No, seriously. The Wii is a gimmick system. Therefore, a few games are going to nail the gimmick, such as Metroid Prime, or Wii Sports. The rest are either bad ports of games on other systems that try to force the gimmick on you, or shitty "casual" games put out by people trying to crash the casual market, a-la 1983. The DS is in the same boat; a few winners, a shitload of losers, to the point where Electronic Gaming Monthly actually profiled the plethora of shitty games on the system.
Wii owners, for the most part, fall into three categories:
1) People that like Nintendo games, and wanted the big names like Mario. Usually, these are Smash Brothers fans.
2) People that wanted the latest craze. These people are going to destroy the system a lot more than bad third party support.
3) People like me that basically see a Gamecube with attachments. I'll be in this group soon.
Actually, I think Psychonauts is great, and I misspoke when I said only one "great" game. However, I can also play Psychonauts whenever I want on Gametap.
There are a few exclusive titles that should go on XBLA. Halo 1 and 2, definitely (even if they're more pricey). Ninja Gaiden/NG Black would be incredible. Panzer Dragoon Orta would likely send me into orgasm.
As awesome as this sounds, I still don't see anything that makes me want to run out and download anything. There's not one great title listed there, save maybe Burnout.
And how much are we talking for these games? Why download a game for $20 (sorry, 1600 MS Points) when I can run to Gamestop and pick it up for $8, maybe less?
Who cares what the kids think? They're kids. They have no rights when it comes to a luxury like video games. We constantly babble, whenever a kid fucks up, "where were the parents!?". This gives the parents back the tools, and personally, I'd rather the parents have the tools to do what they need to do than have the government regulate everyone, which is where we'd he heading otherwise, after a few more Columbine-like incidents.
The kids get pissed? Big fucking deal. They do something the parents don't like in response? Remember the old saying "spare the rod, spoil the child"? It's still applicable, though not as much because no one knows how to be moderate; not every ass-kicking is abuse, and I had me a LOT of ass kickings.
The fact is, children have as many rights as their parents give them until they turn 18, or they emancipate, save the basic rights like food, clothing, shelter, education, etc. Video games? Not a right. And if parents see a reason to limit their children, and therefore establish control (when did rules become negotiable!?), then I want them to have the tools to do so, and in a way that doesn't require a CS degree.
No, I won't be a returning customer. I just have to decide now if I want the MLB Extra Innings package; on the one hand, it's still giving money to MLB. On the other, there's no DRM involved. Decisions, decisions.
I might just say "fuck it", and tell them to fuck off completely, also considering their horrible deal with DirecTV which did nothing for the consumer.
I wouldn't even be so angry if it wasn't for their "no refunds" policy. They're brutal when it comes to supporting users; you HAVE to use Internet Explorer, and you HAVE to use WMP, or they won't even talk to you. Firefox? What's that? (Note: the preceeding was a question asked to me. Literally.)
I've actually been a paying customer of the MLB.tv system for a few years now. I've liked the service purely for the streaming games; I'm the type of fan that can have as much fun watching the Royals playing the Angels as I would watching my Mets play.
Those days are over. I'm normally against DRM in the first place, and they almost lost me when they dropped RealPlayer support (and told Linux to fuck itself; I think that was a Microsoft forced hand). This is the final straw. It's too bad because honestly, it's a good service once you take that out.
I'll order MLB Extra Innings instead, and if I need to record something for posterity, I'll break out an old-fashioned VHS recorder. I won't have the archives anymore, but I'll live.
Meanwhile, I'll be looking into that NHL.com Centre Ice package online. Once they get archives, and if they eschew DRM, I'm in there.
If you like FFT, then pick up a PSP RIGHT NOW. There are incredible games for that system in that genre; it's literally got the best RPGs and strategy games on the market.
Just a sampling:
* Jeanne D'Arc - Take FFT and Fire Emblem. Have them fuck. Take the child, and put it in the Hundred Years War. Add in magic transforming armour and British soldier ZOMBIES. Hit puree. This is probably the best strategy game out for this system that didn't come out years ago.
* Disagea - The same game as the PS2 version, with additions.
* Generations of Chaos 1 + 2 - Decent games from the same people that did Disagea.
In addition to those, there's a host of JRPGs, such as Riviera (which I don't particularly care for), three Legends of Heroes games, and a few others from NiS (Disagea). It's an awesome system.
Who was the nimrod that modded this down? This guy nailed it perfectly; most gamers out there don't give a crap about this game (no numbers yet, but I'm betting it's not selling well, despite the publicity and decent reviews), it's really just an average game if you don't count the gore, and if you want gore, there's better alternatives.
Remember, I'm talking about one specific malware that requires user interaction to install. This isn't volume based infections. Think of it as a science project; give the same trojan with the same requirements to users of two different operating systems, and have them be standard end users. I'm willing to bet the Apple user gets farther out of sheer habit.
Remember the Grand Theft Auto version that allows people to run unauthorized games? They got rid of that, and subsequent firmware updates disabled said ability. I can see the same thing happening.
I don't think one or the other is "superior", but what worries me about Mac users is that they're so unused to stuff like this - security through obscurity, if you will - that they start to think they're invincible. Your average Macintosh luser is more likely to get hammered than your average Windows luser if you take into account a set control number of malware infections that require user interactivity; if you get the same trojan on both OSes, the average luser on Mac is more likely to go through the steps than a Windows luser with the same experience and training because the Windows guy is more likely to be paranoid and ask questions.
One would expect one to automatically question stuff like this, but when you've told yourself "this stuff doesn't apply to me because I'm different" for so long... what happens when that's no longer true?
In a metaphorical sense, it's like a country that's been peaceful for a long time, and has not had the need, means or motivation to keep the knowledge of how to defend itself getting overrun with barely any resistance by a more aggressive neighbour.
Here's a question I've had since the bruhaha started with the webcomics: what defines "notable"?
The problem with internet based webcomics is that the old definition of "notable" - articles in reputable sources, etc. - is an outdated ideal, considering the medium. The problem I'm seeing in enforcing this is two-fold: 1) no one is willing to bend the rules based on the medium, like there's a complete lack of common sense, and 2) too many administrators are power-drunk; they are right because they are admins. The case of the guy that had a few fake degrees is the most notable in this regard, but not the only relevant case.
My main concern is not that webcomics are picked apart because of their nature, or that there are anti-webcomic banditos out there, but that the means that people use to judge notability don't really apply to webcomics; after all, not everyone can be Penny Arcade, you know?
Furthermore, if we're going to judge webcomics - or any other medium - with this much scrutiny, then why is there an article for every episode of too many shows and even anime - obscure anime, at that - to count? Too much of one, not enough of the other.
Finally, asking the public to choose what can and can't be on Wikipedia seems like a weak policy, especially when it seems like too many comments get thrown out for whatever reason, and there's no one overseeing the admins that are doing the counting. It seems almost like a grudge in certain cases, such as when someone gets a majority voting to keep, but they all get thrown out, usually because they didn't have enough edits, and that skews the voting. One would have to forgive us for looking at that, and thinking there's a grudge, or at least vote skewing to prove that they're right, no? I can almost see the reason for this rule (to get rid of people that are there just for that purpose), but it's horribly flawed, especially if you yourself are calling on people to make an account and join in. If it's the public's job to decide, let the public decide.
This is a problem with Vista, but definitely nothing new. Furthermore, the quote from TFA was taken a bit out of context to demonize Microsoft more (speaking of, anyone speaking somewhat in defence of Microsoft is getting hammered. Who gave the monkeys mod points?). This is nothing more than a bug, and he spent most of the article basically saying "this sucks, but it's theoretically necessary and Microsoft was helpful". Where's the problem?
Microsoft's DRM is hopelessly overmatched, and has serious problems with it, and believe me when I say I"m NO Microsoft apologist. However, this is just another excuse for Microsoft bashing, and anyone who bothered to RTFA saw the real issue.
To be fair, combating spam is the livelihood of some of us, including myself.
For example, my place of employment employs a Bayesian spam filter, as well as a greylist RBL. It works very well, but inevitably, we're going to have one cunt email us saying "I GOT FIVE SPAM! FIX IT YOU WHORES!", or there's going to be one false positive, and going into Quarantine is simply too much for them to bear. Forget the millions of spam we block a week; those few that get through, or one legitimate that doesn't, is enough for someone to try to have our ass.
What will fix attitudes like this? Education. Telling lusers not to click questionable links. Having managers understand the specifics of spam filtering. But those two things never come together; the crotchety old vagina in Accounts Receivable is always going to think "wow, that poor man in Nigeria!", and some asshole CIO who only got his job because he learned some buzzwords on G4 will bluster and threaten his way to overreactions.
Considering those circumstances, it's understandable that someone would want a spammer dead; after all, they're trying to take our ability to feed our families away, no? Me, I'm not of that mindset; I judge individuals, not stereotypes. However, this was an exceptionally shitty individual, in an incredibly shitty country. So yeah... justice was pretty much served here.
Thank all these people whom have uploaded/downloaded music/movies for years. They are the true freedom fighters against the evil corporations.
I respectfully disagree, because I will tell you that 98% of the people that download music illegally don't give two craps about the RIAA. They don't even know if the groups are RIAA members, hell, they probably don't know why the RIAA is relevant; they just know "ooh, free music, $TORRENTSITE has that!", and they have one of their IT buddies make it as easy as possible.
There are a few people that are basically e-Robin Hoods; baron pirates in search of truth, justice and that hot new Talib Kweli album. These people are misguided. The RIAA WANTS an excuse to tighten the screws to average consumers who don't know any better, and these idiots are giving it to them. DRM has always been more about making new money than about protecting old money, but it's hard to say that with any justification with idiots like those around.
Slashdot Mirror
No I didn't.
It's funny, because I love Gene's box set. Why, I downloaded it off of a torrent site, and I love listening to it!
:P
Keep rocking on, Gene!
But why would Wii owners stop buying games?
Easy: the games suck.
No, seriously. The Wii is a gimmick system. Therefore, a few games are going to nail the gimmick, such as Metroid Prime, or Wii Sports. The rest are either bad ports of games on other systems that try to force the gimmick on you, or shitty "casual" games put out by people trying to crash the casual market, a-la 1983. The DS is in the same boat; a few winners, a shitload of losers, to the point where Electronic Gaming Monthly actually profiled the plethora of shitty games on the system.
Wii owners, for the most part, fall into three categories:
1) People that like Nintendo games, and wanted the big names like Mario. Usually, these are Smash Brothers fans.
2) People that wanted the latest craze. These people are going to destroy the system a lot more than bad third party support.
3) People like me that basically see a Gamecube with attachments. I'll be in this group soon.
Actually, I think Psychonauts is great, and I misspoke when I said only one "great" game. However, I can also play Psychonauts whenever I want on Gametap.
There are a few exclusive titles that should go on XBLA. Halo 1 and 2, definitely (even if they're more pricey). Ninja Gaiden/NG Black would be incredible. Panzer Dragoon Orta would likely send me into orgasm.
Wrong. I love Psychonauts. But I also have a Gametap account and can play it whenever I want as it is. :)
As awesome as this sounds, I still don't see anything that makes me want to run out and download anything. There's not one great title listed there, save maybe Burnout.
And how much are we talking for these games? Why download a game for $20 (sorry, 1600 MS Points) when I can run to Gamestop and pick it up for $8, maybe less?
Who cares what the kids think? They're kids. They have no rights when it comes to a luxury like video games. We constantly babble, whenever a kid fucks up, "where were the parents!?". This gives the parents back the tools, and personally, I'd rather the parents have the tools to do what they need to do than have the government regulate everyone, which is where we'd he heading otherwise, after a few more Columbine-like incidents.
The kids get pissed? Big fucking deal. They do something the parents don't like in response? Remember the old saying "spare the rod, spoil the child"? It's still applicable, though not as much because no one knows how to be moderate; not every ass-kicking is abuse, and I had me a LOT of ass kickings.
The fact is, children have as many rights as their parents give them until they turn 18, or they emancipate, save the basic rights like food, clothing, shelter, education, etc. Video games? Not a right. And if parents see a reason to limit their children, and therefore establish control (when did rules become negotiable!?), then I want them to have the tools to do so, and in a way that doesn't require a CS degree.
No, I won't be a returning customer. I just have to decide now if I want the MLB Extra Innings package; on the one hand, it's still giving money to MLB. On the other, there's no DRM involved. Decisions, decisions.
I might just say "fuck it", and tell them to fuck off completely, also considering their horrible deal with DirecTV which did nothing for the consumer.
I wouldn't even be so angry if it wasn't for their "no refunds" policy. They're brutal when it comes to supporting users; you HAVE to use Internet Explorer, and you HAVE to use WMP, or they won't even talk to you. Firefox? What's that? (Note: the preceeding was a question asked to me. Literally.)
Someone please mark this man up! That's brilliant. Thanks!
I've actually been a paying customer of the MLB.tv system for a few years now. I've liked the service purely for the streaming games; I'm the type of fan that can have as much fun watching the Royals playing the Angels as I would watching my Mets play.
Those days are over. I'm normally against DRM in the first place, and they almost lost me when they dropped RealPlayer support (and told Linux to fuck itself; I think that was a Microsoft forced hand). This is the final straw. It's too bad because honestly, it's a good service once you take that out.
I'll order MLB Extra Innings instead, and if I need to record something for posterity, I'll break out an old-fashioned VHS recorder. I won't have the archives anymore, but I'll live.
Meanwhile, I'll be looking into that NHL.com Centre Ice package online. Once they get archives, and if they eschew DRM, I'm in there.
If that's so, I'm one of those 20. Granted, it was only two games (total cost: just under $8 USD), but it shows the system is fucked beyond reproach.
Phantom Hourglass is a bastardized version of Zelda, and not even an RPG in it's own right.
FFIII is the lone bastion of decent RPGs on the DS; everything else RPG wise is either action based, or cookie cutter (why hello there Pokemon).
Another loud, annoying special interest group that will be beaten into irrelevancy by 2008. Film at 11.
If you like FFT, then pick up a PSP RIGHT NOW. There are incredible games for that system in that genre; it's literally got the best RPGs and strategy games on the market.
Just a sampling:
* Jeanne D'Arc - Take FFT and Fire Emblem. Have them fuck. Take the child, and put it in the Hundred Years War. Add in magic transforming armour and British soldier ZOMBIES. Hit puree. This is probably the best strategy game out for this system that didn't come out years ago.
* Disagea - The same game as the PS2 version, with additions.
* Generations of Chaos 1 + 2 - Decent games from the same people that did Disagea.
In addition to those, there's a host of JRPGs, such as Riviera (which I don't particularly care for), three Legends of Heroes games, and a few others from NiS (Disagea). It's an awesome system.
Who was the nimrod that modded this down? This guy nailed it perfectly; most gamers out there don't give a crap about this game (no numbers yet, but I'm betting it's not selling well, despite the publicity and decent reviews), it's really just an average game if you don't count the gore, and if you want gore, there's better alternatives.
Remember, I'm talking about one specific malware that requires user interaction to install. This isn't volume based infections. Think of it as a science project; give the same trojan with the same requirements to users of two different operating systems, and have them be standard end users. I'm willing to bet the Apple user gets farther out of sheer habit.
Remember the Grand Theft Auto version that allows people to run unauthorized games? They got rid of that, and subsequent firmware updates disabled said ability. I can see the same thing happening.
I don't think one or the other is "superior", but what worries me about Mac users is that they're so unused to stuff like this - security through obscurity, if you will - that they start to think they're invincible. Your average Macintosh luser is more likely to get hammered than your average Windows luser if you take into account a set control number of malware infections that require user interactivity; if you get the same trojan on both OSes, the average luser on Mac is more likely to go through the steps than a Windows luser with the same experience and training because the Windows guy is more likely to be paranoid and ask questions.
One would expect one to automatically question stuff like this, but when you've told yourself "this stuff doesn't apply to me because I'm different" for so long... what happens when that's no longer true?
In a metaphorical sense, it's like a country that's been peaceful for a long time, and has not had the need, means or motivation to keep the knowledge of how to defend itself getting overrun with barely any resistance by a more aggressive neighbour.
Grab it now, because they're going to patch this one up VERY quickly, likely in the form of a mandatory PSP upgrade.
That precedent has been set.
Don't forget, for video games, there's also Game Rankings.
Here's a question I've had since the bruhaha started with the webcomics: what defines "notable"?
The problem with internet based webcomics is that the old definition of "notable" - articles in reputable sources, etc. - is an outdated ideal, considering the medium. The problem I'm seeing in enforcing this is two-fold: 1) no one is willing to bend the rules based on the medium, like there's a complete lack of common sense, and 2) too many administrators are power-drunk; they are right because they are admins. The case of the guy that had a few fake degrees is the most notable in this regard, but not the only relevant case.
My main concern is not that webcomics are picked apart because of their nature, or that there are anti-webcomic banditos out there, but that the means that people use to judge notability don't really apply to webcomics; after all, not everyone can be Penny Arcade, you know?
Furthermore, if we're going to judge webcomics - or any other medium - with this much scrutiny, then why is there an article for every episode of too many shows and even anime - obscure anime, at that - to count? Too much of one, not enough of the other.
Finally, asking the public to choose what can and can't be on Wikipedia seems like a weak policy, especially when it seems like too many comments get thrown out for whatever reason, and there's no one overseeing the admins that are doing the counting. It seems almost like a grudge in certain cases, such as when someone gets a majority voting to keep, but they all get thrown out, usually because they didn't have enough edits, and that skews the voting. One would have to forgive us for looking at that, and thinking there's a grudge, or at least vote skewing to prove that they're right, no? I can almost see the reason for this rule (to get rid of people that are there just for that purpose), but it's horribly flawed, especially if you yourself are calling on people to make an account and join in. If it's the public's job to decide, let the public decide.
This is a problem with Vista, but definitely nothing new. Furthermore, the quote from TFA was taken a bit out of context to demonize Microsoft more (speaking of, anyone speaking somewhat in defence of Microsoft is getting hammered. Who gave the monkeys mod points?). This is nothing more than a bug, and he spent most of the article basically saying "this sucks, but it's theoretically necessary and Microsoft was helpful". Where's the problem?
Microsoft's DRM is hopelessly overmatched, and has serious problems with it, and believe me when I say I"m NO Microsoft apologist. However, this is just another excuse for Microsoft bashing, and anyone who bothered to RTFA saw the real issue.
To be fair, combating spam is the livelihood of some of us, including myself.
For example, my place of employment employs a Bayesian spam filter, as well as a greylist RBL. It works very well, but inevitably, we're going to have one cunt email us saying "I GOT FIVE SPAM! FIX IT YOU WHORES!", or there's going to be one false positive, and going into Quarantine is simply too much for them to bear. Forget the millions of spam we block a week; those few that get through, or one legitimate that doesn't, is enough for someone to try to have our ass.
What will fix attitudes like this? Education. Telling lusers not to click questionable links. Having managers understand the specifics of spam filtering. But those two things never come together; the crotchety old vagina in Accounts Receivable is always going to think "wow, that poor man in Nigeria!", and some asshole CIO who only got his job because he learned some buzzwords on G4 will bluster and threaten his way to overreactions.
Considering those circumstances, it's understandable that someone would want a spammer dead; after all, they're trying to take our ability to feed our families away, no? Me, I'm not of that mindset; I judge individuals, not stereotypes. However, this was an exceptionally shitty individual, in an incredibly shitty country. So yeah... justice was pretty much served here.
Thank all these people whom have uploaded/downloaded music/movies for years. They are the true freedom fighters against the evil corporations.
I respectfully disagree, because I will tell you that 98% of the people that download music illegally don't give two craps about the RIAA. They don't even know if the groups are RIAA members, hell, they probably don't know why the RIAA is relevant; they just know "ooh, free music, $TORRENTSITE has that!", and they have one of their IT buddies make it as easy as possible.
There are a few people that are basically e-Robin Hoods; baron pirates in search of truth, justice and that hot new Talib Kweli album. These people are misguided. The RIAA WANTS an excuse to tighten the screws to average consumers who don't know any better, and these idiots are giving it to them. DRM has always been more about making new money than about protecting old money, but it's hard to say that with any justification with idiots like those around.