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Archive for the ‘Rants’ Category
Controversies are anything but new to the entertainment business; irrespective of any field, be it gaming, movies or music. Whether its Richard Gere planting one on Shilpa Shetty, “exploitation” of the Slumdog kids, Lindsay Lohan snorting another line, or closer to home; the “Sex-Scene” in Mass Effect which was much campaigned by FOX News… and poorly might I add.
And just before it’s official release, there was this one particular leaked gameplay footage of the highly anticipated Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 developed by Infinity Ward. The game is due for release today on the Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and Microsoft Windows PC. Modern Warfare 2 (MW2) is the sixth installment of the Call of Duty series and is the direct sequel to Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare developed by the same and gained a huge fan-base post its release early November 2007.
(Caution: Campaign spoilers after the jump.)
I like strategy. It’s always run through my veins even in the days before my first PC. Although back then it existed as little more sticks and stones placed in the mud by a young child; one to whom it represented the soldiers and tanks of a fictional army fighting the kind of scenarios that only the long, hot hours the Indian summer could conjure up in one’s imagination.
Its stuck with me since then; now affording me a set of tools to analyze; to poke and prod at the very foundations and innards of some of the games I play today. It is a morbid examination of sorts; but one that is insightful and always gleaning a bit of perspective regardless. The subject of this examination today is that of the Dawn of War series – and in particular, Dawn of War II.
That said, this isn’t really a review – the time for those have long past. Instead, consider this…an insight and a few thoughts, if you will, on just where it fits in the strategy genre in general.
In today’s Hindustan Times’ City section, while Amitabh Bachchan bashes Slumdog Millionaire, another story, craftily titled “Ghajini Shocker” grabs your attention. You’d think it was about the Ghajini video game and how the Army was called in to nuke every last copy of this game, but no – sadly, no dice here. The article talks about how violence in the film has traumatically affected people – kids and their parents included. The article goes on to say that several parents were shocked and upset that Aamir Khan “disappointed” them, after his nice, kids-friendly role in Taare Zameen Par, set such high standards!
Well, we’re not a gossip rag or Bollywood blog, but the parallels to gaming are drawn yet again. Parents need to respect and understand the concept of ratings on film, music and games and restrict what comes to their kids. The same stands true for retailers and stronger enforcement is needed to make this happen. Blaming video games for violence isn’t the issue here – publishers appropriately rate a product for the age group it is intended for and this needs to be understood and implemented by parents, lawyers and retailers.
It absolutely annoys me to read how everyone takes the moral high-ground as soon as something like this happens or a whiney kid gets upset when they see a movie or play a video game, their parents knew wasn’t meant for them. How to deal with this menace of violent video games you ask? Here’s a TAP-TIP: RTFR. Yes, that’s “Read The Fucking Rating”. Can’t possibly get easier than that now, can it? So the next time your child knows that kids at school are not intended to be meat-shields.
It’s pretty much a known fact that the best way to promote a product or service is to get it endorsed by celebrities. So whether it’s Paris Hilton endorsing an anti-alcohol campaign or Robert Downey Jr. on a “Just-say-NO!” campaign, brand-power will rule! However, and thankfully, we’re talking a little closer to home. And of course, at home nothing is bigger, badder and bling’ier than Bollywood.
After the failed attempts of Yuvraj Singh and Akshay Kumar to make the Xbox 360 a household name (yes – most people still think that the PS2 is the latest gaming console), the Xbox 360 is now a prominent feature in some of the latest Bollywood movies! I recently had the opportunity to see this in 2 movies to smack audiences in the face, in recent times – the abysmal turd called LoveStory 2050 and then Bachna Ae Haseeno, both clearly featuring the Xbox 360 console and games (although the concept of gaming in 2050 was as boring and uninspired as the movie itself).
My experience with the Real Time Strategy genre began not amongst the spice-filled hills of Dune II. Nor did it begin at the side of Kane, crushing my enemies under the Iron hand of NOD. No – it all began amidst the star-spangled banners of the allies, charging the front lines even as the colossal front of Soviet Mammoth Tanks pushed forward against all that stood before it – be it tanks, helicopters or infantry. Such is the affection towards the game that if my heart were considered an Italian mafia restaurant, the best table would always be reserved for the boss of the place and his son, Red Alert 2. No other game – regardless of how powerful or good – would dare to eat at that table, lest find themselves at the bottom of the creek with their feet in cement blocks.
And yet today I find myself in a dilemma of sorts. When I was given the opportunity to partake in the Red Alert 3 beta thanks to the bossman, I was nothing short of elated and excited. To finally see the continuation of the series and the third installment – to relive part of that experience along with something more – it was and still is an exciting opportunity. However… I seemed to have fallen into a trap.
There is something I try to keep reminding myself everyday: to stop falling prey to hype, flashy banners and pimped-out sites. Unfortunately, those constant reminders failed with Red Alert 3 (RA3) as I got into my sub and dived into the beta, completely ignoring the warning signs along the way. By the time I emerged back from the murky depths, my impressions of the game had changed significantly – both for better and for worse.
There’s a heck of a discussion going around these days about how the PC as a gaming platform is dying. Some people – foul heretics, no doubt – have gone so far as to even suggest that PC Gaming is “dead” or that its future is “bleak” at best thanks to rampant piracy. One might tend to believe such people – until you realize that almost all of them are, or are deeply associated with, the major game publishers in some form or the other; or alternatively, are rabid console fan boys.
I honestly don’t know where these people are pulling their numbers from or getting the feeling of PC Gaming being dead. If these figures are coming from traditional market sales at Walmart and the gaming stores, maybe one could understand. This of course fails to recognize the not-insignificant number of sales that are going online these days. With services like Steam, Stardock, or even Amazon and Ebay, there’s really little incentive to go to the games store or to deal with annoying stupid staff that always manages to screw up your experience somehow and thus might result in the low numbers that people are claiming to see.
I’m sure by now that many of you have already probably heard the news of Jack Thompson’s fiasco in the Florida court, which would most likely result in him being debarred from practicing law for ten years. That’s right. Count it on both hands, baby – 10 Jack Thompson free years! I’d like to feel a little bit of joy and more than well-deserved feeling of “Finally!”, but I can’t help but feel a sad bit of pity for him now.
Judging by the objections he filed with the court (which had refused to let him read it out), and the wild claims he made about the Judge Dava Tunis before walking out of his own hearing it’s quite clear that the he missed the Sanity train not once, but probably twice in a row. The entire fiasco was quite pathetic and pitiful, and I have to wonder how the hell he ever got to be a lawyer in the first place.
Still, as a gamer, it’s a relief to hear such news and see such an anti-gaming extremist out of the picture… but as a human being, I can’t help but be naturally curious. What hatred could drive this man into willingly jumping into the seas of insanity? What reasoning does he holds against gaming – that which is essentially an indoor extension of the physical activities and games of make-believe we once played as children?
Could it be he really feared that playing such violent games like Quake, Doom and the like made us naturally more violent? Well, does it?
Whenever we catch breath of “news” like this, our somewhat attempts at analyzing it usually draws to the same conclusion. Indian developer announces or shows off game project. Indian developer assures that the game will hold significance when released to the masses. The Angry Pixel pans Indian developer, with the sort of reasoning you get after getting being butt-whipped with a wet towel in the boy’s locker room while changing. Rinse, lather, repeat. And trust me, I don’t like it coming down to that. I want India to grow as a viable platform for game development. But this is just making it too easy, that even Ravi decided not to comment about it. And he wrote the book on Bollywood bashing around these parts.
UPDATE: Apparently, these screens are from an in-house engine test and are nowhere near the current version’s visual representation. Expect to see some real hard facts, and less PR blunder. Thanks to Sanjit for the coolly, collective clarification. Gosh, aren’t I the bumbling douche bucket now. I don’t suppose anyone from the Rocking Pixels team would be interested in dressing up as a ninja, eh?
In between conceited guffaws and outstanding fits of mockery divided between “serial entrepreneur”, “significant online gaming presence” and “expert speak” for so little as a coffee mug associated with FX Labs, I came upon this misshapen fool’s gold nugget. Hm. Quaint. If you bother to actually go through all of brotha Reddi’s drivel, chances are you’ll come up with much less subtle and infinitely more scathing remarks on what is ultimately an opinion on what constitutes a selling game in India (undertones of “And we know how to do it, beetches” included).
Salutations, to all you folk. Say, did you know we recently turned a year old? No, no – not ourselves. Although having a bunch a young, thumb-socking misfits writing an Indian Gaming blog would suffice for more of a relevant plot device than anything the Super Babies movies were ever about. And god, you have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to take a crack at the Super Babies. Imagine if your feces sprouted it’s own civilizations and… wait, where am I going with this?
Anyway, theANGRYpixel blog is now one year old (and then some). How did we get this far?