VerseVerse

The Boring Image Software Post

Categories Software, Tech

There is no fanfare for this post. I have been trying new image software the last few months and I thought I would share a few useful ones.

ScreenToGif

Quickly capture a series of images and turn them into a gif (or webp). Frames can easily be trimmed out and you can play with scaling and time. I had to adjust the settings a few times to get a reasonable file size that was appropriate for my blog posts. Sadly it is Windows only. You can see things in action in my Fauns in Peril post. Download from https://www.screentogif.com/ and visit their subreddit page or discord where the author frequently responds.

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The Elder Scrolls Online: Fauns in Peril

Categories Elder Scrolls Online, Games

The colorful landscape of Galen and the fauns that fill it brought me joy at first sight. Reading The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and visiting Ohio has instilled an instinctual desire in me to want to make friends with all fauns.

Fauns dancing in Galen.

Sadly, the fauns until this point had not seemed keen on the idea. They dance, but never extended an invitation. In fact, they were downright hostile. I doubted I would ever meet a faun friend, but then I found two striking individuals.

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Chills and Thrills: My Spooky Movies

Categories Movies

Picking movies to match the season becomes most essential to me during October, with December a modest second. So I present to you my movies as either Reese’s or Peeps. Are they rich with something delicious in the middle or are they a travesty of all sweet and no substance? Read ahead for spoiler free thoughts.

The Cabin in the Woods

The Cabin in the Woods is Directed by Drew Goddard and produced by persona non grata, Joss Whedon, with shared writing credits between both. It is a flick that almost did not get released and when it did it was years late. Yet this film has garnered a cult following for its unique take on meeting genre tropes and poking fun at them. At times things get dark, but overall it is a masterful balance that makes college-kids-going-on-vacation actually fun. Hold tight in the final 20 minutes, because it is a roller coaster.

The casting is also great, with a special nod from me to Fran Kranz as the stoner friend, Marty. It is hard to not want to name off a bunch of the cast, Like Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford as Sitterson and Hadley, because I think a lot of the films strength rests in its dialogue. If the movie did anything, it made me miss Whedon’s writing. It is a shame that people mostly know him artistically for his blunders and even more so that he has not shown any sign of appreciating why people have been upset with him personally.

The person aside, this film is one I have seen before and I suspect I will see it many more times in the years to come.

This movie is a Reese’s.

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The Very Old Age of Conan: Part 1

Categories Age of Conan, Games

There was a time when I was set on playing Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures. In 2008, I was excited for an MMORPG that was unbound by embracing its visceral combat, unbound by the promise of relentless PvP, and unbound by articles of clothing to maintain any modesty.

Yet Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning came out the same year and with its blitz of marketing, it caught me and I became a cheerleader for another team. I forgot about Conan and embraced WAR. I would go on to play Warhammer Online on and off until its early demise (and then again with its rebirth, but that is for another time).

I never stopped hearing positive things about the initial experience of Age of Conan, that it is well voiced and well put together but also drops off hard in quality after its introduction. I accepted this and decided I would right a wrong, I would finally enter Hyboria!

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Future Nostalgia: It Takes Two

Categories Games, It Takes Two

Every so often I play a game that touches something new inside of me and gets me hyped about games all over again. I know that once it happens, I won’t get it in the same way again.

It Takes Two has reached inside of me and grabbed hold of a mix of wonderment and concern. It is mechanically diverse, emotionally gigantic, and overwhelmingly good vibes.

The game only plays as a two player experience, so a partner is mandatory. I think it would be easy to call forced cooperation brave on the part of the developers but I think it was the only choice for the game they wanted to make. I cannot imagine this game being what it is without the two in It Takes Two, and no NPC could fill the space where the party of two are reading each other just as much as the game.

My journey is not yet done, I have not finished the game. It has become our regular meetup a few times a week, my player-two and I, to see what May and Cody will do next. They still have a lot to learn, and so do we.

Welcome

Welcome, dear guest, to Verse and Vermin. I did not want my first post to be just an introduction but an acknowledgement also feels polite. This is my corner where I mix interest and imagination, a bit of what you have read already. If your eyes find anything to like, I hope that you will stick around and say hello. If you yourself have a blog, please share it here.

Thank you, and I hope you have a delightful day.