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The numbered series should have either been killed off long ago, or become what the offshoots are: explorations of genres with original stories, and attempts at not just different ideas, but NEW ideas.

Think back to the 4th, 5th, and 6th entries in the series. They all had intricate plots, with a huge number of characters and twists everywhere you looked...but they were still simple! Despite how much was crammed into each game, it was all laid out simply. The twists and turns were smooth, well-executed, and in many cases, completely unpredictable. Now, the storylines have to be as convoluted as possible, with a smaller cast than ever! I realize this sounds like me saying "bah humbug, it's too complicated to understand. Now get off my lawn!", but I'm not saying that. What I'm saying is that the pre-VII games had amazingly epic yet simple storylines, while everything post-VII has to be as spaghettied as possible. Complicated doesn't equal epic, folks...in this case, it equals a lack of original ideas.

I'm refering more to my surroundings.

Example: The desk you see in this picture is where I write, typically while my wife is either watching or playing something on the TV. Pay attention to what is immedeatly within my vicinity when sitting there:

-Two walls -Two monitors -A large trackball (a Kensington Expert, to be precise) -My PC Tower -Posters, pictures, etc. -A desk

Seeing these things displayed in front of me, filling my field of vision, really help to put me where I need to be. Having the actual monitors (as opposed to a tablet's or notebook's screen), the big trackball, the full-size keyboard...I'm not really sure how to describe it exactly, but for some reason having all that around me makes writing MUCH easier. I find I get distracted if I'm trying to write on a netbook or a laptop.

I can't really explain it, it's just the way it feels to use a "PC" rather than an "app device" or a laptop. ::shrug:: Wish I could give it more justice than that, but there it is.

Do you ever re-read all of this and think, "hey maybe I'm just anal"? If you wanted, you could get over that, but you seem disinclined.

Everything must be JUST SO. So no laptops for you then. Ok, that's cool, but damn I'm glad most of this market is driven by people who can adapt to new devices.

I'm refering more to my surroundings.

Example: The desk you see in this picture is where I write, typically while my wife is either watching or playing something on the TV. Pay attention to what is immedeatly within my vicinity when sitting there:

-Two walls
-Two monitors
-A large trackball (a Kensington Expert, to be precise)
-My PC Tower
-Posters, pictures, etc.
-A desk

Seeing these things displayed in front of me, filling my field of vision, really help to put me where I need to be. Having the actual monitors (as opposed to a tablet's or notebook's screen), the big trackball, the full-size keyboard...I'm not really sure how to describe it exactly, but for some reason having all that around me makes writing MUCH easier. I find I get distracted if I'm trying to write on a netbook or a laptop.

I can't really explain it, it's just the way it feels to use a "PC" rather than an "app device" or a laptop. ::shrug:: Wish I could give it more justice than that, but there it is.

Did you write a post about it on your blog Living With a Nerd located on the World Wide Web at the URL http://livingwithanerd.com/ ?

Dude, I remember back in the day when I got a Creative AWE 64 Gold card. That's right, the ISA one with the gold-plated RCA outputs, expandable RAM, and general kickassery.

I still have the shiny plastic bit that came on the front of the box! It's sitting just to the left of the framed Fuckwad Theory print.

The Wii only started losing steam this past year, and they still sell boatloads of them every month. Granted, it's a much smaller boat than it was before, but they are still moving units. Even though the current generation of consoles are starting to directly impact the potential complexity of games, they still have a bit of life left in them...Wii included. Here's to hoping that Nintendo focuses more on the hardware this time. Don't get me wrong, there have been some amazing games released for the Wii (Muramasa: The Demon Blade being one of the better ones), but I'd like to see more emphasis on gaming prowess rather than a focus on the "general" market.

Not that I expect that to happen; Nintendo is a business, after all...

Not necessarily. The idea of being able to add content to a game after its release is AWESOME, provided it meets a few criteria:

* DON'T release pay-for DLC the same day (or shortly after) a game is released at retail. That pisses people off.
* DO try to offer free DLC at launch if it covers content you didn't have time to properly polish prior to the game going gold.
* DON'T offer pay-for DLC that includes content or options that should have been included when the game was released (I'm looking at you, Dead Space Weapon/Skins/Costume packs and having to buy DLC stages to get certain achievements for Beautiful Katamri.)
* DO make DLC actually worth buying. Most of the packs released for Fallout 3 are an excellent example of how DLC should be utilized to increase income for publishers/developers while simultaneously increasing enjoyment and game length for players. Borderlands is another example of (mostly) well-done DLC.
* DON'T charge exhorbitant amounts of money for your DLC. Horse Armor shouldn't cost 200 MS points while The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned costs 800 MS points (in Bethesda's defense, Oblivion came out fairly early in the mainstream DLC game.)

It doesn't even matter. We're already starting to see current-gen consoles chug along, with the technology gap between Console and PCs continuing to widen at a faster pace. I hope we're two years or less away from a refresh...the current-gen has gotten quite stale to me, something I noticing happening more and more with gamers.

That being said, I'm glad Nintendo is refreshing the DS before the Wii.

See link in his sig, or incase you hide them:

http://livingwithanerd.com/

I've made my case against fanboys, and I've presented a shortened version of my gaming history, which spanned many gaming platforms from many different manufacturers; that includes Atari, Sega, Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft, and PC gaming.

Full yet, or do you need to be fed more?

I've made my case against fanboys, and I've presented a shortened version of my gaming history, which spanned many gaming platforms from many different manufacturers; that includes Atari, Sega, Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft, and PC gaming.

Full yet, or do you need to be fed more?

So far, I'm happy with Civilization V. It took some time to get its claws in me, since I spent so much time with Civilization IV. However, now that the "getting to know you" period is ending and the "I know you" period is starting, I can see myself getting just as engrossed in this one as I did with previous entries in the series.

REALLY happy to hear that. I've been looking forward to trying to pair different albums with the game, but I'm still really glad to hear that the included soundtrack is good.

How "worldly" is it? As in, does the music cover different genres from different parts of the world, or is it all similar?

Thanks, Sony. Thanks for adding to the overabundence of games with needless motion controls. All this will do is fragment the gaming world even more, while taking potentially good games and making them a waggle fest. Nintendo already had this covered...you didn't have to step in with your overpriced hardware to saturate the market even further.

I see. So the games have nothing to do with it? You're giving up on a console, while completely ignoring the games it has in the process?

I believe there's a word for people like that...

Anyone who bought a new 4GB slim version is screwed when it comes to co-op and multiplayer.

Having the flash drive does nothing.

How the hell do they release a title like this without some sort of testing, even when it was known way back in expansion pack Halo:ODST?

whenever I read a review that disparages a videogame's "story" I chuckle

Sometimes, a story is integral to a video game. Video games provide a medium that enables stories to be told in a way that would otherwise not be possible.

Other times, a story doesn't matter at all. Some games are hugely successful with literally no story.

Dragon Age and Tetris will both suck up hours upon hours of your time, but for entirely different reasons. One keeps you coming back for the depth of its narrative, and the other keeps you coming back for sheer simplicity. Each type of game has its place in the culture, and both of them are equally important.

whenever I read a review that disparages a videogame's "story" I chuckle

Sometimes, a story is integral to a video game. Video games provide a medium that enables stories to be told in a way that would otherwise not be possible.

Other times, a story doesn't matter at all. Some games are hugely successful with literally no story.

Dragon Age and Tetris will both suck up hours upon hours of your time, but for entirely different reasons. One keeps you coming back for the depth of its narrative, and the other keeps you coming back for sheer simplicity. Each type of game has its place in the culture, and both of them are equally important.

You should look for a trackball...the Kensington Expert Mouse is a GREAT mouse for gaming, covering everything from RTS to FPS. It doesn't have a ton of buttons, but it has enough. It's super comfortable, too.

I'm all for DLC, don't get me wrong; I love the fact that new areas and items can be implemented after a game is released. I understand that releasing new content after a game's initial release isn't free; it costs developers and publishers money, but people really need to look at how much some DLC packs cost. That being said, sometimes publishers and/or developers do some really cool things. DLC that is available for free on launch day? Totally awesome...there was stuff that they really wanted to get into the game, and obviously ran out of time before the discs had to be pressed; I really appreciate it on the rare occasion when it occurs.

But what's with DLC you have to pay for being released not even a week or two after a game is released? Couldn't you have just delayed the freakin' game for two weeks if it was that awesome?!? Seriously, publishers...if there is an amazing dungeon or a few great items that just absolutely HAVE to be in a game, give the developers the extra couple of weeks to implement them into the release version. Don't make us pay extra money because the game had to be released NOW NOW NOW, and there isn't time to include things that you should. Can you imagine if you had to pay for DLC to get the Spear in Secret of Mana, or if you had to pay for DLC to unlock secret ingredients in Secret of Evermore?

Developers/publishers walk a fine line with DLC. They need to be careful.

Maybe because being a fanboy is short changing yourself as a gamer.

We use the surge protectors to help guard against daily fluctuations in the power grid, but that's it. If we're home and we hear thunder or see a single lightning strike, everything gets turned off and the surge protectors get unplugged immediately. The layout of our entertainment room allows this to be done extremely quickly.

Here's a picture of our main entertainment area. There is a plug right under the desk (which you can easily see), and the plug for the surge protector that the TV and modern consoles are plugged into sits at about the same height as the TV (it's a really weird placement for an electrical socket, but for our purposes it's perfect.) My wife's work area (which has her computer, as well as a CRT TV and all our older consoles) is set up in a very similar way.

If the weather folks call for thunderstorms to arrive while we're at work, I'll generally unplug it all before I leave in the morning.

Did George ever getting around to suing Blizzard for including a brightly lit and lightweight sabre in Diablo 2? Just ridiculous if he did not go after those deep pockets. He's had 10 years to sue, so I guess if he has not gotten to it by now it might not happen...

Many of them are obvious suggestions, but here are some tips on how to stay healthy while gaming. I hope it helps some of you folks out.

Mods, please mod this post offtopic or troll due to website pumping.

I can name a bunch. Taken from my article on the topic:

Prinny, Killzone: Liberation, GTA: Chinatown Wars, Final Fantasy Tactics, God of War: Chains of Olympus, FlOw, the Loco Roco series, the Patapon Series, Dungeon Siege: Throne of Agony, GTA: Vice City Stories and Liberty City Stories, Dissidia: Final Fantasy, Lumines, Wipeout Pure, Space Invaders Evolution, the Monster Hunter series, LittleBigPlanet PSP, and more.

I'm simultaneously excited and dreading it.

Living With a Nerd

Why do I get the impression this isn't the first time you've said that...

Mods, please mod my post offtopic/troll due to website pumping.

Like I said in the post above yours, my primary problem is that they aren't including origin links. In the case of my own site, for example, I get most of my images from either Wikipedia, IMDB, or some other large website that uses industry-provided screenshots/pictures. If it comes from a gaming site that took the screenshot themselves, there is almost always a watermark on the image indicating where I got it from.

In the rare instance that I take a picture from an individual's site, I always link back to it. The most recent example was in my look back at Robot City. I not only provided a link to the original article/website I pulled the images from, but I even encouraged my readers to check out the website itself.

Mods, please mod my post either offtopic or troll.

In honor of Penumbra (one of the creepiest and most atmospheric games ever created) being a part of the Humble Indie Bundle, I wrote up a review. I highly suggest you play it, it's a fantastic series.

Given how consoles have caught up with computers in terms of their visual and complexity capabilities, I (sadly) now lump PC gamers in with enthusiasts and hobbyists. ::begin self promotion::

I myself am an avid PC gamer even to this day, but there is no denying that the PC/console gap has reduced. That being said, the culture is still just as healthy as ever, it's just different from what it used to be. Not that changing is a bad thing. Still, we have our work cut out for us if we want PC gaming to remain a viable and entertaining past time. ::end self promotion::

Given how consoles have caught up with computers in terms of their visual and complexity capabilities, I (sadly) now lump PC gamers in with enthusiasts and hobbyists. ::begin self promotion::

I myself am an avid PC gamer even to this day, but there is no denying that the PC/console gap has reduced. That being said, the culture is still just as healthy as ever, it's just different from what it used to be. Not that changing is a bad thing. Still, we have our work cut out for us if we want PC gaming to remain a viable and entertaining past time. ::end self promotion::

Given how consoles have caught up with computers in terms of their visual and complexity capabilities, I (sadly) now lump PC gamers in with enthusiasts and hobbyists. ::begin self promotion::

I myself am an avid PC gamer even to this day, but there is no denying that the PC/console gap has reduced. That being said, the culture is still just as healthy as ever, it's just different from what it used to be. Not that changing is a bad thing. Still, we have our work cut out for us if we want PC gaming to remain a viable and entertaining past time. ::end self promotion::

For what it's worth, Windows 7 (and many mainstay programs that have been updated since 7 was released, including Office, Firefox, etc.) are already very "finger-friendly" in design. Things like sliding to the edges of the screen to maximize a window or automatically resize it so it takes up half the screen, the "ribbon" in Office 2010, as well as the large icon-based main toolbar reminiscent of OSX are good examples.

Ubuntu Netbook Remix would also be very conducive for use with a touchscreen interface. The optimizations for netbook hardware would also match up well with the netbook-class hardware that seems to be appearing in forthcoming tablets.

Stop fueling my silent rage.

Oh, and apparently this no longer applies exclusively to the USA...slightly modified, of course.

Eh, I've gotten over it. I much prefer making music anyway...it's difficult to find the specific kind of music I want to listen to, so I figured making it would be the best solution. I played French Horn, Clarinet, and Piano when I was younger, plus I still have full retention of how to read music and the actual structure of music creation, so it didn't take much time or investment to get up and running.

It's served me well enough...I would love to write the scary short stories in my head, and I would love to draw the weird images in my head, but learning how to do either would detract from the time I spend making music. My interests are already too far-ranging, adding any form of creation other than music and the mild amount of writing I do would leave me with zero free time, I think.

I didn't think the 3D version of Alice was bad...in fact, I saw the 3D version by myself while my fiancee was gone, and then saw it in 2D when she was back in town. I definitely enjoyed the 3D version a lot more...the added depth it gave to everything really made the world pop off the screen more (literally and figuratively), and I found myself drawn into it a lot more.

Plus, let's not forget that a 3D movie is a movie that is shown digitally. It could just be me adjusting to more digital content, but film seems to be looking worse and worse nowadays in the theater, no matter which one I go to. There is still a "warmth" to it that digital doesn't have, but when I pay 10-12 dollars to see a movie on a big screen, I don't want parts of the movie to look blurry and parts of it look good...I want the whole thing to look good.

And, just to piss off the people that I piss off every time I do this, my review of Alice: http://livingwithanerd.com/alice-in-wonderland/

It isn't creative commons-licensed (yet), but you can get all of my music for free on last.fm:

http://www.last.fm/music/pojut

You can also grab a couple tracks from my website for free: http://www.livingwithanerd.com/Music

Oh, and a bit of self promotion (which I love to do, lol)...over the course of a month, I wrote a series of articles about being healthy while gaming...two of them deal with nutrition, one with exercise, and the other is comfort. You might find them interesting:

http://livingwithanerd.com/tag/healthy-gamer-series/

This is definitely a good idea, but I think what should really be focused on is making netbooks more gaming friendly. Since (based on people I know and have talked to) netbooks tend to be used mostly while traveling or while watching TV, being able to game on them would instantly increase their appeal. I'm not talking about Crysis or anything here, but it would be nice to not be stuck with pre-2002 games due to low power CPUs (Intel Atom) and integrated graphics (Intel GMA). I know that nVidia has some stuff on the way that will help out a lot, but still...being able to play modern games with the graphics turned down on a netbook would be awesome.

I just posted an article about the topic of gaming on netbooks earlier today. Read on if you are interested in the subject: http://livingwithanerd.com/gaming-on-a-netbook/ /end shameless self plug

The weird thing about MW2 is that it is bigger and more intense in almost every way than Modern Warfare was...but it feels like a game, not like an experience. Surviving to the end of a mission in the first Modern Warfare felt like a goddamn accomplishment; it left you drained physically and emotionally. Surviving to the end of a mission in Modern Warfare 2 feels like you finished a level...nothing more.

You can read my full review of Modern Warfare 2 right here.

If a non-organic system produced exactly the same sound wave as one of your compositions, would it have the same capacity to evoke emotion in the listener?

Absolutely it would. The listener is fed the emotions that I put into my music THROUGH my music, not through me. Therefore, it stands to reason that the music would affect the individual identically whether I created it or a non-organic system created it.

That being said, a non-organic system could try to replicate what I do, but it wouldn't be right. It would sound the same, but it definitely wouldn't feel the same. Sorry to spam the link, but if you browse through the music I currently have made available, you will see that those tracks share a similar genre but have very little in common with regards to structure (except Lotwotl, which is part of a different project than the others). Audibly, you can tell they were all made by the same person...but structurally, they are all very different.

Until we can create non-organic systems with naturally occurring emotions and are able to react the same way a human would react, it just wouldn't turn out proper.

I certainly do it for the art (and because it's really fun)...all my music is free. No DRM and no charge. I'll eventually get all my tracks up for free once I get my new music page finished, but for now that's what is available.

This article reminded me of the "robotic" intergalactic megastar singer in Macross Plus. Still, I think humans will always have a place when it comes to music. Even music that is entirely electronic (such as my own) still requires a human touch...in my case, each of my tracks is supposed to evoke certain imagry and emotional responses...something that a non-organic system simply can't replicate.

Until we are able to emulate not only the way organics process sounds but the emotion those sounds bring about, humans will always have a place in the creation of music.

As always, whenever this topic comes up, here are my thoughts on it:

http://livingwithanerd.com/violence-in-videogames/

Excerpt:

You have to allow the little monster to come out every now and then and release its frustrations. If you don't, you risk becoming a quivering mass of nervous and dangerous flesh. What better place to do this than in a simulated environment with simulated violence where the only things harmed are your eyes for staring at the screen?

Uh...why was parent modded troll for pointing out that the Mac version of Torchlight isn't out yet? Come on, people...if you are going to mod, at least try to mod appropriately. For example, you should mod down my post because I'm about to make a shameless self-plug.

Here is my review of Torchlight: http://livingwithanerd.com/torchlight/

With all the pushing by law enforcement for permanent archiving of everybody's web use the problem will solve itself!

Rah! Rah! for terrosists - they hate our freedom but they have saved our culture from fading from history!

http://livingwithanerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/TerroristsHateFreedom.gif

That is all.

My thoughts on violence in videogames

::begin self promotion::

Perhaps you would be interested in my game reviews then? I try to approach them as somewhere between a game reviewer and a game player. I like to think I do OK, although my writing could use a little work :-) Some reviews of games I've done recently:

Mass Effect 2
Torchlight
Modern Warfare 2 (Single Player only)
Borderlands
The Dark Spire

I do my best to keep personal excitement out of the review and stick only to my experience playing the game, but alas I'm not always able to :-( ::end self promotion::

::begin self promotion::

Perhaps you would be interested in my game reviews then? I try to approach them as somewhere between a game reviewer and a game player. I like to think I do OK, although my writing could use a little work :-) Some reviews of games I've done recently:

Mass Effect 2
Torchlight
Modern Warfare 2 (Single Player only)
Borderlands
The Dark Spire

I do my best to keep personal excitement out of the review and stick only to my experience playing the game, but alas I'm not always able to :-( ::end self promotion::

::begin self promotion::

Perhaps you would be interested in my game reviews then? I try to approach them as somewhere between a game reviewer and a game player. I like to think I do OK, although my writing could use a little work :-) Some reviews of games I've done recently:

Mass Effect 2
Torchlight
Modern Warfare 2 (Single Player only)
Borderlands
The Dark Spire

I do my best to keep personal excitement out of the review and stick only to my experience playing the game, but alas I'm not always able to :-( ::end self promotion::