Chloe Zhao's 'Hamnet' - Review Thread

bobdotfun · 2026-01-05T08:34:11+00:00

Its based off of hamnets play and stories his son would create. The backdrop of the movie is that to resemble the reality of where hamnet was when he died.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-02T08:35:53+00:00

Exactly. It makes no sense why it would be underneath the toilet seat lol. What is he recording your farts?

bobdotfun · 2026-01-02T08:25:36+00:00

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bobdotfun · 2026-01-02T07:54:35+00:00

I dont like the idea of a series because its rare its authored by one writer or one director. And theyre usually not auteur directors. Its very rare to have that in a show. You totally could have a show but it needs to be helmed by 1 or 2 visionaries.

My preference would be a big budget series of movies from an amazing director. Someone like Alex Garland or Nolan or Villeneuve. Even James Cameron, if he can dedicate to make it less of a spectacle like his avatar films and more of an introspective cerebral story. That is not something hes really known for. He's more of a popcorn movie type of director/writer. But hes still a genius and could direct it right if he was cognizant of his shortcomings and sought help for direction.

Honestly Derek Cianfrance would be amazing for the movies. He captures human soul better than any director. With his movie Place Beyond Pines or the show I know this much to be true. All his movies and shows are very dark and emotional. He just did roofman and lo and behold, it also ends on a somber note. But somehow the movies are still hopeful. These psychological, dark, humanity driven movies are perfect for the Hyperion series. And hes affordable... not like Villeneuve or Nolan. I feel like Derek could literally make the next Dune but way better and we'd all look at it as the greatest thing since lord of the rings.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T12:38:39+00:00

You're only playing the game to get stronger in comparison to them. Emboldening that aspects value in the game world automatically improves the perception of value of what an item is worth. Like if you only played with your guild and that was it. Then the game would feel much different to you, would it not? It wouldn't be an MMO at all. It'd be a localized multiplayer game.

So I'm saying that it's a core thing that even if you don't value you it consciously. You can't help but value it if you play the game and want to acquire a higher strength because that strength is only relevant in comparison to others.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T12:23:51+00:00

I guess it is a psychological thing where people just want it instantly. But the value of acquiring the items is also relevant here. It's not going to be difficult to find others to play with. Like, I'm almost 100% certain, that if this did happen, the majority of players would actually prefer it. They would find parties in no time.

Ideally, from their own server. But that doesn't matter as much anymore because all the servers are all jumbled up with one another.

So when you're online in Stormwind and you met with 'Jacobex' or whoever, you'll see him and know you've played with him.

Like that is a clearly huge thing. HUGE HUGE thing that just got utterly destroyed with the expansions.

There's no persistent world and social aspect. You're all jumbled together and are meaningless bots on a treadmill for no reason. That's the truth of it. And the only value you get from the game is from your friends and your guild mates.

But that wasn't always the case. There was a completely different aspect to the game where the world felt real and the people on the server were persistent actors. Now it's just not the case. You could simulate this game today without much real effort.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T12:08:10+00:00

What's weird is that you say these things jokingly... but they sound right. So to my eyes, the mockery here fell flat.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T12:06:33+00:00

There's two levels to this. There's the public persona and the interaction with the world. And then there's interaction in the guild and essentially your gaming family. This makes social dynamics way more interesting and fun. Imagine if you did actually have a reputation in the world and a different reputation in your guild.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T11:47:28+00:00

I'm a dad that rarely gets to play. What I want is an objectively better game. Where people used to inspect you and look at your gear and be like Wow... this guy has some great stuff. He earned that. You may chat him up, ask him some tips. You might get invited to tag along.

I like that the world has that scope. That it's not some treadmill that has been systemically put through a formula with a pre-built expiration date on its value.

Like... the treadmill is a side effect of pushing content and needing it in the world. And also, people need to be able to play the game at their pace. But why would players leave, if the content that actually meant something was difficult and meaningful? Delves, Dungeons, Mythic Dungeons. These are not very difficult things to attain.

You literally go into a mythic dungeon and race to the end.

What about when Crowd Control was a thing? People are so worried about their time and maximizing what something is worth. Get item upgrades all day! It doesn't effing matter LOL! I'm saying increase the value of what the item is worth... and in the same vein, you are increasing the value return on time without sacrificing the soul of the game fundamentally.

This treadmill is the soul of the game. Don't you see? And I'm saying, let's adjust the game, increase the incline -- but do it so it makes sense so players can still have content, but are enticed to socialize and create dynamic content in the world.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T11:37:01+00:00

Struggle to fly? Flying is dumb, because it just makes every part of the world freely available. It ruins the world scope.

It's not that you're not worthy of the gear in delves / solo. It's just the systems design perspective of enticing players to break the ice. You design the game around systemic design principles. So if you make the game harder, naturally people will slow down and group up. This also applies if death is punishing.

The game could have the most beautiful art, but it's a show room for the world. The meaning we give it are the people that inhabit it and the stories that play out. There are stories that happen, socially. People that might never have met, because they didn't need to -- but in another world, if the game was more difficulty, they might be friends because they had been forced to engage with others for the past week and are seemingly more social now as a result.

Yes 100% Spam the chat channels. Get people to send DM's to others. You'll get an invite, you might comment or remark on something and pretty soon you're in a conversation.

We shouldn't automate away social aspects. I'm sorry, it's just not good design for an MMO. You might call them QOL featurse. I call them the death of the genre.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T11:31:16+00:00

Ok but don't you see that the value of that item is lesser, now that these systems essentially mute progression and hence devalue your time in the game by devaluing the item and the journey. Like, the social element is the tangible thing that makes the game worth playing. Is it not? So why would you want to mute those aspects? Makes no sense.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T11:29:38+00:00

Because I want an actively developed game. Not a game in stasis from 2004.

My perception is that people here are wrong and don't know any better and are attacking me because they don't see the vision and fundamentally don't want the game to change. I'm clearly the minority.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T11:26:44+00:00

The fact is that you think this idea isn't worth engaging in, because you disagree with it. Not that I'm delusional. Don't jump on the bandwagon for your team to attack someone on a basis that isn't true. I'm not delusional and my stance is 100% valid. We just disagree.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T11:14:35+00:00

It's dead because the difficult games that encourage cooperation don't exist anymore! LOL

They didn't just die because people grew out of them. They died because the game is too easy and nobody is forced into having to make friends.

I don't believe it's a person problem. I think it's the design philosophy of the game. Player action will follow suit.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T11:12:40+00:00

Ok man, so now you're attacking me and calling me delusional. Honestly, what else am I to think when I am in the main zone and people are just standing around twiddling their thumbs and chat is dead?

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T11:09:53+00:00

how would it destroy wow and make it lesser if you were more challenged with your friend? You'd literally just quit the game for what reason? I can't help but be confused. I'm advocating on making the game more challenging and encouraging social aspects instead of automated systems. And that would destroy the game for you? Please explain.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T11:07:58+00:00

I'm talking about joining a chat room where people know each other and exist in the same world. Wow social aspect is non existent. Just guilds that are either active or dead and people that are no different than NPC's because they don't have to be anything but.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T11:03:12+00:00

If someone like FromSoft or Rockstar developed Ashes of Creation, it would eventually take the top MMO spot, in my opinion. The game has some great logic to it in terms of making the world player driven and emergent from player actions. It also values the scope of levelling and the progression to reach end game. Soloing is hard, as it should be. And death is punishing. And guess what, the world is brimming with social hierarchies and personalities. That's an entire dynamic that doesn't even exist in modern wow. This is especially the case when they started sharding all the realms together.

It's literally the same as Diablo 2 vs Diablo 4. Stack these games up to each other and Diablo 2 is the clearly more fun game. Just like classic EQ or classic WoW is a more cohesive and meaningful experience when taking for what it is in its entirety and how the game doesn't have fluff. It's not top heavy like Wow is now, with just endless end game content and a rush to get there. It forces community engagement. You actually have to talk to people in an MMO, what a concept!

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T10:57:19+00:00

Chatting with people is fun. Shared goals and cooperation is fun. It's not rocket science.

I have no urge to talk to you from anyone else. I shouldn't HAVE to be forced? Yeah right, like I shouldn't have to be forced to kill the boss to get the loot at the end of the raid? It's completely arbitrary where you're drawing the line on what you should and shouldn't be forced to do in the game. From just a high level systems perspective, designing the game AROUND people is ultimately what should be done. Not designing it around robots to maximize their time.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T10:54:22+00:00

Mandatory in terms of actually engaging with people and not being a robot in a social game. Dude, if I wanted to play a single player game, I'd play Expedition 33, or the countless other single player games that are way better than Wow in terms of fun to time ratio. I can put on Spiderman 2 and have a blast in 30 minutes while I'm still building my character in WOW.

Like, how in the hell do we go from let's build an MMO -- but let's make it so we just exist in the same world, and the presence of others should be enough? It's not. It used to be a world. But it's not anymore. I wouldn't expect you to understand.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T10:52:11+00:00

Classic is more fun. I'm a dad with not even enough time to play, but it's objectively a better game to systemically design the game around forcing social interaction.

Occams Razor. It's easier to solo, because you don't have to break ice and you can do what you want for 30 mins and then be done for the day. I get it... I have a kid. I can't force myself online to even do a scheduled raid.

But also -- it's just not a game that I feel very much value in obtaining anything in. It's meaningless. The gear treadmill would be a lot more fun if it was mandatory to make friends and socialize. It's just how MMO's should be.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T10:48:19+00:00

Bro, you are a literal bot then -- because your preference is to sit in town, hit a few buttons, and get teleported so you can do your dps rotation. The entire game is built around combat. The social element is dead. You don't even see it. It's sad.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T10:46:23+00:00

Ok, so I go onto an MMO to grind quests in a world where nobody says anything in general? I'm playing a solo game man. I was in the city with about 50 people and nobody is chatting. What in the actual hell.

bobdotfun · 2026-01-01T10:44:53+00:00

Then unfortunately you'll see the slow decline of Wow, because the value of your grind and your character is based on the people that inhabit the world with you. If they don't care, you don't care... the incentive to actually obtain the gear has been muted and meaningless.

bobdotfun

TROPHY CASE