Eksvplot wrote:not crap, entirely -- but definitely most of the time. i have an open mind, but video games, in general, are such a drain. i wish there was a video game equivalent of a cassavetes film, or a hemingway book, or something that might impell a person to think, or even... feel. most modern games seem to have been designed by people largely informed by crap culture. when i play these games i just feel like i'm navigating a commercial.

Quite correct sir, if pretentiously utopian.

I'll tell you all another problem I have with modern games:

There's nothing punk rock about them whatsoever.

The money it takes to produce and market one and the channels of distribution make the possibility of an 'independent' video game becoming a hit absoultely zero. It's even worse than the situation with cinema. So everything has to follow not just a mainstream perspective, but a global capitalist perspective, ultimately beholden to Sony and Microsoft. Buying, selling, consuming, killing. Simplistic, misogynistic, addictive, antisocial crap as far as the eye can see.

So I say fuck video games from a lefty punk perspective. In Spectrum days of yore, you could program a great game / hit that could be a vast collective experience in your bedroom. Not any more.

johnnyshape wrote:The money it takes to produce and market one and the channels of distribution make the possibility of an 'independent' video game becoming a hit absoultely zero. It's even worse than the situation with cinema. So everything has to follow not just a mainstream perspective, but a global capitalist perspective, ultimately beholden to Sony and Microsoft. Buying, selling, consuming, killing. Simplistic, misogynistic, addictive, antisocial crap as far as the eye can see.

It's my hope that places such as this change all of that. I don't play many video games, and a lot of my friends who play a lot of them consider me weird, because I cannot stand games that don't have some kind of compelling story behind it. The only video game franchise I follow is the Legacy of Kain series, for what I consider to be the most original spin on the idea of vampires.

Chromodynamic wrote:I wasted a lot of last week playing Half-Life 2. Great game. I would play more Ninja Gaiden but I'm sure I would end up throwing my Xbox off the top of my house in frustration.

I broke my girlfriend's table as a consequence of Ninja Gaiden.

I'm almost finished it though.

Oh, and the punk rock videogames comment:

What about darwinia? It sold loads (particularly helped by its distribution method changing to steam*).





*no shit jokes baout this please.

I've come to the decision I need a new console. I'm housesitting for my teacher in the summer and would like to get a new system to last me though the year, possibly longer. So I might as well pick it up in August.

I thought about buying a new ps2, my old one has that annoying disc read error. And The new ones are small and cheap, so how could I go wrong?

But, maybe its time for someting new. As of today I'm considering getting
an xbox. Its got great games and is under 200 beans. Maybe even get one with a mod-chip put in, even though that seems really technical...

Or, should I pony up and get a 360?

Is it lame to get an xbox this summer? How much longer will they be making games for it?

360 looks great, but its really pricey and has features that I don't really care about, like the online stuff. The new games are pretty expensive but look amazing. I guess it will be like an investment and will keep me busy all of next year or so.

But, Can I play regular xbox games on it?

Anyway I hope this ramble isnt too disjointed. So, kind fellows of EA what would you do? new ps2, xbox, or 360.

Sony announced the dates for the release of the new Playstation today (at least in the UK).

I got me an xbox 360. I don't play it nearly enough given the investment.

I was disappointed that my copy of Madden 2006 for the Xbox 360 intermittently "freezes" in various spots. It kind of put me off, since who would want to play a game that would lock up?

The trailer for King Kong looked good, but not good enough to drop $60.

Funilly enough, I turned back to musical instruments for solitary entertainment, and use the old PS/2 for gaming with others. I have a copy of Halo 2, but haven't popped it in to see how it works with the 360.

I bought a 360 just so I could play The Elder Scrolls IV. I feel dirty after typing that.

Are you overall happy or glad after shelling around 400 clams for a system? I wish the games were cheaper.

I hate people who say that playing videogames is a wast of time and then spend 3 hours watching Big Brother or some other piece of reality tv shit.

NOT CRAP

I used to have the SEGA Mega Drive. Jezz, how much I loved playing the Super Monaco GP and Football plays. Oh yeah, and Road Rush kicked ass too !