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XCOMUFO & Xenocide

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Cartesian

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It seems to me that a 'not insignificant' proportion of the fluff text essentially involves troops/scientists doing dumb things, getting hurt/killed, all presented in a humourous fashion.

 

While there may be a lot of dumb troops, I am of the impression that there is a basic IQ test one must pass to become a soldier. It also seems to me that XCOM wouldnt be hiring stupid, or even avergae troopers. When you consider that there are millions of troops worldwide and "XCOM" (whatever we are calling it now) might only have 8 soldiers, one might presume that these would the the best of those available. ie: the smartest, toughest, meanest troops alive.

 

They wouldnt be doing dumb shuckeroonies.

 

Nor would the scientists.

 

How about we clean up the fluff text to eliminate the blatently ridiculous, and use the fluff text to express how professional and excellent "XCOM" staff are. If you want soldier to get hands blown off etc, make it seem as though it was unaviodable and a tradegy. Dont make the soldiers sound like yokels, since chances are they will be IQ 130+.

 

C'mon guys, think it through. ;)

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I guess you've never been anywhere near a military organisation then ;)

 

There's a reason that claymore mines have the words "Face this side outwards" or Grenades have operating instructions.

 

Left to their own devices people can and will find very inventive ways of maiming themselves. A high IQ or brilliance doesn't give people a ticket away from accidents. I have an IQ of 140 and I've done dumb things. Its all a part of being human.

 

Its a bit of an oxymoron putting soldier and IQ 130 in the same sentence. Soldiers follow orders. It doesn't take a genius to do that. Plus anyone with such a high IQ is very likely to have the sense to stay away from incoming fire as they'll know it hurts ;)

 

Anyway its fun to read the dumb things. After all that's the point of playing the game... To have fun. It isn't a science project ;)

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ontopic: A bit of humor have never hurt anyone. And games are here to entertain people, not scare the crab outta them. Give them a little laugh, while you are struggling with Etherials. You need it.

 

offtopic: scare the crab outta them. Don't you get scared when a cryssalid comes in and attack you? Doesn't a crab come out? :)

 

offtopic2: 140 IQ? thats kindof.....alot....what spread do you use? 15? 17?

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I guess you've never been anywhere near a military organisation then ;)

Nah, they like to throw you away before you get too close :hammer:

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I'm of a similar opinion, having a funny fluff text after a serious enter makes it more entertaining. I want to LMAO when I get to a new entry, while others want a very scientific/serious feel to it. The beauty of the XML design is that all these entries will be stored in the equivalent of a text file, so any names or entries a player does not like can be changed using notepad or better. We will include instructions with the game explaining how to do so. But for version 1, we have agreed by consensus to include funny fluff, so long as it's not blatantly cruel or excessive.

 

While the soldiers are professionals, engineers and scientists are curious about everything, and by nature will push the Big Red Button no matter what you tell them. :D

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I have to agree with Brue on this.

 

And it should also be taken into consideration that alot of the research, development, and exploration that you will be doing are in environments and with technology that you don't have the first clue about. Accidents and dangerous situations are bound to ensue. We are just fortunate that most of them have resulted in humerous quotes within the XCorps.

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I agree, soldiers are picked for their ability to fight, and follow orders. If they happen to have a brain, it's considered a bonus. :rolleyes:

 

The same things go for scientists. They're picked for their unique ability to figure stuff out. Risks must be taken in the name of science, and not everything happens flawlessly. If they practice proper hygiene, it's an added bonus. :wacko:

 

Engineers are picked for their low self esteem, and their hatred for unions. It ensures their servitude in your laser cannon sweatshops. On occasion, an engineer may get too depressed... an engineer with no heirs is an added bonus. :D

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Beside I thought the copy I wrote for corporal Beau Hicks regading his comment on the test of laser defenses as pretty funny; but that me of course :wacko:
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I'm find myself somewhere in the middle road on this. I agree with almost everyone in that I enjoy some humorous fluff now and then. However, I do agree with Cartesian in that some of the fluff just seems rediculous for trained soldiers and scientists.

 

Whereas some fluff text featuring stupid things done by soldiers (i.e. removing rate-of-fire inhibitors on laser weapons) are realistic, others, particularly suggested fluff text, seem drastically overdone. Additionally, I think the power of humorous fluff is decreased when it appears in every entry.

 

Some stuff, like the fluff in the plasma weapons entry by tzuchan, is funny because it is exactly what a scientist would do. Remember, while scientists are almost by definition eccentric, they are not stupid. Accidents will happen, expecially when dealing with completely alien objects...but still.

 

On the other hand, I think a lot of humor fluff could more successfully find its way into entries as things that lab assistants and potential recruits do. I agree with Cartesian in that these soldiers will be of above average intelligence, and would add integrity - the organization they work for is entirely secret, so they have to be trusted. However, it would be possible for people to sort of "fail the test" for entry by doing something really stupid. Just don't have the commander of X-corp putting plasma gel in his hair.

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My primary problem is that the whole rookies dying joke is a bit esoteric. As in, people who haven't played the original game (and had a few rookies die) may be a bit disturbed by the constant death of rookies.

 

Also, don't kill one off in every entry, otherwise it becomes boring even if we can invent new ways for people to die.

Edited by Ancalagon
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My primary problem is that the whole rookies dying joke is a bit esoteric. As in, people who haven't played the original game (and had a few rookies die) may be a bit disturbed by the constant death of rookies.
This is WAR. People die left and right at the hands of the aliens, and their booby-trapped technology. The fluff text is but a small taste of the horrors that X-Corps faces on a regular basis.

 

Also, don't kill one off in every entry, otherwise it becomes boring even if we can invent new ways for people to die.
But, people who start the game will notice that their rookies always die. That can be pretty frustrating for a new player, who doesn't realize that rookies are cannon fodder. The fluff text will merely confirm their suspicions. :)

 

Okay, maybe X-Corps agents shouldn't die all the time... :rolleyes: if you get some good fluff text, be sure to post it.

 

Or, maybe the early entries should have agents die, with the later entries showing more and more sucesses. It'd give a feel of the changing tides of the war.

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It's not a requirement that a person die in every one, just that the text be enjoyable to the player. So far most of the humor has been along those lines however. I picture it as James Bond being shown the latest gadget, and having a little less luck when pushing a random button.

 

Non-lethal fluff text is totally acceptable too, if other entries are proposed we can look at them. None of the fluff text is written in stone.

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To repeat (Breunor I believe) the text will be accessible simply change it. For example there are many "Xenocide" names for things that I'll be changing right away.
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Id just like to say, common sense and IQ almost never go together. The smartest people usually do the clumsiest things, but then again so do the dumbest people!
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Id just like to say, common sense and IQ almost never go together. The smartest people usually do the clumsiest things, but then again so do the dumbest people!

theres a thin line between genius and insane. :D

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Or, maybe the early entries should have agents die, with the later entries showing more and more sucesses. It'd give a feel of the changing tides of the war.

That is a good idea. I agree, it would help to illustrate the changing fortunes of the war, when you notice that the fluff text starts talking less about "Poor Jimmy blew his hand off with an autocannon" and more about "In this thing [combat powersuit] I just stood there and watched the horror in the Grey's eyes as his heavy plasma blasts dissapated harmlessly on my armor."

 

So, the more advanced technology (especially the ones that humans create based off of alien technology) should have more successes. Especially the nova, that should be 100% perfect with no injuries or anything during its test.

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Just don't have the commander of X-corp putting plasma gel in his hair.
-Exactly.

 

To repeat (Breunor I believe) the text will be accessible simply change it.
-Wonderful.

 

 

QUOTE (Robo Dojo 58 @ Apr 28 2004, 07:38 AM)

Or, maybe the early entries should have agents die, with the later entries showing more and more sucesses. It'd give a feel of the changing tides of the war.

 

That is a good idea. I agree, it would help to illustrate the changing fortunes of the war, when you notice that the fluff text starts talking less about "Poor Jimmy blew his hand off with an autocannon" and more about "In this thing [combat powersuit] I just stood there and watched the horror in the Grey's eyes as his heavy plasma blasts dissapated harmlessly on my armor."

 

So, the more advanced technology (especially the ones that humans create based off of alien technology) should have more successes. Especially the nova, that should be 100% perfect with no injuries or anything during its test.

- I like the philosophy.

 

Whereas some fluff text featuring stupid things done by soldiers (i.e. removing rate-of-fire inhibitors on laser weapons) are realistic, others, particularly suggested fluff text, seem drastically overdone. Additionally, I think the power of humorous fluff is decreased when it appears in every entry.

 

Some stuff, like the fluff in the plasma weapons entry by tzuchan, is funny because it is exactly what a scientist would do. Remember, while scientists are almost by definition eccentric, they are not stupid. Accidents will happen, expecially when dealing with completely alien objects...but still.

- Yeah, its gotta be believeable. And it doesn appear overdone, which is why I have brought this up.

 

And while your average soldier will have an average IQ of 100, the ones who get to be rookies for XCOM would probably be around or in excess of 130.

 

1/ Think about it. Go to 2.

2/Does it make sense to you yet? Yes: Go to 3. No: Go to 1.

3/ Stop.

 

Deimmos: I have friends in the military, and they aren't that bright. BUt they aren't anywhere near SF, and I know that ppl in SF are generally *really quick thinkers*. Maybe they can't do category theory, but they are not anywhere near stupid.

 

And lastly: "I have an IQ of 140 and I've done dumb things."- This would be one of those right? Seriously, we all do dumb things, but sticking your hand into a blender while its going isn't one of the more common ones, which is the impression I get from reading the fluff.

Edited by Cartesian
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And lastly: "I have an IQ of 140 and I've done dumb things."- This would be one of those right?

 

 

Seriously, we all do dumb things, but sticking your hand into a blender while its going isn't one of the more common ones, which is the impression I get from reading the fluff.

Nope, I'm just illustrating that life is rarely as serious as you made out in your OP.

 

As an example of 'dumb things' I've done what I'm referring to is things like sticking my fingers into live lamp sockets to feel the effect. On reflection a very dumb thing. Or how about cutting grass and running over the wire.

 

My ego doesn't get in the way of my creativity and I can post what I've said without any shame becasue it make me realise that I am still human and as such do dumb things.

 

I'm not competing to be the worlds most perfect indivdual and I'm comfortable with posting comments such as I did above. So no Cartesan this would not be one of those.

 

 

Why isn't sticking you hand in a blender a more common thing? By its very specialised nature the research of alien equipment is very much more likely going to end in messy end for the people that use/misuse them, simply because of the unknown nature of the said items. What I don't want to see in the game is all seriousness and no humour, I want to see x-corps personnel blowing themselves up for all the reasons given above. Plus it adds a dose of black humour, into an otherwise very serious game.

 

If you want it all serious then as Stewart and other have said, its going to be very easy to change the entries so everyone can be kept happy. Lets keep the text entries the way they are though for the official release as I think most people will enjoy whats been written.

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As a comparison based on previous comments, imagine you'd never seen a blender before, and the mixing blades were invisible energy fields, and there was no lid needed when blending. You just push a button and 2 seconds later you have perfectly blended stuff (and a magical harp sound is heard in the background). You reach in there to feel the consistency of the stuff after flipping off the switch, only to realise that's just the "play music while blending" switch. The blender starts as soon as something is put in it, and you suddenly have perfectly blended fingers to contemplate. "After proffesor X was sent to sick bay and nicknamed 'stumpy', we realised a thorough study of the instruction manuals the aliens kept on the supply ship might not be such a bad idea after all..."

 

A variety of accidents can occur even when people use "common" sense, unfortunately alien technology is not common. Add the fact that unlike normal military setups, these soldiers are in complete secrecy and very likely don't have regular contact with the outside world for security issues. Imagine the life of living in an underground base out in the mountains, and you only go out when you must face a superior foe in kill or be killed situations. The average soldier, no matter how elite, might get a little cagey and not do everything right. I compare it to the US Navy SEALS he|| week, not quite as intense but going on for months and possibly years. Add in the new recruit story of The World as We Know It Will End speech, and the best the world can offer is barely good enough to do it.

 

All these factors combined IMO would lead to a fair amount of "human error". :D

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For what it's worth, I really like the idea of having the initial research have rediculous fluff text, and later entries having serious stuff. It'd be worth a look-over, just little stuff like not having [medi-kits] (probably the first or second researched item) being commented on by a veteran...there's a pretty good chance there aren't any veterans when it is researched. And certainly at the beginning of the game (the first time through, when people read the entries) the player will do things that he may consider equally as stupid as what appears in the X-Net.

 

I think that the main problem Cartesian has is not necessarily the prescence of humorous fluff, it is the prevalence and depth of stupidity. Even just taking it out or moderating it in later entries might make the remaining stuff seem more reasonable. Again, I'll mention tzuchan's plasma weapons fluff, which still makes me laugh. Then again, I'm an engineer, and find the eccentricities of people more enjoyable than seeing people get kicked in the balls...maybe other people won't find it interesting at all.

 

I can't go so far as to say that X-Corp soldiers and scientists won't do stupid things. Just remember that there are, actually, a limited number of scientists and soldiers, and you can't have them all do stupid things. Again I would prefer recruits or lab assistants, but that is pretty semantic.

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"After proffesor X was sent to sick bay and nicknamed 'stumpy', we realised a thorough study of the instruction manuals the aliens kept on the supply ship might not be such a bad idea after all..."

I really like this one as fluff text... Who ever read manuals????

 

About the fluff text (that Ive not read in its entirely), the idea is to give an humorous text that promotes you to read the well crafted entry. If the entry finish there, you can be sure that nobody will read it. If in the end (or intermixed) there is something that is humorous then you have a better chance the user will read them.

 

On the other hand, fluff text must be diverse and in diversity is the key to success cause the user would never anticipate it... If in the whole fluffs you have rookies dies, that gets monotonous... Giving a somewhat linear kind of fluff text, gives a sense of anticipation, killing the fun part of reading them. So good events, and stupid things, jokes and even informative stuff like the Alien Containement fluff about security must be scattered.

 

And always remember who the average user of a game is :D, never miss the target. We want to prove that we can make a game and that TBS games are not dead (at least I am sure that we would play it). The only way to accomplish that is not miss the target at all... At least my motivation for working in this is to be able to give actual gamers what I enjoyed so much 10 years ago in a format compatible with the actual technology.

 

Greetings

Red Knight

Edited by red knight
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I think it's accurate to say that once we have all the basic entries completed (first draft-review/comments-second draft) we will go back and start reviewing each entry for consistency. I imagine making a master document which includes all the entries laid out in the order they are presented within the game. Then we can start reading through and making consistency edits so that we have a more uniform use of grammar and flow. We'll be able to pull out the fluff texts as well, and try to make sure they are placed properly and also take the concerns in this thread into consideration. Good points have been made, and will certainly be considered when the time comes.
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I have to fully agree with Cartesian on this one.

 

Although it is amusing to see these guys blowing getting themselves killed, it would be better if a) there was a bit more variety B) some of the really stupid stuff was taken out c) it was recognised from time to time that actually these guys are going to be the (best of best)x10^42.

 

Show some horrors and some funny moments if you like, but if that many scientists are getting killed then why don't you have to by 3 or 4 more everytime you research somthing new? ^_^.

 

Kikanaide has a good point about getting more serious (does that mean less fatal?) towards the end.

 

Incidentally I've never seen your men on the original as grunts or even soldiers, instead I've alway thought of them as highly train operatives like an SAS or SWAT type thing. Those type of comabtants are trained as individuals as well as a team, they have to think, analyse and adapt so I'd expect X-corp to have some fairly inteligent people.

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  • 4 months later...

I hate to think of Xenocide having the appearance of a particularly bad Saturday morning cartoon, or some dumb Simpsons-like feel. Reiterating (again), fluff text can really enhance a game if done correctly. Deus Ex was a prime example of excellent fluff text, and even then, only 10 percent of it was actually humorous. The humor wasn't too hokey and didn't detract from the "this world is screwed" mood by being overly prevailent or unrealistic. Say, Gunther Hermann, the crazy man-killing psychotic by occupation, refers to crowbar usage as "Murder of Crowbars." Meant to evoke a chuckle or two, and not too silly. You can come up with thousands of different morbid ways to kill off little characters, sure, but that, in the end, just becomes pointless and worthless. Most of the Deus Ex's "fluff" came in the form of little notes left by personnel, some examples of which being a couple little "what they didn't tell you in the manual" or "you don't want to try this yourself--trust me" or even "you should have seen the look on his face" bits. Those are okay. Having Sgt. Schlappy get crushed by a fusion bomb, or Lance Sgt. Sleprock blown up by a grenade is just pointless. Seriously, would you want that kind of humor "spamming up" your UFOpedia entries in X-Com?

 

My two cents.

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a little text at the end doesn't really dominate the game.

 

Besides, if it makes people read the text, it would be worth it. Really. Even if they skip it all just to read the fluff. If it wasn't there, they wouldn't read it at all. Simple as that.

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I see your point, I suppose. It really is a more personal thing, I guess--maybe it would serve to make the written parts less stale and dreary, after all.

 

Well, please take no offense--just thought I'd voice my say on the matter.

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Well, please take no offense--just thought I'd voice my say on the matter.

 

Of course, no offense was taken! If we didn't talk and "argue", then some original and nice ideas would never be proposed! :argue: :hammer: :idea:

 

And, as much as I know, no1 has talked like this --> :cussing:

 

Team power... :rock: :beer:

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And, as much as I know, no1 has talked like this -->  :cussing:

 

 

@%@$^&%@#$!%$^$@%@$^&%@#$!%$^$@%@$^&%@#$!%$^$

 

:happybanana:

 

 

I got an idea: Maybe you could choice between stuff in options; "Read whole scientific explaination", "read shortened explanation", or "read only essential". Then there would also be a "show fluff text" checkbox.

Edited by mikker
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we can always do a cliff notes version...

 

Assault Rifle: using lots of little things, it kills big things

 

Plasma Rifle: it kills things faster.

 

:)

 

Seriously I don't think there is an issue with the text being too long or having too much fluf. If perople don't want to read it they can just skip it to look at the stats I don't think we need to have separate versions of the text.

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  • 2 months later...
Maybe we should tone down on the fluff. My problem is that text's seem required to include fluff. I think we should only use fluff if we actually have a good fluff. I for one have not written one good fluff yet, and my fluff is still not bellow standards.
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  • 1 month later...

A brief thought...

 

I, honestly, can't see this game being picked up by the casual gamer.

 

Most people who pick it up will have some knowledge of X-Com.

 

At the very least, consider that most gamers are (in general!) North American or Western European. Or Japanese or such. But generally, a part of the "Western" cultural context.

 

The Greys, UFOs, Area 51, conspiracy theories, etc etc are a part of the culture; I think we'd have trouble finding someone in either Europe or North America who didn't instinctively get a lot of things like that. Since the 60s at least, we've grown up with them.

 

References to bits of internet pop culture (see Deus Ex's references to Kibo) aren't a bad idea, either. :wave:

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Well, I'm well aware of differences in people's senses of humor. *butts heads with Azrael* :)

 

In "Humor According to Astyanax, Volume 22" :P I tend to like quotes that are funny in context. That means real people doing real things (some stupid, some eccentric, some creepy, some brilliant) in a world where Aliens are actually attacking. It's the difference between drawing the player into the game world rather than having the player simply playing the game.

 

Unfortunately, that means limited or subtle references to real world icons/pop culture.

 

From my viewpoint, things like "Mr. so-and-so died because of some stupid act... *laughs*" doesn't really fit- I find it difficult to believe that real people would be so callous in a war situation. However, that doesn't mean death can't be funny, but I feel that it's going to be funnier to the player than an actual X-Corps soldier. Stupid things do happen and they can be funny, but I also think there's a point where stupidity goes beyond believability.

 

I think humor can also be found in the eccentricities of the things that populate the Xenocide world. Quirky scientists, sometimes idiotic soldiers, bureaucratic red tape, occasional brilliance, practical jokes by soldiers who are regular people when they aren't on duty, and so forth. I feel that when painting a living world, we should present a full spectrum of snippets that allows to player to "get a feel" (the good, the bad, and the ugly) for the life of people in the X-Corps, instead of focusing only on stupid antics.

 

Just my two pennies. :)

Edited by Astyanax
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perhaps someone should collect a list of fluffs and we all vote which ones we find funny and which not... so we can get a general idea what is good and what is not. then again, that would be an awful lot of work... OMFG

 

That would work if people would actually vote, we're having real trouble getting enough votes to decide names, let alone voting fluff texts. Our choose system is dictatorial nevertheless :P, so no problem picking :)

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Voting is rather inefficient, unfortunately, but I wouldn't mind it. Az? :Poke: Aside: I hope dipstick's sense of humor is closer to mine :naughty:

 

The difficulty is in the vast disparity in what people think is funny. Hopefully, we can find/create fluffs that are acceptable to all (or most) people.

Edited by Astyanax
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Well, there is a difference between humour and jokes...

 

Fluffs with humour have somewhat "clever", and help you catch the general feeling of the entry. Humour doesn't always make you laugh to death you know...

 

Fluffs with jokes have something sarcastic, sex-related etc. that makes you laugh. Sometimes (IMHO most of the times) they aren't clever, but they seem funny nevertheless...

 

Unfortunately, I have to admit that my fluffs only have "humour" (although most people wouldn't even describe it that way :P), and aren't funny. Asty's are alien-jokes :P :P

 

IMO:

First of all, fluffs should be a "1-line-summary" of the entry, humour is in the second place, and jokes are optional (but preferred)

 

What did I say??! :Coffee: :KooKoo: :wacko:

 

[EDIT]: If you read the thread where we submit fluffs, some are strange, some are funny, some are clever... I remember that there was 1 where a "joke" from an American ad was put, but most people didn't like it at all...

 

People are different, and in most countries people think in a different way... Keep that in mind :Poke: :blink2:

Edited by kafros
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Unfortunately, I have to admit that my fluffs only have "humour" (although most people wouldn't even describe it that way :P), and aren't funny. Asty's are alien-jokes :P :P

It's not always easy to translate our humor and jokes to english, happens to me all the time :)

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