social engineering

For the past few days, I've been reading about social engineering as it relates to popular behavior. Social engineering usually pertains to subjects in political science - to affect and influence popular beliefs by way of law enforcement. Most societies at this point prohibit explicit attempts to change public beliefs, but attempts will still be made through more subtle techniques (such as embedding policies into economic policy).

Can we influence social online behavior by enforcing incentives and disincentives through game mechanics?

!

Going to try, I swear

Andy just started writing in his blog again. I've fallen off the face of the planet - how do the bloggers do it?

Partly, it's because of the fact that I find it really difficult to find time to write something insightful, as opposed to linking anything else that I find insightful to show to you guys. That's what RSS sharing is for, right?

Andy pointed me to something called Tumblr which is supposedly a way to combine all of the different mediums into one - post links, pictures, twitter, blog posts, RSS posts, all-in-one page.

I'll try it.

This page will still remain as my game design-focused blog (whenever I get to it), but there are times when I just want to share something with others and want to comment briefly on it without writing a long take/POV on any particular subject.

All of the posts on this page will also show up on my tumblr feed, but for those of you who just want to hear how my design life is going, tread lightly. I promise I'll update soon.

goty

Left4Dead: My 2008 Game of the Year (so many great games this year!)

meaningful coop + counterstrike + zombies + dynamic encounters = memorable war stories

...it's the game I've been dreaming of making!

It's the only game I've bought for two systems in a long time.

Oh, Canada~

Been in Canada twice in a week already! Currently waiting for the plane to hop back to San Francisco.

Magy invited me up to Simon Fraser University and the Masters of Digital Media Program to give two talks to her students. It was my first time giving a talk about being in the industry, and it was definitely a lot of fun for me--hopefully, it was a lot of fun for her students.

Vancouver is a beautiful city! I'd definitely like to go back soon and visit more of the city when I'm not thinking about a talk and being busy. It has a very nice city vibe without having the grittiness of some of the old towns on the east coast.