Daniel Achterman
@danielachterman.bsky.social
Senior Game Designer at Blizzard on WoW. Lifelong PNW guy. I enjoy learning about people. Views are my own.
Is it like a million hours long?
November 18, 2025 at 3:25 PM
Is it like a million hours long?
The last Dragon Quest I played was VIII and I was kind of under the impression that it wasn't that long ago but apparently it's been two decades and they've made 3 more so...
November 18, 2025 at 6:10 AM
The last Dragon Quest I played was VIII and I was kind of under the impression that it wasn't that long ago but apparently it's been two decades and they've made 3 more so...
I find that undermines it, sadly! Like watching M. Night Shyalamalan's third movie, it's less fun to know a twist is coming.
Like, deceive me. Keep any hint out of the promo materials. Tell me I'm at 100% map completion at the halfway point. Grab this rug under me and really yank!
Like, deceive me. Keep any hint out of the promo materials. Tell me I'm at 100% map completion at the halfway point. Grab this rug under me and really yank!
November 18, 2025 at 3:09 AM
I find that undermines it, sadly! Like watching M. Night Shyalamalan's third movie, it's less fun to know a twist is coming.
Like, deceive me. Keep any hint out of the promo materials. Tell me I'm at 100% map completion at the halfway point. Grab this rug under me and really yank!
Like, deceive me. Keep any hint out of the promo materials. Tell me I'm at 100% map completion at the halfway point. Grab this rug under me and really yank!
I love a good game where you're pushing to the final encounter and it's like "surprise, there's a good 30-50% more game left and it's getting REAL."
SotN of course. Final Fantasy VI. A good turn is just so great.
SotN of course. Final Fantasy VI. A good turn is just so great.
November 17, 2025 at 7:22 PM
I love a good game where you're pushing to the final encounter and it's like "surprise, there's a good 30-50% more game left and it's getting REAL."
SotN of course. Final Fantasy VI. A good turn is just so great.
SotN of course. Final Fantasy VI. A good turn is just so great.
Like, your first sentence completely threw me. "Castlevania" doesn't include saving at all. Castlevania 2 and 3 give you codes instead of saving to storage like Zelda did.
The result is that asking someone their favorite Zelda, Mega Man, or Pokemon game is a decent way to guess how old they are.
The result is that asking someone their favorite Zelda, Mega Man, or Pokemon game is a decent way to guess how old they are.
November 3, 2025 at 9:38 PM
Like, your first sentence completely threw me. "Castlevania" doesn't include saving at all. Castlevania 2 and 3 give you codes instead of saving to storage like Zelda did.
The result is that asking someone their favorite Zelda, Mega Man, or Pokemon game is a decent way to guess how old they are.
The result is that asking someone their favorite Zelda, Mega Man, or Pokemon game is a decent way to guess how old they are.
One of my favorite things about talking about videogames is how different generations of players consider different games in series as the default or definitive one. Your using Castlevania as an example of how save media works reveals that your default is SotN, while mine are 1, 2, and 3.
November 3, 2025 at 9:35 PM
One of my favorite things about talking about videogames is how different generations of players consider different games in series as the default or definitive one. Your using Castlevania as an example of how save media works reveals that your default is SotN, while mine are 1, 2, and 3.
She and, like, maybe Leigh Bardugo are kind of horror-ish.
October 8, 2025 at 8:17 PM
She and, like, maybe Leigh Bardugo are kind of horror-ish.
A couple authors you might enjoy:
Stephen Graham Jones
T Kingfisher
Some books I liked:
Someone You Can Build a Nest In
Our Wives Under the Sea
My Murder
Mr. Magic
Just Like Home
Stephen Graham Jones
T Kingfisher
Some books I liked:
Someone You Can Build a Nest In
Our Wives Under the Sea
My Murder
Mr. Magic
Just Like Home
October 8, 2025 at 8:12 PM
A couple authors you might enjoy:
Stephen Graham Jones
T Kingfisher
Some books I liked:
Someone You Can Build a Nest In
Our Wives Under the Sea
My Murder
Mr. Magic
Just Like Home
Stephen Graham Jones
T Kingfisher
Some books I liked:
Someone You Can Build a Nest In
Our Wives Under the Sea
My Murder
Mr. Magic
Just Like Home
I personally find Silksong bosses more satisfying than Elden Ring bosses because the controls and success / failure conditions are so much more crisp.
September 20, 2025 at 11:12 PM
I personally find Silksong bosses more satisfying than Elden Ring bosses because the controls and success / failure conditions are so much more crisp.
The last game to land like this for me, and to make me stubbornly push through it to prove I'm still a gamer, damn it, was Nine Sols.
September 20, 2025 at 11:12 PM
The last game to land like this for me, and to make me stubbornly push through it to prove I'm still a gamer, damn it, was Nine Sols.
Number of bosses that were like "yikes, this is tough" but not at that "this may be impossible for me" level: very, very many.
September 20, 2025 at 11:09 PM
Number of bosses that were like "yikes, this is tough" but not at that "this may be impossible for me" level: very, very many.
I'm sorry Nikki, it's clear you both loved her very much, and she lived in a joyful home. Give my best to Graham.
Grief is a shitty journey. Be good to yourselves.
Grief is a shitty journey. Be good to yourselves.
September 7, 2025 at 8:02 PM
I'm sorry Nikki, it's clear you both loved her very much, and she lived in a joyful home. Give my best to Graham.
Grief is a shitty journey. Be good to yourselves.
Grief is a shitty journey. Be good to yourselves.
It really was so good.
I think I broke my controller's right bumper.
I think I broke my controller's right bumper.
August 25, 2025 at 3:41 AM
It really was so good.
I think I broke my controller's right bumper.
I think I broke my controller's right bumper.
The trick is to leave negative seconds between speakers. New speakers wait for current speakers to be near finishing a point, then start talking over their last few words. Any silence is a failure condition.
July 14, 2025 at 6:02 PM
The trick is to leave negative seconds between speakers. New speakers wait for current speakers to be near finishing a point, then start talking over their last few words. Any silence is a failure condition.
This last month I've been learning to recognize intervals and scale tones by ear, which has always seemed like a kind of magic to me.
This week I've been struggling through notating chords in songs and I'm so bad at it but I can see how I might get good at it.
This week I've been struggling through notating chords in songs and I'm so bad at it but I can see how I might get good at it.
July 14, 2025 at 2:21 AM
This last month I've been learning to recognize intervals and scale tones by ear, which has always seemed like a kind of magic to me.
This week I've been struggling through notating chords in songs and I'm so bad at it but I can see how I might get good at it.
This week I've been struggling through notating chords in songs and I'm so bad at it but I can see how I might get good at it.
"I pressed my Tears of the Goddess perfectly, I swear. It must have been lag."
April 30, 2025 at 6:40 PM
"I pressed my Tears of the Goddess perfectly, I swear. It must have been lag."
Frantically pressing my game show buzzer and shouting "The City and the City!" but not getting the point.
April 15, 2025 at 9:31 PM
Frantically pressing my game show buzzer and shouting "The City and the City!" but not getting the point.
Holy hell, dude.
March 17, 2025 at 2:30 PM
Holy hell, dude.
I was about to post this, but it feels like bragging.
After mastering Mega Man 1, 2 felt pretty straightforward, almost a letdown. Surprised to see its reputation for difficulty here, but I guess it'd be a rough go if it was your first.
After mastering Mega Man 1, 2 felt pretty straightforward, almost a letdown. Surprised to see its reputation for difficulty here, but I guess it'd be a rough go if it was your first.
March 12, 2025 at 12:21 AM
I was about to post this, but it feels like bragging.
After mastering Mega Man 1, 2 felt pretty straightforward, almost a letdown. Surprised to see its reputation for difficulty here, but I guess it'd be a rough go if it was your first.
After mastering Mega Man 1, 2 felt pretty straightforward, almost a letdown. Surprised to see its reputation for difficulty here, but I guess it'd be a rough go if it was your first.