mat olson
@mathewolson.com
blogging at virtualvector.xyz • writer and creative technologist at large • hire me • ITP ‘24 • totally sincere hater • he/him •
Reposted by mat olson
I went to meet the 'Rockstar 31', the developers who were suddenly fired from their work on GTA 6 for what the studio has described as gross misconduct.
That's not what the workers call it though. They have another couple of words they prefer to use: union busting.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9nO...
That's not what the workers call it though. They have another couple of words they prefer to use: union busting.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9nO...
The Rockstar Workers Fired Before They Could Finish GTA 6
YouTube video by People Make Games
www.youtube.com
November 11, 2025 at 2:43 PM
I went to meet the 'Rockstar 31', the developers who were suddenly fired from their work on GTA 6 for what the studio has described as gross misconduct.
That's not what the workers call it though. They have another couple of words they prefer to use: union busting.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9nO...
That's not what the workers call it though. They have another couple of words they prefer to use: union busting.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9nO...
modest proposal: if they both want to stay a part of american life, andrew and chris cuomo should follow the “man up” mantra of so many of our public intellectuals.
they should participate in a bare knuckle fight at MSG where the winner gets to have a call-in TV show and the loser goes away forever
they should participate in a bare knuckle fight at MSG where the winner gets to have a call-in TV show and the loser goes away forever
November 11, 2025 at 5:48 PM
modest proposal: if they both want to stay a part of american life, andrew and chris cuomo should follow the “man up” mantra of so many of our public intellectuals.
they should participate in a bare knuckle fight at MSG where the winner gets to have a call-in TV show and the loser goes away forever
they should participate in a bare knuckle fight at MSG where the winner gets to have a call-in TV show and the loser goes away forever
Reposted by mat olson
Saw a clip of Chris Cuomo calling Zohran petty for referencing Mario Cuomo in his speech and it’s pretty interesting about where we are as a country that they had super pacs linking Zohran to 9/11 but still feel totally free to call someone else classless.
November 11, 2025 at 4:31 PM
Saw a clip of Chris Cuomo calling Zohran petty for referencing Mario Cuomo in his speech and it’s pretty interesting about where we are as a country that they had super pacs linking Zohran to 9/11 but still feel totally free to call someone else classless.
Reposted by mat olson
this generation of game industry guys like Tim here have always fascinated me, because they may or may not have actually been artists at one point but they don't seem to have ever had much interest or curiosity towards art. their real primary function has been to be a sort of libertarian ideologue.
sincerely cannot imagine being this stupid or anti-art
November 11, 2025 at 5:24 PM
this generation of game industry guys like Tim here have always fascinated me, because they may or may not have actually been artists at one point but they don't seem to have ever had much interest or curiosity towards art. their real primary function has been to be a sort of libertarian ideologue.
meet the writer bold enough to save james bond
November 11, 2025 at 3:02 PM
meet the writer bold enough to save james bond
i see this letter, i reshare it. thank you kurt
In 2006 a high school English teacher asked students to write to a famous author & ask for advice.
KURT VONNEGUT - born 103yrs ago today - was the only one to respond.
His reply was a doozy.
KURT VONNEGUT - born 103yrs ago today - was the only one to respond.
His reply was a doozy.
November 11, 2025 at 2:44 PM
i see this letter, i reshare it. thank you kurt
every modern film franchise should give in and be as lax with “the rules” as the fast movies. in the first movie ludacris’ “i got hoes” is playing as diegetic music at the toretto house. then for 7 movies a guy played by luda gradually reveals himself as an ace driver, hacker, and martial artist
Also like every single Fast and the Furious character has been blown up and they still come back two movies later so
November 11, 2025 at 2:39 PM
every modern film franchise should give in and be as lax with “the rules” as the fast movies. in the first movie ludacris’ “i got hoes” is playing as diegetic music at the toretto house. then for 7 movies a guy played by luda gradually reveals himself as an ace driver, hacker, and martial artist
Reposted by mat olson
bond thing everyone is talking about for some reason is stupid for a zillion reasons but easily solvable via a LOST HIGHWAY style transformation as well. this way you can also put the mystery man at the head of spectre. just brainstorming
there should be a triple feature of the now you see me movies where you watch isla fisher do the LOST HIGHWAY transition into lizzie caplan after the first and then again the other way before the third
November 11, 2025 at 2:28 PM
bond thing everyone is talking about for some reason is stupid for a zillion reasons but easily solvable via a LOST HIGHWAY style transformation as well. this way you can also put the mystery man at the head of spectre. just brainstorming
my optimism has been peaking too much lately thanks to mamdani and the like. the hater muscles are atrophying. i need to make a new enemy and quick
November 11, 2025 at 2:30 PM
my optimism has been peaking too much lately thanks to mamdani and the like. the hater muscles are atrophying. i need to make a new enemy and quick
lol again that this is what punk looks like now BEFORE being put through AI sloppifiers
November 11, 2025 at 2:23 PM
lol again that this is what punk looks like now BEFORE being put through AI sloppifiers
Reposted by mat olson
My favorite Pompeii graffito is “Theophilus, stop eating pussy against the city wall like a dog”
February 1, 2024 at 12:25 AM
My favorite Pompeii graffito is “Theophilus, stop eating pussy against the city wall like a dog”
Reposted by mat olson
i can’t believe that the best response to accusations of betraying the base schumer‘s camp can come up with is “no he just sucks at his job”
November 11, 2025 at 1:48 PM
i can’t believe that the best response to accusations of betraying the base schumer‘s camp can come up with is “no he just sucks at his job”
Reposted by mat olson
It's rumored that the next James Bond will be an enchanted pumpkin that can speak, sing, and even dance
June 29, 2025 at 12:41 AM
It's rumored that the next James Bond will be an enchanted pumpkin that can speak, sing, and even dance
Reposted by mat olson
Chatting with Future Class inductees for my latest at @theguardian.com. They paint a pretty clear picture of the perils of performative allyship.
Thanks to all who spoke with me, and always, to Keza for the chance to do important work!
Thanks to all who spoke with me, and always, to Keza for the chance to do important work!
“Don’t gather some of the most brilliant activists in the industry, treat us like crap, and then expect us to do nothing about it.” After the Game Awards cancelled its Future Class programme, @alyssamerc.bsky.social talked to its former honorees
www.theguardian.com/games/2025/n...
www.theguardian.com/games/2025/n...
“We were effectively props”: young stars of game development feel let down by the ‘gaming Oscars’
Announced in 2020 by the Game Awards as an inclusive programme for the industry’s next generation, the Future Class initiative has now been discontinued. Inductees describe clashes with organisers and...
www.theguardian.com
November 11, 2025 at 12:41 PM
Chatting with Future Class inductees for my latest at @theguardian.com. They paint a pretty clear picture of the perils of performative allyship.
Thanks to all who spoke with me, and always, to Keza for the chance to do important work!
Thanks to all who spoke with me, and always, to Keza for the chance to do important work!
Reposted by mat olson
Sheldon remind me when did Chuck Schumer fight united with the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York
The sooner we get past internal recriminations and back to fighting united, the better off we all are — the likelier our victory next November.
November 11, 2025 at 4:18 AM
Sheldon remind me when did Chuck Schumer fight united with the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York
Reposted by mat olson
![Joyce Carol Oates quoting a tweet that says “wherever he [Elon Musk] goes, he wants to leave”:
"wherever he goes, he wants to leave"-- that's because when he gets there, he has brought his own self along; & whatever club he's invited to join has been devalued by the invitation.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:buy3qvqcj3o76leo6ap7pn2p/bafkreifilfbsxemfsambf4kqwolr24ld2ekqcrz4ybgv3bv7kzi5e6kppm@jpeg)
fuuuuuuuuuuck gillibrand. and cantwell!
Here are the Senators who voted to criminalize hemp products: [with alt text included]
November 11, 2025 at 2:40 AM
fuuuuuuuuuuck gillibrand. and cantwell!
oh fuuuuuuuuuuck c'mon seattle
LEAD CHANGE: Katie Wilson is now ahead of Mayor Harrell by... 91 votes.
That's out of ≈270K!
Seattle counted roughly 39K ballots today, & they broke in favor of Wilson by 11.4%, erasing the entirety of the incumbent's lead.
That's out of ≈270K!
Seattle counted roughly 39K ballots today, & they broke in favor of Wilson by 11.4%, erasing the entirety of the incumbent's lead.
November 11, 2025 at 12:17 AM
oh fuuuuuuuuuuck c'mon seattle
Reposted by mat olson
fuck chuck schumer and anybody down with him
March 14, 2025 at 11:32 PM
fuck chuck schumer and anybody down with him
Reposted by mat olson
Just caught a guy performatively staring into the middle distance…he wanted me to think he was meditating upon the strange vicissitudes of fate but I could tell he was just a wastoid
November 10, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Just caught a guy performatively staring into the middle distance…he wanted me to think he was meditating upon the strange vicissitudes of fate but I could tell he was just a wastoid
Reposted by mat olson
The thing that gets me about ARC’s use of fully generated barks, as well as in The Finals, is that the juice is absolutely not worth the squeeze in a game that is unquestionably high effort. Like it sounds bad because there isn’t a human performance to ground it.
For Arc Raiders to ride the wave of human sociability all the way to the bank, while also being so contemptuous of the thing that makes us social animals in its own workflow demonstrates a lack of artistic integrity that I find impossible to ignore.
Our review: https://bit.ly/49bVn01
Our review: https://bit.ly/49bVn01
November 10, 2025 at 7:55 PM
The thing that gets me about ARC’s use of fully generated barks, as well as in The Finals, is that the juice is absolutely not worth the squeeze in a game that is unquestionably high effort. Like it sounds bad because there isn’t a human performance to ground it.
Reposted by mat olson
Reposted by mat olson
For non-subscribers, here's a gift: For the next 30 days, Aftermath subscriptions for new readers are on sale at $1 for your first month:
aftermath.ghost.io/11-06-2025...
aftermath.ghost.io/11-06-2025...
November 10, 2025 at 3:51 PM
For non-subscribers, here's a gift: For the next 30 days, Aftermath subscriptions for new readers are on sale at $1 for your first month:
aftermath.ghost.io/11-06-2025...
aftermath.ghost.io/11-06-2025...
Reposted by mat olson
Looking forward to
Ryan,
We never thought this would happen. The GOP has lifted the football 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯. Th Democratic Party are working hard to show the GOP 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴
Your donation gets us a new football and brings them 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 so we can finally kick it.
$50 | $100 | $1000
Ryan,
We never thought this would happen. The GOP has lifted the football 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯. Th Democratic Party are working hard to show the GOP 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴
Your donation gets us a new football and brings them 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 so we can finally kick it.
$50 | $100 | $1000
November 10, 2025 at 5:56 PM
Looking forward to
Ryan,
We never thought this would happen. The GOP has lifted the football 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯. Th Democratic Party are working hard to show the GOP 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴
Your donation gets us a new football and brings them 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 so we can finally kick it.
$50 | $100 | $1000
Ryan,
We never thought this would happen. The GOP has lifted the football 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯. Th Democratic Party are working hard to show the GOP 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴
Your donation gets us a new football and brings them 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 so we can finally kick it.
$50 | $100 | $1000