The End of Gamer TV

Few things are as painful in life as seeing a good friend change for the worse. That’s exactly what’s happened to the G4 network. For those who aren’t aware, the once-loved cable channel created for gamers has currently only two programs fully devoted to gaming – the remaining lineup consists of trashy syndicated shows. Legions of disgusted gamers have expressed their outrage at G4’s radical format change by launching everything from anti-G4 websites to YouTube videos.

The trouble surrounding G4 can be traced back to its controversial dissolving of TechTV, a channel G4 merged with in March 2004. Following the network’s bizarre relocation of its headquarters from San Francisco (arguably the center of American videogame production) to Los Angeles, a new CEO took the helm in 2005. This new man-in-charge, Neal Tiles, decided to eliminate videogames as G4’s focus and concentrate on a more male-oriented lineup “peppered” with videogame culture. This saw the acquisition of many shows of questionable appropriateness like Cheaters, Cops and The Man Show as a means of competing with networks such as Spike.

“We’re going through a change. Guys like to play games, but not necessarily watch a bunch of shows with games on the screen,” Tiles told a reporter for Variety in 2005. “So what we’re doing now is expanding G4 from a network solely defined by videogames to one inspired by them.”

Yes, Mr. Tiles. We all know that The Man Show is truly inspired by videogames.
Despite its bold claims of being the fastest growing network on television, an article published in TG Daily in June 2006 reported that G4 was the least watched basic cable network in America. G4 has also been criticized for poor E3 coverage and having too cozy a relationship with advertisers.

The network more or less sealed its fate in January of this year when it debuted a Laguna Beach-style reality show called The Block which was panned by critics as a quagmire featuring a bunch of stoned-out white kids drinking and lusting after each other. This debacle on behalf of G4 was followed by the network changing its slogan from “Videogame TV” to “TV That’s Plugged In” this past March – officially acknowledging a new direction.

Alterations or not, though, we mustn’t forget that G4 is still the TV station that represents videogames. As if we don’t have enough trouble convincing parents and politicians that all gamers aren’t nerdy, drugged-out losers, this network certainly doesn’t help. Is there any chance of salvation for G4? The recent debut of Code Monkeys may be a baby step towards a revival, but for now “TV for Gamers” remains worm food.

Metroid For Virtual Console

Kicking off Nintendo’s “Month of Metroid,” the very first Metroid game was released for the Wii’s Virtual Console on Monday. While no one will deny that the original NES Metroid is a classic in itself within the legendary sci-fi adventure series, is it really worth 500 Wii Points? Read more

There’s No Place Like Home

At this year’s Game Developer Conference, Phil Harrison delivered Sony’s keynote speech.  In it he described the philosophical Game 3.0 saying that the future is all about the “connected” console empowered by the users who are at the center of the entertainment experience.  He then showcased Sony’s Home, a 3D social-networking service for the PlayStation 3.  While the features he described were incredible, Sony’s Home should immediately be confronted with skepticism.  It appears that the “user empowerment” Harrison mentioned seems to be more along the lines of the user economically empowering Sony.  The service seems anxious to draw in a broad audience rather than focusing on providing a first class online service for its faithful user base.

Sony stands to make a great deal of money with Home whether or not it actually competes directly with Xbox Live.  Everything a user does will be connected in some way to advertising.  Sony Bravia TV will play the latest movie trailers.  The central lounge will be adorned with physics based advertising banners and movie-theatre-sized screens projecting high definition videos.  I have no fundamental problem with this advertising because it will keep the service, which is free, up and running.  However, Sony also plans on incorporating non-gaming related brands and a bevy of micro-transaction opportunities as well, and that is where the problem lies.  The inclusion of non-gaming brands, such as new leather couches for “in Home” apartments, hint that Sony is more interested in making Home into a 3D virtual world for the general public rather than for its loyal PlayStation 3 users.

We all know too well the Sony that attempts to push its products as your one-stop solution.  It hasn’t fared well in the past, and why should it be any different with Home?  Despite its amazing features, Home will still not provide gamers a quick and universal way of finding their friends and jumping directly into a game.  Another factor to consider is that jumping from one 3D space to another will load much slower than an easily navigable 2D user interface such as the Xbox Live Dashboard.  While everyone is hailing Home as the impervious lovechild of MySpace and Second Life, it is missing some very key ingredients that are necessary for a good gaming experience.  Sony needs to offer a stripped down version of Home that keeps its typical users in mind or it might just have to count its over-engineered online service as another failure.  They’re desperately hoping that Home will expand their user base, but how many people are going to plunk down half-a-grand for a lovechild when the parents can be played online without having to spend a penny?

Venice Deluxe

The term “casual game” doesn’t have a lot of intrinsic meaning.  It’s really a marketing term onto which a lot of contradictory expectations are heaped.  Casual games are games that you can download quickly.  They appeal to career women.  They’re simple.  They are addictive.  They can be bought online.  They play in browsers.  They have very few art assets.  They’re pretty and shiny.

Depending on what game you’re talking about, several of those above statements won’t apply.  One could argue that Oasis, for example, is “simple,” yet I found it to be challenging and engaging.  I’m no longer convinced the phrase “casual game” means much.   “Casual game publisher”, however, does still mean something, and to many people it means “PopCap Games.”

One thing PopCap has been doing consistently is pushing the boundaries of production values.  It’s no secret that Bookworm Adventures was one of my favorite games last year, and so I approach each PopCap game with some trepidation, afraid it is going to suck me into the same sort of debilitating addiction as their earlier titles.

Venice Deluxe is a game where you shoot vases, hearts, stars, and other shapes into predefined spaces on a game board.  In some ways, it’s like a much easier variant of Snood.  Bonuses are earned for bank and trick shots, and a number of “powerups” appear that change the gameplay slightly.

The production value, as expected from PopCap, is top notch, but the game itself feels a bit dilute.  It’s an awesome game for kids — I left a group of 8 year olds at the laptop for 2 hours, and they wanted to keep playing when I returned — but felt a bit light to me.  Definitely try the demo, but in this case, the word “casual” is appropriate.

Call of the Couch

I used to be a PC gamer.

I used to get into arguments on internet forums about how console games were necessarily inferior to PC games, how they were less sophisticated, were poorer, simpler, and so on.  I don’t get into those arguments anymore.  The war is over.  The PC lost.

This isn’t to say I don’t play PC games now.  I do; I play many.  It’s just that the argument that PC gaming is somehow a singular experience no longer holds water.  In the early 1980’s, many people argued that arcade games were singular and that home machines would never be able to recreate the immersive experience of, say, Star Fire.  That argument was proven wrong, too.

There are a few reasons for these changes.  First, and most importantly, as consoles have grown more powerful, nearly everyone has to come face to face with a simple fact:  it’s more fun to play a game on the couch than at a desk.

There are other reasons as well, though.  User interface design has improved and simplified to where the controls of most PC games can be mapped to a console controller.  Now that text adventures effectively don’t exist anymore (yes, I’m aware of the IFComp and other amateur efforts, I’m painting in broad strokes here) a game that actually requires a full keyboard to play is less likely to be “intricate and deep” and more likely to just have a poorly designed user interface.

What I’ve seen happening is not that PC games aren’t being made anymore but that the locus of innovation has shifted.  There will always be a market for PC games.  There will always be clever games made by small independent developers on on every platform, even the oft-maligned Macintosh, but now the truly interesting advances are coming from new user interfaces.  I’m talking about innovative custom controllers, as in Guitar Hero, and in entirely new console paradigms, as exemplified by the Wii.

A year ago people were speaking of Nintendo in funereal terms, an also-ran long passed by Sony and Microsoft.  Today, they’re leading the charge of the next wave, and they did it not by spending money on faster and hotter chips, but by innovating and developing a new user experience.

I don’t know where the next great innovation in games is going to come from.  But I do know one thing: it’s not going to happen at a desk.  It’s going to happen on a couch.

Runescape

Since its humble beginnings using 2D sprites, Jagex Ltd’s Runescape has evolved into a fully 3D-modeled, browser-based MMORPG that not only is free (why else would you be reading this) but also includes the basics that comes with any MMO along with some extra features that will have you up and questing in no time!

After the initial download, the character design page offers 13 customization options to create a unique Runescape citizen. Sadly, at this point you will probably notice Runescape’s Achilles Heel…its graphics!  It can’t compare to the commercially released titles out there, but since the game isn’t eating $15 a month out of your wallet, I think you’ll be able to cope.  Your new character will now visit Tutorial Island where you’ll learn a variety of skills such as mining, fishing, combat (melee and ranged), and casting spells; all of which are important for your survival.

Along with these new skills you’ll notice some of the many great extras that you wouldn’t expect from a free MMO: 360 degree camera control, a Friends/Ignore list, customizable player controls, an entertaining soundtrack, and a stat system for charting your progress.  These features easily have Runescape in the running as the best “free” MMO on the internet!

With a free account you will be able to participate in 18 quests spread among three difficulty levels.  At the beginning you’ll be killing low level orcs and goblins and probably a cow or two (they put up a weak fight and are easy XP) before making your way to those larger monsters that require the help of friends. If questing doesn’t satisfy your thirst for blood then some good ol’ PvP in the Wilderness will do, but don’t go out there during your early levels because each time you die you lose everything except your three most valuable possessions.

Combat isn’t the only thing to do in Runescape.  Trading with other players, crafting your own items, playing the available mini-games, and visiting some of the shops run by various NPCs all come with the experience!  If you do find that you’ve become addicted and there are no more quests left to burn the midnight oil, FEAR NOT.  You can pay a $5 a month fee to get member status which provides you with 50+ quests.  Along with other bonus content, a membership promises you many more hours of enjoyment.

Runescape is the perfect solution for those that need their MMO itch scratched, and it also provides a “free” alternative so that anyone who hasn’t played an MMO can try out the genre before plunking down the cash for a commercially released title with all the bells and whistles.

Red Ring of Death

On June 20, 2007, something terrible happened. Upon switching on my trusty Xbox 360 for another try at blasting away thousands of giant killer ants in Earth Defence Force 2017 – a game that you all must try unless you fancy a beating from a Yorkshireman – the console simply refused to turn on. Strange, I pondered as I tapped the button once more, only to be blown away by what happened next. Yep, it was the good old Ring of Red.

Now my original plan was to overly criticise Microsoft and their sheer reluctance to admit to the blatant design flaw. This fault is purely due to the heat created in the console and the loosening of one particularly ill placed chip inside. It’s causing thousands of consoles to be shipped out for repair every single day all around the world. Though I’m sure Microsoft Japan is fine, what with only 7 consoles sold to date.

Midway through this column, however, Microsoft announced that not only are they extending the warranty time for this particular fault to 3 years but they will also refund the obscene cost of repair that some of us have been charged. Which, yes, is indeed good of them, but while they spend all this cash to keep us swapping machines every couple of months, why aren’t they redesigning the inside of the 360 console itself in order to prevent this particular fault? Rumours state that with the new ‘Falcon’ chip to be used in future Xbox 360 consoles, the Ring of Red may very well be no more. Though with news that some Xbox 360 Elite consoles are already succumbing to the same fate, things still don’t look particularly healthy for Microsoft.

Thinking about it, I know of a good half dozen of my offline chums that have had to send back a 360 at least once. Add to that the dozens of online pals that have spent time offline thanks to their 360 heading for repair, and all this must be costing Microsoft a hell of a lot of cash.

At time of writing this closing – midday 19th July 2007 – there’s still no sign of my repaired 360 or my refund of my original repair costs. With delays of up to 8 weeks warned for us Europeans, it seems that the problem is worse than ever. If Microsoft doesn’t do something very soon, consumer confidence will disappear almost completely.

PeaceMaker

Games can be laboratories, controlled environments to test a range of potential outcomes. The Serious Games movement is premised on the idea that games can be compelling teaching tools beyond the “simulation environment.” Read more

War Rock

At first it seemed K2 Network had hit one out of the park with their online tactical-shooter, War Rock. You really can’t beat the price of free, and the game actually provides enough quality FPS action to scratch the itchy trigger finger of any gamer. Sure, it can be very buggy at times, with planes regularly getting stuck in mid-air. A not-so consistent frame rate hampers the experience every now and then, but once again the phrase “not bad for free” pops into the mind. That’s about the time when K2 Network hits the player in the face with a sock full of nickels! Read more

Surviving Outside the Party

Playing together is what the Nintendo Wii is all about. The name was chosen because it’s pronounced the same in virtually every language, and exemplifies Nintendo’s message of people playing together. The Wii’s advertisements all feature dozens of people, of all ages, genders, and races, either playing together or taking turns playing the single-player titles, rooting each other on. Where does this leave the stereotypical, friendless gamer in an age of party games and social focus? Read more

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