MyLifetime.com - Serious Gaming for Serious Women

On Monday, I interviewed at Lifetime TV for the internship position Dalia Hierro told us about in her guest lecture a couple weeks ago. To prep for the interview, I went to their gaming website on myLifetime.com, and was surprised to see the amount of games they actually had. There are the usual suspects: matchmaker card games, trivia games on some of their shows, and about nine different kinds of mahjong. What I really didn't expect was actual downloadable games, most of them fantasy adventure. They're free to try, but all are available for purchase for about $20 each. Apparently Lifetime has been building up on their demographic and attracting a lot of female gamers. Their gaming site runs like any other casual gaming website, but they actively promote their downloadable games like no other. Lifetime's online gaming division is relatively new this year and it will be interesting how popular their site becomes within their demographic.

Machinima

My memory of machinima has been one that is dedicated to Counter Strike. Although I haven't particularly gotten into the culture of it myself, it is impressive how expansive it has become across so many titles. From the Sims to Halo to World of Warcraft, even various genres of games can fit into this one overarching theme of combining a cinematic experience to video games.

The article and machinima itself made me think of two things. (1) How the culture of gamers expands far beyond just playing the game itself in the way it was produced/marketed, and (2) how video games are ever increasing their existence as an art form.

As a cultural form, machinima is much like fan art and an expressive route of connecting personally with a video game. It represents video games as a much more immersive medium than many other more traditional forms. Also, it represents a medium that is modifiable and extends itself beyond the scope of its original intent. Machinima therefore makes video games more actively and persistently present/current than other media that might be put to use and tired of quickly.

In fact, machinima is like fan culture on steroids. Just looking at machinima.com you can see that the art itself even gets attention in its own blog, forum, news, and even contests. If fan culture is a way for gamers (or other dedicated media users) to express themselves and participate in the medium, then machinima is an overload of that expression in a realm of its own. That says something significant about not just machinima, but gaming culture as well.

Remix and the Rise of the Amatuer Game Developer

One of the interesting aspects of remix culture (to me) is how it enables people who are not traditionally "content creators" to user pre-existing bodies of work to hurdle their own creations to significance. By using materials of parts of culture which already exists, they can focus on creating meaningful bodies of work, rather than reinventing the wheel.

With the advent of Xbox Live Arcade, and possible the advances in cell phone gaming, creating games is easier than ever. I am also taking an iPhone Programming class in the Computer Science department in which our final project is to create an actual "app" to list on the iPhone appstore over the summer. It has been interesting to see how my fellow peers try to create different type of games, and the most amazing part is how easy it actually is to use these tools to create, real live, commercial viable (reachable) games. In a sense, these predefined toolkits are lower this barrier to entry, and allowing for greater variety of individuals to create something which normal people would actually call "a game."

My question is, if mods, which are re purposing existing game engines are considered "remix culture," can high level APIs from more advanced devices also be considered remix culture?

G4 now plugged into gaming!

The off beat television network G4 has recently launched a new show called Xplay. The show is aired weeknights at 6:30 and 8PM ET. Xplay truly steps into the next generation of TV. The show is dedicated to the video games industry and provides videogame reviews, previews, and news. It is likely that TV executives are wising up to the now broad appeal of the videogame business. Such a strategy only make sense when many major video game titles often outperform sales of Blockbuster movies.

Xplay's game reviews are particularly good as they provide an in depth analysis into the drawbacks of certain videogame titles. For example, a review of Dynasty Warriors Gundam 2, the critic states that one downside of the game is the fact that there is a draw distance of only 20 feet. A draw distance is the distance at which other NPC render on the screen. The relatively weak draw distance within the game is particularly perplexing since the game runs on the technologically advanced PlayStation 3 system. As a result of the poor character rending distance, enemy fighters seem to pop onto the screen out of nowhere. The Xplay reviewers gave the game only one star as a result of these drawbacks. Such a show could provide meaningful insight into the gaming industry for casual and core gamers alike. The show seems to indicate a growing trend within the industry in which product convergence (fusing of gaming and TV) is becoming more common.

MODS and MACHINIMA

The readings on remix-culture and user-created gaming made me think about the role of DIY production in games-- many people use the engines to create their own works of art, but the real art, to me, lies in the engine itself.  Thus, I am more intrigued by mods which involve tweaks to the game engine than machinima which work within it.

Not all mods are created equal, but the level of ingenuity that goes into some of the more complex ones is really astounding.  I remember Natural Selection, a mod for Half Life, making major changes to the multiplayer engine and really using the code from Half Life like a palette to create a vastly remixed experience.

Conevergence culture- paving the way for cartels?

Jenkins's article on convergence culture place the idea of a multimedi narrative of text on very grand scale. He used the The Matrix to discuss the way an intratextual narrative can be formed and consumed. The idea seemed very exciting but I began thinking about how democratic such a concept really is. On one hand, it really empowers viewers/players as all the easter eggs in these text dont just attrct viewers, they also make them more active in deciding what exactly the narrative is meant to be. I like this factor of convergence culture, its refreshingly post modern.
However, I grew slightly more skeptical when Jenkins began to talk of the economic advantages of convergence. I realized that horizontal integration may be fantatic for lrge investers, however, this may drastically increase the capital needed to lauch a fresh idea and erect cartel like restrictions on new comers.
My fears were largely allayed when I read the TIME magazine peice on video game autuers. The very word "auteur" [meaning author in french] was used to refer directors with their own signature style and was coined during the French New wave of Cinema. The French new wave rebelled gainst the high budgets that dictated mainstrem movies and made lots of cheap, improvisational and FANTASTIC films.
The makers of red vs blue dident need millions, they just needed talen and a passion for games.
I think its safe to conclude that convergence does not immediately lead to cartel like business practices. Its just a question of who is conevrging and what they are converging.

p.s: on a lighter note, check out this episode of red vs. blue, its hillarious!!!!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sx_3m-FhAI&feature=SeriesPlayList&p=49C4397CE9AC5260

Marvel VS Capcom 2 is offical!

I have been following the MvC2 release trail for quite some time and I am very ecstatic to report that the remixed-re-release is finally here! Following the success of Megaman 9 and Street Fighter II HD Remix, Capcom is giving Marvel VS Capcom 2 the same treatment. Fans of the series loved it's system of implementing their favorite characters from Marvel (i.e. Spiderman, Hulk, Wolverine) and Capcom (i.e. Ryu, Megaman, Captain Commando) in an all out battlefest. Now fans of the series won't have to pay +$90 for the game as the re-released version is slated to hit PSN and XBLA this coming summer. Fans who can't wait, will be treated to a demo that is scheduled to be released next week, end of April.

Here is a demo of what Capcom has done so far:

http://www.gamespot.com/events/capcom09/video.html?sid=6208663&hd=1&tag=topslot;watchlink;2

Elder Scrolls Books in the Works

Bethesda Softworks recently signed a deal with Random House (Del Ray books) for two Elder Scroll novels. One will be about the the 1996 Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall and the other set shortly after the events in Elder Scrolls: Oblivion.

As a gamer who practically worships the ground that Bethesda walks on (or photo-digitally renders), I'll probably at least pause before deciding not to pick these up. I totally get the argument that the Elder Scrolls lore is extensive, to say the least. The sheer amount of readable in-game books and material in many Bethesda games (Elder Scrolls being the best example) has always been a bit of a shocker to me.

I might change my mind if they come in Choose Your Own Adventure.

save and load

The concept of  the Save/Load feature really interests me.  I know this is going back a week in the reading, but it's been on my mind.   Save/Load games bother me.  I think that a huge and important factor of game playing is being responsible for every action that lead you to where you are.   Save/Load awards too much control to the player.  It makes the game space a sort of playground.  I think that players should have to live with the consequences of their play.  If you can always go back and re-do something, the game turns into more of a demonstration of personal perfection.  Save/Load allows you to go back and rewrite your outcome.  To me, this dulls the game.  If I know i can always go back and fix my mistakes, then I don't really care what I do in the first place.   I guess that's the very issue, some people like to explore and try all experiment all different types of execution, while others like to have more of a one-night-stand relationship with the game. 

AMMI

So, I was on the subway to work today and I don't know why I was so shocked but most of the people on the train, all adults, were playing games either on their iphones, or nitendo ds' but what I found the most interesting was one playing a game on the dark purple original color gameboy (of which I just found my clear purple one when moving last weekend). I don't know why I was so shocked to see someone playing it-could have something to do with how we value "newness" and the concept of buying the newest product. How many of you guys got the gameboy color when it came out?

on a slightly more serious note...this weekend I went to the Museum of the Moving Image in Queens and they have a pretty cool video games section in which you can play the original old school video games (for a price of course). But, it was definitely interesting and pretty awesome to see original games such as Computer Space (1971), Pong (1972), Maneater (1975), Space Invaders (1978)....and many more. Here is their section on video games if any of you want to read up on it. It was an interesting experience to see games that I read about but could never can really imagine how big, simple, and amateur they actually were to games today. 

Hi Deidre!!!

I was descending into the subway at Union Square when I received this email:

Hello Andrew, I put a reminder to myself to complete your games preference survey this week and 'poof'- it is gone! I've been trying to use the link on this page (address removed) to try to get to it. Am I doing something incorrectly? Has the survey been moved elsewhere? I've enjoyed following the posts that you and your classmates have created. All the best with your work. Kind regards, Deirdre Devers Centre for Human Computer Interaction Design City University London deirdre.devers.1@city.ac.uk

Isn't this the coolest? Aside from my survey being a b*tch to take, a woman in London is reading our blog and enjoying our posts. We are so legit now. A nice kick of self-assurance to round out our semester of blogging.

One of my last random bits involves ESPN.com and ponies, strangely enough. Excited?!?!? You should be. Our friends over at Kotaku found that inputting a Konami code brings up cute, rainbow ponies a la Lisa Frank style. Aren't they just the cutest? Indulge you're inner 90's girl with a Trapper Keeper and see if this still works. -AM

Girl Games

Watch Bleep Bloop: Girly Game Slumber Party on CollegeHumor

One of my fondest memories of games as child is playing stupid barbie games on the Sega Genesis. This vid from bleep bloop explores the somewhat ridiculous realm of games marketed to girls. My question is, do we (gurlz) like this stuff (as I, ashamedly, did when it came to SG barbie games) because it is truly appeals to us, or because it is what we are taught to like from day one? This question has been circulating in media studies for years, but it goes to a new level in games, where not only are you exposed- but you can live (or simulate) the dream of being a barbie raising puppies on a pink farm where the only boys are your little brother Tommy or perhaps the a-sexual unthreatening Ken.

Anyways, watch the video, gain insight into the latest brainwashing tools for girls.

WoW on Your iPhone?!

Are all of you World of Warcraft addicts ready to have your minds blown? Well, it looks like WoW is headed to the Apple iPhone. Check out the video below.



Sure, this means that you can level and quest wherever you are, but what does this mean for the iPhone as a mobile gaming platform? The iPhone is already a huge platform for simple mobile games and even some Nintendo DS ports. Sony and Nintendo are already afraid of it taking away from the portable console market.

However, if the iPhone can also run PC games, like WoW, then what does that mean for the PC gaming market? Will gamers prefer the portability of being able to level anywhere as opposed to sitting at their rigs back home? Probably not. But it does help boast the iPhone as a capable gaming device.

Furthermore, it adds another level of interactivity to the MMO. Players can be in a virtual world from pretty much anywhere. This could give players who have iPhones an advantage with leveling, goldfarming, auctioning and other things that one does in WoW. But with these added benefits, I'm sure addicts will find new ways to obsess over the game and be antisocial in public.

I just hope I don't ever end up visiting Azeroth while out to dinner with friends on a Friday night.

-JF

ESA Disputes Method In Game Addiction Research

According to a recent study conducted by Dr. Douglas Gentile of Iowa State University, addicted gamers play 24 hours a week. That amount is twice as much as gamers who play more casually. They also show at least six symptoms; which include irritation when not playing, lying about play habits, and more severely stealing to support that habit. The ESA is responding to the research pointing out errors in the study of methodology and urging Psychological Science magazine not to publish it.
The point that ESA argues is on the fact that the study claims about a 3% margin of error in its population sampling of 1,178 American kids aged 8-18. However, the results did not come from a random sampling choosing. Instead, the results came through an online panel that would offer users points or gifts in exchange for completing the surveys. Leading the charge is Michael Gallagher, CEO of ESA, who intends to prevent the survey from being published in an upcoming issue of Psychological Science.
Gallagher sends a letter to the magazine and states that, "I have no doubt that you value your publication's credibility and reputation. Therefore, I hope this clarification is made quickly so that future readers of your publication are informed that the claims made by Dr. Gentile are not supported by the survey he has based them on."

Original Article: http://gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=23374

USA Today wrote a great article about how to support your video game habit during the recession. New games are as much as 50 or 60 bucks, but there are ways to get the new games without laying out all that cash. Many websites and stores accept used games as payment toward a new game. Some even accept used gaming consoles. Other websites let you sell or trade games directly with other users. Trade-in values depend on a game's popularity and age -- most of the time, you'll need to visit the store to find out how much you can get.

GameStop may allow you to receive an extra trade credit based on the number of games you trade. Or you may also be able to get a bonus for applying your trades to advance purchases of other games. For $15 a year, you can get GameStop's Edge card, which entitles you to 10% off used games and accessories, as well as a 10% bonus on your trade-ins.

Amazon actually lists the used games it accepts, along with their trade-in values. They provide shipping labels and packing slips, they even pay for the shipping costs for you to send your game in. After about two days processing time, Amazon adds an online gift card to your Amazon account, which you can apply to anything on Amazon.

Game Trading Zone and Trade Games Now are two websites that let users trade buy, sell, or trade games. However, transactions are not guaranteed. Goozex is better. Trades are guaranteed.

No matter which strategy you choose, it seems that there are definitely options available for gamers on a budget.

Potential Revival of MvC 2?

For those who have been plagued by nightmares of having to pay +$90 just to play their age old classic, Marvel Vs Capcom 2, don't fret; there is a possibility that Capcom will give it the "HD Remixed" treatment it gave to Megaman 9 and Street Fighter Turbo II. On Capcom's official website yesterday, one of the publisher's bloggers posted a number of items for auction and there happened to be an item of secrecy. As a kind of teaser campaign, the item is not known but there is an image with the Capcom logo and a website underneath it that spells out tu4ar. Anyone who has avidly played MVC2 will recall that mystifying (or irritating) song that played in the background as players traversed through the game: "Take You For A Ride." According to Gamespot, "visiting the site in question provides another clue. The site features a countdown clock and a variety of flags in front of a nearly black "2" on a completely black background." Regardless of anything, gamers won't have to wait long as the countdown to the timer is set to expire this coming Monday, 27th at 6 p.m. Pacific time. 

TAKE MY SURVEY!!!

Hey ya'll,

This may be a little late but I am hoping to get quite a few responses for this survey for my final paper.

Gaming Preferences Survey

Much obliged if you could help me out. Contact me with any questions:
845.913.5399
mercier.andrew@gmail.com
acm381@nyu.edu

metallica guitar hero!!

i don't think i am a hardcore fan of the recent slew of guitar and band based games.  i enjoy playing them but haven't gone out of my way to buy the games or song packs.  But me being the huge fan of metallica that i am, i went out to buy the game so i could rock out all day yesturday.  But even if i were to put aside my love for the band, the game would still honestly be the best of the series in my eyes.  As a series, the main goal is to give the player the feeling of playing the guitar and at the same time produce fun and challenging experiences with each song.  No other list of songs has been more physically fun to play then these, and no list of songs has been quite as challenging.  The question in my mind is, who should get the credit for this?  I am quite sure that they programmers are simply getting better at the same job they've been doing for the past 2 years, but most of me believes that the credit belongs to the music.  It's not simply because they are metallica, it is because they are musically gifted and have the rights to songs that are inherently fun to play, whether on a real guitar, ps3 guitar, or air guitar.  So as more of these artist based titles come out, i hope developers and artist realize where the main sales of the games are coming from, and where the main enjoyment of the games are coming from.  I'm sure the beatles had very little trouble negotiating their upcoming rock band game, i just hope they get all the credit they deserve.

One other thing with these money hungry music games, that resonates with all other games as a matter of fact.  I am on my third guitar at my house, either because my brother strums too hard, or they are crap.  When buying guitar hero metallica yesturday, i had to buy some older model that didn't have all the features because i did not want to buy an entire drum set.  I was infuriated due to the fact that the gamestop did not have any decent guitars that weren't in a bundle.  Where were all the third party contributors.  I started thinking about the days when you could find a huge arrangement of snes controllers or ps controllers not sold by sony or nintendo.  Maybe the controller market should be opened up again.  Controller designs have been pretty much stagnant across the board up until the wii.  Even the wii though could use some competition in their monopoly.  Look at all the people that r gonna run out and buy wii motion plus.  If they had some competition driving their innovations and designs, there would be no wii motion plus attachment, just a better controller (or batteries).  It'd be nice to have some controller options out there.

Pervasive Gaming

It's incredible that cell phone games have integrated GPS into the actual narrative and structure of play.  It seems to me that a game can be considered successful it is able to integrate and fuse multiple forms of technology.   BotFighters mixes game narrative and GPS technology, in such a way that the game becomes fused with the environment in real time.  It makes the transition from virtual to reality. 

Somehow this makes me think of Twitter.  The other day I overheard two guys at work, one showing the other his Twitter platform on his iphone.  "And the sickest part is that if i touch this, I can see all the people tweeting in my area..  look at her..  is she a babe or what?"  This qualifies as pervasive.  The game part.. well I think that could actually be debated.  I'm not sure exactly how this ties into video games, maybe I'd like to explore the notion of Twitter/Facebook/Other Networking sites as being games.   Maybe this is a paper topic.  

Lego Rock Band?

Just today, it was announced that Rock Band developer Harmonix, in conjunction with Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment are currently developing a Lego version of Rock Band. The game is being made for PS3, XBox 360, Wii, and Nintendo DS, and some songs already confirmed for the game are Blur's "Song 2", "Kung Fu Fighting" and Europe's "The Final Countdown". The spokesperson stated that the game creates an enjoyable family experience - but does this seem totally silly and unnecessary to anyone else? One thing that is interesting, is that Harmonix is working with Warner Bros., as Warner Music Group was not too long ago engaged in a dispute with Rock Band regarding how much money should be payed for them to use Warner's catalog in the games. 

Pick Up and Play

In our presentations last week, the cinematic ambitions of Bioshock and Metal Gear Solid stood in stark contrast to the pick-up-and-play qualities of We Love katamari.

The rise of blogging, vlogging, and internet television has created a new, bite-sized format inspired by video games, an aesthetic that has been proven successful on television.  Take for example Cartoon Network's long-running Adult Swim, in which numerous sub-20-minute animated shorts are aired.  Game-inspired plot has also penetrated feature film, as films like Children of Men use extended shots and continuous temporality to create a first-person-shooter inspired experience.

Given the popularity s of game conventions in other media, I find the popularity of long-form cinematic gaming somewhat paradoxical.  Pick-up-and-play gaming will never disapear, but it is increasingly seen as a trait for which PDA or mobile gaming is best suited.  Katamari serves as the exception, rather than the rule, but pick-up-and-play console gaming is what made gaming as popular as it is today.

Last night I found my copy of REZ, which is one of my favorite games of all time.  I think that this game is emblematic of the absolute best in visceral and engaging short-form gaming:

8.5% of Youths "Addicted" to Video Games

The Washington Post recently highlighted a study by Douglas Gentile (of Iowa State University) which concluded that some 8.5% of American children from ages 8 to 18 "show multiple signs of behavioral addiction."

"Symptoms included spending increasing amounts of time and money on video games to feel the same level of excitement; irritability or restlessness when play is scaled back; escaping problems through play; skipping chores or homework to spend more time at the controller; lying about the length of playing time; and stealing games or money to play more."

Joystiq summed up my general reaction pretty well: if that's how addiction is measured, it's just as easy to be addicted to things like "Pokémon cards, Pogs, Skittles, Spelling Bees, laser tag, gardening, dating, Lego bricks, Frisbee golf and blogging."

What bothers me the most about the way addiction is quantified is the care given to the idea of "escaping problems through play." Isn't that a function of childhood in general? When being a child means being virtually powerless to manipulate your environment, why should video games be dragged through the mud when they offer children otherwise unmatched control? Gentile at least delicately sidesteps actively blaming games or gaming culture ("It's not that games are bad," he is quoted as saying in the Washington Post article). But if its not that games are bad, why-oh-why are they continually made scapegoats for child development concerns?

For that matter, don't we herald books for their ability to spirit the imagination away to some mystical in-between world? Isn't the magic of a good book supposed to be that even if you're a child living in a destitute or problem-ridden home, you can escape for a while into a made-up space?

Now obviously I'm no expert, but I think the fear about video games and the lack of fear over books has a lot to do with the cultural tension surrounding ADHD. Parents and sociologists alike seem to be more afraid of the image of an overactive child who's tuned in to some hyper-active world, than the idea of the calm, introspective child reading quietly in the corner.

Big Games...[the Economist and the Manifesto]

The Article in the Economist seems to agree largely with the Big Games Manifesto even though I dont think the the economist coreespondent read the manifesto.
Both recognise the social intercation aspect of games
both realize the concious confusion between the real and the imaginary [using the schzophrenia example.
Both acknowleged the playful use of public space.

However, second life does go a step further by democrtizing the production of the game [and not just its consumption]
What bffles me is how so many people can play second life inspite of ll the technicl glitches the game seemed to have in last weekd demo

my personal ammendment to the manifesto: there exists a statement which says "big games use technology, but are not subservient to it"
I agree that games like seconlife allow alot of people to get under the hood of the game and rearrange stuff. However, this rearrngement hinders the overall speed of the game. Big games cant help but be subserviant to technology-atleast to some degree!

That being said, I must add the the criticism of second life in the Economist article seemed unfair. It undermined the game because most people init chose to look similar [the all apparently look like cosmetically enhanced por stars] and that most of the art on the game was quite a bit of junk.
I dont think thats a problem with second life users, I think thats the most societies function. Most people tend to follow [or atleast want to follow] popular trends as far as their appearance and self expressio is concerned.
BIG GAMES ARE MADE OF PEOPLE
the apparent lack of individuality amongst second life users should not be considered a criticism on the games poential for social change.

Pervasive...or Immersive Gaming

Although the future of gaming on mobile phones presents this idea of pervasive gaming as springing up on you at any moment because of its wireless capabilities, I had a more autonomous idea of pervasive gaming that already exists (but still with the incorporation of mobile phones). We all know that World of Warcraft is incredibly time consuming. But this extends beyond the scope of leveling your character and gaining better weapons, etc. Keeping a continuous update on the game itself, including the progress of the game and the players within the game, serves to be a hefty time consumer as well.


So, perhaps you're about to enter an instance, and to get the most detailed outline of where specific bosses/drops are you go to wowhead.com. Or perhaps the newest patch has just come out and you're on Blizzard's site reading the updates and seeing what has particularly changed for your class/race. And of course there are the traditional fan culture mediums (generally online) that provide gamers with an opportunity to express their feelings towards the game through fan art, discussion, etc. But what is recently new to me (as I just got my iPhone) is the further extension of this "research" onto your mobile phone. There are countless World of Warcraft apps, of which I have "Characters" and "Chest". These two applications let you review character information and item information, respectively.


The extent to which a gamer is immersed in World of Warcraft far expands beyond the game itself. This, to me, is pervasive gaming. A game which requires so much attention that you turn to other media and other expressive outlets to further invest in the game. A game like Snake or Pac Man might be good momentary fun, and a game like Botfighters might indeed lurk up into your cell phone without your initiation, but games like World of Warcraft lure the gamer into the game to the point where it leaves them craving more information and more opportunities to expand their knowledge on the game. Pervasive in that gamers will exhaust countless resources in order to get the most up to date, reliable information on their game.

Reaction to Second Life Article

When reading Living a Second Life, I was surprised at how educational and political environments are using and adapting to this popular technology to educate and help the public fully comprehend the material they are trying to send out. I understand that each has their reason for incorporating Second Life into their lives. Second Life allows the professor to make his lectures on schizophrenia more realistic, as it interacts with the student on a personal level. Through the use of the game students can gain a bit more insight into the lives of those suffering from that mental illness by actively reacting through their avatar to the interactions the professor is sending out to them. Although this bears little comparison to actually personally understanding the illness, it is one step closer than just reading about it through a book. I am sure the professor also thought by using this innovative game he would receive greater student interest and enrollment in the class, as he is making an effort to appear relevant and technologically savvy. Although this seems like a creative attempt at teaching, I can only imagine the frustrations of the students while experiences Second Life lag and computer problems. Former Governor Mark Warner also has a similar incentive. Through the use of Second Life and its power in the internet, he is able to appeal to a new audience who might have been too caught up with their own metaverse to follow real world politics. By joining the those who have participate in online RPG communities, he is reaching out to an audience of millions who will hopefully spread his message to their fellow online and real world friends. Although Second Life has not lived up to its initial hype, its surprising to see how many established and well respected companies and figures have made an effort to embrace it and its thriving audience. I wonder how long this will last.

Starcraft Battle Report

I just finished watching 20 minutes of what was essentially Starcraft as sport battle commentatry, for the upcoming Starcraft 2. On one hand, I just kept feeling like "What am I doing watching two dude narrate two other dudes playing Starcraft?" but on the other hand, I watched the whole twenty minutes.

I have heard in Korea, Starcraft players fill entire stadiums where people play game professionally. One aspect we haven't really covered is about people who play games professionally, and how this rapidly growing network of people is becoming more and more significant to the industry as well as the culture. It is sort of funny, now as more and more games are about subscription based models, that we also beginning to see people who are also paid to play these games. How does this change what games really are? Certainly we have gotten used to paying for them....they are after all, something we do in our free time. But being paid to play? This is much different than the lowly gold farmer, as even thought they like to play in their free time, these people are competing on a much greater scale, and arguably, higher stakes.
Does this change again, what a video game is? We have learned about the industry, and how it is fast becoming and extremely legitimate media outlet. Is this type of competition going to be the future of the video game world, and are we going to see competitive gaming shape new titles?

can't make you love me

Second Life always reminds me of that old school RPG, Harvest Moon.

It's an RPG where you simulate having a farm.

Yes, you read that right. You have a farm. You can also date, get married and have kids!

While not as expansive and not as intricate as Second Life, it's still within that hazy genre of games that simulate "life". You're a farmer who has to take care of a farm. You also have to find time to woo someone to be your potential mate.

Harvest Moon is an RPG with a dating simulator game attached to it. I've always been fascinated by dating simulators. You are a protagonist faced with a variety of boys or girls that you have to somehow charm into liking you. Sometimes you even have a "stats" bar of looks or charm. You win when you pick all of the right actions and the person you desire falls madly in love with you. You fail, and get the "bad ending" where the object of your affection turns you away.

Who's really programming what the correct actions are? The programmers themselves. They're the one who are determining what is right and what is wrong.

At least Second Life and The Sims, with all of their fantasy elements, are a little more honest. The user is choosing their own actions instead of being forced to comply with the actions of some programmer. If I want to make my Sim swim in the swimming pool until he drowns, that's my choice. I'm not confined to some infinite number of decisions to create a desired outcome. If I want to dance around in a club while wearing a tail, that's also my choice.

Dating simulators always seemed so boring and much more formulatic than the average game. Second Life is kind of like an updated, more dynamic, dating simulator. When people in the game date, fall in love and get married, at least it's on their own terms.

Big Games on Firefox

These readings resonated with me really well given that my presentation is completely related. I will be saving most of this for my presentation tomorrow but The Nethernet is a game that is based on browsing the internet.

It reminds me of the discussion we had in class about Mario, rewarding you for exploring the tubes "The Internetz"

The Nethernet essentially does the same thing, rewarding you for discovering new URLS, beyond the 10 or so that make up your daily surfing as well as telling others about them. It has been a great tool in helping me discover new web content as well as some sites that will definitely be with me after I dismantle the Nethernet toolbar...if I do that is.

This makes me sad that these posts will come to an end, so alas I will make the most of it. I present to you ladies and gents, The Gayest Video Game Character of all Time (according to gaygamers.net) Tingle the Fairy from Zelda. Ten points if you can tell me why that is

-AM

Warren Spector

Last Thursday I attended the NYU Game Center's lecture series. Speaking was Warren Spector (left), a character some people may recognize as the guy who was able to rise above the sinking ship of Ion Storm to make Deus Ex at Ion Storm Austin. Currently he is working at Disney Interactive.

Warren prepared a slide show for the talk entirely in the Disney font, with goofy images of himself and of his games. He also had some interesting 'philosophies' on gaming. It was clear that he was kind of a genius (or so was the impression I got- maybe that was his intention), being able to divine extremely complex designs and narratives for games, but he was still able to boil down his views on gaming to a few key points which I've outlined below:

Players are the most important thing to think about when creating a game, and designers/programmers shouldn't forget this. Each play session should be unique (no two players should have the exact same experience with the game)- this encourages multiple plays- something that doesn't happen much these days with games that take forever to play.

The uniqueness of games as a media:

1. They have the power to transport- you can do/try things you never would in real life
2. They are immersive.
3. They require participation- if you walk away from the game, it is no longer the game.
4. They are responsive- rewarding participation

Players should have the power to decide how they experience the game:

1. without coercion
2. without preconceptions
3. without judgment
4. guided without being limited
5. the game has a story, but the player is part of creating that story

Above is a very boiled down version of what he had to say, but I found that he had a very focused view and would be an excellent mentor for someone interested in game design- he has been through a lot (working with Romero?)

His website is here: http://www.junctionpoint.com (they're hiring!)

"Majestic-It Plays You"

Perhaps I shouldn't admit this, but until I read "Boundary Spaces: Majestic and the Uncertain Status of Knowledge, Community and Self in a Digital Age," I had not heard about "Majestic." I think that T.L Taylor and Beth Kolko did an extensive, picture-painting assessment of the game. I had never heard about this, but this article was one of my favorite readings for this class. It was simple and informative, but it really captured my attention.
After I finished the reading, I wanted to know more about "Majestic." Actually, I wanted to play it. Instead, I decided to try to find some YouTube demonstrations of the game and one of the few things I found was this video.



It's short, but I think it does a really good job of summarizing the reading and it's a good visual aid to accompany the text. When I read the article I didn't fully understand how real "Majestic" was and exactly what it looked like, sounded like, etc. I think this video does a good job of showing how terrifying, real, and mysterious the game actually was.
Also, one final note. "Majestic" was rated "M" for Mature. I think this game has the potentially to be far more scarring/provocative than the hot coffee module in GTA San Andreas. Just a thought.

A Threat to Second Life

I have always been interested to learn what the big stink over second life was based on. I’d hear small reasons here and there but never did my due diligence in actually trying to figure it out. Reading this article “Living a Second Life” was the perfect start to a journey I am now sure I will continue. I find the concept of second life not only creative but as an opportunity for people to implement anything they wish to have in their real life but don’t into their life in some way shape or form. As the article stresses it is way more than a simple game. It is “an enhanced communications medium”, “intellectual property”, an extension of reality, and perhaps most importantly something that “celebrates individuality” while connecting those individuals all around the globe. I think that where second life is right now is great. However, as I continued to read the article and learnt that second life is facing similar gentrification threats as the lower east side I felt uneasy. Looking out my window onto Astor place each day I struggle with having to stomach a beautiful and unique non-linear street in New York City that was once occupied by individual artists and has now been taken over by major corporations like Starbucks, Walgreen’s, Cold Stone and until last year Barnes and Nobles. While I do appreciate the fact that a virtual world can so flawlessly come to represent the real world, I worry that the original motives for creating the virtual world in the first place will cease to exist. 

second life

After the Second Life presentation on tuesday I was still confused as to why it was so popular. As it was pointed out, the "game" is incredibly slow which for me would lead to frustration rather then entertainment. But, after reading "Living a Second Life" and learning how second life could be used in the educational environment as professor Yellowless had I was extremely interested. Not, interested in the way that I wanted to go sign up for Second Life and start playing, but rather in a way that the use of the program intrigues me. Would a movie worked just as well instead of renting a virtual island for $300 a month? Who knows, but the way we use technology for educational purposes is always changing and this could have been an interesting way to incorporate a "game" into learning. Additionally, I think the point about intellectual property is interesting. "Because everything about Second Life is intended to make it an engine of creativity,Linden Lab early on decided that residents should own the intellectual property inherent in their creations.... Thanks to these property rights, residents actively trade their creations." It is important that Second Life gives the creators these rights to their work.

On a different note, I was reading the New York Times and came across this article which I also thought was interesting. With all this talk that the video -game industry is recession proof, the article points out that the month of April is pretty much what would determine how we are doing. April is important because the article talks about the rapid downfall of video game sales(games and consoles)  in March compared to previous years. Although last year Easter fell in March and this year in April-was this the real reason for the low sales? Hm, I don't think anything at this point is recession proof but I do think that video games have been safer then most other products thus far. In my opinion (which is base off of a rather small knowledge of the system other then what we have learned in class) couldn't the lack of new consoles being released also lead to a downfall in the industry? Granted consoles are extremely expensive to develop and produce maybe the consumers just want something new. 

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/04/16/video-game-sales-go-south-and-fast/

Bioshock 2 In-Depth Preview

Just last week in class we looked at 2K Marin's Bioshock. This weekend, Gamespot sat down and interviewed some of the producers and developers for the upcoming sequel to the game, Bioshock 2. Check out the video here:



You can really get a sense of how a sequel to an already successful game is designed. Building off of prior mechanics and including things that they couldn't in the first seem just as important as creating an engrossing narrative that continues the story. Hopefully Bioshock 2 will be an even better game than its predecessor. That'll be a tough though, considering that the original Bioshock was considered by many the best game of 2007.

I think it'll be a great play either way. I'm really looking forward to the new growth system of plasmids; your abilities now do different things as they level up. Playing a Big Daddy looks to be fun as does the new dual wielding type of FPS gameplay.

I can't wait to return to the city of Rapture this fall.

-JF

Six Days in Fallujah

Let me start out by saying that I am really interested in the relationship between video games and social commentary. It's an intriguing area of study. However, when I read about "Six Days in Fallujah," a new video game that is based on the real-life photos, diaries, videos, and experiences of Marines in Iraq, I was truly taken aback. The battle portrayed in this game resulted in 38 American deaths and about 1200 insurgent fatalities.

The Marines who banded together to create this game say that it can provide a lesson on the intensity and gravity of war to an audience who wouldn't normally be watching the History Channel or learning about the war in a classroom. According to Atomic Games President Peter Tamte, "Our goal is to give people that insight, of what it's like to be a Marine during that event, what it's like to be a civilian in the city and what it's like to be an insurgent. For us, the challenge was how do you present the horrors of war in a game that is also entertaining." Documentary-style videos of the real-life Marines are interwoven throughout the game.

Several groups that represent family members of veterans and American casualties have spoken out very strongly against this game. They believe it is disrespectful to the sacrifices that our soldiers have made and that it trivializes the experience of war.

I honestly don't know how I feel about this game. Although I'm encouraged by the trend of video games commenting on real-world issues, this game feels a bit offensive and exploitative to me. Does anyone else have any opinions on this game?

As a non gamer for most of my life, I noticed how different my reaction to the variety of games played yesterday in class felt in comparison to those who have grew up with gaming. After hearing the enthusiastic and overwhelmingly positive introduction of Metal Gear Solid I expected to be blown away by what I witnessed. When the gameplay began I actually found it to be quite boring and reminiscent of other war games I had witnessed my friends playing. It seemed normal and repetitive to me, although I clearly understand that is not how the game truly is. My lack of video game background prevented me from understanding the nuances and details which make this game so much better than the rest of its genre. Only after hearing the specifics of the game and the various unseen aspects which were not shown during class time could I actually comprehend how groundbreaking Metal Gear Solid has been as a work of art as well as a game. I also did not feel the fear that Bioshock was supposed to elicit in the player. It seemed to follow a narrative similar to many of the horror movies I enjoy and did not shock or frighten me. I find it to be interesting how non gamers like myself judge and interpret games in comparison to life long fans of the industry.

A Flurry of Game News

I recently downloaded the Viigo application for my Blackberry and of course felt it necessary to add the "Best of Video Gaming" RSS feed to the list of feeds.

Surprisingly, it is the feed that is most updated out of all them, perhaps rivaled only by BBC and the Huffington Post and there is SO much going on.

-Doom 4 was announced to be in the works
-WiiMotionPlus is coming out relatively soon and will cost $20
-Microsoft acknowledged the existence of the E74 errors on X-Boxes and will now compensate players (old and new) that encountere(d) the problem
-Wii Fit is STILL the best selling title in the UK, as if it shows
-Six year old child gets a "brand new" PSP, only to find it stuffed with porn. "The gift that keeps on giving"
-Nintendo makes BusinessWeek's list of 25 Most Innovative Companies

So this is but a small taste of stuff going and on and it only reminds me again that the video games industry is HUGE and is always evolving.

If your a Crackberry user AND a game nerd jump over to Viigo to download it and subscribe to this feed to get all the latest in video game news from all over the web.

Thanx to Jessamyn (or maybe not) I went on a "Bulbapedia" binge and was reading articles for about an hour and was reminded of the infamous seizure event that happened about 12 years ago. Look, it seems Porygon is slightly happy about effing kids over with seizures. Good times....good times

-AM

Cost of Video games...

One thing that always has been bothering my about the Wii (and reminded me today) is the nickle and dime-ing that console vendors have been pulling with this round of consoles. (im taking about: giz on cost of games )

The Wii especially, with all of its add-ons (Wii Motion Plus, gun attachments, fit board sports attachments, wheels, all of the rock band controller stuff, not to mention two part controllers) has gotten to be kind of ridiculous. Isn't the draw of a console is that all you need to buy after than is games, and you are guaranteed to have a system that works for the five year lifestyle of the product? Granted, the $600 is cheaper than any gaming PC, but are console vendors starting to be disingenuous to consumers? We saw last week that video games are BOOMING, and maybe because right now, they are selling us tons of junk that one day we will wake up and realize that Wii accessories take up our entire living room.

"Video Game Becomes Spectator Sport"

Forget about football, wrestling, and baseball--Princeton University has welcomed the up and coming generation of collegiate competition: electronic sports. In her recent article, Patricia Cohen reported on the first international exhibition match for the newly created Collegiate Star Leagues. The league, which is made up of 27 universities around the country— including Harvard, Yale, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Ohio State, Texas, Cal-Berkeley, Johns Hopkins and Oberlin — is trying to turn science-fiction video game StarCraft into a nationally internationally recognized spectator sport. Over 60 fans gathered in a residential hall lounge to cheer on Princeton in a face-off with Tsinghua University, a university in Beijing, 6,800 miles away. Although this new league of electronic "athletes" is small and homogenous (most of the players are asian males, said Patricia Cohen), it is putting electronic sports on the map. Furthermore, it is changing the way we perceive competition and the role of video games in our culture and society. This league/competition not only recognizes the role of video games as modes of social interaction and competition, but acknowledges that they require tremendous skill and ability.
On another note, this article also highlights and contradicts some of the points mentioned in the readings for today. In the article, Cohen mentioned the rift in ability between players in the US vs. South Korea, China, and Japan. However, in some ways, this new trend of international competition between universities is narrowing the divide between the two parts of the world and facilitating interaction, discussion, and competition between the two.
Perhaps in 30 years this competition will seem obvious.

A Visit to id Software in 1993

Considering we are reading Masters of Doom, everybody should watch this video. Added by John Romero himself just nine days ago, this video take us back to the days of beige hardware and DOS. We get a nostalgic glimpse of id Software in 1993. Showing us DOOM in the later stages of development, we see 21 minutes of gameplay. The sound effects were not yet completed and come from the SNES version of Wolfenstein 3D. We are also shown hidden areas and glitches in the game. The sound of the clicky keyboard and gamer trashtalk shows the early days of PC gaming and its clear that besides the technology, not much has changed.


A Visit to id Software from john romero on Vimeo.

Game Stop Illegally Selling Games

According to an article at Kotaku.com, Game Stop, the world's largest video game retailer,  has allegedly been selling games that have been used by their employees as new games.  In some cases the employees would explain why these games were unsealed by stating they were display copies, when in fact they were not. This "check-out" policy of the game store chain has been unconfirmed by corporate spokespeople for the company, but several anonymous employees have reported its practice.  This practice, if confirmed, is in violation of federal law. The FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection would likely deem this to be considered a deceptive marketing/advertising tool, and thus illegal. The FTC has not commented on whether they are investigating this issue. 

Virtual Kill-Counts

Today IGN ran a short blurb about Covenant kills in Halo 3's campaign mode, titled, "Halo 3 Hits 10 Billion Kills."

The idea of a virtual kill-count is both playfully intriguing, and a bit unsettling. It's hard not to wonder what the kill-counts are for other war and war-like games, especially monumentally successful ones like Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. How many virtual "terrorist soldiers" have been killed? Or virtual American ones, for that matter?

It's not totally surprising that Bungie keeps track of these kind of records. Of course it's likely just part of the necessary data stream for awarding achievements, tracking player progress within certain maps, etc. To specifically look at all enemies killed in the game across the player base, however, strikes me as eerie. It draws some heavy parallels to body counts issued during and after real combat.

Part of me grins at the idea that humans must keep tabs on how badly they're beating the alien mobs in video games. However another part wonders if, by mimicking some of the features of war reporting when reporting game stats, the industry isn't opening itself up to some easy potshots by the anti-gaming bloc.

Violence within games, like violence within stories in other media, certainly doesn't phase me. But releasing the kill-count in Halo 3 as a headline is something that I could see coming from the opponents of the gaming world.

words and video games

I never realized how important language and translation is to video games. As someone who does not game all that often I tend to only realize these things when they are mentions such as in clas when talking about the japanese website (which has now been translated). Additionally the reading helped me further understand this with the "All your base belong to us" game. Its so important culturally when we see how these meanings have transformed with the reworking of the phrase "Osama All Your Base"When I play a game I just assume that I don't need words to play but in reality I am lost without them. 

So I mentioned a New York Times article in class last week. The article can be found here: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/05/fashion/05iphone.html?scp=7&sq=iphone&st=cse.

On a similar topic but a different article  the iPhone and iTouch continue to be extremely important in the video game industry. "The surprising emergence of the iPhone and its phone-less sibling, the iPod Touch, as hand-held game consoles has started to change the dynamics of the $40-billion game software industry...It's not just the device that's having an effect. It's also Apple's App Store, an online marketplace where users can browse through 25,000 software applications from thousands of publishers. Many are games that take advantage of the multitouch screens, accelerometers and Web connections featured in the iPhone and iPod Touch. On a typical day, six to eight of the 10 bestselling apps are games." According to the article over 800 million applications have been sold since July. Thats a significant number of games to be selling for one device. Just as PS3 and xBox have been doing by selling games, levels, music etc online through their console thus becoming digital and moving away from discs-the ipod/iphone uses the same technology and idea allowing users to buy their applications seamlessly though the click of a button. Isn't that the magic that the itunes store provides -easy buying with little feeling that it is a purchase until you receive the credit card bill. Thats how music and all video games should be sold if the industry is smart to follow this trend- why wouldn't you use an application that allows you to forget that you are purchasing a product with money and only reminds you of the final outcome- playing your new game quickly.

Culture...

"ALL YOUR BASE" suggests that the jargon used by avid gamers is filtered through the white, upper middle class male point of view [after taking Media Criticism, I really feel the need to ask what channel in the mass media isent!!!] According to the extract, this is because this demographic was most familiar with gaming at the time.
However, this article does not acknowledge the potential cultural egalitarianism that could be bred by the gaming industry. There are more mainstream hit games produced in the far east than blockbuster movie or albums. The blog before mine discusses pokemon, this game may have been played by white upper class males, however, it was designed from a japanes cultural perspective ans not an aAmerican one.
As always, parties who own the means of producing a particulr formof art of entertainment are more likely to have their voices heard than parties that dont. However, gamers have much more control on narrative than movie goers do. This narrative control may be able to dilute the initial cultural meaning of a game.
There is more than one culturl point of view in the gaming world and more are yet to come.

missingno and the multiple masterballs

As an avid player of Pokemon Blue, I remember when word spread across the schoolyard about the MISSINGNO cheat within the game. It was like this huge secret that people didn't want to admit they used within their games. Kids would still crowd around a table during free period (while other kids played chess or read books) and watch as someone tried to trigger the glitch. The rumor was that triggering the glitch would create 50 duplicates of whatever item you had within a certain slot in your backpack. People would duplicate items to increase stats, boost levels or make money.

I can't help but remember MISSINGNO as part of my Pokemon experience, despite it being an obvious glitch. There was no sprite created for the MISSINGO character, it was just a mash of pixels. Kids were giddy and excited, as if they had cracked the code for something totally cool. Was MISSINGNO the first taste of being a "hacker" for some of these kids?

The interesting thing is that Pokemon gamers, years later, still refer to glitches within Pokemon games as MISSINGNO despite the name of the sprite being different. MISSINGNO is oddly embraced within the Pokemon community, with entries dedicated to it in fan created wikis.

Now I want to find my Pokemon Blue cartridge. . .

http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Missingno.

Engrish. A Cruel Joke or a Legitimate Cultural Phenomenon?

In All Your Base Are Belong, Lori Kendall discusses the origin and development of a popular game phrase and popular game dialects. She opens by talking about how online game cultures have become a cross cultural environment where people who speak varying languages congregate. When groups of people communicate to one other from varying backgrounds often dialects emerge. For example along the Mexican border, a new language which mixes English and Spanish is spoken. This language is known as Spanglish.

With regard to online cultures, often phrases are mistranslated or mis-spoken. In some cases such mistranslations can become cultural phenomenons. One such mistranslation originated from a Japanese video game called Zero Wing. Zero Wing was released in 1989 and like many games from that era, the game sets up its premise by providing a short series of images and text at the opening sequence of the game. The Japanese game was translated into an American version and at one point in the game the text is mis-translated to "All of your base are belong to us." In 1998, the phrase was popularized when a picture of game with the phrase was posted to the internet. It marked the beginning of engrish in which poorly spoken English was a funny cultural phenomenon within online games. In my opinion such cultural phenomenons could be considered slightly arrogant. I believe that they encompass an arrogant American perspective that makes fun of people who struggle with English. While such antics may seem funny and catch easily I hope that this cultural phenomenon dies off quickly.

Pikachu

Technologies allowing us to communicate across time and space provided an interesting new concept for community members: individualism, with a side of depression. Because of a disconnected feeling from the community, and the development of commodified desires, people looked to the developing star system for a means of comfort and idolization. It's no wonder that as our technologies continue to develop, and our sense of solidarity grows that we increasingly look towards an icon of comfort.

Pikachu is one such comforting character, as is Pokémon the show and the game itself. It's interesting to note that the distinguishing characteristic of Pikachu is the cute factor. Not only is Pikachu adorably cute, but also seems to connect to a sense of childhood which is something the creators were akin to mentioning. The cuteness is both comforting and a means of reminiscence, which explains people's attachment from various age groups.

This universal appeal to Pikachu attributes itself to Pikachu's wide-spread appearance and popularity. Even if people did not play Pokémon or even know what Pokémon is, they still felt a sort of affinity for the character of Pikachu, overstepping the boundaries of even what "universal" can mean.

Books about Video Games

After reading Masters of Doom, which was awesome, I decided to seek out similar books about gaming. By "books about gaming" I'm excluding guides and manuals, not to discount their value, but because they generally don't make great reads outside of the game. After googling a few phrases such as "top ten video gaming books" and "books on video gaming" I realized that trying to find works of a similar quality and vein as Masters of Doom was going to be harder than I expected. Many of the books are academic or historical, listing the achievements and possibilities of gaming. I was unable to find anything that seemed as well written or interesting as Masters of Doon, which lead me to the conclusion that perhaps as our culture becomes more interested in video gaming as a whole, new spaces will open up for great pieces of writing that focus more specifically on the stories of specific games that have had a huge impact on society in a holistic way (how we play, why we play, who we are, who made the game, etc.)

One suggestion:


Play Money: Or, How I Quit My Day Job and Made Millions Trading Virtual Loot by Julian Dibbell ( I read this book last semester, it is quite entertaining- about gold farming in the world of mmo's)

A top-ten list:

From Game Informer: "Our List Of The Top Ten Video-Game Books Of All Time"


Just thought I'd try to throw some stuff out there. I definitely think if anyone feels inspired, there is still room out there for another entertaining true-story video games book.

At Princeton, Video Game Becomes Spectator Sport

This past month, Princeton University participated in the first international exhibition match for the new Collegiate Star League, which is the latest addition to Princeton's sports roster. Princeton was competing against Tsinghua University (Beijing) in a StarCraft competition, turning it into a spectator sport. The competition was broadcasted on a large screen in a dorm. Princeton is hailing this as the next generation of college sport competition, electronic games. In the past several months, 27 colleges, including Harvard, Yale, MIT and Johns Hopkins, have joined the league. In the college league, matches are composed of five rounds. Although this is an emerging trend in the US, in South Korea, there are professional StarCraft teams who have corporate sponsors. E-sports generate millions of dollars.

I thought this was a really interesting story. I doubt that StarCraft competitions will ever garner the same fan base in the US as they do in Asia, but it's great that some college students have taken it upon themselves to try to raise the profile of this sport.

Consensual Gaming?

Kotaku just posted an article featuring a user-created game mode in Street Fighter IV called "Rose Ball." Check the video below for a demonstration and the link for the game's rules.

Blockbuster and Gaming Rentals

I have recently noticed that most of the Blockbusters have been turning into Blockbuster Medias. I believe the gaming industry has significantly affected this change, alongside other entertainment technological advancements. I have seen the game aisles of Blockbuster continuously expand since I was a child as the gaming world began to grow, match, and then out do movies in the entertainment industry. The idea of giving video games the same importance of movies by including them on the Blockbuster shelves signaled that now gaming was a lucrative and financially successful industry that must be recognized and taken advantage of. Videogames and their players are now as mainstream as any other form of entertainment, providing small niches of interest and community within the general industry. The change from Blockbuster Videos towards Blockbuster Media shows its need to expand on its original idea and become more inclusive to the future of entertainment, which I'm sure provides a great increase in profit. Including and then expanding gaming in the renting process is a great idea.

realism in video games

Throughout this class, I have really come to think about video games not as just an emerging new medium which is finally gaining its artistic and creative due, but as a coming re-contextualization of our whole society. I used to really think video games really were such a isolating, un-natural experience which truly was unparalleled in history of man. However, the more I begin to delve into where I think games are going, it seems they are actually colliding with the big bad world we call reality. The thing that really makes me think a bit further is the fact that it is more about reality infiltrating games, rather than games moving into reality; rather than these completely alternate realities, games are becoming more and more inline with our daily lives. I had mentioned this a bit before when I talked about FOURSQUARE, but in a sense, our lives actually are one big game. So when game designers are trying to reach this level of realism, past the increasing level of photo realistic graphics, designers are tapping into what makes reality "real" in a sense, and either "gaming them," or actually creating additional meaning on top of what people are already experiencing. The more I think about this, the more I begin to think we already as human being construct our lives as a game, and really, the jump to adding some sort of virtual layer over our lives is no more radical than any of the other city-wide social conventions we deal with in New York everyday.

netflix for video games

For the first time this weekend, I saw a TV commercial for a service similar to netflix, but for video game rentals. It was awesome. It showed different people in front of the TV in their living rooms crying, yelling, hitting the floor, in fits of rage, etc. It keeps going then says something like "never buy a bad video game again." I think it's a brilliant strategy for many reasons. First, the simple fact that people can rent a video game before shelling out $50 and realizing it's horrible (ET II, if you will). Second, maybe this will force the game companies to be more rigorous in producing high quality games because they can no longer rely on marketing to get a bad game sold.

It's not that the medium is in its adolescence...

...it's that you're a bunch of ****ing adolescents."

This news is over a week old but I just recently saw a few blog posts about it. Last month at the Game Developers Conference, several gaming-world journalists stepped up to offer their rants about the industry. Apparently the most memorable of the lot came from Heather Chaplin, who blasted video game developers as being immature, as well as frightened of "responsibility, introspection, intimacy, and intellectual discovery."

Aside from the predictable responses that come from people who aren't really sure what they're defending or why ("If you don't like video games, go somewhere else!"), the rant sent ripples through gaming blogs.

In her response, Leigh Alexander seems to both agree with Chaplin's overall sentiment, but almost seems to feel guilty about the strong wording on Chaplin's behalf. "As a woman," Alexander writes, "I never felt that emasculating men was the right way to get them to accept me." Judging Chaplin's rant as some kind of plea for acceptance seems like someone missed the point. Personally, turning around and saying "I'm a girl and I'm not angry at you, guys!" strikes me as pretty counter-productive.

But that still might be better than David Jaffe's response. He lost me around the point where his argument against Chaplin's claims about developer immaturity amounted to, "I'm not immature--I've got two kids and I'm a good father!" Maybe it's just me, but that sounds a hell of a lot like I'm not racist, I've got black/Latino/Asian/Jewish friends!

While I'm not inclined to agree with all of Chaplin's points, as someone who's pretty well-versed in the supposedly "mature" titles out there, it's hard NOT to see where she's coming from. And when the basic response from game developers seems to be "Nuh-uh!" or worse, "So what?" you can't help but realize how valid her accusations are.

Guitar Hero meets MySpace?

From an ex-employee of Harmonix (the developer behind Rock Band and Guitar Hero) comes a new online game that fuses video games with social networking and music called LoudCrowd. The games generally involve dancing - you make your avatar dance to music with the directional keys of your keyboard, along to a soundtrack of dance-related indie acts like Justice, Cut Copy, Friendly Fires, etc. Other games put you in the role of DJ.  Playing the games allow you to earn virtual money that leads to music downloads and the ability to dress/personalize your avatar.  The site is set up for you to connect with other players within the community in a social networking-like fashion. 

iPhone: An Alcoholic's BFF

The drunk dial. We have all either made or received one, maybe within the last 48 hours, and no doubt the makers have felt the regret after the next morning's fearful perusal through call history. Well, the iPhone has come to our rescue yet again with "The Bad Decision Blocker" and "Don't Dial"-two applications that block certain numbers from being called for specific amounts of time when one will be under the influence. While potentially useful, these apps signal the rise of a new generation of technology focused upon making our decisions for us.

They can be as simple as the "Spinning Bottle" app, where indecisive iPhoners can "us[e] the direction of the bottle to buy one particular perfume, or just decide whether or not to say something to the boss." Or, as [potentially] complicated as hunch.com, a website that gathers information about a user's thought processes and personality through a slew of never-ending (you can stop answering when you want to) questions. After compiling a profile on a specific user, hunch funcitons as a decision-maker from topics ranging from what type of car to buy, to breaking up with your boyfriend. Have we ushered in an era where our ability to reason will be obsolete? Why is it suddenly so important to have technological backup for every decision I may make? Should I rely on "Mindful," an app that monitors food and calorie intake before every meal? Should I reference "GoodGuide" before I buy any product?

Again, I'm not claiming that any of this isn't... useful... it just all seems like a bit much. Decision making ability has proven to be relatively important throughout human history... and even after the advent of the iPhone and the internet it still seems kind of necessary. So for now, I encourage you to drunk-dial away, and seek comfort and amusement in your call history, knowing that YOU made the choice to wake up your ex at 3 AM mumbling incoherently.






http://www.iphonefootprint.com/2009/02/spin-to-make-decisions-spinning-bottle-comes-to-the-iphone/

http://media.www.dailypennsylvanian.com/media/storage/paper882/news/2009/03/30/News/Two-Iphone.Apps.Aim.To.Prevent.Drunk.Dialing-3688619.shtml

Gaming as a Story Telling Medium

This late in the game (no pun intended) we all know that video games have great potential as a narrative medium. No greater is that apparent to me at this point than a new game in development about the Iraq War. The developer, Atomic Games, has taken primary sources from real life American soldiers to "re-create" the Battle of Fallujah in video game format. Aptly titled "Six Days in Fallujah" or just "Six Days", it takes on the role of a mini-documentary.


This, for me, is a wonderful use of the medium. It allows people to begin being a part of history and learning it that way. This sort of thing has been evolving with games like Civilization and Age of Mythology. Games that have educational aspects to them as well as being entertaining, but this is different, because it is happening now in front of our eyes in the news. Yet it allows players to be apart of this history and not be so detached from soldiers in Iraq, a sort of informed empathy. Perhaps those rich kids in empathy class could play for a few hours.

When looking for this week's Funny Unrelated Bit, I was so happy to finally combine my love of Britney Spears with my love of video game. Many thanx to YouTube's taintedlore

Presenting the new definition of Womanizer:
A male MMO player who solely plays female toons for the sexual pleasure of it

P.S: Later noticed the author of the WSJ article is none other than former class guest Jamin Brophy-Warren. So give it up folks!!!
P.S.S: Excuse the massively multi-media blog post

The IPhone Breathalyzer: A Safety Device or a Drinking Game Tool?

The IBreath Breathalyzer/FM tuner has recently been the source of a major controversy. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) doesn't like the new device since they fear that it may encourage young people to drink as much as possible in order to drive the meter higher. The company developing the technology makes the case that they discourage this behavior by limiting how high the meter can go to .12. Furthermore, many law enforcement officials have made the case that the iBreath may be healful. Ron DeLord of the Texis combined Law Enforcemnt agences states "anything that will bring attention to a perons alcohol intake is good thing. There are also other applications that can be downloaded in conjuction with the new Ibreathalyzer such as the last call and Taxi Magic app, which automatically calls a cab with the push of a button.

The gaget works like most other electornic breathalyzers requiring the user retract the blow wand and exhale for 5 seconds. A short 5 seconds later the breathalyzer informs the suer of his or her BAC. The device houses a built in alarm that can be set up to 4 hours into the future, reminding the user to test him or herself again later. I believe that the fear of binge drinking with this device is really foolish since the technology has a BAC limit of .12. No one is going to kill themselves driving their BAC to .12. Therefore, I think that law enforcement should publicly encourge the use of this device.


http://www.podcastingnews.com/2006/12/03/ipod-breathalyzer-safety-device-or-drinking-game/

http://www.krld.com/Your-iPod-Can-Be-Used-As-A-Breathalyzer/3537892

I'm addicted: Tap Defense

Speaking of iPhones....



Prof. mentioned a couple of classes back that Tap Defense is a decent iPhone game. I try to avoid downloading too many apps for my phone, I get bored of them fast and honestly it looks messy to have a bunch of generic icons filling up that snazzy touch screen. For the bus ride to work, I tended to rely on Word Warp, a game much like text twist, or the NYTimes app (which is really slow and kind of sucks.) I've also dabbled with Katamari- although it is really nothing compared to the real Katamari, it was defintely fun to play a familiar game with new bodily techniques. Any of these apps I just mentioned, I usually spend no more than 30 minutes a day messing with.....

Until Tap Defense.

Tap Defense (screen shot above) is a tower defense game, a subgenere of RTS games which one might recognize from StarCraft or Warcraft. The game is relatively simple: various creatures follow a path to try and get somewhere. You, the player, don't want them to get there. To kill the creatures as they follow the path, the player must build various towers along the path. Seems pretty simple. However, there are a variety of creatures and a range of towers (which cost money and "halos" to develop.) So strategy evolves from figuring out which towers are best to kill which creatures, and where to place the towers to maximize results. The creatures become more numerous and harder to kill as each level progresses. There is also a "cool" feature (though the jury is out in my opinion as to whether it really does much) called the earthquake tower which involves shaking your phone to do damage to the creatures. (Tower options below.)


I could go on, but describing the game in its entirety will just bore anyone who has read up to this point. What really interests me are two questions: What makes a good iPhone game? and secondly; What makes a game addicting, beyond simply fun to play? Beyond the obvious things (like the addictive frustration of not being able to get past level 31 until trying a bajillion times), I think the addiction in this case is partially because of the mobility of the phone. I can play the game anywhere at anytime, so it is like having a pack of cigarettes to resort to whenever I'm bored or in a awkward situation. This applies to mobile gaming in general, which I would argue is more addictive than console game because it is so portable... like cigarettes.

What makes a good iPhone game then, is staying power. Many of the free iPhone games function like the shareware discussed in Masters of Doom, hooking you with a demo or the first three levels- and suckering you into buying it once you are addicted. The trick is making the game addictive enough to buy, or addictive enough that the advertising doesn't drive you crazy. With Tap Defense I haven't noticed any ads, and I don't have to buy it. Honestly, this is part of what makes it a great iPhone game- it doesn't obligate me to do anything. Also, it incorporates the fun of the iPhone- the earthquake feature, without going too far (Katamari fails here because the phone isn't quite sophisticated enough to truly translated the phone movement with the screen movement.) Additionally, it is split into short levels, records high scores, and provides a variety of challenges and levels to explore. It is surprising how many iPhone games do not do this.

The game has myriad youtube videos, guides and forums online- the community aspect that grows from great, well-loved (or hated) games. This also indicates that I am not the only Tap Defense addict. I encourage people with iPhones or iTouches to check it out, or play a tower defense game in general if you don't have these apple products. The levels are short and easy, not consuming the large amounts of time that many rts games do, the killing isn't too brutal, and experimental strategy is important- and you can change yours every time you play. I think I've found my gaming niche (translation: I think I've found an iPhone game that holds my attention for more than a week.)

i tried to ford the river. . .

I thought I was pretty savvy with those old-school computer games that everyone seems to know. Until one day I came across one that I never played- and I had to find out about it through Facebook.

OREGON TRAIL!

My curiosity got the best of me and I ended up searching Google for a free version to try out.

The screenshot used in the Wikipedia entry is from the version of Oregon Trail that I found on Google. Yes, I played the game.

I was surprised at it's complexity. This version of Oregon Trail was a very early version, and it was the most simplistic version in the series. The amount of decisions a user has to make before even leaving the first town is kind of intimidating. (How much food to stock, what supplies to take, etc.) There were some decisions that seemed to be completely useless, such as your profession- I was some sort of banker and it didn't seem to mean anything.

(Just to prove that I never played this game before, I actually asked my roommate out loud what the aim of the game was. She just gave me a funny look and said, "It's in the title, Jess."

Once my party and I were out on the trail, there were instances where I was completely baffled, because random events would occur that seemed to lack any significance. Members of my party would get injured, and there would be no way to help them. Random events would lead us off the trail. I would be presented with a choice of trail, not knowing the advantages and disadvantages of one trail over the other.

Eventually, I did get to Oregon- with two dead oxen and four dead party members. They were starving and sick and I was frustrated. To top it off, I didn't even learn anything about Oregon or pioneers! I suppose this was an exercise in how even a children's game can be complicated and frustrating.

iPhone - The Gamer's Phone

So I finally wriggled my way out of my Verizon contract and got an iPhone (not for the service). I've noticed a lot of talk about the iPhone as being predominantly a gaming device, something apparently being looked into for its next generation.

Known for its sleek design and impressive graphical quality, it's no wonder that the application store is over-run by gaming applications. In fact, some of the highest rated and used applications are games like Tap Tap Revenge, and the apparently amazingly fun Oregon Trail. Examples such as these reflect the heavy influence from actual video and console games, which is not new to phone devices.





Comparisons of the iPhone to popular hand-held gaming devices also show some impressive numbers. Quoted from Wired: "Add to that the fact that the iPhone App Store has already got the DS and PSP beat in terms of game titles available: When the App Store was just three months old, it had 1,500 games; the PSP and DS had about 600 and 300 titles, respectively" (Chen).

Developments for the next iPhone are speculated to incorporate better graphical quality and processing capabilities, which should secure an even more promising future for the iPhone as a gaming device. Goes to show how prevalent gaming can be in our lives!

Creator of Braid at NYU

Last week I went to the NYU Games Center's lecture with the creator of the hit XBLA game Braid, Jonathan Blow.

I liveblogged the event via twitter. Here are the tweets I came away with:

5:19 pm - Jonathan Blow's first company was formed by himself and a college friend and their first game put them $100,000 in debt.

5:26 pm - Early development slide of Braid. Level made it into the final game. (Art was very basic. Looked like sketches, but the game played the same as in the final version.)

5:28 pm - "Videogames give you a temporary meaning of life in a simplified version of the world." #jonathanblowatnyu

5:29 pm - Jonathan Blow doesn't believe in defining games within categories or systems of fun. (I gave up on using hashtags after on tweet.)

5:43 pm - Elevator Action, Dino Eggs, The Trinity, Super Mario Bros, and Donkey Kong were influences for Braid.

5:51 pm - Head of NYU Games Center's company Area/Code Entertainment developed iPhone game called Drop 7.

5:53 pm - Since Braid is 2D, Time and Space are the same dimensions.

6:01 pm - Jonathan Blow isn't interested in working on future projects with teams. He likes maintaining control in exploring the subjects he wants.

6:05 pm - "Fun traditionally had roots in merit."

6:07 pm - The purpose behind creating World of Warcraft and Peggle are apparently artificial attempts at fun in order to make money?

6:09 pm - I feel like Metal Gear and Fable are different because they have creative directors like Kojima and Molyneux. (My opinion, not Blow's.)

6:10 pm - But Mirror's Edge was pretty much a commercial failure...so artistic games aren't appreciated in the market. But we knew that.

6:16 pm - Jonathan Blow doesn't playtest or use design documents.

6:25 pm - OH YEAH. Portal is also an example of creativity being a huge hit. <3>His next game plans to take away the seriousness of a serious game and seeing what you can do with that.

6:33 pm - Very good point made. Why are the buttons mapped out for Guitar Hero/Rock Band necessarily the right ones? (For this reason, Blow isn't much of a fan or rhythm games, although he is good friends with the people at Harmonix.)

6:43 pm - Good lecture. He didn't answer my question about the stars in Braid though. Probably wanted to keep everything enigmatic still. Valid.

In the last tweet, I asked Blow about the secret starts that the player can collect in Braid. He responded by saying "There aren't any stars in Braid. It's a game about collecting puzzle pieces." I wasn't really surprised by his answer, as in past interviews he has resisted commenting on the plot of the game, claiming that players should interpret it as they like.

Well, that's all I got from the lecture. It was really great and I highly recommend attending future ones presented by the Games Center at NYU.

-JF

"What will you and i do?"

Yesterday was the North American launch of Nintendo's newest portable console, the Nintendo DSi. The DSi is the third generation of Nintendo's Dual Screen consoles after the original Nintendo DS and the DS Lite.

The DSi features the same top screen and bottom touch-screen, DS Card slot, and the usual D-pad and buttons. The stylus is slightly longer in this version for better handling. It also features two built-in cameras: one on the front of the top cover and another between the two screens facing the player (where the microphone is located on the DS Lite). Players can take, edit and share pictures wirelessly with the DSi's Wi-Fi upgrade as well as download content from the DSi Shop Channel. The cameras also provide motion detection abilities which call for great game development. (Check out Warioware Snapped!)



The new channel works similar to the Nintendo Wii's Shop Channel using DSi points. DC ranges from free to 800+ points. People who purchase the DSi within the first 6 months of its launch automatically get 1,000 DSi points. With the absence of a GB Advanced slot on the DSi, there are rumors about bringing Virtual Console to the DSi. For extra storage, the DSi includes an SD memory card slot on the right side of the console where players can save apps as well as music for the DSi's music player (only some music files supported). Audio can also be recorded through the microphone and easily mixed on the touch screen.

Personally, if you're happy with your DS Lite, you shouldn't really bother getting the DSi. Most of the games you can play on the DSi are also compatible with the other DS systems. However, the new upgrades open up a variety of usage for newer games and the soon to be developed DC specifically for the DSi will grant better gaming capabilities.

MAJOR MINOR'S MAJESTIC MARCH

So, According to GAMASUTRA, Majesco is still on the Nasdaq. It was given the ultimatum to raise its price above $1 a share or leave.
http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=23063
One of the MAJOR factors that contributed to its last minute rise in share price was the release of a game called “Major Minor’s Majestic March”.
The game is exclusive to the Wii and it involves leading a marching through a variety of locations. This game has obviously become very popular very fast to save its publisher like that!Let’s examine some of its factors….
A: It seems pretty much all Ludus and no Paeda
B: Players seem to have very little control on the narrative.
C: Since its on the Wii, one does not have to be a serious gamer to be attracted to it/learn how to play.
D: In conclusion, its basically created to have mass appeal, the masses in this case include both serious and non serious gaamers

So, being a non gamer myself, I want to the more intense gamers of the class. Is this mainstream in the way a Hannah montanna song is mainstream [ ie: no music snob could possibly love it] or is it mainstream in the way Pirates of the Caribbean was main stream i.e both movie snobs and non snobs alike can love it]
Feedback???

Study suggests that driving games actually cause more aggression than shooters -- G4

At the British Psychological Society's Annual Conference in England, Dr. Simon Goodson and Dr. Sarah Pearson are going to present a study which found that driving games actually cause more aggressive responses in test subjects than shooters do. As the study's participants played either violent shooting games, 3D table tennis, or driving games, their cognitive and physiological states were measured. Their results suggested that the driving games had more of an impact on the player than a graphic, violent shooter.

Thoughts? At first this sounded really improbable to me but thinking about it, I actually get pretty involved when I'm playing a racing game so maybe this could be true?