Video Games Saving Lives

A friend pointed me to this article in Ars Technica about a website I'd never heard of before. How Games Saved My Life is a collection of deeply personal testimonials about the positive effects video games have had on the lives of people. In it there are stories about lost loved ones, about finding love, about overcoming obstacles and adversities - about all sorts of moments in life that wouldn't have been the same without the positive influence of a video game.

To some it might sound silly or even crazy, but take a moment and read a few stories. The only news items I typically see in regular (non-gaming) media are about the negative influences of video games, usually on children. These stories are the complete opposite, and while I doubt any of them will garner a segment on CNN, it's something to consider the next time you feel sheepish about telling an acquaintance you play video games. Positive experiences are everywhere.

How Games Saved My Life, via Ars Technica, via Dr Fierce

Dear Dead Island, Your Sewers Sent Me Straight To Gears of War 3

Dear Dead Island,

At first I wasn't sure if I liked you or not. But I loved the game you completely ripped off (Borderlands) and I love zombie stuff, so I started to really like you too. I didn't mind running all over the island opening up suitcases for $37 or looking everywhere for "Oleander." Taking a zombie's head off with my modified baseball bat or curb stomping his face was extremely fun, especially when I was playing with friends. But then you sent me into the sewers.

Every zombie game has a sewer level I guess. I get it. But Jesus, did you have to make me go through endless tunnels and rooms that basically all look the same? You added one new zombie to kill, but did he have to be such a rip off of the puking guy from Left 4 Dead? And then, after I finally got out of the sewers, did you really have to send me all the way back through them?

Dead Island, you went from a game where it felt like I could explore the "world" around me, to sending me on a rail so you could get the plot further along. A plot that, by the way, once I got to the cut scenes made no sense.

I only have so much time to play video games, and sad to say for you there are a lot of new games out now. I put in Gears of War 3 instead last night, and although it's not fundamentally that different from the GoW2 campaign (at least in game play), it's proving to be pretty fun so far. And I haven't even touched Horde mode yet.

Pinball Hall of Fame Is the Perfect Escape From the Wife's "Spa Day" in Vegas

What? The Nuge has his own pinball machine?? To which the Nuge replies, "Shut yer yap."

The next time you find yourself in Vegas for whatever reason, do yourself a favor and take an hour or two to visit the Pinball Hall of Fame. It's not glamorous, it's kind of dark, and it's just about the opposite of everything that you typically experience on the strip. What it does have however are pinball machines and classic video arcade machines - tons of them - and all of them are playable.

They have proto-pinball machines from the fifties, classic pinball machines from the seventies (Ted Nugent or Elton John pinball anyone?) as well as the newest pinball machines on the market. They've also got machines sized specifically for kids, all the classic video arcade games you'd expect, and even an extremely rare stand-up pinball machine prototype, of which only three were made. The "Hall of Fame" aspect is pretty thin - there are handwritten cards with information on each machine, but really it's all about playing.

And unlike just about everything else in Vegas, it's a non-profit so all of your hard-earned quarters are going to keep the place going, and then the rest goes to charity. Plus, there's a great dark English pub a few doors down (the Crown & Anchor) and a place to fire machine guns up the street (The Gun Store). It will pretty much make the perfect afternoon while the wife/girlfriend is at the spa.

The Pinball Hall of Fame in Vegas in Las Vegas is a short cab ride from the strip. Check it out at PinballMuseum.org.

Learning Curves

Chris thinks I’m going to buy both Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3.  He’s wrong.  Why?  The learning curve of online play.  I don’t have time to become competent at both games – and therefore I won’t enjoy them both.

I’m a longtime online gamer, all the way back to Quake 2 on the PC.  This was back in the day before headsets (and even high-speed internet), and I remember typing furious messages and smack to other players between frags.  With the advent of Xbox Live and some great multiplayer games I quickly became addicted to gaming competitively over the internet.  

I’d like to think I became competent at all of the Halo games (Halo 2, 3, Reach, ODST).   They all had a similar control set, similar strategies and familiar weapons.  When each new game came up, I’d jump online and be competitive right away.

When the other Gentlemen got MW2, I figured I’d try it as well.  Online reviews were extremely positive. I played the campaign and enjoyed it.  I jumped online and immediately got thrashed.  And then got thrashed again.  And again.  And then about 20 more times before the game went on the shelf.

I found the learning curve to be too steep for my liking.  First, I had to learn a new control set (why game makers can’t standardize, I’ll never know).  Fair enough.  Then I had to get used to the fact that everyone knew the maps better.  They knew the good firing positions, choke points and respawn locations.  This isn’t as important as Halo – where getting to the sniper rifle or rocket launcher first can mean the difference between winning and losing, but it makes a difference.

The most frustrating parts were twofold.  One, there was no in-game help and guide whatsoever.  Campaign games (including MW2) typically walk you through simple controls and strategies to get you familiar with the game.   Most multiplayer games (MW and BF in particular), on the other hand, throw you right in the middle of the fray with no assistance at all.  Fly that helicopter?  Good luck.  Each one flies a little different.  What does this upgrade mean and how do I use it?  Look it up online.  Secondly, the skill tree rewards players who play more – players who play longer and therefore level up get body armor, better weapons, cool upgrades like a scope for your rifle.   I’m already getting my butt kicked, and someone drops an airstrike on me?  How’d he get that?  Not only is your competition better than you, they’re better equipped.

I experienced the same learning curve with BF2.  For whatever reason – patient friends, less sleep deprivation, more time to play - I was able to overcome my noobness and I’ve come to really enjoy the game.    I’m preordered BF3 today, and I’m looking forward to some great online play.  I know it’ll be frustrating at first, but I’ll suck it up and fight through it.

Do I want to go through the learning curve this twice?   Not a chance. 

Netflix Is Going To Offer Video Games. But Why Now?

(Yes you did Netflix. Yes you did.)

I got an email on Sunday from Netflix. It was an apology email, telling me they were sorry for the way they screwed up the splitting of the online and the mail-in DVD service. It was appreciated on my part, because as a customer since the unlimited DVD plan was called the "Marquee Club," I was pissed off about getting my rates unceremoniously jacked up.

But that's not what was interesting about the email. The interesting thing was the announcement that their new disc mailing service (called "Qwikster") was going to include Wii, PS3 and XBOX 360 video games. It will be an additional fee to your monthly bill - much like getting Blu-Ray discs costs extra.

It always seemed to me that they could have incorporated video games into their existing service a long time ago. It could have been done with relative ease and taken advantage of their already huge user base in the process. Whatever the reason was for not renting games, they've now changed their minds and I think I have a pretty good theory as to why.

Qwikster is going to have to make money for Netflix, and fast judging by the blunder in the pricing restructure and the mass exodus of many of their users. So Netflix has to hold onto the business, even though discs are dying and are slowly being replaced in every form of media (video, music) that relied on them. All except the console video game.

If you're going to sell a service that mails old fashioned pieces of plastic back and forth to people, it makes sense to include the one thing that will still probably be shipped on a disc for a long time to come. Digital delivery is quickly on its way to being the dominant way people rent movies and TV shows, but the day I can buy a digital download of Gears of War 3 on my console (and be as satisfied that I have ownership of a copy of the game) seems a long way off. These games take massive amounts of data (gigabytes), and the next generation of consoles will likely garner games that require even more. A console isn't a PC with ever expanding hard drives - and honestly even PC gaming is really in many ways just beginning to figure out digital delivery with services like Steam.

I have no idea if Qwikster will be successful or not. Looking around at the number of Red Box kiosks I see every day I'm not too optimistic. But including games as an option does seem like a good idea, and they'll probably pick up a lot of customers who never tried a service like GameFly but might get a Wii game or two for their kids. And from Neflix's perspective it might be better late than never.