Video Gaming

[Mal]

I was recently with my brother-in-law and he was playing Call of Duty, a first person shooter. I decided to see what the fuss was about (it's one of the highest selling games) so I picked it up (I have a PS3 and still occasionally play). And man, this game is like CRACK. Heart gets racing, and you get such a feeling of satisfaction from doing well (conversely get really pissed when you don't). It's almost like it's geared JUST to stimulate you in that way. My curiosity satisfied, I decided to quit playing this game because it serves no useful purpose. It almost feels like it forces you to go all or nothing. I think I went through withdrawal when I stopped playing!

 

I manage to avoid COD since I sux at 1st person shooters, I use to name myself CannonFodder when I played Quake on the PC The good COD players have so much experience on the maps that it's hard for casual players to get past the frustration of playing against them online. But I did enjoy the PS3 online demo of Crysis2 (I think I may be one of the few who didn't have connection issues) since I was playing people who didn't know the map any better than me. I also pick good players and just wingman them, helps keep me alive, and if you get a squad that works together a bit you just own the people who only play as individuals. But the quick replay format is totally addictive and just consumes time. Short matches and that I'll just have another try factor = what it's 2 am already

 

The teamwork of games (online and local co-op) is what's really appealing to me, I play boarderlands a lot currently with my partner. Great fun. One of the xbox guys at work plays COD with his brother and a few old friends that are no longer in town, he said it's cheaper than a phone call to stay in touch and they get to discuss stuff while chatting as they play.

 

As to wasting time in the real world after a day of -

meditation, work, taichi, work, kung fu, (then teaching 2x a week) finally dinner; I just enjoy entertainment - TVshows/movies, games, TTB (this one often creeps in earlier in the day ), books, music, whatever. Then it's time to sleep with perhaps a bit of damo's cave before bed

 

I think strict traditionalists would have issues with many if not all of the above forms of entertainment, I recall reading once that listening to music was bad as it distracts the mind (sic)

 

PSN artmgs73

[Mal]

and unfortunately for most people the "real world" is this

 

Every day the same dream

 

a browser game that is really quite depressing, but see what you can do

 

I love art that manipulates emotions, makes you consider life

[RyanO]

and unfortunately for most people the "real world" is this

 

Every day the same dream

 

a browser game that is really quite depressing, but see what you can do

 

I love art that manipulates emotions, makes you consider life

 

Mal, does that game ever end? I made two go throughs before I said enough is enough!

 

I like your views on entertainment, it's an issue I've been wondering about ever since I read a meditation book that said we should do our best to cut out all forms of unnecessary entertainment and use that time to meditate. Like you, I think that's a little overboard. Everything in moderation.

 

It's also why I asked Vortex what he thinks of a good book (that is one that doesn't have much practical value) since he disparages video games so much, because you could expand his argument to include all forms of entertainment. Though I do agree that video games are in a special category and some are worse than others (at being negative and addictive).

 

Never heard of Damo's cave, sounds cool, what's that?

[Sloppy Zhang]

Mal, does that game ever end? I made two go throughs before I said enough is enough!

 

Oh my gawd, that game was AWESOME!!!!!

 

Okay, here's a tip for when people play: the routine is fun, but find ways to break the routine, do what you AREN'T "supposed" to do, and cool things will happen

 

 

 

SPOILER ALERT! (for those too lazy to figure it all out on your own)

 

The old lady in the elevator tells you things at the start like "five more steps until you become a new person" or something like that. This is a clue. There are different ways to can go about your day, and after you accomplish certain things, the counter will go down.

 

After going down the elevator, go left and talk to the homeless person.

 

After going down the elevator, go right, and you can get into your car. Press shift, and you can get out of your car. Move to the left or right and go to the farm, pet the cow, get back to your car, and go to work (I discovered this by accident on my fourth day).

 

In the parking lot of your work there is a tree with a single leaf on it. Wait around a bit and it will fall. Press shift and pick up the leaf.

 

Go into work, go to your cubicle, sit down and work. Then wake up.

 

Or you can walk past your cubicle and jump down and commit suicide.

 

Either way, you'll wake up in your bed the next day.

 

Go to work naked, as in, don't press shift to put clothes on. Your boss will fire you. Of course, you'll wake up the next day and go to work!

 

Sometimes I didn't turn off the alarm. Sometimes I'd turn the tv on or off.

 

After you've accomplished everything, you wake up one morning and everyone is gone- your wife isn't there, the bum isn't there, the elevator lady isn't there, your boss isn't there, none of the workers are there. Even the cow is gone.... run to the far right of the balcony, and witness someone jumping.

 

That ends the game.

 

 

 

 

 

Of course, that's not the point, but if anyone wants to see all that happens, yeah. There's a lot of detail in the game. (the whole process took me about 10-15 minutes).

 

WONDERFUL.

Edited March 19, 2011 by Sloppy Zhang

[RyanO]

Oh, and I STRONGLY disagree with that comment about music!

 

[RyanO]

Oh my gawd, that game was AWESOME!!!!!

 

...

 

Ha! That is awesome. Now I feel kinda bad for giving up so soon.

[Mal]

Spoilers

 

Well it is repetitive and boring so making you give up is it's goal (I guess) so perhaps you won RyanO

 

I didn't get the homeless person I'm probably too condition into expecting left to right gameplay. But I went to work in my undies also jumped. Got the leaf (not as good as playing flower)

 

But touching the cow was really moving and emotional, especially compared to interacting with my in game wife I was only trying to walk to work

 

Speaking of flower, since I also loved flOw I'm really looking forward to Journy from thatgamecompany "our goal is to make video games communicating deeper and different emotional experiences the current video game market is not ..."

 

Yes, they are also creating expectations and a desire for new product to spend your money on, but I don't really have an issue with commercial models. Actually, while I don't enjoy the saturation hype advertising, I like how games have become more like mainstream entertainment with trailers, upcoming releases, etc. Now we just need an R18+ rating in Australia, unfortunately our government thinks gamers are all 12yo's As if I could have afford high end consoles and flat screen TV's as a kid, let alone a high end PC as an adult

[Sloppy Zhang]

Well it is repetitive and boring so making you give up is it's goal (I guess) so perhaps you won RyanO

 

It's hard to say what something's goal is, but something I'll say for video games, and people who consider themselves/are considered "gamers" is that (in my experience), after examining something, they test its boundaries.

 

I sent that around to some of my friends, and we all did the same things- we got the mechanics down, okay, shift to put on clothes, okay, go to work, okay, I see, oh, the same day, day in, day out, okay, that's nice.... hehe, what if I go to work naked? Oh, I can? Sweet. Oh, what if I go the other way, oh look, a bum. Hm, cool.

 

Go where you aren't supposed to go. Do what you aren't supposed to do. Is it outside the box thinking? Is it a reflexive reaction to disobey when someone tells you to do something? I dunno.

 

But it leads to non-linear thought and outside the box thinking. At least, it's what I'd like to think

[Everything]

It's hard to say what something's goal is, but something I'll say for video games, and people who consider themselves/are considered "gamers" is that (in my experience), after examining something, they test its boundaries.

 

I sent that around to some of my friends, and we all did the same things- we got the mechanics down, okay, shift to put on clothes, okay, go to work, okay, I see, oh, the same day, day in, day out, okay, that's nice.... hehe, what if I go to work naked? Oh, I can? Sweet. Oh, what if I go the other way, oh look, a bum. Hm, cool.

 

Go where you aren't supposed to go. Do what you aren't supposed to do. Is it outside the box thinking? Is it a reflexive reaction to disobey when someone tells you to do something? I dunno.

 

But it leads to non-linear thought and outside the box thinking. At least, it's what I'd like to think

Its good to know your own boundaries to have a more solid identity and to be able to function from that place of knowing thyself. I don't think gaming adds anything to this area of life, rather distract you from your true identity.

 

While gaming, you are in fact staring at a screen with a controller in your hands trying to accomplish something within a virtual reality that manifests in the real world to the smallest degree and therefor your attempts are futile and a waste. A person who would know his own boundary would know this fact and game according to this wisdom. Simply for entertainment purposes, artistic purposes, competetive needs, and no more. Rather, a competetive person would do much better to choose a more healthy sport like football.

 

Most gamers pretend that they're actually the one holding the gun, that they are actually saving the world or killing people. Else we would all be playing point and click games and not games that look so realistic. Thats why I think that nintendo games are for more mature audiences, even though I don't own a nintendo console.

Edited March 20, 2011 by Everything

[Sloppy Zhang]

Its good to know your own boundaries to have a more solid identity and to be able to function from that place of knowing thyself. I don't think gaming adds anything to this area of life, rather distract you from your true identity.

 

While gaming, you are in fact staring at a screen with a controller in your hands trying to accomplish something within a virtual reality that manifests in the real world to the smallest degree and therefor your attempts are futile and a waste. A person who would know his own boundary would know this fact and game according to this wisdom. Simply for entertainment purposes, artistic purposes, competetive needs, and no more. Rather, a competetive person would do much better to choose a more healthy sport like football.

 

Most gamers pretend that they're actually the one holding the gun, that they are actually saving the world or killing people. Else we would all be playing point and click games and not games that look so realistic. Thats why I think that nintendo games are for more mature audiences, even though I don't own a nintendo console.

 

But see this viewpoint is coming from a goal oriented perspective- you are asking yourself "what tangible thing do I get from this?" You answer "nothing", and so conclude the activity is meaningless, "futile and a waste".

 

Yet I ask you to look at the process that goes into it. The process of, "this is what I'm told I can do, how do I break out of it? Can I try this? What about this? What about this new combination?"

 

Now take the process you see while playing a video game, and apply that to business management. Apply it to a new play in a sports team. Apply it to military strategy. Human relationships. Entertainment. ANYTHING. And you allow for innovation and new creativity. Movement and life rather than stagnation and death.

 

As for your suggestion of football, I believe I, and a few others, have already offered a counter point- that your ability to carry that out relies on the proper timing, for instance, whether the weather allows it, and the spatial concerns, for instance, whether you have friends available to play. Many people have friends who move away, or are in situations in which stuff like football isn't an option. Video games allow for that entertainment.

 

But AGAIN, again again again again and AGAIN, I must stress that it's about being able to make good decisions. There is a time for gaming, and there is a time for not gaming. As with anything else, you reach a point of diminishing returns. Where you play so much that any benefits you'd receive are outweighed by detriments. But where that point falls is different for each person and position, so unless you have a proper understanding of the context, it's impossible to say one way or the other in all cases.

 

There are certainly situations in which choosing to play video games is the less desirable option. But there are situations in which strictly adhering to a dogma of "video games are pointless" is going to leave you missing out on what could be a very enlightening experience.

[Birch]

Gaming getting used to train people - amongst other things. IMO it's sort of like cognitive yoga - brain doesn't necessarily know the difference. So I'd say be careful which games you pick for you and yours. Jus' like TV :-) But maybe worse.

 

However, I will admit, with guilt and pleasure to finding that Angry Birds rocks. Especially the dialogue. Mhnyuck nyucj grognt.