The stars can wait

Remember when I said this?

Well… here you go.

Art by @/kissmedevil

Diaspora is finally in the publication queue at Hosted Games! For those of you who aren’t familiar with this game, it’s a project I started with my friend Vince about… ten years ago. At the time, it was my first interactive fiction, and in some very important ways, it still is. Most of the writing on it was done from 2016-2021 or so, but the last parts ended up taking us much, much longer than they should have.

Day 2: Family

Day 4: House Stark

It is sad to tip the kettle over the cup & discover there is no more tea in the kettle. It is sad when the diner is closed. It is sad when the hawk seizes the rat & sad when the hawk misses. It is sad when the child encounters too early. It is sad when a mother apologizes. It is sad when the aphids have chewed holes in the lacinato kale. It is sad when there is a shopping list taped to a refrigerator. It is sad in the morning, Bach or no Bach. It is sad in winter & depending on the city sadder in summer. It is sad to finish a book & sad not to finish. It is sad to make love imperfectly. It is sad when the body is ready but not the mind. It is sad when [ ] has left the group chat. It is sad when the wrong thing dies. It is sad when it is three in the morning & the wind is howling & the moon is like a burning umbrella oh god who will put up with me

My dears, remember that two centuries ago one christmas night a man with snow white hair met a little girl with curious little eyes fetching water in the dark, and he loved her till the very end of his life

Penis?

Loss?

i mean alright, might as give that a

Was inspired by the previous post a while back, and had been working on this on and off for a long while.

*camera switches to interview where dog barks and mounches on the reporter’s mic (who allows him do it)*

“As the artist mourns his fortune

So the Dynasty falls to crumble,

And the two branches snatch asunder”

You are a recent member of The White Company, a mercenary guild on the far side of the law. Your job consists of hunting artifacts and roaming ruins that the Church has forbidden to mention. One of your expeditions, however, leads you down a path that is much deeper than you ever anticipated.

“The Golden Rose: Book One” is a thrilling 1.2-million-word interactive fantasy novel by Ana Ventura, where your choices control the story. It’s entirely text-based—without graphics or sound effects—and fueled by the vast, unstoppable power of your imagination.

Juggle friendships, new alliances, and flames of romance in this epic adventure that will take you to an Europe where History took a different turn.

Play as male or female; straight, gay, or bisexual.

Find romance, friendship, or rivalry with a cast of colorful characters.

Hunt down the thief that stole your forbidden maps!

Fight against bandits and city guards while trying to stray away from the all-seeing Eyes of the Church.

Explore ancient ruins and the cobble-stoned streets of the medieval city of Tarragona. Step into a grand cathedral, a sprawling market, a multicolored harbor, the dark gates of the city, or an aqueduct that no one dares to come close to.

Bond with a stubborn old horse.

Choose to ally with a street urchin or the feral captain of the Guard.

Uncover what is true in a world where denial reigns supreme.

Start to unravel your own mysterious past.

Immerse yourself in a world rich with characters, story, and lore.

Do you believe in Destiny?

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The Golden Rose: Book One is out for you to play!

You can find it at the links below:

Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1892950/The_Golden_Rose_Book_One/

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.hostedgames.goldenrose1&hl=pt_PT&gl=US

App Store Omnibus: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/hosted-games/id1302297731

Choice of Games: https://www.choiceofgames.com/user-contributed/golden-rose-book-one/

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That being said, real world AI tends to be... dumb. And prone to inheriting issues of its creator. Easiest way to avoid that is black boxing the AI into a learning simulation where it runs 500 businesses every second, checks what works best and what does not every generation. The result will either be an AI that instantly uses all its resources to buy yellow-ish apples, because it decided that the fastest way to achieve its "victory conditions" is that, or something very good at leading.

How is apples leading to victory you might ask, because giving gifts to employee improves morale, improved morale boosts efficency, and apple happens to be the most cost effective gift to boost morale. In its mind,giving every employee 200 apples means that every employee works at 347% capacity, and it uses the money to buy more apples, resulting in a feedback loop where you get infinite capacity per worker as it uses all its money to buy apples.