Stare at the Xbox 360… You are getting sleepy… sleepy…
It may not be there for long, but Microsoft had some not-so-subtle advertising on Gamespot’s PS3 page
I’m submitting this screenshot to Merriam Webster to replace their current definition for “conflict of interest”
If you’re too late to witness it first hand, click the pic above to see a large version of the page. It included two 360 banner ads in addition to the hypnotic wallpaper.
People love lists. Whether they’re organizational ( 1. Make to-do list 2. shampoo cat 3. go to emergency room for stitches (see item 2)…), or informational (Top Ten Scabs I’ve picked: 1) elbow 2) knee…) it seems to be human nature to compare, rate, and rank. I realize that the year isn’t quite over, but I don’t see any contenders coming down the pike, so here are my top ten games for the year. In my exalted opinion, these are all must- buy titles (in no particular order). Readers and EMB editors, I turn the mic over to you.
COMPANY OF HEROES (PC)–Best RTS game of the year and one of the top RTS games of all time
GEARS OF WAR (xBox360)–The hype is true
CALL OF DUTY 3 (xBox360,Wii,PS3)–the best WW2 FPS enters the next gen
F.E.A.R. Combat (PC)–really fun and really FREE
FINAL FANTASY XII (PS2)–Square Enix squeezes the last drop of graphical goodness out of the PS2
WARHAMMER 40K: DAWN OF WAR DARK CRUSADE (PC)–THQ knocks another RTS out of the park
ROCKSTAR TABLE TENNIS (xBox360)–one of the best sports games on any system this year
DEAD RISING (xBox360)–the reason I bought a 360: feel sad for me
OBLIVION (PC, xBox360, PS3)–how can you not be blown away by the polish of this game?
1701 A.D. (PC)–best city/civ game of the year
The overflow 10: OKAMI (PS2), GUITAR HERO 2 (PS2), HALF LIFE 2 Episode 1 (PC), PREY (PC, xBox 360), LORD OF THE RINGS BATTLE FOR MIDDLE EARTH 2 (PC, xBox 360), SAINTS ROW (xBox360), TOP SPIN 2 (xBox360), SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS (PS2), G.R.A.W. (PC,xBox360), WORLD OF WARCRAFT (PC)
[the following is an excerpt from the speech given by the president of JoWood to the team responsible for GOTHIC 3. Translated]
Gentlemen–und fraulein!–We are about to release GOTHIC 3 and let me tell you, the results of your efforts are impres…very…well, there are results. GOTHIC 3 is quite the…it is a…a…it is definitely a game. Heinrich! Put down that puppy and listen! We all know that this game will be compared to OBLIVION. It goes without saying that GOTHIC 3 is nothing like that far superior…um…much better…er…other game.
People nowadays have too many choices, so you wisely elected to allow the player no decisions at all when it comes to avatar customization. It’s my way, or the autobahn, eh Schmidt? Rolf, were you the model for the character? You are a handsome man, Rolf. What’s that? The model was Eva? Well, Eva, you are a handsome…man, too.
Ja, the eye gets fatigued by trying to take in too much detail, so again, wise choice in making those figure models look like shi…like out of focus…watercolor paintings? What about the missing textures on buildings? Ah, I understand–a way to get the player to use his imagination. Or hers. Increased immersion. All in all, I’d say your efforts…er..work…uh…time sitting at your desks was well sp…was used wisely…um…what the hell did you do for the past three years? What’s that, Klaus? F*** you,too.
If you mess with the bull, you’ll get a PS3. Or the horns.
Join the GamersHell crew as we go on location to the hell-on-earth of waiting in line for the Playstation 3. This week’s reviews are Gears of War for the Xbox 360 and Trauma Center: Under the Knife for the Nintendo DS. Catch your breath, there’s more. We’ve got the latest gaming headlines as well as our weekly roundups of demos and new releases. Enjoy!
The ESP Game and Peekaboom are games created by Luis von Ahn here at CMU, to help facilitate tagging of images online for better searches.
The then there is the Jukebox Gameplay Project this semester at the ETC, where the music you decide to play with the game determines how game play unfolds.
Check them out and enjoy folks.
Peace
Staque
Our most expensive battle objective yet
Gear up, soldier. The Gamers Hell podcast is taking you to the front lines of Battlefield 2142. Between mortar fire, we’ve got a pile of reviews and commentary on the latest ads for the PS3. There’s a demo roundup in here as well as coverage of the plentiful new releases. Best of all, your host this week is the incredible HOLYCOW. You do not want to miss this episode. Grab your headphones, seek cover, and listen in! 36:12 min.
Are games Art? Should they even aspire to Art? What is this funky smelling stain on my shirt? These are questions that nearly all serious gamers have asked themselves. Like all philosophicalesque questions, they don’t lend themselves to easy answers. Especially the last one–that stain could be anything.
One of the best discussions of the Games As Art issue was, surprisingly enough, featured in the letters to the editor section of Electronic Games Monthly, despite that magazine’s target demographic being of the age where they have to ride their skateboard to the store to buy a copy with money swiped from mom’s handbag. Let me paraphrase some of the key points:
Art is essentially an artifact of one-person (the Artist) expressing him or herself.
Art is essentially a passive experience (at least in terms of the consumer/observer). We experience Art being done to us or witness it, but generally don’t have a role in shaping it. (of course, we bring our own experiences to the metaphorical table, hence everyone interpreting the Art work slightly differently).
Games, however, are interactive and participatory and instead of being the artifact of one person, are generally the product of a collective (i.e. the developer/team) united by a single vision. A work of Art exists without or without the audience but a Game only exists through the participation of a player.
Games that are the most Art-like are often the most static, the least successful or entertaining as games. However, the best games are always infused with Artistic elements and Artistry. Therefore, games should not aspire to Art, but be satisfied with the table scraps folded in the napkin and surreptiously offered under the table (i.e., being Artistic).
Now, if you haven’t gone back to reading the Cap’n Crunch box, thank you. Here’s your assignment…think about these questions:
1) If Rembrandt were alive today, would he be involved in designing computer games? Would you totally pwn him in Counterstrike?
2) Given a choice, would you rather visit an art museum, or infiltrate one in Rainbow Six?
3) When was the last time that Picasso painting came at you with an EMP rifle?
4) Considering its exquisite aesthetics, lovely, balanced color palette, and richly detailed environments and setting, is GEARS OF WAR a work of Art? If I was actually IN the game, how long would it be before I got my ass kicked for using a word like “exquisite?”
Quotation from the NEVERWINTER NIGHTS 2 game manual: “…you can now choose from the following races: svirfneblin, tiefling, aasimar, and strongheart halfling.”
