I Wish I'd Written That: Part Five

For the final entry in "I Wish I'd Written That" I have focused on articles written by Lane Haygood. Haygood writes for the blog I also write for, and every Friday when he posts I always read his articles and wish I could write as eloquently as he does.

1. Of JRPS and Nerds... and Nerd Love

As an unashamed nerd and lover of video games, if those two things can be different, this article immediately caught my attention. The one section that caught my eye was this:

"Social networking meant for gamers will have the same problem that social games have: the only people actively engaging in seeking companionship will be in entirely the wrong proportions. That is, the available, non-sociopathic, non-creeps will be vastly outnumbered, and any likely suitors/suitoresses will be frightened off by the crawling, grasping misogynist hordes."

The evolution of social networking has been something I have been interested in for a long while. Haygood makes a great point in the above quote about the problems with social networking in general.

2. Gamestop Gonna Get Sued

This article got me interested as I actually work for Gamestop. The article tells the story of a group of Gamestop customers who are upset that the used version of their game does not come with the downloadable content that the new version has. It was great to have Haygood write this article as he actually works as a prosecutor for a small district in Texas. The part of the article that got me thinking was this:

"But is that really a valid suit? After all, should consumers have a reasonable expectation that they are buying a full game when they buy it used and at a discount, especially when disclaimers appear on the packaging that downloadable content is available only to first-time purchasers? Would a consumer expect a used car, for example, to still be under the manufacturer’s warranty?"

This is something that I have been pushing more employees to inform the customer about for a long while. As I have had personal experiences with upset customers over the fact that they are unable to download content included in the new version of the game, I do not want anyone else to have to go through the same thing. I am very interested to see how this class action lawsuit pans out.

3. Double-Fisted Posting: On Video Games and Economics

It was very interesting to read about the various economics involved with game. The part that was the most interesting was this:

"I would argue that guild microeconomies and the wider, Auction-House based WoWconomy are the best modern examples of Marxist economics at work. This is, however, subject to a few corrupting influences, such as the availability of gold (currency, which has only a social exchange value) from a black market. Most gold sellers do not obtain their supplies of gold from legitimate means (such as doing quests, selling drops, or putting the products of labor on the Auction House) but through the illegitimate means of stealing accounts and selling all of the equipment."

One does not usually connect real world philosophy, such as Marxism, with the world of video games.

I Wish I'd Written That: Part Four

For this week's "I Wish I'd Written That" I do not have a theme I stuck with. I just found three recent articles that peaked my interest.

1. Tokyo Beat Down: The Story of Yakuza

The Yakuza game series is one of my favorite series'. The combination of the drama, character development, and action in the games always keeps me on the edge of my seat and makes it hard to put the controller down. I knew the games had a tough time being localized for non-Japanese speaking countries, but it was interesting to read this article and learn just how difficult the process actually was. The one section of the article that intrigued me the most was this:

"It dropped the same week as LucasArts' Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, received a handful of glowing reviews, and quietly disappeared, selling only a (reportedly) scant 40,000 copies. Why, you might ask, release it at all? Sega says the answer was 'for the fans.'"

This part actually made me smile as most companies, especially certain video game ones, are not generally known for releasing a game unless they are sure it will be a big hit. It is good to see there are some left who remember that it's not all about the money.

2. Dr. Ed Roberts, 'Father of the PC,' Dies at 68

This is a short article, but an interesting read. I was not even aware of this man's existence until I read the article. The part that caught my eye was this:

"Roberts later got his medical degree, becoming an internist. His son said Roberts remained interested in modern technology, and up until his death was asking about the Apple iPad. 'He was interested to see one,' said David Robert"

It was nice to read about someone his age who was still hip to what new technology is coming out.

3. Bottling Lightning: Recording the Music of Battlefield: Bad Company 2

I still like to call myself a musician, although I have not had the chance to play with my piano as of late. As a "musician" any articles dealing music interest me. The soundtracks to movies and video games are incredibly important to movies and games, as it engages the viewer and player in the medium. The part of this article that interested me the most was this:

"While it may not be too unfair to picture game development as a dreary building full of people hunched in front of computer monitors for months on end, the industry certainly has plenty of appealing aspects as well. Obviously weapon demonstrations are a blast; motion capture sessions can be counted on to provide a few laughs for the uninitiated; and don't forget the occasional company picnic. But perhaps one of the most genuinely dramatic, if not fascinating events that can happen in game development (and sometimes the least understood) is the orchestral recording session."

As I have heard both horror and amazing stories working for the video game industry it was nice to hear that working in the music side of things is a lot of fun.