This is just what the Games=Violence activists need, more ammunition (no pun intended)
Oh come on now, surely you know that opening a crate of ammo for them was the whole point behind introducing the videogame element into the case. I'll wager it was a briefly mentioned fact in the boys' questioning and the DA seized on that detail, magnifying it into fuel for his political career. If not that then it was a desperate attempt by the boys to divert some of the blame from their shoulders. Or perhaps a bit of both, as most truths usually are.
So far there have been no serious security compromises on the US DAOC servers, mostly just the occasional dupe item bug, player radar, or 'speed hack', which are almost always dealt with quickly. And they have always said their European servers were almost completely outsourced, which may not have been the best idea and I'm sure they regret to some degree now. So much of DAOC is server-side that I don't see how this could've happened unless a rebellious GM (or their account) was involved.
I think voice in MMORPGs could work IF it's done properly.
It shouldn't be mandatory of course, the most likely way to implement it would be a voluntary chatgroup or group option. In PlanetSide (I know it's a FPS, but it has similar elements) the voice chat actually enhances the immersion, you feel more like you're actually in a squad. However voice is much more necessary and useful in a FPS as you can't always take time to type.
In console MMORPGs it could be a great way to avoid having to buy a keyboard add-on, but would detract from the RPG element severely. However it might work well since headset accessories are already prevalent for online console games.
In a computer MMORPG there would need to be more reason to use it. A series of voice filters would be very cool - I'd use voice chat if a filter made me really sound like a guttural troll or a high-pitched halfling. You could even make it part of character creation and attune it to your voice (in a perfect world). Unfortunately I don't think there's enough demand for it yet, the cons currently outweigh the pros in most cases.
Till then I'll just keep muttering back to myself as I type =D
One must wonder what prompted this, and whether the move to Microsoft is financially or personally motivated. I mean it's not like someone with his resume would have anything less than his choice of jobs. Perhaps it was desire to take a bigger role in the projects - in a place like ID... well it's hard to be the big fish in a pond of big fish. Of course there's always the fact that M$ is called that for a reason. As all truths usually are, it's probably a bit of both.
Actually, given that an interesting plot and humor are the most cruicial elements of an adventure game, I can see why they would cancel development if they didn't truly have a quality product. It would be like making a FPS with a crappy engine, fans wouldn't shell out for it. And being a fan, I wouldn't either. I would rather be slightly disappointed now than largely disappointed with a release of a franchise bandwagon.
It might do well, it might not. I mean sure Halo's a great Xbox game, but at it's core it's just Tribes 2. And I have yet to play any FPS that in my mind surpasses Tribes 2 for creativity, play value, and overall fun. I don't play much anymore but the fact that it's the oldest game I still have installed is a big endorsement from me. Anyway, nothin' new to see here folks, please move along.....
I think the biggest stumbling block this console's going to face will be the fact that you HAVE to download the games.
Even IF they can do what only a handful of companies succeed at (breaking into the console market and building a solid player base) then judging from my experiences with online console play and even PC online games, the Infinium servers are going to be so hammered that nobody will be able to get anything in a reasonable amount of time. Not to mention the unreliability of home high-speed connections. There will be a great wailing and gnashing of teeth. And if the servers aren't hammered, then the console will fail because of lack of subscriptions.
I have serious doubts about the DRM features of the console as well. I'm sure that some software companies would be happy to see the DRM elements in place, but I seriously doubt that many will be willing to invest a significant amount of effort in a 'first of it's kind' system when the industry trend shows a tendency for groundbreaking hardware to fall flat on it's face, only to be revised, improved, and re-released later under a major label. Turbografx 16, Jaguar, 3D0, all with elements ahead of their time, all dead now and their technology picked over by the market leaders.
In the end, it's about having good games and offering something your competition doesn't. The only new thing the Phantom seems to offer is DRM protection for the software companies and tedious, frustrating downloads for the gamers. Whoopee. I predict a failure worthy of Waterworld.
Every inn has a dark, shadowy corner
on
To Kill An Avatar
·
· Score: 3, Insightful
In the end, there will always be players in a MMORPG who work outside the basic rules, much like in real-life. I don't believe this will lead to the downfall of MMORPGs however, as long as the game provides an area to work out these anti-establishment feelings.
As far as exploiters go, you find them in every MMORPG. Those who push the limits of every game-enforced law or rule, to gain an advantage over their fellow players. I would like to see a system that encompasses this, similar to moderation on a board. A panel of GMs could monitor the shady activities that go on, and adjust the player's game experience accordingly. A particularly devious game designer could even incorporate specific exploits into the system to draw those who are attracted to working on the fringes of the "law". I believe it would enhance the roleplaying experience for those not inclined to walk the bright, straight, and narrow path, thus leading to a higher subscription rate overall.
You're never going to get rid of the cheaters. But since they're there already, why not make it a player class?
The villan from this one will be Interpol, tracking Indiana down for 20 years worth of smuggling national treasures to sell to museums. High adventure ensues in U.S. Extradition Court, as Indy faces his greatest nemesis, Warren "Eyepatch" Fineburg, a ruthless UN junior legal secretary with a jaunty BLACK fedora and a bullwhip-like fountain pen. Indy's only hopes for exoneration lies in a ragtag legal team consisting of a whiny showgirl, an ex-Russian general turned Hindu monk, and a sassy orangutan lawyer. Indy will need all his skill and luck to survive the climactic out-of-court settlement on the ledge of the courthouse clock tower!
I trusted my heart to you once Lucas, and you let me down. I'll approach this with appropriate levels of guarded enthusiasm.
Wynter
Spoiled kids, back in my day we had wooden pixels!
on
Pac-Man Reloaded
·
· Score: 3, Insightful
I can appreciate the simpler times and the games of yore, I had a 2600. But I don't hold to the opinion that these games were somehow more fun or more "pure". As I remember there were several really good games and a whole lot of crappy ones, much like today. There were the River Raids and the Pitfalls, and then there were the ETs or the Plaque Attacks (real game, very sad). It was and still is all about the gameplay.
Sure, the complexity of the games has changed, but that's a good thing IMO. There are still games you can sit down and play for 5 min, but now there are games you can play for 5 hours with enough depth to satisfy the more sophisticated gamer. Strategy or RPGs used to be more for the hardcore gamer, as many were clunky and average gamers lost patience. But now there's enough eye-candy and action to attract a wider range of players. Same with action games, they have more depth and complexity now to appeal to involved gamers, but can still be played right out of the box. There are exceptions of course, but the most successful games seem to follow this formula.
As for the "retro gaming" movement, I don't think it's a protest or a wanting for more pure games. I think it has more to do with associating those simple games with simpler times. It's all about roots. And more power to 'em, I say.
Now if I could just find my paddle controller I could dust off Ka-Boom! =D
The scent of her hit me like a sack full of kittens. I felt heady just standing by her, clinging to her like a rock in a hurricane of desire. My hand brushed her side, slippery smooth, butter on silk. My heart pumped a techno beat as I lifted her into my arms and carried her across the threshhold. Other men couldn't see what I saw in her, they just saw an AR15 assalt rifle, I saw my Sheila.
While they're introducing new ways of defining your perversity of choice, why not come up with USEFUL ratings labels for games? Such as:
VR - Violent Rage - frustrating levels may provoke fits of rage and destruction that could endanger your controller.
MMP - Media Marketing Project - 2 30 second clips from the movie or tv show and a bad clone of a game you played 5 years ago with new skins.
BHC - Blinding Headache Complexity - You write assembly code to take a break from the game.
NHAR - Non-Human Appendages Required - The key/button bindings in this game would baffle a Yoga guru in mastering them.
FR3D - Failed Resurrection in 3D - This game is the product of a last-ditch effort of a company past it's prime to squeeze the final drops of blood out of it's only success. And it's in 3D!
TF - Text Fetish - Break out the reading glasses and pray you can skip cutscenes. This game makes Tolstoy look like a brochure writer.
TOD - Translator On Drugs - This greatest English port of game from foreign are all the best easy to reading. You have no chance survive. Make your time.
With this product, there's no argument, because you can't argue with a box
No kid with the cognitive ability to play games is going to be fooled into believing Mom and Dad can't get them more game time. This will just change the arguments to "Just 5 more credits Mom, PLEEEZE? I gotta get to the save point...etc". Not a final solution for arguments about game time, but an effective deterrent for sneaking in that last level before hormework/bed. I can't help thinking that with the advent of gaming families it may become an irritation parents don't want to deal with when it's time to get their game on. Such was the downfall of the V-chip.
Slashdot Mirror
This is just what the Games=Violence activists need, more ammunition (no pun intended)
Oh come on now, surely you know that opening a crate of ammo for them was the whole point behind introducing the videogame element into the case. I'll wager it was a briefly mentioned fact in the boys' questioning and the DA seized on that detail, magnifying it into fuel for his political career. If not that then it was a desperate attempt by the boys to divert some of the blame from their shoulders. Or perhaps a bit of both, as most truths usually are.
So far there have been no serious security compromises on the US DAOC servers, mostly just the occasional dupe item bug, player radar, or 'speed hack', which are almost always dealt with quickly. And they have always said their European servers were almost completely outsourced, which may not have been the best idea and I'm sure they regret to some degree now. So much of DAOC is server-side that I don't see how this could've happened unless a rebellious GM (or their account) was involved.
I think voice in MMORPGs could work IF it's done properly.
It shouldn't be mandatory of course, the most likely way to implement it would be a voluntary chatgroup or group option. In PlanetSide (I know it's a FPS, but it has similar elements) the voice chat actually enhances the immersion, you feel more like you're actually in a squad. However voice is much more necessary and useful in a FPS as you can't always take time to type.
In console MMORPGs it could be a great way to avoid having to buy a keyboard add-on, but would detract from the RPG element severely. However it might work well since headset accessories are already prevalent for online console games.
In a computer MMORPG there would need to be more reason to use it. A series of voice filters would be very cool - I'd use voice chat if a filter made me really sound like a guttural troll or a high-pitched halfling. You could even make it part of character creation and attune it to your voice (in a perfect world). Unfortunately I don't think there's enough demand for it yet, the cons currently outweigh the pros in most cases.
Till then I'll just keep muttering back to myself as I type =D
One must wonder what prompted this, and whether the move to Microsoft is financially or personally motivated. I mean it's not like someone with his resume would have anything less than his choice of jobs. Perhaps it was desire to take a bigger role in the projects - in a place like ID... well it's hard to be the big fish in a pond of big fish. Of course there's always the fact that M$ is called that for a reason. As all truths usually are, it's probably a bit of both.
Actually, given that an interesting plot and humor are the most cruicial elements of an adventure game, I can see why they would cancel development if they didn't truly have a quality product. It would be like making a FPS with a crappy engine, fans wouldn't shell out for it. And being a fan, I wouldn't either. I would rather be slightly disappointed now than largely disappointed with a release of a franchise bandwagon.
It might do well, it might not. I mean sure Halo's a great Xbox game, but at it's core it's just Tribes 2. And I have yet to play any FPS that in my mind surpasses Tribes 2 for creativity, play value, and overall fun. I don't play much anymore but the fact that it's the oldest game I still have installed is a big endorsement from me. Anyway, nothin' new to see here folks, please move along.....
....to Half-life 2 =D
Wynter
With all the available outlets for emotional expression and stress relief available in Afghanistan, it's no wonder that it is such a peaceful haven.
What happens when you attempt to relieve growing pressure by sealing it off?
Wynter
I think the biggest stumbling block this console's going to face will be the fact that you HAVE to download the games.
Even IF they can do what only a handful of companies succeed at (breaking into the console market and building a solid player base) then judging from my experiences with online console play and even PC online games, the Infinium servers are going to be so hammered that nobody will be able to get anything in a reasonable amount of time. Not to mention the unreliability of home high-speed connections. There will be a great wailing and gnashing of teeth. And if the servers aren't hammered, then the console will fail because of lack of subscriptions.
I have serious doubts about the DRM features of the console as well. I'm sure that some software companies would be happy to see the DRM elements in place, but I seriously doubt that many will be willing to invest a significant amount of effort in a 'first of it's kind' system when the industry trend shows a tendency for groundbreaking hardware to fall flat on it's face, only to be revised, improved, and re-released later under a major label. Turbografx 16, Jaguar, 3D0, all with elements ahead of their time, all dead now and their technology picked over by the market leaders.
In the end, it's about having good games and offering something your competition doesn't. The only new thing the Phantom seems to offer is DRM protection for the software companies and tedious, frustrating downloads for the gamers. Whoopee. I predict a failure worthy of Waterworld.
In the end, there will always be players in a MMORPG who work outside the basic rules, much like in real-life. I don't believe this will lead to the downfall of MMORPGs however, as long as the game provides an area to work out these anti-establishment feelings.
As far as exploiters go, you find them in every MMORPG. Those who push the limits of every game-enforced law or rule, to gain an advantage over their fellow players. I would like to see a system that encompasses this, similar to moderation on a board. A panel of GMs could monitor the shady activities that go on, and adjust the player's game experience accordingly. A particularly devious game designer could even incorporate specific exploits into the system to draw those who are attracted to working on the fringes of the "law". I believe it would enhance the roleplaying experience for those not inclined to walk the bright, straight, and narrow path, thus leading to a higher subscription rate overall.
You're never going to get rid of the cheaters. But since they're there already, why not make it a player class?
Wynter
The villan from this one will be Interpol, tracking Indiana down for 20 years worth of smuggling national treasures to sell to museums. High adventure ensues in U.S. Extradition Court, as Indy faces his greatest nemesis, Warren "Eyepatch" Fineburg, a ruthless UN junior legal secretary with a jaunty BLACK fedora and a bullwhip-like fountain pen. Indy's only hopes for exoneration lies in a ragtag legal team consisting of a whiny showgirl, an ex-Russian general turned Hindu monk, and a sassy orangutan lawyer. Indy will need all his skill and luck to survive the climactic out-of-court settlement on the ledge of the courthouse clock tower!
I trusted my heart to you once Lucas, and you let me down. I'll approach this with appropriate levels of guarded enthusiasm.
Wynter
I can appreciate the simpler times and the games of yore, I had a 2600. But I don't hold to the opinion that these games were somehow more fun or more "pure". As I remember there were several really good games and a whole lot of crappy ones, much like today. There were the River Raids and the Pitfalls, and then there were the ETs or the Plaque Attacks (real game, very sad). It was and still is all about the gameplay.
Sure, the complexity of the games has changed, but that's a good thing IMO. There are still games you can sit down and play for 5 min, but now there are games you can play for 5 hours with enough depth to satisfy the more sophisticated gamer. Strategy or RPGs used to be more for the hardcore gamer, as many were clunky and average gamers lost patience. But now there's enough eye-candy and action to attract a wider range of players. Same with action games, they have more depth and complexity now to appeal to involved gamers, but can still be played right out of the box. There are exceptions of course, but the most successful games seem to follow this formula.
As for the "retro gaming" movement, I don't think it's a protest or a wanting for more pure games. I think it has more to do with associating those simple games with simpler times. It's all about roots. And more power to 'em, I say.
Now if I could just find my paddle controller I could dust off Ka-Boom! =D
Wynter
Max Payne love story?? I can see it now:
The scent of her hit me like a sack full of kittens. I felt heady just standing by her, clinging to her like a rock in a hurricane of desire. My hand brushed her side, slippery smooth, butter on silk. My heart pumped a techno beat as I lifted her into my arms and carried her across the threshhold. Other men couldn't see what I saw in her, they just saw an AR15 assalt rifle, I saw my Sheila.
Wynter
While they're introducing new ways of defining your perversity of choice, why not come up with USEFUL ratings labels for games? Such as:
:)
VR - Violent Rage - frustrating levels may provoke fits of rage and destruction that could endanger your controller.
MMP - Media Marketing Project - 2 30 second clips from the movie or tv show and a bad clone of a game you played 5 years ago with new skins.
BHC - Blinding Headache Complexity - You write assembly code to take a break from the game.
NHAR - Non-Human Appendages Required - The key/button bindings in this game would baffle a Yoga guru in mastering them.
FR3D - Failed Resurrection in 3D - This game is the product of a last-ditch effort of a company past it's prime to squeeze the final drops of blood out of it's only success. And it's in 3D!
TF - Text Fetish - Break out the reading glasses and pray you can skip cutscenes. This game makes Tolstoy look like a brochure writer.
TOD - Translator On Drugs - This greatest English port of game from foreign are all the best easy to reading. You have no chance survive. Make your time.
Just a few suggestions
Wynter
-----------
With this product, there's no argument, because you can't argue with a box
No kid with the cognitive ability to play games is going to be fooled into believing Mom and Dad can't get them more game time. This will just change the arguments to "Just 5 more credits Mom, PLEEEZE? I gotta get to the save point...etc". Not a final solution for arguments about game time, but an effective deterrent for sneaking in that last level before hormework/bed. I can't help thinking that with the advent of gaming families it may become an irritation parents don't want to deal with when it's time to get their game on. Such was the downfall of the V-chip.
----------------------