I love video games. I really do. It doesn't take much for one to sweep me off my feet, and have me day dreaming about them. When I'm away from them, I feel passionless, and depressed. Though, when I sit myself down and play a new game, I become enamored with it.
Recently I sat down to play Broken Age, the record setting game by Tim Schaefer of Double Fine studios who funded the whole thing with Kickstarter. I immediately fell in love with the aesthetic, story and the gameplay. The game play isn't all that intensive, it's really more problem solving than anything, but I love the thrill of figuring stuff out. I found myself strongly relating to the character of Shay. I was captivated by the visual style of the game, and the music whisked me away. I awoke the next morning needing to go to work, but longing to stay in and play the day away with Broken Age. That is a feeling that I haven't felt for a long time.
I love video games. I love the things that they can do. I love the stories that they can tell, and how by taking control of the characters, their actions have so much more meaning than if I were to just sit back and watch or read about them. I love the music that they play, and the memories of the moments that I first heard them when I played the game. Games aim to create a cinematic experience, but they become something more than that. Uncharted 2 may be the closest thing to a Hollywood experience that video games have seen, but it's much more exciting to play it, than to watch it.
Recently, I picked up the game Titanfall, the game by the people who found Infinity Ward (creators of the original Call of Duty), and left after a huge dispute between them and Activision ( their longtime publisher). After leaving Infinity Ward, they formed their own company called Respawn Entertainment. Titanfall is their premier game, and boy is it a good one. I was so excited to see a game with giant robots, and jetpacks, and explosions. I was a kid again. Why don't games do this more often? Why do games always strive for realism, when we can have unicorns with rocket boosters that are powered by their innate magical abilities? Titanfall is the culmination of pretty much everything that I could ask for in a video game. Tight gameplay that is functional and fun, maps that are fun to explore as well as traverse with my jetpack, a sci-fi setting, the ability to make a multiplayer match meaningful. Yeah, the game has a story to it, and Titanfall is strictly multiplayer. Titanfall presents the story off to the side while the match is going on, making it feel like you're an integral part to the mission at hand. Titanfall forces players to go through the story first before letting them loose in standard multiplayer matches. Which isn't such a bad thing, as it allows players to see things from both angles of the story, as well as get a good feel for the maps. Titanfall is so much fun, and I want everyone to play it because it ditches the whole realism shtick that so many games try to achieve and it creates something original and wonderful at the same time.
Games are wonderful because they can create these wonderful worlds of imagination, that are totally impossible with practical means, and they allow us as players to explore and experience them like no other medium can. Support games, and gamers alike, and explore, experiment and play like no one else. Games are art, and they are a beautiful thing.
Friday, March 14, 2014
Friday, March 7, 2014
Here in My Car
This is my car.
His name is Owen, and he's been with me for quite a while. This car has gotten me many places, and taken me on many adventures. Mostly, he takes care of my regular commute to work, and getting me from point A to point B. Owen's been a good car. A couple of weeks ago, I nearly lost him. Or so I had thought. He wouldn't start.The engine would turn and turn, but nothing would catch on. I thought that I had lost him. I was going to be running late for work, but I was upset for a much more different reason than earning my keep at work. I was about to lose a friend. Owen may be one to have given me troubles in the past, but I still love my little car. I'd hate to see him go. Thankfully, because of a very good friend, and a very good coworker, I was able to get too and from work that day. At the end of the day, I ended up calling AAA roadside assistance, and they were able to get him going again, and told me what I needed in order to keep my car running. My little car still lives, and still runs. It turns out that the engine was flooded. However, I nearly lost a companion. I don't think that I've felt this way for a virtual item.
Lately I've been playing GTA V, and I realized that I couldn't care less about my car. In GTA V, each of the main characters get their own personal cars that they can drive around town. Though, as nice of a touch as that is, it's still just a mode of transport. When you lose your car, it really isn't that big of a deal. Players respawn, and take their pick of whatever thing with wheels and an engine is the most convenient. There is a bit of mourning yes, but you quickly move on, and take some poor saps car for your own. There's no attachment to the characters car. It's just there to take you from point A to point B. It doesn't have any special abilities, there's nothing special about it, it's just transport. In the multiplayer mode of the game, cars are merely assets. A scale of your characters progression through the game. There's no heart put into them. There is time, and virtual, sometimes real, money put into them, but only to tweak or improve.
The whole car modification craze started in the early 2000s with the movie The Fast and The Furious. This trend immediately found its way toward gaming with Need for Speed: Underground. Players could modify their cars to look and drive the way that they wanted them to. While I did feel an attachment to my Mazda Miata, which took me through a majority of the game. However, when I discovered that there was a superior car, I traded it in immediately, with minor remorse. I did love that little Miata, and watching its evolution from a crummy street sedan to the beast that it had become. It was sad to see it go. However, once I got behind the wheel of my new Nissan Skyline, the Miata seemed like a distant memory.
This is kind of the standard fare for video games. Diablo, Borderlands, Forza Motorsport,and Skyrim all have the same format of work to get stronger, to get better items, to work faster, to get better items. It's a vicious cycle that doesn't stop until you reach the top. Which, when reached, is a bit of a bore. There's nothing left to accomplish. It's all been done. I felt no attachment to the cars, or equipment that I picked up throughout the game. Some items lasted me for a good while, but all fade away when I find a better replacement.
In other media, such as movies, television, and books, characters have attachments to their stuff. Characters in fantasy films, or shows, always seem to have their signature weapon. Jon Snow of the Game of Thrones show has his Longclaw. That sword holds a certain significance to him, as he keeps it well taken care of and it becomes part of his identity. Aragorn of The Lord of the Rings has Anduril, The Sword that was Broken. The weapon has history, and it serves as evidence of who that character is. Aragorn's sword pretty much proves that he is the rightful king, just by wielding it. Even in the movie Men In Black, K risks his life just to get back his favorite gun. There are a few guns that I like in certain video games, but I can do without them.
Some games capture that sense of ownership with signature weapons and items. I know I keep going to The Legend of Zelda, but it's a classic game. It's kind of like going back to Star Wars when discussing movies. Though, Link and the Master Sword share a bond, that is tied together by destiny. Link is supposed to have the Master Sword. It is his sword, before he even knew it. There are others besides The Legend of Zelda, such as F-Zero, or Soulcalibur. In F-Zero, Captain Falcon is nothing without his Blue Falcon car. Those two go hand and hand together. It would seem wrong to put Captain with any other vehicle in the F-Zero Universe. With Soulcalibur, each character wields a unique weapon. Ivy has her chain sword, Kilik has his bo-staff, Maxi has his nun-chucks and Nightmare has the Soul Edge. However, all of these are more iconic than personal items. The weapons and fighting styles seem to be more tools, and mechanics than something that the character had to struggle to learn. Even when reading through the characters bios in the extras section of the game, the mention of the weapons re sort of throwaway material. There doesn't seem to be any kind of ties with the characters and their respective weapons, other than they have trained with them for many years. That's all well and good. A good fighter should know how to use their weapons, and such a feat would take many years of training to accomplish the things that they do with their weapons.
However, we don't see those struggles. We don't know how long it took them to get to know their weapons. Me and my car have been through a lot. I've taken care of it as best as I can, and have had to take it to the shop a couple of times. Now, a bo-staff isn't as mechanically complex as an internal-combustion engine, but I'm sure that Kilik had made a few dents and dings into his weapon while training with it. I suppose that the attachment to the items that our virtual counterparts wield is as much as we make up. We can be creative and believe what we want to believe.
Still though, I like my car, and I'll hate to see it go. I've had a lot of fun with the adventures that it has taken me on.
Lately I've been playing GTA V, and I realized that I couldn't care less about my car. In GTA V, each of the main characters get their own personal cars that they can drive around town. Though, as nice of a touch as that is, it's still just a mode of transport. When you lose your car, it really isn't that big of a deal. Players respawn, and take their pick of whatever thing with wheels and an engine is the most convenient. There is a bit of mourning yes, but you quickly move on, and take some poor saps car for your own. There's no attachment to the characters car. It's just there to take you from point A to point B. It doesn't have any special abilities, there's nothing special about it, it's just transport. In the multiplayer mode of the game, cars are merely assets. A scale of your characters progression through the game. There's no heart put into them. There is time, and virtual, sometimes real, money put into them, but only to tweak or improve.
The whole car modification craze started in the early 2000s with the movie The Fast and The Furious. This trend immediately found its way toward gaming with Need for Speed: Underground. Players could modify their cars to look and drive the way that they wanted them to. While I did feel an attachment to my Mazda Miata, which took me through a majority of the game. However, when I discovered that there was a superior car, I traded it in immediately, with minor remorse. I did love that little Miata, and watching its evolution from a crummy street sedan to the beast that it had become. It was sad to see it go. However, once I got behind the wheel of my new Nissan Skyline, the Miata seemed like a distant memory.
This is kind of the standard fare for video games. Diablo, Borderlands, Forza Motorsport,and Skyrim all have the same format of work to get stronger, to get better items, to work faster, to get better items. It's a vicious cycle that doesn't stop until you reach the top. Which, when reached, is a bit of a bore. There's nothing left to accomplish. It's all been done. I felt no attachment to the cars, or equipment that I picked up throughout the game. Some items lasted me for a good while, but all fade away when I find a better replacement.
In other media, such as movies, television, and books, characters have attachments to their stuff. Characters in fantasy films, or shows, always seem to have their signature weapon. Jon Snow of the Game of Thrones show has his Longclaw. That sword holds a certain significance to him, as he keeps it well taken care of and it becomes part of his identity. Aragorn of The Lord of the Rings has Anduril, The Sword that was Broken. The weapon has history, and it serves as evidence of who that character is. Aragorn's sword pretty much proves that he is the rightful king, just by wielding it. Even in the movie Men In Black, K risks his life just to get back his favorite gun. There are a few guns that I like in certain video games, but I can do without them.
Some games capture that sense of ownership with signature weapons and items. I know I keep going to The Legend of Zelda, but it's a classic game. It's kind of like going back to Star Wars when discussing movies. Though, Link and the Master Sword share a bond, that is tied together by destiny. Link is supposed to have the Master Sword. It is his sword, before he even knew it. There are others besides The Legend of Zelda, such as F-Zero, or Soulcalibur. In F-Zero, Captain Falcon is nothing without his Blue Falcon car. Those two go hand and hand together. It would seem wrong to put Captain with any other vehicle in the F-Zero Universe. With Soulcalibur, each character wields a unique weapon. Ivy has her chain sword, Kilik has his bo-staff, Maxi has his nun-chucks and Nightmare has the Soul Edge. However, all of these are more iconic than personal items. The weapons and fighting styles seem to be more tools, and mechanics than something that the character had to struggle to learn. Even when reading through the characters bios in the extras section of the game, the mention of the weapons re sort of throwaway material. There doesn't seem to be any kind of ties with the characters and their respective weapons, other than they have trained with them for many years. That's all well and good. A good fighter should know how to use their weapons, and such a feat would take many years of training to accomplish the things that they do with their weapons.
However, we don't see those struggles. We don't know how long it took them to get to know their weapons. Me and my car have been through a lot. I've taken care of it as best as I can, and have had to take it to the shop a couple of times. Now, a bo-staff isn't as mechanically complex as an internal-combustion engine, but I'm sure that Kilik had made a few dents and dings into his weapon while training with it. I suppose that the attachment to the items that our virtual counterparts wield is as much as we make up. We can be creative and believe what we want to believe.
Still though, I like my car, and I'll hate to see it go. I've had a lot of fun with the adventures that it has taken me on.
Friday, February 21, 2014
Now I am Player One
When I was growing up, me and my brother would always play video games together. As the little brother, I would have to respect the chain of command, and let my older brother take player one. I'm not upset about it, it's just how things were. It wasn't all that bad being player two, sure I got the bottom half of the screen, but at least I got to use my red controller. It wasn't such a bad thing to be growing up in the age of gaming that we did, as everything that came out had some form of splitscreen multiplayer. Though, as we grew up, my brother decided to pursue other interests, like film, music, and girls. I stayed home and played my video games.
It's all part of growing up I suppose. I still love video games, and cartoons, and all of the other things that I grew up with. I think that being the little brother, and being player two affected me in other ways. As with the cartoons that I would watch. My favorite characters in those shows like Dragon Ball Z and Digimon, my favorite character would be the one who would be the "second in command". Picallo for DBZ, and Matt for Digimon. It was the same thing for video games even. My favorite character in Star Fox 64 was Falco, the cocky jackass who would criticize everything that you did, even if you were doing well. I think it's because I left the main character open for my older brother to like. It would be fair if I took the main character from under him. If I did that, I'd be copying him, and I wouldn't be cool to him. Though while my older brother was out, I would be playing video games by myself. I would be player one.
Zelda, Metroid, Shenmue, Soulcalibur, Mario Kart 64, Jet Force Gemini and many other games filled my time. I was getting better at video games. I was starting to be better than my brother. I started to beat him at video games! I think I realized that I had become too good at video games when I beat my brother at Soulcalibur II with an 18-0 record. Video games were clearly becoming my thing, and single player games were how I would spend my time.
My crowning moment was when I picked up Borderlands 2 for my PS3. I told my brother that the game had splitscreen co-op, and that it was really good. To relive the old days, I offered him the player one spot. He turned it down, and told me that it was my game, and that I should take player one. Then we began our quest for guns and blowing stuff up. It was a great moment, and a good time. I had truly become, player one.
I started to find myself associating with the main characters of these video games, among other media. I've always been second in command. I grew to like the idea of being the one in a leadership position. I liked the idea of the lone hero who had to save the world. I was doing things on my own. I was over coming these obstacles before me, and I was winning. I was becoming player one.
As gaming progressed, so did I. My skill was improving as was my leadership skills. Mass Effect's Commander Shepard became my role model, and became a way for me to take on the role of a leader. However, my favorite character to hang out with was Garrus, the ex-cop who was very skilled though didn't care much for rules. Garrus was the second in command. He had all of the tendencies of the characters that I admired back in my youth, though now I found him to be rather immature with his disrespect for the rules. As the leader, I had to keep Garrus in line, and had to show him how to do things the right way. If the player chooses to let Garrus run free, especially in Mass Effect 2, he becomes a mad dog. Commander Shepard has a huge influence on Garrus, even making him a respected officer among his own people by the final instalment of the series. As the leader, players were forced to make decisions that wouldn't please everyone, and make decisions that would affect the outcome of missions. Mass Effect might not be a realistic portrayal of being a leader, as not everyone has to save the galaxy from a race of sentient machines that could completely annihilate the entirety of existence as we know it. However, the game definitely influenced me and encouraged me to be more of a leader in my day to day. I try to teach and to lead whenever I have the opportunity to do so. I don't needlessly take control simply because I can. Only when I know what I'm doing, can I feel confident in leading. That being said, Commander Shepard doesn't necessarily know what she's doing, but still has to take the lead. I can take a page from her book, and take the reigns on certain projects and lead the team to accomplish our goal.
I think that video games can help us in this way: to teach us to be leaders. We may not always be faced with nearly impossible odds, but we can still learn to take the lead to start moving forward. We, as gamers, need to start taking control, as we've always done with the games that we play. We can't sit back and let the game play itself. We are player one, and we can beat this game called life, all we need to do is pick up the controller.
It's all part of growing up I suppose. I still love video games, and cartoons, and all of the other things that I grew up with. I think that being the little brother, and being player two affected me in other ways. As with the cartoons that I would watch. My favorite characters in those shows like Dragon Ball Z and Digimon, my favorite character would be the one who would be the "second in command". Picallo for DBZ, and Matt for Digimon. It was the same thing for video games even. My favorite character in Star Fox 64 was Falco, the cocky jackass who would criticize everything that you did, even if you were doing well. I think it's because I left the main character open for my older brother to like. It would be fair if I took the main character from under him. If I did that, I'd be copying him, and I wouldn't be cool to him. Though while my older brother was out, I would be playing video games by myself. I would be player one.
Zelda, Metroid, Shenmue, Soulcalibur, Mario Kart 64, Jet Force Gemini and many other games filled my time. I was getting better at video games. I was starting to be better than my brother. I started to beat him at video games! I think I realized that I had become too good at video games when I beat my brother at Soulcalibur II with an 18-0 record. Video games were clearly becoming my thing, and single player games were how I would spend my time.
My crowning moment was when I picked up Borderlands 2 for my PS3. I told my brother that the game had splitscreen co-op, and that it was really good. To relive the old days, I offered him the player one spot. He turned it down, and told me that it was my game, and that I should take player one. Then we began our quest for guns and blowing stuff up. It was a great moment, and a good time. I had truly become, player one.
I started to find myself associating with the main characters of these video games, among other media. I've always been second in command. I grew to like the idea of being the one in a leadership position. I liked the idea of the lone hero who had to save the world. I was doing things on my own. I was over coming these obstacles before me, and I was winning. I was becoming player one.
As gaming progressed, so did I. My skill was improving as was my leadership skills. Mass Effect's Commander Shepard became my role model, and became a way for me to take on the role of a leader. However, my favorite character to hang out with was Garrus, the ex-cop who was very skilled though didn't care much for rules. Garrus was the second in command. He had all of the tendencies of the characters that I admired back in my youth, though now I found him to be rather immature with his disrespect for the rules. As the leader, I had to keep Garrus in line, and had to show him how to do things the right way. If the player chooses to let Garrus run free, especially in Mass Effect 2, he becomes a mad dog. Commander Shepard has a huge influence on Garrus, even making him a respected officer among his own people by the final instalment of the series. As the leader, players were forced to make decisions that wouldn't please everyone, and make decisions that would affect the outcome of missions. Mass Effect might not be a realistic portrayal of being a leader, as not everyone has to save the galaxy from a race of sentient machines that could completely annihilate the entirety of existence as we know it. However, the game definitely influenced me and encouraged me to be more of a leader in my day to day. I try to teach and to lead whenever I have the opportunity to do so. I don't needlessly take control simply because I can. Only when I know what I'm doing, can I feel confident in leading. That being said, Commander Shepard doesn't necessarily know what she's doing, but still has to take the lead. I can take a page from her book, and take the reigns on certain projects and lead the team to accomplish our goal.
I think that video games can help us in this way: to teach us to be leaders. We may not always be faced with nearly impossible odds, but we can still learn to take the lead to start moving forward. We, as gamers, need to start taking control, as we've always done with the games that we play. We can't sit back and let the game play itself. We are player one, and we can beat this game called life, all we need to do is pick up the controller.
Friday, February 14, 2014
We Don't Need No Stinkin' Points
The other day I was at my job (for the record I hate my job), and my boss was talking to me about numbers that the store was making. To make his point, he started off his lecture with "you're a gamer right?", as I stared at him with much restraint. In my head I was thinking, "you have no idea how far games have come...."
After giving it a bit of thought, my boss was still right. Video games are still all about getting our initials on that proverbial scoreboard in the sky. It's all completely pointless, when the medium has come as far as it has. Simply by having point values to these games, it trivializes all that happens in them. Achievements and Trophies are worthless.
Games like, Last of Us, The Walking Dead, Mass Effect, Deus Ex, and Bioshock all have amazing stories that engage the player in a way that no other game has ever achieved. All of these games are critically acclaimed, and for good reason, about the way that they tell their story. Yet, each one comes with a set of pointless achievements and trophies for the player to try and attain.
No one cares about your gamer score, all that is, is a quantitative way to keep track of how much of a life that you don't have. So what if you have all of the achievements for game X. I played game X, and I enjoyed it very much. I feel as though I got the full experience from it, and I still keep it around because the multiplayer is still fun to play every once in a while. Just because you have more achievements unlocked for the game doesn't make you better than me, or that you like it more.
Some would say that having achievement, and the like, in video games helps to extend the life of a video game. They suggest new things for the player to try out, and discover. This is true, but only for a certain extent. Games have a lot more than what the achievements offer to them. Say that a game has lots of achievements, and it is the person's only game: of course they will play the game to death, and will most likely score every achievement possible. Though, they will also explore other aspects of the game that were not considered during the development process or the achievement inception. People are more clever than what game developers give them credit for. Games are so linear these days that even experimentation has winstates. Achievements leave nothing up to the imagination, and instead of becoming a personal challenge, everything becomes a point value. It wasn't by my courage that I chose to take on Mass Effect 2 on the hardest difficulty, but because I wanted to get that achievement, because "why not?" I love Mass Effect 2, and it's on my top 5 list of games of all time, but I just kind of ran out of things to do with it. I did explore every nook and cranny of that game, and all that was left to do was to get all of the achievements. I've done some pretty amazing stuff in that game, that I can't really claim to anymore because no one would believe me. If there was an achievement for hooking an enemy on the other side of a wall with a biotic pull, people would see that. I would have validation.
Perhaps that is a reason as to why people achievement hunt. To be able to back up their arguments of their feats of awesomeness. I suppose that I would have no other way to prove to you that I did everything that one can possibly do in a particular video game other than to show you my gamerscore. Then again, who cares? I think what matters is that you or I played the game and enjoyed it.
Playing video games is fun. I enjoy them, and I want to share them with everyone. I don't want to intimidate others with my gamerscore, though I often show them up with my skill in video games. However, that's only because I've played so many, but I digress. Achievements and Trophies are pointless because they get in the way of what the game should be, or how they could be perceived by their audience. Games have come a long way, they can tell stories that empower us, or break our hearts, and we don't need a score to tell us how much we enjoyed that.
After giving it a bit of thought, my boss was still right. Video games are still all about getting our initials on that proverbial scoreboard in the sky. It's all completely pointless, when the medium has come as far as it has. Simply by having point values to these games, it trivializes all that happens in them. Achievements and Trophies are worthless.
Games like, Last of Us, The Walking Dead, Mass Effect, Deus Ex, and Bioshock all have amazing stories that engage the player in a way that no other game has ever achieved. All of these games are critically acclaimed, and for good reason, about the way that they tell their story. Yet, each one comes with a set of pointless achievements and trophies for the player to try and attain.
No one cares about your gamer score, all that is, is a quantitative way to keep track of how much of a life that you don't have. So what if you have all of the achievements for game X. I played game X, and I enjoyed it very much. I feel as though I got the full experience from it, and I still keep it around because the multiplayer is still fun to play every once in a while. Just because you have more achievements unlocked for the game doesn't make you better than me, or that you like it more.
Some would say that having achievement, and the like, in video games helps to extend the life of a video game. They suggest new things for the player to try out, and discover. This is true, but only for a certain extent. Games have a lot more than what the achievements offer to them. Say that a game has lots of achievements, and it is the person's only game: of course they will play the game to death, and will most likely score every achievement possible. Though, they will also explore other aspects of the game that were not considered during the development process or the achievement inception. People are more clever than what game developers give them credit for. Games are so linear these days that even experimentation has winstates. Achievements leave nothing up to the imagination, and instead of becoming a personal challenge, everything becomes a point value. It wasn't by my courage that I chose to take on Mass Effect 2 on the hardest difficulty, but because I wanted to get that achievement, because "why not?" I love Mass Effect 2, and it's on my top 5 list of games of all time, but I just kind of ran out of things to do with it. I did explore every nook and cranny of that game, and all that was left to do was to get all of the achievements. I've done some pretty amazing stuff in that game, that I can't really claim to anymore because no one would believe me. If there was an achievement for hooking an enemy on the other side of a wall with a biotic pull, people would see that. I would have validation.
Perhaps that is a reason as to why people achievement hunt. To be able to back up their arguments of their feats of awesomeness. I suppose that I would have no other way to prove to you that I did everything that one can possibly do in a particular video game other than to show you my gamerscore. Then again, who cares? I think what matters is that you or I played the game and enjoyed it.
Playing video games is fun. I enjoy them, and I want to share them with everyone. I don't want to intimidate others with my gamerscore, though I often show them up with my skill in video games. However, that's only because I've played so many, but I digress. Achievements and Trophies are pointless because they get in the way of what the game should be, or how they could be perceived by their audience. Games have come a long way, they can tell stories that empower us, or break our hearts, and we don't need a score to tell us how much we enjoyed that.
Stop Wasting Your Time
Recently there was a big ol' foofaraw (to make a big deal over something insignificant) over the game of Flappy Bird. It's a mobile game that got people really upset because it was really difficult. Similar to Super Meat Boy, it's difficulty is met with its ease of access. However, Super Meat Boy is lightyears ahead of Flappy Bird in every aspect. Super Meat Boy has time put into it, and has care, effort invested into it. The big deal behind Flappy Bird, is that it was so addicting to the masses and their smart phones, that it was taken down from the app store on iOS devices, never to be downloaded again. While there is indeed a big story there, the fact of the matter is, that everyone was just wasting their time over a game on their phones.
I don't have any mobile games on my phone. Maybe that might be a bad thing, as I tend to waste a lot of time sharing dumb pictures on Facebook. However, the whole intention of mobile phone apps, whether games or no, is to waste time. Usually they are played on the bus, or train, or while waiting on something, but they are not meant to have as much hours put into them as they have. There are better ways to spend your time. I'm not saying that you should put down your phone and start making art, or doing something productive like that. I'm saying that there is a lot more out there than the small and simple games that exist on your phone.
Handheld gaming has been around for a good while, and it has made some great strides to get to where it is today. The difference between mobile gaming and handheld, besides having buttons, is that handheld games are designed to be a fun experience. Most, if not all, mobile games are designed to help pass the time. Mobile games intentionally waste your time! This is an atrocity! Handheld games are meant to be a fun, and fulfilling experience. I'm not saying that because handheld games were made by teams of people that they are in fact better. There are plenty of games that are developed by one to two people, and they can be quite enjoyable. However, the design principles on which mobile games are built, are a waste of time.
There are many games out there for both handheld and mobile platforms, but which ones are really worth your time? Games can be a wholesome experience, that you feel as though something has been gained from playing it. Video games have evolved to become something much more than what they used to be. They are no longer a way to occupy your time, or babysit for you (nor should they have ever been). Games have story, and character, and themes, and music, and all the elements to be a true work of art.
Stop spending your time, and money, on these games that are intentionally designed to waste your time with these hollow experiences. Instead, play something that you can feel better about yourself for playing. Pick up an old game, or a new one, but play a game that has time and effort put into it, and have an experience, rather than letting others pass you by. Time is our most precious commodity, and all too often we waste it with our instant gratification of "social" interaction on our networking sites, or even just watching videos of other people playing video games that you yourself could be playing. Spend your time wisely, it's the most important thing you own.
I don't have any mobile games on my phone. Maybe that might be a bad thing, as I tend to waste a lot of time sharing dumb pictures on Facebook. However, the whole intention of mobile phone apps, whether games or no, is to waste time. Usually they are played on the bus, or train, or while waiting on something, but they are not meant to have as much hours put into them as they have. There are better ways to spend your time. I'm not saying that you should put down your phone and start making art, or doing something productive like that. I'm saying that there is a lot more out there than the small and simple games that exist on your phone.
Handheld gaming has been around for a good while, and it has made some great strides to get to where it is today. The difference between mobile gaming and handheld, besides having buttons, is that handheld games are designed to be a fun experience. Most, if not all, mobile games are designed to help pass the time. Mobile games intentionally waste your time! This is an atrocity! Handheld games are meant to be a fun, and fulfilling experience. I'm not saying that because handheld games were made by teams of people that they are in fact better. There are plenty of games that are developed by one to two people, and they can be quite enjoyable. However, the design principles on which mobile games are built, are a waste of time.
There are many games out there for both handheld and mobile platforms, but which ones are really worth your time? Games can be a wholesome experience, that you feel as though something has been gained from playing it. Video games have evolved to become something much more than what they used to be. They are no longer a way to occupy your time, or babysit for you (nor should they have ever been). Games have story, and character, and themes, and music, and all the elements to be a true work of art.
Stop spending your time, and money, on these games that are intentionally designed to waste your time with these hollow experiences. Instead, play something that you can feel better about yourself for playing. Pick up an old game, or a new one, but play a game that has time and effort put into it, and have an experience, rather than letting others pass you by. Time is our most precious commodity, and all too often we waste it with our instant gratification of "social" interaction on our networking sites, or even just watching videos of other people playing video games that you yourself could be playing. Spend your time wisely, it's the most important thing you own.
Wednesday, February 5, 2014
My Title as a Gamer is a Farce
I'm one of the few gamers of my generation that managed to skip over the Super Nintendo. It's rather unlikely considering the time that I was born, but it's just the way that it is. My Dad had a Super Nintendo, and he had some pretty important games for it. Super Mario World, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Donkey Kong Country, F-Zero, and a few others were among the games that he had to play. I would prefer to stay in and play Super Nintendo, as opposed to being out in the deadly heat of the Oregon Sun in The Dalles. My time on the Super Nintendo was limited, and I could only play for a half hour. I never beat A Link to the Past, or Super Mario World, or even F-Zero. Future experiences with the Super Nintendo consisted of going to Family Video and renting the console and a couple of games with intriguing box art, but nothing major. My memories of the Super Nintendo are that of being home sick and a couple of quirky games that only lasted for two days. I missed out.
The other night while discussing emulators with my best friend, I came to the decision that I would download a Super Nintendo emulator. I've been craving something new in my gaming life, and figured why not. I knew that there were quite a lot of monumental games for the SNES. I had to get Chrono Trigger, that's one of the best. I also got Final Fantasy III, or was it VI, I don't know it's the one with Terra's Theme. I also got Super Mario RPG, because I remember a friend back in college raving about how awesome that game was.. These games are pretty important for the system, though it doesn't even scratch the surface of what the gaming system did for the industry on the whole.
A majority of game reviewers on Youtube often refer to the Super Nintendo as their source of inspiration and love of video games. As one who never had the system, I couldn't say that I can relate, and I still can't. I just have an emulator. There's nothing quite like holding that controller in your hand. The people that played the Super Nintendo growing up, reflect upon it with glistening eyes and wondrous tales of adventure. These gamers experienced something that I never did. Thanks to modern technology and innovative minds, I can with my emulator, and OH MY GOODNESS WHERE THEY RIGHT!
I've been playing Chrono Trigger a lot, and it has absolutely blown my mind on how an RPG should be designed. Mostly I look to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, as it is based on Dungeons and Dragons 3.0, and has an amazing moral, and dialogue choice system that I think that all modern RPGs should adhere to. However, Chrono Trigger, developed by Square Soft, takes what we know about the classic RPG and improves upon it ten fold. I've complained about Final Fantasy and the active battle system, and how it doesn't make any sense, Chrono Trigger makes sense of it all. The active battle system, where characters have a gauge that needs to fill up before making an action, is used in Chrono Trigger, but it can be modified. At the start of the game the player is asked how they would like the battles to play out. "Active" or "Wait" are the two options that are presented and each is explained. I chose wait, because I don't think that there's anything wrong with turn-based combat. While I still haven't got a firm grasp on the battle system, as it seems that enemies still attack on my turn, I've grown accustomed to use it. The ingenious thing that Chrono Trigger does which employs the active battle system, is that it uses combination attacks. Often times when in battle, two characters will be able to attack with filled gauges. The game has an option to use both of these characters to attack at the same time, or at least use a special attack at the cost of both of their magic points, respectively. Different characters have different abilities naturally, and you'll want to use one over the other. That being said, the combat moves so smoothly that players never have to wait long before the character is ready to attack. Chrono Trigger earns its title as one of the greatest games of all time, and I'm only five hours into it.
I love video games, and it's been a while since I've honestly wanted to play something for a while. This emulator gig has rejuvenated my love of video games, as opposed to wasting time on the internet. Long live video games.
The other night while discussing emulators with my best friend, I came to the decision that I would download a Super Nintendo emulator. I've been craving something new in my gaming life, and figured why not. I knew that there were quite a lot of monumental games for the SNES. I had to get Chrono Trigger, that's one of the best. I also got Final Fantasy III, or was it VI, I don't know it's the one with Terra's Theme. I also got Super Mario RPG, because I remember a friend back in college raving about how awesome that game was.. These games are pretty important for the system, though it doesn't even scratch the surface of what the gaming system did for the industry on the whole.
A majority of game reviewers on Youtube often refer to the Super Nintendo as their source of inspiration and love of video games. As one who never had the system, I couldn't say that I can relate, and I still can't. I just have an emulator. There's nothing quite like holding that controller in your hand. The people that played the Super Nintendo growing up, reflect upon it with glistening eyes and wondrous tales of adventure. These gamers experienced something that I never did. Thanks to modern technology and innovative minds, I can with my emulator, and OH MY GOODNESS WHERE THEY RIGHT!
I've been playing Chrono Trigger a lot, and it has absolutely blown my mind on how an RPG should be designed. Mostly I look to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, as it is based on Dungeons and Dragons 3.0, and has an amazing moral, and dialogue choice system that I think that all modern RPGs should adhere to. However, Chrono Trigger, developed by Square Soft, takes what we know about the classic RPG and improves upon it ten fold. I've complained about Final Fantasy and the active battle system, and how it doesn't make any sense, Chrono Trigger makes sense of it all. The active battle system, where characters have a gauge that needs to fill up before making an action, is used in Chrono Trigger, but it can be modified. At the start of the game the player is asked how they would like the battles to play out. "Active" or "Wait" are the two options that are presented and each is explained. I chose wait, because I don't think that there's anything wrong with turn-based combat. While I still haven't got a firm grasp on the battle system, as it seems that enemies still attack on my turn, I've grown accustomed to use it. The ingenious thing that Chrono Trigger does which employs the active battle system, is that it uses combination attacks. Often times when in battle, two characters will be able to attack with filled gauges. The game has an option to use both of these characters to attack at the same time, or at least use a special attack at the cost of both of their magic points, respectively. Different characters have different abilities naturally, and you'll want to use one over the other. That being said, the combat moves so smoothly that players never have to wait long before the character is ready to attack. Chrono Trigger earns its title as one of the greatest games of all time, and I'm only five hours into it.
I love video games, and it's been a while since I've honestly wanted to play something for a while. This emulator gig has rejuvenated my love of video games, as opposed to wasting time on the internet. Long live video games.
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Video Games Are Freedom
Huh.
I think that it is in human nature to want to go out to different places and explore, achieve, and just do a bunch of stuff. Video games allow players to do this. Because $60 is cheaper than most plane tickets, I'd say that video games are worth the price of admission.
But, about the video... The video mentions that video games can be used, somewhat, as a vacation. A form of stress relief that isn't often discussed when it comes to the topic of video games. Mostly, when it comes to the subject of stress relief and video games, the topic generally goes towards free reigning violence. However, we, as humans, generally don't want to kill our fellow man. Instead, we would rather see someplace beautiful, or different, and explore and do things that we normally wouldn't do. Video games offer a lot to do in the virtual locations that they build. Grand Theft Auto V offers the aforementioned hiking, biking, golfing, racing, flying, darts, and so much more. Players can take a walk around Los Santos and pretty much just hang out. The game is a vacation in itself. Los Santos is a place that is full of character, and somewhere I want to visit.
Humans have the desire to explore, discover, and learn.The game Skyrim has ruins for players to explore. The land of Skyrim is filled with religion, politics, culture, regions, races, traditions, classes, and many different things that make up a believable world. In a sense, players can go on vacation in the world of Skyrim, and slay a few dragons while they are there. World famous game designer Shigeru Miyamoto was influenced by his childhood, and a cave in the woods that he was too scared to go into. Miyamoto finally mustered up the courage to go in and explore, and from that he created The Legend of Zelda.
I've never been one to play video games under stress. It has never felt right. I play them all the time to procrastinate. However, I've never gone on a violent rampage in a video game to relieve stress. Video games have always been about the experience for me. They are enjoyable, playable things that I love to spend time with. Even if it is something as simple as Mario Kart, I'm still transported to a different place. That's fun, and that's one of the many reasons that I love video games. Even in states of depression, I've never turned to video games for comfort. That would be, as the video puts it, suppressive. It puts a damper on the experience if you're feeling down. Whether real or virtual, your vacation is lacking because of a bad mood. video games are a way to express yourself and experience new things that are impossible.
While I wouldn't say that video game worlds are real, they do offer a new experience. People always seem to rag on gamers for their reclusive nature, and claim that they are a waste of time. Though, the exploration aspect that they have, offer a wealth of experience. World of Warcraft is the most popular MMORPG on the market, and millions of people have connected through it. In the game, players explore the world of Azeroth. Players come across impossible structures, mythological beasts, and enchanting environments. All the while meeting new players, and maybe making some real world friends. Does that sound like a waste of time to you?
What game world do you like to hang around in? Let me know in the comments!
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