Week 9! you got the touch!

The controller, whether it be the joystick or the high tech wizardry of the wii mote, is an essential piece of equipment for any gamer, lets face it games would be a lot less interesting if you couldn't move.

the early controllers were essentially a stick on a box, i am of course referring to the humble joystick. it was the joystick which provided the interaction in my early gamer days on my Atari ST. Though not always the most reliable, functional or practical pieces of equipment, it sure did come into its own on those early flight Sims.

Nintendo NES brought with the "pad" and consoles have never looked back. The now standard D-pad soon became the control method of choice for most manufacturers. of the early pads i used i seem to remember preferring the SNES pad to its Sega rival. i always thought the megadrive pad, a little too bulky. On the subject of these particular consoles, though they may not have the sleek design of some of today's machines but I personally like them for their pure ease of use, and how robust and heavy duty they were along with the cartridges. No need to worry about a scratch on the disk in them days.

The introduction of the analog stick on the N64 again stuck as another standard feature. I think put to best use on the PlayStation controllers. Particularly the PlayStation 2, dual shock 2 which now i think about it has probably been one of the best.

having fairly recently purchased an Xbox 360 i may be slightly behind the game but i am enjoying the whole wireless remote experience. it is such a huge relief not to be constrained by that pesky wire. having never owned an xbox i have also got the used to the controller fairly quickly which is testament to it really.

Of all the consoles though, purely on looks alone the PS3 does slightly edge it over the 360, though it is a close run thing. i do like the taper of the 360 but the PS3 is so sleek it looks like it could fly.

Then there is of course the Wii and the now infamous Wii mote. I have not used said equipment but it has been a huge success and with it being such a success it has possibly opened the door for more obscure and innovative ways to interact with games in the future. Has it spelled the end for the game pad? i think its success may have, as history has taught us that after one company (Nintendo) has done it, all the other companies follow.

Week 8! The never ending story.

I don't necessarily think a story makes for a better game, but I do think a story certainly makes for a more immersive experience and offers a different type of enjoyment than say a player driven game in the model of the Sims.

A good story will hopefully captivate the player and make them want to keep playing, and i know from experience i have lost entire days trying to delve deeper into a good storyline. I think this is a key difference it gives the player a sense of involvement. How the story is played out is in most cases pre determined by the programmers or creators of the game and the player will travel a series of paths which will ultimately lead to the same end or in some cases a selection of endings again pre determined but i don't believe this limits the story in any way i think the whole point of a good story is to offer some form of structure and plot.

So as a player there is the element of the story guiding but unlike movies playing a game is an interactive experience so their will inevitably be things a player can do or attempt to do which may not always be plot relative. so with that said the story Will guide but the player does have some element of control as to how and when.

Not all games have a predetermined story line. I started to think about guitar hero and singstar as having no story but I guess there is an arguement it is a story of the progression from amatuer to rock god or pop legend. With games like the sims I suppose the storyline is fairly open ended but the characters will follow a very broad script of birth, work, marrige, and death which in a sense offers some form of narrative. I would say that in games where the story may not be a great deal of plot or the story may not be obvious a player will impose their own story.

So I suppose story does exist in most games if you look hard enough. Not always obvious, not always good stories for that matter but I think that a story is a fundemental feature in a game as thats what we as a speices seem enjoy whether it be music, movies or the humble computer game.

Week 7! gimme me an F! gimme an art!

The art director is the person responsible for the look of an entire game in short. In actual fact an art director has a bucket load of tasks and responsibilities ranging from creative influence to the more managerial side of things including the hiring and firing of his team.

The art director has a responsibility to both his employer in terms of creating the look of a game and developing and communicating this visually and also to his team whom he is responsible for in terms of motivating and providing a sense of direction and leadership.

However I don't think the role of an art director is completely hands on. though there needs to be some aspect of creativity involved I think the art director is more about ensuring his team are all working from the same page and perhaps offering pointers or criticisms and ensuring deadlines are met. It is essentially a managerial possession and this will take a toll on how hands on and creative an art director can be. Undoubtedly this is not always the case I'm sure.

With games becoming more and more advanced and increasingly more grand and epic the difference in art direction between games and movies is decreasing. There is more need for a clear vision of what the game will look like. In the past when the look of a game may have been restricted by the technology I'm sure it was a different ball game altogether but now in a time were the artist is almost only restricted to what they can imagine the roles cannot be too dissimilar.

The skills required for an art director I think are firstly artistic. I know what you're thinking, I mentioned previously that I am not sure how much actual art work an art director does, despite this i think they must still have a vast knowledge of the subject simply because it is their decision that will decide the look of a game. They also need to be able to discuss on a regular basis the work which is being carried out by the team which again is another skill set altogether, communication is also a big part of the role.

All in all their are vast number of skills required to be an art director and I think one of the most important things would be knowledge of the industry. So in order to become an art director I think one of the most important skills would be experience.

Week 6! a vehicle of my own design, 5,000 gallons of heated dip.

The term gameplay to me implies the experience of playing a game, and in turn, the way a game is played or intended to be played. Whether it be fast paced action, calculated puzzle solving, or strumming a plastic guitar, gameplay is a fundamental feature of all games and is key to determine if the player is in fact enjoying the experience of playing. With out gameplay the most stunning looking graphics's or the most striking sound scarcely save a game with poor gameplay.


The design process seems to vary depending on the company in question. There isn't specific process which is followed for the design. Though there are obviously such people as game designers who are in some cases solely responsible for the creation of the game it is generally a collaborative effort between the many designers involved in making a game. though one person may have an initial idea it is then widely circulated and built upon and course character design, sound, and level or map design are all key in the process of creating the gaming experiences and, hopefully if done properly implementing the gameplay.

During this process i think the designers are thinking genre specific. Although you could argue that games possess the same fundamental rules and in some cases they do, I still think that a racing game for example is operating under a different set of rules to say, a sing star style karaoke game. No doubt the designers are aware of their target audience whilst developing their ideas and this in itself brings with it a need for the difference in the playing experience.

I tend to enjoy adventure games, games like tomb raider, prince of Persia, shadow of the colossus, metal gear solid, god of war, silent hill, resident evil and most recently have been enjoying assassins creed despite the fact it is slightly repetitive. judging from the list I suppose the things I find important are the sense of exploration and the feel of freedom. A good story with depth and the feeling of involvement in the story is important. also in conclusion, judging from the list a 3rd person view.

Week 5! Everyone's a critic!

Games reviewers, like any reviewers can only offer so much, their opinion. Though this is not a bad thing it is of course not a valid reason to part with forty of your hard earned queen heads on a game they have warranted worthy of the much, ahem! coveted five stars!

Opinions will always vary and everybody has their own. for this reason alone I think a ranking system is redundant and only really offers an at a glance guide to the reviewers feelings towards the game in question, for example I Know that regardless of how many stars a final fantasy style RPG is given, whether it be 5 out of 5 or 100 out of 10, I know the chanses of me rushing out to by it based on these star ratings are slim to none.

from what I have read it also seems that the writers are working to tight deadlines and so it seems some a lot of, if not all reviews are written in a hurry. With this in mind is the fun taken out of playing? Does the reveiwer really have time to enjoy the experience of playing the game? are they rushing through in order to get onto the next review and make that deadline?

The other factor is that depending in the employer of the reveiwer certain pressures are unavoidable. Reveiwers will undoubtedly offer a more favorable review for a game their employer is responsable which really does not offer a true reflection.

After reading some new games journalism i think it is a much more engaging read than many of the formulaic "standard" reviews out there. It is a much more personal approach and I think it offers more than a just a review and is more often an enjoyable read although like all forms of writing there are good examples and bad examples.

week 4, To Infinity and Beyond

Lets start this post with a quick video to have a look at how some of the consoles mentioned have ranked in this countdown of the TOP 10 BEST CONSOLES.


We are now in the 00's and the game industry is a multi billion pound industry.

The console rivalries of previous years continue to be fought, and new billion pound companies have become involved.

In November 2001 Microsoft's Xbox was launched and became a major player in the console market. launch titles which helped Microsoft in this endeavor included project Gotham racing which to this day is available in various incarnations and Halo: Combat Evolved which of course spawned the ever popular series.

I suppose my first console of the 00's and first "next generation" console was Sega's Dreamcast(Right). Yes, i was that one person that actually brought one. Despite the fact it was here and gone in the blink of an eye I was quite fond of some of the games I played on the Dreamcast. I enjoyed "Jet Set Radio", a rollerblading, graffiti tagging, gang rivalry....having?, fun game and chu chu rocket a highly addictive puzzle game. There was also a basketball game, I forget the name but I haven't played many basketball games better than it to this day and I'm a man that plays a fair amount of basketball games.

The ill fated Dreamcast was of course fatally wounded by the release of Sony's PlayStation 2. First released in march 2000 it went on to become the best selling console to date having shifted 120 million units as of 2007.
Like at least 120 million other people i too purchased a PS2 and it has provided me with many years of entertainment right up to this day. favourite games for me, though its hard to name simply because of the shear volume available, are prince of Persia: warrior within, the epic shadow of the colossus, resident evil 4, and both god of war and the recently completed god of war 2. I'm sure there are games that however this is to name just a few as if nothing else the PS2 simply has the largest and most varied variety of games available.

With that said we move onto the current generation of consoles which includes Sony's massively anticipated Playstation 3. despite the hype and Sony's boasts has garnered only luke warm reviews and only time will tell if it can live up to the expectation Sony has encouraged.

Prior to this however Microsoft had released their current generation console and the successor to the xbox, the Xbox 360. The 360 has fast become a popular console and sales of 13.4 million from its initial release up until the present is worthy of note.

The other contender in the market is Nintendo's bodily function sounding Wii. First launched in November 2006 it has quite unexpectedly gone on to become the market leader of this generation of consoles. the wii unique feature is its wireless "wiimote" which allows for new innovative ways to control and manipulate the gaming world. This paired with the type of games Nintendo produce and market has opened the door to a world of new gamers. people who potentially would not play games were now interested in the whole social gaming experience, in the sense that family's could now have a game of doubles tennis in their living room, or house parties could include a boxing or bowling tournament.

This change has introduced "social gamimg" and has obviously been a success for Nintendo but were do games go from here? The xbox and then xbox 360 have had massive success with its "live" service, in a sense another form of social gaming, and Sony are also keen to reach this level of success in this field. So it is apparent that online gaming is here to stay and as more and more games, solely designed for online play begin to appear for consoles (shadowrun for example) it seems that online content will become progressively more important. Obviously from Generation to generation graphics and processing power increase and its fair to say that at some stage a player will be able to manipulate and move around in a photo realistic environment with a photo realistic character where absolutely everything is interactive and the outcome of the game has not yet been programmed.

With the introduction of the wiimote and its popularity could motion detection also continue. possibly tracking points attached at parts of the body in the style of motion capture, or even a full body suit.

The future of games seems dependant on the companies involved ability to change the way games are played. No longer is it simply just about the graphics and sounds, or a game that has a start and an end. It seems players want more freedom and a more interactive experience than previous consoles where able to offer.

Finally though, in response to the top 10 best consoles here's a quick look at THE TOP 10 WORST CONSOLES

Week 3! The 80's and 90's, when video games ruled the earth!

So following on from my previous entry we have witnessed the birth and early development of the computer game industry and now move into the middle ages and a period in which I first ventured forth into the world of games.

However the first significant event, other than me starting to play games, was on the 17Th of June, 1980. Atari's "asteroids" and "lunar Lander" became the first video games to ever be registered at the copyright office and ushered in a new era in the computer game industry.

In the 80's it was all about the personal computers such as the spectrum, commodore and the Atari which was also my first system and my introduction to games.

The Atari ST to be specific, was my first ever computer if memory serves me correctly. Although I can't remember what the first game I ever played was I do have memories of playing such titles as outrun, golden axe, and lotus esprit turbo challenge on my trusty Atari amongst others.

I also seem to remember spending a lot of time playing on a very basic flight Sim pretending to be maverick after watching a little film you may of heard of, TOP GUN!!! anyone??

So, around the same time I was initiated into Top gun with all the other top pilots the gaming industry of the 80's was producing the building blocks of the future. Games such as final fantasy, the legend of Zelda and metal gear all made their debut during this time.

It seems the 80's were a time of new beginnings. Franchises were created, new and, though it wasn't known at the time, legendary characters were introduced, link and Mario to name just a couple, and the market seemed to be gathering momentum all the time.

Which leads us onto the 90's. A decade which See's me move into the console world after father Christmas saw fit to bestow upon me the gift of SNES (or super Nintendo). A Christmas were I proceeded to vanish to the solitude of my room and attempt to complete starwing, calling upon all my previous Top gun training, only venturing downstairs for turkey and those little sausages wrapped in bacon.

By the 90's the gaming industry was well and truly established and it was all about growth and the developing rivalries of the big name companies. Sega and Nintendo dominated the market and had a massive ongoing war of the consoles. Sega's master system followed by the megadrive versus Nintendo's NES and then SNES.

This rivalry continued and with the ever increasing market more companies became involved in this competition for computer game supremacy, namely Sony and in December of 1994 the PlayStation was released.

This again resulted in another Christmas day spent in solitude. One of the stand out games for me on the PlayStation was tomb raider. The new system, along with the then groundbreaking graphics added up to all night stints trying desperately hard raid some tombs.

It appears then that this time was of great importance to the industry, it was established and had grown into an industry to rival that of the film industry and several new and important names entered the foray both in terms of new game franchises, popular characters still in existence today and big name companies becoming interested and in fact staking claim to their share of the market.

this then brings us to the 00's but also in turn then end of this chapter.

Week 2! let there be game! (1950-1970)

In the beginning there was man, then not much happened until one day a slightly more intelligent man created game!



Though the origins of games appear to be contradicting, inconsistent and generally impossible to determine what we do know is this.....



The surface was first scratched, so to speak, in 1952 when a gentleman going by the name of A.S. Douglas created, on the worlds first computer (EDSAC), a game of naughts and crosses. The game was created for Douglas's thesis on human-computer interaction. However this was unique and was not commercially available mainly for the simple reason it was only on the EDSAC, which incidentally was the size of a small country and thus not practical for the living room of most homes.



Following on from this in 1958 there came what is in some cases considered the first ever video game. Tennis for two (left) was created by William Higinbotham to prevent boredom of guests visiting the lab where Higinbotham worked, a clear example that computer games where being recognised as a form of fun and entertainment. Though it transpires this invention and realisation later became a regret of Higinbotham who wanted to be known for his work as a physicist rather than this, I suppose you could call, small side project.




Then came the big hitter, A space fighting game!!!!! in 1962 the future was now with the creation of spacewar! (right). Steve Russell a computer programmer gave us the true computer game experience enabling players to compete against one another assuming the roles of duelling spaceships, imaginatively known as the wedge and the pencil, the object of the game was to annihilate your opponent before they succeeded in annihilating you. with the inclusion of various options such as hyper space and a reasonable representation of physics it is quit a step from the earlier naughts and crosses giant computer considering as well spacewar was on the comparatively tiny PDP-1 computer.




This said it wasn't until 1972 when games where brought to the home. I give you the console ladies and gentlemen. Up to this point games were primarily created and available on military, scientific or academic systems including the aforementioned PDP-1 which was not a domestic computer. the worlds first console was brought to us by a pioneering man named Ralph Baer who way back 1951 had conceived the idea of incorporating games into a TV set he been requested to design by his boss. unfortunately his somewhat less pioneering boss did not approve the idea and it was subsequently scrapped. However our fearless hero, undeterred, 1966, OK, maybe a little deterred, resumes work on the now titled "brown box" which later (1971) became the odyssey (pictured right) the first commercially available home video games console. Given his fairly humble beginning's as a factory worker it is not clear what drove Baer to concentrate so much on the goal of bringing games to the masses over than the fact it appears Baer was very into progresion having attained an at the time unique degree in television engineering and never looked back goin on to sart his own company. I guess Baer saw the potential were others did not and now it is widely accepted that Baer is the man responsible creating and shaping the game industry we know today.



this brings us upto 1973 where the world famous "pong" was introduced, a game im sure most people had their first experience of games.



this however concludes this entry as we have now entered the 70's.

Week 1!

OK so here we go, first blog, first task. I'm gonna try and hit the ground running and just type whatever pours fourth from my brain...........

........OK, that's not gonna work. A new approach, so, for this week's task we have been set the unenviable job of reviewing a fellow blogger. obviously a man of my blogging experience is ideally placed to do this with my 2 paragraphs of blogging history well behind me.

The blog i stumbled across is by none other than the legend that is 90's hip hop star, MC hammer.
being a fan when i was younger it didn't take much to capture my interest and it was good to see hammer is still out there somewhere.

In terms of the blog itself it is frequently written, almost daily, and from what i have seen it covers a wide variety of subjects, mainly hammers take on topics ranging from music and news to things of a more personal nature. the post's themselves range from large areas of text to perhaps a video or picture with a comment to support.

I enjoyed reading the blog although i am biased being a fan. I think it provides me with an insight into the writer and my initial opinion is of someone who is very family orientated with strong religious beliefs.

The above said my take on blogging is that a blog can provide the image you want it to provide. You can be as personal, objective or controversial etc. as you like. This is not said to detract from blogging. From my early experience I think this is the appeal.

From trudging through numerous blogs in the archive, some good, some bad, I think my approach to blogging will try to include hopefully some aspect of personality and be fairly simple to read as these, whether it reflects good or bad on me, are the blogs I was more inclined to read.

Let the blogging begin!!!!