As for the 'political' motivation... What political motivation is needed to rate a game? They didn't sit down and say 'Well, we hate them, and AO will basically ban their game, so let's do that.' They watched the video, it was beyond M rating, and they rated it appropriately. You're correct, without having played it myself I can't say for sure. However, my point was that the controversy that had already erupted over the game prior to even being finished or rated very well may have resulted in clouded judgments. Raters go into work with "this game is sick and disgusting" already repeating in the back of their mind because of the reputation that it may have already developed from not only being what it is (a sequel to a controversial game) but also coming from a company that seems to make a habit of releasing seemingly questionable content.
I don't believe that the ESRB plays the games that they rate at all. They are sent video footage by the developer of what is the most objectionable content in-game and base their opinions on that. Furthermore, their opinion is probably entirely politically motivated in this case, as Manhunt 2 has already been made out as a poster child of video games that influence mass murders.
I was looking forward to Ghost after its initial announcement and would still be interested in it should it come back up in the future. As blasphemous as it probably is to say, I'm not in the least moved by the notion of World of WarCraft or StarCraft 2, so I have to wait for Ghost or Diablo III (or a new installment of the Lost Vikings or Rock 'n' Roll Racing!) before Blizzard catches my attention again.
Not that anyone would really want to buy the sickly animals from a major pet store retailer, that promotes the often times cruel breeding practices used to supply purse dogs and such...
Some people have more money than time or more money than patience. More money than brains, perhaps. They're already paying a monthly fee just to have the "privilege" of playing the game (i.e. grinding), only to spend more money to avoid grinding.
Obviously we should be working on phasing out the entire male gender then instead of wasting time on workarounds. Take care of the problem, not the symptoms!
http://www.watercoolergames.org/archives/000748.sh tml
It would seem as though all thought put toward indie developers were put on hold for some time. The above article indicates such at least, and does make perfect sense. It is an older write-up however, so some now debunked assumptions are made, though "At the rate we're going, independent games of any kind won't be a reality until 2008 at least" is ironic in light of recent news.
I'll believe it when I see small garage-style shop priced Wii dev kits. If I remember correctly, the Wii SDK is only $2,000. While that is certainly a lot of money, it's really a drop in the bucket when compared to other consoles. I don't see it being anywhere near impossible for a small, dedicated development team to raise that amount of money.
Visual quality perhaps (and at what artistic price does so-called "realism" come?). I don't think the ratio of truly great games has changed too much in years past. Remember, complexity does not necessarily denote quality.
Have any of you seen the six foot albino penguins in Antarctica? They guard the Plateau of Leng, just beyond the Mountains of Madness. Beware the Elder Things, beware!
Those guys are annoying, not to mention lacking in any sense of scientific method. What really gets me though is this:"I worked on Star Wars Episodes I and II, on the Matrix films, on AI and Terminator 3". Oh wow! So he worked on a bunch of films that really, really sucked and were riddled with CGI... You know, the kind of special effects that look dated before the films are even in theaters. The exact opposite reason Blade Runner stands the test of time! Let's hope that's something they remember for the so-called "Final Cut".
That trailer didn't really show too much. I've been looking forward to this for some time, personally. I just hope it doesn't end up riddled with newly shot CGI and such rubbish. I did always find it a little disappointing that the film downplays pretty much every aspect of the novel save for the general "feel"; no mood devices, no Mercerism, little social importance implied to organic animals, no radioactive dust, etc. The film is great, but still could have been so much more than just the sci-fi action flick that it tends to lean toward. I expect the "Final Cut" to add more general narrative tot he film, but certainly not to put it more in line with the novel.
Quake would have been pretty close had they stuck with the original design ideas. It has always been the best of Id's games anyway, dripping with Lovecraftian ambiance. It's too bad they fudged it all up with the Borg and Arena sequels, which were great games in themselves but certainly took the series in an inferior artistic direction.
Everyone switch over to pirate radio stations, they're hipper anyway! Now if only the FM spectrum went as low as 66.6 I'd be in. "You're listening to 66.6: The Beast!"
Slashdot Mirror
When record companies cry.
'nuff said...
I don't believe that the ESRB plays the games that they rate at all. They are sent video footage by the developer of what is the most objectionable content in-game and base their opinions on that. Furthermore, their opinion is probably entirely politically motivated in this case, as Manhunt 2 has already been made out as a poster child of video games that influence mass murders.
They allow wit on MTV? o_O
I was looking forward to Ghost after its initial announcement and would still be interested in it should it come back up in the future. As blasphemous as it probably is to say, I'm not in the least moved by the notion of World of WarCraft or StarCraft 2, so I have to wait for Ghost or Diablo III (or a new installment of the Lost Vikings or Rock 'n' Roll Racing!) before Blizzard catches my attention again.
Maybe these kids need some real bullying to toughen them up if some juvenile words on der intraweb makes them and their parents cry.
Not that anyone would really want to buy the sickly animals from a major pet store retailer, that promotes the often times cruel breeding practices used to supply purse dogs and such...
Obviously we should be working on phasing out the entire male gender then instead of wasting time on workarounds. Take care of the problem, not the symptoms!
http://www.watercoolergames.org/archives/000748.sh tml
It would seem as though all thought put toward indie developers were put on hold for some time. The above article indicates such at least, and does make perfect sense. It is an older write-up however, so some now debunked assumptions are made, though "At the rate we're going, independent games of any kind won't be a reality until 2008 at least" is ironic in light of recent news.
Visual quality perhaps (and at what artistic price does so-called "realism" come?). I don't think the ratio of truly great games has changed too much in years past. Remember, complexity does not necessarily denote quality.
It's just too bad that those games are completely uninteresting...
Have any of you seen the six foot albino penguins in Antarctica? They guard the Plateau of Leng, just beyond the Mountains of Madness. Beware the Elder Things, beware!
Those guys are annoying, not to mention lacking in any sense of scientific method. What really gets me though is this:"I worked on Star Wars Episodes I and II, on the Matrix films, on AI and Terminator 3". Oh wow! So he worked on a bunch of films that really, really sucked and were riddled with CGI... You know, the kind of special effects that look dated before the films are even in theaters. The exact opposite reason Blade Runner stands the test of time! Let's hope that's something they remember for the so-called "Final Cut".
That trailer didn't really show too much. I've been looking forward to this for some time, personally. I just hope it doesn't end up riddled with newly shot CGI and such rubbish. I did always find it a little disappointing that the film downplays pretty much every aspect of the novel save for the general "feel"; no mood devices, no Mercerism, little social importance implied to organic animals, no radioactive dust, etc. The film is great, but still could have been so much more than just the sci-fi action flick that it tends to lean toward. I expect the "Final Cut" to add more general narrative tot he film, but certainly not to put it more in line with the novel.
Quake would have been pretty close had they stuck with the original design ideas. It has always been the best of Id's games anyway, dripping with Lovecraftian ambiance. It's too bad they fudged it all up with the Borg and Arena sequels, which were great games in themselves but certainly took the series in an inferior artistic direction.
Everyone switch over to pirate radio stations, they're hipper anyway! Now if only the FM spectrum went as low as 66.6 I'd be in. "You're listening to 66.6: The Beast!"
I always had my suspicions about Big however...
I don't want people who waste their lives on an iPhone being anywhere near me, and that includes my website!
To the Star Chamber!
I must agree, wholeheartedly, with this study.
They could sell it for a lot cheaper than thirty or forty dollars. Of course, they can already. Greedy media pigs.