I love games of all sorts but I've always especially liked video games. As a baby I had allot of fun on my uncles' atari, coleco, and intellivision and when I got older I started collecting with the original NES (yea with ROB) and that thing still works.

• 13Sep 07

  AO No!

  

  So Manhunt 2 has been edited and blurred upfor an M rating?
  

  That's Great.
  That's exactly what the people looking forward to this game wanted: a happier, gentler more easy going game named MANHUNT2.

  My biggest problem now, is that I can't decide who deserves most of the blame for this travesty. When I was a kid and we went to the video store to rent tapes, there was always that curtained off area in the back that your parents would never let you go in no matter how happy uncle Phil was when he would exit. The purpose of the curtain wasn't for decoration or allure. It was to prevent our fragile little eyes from gazing a peek at a poster or tape-box containing images of body parts normally covered with clothing. If we lived in a theocratic state like some people in the mid-east, the video store wouldn't need the curtain or the room, but we live in the United States where consumers wereallowed to rent and purchase entertainment products which some may find offensive, vulgar, and/or perverted.

  Why the past tense? Well we're apparently no longer able to decide what is suitable entertainment no matter how old we are; and to the surprise of many, it isn't even the government who is regulating us yet. It's retail chains like Wal-Mart who are built on religious foundations by religious fundamentalists that pose the biggest threat.As it makes up a large percentage of overall retail sales across America, anythingWal-Mart bans from it's shelves will not reach a majority of the shoppers' eyes. This is why so many companies (not just game publishers) that produce retail goods feel the need to adhere to Wal-Mart's regulations. So you have other (not necessarily religious) corporations being forced to adhere to one retail outlet's fanatical beliefs. I don't see why American companies would want to endorse this practice since we see that it doesn't work too well for the corporations in third world hell holes that we invade. This is why I often get the feeling that our way of life is threatened more by radical Christian clerics (like Pat Robertson) than radical Islamic clerics.

  I hate that the game companies feel that they need to cater to the big retail chains like Wal-Mart who think that anything more violent than Bambi or more sexually explicit than a Harry Potter film is too icky to be sold to the American public but this is why monopolies aren't usually allowed to exist. However some retail chains (like Wal-Mart) get so big that while they aren't quite yet a literal monopoly, their choices still effect everyone from other large corporations down to thecommon consumer.

  Many gamers worry about politicians and other needy publicity hounds but those fools never actually get anything done. It is the monopolies (among other things) that threaten game creativity as well as the public view of gamers by making them look like wasteful fools (perhaps the greatest disservice GameStop/EB provides to gamers; but that's a whole 'nother article) while they are rewarded with greater profits every quarter. Will R* keeptrying to push the envelope if it means another half years work every time? I hope so.

  Now, I know it is the goal of any corporation to make as much money for it's shareholders no matter what it does to our health, environment, and/or our American way of life and that is why so many of these corporationsdo things that are harmful to us. But with retail chains like Wal-Mart or GameStop, they oftentimes have to directly harm and/or scam their customers in order to drive the greatest profit. This is where the consumer must make a stand. Does it bother you that Wal-Mart refuses to sell the kind of games you want to buy? Then don't buy anythingfrom them. Do you buy used games from GameStop because saving $1 is better than nothing? Then use a service that cuts out the middle man (and his profit) like Amazon or eBay so you can save $10-20. I have amassed a huge collection of games and systems without ever resorting to Wal-Mart or GameStop while some think they're the only places to buy games.

  If enough gamers stop giving their money to these corporations, they'll either stop selling games or realize they can't openlypatronize us the way they have been. As long as we allow these retail chains to make fools out of us, they will, and completely without shame, because it earns them a pat on the back from their investors.

  And that brings me to the point of this whole rant: Manhunt2. I'm one of the people whoWAS really looking forward to this game. I'm not into the "torture horror" movies like Saw or Hostel but a game like that seems very interesting because we don't often see it. Sure one has come out every few years since the old arcade light gun game Chiller but the genre isn't a common fixture to the catalog of most publishers the same way sci -fi RTS games are. My curiosity was also encouraged by the question "How far will they go?" which is, I'm sure, the draw to most fans of the "torture horror" flicks. Of course, now, I will not have a satisfactory answer since the game now hasbeenedited so that some kills are removed and the others are blurred or darkened.

  While the makers of horror movies are free to go as far as they want, knowing that the more restrictive the rating, the more rabid the fanbase. Game publishers on the other hand are learning they can't take a game as far as an AO rating and still have it show up on the three big home consoles or the two little portable consoles either since not only Nintendo, but Microsoft and Sony also forbid such games to be made for their machines. So why should we bother to buy games that the publisher was forced to edit, especially if it was the most shocking bits (the shocking bits being the draw) that were taken out? It's buying a game that the publisheradmits to being only half done with. Don't they know that anyone buying a game called Manhunt is looking for shock and horror?

  And then we have to ask, what's the point of the AO rating if the companies aren't allowed to make them for the consoles? Why don't they just leave those games Unrated which you can get for your computer regardless of it's standing with the ESRB. These games are usually imported and thus rating less anyway. And then I can't help but wonder, what's the use of these game consoles anyway? You can get a pc to do pretty much anything these game consoles can do, and better too. Not to mention that while we do usually have to wait, any game that comes out on a console, eventually makes it to the PC, and usually in much better form. So why would anyone who has a PC get an incomplete console version of Manhunt 2 when they can have the complete experience on the PC.

  Now, I do understand that there are bad parents out there who will get their deranged kid any video game no matter how inappropriate the game or unhinged their child as long as it'll shut the kid up for a second. Are these people worth restricting ourselves for and willunavailability of a game stop the child from growing up a psycho? I'm sure the answer to both questions is a resounding NO. Don't we already know that restricting video game content will have as much of an effect on the issue as the Comic book seal or the Explicit Lyrics stickers.

  Anyone who wasn't completely stoned during Psych 101 would know that psycho kids go psycho because of abuse that they've suffered. At least, that's the case with every psycho who's ever lived to this day. No one ever went psycho from a game (on the computer, D&D, Checkers or anything else), music (heavy metal, rock, and jazz are all innocent too), or comic books (even the ones about psychos) and if you asked any psychologist (who isn't a part of the Moral Majority or some other radical religious movement) they would laugh at you for suggesting they could. Okay... MAYBE it could work if you had one of those acid feeding, eyelid propping crazy chairs from Clockwork Orange; but otherwise, it's a preposterous suggestion.

  The only link that could be made is that someone who is already a psycho may also like violent games, heavy metal music, and the old horror comics, but that doesn't necessarily make it the cause. Psychos probably all like hamburgers too, should we blame the beef industry then? I can see that Thompson d-bag's argument now: "It's meat, it's chopped, and you're just going to hand it over to some gore crazed psychotic case?" You see how preposterous this can get. Guys like him are probably thinking that if this game is released, kids are going to be strangling each other with their nunchuck cords or bludgeoning people to death with their wiimote.

  So let's decide, are we going to let a bunch of misguided religious fundamentalists decide what's appropriate entertainment for us? Hey, it works in the mid-east right? If you think so, you better get used to completely tasteful, sterilized, and comforting entertainment all the time, because if these nut cases have it their way, the only people who are going to be entertained in the future are these thoughtless mouth breathers who get a kick out ofthe 700 club and the psychos who, to everyone's surprise I'm sure, will still be out there in full force slicing people up.

  When we look at this situation with Manhunt 2's AO to M edit, we can see a dangerous precedent being set here where we may one day have to live our lives to the satisfaction of religious nuts. Look at the state of politics: the able majority isn't listened to in this country, it's the vocal yet completely insane fundamentalists who are so obsessed they write to their congressman everyday about the offensive cleavege they saw on TV. Did you ever watch the Breakfast Club on network TV? It's a very different movie isn't it? They cut out whole scenes and the VO edits are horrible. Can you imagine if it was only possible to purchase the DVD of the cheesy edited for TV version? That isn't an America I want to live in.

  • Posted Sep 13, 2007 8:55 am PT
  • Category: Games
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• 23Jan 07

  Disappointed? Just a Wii bit.

  
  
  I've had my new Nintendo Wii for over a month now and I have to say that I only have two complaints. I'm going to address these two slips because I do not have the time to detail all of the things that I love about Nintendo's little miracle. The first problem is that the "virtual consol" is a total bore. The second is that there doesn't seem to be a really good first person shooter yet.
  
  
  
  The virtual consol (as I've mentioned elsewhere on the site) currently has only old games which if I didn't play to death 20 years ago, I could play for free on an emulator. I don't want to encourage anything illegal (at least anything infringing on the rights someone has to their creative work) but who are they trying to kid. Even the least savvy computer novice can find and run an emulator and some roms.
  
  
  
  What do I want to see? Some original games. I'm not expecting any geometry wars but I'm sure they could whip up some brain games for the shop. Of course they're probably going to make a $50 disc of that one instead. But even some tried and true games slightly modified for the wiimote would be worth 100-200 points to some. A motion sensitive snake game for example would probably cost one programmer an afternoon and rake in more points than any of the golden oldies they dusted off for the VC.
  
  
  
  And if they're going to dust off oldies for the VC, why don't they sell old arcade games that wouldn't even work on the other new systems. I'm thinking about all those old arcade light gun shooters of yesteryear like Chiller (remember that disturbing bit of programming?), Operation Wolf, and Terminator 2. These would be perfect for Nintendo's new controll scheme and could run with the wiimote alone. Yea it might take a little reworking, but I'm sure they would rake in way more points than Mario Bros., NES Soccer, and even the Zelda games. Why is Nintendo reviving the light gun style but neglecting the classic light gun games?
  
  
  These games would be especially welcome at this point as we don't really have too much shooting action to choose from on the Wii specific lineup. Red Steel was okay but I am glad I waited to see it on sale before buying it; the full $50 price is a bit of a rip off. Call of Duty wasn't the reinvention I expected either. For the system that revolutionised the light gun, they seem to not have the software to really make it shine as a shooter just yet. Most of the other games I've picked up however, do prove that this control scheme works well and can be quite intuitive.
  
  
  Those are my only problems. Of course neither of these little problems have overshadowed the great big strengths the Wii has going for it and in no way do I regret my purchase or the three hour wait outside the Nintendo World Store. Besides being fun for gamers like my wife & I, friends who never had an interest in games want to get one after trying ours.
  
  
  The price and the simplicity are proving that this is the most inclusive game system ever. It's certainly less intimidating than the current competitors whose $400+ tag and many buttoned gamepads bewilder most non-gamers. People who lost interest in games when the joystick went beyond one stick and one button are finding the Wii to be the next logical progression from the atari. In the end I believe all the game makers will be on their knees thanking Nintendo for expanding the market like this.
  
  -Gonzo
  
  
  • Posted Jan 23, 2007 3:16 pm PT
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• 25Oct 06

  Lik Sang Will Be Soerly Missed. Let's Stop Sony's Hypocracy

  http://www.PetitionOnline.com/liksang8/petition.html
  This is the link to click if you believe Sony overstepped it's bounds in suing Lik-Sang into oblivion. While Sony would like to deny their responsibility for this travesty, it's forcing them to play stupid (which they've been pretty good at lately) by saying their multiple lawsuits didn't directly cause Lik Sang to shut down. However that's dependent on the lie that they weren't aware Lik Sang was not a huge multinational corporation like themselves; unable to defend themselves in all the countries in which they were sued.
  For those of you who don't know, Lik Sang was a web shop where one could buy imported games, hardware, and peripherals which are either not available internationally or un-licenced and therefore not sold in all stores. I've bought items there which I couldn't even find in Chinatown. Such as my GBA Movie Player which I use everyday; mostly for reading ebooks and listening to music at the same time. My psp doesn't even do that.
  What Sony wanted was revenge on a scapegoat. They blamed Lik Sang for ruining the European market for PSPs when they started selling import PSPs to European customers before the official European release. Some of those who made the purchase were actual high level Sony Europe executives adding the indignity of hypocrisy to this scandal. It was this (Sony claims) which caused the PSP to sell so poorly in Europe rather than the fact that the smell had drifted over from America and Asia where we were already growing bored with the PSP.
  While I am mostly just upset about the closing of this site which provided a great service to us gamers, I am left wondering why our friends in Europe always have to wait for new games and hardware. In the case of the PSP, they had to wait so long, everyone lost interest. Currently, Dawn of War: Dark Crusade (which is based on a tabletop battle game from the UK) is out in America a month ahead of Europe. The idea came from Europe and they have to wait.
  Well I can't answer that question but I can ask you to sign the petition which will be sent to the High Court of London as well as Sony. While that may not actually DO anything, you can at least let them know that they can't intentionally hurt the gaming community like this and still expect us to buy their overpriced and frail hardware.
  When Sony says and does stupid things like this, it just makes me want to sh*+ in my PS2 and send it directly to Phil Harrison.
  http://www.PetitionOnline.com/liksang8/petition.html
  
  
  
  
  
  • Posted Oct 25, 2006 1:31 pm PT
  • Category: Business
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