Slashdot Mirror
X-Files FPS Episode
The Queen
reminded me to post this: Last night's "X-Files" was a weird episode involving a video game gone wrong. It obviously was meant to promote discussion on violence in video games: "Healthy outlet for stress or promoting violence in society?" Personally I thought it was a crappy episode and not very suspenseful. Cheesy. Formulaic. Definitely sub-par for the show (even for its last few seasons), although it did have its moments. Did anyone else watch this?
I know there's a lot of comments already, and I don't want to be redundant... I do, however, want to throw in my thoughts.
Yes, the episode had difficulties, most of which everyone else has covered. But I'd like to answer some of them; to the question of why didn't they use actual game graphics? Well, think about it. It's probably a lot cheaper and faster to hire an actor and say "move like this, say these lines" than to actually go through and render the exact sequences the script and director call for.
Someone else brought up the seeming lack of an AI in the game. I have to agree that this was the case for Level II. The game's level 1, however, reminded me a lot of the opening level from Duke Nukem 3D, and I thought that was good. It also seemed like it had a lot more potential for AI involvement than the second level, which was, essentially, a duck hunt or Carnival style shooter and that's it.
Someone else asked how they planned to ship the game. At one point one of the lone gunmen said it was being sent to "50 malls next week." that gave me the impression that it was going to be set up like the lazer tag places and virtual reality arcades that are in existence now; it wouldn't be sent to homes but would be an amusement desitination.
Ignoring all the implausibilities, I thought the episode was just fun, darn it. We all know mulder's a geek, and to see him go in to the game in his groovy techno armor was cool. It reminded me of how I felt playing Doom II over a network for the first time around '94. And I think that's what the episode meant to do, besides bringing up the issues of game violence, sexism, etc, I think it just wanted to create the same feelings that arise among players of First person shooters, perhaps providing a bit of a glimpse into a culture that non players might not know exists.
And while I'm asking for it, I thought that the COPS style episode last week was really cool too. And before I get skewered let me remind you of Pohl's law... Nothing is so good that somebody, somewhere, will not hate it.
-Wombat
Because. Syntax Error in line 10. Core dumped. Please bugger off.
The best reason to have an IPO is so that you can afford a $300 backup solution. Or a CVS repository. Or a hard drive to go along with your ramdisk, so that if the power accidentally goes out, you don't lose all of your work.
Gosh, you'd think William Gibson wrote "Neuromancer" on a typewriter or something.
--
how to invest, a novice's guide
I get very tired with the same plot device being used every time someone uses virtual worlds or gaming in a plot, what we always end up with is "what happens to you in the game, happens to you in life" or somesuch.
:)
The Matrix did it, X-Files did it last night, The Thirteenth Floor (avoid this movie), did it too. The Matrix explained it as "the body cannot live without the mind" as I recall.
I'm getting really tired of this theme, which I understand must be used to actually induce some drama into these worlds, since most people probably wouldn't care about a virtual game or world, if there were very little consequences in the real world for whatever transpired "virtually."
But come on already, enough is enough! Can anyone point me to any study or theory that says Virtual Reality deaths may cause you to die? I doubt it.
Think of dreaming, we've all experienced dreams that seemed very very real to us, more real than any virtual experience is, or probably will be for the next 50 years. Do we have otherwise healthy people dying in their sleep due to violent dreams? Hell no! I've been chased by dinosaurs at least 5 times, and I've yet to wake up clawed, gnawed, and bleeding.
So, my challenge, to all would-be and current sci-fi writers is this: invent a way to make us actually care about what happens virtually with a better plot device than psycho-babble about the mind manifesting injuries and death upon the body.
I'm finished ranting now, so I will return you all to your regularly scheduled trolls.
---
When in danger or in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout. --Robert A. Heinlein
The opening scene within the game seemed right. You could almost feel the tension and adrenaline gripping the players as they get ready to go. They bounce back and forth.
Chomp at the bit.
Buzzer. Gate. Violence unleashed...
And all the players run to the same bunker. "Newbie cluster!" my wife yells. She doesn't play FPS games. But she does play paintball. In either case, it makes everyone one big massive target. I suppose it also makes it easier to get the camera angles right. Better make the scene quick.
The next thing we prove is that Hollywood can not produce a bad guy who can aim. Even if they program them. Our 3 players in the opening scene run forth into a gauntlet of machine-gun toating bad guys who have the advantage of cover, angle, and height. Our heros' guns blaze and take out Bad Guys left and right. Granted, one of the players gets hit. He probably shot himself.
Savor this moment. Other than the shapely Laura-in-leather killer AI, this is the end of the action within the FPS environment.
The rest of the "action" scenes involve our heros standing still and wiggling around a bit as they squeeze a trigger. "Wow! Look at her go!" admires an onlooker as Scully mows down the bad guys. Yea. She's skillfull with that trigger squeeze.
I find myself yelling "Straffe, damn you! Straffe!"
Once again, I suspect its so much easier to shoot a scene involving a solitary figure waving a gun around. Interject a bit of reality, and the majority tail end of the scene is our hero's gibs.
I suppose its silly of me to complain. I should be happy with what they seem to think is action. Next thing you know, I'll be demanding something that can be identified as a story-line and plot.
None of it was found in this XFiles episode.
Post-apocalyptic 'industrial' scenery - check.
Misused techy buzz words - check.
Overuse of leather and plastic costumes - check.
Life and death struggle inside a computer - check.
Goofy sunglasses - check.
Yep, sounds like a typical portrayal of a 'cyber' world to me. I was a nice try the first time... when it was called The Matrix.
I did, however, enjoy the part where the game reverted back to a DOS prompt - no wonder things went wrong.
-SG
NerdPerfect.com : breakfast of champions.