Darrell Rowbottom

_Scientific Progress_ is now published, and available for free for two weeks. (You can even download the pdf and read it later.) doi.org/10.1017/978110…

@chesscoachandra @nietzchess Ok. Can you guide me to 2300?

@rowbott1 @nietzchess It’s not my doing but his. I merely guide the journey!

Proud of my student , Sascha for reaching 2300 rapid on chesscom! ( we started working at 1700) onward and upward!!!🔥🔥💪💪

@ShakyFoundatio @BigBrainPhiloso It’s not about semantics. You recognise something as falling into a category (such as thought or redness) by comparison with (and typically memory of) other things in said category. Hence, the recognition is fallible.

@rowbott1 @BigBrainPhiloso I guess that's more of a question about semantics and the definition of thinking. I see your perspective but will keep mine :)

Karl Popper's case for intellectual humility: We can know we're getting closer to the truth but we can never know we've reached it.

@chesscoachandra @nietzchess Amusingly, I’m 51. Can you do the same with me? I’ll even play worse to drop to 1700 for the start.

@rowbott1 @nietzchess 15

@ShakyFoundatio @BigBrainPhiloso Well, you shouldn’t be certain. Note that even labelling like ‘red’ and ‘thought’ requires reference to a universal you may be mistaken about. I used to teach 1st years this stuff. Note too ‘I think’ is already first person, so ‘I am’ is defunct. May as well just say ‘I am’.

@rowbott1 @BigBrainPhiloso None of us can know what the "I" truly is with certainty. But that it is, I am is certain. I don't know if you "are" though.

@TheCinesthetic How about No Retreat No Surrender? 😀

Bloodsport (1988) sells itself as a true story even if the Frank Dux claims are questionable, but it works on sheer presence. Van Damme, the Kumite setting & that final fight carry the whole thing. It’s rough around the edges and still completely watchable.

@FrontierAstro Yes I played it, but the BBC Micro version was THE ONE.

Elite for the #CommodoreAmiga improved on the original in virtually every way, with fast, colourful graphics, secret missions and exciting gameplay. Somehow though, it lacked both the x-factor and wow factor of the 8-bit versions, probably because games had moved on by 1988.

@XDarthThunderX That’s because there won’t be. It was the masterpiece.

I don't think there will ever be another Star Wars movie that will top The Empire Strikes Back.

@ShakyFoundatio @BigBrainPhiloso How do you know there’s an I? Go back to sceptic school.

@BigBrainPhiloso Everything beyond "I think, therefore I am" is specualtion. Not all speculation is equal in predicting and responding to reality though.

@exQUIZitely I remember it well! Good game!

A very underrated gem, Imperialism was published by SSI in 1997. It's a classic turn-based strategy game set in the 19th century during the Industrial Revolution and the height of colonial expansion. You control one of several major powers such as Great Britain, France, Russia, or the United States, starting in 1815. The goal is global domination (how "modest"!) - achieved either through military conquest or by securing a two-thirds majority in the periodic "Council of Governors" to become world ruler. Gameplay focuses on resource management, industrial development, diplomacy, trade, exploration, and warfare, though I always felt that the build up and trade aspect was much more fun. The game's pace is very slow, which made it perfect for long weekend LAN sessions with friends. in fact, it was so slow we often had to save and continue over several weekends. Hard to believe it's now approaching 30 years old.

@TheCinesthetic No, A View to a Kill is more ridiculous on many counts, especially the villain!

Moonraker (1979) goes completely off the rails and that’s the appeal. Roger Moore leaning into the absurd, a lineup of memorable villains, glossy visuals, and set pieces that just want to entertain. It’s Bond at his most ridiculous and it works.

@oldyzach England every time, obviously. Longbow death cometh.

So – what was your choice in Total War: Medieval II? 😎

@retro_gamess Ah yes, a game I could complete on the hardest level without getting hit once. Something I truly mastered.

Star Fox (1993)

@memeslich You created the opening…

My Dungeons & Dragons players spent an hour arguing with a sentient door.

@Alexandra_chess I would stop diagonally to you and ask if you’d take me.

I was walking in the supermarket and this guy thought it would be funny to en passant me IRL. What is wrong with you?!

@exQUIZitely Yes. Recall Incubation fondly too! If you had asked about RTS, btw, my answer is easier. Gotta be Close Combat.

@rowbott1 I loved all of the Battle Isle games, also Incubation the quai sequel. History Line was also a blast, you played it, I assume?

Best turn-based strategy game of the 90s. What would be your pick? Mine would be Civilization II from 1996.

@exQUIZitely I have a weird fondness for that game. Not sure why, but if I could play just one right now, that would be it. Like a guilty pleasure!

@rowbott1 Battle Isle 2200 --- unusual pick, love it!

@XExarKun @exQUIZitely Indeed. It was better than many of the later ones too.

@exQUIZitely The biggest step up from original Civ 1. All other upgrades from Civ 2 onwards were not that huge leaps in comparison.

@exQUIZitely Populous or Dungeon Keeper. Both ingenious.

I know the main counterargument to “Games were more innovative in the past” is that it's obviously harder to come up with new concepts today than in the 80s and 90s. The gaming industry wasn’t as established back then, so new ideas and concepts were easier to come up with. Still, one studio stood out: Bullfrog. I sometimes wonder what other unique and wonderful games we would have today if EA hadn’t acquired Bullfrog in 1995, only to completely change their philosophy and culture before shutting them down in 2001. Bullfrog was never the biggest developer in terms of team size or sales, but I always felt they were among the most daring - they really tried new ideas, made unusual games, pushed limits, and took risks. If you look at their portfolio of games, I don't think there's a game studio that had a more diverse mix. One early employee later said he believed Bullfrog had become too corporate after the EA takeover, so he left to make games for the sake of making games rather than to satisfy shareholders. A classic case of corporate greed killing creative freedom. What would you say was their best and most innovative game?