How fitting.

I was working on making dinner today, when an onion I was slicing up slid under my hand, and I ended up doing the knife-equivalent of whacking my thumb with a hammer. For such a relatively small wound, it bled a surprising amount. Which brings us to today’s word.

imbrued, verb – past tense of imbrue, to stain, particularly with blood

Learned from: Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night (Playstation 4, PC, Switch, XBox One, mobile)

Developed by ArtPlay, Wayforward

Published by 505 Games (2019)

When I found my first Imbrued Skull, I thought it was a typo of “imbued.” But the rest of the translation had been pretty solid, and nothing in the item’s description suggested it was imbued with anything (except perhaps blood). So, on a whim I looked it up, and yeah, it’s just a very tongue-in-cheek play on words, considering the game it’s from.

I actually kind of respect that, because while <i>Bloodstained</i> is <i>Castlevania</i> in everything but name, it’s got enough self-awareness to give it a slightly playful identity all its own. Sure, there’s themes of human experimentation, and demonology, and all that, but you’ve also got a bumbling villager who keeps getting lost, despite all your efforts to help him get home, an old lady who just wants to eat all her favorite foods one last time before she dies, and the occasional fourth wall-breaking joke. And somehow, it all works.

What a terrible night to have a bloody hand injury…

Back to normal?

Well, two days ago marked the official start of a new era in United States politics. That sounds a bit melodramatic, but the past four years have felt much, much longer. And I know the problems inherent in, and responsible for those four years won’t just go away overnight, but we can hope they were ultimately an aberration. Which brings us to today’s word.

ergodic, adj. – the tendency for a system to even out to a baseline value over time

Learned from: Oxenfree (Playstation 4, Mac, Mobile, PC, Nintendo Switch, XBox One)

Developed by Night School Studio

Published by Night School Studio (2016)

Disclaimer: The definition above is significantly simplified. The exact meaning is rather technical, and seems to vary slightly depending on which dictionary I use to look it up. This is perhaps fitting, considering the term in the game applied to a theory of thermodynamics.

Oxenfree is an interesting horror-themed adventure game. Sort of a sci-fi, coming of age, ghost story…kind of. You play (mostly) as Alex, a girl who gets invited to a party on an abandoned island one summer. Once you’re there, you and your friends accidentally make contact with…something through your portable radio, and end up in a struggle for your lives against the entities on the island. Much like today’s word, this synopsis is over-simplified, but I don’t want to give spoilers, because the narrative really is good, with dialogue choices that seem to matter, and some really neat twists.

Anyway, at one point, you discover the notes of someone who was researching the entities, and it’s in this person’s study that you find, among other things, books on ergodic thermodynamics. You know, just a bit of light reading while your friends are getting possessed, and reality itself is warping around you.

Damn teenagers, always on their radios, opening rifts in space-time…

Have a very scary solstice

December is chock-full of holidays, and regardless of their individual religious connections, there’s a very good reason for that: the winter solstice. During the darkest time of the year, when the days–let alone the nights–are freezing, and light seems to be fading from the world, people needed an excuse to be happy. Even before 2020. Today’s word isn’t the happiest, but it does fit, thematically.

fuliginous, adj. – sooty, smoky, dirty

Learned from: Darkest Dungeon (PC, Mac, mobile, Playstation 4, Playstation Vita, Switch, XBox One)

Developed by Red Hook Studios

Published by Red Hook Studios (2016)

I have a certain fondness for games that are punishingly difficult: Dark Souls and its ilk, the Shin Megami Tensei series, etc. Darkest Dungeon is no exception. Your characters are as likely to go insane from the stress of exploring your family’s estate, as they are to die of actual physical damage. Pathological fears, obsessive compulsions, and strange fixations can cripple them more than any injury or disease. And sometimes when one of them succumbs to this stress, they have some colorful, almost H.P. Lovecraft-level purple prose to accompany it–such as the occultist who cried out about the pull of the “fuliginous abyss” calling to him, or something like that, before he lunged for the clearly evil altar in the middle of the room.

So yeah, your characters will occasionally do things that are outside your control, and those things can sometimes lead to the death of your entire party, like when they activate a ritual to open a rift in time and space, and some tentacled horror picks them apart, one by one. As long as you don’t mind setbacks like that, it’s an incredible game.

Green thumb-stick

Every once in awhile, I like to take a break from RPGs and action games, and just play something simple and relaxing. And one of my favorite types of games to turn to in those times, is Picross puzzles. Filling in pixelated images just based on number clues can be soothing, but it usually doesn’t teach me anything–but there are exceptions to every rule. Which brings us to today’s word.

luculia, noun – a flowering shrub related to the gardenia

Learned from: Picross S4 (Nintendo Switch)

Developed by Jupiter

Published by Nintendo (2020)

Picross puzzles are laid out on a grid with a number or numbers written next to each row and column. Each number tells you how many squares on the line are filled in, and if there are multiple numbers per line, that means there’s a least one blank square between each of them. When you’re done, you’ll have a rudimentary image of something like a car, or a lamppost, or in this case, a luculia shrub. If the puzzle doesn’t include colored squares, the flowers you’re supposed to see might look more like a pile of trash, even if you squint, but the process of solving it can still be fun.

Horrible, yet inspirational in a way

Earlier this week, a regional landmark suffered a terrible blow. August had been a pretty dry month up until the end, and the sudden heavy rains we started getting caused the roof of a local theater to collapse. To add insult to injury, a section of the roof over the stage had actually been replaced, just a few years ago (that section stayed up). It’s a huge amount of damage to what had been a beautiful old building. And the real kicker? An initial investigation suggests that the rainwater pooled because the drainage channels had been blocked by pigeons, of all things. Freaking pigeons. That brings us to today’s word.

collet, noun – a flange designed to hold a gem

Learned from: Blasphemous (Switch, PC, Playstation 4, XBox One)

Developed by The Game Kitchen

Published by Team17 (2019)

There aren’t many “normal” items to find in Blasphemous, and the Dove Skull certainly doesn’t break that trend. The actual skull of a bird, described as being “drilled as a collet,” it’s a trinket you can equip to slightly bolster your defense. It’s slightly morbid, but compared to a lot of the items in the game, it’s not that bad.

I’m not going to go much in depth on the game today, because the damage to the Vista Theater is still so fresh in my mind. The photo below really illustrates how bad the situation is, but if you find yourself wanting to help, please consider making a donation to try and help them start putting the pieces back together. Thank you.

Finally, perhaps we can take something positive away from this. If something as common and unremarkable as pigeons can collapse a brick and mortar structure with their nests, maybe there’s a chance that normal folks like you and me can change the world on a large scale as well–just in a more positive context.

vista

Image credit to http://www.uppermichiganssource.com

It belongs in a museum!

With the quarantine continuing on, I’ve had ample time to lose myself in games, including Animal Crossing: New Horizons, which I didn’t think I’d like anywhere near as much as I do. Which brings us to today’s word.

Euththenopteron, noun – a genus of lobe-finned fishes that may be the link between sea- and land-dwelling life

Learned from: Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Switch)

Developed by Nintendo

Published by Nintendo (2020)

I loved dinosaurs as a kid, but much like the fossil record, it seems there were some gaps in my knowledge–namely when it came to prehistoric creatures that weren’t dinosaurs, per se. Woolly mammoths? No interest. Saber-toothed tigers? Young me couldn’t have cared less. For some reason, if it wasn’t lizardy and scaled, it didn’t catch my eye. (Except for trilobites–I always thought they were cool.) So it’s always cause for celebration when I learn more about the animals I just brushed off in my youth. Especially when they’re something as noteworthy as one of the first creatures to try and crawl out of the sea.

eusthenopteron

Darling, isn’t it?

Easter in quarantine

I’m not going to say “happy Easter,” because most of the things that people seem to like best about the holiday are things that they really shouldn’t be doing right now. If you’re having an egg hunt, I hope it’s indoors, or that you have a fenced lawn. Much as you miss your families, you really shouldn’t have them over for dinner. And if you’re smart, you’re not going to church, because if there are a bunch of people clustered together, the virus doesn’t care where they are. It’s understandable if this makes you feel sad, frustrated, or even guilty, but staying home and staying safe is objectively more important than putting yourself and others at risk, simply because tradition calls for it. And in a roundabout way, that brings us to today’s word.

biliary, adj. – of, or relating to the bile ducts or gall bladder

Learned from: Blasphemous (Nintendo Switch, PC, Playstation 4, XBox One)

Developed by The Game Kitchen

Published by Team17 (2019)

Blasphemous is essentially Catholic Guilt: The Video Game. It’s a 2D metroidvania full of quasi-religious imagery, where everything joyful is a sin, and if a person is suffering, that means they’re blessed. It’s twisted and grim, and a perfect example of a Kickstarter project done right. You play as the Penitent One in Silence (there are other Penitent Ones with different burdens they carry), as he tries to atone for whatever sins he’s committed, by slashing his way through an oppressive world suffused with twisted faith. Your sword is gradually piercing its way into your own flesh, you regularly anoint yourself with the blood of your foes, and your health items are biliary flasks (that admittedly look more like they’re filled with blood than bile).

In short, the game is metal. Less short, it’s a beautifully realized world, with great pixel art, plenty of secrets to find, and gameplay that’s a comfortable challenge. So if you’re stuck at home today, and looking for something new to play, consider giving this one a shot.

blasphemous

I could make a “he is risen” joke, but that’s low-hanging fruit. Also, bad grammar.

Welcome to the world of tomorrow!

For this entry, I find myself in the odd position of writing about a game that hasn’t been released yet. I’ll explain in a moment.

oniric, adj. – variant of oneiric: dreamlike or pertaining to dreams

Learned from: Iris and the Giant (projected platforms: PC, PS4, Switch, XBox One)

Developed by Louis Rigaud

Published by Goblinz Studio, Maple Whispering Limited (projected release: 2020)

So, I was scrolling through my Facebook feed today, and an ad for this game showed up, proclaiming it to be a “roguelike oniric deckbuilder”. I knew what two of those words meant, but I’d never heard the term “oniric” before. After looking it up, and perusing some of the screenshots on Steam, I can say it does look rather dreamlike. As a fan of deckbuilding games (100+ hours in Slay the Spire, and counting), and the randomness of roguelikes, I may have to give this one a shot whenever it comes out–I almost feel I owe it that much for already teaching me a new word.

iris

I do love how indie games are willing to experiment with different art styles.

Stuck in an infinite loop

It’s been longer than I’d intended, since my last post, but life has gotten crazy as the joys of homeownership have reared their ugly heads, one after another. First, the process of refinishing my deck took weeks due to inclement weather, then there was a problem with my fireplace randomly turning itself on, and then I discovered a leak in the ceiling, after the most recent bout of rain. Just one bloody thing after another, seeming to never end. Which brings us to today’s word.

lemniscate, noun – a curve in the shape of a figure-eight, or infinity symbol

Learned from: AI: The Somnium Files (Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, PC)

Developed by Spike Chunsoft

Published by Spike Chunsoft (2019)

I don’t know when the months of August through October became the new holiday season for games, but holy crap, is there a lot of good stuff coming out in that span, this year! From big name blockbusters like Borderlands 3, to stylish takes on old formulas like Code Vein, to surprising niche titles like AI: The Somnium Files, there’s something for everyone, and much of it is pretty solid.

AI is a cyberpunk murder/mystery visual novel, in a subgenre that has a surprising number of entries, when you stop and consider it. (Observer, Read Only Memories, VA-11 HALL-A, Detroit: Become Human, etc.) And aside from maybe Read Only Memories, AI is the quirkiest one I’ve played so far. Think, mixing all of those other games with a dash of Deadly Premonition, and that’s kind of the atmosphere this one has going for it, and I’m really digging it so far. Anyway, you play as Date, an investigator for a secret branch of the police force, and the game starts you looking into a case that’s suspiciously similar to something that happened to Date himself, six years ago. The plot has you cooperating with your A.I. partner (who’s also your prosthetic left eye), to dive into people’s memories, to try and work through their mental locks that are hiding information on the case that they might not even realize they know. Things get pretty surreal, and kinda goofy at times, but it’s great.

One of the characters you run into in your investigation is an idol singer named Iris, who works for a company called Lemniscate, and manages to get herself tangled up in the case. I haven’t gotten far enough in the game to know for sure yet, but I’d wager that name wasn’t chosen at random, and that it has some deeper significance to the case–just like Iris herself very well might. But I’m juggling several different games right now, so it might be awhile before I find out for sure. What I can say with certainty though, is that if you like visual novels, narratives that are a bit off-kilter, the cyberpunk genre, or mysteries (or puns–your A.I. partner is an “A.I.-Ball” for example), you should probably check this one out. It’s been entirely overshadowed by bigger titles coming out around the same time, and it deserves more recognition.

Iris is the one on the right. Sweet, innocent, totally-not-conniving Iris…

Right in front of my eyes

Ever have one of those moments where you suddenly discover there’s a specific term for something you’ve been aware of for years? It happened to me, just the other day.

hypermetropia, noun – farsightedness

Learned from: Crossing Souls (PS4, Mac, PC, Switch)

Developed by Fourattic

Published by Devolver Digital (2018)

It’s been about twenty years since I was diagnosed with being farsighted, but I honestly don’t think I’ve ever heard the technical term for the condition until now. Maybe the optometrist didn’t want to worry young me with an imposing-sounding medical term like that, or something. The world will never know.

As for its usage in the game, first, a bit of backstory. Crossing Souls is an attempt to cash in on the ’80s nostalgia sparked by pop culture phenomena like Stranger Things and Ready Player One, and it’s…not as successful. It starts off okay, with a freak storm knocking out power in a small, suburban town during summer vacation, and in the midst of it all, a group of friends stumbles across a magical artifact. But then the cracks start to show.

It’s as if the folks at Fourattic felt they needed to reference all of the 1980s, often times directly and without purpose. Shady government types have cordoned off a house to try and steal back the artifact–time for an E.T. reference! Simon was a thing in the ’80s, so we need to work that in–no, it doesn’t need to make sense that you have to beat an undead bus driver at a game of it…or that when you win, an inexplicable machine pours lava on him–it needs to be there! And of course, there’s a reclusive Chinese pawn shop owner, straight out of Gremlins. Which brings us to today’s word.

The pawn broker is in possession of a key that he won’t give up, so you need to steal it from him. In order to do that, you need to distract him with increasingly absurd requests for things you ostensibly do want to buy, so that he’ll disappear into the back long enough for you to swipe the key. One of those things is, well…I’ll let the screenshot speak for itself.

hypermetropia

It’s not often I catch a shot of one of these words in the wild, so to speak.