gewgaw

While at MSR, I got a copy of Yourself Fitness – which I’ve been meaning to check out. While not a “game” so to speak, I find the idea of an interactive exercise tape (with routines and pacing you can control) really interesting. But as I was sitting here reading email (the box is right here next to me) I realized something else: Maya is pretty cute!

She’s got warm eyes, soft glowing sking, a great physique… and she looks comfortable and natural (despite the fact that it’s obviously a pose). I’d even go as far as saying that Maya appears to be… soulful. When was the last time I had that thought about a female lead character? Ico’s Yorda would be it, I guess (thoug she was more of a pretty waif than a “mind like water” type of girl).

Anyhow, back to the mail: Lulu sent a link to flash-based therapy game where you treat traumatized stuffed animals. As she points out, it’s basic decision-tree traversal wrapped around a really crazy fiction… but it’s oddly compelling. Go help those l’il animals resolve some issues!

And if you can’t, or the work gets you down – why not fix it with some play-therapy shoes? Thanks Amanda!

GI has posted all slides from the ELSPA ‘05 game summit! Talks cover a wide variety of issues facing the industry here and abroad, from generating new production talent to understanding perceptions about games and game rating systems. Good stuff!

Dan’s first Game Daily column is up. One more step towards positive, family-friendly game press and reviews. Woot!

Meanwhile, here in Seattle, there is a lot of chitchat about “casual” games, “family” gaming and so on… stuff that makes me think we are in store for some good PR for “fun” via MS. Keep your fingers crossed – we could certainly use some help on this front!

The Esuvee campaign now has an advergame (thanks Jon).

“Can you ride right – and keep it on all fours?”

Hrm. I wonder if R* helped them design the concept?

Regardless, it isn’t nearly as creepy as this thing (via Alice).

Uncanny valley – here we come!

I should be writing my talk for MSR on Friday. But instead, I’m goofing off.

What a nice interface for finding frames! Go Ebay!!!

Sometimes, this is how I feel about graduating and finding a job.

Keep pushing dude – you’re almost there!

(thanks, Jurie!)

Time to stick out that thumb!

Congrats to Lance and all those who rode into Paris today.

Vive la Tour!

Tara has posted a public response to this article which appeared yesterday across the net. Having experienced similar skews in interviews (and sometimes, being misquoted), I just wanted to post her comments in support.

Tara is an NU alum, so I’ve known her for a while. We recently caught up with each other at the AIIDE conference, and discussed her work at Mad Doc. She’s a talented programmer and enthusiastic gamer, dedicated to making great games. What’s more, she’s chosen to work on products that push boundaries in AI, with content that promotes learning and exploration. What a shame that when given the space and time to highlight the contributions of women like Tara, many reporters choose to focus on the things she has the least chance to influence.

The construction and representation of gender in media (from contemporary film, television and games to historical fine art) is a complex and frustrating issue that deserves plenty of discussion. Sexism, the glass ceiling and the struggle for equal pay are also issues that I love to see addressed in the press. But when it comes to inspiring women to get creative and involved in making media – we have to start taking the high road.

Generally, I think games *could* use a female touch. More pointedly – I think game creators should be diverse… as should game products… and game players! But articles like this focus on all that stands in the way of diversity, and drive discussion away from actionable change.

No press isn’t the answer – but better press is hard to come by, it seems. Let’s hope that the next time we read about Tara, she’s being showcased for her expertise, and really given a chance to shine.

Orkut in the news.

There are now 30,942 members in the shoe community I started.

Wait! Now its 30,944…. and counting…

!!!

The next day, he went to the museum and collected, from Bridgers, two large blue Metropolitan Museum shopping bags stuffed with more than two hundred CDs, containing every number that the Leica had collected from the Unicorn tapestries. There were at least a hundred billion numbers in the shopping bags.

from this fabulous a New Yorker article on digital imaging and The Hunt of the Unicorn tapestries via Jurie.

And via Andrew, another article on the lure of numbers… for (gasp) pretty girls!

:)

That sucks!

Moon Day!

In the last year or so, I’ve been under a rock, of sorts. Working through my thesis, managing a bunch of travel and volunteer projects, starting my job search, moving; with all this on my shoulders, it’s been hard to do much else.

These last few months have been especially exhausting. Late at night, I’d lay down to sleep, and my mind would fill with lists…. endless “to do’s” that I hadn’t gotten to yet. Grocery shopping, paperwork, the eye exam I keep putting off… cover letters, introductions, and thank-you notes… not to mention updating my bibliography or writing that appendix on Lanchester’s Laws. “Someday,” I’d think to myself, “when this is all taken care of, won’t it be nice to exercise again? To see movies? Go to shows? Read… fiction?”

—

Of course, it isn’t ever really “all done”. Email, phone calls, hacking on docs, setting up interviews, finding time for friends and loved ones… so what? Life is hectic – and that’s a good thing! Each day introduces new potential – places where just a *little* time or effort can help make the world a better place. At least, that’s how it seems to me. The challenge is choosing your battles, getting organized, and making the differences you really care about.

Since I packed up my stuff and came out to the bay, I’ve been trying to do this. It started with exercise – riding my bike (the hills here are gorgeous!), Pilates, rock climbing, DDR – whatever, so long as I’m doing something active three or four times a week. Then, I’ve made time in the mornings and mid-afternoons to spend at least an hour with a book, cd, game or film that I’d previously sidelined in favor of “work”. Sundays are now off limits – time for shopping, laundry, maintenance chores.

And you know what? It’s working. Gradually, I’m getting to a point where I feel balanced again.

—

This morning, after some email and coffee, I watched The Incredibles. What a fabulous little movie! So many folks had scolded me for not watching it, but I just hadn’t made the time. I couldn’t! I felt so… overwhelmed! It was hard to sit still in front of the TV when I had… so much to do!

But what good is it always running, if you’re just running in place? “No matter how many times you save the world, it always manages to get back in jeapordy again. Sometimes, I just want it to stay saved, you know? For a little bit? I feel like the maid! I just cleaned up this mess! Can’t we keep it clean for… ten minutes? Please?”

And how!

But this feeling – it comes from within. It’s an artifact of trying to be *too incredible*, all at once. In small pieces, with plenty of rest, relaxation and exercise, you can keep things tidy without crawling into a cave and shutting everything else out. Crunch happens, but it isn’t a healthy way of life. I’m so glad to have discovered this again, for myself – and I hope I can keep it in mind, moving forward, wherever I end up.

—

After the film was over, I got up to wash out my coffee cup, and heard my phone ring. I walked into the bedroom to retrieve it – but strangely, the call was disconnected. No caller ID registered… just a number: 0-000-123-456. Looks like I may have to get my supersuit ready…

But at least I’ll be rested!

And with that being said, Neversoft is creating what many could call Grand West Auto. It’s a free roaming action shooter set in the Wild West. You’ve got a really huge area with cow towns and Native American tribes, you get missions from various brothels in the area, and you ride around and kill people while on horseback. Where San Andreas was set in the West in a modern day setting, we’ll get to feel what it would have been like in the eighteen hundreds, before the white man brutally raped the land and the indigenous people in submission with his guns, Calvary, the Oregon Trail, and his penis.

from this preview of Gun via Bluesnews

Also via Blues – an LA Times article that features one of the best quotes ever on digital media distribultion, courtesy of BG himself:

“Can I use it, can I lend it to my friend, can I use it in my summer home, what can I do with it? That’s got to be clear,” he said.

Indeed. The Hamptons just wouldn’t be the same without my copy of The Massacre wafting from the B & O. Reprazent!

Incidentally, there appear to have been certain games which were regular concomitants of the feature article. The readers themselves took the active role in these games, which put to use some of their glut of information fodder. A long disquisition by Ziegenhalss on the curious subect of “Crossword Puzzles” describes the phenomenon. Thousands upon thousands of persons, the majority of whom did heavy work and led a hard life, spent their leisure hours sitting over squares and crosses made of letters of the alphabet, filling in the gaps according to certain rules. But let us be wary of seeing only the absurd or insane aspects of this, and let us abstain from ridiculing it. For these people with their childish puzzle games and their cultural feature articles were by no means innocuous children or playful Phaeacians. Rather, they dwelt anxiously among political, economic and moral ferments and erthquakes, waged a number of frightful wars and civil wars, and their little cultural games were not just charming, meaningless childishness. These games sprang from their deep need to close their eyes and flee from unsolved problems and anxious forebodings of doom into an imaginary world as innocuous as possible. The assiduously learned to drive automobiles, to play difficult card games and lose themselves in crossword puzzles – for they faced death, fear, pain and hunger almost without defenses, could no longer accept the consolations of the churches, and could obtain no useful advice from Reason. These people who read so many articles and listened to so many lectures did not take the time and trouble to strengthen themselves against fear, to combat the dread of death within themselves; they moved spasmodically on through life and had no belief in any tomorrow.

from The Glass Bead Game by Herman Hesse.

On the flipside…Chuck Foreman!

To follow up on that last post…

A box of games just arrived in the mail from EB. In it – an older racing game for Xbox and two new DS games. Clearly, the DS games (designed explicitly for play with the stylus) will be much more exciting to me. I mean – I am dying to play both these games. But after reading the back-of-box copy…

Meteos:
“Try not to panic as you take on the most frantic puzzle game in the galaxy. As multicolored Meteos blocks rain down, use your stylus – and your brainpower – to align matching ones and fire them into space!”

Translation: This is a blocks puzzle with mulitcolored pieces. They fall, causing you to feel frantic, yet smart when you successfully eliminate them (that is – if you care about this sort of thing). Stylus control – how exciting!

Kirby:
“Your DS stylus has been infused with the power to paint! When Kirby gets turned into a ball by an evil witch, your hand-drawn rainbow paths become the only way he can find power-ups and reach the gates of each world. Draw loops to make him speed up, make ramps to jump danger, and draw walls to block laser beams and cannon blasts as you explore seven worlds packed with adventure!”

Translation: This is…. ok, it’s a platform game, safe for kids… pretty much just like you expected. There 7 levels of platformy challenges. Stylus control – how exciting!

Burnout 3:
“Don’t fight the traffic…. DESTROY IT!

Translation: None required.

Sure – you’re always fighting an uphill battle with new tech or new gameplay… and yes, racing games are somewhat of a freebie. The idea of smashing into cars will sound exciting and satisfying to anyone who has ever driven – or only driven in games. But still, you gotta do better than this, guys! All the innovation in the world (hardware, software, you name it) won’t get us anywhere if the marketing is stale and tired. Period!

I just got back from my weekly pilgrimage to Fry’s to cruise the PC Games aisles and found row after row of boxes with the same 4 images on the front: Army guy with gun, Creepy horror guy covered in blood with gun, Big Orc with gun-sword, Skinny chick with sword and combat-thong. My eyes glazed over after a few passes up and down the aisle as I waited for one of them to seduce me into a purchase, but it never happened. The marketing vibe of these boxes is indistinguishable from the background radiation of the universe itself. If physicists really want to find all the Dark Matter in the universe, I suggest they look in the PC Games aisle.

via Grumpy Gamer

May your cake be splendid, and your day… marvellous?

Way to go, little lady!

…from Randy and Lulu’s twin birthday trip to Barcelona & Paris. It’s a bike. See?

This one is a close runner up. It’s from inside La Sagrada Familia, which is under construction, in the center of Barcelona. They also witnessed the funky seahorses that I was so obsessed with when I saw the exhibit at Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. Fish are so amazing and beautiful!

Anyhow – nice album, guys!

Do they or don’t they?

I’m all for more research (”investigaton” seems a bit strong, Hillo)… but that reserach has to be informed by notions of context, parental involvement and personal choice. Sure – we can argue about the impact of games… just as we argued about the evils of pulp novels, movies, television and rock music. Or, we could learn from these old debates, get over ourselves, and move right on to some new freakout.

*sigh*