Nick Capozzoli
@nickcapozzoli.bsky.social
architect | critic | games journalism award chair @ https://nygamecritics.com/ | newsletter & blog @ https://www.arcadence.com/
woop here comes stage 3, RIP me too
November 20, 2025 at 3:56 PM
woop here comes stage 3, RIP me too
A problem with the flood mechanic in CK3: the floods happen in 3 stages over a few days—and because they can kill, say, a local governor in stage 1, and because when a governor is killed and you are the next in the appointment line, you & your court get instantly transported there, and thus:
November 20, 2025 at 3:53 PM
A problem with the flood mechanic in CK3: the floods happen in 3 stages over a few days—and because they can kill, say, a local governor in stage 1, and because when a governor is killed and you are the next in the appointment line, you & your court get instantly transported there, and thus:
my character was on the south bank to assist with a local examination that officially kicked off right after the flood event and there are like 4 attendees left alive to take the test lol
November 18, 2025 at 6:17 PM
my character was on the south bank to assist with a local examination that officially kicked off right after the flood event and there are like 4 attendees left alive to take the test lol
goddamn when the game warns you that a river is about to flood get the fuck outta dodge
November 18, 2025 at 6:14 PM
goddamn when the game warns you that a river is about to flood get the fuck outta dodge
That sparks the "Division" cycle, very much akin to the early "Three Kingdoms" dynamic. Now I've been confederated into the Kingdom of Lu (despite my family's estate being in the Kingdom of Wei, across the river.). I have no idea what the next move is, which is such a welcome feeling in CK3.
November 17, 2025 at 8:12 PM
That sparks the "Division" cycle, very much akin to the early "Three Kingdoms" dynamic. Now I've been confederated into the Kingdom of Lu (despite my family's estate being in the Kingdom of Wei, across the river.). I have no idea what the next move is, which is such a welcome feeling in CK3.
he wouldn't admit it if asked, but Song Jiang's most personally satisfying reward among all this is, after a lifetime of battling upstream at the exams, the chance to now build his own local examination hall
November 16, 2025 at 10:31 PM
he wouldn't admit it if asked, but Song Jiang's most personally satisfying reward among all this is, after a lifetime of battling upstream at the exams, the chance to now build his own local examination hall
...and immediately get the option to betroth his son-and-heir to one of the imperial princesses. Everything's coming up Song House.
November 16, 2025 at 10:10 PM
...and immediately get the option to betroth his son-and-heir to one of the imperial princesses. Everything's coming up Song House.
At the age of 73, the mercenary Song Jiang finally gets his glow up, after being (somewhat inexplicably) offered the province of Xingmeng by the warlord of the Hebei circuit. Wasn't even aware that was a thing that could happen.
November 16, 2025 at 10:04 PM
At the age of 73, the mercenary Song Jiang finally gets his glow up, after being (somewhat inexplicably) offered the province of Xingmeng by the warlord of the Hebei circuit. Wasn't even aware that was a thing that could happen.
"oh shit oh fuck they're coming this way"
November 16, 2025 at 3:23 PM
"oh shit oh fuck they're coming this way"
sorry for accidentally manifesting this one guys
November 14, 2025 at 5:50 PM
sorry for accidentally manifesting this one guys
cam's reply here honestly deserved to go viral on its own; absent being able to manifest that I have bookmarked it (i.e.: the platinum Like)
November 14, 2025 at 3:29 AM
cam's reply here honestly deserved to go viral on its own; absent being able to manifest that I have bookmarked it (i.e.: the platinum Like)
Been enjoying the CK3 Asia Expansion, playing as Song Jiang, an unlanded mercenary who was apparently a historical-and-mythologized bandit, but I'm roleplaying him as obsessed with "going legit" and so he takes (and fails) the capital examination every couple years, but refuses to stoop to cheating
November 14, 2025 at 2:02 AM
Been enjoying the CK3 Asia Expansion, playing as Song Jiang, an unlanded mercenary who was apparently a historical-and-mythologized bandit, but I'm roleplaying him as obsessed with "going legit" and so he takes (and fails) the capital examination every couple years, but refuses to stoop to cheating
oldheads may recognize this is essentially my ur-argument RE: reviews, that majoritarian (straight/white/etc) systems reject empathetic asks *from* them & demand empathetic response *for* them as counterargument, trading on the idea that their subjectivity is objective truth www.arcadence.com/wwwgc/
![As real, honest-to-goodness cultural criticism finally begins to assert its place in reviews, the reactionaries put off by these new voices are searching for a way to tamp them back down without sounding like terrible bigots. A call for objectivity makes for a convenient way to back into suppression of progressive voices. It sounds innocent enough, and it plays on our impulse to be comprehensive and magnanimous. But the truth is barely disguised--it's just a call for subjectivity that this conservative bloc is more comfortable with. What Bain and the rest are asking for is for critics to voluntarily don the veil--but instead of evaluating a game as if they're an affluent "other," they're to evaluate it as if they were someone more reflective of the assumed majority.
Hence, "we just want more voices [so that it's easier to dismiss this feminist critic]!" Or, "really, review scores are problematic and should be done away with [especially now that reviewers are giving low scores to games for misogynistic content]."
"It's great that this Native critic shared his thoughts about this game..."
"...but Why Wasn't a White Guy Consulted?"](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:ujf35hu33kameivayjn2fwih/bafkreibvgdggagfzsjipwly4wxuzwhcpgy4he33vbyg44nx7wpgvbgeuj4@jpeg)
November 13, 2025 at 6:20 PM
oldheads may recognize this is essentially my ur-argument RE: reviews, that majoritarian (straight/white/etc) systems reject empathetic asks *from* them & demand empathetic response *for* them as counterargument, trading on the idea that their subjectivity is objective truth www.arcadence.com/wwwgc/
I have a larger piece on this sitting in drafts, but I included a bit of my take in a footnote in my last blog post. Essentially, it's that if we have any problem, it's being *too* "willing to meet a game on its own terms."
November 13, 2025 at 6:04 PM
I have a larger piece on this sitting in drafts, but I included a bit of my take in a footnote in my last blog post. Essentially, it's that if we have any problem, it's being *too* "willing to meet a game on its own terms."
in what possible way could this practicably be a factor in holding the city back
November 13, 2025 at 3:56 AM
in what possible way could this practicably be a factor in holding the city back
Insane how much better this is across the board
November 13, 2025 at 2:48 AM
Insane how much better this is across the board
big ups to Paul Tassi for proving my point
November 12, 2025 at 2:23 PM
big ups to Paul Tassi for proving my point
ME: Hi, I have $250 Trump Bucks and I'd like to negotiate new health insurance coverage using the leverage available to me as an individual person who must have this in order to live. I would like [x dollars] of coverage.
UNITED HEALTHCARE: Sure. Here is my counteroffer:
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November 11, 2025 at 4:43 PM
ME: Hi, I have $250 Trump Bucks and I'd like to negotiate new health insurance coverage using the leverage available to me as an individual person who must have this in order to live. I would like [x dollars] of coverage.
UNITED HEALTHCARE: Sure. Here is my counteroffer:
UNITED HEALTHCARE: Sure. Here is my counteroffer:
it's an unconventional pick, sure, but you can't deny that she understands how the intangibles can lead to victory in contact sports
November 10, 2025 at 10:03 PM
it's an unconventional pick, sure, but you can't deny that she understands how the intangibles can lead to victory in contact sports
"a certain number of people *would* be de-housed, it's true"
Most interesting scene in Into the Storm, so far (I'm about halfway through. I've always found the moral calculus of "total war" interesting, the way tech impresses greater & more dire concessions to personal ethics.)
Most interesting scene in Into the Storm, so far (I'm about halfway through. I've always found the moral calculus of "total war" interesting, the way tech impresses greater & more dire concessions to personal ethics.)
November 10, 2025 at 3:14 AM
"a certain number of people *would* be de-housed, it's true"
Most interesting scene in Into the Storm, so far (I'm about halfway through. I've always found the moral calculus of "total war" interesting, the way tech impresses greater & more dire concessions to personal ethics.)
Most interesting scene in Into the Storm, so far (I'm about halfway through. I've always found the moral calculus of "total war" interesting, the way tech impresses greater & more dire concessions to personal ethics.)