Gamer Culture, Gears of War, Halo, Politics
The Consequence of Pessimism
For countless generations it has been said that the children are our future. But exactly what does this mean? A superficial interpretation will merely state that the youth will take over the roles of tomorrow.
However, as older generations are physically replaced by newer generations, there is also an introduction of new ideas, new values, and new perspectives that result in an overall change that expands throughout all social, cultural, political, and economic spectrums.
Often times, popular culture plays a large role in influencing future values. So, this begs the question of how will the generation of current popular culture, which also includes video games, come to view the world?
Read More »
Valve, the masterminds behind the Half-Life, Portal, Team Fortress, and many other amazing series, have dazzled us since they first tossed us into the body of Dr. Gordon Freeman. However, the people developing Black Mesa thought that the original Half-Life needed to be re-done. Now don’t go getting offended just yet, not until you’ve seen exactly what they’ve accomplished.
Ranking Valve games is a lot like ranking your own children. When people ask, you spout, “I love them all” or something equally inane. Deep down, though, you prefer little Randy and hope Sally is the mailman’s demon spawn so you can divorce your overbearing shrew of a wife. Note to current and prospective parents: Child Services frowns upon ranking children with a branding iron, especially when rankings are subject to change.
There are few certainties in gaming: extra lives, “game over” screens, and saving the princess. It’s time to add one more to that short list. The addition of the gun from Portal would drastically alter any game (for the better, of course), so why not help struggling developers who can’t seem to come up with new game play mechanics? Here’s a list of games that would benefit greatly from the inclusion of a portal gun — GLADoS (sadly) not included.
EA is no stranger to acquisitions. The monolithic mega-corporation has been snatching up other gaming companies for years, much to the chagrin of gamers and the satisfaction of stockholders. As a result, EA has earned an unflattering reputation specifically among its detractors as a big, bad monopoly - similar to how some think of Microsoft’s computer business. Unsurprisingly, EA could have a new target in mind: Valve. Known for its epic Half Life series, the creative giant isn’t exactly prolific. Could this change if they set up shop under the enormous EA banner? Or will the next Portal game feature burly linebackers tackling each other through tears in the time-space continuum while John Madden mumbles lethargically? Wait…that actually sounds kind of cool.
You can’t say “ground-breaking first person shooter” without mentioning the Half-Life series in the same breath. Since its initial release on the PC in 1998, the series has garnered overwhelming critical acclaim as well as commercial success. Crowbar-wielding Gordon Freeman fanboys have been frothing for Valve’s next concoction – Half-Life 2: Episode 3 – for over a year.