I graduated as a Computer Engineer in 2003, having gone through a hands-off theory heavy program. In our second to last year, our class was joined by local technical college students who, having received their diplomas, had the option to take an extra year to earn degrees.
The difference in general understanding and comprehension between the theory-heavy students and the hands-on tech college students was staggering. Time and time again, we theory-based guys would get our asses handed to us when it came time to actually apply our knowledge.
As other posters have stated before, the theory-kids had an incredibly difficult time bridging the gap between theory and application - whereas the tech school guys, already having a solid understanding of the real-world basics, were able to ramp up on the theory far quicker - and with a greater comprehension to boot.
At the end of the day, I think my university would have produced far better thinkers if they had taken the time to have us apply our knowledge as a means of driving home the points they were trying to teach us on the blackboard.
What I wouldn't give for another Feist-inspired Krondor game.
Betrayal at Krondor had an incredibly rich and complex storyline, due in large part to the creators keeping true to the source material - the books of Raymond E. Feist. (It was apparently a widely-held myth that Feist contributed directly to the game). Add a full orchestral soundtrack, amazingly lifelike characters (for its day) and a large element of exploratory freedom, and the result was a mature and intelligent game that I played through dozens of times, and still think about from time to time.
And sequels did come out. We had Betrayal in Antara, poorly received by fans who wanted to travel back to Midkemia and be greeted with a mature plotline and instead were thrust into a cartoony adventure game. We had Return to Krondor, which took away a tried and true interface, as well as a large amount of gameplay freedom. Both "sequels" failed to capture the spirit of adventure that captivated so many of us in the original title.
The 7th Guest still holds a place of honour in my memory for delivering some of the creepiest gaming moments I've ever had. I can still remember that awful, mocking laugh of Henry Stauf bouncing off the walls as the paintings suddenly came to life with gruesome depictions. And that haunting violin that plays in the opening cinematic? Classic haunted house horror.
It's a shame that it and the sequel, "The 11th Hour", became fairly unplayable (with respect to system compatibility) once the new waves of computers came down the pipe.
I find that games featuring realistic graphics tend not to age as well as those that instead use a unique and "stylish" design without getting too hung up on the concept of realism. Sure, SuperExMarineShooterGuy 12 has the latest and greatest in realistic graphics engines, but how will it compare even a year later, when !!13!! is released?
The one thing that I'm *quite* interested to see is how they make use of Keyhole, a satellite imaging company that Google aquired a little while ago.
When you consider that they now have a store locator tool (local.google) complete with built-in mapping tools, it makes that recent acquisition all the more interesting. Will we soon have directions mapped onto live satellite footage?
Yet another film wrapped in the safety net of a pre-existing fan base, good lord.
More often then not, these remakes (as well as the many gawdawful tv-to-film projects) are nothing more than blatant cash grabs that can be easily sold to production companies based on the fact that the fan base has already been established. Like many memorable movies, Tron was a success because it was incredibly creative as well as visually stunning for its time. In the same way that Star Wars and the first of the Matrix flicks blew fans away, it was showing us something we'd never seen before, and so we were captivated.
I hope that the new film will not be so much a remake as a new creative spin on the same general theme... but I have my doubts. (Now, if Lucas hijacked the project, injected some comedy relief in the form of a wisecrackin' RAM chip with a speech impediment... PURE GOLD, BABY!)
You have so much more to gain if you are enthusiasts for gaming, and try to find the audience for a new game. You are so much better off if you do not bite the hand that feeds you.
You are so much better if you let us keep face, take your paycheque home and don't make waves?
I hope Nokia's marketing people will be up to the task of fielding all those calls from panicked hobbyists worried that the n-gauge model trains are waning in popularity.
Slashdot Mirror
I graduated as a Computer Engineer in 2003, having gone through a hands-off theory heavy program. In our second to last year, our class was joined by local technical college students who, having received their diplomas, had the option to take an extra year to earn degrees.
The difference in general understanding and comprehension between the theory-heavy students and the hands-on tech college students was staggering. Time and time again, we theory-based guys would get our asses handed to us when it came time to actually apply our knowledge.
As other posters have stated before, the theory-kids had an incredibly difficult time bridging the gap between theory and application - whereas the tech school guys, already having a solid understanding of the real-world basics, were able to ramp up on the theory far quicker - and with a greater comprehension to boot.
At the end of the day, I think my university would have produced far better thinkers if they had taken the time to have us apply our knowledge as a means of driving home the points they were trying to teach us on the blackboard.
Betrayal at Krondor had an incredibly rich and complex storyline, due in large part to the creators keeping true to the source material - the books of Raymond E. Feist. (It was apparently a widely-held myth that Feist contributed directly to the game). Add a full orchestral soundtrack, amazingly lifelike characters (for its day) and a large element of exploratory freedom, and the result was a mature and intelligent game that I played through dozens of times, and still think about from time to time.
And sequels did come out. We had Betrayal in Antara, poorly received by fans who wanted to travel back to Midkemia and be greeted with a mature plotline and instead were thrust into a cartoony adventure game. We had Return to Krondor, which took away a tried and true interface, as well as a large amount of gameplay freedom. Both "sequels" failed to capture the spirit of adventure that captivated so many of us in the original title.
I wanna' go back to Midkemia.
When there's only two choices, Almost live still means dead.
Punch the Monkey! Win fabulous prizes! *
*get tagged as a future homicidal maniac.
Webdings.
All your porn is belonging to base?
Yet another interface change?
......hey.
......stop it.
......Stop it.
...okay. ...okay? ...okay. ...alright.
Geez. If I were there with the dev team, I'd teach them.
------
Me: Hey!
Me: Hey.
Me: hey.
Me:
Me:
Me:
Dev:
Me:
Dev:
Me:
I'll bet thousands of day traders suddenly felt a chill of excitement the moment you posted that note.
It's a shame that it and the sequel, "The 11th Hour", became fairly unplayable (with respect to system compatibility) once the new waves of computers came down the pipe.
Tycho and I remain free men. The fact is that Jack actually sent the fax to everyone but the intended recipient at the Seattle PD.
I find that games featuring realistic graphics tend not to age as well as those that instead use a unique and "stylish" design without getting too hung up on the concept of realism. Sure, SuperExMarineShooterGuy 12 has the latest and greatest in realistic graphics engines, but how will it compare even a year later, when !!13!! is released?
...where do you want to go today?
I suppose it's for the best, though. How long until it KILLS AGAIN!!?!
Yup. Best fun had with a yo-yo since 'Goonies 2'.
Now go away before I taunt you a second time.
(sorry)
You're playing fox.
Shame on you.
James Earl Jones is credited as Vader's voice in the full cast listing on imdb, thank goodness.
It'd be fairly slick to see those street maps generated by Google local make use of actual satellite imagery, wouldn't it?
Don't you agree, my fellow non-artificially created life-forms?
Oh, and I found the recently posted comment regarding soviet russia most humourous.
ha. ha. ha.
When you consider that they now have a store locator tool (local.google) complete with built-in mapping tools, it makes that recent acquisition all the more interesting. Will we soon have directions mapped onto live satellite footage?
More often then not, these remakes (as well as the many gawdawful tv-to-film projects) are nothing more than blatant cash grabs that can be easily sold to production companies based on the fact that the fan base has already been established. Like many memorable movies, Tron was a success because it was incredibly creative as well as visually stunning for its time. In the same way that Star Wars and the first of the Matrix flicks blew fans away, it was showing us something we'd never seen before, and so we were captivated.
I hope that the new film will not be so much a remake as a new creative spin on the same general theme... but I have my doubts. (Now, if Lucas hijacked the project, injected some comedy relief in the form of a wisecrackin' RAM chip with a speech impediment ... PURE GOLD, BABY!)
c'mon guys, this is war! Play fair!
You are so much better if you let us keep face, take your paycheque home and don't make waves?
I hope Nokia's marketing people will be up to the task of fielding all those calls from panicked hobbyists worried that the n-gauge model trains are waning in popularity.