• 5Sep 06

  Silicon Wars Get Personal

  In the closing generation of videogames, there were four main consoles competing for your attention (if you count PC). Since not many of us have a lot of time or money on our hands, chances are you only wound up playing games with one or maybe two. What influenced your choice? It could have been how much money was in your back pocket, or it could be the games the system was showcasing. Let's not forget, though, that if you weren't just getting into videogames, there's a good chance you chose your console by what you already had. Assuming that you take an active role in gaming with the console(s) that you have, you have probably developed some degree of loyalty. This, however, causes more conflicts than it does connections, and it's something I've always had a problem with.
  
  I was recently invited to a union called "PS3 - THE REAL NEXT GEN" - and just for kicks, I joined, even though I own an Xbox and Xbox 360. (I'm going to see how many unions I can collect by the end of the year and then quit all of the ones I don't participate in.) This is not the first time I've been invited to unions like these, and I joined only out of sheer morbid curiosity. I looked around for a few minutes, and I decided that these are not the kind of people I want to associate with.
  
  I consider myself a passive and nice guy, since I've always supported the ideal of the Golden Rule. I think that open hatred or bias is not worthy of attention, and it's unfortunate that that union is a level 7 while the IGU or GGU are only 3 and 1, respectively - and we're all friends here. Gaming is not political or personal - it isn't based on moral beliefs or important decisions, so taking sides about a silicon "war" is arbitrary and stupid.
  
  The only reasons I stuck with the Xbox are 1) it looked at the time to be the most technically capable, especially since I didn't start looking at "next-gen" until November '01, 2) it had Halo, and 3) my parents wouldn't let me buy the other consoles. The only reasons I got the 360 were 1) I liked the Xbox, and 2) I was eager to get into the next generation and the Xbox 360 seemed like a good choice. I'm not a missionary of Microsoft - if someone asks me what I think, I'll tell them I like the machine, but I won't necessarily encourage them to buy one. What you get should be based on your preferences.
  
  The thing is, the "PS3 NEXT GEN" union is basing its entire foundation on a fundamental assumption that 1) is entirely subject to opinion and therefore unprovable, and 2) that the PS3 will be good, even though no one has even played it yet. Isn't the point of all the consoles to entertain? Why fight about it? If you locked Bill Gates in a room until the end of time and gave him nothing but a TV and a PS3, I would bet my big toe that he would play it.
  
  Few people literally invest in a console, and even those that do don't usually claim to care about the games. But to gamers - not the cutthroat businessmen that have a reason to be competitive - it's about the games. If you see a set of games you like on a console, you're going to play that console if you can. Every machine has a desirable set of titles or way of playing them. There is no denying that each platform has its undeniable merits - picking yours should be up to you. In the grand scheme of things, though, it doesn't matter, or shouldn't matter, so long as you play the "good" games or games that best suit you.
  
  So I encourage you not to throw stones at your neighbors - it's a fight you have nothing to gain from. If you enjoy games, play them. Don't ever tell me that I'm an idiot for buying an Xbox, because I'm going to fight back and you're going to look like an dick. I play games, and from the time I have spent with every console, they're just as enjoyable no matter where you play them. Silicon wars should be between businessmen and not the gamers who, in the end, have entertainment in common.
  
  
  • Posted Sep 5, 2006 2:46 pm GMT
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• 4Sep 06

  Everything In Moderation

  I'm willing to bet that, sometimes, if you aren't preoccupied, coming onto this site to check your messages or look for updates makes you feel guilty. I'm betting that some of you feel like geeks, spending hours of your time staring over a gaming website. It's only one example of an unspoken "mindset" that has simply become universal in our society, and that is that videogames are something considered "taboo." Videogames, like druidism, are by no means wrong, but similarly something you don't openly profess.
  
  While some of the criticism on videogames is undoubtedly true, there are a few fundamental assumptions people make that really aren't fair. Gaming is just a relatively new hobby, and as a whole there's nothing wrong with it.
  
  LIke everything else in life, it's perfectly OK if used in moderation. It's also paramount to value friends, family, education, and personal health first, no matter what the situation is. I think that part of the reason gaming has become "taboo" is because the image of the "extreme" gamer stands in unpleasant contrast to the "extreme" participant of any other practice. For instance, a star football player doesn't always strike you as being obsessed with football; while an athletic physique and occasional testosterone flares may stand out, a "normal" lifestyle is still entirely plausible. On the other hand, the CS-obsessed hacker-fanboy who talks about computer hardware and the last batch of "n00bs he pwned" is not getting a good date for a long, long time.
  
  People see gaming in a bad light partially because of people like these. When gaming becomes a lifestyle rather than a recreational hobby, then you really do have problems. That said, why not see gaming as "legitimate?" What's really wrong with it, so long as you don't overdo it?
  
  I watched the Halo 2 making-of documentary recently (I have the collector's edition), and the resounding image I always see is not how hard Bungie worked or how talented they are; instead, it was the white-haired fan in Connecticut who hosted a semi-annual LAN party. This man, who was easily a decade older than my own dad, said that gaming was no longer the domain of the geeks. Himself a player, he said, "Are we too old? Naw." Similarly, one of the nicest people I could ever hope to meet playing online was in his late 30's, and he held a very good position in a business firm. His motto? "Never too old." He said that he planned to work like a businessman and then go home and relax like a kid. Is there anything wrong with that?
  
  I love to play games. I consider it my hobby of choice. But I'm a A student, I spend time with my cousins and grandparents, I do things with friends every week, and I'm perfectly healthy (6'0", 130 lb). Games, like anything else, have the power to corrupt and change people - but it's still new. Gaming is growing, and it's becoming more and more mainstream every year. Even prehistoric peoples were skeptical of basket weavers until they realized how important a hobby basket-weaving was. As you can see in my other articles, gaming has its own perks and merits.
  
  So don't feel guilty, if you "have a life." If someone asks you what your hobbies are, don't be afraid to say videogames, provided it isn't the only one you give. Gaming in moderation is completely legitimate, and it's wrong of people to hold a prejudice against it. It's just a hobby - I hope.
  
  • Posted Sep 4, 2006 10:51 am GMT
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• 27Aug 06

  Why Gamers Game

  Why do gamers game?
  
  That sounds like a dumb question, but really there's several answers for it. Videogames being a constantly expanding source of entertainment, gamers game to have something to do, to have a way to unwind. Maybe you could even consider gaming a hobby or a fascination. But I think that beneath all of that - for those of us who are experienced with games - there's something actually more important.
  
  I think that we're all constantly searching for something to captivate us, to take our breath away. It doesn't happen often - between the low-caliber games that come out too often and the specific preferences between people, it really is hard to find something that grabs you.
  
  There's a fine line between entertainment and captivation. A good game will keep your attention and give you some incentive to finish, or otherwise give you something to do. But this alone is not enough to warrant gaming, it's not enough to motivate trying something else. When you find something you love or come to love, something that grabs your attention and doesn't let you go the whole way through - you've found something you can remember for a long time.
  
  The games that captivate are the ones that you add to your library. They are the games that you tell your friends about, and they are the games that bring back memories after being played again after a long time. This is why gaming can be so enjoyable - because the games you want to play are the games that take you somewhere. When you first play one of these games, or at least sometime before you finish, it will send a big grin across your face or make you hold your breath in anticipation.
  
  These games are great in themselves, but they can be the common medium, the canvas over which memories are created. If videogames are emotional stimuli, then the games are simply the ones that stir up your thoughts and actually make you feel something. These feelings are unique and viscerally addictive - and so trying to find these kinds of feelings again are part of what make gaming somewhat profound.
  
  So why do gamers game? Beyond the simple, obvious necessity for entertainment, gamers game because they're looking for that old familiar feeling. Gamers game because they know that there's a game out there somewhere, waiting to be discovered. Gamers game because they need that profound sense of enjoyment that only a great game can bring.
  
  • Posted Aug 27, 2006 8:36 pm GMT
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