Pictured above: Money Grubbing Whore

When I first saw the "Monthly Musing" for October, I thought long and hard what possibly could scare me. With such good topics appearing such as The FEAR: Ravenholm and The FEAR: Addiction, I knew that I couldn't put out an overused idea. So what is my fear for video games? Well, like most people, my fear started out as a general fear and grew to acceptance. My fear is of course about ruined video game franchises. I like to refer to this phenomenon as the George Lucas Effect.

Why the George Lucas Effect? Let me list the reasons:

1. I hate him. He is one of the worst writers and directors to date. The only reason his stuff is well done is because his actors improvise. George Lucas has only made three good things: Star Wars 4-6, Indiana Jones 1-3, and American Graffiti. He has great ideas but can't seem to put pen to paper.

2. Since he has only made three good things. He has chosen to take him money and run with it, and loves to never expand and to keep churning that money mill. Face it fans, you can hope for Star Wars to pick back up, but it wont and never will.

3. I've been meaning to talk about how much he sucks and this was the perfect chance to do it.

My first disappointment came with Halo 2. Now before I am shot in the head by a Bungie board member, I just want to say that the past two Halo games have had quite a disappointing storyline. While it did present some unique ideas there was no reason for me to care or be interested in Master Chiefs' fight with the Covenant. The focus had shifted from huge battles and small skirmishes in big maps with puzzle and exploration elements to tight close combat in smaller areas with very little puzzle elements. I do realize that the Halo multiplayer experience is great; I don't play games for purely the multiplayer experience if it isn't a multiplayer game. This seems to be the Halo franchises more direct focus which leaves my rich single player hunger still hungry.

However, Halo and its story and whether it is well made is a topic that can be debated for infinity. Halo isn't the only offender. Why most notable franchises include Star Wars episodes one through three, Indianna Jones: Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Sonic the Hedgehog, Starfox, and Tomb Raider to just name a few. This problem doesn't necessarily plague just the single player experience and sequels. No it can be found in the hype of new titles also. While this isn't a major problem. It does cheapen the video game experience a lot. Especially when a great game is supposed to come out. The game doesn't even have to "revolutionize the way we play [insert genre here]."

In conclusion, the problem cant be fixed. It isn't caused by uncreativity or laziness. But rather pressed deadlines and poor budgeted productions. Sure you can say that the developer is being lazy but when it comes down to it. It's all about money and what the companies what to spend on a title. It's just another sad fact of life.