I recently watched a documentary called Playing Columbine: A True Story of Video Game Controversy. It is a documentary centered around a game called Super Columbine Massacre RPG! and the way video games are portrayed in today's media. I found it to be rather thought provoking and I decided to post my thoughts here in the hopes that someone may read it and go on to play the game, watch the documentary, or just start talking to someone. Please feel free to leave me a comment.

As a "gamer" we have been and still are scrutinized regularly by society and the media, particularly whenever someone that plays games commits some act of violence. At this point it's probably safe to say that we are scrutinized more heavily then people that watch movies, listen to music, or (gasp) read books. You don't hear FOX News blaming the bible for the actions of a few religious nutcases. Nor do we often hear of serious campaigns saying that X movie is warping the minds of youth and is the cancer killing our society. I recall back when the Harry Potter craze was at it's peak you'd occasionally hear or see someone saying that the books were a negative influence on children, that it was turning them to witchcraft. These people were mostly ignored as just about everyone realized that their arguments were crazy. But it's obvious that video games are the cause of a host of problems with today's youth. If a couple of kids were to mutilate a younger child while acting out something from one of the Harry Potter books would the media give it the same kind of attention as if somebody did something they did in GTA? I'd be very surprised if the answer was yes.

I can think of reasons why the media does this and both reasons are cultural. For starters, most of the people involved in bringing us the "news" are from the previous generation (commonly called the baby boomers). While by this day and age everyone from the previous generation is familiar with the existence of games only a small minority likely respect and understand the artist medium that are video games. If you look back through history you'll likely find that every time a new entertainment medium emerges the previous generation blames it for society's ills. Be it rock music, movies, table top role playing games, or games like Manhunt, it is human nature to fear that which you do not understand. Only an enlightened few will make the actual effort of beginning to understand or appreciate something they aren't comfortable with. The second reason is that most members of society doesn't want to think about what's wrong with themselves. Society has always needed scapegoats for everything that is wrong with it, every tragedy, every warped individual. To place blame is to be human, we all do it on some level. Few people can come out and say they they messed up, that something is completely their fault. That they were lousy parents, that they ignored the kid being bullied in their c lassroom, that they didn't want to invest the time to help someone other then themselves. That is why the same kind of bullying goes on in schools a few years after a shooting. It's easier to blame something for a persons actions then actually think about the societal cause and try to do something to change things for the better.

Gaming is not a new medium anymore, but to those that don't play games or only play(ed) them casually they are still just kids toys. Super Mario Brothers, Sonic, Animal Crossing, Harvest Moon, these are the kind of things that come to a lot of peoples minds when they think of video games. The idea of the things you can do in GTA is as offensive to the people that don't understand the medium as the idea of Disney producing a full length animated pornographic movie. It is as wrong to blame them for doing what they do as it is for them to blame DOOM and Marilyn Manson for something like the Columbine shooting. FOX News knows that if they blame video games for some recent act of terrible violence they will get ratings. And if they bring someone like Jack Thompson or any "expert" that has never played anything more advanced then Tetris or Mario nobody will question them. To question the media is to question the unthinking hordes of people that just buy into everything they present as "fact". You and I might know better, but the middle aged Christian mother of two teenagers probably doesn't. I can't blame my cat for throwing up on the living room carpet, nor can I blame my Christian father for not understanding the appeal of Grand Theft Auto.

As people that do understand this misrepresented and misunderstood medium it is up to us to both educate and set an example for the general population. There are millions of people that play games across the world, but if a few go out and do something terrible it's not us that the media will focus on. Just like people don't talk about the hundreds of millions of genuinely nice, peaceful, tolerant Muslims out there. I don't claim to know the answers but I do know that posting messages on internet forums about what violent act you'd like to do to Jack Thompson does not help, in fact your helping people like him. Being hostile and/or rude is not the answer, being frank, well spoken, and polite will probably actually get us somewhere. What we can do is discuss things when the issues come up. Talk to your parents about that report about the effects of on violence in video games on children with your parents. Write a well spoken, thoughtful letter to the editor of a magazine or newspaper after they blame video games for the decay in the values of todays youth. Aside from things like that all we can do is wait. Because like every misunderstood generation before us it's only a matter of time till we are in charge. In ten to twenty years there might be an American president that has played (any privately enjoyed) Grand Theft Auto IV.

Another thing I don't hear very often said by people like us to ignorant politicians and journalists is "you have a point". And you know what, Jack Thompson might be a bit of a religious nutcase, but I also think he is right about a lot of things. I strongly believe that video games can be a bad influence on kids and that they should not be sold or given to minors. And the kicker here is that, from what I've read, most gamers would agree with that statement. I know that were I in a position where I had to shoot someone it would not have the same effect as it would on someone that hasn't done the act thousands of times in a virtual world. I know that this is because I play video games, I know that in some ways they have desensitized me to certain images. Jack Thompson is right when he says that violent video games are a danger to children. Perhaps this is because he knows that when combined with bad parenting an individual is much more likely to be prone to violence. The thing is this can happen with any medium, I could use the bible to raise a killing machine. Just look at the crazy folk blowing themselves up in the middle east for their god.

What has been pointed out so many times by people in the gaming community is that it's the ignorance of parents and adults that puts Manhunt in the hands of a ten year old. People talk about rating systems and the need to communicate the content of games to parents purchasing titles for their kids. I don't see a giant M in the corner of movies, in fact I often have to squint to see the box that tells me that the movie contains scenes of graphic violence and coarse language. But that goes back to my point earlier, the previous generation understands movies, they are comfortable judging the content of a movie and wither or not it's appropriate for their children. When I was a kid my parents wouldn't let me watch or rent R rated movies but I had several games for my ps1 that were rated M. Now my parents weren't ignorant trailer trash, nor were they the kind of folk that didn't think about how their kids turned out. It is us up to the gaming community to inform parents about what their buying. To just say that kids having access to these mature games is purely the fault of the parents is just as wrong as the media blaming the games for the violent actions of a few individuals. Knowing this we need to find a way to act accordingly, to actually do something about a problem rather then simply shift blame. But it is also up to parents to care enough to ask, and even more important to have an open dialog with their children about what they are playing. I've worked in game stores and I've told parents buying San Andreas about the content only to have them shrug and buy it anyway. If the government passes law that allows me to deny the sale of that game to that adult or that fines the parent for buying a game I can't say I'd object. If I worked in a store and got caught selling alcohol to someone obviously buying it for a minor I'd probably lose my job. Why are we getting so defensive about the idea of a state passing a law that would let an employee say "I'm sorry sir, I can't sell you this game because you are obviously buying it for a minor"? I certainly don't believe in censorship or banning a game based on it's content, but restricting who has access to potentially damaging content just makes sense. If you have ID and are over 18 nobody will stop you from buying GTA and then killing that hooker to get your money back. If your thirteen and don't like it, that's just the way the world works, it should be up to your parents to know if your are able to properly digest that kind of content.

Finally I believe a large part of educating people lies within the evolution of the medium itself. The vast majority of games being released today are fluff. A paper thin story providing reasons for a two dimensional character to go out and do acts of extreme violence. It us up to game developers, publishers, and us the consumers to force the world to take video games as a mature medium for artistic expression, and social commentary. Video games aren't just kids toys anymore, the responsibility of proving this falls to those that make, publish, and enjoy them. You, the gamer reading this can help, yes you can actually do something. Buy games that have actual story, or have a story that deals with social issues we are facing today. Go play Super Columbine Massacre RPG! and talk to somebody about the social conditions that make people do terrible things like that. Think about what your doing, you may find that it helps you enjoy what your playing. Play a game that has artistic merit rather then just another shooter. Think about what your playing, more importantly start wanting to think about what your playing from time to time. When was the last time you played something that actually had any kind of lasting impact on your life. It's up to us to create the demand for games that do.

Now perhaps your thinking something along the lines of "I don't play games to think, I play them so I don't have to". That's fair . . . . . . . to an extent. If you are actively avoiding thinking, about yourself, your life, or the world you live in perhaps that in itself is a reason to step back and ask "why?". Nobody wants to be constantly engaged with complex social issues, or themes that force you to question how you've been living. Sometimes I just want to pick up a shotgun and put a few people down. In the same way I don't always want to watch movies like Fight Club that force me to think about how I'm living my life and how I should change for the better. Sometimes I just want to watch something simple with a lot of entertaining violence. But if all we immerse ourselves in is shallow and pointless, if all we do is play to tune out our lives and the world. Then we are doomed to become the same unthinking people that don't ponder the causes and just blame something easy when things go wrong.

Apparently youth crime rates are lower today then they were back in 1993, despite GTA, Gears of War, and God of War. You and I both know that just like any contact sport they can serve as a release. It is up to us to stand up to the media and show them they are wrong. To educate those that know little or nothing about video games. To ensure our favorite pastime isn't persecuted just because a few sad individuals also enjoyed it as well.

If your reading this your probably either using Firefox 2 or Internet Explorer 7. If your using firefox you may or may not be familiar with it's history and how it it's linked with IE. If your not then suffice it to say that were it not for Firefox and it's being superior to IE in every possible way we (XP users) would still be using IE 6. It is of my opinion that Firefox is really the only browser you should be using. And to top it all off Firefox 3 is set to be released tomorrow (june 17) which I have been using the public beta's for almost three months and can say that it is a great improvement over FF 2. Anyway, Firefox is made my Mozilla and you can imagine that it perked my interest when I found out that Mozilla was currently developing a media player.

Songbird has been in development for a while now and earlier this month they released their 0.6 build as a public alpha. Previous builds have never worked on my computer partly due to the sheer size of my music library. But with 0.6 I can finally say that Songbird is . . . . . . . . . usable. There are still bugs all over the place, both with the program itself and the various add ons you can download. But it is still usable which for me was a huge step.

Now a lot of you are probably noting that it looks like iTunes but with a black color scheme . . . . . you would be right. As far as I'm concerned Windows Media Player 11 is where it's at but I'm assuming that with further time in development Songbird will take on a more unique (and hopefully better) look and feel. Until then it is at least useable and you iTunes users will quickly feel right at home. Also on the media player side songbird already seems to play just about anything I can throw at it. It can play anything WMP, iTunes, or Realplayer support as well as synch to just about any mp3 player. Something none of the three previously mentioned media players can clam to do well. Anyway, a new media player isn't anything special and so far Songbird isn't anything to sing about (yet). But Songbird has another side, it's not just a media player, it's also a web browser.

Now users of Realplayer probably know that Realplayer also has a web browser built into it. Thing is, unlike realplayer, Songbird's web browser doesn't suck. It is very basic at this point but it is also rather usable. Any bookmarks you make are stored on the side bar you can see in the pictures above, so with just a click you can go from your media library to your favorite website. Want to go back to your library and change what your listening to, click the back button. Want to keep your library open so you can swap back and forth from the web and your music, simply open another tab. Brilliant. Some of you might be wondering how secure the browser for Songbird is and I'd have to say that it's probably nowhere near as good as Firefox. Especially with the new security features introduced in Firefox 3. However Songbird is open source and supports user made add-ons for both it's meda player and it's web browser. Already there is a version of Noscript available for Songbird which brings it's browser security near or above what IE 7 offers.

Just like Firefox there is a page full of user made add-ons for you to tweak both Songbird's look and features. Unfortunately at this stage in development it is these add-ons that cause a lot of problems. Songbird is far from finished and it will likely freeze up or crash on you. Depending on how you use it and how many add-ons you have installed your issues may vary. I only have a couple add-ons installed at the moment (last.fm support being a big thing for me). However once the program is finished there will be a wealth of user add-ons which ensure that if Songbird doesn't do something you want then there is an add-on out there that makes it happen. Just like Firefox has going for it now.

I know for myself I will continue to follow Songbird's progress as I think the concept is brilliant. It elegantly brings two applications together into one program. If your somebody that always has music going while they browse the internet this program will be for you when it's finished. It's not something somebody that just uses the internet to do a couple things will appreciate, they are and will be better off sticking with Firefox. But for the legions of kids and adults that love their music as much as they use the internet like I do Songbird is a great idea. If it continues to keep getting better then it will be definately be worth your downloading, once it's finished.

I just finished reading gamespot's Dual Shock 3 Hands-On Feature and I just have to say a few things. I know i've covered this before in previous blog entries but I just feel the need to go into it again. Maybe it's just me but I really didn't miss rumble when I switched over to a ps3 back in February. In all my years of gaming I can't say that rumble has done anything for me other then amuse my girlfriend. Yes there have been a few examples of good rumble use (Metal Gear Solid and Psychonauts come to mind) but these titles are few and far between. From a development standpoint it made a lot of sense. Vibration comes from little motors, which drain your battery. Now I don't know about the folks using wireless 360 controllers but I don't have to charge my ps3 controller very often and from what I've heard the 360 controllers eat batteries if you play a lot. I would have been very interested to see how long the battery life of the Dual Shock 3 is compared with the vanilla sixaxis. Maybe there is a better battery in the dualshock but I would imagine you just have to spend more time tethered to that short usb cable that came with your ps3.

Also, maybe it's just me but I never found that a vibrating controller made my gaming experience more immersive. I don't need to controller to shake when I take a hit, skid over grass, or fall off a cliff, in fact it just annoys me most of the time. So I have no idea why so many people were whining to the point that Sony listened and graced us with the Dual Shock 3. Given the choice between rumble and longer battery life I'd go with the battery life in a heartbeat. But maybe that's just me coming from a time when games didn't have rumble. The controller didn't shake when Terra would cast ultima in Final Fantasy VI, or when Bowser was chucking giant cannon balls at Mario in Super Mario World, when Samus used bombs to get to high places while in the morph ball. Games were great before rumble and they are still great without rumble now.

If I wanted rumble support on my ps3 that bad I'd just pick up a ps2 to usb adaptor for a couple bucks rather then pay as much as a new game for a new controller. But the general public has never been one for doing the obvious when they can complain.

That said I guess I'm done. If you have any opinions on this leave me a comment below.

Hope your all well.

Dark Orb

I posted this in a thread over on the Legacy Platform board and thought I should put it up here too.

I know I'm not as good a gamer as I used to be. Mainly because I'm not as patient, i'm no longer willing to run around aimlessly trying to figure out what exactly I'm supposed to do. Nor am I willing to spend an afternoon trying to get through one boss or hard area anymore. I'm finding now that I like things to be more streamlined, obvious, and focused. I don't mind a challenge in games but I just don't have time for games with punishing difficulty anymore. Part of that is because I'm just not a kid living at home with school being the only thing I have to do. I've got responsibilities and less free time. I love gaming but I'd rather spend what free time I have enjoying games rather then taking part in a love/hate relationship with whatever it is I'm playing. So personally I don't mind games being easier. That said I don't enjoy a total pushover of a game that I can blow through in a day or two a reasonable challenge is what i'm after

On top of that I have the same thing a lot of older gamers are getting where it just takes more to impress me. More and more something reminds me of something else I've played that was just like it but better. You can see that a lot in reviews as a lot of games are unfairly criticized with "brings nothing new to the table" or "doesn't break the mould in any way". While I'm not nearly as bad as some I know some of this trait is slowly seeping into me as I play more games. If your interested I did a blog post about this back in Sept. which you can read here.

But the worst one for me is that I'm just not as quick with my reaction time as I used to be. Maybe this is something I can get back with time, practice, and a reason. I'm not to bad with Devil May Cry but I remember being a lot better at fighting games like Street Fighter. Also I've found that I can't do multiple things at once. Which makes it nearly impossible to play pc RTS games. It feels like that genre is just getting more and more complex with time so anything beyond Warcraft III is just frustrating which puts it in the same category as my first point above.

I don't know if the latter two are things that will change or that I can get back with an investment of time. But what I do know is that as you age you change as a gamer, both in your tastes and in ability. People aren't like wine, after a certain point a lot of us stop getting better. Certainly for myself it's made me realize that there is a day when I will stop looking at what's out next/soon in favor of spending the rest of my life tracking down and replaying the games that were released "back in the day". In a market aimed at kids and young adults you really notice when your not the target audience anymore, you can just never figure out when it happened.

Slowly working through my long list of games to play that I actually own. I just finished playing Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII last night and I felt it deserved a review. So I wrote one. I'm not srue what exactly I'll play next, i have a number of great options. I've been seeing a lot of stuff on Fallout 3 which leaves me wanting to play Fallout 2. I've played the first one a few times but I still have yet to really play more then the first half hour or so of Fallout 2. That said, looking at Fallout 3 shots also makes me want to play Oblivion which I don't even own yet. I loved Morrowind to bits but for a number of reasons I just havn't gotten around to picking up Oblivion. I'm kind of taking a long break for pc gaming though. I've almost been home for a year now and I'm still happy to have a playstation system under my tv again.

Hope your all well.

Dark Orb

I've been a gamer for a long time and have enjoyed a lot of games, i'm what you kids might call an "older gamer". There are a lot of great games out there that people haven't played for some reason. In this age of digital downloads, and hand held systems more powerful then previous home console generation there are a few things that I think need to happen. They stare me in the face and make me angry walking home from work sometimes. And then there are features that I know should be there. I use the systems but I just know some features should be there. Maybe i'm just crazy but it just makes sense to me.

1) The Sonic Mega Collection on PSP.

This is a no brainer for me. The original 2D sonic games were simply awesome. And SEGA has released a them in a fine collection on the Gamecube, the PS2, and the Xbox. Heck you can even get it for PC in Europe. You can play Sonic 2 on PSP if you own a copy of the SEGA Genesis Collection and you know what, it's still good. Why, oh why, has SEGA neglected this obvious move to make money and please fans? The original Sonic games were most of the blue hedgehog's best, so why not let me play them on the go rather then tarnishing his name further with some rediculous hoverboard game?

2) Secret of Mana!!

Square has been very kind to it's fans for the most part. They've re-released just about every one of the great RPGs they put out for the SNES back in the day. All of these releases have added goodies like bonus content, flashy new cut scenes, and updated script. But one fine gem has been left untouched to those of us without a copy of it and a SNES. Give me a collection for PS2 (ideally with Secret of Evermore), a re-release for PSP, even as a download on the Playstation Network. I don't care how I get it I just want to play it again on a modern system. I don't care if it gets touched up or directly ported, I just want it.

3) Play PSP games on/with your PS3

Really come on, there is no reason this can't be done. I can plug my psp into my ps3 and access my pictures, videos, and pictures with the ps3. Why can't I just start up whatever game I have in my PSP and play it on my TV with my controller? Back in the day we had to shell out a pile of cash for a Gameboy Player for the SNES. Or something that screwed into the bottom of your gamecube that let you play your GBA games. I can see this happening in a firmware update sometime if people wanted it to happen. And I'm still hoping it has by the time I get around to picking up Crisis Core.

4) Breath of Fire for PSP

Same thing as Secret of Mana and the Sonic Collection. Breath of Fire I and II on my psp or as a download for my ps3 would rock my world. As far as I'm concerned the Breath of Fire series rocked and I want to play it again.

5) Audiosurf for consoles

Those of you that have played it know what why this needs to happen. For those of you that haven't played Audiosurf for PC it's kind of a blend of guitar hero and a racing game. Basically the game takes any mp3 file and makes a racing track based on the song. Depending on the game mode you collect and avoid blocks for points and then submit scores to online scoreboards. I know it would suffer moving from a mouse to an analog stick but I know it can be done.

6) Last.fm on your PS3

I love my music, and I have a ton of it. Until I got my ps3 I always listened to it on my pc. But now that I can access any of the music on my pc and copy it to the ps3 hard drive I'm finding myself spending more and more time sprawled out on my couch listening to tunes. I use last.fm to keep track of what I listen to as I find it neat to look back at my listening habits. Considering the ps3 has an open connection to the internet I can't see a reason why the folks at last.fm couldn't work with sony to make a version of their client for the ps3.