Roger Ebert

Someday we’ll all look back at this and laugh

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If you’re reading this blog then there’s a fairly decent chance that you’ve heard about Roger Ebert, his loud and controversial opinion about videogames, and its latest iteration which was posted last Friday. I told myself that I’m above falling into that cyclical argument, but the bait is too tempting for me to resist any longer. In case you actually had a life over the weekend, allow me to catch you up on the crux of his argument: videogames can never be art.

If you find that above statement infuriating and wish to express that rage via typing words in a box on a website, then the recommended course of action is for you to click your way over to Ebert’s blog and do exactly that. Ebert personally reads every single comment that gets posted and delights in watching the comment count tick upwards. →  Read the rest

Street Fighter 4 Backlash

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Capcom is taking the usual approach when it comes to hyping up Street Fighter 4. They slowly release videos and screenshots, while allowing all sorts of previews and interviews to try and assure fans that they know what they are doing.

Of course, in this day and age such a method of hype is the wrong way. I have not done much to check out how the hardcore fighting game community feels about SF4, but among mainstream gamers and the non fighter “hardcore” crowd, the reactions are less than stellar. Bad words are flying about the stages, the new character, the way the fighting itself seems to work. It all seems baffling considering the game is still in an incredibly early stage (not even alpha yet), and the only confirmed platform is Japanese arcades (which was a guarantee when the game was announced). →  Read the rest

Review – Bioshock

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About halfway through Bioshock, I had concocted three different introductions to use in a review.

Then I lost my saves.

Word to the wise; don’t transfer your offline gamertag onto Xbox Live at 2 in the morning. Bad things will happen. They did to me, and I had to play the entire first half all over again. Doing this was a blessing in disguise, as it showed me a few things about the game that were not evident the first time around. Then the second half taught me even more. Let’s get right to the point; this is a good game. Is it a great game? Some will feel it is not, as there are most certainly a few problems here. Is it a work of art? This is an even tougher question to answer. →  Read the rest

Bioshock and Awe

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First of all, let me say that I hope that everyone who can play Bioshock is trying their best to do so. This is a big, important game that we need to discuss campfire style.

Second, I want to tell everyone to please, please, slow the hell down.

Thanks to Bioshock’s art deco style, mesmerizing visuals, and Randian plot and philosophy, there are already people declaring this an instant work of art. By the end of the year you will no longer hear chants of “Ico! Beyond Good and Evil! Shadow of the Colossus!”. Instead the only weapon many gamers will wield will be Bioshock.

ReggieHatesYou

Again, I say to this – slow down. Wait until everyone has played it. Wait until the initial excitement and hype has died down, as this has a huge inflating effect on our opinions of a game. →  Read the rest

Message to Ebert: You and me, flagpole, afterschool

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I used to be a pretty big fan of Roger Ebert, especially when he had that show with Gene Siskel (yeah, the bald guy). But now, after hearing his second rant on how video games can’t be art, I think I’m gonna have to take him off of my “cool motha fuckas” list. Sucks to be him, I guess:)

Anyway, on his personal blog, Roger Ebert came out and explained what he meant earlier on how games can’t be art. Amazingly, he corrects himself on the issue by saying:

“Anything can be art. Even a can of Campbell’s soup. What I should have said is that games could not be high art, as I understand it.”

So, video games can be art, but not the good kind. A few people in the comments sections of other sites are starting to realize that, no matter how many credentials someone has, anyone can say stupid shit. →  Read the rest