ummmmm...has no one picked up on the fact that "stealing negative 1,400,000,000" amounts to taking on $1,400,000,000 of the industry's debt? if i was mr. geffen, i'd be pretty cheery about this. the pirates are just giving back to the industry.
Despite the fact that it was aired twice during the game (and I was really paying attention the second time, having been very confused by this ad the first go-around), the ad for WebMD.com, featuring Muhammed Ali, left me completely befuddled. I was mostly confused by the text, which was apparently meant to get the main message of the ad across, since the images consisted only of Ali dancing/stinging for the camera. It went something like:
me. fighting time.
not time wasted on medical care.
we. [something about learning about medicine together on the web].
WebMD.com logo - and fade to black.
Huh? I guess it makes sense at a certain level, but am I missing some powerful message here?
Nunn seems to be the chess world's Puzzlin' Grand-pappy. Given his status, the "puzzle" here almost certainly lies on the chess board, not in the wording - if so, it wouldn't be at all pleasing to solve from a chess standpoint, which is the whole point of these things.
Though I admire your lateral thinking, I'm afraid this isn't "it". Or I'm wrong.;-)
I've heard my fair share of ghost stories - why the hell are they always in academic institutions?!?!?! I suppose the buildings are old and thus chock full of explanations for the presences. In any event, I'd be curious to know whether the folks running the webcam actually hold on to the pictures themselves for comparison purposes when someone sends in a potentially edited "evidence" image.
Chances are it's a celebration of photoshop, not a ghost.;-)
The bulk of id's revenue does come from the licensing of their engines, but to regard them as a technology company rather than a game company would be a crime. The notion that id's games are nothing more than "proofs of concept" is a real stretch. if id were a tech company, it would probably have one employee - carmack. Maybe he'd contract a single artist to create a few textures, models, and skins to show off the engine's capabilities, but essentially, carmack would be id: he'd write an engine, demonstrate it, sell it, buy several high-performance sports cars with the proceeds, then start writing another engine. Granted, in a sense, carmack is id - without his engines, it wouldn't be around. But the fact that id has a reasonably-sized staff that boasts some of the most talented (and, likely, highly-paid) individuals in the gaming industry speaks volumes about id's goals.
FPS (first-person shooters) are so popular for a very good reason - deathmatch. There seems to be a misconception that multiplayer combat (deathmatch) cannot be a game on its own. In truth, deathmatch is one of the most beautiful, elegant game concepts around. Deathmatch is a riot, and not just for the 14 year-old male peer-murdering death metal-loving demographic (I'm 23 - most of the many people I've played with are in my age range). Deathmatch also accounts for 99% of the time spent playing an FPS - by its nature it has near-infinite replayability. id has recognized this (evidenced by the fact that quake 3 will be geared entirely toward deathmatch/multiplayer combat). A great single-player scenario is all well and good, but multiplayer is where it's at. Take Half-life. The single-player was a lot of fun (though it wasn't the excellent, hyper-immersive, this-is-a-quantum-leap-for-FPS's game every reviewer seemed to think it was). Deathmatch, however, was poor. I've touched it once, maybe twice, since finishing the single-player game.
id does deathmatch better than anyone else. Producing a proof of concept wouldn't require near the number of hours id throws at its games for purposes of play-balancing, and many-more-than-necessary quantities of levels, multiplayer maps, models, and skins. There's no question that id's technology is a valuable commodity, but these folks are most definitely in the business of creating the most entertaining experience possible for a gamer's buck.
The simplicity of deathmatch/multiplayer allows for a universe made truly complex through human interaction (sure, combat is a fairly simple interaction to build a framework for, but it's also one of the most intense ways humans deal with one another and thus lends itself to gaming) rather than attempting to simulate complexity through a purportedly immersive world of buttons to press, levers to pull, and pre-scripted encounters. id didn't just create deathmatch, it almost single-handedly popularized graphical multiplayer gaming...the "future of gaming," especially as broadband becomes more widespread. id has revolutionized the way games are played - if that doesn't make it worthy of the title of "game company," I don't know what does.
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ummmmm...has no one picked up on the fact that "stealing negative 1,400,000,000" amounts to taking on $1,400,000,000 of the industry's debt? if i was mr. geffen, i'd be pretty cheery about this. the pirates are just giving back to the industry.
Despite the fact that it was aired twice during the game (and I was really paying attention the second time, having been very confused by this ad the first go-around), the ad for WebMD.com, featuring Muhammed Ali, left me completely befuddled. I was mostly confused by the text, which was apparently meant to get the main message of the ad across, since the images consisted only of Ali dancing/stinging for the camera. It went something like:
me.
fighting time.
not time wasted on medical care.
we.
[something about learning about medicine together on the web].
WebMD.com logo - and fade to black.
Huh? I guess it makes sense at a certain level, but am I missing some powerful message here?
Nunn seems to be the chess world's Puzzlin' Grand-pappy. Given his status, the "puzzle" here almost certainly lies on the chess board, not in the wording - if so, it wouldn't be at all pleasing to solve from a chess standpoint, which is the whole point of these things.
;-)
Though I admire your lateral thinking, I'm afraid this isn't "it". Or I'm wrong.
I've heard my fair share of ghost stories - why the hell are they always in academic institutions?!?!?! I suppose the buildings are old and thus chock full of explanations for the presences. In any event, I'd be curious to know whether the folks running the webcam actually hold on to the pictures themselves for comparison purposes when someone sends in a potentially edited "evidence" image.
;-)
Chances are it's a celebration of photoshop, not a ghost.
Yes.
The bulk of id's revenue does come from the licensing of their engines, but to regard them as a technology company rather than a game company would be a crime. The notion that id's games are nothing more than "proofs of concept" is a real stretch. if id were a tech company, it would probably have one employee - carmack. Maybe he'd contract a single artist to create a few textures, models, and skins to show off the engine's capabilities, but essentially, carmack would be id: he'd write an engine, demonstrate it, sell it, buy several high-performance sports cars with the proceeds, then start writing another engine. Granted, in a sense, carmack is id - without his engines, it wouldn't be around. But the fact that id has a reasonably-sized staff that boasts some of the most talented (and, likely, highly-paid) individuals in the gaming industry speaks volumes about id's goals.
FPS (first-person shooters) are so popular for a very good reason - deathmatch. There seems to be a misconception that multiplayer combat (deathmatch) cannot be a game on its own. In truth, deathmatch is one of the most beautiful, elegant game concepts around. Deathmatch is a riot, and not just for the 14 year-old male peer-murdering death metal-loving demographic (I'm 23 - most of the many people I've played with are in my age range). Deathmatch also accounts for 99% of the time spent playing an FPS - by its nature it has near-infinite replayability. id has recognized this (evidenced by the fact that quake 3 will be geared entirely toward deathmatch/multiplayer combat). A great single-player scenario is all well and good, but multiplayer is where it's at. Take Half-life. The single-player was a lot of fun (though it wasn't the excellent, hyper-immersive, this-is-a-quantum-leap-for-FPS's game every reviewer seemed to think it was). Deathmatch, however, was poor. I've touched it once, maybe twice, since finishing the single-player game.
id does deathmatch better than anyone else. Producing a proof of concept wouldn't require near the number of hours id throws at its games for purposes of play-balancing, and many-more-than-necessary quantities of levels, multiplayer maps, models, and skins. There's no question that id's technology is a valuable commodity, but these folks are most definitely in the business of creating the most entertaining experience possible for a gamer's buck.
The simplicity of deathmatch/multiplayer allows for a universe made truly complex through human interaction (sure, combat is a fairly simple interaction to build a framework for, but it's also one of the most intense ways humans deal with one another and thus lends itself to gaming) rather than attempting to simulate complexity through a purportedly immersive world of buttons to press, levers to pull, and pre-scripted encounters. id didn't just create deathmatch, it almost single-handedly popularized graphical multiplayer gaming...the "future of gaming," especially as broadband becomes more widespread. id has revolutionized the way games are played - if that doesn't make it worthy of the title of "game company," I don't know what does.