gamesforgamers

A few days after I posted the lure of World of Warcraft, I found myself signing up for the 10-day trial offer designed to sucker former players (like myself) back in.  This is Blizzard’s way of showing you the goods but to really test drive it, you have to upgrade to a subscription.  All the content is there but there is a level cap for trial players at 71.  There is the rub!

I already had three level 70 characters so this offer was a bit of a bait and switch.  While the game was installing on my desktop, I took the time to post some inquiries on my guild’s forums.  Testing the waters to see what I should expect and unintentionally feeding the addiction that is Warcraft.

With the normal level cap being 80, I will hit 71 from 70 in a day.  Unless, I opt to upgrade my account from free to paying.  And thus the claws of that vile game dig deeper into me!

It was about two weeks before the release of World of Warcraft’s second expansion, Wrath of the Lich King when I walked away from the game.  I had been planning on it for sometime but put if off for the same reason the game is calling me back again.  Being part of a friendly and progressive guild extended my play time even when the game play itself had become a grind.
I pretty much have been with the same group of people for about four years and still follow the guild’s progression through our forum.  But it is getting harder and harder to resist the urge to hop back on.
For many, Warcraft is not about just the game play but rather the social aspect of it.  Sure, there is the occasional noob and idiot but the camaraderie that is developed among guild mates is truly unique.  Those late night chatter and instance runs sets the foundation of a friendship that goes beyond the online world.
This is not to say that all guilds nourish these types of relationships.  Guild drama brings out the worse in people also and can also make for a very distasteful gaming experience.
So here I sit.  Months passed the latest expansion and my account is still deactivated.  None of the upcoming console games have caught my eye so the wear down of Guitar Hero: World Tour and Fallout 3 continues.

Nintendo recently filed a patent allowing tutorial walkthroughs to exist through out the entire video game.  Modern games usually have one for the first couple of levels or stages.  Seldom will a game come with a manual that explains anything beyond the basic functions of specific buttons.
This is almost understandable considering the complexity games have gotten.  However, the best games are the ones that are challenging.  Dumb down games too much and it will lose its purpose.
I admit that I was beyond frustrated after dying again and again in Call of Duty: World at War.  But it was a huge pay off when I was finally able to do it.  Well, the great story line helped motivate me also.
Nintendo’s idea will also allow players to play any part of the game without having to have unlocked any previous levels.  How much pleasure would it have been to go straight to the last level of Metal Gear Solid: Sons of the Patriots without even playing to previous levels.  Heck, bypassing the majority of F.E.A.R. would defeat the whole purpose of its suspense motif.
If you want simple games go to Pogo.com and leave real video games alone!

Booyah!

I was a bit of a latecomer to the whole Guitar Hero frenzy.  I was in between my love/hate relationship with World of Warcraft when the thought of dusting off my Playstation 3 came to mind.  After doing some research (looking at the top ten list on Gamefaqs.com) to see what all the cool kids where playing, I decided to try my hand on this whole plastic guitar craze.
Flash forward to the present and I am throwing down with some friends to epic journey that is “Pull Me Under” by Dream Theater, the end song on Guitar Hero: World Tour.  Even though there are plenty of songs to jam to, I still find myself picking a song or two from the downloaded Metallica content of 2008 Death Magnetic.
So imagine my excitement when they officially announced Guitar Hero: Metallica to be released sometime in the first quarter of 2009.  To all the young ones out there this may not hold much fanfare.  However, to someone that has followed the band since the early 80s, this is like Utopia.
There is no way the game could be a disappointment like Guitar Hero: Aerosmith.  Metallica’s body of work is by far superior.  Yes, yes…I am a tad bias.  It is hard to compare the two.  Aerosmith belongs in the Rock Band world while Metallica is a much better fit in the world of Guitar Hero.
A great example of this is the addition of a second bass pedal.  Just put on some short shorts and your channeling Lars Ulrich.
So start growing your hair out, find those tight black jeans, and get ready for the onslaught of oh-my-God-my-fingers-are-going-to-fall-off monster seizure inducing songs that your mother warned you about.  Master of Puppets anyone?

Booyah!

What makes a gamer a gamer?

By definition it is simply a person that plays games.  Yet there is a vast difference from the person that knows nothing else but what Pogo.com offers and a person who knows what the term “camping a spawn point” means.  I won’t lie; I am guilty of camping a particular Call of Duty 4 spawn point.  I’m not proud of it.  I was young and foolish.  There also might have been some whisky in me but lets not go there.

A gamer is someone whose thumb has developed its own personality or has had most of his or her meals in front of the computer.  We are a different breed from the norm, lurking and breeding in the shadows of society.  Pretty soon, when the time is right, we will show our true might!

I mean, come on, how else could you explain the influence of gamers.  We push technology to the edge and have influenced music and movies.

Then again, we gamers may just be lazy sloths who sit all day mindlessly staring at a screen.  That’s okay, we have the Wii to shed some pounds when we get to large to make it to the front door when the pizza guy comes.