iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

I would like to conclude tonight by reiterating that Splatoon 3 has the most cumbersome observer controls that I have ever handled. The snapback that I get trying to pivot between camera views (which is done by the analog stick in some cases) is completely ridiculous.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

It's actually the first time that I had ever been featured in the published photo album(s) of a major, and this past Riptide did it to me twice. One of them is now my PFP. Attributions: @julzz.net and @bluerosetori.com

Image of ECT as a pools captain during Riptide 2026 running bracket for Super Smash Bros. Melee at table 205.

Photo credits: JULZZ

Image of ECT pools captaining an unknown game, but position of background elements possibly suggests Rivals of Aether II.

Photo credits: bluerosetori

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Riptide @riptidessb.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

📸Relive Riptide 2026 through our official photo albums produced by our wonderful event photographers @bluerosetori.com and @julzz.net !

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

I have successfully managed to call the winner of a tournament from the earliest stages of bracket (by captaining the pool which the eventual winner was assigned).

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

I've got no less than three cameras pointing at me incidentally as people spectate Hungrybox playing in bracket on a pool that I am running

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

The best I can do is get the sub and the special, but that is beside the point

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

I am starting to wonder if I am one of only two Dark Tetras players of consequence (the other is a friend of mine) considering that no vendor here at Riptide actually has anything featuring my main. Perhaps I should get back into streaming as a DT one trick

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Booted up Splatoon 2 for the first time in eons and I must confess that I actually miss that little shimmy that Octolings had when running. The girl had it much more prominently

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Reposted by ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo!

LoftTheKnight @lofttheskywarrior.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Finished a c0mm for @mendicantect.bsky.social ! Took longer than I thought to complete as I have been busy lately, but thank you for ordering! #digitalart #oc #artsky

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

I've decided to log into a Soundcloud account I had mothballed for a while. I remember when I had found it enjoyable to create covers of certain video game tracks of interest, but I do not know if and when I would be into getting back into it. I just found it too tedious after a while.

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Reposted by ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo!

Zach Bussey 🍁 @zachbussey.tos.gg · 12/08/2026

Twitch now uses your channel to train generative AI by default. You can opt out of some training here: www.twitch.tv/settings/sec...

Training for Generative AI

Allow your channel content to train generative AI content models at Amazon. Turning this off does not opt you out of Twitch and Amazon using your channel content for other purposes described in the Twitch Privacy Notice, including using AI-supported Twitch features that benefit the community by facilitating streamer growth and monetization (such as real-time sponsorship campaign assistance), viewer discovery (such as recommendations), and community safety (such as AutoMod). Learn more

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Reposted by ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo!

Zach Bussey 🍁 @zachbussey.tos.gg · 13/08/2026

Twitch creators appear to be adding 'aioptedout' to their content tags to help indicate to audiences that they have toggled it off. Twitch CPO Mikey Minty was asked about an "opted in/out indicator" yesterday and said they had no plans to implement one for viewers.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

I don't think I have ever seen someone softlock on the Balrog while playing Rings. But it happened to me today

A partial image of the upper playfield of the Lord of the Rings pinball table. A pinball is visible between an arm and the head of the Balrog figurine. It is unknown how the pinball got in this position.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

Okay, I've held the Xbox One controller (older generations with the traditional style directional pad) in high regard until realizing it is literally the worst controller to disassemble and reassemble. It is no longer the best controller because of its low repairability. Good design otherwise.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

Imagine if Guitar Hero III featured the full nine-minute version of Slow Ride. Would it still be a tier 1 song?

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

Booting up Splat 3 to pledge with one realization: I think this may be the first "regular" Fest (i.e. not one with any of the seasonal themes) in the game in the post-Grand Fest era.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

In response to Riptide Splat opening up commentator and crewmember applications, I'm dedicating a couple of days scouring stream VODs and highlights to try to find material (both Splat and non-Splat) that is demo reel-worthy. It's time I finally conjured one up.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

2027 booking musings. The 30th CODCon (local community college organizes this quaint little multimedia convention) takes place the same weekend as Midwest Gaming Classic.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

In the midst of this, enjoy Yet Another Failure to Destroy the Ring. This series had one attempt that choked at phase 1 and actually took me a while to get the starting shot.

Scores from a series of four games in the Lord of the Rings pinball table as displayed on the game's dot matrix display. From player 1-4: 4,470,940 points; 40,763,290 points; 16,680,030 points; and 5,614,440 points.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 13/06/2026

Concluded Gamer's Universe. Thus begins a relatively dry spell for events before Riptide and C3. I don't know if they are running Unranked in July or whatever, but most of the stuff happening here are all locals and so on.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

What landscape are we in such that I could advertise I am going to a single-day con organized by a public library?

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

PB for PokePin. And it happened to place second on the house's pinball contest.

Photograph of a high score listing on the Pokemon pinball table. The player's handle is ECT, and the score reads 197,242,220 points.

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Zapi @zapppi.bsky.social · 31/05/2026

New side quest unlock! I’m going to riptide. Shoutout to my friend for taking me to see everyone there. Unfortunately I won’t compete however, imma support my friends or those who compete! #compsplatoon #splatoon

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Reposted by ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo!

COMBOBREAKER @combobreaker.org · 25/05/2026

Until we all come up. #CB2026

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 25/05/2026

Street Fighter Grand Finals at Combo Breaker #CB2026 being between two non-US players? A marvelous testament to the global reach of competitive gaming.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Why can't Youtube assume that I would like to view subtitles in the video's native language, when I cross between languages? Seriously. I don't need Japanese subs on a video with English dialogue and vice versa. It was a problem with their autogenerated audio tracks for a while.

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Splatoon Stronghold @splstrong.com · 21/05/2026

Splatoon 3 could arrive for the first time at an existing major gaming LAN in Illinois. To get there, we need to gather community interest to pitch it to the event committee. If you'd like to see this come to fruition, fill out the form! forms.gle/5c7v5JJe3HT6...

Two Inklings from Splatoon 3 in mid-action battle poses. One has yellow ink and a Sloshing Machine, and the other has purple ink and wields an E-liter 4K. Text reads "Splatoon at a major LAN? Your interest could make it happen!" The background is Wahoo World.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 02/05/2026

Eventually, see you all at: * Combo Breaker (more than likely one of either Sat/Sun only, depending on circumstances) * Cream City Convergence * Riptide (whole weekend!) Any more bookings, I'll let you know. All of these are confirmed, though

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

Oh, I ought to mention that I was at MWGC over last weekend. Really nice event as always (it was their 25th!), but I feel that the show has been improving to the point where I think it may be viable to get a full weekend ticket off. Lots of good panels.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

(also, please excuse the aftermarket backglass - I would much rather take the stock backglass for LOTR instead of what this had here, but beggars looking for this game in the wild can't be choosers)

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 05/04/2026

Eight games of LOTR played one after another in two separate blocks of four. Within eight games, I had two tries granted to destroy the Ring. Both failures.

Four scores from the Lord of the Rings pinball game, as displayed on the game's dot matrix display upon game conclusion. Player 1 (top left) has 22,089,170 points. Player 2 (top right) has 67,454,520 points. Player 3 (bottom left) has 22,387,960 points. Player 4 (bottom right) has 4,341,190 points.

Four scores from the Lord of the Rings pinball game, as displayed on the game's dot matrix display upon game conclusion. Player 1 (top left) has 9,194,560 points. Player 2 (top right) has 60,124,690 points. Player 3 (bottom left) has 6,039,450 points. Player 4 (bottom right) has 8,596,490 points.

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Squid-Waukee @squidwaukee.bsky.social · 30/03/2026

Squid-Waukee #8 is here! Hey Wisconsinites are you looking for a Splatoon Lan in your state? Well Welcome to Squid-Waukee! A Splatoon Lan that takes place in Milwaukee Wisconsin! All ages and skill levels are welcome! For more info, join our Discord! discord.com/events/20967...

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

For those of you in the Milwaukee area, even showing support for the Splat scene will work wonders.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 21/03/2026

So *Akatsutsumi,* *Gotokuji*, and *Matsubara* are the names of three neighborhoods in the *Kitazawa* community area in Setagaya. What a remarkable coincidence

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

By the way, about Battleground - as much as it was necessary to pull Splat from the event, it was still worth it to go just to shake hands with people in the academic esports space. I did get to commentate Smash as a consolation prize. There were some other production hiccups, but it was still good

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

Today I make a day trip up north to Milwaukee to an esports summit as a representative of the community tournament organizing space. I do not know who else within that space has confirmed their attendance, but there will be some collegiate and HS esports representatives present.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

Splatoon 3 will likely have its bracket pulled if four teams don't sign up. Despite this, this will not be the last attempt I try to do something like this. There are more bookings I have in mind to bring Splat to an area regional or better, but I will talk to this in depth closer to.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

Less than two weeks before Battleground kicks off. With that, the administration has decided to deploy a $10 off promo code specifically to get Splatoon's momentum somewhere: greeksplatoon10 (once again, link: www.start.gg/tournament/m...)

start.gg

Midwest Battleground 2026

The best place for Midwest Battleground 2026 brackets, streams, standings and schedules all in one place!

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

Still bummed I could not attend the raffle or the group photo custom that they always do, but there'll be another time.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

In any case, Saturday was fun. Towards the end of the tournament is always a fun time because that's when picking up from the extra board gets trickier because naturally, there are fewer brackets to claim toward the end. I still managed to get three more brackets to work on Saturday.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

Sorry for not writing about Frosty's the end of day the last time. I had to suddenly balk from coming back to the venue on Sunday because I had an unfortunate circumstance occur overnight to where I could not be able to make it back. But no, I ultimately did not disappear.

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ECT during post-Riptide cyclic slowdown. 🔜 Pin Expo! @mendicantect.bsky.social · 31/01/2026

Tomorrow I return to the venue to run more brackets. See you then.

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