A great video over at The Gameological Society that talks about the impact of the 1980s Nintendo sci-fi classic Metroid. I remember growing up with this game and feeling so bad ass after my friends and I defeated Mother Brain. Its influence on modern gaming is undeniable.
Ben Kuchera, writing for The Penny Arcade Report:
Sony has lost this generation, and there is no reason to lower the price and lose more money than necessary. Sony’s focus is on next year, and its next generation console; they are aware that there’s little that can be done to fight off the competition this holiday season…
…The PlayStation 3 and Vita are going to be low sellers during the North American holiday season. Full stop. That lack of momentum going into 2013, mixed with Sony’s ongoing financial problems, puts Sony in a defensive position in 2013. We won’t be seeing many bold moves when it comes to hardware; Sony doesn’t have the power at the moment to take risks with the proprietary architecture and bleeding edge components that led to the PlayStation 3’s high launch price. This may make it hard to differentiate the console from its competitors, and create even more of a marketing challenge for Sony.
Ben has a good point. Vita will end up as a complete platform disaster for Sony, and what’s the big “hook” for prospective customers to pick up a Playstation 4?
The Verge‘s Andrew Webster:
In order for the Wii U to truly succeed, Nintendo needs to create experiences that could only be possible with the GamePad, and that are good enough to make people want to buy the console. Speaking to the New York Times, Fils-Aime said that the GamePad “allows us to create content that shows different ways to play together but have fundamentally different experiences.” Now Nintendo needs a game that exemplifies that philosophy.
Exactly. Mark my words: the idea of selling a cheaper version of the Wii U without pack in software is a huge, huge mistake.
Kyle Orland makes the case for Terry Cavanagh’s (developer of cult platformer VVVVV) retro, trippy arcade game. I agree with him; it is often frustrating, but it’s addictive as hell. Perfect way to kill 30 seconds between subway stops.
Really enjoyable article on the influential gaming company Valve, best known for the Half-Life series and Steam gaming service. I liked the insights here on their very unorthodox management structure (there effectively is none) and distributed work ethic. If you’re into gaming or just interesting in learning about a shaken up company hierarchy, it’s a good read.
I originally discovered this on Kotaku. It’s a screenshot heavy look at why Wind Waker, a game released almost a decade ago, still holds up fairly well from a graphics standpoint.
Writer/designer Craig Grannell:
I’m not of the opinion Nintendo should throw in its lot with Apple and other third parties, effectively becoming another Sega—yet. This is because Nintendo still has the potential to out-Apple Apple in the gaming space, through making games and hardware. This, note, is what Apple proponents rightly say sets Apple apart from much of the competition—it makes devices and operating systems, and so can mesh those things together far better than other companies. But Apple doesn’t do this in gaming.
An excellent point. More recently I had the opinion Nintendo should go the Sega route but I’m starting to move in Craig’s direction.
(Small logistical note: This is my last post before I head off to vacation through September 3rd. I’ll try to drop in with a few minor link posts, but expect content to slow during this period.)
The consistently excellent Tom Bissell, writing for Grantland:
I have my qualms about the story this game tells, but then I always do. At the same time, I’m aware that BioWare’s writers have had to juggle the individual and — depending on player action — often highly variable fates of several dozen characters throughout something like 150 cumulative hours of in-game narrative time…In light of that, the story’s occasional failure to make sense is forgivable. Slightly less forgivable is the fact that Commander Shepard, Mass Effect’s indomitable hero, seems to meet the same two dozen people in every Mass Effect game. Is this the smallest galaxy ever imagined? It seems like it. There’s a point at which fan service becomes narrative prostitution.
I couldn’t agree more. As I noted in an earlier editorial the constant “coincidental” bump ins with past characters from the Mass Effect universe got pretty grating. This could have been handled a more gracefully if some aspects of this were just directly written in the plot (e.g. Shepard is asked to directly assemble his old team.)
Film Crit Hulk on the the ending to Mass Effect 3 (game spoilers will follow):
To be honest, hulk thought it was one of the best video game endings that Hulk has ever seen. It went for a brief, beautiful articulation of everything it ever needed to say about its central, driving theme. But even if it didn’t do it for you in that same emotional way as it did for hulk, there is no denying that the ending is a single, economic thought and pure expression of the creators.
Hulk argues well here. It’s probably the best defense of Bioware’s original intention I’ve read. Yet like many (most?) of those that have finished the game, I remain disappointed by Mass Effect 3‘s ending. It fails on several levels – it’s length (there were early side mission cut scenes that ran longer) and its failure to account for decisions made earlier in the game, a hallmark of the Mass Effect series. Yet for me the biggest shortcoming was less plot and more user interface; that “walk to one of three options” final choice on the Crucible was flat out confusing.
Gamer Hazzen on Ouya, the red hot Kickstarter funded gaming console:
I could go on and look at the other realities of this project, but I won’t. I don’t even care if the thing succeeds or not. I’m just sick of the breathless enthusiasm for a complete unknown in an exceedingly difficult industry.
Agreed. Hazzen goes on to rip apart the economics of this new gaming platform. Be it for big releases or even indie hits, the financial implications don’t seem sound. I don’t see this taking off. I’d expect a more integrated Mac/PC/iOS to TV gaming solution as a much more viable option.