Recently in Video Games Category

I've been playing a lot of World of Warcraft lately, so much so that I'm beginning to think I might have an addiction. Like any good addict I've asked my friends to come along, dealing out 10 day trials and EB Games coupons to buy the game for $29.99 instead of $49.99.

Kottke recently pointed out the number of games with "cleaning" type themes: eat all the dots, kill all the enemies, wash away all the dirt.

For someone like myself, who has slight obsessive compulsive tendencies, this struck a chord with my WoW addiction. Common tasks include collecting a certain number of items, exploring and discovering all the regions on a zone map, talking to every person with a yellow exclamation point over their head, filling your XP bar in order to gain a level, and finding sets of things (i.e. armor). Personally, I find it challenging to log out with only four of eight murloc eyes. I'll get one, then another, might as well get half of them, I'll just get one more, why quit now? Only two left!

The bottom line is that WoW emphasizes and reinforces a repetitive cleaning/sorting/straightening pattern of behavior, one that I find very satisfying to complete over and over and over. Does that mean I have a problem?

As an aside, I'm curious if this type of behavior repetition could burn in other patterns at the same time. We always hear about Pavlov's dogs: ring the bell and give them food enough times and they'll salivate merely at the ringing of the bell. If collecting 12 Thresher eyes requires killing them, and I repeat that pattern over and over, can I unknowingly train myself into preparing for battle when I gather my dirty laundry? I've really stretched that example, but it's a serious question.

"I've been playing Final Fanatasy Advance Tactics on the Subway and while watching football games. The game is great, and I agree with Gabe's comments regarding the ability to pause and end quickly while being able to jump right into the action when you pick it up again. They make for an excellently portable adventure. One thing that bothers me is the fact that the skill tree is not laid out; you have to figure it out yourself. This makes it tough to advance characters, especially when finding a battle somtimes requires a good deal of milling around the world. Over all though, the game is a lot of fun. It eats up time quickly though: I've already logged almost 30 hours. Sheesh.

I bought a GameBoy Advance a while back. One of the things that sucked about using it was that without some kind of lighting rig you had to contort into weird positions or cram up against a lamp in order to see the game. Travelling and playing was not easy to do, and isn't that what a GameBoy is for?

With the new GameBoy SP, Nintendo included a light builtin to the LCD. What drove this change? A kit called the Afterburner released by Triton Labs. Having heard good things about Final Fantasy Advance Tactics, I wanted to give it a try but I didn't want to have to buy an SP when my Advance was perfectly fine. This was the perfect opportunity for me to check out the Afterburner kit as well.

I'm not going to go into the installation step by step, as the manual is good enough at that. I will say this, though: use the online manual with helpful hints as opposed to the one shipped with the kit. The hints are excellent. Some things I'd like to add: 1) the adhesive that holds the screen cover on can accidentally be transferred to other things that you don't want it on (like the interior portion of the screen cover) causing blemishes that are very apparent when the system is in use. Do your best to avoid touching the adhesive and if necessary, clean the adhesive off of the casing. You can always use double sided tape or glue (glue is a little permanent, though) to reattach the cover later. 2) When trimming the interior of the case to fit in the Afterburner, do this in a separate room. Also wash the casing and check your clothes for casing material when you're done. This will avoid getting casing bits inbetween the numerous screen pieces. I ended up with very little dust stuck to the various pieces but I got a lot of casing shrapnel in there. The little flecks show up very well on dark colored game screens.

Overall the installation went well, but I wish I'd been able to do a practice run first. It still turned out well; the kit is great and it enhances the system a lot. If you're technically inclined and done't want to replace your Advance, you should look into the Afterburner. It's affordable and definitely makes a great upgrade for your system.

CNN is running a story claiming that "Women, some scantily clad, sell games". Well no shit. Once again, I ask you to picture a bunch of guys standing around the office trying to decide on a story topic.

One: "Wait, wait, wait... I got it! I bet that scantily clad women cause more teenage boys to buy video games!"

Two: "Can we find an expert to back that up?"

One: "Who needs an expert when we can get a no name video game magazine contributor!"

Sheesh. The next story will probably be about how games with good graphics make people want to buy new hardware so they can play them. Assholes.

I can't wait. This game will rule. I mean, as soon as you read about the game, didn't you want to play? I mean really. Sure you did!

I own a GameCube. I've been a Nintendo fan from the beginning, owning a NES, SNES, N64, GameBoy, and GameBoy Advance. I've never owned any other consoles. Lately, though, I've been wondering about Nintendo and where they're going.

I wasn't as impressed with the latest Zelda as I have been with some of the other installments in the series. A Link to the Past on SNES was an amazing and ground-breaking game. As this article points out, Wind Waker, although beautiful, is basically the same as Ocarina and Majora. Disappointing.

Owning my GameCube, I've played Metroid, Zelda, and Star Fox Adventure. I think this Penny Arcade sums it up pretty well. Lately the only games I've been coveting are those on other systems.

I'm not sure where this leaves Nintendo, but I don't think its anywhere near the market for older, more experienced gamers. That's a sad thing, as they're innovating (I mean the cell-shading was cool), but they're not releasing anything for the gamers who grew up with them. Come on Nintendo: make a game for me.

Look closely. Yes, that's a hand in his hand. With one finger extended. Comments?

Those wacky Asian people. What'll they think of next?

I've been playing The Legend of Zelda, Wind Waker for a few weeks now. To be honest with you, the only reason I even invested in a Game Cube was for this game. I've been a fan of Nintendo's Zelda from day one.

Produced by Shigeru Miyamoto (who directed the original Zelda titles as well as numerous other Nintendo classics including the Mario Brothers games), this game had a lot of potential. The first Zelda title to be released on the Game Cube, it had the ability to follow in the footsteps of Ocarina of Time and Majora's mask, introducing us to the most realistic Link of all created with new and better hardware. Instead, though, a new Link was created, a cartoon Link.

Much has been said about the schism this created among hardcore Zelda fans. Some thought the new look was absurd, others loved it. It gave the game's designers room for much more creativity and expression, though. When Link gets startled and his eyes bug out, or an enemy gets wacked from behind and runs around holding his butt, you begin to understand the benefits of this type of animation. As I've been playing through, though, I can't help but feel like I'm playing a Flash movie.

And that's it: Wind Waker feels like a Flash movie. Clean vector looking graphics and beautiful shading give the world a brilliant and exciting feel. Subtle visual effects like the rolling ocean and blurring of items and characters farther out in Link's field of view are hard to get used to at first, but make the game feel more realistic, even as the cartoonishness of it makes it easier to immerse yourself in.

The only drawback I've found so far is the lack of recorded dialog between characters and strangeness in character interaction. With digital audio and DVD based storage, you would think that dialog could be read and acted out and character's movie sequences would be more fluent and smooth, but that's not the case. In one section, Link is talking to two other characters, one who apologizes for causing him so many problems. In the blink of an eye, his face goes from showing no emotion to having a huge smile that disappears in an instant. It's easy enough to interpret this as Link emphasizing that it's no big deal and all is forgiven, but it feels like bang, bang, bang, and he turns and walks away. Those are the things that snap you back out of Hyrule and make you realize it's still only a game.

I'm not sure how far into the game I am, but I'm thoroughly enjoying it so far. Worth the wait and the time it takes to play, Wind Waker is a great next step in the Zelda series, even though there's still room for improvement. As far as I'm concerned, if this is where games are headed, at least we're going in the right direction. Artistic and rich, exploring Hyrule is a great way to relax and unwind.

Got Game?: gaming, networks, multiplayer, strategy, personal technology, consoles - Corante.
Bookmark this now! You have to!

This blog is about tracking the rise of games as a medium of popular culture, and perhaps the medium of the times. The Jones' kids all have game consoles, but more and more it's not just Saturday morning entertainment - games are impacting peoples lives in a way never seen before. There are fan sites, art books, academic theses, and a massive entertainment industry all waking up to the fact that these things are a lot more important than we gave them credit for. Already games are under fire as the evil corrupting the youth: a place formerly reserved for the likes of Rock'n'Roll, Hollywood or Ragtime (depending on your era). This blog is about watching the emergence of a medium, right before our very eyes.

GameSpot: The Lord of the Rings: War of the Ring details
Gamespot has a tiny write-up about the LOTR real time strategy game being developed by black label games. The write-up is useles, but the screenshots (which are really just art scans) are pretty good. The one of Sauron, based on my reading of the Silmarillion, is probably the best depiction of him I've ever seen.

Anarchy and Game Theory

According to an article in today's Metro, Microsoft will not be purchasing Vivendi Games afterall.

Student Fakes Report of Microsoft Buyout
Microsoft Corp. and news network CNN said they were hit buy a hoax yesterday after a faked Web page wrongly reported that the software giant had agreed to buy the video game operations of French conglomerate Vivendi Universal. The hoax Web site, which Purdue University in Indiana confirmed came from its Internet address, was designed to look like a CNN report and circulated on the Web among video game industry watchers yesterday.

The student who put up the site was identified and referred to the university's dean of students for possible disciplinary action, the spokeswoman said. It was unclear whether Microsoft or CNN plan to press charges or take any other legal action.

Since Blizzard is a part of Vivendi Games and has been making a move into the console market, I'm glad this rumor turned out to be false. I'd hate to have to buy an Xbox in order to play Ghost.

I spent the majority of my day playing Metroid Prime. I managed to obtain the X-Ray visor as well as the Plasma beam. The X-Ray visor is hard core. When wearing it, if Samus reaches up to cover her face, you can see her bones. As for the plasma beam, I truly enjoy watching space pirates burn. That rules.

In other hardware related news, I finally got my linux box online. I'm only using Linux 7.something though. According to Asa, 8.0 is really good. I'd love to try it out, but I don't want to buy it and it will take f o r e v e r to download the CD's. Anyone know anything about update an already installed version of Linux and how long it takes?

As an aside, on the off chance that my auto trackback pings your site Asa, and you end up coming here and reading this, if you'd like help getting your old template to work with MT, I'd be glad to help you out. Just email me a copy of an old page and your old CSS. It'll only take a little while.

Wired: Why Nintendo Won't Grow Up

Despite his unfailing politesse, he bristles at the suggestion that his own creations might be holding back the industry. "People often talk about Grand Theft Auto. But I am not sure whether that sort of extreme subject matter is always appropriate. They also talk about the future of games being a kind of virtual reality. But I am not convinced that being more realistic makes better games."

In his view, it is the urge to imitate cinema - not his own unwillingness to compromise - that impedes the industry's evolution. "Videogames do not have any competitive edge over movies as an entertainment form. We have to pursue something that movies cannot do." Just what that is, however, is hard for him to articulate. "The most important thing is for games to be fun," he says. "I cannot tell you exactly what that means. It is something you feel, I think."

Great article from Wired with some history of the genre as well as a little bit of insight about the future.

CNN.com - New Mortal Kombat bloodier than ever
I asked for a Game Cube for Christmas in expectation of the new Zelda game to be released next year, as well as being able to play the new Metroid. This Mortal Kombat title also looks like it could be fun. As games get better and computing power increases, there's the potential for some extremely neat things to be created. For instance: according to the above linked CNN article, this game keeps track of injuries and makes them continue to bleed. It also let players leave tracks when they step in blood. Gruesome? Maybe. Realistic? Much more than the disapearing blood found in earlier versions. Thing of games like Quake: what if after you were shot you dripped blood and the AI used it to track you? Now that would be hardcore.

Yeah he's going to!

StarCraft: Ghost

So I read somewhere, maybe on slashdot that computers would soon become obsolete as gaming platforms due to the fact that gaming consoles are getting better and better. After viewing the demo for Madden 2003 on the X Box and Playstation 2, I would have to agree. I mean seriously: any game that needs a whole fucking keyboard as well as a mouse and a joystick in order to play has been designed by Satan himself in order to spread carple tunnel like the bubonic plague.

A few weeka ago at a different email address I got a message from Blizzard. Stupid me, I didn't read it right away. Blizzard has begun designing a new console game. Stunning? Not merely because it's by Blizzard for a console, since they re-released other titles on various gaming systems. However, all of their games have been released for computer first. Blizzard is an incredible company, releasing games infrequently, but when they do, look out. I may be wrong, but I think every game they've released has been given some award during its first year (usually best game, duh) and sells a buh-zillion copies. Blizzard, in short, rules. If they think the PC is dead as a gaming platform, and they must have some doubts based on their development strategy for Ghost, it very well may be a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Now if the next version of Quake is PS2 only, it's definitely all done.

I was selected to help test the Game Neverending prototype. I'm wicked excited. I even got to talk to Eric Costello of Glish, who in my book is practically famous. As I play it more I'll let you all know how its going. Stay tuned.

As advertised by Eric Costello at Glish, you can sign up here to be an alpha tester for a new game he's helping develop. Information is currently limited, but it seems to be interesting. I know some of you are video game fans. Check it out. Eric's work is pretty good (see meetup.com). This should be similarly interesting.

I finally got a chance to play through the last level of WarCraft III today. Overall, I enjoyed the game, probably logging about 48 hours into it in total. Once again, Blizzard has done a phenomenal job. The rendering was great, the animation sequences incredible, and the movie scenes use the same engine as the game so everything is seamless. I enjoyed it a lot. However, I missed a portion of the credits section that I'll have to re-watch cause the parts I did see were rather humorous, and I haven't tried it in hard mode. I wonder how hard hard actually is? I can say that I beat everything in normal mode without having to tone down the difficulty (although I did have to play a few levels quite a few times). Oh well. I won't find out unless I try it.

When it comes to video games, it seems like thats all I do: wait for the new ones to come out. I recently picked up Warcraft III (yes, I put down a deposit to reserve my copy) after waiting for it for years. Its excellent. I've wasted many hours playing it already, and I'm three fourths of the way through, meaning I have a lot of time to go.

I also learned that Nintendo will be releasing a new Mario game in August, a new metroid game in a first person shooter style shortly after that, and now much later they'll be releasing Zelda. Three stellar games in a half years time. I can't wait. Zelda rules.