Week round-up: April 27
Today is a week for multiple bizarre trading card games.
The fury at 'America's Most Powerful': Why there is currently an Iraqi Most Wanted-style deck of cards with Elon Musk's address for sale online - Brian Merchant
Why You Should Check Out “World of Mosses” - Shel Kahn
A real interesting-link-core post about a series of websites created by an Ontario-based native plant enthusiast, Walter Muma. Shel gives special attention to World of Mosses, which is full of the writing and art Muma's father created about moss in the 70s and 80s. It's a fantastic read!
The Myst Graph: A New Perspective on Myst - Guillaume Lethuillier
Myst as a graph! Every environment node connected by arrows showing how the player can move between them. Puzzles are not graphed, so the diagram doesn't show which vectors of travel are locked or unlocked at any given time. It's a fascinating way to look at the game. There is a second article in the series which covers some oddities reveals by the graph (like the leftover traces of revised game content still present in the code).
Middle-Aged Man Trading Cards Go Viral in Rural Japan Town - Ynes Sarah Filleul
I wish I could play the old-man Pokemon!! It was created and is manufactured by a single person for the children of a specific town. Normally I'd say "I wish someone would introduce the designer to itch.io" but actually it rules that this card game is so inaccessible. I hope it stays as inaccessible as possible, actually. Incredible stuff.
What happens after a homeless person is arrested for camping? Often, not much - Marisa Kendall
An interesting article about how putting unhoused people through the criminal justice system for the sole crime of sleeping in public is absurdly harmful to the defendant and wasteful for the state. It's recently become possible for municipalities in the US to do this, and it's just boggling to see what a bad decision it has been for cities to go down this path. The man whose case this article covers was prosecuted partially because he initially refused the housing services Fresno offered him. By the end of the story, someone is able to win his trust enough to help him get into housing. You can imagine what I'm about to say: what if instead of trying to punish this guy, someone actually tried to win his trust?!