Archive for November, 2009
Express Checkout: Ugly Betty, Twilight, Persona 3
- I was rather pleased to see Ugly Betty take some really good swings at Scientology over the past couple of episodes. It wasn’t doing it bare handed either… it was swinging a golf club. I applaud them for doing so. I hope more shows take on that challenge and go after them in more and more pointed ways.
- Well, horror of horrors… apparently there is a Twilight television series in the works starring he-who-must-be-bathed, Robert Pattison. OK, I’d root for Jay Leno against that (if his show lasts until next year that is). If this goes through, it is going to be a long few years for pop culture.
- I’ve been playing an RPG as of late (Persona 3: FES), and I have to say I’ve been impressed not only by the story and character development but by something that is so
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The Multiplayer
I just read this article on Lost Garden. I’m sort of in agreement, except that I’m mostly not.
While I like the overall idea of ditching some of our arbitrary constraints and crufty assumptions, I don’t think that the proposition he actually writes is a good one. If you haven’t read it, the article can be summarized as being a giant endorsement of A) multiplayer, B) rules to let players express themselves, and C) integrating games into daily life.
I agree with most of these in almost all situations (only (C) is somewhat iffy), but I disagree with his examples. For example, he specifically says that we can “dodge” the hard problem of highly interactive/adaptive NPCs by having other players instead. This only works in certain situations. It is inherently an extremely low-immersion solution, and is almost always implemented in a way that damages any one player’s ability to…
iLASIK Video Contest
This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Incendia Health. All opinions are 100% mine.
Today our random topic is: iLASIK Video Contest
This contest is a video contest(Obviously) inviting entrants to make a video showing the impact of improved vision, for a chance to win cash and prizes. People have already submitted:
• original music videos
• videos on boxing and swimming
• videos that just show how their daily lives would improve
Why Horror Games Suck!
Inspired by Ron Gilbert’s article “Why adventure games suck” I decided to do my own list. To be fair I do not think that all horror games suck (in fact some are really good!), but there are some common problems that pretty much all the games have. These issues hold horror games back from using the medium’s full potential and I am convinced that games can be a lot more scary and engaging than what we have seen so far.
I also want to point out that the Penumbra games all have their share of flaws from the stuff below and are by no means exceptions from the rule. However, it is always a start to notice what kind of flaws that exist, so that one can work upon fixing them. It is our goal that our upcoming game Amnesia will minimize
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Sunday Video: Twilight Intervention
Skyler Stone of Con fame decided to stage an intervention for Twilight fans on the opening night of New Moon. Much hilarity ensues.
Now, that’s a burn.