The Big Three - Who Will Succeed in 2006?
Anyone familiar with my blog knows that I rarely talk about current events in the video game industry. I figure that, if someone wants to learn more about the Grand Theft Auto San Andreas "Hot Coffee" mod controversy, or catch up on the games revealed at the recent German Games Convention, he is better of going to a gaming news website such as IGN or Gamespot (both of which have links on this page). It's not that I don't like talking about current events, it's just that providing deep analysis of gaming news and developments is usually beyond the scope of this humble blog.
Still, with E3 long since over, and the aforementioned German Games Convention having just concluded, I figured I'd share a few of my feelings regarding the three giants - Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo - and conjecture a bit about what awaits us in 2006.
First off, I think Microsoft is wise to jump ahead of the competition and release its new console, the Xbox 360, by this Christmas. Yes, being the first system out of the door is a gamble, a fact many a poor Sega Dreamcast owner will attest to, but I honestly think the 360's early entry will work to Microsoft's advantage. Despite the 360's shameless and ostentatious revealing on MTV a few months back, plus another iffy E3 presentation, the system still seems to be generating a good amount of buzz among gamers, and the two price points - a $299 and $399 version - will help anyone who wants the system to be able to afford one. Let's just hope the launch titles are as good as Microsoft boasts them to be. And incidentally, buy the $399 model if you can, it's by far the better deal.
Next is Sony and its cleverly named Playstation 3 (note the sarcasm here). To be fair, I think the design of the system is the most original of the three coming consoles, and if Sony is to be believed, it should also be the most powerful. Still, footage of actual games for the system has been scarce, and the videos that
have been shown have been largely criticized by the press as being merely prerendered movies (and thus not true representations of what the system can do). Also of concern are the rumors regarding the system's price - estimates range from the reasonable ($350) to the astronomical ($600). With the already powerful Xbox 360 at $300, why would anyone pay an extra $100-300 for a PS3? One can't help but feel Sony may be trying to make the system too powerful, and thus more expensive, than it really needs to be.
Finally, there is Nintendo's enigmatic Revolution, the system the Big N promised would be released before or at the same time as the PS3, but now will likely be the last of the three consoles to hit the market. Unlike its competitors, Nintendo is not focusing on sheer hardware power but is instead concentrating on another important element - interaction. Supposedly, Nintendo has adapted a "revolutionary" technology to the system's controller that will provide gamers with an unprecedented amount of control and feedback in their experiences. Unfortunately, Nintendo has been characteristically secretive in regards to what the controller or the technology might be, leaving gamers and the media scratching their heads in wonder (and frustration) over what the company is hiding. Is the technology really so great that it justifies the Big N's seemingly endless silence? My hunch is that when the controller is finally revealed, people's expectations will be so high, they're going to be at least mildly disappointed by what they see. In any case, at least the Revolution will boast on-line capabilities, a crucial feature GameCube owners more or less missed out on.
So, which system will ultimately reign? It's a tough call. I suspect the Xbox 360 will give the PS3 a good challenge in America, but will still lose to Sony in Japan. The Revolution, no matter how great (or not) the controller turns out, will likely place third in America, although it will still be popular with the kids (in part to a relatively low price point) and a sleeper favorite among the hardcore. Besides, it's supposed to have an on-line Smash Brothers game at launch, which is reason enough for any self-respecting gamer to give it a chance.
So, which system(s) do you plan on getting? Until next time. . .
Video Games Make My Simple Life Complicated
It's been a long night of work (yeah, I work nights, bleah), so I'm a bit too tired to come up with a brilliant topic for the mid-week post. So instead I'll write about the games I'm currently playing (or not playing, as the case may be).
Many gamers play one game at a time. Once they complete the title, they move on to the next one. Others will not only complete the game, but will play it over numerous times to unlock all the extras and goodies. Only after getting 100% will they then move on to the next title. But not me. I usually have, on average, five games going on at once, and I rarely get to finish half of them.
Take my lowly weekly routine, for instance: I get up, go to work, come home, check my email, log onto IGN, play a bit of Nintendo GBA or DS, exercise, eat something, and then go to sleep. Exciting life, huh? But because I do manage to squeeze in a few minutes of play on the GBA or DS, that's, at minimum, two games already competing for my attention. Currently, I'm playing
Sonic Advance 2 on the GBA and
Yoshi's Touch and Go on the DS.
Weekends are a different matter, as I have the freedom to arrange my routine without my pesky job getting in the way. Because of this, I usually skip the portables and jump to either my GameCube, PS2 or PC. On the Cube, I've just worn out
Mario Power Tennis and am preparing to start
Resident Evil 4. On the PS2, I dabbled in
Street Fighter Anniversary Collection and
Maximo (both were disappointments, by the way), and am now debating on whether I should start
Final Fantasy VII again and actually play all the way through (yeah, I never have done that) or begin the underrated classic,
Beyond Good and Evil. Decisions, decisions.
Ah, yes, and then there's my beloved PC on which I type this humble blog. I had started playing
Doom 3 and intended on seeing it through to the end, but then
Half-Life 2 went on sale at CompUSA and, naturally, I bought it. So I now have two great computer games vying for my precious time. (Incidentally,
Half-Life 2 is winning).
So, despite my simple existence, one can see how my life can still be pretty hectic with all these games I have on my hands, and why so many of my titles remain unconquered. I know, it's a rough life.
Until next time. . .
Game Collecting - The Basics
Human beings love to collect stuff. Porcelain dolls, comic books, stamps, paintings, antiques, Beanie Babies - people will collect almost anything.
For me, it's video games. Sure, I also collect comics, DVDs and the occasional animation cel, but my real passion lies in amassing a large library of games that I can use as show pieces to help educate my friends on the history of the medium.
Unfortunately, game collecting can be an expensive hobby, so I recommend that anyone who wants to start building a respectable game library to first start small, perhaps only seeking titles he or she truly enjoys or has fond memories of. For me, this meant initially seeking only PSONE games I felt were truly exceptional and revolutionary for their time. Fast forward a few years and I now own a pretty eclectic mix of Playstation titles, from common releases like
Final Fantasy VII and
Tomb Raider to rare gems such as
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night and
Valkyrie Profile.
Of course, if you're already making a lot of cash and have the money to burn, then the possibilities for your collection are almost endless. Why not seek out the rare Turbografx 16 console and its unique library of titles, or track down ancient golden age hardware such as the Magnavox Odyssey (the first home video game console) and the Microvision (the first portable gaming system)? One popular activity among hardcore collectors is purchasing uncommon Japanese titles never released in America. Games such as
Radiant Silvergun (for the Sega Saturn) or
Dracula X: Rondo of Blood (for the Turbo Duo) are prized possessions for any dedicated hobbyist. Just be prepared to pay some serious cash for them.
Newbie collectors often wonder what makes certain games more valuable than others. Certainly, the rarity of a particular title is a primary factor, but it's not the only one - games that are not in high demand will not fetch premium prices, no matter how scarce they might be. Incidentally, RPGs are the most likely to increase in value over time, while sport titles are the most likely to devalue. Another important factor is whether the game in question comes with its original box and manual. If it does, and the materials are in good condition, the value of the game is often doubled or even tripled. And obviously, the game itself must be in good shape. An unscratched, flawless copy of
Panzer Dragoon Saga is certainly worth more than a beat-up copy is.
Sadly, locating rare titles that are also in good condition can be difficult. While most game shops sell used titles for the more recent systems, the games are often dirty, scratched, and don't come with their original packaging. This fact forces the more serious collectors to buy almost exclusively over the internet, where pristine copies of certain games can still be found. The catch, however, is that these spiffier titles, often found through the likes of eBay and similar services, will often cost far more than the less-than-perfect copies available in stores. Personally, I usually use Half.com for my collecting needs. An extension of eBay, some decent buys can be found there, and better yet, there's no bidding!
So, what makes game collecting so rewarding? I think that it largely has to do with a game's ability to allow the player to relive the past. While people can only passively watch an old movie or listen to an old record, being able to actually move around and explore the world of an old video game is often a more engaging experience. It allows the individual to, in a sense, actively relive or experience a small part of history versus being a mere observer.
Anyway, my main advice to new collectors is to not spend your money needlessly. If you don't like RPGs, for instance, perhaps you should ignore that hundred dollar copy of
Suikoden 2 you found on Ebay. Save your money for something you will truly appreciate and let someone else have the title. Collecting solely for rarity's sake, or for profit, is poor form.
By the way, anyone interested in seeing my collection again at IGN can click this:
http://my.ign.com/my/sb?action=viewUserGameList&ownedGames=yUntil next time. . .
Sacrilege! What Have You Done, Nintendo?
Sacrilege! That's what I immediately thought when I viewed these art pics on IGN.com. The images are from Super Mario Strikers, another Mario sports title - this time involving soccer. As if it were not bad enough that Nintendo inappropriately had Mario, Luigi and the Princess shoot hoops in the rough and rowdy NBA Street: Vol. 3, now we are to assume that Mario is a badass soccer player and Peach is a girl with attitude.
But are these revised depictions of two classic Nintendo characters not contrary to what they have traditionally been and represented? Mario is the quintessential underdog who is always willing to do his best and help somebody out. And Princess Peach is a graceful, pure, kind-hearted woman who emanates peace and beauty. In other words, she would not be a cocky soccer player! And even if she was, she would never wear a skimpy mid-drift!
I actually sent IGNCube a quick letter on the subject and I'll post it here:
Mr. Matt and Mr. Juan,
I was just browsing through the new images of Super Mario Strikers and found the new character artwork a bit disturbing. What's up with trying to make Mario look all bad-ass, or depicting Princess Peach as a girl with attitude? People have complained for a long time that Nintendo is "whoring out" its characters by allowing other companies to make innumerable games based of its Mario properties, and these new pics confirm this.
I don't think Nintendo itself has a true understanding of its own characters. Mario is not cool! He's more like Mickey Mouse - likeable and funny, but again, not cool. And Princess Peach? She's supposed to be the antithesis of the rough and tough, in your face, aggressive women found in most games today. The Princess is pure, modest and refined - not some gritty, competitive athlete.
Ah well, I'll close this letter now. But I seriously think Nintendo needs to reevaluate its characters and be more particular in how other companies depict them. What do you guys think?
Thanks, Dan
And I think that more or less concludes this topic. But really, you don't see Disney taking Cinderella and transforming her into some biker chick or something. Anyway, until next time. . .
What Are the Best Games of All Time?
Probably the one thing video game enthusiasts enjoy almost as much as actually playing games is debating which titles or genres are better than others. Of course, being that video gaming in all its variety is largely one of personal preference, deciding which titles are truly great--and thus deserving of classic status--is often a difficult, if not impossible task.
Various magazines and gaming sites will often have "Top 25," "Top 50," or "Top 100" lists expressing their respective editors' own views on what should be considered history's best titles. But again, the choices for these lists are largely debatable, as even the editors of the publications in question will often get into heated discussions concerning not only what titles should be included, but what specific ranking they deserve on that list. For instance, IGN.com recently posted a "Top 100 Games" list on its site. Not surprisingly, Matt Casamassina , the primary editor of IGNCube (IGN's GameCube channel), thought Metroid Prime should be included in the top ten. Some other editors, however, ardently disagreed, deeming the game unworthy to even be included in the top 100. The end result? The game placed 52nd on the list as a sort of shaky compromise between the editors. Here's the link to the complete list if you're interested:
http://top100.ign.com/2005/index.htmlThis scenario is not uncommon, as the factors that determine a game's quality and significance is often relative to the individual. Some gamers, for example, might rank the original Super Mario Bros. high on their list due to the game's historic value - it more or less singlehandedly resurrected the gaming industry after the 83-84 crash and ensured Nintendo's dominance in the gaming world for the remainder of the 80's. Not to mention the game is still fun even today.
Others, however, would scoff at placing an ancient game like Super Mario Bros. high on a list. Sure, the game was great for its time, but who would play it now when more sophisticated titles such as Half-Life, Metal Gear Solid and Ratchet and Clank are available? And they have a point.
While I haven't given it much thought, here's a quickie Top 10 list of my own (in no particular order). I recommend these games to anyone interested in the fine art of video game design.
My list as follows:
1. The Legend of Zelda series (especially Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, and Link's Awakening)
2. Super Mario Series (namely the 2-D titles including Yoshi's Island, but also Super Mario 64)
3. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (hard to find now on the PSONE, but a must-play)
4. Super Mario Kart series (although I put "series," I mostly recommend the original or GBA sequel)
5. MegaMan Legends 1+2 (okay, you knew I had to throw at least one odd choice on the list; still, both titles of the series are great PSONE games if you can get past the dated graphics)
6. Half-Life series (the most immersive and exiting single-player FPSs I have ever played)
7. Super Smash Bros. Melee (a fantastically fun fighting frenzy that is both enjoyable alone or with friends)
8. Secret of Mana (maybe a little dated now, but this game still captivates and screams for a proper sequel)
9. Metroid series (I recommend Super Metroid, Metroid Fusion, Metroid: Zero Mission, and Metroid Prime)
10. Pac-Man/Ms. Pac-Man (proof that a game of minimalist design can be great fun)
Does anyone have a list they'd like to share? Then do it! Until next time. . .
The Growing Interest in Classic Gaming
Over the last several years, classic gaming, or retro gaming as some call it, has seen a sharp surge of popularity. Back in the early nineties, most gamers were pretty ignorant of gaming's short but colorful history. In those days, if you were to ask the average gamer who the founder of Atari was (Nolan Bushnell), or who was the creator/designer of
Asteroids (Ed Logg), most would shrug and say, "Uh, I dunno."
Fast forward about ten years, however, and suddenly everyone seems interested in classic gaming. To satiate this growing awareness, numerous books and DVDs chronicling the history of the medium are available, from the early days of Steve Russell (creator of the first computer game,
Space War) to the great video game crash of 1983-84. Replicas of classic game systems and controllers with actual games built into them are sold to great demand. Shirts, jackets and other apparel sporting pics of classic game characters and insignias are common purchases in various clothing stores. G4, a cable channel dedicated to the video game pastime, is now watched readily across the country.
Why the sudden interest in gaming and its past? It all has to do with simple nostalgia. As gamers grow into adulthood, many remember fondly the first time they saved the Princess, defeated Dr. Wily or finally beat the local
Street Fighter 2 expert in a match at the nearby arcade. And so, by purchasing classic games and merchandise, these older gamers are reliving their youth and paying tribute to an era when gaming was a simpler, more innocent hobby.
Speaking of classic gaming, I purchased the PS2 title
Atari Anthology over the weekend, and I have to say, with over eighty games included on the disc, it's the most comprehensive collection of Atari produced titles I have ever seen. That's not to say that all the games are fun, mind you - most of these ancient titles seem atrocious by today's standards - but it's still a great piece of interactive history that I recommend to everyone. Hey, it's only twenty bucks, and it even has an interview with Nolan Bushnell (the founder of Atari, in case you've forgotten already)!
Ah well, I'll talk more about retro games in a future post. Until next time. . .
Video Game Cartoons and Animation Cels
For the weekend edition of my blog, I figured I'd stray a bit from my usual gaming contemplations and show off a couple of animation cels I recently purchased off of good ol' eBay.
The first is a cel of the old
Legend of Zelda cartoon that used to come on Fridays as part of the
Super Mario Super Show, a cartoon series that originated in the late 1980's, early 1990's. The cartoon's writing and animation is a bit cheesy (even sacriligious) when compared to today's standards of animation (and to the Zelda video game franchise), but it was entertaining enough for its time. I purchased a DiC DVD that included a few of the Zelda episodes and, after having not seen the series in years, was surprised to find them still somewhat enjoyable, if mostly in the nostalgic sense. It's easy to see how the series could be improved ten-fold if done again today. If only Nintendo would release a new improved Zelda anime series for the 21st century. . .(and perhaps it will now that the company has announced an interest in producing animated movies). As for the cel, it's marred slightly from minor line fading, but overall, the condition is pretty good. The scene shown is actually a composite of three different cels overlayed on top of each other, which was a technique animators used when animating complex scenes with multiple moving characters.
The second cel shown here is of everyone's favorite damsel, the beautiful and kindhearted Princess Peach Toadstool. This particular cel either comes from the
Super Mario Super Show or one of its two follow-up series--
Super Mario Bros. 3 or
Super Mario World. Anyone out there know for sure? Anyway, the cel is in pretty good shape, but like the Zelda cel it suffers a bit from minor line fading. There's also two small flecks of paper stuck to each of the Princess' eyes, although they're virtually invisible unless studied closely. Despite the small imperfections, however, I'm pretty happy with this cel. I used to watch the
Super Mario Super Show religiously as a kid, and cels such as these bring back a lot of fuzzy memories.
Just in case you're unfamiliar with what an animation cel is exactly, it's a sheet of thin, clear celluloid plastic (cel is short for celluloid) with a painted drawing of one or more objects. Animators would trace and paint an object on one cel, photograph it, and then replace it with a slightly updated second cel of the same object and repeat the process. For example, to depict the wave of a character's hand, each cel in a sequence would show the hand drawn a little more to the left or right than the last. Once this sequence was photographed and then played back on film, the illusion of the hand moving back and forth was created (anyone who has seen a cartoon flip book should understand this process a bit more clearly). Animators used the transparent sheets (the cels) so they could easily transpose their drawings over handpainted backgrounds. So when you catch an old Looney Tunes short on TV and see Bugs Bunny running through a forest, what you're really seeing is the sequence of hundreds of paintings of Bugs photographed over a static painted background of some trees and foliage. Make sense?
The sad news is that the art of 2-D animation is all but dead (much like it is in video games, but that's another topic). Sure, 2-D cartoons still appear on the air waves (
Teen Titans,
Kim Possible,
SpongeBob,
Inuyasha, to name a few) , but even these programs are actually drawn and produced on computer via special software. The art of physically drawing scenes by hand to paper and celluloid has all but vanished in the wake of the digital age, which is a shame. It also means you won't be finding cels of recent animated hits because, well, cels aren't used anymore in the creation of modern animation.
Until next time. . .
A Social or Anti-Social Weekend?
Praise God, it's the weekend! And as any true gamer knows, this means two complete days of gaming Nirvana before being beckoned back to the daily grind come Monday morning.
But this begs the question: How do gamers spend their weekends? With a mere precious 48 hours before the dreaded coming of the next work week, gamers must spend their time wisely if they are to feel like they've accomplished something before returning to their jobs.
I used to work at a video store and would regularly see customers rent a video game on Friday with the aim of completing it by Sunday evening. They weren't always successful, but with multiple quality titles flooding the market every month, renting a game every week and playing it diligently all weekend long is not a bad way to properly experience the current month's biggest releases. It just leaves no time for anything resembling a normal social life.
To avoid this fate, many gamers opt instead to having "Game Nights" where a bunch of guys (and the occasional girl) get together to play their favorite multiplayer game. From my experience, at least with console titles, the most popular candidate is
Halo (and now
Halo 2) on the Xbox, although back in my college days
Super Smash Brothers Melee for the GameCube was also a well-loved title (and my personal favorite). The beauty of these gatherings is that they not only satisfy the individual's gaming urges, but they allow everyone to have fun in a social context versus the old days when gaming was largely a solitary (and anti-social, as some would say) pastime.
So have fun, relax and enjoy your weekend, no matter how you choose to spend it. Just try not to be
too "anti-social"--we don't need to be reinforcing that old stereotype anymore than we already do. Until next time. . .
Every Guy Wants a Gamer Girlfriend, Right?
A topic guys often joke about is how to get their girlfriends interested in video games, or how nice it would be to have a girlfriend who was also an avid gamer.
Of course, to say that women don't like gaming is a pretty strong overgeneralization, as I know plenty of young ladies who at least dabble in the hobby from time to time. But while interest in gaming is indeed growing (albeit slowly) among the female population, the games girls play do tend to be of the simpler, dare I say it cuter, variety. Titles such as
Monkeyball,
Mario Kart,
Smash Brothers, and some RPGs like
Final Fantasy seem to attract far more female players than, say,
Mortal Kombat,
Halo or
Grand Theft Auto (although the few women I've seen who do like these types of games are scary good at them). These latter titles still seem to be considered mostly "guy games," much like action movies such as
Star Wars still seem to appeal more to men than women.
This is not a bad thing, by the way. As far as I'm concerned, let the girls enjoy the classier, more traditional titles like
Super Mario and
Sonic the Hedgehog and keep them away from gore fests like
Manhunt or
Postal. Heck, if my (hypothetical) girlfriend liked playing
GTA: San Andreas just because she found it fun driving around for hours running over people, I'd probably be a little disturbed by this fact. I like nice girls, darn it!
I actually sent Dave "Fargo" Kosak of Gamespy fame a humorous email discussing this topic a tad, and I figured I'd paste a bit of it to illustrate my thoughts on this matter further. By the way, this was written with tongue firmly in cheek, so keep that in mind as you read on. . .
As written to Fargo:
Sure, it's cool to have a gal who'll play Smash Brothers or Mario Kart with you from time to time. But the more hardcore a gamer your significant other becomes, the more proportionately annoying she becomes as well. Squabbles over which game to play become common, and if you both decide to play separate games on separate consoles, you'll then fight over who gets the larger, nicer television set.
Worst yet, gamer girls tend to be rather arrogant. I'm sure you've seen them - they have that smug "I'm better than any guy" air about them. The funny thing is, should they actually begin losing against a male opponent, they'll get increasingly defensive and bitchy, and if they do lose, they'll keep demanding rematches until they win one. Seriously, who wants a girl like that?
Lastly, what guy wants to come home from a hard day of work looking for a little lovin', only to discover that his wife has been playing World of Warcraft or Final Fantasy XI for the last twelve hours? Instead of a little affection, the only acknowledgment he gets from his bloodshot-eyed wife is, "Don't bother me. I'm in the middle of a raid. There's some leftover pizza in the fridge if you're hungry."Again, these words to Fargo were written more for laughs than anything, but I think most guys will admit that there's a little bit of truth here as well. And no, Fargo hasn't replied to the letter, so I can't say how well he liked it. I'm sure he thought it was absolutely brilliant and hilarious, however. Anyway, until next time. . .
