The menu ambience and UI of Battlefield 3.
Hearing this again hit me with nostalgia and a wave of emotion. Because it brought that feeling back to me. I would be hard pressed to quantify what it was, especially about BF3. But man.
“The center left helped Trump get elected.” “Vote blue no matter who.”
Right
When I think about TW3, and reminisce on the plots and characters who moved me, one of the first I still remember very fondly is Anna Henrietta’s lady in waiting, Vivienne de Tabris.
I think this stems from what a whirlwind of emotions her story conjures in us. It’s a tremdously sad, melancholy tale, one without any real on screen villains, (Guillaume de Launfal is kind of but he’s also pitiable) one without a clean reversal of the evil enacted, and no real solution.
You feel a real sense of her isolation, this lonely girl, sentenced either to a shortened life, or to inflict her curse on another. It’s was quite the quandary for me at the time, and I opted to respect her wishes and transfer the curse to the oriole egg.
What resonated with me was her response. Not one of despondence, or anger. A resolve, to make her final years count, to travel, to see the world. It’s a tremendously moving and encouraging ending, one that mirrors so many real peoples situations every day. That’s why it has stuck with me all these years, and going to see her in Novigrad, and then Skellige, were two tremendous highlights in an always incredible piece of work.
“The Warble of the Smitten Knight”
Some online exchanges bring an involuntary smile to my face, still after all these years.
Truth is I can’t really make up my mind on this question, there are such good arguments on both sides.
My heart leans towards Stannis. I despise many of his tendencies, and yet. There’s something I love about him. His unwavering nature. His commitment to justice. This isn’t a secret ploy to StannisPost, but I need to be forthright in my biases.
Gosh her writing is strong. In an expansion where we focus on Dandelion’s home, where there is sure to be romance afoot and mischief to be had.
Anna Henrietta in the mix would be a dream come true. Also I love her dynamic with Geralt, and exploring that more would be a joy as well.
Having recently finished a play-through with a plan to immediately start NG+, I luckily was faced with the prospect of delaying that for a month till the remaster comes out. Which I am very excited for, make no mistake.
But I was still totally wowed at the visual prowess and artistry in display in the base game, I was constantly just putting my controller down and taking it all in. The seamless day and night cycle, changing the mood of cutscenes and cinematics in real time. The unified and cohesive art style, unique for each region and faction, all while feeling part of the same world. The incredible lighting work, making interiors feel loved and homely, while capturing the wide and vast scope of the forest and mountains of the game.
There is a popular talking point circulating around many new releases, namely the argument that art direction is more important than graphical fidelity, and “high quality” visuals. This is a game which I think bares this argument out, and that fact that 11 years after it release, this game is still a benchmark. Still an example to look up to. That it still stand alone in many ways. Is a credit to the folks at CDPR, the work they have done, and the work they will do.
I’ve spent years listening to this on YouTube, thanks to an excellent playlist by Soundtrakcs, which is located here.
I decided to take the time to find the recordings, have a copy in my computer and phone, and then add and format them onto Spotify.
To download the ZIP file, go here. Scroll past the paid downloads and choose the slow one, it doesn’t take that long.
To add to Spotify, download to Files, and then drag them to the Spotify folder, which will display them in a playlist called “Local Files”. If you don’t see this you may have to going to “Settings”, then to “Apps and Devices”, and selected the option to allow Local Audio files.
If you want to add Album art and track listing etc you will need an App which allows you to edit MetaData and other things, there are many free ones, I used Evertag.
Spotify cover art has to be a certain parameter, or else it won’t show. The cover art I added at the end is cropped to the correct specification, if you like that particular poster from Inception, use that.
Inception is probably my favorite soundtrack of all time, it’s unparalleled in so many ways, and for me imbues the film with an otherworldly sense of pace and emotion. It’s a crime this has never had a major release to my knowledge. Hope this finds some of you who find it useful.
The narrative lead of TW4, Phillip Weber, confirmed today that “Geralt will always play an important role.”, in discussing the future of the franchise, specifically TW4. This news was welcome for a number of reasons.
Chief among them would be that I love his relationship with Ciri, and I feel there is so much more to explore there. In every play through of TW3, I have never really found myself wanting to romance Yen, or Triss. The way those relationships are presented in the game just don’t quite ring true to me. Ciri is the only one that feels natural, and in turn is the only one I am emotionally invested in.
The prospect of Geralt helping to guide her, to impart his wisdom. To see them get older together, a daughter chasing after the example of her father is quite moving, and I am thrilled that the very good ending of Blood and Wine (at least my ending), with them sitting together under a tree, taking it all in, will not be all that is in store for the two of them.
The Wolf and The Swallow (Screenshots from my last pre remaster play-through)
Michael Caine dropped this jewel
Robert Sammelin is an artist who developed the modern visual identity and aesthetic of the Battlefield Franchise, starting in 2010 with Bad Company 2, extending all the way to Battlefield V in 2018.
He created the key art, title design, and concept art for these games, and we have been all the poorer as a fanbase, and as a franchise, for his absence.
These designs are iconic. The icy blues meshed together with the burnt oranges, the grittiness and haptic texture of it all. They are all unique for the game and setting they are in, yet there is a cohesive vision linking them all, a unified theme and direction behind them. I don’t understand why this design template was cast aside.
His departure signaled a change in the visual identity of Battlefield 2042 and Battlefield 6, extending to seemingly every artistic choice made in these games. The soulless, mobile gamification of it all, the lazy streaming service menu tiles, the unoriginal and nausea inducing way they present the battle-pass. Just a mindless checklist of unlocks and hideous weapons stickers, the Microsoft paint Esq. player cards and emblems, the nonexistent ribbons, the dog tags which display no meaning, no sense of pride or achievement (and which are barely visible), and on and on.
This is a franchise that currently has 4 STUDIOS working on the main game. 4 Studios, all of whom pay a kings ransom to over 250 artists. That employ “professionals” in this field. It’s just sad that for whatever reason, the people who made Battlefield what it is, over multiple games, no longer fit into DICE’s vision for the franchise which made them.
People like Robert Sammelin.
Did I forgot to say 4 STUDIOS😭😭
In 2015 during a deep dive into the work of Hans Zimmer, I was introduced to this film. Not being able to find a physical copy, my search took me to EBay, where I saw this beauty.
Such an elegant design, such a tasteful work of art. If they ever release this in 4k, I’ll still hold onto it.
I love the weET edition but looking for any Fury Road Steelbook.
The 4k Steelbook I purchased didn’t have it on the special features for some reason. And I don’t want to buy another copy of it. Any help would be appreciated.
I sometimes forgot until a rewatch what a momentous accomplishment this film is on a technical level. So many short, almost throwaways shots are like this. As beautiful as a painting.
The fleeting moments they all were together, like a family, gave a glimpse of a life they could have known. Beautiful stuff really.
This little snippet from the appendices really distills what makes these films so special. Two of the UK’s finest thespians, veterans of both stage and screen, pouring their heart out to a crew who may not have grasped how rare their commitment and devotion to this project was.
Rhys-Davies words in particular bring tears to my eyes. With those parting words, you get a sense of a man who came to Hollywood full of excitement, with the world at his fingertips. But the years wore him down, the cynicism of the business may have brought disillusion to his heart. It does to many. And yet in the mountains and hills of New Zealand, he discovered all over again, what that calling was he felt so many years ago. People that loved their work.