this is your brain on xbox

Another day, another crackpot blaming violence on video games.

17-year old Daniel Petric was recently found guilty of shooting his parents over Halo 3 – and no, the dispute wasn’t over who stuck the best plasma grenade. I don’t really care too much about Daniel, as anyone who could shoot a gun at his parents is sick and twisted (his mom died, for frak’s sake!), but I do care about Judge James Burge’s idiot comments (transcript courtesy of gamepolitics.com):

This Court’s opinion is that we don’t know enough about these video games. In this particular case, not so much the violence of the game because I believe in the Halo 3, what it amounts to is a contest to see who can shoot the most aliens who attack.

It’s my firm belief that after a while the same physiological responses occur that occur in the ingestion of some drugs. And I believe that an addiction to these games can do the same thing. The dopamine surge, the stimulation of the nucleus accumbens – the same as an addiction. Such that when you stop, your brain won’t stand for it.

The other dangerous thing about these games, in my opinion, is that when these changes occur, they occur in an environment that is delusional. Because you can shoot these aliens, and they’re there again the next day. You have to shoot them again. And I firmly believe that Daniel Petric had no idea, at the time he hatched this plot, that if he killed his parents, they would be dead forever.

What really catapults this into the crackpotopshere is the notion that the body reacts to video games the way it reacts to drugs.

Uh WHAT?! I wish!

You want to have a conversation about video games causing violence? OK. Bring movies, music, and TV to the table, too, and I’d be glad to tell you why you’re wrong.  Until then I’m just going to scoff and be snarky at you.

via IGN

RIP 1UP Show

So I’m a little late to the party here, but I just read yesterday that The 1UP Show is no more.  As of January 7, 2009 the 1UP Network was sold by Ziff Davis to UGO.  I don’t know UGO and I don’t really care, but they’ve chosen not to continue The 1UP Show after taking ownership. This makes me very, very sad.  The 1UP Show is the only game-related podcast that I’ve found to be bearable, and I’m a hardcore gamer.

what is it good for? something.

Game Review – Fallout 3 from Bethesda Softworks (Xbox 360)

War. War has changed. Sorta. But not really. Because war never changes. Or at least that’s what Ron Perlman tells me.

When Bethesda Softworks acquired the Fallout IP from erstwhile publisher Interplay, they announced that the isometric, turn-based RPG would go first-person with Fallout 3. And a million fanboy heads asploded in mushroom cloud rage. Those of us who took shelter in the “let’s wait and see” vault have now emerged to discover a world that is at once new and strangely familiar.

Read on, sweet America, for the full review. But please – no mutants allowed.

not human enough -or- too hubris

 

Game Review – Too Human from Silicon Knights (Xbox 360)

Silicon Knights’ Denis Dyack, the driving force behind Too Human, caused a stir when he first A) showed a painfully crude build of the game at E3 in 2006 and then 2) bitched and whined about gaming press and internet forum communities when they called him on it. Ever since then it seems like Dyack has been out there wielding both snark and unflattering defensiveness in an effort to convince us that Too Human really is a great game, guys!

v.a.t.s. the way to do it

Still plugging away at Fallout 3.  Still loving it.  I’m going to have a lot to talk about when it’s review time.  I never thought the designers would pack in so many recognizable names, places, and details (five words: hexagonal metro station floor tiles!).

The only things that have been able to tear me away are Nate and the election.  Oh, and that pesky job thing I do, too.

dc never looked so good

First Impressions – Fallout 3 from Bethesda Softworks (Xbox 360)

I’m six or seven hours into Fallout 3 and I wanted to give some quick first impressions. This is a game that I intend to spend many dozens of hours in, and a full review won’t be possible for a little while.

Everything I’ve experienced so far indicates that Bethesda Softworks has nailed the dangerous, gritty magic of the Fallout world. This really is Fallout 3, and not Oblivion with guns. Preview screenshots and videos may have led to some concerns on this matter, but my fears have been allayed.

Gameplay is tight and polished. Character creation is fun, immersive, and innovative. Exploring the Capital Wasteland is tense, and the V.A.T.S. (Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System) combat is bloody (nyuk nyuk) satisfying. My only concern is that, even at a low level of skill, the horrifying decapitation and dismemberment that Fallout is known for is rather commonplace. Will it evolve and still be satisfying at higher levels, or will it become kinda “meh”?

The visuals are incredible. The Oblivion engine has grown up nicely and many of its nagging inadequacies seem to have been addressed. I’m excited to explore Fallout 3’s vision of post-apocalyptic DC. Bethesda Softworks is a local company here in the DC area (I drive by their office every day on the way to work!) and I look forward to finding all the little tidbits and landmarks they’ve thrown in.

Music and sound design are excellent. These are very important elements to me and I haven’t yet been disappointed. Voice acting is top quality and fits well with the setting. The background music is moody and ambient, but quickly picks up if bullets start flying. Another nice little touch is that you can pick up radio signals that provide an in-game soundtrack that adds to the immersion. Period music, like in Bioshock, is a vital part of the mix.

Very little of the story has been revealed so far. You begin life in Vault 101, but events early in the game lead you out into the Capital Wasteland in search of your father. The minor quests I’ve undertaken so far have been varied and enjoyable.

That’s about all I can say so far. I am very excited about digging into this game. A full review will come when it comes – Fallout 3 is an experience that demands to be savored.

spoiled by gamerscore?

It’s entirely possible that I’m addicted to Achievements.

No, not the real life kind. Getting a promotion or saving up to buy a house are all well and good but I’m talking Achievements with a capital “A” – Xbox 360 Achievements. I long to hear the little plunk sound that means I’ve met the requirements for an Achievement, and have been rewarded some Gamerscore points for my efforts.

As of this moment, I am between games. I just finished playing through Bioshock for the second time (for which one of my motivations was to pick up the last three unattained Achievements) and I’m trying to decide what’s next. There are several GameCube and O.G. Xbox games that I own and want to play – games that I’ve either played before and want to play again, or new-to-me bargain bin purchases that I want to play for the first time. Every time I think about playing one of those games I feel a subtle tug at my will, a tug that seems to say, “Jooohhhnn….Joooooohhhhnn….now why would you want to play any of those old things, hmmmm? What can they possssibly give you, hmmm?”

That’s right. I find myself hesitating to play anything that doesn’t have the potential to beef up my Gamerscore. WTF. What has Microsoft done to me? Are there any tangible rewards for these points? No. Is my Gamerscore so incredibly super awesome that letting it stagnate would cause me ego-crippling shame? No. So why does it have such a hold over me? It defies all logical sense. My current dilemma of indecisiveness might have something to do with the fact that, as of now, my Gamerscore stands at 9,957 – a number painfully close to 10,000 (a goal that I set for myself in what was, most likely, a wine-inspired twitter post).

They say that knowing you have a problem is the first step in defeating it. Well I say, “Yes I do have a problem, thank you, now can I have some more of that delicious Gamerscore crack, please?!?!” I can’t help it!

So here’s what’s going to happen. It’s tough love time. I’m going to play some GameCube now. And you, Mr. Evil Inner Demons Achievement Addiction, you’re going to have to deal with it for a while. Because even though you make playing games ever so delightfully quantifiable, you’re not the reason I play.

one of each, please

These Super Mario Bros. mushroom lamps elicited from me a barely-audible squeal of delight when I saw them. I read about them on Engadget and couldn’t resist picking up one of each color. Nothing says Christmas like a gift for yourself!

i say saladin, you say salah al-din

Game Review – Assassin’s Creed from Ubisoft Montreal (Xbox 360)

Hype is a fickle mistress, my friend.

The release of Assassin’s Creed from Ubisoft Montreal saw quite a bit of the old ultrahype. Touted as a “true next-gen experience”, the game crafted an awfully big pair of britches for itself to fit into. Early reviews were wildly varied, but I decided to give Québécois-U.S. relations a boost and picked up the game.

So is it an assassin or just plain ass?

the galaxy is not as it seems

Game Review – Mass Effect from BioWare (Xbox 360)

Mass Effect is the latest RPG epic from the good doctors at Bioware.

I’ve played every major release from BioWare since getting hooked on 1998’s Baldur’s Gate. The one thing that ties them all together is their focus on good damned storytelling. Memorable characters and moving plights are everywhere to be found. Hell, with Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic they injected magic back into the franchise for the first time in twenty years! I always look forward to throwing myself into the worlds they’ve created, and to savoring all the little details they pack in for completionists like me.

Yes, my expectations were high. Will BioWare finally strike out with Scranto? Duh duh duhnnn!