Yeah, I know the title sounds like something that would be posted under the casual encounters section of Craig's list involving somebody aptly named Notapriest53 buuuut it made me giggle.

With episode 16 comming up I was wondering if anybody else out there in the dtoid world have watch parties?
For me and my group we usually watch it the weekend after the debut. Copious amounts of whiskey, takeout/delivery and Halo, Gears, Resistance, MarioStrikers, SoulCalibur2, etc are usually involved and a good time is had by all.
Well for those of you in the Oklahoma City area that would like to attend we're thinking about moving to a set location for such events and have a couple places picked out. Drop me a line if there's any of you out there that'd be interested.

Thanks to Lowkey's blog pointing out this kickass art I was able to do a bit of digging to try and find the artist responsible for those amazing images.
If you're like me and when you see something this slick you feel the urge to sift through anything he's put up on the 'net you can find out more about him HERE.
His name is Ben Mauro and he is awesome.

All feelings about a 2nd iteration of Bioshock aside, here's hoping the attention he's gained will land him a yob!

Well, having passed on picking up Persona 3 when it dropped I've been half-heartedly trying to locate a copy around the OKC area shops. This search has proved to be more futile than Princess Peach getting a restraining order on Bowser *insert cheesy laugh track*
In my dejected state I decided to just swing by my local GameExchange in hopes of finding an old copy of Battle Angel on dvd or vhs. (If anybody actually has this, I have a slightly used left testicle I'd be willing to offer in trade)

As it turns out I came across a game that me and the wife got a LOT of fun out of;

*note I picked it up on the xbox, not just because that was the only copy they had but also because it's on the 360 backwards compatibility list and after the first few play sessions I can say it works fine.

Now if you haven't played this I strongly recommend you go out and pick it up if you can find it. It's a platformer that has great level design, character animation, and a variety of gameplay mixed in with the adventure.
It unfortunately was released at the same time as Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time so you can see how a squatty ninja voiced by Billy West could be overshadowed by a dude in parachute pants with the ability to control time.

Our chibi-headed hero was brought to life by Argonaut Games, a developer which to a good majority of gamers either went unknown or at best was associated with a string of lackluster titles with the exception of StarFox and of course I-Ninja.
That's right, StarFox. Not only was Argonaut a huge contributer but they were the brains behind the development of the Super FX chip which was the powerhouse that allowed you do execute those beloved barrel rolls in 3D!!
The Super FX was also used in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island to great success despite the reluctance of some in regards to the art style.

Unfortunately I have to say that Argonaut Games has since shuffled off the mortal coil around 2004-2005. Even though a quick glance at their choice of projects (starfox and i-ninja aside) it's obvious to see why they weren't exactly a huge success garnering industry and critic acclaim. ...but.. I still blame the final nail in the coffin on Catwoman.

Well that's it for this delve into a bit of obscure gaming history, join us next time when we take a closer look at how much fun visual and auditory hallucinations can be!

This is slightly old news, but I think it's important to keep tabs on where these front runners stand in regards to regulating new media, specifically our precious vidjaamez.

Common Sense Media had invited some of the more notable candidates to share their views on the "biggest kid-and-media issues facing parents today."

The opening page can be found here and gives you a quick summarization of the questions asked and quick answers the candidates provided.

The second question, which might be of interest to you all, is this;
"To date, nearly 10 states have considered legislation to keep violent video games out of kids' hands. Would you support this type of legislation at the federal level? What other strategies would you support to keep the video game industry and other media companies from marketing and selling inappropriate content to children?"

You can find the candidates full answers to that question here.

I feel it is important to note that out of the total presidential candidates invited to participate in the survey only 5 total felt the need to respond to the questionnaire. Keep in mind this survey covered more than the hot topic of violence and video games, the candidates were asked about a wide variety of topics about media and children.

Even though the majority of those reading are in the 16 and over crowd and might think that since the focus here is on minors these issues won't directly affect you in the next few years please keep this in mind; Many, many times in the past and today "protecting the innocence of children" has been used as a means to justify outright censorship of anything deemed obscene by the "ruling majority."

I feel that in a time where being an opinionated gamer can land you in the middle of debate whether you've sought it out or not it is imperative that we try to stay informed.


Sorry for the long read, and I tried to keep my personal opinion on the candidates out of this on purpose, I just wanted to pass along what I viewed as useful information, hopefully it was.

::Rant disclaimer::


After being reminded of Shawn Woolley via the story this morning I decided to try and dig up a bit of truth behind him and his struggle. I won't get into the details of Shawn and his mother working together to overcome his previous emotional struggles and how easy it would be to draw a conclusion that one of the only reasons Everquest was onscreen may have been becaause of the same reasons why other suicide victims play favorite songs, read favorite passages, etc before going through with the act.

Instead I'd like to draw your attention to this page.
It is a section of a website for "Kjos Ministries" wherein readers write in for advice involving issues and conflicts that arise when christians are confronted with non-christian themes in entertainment, specificly video games.

The first dialogue between a reader and Peter, the advice coloumnist, shows more of an example of what I'd view as active parenting instead of rampant paranoia and is the only reason I continued to read. I may not agree with the religeous views of either of them but as a new father I can appreciate the effort a mother put forth in researching the game in question(which was Fable if you're curious).

Sadly, this was the exception to the norm as was proved by the other letters presented in this segment.

The final straw for me was this;

"Dear Mom,
This is a sad sad story. I have to tell you that your son is learning occult magick in your Christian home. ...Pokeman is a card game developed by Wizards of the Coast (devoted occultists) accidentally marketed to too young an audience"

Pokemon is evil? Are you serious? Fuckuing pikachu?... He's a paganistic druid!! He casts Lightning bolt! lllliiightning bolt!!

As a new father and an avid, sometimes rabbid gamer who enjoys all mediums of gaming it pains me to see such ignorance blanketing anything that isn't Chutes and Ladders as evil.
I mean Candyland must be some sort of diabolical lure conceived in the pits of hades since it has that dookie monster camping out in the molasses swamp!! And just look at that lord licorice, he's obviously the devil dressed up as a muskateer bent on pimping out queen frostine!!!

If they can blame videogames, I can blame Jesus.

Eh, I couldn't think of a decent title so that'll do.

Being an avid gamer that's recently become a father has made me think back to my first video game experiences.
Some of my best memories, gaming or otherwise, are of me and my dad staying up late playing favorite titles like pac-man, defender, missile command and later on Rush'n Attack.
It makes me wonder what games will look like in another 5-8 years. What genres will have thrived and which ones will have faltered?

But as a curious bastard waiting for 5 o'clock to get here, I wonder aloud, "What are some of your favorite memories as a neophyte gamer?"