iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 17h

This game is rad, and it has an amazing soundtrack. A bargain at, like, 20 times the price.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

It's a really fun game. I dig it a lot.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

Feels bad getting my physical copy of Dave the Diver - Complete Edition the day after they announce the game's final DLC is being released early next year. Looking forward to purchasing a copy of Dave the Diver - Complete Editionv2_final_FINAL_USE THIS ONE sometime next summer.

Boxed copy of Dave the Diver - Complete Edition—Nintendo Switch 2 Edition.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Personally, I'd go with "Reeto" over "Rito," but maybe that's just me.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Around the same time, I got another call from someone at SEGA thanks to a mailed in registration card. They also wanted to talk about my gaming habits. During the course of the conversation, they told me that SEGA was working on a Blue Brothers game (that obviously never happened).

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Back in 1993, I got a phone call from someone at Renovation who was excited to tell me that I was the first person to mail in the registration card for the SEGA CD game Revenge of the Ninja. We ended up having a really nice chat about the games I liked to play. It was pretty rad.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

As someone who started watching Doctor Who during the McCoy era, this promo never fails to make me tear up a bit. www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgHR...

youtube.com

Ace Returns! | The Collection: Season 26 Announcement Trailer | Doctor Who

YouTube video by Doctor Who

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Well, I’m glad you enjoyed it! (Which I realize reads as sarcastic, but I mean it.)

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

I mean, the line everyone remembers is "Leeloo Dallas mool-ti-pahs."

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

And no, that's just a terrible movie. Cripes.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

So, @faunafiddled.bsky.social and I watched The Fifth Element last night. She had never seen it before, and I hadn't watched it since it was in theaters (1997, I think). I didn't remember many specifics about the movie, but I did recall not liking it. Still, I figured it would be worth revisiting.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Transporter accident Gul Duquark was just sitting there in front of them, and they never went for it.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

I think I’ll pick up GTA 6 next!

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Yeah, the guy I talked to today did tell me that they had run out of things to try. I'm absolutely starting the next call with a "we need to escalate this." Here's hopin'!

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Looks like I'm now physical-only customer when it comes to Sony's PlayStation! Problem solved!

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Some (potentially) good news: my physical copy of Ace Combat 8 seems to be installing OK, and the day one patch was automatically added to my download queue (and is actually downloading). So, I guess my PlayStation account will still let me play new physical games that I buy?

A boxed copy of Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve for PS5 being held up in front of a TV screen showing that the game is being copied to the system.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

There's a reason I've hung on to a bunch of SNES and Genesis carts.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

And you are far too kind. This reminds me that a small gift for you that I picked up ages ago (like, shortly before lockdown). I'm hoping to pass it along to you personally if I can ever convince @mudron.bsky.social to let me come hang out down there for a weekend.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

On the contrary, you have been extremely helpful, and I am always delighted to hear from you. But yeah, I'm gonna push for escalation next time I call, and we'll see where that goes. Writing down a timeline sounds like a great idea! I'm definitely gonna do that. Thanks for the advice!

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

No, but this doesn't seem like a system problem. I did a factory reset on the PS5, and I can still access/download/play all games currently attached to my account. They all receive new automatic updates. My wife can get new stuff with her account. I don't think digging out my PS4 will fix things.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

"Cracking" here = getting a little snarky ("I've been trying to fix this for a month, and now I'm being told that a month and a day is what's gonna clear things up?") and explaining how frustrating this process has been.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

"We need to escalate this case" is how I'll absolutely be starting my call next week when this "wait 24 hours; try again" advice inevitably doesn't work. I've probably mentioned this before, but I'm always very polite with customer service folks, but I was really cracking at the end of this call.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

REALLY not looking forward to having to explain the extent of my problem to a support person for the FIFTH time next week and run through their checklist of things to try just so I can respond to each of them with, "Yeah, I already tried that several times now."

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

It's starting to feel like Sony's forcing me out of their ecosystem. Althrough after—no foolin'—six hours of dealing with PlayStation support now just to get back to "try again later and call us back if it doesn't work" I think I might welcome that.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

They told me they had exhausted all their options to assist me. I asked what to do when I wait 24 hours and it still isn't fixed, and I was told to call back then. So, the cycle will begin anew, I guess? Just... useless.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

I explained that I've spent the past month waiting 24 hours, 48 hours, a week between purchase attempts to no avail. But I guess this final 24 hours will finally fix it! (It will not, of course.)

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

WELL! After spending another hour on a call with PlayStation support to fix my "can't add anything new to my account" problem, they finally landed at the EXTREMELY HELPFUL advice to "wait 24 hours and try making a purchase again."

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Avengers: Doomsday is mathematically three times darker than Grave of the Fireflies. Buckle up, snowflakes.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

I have learned that I can't redeem the code for my bonus copy of Ace Combat Zero at the moment. The code is recognized, of course, but I get an error message that's something along the lines of "This content can't be downloaded now; try again later." So that's cool!

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

I forgot to cancel my preorder for my physical copy of Ace Combat 8, which is supposed to arrive today. I guess I'll be conducting a $70 experiment to see if I can play newly purchased physical releases on my account!

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Steeling myself to attempt another call to PlayStation support this afternoon. NOT looking forward to it at all, but I really DO want to get my account working again.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

"Dry those tears, li'l cowboy. Your daddy'll be back with you before you know it ... we've been plannin' for just this sorta thing. That brave sumbitch lyin' in that pine box there signed up to be the first volunteer for PROJECT: SHATTERED SOLDIER."

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Holy crap, I broke and snorted at that last clip like the lady in the "we're just normal men" video.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

It’s October. Time to bust out the new shirt.

Close-up of my “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” aloha shirt by Reyn Spooner.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

PlayStation's merch store certainly has no problem with me making new purchases...

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

The Gundam's head needed a few dabs of black paint to bring out some details, but I was nervous about doing so due to how tiny the details are. Still, I got out a fine point Gundam Marker and gave it a go. Not perfect, but it does look nicer! (Here's a pic of the model with an unpainted head.)

Completed RX-78-2 Gundam (Revival Ver.) model holding its shield and Beam Saber. The Beam Saber's blade has been painted pink, but I hadn't added the black details to the head yet.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Because it's a... remaster (?) of a decades-old set, it's quite simplistic. Only the most basic of articulation, but loads of that retro '80s charm. It says no paint required, but I DID bust out a couple Gundam markers to zazz up the all-white Beam Saber and all-gray Beam Rifle a bit.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

I put together my first Gunpla model a few days ago. It's a VERY basic set (no glue or paint needed) that only took, like, 30-40 minutes to assemble, but it's got a neat history. It's the RX-78-2 Gundam (Revival Ver.), a modern-day update of the very first Gunpla from 1980.

Completed RX-78-2 Gundam (Revival Ver.) model holding its shield and Beam Saber. The Beam Saber's blade has been painted pink, and there are some painted black highlights on the Gundam's head.

Completed RX-78-2 Gundam (Revival Ver.) model holding its shield and Beam Rifle. The Beam Rifle's... aiming sensor (I believe) has been painted gold, and there are some painted black highlights on the Gundam's head.

RX-78-2 Gundam (Revival Ver.) model box. It shows a painting of the Gundam and artwork of Amuro Ray.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

I spend SO much time staring at this poster as a kid. Soaking in all the detail and practically memorizing all the little blurbs that the characters were saying. I had been trying to rediscover this thing for years now to no avail. What luck you sent me down the path again today.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

This post inspired me to once again attempt to track down a childhood poster (a hand drawn map of the Chicagoland area's Brookfield Zoo) that I had been looking for on-and-off for years now. And whaddaya know, there just happened to be one on eBay that I just spent way too much money on.

A hand drawn map of Brookfield Zoo by Bob Terrio, created in 1984. It's a densely illustrated map in a cartoonish style akin to the Where's Wally/Waldo books (although this poster predates that series by three years.

Like the Waldo books, the maps is covered in intricate details, and the zoo is populated by hundreds (probably... I'm not counting them) of tiny cartoon people. They're all chatting via little word balloons, so any potential blank space on the poster is filled with dialogue.

It's wonderful.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

That's outstanding! And I don't think I ever knew about the Stampede belt buckle (it looks incredible). Sadly, I have no idea what happened to my original Laser Blast patch. MAYBE it's buried in a box somewhere at my parents' place. Regardless, I eBayed a replacement a few years ago.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

This was the only Activision game I earned a patch for back in the day.

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Phil Theobald @whimsicalphil.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Preston's too busy playing American Doctor Who in this alternate universe.

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