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Oliver Balaam
Oliver Balaam

85 Followers

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Feb 4, 2021

Book Review: How to Be A Liberal, by Ian Dunt

Ian Dunt is a brilliant explainer. Politically I’m to his left, but I consistently seek out his work whenever I need clarity. His ability to make complicated matters comprehensible is unparalleled. His first book, Brexit: What the Hell Happens Now? …

Liberalism

4 min read

Book Review: How to Be A Liberal, by Ian Dunt
Book Review: How to Be A Liberal, by Ian Dunt
Liberalism

4 min read


Jan 20, 2021

Why are the Conservatives boycotting opposition day debates?

Opposition days are days allocated in the House of Commons for the discussion of subjects chosen by the opposition parties. They’ve existed since the late 19th century, but no government has treated them with as much disdain as this one. …

Conservatives

4 min read

Why are the Conservatives boycotting opposition day debates?
Why are the Conservatives boycotting opposition day debates?
Conservatives

4 min read


Jun 11, 2019

Celeste and Dead Cells: two philosophies of accessibility.

This week I completed two of last year’s best games: Celeste and Dead Cells. It struck me that, while they both support their players, their philosophies regarding difficulty and accessibility could not be more disparate. Celeste’s developer describes their game as “a platformer about climbing a mountain”. …

Gaming

4 min read

Celeste and Dead Cells: two philosophies of accessibility.
Celeste and Dead Cells: two philosophies of accessibility.
Gaming

4 min read


Published in Improbable Engineering

·Feb 1, 2019

Ask the Unity expert: choosing between the ECS and MonoBehaviours workflows.

In this, the second in a series of posts on the topic, we’ll compare the ECS and MonoBehaviours workflows in the context of the SpatialOS Game Development Kit (GDK) for Unity and explore what they can do for your game. As we explained in our first blog about Unity’s Entity…

Game Development

5 min read

Ask the Unity expert: choosing between the ECS and MonoBehaviours workflows.
Ask the Unity expert: choosing between the ECS and MonoBehaviours workflows.
Game Development

5 min read


Published in Improbable Engineering

·Nov 7, 2018

Ask the Unity expert: what is the ECS?

In this, the first in a series of posts on the topic, we’ll explain what Unity’s ECS is and what it can do for your game. The headline benefit of Unity’s ECS is performance-by-default. To achieve this, ECS moves away from traditional object-oriented programming (that is, the GameObject and MonoBehaviour…

Unity

4 min read

Ask the Unity expert: what is the ECS?
Ask the Unity expert: what is the ECS?
Unity

4 min read


Jun 25, 2016

The covert conservative politics of Kingsman: The Secret Service.

Empire recently labelled Kingsman: The Secret Service “007 cranked all the way up to 0011” and, like the film itself, this assessment hits it right on the nose. The film magnifies everything brilliant about classic James Bond films, but in the process, also amplifies some of their biggest flaws. Kingsman’s…

Film

5 min read

The covert conservative politics of Kingsman: The Secret Service.
The covert conservative politics of Kingsman: The Secret Service.
Film

5 min read


Jun 25, 2016

Snowpiercer is the best videogame movie ever made.

In the near future a coolant called CW7 is introduced into the atmosphere in order to counteract global warming. It backfires and freezes the planet, along with the vast majority of its population. The only known survivors live aboard the Snowpiercer, a rickety bullet train that travels around the globe…

Gaming

4 min read

Snowpiercer is the best videogame movie ever made.
Snowpiercer is the best videogame movie ever made.
Gaming

4 min read


Jun 25, 2016

On the importance of oversight and accountability.

Inspired by Tony Benn, Oliver Balaam searches for systems of accountability atop the world’s biggest democratic organisations, and comes away largely empty handed. When Tony Benn passed away last month, bipartisan condolences, tributes and hagiography flooded the media, along with a depressing number of easy to knock out listicles. Debates…

Accountability

5 min read

On the importance of oversight and accountability.
On the importance of oversight and accountability.
Accountability

5 min read


Jun 25, 2016

Your anger isn’t helping: The real cost of false outrage.

Technological illiteracy, willful ignorance and hyperbolic outrage are drowning the discussion of real issues writes Oliver Balaam. Last week, in the wake of the fatal shooting by Smyrna police officers of Nicholas Thomas, an unarmed 23 year old black man, Facebook users were dismayed to discover that the website had…

Outrage

3 min read

Your anger isn’t helping: The real cost of false outrage.
Your anger isn’t helping: The real cost of false outrage.
Outrage

3 min read


Jun 25, 2016

Reptilian Revisionism: A search for meaning in Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla.

Troubled by Hollywood’s habit of putting style over substance, Oliver Balaam searches for meaning in Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla, but finds little more than a giant lizard. Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla is a beautiful, and fiercely entertaining film that I’d recommend watching on the biggest screen you can get your hands on…

Film

4 min read

Reptilian Revisionism: A search for meaning in Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla.
Reptilian Revisionism: A search for meaning in Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla.
Film

4 min read

Oliver Balaam

Oliver Balaam

85 Followers

Two time Emmy award viewer.

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