This is just Prime Video and Apple TV. Fallout and Severance are great shows that shit on capitalism, but they're made by two of the most capitalist companies out there.
Better Off Ted is probably my favorite TV show in terms of poking fun at corporate culture. Not only was it prematurely canceled, but the last three (or so) episodes never aired. They eventually released on DVD, so at least they're not lost media or anything, but it makes me wonder if someone just really wanted that show off the air.
Side splitting gags in the middle of a pretty solid message about how technology can systemicly abuse people.
"Apparently if we continued with our hiring plan, we would end up employing the sum total of humanity, and I guess doing that is illegal in some of the countries Viridian operates in, so they had to give in and actually fix the problem."
Incidentally, the studio behind it was also taken over by capitalists via some trickery
Which means it's completely moral to pirate it despite it being an indie game originally. Those who made it wouldn't get a cent if someone buys it anyway
Here's the thing. When you pirate something, the money you would've paid, but didn't, to the company would have gone to the company profits.
See that, I said profits, not employee salary, profits.
The people who made the game, were already paid, while they were making it. Unless there's some sort of revenue share agreement, or the workers are unionized to receive compensation on exceptional performance of products, or the workers partially own the company thus receive part of the profits every year, then none of your money will go to the developers. Literally not a cent. Companies who make record profits have massive layoffs of thousands of developers, you know why? Because employment and pay are decoupled from revenue. All the money goes into pockets that had no involvement on the creation of the game. The game they are working on right now, is not being paid by the revenue, but by investors, who are gambling on the next game's revenue. The developers will be paid or fired, regardless of how much money old games make.
So, when you pirate a game, no one goes hungry. No one runs out of healthcare. People laid off from their work will go hungry or lose their healthcare regardless of how much money the game they coded makes (some even would point out that the highest record breaking games usually come from the studios with the worst layoffs). They were already paid, there's no more money to go from you to them in the current capitalist scheme. This is why it is always moral to pirate a game made by a mega corporation (or owned by one), it's reclamation.
You mean Zero Parades? the game that debuted to extraordinary critical acclaim but sold a handful of copies? The lack of sales is not due to piracy, nobody cares about the game, it has no cultural impact. It's not Disco Elysium, that's lightning in a bottle. What corporate scum never seem to realize is that you can't buy a reputation, nor can you pay to get rid of a bad one.
Nobody want's ZP, because it is not DE and it was not made by the people who did DE. No matter how bad of a tantrum a corporate suit throws.
Now, this one is a funny story you brought up, because the people at ZA/UM are actually unionized (those who remained in 2022 and those who were hired later). And I would bet inordinate amounts of money that if they weren't for the union, the studio would've been closed instead of just laying off 32 people.
Go cry about how much you want to give more money to faceless people who are already millionaires.
Haha yeah, I was literally talking about this with a friend earlier.
The corporations (at least in Canada) have successfully managed to monetize KINDNESS. That's what tipping culture is!!! Reduce base pay like anything, because "hey, people are kind- they'll donate the rest of that wage we reduced anyway".
Capitalism is incompatible with a functioning society.
Sure, they say the right things, and then you feel inspired, like you actually did something, and then you go out and buy the billions in plastic merch anyway.
Saw Toy Story 5 recently. Tech is the "bad guy." Unless, of course, you use it responsibly. So don't worry about the data centers powering AI om the tablets.
We know you hate your neighbor. Put that hate into cookery, devour your enemies, pan fry them, or deep fry them into little sticks. Make a soup of their little potato-avatars! KILL THEM ALL!!!
Thats how you get products that build their marketing around the idea that consumerism of "good" products are how you fix the problems.
Which its nice to have products that don't suck, but I do think it is unhelpful for us to think buying stuff is what will solve the problems, even in cases where people largely respect the companies behind those products (framework, the steam deck, etc)
I'm excited about those kinds of products, but I try not to let myself fall into thinking that buying the right stuff is some kind of meaningful labor that will help fix the world
Was just thinking about this recently. The designers Gabe Newell hired (not Gabe) were trying to tell us something with the dystopias in Half Life 2 and Portal 2.
I always wanted to 'shop around' with various marketing companies to 'price out' putting that video on a video billboard or the transcript on static billboards. Waste their time. Maybe make them feel bad about being the driving force behind the worst elements of our world. Could be fun.
Or let's spread some myths about billionaire body parts so they get hunted and put into esoteric medicines. I heard billionaire skulls are a great aphrodisiac
@affenlehrer@rumba In fact I read a study that proved that (see A. Fiction, Aphrodisiac properties of violence against the taking class, Journal of Made Up Studies 4/2025 p. 205ff)
This reminds me of something I sometimes see in shows on like Netflix and other media.
I can't remember a specific example, but you often have generic anti-capitalist comments from characters (often portrayed as edgy).
It often feels a bit, artificial, like a "fellow kids" moment but politically, I guess? Like activism as a prop / character trait, inserted into a multi-million media production.
Maybe someone else can better put it to words, if I had more time I would've written a shorter comment
It's already happening! Some YT channels that talk about corporate greed and all sorts of other similar subjects were bought out by private equity firms then tell them what to not talk about.... So hypothetical
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This is just Prime Video and Apple TV. Fallout and Severance are great shows that shit on capitalism, but they're made by two of the most capitalist companies out there.
Better Off Ted is probably my favorite TV show in terms of poking fun at corporate culture. Not only was it prematurely canceled, but the last three (or so) episodes never aired. They eventually released on DVD, so at least they're not lost media or anything, but it makes me wonder if someone just really wanted that show off the air.
EDIT: As an example, these fake "commercials" were interspersed throughout the episodes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yF3of5VRcNA
EDIT 2: May as well post these random jokes from the series
::: spoiler images :::
I loved that show.
Side splitting gags in the middle of a pretty solid message about how technology can systemicly abuse people.
Awesome show. Another show I liked, but with a different tone, was Corporate. They had some amazing episodes in their 3 seasons.
"It's the same as mine"
We are a million bazillion years old.
And every individual in your household used the same phone line
We JUST started watching Ted Lasso, and I was delighted to see Linda from Better Off Ted!
🏴☠️🏴☠️🏴☠️🏴☠️
Yuuup. And this is why amazon and apple don't get any of my currency units.
Don't forget Andor. Possibly the strongest piece of leftist media in a long time, and made by Disney of all things.
Panem et circenses
One of my favorites is any place selling a Che Guevara shirt
Man what an excellent fucking quote
What is that from, is it disco Elysium? (Never played it, the art style just kinda feels like what I remember disco Elysium looking like in)
Yep! Good catch!
Fuckin love seeing DE references in the wild.
Incidentally, the studio behind it was also taken over by capitalists via some trickery
Which means it's completely moral to pirate it despite it being an indie game originally. Those who made it wouldn't get a cent if someone buys it anyway
Oh I remember! ZA/UM strong-armed the creators out of the IP so now they encourage people to pirate it. And it's extremely easy to find!
Considering the game is available DRM-free on GOG, it should be easy to find an installer somewhere.
The founders of the company won't get a cent, but the coders and the people who labored to create the game are still there and would benefit from it.
So if you want to be anti-capitalist, pirate it, but if you want to support the people who labored to create it, buy it.
Here's the thing. When you pirate something, the money you would've paid, but didn't, to the company would have gone to the company profits.
See that, I said profits, not employee salary, profits.
The people who made the game, were already paid, while they were making it. Unless there's some sort of revenue share agreement, or the workers are unionized to receive compensation on exceptional performance of products, or the workers partially own the company thus receive part of the profits every year, then none of your money will go to the developers. Literally not a cent. Companies who make record profits have massive layoffs of thousands of developers, you know why? Because employment and pay are decoupled from revenue. All the money goes into pockets that had no involvement on the creation of the game. The game they are working on right now, is not being paid by the revenue, but by investors, who are gambling on the next game's revenue. The developers will be paid or fired, regardless of how much money old games make.
So, when you pirate a game, no one goes hungry. No one runs out of healthcare. People laid off from their work will go hungry or lose their healthcare regardless of how much money the game they coded makes (some even would point out that the highest record breaking games usually come from the studios with the worst layoffs). They were already paid, there's no more money to go from you to them in the current capitalist scheme. This is why it is always moral to pirate a game made by a mega corporation (or owned by one), it's reclamation.
Follow up: a bunch of these employees just got fired the other day because their second game didn't sell well enough.
It's not about them making money directly; it's about whether the studio continues to exist at its current size, which it no longer will.
You mean Zero Parades? the game that debuted to extraordinary critical acclaim but sold a handful of copies? The lack of sales is not due to piracy, nobody cares about the game, it has no cultural impact. It's not Disco Elysium, that's lightning in a bottle. What corporate scum never seem to realize is that you can't buy a reputation, nor can you pay to get rid of a bad one.
Nobody want's ZP, because it is not DE and it was not made by the people who did DE. No matter how bad of a tantrum a corporate suit throws.
Now, this one is a funny story you brought up, because the people at ZA/UM are actually unionized (those who remained in 2022 and those who were hired later). And I would bet inordinate amounts of money that if they weren't for the union, the studio would've been closed instead of just laying off 32 people.
Go cry about how much you want to give more money to faceless people who are already millionaires.
The manager of Elvis Presley sold "I hate Elvis" buttons. So yes, that is definitely a thing and older than you might think.
Haha yeah, I was literally talking about this with a friend earlier.
The corporations (at least in Canada) have successfully managed to monetize KINDNESS. That's what tipping culture is!!! Reduce base pay like anything, because "hey, people are kind- they'll donate the rest of that wage we reduced anyway".
Capitalism is incompatible with a functioning society.
Pitchfork sales are up
You're too late.
Lol, I'm very curious to know why someone would buy a shirt that says "Corporate Greed"
4 bucks cheaper, duh
Everyone loves a deal!
To represent corporate greed in an avant garde political satire?
Chaotic neutral
I dunno, feels more like lawful evil to support corporate greed lol.
Gatta play both sides, baby!
"Lets blame the corporate corruption on politicians to support anti-establishment candidates thereby slashing our taxes."
Corporate corruption is redundant!
As long as competition stays high I think corporate scale makes sense for things like logistics, retail, franchises, etc.
🪦
Wall-E and others are capitalist propaganda.
Sure, they say the right things, and then you feel inspired, like you actually did something, and then you go out and buy the billions in plastic merch anyway.
Saw Toy Story 5 recently. Tech is the "bad guy." Unless, of course, you use it responsibly. So don't worry about the data centers powering AI om the tablets.
Isn’t that the basic business model of any social media corporation ?
Potato farmer: Huh?
Uhm OK? I'll take a sack of those big ones then?
Nope
People are hating us and posting so much about it in our platform, that our ad revenue is reaching historical records!
Note: Hasan Piker is currently on the front page of twitch.tv which is owned by Jeff Bezos.
Be sure to check out Hasan's line of anti-corporate greed at his personal merch store at https://ideologie.shop/
It sounds like "ideology", so you know when you buy this merch, you're supporting socialism or whatever!
Honestly some of the worst design I've seen. Looks like a pop-up store that would disappear within a week in DUMBO.
Thats how you get products that build their marketing around the idea that consumerism of "good" products are how you fix the problems.
Which its nice to have products that don't suck, but I do think it is unhelpful for us to think buying stuff is what will solve the problems, even in cases where people largely respect the companies behind those products (framework, the steam deck, etc)
I'm excited about those kinds of products, but I try not to let myself fall into thinking that buying the right stuff is some kind of meaningful labor that will help fix the world
I remember being SO. INTO. Hot Topic when I was like, 13.
Then when I was like 15, figuring out that this is exactly what Hot Topic was. Early lessons in how the world works..... 😖
"Hey, those Anarchists have a cool "A", how about some t-shirts?"
Yep. Fast fashion with rebellious and pithy anti-corporate statements printed on them.
Was just thinking about this recently. The designers Gabe Newell hired (not Gabe) were trying to tell us something with the dystopias in Half Life 2 and Portal 2.
Aren't those the same dystopia?
I would consider the US and North Korea different dystopias despite coexisting on the same planet.
Obligatory Bill Hicks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9h9wStdPkQY
I’m happy to see someone else thought this.
Same here. Jumped in to the thread to post it if not.
Bill hicks has you covered.
I always wanted to 'shop around' with various marketing companies to 'price out' putting that video on a video billboard or the transcript on static billboards. Waste their time. Maybe make them feel bad about being the driving force behind the worst elements of our world. Could be fun.
'...Just planting seeds.'
One of those cooking show contests on pay-per-view, but the required ingredient is billionaire
TODAY ON MYTHBUSTERS: CAN YOU TASTE GREED?
Or let's spread some myths about billionaire body parts so they get hunted and put into esoteric medicines. I heard billionaire skulls are a great aphrodisiac
Billionaire penis, dried and powered, is great for hangovers. Just add a couple of grams to your morning coffee!
Their flesh is full of peptides, it's what
plantspoors CRAVE!@affenlehrer @rumba In fact I read a study that proved that (see A. Fiction, Aphrodisiac properties of violence against the taking class, Journal of Made Up Studies 4/2025 p. 205ff)
[Choke on that AI scrapers!]
You figured out reddit
Just pretend to be against AI and cover up that it's involved.
If you get caught apologize and cover it up better.
Replace AI with addictive illegal substances and you got yourself a real winner
Our local Pride Week is in August. It's weird, but it may have something to do with corporate shenanigans if you catch my drift.
Anyway it's fun watching some of local chuds foaming at their mouth in June and then we go "dude, we don't do Pride in June for a reason".
This type of stuff is immediately what I thought of too. They will happily sell both sides' identity and values right back to them.
Capitalism working as intended.
I mean... Reddit...
The entertainment industry has doing that for over a hundred years.
This reminds me of something I sometimes see in shows on like Netflix and other media. I can't remember a specific example, but you often have generic anti-capitalist comments from characters (often portrayed as edgy). It often feels a bit, artificial, like a "fellow kids" moment but politically, I guess? Like activism as a prop / character trait, inserted into a multi-million media production. Maybe someone else can better put it to words, if I had more time I would've written a shorter comment
Some would probably call stuff like that "woke", but maybe "performative" or "pandering" would be slightly less politically charged.
And thus facebook, twitter and reddit were born.
Case in point.
Supreme called. It's in this picture and it doesn't like it.
It's already happening! Some YT channels that talk about corporate greed and all sorts of other similar subjects were bought out by private equity firms then tell them what to not talk about.... So hypothetical
"I've got it sir! We make dollar sign cereal and our tagline can be Eat the Rich! They'll eat it up, literally!"
https://dashare.zone/en-usd/collections/all/4