Wii Keep the Pace

I haven't had much to say this week: I've been on a Mass Effect 2 binge - brought about by obtaining all the DLC available and getting access to a High-Def TV.

Anyway, I recently heard that Nintendo's profits have taken a turn for the worse. Yep, the company that wrote the rulebook on gaming, traveled with many gamers from childhood and beyond is now in a rather uncomfortable position - the type of which is quite surprising considering the near untouchable nature Nintendo has enjoyed.

Sure the Wii has sold well and done a lot to introduce people to games, but what Nintendo do now is indeed a good question. With regards to the Wii, Xbox and Playstation have now embraced Motion Controllers, the console itself is being outclassed by it's technological superior rivals, first-party games like Super Mario Galaxy and Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess have yet to drop in price, many of the 'hardcore' crowd are unimpressed and defecting to Microsoft and Sony, and one potential ace-in-the-hole, I am of course referring to the Virtual Console, seems to have been abandoned.

I do admire that Nintendo were trying to come up with new ways to play games than compete in the technological race. I give credit to the efforts Nintendo put in to grab attention of people who don't normally play games. However these two feats may have ended up working against Nintendo. The problem I find with Motion controls is that it essentially removes the connection between player and console. People play games as a leisure activity - you know, to relax - and incorporating motion controls takes that away through demanding the player to be off their seat and active.
Also, whilst I despise the distinction between the 'casual' and 'hardcore' gaming, I must grudgingly admit that it's inescapable with the Wii. Sure it may have tied up the casual crowd nicely, it has however lost a lot of the hardcore crowd to the PS3 and Xbox 360 - many of whom would've been weaned on the NES, SNES and N64.

Another problem with the Wii is the Virtual Console. One of it's major selling points, I myself was one of many sold over, it now seems to have been abandoned by Nintendo. No updates have appeared in a while and many longed-for titles have yet to show their face. I myself have championed the Virtual Console for the longest time and felt it was a real advantage for Nintendo. It's just a shame the idea wasn't taken to it's full extent. I would like to see more previously exclusive titles appear on the Virtual Console (Chrono Trigger for example) and more from obsolete consoles (I can think of more than a few Sega Saturn titles I would like to see dusted off). Come on Nintendo, it's not too late to turn around!

At the end of the day, the Wii may have managed to keep Nintendo financially stable, but ultimately, I'm not willing to deem it a successful console. Call it a combination of ideas not pushed to their full extent, ideas that just didn't work and being outpaced by Nintendo's rivals.
So what can Nintendo do from here? Company survival may well be the order of the day. Whilst Nintendo may have been unstoppable in the past, in recent years things have taken a rather uneasy turn. Indeed, one too many wrong moves can prove fatal in this business - just ask Sega. Of course, now Nintendo are investing a lot into the DS and it's successor - does this mean they're giving up on the home console business altogether? Abandoning what they've built a business around?

But, as history has a tendency to repeat itself, one would think that Nintendo may do what Sega did all those years ago: Introduce a new console thus inspiring a new generation just to remain ahead.

Hottest 100

Well, well, well, I've made it to one hundred posts. I had no idea that this blog was going to last longer than a handful of posts. Still a milestone like this is as good as any other so I might as well take the time to ponder on what this blog has accomplished and what may lie ahead.

This blog essentially is an excuse for me to rant about games. I've explained what games I've liked, I've been keeping track of the games I've been playing and downloading, I've exercised caution in the dangers of following majority opinions and made countless of observations about gamers and gaming in general.

All of this however marks me as one voice in amongst many: Anyone can set up a blog in this day an age and anyone who can put fingers to keyboards can use a word processor just as easily as a game. This is ultimately one gaming blog in amongst many - the only difference is that no one is paying really much attention to this one.

Should I be bothered? Don't think so: I'm writing becuase I want to and if someone is willing to sit down and waste so much of their precious time listening to my ramblings then good for them. I have views forged from many years experience playing computer and video games. I know what makes a good game and what can grab my attention from the word go. Indeed, I think the late comedian George Burns said it best:

Too bad that all the people who know how to run the country are busy driving taxicabs and cutting hair.

So maybe it is true: Those who know what makes a good game are those are standing on the outside of the development process. You know, the consumers who hand over dollars for games that are churned out by people who need to make a profit and not taking the time to figure out just what the hell they're doing. Personally I'd be naive in the extreme to think that anyone from Valve or Blizzard stumbled across my blog and took notice but still.....

There are only two people regularly following this blog (one of which being my partner) but in a way that's all I need. It doesn't bother me that my followers have reached double figures or so many more people have no idea on what they could be missing out on - what matters is I'm saying something becuase I want to. After all, the worst I can do is to remain silence when all around is collapsing into bullshit.
And sometimes the outsider's view can sometimes make a whole world of difference.

So the summarize, I've been adding to this blog becuase I have something to say and its fun saying stuff like this. Sure not many people may read this but I see no reason to be bothered by it.

Nor any reason to start.

All Your Base Are Belong to Meme

It's January 26th- Happy Australia Day! Woohoo!

Anyway, I find the All Your Base meme a curious fascination. Aside from the popularization of bad Engrish and that seemingly nonsensical combination of those three words, what I find most interesting is that it gave the seemingly forgotten game Zero Wing a new lease of life (I say forgotten in that it was never released in the US).

Could it thus be possible for another forgotten game to be resurrected as such? Of course what may have been impressive in a previous era can easily come across as down right cheesy (hence the success of the meme) but seriously, if a new life can be given to Zero Wing, then there's no reason why it can't happen to another video game.
That being said, I have a challenge in mind:
Anyone remember Impossible Mission? Not to be confused with the similarly titled TV series (and game tie-in), IM was released on the Commodore 64 and then other 8bit computers and featured an athletic secret agent ransacking a building of many rooms and dodging malevolent robots to find pieces of a puzzle. Finding said puzzle pieces ultimately leads to cracking a secret code to thwart a mad-scientist. For it's time, IM was hailed for it's then innovative combination of compelling puzzles and action platforming. But for many the major selling point was the use of synthesized voices. Although primitive now, IM's voice acting (if you can call it that) had some cool moments: The death scream when the protagonist falls down a hole, the villain's taunt: "Destroy him my Robots!" and the classic introductory line of "Another visitor! Stay Awhile! Staaaayyy Foreverrrrrr!"

My challenge is for someone to make a dance remix using those samples. That's right remixers: Someone take the six voice samples making up IM and turn them into a dance track.
I mean if Bill Bailey and Pendulum can make dance remixes out of TV News Themes then anything can be posisble...

Final Round: Fight!

Last year I made a post describing what I would like for the sequel to Final Fantasy Dissidia. Now that more information has come to hand how do I feel about it?

Well, the presence of Yuna and Gilgamesh is pleasing - The addition of Laguna is a nice surprise too. However I am disappointed by (as yet) no sign of Seifer, Freya, Cid Highwind and Shadow. No doubt these fighters would be reduced to 'support' roles which comes across more as a wasted opportunity.

And then there's the presence of Aerith - only as a support character. Good Lord, has there been any other contentious issue than whether or not Aerith should stay dead? Having the Flower Girl has a support character really just adds to the never-ending debate. Personally, I can see both sides of the issue: Credit must be giving to Square for sticking to their guns and keeping Aerith dead out of undermining the impact of her death scene. But on the other hand, ignoring the fanbase is never a good business move: After all you can only ignore them for so long before they start refusing to hand over their dosh.

First In, Best Dressed

They say you always remember the first game you ever played. I however beg to differ: I started gaming at a young age and, as a result, it is difficult to pinpoint WHAT was the first game I ever played.
So, whilst I can't recall exactly what the first game I ever played was, I do however have some likely candidates:

(treasure game)
This may be the very first game (computer or console) I ever played - but I am reluctant to count it as I've forgotten it's name! Still, I do remember it well: I played this game on the Commodore 64 and it, although basic, involved the player exploring a series of islands to find a treasure chest. Along the way, a great deal of exploration is involved, with the player discovering items - some necessary to solve problems - and evading a sea monster. Again this sounds incredibly basic but, for a young lad, this was awesome indeed.

Pitfall! 2
I have fond memories of playing this on the Atari 2600 - in retrospect it was everything a sequel should be: outclassing the predecessor in every possible way. Indeed, I found it very hard to go back to the original after playing Pitfall 2. Plus, I do recall Pitfall 2 has having the very first tune I committed to memory.

Super Mario Brothers
I recall my brother inviting his friend round with his NES. Along the games he had, was Super Mario Brothers. It must've made quite an impression on me because I'm still playing it now! Which goes to show that a great game shall forever remain a great game.

Why my favourite games rock: The Metal Gear, The Solid Snake and Me

Today i thought I might share with you all my thoughts on one of my favourite games ever: What they do, how they work for me, what they do to my perception of gaming and why I hold them in such high regard
The game I want to talk about today is Metal Gear Solid.



Released in 1997 for the Playstation(1), it has since been recognized as one of the benchmarks of stealth-based games and a highpoint of that system. I myself agree whole-heatedly with the latter. It's strengths lie in some superb action sequences, compelling boss fights, great voice acting and a well-developed cast of characters, not least of which is the protagonist Solid Snake - whom the entire game's well-realized world is built around.
Props indeed must go to Solid Snake himself: Sure he plays the gruff, reluctant (and at times) Anti-hero that has been seen many times before but here it is pulled off in a way that makes him continually interesting. He was a lot of depth being put to him - and seeing as he carries the weight of the game on his shoulders, he still manages to becoming endearing to the player. Additionally, Snake has to think things out for himself, is guided by a support crew whose intentions may not be 100% but whom are ultimately helpful, kills the baddies with ease and uses a variety of weapons (I particularly enjoyed using the sniper rifle) and nifty little gadgets.
Also pleasing is the well detailed setting incorporating well realized rooms and detailed military equipment. The game shows signs of being meticulously researched by the makers and it works incredibly well for it. The action sequences are fun too, in using a variety of weapons and having to run the gauntlet with the bosses, each a different battle from the last.



Sure it has it's flaws: The plot is both complex and absurd in equal measures, the guards are so stupid it's beyond belief, it does get very preachy on it's stance of being anti-nuclear warheads and, in a way, the game is somewhat restrictive in that all the player is doing is just pushing Snake from one cut-scene to the next. But for me all of these are swept aside for one single moment: The conclusion.

At the end of the game, it is a happy conclusion of sorts: Global disaster has been averted, the baddies have been dealt with and Snake has saved the day. But for me the strength of the ending lies solely in the way it is handled and the top notch voice acting that, even to the end, never breaks stride.
Sure the game conclusion provides a sense of achievement (like all game endings should) and it could've settled with that but no: MGS goes one step further.



When I completed MGS for the first time I had hit a new low: I was feeling depressed, through unemployment, lack of progress and rejection. But watching the conclusion to Metal Gear Solid struck me. I felt something. Something different to what I have previously felt upon completing a game.
Really there are a number of magic moments in that ending: Roy giving up his role as Colonel just for the sake of keeping Snake alive; Snake and Roy putting past misgivings aside and agreeing to far more friendlier terms; Naomi reconciling with the memory of Frank and urging Snake to follow her lead in living instead of trying to find a reason to; and Snake finally deciding to live beyond his survival instincts, make every minute of his time left on Earth count and seeking a new path in life (henceforth I'm finding his subsequent reappearances in the MGS sequels rather puzzling).
And all of this is wrapped with the achingly beautiful closing The Best is Yet to Come which plays over the end credits accompanied by footage of the Alaskan wilderness.
Of course, what I've just described may sound cliched but because of the commitments to the writer who writes the lines and actors who read them, it evolves into something far more substantial. Indeed I still get a lump in my throat whenever I revisit it.

So seeing as I was at a low point in my life before I completed Metal Gear Solid, how did I feel after I completed it? Well not unlike the game's protagonist, I did feel lost and without any inkling of self-worth – but upon completing Metal Gear Solid, I came away feeling something else: It was enlightenment. It was the realization that there something else out there and that each minute upon this Earth should be used wisely & lived for one's self. The fact that a game can handle such human emotions and pull it off convincingly is indeed a feat in itself.
Indeed, the beauty of the game's conclusion is that it comes across as being a world apart from the game itself: Viewing it creates the impression I didn't spend so many hours of my life sneaking my way into a Alaskan military installation with the intention of stopping a nuclear warhead being fired. No, it was the impression that I had seen a man finding a sense of renewed purpose where once was nothing and wanting to make the rest of his time on Earth (no matter how limited) count. As such the title of the ending them rings true: The Best is Yet to Come.

I like the line that Dr. Hunter says at the end of the game:
"You mustn't allow yourself to be chained to fate, to be ruled by your genes, Humans can choose the type of life they want to live. ....whether you've been programmed or not. The important thing is that you choose life. And then....Live!"
Really, that says a lot about the game and how it made me feel at the end. I couldn't have put it better!

I think at some stage in this life each of us find a sense of self-worth (or at least find something new that provides us with a necessary reminder of it) and I found it in, of all places, a video game. It may be an odd place to find such an affirmation but the effect is still the same nonetheless.

So thank you to both Hideo Kojima and Solid Snake.

Us vs Them

Last week I made a post about World of Warcraft. Since then a friend (who is a WOW enthusiast) pointed out a flaw: There really is no such thing as good/bad in WOW. Thus it is not unheard of for the alliance to do bad things and the Horde to do good things. It's all in shades of grey - which, ironically, was the very thing I was championing in my post.
Well, I certainly feel like an ass but I guess it doesn't matter seeing as no one is really reading this blog anyway.

Still, it is kinda easy to make that assumption of Alliance/Good and Horde/Bad. After all, the titles say nothing of the ambiguity that the factions actually commit through their actions.
True, these factions have been the same since the first incarnation of Warcraft - thus establishing a sense of familiarity - but in the time since Warcraft 1&2, the distinctions between 'good' and 'evil' have become blurred and the mistake of assumption is far from surprising. Maybe such an assumption is why some people find the Horde more appealing than the Alliance.

I don't know: Would it have made a difference if Blizzard just went with 'Those guys' versus 'Those guys'?