Tag Archives: Mass Effect

Food For Thought, General Commentary, Posts By Active Authors, Widely Read Posts

When You Know It’s Right

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Image by Axel Pfaender: https://www.flickr.com/photos/axor/5775058735/sizes/o/in/photostream/
Image by Axel Pfaender (source)

I’ve been playing Dragon Age II (very slowly) for a couple weeks now and I think, finally, we’ve clicked. How do I know? Because the gameplay and my characters from the game pop into my thoughts when I’m not playing. And when that happens, distracting as it may be, I starting thinking about where I’m going to go and what I’m going to do next in the game.

And then I start thinking about just playing the game – being in my house, controller in hand, calm and comfortable, ready to explore the unknown. [happy sigh]

How do you know when you’ve hit your stride with a game? Is it love at first play or does it take awhile to build up a relationship?

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General Commentary

Premium Content in Games

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Image by Flickr user JBLivin
Image by Flickr user JBLivin

Day 1 DLC, online access codes, the “PSN Pass”, each of these a different version of “premium” content meant to encourage buying new. Premium content is a tough issue to take a stance on, since there is a valid argument for each side. On one hand we have the developer/ publisher essentially offering a more “complete” game by offering extra content to new game buyers, while on the other hand we have used game consumers, who are seemingly punished by the existence of that same premium content. Neither side is completely in the wrong, since the developer and/or publisher are simply trying to reduce losses due to used games, while used game buyers are simply trying to make their hobby slightly more affordable (a game is an expensive purchase after all).
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Console, Food For Thought, General Commentary

The “Triple A” Fun Factor

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Image By Flickr User: JBLivin
Image By Flickr User: JBLivin

Big budget “Triple A” video games are more complex and immersive than ever before. It’s gotten to the point that when you buy a major title these days, you’re buying more of an experience rather than just a game. That’s really become the point hasn’t it? Major developers aren’t trying to make just games anymore; they’re trying to create fully realized experiences. The common emphasis seems to have shifted from gameplay to everything else, elements like graphics, sound, and story. There’s nothing inherently wrong with this, after all I love an attractive game with a good story just as much as everyone else, it’s just that at the end of the day a game is meant to be played. So here’s the question: are modern games made to be fun in the same way that old-school games were made to be fun?
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