↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A (Start) News Report 09.16.06
Posted by Shawn Struck on 09.16.2006
This week's edition of ↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A (Start) features Google possibly taking over the video game world, how to get a job in the video games industry, and it's only my scond column and I'm generating CONTROVERSY! I smell RATINGS~!
I'm not going to talk about any of that this week.
Not because I hate Nintendo (even if it DID burn down my village and place me under a horrible curse).
Not because I love Sony (even though they DID send me a lifetime supply of "Bacon-Fried Bacon with Bacon Bits"). And not because Microsoft is plying me with hats made of money (it was Monolpoly™ money, anyhow). No, while this is big news for video game fans, 411 Mania Games is your one-stop resource for everything going on in the world of video games. My little corner of 411 Mania (when I'm not in the Review Crew Bullpen, or toiling merrily working in the Preview Mines) is for shining a spotlight on the lesser-know, but still interesting, important, or overlooked in video game news this week.
This is ↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A (Start).
"I'm a PC" must stand for "Pretty Cool (Guy)" (via
BoingBoing)
You might recognize John Hodgman from those "I'm a Mac, This Is A PC" commercials, or his frequent appearances on "The Daily Show With John Stewart". But did you also know he's a hardcore gaming geek ("one of us! One of us!"). How do I know this, you ask?
I have absolutely no idea how he managed to pull it off, but somehow John Hodgman convinced his publisher to run an ad for his book The Areas of My Expertise that parodies a classic Intellivison ad featuring editor George Plimpton hawking the Intellivsion game console. Check out Hodgman's ad here, and a larger scan of the ad he references here
If that doesn't scratch your classic video game advertisement viewing itch, you can either see a specialist, or check out this Flickr set chock-full of Scans of video game magazine advertisements from 1982. My favorite is the Space Patrol ad-- it looks like a cast-off prog-rock album cover. Not to leave the dozen or so people alive that remember the Odyssey, you can get your nostalgia on here.
Google Earth + 3-D Modeling = Video Game World Takeover? (via Edge Online)
Edge Online has a fascinating article on Google and possible forays into the video game industry, especially after they recently bought and distributed the freeware 3-D modeling software package SketchUp.
The article explains: "SketchUp is thoroughly integrated with Google Earth, meaning models can be uploaded and placed into the real world, letting you see how your dream house would look in situ, or create a parade of giant scissor people marching down Oxford Street.... Google Earth forms an amazingly adaptive canvas. And it plays well with another growing branch of gaming – the kind of mixed-reality game made famous by the Halo 2 promo I Love Bees. Easily able to process GPS co-ordinates, there are substantial possibilities for games where the movements of real-world people are represented by the progress of SketchUp-created avatars across Google Earth's surface."
As they say in blogtopia (y! sctp!), read the whole thing. The possibilities certainly are exciting; I am a HUGE fan of alternative reality games (also called ARGs), and I was an active participant in I love Bees and the current ABC-sponsored Lost Experience. One of my favorite ARGs, though, was the fan-created Metacortechs game that took place right before the launch of the Matrix: Revolutions.
That got me thinking... Sketchup is a free 3D modeling engine that is great at teaching ANYONE the basics of 3D modeling. Gooogle Earth and Google Maps are both great vehicles for people doing all sorts of customized data applications with it. This untapped potential won't remaining untapped for long, I don't think. This might lead to an explosion of fan-made and original ARGS. I, for one, welcome our new reality bending overloads.
So, it's the 20-year anniversary of the Famicom game that almost single-handedly made the concept of RPGs on the Famicom into a rousing success: Dragon Quest (known as Dragon Warrior to us Yanks). As part of the celebration, Square-Enix is releasing a new game-- a board game. Dragon Quest Dungeon R, is a limited-edition game that reworks Battleship into a multi dungeon-format.
This looks so, so cool, you guys. It's a shame that it's so pricey. At current exchange rates, you're looking at about $55 US, and that's before shipping and handling! So many childhood memories are wrapped up in playing Battleship with my little brother, or Dragon Warrior with my Dad (Fun Fact: He made it almost to the very end, but when the Dragonlord asked if he'd join forces, he said "YES" and then was killed instantly. Hah-hah, in your FACE!).
Interns Share Tips On How To Break Into Video Games (via mtv.com)
If you've ever wondered just what it was like to work for a video game company, or if you wanted some pointers on how to get your foot in the door, you'd do well to check out this article up at mtv.com. Interns share their experiences, as well some pointers directly from Electronic Arts' Head of University relations:
Of course, it is possible to be too passionate. One student sent McCreary a résumé boasting of three maxed-out characters in "World of Warcraft." "More than likely, if you have multiple level-60 characters at 'World of Warcraft,' you probably haven't been going to class very often," she said.
Saturday Morning Cartoons!
There are plenty of web comics that center around video games. But there are quite a number of web cartoonists that are gamers that don't necessarily write strips about video games. So it's a nice surprise when one of your favorite web cartoonists makes something that's not only video-game related, but FUNNY.
First up is XKCD. Randall Munroe does a doodle a day, usually involving stick figures. His jokes are have everything from Python-esque whimsy, math jokes, science puns, and spiders.
Of course, while 411 Mania Games is a mighty media portal, with our fingers in lots of pixel pies, and my association with such a collection of hard-working staffers makes me, by
association, AWESOME... even I can't be everywhere at once. So, I'm looking to you, the dozens (....and! DOZENS!) of loyal Struckomaniacs-- have you come across some gem of a newspost, online feature, video-game movie, video clip, or bit of gaming minutiae that you feel deserves a wider audience? Well then, send an email to shawnstruck@gmail.com with a link and how you wish to be credited (real name, email, 411Forum handle, etc).
And have you ever wanted to have a chance to share your opinion with a game reviewer (or fire back at a game THEY hated but you liked)? Well, now you can, with me. I've been getting a trickle of feedback from my reviews and previews, and so I'm offering y'all some eyeball real estate. Send me feedback, see your name in print. What are the guidelines? Glad you asked (tip of the keyboard to Erin Mehlos )!
Q: What do I have to do to get my feedback printed?
A: At the very least, make it look like you read the following submission guidelines: Length: There is no explicit word limit, but if at all possible, keep it under 500 words. occasional wiggle room not withstanding-- I'm a sucker for a well-written letter, length be damned. Language: I will make no bones about my love for obscenity -- it's a much-maligned art form, and one I have no reservations about practicing under the benevolent gaze of Ashish and Newbs. Bear in mind, I said art-form, and when I say "art," I don't mean Jackson Pollack -- I'm not fond of vulgarity strewn around willy-nilly. Obscenity should instead be like an Escher line drawing, wrought with control and precision. Signed names: I don't especially care if you sign your name or not, but for the most part, without\ names -- or pseudonyms, at least -- it's difficult to maintain a person,
reader-to communistcolumnist atmosphere. Sigs: I don't print contributors' e-mail addresses for various reasons, so if you tack it on to the end of your letter, don't expect me to pass it along. I may print homepage addresses if similarly appended, so make sure if you've written in\ to flame the living hell out of, say, the Fire Wrestling Pro fans, that your e-mail address is nowhere to be found on the site linked to unless you want to field the subsequent backlash. Sig quotes and other such nonsense makes little difference to your letter being printed, either way. Praise and other feedback:
Nothing says luvin' like sending me an e-mail asking if you could please bear my children because you're smitten with my verbal mad skillz, but nevertheless, if you must, send it separately from your contributions to the discussion at hand. Same goes for constructive criticism, which is equally appreciated. Q: Your opinion of Game X sucks! Your preview sucks. You suck. *quiet sob* I'm so lonely.
A: I'm sorry -- would you like your money back?
So go ahead, and help this weekend column be the best it can be, just like you've helped the site be the best it can be. And that's the bottom line, cause Shawn Struck said so. CONTROVERSY = RATINGS~!
Yes, I think I've managed to set some sort of record (on the internet): I've created a bit of a controversy with my very first column! What's all the kerfluffle about? My column name! See, it's been evenly split between readers that LOVE the name "↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A (Start)", and those that think it's too long or hard to cite.
So, loyal readers, here's where YOU come in. Shoot me an email with YOUR vote: Keep ↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A (Start)... or should I switch to "The Code" for this column title's name?
There's even a free prize for the reader that writes the most passionate defense (no matter what the winning vote is) of their column title choice: a free copy of DIRGE OF CEREBUS -FINAL FANTASY VII- (that's not me shouting, that's how the game should be spelled according to Square-Enix Styleguides)! ZOMG YOU GUYS (that IS me shouting)!
"Plugger" is a horrible comic strip. But it's a wonderful way to show what's been going down this week at 411!
But... but.. PLUGS! Mellick reviews NASCAR 07, and in a show of restraint, only makes twenty-five-hojillion redneck jokes.
