I keep hearing ba-dum ba-dum ba-dum coming from the next room. If they really are churning the butter over there, they're going damn fast and I hope they don't injure themselves...

On a related note, why is porn so boring?

I know a crap ton of old painters after 6 some classes of art history here in college (and I have a long list of favorites), but I haven't seen many contemporary artists that I like in school. My teachers show a lot of slide shows, sure, but it's mostly crappy conceptual postmodern bullshit like paint smears, drips, and ripped up paper glued onto the canvas randomly.

So I want you guys to post your favorite 2D artists living and working today. Digital art and illustration is more than welcome; if there's any way I'm post-modern it's that I believe quality can come from anywhere and be made from anything. I'd love to see some traditional painters, though, as that's my first love. (I just got a camera recently so I'll be posting pictures soon!)

Here's my current (and rather feeble) list:
Joe Sorren
Graydon Parrish
Jacob Collins
Endling (from deviantArt :3)

Ok, I'm not usually one to pat myself on the back, but this song is so fecking awesome I can hardly believe I made it. AHH, I'm so excited I want to run a few laps. Go listen to it and tell me what you think!

GOGOGOGOGOGOOGOGOG!!!

I was reading on Roger Ebert's blog about his views on video games and I decided to send this response. Ebert is somewhat notorious for his views, so I'm not sure what his reply will be like (if there is one at all), but it could be an interesting debate.

What do you guys think? Are they art, or not?

*************

Dear Mr. Ebert,

I really enjoy your movie reviews and I've found I agree with you in most of your opinions. However, I'd like to challenge your idea that video games can't be art. I will agree with you that most of the video games made today aren't art, but that isn't because they're stuck with a non-linear narrative to present to the player; it's because they're trying to make a linear narrative in the first place (and a mostly clichéd narrative, at that, but that's another argument).

Video games are still a rather new form of expression, and because of that they're trying to adopt conventions from other media, notably board games, film, and, yes, sports (I liked that comparison). However, if you dump the idea that art has anything to do with telling a story specifically, then video games have a lot of potential in terms of presenting a holistic emotional experience. Telling stories is one art form, yes, (and arguably a part of video games) but music is also an art form in its own right, and its "narrative" is entirely different from storytelling. I'm not entirely sure what your view of art is in general, but I've come to believe art can be defined as a form of communication that we can use to share experiences and ideas. There are many ways to do this, but I think video games may actually hold the greatest potential for this.

Consider someone is making a game about WWII. This person could write a story and drive game play mechanics around it, sure, but it wouldn't work entirely because it would be mechanical and the player would feel more like they were just in an interactive movie. In this way many of today's games fail to be a better form of expression than film or books because they are trying to balance two opposites. Games are experienced, and part of what makes them such a good platform for art is the direct involvement with and connection to the player. If the game in my example focused more on the experience of being in a war than the story that comes out of such an experience, it will be more successful.

However, this doesn't mean games shouldn't pursue a narrative at all; that's definitely an important aspect. It's just that in a game the narrative should serve to support the experience rather than try to be the experience itself. This is opposite in film, where the experience is derived from the emotional arks of the story and all of the acting and set design and filming and effects are aimed at supporting this narrative. Great game play comes from putting the player into an emotional state and keeping them there with active involvement; the environment itself becomes the expression. In this way it can be much more direct.

Another point I'd like to make is that I believe part of your argument comes from a misconception as to how much control the player really has over the outcomes of a game. I've been making games for the last four years as a flash developer, and most of what I've learned about game play mechanics in doing this is how little control the player actually wants. A video game is a lot more like a trick that the developer is playing on the player. The player believes that they are part of a changing world that is actually rather static in its conception. I think this is a defining characteristic that makes video games such a unique form of expression. The developer isn't giving up control of the medium to the player; they are involving the player directly in the emotional narrative as it unfolds, and the richer that connection is (the more the player feels a part of the game itself), the better a game tends to be.

One of the main reasons I'm writing to you with this is because, as an experienced movie critic, I feel you are one of the few people in the art world these days with any amount of intellectual integrity. I'm currently in my last year of art college (for painting, mainly) and I'm still trying to grasp the current state of painting and fine art in general. I've found solace in the fact that at least the more mainstream and commercial art forms still have a sense of craftsmanship and self-respect, and I'm hoping that by presenting my ideas you might be more willing to consider and recognize the potential of video games as an art form.

Thanks for taking the time to read this,
- Luke

So I saw some posts about this on the FP, and I was going to restrain myself and not be a shameless attention whore, but then I realized shame is for pussies, soooo...

http://jayisgames.com/best-of/2009/pla tform/

Go vote for William and Sly EVERY DAY!!! PLZPLZPLZPLZ!!!

Or, you know, don't. :3

Also, here's a picture by Rembrandt.

My parents had an old scanner they weren't using and they gave it to me! So now I can scan in my drawings and put them on here, YAY! I've been drawing like a maniac lately, so you can expect more soon.

http://www.newgrounds.com/art/view/kaj enx/demon

</attention whore>

Also, for anyone who's interested, I've started work on the next Ether Cannon/War related game. This one plays like a tower defense/base defense hybrid. No idea when it'll be done, but it should be pretty epic. Sadly this one won't be multiplayer like I promised, but it'll still be fun.

Wakka wakka wakka.

Maybe?

Probably my best song yet.

I also released another older one yesterday; go take a listen and tell me what you guys think!

ZOMG CLICK HERE!

It's a pretty simple game, but I think it's fun for a few minutes. Tell me how far you guys get, I think I got to level 23 once.

Reply to this post with the most creative use for a hammer you can think of, and I'll rate your creativity from 1 to 10. Multiple replies are expected and encouraged.

Also, go buy Waterflame's new CD!!!!

EDIT: A lot of responses are using a hammer as a hammer is already used. No matter how imaginative your story is, using a hammer to pound things in or leaver things out isn't a creative use of a hammer. The point of the exercise is to think like the inventors of the Frisbee and the Bean Bag Chair. Just thinking of a new use for something can bring fame and fortune!

EDIT 2: Ok I'm going to bed! :D I'll answer any new ideas tomorrow.

I know it sounds kinda lame and corny, but it's such an honor to get monthly 1st! It's the sort of thing you hope for, but you don't feel like will actually happen (kind of like my whole career as a game designer has been). This site, and flash culture as a whole, has given me such a great opportunity to do what I've always wanted to do, and at the end of day that's worth more than anything to me.

I want to thank you guys for the outpouring of reviews and comments too. There's really nothing like the flash portal for a student of game design, you guys are fair and honest and I feel like every game I make I get closer to my goal of making something really fun for the broadest possible audience. I understand that there were people who didn't like William and Sly, and your comments helped the most. I still feel like I'm in the growing process, but I also feel like I've learned more making this game than I have on anything else I've made. I'm going into my next big project equipped with that, so hopefully I'll make less mistakes this time around.

TL:DR - Thanks for all the support. :3

Picture: Sly in front of William's cabin - late 2007