Dearest classmates,
Please fill out this survey so that I might get information for my final project. If you don't answer, gamers everywhere will be misrepresented. You wouldn't want that on you heads now would you?
Please fill this out by December 2, 2009.
Survey 1 "Defining the Gamer"
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=G10WBWK1bvp3Jb3dpMWRkQ_3d_3d
Survey 2 "Survey for Gamers"
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=w1H8csku2hAt_2fk7C_2bhAhOA_3d_3d
P.S. If you fill this out please tell me and I will give you candy!
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Final Games Project
In my final games project I want to address the stereotypes that the non-gaming community has concerning gamers. In order to do this I want to do a survey in which I ask an undetermined amount of people in various age groups what their view of gamers are. I’m sure most gamers know of at least one negative stereotype against them. So I want to see what other people's thoughts or images are when they hear “videogames” or “gamers”. Some questions I wish to address are: if they consider themselves gamers, how videogames have, if at all, affected their lives, what they believe a typical gamer looks like (e.g. sitting in their parents’ basement playing D&D”), so on and so forth. I then want to take these information put them into figures and critical analyze them. I will be comparing my results to typical stereotypes and seeing which if any are true, and if so how they reflect on the gaming community.
Dynasty Warriors 3
How can a game that has the same plot as its two prequels still be worthwhile purchase? To find the answer, I decided to take on Dynasty Warriors 3 for the PlayStation 2. Taken from Luo Guanzhong’s Romance of the Three Kingdoms, this game, which is part of a series, rehashes the same story, but still somehow has quite a large following.
I was first introduced to this game by a friend who was obsessed with Dynasty Warriors and felt that she had to share it with me. Being the first Dynasty Warriors game to have a multi-player mode, she thought it best for us to play together, so I could get a chance to fight, and she could help me if need be. Since she had already chosen her strongest character, Sun Shang Xiang, I was left to choose from weaker characters who only had their first level weapon. Needless to say I died… a lot. With this experience I couldn’t see what was so great about the game; I actually found it a bit annoying.
It wasn’t until my brother lent me Dynasty Warriors 4 that I broke down and bought the 3rd game. Enlisting my sister as the second player, I took another go at the game. It was at this point that I found what was so appealing about the game. While I had previously played only in Free Mode, my sister and I now played in Musou Mode (the actual story). Since the game is taken from the era in China called The Three Kingdoms, it is not surprising that when one starts, he/she gets to choose characters form one of the three warring kingdoms: Shu, Wei, or Wu. The first step is to decide which of these kingdoms to fight in. After a few moments the winner ending up being Wu, since it was the only one with a female, and it had the prettiest people. That’s right, Wu had pretty boys.
The controls weren’t as hard as I thought they were when I had first played. The main problem was remembering what the trigger buttons do. A note to all who plan on playing this game: you have to hit the L2 button in order to see the enemies’ health bars. Without these bars floating above their heads the regular foot soldiers will look just like yours, and you won’t know who is an ally and who is not.
The game had some standard fare for a fighting game. Weapons, items, and characters all had the ability to level up…you even got more bodyguards. While not unique to this game, these features did increase the game’s re-playability.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the game sometimes makes it so the enemies are invisible. Your character could be running through a deserted area when he suddenly finds himself in the midst of 20 enemies. This doesn’t mean you were ambushed, rather more like they decloaked around you… and they can hit you, but you can’t hit them. Since there is no “cloak” or “decloak” function in the game, I have to wonder if this is perhaps a glitch.
While the attacks, characters, and overall graphics are of high quality, the same cannot be said for the voice acting. I can best sum it up by saying that it is atrociously bad in a strangely humorous way. For example, during the Nanman Campaign’s opening cut scene, a peon appears before Nanman King. His message, “Meng Huo there’s a problem” is delivered in such a sniveling, whiny voice that my sister and I missed the rest of the message because we were laughing so hard. While bad voice acting usually makes a game unbearable, here it somehow gives it better replay value. Seeing Sniveling Dude before the level makes the rampaging elephants and characters that have to be killed repeatedly during the mission, almost bearable.
Other problems that occurred during the game were either the inability to remember everyone’s names, or not being able to remember how to pronounce them. Keeping with military tradition, we gave many characters nicknames. Most of them were based on a distinctive feature of the character. For example, Hat Boy is the only person who wears a hat, the Fan Girls are two sisters who fight with giant fans, and Pipe Cleaner Man has what looks like a large pipe cleaner on top of his helmet. These names are far from manly but when you’re trying to tell your partner who you are fighting or who you’re supposed to be following these nicknames are rather efficient.
http://kongming.net/dw3/portraits/
Overall this game is very entertaining and enjoyable to play. The replay value is increased by the ability to unlock new characters, weapons and items. When you finish a character’s story make sure to watch the ending, especially if you and a friend play as the Fan Girl Sisters… it’s awesomely hilarious.
I was first introduced to this game by a friend who was obsessed with Dynasty Warriors and felt that she had to share it with me. Being the first Dynasty Warriors game to have a multi-player mode, she thought it best for us to play together, so I could get a chance to fight, and she could help me if need be. Since she had already chosen her strongest character, Sun Shang Xiang, I was left to choose from weaker characters who only had their first level weapon. Needless to say I died… a lot. With this experience I couldn’t see what was so great about the game; I actually found it a bit annoying.
It wasn’t until my brother lent me Dynasty Warriors 4 that I broke down and bought the 3rd game. Enlisting my sister as the second player, I took another go at the game. It was at this point that I found what was so appealing about the game. While I had previously played only in Free Mode, my sister and I now played in Musou Mode (the actual story). Since the game is taken from the era in China called The Three Kingdoms, it is not surprising that when one starts, he/she gets to choose characters form one of the three warring kingdoms: Shu, Wei, or Wu. The first step is to decide which of these kingdoms to fight in. After a few moments the winner ending up being Wu, since it was the only one with a female, and it had the prettiest people. That’s right, Wu had pretty boys.
The controls weren’t as hard as I thought they were when I had first played. The main problem was remembering what the trigger buttons do. A note to all who plan on playing this game: you have to hit the L2 button in order to see the enemies’ health bars. Without these bars floating above their heads the regular foot soldiers will look just like yours, and you won’t know who is an ally and who is not.
The game had some standard fare for a fighting game. Weapons, items, and characters all had the ability to level up…you even got more bodyguards. While not unique to this game, these features did increase the game’s re-playability.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the game sometimes makes it so the enemies are invisible. Your character could be running through a deserted area when he suddenly finds himself in the midst of 20 enemies. This doesn’t mean you were ambushed, rather more like they decloaked around you… and they can hit you, but you can’t hit them. Since there is no “cloak” or “decloak” function in the game, I have to wonder if this is perhaps a glitch.
While the attacks, characters, and overall graphics are of high quality, the same cannot be said for the voice acting. I can best sum it up by saying that it is atrociously bad in a strangely humorous way. For example, during the Nanman Campaign’s opening cut scene, a peon appears before Nanman King. His message, “Meng Huo there’s a problem” is delivered in such a sniveling, whiny voice that my sister and I missed the rest of the message because we were laughing so hard. While bad voice acting usually makes a game unbearable, here it somehow gives it better replay value. Seeing Sniveling Dude before the level makes the rampaging elephants and characters that have to be killed repeatedly during the mission, almost bearable.
Other problems that occurred during the game were either the inability to remember everyone’s names, or not being able to remember how to pronounce them. Keeping with military tradition, we gave many characters nicknames. Most of them were based on a distinctive feature of the character. For example, Hat Boy is the only person who wears a hat, the Fan Girls are two sisters who fight with giant fans, and Pipe Cleaner Man has what looks like a large pipe cleaner on top of his helmet. These names are far from manly but when you’re trying to tell your partner who you are fighting or who you’re supposed to be following these nicknames are rather efficient.
http://kongming.net/dw3/portraits/
Overall this game is very entertaining and enjoyable to play. The replay value is increased by the ability to unlock new characters, weapons and items. When you finish a character’s story make sure to watch the ending, especially if you and a friend play as the Fan Girl Sisters… it’s awesomely hilarious.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Final Chapter
Hmm so yeah, I’m not exactly sure what I’m supposed to be writing about this week. So in an attempt to do this blog I will more than likely just be rambling for about 400 words, maybe even less. I shall therefore apologize in advance for wasting your time.
Right, so a game studies project is just like any other research paper and/or topic, just with videogames as the topic. This chapter in An Introduction to Game Studies, while kind of boring and pretty much stating the obvious, told its readers how to do a research paper. If I had never written a research paper before, than this chapter would still be a little boring, but at least it would have been a great help. I am glad that this chapter was put into this book, because it is rare that one actually is given step by step directions on how to write this kind of paper. However, since I’m in my fourth year here at the University of Michigan Flint and am majoring in English, this whole chapter was pretty much just a review for me.
Overall if you don’t know how to do a research paper I think you should check this chapter out I’ll probably help you out quite a bit.
Right, so a game studies project is just like any other research paper and/or topic, just with videogames as the topic. This chapter in An Introduction to Game Studies, while kind of boring and pretty much stating the obvious, told its readers how to do a research paper. If I had never written a research paper before, than this chapter would still be a little boring, but at least it would have been a great help. I am glad that this chapter was put into this book, because it is rare that one actually is given step by step directions on how to write this kind of paper. However, since I’m in my fourth year here at the University of Michigan Flint and am majoring in English, this whole chapter was pretty much just a review for me.
Overall if you don’t know how to do a research paper I think you should check this chapter out I’ll probably help you out quite a bit.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
crack, alcohol and MMORPGs
My cat is attacking my shoelaces and my sister is helping her... wait that's not what this blog is about. That's right it’s about Massively-Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPGs) and people's addiction to them.
MMORPG is a needlessly long acronym that is just as difficult to say as saying the phrase itself. Ironically the game play also is needlessly long and complex. A coincidence? I think not.
I recently played the game "Dragonica." It was free (with cash options, which I am avoiding). I am wise to the trap and will not take the bait! Never will this game see even a penny of my hard-earned cash!
Anway to the point. The game is about.... well it tried to tell me the story at the beginning with a cutscene, but my computer was having...issues. I therefore missed large parts of the explanation, so I'm still not sure exactly what dragons have to do with the game. The game itself was fun that is once I got the hang of it. Your character can be from the warrior, magician, archer or thief class. Each has its own pros and cons. As I started the game found that I had a guide that was supposed to, well, guide me. I am sad to say that he failed at this task, epically. Not only did he not explain some of the basics to me, but when he would start talking they were at random times and the scroll bar was sooooo slow.
As with most MMORPGs, it is better to play with friends and form a party with them. However I fear for mine. I believe that they are becoming addicted to the game, and I don’t know if it is too late to save them or not. I started "Dragonica" with my friend whom I shall call Melilot (since I don't have permission to use her real name, her avatar's name shall suffice). She is currently a higher level then me, as is her boyfriend Stormbear (avatar name obviously). Normally this wouldn't bother me, but Stormbear started playing a week or so after Melilot and I did and his main archer is about the same level as Melilot. The second avatar he created while his warrior character is stronger than my thief (my only avatar). I admit that I try not to play that often, lest I fall into the trap that is MMORPG. The same cannot be said about my friends though.
I believe that MMORPGs are fun and are fine to play, IF you don’t allow them to consume your every waking moment. So if you’re reading this Melilot and Stormbear please step away from the computer and go outside and enjoy the fresh air and human interaction before its to late.
MMORPG is a needlessly long acronym that is just as difficult to say as saying the phrase itself. Ironically the game play also is needlessly long and complex. A coincidence? I think not.
I recently played the game "Dragonica." It was free (with cash options, which I am avoiding). I am wise to the trap and will not take the bait! Never will this game see even a penny of my hard-earned cash!
Anway to the point. The game is about.... well it tried to tell me the story at the beginning with a cutscene, but my computer was having...issues. I therefore missed large parts of the explanation, so I'm still not sure exactly what dragons have to do with the game. The game itself was fun that is once I got the hang of it. Your character can be from the warrior, magician, archer or thief class. Each has its own pros and cons. As I started the game found that I had a guide that was supposed to, well, guide me. I am sad to say that he failed at this task, epically. Not only did he not explain some of the basics to me, but when he would start talking they were at random times and the scroll bar was sooooo slow.
As with most MMORPGs, it is better to play with friends and form a party with them. However I fear for mine. I believe that they are becoming addicted to the game, and I don’t know if it is too late to save them or not. I started "Dragonica" with my friend whom I shall call Melilot (since I don't have permission to use her real name, her avatar's name shall suffice). She is currently a higher level then me, as is her boyfriend Stormbear (avatar name obviously). Normally this wouldn't bother me, but Stormbear started playing a week or so after Melilot and I did and his main archer is about the same level as Melilot. The second avatar he created while his warrior character is stronger than my thief (my only avatar). I admit that I try not to play that often, lest I fall into the trap that is MMORPG. The same cannot be said about my friends though.
I believe that MMORPGs are fun and are fine to play, IF you don’t allow them to consume your every waking moment. So if you’re reading this Melilot and Stormbear please step away from the computer and go outside and enjoy the fresh air and human interaction before its to late.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Game Review: Dragonic Online
So what kind of game genre(s) do you like? Perhaps it’s a good first person shooter, or post apocalyptic, or maybe even racing. Personally I have always been a fan of role playing games (RPGs), but it was not until just a few days ago that I finally entered the world of massively-multiplayer online role playing games (MMORPGs). I’m still not sure if this was a good thing to do since this type of game tends to consume its players, but I still have faith that I won’t get to addicted to it. We’ll see how that long that confidence lasts.
A friend of mine was looking at new released games when we came across Dragonica Online. Thinking that it met the requirements for my assignment, and that the graphics looked kind of cute, I decided that I was going to play it. In the game you make your character so he or she can be one of four classes; warrior, magician, archer, or thief. Each class has its own; town, armor, weapons, skills, and a choice of two different career pathways. Once you have selected your class you are able to customize your character and name it, and now the story begins.
You start your journey on a lone road heading toward the town of your class, since I chose thief I was heading toward Back Alley, when suddenly you hear something calling you. The voice belongs to a small, cute (?) blue creature that is flying toward you. This little guy is going to be your own personal guide around Dragonica. Yay! right? No not really. He speaks incredibly slowly and you just want to keep hitting the space bar, since it’s an online game keyboard and mouse are used, so you can read what he’s trying to say. Furthermore he has the worse timing you can imagine. The guy is usually quite and just floats around behind you, but when he does talk it is during a conversation with a non player character (NPC), or worse when in battle. So you end either missing what the person you’re trying to talk to is saying or are getting attacked. The most annoying thing is that it doesn’t tell you half the things you need to know. It tells you that the “z” key allows you to use the portals but it doesn’t tell you that, if for example you’re a thief, that holding down “z” allows you to use a charge attack. You get this tidbit of information by pressing the “esc” key that bring up your controls. He also doesn’t tell you how to equip items for a good 3-4 hours into the game, which by this time you’ve probably figured it out yourself. So anyway once he has introduced himself and what not, you hear people screaming. Apparently the town is being attacked by wolves. The guard who you are now talking to decides to allow you to take on the job. I don’t know why he does or thinks he can trust me considering he simply refers to me as “Thief”, maybe he’s bit hit on the head one to many times. Taking up the job the action portion of the game finally begins.
The actual game play is pretty fun once you get the hang of the controls, or you change them to your liking. You get a variety of attacks, spells if you’re a magician, which can be chained to create a sweet little combo. Being an MMORPG you can play alone or you can team up with friends to take on bosses or accompany each other on quests. If you have friends you can create a four person team, another thing you’re not told how to do, by clicking on an icon on the lower right hand of the screen. This is a great asset for quests that require you to defeat a level, numerous times occasionally, where the boss has about 10 or more minions surrounding him. Having one person running around distracting the boss and the other(s) fighting helps prevent the death of all the players.
The graphics as I stated earlier are rather cute, but not in a its so cute it make you ill sort of way. The background is 3 dimensional, so you can jump on to crates or other structures including buildings. This is nice if you’re trying to get away from an enemy and heal. The characters and monsters look 2 dimensional and rather cartoonish. The different dimensional aspects of the game surprisingly complement one another rather well. The monsters have a comic effect when they die, as do you for that matter. When your character dies it falls to the ground mouth open and tongue sticking out. The game itself is well lit, except when you’re in towns then its night, and has a good balance of color and depth.
I would have to say that people should give this game a chance and play it. Just keep in mind that while the game does have some flaws, that as I write this review the game hasn’t been out for half a month yet. So the creators will more than likely fix the game’s problems as time goes on and a great game will emerge.
Interested in playing? Here’s the website! http://dragonica.thqice.com/index.html
A friend of mine was looking at new released games when we came across Dragonica Online. Thinking that it met the requirements for my assignment, and that the graphics looked kind of cute, I decided that I was going to play it. In the game you make your character so he or she can be one of four classes; warrior, magician, archer, or thief. Each class has its own; town, armor, weapons, skills, and a choice of two different career pathways. Once you have selected your class you are able to customize your character and name it, and now the story begins.
You start your journey on a lone road heading toward the town of your class, since I chose thief I was heading toward Back Alley, when suddenly you hear something calling you. The voice belongs to a small, cute (?) blue creature that is flying toward you. This little guy is going to be your own personal guide around Dragonica. Yay! right? No not really. He speaks incredibly slowly and you just want to keep hitting the space bar, since it’s an online game keyboard and mouse are used, so you can read what he’s trying to say. Furthermore he has the worse timing you can imagine. The guy is usually quite and just floats around behind you, but when he does talk it is during a conversation with a non player character (NPC), or worse when in battle. So you end either missing what the person you’re trying to talk to is saying or are getting attacked. The most annoying thing is that it doesn’t tell you half the things you need to know. It tells you that the “z” key allows you to use the portals but it doesn’t tell you that, if for example you’re a thief, that holding down “z” allows you to use a charge attack. You get this tidbit of information by pressing the “esc” key that bring up your controls. He also doesn’t tell you how to equip items for a good 3-4 hours into the game, which by this time you’ve probably figured it out yourself. So anyway once he has introduced himself and what not, you hear people screaming. Apparently the town is being attacked by wolves. The guard who you are now talking to decides to allow you to take on the job. I don’t know why he does or thinks he can trust me considering he simply refers to me as “Thief”, maybe he’s bit hit on the head one to many times. Taking up the job the action portion of the game finally begins.
The actual game play is pretty fun once you get the hang of the controls, or you change them to your liking. You get a variety of attacks, spells if you’re a magician, which can be chained to create a sweet little combo. Being an MMORPG you can play alone or you can team up with friends to take on bosses or accompany each other on quests. If you have friends you can create a four person team, another thing you’re not told how to do, by clicking on an icon on the lower right hand of the screen. This is a great asset for quests that require you to defeat a level, numerous times occasionally, where the boss has about 10 or more minions surrounding him. Having one person running around distracting the boss and the other(s) fighting helps prevent the death of all the players.
The graphics as I stated earlier are rather cute, but not in a its so cute it make you ill sort of way. The background is 3 dimensional, so you can jump on to crates or other structures including buildings. This is nice if you’re trying to get away from an enemy and heal. The characters and monsters look 2 dimensional and rather cartoonish. The different dimensional aspects of the game surprisingly complement one another rather well. The monsters have a comic effect when they die, as do you for that matter. When your character dies it falls to the ground mouth open and tongue sticking out. The game itself is well lit, except when you’re in towns then its night, and has a good balance of color and depth.
I would have to say that people should give this game a chance and play it. Just keep in mind that while the game does have some flaws, that as I write this review the game hasn’t been out for half a month yet. So the creators will more than likely fix the game’s problems as time goes on and a great game will emerge.
Interested in playing? Here’s the website! http://dragonica.thqice.com/index.html
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Just how much should society worry about videogames?
Videogames a harmless pastime? Or a plague that is taking over the world? For most gamers this is a rather stupid question that is answered by the prior. However, for non-gamers, especially parents, this question poses a very real concern. Both sides have different experiences with the item in question and therefore have different opinions of what the correct answer is. However, maybe the answer isn’t one of the options given; perhaps it in their own right they are both write.
People with hands on experience with videogames have more knowledge on the topic, and therefore should be able to form an educated opinion. However, this opinion is extremely biased favoring the game industry, and therefore are not going to see all the problems that games may contain. To them it is an experience of living as someone other than them self in a world that is not their own. Getting a chance to sniper the enemy in the head when they are being hunted down by a mob of monsters or the undead is very rewarding, it means you get to live longer. However, to the person who walks in the room to see the player sniping people may think that they’re happy about killing, and miss the point of what they’re really doing. As Stephen Totilo pointed out in this review on “Resident Evil 5”, “A lot of genuinely horrible actions depicted in video games don't seem horrible when viewed by the player of a game. They horrify only the onlookers watching you play -- or watching the trailer of someone else playing.”
Being unaware of what most videogames are about, many parents only see that their children spend hours a day on them. When they do happen to read the back of the case and they see that it says “mature content” they naturally assume the worst, but you know what they say about assuming. If they do watch their children play they may see the situation described above and fear that their child is planning the next Columbine shooting. What these viewers don’t seem to understand is that most gamers play these games because they either would never or could never do these things in real life. If parents are worried about which videogames their children play they should also be weary of what movies they watch. If, for example, parents allow their children to watch action movies where there is a lot of killing, then why, when they see those children play action videogames should they freak out? What is the difference between the two? Is it only due to being a spectator for the movie, and being the “in” the movie for a videogame? It seems like the parents should be happy that the children have enough sense to only be imitating the action where it is safe and fictional, and not out in the real world.
Both views are reasonable, because while a lot of games are harmless, there are those that go overboard. In the end if non-gamers really see videogames corrupting the youth then all they have to do is not buy them the game system, because without the system you can’t play the games. Besides, what kid can afford an over $300 game system?
People with hands on experience with videogames have more knowledge on the topic, and therefore should be able to form an educated opinion. However, this opinion is extremely biased favoring the game industry, and therefore are not going to see all the problems that games may contain. To them it is an experience of living as someone other than them self in a world that is not their own. Getting a chance to sniper the enemy in the head when they are being hunted down by a mob of monsters or the undead is very rewarding, it means you get to live longer. However, to the person who walks in the room to see the player sniping people may think that they’re happy about killing, and miss the point of what they’re really doing. As Stephen Totilo pointed out in this review on “Resident Evil 5”, “A lot of genuinely horrible actions depicted in video games don't seem horrible when viewed by the player of a game. They horrify only the onlookers watching you play -- or watching the trailer of someone else playing.”
Being unaware of what most videogames are about, many parents only see that their children spend hours a day on them. When they do happen to read the back of the case and they see that it says “mature content” they naturally assume the worst, but you know what they say about assuming. If they do watch their children play they may see the situation described above and fear that their child is planning the next Columbine shooting. What these viewers don’t seem to understand is that most gamers play these games because they either would never or could never do these things in real life. If parents are worried about which videogames their children play they should also be weary of what movies they watch. If, for example, parents allow their children to watch action movies where there is a lot of killing, then why, when they see those children play action videogames should they freak out? What is the difference between the two? Is it only due to being a spectator for the movie, and being the “in” the movie for a videogame? It seems like the parents should be happy that the children have enough sense to only be imitating the action where it is safe and fictional, and not out in the real world.
Both views are reasonable, because while a lot of games are harmless, there are those that go overboard. In the end if non-gamers really see videogames corrupting the youth then all they have to do is not buy them the game system, because without the system you can’t play the games. Besides, what kid can afford an over $300 game system?
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Monkey Island
There I was on Mêlée Island, a town that sat on the docks. I had never been here before but I knew that this was where I needed to be. The place that would help me fulfill my dream. My dream of becoming a pirate! In order to do this I had to go to the toughest and most pirated filled place on this island- The Scumm Bar. If you could make it here you were well on your way to becoming a true pirate, which is just what I wanted. I learned many things at The Scumm Bar like what the pirate drink Grog is made of and how you should never enter the kitchen while the cook is in there. I was even able to talk to three important looking pirates who told me to complete three tests so I could become a pirate. Yes! Now I could prove that I am pirate material. I had to learn how to swordfight, steal something and then go on a guest for the treasure of Mêlée Island, which just happens to be lost.
Now that I knew what to I decided to go around town and see what I could get to help me on my quests. While doing this I entered a strange building with many strange and probably unsanitary things hanging from the walls and ceiling. That’s when I saw it just sitting there; I could help but to take it. Besides how often do you get to see a real rubber chicken with a pulley in the middle? Walking in a little further a met a strange lady who knew exactly who I was and what I needed to know. This is how I met the Voodoo Lady. Don’t let her name fool you she’s actually quite nice and helps me out when ever I’m in a bind.
After exploring the town some more and pocketing everything that would fit into my pants pocket, including a full size shovel and the sword I would use in training, I decided I should start my trails. I went to the great Captain Smirk who taught me the basics of sword fighting. However my task was to master this skill and the only way I could do that was to study under the Sword Master Carla. From her I learned the secret behind winning against pirates in a duel. That secret that I had to master was insults. That’s right in order to beat my teacher of five minutes I had to out wit her in a battle of insult sword fighting. I knew at this moment that I had a long and difficult road ahead of me. I had to fight many wandering pirates to learn enough to survive a battle. Soon I was able to fight with the best of them. “You fight like a dairy farmer” My swashbuckling opponent would exclaim. “How appropriate. You fight like a cow” I would retort without hesitation. With a new arsenal of wit on my side I was able to defeat Carla and move on to my next task.
I made my way to the Governor’s mansion to steal the requested idol when yet again I was stopped in my tracks with awe. Strangely it wasn’t because I was captured by the butler but it occurred when I met Governor Elaine Marley. I knew we were meant to be from the second I saw her. She knew too, even if she did call me names and out rightly hate me. I could tell though, she totally was into me. She let me go but her butler who had caught me decided to dispose of me and throw me in the sea with the idol tied to may leg weighing me down. However, I, the might Guybrush Threepwood, can hold my breath for ten minutes so this was just a minor set back. By tying the idol to me he just guaranteed that my second task was now complete.
My final task was stealing finding the lost treasure of Mêlée Island. After getting lost in the woods I found the giant “X” on the ground. Using the shovel I had pocketed earlier I began to dig. Many hours later I managed to find reach the treasure which turned out to be a T-shirt saying that I had found the treasure. I had completed the task and could now attempt to save the gorgeous Elaine Marley who had been kidnapped, while I was underwater, by the evil-ghost-pirate LeChuck who had been in love with Elaine from before he was dead.
Not knowing what to do, I went back to the Voodoo Lady who told me about the famed Monkey Island. I managed to get a crew and buy a ship from an eccentric salesman named Stan. I didn’t know what to pay attention to his incoherent speech or his non stop over the top gestures. I finally got to Monkey Island after I did all that the Voodoo Lady told me to do. Once on the island, my crew was still being on the ship, I met Herman Toothrot who had been on the island for some time. I decide to go out and explore this famed island. On a hill I found a catapult and I decided to randomly move it just for fun. I move higher up the cliff where I spotted a rock that was close to the edge for even more fun I pushed it off to the ledge below where the catapult was. What I didn’t expect to see was my ship sink due to my previous actions…. I hoped my crew was all right. Realizing I should leave the scene of the crime I once again set off to explore. I ended up in a village where I saw some bananas, I took them. I was immediately captured by the Cannibals of Monkey Island, who would have been far more terrifying if they didn’t wear such strange masks. Once I escaped, I made my way to the Great Monkey Head that the Cannibals worship. I noticed an idol that was made by the cannibal Lemonhead, I don’t know why but there is just something about that guy that I just couldn’t hate.
I managed to unlock the Great Monkey Head with a key that resembled a giant cotton swab. Inserting it into the Great Monkey Head’s ear I realized that a cleaning was long overdue. The opening led me to catacombs that would lead me to LeChuck’s ship, but getting lost was far too easy, I needed help. I went back to the cannibals and talked to them for a bit. They gave me the head of a navigator that had a necklace of eyeballs that would make me invisible to LeChuck’s ghoulish crew.
I made it to the ship and did what my non-cannibalistic cannibal friends told me to do. However LeChuck decided to marry my dear Elaine back at Mêlée Island. It was here that I come face-to-face, sort of, with the evil ghost pirate. I pretty much got my but kicked all over the island until I end up at Stan’s boat shop once again. Scared to the bone I shook a bottle of root beer I had found and used it on LeChuck. Words can not describe my shock and horror as I saw him dissolve into a puddle at my feet. Who would have guessed that root beer was the only way to get rid of ghost?
At last it was over, Elaine could now stop worrying about LeChuck’s beyond the grave love for her and go back to being Governor, and think of your truly of course. I on the other hand had just defeated the most terrifying pirate to ever roam the seas, both while he was living and dead. I was officially a pirate in my mind and could roam free and do what any other pirate would do. That’s right I was going to look for the legendary treasure of Big Whoop.
Now that I knew what to I decided to go around town and see what I could get to help me on my quests. While doing this I entered a strange building with many strange and probably unsanitary things hanging from the walls and ceiling. That’s when I saw it just sitting there; I could help but to take it. Besides how often do you get to see a real rubber chicken with a pulley in the middle? Walking in a little further a met a strange lady who knew exactly who I was and what I needed to know. This is how I met the Voodoo Lady. Don’t let her name fool you she’s actually quite nice and helps me out when ever I’m in a bind.
After exploring the town some more and pocketing everything that would fit into my pants pocket, including a full size shovel and the sword I would use in training, I decided I should start my trails. I went to the great Captain Smirk who taught me the basics of sword fighting. However my task was to master this skill and the only way I could do that was to study under the Sword Master Carla. From her I learned the secret behind winning against pirates in a duel. That secret that I had to master was insults. That’s right in order to beat my teacher of five minutes I had to out wit her in a battle of insult sword fighting. I knew at this moment that I had a long and difficult road ahead of me. I had to fight many wandering pirates to learn enough to survive a battle. Soon I was able to fight with the best of them. “You fight like a dairy farmer” My swashbuckling opponent would exclaim. “How appropriate. You fight like a cow” I would retort without hesitation. With a new arsenal of wit on my side I was able to defeat Carla and move on to my next task.
I made my way to the Governor’s mansion to steal the requested idol when yet again I was stopped in my tracks with awe. Strangely it wasn’t because I was captured by the butler but it occurred when I met Governor Elaine Marley. I knew we were meant to be from the second I saw her. She knew too, even if she did call me names and out rightly hate me. I could tell though, she totally was into me. She let me go but her butler who had caught me decided to dispose of me and throw me in the sea with the idol tied to may leg weighing me down. However, I, the might Guybrush Threepwood, can hold my breath for ten minutes so this was just a minor set back. By tying the idol to me he just guaranteed that my second task was now complete.
My final task was stealing finding the lost treasure of Mêlée Island. After getting lost in the woods I found the giant “X” on the ground. Using the shovel I had pocketed earlier I began to dig. Many hours later I managed to find reach the treasure which turned out to be a T-shirt saying that I had found the treasure. I had completed the task and could now attempt to save the gorgeous Elaine Marley who had been kidnapped, while I was underwater, by the evil-ghost-pirate LeChuck who had been in love with Elaine from before he was dead.
Not knowing what to do, I went back to the Voodoo Lady who told me about the famed Monkey Island. I managed to get a crew and buy a ship from an eccentric salesman named Stan. I didn’t know what to pay attention to his incoherent speech or his non stop over the top gestures. I finally got to Monkey Island after I did all that the Voodoo Lady told me to do. Once on the island, my crew was still being on the ship, I met Herman Toothrot who had been on the island for some time. I decide to go out and explore this famed island. On a hill I found a catapult and I decided to randomly move it just for fun. I move higher up the cliff where I spotted a rock that was close to the edge for even more fun I pushed it off to the ledge below where the catapult was. What I didn’t expect to see was my ship sink due to my previous actions…. I hoped my crew was all right. Realizing I should leave the scene of the crime I once again set off to explore. I ended up in a village where I saw some bananas, I took them. I was immediately captured by the Cannibals of Monkey Island, who would have been far more terrifying if they didn’t wear such strange masks. Once I escaped, I made my way to the Great Monkey Head that the Cannibals worship. I noticed an idol that was made by the cannibal Lemonhead, I don’t know why but there is just something about that guy that I just couldn’t hate.
I managed to unlock the Great Monkey Head with a key that resembled a giant cotton swab. Inserting it into the Great Monkey Head’s ear I realized that a cleaning was long overdue. The opening led me to catacombs that would lead me to LeChuck’s ship, but getting lost was far too easy, I needed help. I went back to the cannibals and talked to them for a bit. They gave me the head of a navigator that had a necklace of eyeballs that would make me invisible to LeChuck’s ghoulish crew.
I made it to the ship and did what my non-cannibalistic cannibal friends told me to do. However LeChuck decided to marry my dear Elaine back at Mêlée Island. It was here that I come face-to-face, sort of, with the evil ghost pirate. I pretty much got my but kicked all over the island until I end up at Stan’s boat shop once again. Scared to the bone I shook a bottle of root beer I had found and used it on LeChuck. Words can not describe my shock and horror as I saw him dissolve into a puddle at my feet. Who would have guessed that root beer was the only way to get rid of ghost?
At last it was over, Elaine could now stop worrying about LeChuck’s beyond the grave love for her and go back to being Governor, and think of your truly of course. I on the other hand had just defeated the most terrifying pirate to ever roam the seas, both while he was living and dead. I was officially a pirate in my mind and could roam free and do what any other pirate would do. That’s right I was going to look for the legendary treasure of Big Whoop.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Genres and a big heaping bowl of I don't care
When you look at a videogame do you pay attention to the genre that it belongs to? If so do you think that it is accurate? Does it even matter? With game developers expanding and trying new ideas it is not surprising that genres would be crossed more often than not. When this is the case it is the advertising teams job to say what the game should be categorized under, but how should they do this?
They could be like Mark J. P. Wolf and say that genres should “take into consideration the dominant characteristics of the interactive experience and the games’ goals and objectives, and the nature of the game’s player-character and player controls” in his 6th chapter of Genre an the Video Game. By doing it Wolf’s way all that needs to be done is figure out which genre is dominant and go from there. What happens though if, lets say, the two genres in the game are close to or are equal to one another in dominance? According to this theory the advertisers would either have to figure out which one has a more prevalent standing in the game or just try and make a good call by choosing one over the other.
If we ignore Wolf’s ideology then another conclusion can be made, one in which the two, or more, genres are mentioned. By doing it this way the player is able to get a better idea of what is in store for them when they start playing the game. If a game says ‘fantasy adventure’ for example you, the player, know that these two genres will both be important in the game play. Given this simple solution of acknowledging and mentioning the cross of genres is not as devastating or drastic as some companies might think. Gamers are well aware that their games are not going to be solely action or first person shooter, but rather that the genres will mix. If gamers only wanted a genre per game then games would so limited that ideas for them would soon run out and one game would be a carbon copy from the one before it. If this were the case then the game industry would soon go under and that would be the end to videogames. However this is not the case and video gamers are more accepting than some people would give them credit for.
I’m curious as to what other people think about the topic. Is the videogame industry doing the right thing in trying to categorize games under only one genre? Or should they accept that games will cross genres?
They could be like Mark J. P. Wolf and say that genres should “take into consideration the dominant characteristics of the interactive experience and the games’ goals and objectives, and the nature of the game’s player-character and player controls” in his 6th chapter of Genre an the Video Game. By doing it Wolf’s way all that needs to be done is figure out which genre is dominant and go from there. What happens though if, lets say, the two genres in the game are close to or are equal to one another in dominance? According to this theory the advertisers would either have to figure out which one has a more prevalent standing in the game or just try and make a good call by choosing one over the other.
If we ignore Wolf’s ideology then another conclusion can be made, one in which the two, or more, genres are mentioned. By doing it this way the player is able to get a better idea of what is in store for them when they start playing the game. If a game says ‘fantasy adventure’ for example you, the player, know that these two genres will both be important in the game play. Given this simple solution of acknowledging and mentioning the cross of genres is not as devastating or drastic as some companies might think. Gamers are well aware that their games are not going to be solely action or first person shooter, but rather that the genres will mix. If gamers only wanted a genre per game then games would so limited that ideas for them would soon run out and one game would be a carbon copy from the one before it. If this were the case then the game industry would soon go under and that would be the end to videogames. However this is not the case and video gamers are more accepting than some people would give them credit for.
I’m curious as to what other people think about the topic. Is the videogame industry doing the right thing in trying to categorize games under only one genre? Or should they accept that games will cross genres?
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Blogs and Magazines
Gaming Blogs and magazines are both popular ways in which the average gamer can get the information they need to know before they decide to purchase a game or not. However these to forms of media, while trying to tell readers the same basic thing, vary on many different levels. Mind you I do not mean to say that one is better than the other or anything like that. I simply wish to explore how both forms of media are structured to handle the same topic, videogames.
Blogs for example tend to lean toward the author reviewing his or her experience of a game. This is not to say that some magazines don’t do the same, but that blogs seem to do this more. These blogs can be rather interesting because you get to see how other players viewed and analyzed the game. The most interesting tend to be from people playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG) since they all have their own unique experiences to recount. While blogs can give their readers hours of reading material as well as a chance for said readers to leave comments about the blog they just read, blogs are not without their problems. The main problem I find with them in general is the way they are written. In Iroquois Pliskin’s Games Journalism Needs Games Journalists not only does she seem to wander from the original topic she also writes in a way that may not be enjoyable for the occasional reader. In this case she not only uses words that would not be in the average person’s vocabulary but she often seems to rant about what ever comes to mind. This latter seems to be a common problem which leads to the main topic of the piece either being briefly touched on or forgotten all together. I believe this is due to the unlimited amount of space they have to write their blogs.
In magazine articles the reader does not always get the in depth look of the game that they want. This is due to the limited space each member of the writing staff of the magazine gets for his or her article. The advantages of this however is that they often get to the point that they are trying to make and they do not stray from said point, and a reader can usually follow them. The disadvantage is that they may not get to say everything about the game they wanted to so important information may be left out of their article.
Since both forms of information can be resourceful it really matters on the reader what he or she wishes to know and which media is preferred.
Blogs for example tend to lean toward the author reviewing his or her experience of a game. This is not to say that some magazines don’t do the same, but that blogs seem to do this more. These blogs can be rather interesting because you get to see how other players viewed and analyzed the game. The most interesting tend to be from people playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG) since they all have their own unique experiences to recount. While blogs can give their readers hours of reading material as well as a chance for said readers to leave comments about the blog they just read, blogs are not without their problems. The main problem I find with them in general is the way they are written. In Iroquois Pliskin’s Games Journalism Needs Games Journalists not only does she seem to wander from the original topic she also writes in a way that may not be enjoyable for the occasional reader. In this case she not only uses words that would not be in the average person’s vocabulary but she often seems to rant about what ever comes to mind. This latter seems to be a common problem which leads to the main topic of the piece either being briefly touched on or forgotten all together. I believe this is due to the unlimited amount of space they have to write their blogs.
In magazine articles the reader does not always get the in depth look of the game that they want. This is due to the limited space each member of the writing staff of the magazine gets for his or her article. The advantages of this however is that they often get to the point that they are trying to make and they do not stray from said point, and a reader can usually follow them. The disadvantage is that they may not get to say everything about the game they wanted to so important information may be left out of their article.
Since both forms of information can be resourceful it really matters on the reader what he or she wishes to know and which media is preferred.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Videogames and how they are art
Videogames are a fairly young medium by today’s standards, so when someone compares them to the older and more established ones a few heads usually turn. To call videogames a form of art one must justify an explanation. What part of the videogame is considered art; the graphics, the story, the character development, the game play? To simply say that games are a form of art leaves to vague of a definition, so to try and fix this I will try to explain how the different parts of the game all come together to achieve the goal of being called art.
First off the bat, are the graphics. Since videogames have come into being their graphics have improved by leaps and bounds. This suggests however that they only became art once the graphic reached a certain undetermined level. Does that mean though that early game graphics from for example were not art? No, that is not the case. By the technology that we have presently and other early games are rather lacking in the eye candy department. That doesn’t mean society can simply dismiss them though. In comparison it would be like saying that painting a portrait is no longer art because we can simply take a picture of the person. With advances in technology as we move toward the future humans must remember to treasure the effort it took to get to where they currently are. After all if no one painted portraits or tried to capture on canvas or paper what they saw in the first place, then cameras may never have been invented. The same can be said for early games. They didn’t have the tools we have today but if game developers didn’t try then there is no logical reason we would have what we do today.
Even with the best graphics the industry has to offer, without a story there would be far fewer games in the world. A majority of videogames have at least some basic story behind them after all even fighting games have a Story Mode. If a story has the ability where it can draw you in and make you feel like you are a part of it, or it makes you want to keep playing then its art. Art isn’t just about its appearance; it also deals with how it makes its viewers feel.
Classic literature is art because it makes the readers feel for the characters (whether its love or hate depends on the individual and the literature)and brings them into the story.Videogames that have a good story do the same. If a character dies and I don’t mean the kind where you are in battle and can just heal them or resurrect them, but actually dies in the story and you feel sorrow, or in some cases joy, for the death then I would say its art. It is getting an emotional reaction from the player meaning it has done its job of pulling in said player.
In order to get an emotional reaction from the players then the developers have to make a character that would invoke emotions. Due to these conditions character development can be an extremely tricky task. First you have to get the basics of the character down, and you have to make sure that they are believable or it’s an ultimate fail on the developers’ part.
When developing the characters it is important that the theme of the story is kept, for example a highly optimistic happy go lucky house wife for a main character would not work in a post apocalyptic world, then again neither would some one who just mopes about. To get not only the human aspects down but also one where players would enjoy being that character is not only difficult but also worth it. Nobody likes a whining and spineless main character so to get a likable main character is mandatory.
Ah the game play how easily it can make or break a game.
It doesn’t matter how good a game’s story line or graphics are, if the game play sucks then people will not play it. The game play is the only control that the player has in the game, so if the game isn’t user friendly there is a high chance that people will stop playing less than an hour in and sell the game.
For a game to prosper in this respect then they have to have a system that is easy to understand yet still gives the player a challenge. To capture the attention of a player yet challenge them is a difficult task that invites creators to give various difficulties to a game.
If all of these work together than it is in my opinion that a game can rightfully be called art. The only problem here is that everyone will have their own experience with a game and therefore creating their own opinions. If using math terms then the unknown variable which can change the whole outcome of the answer would inevitably be the individual gamer.
First off the bat, are the graphics. Since videogames have come into being their graphics have improved by leaps and bounds. This suggests however that they only became art once the graphic reached a certain undetermined level. Does that mean though that early game graphics from for example were not art? No, that is not the case. By the technology that we have presently and other early games are rather lacking in the eye candy department. That doesn’t mean society can simply dismiss them though. In comparison it would be like saying that painting a portrait is no longer art because we can simply take a picture of the person. With advances in technology as we move toward the future humans must remember to treasure the effort it took to get to where they currently are. After all if no one painted portraits or tried to capture on canvas or paper what they saw in the first place, then cameras may never have been invented. The same can be said for early games. They didn’t have the tools we have today but if game developers didn’t try then there is no logical reason we would have what we do today.
Even with the best graphics the industry has to offer, without a story there would be far fewer games in the world. A majority of videogames have at least some basic story behind them after all even fighting games have a Story Mode. If a story has the ability where it can draw you in and make you feel like you are a part of it, or it makes you want to keep playing then its art. Art isn’t just about its appearance; it also deals with how it makes its viewers feel.
Classic literature is art because it makes the readers feel for the characters (whether its love or hate depends on the individual and the literature)and brings them into the story.Videogames that have a good story do the same. If a character dies and I don’t mean the kind where you are in battle and can just heal them or resurrect them, but actually dies in the story and you feel sorrow, or in some cases joy, for the death then I would say its art. It is getting an emotional reaction from the player meaning it has done its job of pulling in said player.
In order to get an emotional reaction from the players then the developers have to make a character that would invoke emotions. Due to these conditions character development can be an extremely tricky task. First you have to get the basics of the character down, and you have to make sure that they are believable or it’s an ultimate fail on the developers’ part.
When developing the characters it is important that the theme of the story is kept, for example a highly optimistic happy go lucky house wife for a main character would not work in a post apocalyptic world, then again neither would some one who just mopes about. To get not only the human aspects down but also one where players would enjoy being that character is not only difficult but also worth it. Nobody likes a whining and spineless main character so to get a likable main character is mandatory.
Ah the game play how easily it can make or break a game.
It doesn’t matter how good a game’s story line or graphics are, if the game play sucks then people will not play it. The game play is the only control that the player has in the game, so if the game isn’t user friendly there is a high chance that people will stop playing less than an hour in and sell the game.
For a game to prosper in this respect then they have to have a system that is easy to understand yet still gives the player a challenge. To capture the attention of a player yet challenge them is a difficult task that invites creators to give various difficulties to a game.
If all of these work together than it is in my opinion that a game can rightfully be called art. The only problem here is that everyone will have their own experience with a game and therefore creating their own opinions. If using math terms then the unknown variable which can change the whole outcome of the answer would inevitably be the individual gamer.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Which side do you take?
When you play videogames do you make the character act like you would in the given situation or do you make them do the complete opposite? The type of games that give you a list of actions you can take or phrases that you can say has a certain allure to them that can just draw a person in. This is perhaps due to the 3 dimensional feel that the game gives the character. Not only can you walk around, buy stuff, and do missions as the character but you can determine what that character is thinking. While its fun to execute button combos to defeat your enemy it just isn’t the same as when you get to make the character you’re controlling say or do what you would, or do the exact opposite.
Which ever view you take in this conversation it tends to make one re-evaluate their view of their being. Let just say that for argument’s sake that you always make your character do what you would do. This tactic can be rather fun because in a way you are incorporating yourself into the game. Now when you’re playing the game take a break and think about the things that you just made your character do and compare it to yourself. At times you will realize that you where pretty much the person you thought you were all along, but I’m sure that there are some events that transpired that even surprised you. These things of course can be either good or bad. You may find that you have no interest in the people around you and would rather just get whatever task before you done taking out anyone that tries to gets in our way. On the other hand you may find that you’re the bleeding heart type that can’t say no to someone who sends you on a quest (no matter how ridiculous it is).
Making the character become a polar opposite of you can also be entertaining, if nothing else than difficult. This tactic gives you the chance to see what you would be like if you were a total dick or a goody-to-shoes without the annoying consequences of your actions. It also gives you a chance to play your favorite games again, this time adding some verity to the mix. If you’re not used to playing this way you might find yourself struggling to do, from your perspective, the wrong thing.
Either way you look at this situation it’s fun to give the character a personality and some depth to their character.
Which ever view you take in this conversation it tends to make one re-evaluate their view of their being. Let just say that for argument’s sake that you always make your character do what you would do. This tactic can be rather fun because in a way you are incorporating yourself into the game. Now when you’re playing the game take a break and think about the things that you just made your character do and compare it to yourself. At times you will realize that you where pretty much the person you thought you were all along, but I’m sure that there are some events that transpired that even surprised you. These things of course can be either good or bad. You may find that you have no interest in the people around you and would rather just get whatever task before you done taking out anyone that tries to gets in our way. On the other hand you may find that you’re the bleeding heart type that can’t say no to someone who sends you on a quest (no matter how ridiculous it is).
Making the character become a polar opposite of you can also be entertaining, if nothing else than difficult. This tactic gives you the chance to see what you would be like if you were a total dick or a goody-to-shoes without the annoying consequences of your actions. It also gives you a chance to play your favorite games again, this time adding some verity to the mix. If you’re not used to playing this way you might find yourself struggling to do, from your perspective, the wrong thing.
Either way you look at this situation it’s fun to give the character a personality and some depth to their character.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Dynasty Warriors Gundam 2
Have you ever wanted to pilot a mecha from your favorite Gundam series, while destroying anyone and anything that gets in your way? Well Koei in co-operation with Namco Bandai Game and Sunrise are here to grant your wish once again with Dynasty Warriors Gundam 2! O.K. enough of the advertising, but seriously I would highly recommend this game for any Gundam fan that might be reading this.
As you start the game off in Official Mode you are able to play as one of four playable characters, more become unlocked as the game continues. Deciding to go old school I went with the very first Gundam pilot, Amuro Ray in all his 1979 glory. Once your pilot is chosen, he or she will say some odd little catch phrase that allows you to get an idea of the inner workings of your character’s personality. Now you begin to follow the anime’s original storyline that your character is from. If you are new to the Gundam universe fear not, you are given the chance to read a brief synapses of the character and of the events that lead to, and are occurring in the war you will soon be joining. Once you have chosen the first mission the narrator will fill you in on how, in this case, Amuro acquired and began piloting Gundam. Once this is done other characters from the series will proceed to talk to you, filling in more of the story for you the player. After certain key missions are completed more of the story line will be revealed, eventually giving you the basic plot of the anime from your character’s perspective. Then again if you don’t care about any of the story or already know it you can skip it all and go straight to the fighting! Huzzah fighting! Keep in mind however that when you first go into your mission to make sure you go into Player Settings and then to Action Info check your mech’s controls. Different mechs have different controls and abilities so failing to check its moves may cause your death once more mobile suits are acquired and played. For example the mass produced models can only do a simple hit combos, shoot, and use a very lame SP (special) Attacks. The Gundams on the other hand can combo their regular hitting combos with a gun or sword attack, and have a much more effect and cooler looking SP Attack.
Once you’re done with Official Mode you can continue to play as your character in Mission Mode. In this mode over 100 new missions will be available for you to play, allowing you to gather more parts for not only our own mech but also for mass produced units and other Gundams. When you gathered all of the pieces of these units you’ll be able to use them in battle and complete missions where only that suit can be used. A perk that fans will appreciate is the ability to not only ally with and or make enemies of pilots from other series, but you also get to gain the license to pilot their Gundams.
The controls for fighting are hard to get the hang of at first, and you’ll probably die and be confused the first few times you play. Once you get over this you’ll find yourself being able to defeat almost enemy that comes your way. The exception is Mobile Armors who will be your worst enemies. These oversized mobile suits have a wider range of attacks and do at least twice as much damage to you as you do to them. The creators of this game foresaw your impending doom and were considerate enough to give you a briefing on how to attack the enemy just before your first fight, in hopes that you might win. However this still takes a bit of effort on your part, and oh yes your in an enclosed field so you can’t escape and health is not always on hand and your allies usually cause more trouble then their worth… sigh. Yet again the creators help you out by allowing you to Interim Save as many times during battle as you want. The movements of your suit are broad and mechanic as would be expected from fighting robots. Then again so are everyone else’s movements so you are not a disadvantage by any means.
The graphics for this game vary depending on what you are doing. If you’re dealing with the characters then you’re going to be dealing with their original anime format allowing you to tell the older series from the newer ones. It’s like comparing the original Speed Racer from the 1960s to something you see now, you can tell the difference in quality. When you deal with the fighting portion of the game the mechs and battlefield are what you would expect to see with regular game graphics. The best graphics occur when watching the cut scenes, but that’s to be expected as well.
Overall this game is a lot of fun and I’m glad I bought it. It practically pays for itself since you can clock over 70 hours on just one character between Official and Mission Mode. I can’t see giving this game anything but 8 out of 10.
As you start the game off in Official Mode you are able to play as one of four playable characters, more become unlocked as the game continues. Deciding to go old school I went with the very first Gundam pilot, Amuro Ray in all his 1979 glory. Once your pilot is chosen, he or she will say some odd little catch phrase that allows you to get an idea of the inner workings of your character’s personality. Now you begin to follow the anime’s original storyline that your character is from. If you are new to the Gundam universe fear not, you are given the chance to read a brief synapses of the character and of the events that lead to, and are occurring in the war you will soon be joining. Once you have chosen the first mission the narrator will fill you in on how, in this case, Amuro acquired and began piloting Gundam. Once this is done other characters from the series will proceed to talk to you, filling in more of the story for you the player. After certain key missions are completed more of the story line will be revealed, eventually giving you the basic plot of the anime from your character’s perspective. Then again if you don’t care about any of the story or already know it you can skip it all and go straight to the fighting! Huzzah fighting! Keep in mind however that when you first go into your mission to make sure you go into Player Settings and then to Action Info check your mech’s controls. Different mechs have different controls and abilities so failing to check its moves may cause your death once more mobile suits are acquired and played. For example the mass produced models can only do a simple hit combos, shoot, and use a very lame SP (special) Attacks. The Gundams on the other hand can combo their regular hitting combos with a gun or sword attack, and have a much more effect and cooler looking SP Attack.
Once you’re done with Official Mode you can continue to play as your character in Mission Mode. In this mode over 100 new missions will be available for you to play, allowing you to gather more parts for not only our own mech but also for mass produced units and other Gundams. When you gathered all of the pieces of these units you’ll be able to use them in battle and complete missions where only that suit can be used. A perk that fans will appreciate is the ability to not only ally with and or make enemies of pilots from other series, but you also get to gain the license to pilot their Gundams.
The controls for fighting are hard to get the hang of at first, and you’ll probably die and be confused the first few times you play. Once you get over this you’ll find yourself being able to defeat almost enemy that comes your way. The exception is Mobile Armors who will be your worst enemies. These oversized mobile suits have a wider range of attacks and do at least twice as much damage to you as you do to them. The creators of this game foresaw your impending doom and were considerate enough to give you a briefing on how to attack the enemy just before your first fight, in hopes that you might win. However this still takes a bit of effort on your part, and oh yes your in an enclosed field so you can’t escape and health is not always on hand and your allies usually cause more trouble then their worth… sigh. Yet again the creators help you out by allowing you to Interim Save as many times during battle as you want. The movements of your suit are broad and mechanic as would be expected from fighting robots. Then again so are everyone else’s movements so you are not a disadvantage by any means.
The graphics for this game vary depending on what you are doing. If you’re dealing with the characters then you’re going to be dealing with their original anime format allowing you to tell the older series from the newer ones. It’s like comparing the original Speed Racer from the 1960s to something you see now, you can tell the difference in quality. When you deal with the fighting portion of the game the mechs and battlefield are what you would expect to see with regular game graphics. The best graphics occur when watching the cut scenes, but that’s to be expected as well.
Overall this game is a lot of fun and I’m glad I bought it. It practically pays for itself since you can clock over 70 hours on just one character between Official and Mission Mode. I can’t see giving this game anything but 8 out of 10.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Kingdom Hearts
Ah the joys of Kingdom Hearts 358/2 days. This game is art, without a doubt. It has the pretty graphics, music, and heck it even has character development from the start! YAY for Square Enix and Disney.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Videogames and art in the public eye
Are videogames a form of art? According to The American Heritage College dic-tion-ary-y Third Edition the first definition of art given is the “Human effort to imitate, supplement, alter, or counteract the work of nature”. According to this definition videogames are in fact considered art. The end…… hmm that’s a rather boring argument, let’s spice things up a bit.
The dictionary term of art does say that videogames fit the description, but then again so would many other things. When a person mentions the word art to you what is the first thing that pops into your head? Is it a painting, a photograph, a sculpture, or something else that might be found in an art museum? If you thought of any of these things then your train of thought tends to rule out videogames from fitting into the category. Worry not though fan of gaming this doesn’t mean that you have betrayed your beloved videogames. It would actually be quite strange if videogames were the first thing that came to mind at the mention of the word art. Thankfully the world we live in doesn’t exist in extremes such as good and evil, ying and yang, and black and white. Rather it resides in the realism of the hazy gray middle ground.
When I say middle ground I mean that both you and the dictionary may be correct on this subject. Videogames are still a relatively young form of entertainment, and only in the past decade have they been able to even remotely “imitate…..nature”. Couple this with the fact that this media is still largely looked down upon by the majority non-gamer community it’s not all that hard to understand why one would lean toward the answer of no.
The question of videogames being art is somewhat unfair and dependent on the viewer. Overall I think it safe to say that they are not yet considered art. This doesn’t mean that once the industry gets older that the same will be true. It is obvious to gamers that a lot of work goes into the making of these games but art is really in the eye of the beholder. There are some abstract paintings that are simply blotches of paint on canvas and its considered art, yet in today’s time we know of great artists of the past that lived and died poor because their work wasn’t to the people’s tastes. So whether videogames are a public form of art or not depends on the public, but on a personal level it all depends on you.
The dictionary term of art does say that videogames fit the description, but then again so would many other things. When a person mentions the word art to you what is the first thing that pops into your head? Is it a painting, a photograph, a sculpture, or something else that might be found in an art museum? If you thought of any of these things then your train of thought tends to rule out videogames from fitting into the category. Worry not though fan of gaming this doesn’t mean that you have betrayed your beloved videogames. It would actually be quite strange if videogames were the first thing that came to mind at the mention of the word art. Thankfully the world we live in doesn’t exist in extremes such as good and evil, ying and yang, and black and white. Rather it resides in the realism of the hazy gray middle ground.
When I say middle ground I mean that both you and the dictionary may be correct on this subject. Videogames are still a relatively young form of entertainment, and only in the past decade have they been able to even remotely “imitate…..nature”. Couple this with the fact that this media is still largely looked down upon by the majority non-gamer community it’s not all that hard to understand why one would lean toward the answer of no.
The question of videogames being art is somewhat unfair and dependent on the viewer. Overall I think it safe to say that they are not yet considered art. This doesn’t mean that once the industry gets older that the same will be true. It is obvious to gamers that a lot of work goes into the making of these games but art is really in the eye of the beholder. There are some abstract paintings that are simply blotches of paint on canvas and its considered art, yet in today’s time we know of great artists of the past that lived and died poor because their work wasn’t to the people’s tastes. So whether videogames are a public form of art or not depends on the public, but on a personal level it all depends on you.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
The scariest people on earth...fanboys and fangirls
Undoubtedly some of the most interesting,whether they be funny or scary, reviews come not from the reviewer, but rather the fanboys and fangirls that reply to the reviews. Amusingly these fans tend to take reviews with the utmost seriousness and will not stand for any injustice against one of their beloved games. They will however praise the critic if they actually agree with their review. As G4's Adam Sessler brings to his viewers' attention, a majority of the comments left are from fans that tend to disagree with what was said on the show. It seems odd however that most of the comments when Killzone 2 was reviewed had to deal not with fans of the game, but rather those of the console. It appears that Xbox owners cant stand a good review about a PlayStation 3 game and assuming vice versa. Its so strange that I'm honestly perplexed by the whole situation. I could understand if your favorite game was rated poorly and just totally bashed into the ground that you would be upset, but seriously to be upset because a game that wasn't on your system got a high rank? Seriously who cares? Are these fans really that obsessed and dedicated to Microsoft or Sony? Are they jealous because it looks like a good game but upsets because it's not for their system? It appears that I just cant wrap my mind around the logic behind these fanboys and girls.
O.K. I admit that I'm pretty bummed when a game I was looking forward to and wanted to buy isn't for a system that I have, but I don't take it out on the console or game reviewer. Generally if its a good game a friend or sibling will buy it and I can play it then. I don't care what system its on as long as I get a chance to play it. I am also not one of those people that thinks, as Ben Kucher says in his Killzone 2 review, "there is a secret world where Microsoft
and Sony agents visit different gaming writers, paying them to love
some games and hate others". It makes me want laugh and to ask these fans if they seriously think that its all a conspiracy between the game companies. Actually can anyone tell me or explain to me in any amount of detail what these fanboys and fangirls are thinking?
O.K. I admit that I'm pretty bummed when a game I was looking forward to and wanted to buy isn't for a system that I have, but I don't take it out on the console or game reviewer. Generally if its a good game a friend or sibling will buy it and I can play it then. I don't care what system its on as long as I get a chance to play it. I am also not one of those people that thinks, as Ben Kucher says in his Killzone 2 review, "there is a secret world where Microsoft
and Sony agents visit different gaming writers, paying them to love
some games and hate others". It makes me want laugh and to ask these fans if they seriously think that its all a conspiracy between the game companies. Actually can anyone tell me or explain to me in any amount of detail what these fanboys and fangirls are thinking?
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Game reviews and the work that goes into them
Game critiquing seems to be a trickier subject than I first anticipated. Just like with movie or books, a person will read reviews from other people that have, in this case played the videogame, to see if the item in question is worth spending money on. That seems like a simple enough concept. However not everyone agrees with how the critiques go about their reviews, thus causing the problems.
Some game critics simply give you a quick synopsis of the overall game so you can decide on or own if it sounds good or not. These reviews are fairly simple and usually just expand what would be on the back of the game’s case. While other critics give you a review of the game. They play it, keep track of what they did and did not like, then they either post it on a blog or send it to the magazine they’re writing for. Depending on the critic he/she will probably focus on some aspects of the game over others. This can cause some problems because it may over look important pros or cons to the game.
It’s understandable that not everyone is going to agree with what the review says, after all everyone has and is entitled to their own opinion. What boggles my mind is that some readers will go out of their way to complain about what they have just read. The readers should be well aware when they begin to read that it is an article based on someone else’s point of view, and that it may not parallel their own. I suppose I understand to a point because when I read a game review and don’t agree with the writer I think ‘How dare they say that! That game was awesome!’, but I never saw the point of posting a blog on how the person was wrong. Generally once I think about the review for a couple minutes I realize that the person is entitled to their own opinion and maybe there is some truth to what they say. Then again this could be due to years of my older siblings criticizing the various things I liked growing up.
Another problem that seems to exist is the current method of scoring videogames in reviews. I’m sure most people are well aware that there is the basic scale of 1 through 10. Many people find this system to be flawed. To some avail they’re right. Not everyone’s idea of a rate 5 game is the same. After all who decides what average is? Once again however I can’t agree with these people. Reviews after all are an attempt to tell the masses what critic thought of something and generally they want a basic grade for the game. Thus the 1 through 10 scale is in use. The reader doesn’t have to take this score at face value, but they should consider that this is for the overall game. This means: graphics, plot, character(s), overall development, game play, camera angles, etc. So even if this game was “epically awesome” the fact that the camera angles totally sucked and made you die 25% of the time might lower the grade. Another thing the reader has to keep in mind is that the writer may be limited to a certain amount of space or words so they may not be able to say everything about the game that they want to.
In conclusion I think that people need to stop trashing every little thing they read and take into account all the work that goes on behind the scenes just so they, the readers, can read a game review.
Some game critics simply give you a quick synopsis of the overall game so you can decide on or own if it sounds good or not. These reviews are fairly simple and usually just expand what would be on the back of the game’s case. While other critics give you a review of the game. They play it, keep track of what they did and did not like, then they either post it on a blog or send it to the magazine they’re writing for. Depending on the critic he/she will probably focus on some aspects of the game over others. This can cause some problems because it may over look important pros or cons to the game.
It’s understandable that not everyone is going to agree with what the review says, after all everyone has and is entitled to their own opinion. What boggles my mind is that some readers will go out of their way to complain about what they have just read. The readers should be well aware when they begin to read that it is an article based on someone else’s point of view, and that it may not parallel their own. I suppose I understand to a point because when I read a game review and don’t agree with the writer I think ‘How dare they say that! That game was awesome!’, but I never saw the point of posting a blog on how the person was wrong. Generally once I think about the review for a couple minutes I realize that the person is entitled to their own opinion and maybe there is some truth to what they say. Then again this could be due to years of my older siblings criticizing the various things I liked growing up.
Another problem that seems to exist is the current method of scoring videogames in reviews. I’m sure most people are well aware that there is the basic scale of 1 through 10. Many people find this system to be flawed. To some avail they’re right. Not everyone’s idea of a rate 5 game is the same. After all who decides what average is? Once again however I can’t agree with these people. Reviews after all are an attempt to tell the masses what critic thought of something and generally they want a basic grade for the game. Thus the 1 through 10 scale is in use. The reader doesn’t have to take this score at face value, but they should consider that this is for the overall game. This means: graphics, plot, character(s), overall development, game play, camera angles, etc. So even if this game was “epically awesome” the fact that the camera angles totally sucked and made you die 25% of the time might lower the grade. Another thing the reader has to keep in mind is that the writer may be limited to a certain amount of space or words so they may not be able to say everything about the game that they want to.
In conclusion I think that people need to stop trashing every little thing they read and take into account all the work that goes on behind the scenes just so they, the readers, can read a game review.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Articulation
On page 14 in An Introduction to Game Studies Laura Ermi and Frans Mayra state that "a player is rarely able to verbalize very well the exact quality of game play experience". I think that with a little thought we can figure it out and verbalize it. Good videogames are like movies and books: they tell a story, make one think, and have engaging characters. With a basis such as this people outside the world of gaming can begin to understand and relate to those who do play videogames.
In books or movies, you may be drawn in by likable characters or engaging tales, but you have no control over the events that conspire; you are just an observer. Gaming gives you the ability to be part of the story. In a complex game where you play as a character, you are, in a sense, that character. You control where your character goes, who they interact with, and even what they do in battle. In addition to playing this interactive story, you are also able to do things you would likely not be able to do in real life. After all, it is probably safe to say that you're not going to go into a dungeon to fight some monsters, use magic spells, or have some other amazing adventures or skills. This aspect of being someone you're not can be very appealing. Unlike yelling at some movie or book where the main character is about to do something profoundly stupid and you can't stop them, in videogames you have control. So if you have a feeling that a zombie or some other enemy is on the other side of the door, instead of yelling at the character, you can make sure your weapon is out and go to town. With games you get all the joys of a story but now you get to have some say in it.
On page 15 in the afore mentioned text, Mayra refutes his own argument when he quotes David Sudnow in his description of the game Breakout.
Mayra follows this description with his own explanation of the game's
popularity. If Mayra can explain how and why people like a game with
just a paddle, ball, and bricks, then it should be easy for him explain to non-gamers why people like more in-depth games. Showing that with a little thought a gamer actually could verbalize what in a game drew them to playing it.
In books or movies, you may be drawn in by likable characters or engaging tales, but you have no control over the events that conspire; you are just an observer. Gaming gives you the ability to be part of the story. In a complex game where you play as a character, you are, in a sense, that character. You control where your character goes, who they interact with, and even what they do in battle. In addition to playing this interactive story, you are also able to do things you would likely not be able to do in real life. After all, it is probably safe to say that you're not going to go into a dungeon to fight some monsters, use magic spells, or have some other amazing adventures or skills. This aspect of being someone you're not can be very appealing. Unlike yelling at some movie or book where the main character is about to do something profoundly stupid and you can't stop them, in videogames you have control. So if you have a feeling that a zombie or some other enemy is on the other side of the door, instead of yelling at the character, you can make sure your weapon is out and go to town. With games you get all the joys of a story but now you get to have some say in it.
On page 15 in the afore mentioned text, Mayra refutes his own argument when he quotes David Sudnow in his description of the game Breakout.
Mayra follows this description with his own explanation of the game's
popularity. If Mayra can explain how and why people like a game with
just a paddle, ball, and bricks, then it should be easy for him explain to non-gamers why people like more in-depth games. Showing that with a little thought a gamer actually could verbalize what in a game drew them to playing it.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Late intro
I realized that I never properly introduced myself, so I'm here to fix that.
My name is Jessica Asselin and I've been gaming since before I started kindergarten. I mainly like and play RPGs, but I wont deny a good fighting game to spice things up a bit and to get some stress out. I come from a large family of gamers, excluding my mom who sadly thinks most games are a waste of time and possibly my eldest sister who is married and busy taking care of her kids. Its safe to say that it was my siblings who got me into gaming in the first place. However, since I'm the youngest I got really good at being patient and watching people play videogames. Hmm lets see now I don't think I have a favorite series of games but I know I watched my siblings play a lot of computer games such as Monkey Island, 7th Guest, Final Fantasy VII, and much to my boredom even some DOS games.
While they were busy with computer games that left our Atari 7800 console open. YAY Atari!!
My name is Jessica Asselin and I've been gaming since before I started kindergarten. I mainly like and play RPGs, but I wont deny a good fighting game to spice things up a bit and to get some stress out. I come from a large family of gamers, excluding my mom who sadly thinks most games are a waste of time and possibly my eldest sister who is married and busy taking care of her kids. Its safe to say that it was my siblings who got me into gaming in the first place. However, since I'm the youngest I got really good at being patient and watching people play videogames. Hmm lets see now I don't think I have a favorite series of games but I know I watched my siblings play a lot of computer games such as Monkey Island, 7th Guest, Final Fantasy VII, and much to my boredom even some DOS games.
While they were busy with computer games that left our Atari 7800 console open. YAY Atari!!
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Ch. 1 readings
I never thought I would say that an article about gaming could be so utterly boring. The debate on "video games", "videogames", "digital games" or whatever you want to call them actually amazed me that people could be so stuck on a simple title. I agree that it can be annoying when the writer changes between "videogames" and "digital games" for example but that's just a case of re-reading your paper and deciding which one to stick with. Also, games, like books, have different formats. Books for example come in both hardbacks and paperbacks and we distinguish the two. In my opinion we don’t have to mesh all games into a single category but if you do call it video games, just remember that there can be sub-categories as well. If a game is played on a computer than it should be under the sub-category of "computer game", on a hand held such as Nintendo DS, Sony PSP, ect. then it should be called a "hand held game", and of course console should be "videogames/video games". Another way of looking at this is comparing these sub-categories to different genres.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
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