Late again. Sorry, folks.

How many of you play video games? And how many of you care how good the games you play look?

As I’ve looked at the video games released in the past few years, there have been two trends that I’ve noticed when it comes to graphics.

One is the ‘we need to push the envelope as hard as we can’ trend, where games like Crysis require the absolute best possible machines to run them in their full glory. Games where it is not uncommon to hear, “I’m upgrading X on my PC so I can play Y,” in reference to that game.

On the other hand, though, there is also a movement of ‘let’s make it so this game can run on as many machines and consoles as possible’. Games like World of Warcraft and many of the games that are fully cross-platform, which garner comments like, “Well, it’s not the prettiest game out there, but it still looks pretty good.”

I understand the desire to have the most badass, beautiful game out there, but at the same time, as a member of the game industry, I’d rather have my game being purchased and played by as many people as reasonably possible.

It raises the question of how important graphics are to the average user these days. Is it worth satisfying one segment of the buying population to lock out another?

So, which camp, if either, are you in? Do you think games should always be on the bleeding edge of technology, or do you think games should be playable by the largest number possible?

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I’ll have my post up tonight or tomorrow, folks. Sorry for the delay.

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Like many geeks of my generation, I have a special place in my heart for old shows, cartoon and live action, from my childhood. And like many geeks with a reasonable amount of disposable income, I have tried watching some of these old shows again.

They don’t always hold up. The years have not been kind to the quality of film, to the acting, to the writing in the show.

But sometimes they do. And do so well. I think so, at least.

Two of my all-time favorite shows from the 80s were the Centurions and the Bionic Six. I had a discussion about old shows with a friend recently, and decided to look for footage on YouTube. I was not disappointed. (Warning: My opinion on these shows is positive, but your mileage may vary.)

The Centurions was about three (then later, five) rugged men, all built like barbarians, who used special suits that fused with various weapon systems. These weapon systems allowed Ace McCloud and his friends to fight the forces of the evil ‘Doc Terror’, and his cyborg lackey, ‘Hacker’. The show was kind of hokey, and no one ever died, but the action was neat, the ideas were interesting, and they even had ‘science lessons’ at the end.

Most importantly, the toys were pretty cool. (I had Jake Rockwell and his base weapon system.)

The Bionic Six was also set in the near future, and centered around the Bennett Family; an unusual group that, through adoption, covered much of the ethnic rainbow. Through a fairly strange contrivance, the family, sans the father, falls comatose due to the influence of an alien device. Only by ‘bionic-izing’ the family, as the father already has been, can they be saved. Once the family was made bionic, they ended up fighting Scarab, a mad genius bent on world conquest, and his twisted minions.

Neither of these shows have been released on DVD yet (not officially, at least), but if they ever are, I will be one of the first in line to get them. I’d be behind a remake, too, just to see how they treated the licenses.

So, what are some of the special shows from your childhood? Have you watched them again recently? Do you still love them, despite the passage of time? Do you think they would be good fodder for a remake? And will I ever write anything interesting again?

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First, my apologies for being really behind once again. If I get some spare time, I’ll try to catch up on the posts I’ve missed. 

So, a few weeks ago, a coalition of 12 environmental groups from New Mexico suggested that a tax be levied against video game and television entertainment, (link from Kotaku) so that the tax could be used to fund outdoor education programs. These programs would be aimed at getting children out of their homes and into the parks and such. 

I, for one, am both for and against such a tax.

I’m for it, because while I love video games and television, I do believe that education of all kinds is important. Even if I’m not personally a fan of the outdoors, I do think that it’s good for children to experience it for themselves, at least somewhat.

I’m against it because of the way it targets just video games and television, and not other forms of entertainment, like sporting events and movies. I’m against it because it’s trying to blame video games and television for the waning numbers of children visiting their parks and recreational areas, as opposed to themselves.

If they are going to levy a tax on entertainment, it should be on all entertainment, not just video games. That would be fairer, and get them even more funds.

What do you think? Should we tax our entertainment? Why? Why not? What would be fair if we did?

On a happier note, with the Writer’s Guild strike ended, some of favorite shows have come back. In my case, I’d been waiting for Big Bang Theory to come back, along with Heroes (sadly postponed until the next season) and How I Met Your Mother.

What show(s) did you miss the most, if any? Did the WGA strike affect you at all?

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Sorry, folks. Life has been a bit more insane than usual.

I’ll be posting about the return of our favorite shows when I get a chance to write more than a couple of sentences.

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Sorry, folks. Work has kept me busy, busy enough that I can’t remember what I was going to write about.

I’ll try to get a post up later this week.

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(note: to the experienced MMO players out there – I’m writing this for those folks who might not know all of the terms, so I’ll be explaining what some of them are. You have been warned.)

World of Warcraft. Everquest (1 and 2). Ragnarok Online. Eve Online. The list goes on.

These days, it’s hard to read a video gaming magazine or website and not see an article or post about MMO (massively multiplayer online) games. World of Warcraft’s huge subscription numbers are often spoken of these days, and a lot of people try to dissect why it’s done so well.

At its core, there are two primary modes of gameplay: Player versus Player (PvP) and Player versus Environment (PvE). The first pits you against other players, both of the opposing faction (in special battlegrounds) and sometimes of your own (the arena combat system). The second has you playing against the game itself – fighting computer-controlled monsters and enemies, doing quests for the various NPCs in the game, and working with other people to achieve certain goals (like defeating the dungeons).

Many people tend to prefer one type of play over the other. Some of the PvE types like to see the in-game lore that unfolds from doing quests and exploring new areas. Others like to see what kinds of cool loot they can get from doing the large-scale dungeons (known as raids) and fighting some of the super-tough bosses (aka world bosses).

On the PvP side, some people just enjoy pitting their skill (and gear) against other players, be it in “large-scale” warfare, ala the WoW battlegrounds. Others prefer to do their fighting in closer quarters, against smaller groups of enemies. For these people, there is dueling and the Arena.

Both are valid forms of gameplay, and as more MMORPGs come out, there will some games that try to balance the two types of gameplay, like WoW does, while others will try to focus on one over the other, like Pirates of the Burning Seas. I think it will be interesting to see how the landscape develops over the next few years.

So, I pose this question to you, dear reader – if you play MMOs, what do you prefer? PvE? PvP? Why? If you’ve never played an MMO, which of these two types of game play do you think you’d prefer, and why? (Me, I’m a PvE-centric player.)

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In the past few years, a few Japanese shows have been brought to the U.S. and repackaged for American consumption. The ones that come to mind the most readily are Ninja Warrior (on G4) and MXC (on Spike TV). These two shows, along with a couple of others, have been met with varying degrees of popularity.

What some people might not know is that with the exception of Ninja Warrior (known as Sasuke and Kunoichi for the male and female versions) and Hey! Spring of Trivia, which are both currently running, the shows are fairly old.

While it’s kind of easy to tell with MXC (originally Takeshi’s Castle), where the footage is fairly old looking, it’s not as easy to tell with G4’s new show, Unbeatable Banzuke (Muscle Banzuke). Banzuke ran in Japan from 1995 to 2002, and because the footage is relatively recent, one could easily mistake it for a modern Japanese show.

However, there are a couple of tell-tale signs if you look for them. Fashion in Japan is generally close to that of the U.S., so when you watch Banzuke, you can notice some definite 90s fashion. The contestants’ (and host’s) hairstyles also give the show’s age away, if you watch closely.

So, fans of these shows, what do you think? Do you care that we’re being given repackaged shows from 10 and more years ago? Do you want more old Japanese (and other foreign) shows brought to the U.S. mostly untouched? Do you watch any shows like this that I didn’t mention?

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It used to be that finding anime-influenced art on non-anime things was fairly rare. You might spot a bootleg anime picture on a bootleg product, but that was likely to be it. But these days, it’s become fairly common to find anime-influenced artwork in everyday items.

Case in point, I was at Best Buy a couple of weeks ago, and as I stood in line, I took a look at the “quick sale” racks, and noticed a couple of karaoke CDs that looked a bit unusual.

Upon inspection, the ‘Western Hits of the 90s’ karaoke CD had a distinctly cute anime girl on the cover (and without a cowboy hat or any kind of identifying ‘western’ apparel).

I thought to myself, “This has to be a joke.” Then I looked around, and spotted a couple more CDs with similar covers. At first I wondered why they would be trying to sell karaoke CDs like that to kids, then I realized that the ‘kids’ I was thinking of were now in college most likely.

Since then, I’ve noticed anime style art on a variety of items, from clothing labels to snack packages (and again, not branded-items) to a bunch of other things. But still, the thing that struck me as the strangest was the karaoke CD.

So what kinds of things have you noticed in normal life that has anime-style art on it? What’s been the most unusual? The most “normal”?

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I will post more about the Haruhi game I played last week once I’ve had the chance to play it a bit more. This week, I want to take a first look at a game for the Nintendo DS known as “Game Center CX: Arino’s Challenge”. 

This game is loosely based off of a show with the same name. The premise of the show is that Shinya Arino, a comedian and actor, has to play an extremely hard game all the way through. The only help he gets is from his staff, who supply him with information, cheat codes, and even occasional assists. It’s a wonderful show, and I may talk about it more in the future. 

In any case, the game’s premise is that Arino has had enough of the hard games, and takes it out on you. To get his ‘revenge’, he turns you into a kid, and sends you back into the 1980s, where you will have to play the same old school games that cause him so much trouble.

You are assisted in this by Arino – Arino as he was in the 1980s. He supplies the games, some advice, and he even buys gaming magazines from time to time to get tips and tricks. He can’t believe what his older self is doing, but is glad to have a friend to game with.

“Demon Lord Areenoh”, as he calls himself, issues you four challenges per game, with eight games to play total. The games include two shooters, two racing games, three platformers, and even an RPG. The interesting thing is that you can play the games, all the way through, both in the “story mode” as well as once you’ve beaten the challenge from the main menu. While they aren’t very long, they are definitely entertaining.

I’ve gotten past a few of the games so far, and am looking forward to hitting the RPG part and beyond. Like the Haruhi game, I will report a bit more when I get some more game time.

So, I ask you, dear reader: is this the kind of game you would like to play? Would you want to see a show like this in the U.S. (or wherever you may be)? Do you like classic games, and if so, what’s your favorite?

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