Movie Block

So..... this is a thing...

You can't be serious. A Tetris movie may be a flimsy concept on it's own but an $80 million budget? And a trilogy?!

What more can I say except......DOA anyone?

Blocked up

Recently news has emerged that a new movie based on a game will be emerging. And the lucky candidate will be the immortal calssic....

....Tetris.

It's an odd choice to be sure but how one earth can you make a movie out of Tetris?
I personally believe the only way you can do this would be to focus on the bizarre legal story that plagued Alexey Pajitnov in distributing the game. And that story has enough potency to make a fascinating movie.
But no, my opinion doesn't matter as I am a lowly blogger and nowhere near the Hollywood system. Still, if the Tetris movie does turn out that way, I will pay to see it (your move movie makers!)

XBLAndering forward

 Some more recent acquisitions for my Xbox (courtesy of XBLA):

Tetris Splash
What can I say? It's Tetris - however with a nuatical theme - and it's still as timeless and addictive as it ever was. My previous version of Tetris can't run on my computer (curse the 64x transition!) so this is a welcome addition in my book.

Daytona USA
The presence of this game seems a bit redundant as I'm not a Xbox Live user but it's still a great game to play - the HD revamp looks great too. And let us not forget that unrelenting refrain of : "Daytooooooonnnnnnnaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!"

Sonic CD
Again, this is nice to have in HD but there's something about this that rubs me the wrong way: Where is the original music?! The original soundtrack to Sonic CD was wonderful enough - which coming from a Mega CD game was hardly surprising - so to hear something completely different is indeed a surprise and an unwelcome one at that. Apparently there is the option to switch between soundtracks but I have yet to find it.

Digging up the dirt

Whilst going through some old files, I came across an old webcomic I used to do: A-Soc. This was done from 2004-8 and was based on a group of friends and the wacky stuff we did. We were all bound together in an anime society and although some of the faces changed over the course of the webcomic, it pretty much documented the weird stuff we did. I wrote and drew all of the comics (except on the few occasions when i let some guests in) and was pretty much in complete control. I even snuck in a few jokes related to my view of the world and drew some with a personal resonance.

One thing I did during this time is make a few jokes at WoW's expense. Now whilst I'd yet to play the game, these were done from an outsiders opinion. Now, having played WoW and with the passage of time, how do this comics look? Well let's find out:



This cartoon was inspired on two fronts: The first is Free Will. It's something that interests me (mostly because it's something good to have) to a point where it terrifies me to think that someone will create a reality which we will all willingly surrender to and essentially make the real world, and eventually our living bodies of flesh and blood, obsolete. It may seem like a scifi scenario but with each technological advancement, it seems possible that this destiny may be sooner then we'd like to admit.
Secondly, much has been said about WoW winning over many players to a point were they do little interacting with the real world. Thus it wasn't hard to put two ideas together.
Mind you, i do recall this got a lot of bad comment when it was originally published.

From the perspective of a WoW player I have done some interacting with other players and found most of them aren't misanthropic shut ins - they are regular people with regular lives (well the one's I've talked to). Still there are still stories that keep coming up of people dropping dead from gaming marathons, not to mention the persistent hikikomori problem in Korea. So in that sense maybe is cartoon is relevant.



Again another meditation on the break down of the real world with the player character growing a sense of identity - which subsequently leads to an existential crisis.
Having said that, looking back at this cartoon, it's a good idea conveyed poorly making it looked forced and dumb. Oh well, can't win them all...



This cartoon plays on the idea that people play WoW solely for the satisfaction of beating up other players. Now I realise it genuinely happens and it's called PvP so this cartoon doesn't really make a lot of sense. Still it could be said that the idea of PvP being integrated in as a feature of WoW does take away the freedom/rebelliousness/antagonism of the original concept.....



Again playing on the themes of the previous cartoon. But having this type of thing happen to me (as described in a previous post), this cartoon now hits closer to home than any of it's brothers. Like a wine, it got better with time. Or something.



Saved the best for last - A play on the addictive nature of WoW and having sampled it for myself I can see this was pretty much spot on - not bad for an outsider view. And yes in looking back at these, this was the one I enjoyed the most. Call it a fluke I guess XD
So many people have played Tetris over the years and most likely will continue to do so for decades to come. Makes you wonder if WoW will prove to have the same staying power...

31 Songs (no.1)

This month is the month of November - What does it mean? Not much - but for me it may be a good enough excuse to put together another serial. So, for the duration of November, every Friday I'll be talking about a subject over a series of posts, describing my own opinions and sharing experiences with a particular topic.
So what's the serial topic this time around?
Game music!
Yeah we should admit to it: We each have our particular favorite tunes in any game and we've even halted progression in a game just to listen to them. We may have downloaded some to listen to on the computer or Ipod and may have even sought out some remixes done by someone else who thought the tune was really cool.
So for this serial, I want to talk you all through some of my favorites. And as I've over two decades of gaming experience, there is quite a lot to get through. Therefore, this serial will be done with each post focusing on a particular gaming generation and, hopefully, track an evolutionary path through music, technology and taste.

So let's begin with the roots of my gaming experience, the third generation!

Arkanoid theme

Unlike most kids of the late eighties and early nineties, I never had a Sega or a Nintendo. Nope, I had a Commodore 64. Can't complain though: The damn thing had it's fair share of moments and some decent games. Indeed, it's fun to go online now and finally see other people share an interest in what I thought was ace at the time.
So about Arkanoid: This was a Breakout clone where, for the unfamiliar, the player controlled a bat facing a layered wall of bricks and to take them all out by bouncing a ball at them. Arkanoid however provided its own spin on the formula with power-ups and a 'space' theme with a mammoth space ship on the title screen and aliens that wander through the playing area. And of course, it had a rockin' theme tune.
I love how this tune is divided into sections starting with the explosive bass, before evolving into some electronics, followed by a mournful noise and then finally grinding to a complete stop. The end result is something surprisingly epic-sounding from the lowly C64 SID chip. Funny thing is, when I was a kid I thought that this was a theme best suited to a space-exploration/Star Trek-esque game - so imagine my disappointment that was used for a Breakout clone.
Still this was the sound of a sound system being pushed to the limit proving that anyone can make anything epic-sounding with even the most limited of tools.


Bubble Bobble - Theme

OMG is this song catchy. It has to be the most insanely catchy song every created in the history of gaming. Once heard you can't really get it out of our head! It's insane!
Now I've played Bubble Bobble in other formats namely the arcade version and the NES one on the Virtual Console and, I have to say that it is still the Commodore 64 version that works for me, in the terms of playability, graphical and, of course, the music. And how can one say no to that one tune? It's cheerful, catchy and, although repetitious, it never once gets boring. It's the time of theme that bores it;s way into the mind but in a good way - which is rare feat for any piece of music to accomplish.
What more can I say except it's so damn catchy and, even now, I'm still yet to tire of it.
Not that I want to anyway.


Last Ninja 2 - Central park

As this is a serial on my favourite game themes, I set myself a little challenge: To actively select games that I played and enjoyed, to deliberately seek out little known themes & shine some light upon them, and not fall into the trap of suggesting the obvious.
Which brings me to the Last Ninja 2. As mentioned previously in my Greatest Gaming Heroes list, this series was the defining game for the system and beloved by many a C64 owner. Sure the Nintendo kids may have had Mario or Link to champion but what would I care? I had Armakuni.
One of the trademarks of the Last Ninja series was the fantastic music. Whilst the first Last Ninja had some cool themes, it really stepped up with the sequel. I listen this theme now, after twenty-plus years of technological advancement and I'm still impressed by how the C64 SID chip is being pushed at such a rate one would never have thought possible. It's a hard rockin' theme and a damn good imitation of a metal band - I particularly like that solo/coda that wraps up the song. In fact I think this may have started the trend of having footage of ninja's fighting synced to metal music (and a gazillion and one Naruto AMVs). Okay maybe not but I'm still claiming it for Armakuni!
The rest of the soundtrack of Last Ninja 2 is indeed impressive but this still works for me - and judging by the many rock covers/remixes that exist of this theme, many more agree with me.


R-Type - Title theme

This was something of a milestone in my gaming history: This was the first time I'd actually sit at the title screen of game purely for enjoying the music being played. And how could I not? This was a fantastic opening theme and a pace setter for a brilliant soundtrack. It was energetic and perfect music for gunning down aliens and evading bullets with intensity. And the person we have to thank for this is Chris Hulsbeck - the man who wrote the equally excellent music for Turrican and, more recently, Star Wars Rogue Leader.
Funny thing is I've played various R-Types since and I can recognize some familiar themes. But I'm used to the frantic soundtrack to the Commodore 64 version - thus the other versions come across as being surprisingly stiff. True - they don't work for me. Why I heard the title music to the Amiga version and honestly it doesn't hold a candle to this one. Even hearing it now they seem to be completely different themes - but if the Commodore 64 version of R-Type truly got it's own theme then it's one up for it!


Ramparts - Theme

Not to be confused with the strategy game of the same name that made it's way to various systems (including the C64!) this Ramparts is actually a clone of the classic game Rampage. The major difference is it went for a medieval/fantasy theme with the players controlling an armored giant climbing castle towers and smashing them to pieces. Looking back it's a bit of weak game with dodgy controls, awful graphics (by C64 standards) and little to maintain interest.
But the game's saving grace is a genuinely freaky theme: Played throughout the game, this is truly a theme of giant destroying large buildings. I recall this theme being the one that frightened me as a kid - even to the point where I was more focused on the music than the actual game itself - and if the music is more engaging than the game itself then something must've worked. Okay so maybe now this theme can't compare to the likes of the Silent Hill games but for one of the scariest gaming themes ever made it sure makes a compelling case.


Tetris - Type A

Yes this is a no-brainer and yes it's inclusion breaks my own rule of not kowtowing to the obvious but damn, how can I honestly say no to this?
Interestingly enough, it is only in recent years that I found out that all the music from Tetris was based on Russian folk songs - and Type A itself originated from a song called Korobeiniki. Funny thing is, most people would probably recognize this theme almost instantly - and even then it's most likely through Tetris. Funny how game's can do that....

And on that note, this concludes the first part of the series - tune in next week when the music steps up a notch as we enter the fourth generation....

We R Australian

Big news down here in Australia with government support now behind the lifting of the R18+ ban. This has been a big thing down here as we are the only country who doesn't have an R18+ classification and as a result many games are either being unreleased or being heavily censored. So, with a shot in the arm to the ban being lifted, I thought I might share my thoughts on the idea of questionable content in games:

My main concern with R18+ games is that they contains buckets of blood and the type of sexual nature that would only appeal to gamers who can’t get it own and probably never will. No, I’m not some twerp who condemns the usage of gore on the screen. I’m actually someone who remembers what triggered this whole, long-lasting debate on violence in video games: It was in game called Mortal Kombat (anyone remember that?).

The thing with Mortal Kombat was that it came at a time when everyone was trying to capitalise on the one on one fighting formula that made Streetfighter 2 a big hit. I understand the notion that incorporating blood and gore was it’s method of standing out from the pack but looking back at the game now, it just seems tame: It hasn’t aged well, like other games from the era, and it’s flaws now seem glaringly obvious now the sensation of tearing people apart has since settled. Thankfully, the sequel, MK2 was an improvement on many levels – and it was indeed satisfying to hear, at the time, people talking abut MK2 as a great game, not just some gore-fest.



Looking at Mortal Kombat now it seems hard to believe that it started this ongoing debate about violence in videogames. Of course, since then games have incorporated violence and blood and have continually pushed the envelope on what players can do to their on-screen opponents.
And this is what I feel is the biggest problem with the violence in videogames debate: Violence has become too commonplace. Ten/Fifteen years ago, seeing a game bearing the M15+ label would’ve been an endorsement: This was a bad/naughty game that would make gamers buy it purely for the element of danger that continually drives thrillseekers onward. Nowadays, you see so many games bearing the M15+ and the MA15+ games that gamers just seem unfazed – even to the point where the games rated G and PG are laughed out of the room.

My point? Violence in videogames has evolved to a point where it’s no longer a constant: It’s now a dependant. Such is the gamer today that if a game doesn’t have lot’s guns and plenty of bad guys to mow down, then it has no hope of getting anywhere. Who cares about new ideas or getting a point across? All one needs to do is provide enough arms and ammunition for several Arnold Schwarzenegger movies and the player won’t think about anything else.

As stated above, I have a knowledge of what makes a good game, forged from many years playing them. I like games that present a degree of immersion, shows signs of intelligence, present a challenge and really establish a connection with the player. So in order to dispel some notion that I some lily-livered panzie who faints at the sight of blood, I do enjoy the game God of War. Sure it is a ridiculously violent game but it is a good way of reliving stress. More importantly however, it has some interesting tricks woven into the gameplay that give it long-lasting appeal and a compelling plot that adds depth to the protagonist Kratos that make him more than just some mindless mass-murderer. But what I find particularly interesting about God of War is that it reinvents Ancient Greek mythology by presenting a degree of brutality never seen before. All the legendary monsters, like the Minotaur, the centaur and the hydra, are in there but they look hideous and capable of breaking a neck like a twig.



Some may argue that violent games are a great way to relive stress. I can agree with that. Some also argue that violent games in no way provide a corrupt influence to socially-maladjusted teenagers and such a belief is ill-informed propaganda. That too has weight. But when it comes to the amount of violence in R18+ games, it is those gamers who are under 18 who will get the most out of it. Sure boasting about blowing foes away in a video game may be fun in High School but doing the same thing when you’re an adult just encourages everyone to keep their distance. That being said, it is strange to allow games bearing a R18+ when the type of things that gets done by its target audience isn’t anything worth bragging about.

Consider the game Grand Theft Auto 3. One of the most controversial games of all time it does succeed however by allowing the player to do whatever they want. It presents scenarios found in action movies, such as high speed car chases, punching people out and blowing things up with a variety of weapons.
There is no denying that escapism walks hand in hand with videogame. And therein lies the strength of GTA3: it allows players to do things that they will never do in real life. And that’s exactly why we play games. We want to escape the troubles of our own life and we want to do something that our mundane lives can’t provide. For this reason alone, the concept behind GTA3 has inspired other games.
But it strikes me that those trying to replicate the ‘do whatever you want’ concept of GTA3 missed the point completely: These clones seem more about blowing things up and creating a ruckus. This strikes me as an indication that game developers are getting lazy. I’m not denying that violence sells but if all there is to it then what are you doing? One of my favourite movies is the Wild Bunch. It is a violent film yes and focuses on violent men as it’s protagonists. But there is reasoning behind it and achieves the somewhat difficult task of introducing a lot of humanity to the murderous protagonists.

It strikes me that this continued presence of violence is really hurting the games industry in general. Consider Jack Thompson: Yes we all hate him and his arguments come across as ill-informed scare-mongering, but he’ll never stop. And even if he does shuffle off, some other nob will come and takes his place. In the case of Manhunt, it’s quite clear that it was intended as a huge smirking, kick in the balls to those who condemn videogames as too violent. It may work in theory but it seems to have backfired tremendously: It has instead given Jack Thompson and his ilk more ammunition. Nowadays gamers encompass people of all types and the idea of a socially inept with contempt for society is more inclined towards a cliché. However, clichés are harmful things and they can be easily utilised by the wrong people.



In the case of the hotly debated Left 4 Dead 2, I find interesting that there is a massive push to get in here uncensored that no one has bothered as to whether or not the game is actually any good. Indeed it is interesting to note that the censored L4D2 released here in Australia
People say that a large number of gamers are all adults when compared to the Golden Age of Gaming (the 16-bit era) but I don't buy that. I mean, if gaming has 'grown-up' as many claim then why is violence still the most powerful driving force? Anyone can make a game which can be addictive and fun without any violence – you only need to look at Tetris. And, in the case of Ico, concepts such as subtly and experimentation, end up being treated with confusion, being overlooked and ultimately disdain.
All of which is hindering gaming evolution.

So what would I like? Well, as mentioned above, violence is predominant in gaming that all designers are getting lazy and new ideas are being sneered upon. That being said, I would like to see game developers think beyond buckets of blood: It will prompt them to be adventurous, experimental and to try new things. It will encourage them to mess with established formulas and do something new with them and save them from being reduced to merely ripping off something else.
It will also force gamers to change their perception of games and look beyond the, somewhat juvenile, perception of buckets of blood. It will encourage thinking, emotion and imagination, elements that can have a place in gaming but are largely confined behind razor wire fencing.
Additionally, it will create a positive image of gamers. Yes we may have halted the cliché of being social freaks but that isn’t enough: The cliché is indeed a cliché and should be stamped out of existence. I would like to hear about gamers who are normal people who balance gaming with decent jobs and an active social life - Lord only knows why Pure Pwnage needs to exist.

In conclusion, I do indeed see the value of having an adult classification so people don't end up making the wrong choice. However, as a gamer, I would like to suggest the following:
We as gamers need to think beyond violence. We need to look to games that can be successful and fun without buckets of blood. We need to embrace any games that do things differently just for having the balls to do so. We need to understand subtly as not an alien concept. We need to take such steps to ensure gaming evolution and continued survival.
And while we're at it, I would also like a Ferrari.