Editing 1333: First Date
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==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
− | TPP, or {{w|Twitch Plays Pokémon}}, was the first of a creative and radical new variant of streaming gameplay videos created in early 2014 — a few days before this comic was released. | + | TPP, or {{w|Twitch Plays Pokémon}}, was the first of a creative and radical new variant of streaming gameplay videos created in early 2014 — only a few days before this comic was released. |
− | + | With the increasing popularity of watching video games be played (usually by 'popular' gamers known for entertaining gameplay), streaming sites dedicated to streaming gameplay were created. [http://twitch.tv/ Twitch.tv] was one such site. | |
− | Whereas traditional video game streams involved the channel broadcaster or | + | Whereas traditional video game streams involved the channel broadcaster or other personality playing the game, the channel "Twitch Plays Pokémon" recorded a {{w|Internet bot|bot}} playing an emulated game of [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Red_and_Blue_Versions Pokémon Red] for {{w|Game Boy}}. The game was given inputs by the bot based on players' messages in the video stream itself. Thus, that for all intents and purposes, the watchers of the stream were playing the game, using chat "commands." The player behaved incredibly erratically, frequently getting "stuck against simple obstacles" (as mentioned in the title-text) and moving about in a strange manner ("Why are you up there?"/"Bye...Okay, coming back now"). Despite this, the player advanced surprisingly far in the games. They have beaten the [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Elite_Four Elite Four] and [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Champion Champion] of generations [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Generation_I I], [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Generation_II II], [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Generation_III III], [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Generation_IV IV], and [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Generation_V V], and [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_X_and_Y Pokémon X], and from August 4 to present, a modified version of [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Stadium_2 Pokémon Stadium 2] is being played, while awaiting the release of [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Omega_Ruby_and_Alpha_Sapphire Pokémon Omega Ruby]. You can see the state of the player characters' Pokémon and inventory at game end in [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Twitch_Plays_Pok%C3%A9mon this Bulbapedia article]. TPP surged in popularity rapidly from its inception, reaching 80,000 channel viewers within five days. Derivative channels (such as 'TwitchPlayers') soon arose, turning "Twitch Plays..." into an idea rather than a single channel – the idea of crowdsourcing a task, such as controlling a single person (as in the Pokémon games) for erratic and often hilarious results. The stream has reached [http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/twitch-plays-pokemon memetic status], and as of this writing it is still ongoing. |
− | + | In the above comic, [[Cueball]] and [[Megan]] are on a date, however, Megan is behaving very erratically. Cueball determines that Megan is being "controlled by Twitch," as her behavior matches well with that of the TPP protagonist (whose name, canonically, is [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Red_(game) Red]). Megan loudly declares at one point that she is "SAVING" her 'game progress', referencing the incessant saving in TPP via random button presses. The random ten-letter string she says is reminiscent of the [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Nickname nicknames] that all of TPP's Pokémon end up with as the players move haphazardly across the game's keyboard. Her fascination with the "cool spiral" is an allusion to TPP players' fascination with the [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Dome_and_Helix_Fossils Helix Fossil], an in-game item. As user input often leads to the checking of the in-game backpack, followed by erratic commands to handle the items within, it was common for various [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Valuable_item valuable items] to be haphazardly thrown away; however, players quickly discovered that the Helix Fossil, as a [http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Key_item key item], could not be tossed. The players' realization that the Helix Fossil would stay in the bag almost permanently throughout the game caused TPP players to jokingly regard it with a near-religious reverence for its constant appearance, with many acting as if the protagonist was "looking to the Helix for guidance". | |
− | + | The title text, as explained above, simply is a light-hearted joke from [[Randall]], empathizing with TPP as he has also spent real-life days stuck against simple obstacles, and is surprised by how far he has got in life despite this. | |
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− | The title text, as explained above, simply is a light-hearted joke from [[Randall]], empathizing with TPP as he has also spent real-life days stuck against simple obstacles, and is surprised by how far he has | ||
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
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:Megan: Waiter! One of everything on the menu. | :Megan: Waiter! One of everything on the menu. | ||
− | :[Megan stands up. Standing on her chair, holding a plate.] | + | :[Megan stands up. Standing on her chair, she's holding a plate.] |
:Cueball: Why are you up there? | :Cueball: Why are you up there? | ||
− | :Megan: I'm stuck. | + | :Megan: I'm stuck. This plate looks delicious. Aaaoogaoag. |
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:[Megan has put the plate down and walked off-panel.] | :[Megan has put the plate down and walked off-panel.] | ||
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:Megan: Check out this cool spiral! | :Megan: Check out this cool spiral! | ||
:Cueball: It's— | :Cueball: It's— | ||
− | :Megan: | + | :Megan: '''SAVING.''' |
{{comic discussion}} | {{comic discussion}} |