I can see with issue 200 that PC Gamer magazine is finally, finally, finally, fucking FINALLY talking about the galaxy of games you can play on the PC besides the new retail releases. There is so much to play on the PC, almost all of it free: abandonware, indie games, browser games, mods. You could literally play a unique, free, quality game every single day of your life. And yet for years PC Gamer has focused solely on the newest big-budget blockbusters that require you to drop $400 in upgrades every five months, to the great detriment of its readers.
Looks like they've rectified that. It's about time.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Let's REALLY Talk About Cool Games, Guys
Checked out Nintendo Power's "Why Aren't You Playing This?" feature, 10 overlooked Wii games that really deserve your dollars. In case you care, they are:
1. "Muramasa: The Demon Blade"
2. "Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers"
3. "Klonoa"
4. "A Boy and his Blob"
5. "Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles"
6. "Silent Hill: Shattered Memories"
7. "MadWorld"
8. "Dead Space Extraction"
9. "Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars"
10. "Little King's Story."
As the Wii doesn't really have the punch of the PS3 and 360, it tends to be defined by big name Nintendo tentpole releases with a lot of quirky, overlooked gems buzzing around the edges; there's not much middle ground. A feature like this really serves the reader. Nicely done.
Much like GamePro's "State of the System" that I described... in the post right before this one (magazine posts won't last much longer guys, I've pretty much exhausted the library's magazine reserve), this is something I think the game enthusiast print media should be doing much more often. You're always going to get the big features on the big games, like "Call of Duty," but those games are going to sell themselves. Not that gaming magazines exist to sell games, but they should put a significant focus on the unknown, the overlooked, and the quirky, because it's a way to bring good games to the attention of readers in a way that serves the medium, which, y'know, is why we still read gaming mags. A "Top 10 Overlooked Games of the Year" should be a standard feature, especially in console-specific mags.
We're already getting things like more thoughtful, long form game reviews that incorporate the perspectives of many critics. Second looks and reader discussion are also starting to take hold. Throw in an increased focus on those fun games that aren't going to set the world (or sales charts) on fire, along with good original features, and gaming magazines are positioned to deliver a package that let's you sit back, take in the entire width and depth of the industry, and both make informed buying decisions and think about all of the art and business involved. Sounds like heaven to me.
The best endorsement I can give is that reading these magazines has gotten me interested in the modern game industry again after a long lull. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to grab a lightgun shell and a copy of "Dead Space."
1. "Muramasa: The Demon Blade"
2. "Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers"
3. "Klonoa"
4. "A Boy and his Blob"
5. "Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles"
6. "Silent Hill: Shattered Memories"
7. "MadWorld"
8. "Dead Space Extraction"
9. "Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars"
10. "Little King's Story."
As the Wii doesn't really have the punch of the PS3 and 360, it tends to be defined by big name Nintendo tentpole releases with a lot of quirky, overlooked gems buzzing around the edges; there's not much middle ground. A feature like this really serves the reader. Nicely done.
Much like GamePro's "State of the System" that I described... in the post right before this one (magazine posts won't last much longer guys, I've pretty much exhausted the library's magazine reserve), this is something I think the game enthusiast print media should be doing much more often. You're always going to get the big features on the big games, like "Call of Duty," but those games are going to sell themselves. Not that gaming magazines exist to sell games, but they should put a significant focus on the unknown, the overlooked, and the quirky, because it's a way to bring good games to the attention of readers in a way that serves the medium, which, y'know, is why we still read gaming mags. A "Top 10 Overlooked Games of the Year" should be a standard feature, especially in console-specific mags.
We're already getting things like more thoughtful, long form game reviews that incorporate the perspectives of many critics. Second looks and reader discussion are also starting to take hold. Throw in an increased focus on those fun games that aren't going to set the world (or sales charts) on fire, along with good original features, and gaming magazines are positioned to deliver a package that let's you sit back, take in the entire width and depth of the industry, and both make informed buying decisions and think about all of the art and business involved. Sounds like heaven to me.
The best endorsement I can give is that reading these magazines has gotten me interested in the modern game industry again after a long lull. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to grab a lightgun shell and a copy of "Dead Space."
Saturday, March 26, 2011
New Game Magazines: Also Surprisingly Good
Hey all. While nothing, and I mean nothing, beats the totally radical, jam-packed game mags of the 90s, over the last few months I've been checking new magazine issues out of the library (I've got seventeen sitting on the table right now... dammit library I'm never going to read seventeen issues in three weeks) and I have to say, they've really turned themselves around.
I kind of fell out of love with gaming mags riiiiight around the end of 2005, the last issue of EGM I own is a "PS3 vs. 360 vs. Wii" feature (with that cool PS3 boomerang controller that makes ultra-frustrating games suicidal). My subscription was kind of running on inertia around then; I would get issues, read through them (I mean, I had them there) and then... not care. And not renew. And I didn't buy a gaming magazine for a long time after that.
This wasn't just due to the internet doing everything the magazines were doing faster. They (by which I mean EGM, the only mag I was still reading) just really started to slack. Instead of reviewing every game, they'd have "review round-ups" with little blurbs for many games; sure, half the time they were mediocre licensed product, but other times they wouldn't review worthwhile stuff like "Capcom Classics Collection." Their preview section took the biggest hit. It kind of merged with features and tried to pass off meatloaf as steak, with more previews that were large screenshots with annotations, and other games that in olden days would get half a page now getting a 40-word blurb and a single screenshot. All this, with features not improving in quality in any noticeable sense. I don't mind reading a well-prepared content package even if the information is a bit old, but you could just see the content leeching out of the thing. The December 2009 issue of GamePro is about one-third the size of the December 1999 issue.
WELL ANYWAY from the issues of various magazines I've read, that's changed. They've started writing for an older audience, and delivering content more well-suited to the print medium. While the magazines are the same lean size, there's a lot more in the way of analysis and features, unique things you can only read in that magazine, and I've been finding them consistently entertaining. GamePro's even stopped doing regular reviews; realizing that they're going to be publishing weeks after release with dozens of reviews available online, they essentially aggregate the consensus of several other reviews and throw in the reviewer's own thoughts, looking to give a more thoughtful, considered analysis.
GamePro also started running a "state of the system" for each console, showing what games have quickly stopped being fun, which ones are still holding attention, and which are selling little and really need you to buy them. It's the kind of broad analysis beyond the NOW NOW NOW done gone that I quite like. I recall in the rating process for the "Top 100 Games of All Time" in EGM 150 that they disqualified from consideration stuff from the PS2's killer fall 2001 lineup because you really need time to sit back and digest a game before you can really say how good it is, but outside of that every game rater has always told you their experience after a hellish, deadline-induced marathon. It really serves the reader well to tell them how well a game fares after the newness has worn off.
(And that's not to say that GamePro is my favorite of the "relaunched" magazines, their editorial philosophy just provided the easiest examples of a generally smarter structure in all mags.)
In short, I'm considering subscribing to one or more, and that's new. So... new magazines are good, maybe buy one. Or check a bunch out. But I wouldn't hit the Rainbow Library for a few weeks, because I think I've got everything...
I kind of fell out of love with gaming mags riiiiight around the end of 2005, the last issue of EGM I own is a "PS3 vs. 360 vs. Wii" feature (with that cool PS3 boomerang controller that makes ultra-frustrating games suicidal). My subscription was kind of running on inertia around then; I would get issues, read through them (I mean, I had them there) and then... not care. And not renew. And I didn't buy a gaming magazine for a long time after that.
This wasn't just due to the internet doing everything the magazines were doing faster. They (by which I mean EGM, the only mag I was still reading) just really started to slack. Instead of reviewing every game, they'd have "review round-ups" with little blurbs for many games; sure, half the time they were mediocre licensed product, but other times they wouldn't review worthwhile stuff like "Capcom Classics Collection." Their preview section took the biggest hit. It kind of merged with features and tried to pass off meatloaf as steak, with more previews that were large screenshots with annotations, and other games that in olden days would get half a page now getting a 40-word blurb and a single screenshot. All this, with features not improving in quality in any noticeable sense. I don't mind reading a well-prepared content package even if the information is a bit old, but you could just see the content leeching out of the thing. The December 2009 issue of GamePro is about one-third the size of the December 1999 issue.
WELL ANYWAY from the issues of various magazines I've read, that's changed. They've started writing for an older audience, and delivering content more well-suited to the print medium. While the magazines are the same lean size, there's a lot more in the way of analysis and features, unique things you can only read in that magazine, and I've been finding them consistently entertaining. GamePro's even stopped doing regular reviews; realizing that they're going to be publishing weeks after release with dozens of reviews available online, they essentially aggregate the consensus of several other reviews and throw in the reviewer's own thoughts, looking to give a more thoughtful, considered analysis.
GamePro also started running a "state of the system" for each console, showing what games have quickly stopped being fun, which ones are still holding attention, and which are selling little and really need you to buy them. It's the kind of broad analysis beyond the NOW NOW NOW done gone that I quite like. I recall in the rating process for the "Top 100 Games of All Time" in EGM 150 that they disqualified from consideration stuff from the PS2's killer fall 2001 lineup because you really need time to sit back and digest a game before you can really say how good it is, but outside of that every game rater has always told you their experience after a hellish, deadline-induced marathon. It really serves the reader well to tell them how well a game fares after the newness has worn off.
(And that's not to say that GamePro is my favorite of the "relaunched" magazines, their editorial philosophy just provided the easiest examples of a generally smarter structure in all mags.)
In short, I'm considering subscribing to one or more, and that's new. So... new magazines are good, maybe buy one. Or check a bunch out. But I wouldn't hit the Rainbow Library for a few weeks, because I think I've got everything...
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Import Shops
Hey, I'm reading this wonderful old EGM, and it mentions calling up an "import shop" to get your hands on some Saturn game (it was "Shining Force III: Scenario 3, okay?). I've seen this before in magazines of this era. Import shops.
What the hell is an import shop?
A game store that specializes in imported games...? Some kind of store that just specializes in imported stuff in general? I don't understand. If they're dedicated stores, where did they go? I became aware of more of the machinations of the industry shortly after the publication of this issue, so they must have disappeared in a hurry.
I'm confused.
(I bought all my import games on ebay, and one at the Classic Gaming Expo. Did... did those sellers originally get them from "import shops?")
What the hell is an import shop?
A game store that specializes in imported games...? Some kind of store that just specializes in imported stuff in general? I don't understand. If they're dedicated stores, where did they go? I became aware of more of the machinations of the industry shortly after the publication of this issue, so they must have disappeared in a hurry.
I'm confused.
(I bought all my import games on ebay, and one at the Classic Gaming Expo. Did... did those sellers originally get them from "import shops?")
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
FRIDAY FRIDAY FRIDAY
I've been seeing these commercials for the "Monster Jam World Finals" since I was 5. Is it a competition? How do they score it? Are there preliminaries and amateur leagues? I thought it was just trucks crushing things...
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
New (Old) Magazines!
Okay, I've found something to collect. Old game magazines.
Hit a series of thrift stores, indie game stores, and used bookstores with my bro over the last few days. Not much in the way of games, but I spent about 20 bucks on magazines and strategy guides and ended up with a two-foot pile. I might go into specifics later, but I think the best find was a few issues of EGM from the late 90s, with big cover features on "Tony Hawk 2," "Donkey Kong 64," and "Ocarina of Time."
I love these things. I love their brash, ostentatious 90s advertising. I love their colorful, stylized column formats. I love the graphic design work on the features. Most of all, I love all of the tidbits and factoids that comes from their enthusiasm of then-new classics.
For instance: Nintendo higher-up Howard Lincoln called Zelda the "Gone with the Wind" of gaming. And, amazingly, history may have proven his drunken boast right.
With a pile of these things, an excel spreadsheet, and a shitton of free time, I could write an amazing book on the industry filled to the brim with anecdotes.
I need more. Earlier ones. EVER EARLIER.
Hit a series of thrift stores, indie game stores, and used bookstores with my bro over the last few days. Not much in the way of games, but I spent about 20 bucks on magazines and strategy guides and ended up with a two-foot pile. I might go into specifics later, but I think the best find was a few issues of EGM from the late 90s, with big cover features on "Tony Hawk 2," "Donkey Kong 64," and "Ocarina of Time."
I love these things. I love their brash, ostentatious 90s advertising. I love their colorful, stylized column formats. I love the graphic design work on the features. Most of all, I love all of the tidbits and factoids that comes from their enthusiasm of then-new classics.
For instance: Nintendo higher-up Howard Lincoln called Zelda the "Gone with the Wind" of gaming. And, amazingly, history may have proven his drunken boast right.
With a pile of these things, an excel spreadsheet, and a shitton of free time, I could write an amazing book on the industry filled to the brim with anecdotes.
I need more. Earlier ones. EVER EARLIER.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
The Terror of Super-Mizerly Gaming
Yo, is there any independent game store in Vegas that'll sell me a loose Genesis cart for less than five bucks? I'd gladly spend 45 minutes tooling around in "Predator 2" or something, but once it costs a fiver I hit some kind of psychological threshold that says... well, I guess that "Predator 2" isn't worth five bucks.
And it's not like the good Genny games are five bucks, anything even remotely well known is closer to ten, and anything REALLY good is more like $30 or $40. For god's sakes, their "Super Mario & Duck Hunt" carts were going for ten bucks a pop, and they're so common they're used as skeet shooting targets.
In short, buying old games is more expensive than I'm comfortable with.
And it's not like the good Genny games are five bucks, anything even remotely well known is closer to ten, and anything REALLY good is more like $30 or $40. For god's sakes, their "Super Mario & Duck Hunt" carts were going for ten bucks a pop, and they're so common they're used as skeet shooting targets.
In short, buying old games is more expensive than I'm comfortable with.
Friday, March 11, 2011
What, No Hamtaro?
Oh my god, you guys. OH MY GOD. You need to go to this site right now: http://www.toonamiaftermath.com/. Do it.
Did you do it? Do it! I know, I too have been burned when people insist I have to see a site RIGHT NOW that didn't really warrant that level of excitement, but I am telling you, for the first time in my entire life, here is a web site that warrants that level of excitement. CLICK. IT.
I know, right? It warms me well to know not only that there are other huge fans of Toonami and mid 90's/early '00s Cartoon Network, but that they're crazy enough to devote their time, energy, and money to recreating the experience in a way that will almost certainly end with all of them sued. But they did it anyway! The fact that people out there work their asses off just to entertain, for nothing more than that intrinsic value... really, it hits me on a level meaningful enough that it almost brings tears to my eyes. Thank you, you wonderful, crazy bastards!
Look at the schedule. Okay, whadda we got here... Well, you got a lot of the anime my friends, brother, and I would devour after school. Dragonball Z, obviously. Tenchi's there. Outlaw Star, kick ASS. The "Midnight Run" stuff... remember "Midnight Run?" Slightly more violent anime! Cowboy Bebop, 8th MS Team, Yu Yu Hakusho... was Ruroni Kenshin afternoon or midnight?Both? I don't remember, that was kinda at the tail end of my viewership... Don't remember them ever showing Berserk, Ranma 1/2, or Trigun, but whatev, they fit. Then you've got pretty much every single Cartoon Cartoon. Seriously, I think they've got all of them (except Grim and Evil, but I think that one came later...). Some of the early/precursor Adult Swim stuff like Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Mission Hill, Home Movies... Batman AND Batman Beyond, both ends of the spectrum. Then some stuff that I don't think ever came near Toonami, such as Animaniacs, Freakazoid, Beast Wars, Roughnecks, and X-Men: The Animated Series, but I don't think anyone in the "Toonami fan" age bracket is going to care. Plus, they play house ads and the old Toonami framing sequences between episodes, for extra nostalgic appeal.
Y'know, we really got lucky, cartoon-wise, anyhow, to grow up when we did. TVTropes calls it The Renaissance Age of Animation, and their description is probably better than anything I could do. Nicktoons, Cartoon Cartoons, Toonami, WB Stuff, Darkwing Duck, The Simpsons... just killer stuff. I guess market forces made hand-drawn, higher quality stuff profitable back then, because today its all low budgets and CGI, because kids have too many other things competing for their time and income, like internet phones that play games and music. Christ, when I was a kid the height of technology was the Game Boy Color. And we were happy to have that Game Boy Color, it was amazing! But at the end of the day, of COURSE we watched Dragonball Z and Outlaw Star. Because all we had to distract us was the Game Boy Color! And I might have had dial-up internet at the time... I think I was the only one of my friends who did, and only one computer in the house was connected, and videos took a few hours to load, and you couldn't make phone calls while online, and-
Did you do it? Do it! I know, I too have been burned when people insist I have to see a site RIGHT NOW that didn't really warrant that level of excitement, but I am telling you, for the first time in my entire life, here is a web site that warrants that level of excitement. CLICK. IT.
I know, right? It warms me well to know not only that there are other huge fans of Toonami and mid 90's/early '00s Cartoon Network, but that they're crazy enough to devote their time, energy, and money to recreating the experience in a way that will almost certainly end with all of them sued. But they did it anyway! The fact that people out there work their asses off just to entertain, for nothing more than that intrinsic value... really, it hits me on a level meaningful enough that it almost brings tears to my eyes. Thank you, you wonderful, crazy bastards!
Look at the schedule. Okay, whadda we got here... Well, you got a lot of the anime my friends, brother, and I would devour after school. Dragonball Z, obviously. Tenchi's there. Outlaw Star, kick ASS. The "Midnight Run" stuff... remember "Midnight Run?" Slightly more violent anime! Cowboy Bebop, 8th MS Team, Yu Yu Hakusho... was Ruroni Kenshin afternoon or midnight?Both? I don't remember, that was kinda at the tail end of my viewership... Don't remember them ever showing Berserk, Ranma 1/2, or Trigun, but whatev, they fit. Then you've got pretty much every single Cartoon Cartoon. Seriously, I think they've got all of them (except Grim and Evil, but I think that one came later...). Some of the early/precursor Adult Swim stuff like Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Mission Hill, Home Movies... Batman AND Batman Beyond, both ends of the spectrum. Then some stuff that I don't think ever came near Toonami, such as Animaniacs, Freakazoid, Beast Wars, Roughnecks, and X-Men: The Animated Series, but I don't think anyone in the "Toonami fan" age bracket is going to care. Plus, they play house ads and the old Toonami framing sequences between episodes, for extra nostalgic appeal.
Y'know, we really got lucky, cartoon-wise, anyhow, to grow up when we did. TVTropes calls it The Renaissance Age of Animation, and their description is probably better than anything I could do. Nicktoons, Cartoon Cartoons, Toonami, WB Stuff, Darkwing Duck, The Simpsons... just killer stuff. I guess market forces made hand-drawn, higher quality stuff profitable back then, because today its all low budgets and CGI, because kids have too many other things competing for their time and income, like internet phones that play games and music. Christ, when I was a kid the height of technology was the Game Boy Color. And we were happy to have that Game Boy Color, it was amazing! But at the end of the day, of COURSE we watched Dragonball Z and Outlaw Star. Because all we had to distract us was the Game Boy Color! And I might have had dial-up internet at the time... I think I was the only one of my friends who did, and only one computer in the house was connected, and videos took a few hours to load, and you couldn't make phone calls while online, and-
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