iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Last night's Gojira show was incredible. I can't remember the last time I felt this close to a band while they performed. It was unreal to see such a huge act play at such a tiny venue, so I couldn't help but be blown away.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Happy 30 years to Ænima by Tool, a wonderfully weird metal record that set the progressive trajectory for the band without losing the underground grime of Undertow. Psychedelic, heavy, a metal classic. Love it. #NowPlaying

Album art for Tool's Aenima record (floating eyes behind a panel of light) (Happy 30 years!)

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

It's always been a problem. The community didn't leave the behavior issues back at Twitter. There's still quote-dunking. There are still public callouts. There's still toxicity. While it's a better environment than Twitter, it would be even better if people actually addressed the persistent issues.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

I listened to Radiohead's Kid A album in its entirety for the first time.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Do you file it under Z for "Zelda" or under L for "Legend of Zelda"?

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

I can hear "Blood Sugar" by Pendulum through this image.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Persona 5 turns 10 years old today. Even with Persona 6 on the horizon, it doesn't seem real that Joker and his band of Phantom Thieves are celebrating their first adventure's ten-year anniversary. We're still seeing Persona 5 everywhere. It still feels like a blockbuster to this day.

Joker and the Phantom Thieves on a street background

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

You see the announcement for the Russian Circles/Pelican shows, @jello44.bsky.social?

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

And for my Capcom faithful over on the PlayStation 2 side, God Hand turns 20 years old today. The last game by the best damn studio to do it, Clover Studio, you can see the lifeblood of PlatinumGames slowly rising in this wild, over-the-top, and endlessly fun action game.

God Hand art: Fighter getting punched by a tattooed fist

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Happy 25 years, Nintendo GameCube. Some of my best gaming memories came from this console's library, from Metroid Prime to Wind Waker, from Melee to Eternal Darkness. It was a humble system that still had plenty worth appreciating, even in the face of its competition.

Nintendo GameCube in indigo with controller

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Discovered a Florida metal band called Kaiju this week and gave their recently released debut album a spin. There are a ton of styles here, from noise rock to hardcore to full-on post-metal. Jumping from a 2-minute-long punk song to a sludgy 17-minute-long post-metal jam? Great stuff. Recommended.

theonekaiju.bandcamp.com

Kaiju, by Kaiju

5 track album

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Yeah, the hidden track isn't even a song. It's just a phone message from Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age. 😆

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Blood Mountain was heady and transportive, far beyond the seas of Leviathan. "This Mortal Soil" is my favorite track by the band ever. It has everything I love about their music. Technical drumming, layered vocals, and rich moodiness combined with their trademark heaviness. Nothing else comes close.

youtu.be

This Mortal Soil

YouTube video by Mastodon - Topic

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Amputechture was almost all jams, but they were some of the craziest jams that the band ever put to tape. I still listen to "Day of the Baphomets" and think how in the world these guys pulled off what they did. They threw caution to the wind and went totally wild here.

youtu.be

Day Of The Baphomets (Album Version)

YouTube video by The Mars Volta - Topic

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Two incredible albums by two incredible bands turn 20 years old today: The Mars Volta's Amputechture and Mastodon's Blood Mountain. If you were even just dabbling in prog during the 2000's, these albums felt wild, untamed, and psychedelic in so many ways. I adore both of these records. #NowPlaying

Cover art of The Mars Volta's Amputechture album: three people holding a giant orange statue head wrapped in orange cloth.

Cover art of Mastodon's Blood Mountain album: a mythical forest creature with three heads and large antlers in front of a rustic red background

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

I swear, the animation of Logan opening the crate, looking at the item inside, then storing it away was nearly identical to God of War 2018 and I think that's a spot-on indication of how exhausting this "AAA prestige game" thing has gotten over the years. (Stellar vid, @writingongames.bsky.social.)

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Gojira announced today that they're playing a charity show at a small venue here in STL. The show is just a week away. I'm insanely lucky that I was listening to my local alt-rock radio station at the exact moment when the DJ broke the news. Otherwise, I wouldn't have gotten my tickets! Hyped!

Gojira with special guest Locked Shut - promotional poster with red cardinal
September 18th, 2026
St. Louis, MO @ The Sovereign
All Proceeds from this show are going to Operation Food Search

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Reposted by Alex Carlson

Jiikae @jiikae.com · 10/09/2026

The “Big 3” gaming platforms are actually Nintendo, PC and a Chinese emulation device of your choosing.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Love how the pink aura matches the color of the "Ravenous" text. 👍

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Reposted by Alex Carlson

Samantha Checkpoints 🏳️‍⚧️ (commissions open) @checkpointsam.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

A piece to tackle the burnout in my brain! Not sure what's up with Samus but she is PISSED in Metroid Ravenous....and we're here for it 💪😁

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

I still love that stupid-ass Blood Dragon font on "Ravenous." Watch this be the most totally radical Metroid game yet.

Metroid Ravenous (first word in typical white Metroid font, second word in radical neon pink font)

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

A lot of people are writing off Showing Teeth as "deathcore for tiktok users" but I gave a listen to their A Fate Worse Than Loneliness EP today, and came away impressed. Holy crap, can Addison scream. Her vocals are monstrous. youtu.be/el2qML9p1-s?...

youtu.be

Showing Teeth - Bad Exchanges

YouTube video by ShowingTeethVEVO

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

I'm gonna be a bit of a cynic here and say that Twilight Princess didn't do anything particularly well or uniquely except its dungeons, which were absolutely exceptional. Traditional dungeons are what the anti-open-world Zelda fans miss the most, so that's why Twilight Princess is so idolized now.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

It's always Twilight Princess. It's never Wind Waker or Ocarina of Time or A Link to the Past. You never hear those games' fans complaining about open-world Zelda games. It's always Twilight Princess and that's pretty funny to me.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

"I hate Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom! They aren't real Zelda games!" "Okay, what's your favorite Zelda game?" "Twilight Princess!" Every goddamn time.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Oh, for sure. I can see the value in the kinetic, speedrun-focused movement of DKC-likes, which feels very DKC2 and 3 inspired, but sometimes I just want to slow down a bit and chill in the moodiness of a level. I wish more DKC-likes prioritized that at least a little bit more.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

More like the mood of the levels. I keep thinking about the levels in Gorilla Glacier from DKC1, how their setting, visual effects, and music themes come together to feel atmospheric and moody. Lots of the DKC-likes focus on the kinetic movement more than stage-setting, if that makes sense.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

I've been seeing more and more indie projects citing Donkey Kong Country as an inspiration, and while their mechanics manage to feel like DKC, I wish they would invest more into the atmosphere too. DKC1 in particular had so much ambience in its vibes. I haven't seen any DKC-like even come close.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Honestly, the post was barely a jab at all. I just didn't want the person to get the wrong idea. I thought their post was actually pretty funny.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Just saw a lighthearted jab post about gaming Youtubers from a rando that I honestly want to repost, but I don't want the rando to think I can't take the joke and that I'm putting them on blast or anything.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Alec continues to set the bar higher than anybody else in the Youtube scene. Even if you have no experience with Homebody or any horror games like it, this video is still worth your undivided attention.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

NEW ARTICLE: Denshattack! wants its message to travel far and loud, but when you’re shouting at the top of your lungs for so long, eventually you’ll start to lose your voice.

medium.com

Denshattack! is Too Much

Games like Denshattack! are important from every angle. Regardless of what component of a video game resonates most with you, from the art…

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Discovered this pleasant campfire world in VRChat a couple weeks ago and found myself spending a lot of time just vibing in it. Ended up saying "this reminds me a lot of Outer Wilds," then heard the background music and it was a piano cover of one of the songs from the Outer Wilds OST. Perfect.

Campfire area surrounded by logs, pine trees, and a starlit sky (very Outer Wilds inspired)

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Happy 25 years to one of the wildest, ugliest, most earth-shaking metal records of all time. The scene has had plenty of chances, but to this day, nothing else sounds like Jane Doe. #NowPlaying

Now Playing: "Homewrecker" by Converge (Happy 25 years to the metalcore band's groundbreaking album Jane Doe)

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Everything I've heard about that site has been against my will from people who assuredly should know better than to proliferate it.

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Reposted by Alex Carlson

Jon Cartwright @jon.gvg.io · 01/09/2026

Absolute sickos have the capacity to make an Astral Chain Switch 2 Edition and haven't done it

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Wrapped up Denshattack! and got all achievements too. Think I'm going to write up a review of this for the blog, because there's a lot to talk about.

Denshattack! The End (text on yellow background)

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Either way, I think the questions you're asking are important. I wish the conversation surrounding preservation was like this. There's a lot to consider.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

This is a discussion that needs more bandwidth than this site can provide, but i guess my question there is "who DOES have access to it?" Is it a culturally responsible body? I struggle to find closed-door, non-public preservation to really be serving the artistry of the culture it represents.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Games require interactivity as a medium, so it's a very different discerning and dissemination of artistic value. You need to play a game to really get the most out of it. That being said, "game preservation" as a topic certainly needs more of an academic approach than what we're currently seeing.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

IMO, there's a big difference between preserving the artifact itself and "preserving" the information conveyed within the artifact, like between keeping an ancient historical tome in a museum and publicly disseminating the stories that the tome contains. Very complex discussion to be had here.

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Reposted by Alex Carlson

2dos @ DK64Randomizer.com @2dos.dk64randomizer.com · 29/08/2026

The DK64 recomp is now out! Play "DK64 Rekongpiled" now! Playable on Windows, Mac and Linux, just provide your own DK64 rom. No generative AI used at any point in the process. www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVUvGGXTk0E dk64recomp.com

youtube.com

DK64 RECOMP RELEASE ANNOUNCEMENT

YouTube video by 2dos

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

I love how off-the-rails The Third and IV were, but Saints Row 2 is the one that the community digs the most, from what I've gathered.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

20 years ago, Volition challenged the king of open-world games and ended up building their own kingdom. Though it's changed a lot over the decades (for better or worse, depending on who you ask), the Saints Row series is a special one. It's still such a wild ride. Happy 20 years, Saints Row.

Saints Row promo image: four people holding weapons in front of a gold-tinted street with cars and decorative art

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Saw this on a Reddit thread about the project. Sounds like the Blue Dragon PC port clears.

Blue Dragon PC port Reddit thread
Graine: As someone who contributed to the project, it is not vibe coded
Zealotjohn: Hearing from a dev directly is great for a game I love.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Is there any "vibe-coding” in this? Unfortunately, the current climate requires me to ask this about any recently released PC port project.

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Alex Carlson @postmesmeric.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

Moving away from Retroarch for game emulation has been remarkably painless. Many of the emulators I use have been very easy to use and configure, and since I use Playnite as a launcher, I can still keep things centralized. I recommend giving individual emulators and dedicated frontends a go.

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