Bleszinski Appeals To Phil Fish: Get Back In The Game

[Rebel_Raven]

Well, it's been said that the best revenge is to live well. A new, popular game could easily help in that department.

But what ever Fish does, I hope he gets to relax a bit.

 

[Roander]

Bleszinski Appeals To Phil Fish: Get Back In The Game


Beat the haters by outperforming, not by quitting, says Bleszinski.



The argument that sparked this all off was between Fish and GameTrailers presenter Marcus Beer, which ended with Fish Tweeting a wish that Beer kill himself quote from Futurama.



Permalink

Seems silly now, doesn't it.

Given the context of the rest of his tweets, the fact that it is a quote is irrelevant.

I disagree. I didn't see his entire rant but given the context of the rest of the tweet that particular line was in I think it's reasonable to interpret it as him bragging about his life rather than him wanting Beer to kill himself. This is the same way the line was used in Futurama. What bothers me about the way this is being treated, though, isn't that some people are viewing it as a demand that Beer kill himself but that no coverage I've seen of it has even acknowledged the possibility of any other interpretation.

 

[Roander]

Bleszinski Appeals To Phil Fish: Get Back In The Game


Beat the haters by outperforming, not by quitting, says Bleszinski.



The argument that sparked this all off was between Fish and GameTrailers presenter Marcus Beer, which ended with Fish Tweeting a wish that Beer kill himself quote from Futurama.



Permalink

Seems silly now, doesn't it.

Not really, actually, because the potential source of a quote doesn't always negate the potential intention behind its use.

Or would you say that me using "Stupid is as stupid does" in direct reference to a comment that could potentially be taken as being stupid would not be considered potentially insulting because it's a movie quote?

"Stupid is as stupid does" means people should be judged by their actions. It's not actually an insult. In Forest Gump it was his mother who told him this; probably to encourage him rather than insult him. This is actually an example of how it does matter whether or not something's a quote. The context from the source being quoted can be relevant to the intended meaning of the phrase. Of course that only applies when the person using the quote is aware of the context himself.

You are correct, however in that just because it's a quote doesn't mean he didn't mean it literally. I haven't seen many people even consider the possibility that he didn't, though.

 

[Icehearted]

I really hate that Cliffy B. is even a little relevant given the inordinate levels of drippy shit he's been flinging at gamers and the industry for the last year or so. That as a commenter on anything and somehow legitimized by any other website is just a downer. I realize he's contributed more to gaming that I ever will, but he's also diminished gaming more than I ever will as well. If this had been some no-name in the industry it might have sat more favorably with me, but the fact that it's Cliffy B. elicits only revulsion that it's Cliffy B. A strong word, but accurate about how he makes me feel about gaming and about himself.

Don't hate the player, hate twitter!

The truth emerges...first? Dazzling!

 

[SanguiniusMagnificum]

Hey, you know what? That Bleszinski guy has a point! Yes, the internet can be a vile and abusive entity, but that shouldn't let you down. Just man up, get back to work and unleash that gian HADOKEN!I can get behind that mindset.

Wait,you're telling me Bleszinsky is actually Cliffy B? The most douchetastic douche of douches in the industry? Yeah, you know, forget about everything good that I wrote about that...

 

[TheSaintX]

I always had a feeling he'd go a bit nuts after seeing Indie Game: The Movie but it's nice to see Cliff caring.

 

[Agayek]

Too bad Fish couldn't outperform his way out of a particularly flimsy wet paper bag.

Eh. To be fair to the man, Fish is a talented game designer. Fez is an excellent game with a charming art style, tight mechanics, and fairly high production values for its budget. It's not the best game ever by any means, but it most certainly is a very well made game that clearly had a lot of love and passion poured into it.

It's just unfortunate that Fish seems to be incapable of not acting like a cock in the public space.

By all means, dislike the man or the game all you like, but don't say that Fez is a bad game, because it really isn't. It may not appeal to you (I got tired of it fairly quickly myself), but that only means it's not for you.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

"Never forget that the internet can be a fantastic thing," says Cliff Bleszinski in an open letter to Phil Fish, "but it can also be fantastically dumb."

Yes, you would know all about that wouldn't you Cliffy? After all the Internet has allowed us to bear witness to more than a few of your boneheaded statements.

 

[Monsterfurby]

Seems silly now, doesn't it.

Communication is a sender-receiver interaction. As a sender, one SHOULD be aware of what the receiver might understand if they are not aware of the same memes. Especially if you are also a public personality, like Mr. Fish chose to be.

 

[Evil Smurf]

I think if Fish was less of a twat people would like him. Also taken out of context a beer twitter explosion sounds fantastic.

 

[rbstewart7263]

Im gonna stand by Phil right now and say that I hope he comes back! As a fellow man of thick skin Ive never found anything that he has said remotely offensive.

 

[Nazulu]

Phil, just learn to ignore social sites, or find less hostile sites. And why you're at it, learn some self control and don't speak your mind everywhere you go.

Don't be a moron like Bleszinski who thinks he can get away without flak when telling everyone how wrong they are with piss poor reasoning.

 

[Roander]

Seems silly now, doesn't it.

Communication is a sender-receiver interaction. As a sender, one SHOULD be aware of what the receiver might understand if they are not aware of the same memes. Especially if you are also a public personality, like Mr. Fish chose to be.

True, but Fish is a public personality in the video game world. It's not unreasonable for him to think his audience is familiar with Futurama.

 

[Roander]

Having seen his entire rant, I disagree.

The entirety of his post was practically dedicated to him insulting and belittling the other, with that "quote" as the cap twisted on the bottle so to speak. And you must not be looking around too much if you're claiming no one is bringing up the fact it MIGHT be a reference, as I've seen it in several articles.

Fact is, though, is it being a reference means jack shit. Reference or not, what matters is the intent behind the post. Someone can just as easily hide what they really mean behind a reference, as they can just making a reference. And we'll never know because we aren't Fish. But given his past behavior, I wouldn't doubt it if he sincerely meant it with a thinly veiled reference.

This isn't a fact, it's an opinion. I do agree that what matters is the intent behind the post and that, since we aren't Fish, we can never be sure of what that intent was. We have to make our best guesses based on all the information available. That includes whether he was referencing something else in the media or just making a plain statement.

And I found and read the remainder of his rant, unfortunately missing most of the tweets he was responding to. I still think what he said is open to interpretation.

 

[Jumplion]

Recettear: An Item Shop's Tale. Indie game made in Japan, got a good chunk of positive press here.

One game an industry does not make, though it is a delightfully quirky one.

The problem is, he's not just a victim. I agree that the "journalist" was at fault here, but keep in mind that Phil Fish is no stranger to controversy. He's derided other developers, insulted other members of the gaming community, and made snarky, rude, and ignorant online rants on the internet.

Nothing that can't be found in your run-of-the-mill gaming forum, which is a damn shame.

I really do feel sorry for his troubles, but they were invited by him. He's the one who starts most of these feuds, with no justification whatsoever. Remember when he said, in front of a full panel, that Japanese games "just suck?" He was openly hostile, and said that in the most disrespectful way possible, never mind that he's right. You can't behave that way, then get upset when you invite criticism.

Essentially you're saying "he deserves it", which I don't agree with on basic principles of ethics. Nobody "deserves" to be ragged on, especially to the extent that Fish has

He is loud, yes, maybe even obnoxious to some. But this doesn't justify the, in some ways even more hostile and vicious reactions of everyone against him.

I would argue most of the hate comes from his overwhelmingly pretentious attitude. You get the sense that he really does think he's superior to others, and no one appreciated getting talked down too.

I don't get that sense at all. People claim that he is pretentious and I just don't see it. He's loud, yes. Very passionate about what he says, sure.

If you've seen Indie Game: The Movie, it is clear, this man is troubled. He fully admits this, he has self esteem issues, constantly worries about what others think of him, and is easily stressed by pressure. Nowhere in the movie, at least for me, did I feel that Fish was somehow "pretentious" or anything like that. I'd understand Johnathan Blow being called that, though I find him interesting as well, but certainly not Fish.

He's not a victim, he's a bully, and I think maybe he's allowing his own self esteem issues to affect the way he treats other people. If I knew the man, I would recommend he undergo some much needed maturing, then return stronger than ever. He's a skilled developer, and he has potential, but it's past time that he grew up and joined the adult world.

I wouldn't classify him as a bully in any respect, or if in some respect then only because his mouth runs faster than his brain does.

I dislike the argument "he's so immature, childish, etc..." because I highly doubt anyone else claiming this honestly really cares about maturity. If they did, we wouldn't have nearly as many people raging against Sarkeesian for wanting to make a simple video series, we wouldn't just accept that the CoD community are "12 year olds" with them launching death threats by the volley at Infinity Ward just for a recent patch, and we would actually be able to properly discuss a much wider array of issues that what we currently do. Currently, in the Escapist no less, a place that tries to pride itself on being higher-minded in its discussions, everyone is basically shitting on a lone guy as if he's the face of gaming.

I do not agree with the claim that somehow, out of everything else we should be deriding for immaturity, Fish, a lone indie developer that not even people who play his games may know who he is, is the maturity point we should fixate on. It's even worse when people complain about his swearing, as if that's a sign of maturity, and act just as haughty and pretentious as they claim Fish to be.

Please understand, I'm not saying Fish is a genius or a god or that people shouldn't criticize him. Hell, I haven't even played Fez yet (goddamn STEAM sales creating an even bigger backlog), and for all I know it could be delightfully bad. I'm just saying, with all the obvious hints and signs at this man's mental well being, maybe if we had just a bit more sympathy and understanding, not much of this would have happened or be necessary.

 

[DataSnake]

Uh... gotta disagree there. Unreal brought us the Unreal Engine, which to this day is one of the most used engine in video games. Period. A lot of franchises like Mass Effect and BioShock would not be here if it weren't for the Unreal Engine.

Or they could have, you know, just [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Id_Tech_5] used [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LithTech] a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunia_Engine] different [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Source_(game_engine)] game [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CryEngine] engine [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/REDengine]. I like UE3 as much as the next guy, but it's not like it's the only engine available.

 

[Fox12]

Recettear: An Item Shop's Tale. Indie game made in Japan, got a good chunk of positive press here.

One game an industry does not make, though it is a delightfully quirky one.

The problem is, he's not just a victim. I agree that the "journalist" was at fault here, but keep in mind that Phil Fish is no stranger to controversy. He's derided other developers, insulted other members of the gaming community, and made snarky, rude, and ignorant online rants on the internet.

Nothing that can't be found in your run-of-the-mill gaming forum, which is a damn shame.

I really do feel sorry for his troubles, but they were invited by him. He's the one who starts most of these feuds, with no justification whatsoever. Remember when he said, in front of a full panel, that Japanese games "just suck?" He was openly hostile, and said that in the most disrespectful way possible, never mind that he's right. You can't behave that way, then get upset when you invite criticism.

Essentially you're saying "he deserves it", which I don't agree with on basic principles of ethics. Nobody "deserves" to be ragged on, especially to the extent that Fish has

He is loud, yes, maybe even obnoxious to some. But this doesn't justify the, in some ways even more hostile and vicious reactions of everyone against him.

I would argue most of the hate comes from his overwhelmingly pretentious attitude. You get the sense that he really does think he's superior to others, and no one appreciated getting talked down too.

I don't get that sense at all. People claim that he is pretentious and I just don't see it. He's loud, yes. Very passionate about what he says, sure.

If you've seen Indie Game: The Movie, it is clear, this man is troubled. He fully admits this, he has self esteem issues, constantly worries about what others think of him, and is easily stressed by pressure. Nowhere in the movie, at least for me, did I feel that Fish was somehow "pretentious" or anything like that. I'd understand Johnathan Blow being called that, though I find him interesting as well, but certainly not Fish.

He's not a victim, he's a bully, and I think maybe he's allowing his own self esteem issues to affect the way he treats other people. If I knew the man, I would recommend he undergo some much needed maturing, then return stronger than ever. He's a skilled developer, and he has potential, but it's past time that he grew up and joined the adult world.

I wouldn't classify him as a bully in any respect, or if in some respect then only because his mouth runs faster than his brain does.

I dislike the argument "he's so immature, childish, etc..." because I highly doubt anyone else claiming this honestly really cares about maturity. If they did, we wouldn't have nearly as many people raging against Sarkeesian for wanting to make a simple video series, we wouldn't just accept that the CoD community are "12 year olds" with them launching death threats by the volley at Infinity Ward just for a recent patch, and we would actually be able to properly discuss a much wider array of issues that what we currently do. Currently, in the Escapist no less, a place that tries to pride itself on being higher-minded in its discussions, everyone is basically shitting on a lone guy as if he's the face of gaming.

I do not agree with the claim that somehow, out of everything else we should be deriding for immaturity, Fish, a lone indie developer that not even people who play his games may know who he is, is the maturity point we should fixate on. It's even worse when people complain about his swearing, as if that's a sign of maturity, and act just as haughty and pretentious as they claim Fish to be.

Please understand, I'm not saying Fish is a genius or a god or that people shouldn't criticize him. Hell, I haven't even played Fez yet (goddamn STEAM sales creating an even bigger backlog), and for all I know it could be delightfully bad. I'm just saying, with all the obvious hints and signs at this man's mental well being, maybe if we had just a bit more sympathy and understanding, not much of this would have happened or be necessary.

I wouldn't go so far as to say I think he deserves the hate, because I don't believe perpetuating hate ever helps anyone. Rather, he can't reasonably behave a certain way than expect any other kind of feedback than what he is receiving. He may be the nicest person in history, but if what most people see of him is his angry outbursts and negative twitter rants than that's going to affect how the public perceives him. All I'm really trying to say is that he's responsible for his own image.

Please understand I don't hate the guy, I've never met him, I just think he was a willing participant in a lot of the controversy that surrounds him. I hope, whatever he does, he finds a rewarding career, whether that be in gaming or somewhere else. Furthermore, if he's really as troubled as people say, than I'm actually glad he's taking a break from game development. It may be healthy for him to separate himself from the situation, take some time off, away from all the hate, and look at the situation from the outside. Getting a fresh perspective is probably the best thing for him. I also hope he comes back, and if he doesn't, than I hope he's happy wherever he is.

I still think he has a bit of an attitude though, and maybe this is an opportunity for him to think about how he chooses his words. Maybe if he apologizes for some of his unprovoked remarks, and chooses to take the high ground with some of the rude remarks he gets, the whole thing will blow over. I can't think of any other Indie dev who receives so much negative press, and I feel like if he created a more friendly public face then a lot of it would go away.

 

[Jumplion]

I wouldn't go so far as to say I think he deserves the hate, because I don't believe perpetuating hate ever helps anyone. Rather, he can't reasonably behave a certain way than expect any other kind of feedback than what he is receiving. He may be the nicest person in history, but if what most people see of him is his angry outbursts and negative twitter rants than that's going to affect how the public perceives him. All I'm really trying to say is that he's responsible for his own image.

Have you seen "Indie Game: The Movie"? I'm legitimately asking, because there's this interesting bit in it where Johnathan Blow, the creator of Braid, notes how as the reviews of his game started coming out, the public's perception of him morphed into that of the "artsy fartsy pretentious indie dev", despite nothing really to truly support this at the beginning.

A person's public image is not as in control as you might think. This isn't to say I disagree with you, I do understand the point of Fish's behavior contributing to it, but at the same time Fish's actions have received an exorbitant amount of scrutiny whether what he does is big or small. It's a more cyclical problem than I think you're giving credit for, and it's not like Fish only receives hate when his mouth opens up, as Jim Sterling just said in his recent video here on the Escapist, it's a constant thing that builds up.

Please understand I don't hate the guy, I've never met him, I just think he was a willing participant in a lot of the controversy that surrounds him. I hope, whatever he does, he finds a rewarding career, whether that be in gaming or somewhere else. Furthermore, if he's really as troubled as people say, than I'm actually glad he's taking a break from game development. It may be healthy for him to separate himself from the situation, take some time off, away from all the hate, and look at the situation from the outside. Getting a fresh perspective is probably the best thing for him. I also hope he comes back, and if he doesn't, than I hope he's happy wherever he is.

Again, I heavily recommend watching "Indie Game: The Movie" to really get an idea over what he's been going through, and also for a really good insight into what indie devs go through in creating their games. You could probably find it somewhere on the interwebs.

Just think of it like this; Fish was basically completely unknown before the documentary, and even then he was still getting flak for taking his time with the game. Multiply that by 100x, becoming an overnight internet celebrity afterwards, all in the middle of really messy legal troubles with a former coworker, and at the very least I guarantee you will understand some parts of Fish's more aggressive psyche. Again, I'm not saying he's some "misunderstood genius", but there is, at the very least, an interesting person behind that running mouth of his.