"...It was a little TOO arty for my tastes, I think."

I find it funny that most art related games use pixels.

A lazy person could make a pixel game and call it art and most likely get away with it.

I think you may be confusing Andy Warhol with Jackson Pollock.....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackson_Pollock

I find it funnier without the caption, the title says enough for me.

trialanderr0r has the right of it.
Jackson Pollock made the mindless color splotch "art".
Andy Warhol made the mindless negative image "art". Oh, and soup cans.
Funny cartoon anyway.

It could just be a title referring to art combined with flash

let me tell you what's not funny: the ignorance of skoodge80 and debaser who continue their vendetta against these comics. Grow up and keep your venom to yourselves. You're clueless if that's your critique of this one. Why can't you just leave well enough alone? Do you feel entitled to bring others down?

Hey, I'm trying to be polite by putting my comments behind spoiler tags, but I guess that doesn't matter so I won't bother anymore.

I understand that people like this comic, but I don't understand how. It is so unbelievably unfunny to me that I feel like I have to say something.

Also, what do you mean by "you're clueless if that's your critique"? I assume you're referring to what I said about the title, but that wasn't the only thing I said. There is literally no joke here, just an unrealistic situation. That's all these ever are, and it's not enough to make an entire series of comics. My critique is that I completely understand what James Francis is going for here, but that there is nothing funny about it no matter how many ways I look at it. The entire purpose of the caption is to explain why he is covered in paint, not to make a joke about it. The only way this could possibly be funny is if the actual IDEA that a game could cover a person in paint makes you laugh.

I have shown these comics to my friends and family and hundreds of people on the internet, and everyone agrees that it has never once been funny.

No it's quite clear you are clueless. you don't understand it at all. Now shut the hell up about it.

Ok, that's enough. Let's not have this flame war going on, please?

I'll make an offer to anyone who doesn't think these comics are funny to come up with one of their own. I'll gladly publish any game-related comic that one of you dissenters come up with as an alternative to James' regular feature here.

Let's see what YOU think is funny. So, here's your chance. ;)

Oh, and skooge, you probably shouldn't be taking these comics so literally (or so seriously). Just because there's paint all over the walls doesn't mean James was suggesting a Flash game actually did that. Much of art is symbolic. Try to go for a deeper meaning than just what's on the surface.

But then again, what do I know.

Alright here's what I came up with.

I also made this one, but, uh... yeah.

OMG skoodge you are so amazing! you should do this for a living.

oh mannnnn I love it skoodge!

okay, I'm not exactly an art critic but I laughed way harder at this skoodge kid's comic than I did at the Babylon one.

Skoodage, that was literally the best thing I have ever seen in my life.

Skoodge is the Bob Ross of comics.

Jay, your comment is surprisingly childish, especially for a critic. If I didn't like a game, and you did, would you tell me that I should become a game designer and make a superior game? It would be unreasonable. You don't have to be a game designer or programmer to have an opinion on games, just like you don't have to be a comic artist to form opinions on comics.

Your statement suggests that because we don't create comics, we can't have an honest reaction to the work. Skoodge explains very plainly why he doesn't like the comic. He is offering criticism supported by reasoning. In response, instead of offering an argument in favor of the work and what you like about it, you essentially told him not to criticize. For a person who runs a website about criticism, discouraging opinions in your readers is borderline depressing.

@Gilbert et al: Sorry to depress you! That wasn't my intention to discourage criticism in general with my comment. It was directed primarily toward Skooge and debaser who continue to comment on each comic we publish basically with the same complaint each time.

I'll leave the challenge open to anyone who would like to contribute to our comics each week. I think that's being generous and promoting the sharing of opinions (and perhaps we'll even have a greater variety of comics to feature each week).

You're free to look at that any way you like, of course. I don't think I was being childish at all.

Hahaha, I'm sorry, guys. I didn't mean to start a big thing about this. The comic just really bothers me. :\

I don't think I would be able to make a weekly gaming webcomic that is actually funny. I admit that.

All right, sounds like a challenge.
here is little something:
https://jayisgames.com/images/hs_ada_babylonn.jpg

Finally something worth commenting on, Ada! Good work with the comic, it looks good, is a parody of the babylon comics, and is a good commentary on this here comment thread. It's just that i don't find it very funny because i do think babylon sticks is saying something in the comics and the whole not funny thing is so not funny to me. and it doesnt have anything to do with games besides the bystander saying he would rather be playing games. if that makes it about games then you could just add that to any non game comic to make it game related. and so It doesnt work imo. but overall i see what you did there and i like it.

I disagree with stephan, I think my comics are very much worthy of comments. So I made another one for you, hopefully you like it more than the others.

I lol'd at Jack Francis's comment. Maybe he should make a cartoon about that.

For the next one I thought I would do a parody of room escape games.

This next one is just a burger, because I'm hungry. It's just cheese and pickles, I don't like lettuce or tomatoes or onions. There's ketchup on it too. If you want different things on your burger, that's fine. This one is mine though.

I prefer skoodge's comics.

I feel like they are more realistic.

ha ha ha
oh skoodge!

I also fail to see anything funny in these comics. skoodge80 is being cruel though, using up so many of the ideas for future comics.

I think skoodge's comics are way better
I can relate to them
That's important to me
Like that cheeseburger?
Absolute genius

I understand that everyone is entitled to their opinion, but Skoodge is doing so in a childish manner. Skoodge used an insincere pretense of politeness to defer arguments against his/her nonconstructive criticism, then created meatpuppets to support himself (or herself).

@Skoodge

Personally, I just don't get this one. And because of the sparse location, there's not much I can say for the art either. There's usually fun stuff to find (tee hee, beer helmet) hidden in the comics, but this one was mostly just colorful.

I am being childish but I assure you, those are not meatpuppets, assuming that means they are me commenting on my own things. None of those people were me. Even I wouldn't go that far with this.

The politeness I guess you could say is pretense, but I was trying to be at least somewhat respectful in the beginning. But I do think my criticisms were constructive. What I am trying to say is that this comic is satirical in the same way as Aaron Seltzer and Jason Friedberg's "_____ Movies". It never makes any sort of observation or joke other than "here's something you've seen in another place, this is what it would look like in a different situation than usual." Like the "real life pong" one, the joke for that was just "real life pong isn't a good idea."

My comics weren't really trying to be parodies of Babylon Sticks, though. They were just stupid things I made in Paint.

@Skoodge, your pants on are on fire. And not in a cool, awesome way, or hot way, or the other hot way (which is also the cool way), I mean like in a singsongy way.

However, I'm glad you might continue to view the future comics this way rather than calling them out for nonsensism based humor.

The first comic I ever saw of this series was funny. The rest were pretty stupid imo. But oh well, it seems people are amused by blatant obviousness that is repeatedly awkwardly twisted to fit with reality... So let's leave it at that.

Skoodge's Tetris comic actually made me laugh out loud, unlike Babylon Sticks. Congrats.

I thought skooges tetris comic was stupid, as were his others. As for this "arty" one, it made me laugh because thats just how i feel sometimes after playing one of those experimental art games... dazed & bewildered, as if ive just been covered in goo. I enjoy the babylonsticks.

Here's a comic I made years ago that sums up video game-related webcomics pretty well.

Enjoy.

https://jayisgames.com/images/hs_duke_webcomic.png

Thank you Duke and Ada for your contributions! I enjoyed both of your comics for different reasons.

Ada's comic is a decent attempt at parody of the Babylon Sticks comics. It's not necessarily a comic about video games, which is what we are interested in for our Thursday feature comic.

Duke's comic is silly and childish, but I still found it funny. And, like Ada's, not a comic about video games.

I've uploaded your images to the JIG server so they'll always be here.

If anyone would like to submit a comic (one about video games) for possible publishing in a future Thursday comic slot, please let me know by emailing me at our contact address below.

Oh, and JIGuest totally nailed why I think this particular comic is funny. To me it's not about a game that actually paints all over the walls(!) How could that even happen?? To me it's about the confounding effect that art games can have on the player. That guy definitely looks dazed and confused!

I love the artwork of the Babylon Sticks comics, but gotta confess I really don't find them funny (like in a painful way). Like Skoodge it's not that the joke is bad it's that for me there literally is no joke to be found.

But it seems that many people are finding a joke and it's making them laugh so for that reason it's worthwhile! I'm liking the idea of getting some different comics on here from time to time to cater to different senses of humour.. seems like a good compromise.

The mighty Jig has finally fallen to the accursed flame war. Alas, I knew our sanctuary could not last. Good day to you, sir/madam.

thanks guys. And you were right, i did not attempt to make game-comics, it was supposed to be pastiche, and a critique of comment thread.
I know that there is a group of readers who finds babylonsticks very funny, good for them.
Personally i have problem with finding the joke, and i see i'm not alone. It's not that the joke doesn't make me laugh, there is no joke. And Jay, really? "That guy definitely looks dazed and confused"? he looks completely blank to me, no expression, no emotion, all characters looks the same. I think my problem with babylonsticks is that author is "trying to say something", instead of drawing a joke. It's allways taged as 'comic', 'humor' but it never is. It's sirious mistake when satiric picture isn't funny, and isn't good drawing either(very VERY simple, emotionless). The purpose of satiric picture is to be funny first of all. It may try to say something in addition.

If i'll get some clever idea for tetris-comics, I'll send it.

And it's not war, it's discussion.

ps.
I never had the confounding effect that you talk about. Makes me think i never played real art game? Hm.. Can someone recommend extreme art game that will make me feel dazed and bewildered ?

It's unfortunate you cannot see the emotion in the characters that James draws, because I do believe it's there. I see it certainly and without a doubt in my mind. He has an acute eye for detail that apparently some people cannot see or appreciate.

Maybe some comics are too deep for a casual audience?

The concept of an art game causing someone to be dazed and confused is certainly not beyond the imagination, and is quite well represented here, at least in my interpretation of the comic. But then again, that's only my interpretation, and your well-trained, discerning eye may not get dazed and confused by art in the slightest. But that's the beauty and wonder of art, is it not?