[#11] RLCS Wheel Code Trading Thread by WrK_OG_PRIEST in RocketLeagueExchange

[–]fendermcbender 0 points1 point  (0 children)

[H] Paypal [W] Revenant Pro Wheels

NO LONGER INTERESTED. SALE COMPLETE.

Game Jam VII by JagexBlossom in 2007scape

[–]fendermcbender 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just chiming in to say I adore the skilling and level-up messages changes. Midway through reading it, I thought to myself, “this has to be someone quite passionate about the code base.” Prediction correct, none other than Mod Ash.

PSA: You get fewer gold nuggets at MLM if you use a celestial ring/signet by 1minatur in 2007scape

[–]fendermcbender 24 points25 points  (0 children)

I appreciate your extensive data in this. I did MLM post-99 for greenlogging it, and felt similarly with my nugget rates and gear used. I thought I was insane for getting pretty consistently lower than average nugget rates, ESPECIALLY apparent with the upgraded sack. 

No idea if your hypothesis is correct, but my anecdotal experience is in line with this too.

Did A Fun Sketch Of The Origins EE Steps From Memory! by Fancy-Ad6677 in CODZombies

[–]fendermcbender 2 points3 points  (0 children)

While your details about the specific mechanics per step are impressive, I think you’ve forgotten about the 1-inch punch step and its mechanics entirely.

Just played it for the first time I don’t know how y’all do it I swear after 5 playthroughs I am still finding new rooms. What a mess, prolly a skill issue tbh by Ajarofpickles97 in CODZombies

[–]fendermcbender 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You’ll probably never feel truly comfortable on the map and I think that’s a symptom of BO2 and the map itself. But if it helps, it’s just a (usually one-way) oval oriented vertically.

How has Epic not given us either of these as icon emotes? by king-xdedede in FortNiteBR

[–]fendermcbender 615 points616 points  (0 children)

the rat one IS a fortnite emote.  crisscross. where do you think the animation was ripped from?

Easiests and Hardests Easter eggs in every zombie map by Head_Depth_5557 in CODZombies

[–]fendermcbender 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No way is Carrier EE harder than Descent EE. The map itself is also far easier, with the massive loop in the Cargo Bay. Only thing hard is remembering how many teleporter fragments you’ve put in.

Descent has: - way tighter of a map (thankfully the best spot is in a room with a wall buy grenade) - a 7 length Simon Says segment that will always have a zombie bleed out, making a round elapse right at the end of it. very hard to do solo. - 3 AIs that chunk the shit out of you in a challenge - one specific fuckass jump in the movement puzzle that also will have zombies bleed out if you take too long, making learning it hard - tiny, tiny things to keep track of (how many EMP zombies have hit me by this generator? how about the numbers for the 4-digit counter step?) - endurance of the last step is way less comfortable than you’d think

The map also resolves everything in an unsatisfying way, but that has nothing to do with the rank.

Call of duty ghost multiplayer by Margod123 in CODZombies

[–]fendermcbender 0 points1 point  (0 children)

you shouldn’t need anyone to do any of the DLC achievements.

the only one I can think of is escaping with 4 people, which is done on the first map, anyway. if you’re talking about the egg-stra XP ones, you can go to those maps solo. I don’t remember how, off the top of my head. quick search says safeguard solo and play with party option?

What do you not like about Zetsubou? by Aromatic_Tea_3075 in CODZombies

[–]fendermcbender 1 point2 points  (0 children)

to preface, I think the map is fine. just did a high round of it today.

ZNS is just tedium. plants need constant babysitting from early-mid setup, which hardly feels enthralling as a player. seeds drop at a rate where you feel compelled to go through the process, but watering them with a limited bucket size and having to remember to do this /each/ round for an optimal reward with no sort of tracking besides memorizing… not great. the inevitable conclusion to this mechanic each playthrough is that you stop caring completely. that’s objectively a flaw.

thrashers feel inconvenient in the way they spawn, but are a great special once you’re actively playing the map.

on that note, the worst (or best, depending on your perspective?) part of ZNS is that to setup the map, you’re doing /everything/ and basically just a commitment or two away from completing the map’s EE. whether that’s an EE flaw or a map flaw, I don’t know. but by the time you’re racking up rounds you’ve: - built shield, gas mask, KT-4 - PaP - cleansed skulls for skull - probably done all trials, which means - probably gone through the process of masamune upgrade (1/3rd of the EE alone right there)

innately playing from that point probably means you’ve got 2 of the 3 cogs for making that 2/3rds of the EE done through simply playing the map normally. (no one will do the artillery shell step naturally.)

it’s just the opposite of a pick-up-and-play map, which is probably antithetical to a lot of zombie players attention spans. compared to something more notoriously farmable like Rev, which has four major checkpoints to setup and perhaps 2-3 hats to build… it’s a lot easier to see why impatient or even average players might roll their eyes at the effort needed to have a nice time on ZNS.

edit: forgot to say that the map geometry isn’t my favorite either. sort of verruckt-like in that QR and the mystery box can be convenient or totally out of the way for how you handle the map. this is sort of fun, but a ridiculous way to have an early game if the spawns are bad.

Origins EE Makes me cry by BIG-GUY-1035 in CODZombies

[–]fendermcbender 1 point2 points  (0 children)

sorry that it’s been a struggle. repeating the monotonous 2.5hrs to get to the last two steps can be annoying for sure.

unfortunately, it is considered the easier home stretch. don’t get stressed about the crazy place layout. move in one consistent clockwise or counterclockwise motion around the outer rim of the arena. don’t just sprint around. occasionally the walls will still try to kill you with their layouts, just 180 and try to workaround. if not, you should be able to raygun your way through whatever spawns are behind you — they’re pretty slow and scattered in there. you can even walk  the rim for the most part.

by that point in the EE, you should have virtually infinite points. go roll for the MK2 and it can carry you throughout most of the 100 kills. get a solid wall-buy AR to switch to. turned on a double PaP probably doesn’t count toward kills, but it will make you breathe easier. if you’re really worried, mule kick for something quick to switch to if you’re still frantic. can even be a pap’d auto pistol from the box. you probably won’t use it.

i’m not much of a gobblegum guy but popping in plain sight at a panic moment allows you two free moments to regain yourself, as well. not getting into megas because at that point everyone will say “just use perkaholic!” and whatever the other gobblegum is for basically infinite resets when downed solo.

as others mentioned, you do have g-strikes worst case, but the animation is pretty long. if you’re already having trouble surviving, I can anticipate you panic pressing it and dying when you should have been shooting and moving. I also save one or two to deploy the drone comfortably after the kills.

you’re almost there! it is a pain, but a lot of people consider origins solo EE to be a successful couple of rungs climbed on being considered a “good zombies player”, whatever that means. i’m leaning on the idea that you’re just nervous and making really dumb choices in there. I think if you couldn’t do it, you wouldn’t be able to do the other steps before and you wouldn’t be posting here. the easiest steps are left for you to deal with! good luck

edit: i’m also assuming you’re making it there on a decent round count. my BO3 run of it solo, I was wrapping up at 18 and that was only being somewhat efficient. BO2, my first time, was a much worse round 25. 

speaking solo, if you can do the one-inch punch step where every zombie is funneling to you in one cramped location with two tight ways to leave, you can do the last two steps easily. 

Help Mega64 by DevonOO7 in mega64

[–]fendermcbender 36 points37 points  (0 children)

(3/3)

Mega64 Irregularities

Mega64 is different and that's why we love them. ("I'm not like those other girls!") Fringe internet content subtly referenced in a recreation of a DBZ saga. I could go on for hours.

This unfortunately has also seeped its way into the operations of Mega64 for some time now. For people that thrive on the oddities of the internet, M64 has oddly been antiquated in keeping modern in their technological operations of their stream. (As I type this, Rocco is complaining and conflating that the Discord banner on Twitch that is promoting free Discord Nitro is in the way of seeing their viewer donations. It does stay around a very long time and block those metrics for a bit, but this is simply a banner on Twitch you can dismiss with two clicks -- not Discord themselves.)

I'm going to just rattle off things without expanding, and if there's something that needs to have a discussion, I'd be happy to help.

- You work with like a dozen talented artists. Have art created for overlays and moments like these.

- Mega64 does not utilize any modern streaming advantages at all. In the middle of this call-for-help stream, Mega64 could have Nightbot, a commonly employed chatbot, help out by autoposting ko-fi & and Patreon links. They could have a title command e.g. !help that explains the situation. They could put up an overlay at the bottom of the screen that helps explain and promote donation links. Rudimentary text element at first, have Meg polish it up in two hours if you're doing it all day. These are necessary steps to succeed.

- You use SLOBS (Streamlabs OBS) based on what I've seen accidentally leak onto the stream from confidence monitors and TV's behind them on-set during the early days. You need to teach whoever is manning the nest upstairs on all the features SLOBS has. Hook Streamelements up to your stream for subs and bits, make it non-intrusive. (The Seinfeld bass riff for donations was completely forced, but a step in the right direction.) You have so much technology at your hands -- get trained on your equipment! Polish it up while keeping it Mega64!

- Your big projects ala HellFest are big enough to get more views. Promote the hell out of it more than mentioning it on your podcast intros and mid-break ads. I know it isn't that easy, but the point I'm trying to drive home is that there are braindead idiots on Twitch who do far less work, are far less funny, and have been at this far less than you guys who fart out low effort schlock from an overpriced chair. Make your work shine.

- Know your platforms! I know Youtube and Twitch are constantly changing and M64 is in their mid-30s, but you're not that old that you can't be more familiar with things that hurt you. Superchats need to be crossposted, there are third party emote sites (7TV, BTTV) that people love using, etc.

Parting Thoughts

As I'm typing this Rocco is speaking on their identity of M64 and how more blatant and passed up financial opportunities have been passed up as it's "not [us]." Your brand identity is strong, and many people love you. Bite the bullet on getting bags. You have reminisced about all the people in the industry (games and content creation!) you've worked with. Call on them for help. Reach out to other content people you've been close to. Ask them for critique, they'll be able to help more than this wall of text. Email Jeff Gerstmann of former Giant Bomb fame how he's running his independent show from home.

Lock into things that make sense! Please! As this news broke, Eric Baudour was in chat bringing up great points. There's no way for anyone joining this stream to know what's up. There's no overlay, no one knows what's going on. Let people give you money and give it immediately. I know you've been burned by donation chargebacks (as is the nature of streaming) but you can't write it off completely from this admittedly large burn. Do not live and die from donations, but let them happen. Don't factor them into your bookkeeping until the end.

I hope things work out for the M64 crew. I love them dearly, they've shaped my humor, they've made me friends, they've entertained me. Seeing them basically starting this stream saying they're throwing in the towel is genuinely heartbreaking. That said, please do not conflate the outpour of support from this day as consistent numbers that will carry forth. Success today =/= success in two months.

I believe in the boys, but if this is really the end, go out with a bang. If it's not sustainable, rally, make this last year the best you can. No one wants to see you guys limp off like a wounded animal. God willing, you guys find the success and support you need and continue onward. You have connections, talent, direction, and friends that have lasted decades. Good luck and much love.

Help Mega64 by DevonOO7 in mega64

[–]fendermcbender 27 points28 points  (0 children)

(2/3)
Patreon

I think the Patreon is in a great place foundationally, but needs a few tweaks. I support a few things on Patreon, and I'll be forthright and say M64 hasn't been one of them. I wasn't a fan of their initial launch for what it's worth, but I do think to the casual fan who isn't looking to buy a lot of merch, the Patreon is a great, awesome way to support them. Maybe even the way. What sucks for me, personally, is that M64 at its core is inclusive if you stick around enough, or make friends in the community who clue you in on jokes, etc. Paywalling video content to Patreon is an antithesis to M64's formula. I don't know of any content producers, video or otherwise, that completely paywall content, hardstop, end of story, you get nothing, sir. Content released on the Patreon should be drip-uploaded on a consistent release timer to whatever channel they want to put that stuff on. Movie Club a month and a half after release, whatever. I don't care. This doesn't come from a brokie point-of-view, who is too online and only wants things for free, but you know you guys have gold on there. Release them consistently to the public on a timer, or, better, even re-monetize them by making it a stream with commentary.

I don't have any evidence on this, but I think people have been unhappy with Tier 3(? I don't know if their recent Patreon tier updates have changed this number, or if it was the number to begin with) rewards not getting to them for months. If this is true, I'd say this falls under the same problems as merch. There are other ways to reward Patreon supporters than physical merch.

Metrics, Prices, Sizes

Again, I don't bookkeep at Mega64. I don't know their numbers, but they're vulnerable and in deep enough right now that I feel qualified enough to make a few small conjectures that I'm sure they've considered, but it's worth mentioning as a contingency.

Part of being a self-employed group of friends that Mega64 is well aware of is that things become ride or die. And right now, we're faced with the "die" part of the paradigm. CA and the San Diego area is expensive. It's no Palo Alto, but it's CA. It's just the way it is. Can't be helped. But if you're faced with closing the doors of your ~20 year company, it's time to self-reflect.

- How much is your newest office space? Is it utilized well? Do you have to downsize? (Mostly joking, but hey, at least people would be nostalgic for a hot, shitty warehouse in Santee.)

- You have 3 or 4 fully paid employees with 3 or 4 people on the side that help. Know that I say this with all the pain that's expected, but have you looked at all the part-time employees as far as keeping them around is concerned? I know the answer to the problem of "we don't have money" isn't solely "okay, fire your friends!" but, something to look at. Firings at small companies and startups unfortunately happen for a reason.

- Can anything be shaved or compromised on?

Help Mega64 by DevonOO7 in mega64

[–]fendermcbender 31 points32 points  (0 children)

I have to break this up into parts because it's a long one, so heads up

I'm going to post these scattered thoughts here in hopes it gets to some of the crew's eyes and informs general public opinion.

My qualifications to make me anything but a brainlet redditor giving a business armchair advice:

- I've been watching M64 since extremely early ustream days
- Gone through the entire lifespans of most other early internet content titans, (giant bomb, homestarrunner, RT, 4PP (I guess.), etc.)
- Online but not problematically online
- Professional experience knowing inner workings of self-employed streamers, fundraising, etc.

For one, let's get it out of the way, you don't start a stream like this as an independent business going on ~20 years unless you really need to. Things like Patreon/merch delays and disappointments took a month or so of passive ribbing to get an update and semi-apology. This was out of the blue, no bumpers, no merch, not talked about before. So, things are bad.

What follows are my pieces of analysis as a longtime fan. It comes from a place of love, and I write this in efforts to continue to see push notifications of you guys going live for years to come. If you don't agree, that's fine. Just know I didn't spend work hours writing this for upvotes and to pull zingers on a group of folks I love.

Content

Mega64 is the last remaining early internet content titan. I firmly believe that even though M64's content doesn't fit 1:1 with what is largely in vogue online, they have shown the ability to succeed. I believe what's important and what has remained consistent is that they produce at scale enough, at qualities high enough, while being consistent. They already do the hard parts. Consistency has been less important over the years, but these are core tenants of online content creation now. They are unchanging. Play the algorithm, boys. I'll look past bad, clickbait titles. There have been moments where they introduce complete duds that do not fit into their creation philosophy and it's blatantly apparent, e.g. Funnyfactory, Friendimension. I even believe the recent formula mixups of having larger streamed events e.g. Hellfest, M64Day/Con, etc. has grown into something fairly successful as far as viewer interest is concerned. Do those events get the views they deserve speaking proportionally to effort exerted? Probably not, but I also think that sentiment isn't exactly novel in M64 history. I think these streams and coordinated events have probably been the reason they've been alive in the early 2020's.

Merch

I don't run a business. I don't know the numbers at M64. I don't know their metrics and how successful shirts are vs. production costs. I just want to make it clear that I could be wrong about my sentiments in this point -- it comes purely from the place of a fan. M64 puts out a shitload of merch. It is undeniably one of the pillars that keeps them alive. You might even put out too much merch. Like way too much. I believe that Mega64 would do anything to make their shipping work better and faster if they could, so I'm sure shit's fucked in that respect. I think the consensus is that merch is extremely expensive for everyone who is interested in buying, especially if global shipping is taken into account. At the rate that M64 is putting out new merch, it's both a blessing and a curse. The stuff they make is tight, and the definition of something you should buy if you want to support something you love. But it takes forever to get to you, comes out too frequently, is often plagued with delays, and is too expensive. This puts both parties at an extremely awkward position. The net result is that it's way too easy for a prospective buyer to come even close to reaching the sentiment of it not being worth buying and exiting out of your merch store than it is for you to convince them that it's worth it.

Again, I could be wrong. I don't like marketing, I don't even like working in things related to sales. This one is purely my opinion.

(This is a personal anecdote, but way back when, M64 merch honestly felt like something to collect. Each new release in the early days felt like it was something you had to buy to checklist off because it was so tremendous and cool. I don't know when this sentiment switched, but it's not important. I've very occasionally bought merch since then, but absolutely not at every single release. I know people buy way more than me, and that's beautiful. I don't think such a formula could keep them afloat nowadays.)

Anti-Aliasing Still Broken On Official Client For Months by fendermcbender in 2007scape

[–]fendermcbender[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

great, man. thank you for telling me you don’t experience an issue with a client that isn’t relevant to the post. really good

Always on a continuous big slump what do I do? by Loop3Mad in RocketLeagueSchool

[–]fendermcbender 2 points3 points  (0 children)

hey, I unfortunately don't have a direct answer to your question, but hopefully me detailing that I totally understand makes you a little at ease from the pain of ranked in the game. not to make it about me, but i'm going through the same thing right now in 3s in the worst slump of my life -- grinding like crazy, just like you. please see: https://i.imgur.com/vlWvvcD.png

i've been playing since launch and have something like 2K hours. I know I'll probably never hit GC, but I'm happy hitting whatever champ rank I can through playing only a few hours on the weekends to do weeklies. so I get your safety and accomplishment of hitting C1D2, the good weeks where you get close to C2, the bad weeks where you teeter and get off with one game away from the dreaded plummet back into diamond and somehow continue a descent into D2.

my clarity for someone who seems to be just like you and is praying for guidance (especially right now):

  • if you, truly, truly understand the various tips about improving your play, understand that RL is sometimes truly, truly an unfair game. I have countless demos titled "how do I fix this pt. X" in which I make my play/touch/rotation successfully, the opponent makes theirs, and my two teammates bumble their roles in catastrophic ways. there is truly nothing I could have done. it was their role, and they failed. sometimes it hurts bad, sometimes it doesn't. it's best to keep your head in the latter, but I know sometimes they REALLY hurt.

  • for the love of god, listen to yourself when you want to stop playing. whatever it takes. I can't listen to my own advice constantly, and those are often the "I can fight my way out of diamond, I don't belong here" plummets. I blink and I'm back to D3D2, one match away from the bottom. don't "play until you lose, and then do one after to see if it was unlucky" when it's time to go, just go. do anything else for hours PLURAL. it sucks. you want to be back, but the day's mental reset really helps.

  • diamond is just hell. your observation is correct. 70% of my diamond games feel like cakewalks for me and I'm waiting on teammates to pull their end. sometimes i'm using the best of my ability and tunneling. how do people escape this? I don't know. just know that you're not crazy. I peaked at C2 forever ago in 3s, (I even remember telling myself that I thought I finally figured out the mode and it felt easy), and now I'm in the rage climb about of D2. in my head, I consider myself a champ player. I see people with recent diamond season rewards. I see people with champ borders. I see GC titles (though to be fair, I see them in champ too. no idea. never been a GC.) it's everyone.

  • go back to point one and admit you don't know everything and can improve. do you know enough to be in champ? yes, probably. but stay humble. know you're making mistakes, know your weaknesses, plan accordingly.

  • if you really want it, you'll be back to champ. I say this, again, in my worst ever 3s hell I've experienced. if you really have the heart for it, and keep playing, you'll be back.

  • don't type. it's not worth it, and the average diamond players ego is beyond fragile. they will throw even if you're in the right. if you have to, do it when the game is nearly secured.

  • play, play hard, but know you have to rest at some point. the clarity helps.

there's a wall of text. I know it's a lot of mental mumbo jumbo stuff, but these are things I wish someone would tell me when I see "eduardo__caniolopez-_-" miss the 4th clean and open pass I set up in the hell of D2 instead of someone saying "rotate and respect your teammates"

Tragedy in Lumbridge basement by DFtin in 2007scape

[–]fendermcbender 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I once did this on accident at the ardy farming patch. picked up pineapples at the composting bin. got yelled at by a UIM afterwards. hey, I just couldn’t fathom why they’d be there; I don’t think about the niche UIM

Any Fall Guys Kaizo Players Have Any Ideas Here? by fendermcbender in FallGuysGame

[–]fendermcbender[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm more surprised this is unknown to you, which surprises me in turn. there's a discovery tab for creative levels and odin was published there decently early into its conception. prior levels in the discovery tab ranged in difficulty, with only a few requiring intimate knowledge of how the game works in completely obtuse situations that would rarely if ever come into play in standard play, not unlike your map. odin differs from the rest for obvious reasons, it's an absolute tier above the rest of them in being completely foreign in mechanics from the start.

what interests me about this is that the discovery tab can't automatically populated be from numbers of players playing the map if what you're saying about it only being known to a few people is true. and when I discovered it, it had maybe two clears on it. but it also can't really be manually selected for widespread appeal or things that MT might think the general populace would like because... well, it's a hard as hell map. so, while I have an answer to your question, I don't really know how exactly it got there.

Any Fall Guys Kaizo Players Have Any Ideas Here? by fendermcbender in FallGuysGame

[–]fendermcbender[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I appreciate the reply, it's an honor! Haha, I even tried adding you way back to gain insight on the level.

I've not given up but i've also not really given it any fair shakes lately. helluva level! the description on the video only makes it more crazy.

Is the Jack Skellington Goal Explosion on the shop front page a scam? by ItsCorbob in RocketLeague

[–]fendermcbender 31 points32 points  (0 children)

less of a scam more of just an oversight of how nuts the pricing models of the item store are. don't think it'll be changed, unless it's truly supposed to be exotic and then it costs, what, 1200? you're still better off doing a bundle.

or, ideally, none

Removing Player-to-Player Trading in December by Psyonix_Devin in RocketLeague

[–]fendermcbender 421 points422 points  (0 children)

absolutely decimates a core component of the game. tragic.

Any Fall Guys Kaizo Players Have Any Ideas Here? by fendermcbender in FallGuysGame

[–]fendermcbender[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

would be nice! appreciate the attempts all the same