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Gaming: When did it change?
Sat, 17 Feb 2007

You see, I post one article and out pops another. Funny how that is. The rants are on people!

A thought pops into my head: A lot of games you finish (be it at the end or just when you've had enough) with relief, while others you genuinely enjoy or miss upon completion. A hearty 'wtf' to the former.

When Half Life 2 came out I thought I'd pick it up as I'd ignored much of the genre before that. A few weeks later when I emerged from the bleery eyed depths, terribly afraid of zombies and head-suckers, I was pretty spent. Good times.

RPGs are famous for 'the grind', and frankly its not an RPG to me unless you need to level up, spend time in (non-meaningless) dungeons and obsess over item statistics. I'm happy with this, and demand it, but the pacing must be ever so carefully managed lest it turn boring or tedious. As long as they play out like Dungeon Master or Wizardry, I'm golden.

I know the "MMO"s out there (for non-gamers, think Everquest, the marriage ruiner of the early 2000's) are basicly just cesspools of life destroying grind. They charge by the month, like a magazine, so they just want you to hang around. They reward grinders, people who spend serious time to get anywhere. After all, shouldn't people who play 800 hours a month win.. win more than sensible humans? A complex question that, but the answer is -- as long as they pay. (Its not about winning you see, its about keeping you around grinding - sure you get the good parts every once in awhile, like a Pavlovian experiment. In between, you get to grind away like a job at the laundromat.) These games are fun (if they weren't, lives would not be destroyed. We all know everything worth doing is worth destroying a life over, right?), but they cross over -- when you hit the wall and break away, are you more relieved than anything?

Metal Gear Solid would be a good game, were it not for the thirty-seven gajillion Cut-Scenes of Intense Boredom +5. Final Fantasy too .. too. And don't think esteemed franchises such as Gran Turismo are immune from this vinegar ... what were they thinking when introduced concepts whereby the player has to earn his licenses to get anywhere good? For that matter, easter eggs in games are awesome.. but this recent trend requiring you to clear a game in certain speeds or certain completions to 'unlock' the extras.....

Theres a lot of really great computer and console gaming going on, but go talk to Eugene Jarvis of Robotron game. Or Sid Meiers of Civilization. Get to the good parts, the interesting parts fast. We don't need to be all powerful up front, but we want to be immersed, we want to see the meat before the sun sets. We want to play, and go out for drinks afterwards. Sure, we might want to be able to play 160 hours a month like a full time job, but we do not want you to build that mechanic right in. And, one last thing -- didn't button mashing go out of vogue with Street Fighter and Everquest? I'm looking at you Blizzard.

[ Category: / entertainment / gaming / psychology ] [link] [Comments]

Cinema: _The Goonies_ - its full of awesome
Sat, 17 Feb 2007

Sorry, been an entire month since last I wrote; its been busy, I tell you.

Our little one is due in about 5 days (though rarely do they arrive on the due date itself I'm told.) I expect some day the child will look up with big eyes and ask 'What was it like when you were growing up, old man?' I know now a reply that can come easily: 'There was pirate booty, mutants, mafiaso and video games'. When the child shakes his head with disgust, I'll point them to The Goonies as proof invariable.

After a long day of chores, we crawled to the couch to check pay-per-view. It was easy to pass up such instant classics as Little Man (the Custer's Revenge of movies, a Yars Revenge it is not!), but when we stumbled over Goonies it was nearly a must watch -- I'd never seen it. The Gremlins, sure, but not The Goonies. Yes - its true - I missed a movie that was made into a video game. I know, I know my friends, it happens.

I am trying not to say 'they don't make them like that anymore', but lets tick off the proverbial fingers shall we: Back to the Future, Indiana Jones, Star Wars, E.T. Should you challenge this assertion, I will insert sed fingers to ears - lalalalalalanotlistening!

Let me be blunt -- some great movies were made back in the day; they had a certain ingrediant thats been lacking ever since. Yes my dear friends, The Goonies was full of teh eighties.

Watch it. Good times. Not tossing bread crumbs to the gease in the park good times, but water slides good times.

Aside: I'll see if I can find a moment to pick up this new PC game - Supreme Commander - the sequal to Total Annihilation. Like I'll have time :P

[ Category: / entertainment / cinema ] [link] [Comments]