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Colin finally got to interview Alyssa Mercante

Omnipunctual Godot said:
He certainly didn't give SmashJT the same courtesy.
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I'm a Patreon supporter and consume most of their content - especially Sacred Symbols monikered shows.

Colin, from my read after thousands of hours of listening the guy for the last 15 years, is a well meaning but often weak interviewer when it comes to doing these more controversial or friction-possible discussions.

I've heard him push back on Jaffe a few times with political commentary; The Smash JT one is obviously a highlight recently. His interview of the plagiarist from IGN was decent….

But, when it comes to culture wars stuff he seems to plop himself weirdly in the middle.

I see it as he doesn't want burn a potential new bridge with someone, he's genuinely open to having dissenting voices but also, he knows this shit drives engagement, clicks etc…he's not dumb. He knows this stirs the pot.

I think most of us who lean right or disagree with Mercante would love to hear her get her ass handed to her in a more serious discussion- but Colin isn't into that typically. He's not a debater and he's not typically adversarial.
 
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WellSheet said:
I'm a Patreon supporter and consume most of their content - especially Sacred Symbols monikered shows.

Colin, from my read after thousands of hours of listening the guy for the last 15 years, is a well meaning but often weak interviewer when it comes to doing these more controversial or friction-possible discussions.

I've heard him push back on Jaffe a few times with political commentary; The Smash JT one is obviously a highlight recently. His interview of the plagiarist from IGN was decent….

But, when it comes to culture wars stuff he seems to plop himself weirdly in the middle.

I see it as he doesn't want burn a potential new bridge with someone, he's genuinely open to having dissenting voices but also, he knows this shit drives engagement, clicks etc…he's not dumb. He knows this stirs the pot.

I think most of us who lean right or disagree with Mercante would love to hear her get her ass handed to her in a more serious discussion- but Colin isn't into that typically. He's not a debater and he's not typically adversarial.
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I see it more as he gave her a softball interview to spite SmashJT (Colin and Alyssa agreed to the interview six days after Colin went on Smash's show), since Colin knows Mercante is currently suing Smash over what should be viewed as a clear-cut case of free speech, but you can sue anyone for virtually anything, and if you can drag out the legal process long enough, you can bleed them dry. She's a despicable piece of shit for that in my book, and if Colin didn't challenge her on it, he's no better.
 
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Omnipunctual Godot said:
I see it more as he gave her a softball interview to spite SmashJT (Colin and Alyssa agreed to the interview six days after Colin went on Smash's show), since Colin knows Mercante is currently suing Smash over what should be viewed as a clear-cut case of free speech, but you can sue anyone for virtually anything, and if you can drag out the legal process long enough, you can bleed them dry. She's a despicable piece of shit for that in my book, and if Colin didn't challenge her on it, he's no better.
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I'm admittedly checked out on the whole Smash JT / Mercante dust up.

From what I've seen before this interview made dislike her enough, and her vapid, indentitarian and anecdotal takes in the interview with him solidified it more that she's not someone I'd care to listen too
 
WellSheet said:
I'm admittedly checked out on the whole Smash JT / Mercante dust up.

From what I've seen before this interview made dislike her enough, and her vapid, indentitarian and anecdotal takes in the interview with him solidified it more that she's not someone I'd care to listen too
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Yeah, just to condense and simplify it as much as possible:
  • She's suing him for defamation (because he called her a prostitute) and "stochastic terrorism."
  • Meanwhile, she literally responded to someone on twitter who asked how she got into the business by saying, "I sucked d**k." She also worked as a cam whore. (She's deleted the exchange since then, which should be considered destruction of evidence.)
  • She's currently suing Smash (who lives in California) in New York, saying that because his website uses a Wix CMS, which is based in New York, New York should have jurisdiction in the case.
  • This should've shut the case down at the outset, since there have been numerous cases where a plaintiff tried to use flimsy internet connections to establish jurisdiction and failed (Johnson v. Huffington Post, Revell v. Lidov, ALS Scan, Inc. v. Digital Service Consultants).

I'd imagine her lawyers are likely taking this pro bono, so the costs aren't hurting her the same way they are Smash, and I'd imagine they also shopped around to find a sympathetic judge who doesn't care about the actual law as much as promoting their own politics. There's no reason why this case should still be going on in a New York court system nearly two years in.

I think Colin is just trying to launder her reputation because he hates Smash.

I know a lot of people don't like Smash, but this is an obvious case of a guy getting railroaded by the court system.
 
Omnipunctual Godot said:
Yeah, just to condense and simplify it as much as possible:
  • She's suing him for defamation (because he called her a prostitute) and "stochastic terrorism."
  • Meanwhile, she literally responded to someone on twitter who asked how she got into the business by saying, "I sucked d**k." She also worked as a cam whore. (She's deleted the exchange since then, which should be considered destruction of evidence.)
  • She's currently suing Smash (who lives in California) in New York, saying that because his website uses a Wix CMS, which is based in New York, New York should have jurisdiction in the case.
  • This should've shut the case down at the outset, since there have been numerous cases where a plaintiff tried to use flimsy internet connections to establish jurisdiction and failed (Johnson v. Huffington Post, Revell v. Lidov, ALS Scan, Inc. v. Digital Service Consultants).

I'd imagine her lawyers are likely taking this pro bono, so the costs aren't hurting her the same way they are Smash, and I'd imagine they also shopped around to find a sympathetic judge who doesn't care about the actual law as much as promoting their own politics. There's no reason why this case should still be going on in a New York court system nearly two years in.

I think Colin is just trying to launder her reputation because he hates Smash.

I know a lot of people don't like Smash, but this is an obvious case of a guy getting railroaded by the court system.
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1000% i want smash to win
 
I got to the 11-minute mark and had to stop. I was really disappointed in Colin's take that the problem people had with Saros is that the main character was of Indian descent. Now there may very well be people who had some issue with that, but the discourse I've seen has NOTHING to do with the main character's race. It had everything to do with the fact that players find out they're playing as a piece of shit who cheated on his wife. Whom then suddenly became a lesbian. Now, to be fair, Returnal's story was about a self-absorbed, delusional bitch who got herself and her child killed. So, Housemarque is already on a streak here of making us play as douchebags that we don't realize are douchebags until the end. Of both the male and female variety. However, MY issue here is that Colin tried to identify the Saros backlash as simply racism. That's just lazy.
 
Varteras said:
I got to the 11-minute mark and had to stop. I was really disappointed in Colin's take that the problem people had with Saros is that the main character was of Indian descent. Now there may very well be people who had some issue with that, but the discourse I've seen has NOTHING to do with the main character's race. It had everything to do with the fact that players find out they're playing as a piece of shit who cheated on his wife. Whom then suddenly became a lesbian. Now, to be fair, Returnal's story was about a self-absorbed, delusional bitch who got herself and her child killed. So, Housemarque is already on a streak here of making us play as douchebags that we don't realize are douchebags until the end. Of both the male and female variety. However, MY issue here is that Colin tried to identify the Saros backlash as simply racism. That's just lazy.
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yikes Colin I thought you were better than that
 
To spare everyone the hassle of desperately trying to recall who TF that hot chick is we are talking about: 🥲 🔥❤️‍🔥🚒🧑‍🚒

7x4I1cL7PTk9ayD2.jpg
 
Omnipunctual Godot said:
Is it just me, or is there something disgusting about posting a lewd pic in a Walmart bathroom with toilet, special needs handle, and toilet paper on full display?
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Special needs people also have the right to show how hot they are! 🔥:p😘

: Myuni! .... Myuni! Stop it and go to bed now! It has been a long, hard day at work!
 
WellSheet said:
I'm a Patreon supporter and consume most of their content - especially Sacred Symbols monikered shows.

Colin, from my read after thousands of hours of listening the guy for the last 15 years, is a well meaning but often weak interviewer when it comes to doing these more controversial or friction-possible discussions.

I've heard him push back on Jaffe a few times with political commentary; The Smash JT one is obviously a highlight recently. His interview of the plagiarist from IGN was decent….

But, when it comes to culture wars stuff he seems to plop himself weirdly in the middle.

I see it as he doesn't want burn a potential new bridge with someone, he's genuinely open to having dissenting voices but also, he knows this shit drives engagement, clicks etc…he's not dumb. He knows this stirs the pot.

I think most of us who lean right or disagree with Mercante would love to hear her get her ass handed to her in a more serious discussion- but Colin isn't into that typically. He's not a debater and he's not typically adversarial.
Click to expand...

I'm a Pateron supporter too. And a fan for the same 15 years. So you know his goal is never to have public fights. He hates the thought of it. He's from the real journalist type thinking where the goal isn't to start a fight, but to have a conversation.

He recognizes that the culture wars stuff is wack and both sides EQUALLY have their crazies. And that there's no real reason to make one side look worse than the other.
 
Varteras said:
I got to the 11-minute mark and had to stop. I was really disappointed in Colin's take that the problem people had with Saros is that the main character was of Indian descent. Now there may very well be people who had some issue with that, but the discourse I've seen has NOTHING to do with the main character's race. It had everything to do with the fact that players find out they're playing as a piece of shit who cheated on his wife. Whom then suddenly became a lesbian. Now, to be fair, Returnal's story was about a self-absorbed, delusional bitch who got herself and her child killed. So, Housemarque is already on a streak here of making us play as douchebags that we don't realize are douchebags until the end. Of both the male and female variety. However, MY issue here is that Colin tried to identify the Saros backlash as simply racism. That's just lazy.
Click to expand...

Why do y'all hate playing as characters that are so-called "douchebags"?

We've done it before in the past and it was never a problem. Why is it a problem now?
 
adamsapple said:
er ... is there a back story that would make this interesting?

without context this means nothing ..
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Back when the gamergate 2.0 started Alyssa Mercunt became one of the biggest Sweet Baby Inc defenders and most vocal among the videogame "journalists" against the "chuds". She worked for Kotaku and used the website like it was her personal blog to push her leftist agendas. Eventually she got fired, tried to make a youtube channel that no one cared about and found a job in a restaurant or something like that. Shes a tourist and the last place i want to see miss Cunt is back in the videogame news.
 
mckmas8808 said:
Why do y'all hate playing as characters that are so-called "douchebags"?

We've done it before in the past and it was never a problem. Why is it a problem now?
Click to expand...

For a lot of people, the issue is finding out at or near the end of the game that the person they were made to play was a piece of shit. They're misled about who the character they're playing is and the revelation doesn't sit well with people who spent the whole game identifying with them. Like they were tricked.

In the most recent two Housemarque games, people were misled into going along with a delusional twat who gets her child killed or an asshole who cheated on his wife. In the case of the latter, of course it had to end with the guy's wife becoming a lesbian.

Now, don't assume that I'm angry over these games. I never bought or played either of them. I'm not a fan of bullet hells or roguelikes. I am explaining what the discourse has been from the people who don't like them and why it's dishonest and intellectually lazy to simply label it racism just because the main character is of Indian descent.

You'd also do well to not assume that everyone was simply okay with playing as douchebags just because some games might have been popular while having such protagonists. Also, tastes can, and often do, change over time. Something that was palatable before might not be to more people today.
 
uncreativename said:
I'm also not sure what the big problems are with her in particular tbh. Would appreciate if someone could come up with a summary. According to google the awful stuff around Night in the Woods happened before she rose to prominence.
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She said that people can't be racist against white people, called people cunts and threatened to fight them and then bitched out when folks took her up on the offer, and tried to have Smash JT doxxed. She was so toxic even Kotaku fired her for being so unhinged which is saying something.
 
KanKamAndNob said:
She said that people can't be racist against white people, called people cunts and threatened to fight them and then bitched out when folks took her up on the offer, and tried to have Smash JT doxxed. She was so toxic even Kotaku fired her for being so unhinged which is saying something.
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Sounds like a real piece of work and a crazy lol. I don't blame people for not liking her then, but at least she's not on the same tier as Zoe Quinn.
 
uncreativename said:
Sounds like a real piece of work and a crazy lol. I don't blame people for not liking her then, but at least she's not on the same tier as Zoe Quinn.
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Tbf, i'm probably forgetting some stuff, but that's all I personally remember about her.

And yeah, it's going to be a tall order to top Quinn when it comes to being a horrible person.
 
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mckmas8808 said:
Why do y'all hate playing as characters that are so-called "douchebags"?

We've done it before in the past and it was never a problem. Why is it a problem now?
Click to expand...
I get where you're coming from with this perspective- but I think context is important for WHY it's frustrating.

It's no secret Sony's studios have a sociopolitical agenda with their games the last 7 years or so….

You may not find it frustrating, you may not take it as sleight (if you're a man) but a lot of men - the overwhelming demographic who are hardcore gamers - are sick of having media tell them how racist, toxic and useless they are.

The sidelining and eroding of men and the Male element in their games is so glaring Ray Charles can see it.

It's in major ways and small ways.

Look how they treated Ratchet in his last game. They even made sure to make the Rivet more muscular, smarter and effective than him.

Saros, sure there are sin racist assholes who wanna complain about him being Indian- but 98% of people are upset about the fact that he's portrayed, as almost all media seemingly does, as an abusive, toxic asshole who isn't worthy of his wife. The LGBTQ themes are just added fodder.

I can list tons of examples in games and outside.

Think of any commercial you see now a days; if there's a couple discussing something the woman ALWAYS has the answer or is the dominant one.

I saw commercial for cars.com the other day where a girl was sitting in her car looking for a phone and her boyfriend is in the seat next to her and he asks her what she's doing. She says "oh I wanna upgrade my car since I got a promotion";

the scene then cuts to her in a brand new Italian sports car and her boyfriend is some suave Italian guy and she makes a flirty overture at him. In today's age, can you possibly imagine that ever going the other way?

And I get the conversation on the other side - women have been maligned; LGBTQ don't get respected or represented…blah blah. This is retribution because the industry was only serving straight, white males their fantasy and this is a course correction.

Well, it's not the right way to course correct and the straight white males took the bullshit for a few years and are now tired of it.

Anyways, not trying to necessarily argue - just give a perspective.

Buddha bless your soul if you read this
 
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mckmas8808 said:
Why do y'all hate playing as characters that are so-called "douchebags"?

We've done it before in the past and it was never a problem. Why is it a problem now?
Click to expand...
You and I probably disagree on a lot of things, but I think you're one of the few progressives on here that actually asks questions in good faith so I'll do the same.

Wall of text warning:

Full disclosure that I don't plan on playing Saros because fuck bullet hell games regardless of wokeness or not (unless they're like Vampire Survivors) lol.

One of my favorite video game characters is Alex Mercer, a murderous, edgelord that firmly stands in the 'asshole' category of male characters. What works for characters like him, old Kratos, and Joel for examples are their backstories explaining why they're the way they are. While their pasts don't excuse their behavior, at the end of the day, we ultimately like these characters because they're fucking cool and we didn't need to be lectured about "toxic masculinity" or how men "need to do better" in the most hamfisted and blatant ways possible like now.

From what I gathered about the story for Saros, the MC is an alcholoic cheater and the game world is just the whole "the monster is really trauma" trope. Ignoring how comically overplayed that particular trope is, even taken on the surface level people who lean or are hard anti-woke (like myself) can take it as more anti-male rhetoric. I personally can't say if Saros is a level 10 or not regarding this stuff because I'm never going to play this game, but I wouldn't blame anyone for not wanting to play another game where the main male character has to be "taken down a peg".

To give an example of a douchebag character that I actually really liked would ironically be the female character Velvet Crowe. Tales of Berseria is kind of old at this point, but I think the game does a good example of having an extremely flawed, and initially unlikeable character become way better as time goes on without male bashing or making the men look overly evil, imcompetent, or weak.

It's in my opinion just a microcosm of what we've been hearing from activists/feminists for over a decade now. "The Force is female", "girl Power", "we need more women in X fields", "50% of gamers are women", "men need to do better", "MeToo", "I'd choose a bear", etc. It gets tiring when we have to see and hear it not only in real life, but even in fiction regardless of whether it even fits the lore, characters, story, or pacing.

Rant over:

Tired Spongebob Squarepants GIF
 
proandrad said:
Most people are like Colin, but the purple people have convinced themselves that anyone that doesn't fall in line with 100% of their world views are bigoted. Hopefully more interactions like this can take place instead of them crashing out and wanting to censor and cancel all opinions they don't like.
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Most of us don't care unless it starts to effect our lives. Not going into a political rant about these freaks.
 
Omnipunctual Godot said:
Is it just me, or is there something disgusting about posting a lewd pic in a Walmart bathroom with toilet, special needs handle, and toilet paper on full display?
Click to expand...

You'd be amazed at how many women use bathroom selfies for their opening online dating profile pic.

It's like "Hope you washed your hands after taking that hefty protein shake shit. Interested in drinks later?"
 
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