For the most part, I hate reading video game reviews. I find them to be verbose, overdrawn, and poorly written. One of the biggest offenders is IGN, with 4 to 5 page reviews going in detail about aspects of the game that frankly should not make its way to a review. Game reviewers look for qualities that would not normally appeal to the average gamer. Bonus content, developer reels, and concept art are all nice additions but are not a deal breaker and do not stack up against solid gameplay. Video game reviews also have the habit of comparing one video game to another. This works great if your target audience is an avid gamer, however when every video game review contains comparison to similar games in the genre, it becomes important to ask: who reads game reviews? I have to imagine that not everyone who reads a video game review is a seasoned gaming veteran; I am sure there are concerned parents who want to research a video game before purchasing it for their child. I am sure the jargen-filled, self-referencial nature of video game reviews is one of the many factors creating a barrier between gamers and non-gamers. Looking at the film reviews, critics write reviews that appeal to hardcore movie goers and the everyday person. Movie reviews are written in a manner that can be easily digested for public consumption. Did I mention that video game reviews are extremely biased?



Movies and film have the advantage of an academic backing and a diverse viewership. Despite being a relatively young field of study, most college campuses have a department for cinema studies. FIlm benefits from being considered both a commercial entity and an art form. Movies and film also have a much broader audience than video games. Men and women of difference race and religions go to the theater to watch the lackest blockbuster. Unfortunately the video game community does not enjoy these luxuries, but it also shows through their writing. Most reviews follow the same format or template: a brief introductory paragraph, an analysis of the graphics, gameplay, sound, give or take another section, and then a concluding paragraph. Some reviews have degenerated into bullet points of pros and cons while others are detailed plot synopsis and gameplay analysis. In most circumstances, I jump straight to the concluding paragraph because everything I actually want to read is summed up there. Some reviews lack a concluding paragraph which is a something I think we all learned about in middle school. Because reviews are so formulaic, reading reviews is never really a surprise. I read and watch many reviews - for good games, for bad games, for games I'll never play, and games I desperately want more than anything else. I enjoy reading and even if the writing is not the best, then I learned what worked and what didn't work.



Gamers are an opinionated crowd debating in great detail trivial matters like: Who is better: Cloud or Sephiroth? And those opinions and biases find their way into writing. Taking Final Fantasy as an example, reviewing Final Fantasy 8 is not a review of Final Fantasy 8 against the quality of Final Fantasy 7 or any of the preceeding Final Fantasies. Especially with Final Fantasy, most of the games have different locations, characters, and plots. Understandly, franchises have standards and it is important to address if a quality of a series is in sharp decline, but to base a review around that premise is a good way to confuse anyone reading who hasn't played Final Fantasies. My firm belief is that any one should be able to read a game review and know if they should buy the game or not. Instead, readers are treated to long-winded reviews without much personality or style. Those who have experience in print media understand the spatial constraints of writing anything. Editors cut content, adjust layout, and alter margins in order to have the writing fit a given space. Online reviews have endless space and do not need an editor - boundless creative freedom. Because of this, reviewers do not understand the desired lenght of a review - at maximum no longer than a single magazine page, two-columned.



I'm sure there are those who will read this and think that I am a pretentious person. I do not claim to be an excellent writer; in high school I was actually a pretty bad writer. Over the years, through a series of eye-opening experiences and necessity, I realized that communicating meaning and important through writing is invaluable trait. Right now more than ever, gamers want to be taken seriously. E-sports are growing, video game studies departments are appearing on college campuses, and the financial endowment of video games is growing. Video games and the gaming community is also under attack from political administrations and other organizations. To the general public, gamers are still thought of as a group of prepubescent, poorly articulated, over-aggressive homophobes. We at Destructoid know, more than anything else, that we are also a group of able writers.

My original story can be found over at kokugamer.com. Thanks for destructoid for helping me build my writing portfolio. I am now News Contributor.

Since it’s launch, PS3 has remained the most expensive of the current generation consoles. Its pricetag has stopped many consumers and loyal fans from purchasing the game system leaving most in hopes of an eventual price drop. With not pricedrop announced at E3 2009, the prospect of owning a PS3 continues to be a distant thought for many. Online electronics distributor Zwee, formerly Ebid, grabbed my attention today when it appeared on a Gmail sponsored link: ”Playstation 3 for $197.” At less than half the price of retail Playstation 3, this offer seemed undeniably suspicious; especially considering the shipping is free. However, with 830 reader votes and 4 customer reviews and a sharply designed website, could this be a dream come true?



Personally, I am not optimistic. Luckily, Zwee does provide a 30 refund policy for a full refund. Given the low price, I would have assumed there would be more online coverage, but the only other viral publicity I found was on the forums of Cheapass Gamer. In any case, to those looking for a cheap PS3, proceed with caution.

Update: Chronoswing discovered today that the Zwee offer is indeed a scam which has been reported by RedFlagDeals.

via [Zwee]

Typomagia
typing - free
by Jari Komppa (Sol::Games)
originally released 2009

Typomagia is tactical typing game requiring users to type quickly in order to conquer the enemy. In order to earn energy, players must type words correctly as they appear on the screen. To summon units, the player must type in the respective commands that are found in the left hand column. The game also features a tutorial mode for players to ease into the game mechanics. In addition, the game has a story mode and quick play with adjustable difficulty.

In terms of presentation, Typomagia has a clean interface with sharp effects. The units are pixelated creatures reminiscent of Nintendo's 8bit console. Typing, summoning, and battles all feature their own unique sound effects which can all be turned off from the options menu. The game also indicates to the player if they have typed a word wrong. The game can be played in both full screen or windowed.

Typomagia is a short, fun game that is sure to get even non-gamers interested. Although educational games have typically received poor reception from the gaming community, there are a handful of notable typing games: Mario Teaches Typing (well, I liked it) and Typing of the Dead. The indie game scene is great because gives births and revives genres of games that would otherwise not appear in the mainstream market due to the astronomical production costs. Typomagia has received quite a bit of attention from other blogs and game enthusiasts outside the indie community. If you haven't already checked it out, download it and give it a whirl. Its only 3 MB and takes up no resources while playing.

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I don't think any game developer intends to make a mediocre game and especially not a bad game. From its humble beginnings as a one-man project, video games have grown into a multi-billion dollar global entertainment industry. Despite the efforts of developers, some games inevitably flop, both in terms of sales and critical reception. Although there is argument over the "best" game, good games are determined by gamers and game reviewers and the mysterious outside forces that also play an influence. On the other hand, bad games are painstakingly played by the Angry Video Game Nerd and anyone else who has been duped into playing the game. Good games enjoy praise while bad games are treated with scorn, but both are memorable - bad games in particular enjoy the limelight as the latest internet meme. The real loser is the mediocre game. They are more or less forgotten and occupy the bargain bin at your local blockbuster video. Even bad games have the last laugh by selling for huge sums on eBay.



Ideally, all games would be good but games of all quality serve a critical function, especially for the game reviewer. Video games are highly derivative. Video games are playable on only a select few consoles and for the most part use standardized controls are are restricted by the parameteres of the console's hardware. Many of the variables are anchored (a dream for any laboratory scientist) allowing the gamer to focus on what's important - the game. This means that games can be evaluated efficiently. Furthermore, good games are helpful because they inform the reviewer on the strenght while bad games help reviewers focus on the mistakes and failures. Not all games use comparison, which I think should be used sparingly anyways: each game should stand on its own. However, the gamer behind the review should have played a good games, bad games, and mediocre games.



Video game journalism has come under heavy criticism, both internally and externally. You know that the state of video game journalism is bad when a gamefaqs user review is written in the narrative voice of Professor Oak. The most notable critic of video game journalism is Chris Buffa from Gamedaily. As he puts it, game reviews are uninteresting, too verbose, poorly written, and unengaging. Playing mediocre and bad games is espeically important to game reviewers. Most of us can go on for days and days talking about their favorite game - presumably a game that falls in the good category. But to be able to write a compelling argument on a bad or mediocre game - now thats a challenge. You don't have suffer through Superman 64 to understand what makes a game bad, but you should be able to intelligently articulate what make a bad. I have to give James Rolfe (the AVGN) a lot of credit. Although his videos made to be funny, they are remarkably entertaining and critical of the games he plays. Just because a game is mediocre or bad does not mean the review should be.

After presumably a hectic day at Screw Attack, Jack Thompson is scheduled to appear once again at SGC. This report comes from both Game Politics and Screw Attack's news segment Hard News. This is undoubtedly great news for both event coordinators and guests for the upcoming convention.





Although a conference call was originally scheduled between event coordinators and Jack Thompson, after receiving an email apology from the parody video's user and submitting a 12 sentence introduction instead of a 1 to 2 sentence introduction, Thompson has agreed to reappear at the convention.

With games like Okami and Crayon Physics Deluxe, "drawing" has become a popular tool for game play mechanics. Chalk joins the ranks as a fun, challenging indie game and is today's spotlight:



Chalk
shmup, action - free
createdy by Joakim Sandberg
originally released 2007

Chalk is an innovative shoot-em up that requires the player to draw lines to solve puzzles and defeat enemies. The player controls a piece of chalk with the left mouse button and the character by holding the right mouse button. The chalk has a limit so players will have to draw lines quickly while protecting the character from harm's way. The player starts the game with 3 lives and 3 continues with extra lives awarded after earning enough points. Although the game features no actually shooting, you can redirect enemy attacks, destroy obstacles, and grab objects using your trusty piece of chalk. Chalk features hand-drawn backgrounds and character sprites that look as if they were created using chalk - very fitting of the game.

The game features 6 levels, each with its own unique boss, background art, music, and orientation (for example level 1 moves from left to right, level 2 moves from bottom to top, etc). Each level also introduces new types of enemies. After playing through the game, the player can revisit any level of the game. The game records the players high school and the player's performance is ranked in each level on a F, D, C, B, A, S scale. The music in the game is catchy and appropriate. Each time the chalk is used, the iconic "chalk hitting a chalkboard' sound is reproduced.

Joakim Sandberg went the extra mile in deliver a unque, fun, and addictive game experience. It is clear from Chalk's presentation, that Sandberg wanted the gameplay and style to reinforce one another and he certainly achieved his goal. Unfortately, the game is on the short time clocking in at around one hour. Despite its short length, the game is fairly difficult forcing the player to think hard on how to solve certain puzzles and defeat bosses. Chalk is a great mixture of old school arcade features such as timers and scores with an innovative control scheme.

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