Jon Michael May's Blog, page 8
January 20, 2013
Why the Moon Landings weren’t faked…
I like the idea that it would have been easier to go the moon than to have faked the landing footage with 60′s technology.
January 11, 2013
Cyberpunk 2077
This looks amazing and next gen. It certainly sets a interesting tone and visual style. Plus cyberpunk! It’s beginning to look like Cyberpunk could be the next big genre in gaming, much like modern war shooters have been as of late.
January 4, 2013
Stuebenville: Read. Tweet. Repeat.
I don’t have anything new to add to this conversation or this story. I just want people to read it and spread the word, because if social media is good for anything, every once in a while it’s good for bringing horrible dark stuff into the light.
The basics of the story:
In Stuebenville, Ohio, high school football is a big fucking deal.
Just when you think humanity might be getting its shit together, you're reminded by something like this that people are still animals...and terrible.
January 3, 2013
Deep Space Nine…20 years later
Today is the 20th Anniversary of the premier of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Here are some of my thoughts…
My first episode was Heart of Stone. Like many people, I was preoccupied with TNG and didn’t give the show a fair chance until catching it late one night almost by accident. I hadn’t intended to watch it, but simply left the tv on to have something playing in the background while I was working on something else…which I can’t even remember what it was now.
What I do remember though, was being so engrossed by the Odo, Kira, and the Female shapeshifter that I made a point to tune in the following week to watch more. And boy was I not disappointed. By the time I started watching, Season Three was nearing the end of its original run and was showing repeats before heading into the last few episodes of the season. I don’t recall if it was the next episode I saw, but shortly there after, I saw The Search…and was properly introduced to the Defiant.
Wow. This wasn’t the Enterprise-D at all and Sisko wasn’t anything like Picard. If anything, he was more like Kirk, kicking ass and taking names. It definitely left an impression.
Soon after that came Defiant, Improbable Cause and the Die is Cast. I suppose that it helped a great deal that my introduction to DS9 was based mainly on such strong episodes. Had I started out from the beginning, I’m not sure I would have stuck with it. I enjoyed Emissary quite a great deal when I finally saw it and there are some really good episodes in the first two seasons, but they are certainly few and far between.
Well, by the time the Season Three finale came around, I was hooked and I had only seen mainly half the season. I was gearing up for Season Four and the obvious conflict with the Dominion that was sure to come and that’s when something changed for me.
I had seen and enjoyed the original movies, some of TOS, and much of TNG. All of it though was just something I watched and and enjoyed. They were just movies and TV shows.
DS9 was different.
DS9 flipped the switch that made me a Star Trek Fan. It wasn’t enough to just watch the show any more. I had to know about the Defiant and how things worked on the ship as well as the station. I had to know about these characters and their past, where they had been and where they were going. I needed more information than what the show was giving and for the first time, I began to seek out other sources for that information.
DS9 pushed my into bookstores to buy sci-fi magazines so I could get interviews with anyone who worked on the show. And eventually DS9 pushed me online to find other people and what information they had. I had to know as much as possible about this world. I was fanatic…I was a fan.
DS9 made me the sci-fi fan I am today and for that, it will always hold a very special place in my heart. Those were good years, some of the best years and while my love and enthusiasm for Trek may wain at times, I will always be a Niner.
December 30, 2012
Thank You…
Thanks to everyone who downloaded my book during the free promo. I hope you enjoy it and by all means leave a review.
Leaving a review on the Amazon sale page is very important, so if you did download or have bought it already, than I urge you to leave a comment there. It really helps…and even if you didn’t like it, let me know.
Thanks again.
Method of Life
Also, here’s a missile launcher I made today. Enjoy.
December 27, 2012
Free Ebook Promotion…
Get my ebook for free, today thru Saturday on Amazon. Method of Life
But I don’t have one of those fancy Kindles. That doesn’t matter. If you’re reading this, than you have a computer…obviously. You can get the Kindle App for your computer, PC’s and Mac’s. So there is no excuse, unless you don’t like to read and if that’s the case than what the hell are you doing looking at this blog with all these words. Go somewhere else, where there are just pictures.
But I’m not down with Amazon or their Kindle.
Fine. You’ll just have to wait a little longer to read the greatness that is Method of Life. It will be available through other ebook services in a few months…there might even be a hard copy if that’s your bag. Maybe I’ll write my name in one if you want. It’s going to cost more though, cause that’s the way the world works.
The free book promotion is going well. How well? I’ll never tell. Insert maniacal laughter. I had zero expectations so anything is good really and at this point in the game, just getting my work into the hands of people who might actually read it and tell me what they think is a win. Really that’s the hardest thing that no one ever tells you. You can do something great and I’m by no means saying my work is great, I’m just using some amazing fictional work of greatness as a stand in…you do this great work, but until you get people to take the time to notice, you might as well be holding onto it with both hands and giving people who could be interested an evil look when they walk in your direction.
And that is publishing on the Internet! You’re screaming at the top of your lungs, look at me and this thing I made. The catch is that the Internet is full of people trying to get their work noticed. So it becomes a game of who can yell the loudest. And apparently offering things for free, is a good way to get noticed. People like free stuff. Who would have guessed. I’ve given away more books this week, than I’ve sold since the book was released. That’s sort of a bummer. Yes, I still use the word bummer. Deal with it.
Oh well. I’m an artist and I don’t care about things like sales numbers. I make art for arts sake, not to make money. What’s that, medical bills are overdue? And now they’re turning off the water? I don’t need a doctor or showers.
They’re cutting off the internet.
Ok, now it’s serious.
Download my free book. Read it, then write a review….then tell your friends the title page was more enjoyable than all of Twilight. That’s right, I said it. Method of Life
December 25, 2012
Method of Life is Free today!!!
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0093JL7ZQ
Go get it now!
But I don’t have a Kindle eReader?
You don’t need one.
Get the Kindle eReader App for you phone, tablet, or computer right here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771
Now there is no excuse.
Go download it now: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0093JL7ZQ
And if you feel like it, you can read it to.
December 23, 2012
My novel for free, through Christmas…and the Walking Dead Game…
Another shameless plug.
My book, Method of Life, will be free beginning Christmas day, through 12-29-12. If you haven’t already purchased a copy, than this is your chance to get it for zero dollars. You’ve got nothing to lose and it would help me out immensely if you download it, even if you never read…though I hope you do. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0093JL7ZQ
Also a reminder, if you don’t have a Kindle, you can download the kindle reader app for your your phone, tablet, or computer. http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771
On another note, I finished the Walking Dead Game. I’ve had videogames effect me emotionally before, but never this strongly. I teared up during the big death scene in Gears of War 3, and was left feeling gutted at the end of Mass Effect 3, aside from the gut wrenching deaths of more than a few characters throughout that game. That being said, never before have I had a game push me emotionally through every stage. The instances I cited, were short and once done, they were largely over and I could begin to move on. That wasn’t the case with the Walking Dead.
There are moments when Clementine looks at you, and she breaks your heart. People die and it’s like getting punched in the stomach because you don’t see it coming. And the end…I’m not sure I can put it into words.
Sure, there are parts of the game that are clunky. A few times throughout the game, the facial expressions don’t match up with how the character is actually responding, though it becomes less of an issue as the game progresses. I’m not sure if I stopped noticing, or if they simply got better. Either way, it’s a minor part. The game is fun, trying, and the story hits every mark it aims for, often surpassing those goals.
As far as storytelling in games is concerned, The WD, has to be near the top of any list, which is an achievements all on its own. Forget that the game is fun to play, looks uniquely stylized, and is fully fleshed out. The mere fact TellTale achieved a story on par with anything the Tripple-A studios have done, speaks volumes, not a=only about their capabilities but where the future of story telling in games can and no doubt will go in the next generation.
If you like games at all, you owe it to yourself to play this. If you like zombies, play it. If you like the Walking Dead, play it. I doubt you will be disappointed. It’s not only the best game I’ve played this year, or in recent memory, it may very well be my favorite game of all time.
I hope there is a Season 2.
December 20, 2012
Videogames…
2012, the year that a bunch of whining fans on the internet, forced a major game studio to cave to public opinion. I lost respect for Bioware, not because of how ME3 ended, I liked the ending, but because they gave into public opinion. If you want to argue that games are art, than have the backbone to stand by your art when people don’t like what you’ve done with it. Bioware set a dangerous precedent by ‘expanding’ the ending of ME3, a trend that I hope isn’t copied.
2012 will also be remembered as the year that indie and downloadable titles, rivaled retail tripple-A titles. The Walking Dead, an epsodic downloadable title from Telltale Games is at the top of many GoTY lists this year.
December 16, 2012
The Sensible Thing to do…
Method of Life has a snazzy new cover. If it’s not showing up in the thumbnail, as it isn’t for me, than something must be wrong in the Interwebs. Maybe the tubes are clogged. I don’t know, I’m not an IT guy. Trust me, there’s a new cover. Go ahead and click the link and see for yourself.
While you’re there looking at the new cover, go ahead and let your mouse/finger slide on over to the Buy button. It feels good doesn’t it, almost natural. It’s as if your entire life has been building towards this one moment. As if, your sole purpose on this earth has finally been revealed to you. You’re welcome.
You know what feels even better, actually buying a copy, which you can do right now for the low, low price of $2.99. That’s quite a deal. I’m practically giving it away…and starting Dec. 25, I will be giving it away. Starting Christmas day, you can download Method for Free, so there is no excuse for not getting, unless you hate me and if that’s the case than why are we online acquaintances? That just seems wrong.
No worries. We’ll work it out later after you’re done buying my book.
So buy it now or wait a few more days and get it for free. Either way is cool, unless as we discussed previously, we’re not really friends. In which case you should make it up to me by buying several copies of my book. It’s really the only sensible thing to do. Buy Me!
