Things I Should Like, But Don't: Borderlands

A while back I reviewed Borderlands, calling it a fun and addictive but flawed game. I liked it, so why has it made the list of Things I Should Like, But Don't, you ask? Well it has to do with an interview of Gearbox's Creative Director Mikey Neumann. The interview was an open Q&A about "Anthony Saves The World" (a fun series by the way, starring Neumann and Anthony Burch of 'Hey Ash, Whatcha Playin' fame). Durring this Q&A a fan asked Mikey about his public resume (available on the Gearbox site), saying that he listed Chrono Trigger as his favorite game. The fan then asked if he had any intention of making an RPG. Mr. Neumann responded flippantly that he already had "umm little game called borderlands, if you've heard of it" the answer was rude, arrogant, and wrong... well kind of.

I respectfully disagree that Borderlands is an RPG. It has certain RPG elements, but having loot and leveling up does not make your game an RPG, certainly not one you can compare to Chrono Trigger. Simply put, I do not enjoy Borderlands as an RPG because represented as such, it is a complete failure. What if I tried to sell you Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands as an RPG. You certainly play a role and you even level up abilities. The game is fun, but one would not buy and be satisfied with PoP as an RPG. I enjoyed Borderlands as a First Person Shooter, not as an Role Playing Game, but if the creator insists it is as such then I have to say; I don't like it.

David Jaffe Doesn't Like Me

It's true, David Jaffe (creator of Twisted Metal and God of War) Does not like me. Why, you ask? Because I have the gall to claim that video games are art. My current frustration comes from a lengthy blog written by Jaffe as he procrastinated on Twisted Metal. To summarize he said that games are not art, and saying that they are art is damaging to the industry. Specifically he targets artistic games as follows:

"Shining the powerful media light on these sorts of games - that tell you they are important but are not really all that engaging/interesting play wise and are nowhere near as emotional or meaningful as most B rate, night time dramas on network television - means that the media light and publisher cash gets taken away from traditional games," he explained. "And because of this, traditional games are disrespected, devalued, and shown a lack of appreciation, understanding, and love for the very things the medium does so well, so effortlessly, and so successfully."

Look closely at what he said, first he undermines any emotional resonance that a game carries (and I'm not talking about nostalgia). Next he goes on to explain that these artsy games are taking money out of the pockets of traditional or "pure games" in his words. Then he claims traditional games are disrespected and devalued... I'm not sure what rock he's been living under but I believe I saw just last week that Black Ops was the best selling game in US history, the AAA market is still churning out hits on a regular basis, and those other studios producing "traditional" games are in no worse a position than they were last generation.

I just can't believe he would claim artistic games are devaluing traditional games. If anything AAA hits like his own God of War are taking funds away from other devs because that big name IP is a sure thing. If you're so worried about your "traditional" games not getting funding then how about giving the publishers no choice but to push that. Of course, that would mean dropping your two most popular IP's.

The final nail in Jaffe's coffin was this:

"To be going on and on about how games need to be/can be/should be/already are 'more' than 'just games' to me disrespects the joy and happiness traditional games bring to the world."

Striving to be more is disrespectful? I'm sorry, when I was young I wanted to be an paleontologist, then an archeologist, later a game designer. As I grew and matured the things I wanted to do and achieve changed. So is it disrespectful to my childhood that I did not stay on the same path and become a paleontologist. No, of course not, the very idea is absurd and immature.

By saying that games are not art Jaffe is showing arrogance of overwhelming proportions. He is not speaking for just himself, he is speaking for everyone who has ever played a game. I bet you didn't know that David Jaffe was the judge of every experience you've had with games. Coming from someone this well known to the industry that really hurts. Recall if you will when Roger Ebert said games are not art. This was coming from a man who had never even touched a game. That is why it is such an insult that something like this would come from not only an avid gamer, but a game designer.

If we give Jaffe's fears a reasonable basis it is that all the attention on artsy games is going to make developers think they have arrived as artists. I have news for you, they already have, yet developers still strive to create new artistic visions. Jaffe's fears of the industry become stagnant are baseless. Its just ignorant. All genres evolve. Since Jaffe was so keen on comparing games to movies lets stick with that. I'm sick of naysayers predicting the end of gaming as we know it. Do you honestly think Hollywood is going to stop making blockbuster movies because indie films are getting more popular. No, they will not, because blockbusters make a lot of money. The same goes for games.

Another argument Jaffe has is that the medium is to young to have true artistic value. Age shouldn't be the judge of art. Gilgamesh is just about the earliest example of a narrative, is that not a work of literary art? How about Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times, a silent film and cinematic masterpiece. If one were to look at Missile Command in a different light, even a game as simple as that becomes incredibly powerful.

Traditional games aren't going anywhere and it's downright stupid to project your fears onto a certain group of developers. Also, on that note, to Peter Vesterbacka: No, the mobile market is not going to destroy consoles. The portable market didn't do it, an increase of available systems didn't do it, and your microgames sure as hell aren't going to take down the AAA market. There are too many big businesses invested in this industry for it to just vanish. It seems like gaming more than anything is constantly fighting rumors of its demise. Just calm down people, there is room enough for everyone; Big games, independent, artistic, portable, mobile. Diversity is not a bad thing.

One last bone I have to pick is with Jaffe picking on Flower. The opening of his article says "Just because there's wind blowing and a minimal soundtrack and vast open spaces to explore and a slow pace doesn't mean that the game your playing is art." That is a clear shot at ThatGameCompany (creators of Flow, Flower, and the upcoming Journey).
While he is correct in saying those elements don't make a game artistic I have to disagree that Flower isn't anything but beautiful and moving. The demo alone left me speechless. The people at ThatGameCompany are trying to do something different and because he thinks it's not fun suddenly it's not art. No sir, you are certainly not the gauge of what is artistic in this medium. Jaffe's games are fun (though I'll admit God of War has never held my interest) but his games are also just noise. I'm not trying to take a cheap shot at him, it's quite clear he thinks the games he makes are just a fun diversion, not art.

So Mr. Jaffe, if all you think you are doing is making toys for people to play with, then by all means continue to do so. But do not think that gives you the right to stifle others' artistic vision.

Things I Should Like, But Don't

I've been on a bit of a hiatus lately. While I've found myself with more free time technically I haven't been able to write anything in quite some time. Effective immediately that will change. I'm going to get back into the swing of writing about every other day, whether it's an update on the game I'm playing or a full article. Today I'm debuting a new feature I like to call "Things I Should Like, But Don't". I'll admit I got the idea from my good friend Chad.

Here I will put on display my prejudices. These will be things that Nerd, Pop, and Retro culture all say I should enjoy, but alas, I find my interest waining at best. Please take note, this is not an exercise in trolling, it's just my opinion. I can see why people are fascinated by the things I'm going to address, just know I'm not that person. This will include entries from Gaming, Movies, Music, and anything else I can think of. So without further ado I give you the first on my list (which is in no particular order)

Things I Should Like, But Don't: Rocky Horror Picture Show

I'm going to be brief with this one. I love the music, I think it's fun and catchy, but the movie itself just doesn't interest me at all. It's quirky in all the wrong places and there is nothing truly special about it. It panders by trying to be overtly sexual and risqué but just comes off as immature. I think Tim Curry is great, in fact he's the main reason I ended up seeing this the first time. Keep in mind I don't hate RHPS I just can't seem to have a very good time watching this movie. I won't deny that it has a cult like following, but much like Fight Club, I don't think it deserves it.

Preview of Tomb Raider Angel of Darkness Review

So I bought Tomb Raider Angel of Darkness. It's been... an experience...

Only Slightly Delayed: Jurassic The Hunted

Well I was going to do an article on Trophies/Achievements but alas, I procrastinated and now someone else did it (and probably better). So instead I will now regale you with a story of why it's so awesome to be me, and how I had a fantastic time playing what many consider a bad game.

Jurassic: The Hunted is First Person Shooter set in the Bermuda Triangle where you shoot dinosaurs to your hearts content. If you didn't just high-five yourself after reading that blurb then you're probably not as excitable as I am about dinosaurs. J:H is also a b-movie, only it's a game… The gameplay is smooth and satisfying but the acting is abominable. The dialogue sounds like it was written by a 14 year old and all the motion capture seems like it was from marionettes, and it all ends up being amazing. These hackneyed elements combined with actually satisfying gameplay create a strangely mesmerizing experience. This is an extremely unique game. It is akin to Troll 2 or The Room, it is so awful, but still playable, so the poor elements become entertaining. This game squeezes in amongst the "so bad it's good" crowd.

The story goes something like this. Generic every-merc Dylan is on an escort mission with a "scientist" to the Bermuda Triangle when something goes horribly wrong. A magic mcguffin opens up and time goes haywire. Now you're on an island trying to find your team through waves of dinosaurs. Now, if shooting a dilophosaurus in the face on top of a volcano doesn't interest you then I'd suggest you stop reading now. For me, it's nirvana.

Being stuck in a time warp Dylan has to use whatever weapons he can find. These run the gambit from single shot Black Powder rifles to a Plasma Gun. Also, Jurassic: Hunted had an exploding bolt crossbow before it was cool. As I said before the mechanics in this game are great, the gunplay is fast and fluid and does not feel awkward at all. The addition of things like Civl War camps and World War 2 ships really helps add to the atmosphere of the mysterious circumstances you're in.

There is a Trophy/Achievement called "Clever Girl" that you get from being killed by a Raptor melee. Best Trophy Ever.

The environments get the job done, there's not much range (jungle, volcano, cave, jungle opening) but the game looks good enough. It's not eye candy, but it's not painful to look at, plus there aren't any screen tearing or slowdown issues, which is wonderful on a budget title. The one thing the game toted as it's unique feature was something called Adrenaline Mode, which is basically just bullet time BUT you can see the vital organs of the whatsitsaurus you're about to shoot giving you a tactical edge. Honestly, I think this feature works better than "traditional" bullet time. Adrenaline slows down everything, even you (unlike most games wherein bullet time you still have some semblance of speed). This means it's much more about your accuracy and less about you just slowing down time to cheat.

The game does have it's fair share of actual faults though. Segments are often repeated specifically "kill a ridiculous amount of dinos from a turret" and "kill a ridiculous amount of dinos from the fort you're in (that you need to repair)" These missions tend to outstay their welcome. Another downer; despite nazis being insinuated in the plot (a level where you travel to a u-boat) you never actually see any nazis. That would have been the cherry on top of this game to include nazis along with dinosaurs. Hilarious!

All in all, yes J:H is a budget title and it certainly shows in the story and acting departments, but honestly, the game as a whole is a laughably fun adventure. Plus it doesn't hurt that the game came out as a budget title ($40) and can now be found for $15 or less. While I know many will not enjoy this game the same way I did I can't help but feel it was one of the better games I've played in recent memory. If only because I was genuinely entertained and was laughing out loud at the atrocious dialogue.

Speaking of dinosaur games, check out the trailer for the new Jurassic Park Game from Telltale! I am so flippin excited for this one!

Latersaurus

Opinion-Hated: Hand Held Gaming (ep1)

This is a podcast type thingy where Jeremy and I exchange opinions about hot button nerd topics. This episode is about the next generation of hand held gaming.

Quick Thoughts on Some Movies!

Hi Everybody! I'm uploading the first episode of a new series called Opinion-Hated. It's a podcast type thingy where Jeremy and I exchange opinions about hot button nerd topics. It's also 20 minutes long and is taking FOREVER to upload. So in the mean time I thought I would give you some good old fashioned written down thoughts on a few movies I've viewed recently.

Exit Through the Gift Shop

I believe this movie might just be the longest joke I've ever watched. Essentially it all builds up to a finale that is hinted at in the begining and Hipsters are the punchline. The movie itself is a documentary by an amazing street artist named Banksy about another "artist" Thierry Guetta. Basically Thierry makes his money by selling beat up old clothes to stupid Hipsters at a ridiculous mark up. In addition to this he was also known for having a video camera with him at all times. The story of Thierry discovering street art and meeting the underground artists is fascinating, but the documentary takes an odd turn toward the end.

Thierry decides to become a street artist himself and forms the persona "Mr Brain Wash". His work is all derivative and even made by other people (he sees himself as a facilitator and button pusher) yet thanks to the sheer stupidity of masses he makes it big after just one art show. The movie seems to build up to this moment where it winks and tells you that art is dead, but you can still auction off the corpse. All in all I loved this film. A great deal of that probably comes from how prominently stencils and graffiti are featured (an old hobby of mine). It was fast paced and quirky and told the story of an interesting and eccentric man who may or may not be mentally handicapped, but in the end it doesn't matter, because he got your money, hipsters.

Space Jam

On the spur of the moment Lee, Jessica, Jeremy and I decided to watch Space Jam (thank you Vudu). Honestly I remember enjoying this as a child… then again I enjoyed a lot of things. After watching this again however, I've found that it has not aged as well as some might think. The entire movie feels like an extended commercial for… well nothing in particular. The animation is significantly dated and the human characters with the cartoons just looks odd. In comparison, Who Framed Roger Rabbit has held up much better. This is probably due to the fact that they used real actors for that film and not an NBA star. Also, a noir-esque story doesn't hurt.

My wife made a good point that the animation seems dated because they tried to represent the characters with a more bubbly shaded approach as compared to the straight 2D of Roger Rabbit. In the end I just couldn't shake the feeling that I would rather be watching an old WB cartoon, like the ones you catch glimpses of throughout Space Jam.

Secret of Kells

This movie was in limited release when it came out in theaters and it didn't have any more fanfare when it was released on DVD so I really can't blame you if you've not heard of it. Secret of Kells is an animated film about a young boy in a village surrounded by a great wall that was built to keep invading Vikings out. It is stunning and beautiful and breathes new life into the "cartoon network" style animation. It is also boring.

I find myself a bit torn because I really did love this movie, but I can't help but admit that it is somewhat boring. It is a very simple story but it unfolds quite elegantly. It's not in the traditional western style of grand action and consequence. It is smaller and much more personal. I highly recommend it, but keep in mind it is a tad bit slow.

The Living Wake

This is a small indie movie about an eccentric man who wishes to achieve greatness and find the meaning of life. K Roth Binew is told by a doctor that he has one day to live and this film chronicles it. The humor is dark and the characters quirky. There are touches of Wes Anderson here and there and it strives desperately for that indie feel much like the movie Wrist Cutters. Much like Wrist Cutters it misses the mark in editing and falls a bit short. All in all though there are some good and touching moments and it is worth a watch, if you can stand tremendous over acting. Oh and Jesse Eisenberg is in it.