lexxercise: Remember that one time I made a bunch of Homestuck...
Remember that one time I made a bunch of Homestuck shirts? Sad that you missed out on nabbing one?? Through the combined powers of What Pumpkin and TopatoCo, NOW YOU CAN!
My classic DANCE design is now available on both black and white shirts. Some sizes are already starting to run low, so get em while they're hot!
Thank you for this lovely shirt design, Lexxy.
NEW HOMESTUCK ALBUM - CHERUBIM
NEW HOMESTUCK ALBUM - CHERUBIM:
Go to the Bandcamp page to check it out!
You may now preorder the 2013 calendar! Oh hey also there are a couple new hoodies.
You may now preorder the 2013 calendar!
Oh hey also there are a couple new hoodies.
Let’s take a look at a few responses… Wow. WOW. You guys made ANDREW HUSSIE take the...
Let’s take a look at a few responses…
- Wow. WOW. You guys made ANDREW HUSSIE take the Caucasian joke completely out of his comic. *slow claps* That… I don't even know what to say. You made one of the only people who could say and do whatever they damn well please change, completely missing the point of trolling, sarcasm, irony, etc. Happy now? Isn't censorship so much fun? Welcome to the real world, do you think it gets any better? Or are you just happy when you're on the other side of the joke?
- Am I the only one who wasn't a butthurt socialjusticefag about hussie's headcannon joke and actually lolled rather than pouting
- I will simply say that this is what can happen when a webcomic gets huge like Homestuck does. You simply draw your imaginary webcomic character as a different color, and every hypersensitive freak has a meltdown over it. This is why social justice is an inherent constraining force on all art. Social justice is in essence a form of censorship, which is antithetical to art.
- Manning the fuck up? He did nothing wrong. He didn't do it to start a fight, he even said so himself. It's you, the idiot bitch who gets upset when white people are in existence (which is racism by the way) that caused him to change it. If you don't like that, maybe you should commit suicide!
These are just a few, picked out semi-randomly, ranging from “mild, but missing the point” to “unspeakably terrible”.
Ironically, attitudes like this were much more responsible for my decision to change the joke than any form of “SJW crusading”.
In fact I didn’t even really see all that much reactionary SJ boilerplate in response to it. I did notice a lot of people expressing some reasonable opinions about it, and being met with an excessive amount of rhetoric like this.
Again, I can’t say I wasn’t expecting a mixed reaction to the joke. But stuff like this, in such high volume, is well beyond the result I wanted. It’s fine if you found the original joke funny, but if you defend it to others in this way you aren’t speaking for me. Your straw man arguments are not my own, and by making the joke I was not authorizing you to harass others. By changing the joke I’m just taking responsibility for not thinking these outcomes all the way through.
I’ve said I thought the joke was funny. But if some feel differently, and I see them being widely attacked for it; that doesn’t mean I won’t empathize with them because I’m so convinced “THEY JUST DON’T GET IT!” And seeing too many people with that exact attitude was what first got me thinking “yeah, I gotta change this.”
This is why the claim “social justice is in essence a form of censorship” is so ironic here. Because the forces of social justice aren’t actually making me change anything. In this case, it’s actually the people who OPPOSE those concerns in the ugliest manner who motivated me to “censor” myself.
Most people here would agree that some SJ enthusiasts can get pretty carried away. But if you feel convinced social justice is a crushing form of censorship, you might want to rethink that idea. Because apparently “one of the only people who could say and do whatever they damn well pleased” for the first time ever decided to redact a joke, not because of SJ bloggers, but because of the behavior of their most strident critics. And if you truly dislike censorship, and do not wish to see more self-censorship in the future, then you would be doing your part to behave in a way that doesn’t make creators feel embarrassed to be defended by you.
So I just dialed down the joke on page 7623. The thing with that joke was:Poking a little fun at an...
So I just dialed down the joke on page 7623.
The thing with that joke was:
Poking a little fun at an ongoing point of controversy surrounding the comic, without trying to make a statement on anyone’s position in particular.
The thing with that joke was not:
Admonishing those who wish to maintain non-white headcanons for characters. Or those disappointed to see Trickster Jane with skintone. Or anyone really. There was not any coherent ‘TAKE THAT’ going on here.
At least that was not the intent. I can see how it would appear that is what I wished to communicate, but it is not. If that is an interpretation that will commonly persist I’d rather just ditch the joke. Or at least tone it way down, which I did.
But actually what motivates me more to revise it is noticing more than a few unsavory individuals using it as justification to harass POCs or anyone who, reasonably, wanted to voice their concerns. On reflection I’d rather not have my decisions serve as fodder for the arguments of such people. They don’t speak for me.
As a humorist, and someone who writes a provocative and unpredictable story, there are many types of unpleasant responses to my stuff I can easily accept. But some types… maybe not so much.
The original joke from my perspective really was a lighthearted jab at the storied subject of race in the comic, and the debates about it over the years. Mainly I thought the gag was tempered by its utterly absurd presentation, and made so over the top as to compromise its ability to be taken seriously. Beyond the pale of usual absurdity even for Homestuck, as has been the case with all this trickster stuff. Trickster mode, you’ve probably observed, is a sort of ridiculous game powerup, like a Mario star or Kirby’s lollipop, which for a while brings everything to a frantic and surreal place. In this case those effects apply to Homestuck in its entirety, the characters, visuals, flow of story, the site itself, and the sense of humor, all getting a little warped and pushed a bit outside the usual comfort zones.
Tricksters were once an easter egg in HS a long time ago, and they kept picking up steam in the fandom. So, as is often the case with MSPA, the idea has been adapted as a nod to the readership, in a way that is compatible with the story’s logic. Fans have always drawn them as particularly cherubic white kids, and so that’s how they look in the comic. But this creates a really strange disparity between their skintone and the usual blank #ffffff depiction of human characters. This alone makes them a pretty bizarre addition to the story and contributes toward pushing this arc into sort of a narrative uncanny valley. I was inclined to address this flagrant coloration disparity by making a totally ridiculous, way over the top joke about it. That’s because jokes are pretty much all I do. I even turn my jokes into jokes. (See the edited page.)
Personally I still think the original gag is pretty funny. But I had the benefit of knowing exactly where I was coming from. I think the new joke is pretty funny too. Maybe even more funny, if you have the benefit of remembering the old one.
I know I have a reputation for riling people up, so some probably think this was my chief motivation. But not really. My primary goal is always to do what I think is funny. I’m not saying I wasn’t expecting some kind of controversy from invoking the subject, but neither did I anticipate the particular texture of the response, which isn’t sitting well with me. So in retrospect, I decided THIS time, the gag wasn’t really worth it. Especially if it just galvanizes an army of tools against people who have to deal with shit like that too often already. So to those people, I will apologize.
The site was down for a few days there, but we are back. The server is located in New York City,...
The site was down for a few days there, but we are back. The server is located in New York City, which lost power due to a hurricane. The server people at Internap did a nice job getting everything back on line quickly with generator power, despite the major problems the city is having. If you live in the affected areas, I hope life will return to normal for you very soon. When things like this happen, I think our first impulse should be to help out. Let’s consider doing that!
The MINISTRIFE (which was going to drop on 10/31 but oh well) is chock full of sprite characters made by Feastings. Most of them were done a while ago and started floating around the tumblrverse as a little fandom craze, so I asked her to make a few more and now POOF they’re all magically canon. Thank you Feastings. Also UU art as always supplied kindly by Shelby. Song = Killed by BR8K Spider!!!!!!!! by Radiation. “Who???” I hear you ask. Yes I know, that guy’s music NEVER gets used Homestuck.
Act 6 Act 4 next. Are you ready for it? Are you ready to do some more AWESOME WAITING for it?? I hope so. I’ll try to have something ready by 11/11, which is exactly one year from the start of Act 6 (hey calendar: wtf???) The main issue of uncertainty here is I have to fly down to Florida and sign more than 11,000 prints. I actually have no idea how long that will take. I have no basis of estimation for signing that many things, because I have never signed that many things before. But the sooner I do it, the sooner we can ship out all your sweet Kickstarter loot. It must be done. I’ll try to get whatever work done I can around this crazy mission. An 11K heap of large prints is actually so much paper, we’re not sure if we can keep it all in the same room, because it might actually cause the floor to collapse. True safety facts.
Actual Tumblr User NotASenator: Update regarding Hurricane Sandy and MSPA: Part 2
Actual Tumblr User NotASenator: Update regarding Hurricane Sandy and MSPA: Part 2:There is significant flooding at the building that hosts the MSPA server. The generators that are currently providing power to the customer equipment can only provide a few more hours of life, and it looks like the servers may be shut down as early as 12:30am Eastern. It is not currently known…
MSPA site down due to hurricane. No telling how long it will be down. Hope all the server people are safe.
Final HS Solo Album - Genesis Frog!
Final HS Solo Album - Genesis Frog!:
It's finally here! Join the consorts on an amphibious adventure through the world of the Genesis Frog.
NOTE: Here the noun "amphibious adventure" means "goofy orchestral music by Alexander Rosetti" and "join the consorts on" means "listen to." Also "through the world of the Genesis frog" means "at your computer." Throw money at your screen now.
Beta version of minigame was just sent out to all KS backers of $50 and over. (But not for those who...
Beta version of minigame was just sent out to all KS backers of $50 and over. (But not for those who went through paypal because beta version only works when clicking through the Kickstarter message system.)
This will be a brief test because the system is pretty well ironed out by now. Final version will go up on site in a few hours or so. Til then if you don’t want spoilers you might want to avoid tumblr because people like to post screenshots and stuff.
Two quick hyperlinks:
An interview I did with Bryan Lee O’Malley:
And in case you missed it, a Kickstarter update with 2 days to go:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/14293468/homestuck-adventure-game/posts/320187
Some additional notes on the recent game update from Alexis, who I’d like to thank again for...
Some additional notes on the recent game update from Alexis, who I’d like to thank again for all the hard work he’s put into this, as well as those who’ve been helping him:
In addition to the more obvious introduction of save/load functionality, there’s a error reporting tool built in now! If ever you see an issue you want to report, just press the “~” key (under ESCAPE), and press space to dump a screenshot and the game state to us. This may or may not destroy our error reporting server in the process.This debugger, and the much more robust file loading that you now enjoy, is courtesy of Fugiman, who has been my right hand man on this development. He seriously deserves a medal for the hoops he’s jumped through for me (and you!). Furthermore, big thanks to LtSquigs for the awesome Save/Load functionality we’ve been able to include, as well as fixing up my mistakes with SburbML manipulation. Finally, thanks to illuminatedwax for his work on making sounds more reliable and helping with a lot of the core engine.This is your MSPA coding team, and they’re friggin’ champs. If you want to be a champ too, the entire code base is hosted and developed here: https://github.com/WhatPumpkin/SburbIf you see an issue you think you can help with, we’d love to get your contributions.
About a week to go
As of typing this, only nine days remaining in the Kickstarter. The response to it continues to be fantastic, and my gratitude to the backers is equally continuous.
Thanks to everyone who beta tested the recent update in advance of its release. Anyone who pledged $50 or more was sent an early beta version and a feedback form to help us sort out the bugs. The same offer will apply for the next and final minigame installment. If you have pledged $50 or more by the end of the Kickstarter, you’ll get an advance copy to test sent through the Kickstarter message system. If you pledge, just be sure you select a reward tier at $55 or more, so that we know to send you a copy. (Note this is unrelated to the $1.5MM stretch goal, which states that ALL BACKERS will be allowed to beta test the adventure game itself, before it is released in 2014.)
Also, once the Kickstarter is over, we’re going to put up a Paypal pledging option for the project. A lot of people seem to only be able to use Paypal to pledge, which Kickstarter doesn’t allow. So for a brief window after, one or two weeks, you’ll be able to pledge via Paypal for the same reward tiers at the same prices. The window will be fairly short so that we can compile all the orders and ship the rewards out in a timely fashion. We’re expecting a good number of people may want things to ship in time for the holiday season. If you’re in the U.S. or Canada, it’s very likely this will be the case.
For those who haven’t pledged yet, this might be something to consider. The timing of the shipping here means that buying rewards could actually double as holiday shopping. If you see yourself doing holiday shopping for people a couple months down the road anyway, this might be a good advance opportunity. A lot of those pricier bundles start to pile up so much extra cool stuff, seems to me this makes for a good chance to divvy them up as holiday gifts for friends, maybe some of whom didn’t have enough money for the bigger bundles.
Whatever the final total winds up being, you have already helped make this Kickstarter an overwhelming success. Thank you again for your support!
Heroes Go Right: List of the Homestuck Tarot Artists! (and what cards they did!)
Heroes Go Right: List of the Homestuck Tarot Artists! (and what cards they did!):Hey everyone thank you all so much for being excited about the Homestuck Tarot Deck (Available now through the Homestuck Kickstarter Project!) A lot of work went into making this dream a reality so if you guys have a chance to help support the artists and the kickstarter as a whole, please do…
Ah! Some good info on the tarot project. Click the post to see full list of art credits. Thanks Left!
SEERPAK
Check out the new Kickstarter reward tiers here.
This is the final batch of reward tiers we’re releasing for the Kickstarter. Hopefully this is now a sufficiently tantalizing buffet of options to get you thinkin about making a pledge if you haven’t already!
The extra-cool thing in this bundle is that tarot deck. Get a better look at all the art for the cards by clicking on the preview links on that update page. Quite a few great artists chipped in some really fantastic stuff for this. There was a lot of emphasis put on matching Homestuck imagery up with the Major and Minor Arcana of the cards in ways that are meaningful with respect to tarot symbolism. So if you’re wondering why certain characters and scenes appear on certain cards, do a little research into tarot lore and you’ll find your answer.
A little more than two weeks to go on the Kickstarter! Next stretch goal is $1.5M, which will unlock some more perks for backers. We’ll also reveal something higher up on the ladder.
Another update to the stretcheladder! One thing worth highlighting here: for all people in tiers $50...
Another update to the stretcheladder!
One thing worth highlighting here: for all people in tiers $50 and higher, I’ll send out a beta version of the next Homestuck mini game update, several days before it shows up on the site. You can help us test it! Aiming to have that done in about a week.
Kickstarter update
More cool rewards added!!!!!! Click here.
http://mspaintadventures.com/scraps2/johns_hair_is_not_different.gif
http://mspaintadventures.com/scraps2/johns_hair_is_not_different.gif
A non-Kickstarter update.
My plan was to post the A6I3 mini-game in three parts consecutively. I’m still going to post all three parts, but I’ve decided to break them up with some regular updates between each instead.
Between setting up and launching the Kickstarter, and then keeping up with the crazy whirlwind it’s become, I’ve had absolutely no time to work on the second mini-game yet. So rather than just keep delaying the update, I’ll post a reasonably regular stream of updates while I work on it. I’ll probably do the same thing between parts 2 and 3.
To some extent I’m doing it this way because I’m getting a little tired of MSPA being in “infinite hiatus mode” which has characterized most of the summer. There have been a lot of long waits, due to traveling, big animation projects, working on the mini-game, and of course planning the Kickstarter. For the entire month of August, my time was split pretty evenly between working on the A6I3 update, and planning the Kickstarter. There was a massive amount of unseen work that went into that, not just to plan the Kickstarter itself, getting the rewards ready and all that, but to make sure we had a solid development plan in place down the road if it got funded.
This has really seemed like one of the busiest summers for me ever, but unfortunately all that labor isn’t reflected too well by the archive spanning those dates. I’m more than ready to get back to business as usual* for MSPA.
*note it still won’t be QUITE up to usual speed, because I’ll still be working on part 2 of the mini-game behind the scenes.
You find a fatherly note taped to your tumblr dash. It reeks of cologne.
The Kickstarter reached its funding goal in what seems like the blink of an eye. I must first say thank you to all who backed the project, and helped us reach our goal so quickly. I’m still utterly amazed by the response. I think a lot of people checking out this project are. There still seem to be so many people out there who’ve never heard of this story, or its phenomenally dedicated following. Maybe that will start to change soon. If that turns out to be the case, again, it’s thanks to you.
The project may have been funded already, but there’s still plenty of time left for pledges to be made. The Kickstarter will stay open for another 28 days. Every dollar raised beyond the goal will go toward improving the game. More platforms will be supported if certain stretch goals are reached. And beyond a certain point, all money will be dedicated to higher production values. $700K sounds like a lot of money, but it’s actually a very small budget for a game. Multi-platform games usually cost many millions of dollars. Increasing the budget for this is only going to make a better product.
This is the bottom line: because the project was funded, there WILL be a game. I’ll make sure it’s the best game the money available can possibly buy. The only question then is, how much is that? This is up to you. Over the next 28 days, the fans will decide how great they want this game to be!
So, here are the stretch goals we’re starting with, which represent both enhancements to the game the extra money gets us, as well as extra reward perks certain milestones unlock. As I type this, we’re already getting pretty close to Mac support. Soon we’ll add a better graphic of all the goals to the Kickstarter page.
$700,000.00 FUNDED!
$800,000.00 Mac Support
$850,000.00 New reward tier perk unlocked
$900,000.00 Linux Support
$950,000.00 ???
$1,000,000.00 ???
$1,100,000.00 ???
$1,250,000.00 ???
(??? revealed later. More stretch goals to be added if necessary.)
Also, later in the Kickstarter we’ll begin revealing some hidden reward tiers. I notice the Snoutpaks sold out pretty fast. We should be revealing new reward bundles later on that contain more scalemate plushes. Keep an eye out for them. Also remember that at any time you can increase your pledge if you ever feel like claiming a higher reward tier. Just remember to select the reward tier you want when adjusting your dollar amount pledged.
If you backed the project, thanks again for the support. And if you haven’t yet, I hope you’ll consider it, and help us make this the best game it can be!
FUNDED
In 32 hours!!!!!!!
7699 backers, $700,009, and still counting.
I will make a follow-up post soon, to announce some stretch goals and say a few other things. Everyone has done an amazing thing here today. Thank you all for your support.
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