Angry Gaming 08.13.07: Party Party Party
Posted by Damian Sarcuni on 08.13.2007
Party Party Party, the Party's gonna starty
I know a guy named Marty; Marty likes to Party
Welcome to Angry Gaming, the UV protection that douses the harmful rays of the gaming industry's sun. I am your hate master, Damian Sarcuni, and god willing I'll get off my lazy arse this week and pick up a Wii….or maybe that'll be next week.
Before we begin, it's time for some old school feedback!
You're damn right on the whole article. It's a game people, live with it. If you don't like it, don't buy it, don't see it. It's about time companies do different things to show they're not afraid to let it all out. Whites killing blacks, whites killing Spanish, whites killing whites, whatever it may be, when it all comes down to it, it's a video game. – Phillip Aragon
I think that these days most developers have a specific message they are trying to get across in the storyline's of their games. When trying to grasp that message, we should look at the substance of the game rather than image. Hell, this very email is a perfect example. If you read the language, it seems pretty edgy. But if you look at what Phillip is actually saying, it's fine.
I included this email to make the point that I'm STILL getting feedback about this article one year later. This was one of the kinder ones. Can't we all just get along?
Something that you might not have noticed about Rockstar Games. They actually HAVE made some great, non-controversial games.
However, most of these games (Space Station Silicon Valley and Body Harvest are the two best examples, along with Lemmings) were made back when Rockstar North was still known as DMA Design. GTA III is pretty much "Body Harvest with crime and without aliens and time travel". Also, it's important to remember that Rockstar Games is divided into many separate divisions. Rockstar Vancouver (which made Bully) was responsible for the Homeworld games back when they were known as Barking Dog Studios. Other divisions of the company were previously known as different video game developers as well (and it's my personal belief that DMA Design and others were much better at making video games before Rockstar came into being than afterwards).
~John H (aka: JONJONAUG on some forums, I know Sean McCabe over forums and MSN)
It sounds to me like Rockstar was originally a collection of smaller studios that collectively united under one banner and made a conscious decision to shock the crap out of the media on a yearly basis. The point of the article was that I'm really sick of Rockstar pushing the controversy envelope year after year. It's sort of like that loud friend at a bar who has a few too many and immediately looks for a fight. You know he's gonna get himself hurt, and he's probably going to get you all banned completely. I'm not saying Rockstar doesn't have a good development history but let's be realistic: how many of those games were Rockstar truly known for before GTA III? They are sacrificing the image of the game industry to line their own pockets and they are doing it on a set schedule. It's annoying at best.
Thanks for reading, tell McCabe I said to send me some Claymore episodes.
Party Party Party
It has been said that the internet has revolutionized nearly every single industry in the world, but it can also be argued that none of these has been so affected as the gaming industry. Before the glorious days of online, gaming was a very personal and social experience. I can remember walking into my elementary classroom with a new issue of Nintendo Power that would have fellow students crowded around my desk just to catch a glimpse of new game titles being released for the most popular system everyone had. In later years after school, pre-teens would meet at the local arcades and challenge each other in rounds of Mortal Kombat (while the shiftier of us sold cheat sheets listing the moves of the game for $3 a pop). Heading home, there was always time to gather around the console for a quick two player action side-scroller with friends or family.
After the internet emerged onto the scene, the face of gaming began to change. People began to look online for tricks and tips instead of in gaming magazines. There was less of a need to run over each other's houses when you could simply message each other and set up a game over the net. Yet at the same time, there were two things preserving the social nature of the gaming scene, two institutions protecting the unity of gamers and keeping us together. These were the LAN cafés and LAN parties. These were the gaming havens for PC gamers, a place where game geeks of the highest order could get out of the house and at the same time do what they loved: play first person shooters, eat, and drink.
These days there has been a major decline in social gaming institutions. Many arcades have shut down and so have the LAN cafés. Fewer and fewer friends are getting together for LAN parties, and while this is a good thing from a nerd eradication perspective it still upsets the balance and breaks down one of the many pillars that gaming was founded on. Even we nocturnal game hounds have to come out for a visit to group up every once in awhile, but motivation is a key problem here. Hardcore gamer recluses need a damn good reason to go outside, especially if they are going to be doing something they could just as easily be doing at home.
Well, I've got four reasons. It's time to load up our cars with computers and various other electronics, alcoholic beverages, and food. Grab a sleeping bag and head over to the spot, and get ready to the game. Angry Gaming is bringing back the LAN party, and you'll want to join us when you see what we're bringing:
Guild Wars: Eye of the North
While the LAN parties of old were primarily focused on friends getting together to frag one another in first person shooter games, the fact of the matter is that massively multiplayer role playing games are now a huge part of the online PC gaming world. Even back when FPS' were the dominant genre, gamers still found time to form up a party and go treasure hunting in Diablo II.
Guild Wars finds that happy medium between Diablo style RPG and full on pay-per-month MMO. While NCSoft doesn't charge a monthly fee to play the game and doesn't require players to have friends playing alongside them, nearly all the quests in the game become a lot less hellish in difficulty with a trusty old human companion by your side as opposed to the somewhat ignorant and dare I say cowardly artificially intelligence controlled mercenaries.
Eye of the North looks great and will be no different in terms of game play. The best part about this title is that even though it requires gamers to have a previous installation of Guild Wars already on one's hard drive, with so many versions of the game already released it is likely that you and your friends will already have the necessary requirements to play. Guild Wars has turned quite a few heads over the years and Eye of the North is a great reason to saddle up with a few friends and get back into the game. You'll want to bring this title to the LAN party instead of just online so you can shout out instructions to your mages during those hectic, swarming battles that make up the core challenge Guild Wars has to offer.
World in Conflict
I really wanted to list Starcraft 2 here, but as I've said before you just can't trust release dates when it comes to Blizzard development. Until the time for more Zergling rushes and proton cannon defenses are upon us, World in Conflict looks more than capable of keeping the real time strategy crew at your LAN party amused. Featuring a "drop in" multiplayer set up that allows for players to join games in the middle of play, World in Conflict is a wealth of convenience for LAN party gamers. No more pressure to finish up your last round in Unreal Tournament or induce vomiting after having a few too many beers! Now your friends can take their time and get into the battle right when they need to.
Another major feature of the game is the lack of harvesting and development. There's very little in the way of resource gathering in this game. You simply pick your units and get into the action, which is enticing for any long time RTS fan and will most certainly bring in new ones. Resource gathering is one of the banes of the RTS genre, something that is more of a necessary evil than a desired element for many players. World in Conflict eliminates that aspect of the game and lets drunk, partying gamers get right into the thick of the action.
Plus, it's the old school USA VS Russia rivalry reborn! Grab some Slavic friends and rewrite the cold war!
Counter-Strike: Zombie Mods
While it's almost kind of sad to say it, Counter-Strike is still on top of the PC first person shooter world. Recently, the popular game of counter-terrorism was given a nice shot in the arm by a popular mod that somewhat emulates survival horror games and gives PC gamers a whole new reason to get back on the battlefield. That mod is the zombie mod.
While there are several poorly designed maps available for the zombie mod, the best ones are simply darker edits of existing Counter-Strike maps. The idea is simple. You and a bunch of friends are being attacked by swarming zombies and either must rescue hostages or simply survive the onslaught. The zombies are fast, powerful, and simply will not die. Getting killed by a zombie turns you into a zombie, which means it's you and your computer controlled friends against your former human comrades. In addition to this mod is the upcoming Left 4 Dead which is rumored to be a professionally developed game with similar aspects to the zombie mod. While waiting on that title however, this one will more than keep FPS lovers frantically busy.
Between the co-op aspect of the game and the joy of assimilating your former buddies into the walking dead, this game has LAN party fun written all over it. Imagine the cursing, shouting and laughing as you manage to sneak up behind a guy sitting not 5 yards away, slashing at his back and sending him to his doom. Throw in some alcohol and grilled meats and you have a game that will last you all afternoon.
The Xbox 360
One of the great things about the internet age is that consoles have started getting into the swing of things and adding in online play complete with microphones and webcams. However, there are still several games such as Halo and Crackdown which make good use of the Xbox 360's multiple console link features and these are all too underutilized. People still want to get together in front of the TV and blast away on console games, but split screen is a drag even on your best friend's overly expensive HD widescreen television. With most households now boasting more than one television on the premises, it's a great time to bring over your Xbox 360 and link up for a few rounds of live action multiplayer play.
The Anger
While a LAN party may not be the most socially high end get together ever heard of, it is a good change of pace and certainly an underutilized reason to get friends together. As for the LAN café which this article didn't focus on, if you have the means I certainly recommend giving that business venture a try as well. Finding the right location will result in a profitable business that is fun to run and provides a wonderful service for gamers everywhere. There are a lot of new games hitting the market and a lot of classics left to be experienced with others. Let's enjoy them together and embrace the hatred.
