Sam Howitt
@samuelhowitt.bsky.social
I wrote a lot about Final Fantasy and now I'm branching out to other videogames. They/Them
Words at pixpen.co.uk
Words at pixpen.co.uk
I just finished Dragon Quest 2 HD2D Remake. Honestly astounded that they made it so much bigger, and yet that didn't make it less enjoyable. Loved this one.
Will get an article about 1&2 written fairly soon.
Will get an article about 1&2 written fairly soon.
November 29, 2025 at 12:51 AM
I just finished Dragon Quest 2 HD2D Remake. Honestly astounded that they made it so much bigger, and yet that didn't make it less enjoyable. Loved this one.
Will get an article about 1&2 written fairly soon.
Will get an article about 1&2 written fairly soon.
Introduce yourself with five concerts you've seen.
Depeche Mode
Thundercat
Mew
Sungazer
Distant Worlds: music from Final Fantasy
Depeche Mode
Thundercat
Mew
Sungazer
Distant Worlds: music from Final Fantasy
Introduce yourself with five concerts you've seen.
Fear Factory
Black Stone Cherry
Babymetal
FEMM
Pete & Bas
Fear Factory
Black Stone Cherry
Babymetal
FEMM
Pete & Bas
Introduce yourself with five concerts you've seen.
The Mad Capsule Markets
Nightwish
Killswitch Engage
Linkin Park
Karen Dió (most recent!)
The Mad Capsule Markets
Nightwish
Killswitch Engage
Linkin Park
Karen Dió (most recent!)
November 27, 2025 at 10:58 PM
Introduce yourself with five concerts you've seen.
Depeche Mode
Thundercat
Mew
Sungazer
Distant Worlds: music from Final Fantasy
Depeche Mode
Thundercat
Mew
Sungazer
Distant Worlds: music from Final Fantasy
Reposted by Sam Howitt
Hong Kong fire and Grenfell are just alike. Fire spreading through unsafe building materials installed due to penny-pinching, killing dozens. One difference: before the HK fire is even out three executives at contractors have been arrested, eight years after Grenfell no-one has been arrested.
November 27, 2025 at 9:11 PM
Hong Kong fire and Grenfell are just alike. Fire spreading through unsafe building materials installed due to penny-pinching, killing dozens. One difference: before the HK fire is even out three executives at contractors have been arrested, eight years after Grenfell no-one has been arrested.
Reposted by Sam Howitt
this is insane both on its face and with several more insane details once you read the full thing
Our upcoming game HORSES was preemptively banned from Steam, with no path to appeal. The game will still launch next week on December 2nd and will be available on EGS, GOG, Humble, and Itch for $4.99. Here is a detailed FAQ covering what happened: horses.wtf/BannedFromSt...
November 25, 2025 at 5:53 PM
this is insane both on its face and with several more insane details once you read the full thing
Reposted by Sam Howitt
Thought I was going to read about a DQ remake but instead I got a thoughtful meditation on growing up as video games were also growing up. Whewie more @dialacina.com please
The HD-2D remakes of Dragon Quest might modernize these ancient RPGs, but could anything recreate the experience of playing them on the NES? www.avclub.com/dragon-quest...
A quest for relevance: Dragon Quest’s remakes search for the impact it had in the ‘80s
The HD-2D remakes of Dragon Quest might modernize these ancient RPGs, but could anything recreate the experience of playing Dragon Warrior on the NES?
www.avclub.com
November 25, 2025 at 2:14 PM
Thought I was going to read about a DQ remake but instead I got a thoughtful meditation on growing up as video games were also growing up. Whewie more @dialacina.com please
I think I might finish Dragon Quest 2 HD2D Remake this week. I think I'm close to done and then it reveals more to do. Just on 2's remake alone I've spent more time on it than the 3 remake.
Both 1&2 together is probably gonna take me around 60+ hours.
Still having a great time with it though.
Both 1&2 together is probably gonna take me around 60+ hours.
Still having a great time with it though.
November 24, 2025 at 11:21 PM
I think I might finish Dragon Quest 2 HD2D Remake this week. I think I'm close to done and then it reveals more to do. Just on 2's remake alone I've spent more time on it than the 3 remake.
Both 1&2 together is probably gonna take me around 60+ hours.
Still having a great time with it though.
Both 1&2 together is probably gonna take me around 60+ hours.
Still having a great time with it though.
In Xenogears and Xenoblade Chronicles 1, 2 & 3, if you are in the middle of a jump, you cannot go into a pause menu.
i was going through my X archives and found this by @superpodsaga.com, which I qrt'd at some point years ago
so, let me bring the question back: what is the most useless piece of video game knowledge you know?
so, let me bring the question back: what is the most useless piece of video game knowledge you know?
November 24, 2025 at 5:01 PM
In Xenogears and Xenoblade Chronicles 1, 2 & 3, if you are in the middle of a jump, you cannot go into a pause menu.
Dragon Quest 2 HD2D Remake isn't the longest game I've played, but it feels massive when it's seemingly going to be 3-4x the length of the original game.
November 23, 2025 at 10:36 PM
Dragon Quest 2 HD2D Remake isn't the longest game I've played, but it feels massive when it's seemingly going to be 3-4x the length of the original game.
Reposted by Sam Howitt
Smaller, passion-led projects created by talented people who care about their craft are still out there! Please don't give up. Support the internet and the creatives you want to see! 🧵
November 19, 2025 at 8:05 AM
Smaller, passion-led projects created by talented people who care about their craft are still out there! Please don't give up. Support the internet and the creatives you want to see! 🧵
Reposted by Sam Howitt
November 18, 2025 at 9:10 AM
Jackson puts into words very well the reasons why I've generally avoided using the term "JRPG" in my own writing, even if that's supposed to encompass much of what I cover, because it fails to convey what I'm writing about.
jrpg isn't a real genre. its a useful shorthand and comparative term (i.e. if you like tales games you'll probably like falcom games) but when more academically discussing things like whether the genre has "evolved" enough or not it becomes tautologically useless
November 18, 2025 at 6:24 AM
Jackson puts into words very well the reasons why I've generally avoided using the term "JRPG" in my own writing, even if that's supposed to encompass much of what I cover, because it fails to convey what I'm writing about.
Reposted by Sam Howitt
instead of posting about the game awards, make a post telling me about what games we're special to you this year and why
November 17, 2025 at 7:29 PM
instead of posting about the game awards, make a post telling me about what games we're special to you this year and why
Reposted by Sam Howitt
Rebecca was one of the founders of Interplay and programmed & designed for some of the most influential games of my youth, notably Bard's Tale I & III and Wasteland. She will be missed.
My trailblazing game industry bad-ass friend Rebecca Heineman has passed away.
Fuck cancer.
Friends, let’s not forget her: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebecca...
Fuck cancer.
Friends, let’s not forget her: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebecca...
Rebecca Heineman - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
November 17, 2025 at 10:18 PM
Rebecca was one of the founders of Interplay and programmed & designed for some of the most influential games of my youth, notably Bard's Tale I & III and Wasteland. She will be missed.
Reposted by Sam Howitt
It appears our beloved Rebecca Heineman has now passed on. She lived her life in such a way as to leave a trail of joy in her wake next to a long list of creative accomplishments. She was a fixture in many communities and a titan in games history. Becky was the best kind of person.
November 17, 2025 at 10:35 PM
It appears our beloved Rebecca Heineman has now passed on. She lived her life in such a way as to leave a trail of joy in her wake next to a long list of creative accomplishments. She was a fixture in many communities and a titan in games history. Becky was the best kind of person.
I'm nearly 40 hours into Dragon Quest 1 & 2 HD2D Remake and I still feel like I have so much to do in it...
November 13, 2025 at 11:19 PM
I'm nearly 40 hours into Dragon Quest 1 & 2 HD2D Remake and I still feel like I have so much to do in it...
Reposted by Sam Howitt
This week: community and continuity form a thematic throughline for seventeen new picks:
critical-distance.com/2025/11/09/n...
critical-distance.com/2025/11/09/n...
November 9th
Welcome back readers. Okay, I lied a small lie last week. I’m not going to plug our money stuff this week. Instead keep your focus on The Jamaican government’s official portal for Hurri…
critical-distance.com
November 9, 2025 at 8:43 PM
This week: community and continuity form a thematic throughline for seventeen new picks:
critical-distance.com/2025/11/09/n...
critical-distance.com/2025/11/09/n...
Reposted by Sam Howitt
dragon quest 1 is in the air lately, so please enjoy this old blog exploring the development of one of my favorite relationships with a jrpg world map
tunditur-unda.neocities.org/posts/2020-0...
tunditur-unda.neocities.org/posts/2020-0...
November 8, 2025 at 6:26 PM
dragon quest 1 is in the air lately, so please enjoy this old blog exploring the development of one of my favorite relationships with a jrpg world map
tunditur-unda.neocities.org/posts/2020-0...
tunditur-unda.neocities.org/posts/2020-0...
That's Dragon Quest 1 HD2D finished. Game's certainly much bigger, took me three times as long as the original.
I know I'm merely getting started, onto the second game!
I know I'm merely getting started, onto the second game!
November 8, 2025 at 2:21 PM
That's Dragon Quest 1 HD2D finished. Game's certainly much bigger, took me three times as long as the original.
I know I'm merely getting started, onto the second game!
I know I'm merely getting started, onto the second game!
Reposted by Sam Howitt
my latest is out for skybox!!! 💜
the casting of teruyuki kagawa in yakuza kiwami 3 is not only disgusting in itself, but also ridiculous in its hypocrisy considering rgg's past recasts and the series. i feel, and write, very strongly about it
please read, i think this is some of my best work 💜
the casting of teruyuki kagawa in yakuza kiwami 3 is not only disgusting in itself, but also ridiculous in its hypocrisy considering rgg's past recasts and the series. i feel, and write, very strongly about it
please read, i think this is some of my best work 💜
Hamazaki Has To Goh - where does Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio draw the line on casting, and why is it not at sexual assault? by @ashlikeadragon.bsky.social
"it’s particularly insulting and disgusting for him to be cast in a series that has historically featured sex pests being (rightly) beat up"
Read on:
"it’s particularly insulting and disgusting for him to be cast in a series that has historically featured sex pests being (rightly) beat up"
Read on:
Hamazaki Has To Goh - where does Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio draw the line on casting, and why is it not at sexual assault?
A look at the bizarre decision to cast Teruyuki Kagawa's in Yakuza Kiwami 3, through a lens of previous re-casting decisions from RGG Studio.
skyboxcritics.com
November 7, 2025 at 4:44 PM
my latest is out for skybox!!! 💜
the casting of teruyuki kagawa in yakuza kiwami 3 is not only disgusting in itself, but also ridiculous in its hypocrisy considering rgg's past recasts and the series. i feel, and write, very strongly about it
please read, i think this is some of my best work 💜
the casting of teruyuki kagawa in yakuza kiwami 3 is not only disgusting in itself, but also ridiculous in its hypocrisy considering rgg's past recasts and the series. i feel, and write, very strongly about it
please read, i think this is some of my best work 💜
Reposted by Sam Howitt
there's just no way
November 6, 2025 at 12:13 AM
there's just no way
Trying something different with facial hair, it's a work in progress.
November 6, 2025 at 7:41 AM
Trying something different with facial hair, it's a work in progress.
Reposted by Sam Howitt
NEW BLOG POST: My experience with Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles is defined by change, both in the game and within myself.
pixpen.co.uk/2025/11/04/t...
pixpen.co.uk/2025/11/04/t...
The Truth of Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles
This article contains spoilers. From its original incarnation, Final Fantasy Tactics has always been about truth. It’s a story told in retrospect from the fictional historian Arazlam. He tell…
pixpen.co.uk
November 4, 2025 at 8:47 PM
NEW BLOG POST: My experience with Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles is defined by change, both in the game and within myself.
pixpen.co.uk/2025/11/04/t...
pixpen.co.uk/2025/11/04/t...
NEW BLOG POST: My experience with Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles is defined by change, both in the game and within myself.
pixpen.co.uk/2025/11/04/t...
pixpen.co.uk/2025/11/04/t...
The Truth of Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles
This article contains spoilers. From its original incarnation, Final Fantasy Tactics has always been about truth. It’s a story told in retrospect from the fictional historian Arazlam. He tell…
pixpen.co.uk
November 4, 2025 at 8:47 PM
NEW BLOG POST: My experience with Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles is defined by change, both in the game and within myself.
pixpen.co.uk/2025/11/04/t...
pixpen.co.uk/2025/11/04/t...
Reposted by Sam Howitt
INCOMING CANON FIRE!
A deep dive into the ABSOLUM, the latest from the Streets of Rage 4 team!
I dig into how it evolves the arcade spirit of games like Capcom's Dungeons and Dragons beat-em-ups, its remix of fantasy tropes, and even its take on gender and identity.
canonfire.net/post/7992333...
A deep dive into the ABSOLUM, the latest from the Streets of Rage 4 team!
I dig into how it evolves the arcade spirit of games like Capcom's Dungeons and Dragons beat-em-ups, its remix of fantasy tropes, and even its take on gender and identity.
canonfire.net/post/7992333...
055: Absolum brings the arcade spirit of its fantasy inspirations roaring into the modern age
The latest from Guard Crush Games, one of the main developers on Streets of Rage 4, Absolum takes plenty from their work on SEGA’s brawler. The skeleton of the game can be seen in their experiments...
canonfire.net
November 3, 2025 at 10:23 PM
INCOMING CANON FIRE!
A deep dive into the ABSOLUM, the latest from the Streets of Rage 4 team!
I dig into how it evolves the arcade spirit of games like Capcom's Dungeons and Dragons beat-em-ups, its remix of fantasy tropes, and even its take on gender and identity.
canonfire.net/post/7992333...
A deep dive into the ABSOLUM, the latest from the Streets of Rage 4 team!
I dig into how it evolves the arcade spirit of games like Capcom's Dungeons and Dragons beat-em-ups, its remix of fantasy tropes, and even its take on gender and identity.
canonfire.net/post/7992333...
Reposted by Sam Howitt
NEW VIDEO: Cosmic horror, social distrust, technology as a means of reaching out into the void and religious iconography stalking the streets of a sleepy Sardinian town. Here are four unique tales of terror, and why you should pay attention to them:
Unusual Horror Games | Static Canvas
YouTube video by Static Canvas
youtu.be
October 30, 2025 at 11:50 PM
NEW VIDEO: Cosmic horror, social distrust, technology as a means of reaching out into the void and religious iconography stalking the streets of a sleepy Sardinian town. Here are four unique tales of terror, and why you should pay attention to them: