some comments about the vaccines being rushed out and not going through the standard trial processes and periods. It doesn’t seem untrue, though given the environment at the time justified, but that comment was extrapolated to “He’s a hard-right anti vaxxer”. No citations of my own though, so this is just memory. Either way, this is why I try to stay off Twitter.
- wahnfrieden 10mo ago
  You are picking a small comment among a mountain of them and giving the most charitable possible interpretation of it. Strange for you to join conversation to defend the guy as you admit you have no sources to cite.
  - sunrunner 10mo ago
    A mountain of comments that you or others are able to provide, I’m sure? You’re right, I don’t have any, I’m simply asking others that are making bold claims about so-called extremist views to provide appropriately sized sources.

tom_ 10mo ago

https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713018435458495 https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713018435458495 > The funding for underrepresented creators was a condition of my involvement in this project, so doesn't represent his values so much as mine. He was at least willing to do it though, which I'm not sure he would be today. (https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713018435458495 https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713018435458495) > ...his company was the public face of that grant, my involvement in it isn't common knowledge. (https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713113473398888 https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115713113473398888) Seems like this was all sorted out by early 2019 - and nearly 7 years have passed since! Plenty of time for a person to change from somebody you'd be happy to associate with to somebody you might not. > Some people have mentioned they couldn't tell from this thread whether these games are used with permission. For clarity, yes, we agreed to this in mid 2016 and signed a contract in late 2018/early 2019. (https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115707937686651789 https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@draknek/115707937686651789)

sunrunner 10mo ago
> The funding for underrepresented creators was a condition of my involvement in this project, so doesn't represent his values so much as mine. He was at least willing to do it though, which I'm not sure he would be today. Interesting, and thanks for the sources. I was under the impression that it was the same fund as that announced in 2010 [1] but the date in [2] plus the apparent timeline does align. "I'm not sure he would be today" is a strawman and just Hazelden's own current views of Blow, but I doubt there's going to be a direct quote (or even better, a new grant from Thekla) to back it up. But yes, 7 years is a long time and the political landscape has changed "somewhat". [1] http://the-witness.net/news/2010/03/announcing-indie-fund/ http://the-witness.net/news/2010/03/announcing-indie-fund/ [2] https://www.gamesindustry.biz/the-witness-studio-offering-usd20-000-grants-to-underrepresented-developers https://www.gamesindustry.biz/the-witness-studio-offering-us...
- tom_ 10mo ago
  That specific quote feels to me like a strange one to complain about, given that it's so obviously his own subjective opinion. Even if you're English, perhaps inclined to employ this sort of phrasing to state something that you are certain is incontrovertible fact (and will be so to everybody listening), the subjective nature has hardly been downplayed!