You said it better than I could.

The movie’s cover of Witch Doctor got stuck in my head literally out of nowhere a few days ago. My internal monologue was solely the chorus with the fart noise.

I mean, there are more factors at play than just a game’s budget; depends on how the company’s managed, how many people they employ, how much the games sold, any loans they may have taken out, investor interest...

You’re right: it’s a common thing for straight characters, especially men, to lose their partner and seek revenge. There’s a reason Women In Refrigerators is a discussion topic. (There’s also a reason John Wick is so popular: it’s not about the death of a partner, amongst other reasons.)

Sure, and there’s something to be said about that! It’s still entirely possible this one will fall into tropes. Besides, tropes aren’t inherently bad—it’s just that Bury Your Gays as a trope is so overused that I’d rather they avert it and find a different motivation for Ellie, you know?

Yeah, in a personal note, a specifically-directed message could come off as flirty or creepy, especially if the letter writer is a man. If they’re going to mention names, it’s probably best to do it in an online review or something; “The staff here is friendly, and Jane has really made me feel like I can be…

I think part of it really depends on if you’re a guy or not, which isn’t clear from the letter. idk how different it might be for bartenders, but when I was a coffee barista in a bar district, we’d have people occasionally give us small gifts. It wasn’t often at all, but the women that were the recipients weren’t…

Thanks for the advice omg. That sounds amazing. Plus, I just got a job that might make this feasible. Hell yeah.

I’d be into that, honestly.

You’re damn right I’m letting other authors speak for me, because they’re actual trans people and/or a lot more informed on the issue than I am and word it better than I can.

Probably depends on the Costco. None of them I’ve been to in Phoenix have ever tried to sell me anything when I get liquor; they simply call over a manager to override the membership card prompt on the register.

It took me a while to really get into the last game with how slow it moved at first, but I really loved Ellie, so I’m looking forward to this. The idea that Dina is the impetus for Ellie’s revenge, though, is offputting; the first queer protag in a AAA game, and it’s a potential instance of Bury Your Gays, lesbian…

I mean, it’s also groundbreaking that we have a queer lady protag in a AAA game. Normally I agree that you don’t need to describe us queer people by our queerness, but when it’s a legit Big Deal and serves to contrast her with the straight, gruff Joel, imo it makes sense. It’s related to the content, not a random “btw…

Are you seriously trying to argue that trans people are the same as Rachel Dolezal. Seriously. My dude, you can google that in ten seconds. It’s not at all the same.

Is it really that awkward, though? I already showed you: you simply phrase it the same way as if you were referring to something in the plural. It’s all about context; if you’re only talking about Sean, there’s no logical train of thought there beyond Sean. You wouldn’t think about Kevin or Kim when you’re…

Where on earth did they say it was shattering their peace? They’re asking a question about how to politely ask servers not to interrupt their meal. “let me [x]” in peace” is a pretty common way to phrase “don’t interrupt me”, not something as dramatic as you’re painting this letter to be.

It’s a start, at least. I’ll take it. I can only hope they’ll follow through.

They should have put one of those tiny plastic babies inside the controller. For accuracy’s sake.

Some people have hairier derrieres and flush multiple times so things don’t get clogged. Toilets don’t always get everything in a single flush. There are tons of reasons for a courtesy flush. JFC.

You’d still use “weren’t”, dude. Not that hard—we do that all the time as it is. “I couldn’t talk to the manager because they weren’t there” when the gender is unspecified; “what are they doing out there?”; “Nobody was late, were they?”; “When someone asks me a question, I have to wonder, ‘Are they right?’. They often…