Continuing my look at games that are breaking the "MMO" mold, this blog will be taking a look at a game that, on this thursday, will be celebrating it's second "birthday." The game I'm talking about is called League of Legends.
League of Legends, developed by Riot Games, actually has its roots in Blizzard, the company behind WoW. In the game World of Warcraft 3 it was possible to make your own maps and gametypes. A man created a gametype that would become exceptionally popular called Defense of the Ancients (DotA). Eventually another man named Steve Feak took that gametype and made a newer more advanced version called DotA Allstars. Not too long after he and a fellow designer got together and created the game League of Legends, which follows the same formula, albeit with some key changes.
League of Legends is a DotA style game that is played online between 10 people in 5v5 games, or 6 people in 3v3 games. The way it works is this: Players choose from a large number of characters called champions, each with their own unique abilities. Their objective is to defend their "nexus," a structure in their base, while trying to destroy the nexus of the enemy. All the while NPCs called minions constantly spawn and move to attack the enemy. Players earn gold and experience for their champion by killing minions, enemy players, and neutral monsters found throughout the game map. They use the experience to level up abilities, starting at level 1 every game and maxing their level at 18. They use the gold to buy weapons and armor which can be used to create stronger equipment, which makes their champion significantly stronger. Along the paths between the bases are towers which are exceptionally powerful, but can be destroyed with persistence.
Player stats are tracked, and they level up themselves based on how they do in games. They use the levels they obtain to make minor upgrades to their profile which effect any champions they play as, including attack speed, health, and experience gained. Players can make friends and play games in groups.
While it could be said this game has more in common with a game like Counter-Strike than WoW, League of Legends is relevant because it spells a different end to the WoW era. The complete abandonment of the MMORPG as a genre. As dramatic as that sounds, let me explain. Essentially, there were only two real types of games played online in the days when the PC dominated that market: MMORPGs and online shooters. Shooters have evolved to adapt to the console generation, while the MMO has largely stayed on the PC. As game developers move on from the WoW generation to different forms of online play, games like League of Legends come about (which has oddly enough spawned its own batch of imitators) which could mean developers are moving away from the MMO altogether, in order to capture a different market.
On that note, another interesting point about League of Legends is that it's 100% free to play. There is no "level cap" for players, none of the characters are restricted to players who pay real money, and none of the gametypes are exclusive. Champion selection has a free rotation that allows players to play a handful of the available champions as much as they want, and as they play they earn in game currency which can be used to purchase and permanently unlock champions, so they may always play as them, regardless of the rotation. Real money may also be used to unlock champions, and is the only way to unlock "skins," extra costumes for the champions, but it's not necessary.
I've actually been playing League of Legends for a bit over a month now. I've paid for a couple of things, but at most I think I've put about 40 dollars into the game. I find it very fun, and I've even gotten several of my friends to start playing. I think what makes it more enjoyable than say getting everyone in on an MMO is the lack of commitment. MMOs require a lot of time and effort to really be rewarding, while a game like League of Legends can give that sort of feeling within about 40 minutes. Does that mean impatience? Or does that mean I don't want to sink half a year into a game before it gets interesting? I suppose that question can be answered both ways, depending on the individual.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Life After WoW: Another Chapter
In browsing the internet, looking at videos, playing flash games, etc, I kept coming across two different ad banners. Both were advertising MMO games of sorts, but I had never seen games like them before. I decided to investigate. One was named Rusty Hearts, by Stairway Games, the other was called Elsword Online, made by KOG Studios. Both had a heavy emphasis on an anime style in terms of graphics, as well as story. What made them both jump out at me though, was the fact that you didn't make your own character. I'll go into more detail with each game as I discuss them in this blog.
Rusty Hearts is set in a fictional world, involving the undead and vampires. How players interact is simple, they pick from a set of pre-made characters, each having their own unique skills and abilities, then enter a server with other players. Only one player may be playing a particular character, so there are no multiples. The purpose of this is the game follows a "story" progression, and the characters are all unique in it. This is completely different from the standard MMO build of "making your own story" as you play. The game actually has a plot to it that the players are following. Because MMO's are built on sustained play it's probably a safe assumption that the plot does not have a definite end (I couldn't find one, in any case.) To date there are only three characters, but I feel like they'll probably add more down the road, as the game only recently came out in the US. Other than these features it plays like a fairly standard action MMO, with a large emphasis on hack n' slash as opposed to pointing and clicking. Sadly due to the new nature of the game I couldn't find any screenshots off the official website, but I did find a bunch of pictures through google. I don't think I can post those, so instead I'll link to the official site and to a gameplay video on Youtube. Here's the main site and here's the video. A fair warning though, the comments are a little harsh, mostly children bickering, but the video gives a solid look at the game.
Elsword Online is a side-scrolling action MMO, with a similar build to Rusty Hearts in that you pick from preset characters, but they have their own unique progression. The art style is done similarly to Rusty Hearts as well, focusing on a Manga-like appearance, even having comic "frames" appear during certain special attacks. The game has an over-arcing story that the players follow as they progress, and based on the artwork I'm inclined to believe players actually watch their characters grow up as they progress in level. The action is also similar to Rusty Hearts with emphasis on combos, hack n' slash mechanics, and a generally hectic pace. Screenshots were a little hard to come by, but again I'll post a link to their site here and a video here. All in all, it looks interesting, and action packed.
As new companies try new ways of approaching the MMO genre, we get oddballs and we get staples. I'm not sure what I'd call these games, but one thing is for certain, they are definitely different, and I figure that's a step in the right direction.
Rusty Hearts is set in a fictional world, involving the undead and vampires. How players interact is simple, they pick from a set of pre-made characters, each having their own unique skills and abilities, then enter a server with other players. Only one player may be playing a particular character, so there are no multiples. The purpose of this is the game follows a "story" progression, and the characters are all unique in it. This is completely different from the standard MMO build of "making your own story" as you play. The game actually has a plot to it that the players are following. Because MMO's are built on sustained play it's probably a safe assumption that the plot does not have a definite end (I couldn't find one, in any case.) To date there are only three characters, but I feel like they'll probably add more down the road, as the game only recently came out in the US. Other than these features it plays like a fairly standard action MMO, with a large emphasis on hack n' slash as opposed to pointing and clicking. Sadly due to the new nature of the game I couldn't find any screenshots off the official website, but I did find a bunch of pictures through google. I don't think I can post those, so instead I'll link to the official site and to a gameplay video on Youtube. Here's the main site and here's the video. A fair warning though, the comments are a little harsh, mostly children bickering, but the video gives a solid look at the game.
Elsword Online is a side-scrolling action MMO, with a similar build to Rusty Hearts in that you pick from preset characters, but they have their own unique progression. The art style is done similarly to Rusty Hearts as well, focusing on a Manga-like appearance, even having comic "frames" appear during certain special attacks. The game has an over-arcing story that the players follow as they progress, and based on the artwork I'm inclined to believe players actually watch their characters grow up as they progress in level. The action is also similar to Rusty Hearts with emphasis on combos, hack n' slash mechanics, and a generally hectic pace. Screenshots were a little hard to come by, but again I'll post a link to their site here and a video here. All in all, it looks interesting, and action packed.
As new companies try new ways of approaching the MMO genre, we get oddballs and we get staples. I'm not sure what I'd call these games, but one thing is for certain, they are definitely different, and I figure that's a step in the right direction.
COMM 344: Board Game Review
Recently I was able to get into a small group and try out two different board games that either had educational qualities or the potential to be educational. In this blog I will talk about both games and review them based on points in my Game Design text.
Ticket to Ride:
The first game I played was called Ticket to Ride. It reminded me a lot of Monopoly while lacking any kind of money or other currency. The premise of the game is to build railroad lines connecting various cities across North America. Using a simple card draw system, players build lines to connect cities, building a full track to their destination, winning them points. The main player-game interaction comes from the card draw. Random chance is always a good way to mix up the action in any game. The aspect that really makes me think of the real estate game, however, is in blocking tracks. Some sections of track are smaller than others, making them easier to build on. By taking your turn to build on one of these smaller sections, you can get a small amount of points, while at the same time blocking another track build if another player was hoping to use that section. This sort of railway monopoly blocking also feels like the primary player-player interaction. Players having to decide to either build their own way or stop another player cold provides a good competitive aspect that keeps it interesting. I liked the game overall, but on its face there isn't much educational value. My instructor's assumption about the game (that it focused on western railroad expansion) could be utilized to give the game an educational background, I think.
Trivial Pursuit: Totally 80's:
Trivial Pursuit at this point in time shouldn't need an introduction, it's the classic trivia-based board game. For those of you who don't know what it is though, here's a quick rundown: You have a piece on a board that looks like it's missing several parts, pie slice-shaped parts, specifically. You roll a die and move that many spaces in any direction, you'll land on a space of a particular color, at which point another player pulls a question card and reads the question that corresponds to that color on the card (Different colors mean different topics, like music, movies, news, etc) if you get it right, you can roll again. There are 6 spaces on the edge of the board that are each a different color/subject. Landing on these spaces and answering the corresponding question correctly earns you a pie piece of that color. Winning the game consists of getting all 6 pieces, returning to the center of the board and answering a final question.
This game was fun, with too many players my group split into two teams. Sadly the game never really took off since the game's questions were set in the 80's and none of us were particularly knowledgeable about that decade. Most of the questions had everyone stumped and saying "huh?" when the answer was finally given. A more relevant version of the game would have been better for us.
Player-player interaction is small, mostly sticking to players reading each other the questions. Team-based games have more interaction between players, but it's still minimal. The most interaction is player-game, between the dice rolls, the random card draw and the questions themselves. Basically it's a quiz game with a board under it, which means it could very easily be adapted for educational purposes. Unlike a standard quiz game, however, the board aspect combined with the different topics to question would keep things interesting I think. Overall I see a good deal of education potential in this game, and may craft my own based on this concept.
Ticket to Ride:
The first game I played was called Ticket to Ride. It reminded me a lot of Monopoly while lacking any kind of money or other currency. The premise of the game is to build railroad lines connecting various cities across North America. Using a simple card draw system, players build lines to connect cities, building a full track to their destination, winning them points. The main player-game interaction comes from the card draw. Random chance is always a good way to mix up the action in any game. The aspect that really makes me think of the real estate game, however, is in blocking tracks. Some sections of track are smaller than others, making them easier to build on. By taking your turn to build on one of these smaller sections, you can get a small amount of points, while at the same time blocking another track build if another player was hoping to use that section. This sort of railway monopoly blocking also feels like the primary player-player interaction. Players having to decide to either build their own way or stop another player cold provides a good competitive aspect that keeps it interesting. I liked the game overall, but on its face there isn't much educational value. My instructor's assumption about the game (that it focused on western railroad expansion) could be utilized to give the game an educational background, I think.
Trivial Pursuit: Totally 80's:
Trivial Pursuit at this point in time shouldn't need an introduction, it's the classic trivia-based board game. For those of you who don't know what it is though, here's a quick rundown: You have a piece on a board that looks like it's missing several parts, pie slice-shaped parts, specifically. You roll a die and move that many spaces in any direction, you'll land on a space of a particular color, at which point another player pulls a question card and reads the question that corresponds to that color on the card (Different colors mean different topics, like music, movies, news, etc) if you get it right, you can roll again. There are 6 spaces on the edge of the board that are each a different color/subject. Landing on these spaces and answering the corresponding question correctly earns you a pie piece of that color. Winning the game consists of getting all 6 pieces, returning to the center of the board and answering a final question.
This game was fun, with too many players my group split into two teams. Sadly the game never really took off since the game's questions were set in the 80's and none of us were particularly knowledgeable about that decade. Most of the questions had everyone stumped and saying "huh?" when the answer was finally given. A more relevant version of the game would have been better for us.
Player-player interaction is small, mostly sticking to players reading each other the questions. Team-based games have more interaction between players, but it's still minimal. The most interaction is player-game, between the dice rolls, the random card draw and the questions themselves. Basically it's a quiz game with a board under it, which means it could very easily be adapted for educational purposes. Unlike a standard quiz game, however, the board aspect combined with the different topics to question would keep things interesting I think. Overall I see a good deal of education potential in this game, and may craft my own based on this concept.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Social Issue Game Reviews
So today I played 4 different flash games online that were based on various social issues. In this blog I'll be going over them in moderate detail and giving them my reviews.
The first game I played was called Consumer Consequences, linked here. Here's a picture of the game in action:
The target age group for this game is probably in the late teens, early adulthood years due to the game asking questions about utility bills and travel expenses. The main concepts the game is trying to teach include consumption impact, perspective of consumption, and how to reduce consumption. I know that's a lot about consumption, but literally that's all this game is about. The game does a good (albeit demeaning) job of teaching me about my consumption levels. I feel as though it's more about reprimanding people for living their lifestyles, and I get the "green" feeling from it almost immediately. Aside from it all the game itself is just a survey with some visual representations, and without any entertainment value I don't see it accomplishing much. People don't like being told they're wrong, unless it's in a way that still makes them feel good (ironic, but still truthful). If this game wants to convey its message better, I'd recommend possibly making it more interactive, instead of just using the survey tech, have a player be able to adjust their lifestyles throughout the game and see the consequences change accordingly.
The next game I played was called Third World Farmer, which can be found here. Here's a picture of the gameplay:
The game was probably aimed at young adults, due to the more intricate system for farming, crop wages, and "random" afflictions. The game's message was clearly discussing the hardships and travesties that third world farming families have to face, and how much harsher their lives are than really anyone else's. But I feel as though the game can also show how some families end up doing well and even getting their children a solid education, although this is a rarity. The game did a good job in the short time I played it teaching me just how hard things are (relatively) by being almost completely unforgiving. Within two years I had basically lost the father to illness and had no sustainable crops due to one problem or another, while selling my dignity and part of my land to make enough money to live off of. It's almost shameful to think that I have their perspective now, and I know that I do not, but this game did give me at least a small glimpse into that world. To improve upon it, I can't really think of anything. The game was engaging enough to keep me playing even when things looked impossible, and the message is taught through the experience, rather than just spelled out for the player.
The third game I played was called Darfur is Dying, linked here. Here's a screenshot of gameplay:
This game could have been targeted to almost any age group past 10 years of age because of the gameplay, but due to the seriousness and mature nature of the message I'd say the age target was probably around 13+. The message of the game is clearly the state of refugees in Darfur under the Sudanese government. Having to dodge roving rebels in search of water as well as essentially watch a camp die hits pretty hard, and the game does a good job explaining all of the fates in store for those who get captured. More instruction during the camp sequences would help, because I felt like I was missing something that would have allowed me to do more, but maybe that was the point. I truly felt helpless at times, and I imagine that feeling is infinitely greater for the actual refugees.
The fourth game I found and played was called The Brink, located here. Here's a screenshot:
The game is targeted for just about any age group, and while it doesn't talk about a specific issue, it did discuss the global resource issue, which many are sure will become larger as we move into the future. The game was simple enough with it's design, but it was really too easy, and I managed to win in just three turns. I think a more visual aspect with a higher degree of difficulty would help convey the message better. Otherwise I think it's a solid idea that just needs some refinement.
The first game I played was called Consumer Consequences, linked here. Here's a picture of the game in action:
The next game I played was called Third World Farmer, which can be found here. Here's a picture of the gameplay:
The third game I played was called Darfur is Dying, linked here. Here's a screenshot of gameplay:
This game could have been targeted to almost any age group past 10 years of age because of the gameplay, but due to the seriousness and mature nature of the message I'd say the age target was probably around 13+. The message of the game is clearly the state of refugees in Darfur under the Sudanese government. Having to dodge roving rebels in search of water as well as essentially watch a camp die hits pretty hard, and the game does a good job explaining all of the fates in store for those who get captured. More instruction during the camp sequences would help, because I felt like I was missing something that would have allowed me to do more, but maybe that was the point. I truly felt helpless at times, and I imagine that feeling is infinitely greater for the actual refugees.
The fourth game I found and played was called The Brink, located here. Here's a screenshot:
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Life After WoW: The Next Generation
As we begin to say our fond farewells to the WoW generation, we look to the future, wondering what it holds in store for us. For this segment, I will be looking into a couple of MMORPG's that have either come out since WoW, or will be coming out within the next couple of years.
First on our list is the much-anticipated Star Wars: The Old Republic, by Bioware. Set in the Star Wars mythos (As the title suggests) this game takes place well before any of the movies, and even before many games that are placed in the universe.
While the game is still in development, and the release date changes depending on who you ask, most of the game's features are fairly well known and the community at large is eagerly awaiting the release.
One of the main features that will set TOR (The Old Republic) apart from other MMOs is the dialogue and player choice system. Players will be able to choose how their characters interact with the various NPCs (Non-Player Characters) that they encounter in the world, including how they speak to them. These dialogue options along with choices in how the players accomplish quests will open and close other quests further down their game progression, giving each player a unique experience that they themselves crafted through their actions. In this way Bioware is hoping to break the mold of linear quest progression, the idea that every player will do the exact same quests in the same order. While this does foster companionship with players working together to complete the same quest, I feel like the system in TOR will allow players to experience their own stories, and then help their friends in their own unique plots.
Another game worth mentioning is already out and has been doing well. It is called Rift, and it was developed by Trion Worlds. Rift is set in its own fictional world, creating a brand new universe and a brand new experience for players.
The core elements of Rift are similar to the standard MMO trends, but what separates it from others is the Rift mechanic. Throughout the gameworld rifts to other dimensions randomly open and special types of monsters begin to pour out of them. The players will have to rally at these moments to fight off the monsters and protect the area. If they fail, the area falls under the control of the rift-based beasts, and this causes long-term problems for the players until they can seal the rifts. I find that this is an interesting and spontaneous way to break up the standard monotonous questing, as well as a fresh take on the "random encounter" concept many RPGS rely on.
The last game we will be looking at is called DC Universe Online(DCUO). Set in the DC comic universe (Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, etc) the game was developed by Sony Computer Entertainment and Warner Brothers Games. An interesting note about this game was that it was released for both the PC and the Playstation 3.
Unlike more traditional fantasy-based MMOs, DCUO takes place in either Gotham City or Metropolis from the Batman universe and the Superman universe, respectfully, based on player choices at their character creation. Instead of character "classes" players instead choose a fighting style (martial arts, magic, sword, brawling, etc) and a power base (fire, gadgetry, nature, etc) and finally a movement style (super speed, flight, etc) and they craft how their superhero (or villain) will play from there.
Another interesting aspect of DCUO is how the weapons and armor system work. Players create the look for their characters before entering the game world, customizing color scheme and many details of their character's appearance. In a lot of other MMOs, these looks would eventually be covered up by the different armor and gear the player would acquire. While the gear is surely designed to be appealing, the character's individuality is crushed. In DCUO when a player obtains new gear they may choose to equip it normally, or they may choose to equip it but keep the "style" of their old gear. This allows players to visually keep their character's setup, unless they would prefer the look of the new gear. Due to this design choice almost every character is completely unique in appearance.
Games have come a long way since the likes of Pong and Pac-Man Those in the MMO world have come pretty far themselves. The knowledge that the industry will continue to tirelessly work and improve upon the greatness of the past fills me with hope for the future. I can't wait to see what this next generation of gaming can produce, and even the generation after that.
First on our list is the much-anticipated Star Wars: The Old Republic, by Bioware. Set in the Star Wars mythos (As the title suggests) this game takes place well before any of the movies, and even before many games that are placed in the universe.
While the game is still in development, and the release date changes depending on who you ask, most of the game's features are fairly well known and the community at large is eagerly awaiting the release.
One of the main features that will set TOR (The Old Republic) apart from other MMOs is the dialogue and player choice system. Players will be able to choose how their characters interact with the various NPCs (Non-Player Characters) that they encounter in the world, including how they speak to them. These dialogue options along with choices in how the players accomplish quests will open and close other quests further down their game progression, giving each player a unique experience that they themselves crafted through their actions. In this way Bioware is hoping to break the mold of linear quest progression, the idea that every player will do the exact same quests in the same order. While this does foster companionship with players working together to complete the same quest, I feel like the system in TOR will allow players to experience their own stories, and then help their friends in their own unique plots.
Another game worth mentioning is already out and has been doing well. It is called Rift, and it was developed by Trion Worlds. Rift is set in its own fictional world, creating a brand new universe and a brand new experience for players.
The core elements of Rift are similar to the standard MMO trends, but what separates it from others is the Rift mechanic. Throughout the gameworld rifts to other dimensions randomly open and special types of monsters begin to pour out of them. The players will have to rally at these moments to fight off the monsters and protect the area. If they fail, the area falls under the control of the rift-based beasts, and this causes long-term problems for the players until they can seal the rifts. I find that this is an interesting and spontaneous way to break up the standard monotonous questing, as well as a fresh take on the "random encounter" concept many RPGS rely on.
The last game we will be looking at is called DC Universe Online(DCUO). Set in the DC comic universe (Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, etc) the game was developed by Sony Computer Entertainment and Warner Brothers Games. An interesting note about this game was that it was released for both the PC and the Playstation 3.
Unlike more traditional fantasy-based MMOs, DCUO takes place in either Gotham City or Metropolis from the Batman universe and the Superman universe, respectfully, based on player choices at their character creation. Instead of character "classes" players instead choose a fighting style (martial arts, magic, sword, brawling, etc) and a power base (fire, gadgetry, nature, etc) and finally a movement style (super speed, flight, etc) and they craft how their superhero (or villain) will play from there.
Another interesting aspect of DCUO is how the weapons and armor system work. Players create the look for their characters before entering the game world, customizing color scheme and many details of their character's appearance. In a lot of other MMOs, these looks would eventually be covered up by the different armor and gear the player would acquire. While the gear is surely designed to be appealing, the character's individuality is crushed. In DCUO when a player obtains new gear they may choose to equip it normally, or they may choose to equip it but keep the "style" of their old gear. This allows players to visually keep their character's setup, unless they would prefer the look of the new gear. Due to this design choice almost every character is completely unique in appearance.
Games have come a long way since the likes of Pong and Pac-Man Those in the MMO world have come pretty far themselves. The knowledge that the industry will continue to tirelessly work and improve upon the greatness of the past fills me with hope for the future. I can't wait to see what this next generation of gaming can produce, and even the generation after that.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
A Response to Straw Towers
Recently the class participated in an activity where the objective was to, using a set number of straws and as much tape as needed, build a tower that would reach higher than any other player's tower. The rules stated that the tower could not lean on anything except it's own legs and that it had to stay standing for at least three seconds. This blog is a response to the question, "Would you say that the tower activity counts as "meaningful play" based on the definitions in the book?"
In a few words, no I do not think so.
What I saw in that activity was a chance to creatively solve a problem, with a hint of competition in it. However I don't feel as though the parameters of the project would fall under play. What we did has more in common with arts and crafts, or a science fair project. We had to work in a team, come up with our own solutions, and we were judged against our peers for our efforts.
This is not meant to discredit the project however. We were given creative leave to solve the problem however we wished, and it was a great way to get a look at our unique design styles. But ultimately I did not see the player/game or player/player relationship present in any game.
Based on the information I gathered before writing this blog, I'm interested in seeing just what kinds of activities we will be doing later on that will actually count as meaningful play. I look forward to seeing what sort of creativity can stem from it all.
In a few words, no I do not think so.
What I saw in that activity was a chance to creatively solve a problem, with a hint of competition in it. However I don't feel as though the parameters of the project would fall under play. What we did has more in common with arts and crafts, or a science fair project. We had to work in a team, come up with our own solutions, and we were judged against our peers for our efforts.
This is not meant to discredit the project however. We were given creative leave to solve the problem however we wished, and it was a great way to get a look at our unique design styles. But ultimately I did not see the player/game or player/player relationship present in any game.
Based on the information I gathered before writing this blog, I'm interested in seeing just what kinds of activities we will be doing later on that will actually count as meaningful play. I look forward to seeing what sort of creativity can stem from it all.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Life After WoW: Prologue
Many moons ago Blizzard Entertainment released a MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game) based off of their WarCraft universe. The game, called World of Warcraft, or WoW, changed online gaming forever, and established the standard for MMOs for years to come. Imitators and emulators came from every walk, trying to replicate the gold that WoW had started. Some tried keeping things fresh by adding their own spin on the formula, while others shamelessly copied every aspect of the game. None of these tactics worked, and they all ultimately failed or faded into obscurity as WoW continued to dominate. It seemed like Blizzard had managed to obtain a monopoly on the genre, but that was then, and this is now. And now...
Things are not going quite as well.
To start, articles in Game Informer said that from March of this year to July Blizzard reported a loss of 800,000 subscribers. Granted this means they dropped from 11.9 to 11.1 million, but it is still a significant drop, and their largest since they started the game. They have even started a "unlimited free trial" version of the game, which allows players to play as long as they like up to a certain level, getting rid of the standard 10 and 12 day trials.
Another sign of the WoW apocalypse is the fact that competing companies have stopped trying to emulate them. MMOs of the future are moving in different directions. A great example of this transition is the emergence of the MMOFPS (First Person Shooter). Games like Planetside dominated the somewhat unknown market but eventually faded away. Now the sequel is coming and a few other titles have been announced, such as Firefall, which is built on PvP (Player versus Player). These and other titles that are redefining how MMORPGs are played will reshape the mold that WoW broke.
WoW's days were gilded and full of cheap imitations. Their strength was and still is obvious, but it's the dawn of a new age in online gaming, and the future looks even brighter than Blizzard's golden child.
All information was found at these sites:
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/08/06/world-of-warcraft-subscriptions-fall-again.aspx
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/05/09/world-of-warcraft-drops-over-500k-subscribers-post-cataclysm.aspx
http://www.gameinformer.com/games/planetside_2/b/pc/archive/2011/08/18/new-planetside-2-screens-land.aspx
http://www.gameinformer.com/games/firefall/b/pc/archive/2011/08/18/hands-on-with-firefall-s-pvp.aspx
Things are not going quite as well.
To start, articles in Game Informer said that from March of this year to July Blizzard reported a loss of 800,000 subscribers. Granted this means they dropped from 11.9 to 11.1 million, but it is still a significant drop, and their largest since they started the game. They have even started a "unlimited free trial" version of the game, which allows players to play as long as they like up to a certain level, getting rid of the standard 10 and 12 day trials.
Another sign of the WoW apocalypse is the fact that competing companies have stopped trying to emulate them. MMOs of the future are moving in different directions. A great example of this transition is the emergence of the MMOFPS (First Person Shooter). Games like Planetside dominated the somewhat unknown market but eventually faded away. Now the sequel is coming and a few other titles have been announced, such as Firefall, which is built on PvP (Player versus Player). These and other titles that are redefining how MMORPGs are played will reshape the mold that WoW broke.
WoW's days were gilded and full of cheap imitations. Their strength was and still is obvious, but it's the dawn of a new age in online gaming, and the future looks even brighter than Blizzard's golden child.
All information was found at these sites:
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/08/06/world-of-warcraft-subscriptions-fall-again.aspx
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/05/09/world-of-warcraft-drops-over-500k-subscribers-post-cataclysm.aspx
http://www.gameinformer.com/games/planetside_2/b/pc/archive/2011/08/18/new-planetside-2-screens-land.aspx
http://www.gameinformer.com/games/firefall/b/pc/archive/2011/08/18/hands-on-with-firefall-s-pvp.aspx
Thursday, March 31, 2011
COMM 333: Music Video Concept
One of the first days of this class, I was thinking about what my music video would be about, what it would include, etc. My mind racked itself trying to think of concepts, and I was on the verge of despair because I couldn't think of anything. Then, suddenly, a memory came to me. Years ago, when I was still in high school I was browsing around a flash animation website called Newgrounds.com, when I found a series of videos by a user named O-Ovinnie. His videos had a very unique style and movement and I found myself thoroughly enjoying all of them. One video in particular stood out to me in terms of a music video. The flash animation was called "Days After Those Days + +" (I'll put up the link at the end of this post) and it was vinnie's first animation. The "animation" was nothing more than a succession of keyframes of what would be a traditional animation. More like a fast slideshow, but it was completely capable of conveying the action onscreen.
Then the idea hit me: A liveaction version of that video! Sadly I couldn't do a completely faithful reproduction due to the original video involving a wrecking ball and a rabid dog at one point. But I figured I could capture the essence of the video with actual people. So my concept is largely based around that: not quite stop motion, a little slower actually, with a lot of implied action and an interesting twist ending :D
link to original video: http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/170908
So I have entitled my video "Days After the Days After Those Days" and I hope it will entertain people and make them smile.
Then the idea hit me: A liveaction version of that video! Sadly I couldn't do a completely faithful reproduction due to the original video involving a wrecking ball and a rabid dog at one point. But I figured I could capture the essence of the video with actual people. So my concept is largely based around that: not quite stop motion, a little slower actually, with a lot of implied action and an interesting twist ending :D
link to original video: http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/170908
So I have entitled my video "Days After the Days After Those Days" and I hope it will entertain people and make them smile.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
The Digital Age: Film is the New Photograph
Our instructor in my music video course has said that everyone should have a fundemental knowledge of digital movie making in some form. Whether it is with Movie Maker, iMovie, or something closer to professional grade like FCP, everyone should learn the basics and be capable of creating and sharing digital movies.
I for one agree with this notion due to how heavily movie making has become integrated into our society. Advertising, relation campaigns, even simple family get-togethers are becoming more multimedia oriented. The simple family slide-show is being replaced by the compiled vacation video movie. Standard presentations are either being replaced or are using digital film in some way. When the home camera was invented it allowed anyone to become a photographer, to be able to take and make pictures of whatever they wanted. This expanded their horizons both in the professional workplace and in the home. Now if a company owned a camera they didn't have to hire a professional photographer, or they could have a professional as part of their normal staff as opposed to hiring a freelancer. Family portraits could be done at the home, without spending all the money on a studio or having someone else take the pictures.
Video cameras have been around for a while, but it is only fairly recently that they have become primarily digital, allowing anyone to transfer the footage to their computer for editing. Where film-based cameras essentially gave you what you got out of them without the ability to do much about it, digital film allows people to share and edit their work with ease and cost-effectiveness. The same goes for companies, who would either have to rely entirely on a third party or simply do without. Now they can pay for pro-grade software and train some PR employees and suddenly they can make their own commercials or on a smaller scale create professional presentation videos.
The usefulness of understanding movie making and editing now is similar to understanding how cameras worked when home photography was a new idea. While not technically a necessity to a successful or happy life it can easily enrich those who want to be able to archive memories in the family or those who want to take the next step in professionalism and effeciency.
I for one agree with this notion due to how heavily movie making has become integrated into our society. Advertising, relation campaigns, even simple family get-togethers are becoming more multimedia oriented. The simple family slide-show is being replaced by the compiled vacation video movie. Standard presentations are either being replaced or are using digital film in some way. When the home camera was invented it allowed anyone to become a photographer, to be able to take and make pictures of whatever they wanted. This expanded their horizons both in the professional workplace and in the home. Now if a company owned a camera they didn't have to hire a professional photographer, or they could have a professional as part of their normal staff as opposed to hiring a freelancer. Family portraits could be done at the home, without spending all the money on a studio or having someone else take the pictures.
Video cameras have been around for a while, but it is only fairly recently that they have become primarily digital, allowing anyone to transfer the footage to their computer for editing. Where film-based cameras essentially gave you what you got out of them without the ability to do much about it, digital film allows people to share and edit their work with ease and cost-effectiveness. The same goes for companies, who would either have to rely entirely on a third party or simply do without. Now they can pay for pro-grade software and train some PR employees and suddenly they can make their own commercials or on a smaller scale create professional presentation videos.
The usefulness of understanding movie making and editing now is similar to understanding how cameras worked when home photography was a new idea. While not technically a necessity to a successful or happy life it can easily enrich those who want to be able to archive memories in the family or those who want to take the next step in professionalism and effeciency.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Identity Crisis: The Management and Responsibility of Online Personas.
This post is a response to the article "A Rape in Cyberspace" linked: http://www.juliandibbell.com/articles/a-rape-in-cyberspace/ and the article "The Sock Puppet Who Loved Me" linked: http://www.slate.com/id/2178820/
Adopting new personas is nothing new in our world. Older writers would adopt pen names for a number of reasons. People throughout history have claimed double lives. The fantasy of new personas is expressed widely in the stories of super-heroes in comic books. The internet as a new creative medium is simply another form of expression that can allow people to take on new personas. But in this case, there's another element.
That element to me is hard to explain, but in essence it expresses a much deeper level of truth and emotional attachment than any other medium where new personas exist. This becomes very apparent in Julian's article, describing the emotional response from the victims of the "cyber-rape" as being very similar and yet very different from victims of actual rape. I do not mean to imply that the feeling is the same, as in actuality I believe they are completely different, but nevertheless those people at LambdaMOO felt violated and attacked. As I read the article I was confused and a bit astounded by how invested the people of that group were in their characters, in their personas. This investment came to the point that, to paraphrase the article, the drama and issues of the online world became just as real to them as the drama and issues of their lives off the internet. I don't know what the lives of these people were like, or how the internet became a part of it, but based on my experiences I could barely relate to them. To be honest I'm having trouble explaining what my point is, so I'll try to show it with an example.
Let's take the event that occurred and put it into a different perspective. I associate with a lot of people who actively play role-playing games, similar instances where the players (or in the case of the MOO, users) create new personas and act out the character's life based on established rules. To me the LambdaMOO seemed very much like an online Role-Play. In most Role-Playing communities I had participated in, the kinds of actions perpetrated by Mr. Bungle would have at best been ignored (with the perpetrator ultimately being ignored by the entire community at large) and at worst would have lead to the "toading" that had occurred, but with much less debate involved (where instead of debating the idea of some form of self governing MOO, the users would simply request that Bungle be banished). Perhaps it is because I speak from the mind of a different generation but in scenarios like that the emotional attachment still exists. For instance I genuinely care about the characters I create but it tends to come with a detachment that they are just fictional ideas, and I guess I couldn't really relate to the emotional pain that the "victims" seemed to be going through.
But I guess that's the point of it all. It's a matter of perspective, just as if I was participating in the MOO during that time I probably wouldn't have had that much of an interest (at least not one to compare with the people who treat it as a second life) in what was happening. Would have I been offended by the Bungle incident? Absolutely. But the detachment I tend to carry with any online persona I make would have probably had me shrug it off after a day or two and just move on, or if the rules of the MOO forbid people from just ignoring what happens continue to participate with the same detachment I always carry. While I can understand the emotional investment that can come with fictional situations (I've had my share of characters in books and movies I really wanted to succeed) I suppose I don't share the same type of investment with online persona-users.
Moving on to the other article, to be honest I've heard stories like this before. Not just in news articles but even from rumors circulating around my high school. The creation of fictitious people has changed with the advent of the internet as much as creating any work. The main difference with using social networks as the tool is that for all intents and purposes the person, unless identified as otherwise, will appear real in every sense of the word. In standard fiction a character is made "real" by their actions and believability. This doesn't mean the reader of the character necessarily believes the character to be a real person who they could walk up to on the street and talk to, but it means that the reader will acknowledge the legitimacy of the character and will believe that the character's actions are plausible in either the real world or the world that the character resides in. The difference there is that usually the creator of the character does not do anything to make the character seem real in the sense that they exist in a material tangible way. The end result of a character who by its nature seems to be a real person is that "readers" will not have the immediate detachment that normally accompanies the reception of a fictitious character. This can be used for good or bad purposes (in the case of the article I'm referring to, very bad) but either way a hefty responsibility comes with that sort of ambiguity.
I've always been an advocate of individual responsibility, and in this case I don't feel very different. When Lori Drew created the Josh Evans persona, she probably didn't realize the weight that a perceived real person could have on Megan. Let's say that instead of the myspace prank, Drew was in fact an author and she wrote a short story about Josh Evans and Megan. If Megan read it, and it was written to hurt her emotionally, it would have most likely succeeded, but in my opinion, it wouldn't have had nearly the devastating effect that the "real" person Josh Evans had on the girl. By understanding from the beginning that Josh was a fictional character, Megan would have become at least a bit detached from the story. The biting words in it would have still stung, but they wouldn't have had as much of an impact. What happened was this: By creating a fake persona in the immediate guise of a real person, Drew opened a window to Megan's heart that most if not all standard characters of fiction usually close simply by being fictitious. That window caused Megan to become much more emotionally attached to the character and when the character turned on her it broke her heart.
Responsibility must be taken into account when making a character, regardless of the reasoning behind it. Especially now with the internet blurring the lines of emotional detachment, it falls on both the speaker and the reader to understand the nature of creating online personas. If you let yourself become too attached to your persona, you can fall victim to someone who abuses that emotional connection. And if you don't understand the impact that a "real" person can have on another you can cause serious harm without intending to. The online identity crisis is a problem that will most likely not be solved for some time due to its fairly young age, and because of that we need to tread cautiously in the world of online personas, so as to not forget who we really are.
Adopting new personas is nothing new in our world. Older writers would adopt pen names for a number of reasons. People throughout history have claimed double lives. The fantasy of new personas is expressed widely in the stories of super-heroes in comic books. The internet as a new creative medium is simply another form of expression that can allow people to take on new personas. But in this case, there's another element.
That element to me is hard to explain, but in essence it expresses a much deeper level of truth and emotional attachment than any other medium where new personas exist. This becomes very apparent in Julian's article, describing the emotional response from the victims of the "cyber-rape" as being very similar and yet very different from victims of actual rape. I do not mean to imply that the feeling is the same, as in actuality I believe they are completely different, but nevertheless those people at LambdaMOO felt violated and attacked. As I read the article I was confused and a bit astounded by how invested the people of that group were in their characters, in their personas. This investment came to the point that, to paraphrase the article, the drama and issues of the online world became just as real to them as the drama and issues of their lives off the internet. I don't know what the lives of these people were like, or how the internet became a part of it, but based on my experiences I could barely relate to them. To be honest I'm having trouble explaining what my point is, so I'll try to show it with an example.
Let's take the event that occurred and put it into a different perspective. I associate with a lot of people who actively play role-playing games, similar instances where the players (or in the case of the MOO, users) create new personas and act out the character's life based on established rules. To me the LambdaMOO seemed very much like an online Role-Play. In most Role-Playing communities I had participated in, the kinds of actions perpetrated by Mr. Bungle would have at best been ignored (with the perpetrator ultimately being ignored by the entire community at large) and at worst would have lead to the "toading" that had occurred, but with much less debate involved (where instead of debating the idea of some form of self governing MOO, the users would simply request that Bungle be banished). Perhaps it is because I speak from the mind of a different generation but in scenarios like that the emotional attachment still exists. For instance I genuinely care about the characters I create but it tends to come with a detachment that they are just fictional ideas, and I guess I couldn't really relate to the emotional pain that the "victims" seemed to be going through.
But I guess that's the point of it all. It's a matter of perspective, just as if I was participating in the MOO during that time I probably wouldn't have had that much of an interest (at least not one to compare with the people who treat it as a second life) in what was happening. Would have I been offended by the Bungle incident? Absolutely. But the detachment I tend to carry with any online persona I make would have probably had me shrug it off after a day or two and just move on, or if the rules of the MOO forbid people from just ignoring what happens continue to participate with the same detachment I always carry. While I can understand the emotional investment that can come with fictional situations (I've had my share of characters in books and movies I really wanted to succeed) I suppose I don't share the same type of investment with online persona-users.
Moving on to the other article, to be honest I've heard stories like this before. Not just in news articles but even from rumors circulating around my high school. The creation of fictitious people has changed with the advent of the internet as much as creating any work. The main difference with using social networks as the tool is that for all intents and purposes the person, unless identified as otherwise, will appear real in every sense of the word. In standard fiction a character is made "real" by their actions and believability. This doesn't mean the reader of the character necessarily believes the character to be a real person who they could walk up to on the street and talk to, but it means that the reader will acknowledge the legitimacy of the character and will believe that the character's actions are plausible in either the real world or the world that the character resides in. The difference there is that usually the creator of the character does not do anything to make the character seem real in the sense that they exist in a material tangible way. The end result of a character who by its nature seems to be a real person is that "readers" will not have the immediate detachment that normally accompanies the reception of a fictitious character. This can be used for good or bad purposes (in the case of the article I'm referring to, very bad) but either way a hefty responsibility comes with that sort of ambiguity.
I've always been an advocate of individual responsibility, and in this case I don't feel very different. When Lori Drew created the Josh Evans persona, she probably didn't realize the weight that a perceived real person could have on Megan. Let's say that instead of the myspace prank, Drew was in fact an author and she wrote a short story about Josh Evans and Megan. If Megan read it, and it was written to hurt her emotionally, it would have most likely succeeded, but in my opinion, it wouldn't have had nearly the devastating effect that the "real" person Josh Evans had on the girl. By understanding from the beginning that Josh was a fictional character, Megan would have become at least a bit detached from the story. The biting words in it would have still stung, but they wouldn't have had as much of an impact. What happened was this: By creating a fake persona in the immediate guise of a real person, Drew opened a window to Megan's heart that most if not all standard characters of fiction usually close simply by being fictitious. That window caused Megan to become much more emotionally attached to the character and when the character turned on her it broke her heart.
Responsibility must be taken into account when making a character, regardless of the reasoning behind it. Especially now with the internet blurring the lines of emotional detachment, it falls on both the speaker and the reader to understand the nature of creating online personas. If you let yourself become too attached to your persona, you can fall victim to someone who abuses that emotional connection. And if you don't understand the impact that a "real" person can have on another you can cause serious harm without intending to. The online identity crisis is a problem that will most likely not be solved for some time due to its fairly young age, and because of that we need to tread cautiously in the world of online personas, so as to not forget who we really are.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Music Video: A Love Story
Original Link: http://www.nypress.com/article-16889-official-history-of-music-video.html
Upon searching the internet for interesting stories about music video's history, I stumbled onto this little gem. The detail into music video's parallels with other art forms was surprising, considering I had figured since music video itself is a new art form that it would follow new directions, but this was not the case. While in itself music video is a new form of expression, it seemed to follow similar paths that other mediums had already progressed through. The article also went on to talk about the use of music video to comment on cultural happenings, and cited "Night of the Living Baseheads" as the first example of this.
My personal favorite piece from the article was where it talked about how music video could "unite the tribes" tribes in this case meaning the various fangroups of the different genres. Noting that Metallica's "Enter Sandman" airing next to De La Soul's "A Roller Skating Jam Named Saturdays" as well as other examples made for a good argument that the music video allowed a sort of cross-pollination of genres, expanding the views and tastes of the fangroups while expanding the potential market for the music industry, a win-win.
The article in general was very interesting, and I rather enjoyed reading up a bit on the cultural impact of music video at large. The truth I found to be very surprising, while the ideas I've learned in class have certainly been eye-opening and new, the article here brought new light to the slight illumination that I've gained about music video as a cultural phenomenon.
Upon searching the internet for interesting stories about music video's history, I stumbled onto this little gem. The detail into music video's parallels with other art forms was surprising, considering I had figured since music video itself is a new art form that it would follow new directions, but this was not the case. While in itself music video is a new form of expression, it seemed to follow similar paths that other mediums had already progressed through. The article also went on to talk about the use of music video to comment on cultural happenings, and cited "Night of the Living Baseheads" as the first example of this.
My personal favorite piece from the article was where it talked about how music video could "unite the tribes" tribes in this case meaning the various fangroups of the different genres. Noting that Metallica's "Enter Sandman" airing next to De La Soul's "A Roller Skating Jam Named Saturdays" as well as other examples made for a good argument that the music video allowed a sort of cross-pollination of genres, expanding the views and tastes of the fangroups while expanding the potential market for the music industry, a win-win.
The article in general was very interesting, and I rather enjoyed reading up a bit on the cultural impact of music video at large. The truth I found to be very surprising, while the ideas I've learned in class have certainly been eye-opening and new, the article here brought new light to the slight illumination that I've gained about music video as a cultural phenomenon.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Response to Powerpoint Articles.
For my next assignment for Computer Mediated Communication, I had to read to articles about Microsoft PowerPoint. One article linked here explains how PowerPoint has a surface simplicity that hides a deeper medium that can be used to express artistic ability. The other article, linked here explains that PowerPoint is evil for its over-simplistic design and function. It also states that the use of PowerPoint to replace effective presentations ends up damaging the overall effectiveness of the information at being well-received.
My thoughts on the subject are as follows:
PowerPoint has a capacity to supplement a decent presentation and make it stellar. The artistic and creative freedom that is allowed in the seemingly restrictive application can create visually stunning slides with attention-grabbing music to accompany it. At the same time, however, the program can be used as (and is often used as) a crutch for the entire presentation. In this way the presenter usually does little work instead letting the program take the reins. The downside here is that PowerPoint is fantastic and generating generic templates that the presenter should BUILD UPON, not just rely on. Lacking any real creativity the user will create a completely bland and uninteresting slideshow that waters down the information so the audience either doesn't get the whole picture or they just don't care about it.
PowerPoint, like many programs, is as effective as a person wants it to be. It's up to the individual to understand that they have to put the effort in to make PowerPoint really shine as a teammate rather than try to make it the star athlete. I've seen some of the best and worst the program has to offer, and both are stunning in their own way.
My thoughts on the subject are as follows:
PowerPoint has a capacity to supplement a decent presentation and make it stellar. The artistic and creative freedom that is allowed in the seemingly restrictive application can create visually stunning slides with attention-grabbing music to accompany it. At the same time, however, the program can be used as (and is often used as) a crutch for the entire presentation. In this way the presenter usually does little work instead letting the program take the reins. The downside here is that PowerPoint is fantastic and generating generic templates that the presenter should BUILD UPON, not just rely on. Lacking any real creativity the user will create a completely bland and uninteresting slideshow that waters down the information so the audience either doesn't get the whole picture or they just don't care about it.
PowerPoint, like many programs, is as effective as a person wants it to be. It's up to the individual to understand that they have to put the effort in to make PowerPoint really shine as a teammate rather than try to make it the star athlete. I've seen some of the best and worst the program has to offer, and both are stunning in their own way.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Reasons for the Name
As anyone who may have found this blog or skimmed over it at my request might figure, the blog and the URL have odd names for a personal blog. This post's purpose is to explain where they came from.
For about a week I had a series of odd dreams that I would consider "episodic" in that they skipped from "scene" to "scene" with completely unrelated circumstances happening in each one. The one thing that connected them all was an incredibly large shopping center, as each sequence ended I found myself in this shopping center, with very strange stores or just strange renditions of stores I've been to before. The roads and parking lot were extremely hard to navigate but whenever I finally found the exit I would immediately be in another dream sequence. This happened enough times for me to consider that my mind in a dream state considers its hub like a large shopping center. From that the name for the blog came as a sort of window into my central hub, or the shopping center itself. Odd, and a bit on the silly side, but it works for me.
For about a week I had a series of odd dreams that I would consider "episodic" in that they skipped from "scene" to "scene" with completely unrelated circumstances happening in each one. The one thing that connected them all was an incredibly large shopping center, as each sequence ended I found myself in this shopping center, with very strange stores or just strange renditions of stores I've been to before. The roads and parking lot were extremely hard to navigate but whenever I finally found the exit I would immediately be in another dream sequence. This happened enough times for me to consider that my mind in a dream state considers its hub like a large shopping center. From that the name for the blog came as a sort of window into my central hub, or the shopping center itself. Odd, and a bit on the silly side, but it works for me.
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Ideas for Website.
I'm not all too sure what I would want to make a website for. I suppose the most practical thing I could do would be game reviews. Not only could I base the website around something I enjoy, I could use it in my portfolio for both game review writing and web design. If I'm allowed to, I think that is the best option.
EDIT- After longer consideration I have decided not to do a game review site. The reason I changed my mind was that a review website would only be relevant for a set amount of time, until the games became less and less high in demand. Without permanent access to the programs we will be using to create the websites it would be very hard to update the website. Instead I'm going to create a "Introduction to Video Games" website. The site will be designed to inform people about the various genres, ratings, systems, etc regarding video games, as well as cite examples. This will be a fairly low-maintenance website and if/when I get access to the programs needed to modify the web page I can add more information, including reviews.
EDIT- After longer consideration I have decided not to do a game review site. The reason I changed my mind was that a review website would only be relevant for a set amount of time, until the games became less and less high in demand. Without permanent access to the programs we will be using to create the websites it would be very hard to update the website. Instead I'm going to create a "Introduction to Video Games" website. The site will be designed to inform people about the various genres, ratings, systems, etc regarding video games, as well as cite examples. This will be a fairly low-maintenance website and if/when I get access to the programs needed to modify the web page I can add more information, including reviews.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Expectations for New Class
I have recently enrolled in a computer mediated communication course here at Shepherd. The bulk of the class is going to be in web design. This is both exciting and a bit intimidating for me because I've never really done much when it comes to web coding (or any coding for that matter). I'm hoping to get a better understanding of how coding works from this course as well as be able to design a personal website I can include in my portfolio.
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