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Way of the Game / WotG Episode 26 - 360 > PS3 (sorta), and a whole buncha games
« on: June 10, 2010, 08:28:13 AM »
I'll be curious to see what you all think of this one. I'm prepared for the hate mail.
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32
General Discussion / Welcome to... Action Castle!
« on: June 08, 2010, 02:54:39 PM »
You are standing in a small cottage. There is a fishing pole here.
Exits are: Out
One rule: you may not post an action twice in a row.
Exits are: Out
One rule: you may not post an action twice in a row.
33
Way of the Game / Seeking Submissions
« on: June 07, 2010, 03:30:01 PM »
On the off chance you read this forum before you read the Announcements forum, we're looking for submissions, and the explanation is there.
Similarly related, if you'd like to submit a One-Way Review for possible release on the feed, shoot Alex or I a PM. The intention was to do more of those ourselves, on a regular basis, but time and other podcast demands have gotten in the way.
Similarly related, if you'd like to submit a One-Way Review for possible release on the feed, shoot Alex or I a PM. The intention was to do more of those ourselves, on a regular basis, but time and other podcast demands have gotten in the way.
34
Announcements / Seeking Submission for The Way of the Game 29
« on: June 07, 2010, 03:26:20 PM »
So, here's the deal. Alex and I put off talking about our favorite games of 2009 in December and January because at the time we hadn't played very many games from 2009. Now that 2010 is half over, we're pretty comfortable with the quantity of '09 games we've played. In episode 29, we're going to talk about our favorites.
That being said, we still haven't played (and never will have played) every game from '09, and thus have probably missed something fantastic, so we want to (literally) hear from you. We're looking for one or two minute recordings of what your favorite 2009 game is, and why. We'll mesh them in with our own discussion, and it'll be awesome.
Send submissions to feedback[at]thewayofthegame[dot]net. The deadline is June 24, as that's when we'll be recording the episode.
Good? Good. Get to it.
That being said, we still haven't played (and never will have played) every game from '09, and thus have probably missed something fantastic, so we want to (literally) hear from you. We're looking for one or two minute recordings of what your favorite 2009 game is, and why. We'll mesh them in with our own discussion, and it'll be awesome.
Send submissions to feedback[at]thewayofthegame[dot]net. The deadline is June 24, as that's when we'll be recording the episode.
Good? Good. Get to it.
35
Way of the Game / WotG Episode 25 - EA Online Pass, DRM, and You
« on: June 01, 2010, 09:50:14 PM »
The new episode is up, and it's a return to form for us.
I wanted to clarify something that I forgot about during recording. I think EA's strategy is acceptable, and I think Johanna Blakley's ideas about intellectual property and copyright are extremely interesting, but I think there's a definite danger in either of them going too far.
If EA ever starts charging new buyers for access to key parts of a game, I am extremely against that. Online multiplayer and free DLC are both options that are paid for by money made from selling the game. EA doesn't get that money from used sales, so I understand why they'd want that financial support. If ever an aspect of the offline game is denies me ("Pay ten dollars to unlock the final level!"), I'll be livid, even if I got an access code when I purchased the game new.
Similarly with the free market approach to entertainment, I'm not sure removing copyright entirely is a good thing. The winner-take-all, laissez-faire approach to the fashion industry is probably too extreme for books and movies and games, but I do think copyright goes too far and lasts too long currently. Drastically reducing it could be a good thing that I wish gets explored at some point.
I wanted to clarify something that I forgot about during recording. I think EA's strategy is acceptable, and I think Johanna Blakley's ideas about intellectual property and copyright are extremely interesting, but I think there's a definite danger in either of them going too far.
If EA ever starts charging new buyers for access to key parts of a game, I am extremely against that. Online multiplayer and free DLC are both options that are paid for by money made from selling the game. EA doesn't get that money from used sales, so I understand why they'd want that financial support. If ever an aspect of the offline game is denies me ("Pay ten dollars to unlock the final level!"), I'll be livid, even if I got an access code when I purchased the game new.
Similarly with the free market approach to entertainment, I'm not sure removing copyright entirely is a good thing. The winner-take-all, laissez-faire approach to the fashion industry is probably too extreme for books and movies and games, but I do think copyright goes too far and lasts too long currently. Drastically reducing it could be a good thing that I wish gets explored at some point.
36
Way of the Game / WotG Episode 24 - Chibi's Top Ten
« on: May 27, 2010, 10:49:52 AM »
Feel free to berate and/or agree with Chibi's list here. 
37
Way of the Game / WotG Episode 23 - David's Honorable Mentions
« on: May 19, 2010, 05:48:50 AM »
Check it out, folks! We talk a bit about the move from GLN, and try to get into The Great Mr. Chibi's Top Ten list, but as part of our increased attempt to stay within our hour-long time limit, the meat of the list gets pushed off 'til next week. There's still plenty of video game talk, though, so check it out, and what doesn't make David's list may be just as surprising as what ultimately does.
Listening to Alex talk about Solium Infernum, I once again went and checked out the game's website, and was once again reminded why I don't own it yet. It's a PC-only release. That moves it out of the realm of a quick pick-up-and-play game for me, because if I'm going to switch over from OSX to Windows, I need to be willing to spend some time on that side.
Edit: Something's getting messed up in the media link, and won't allow files to be downloaded. I'm working on it.
Edit Edit: Fixed it.
Listening to Alex talk about Solium Infernum, I once again went and checked out the game's website, and was once again reminded why I don't own it yet. It's a PC-only release. That moves it out of the realm of a quick pick-up-and-play game for me, because if I'm going to switch over from OSX to Windows, I need to be willing to spend some time on that side.
Edit: Something's getting messed up in the media link, and won't allow files to be downloaded. I'm working on it.
Edit Edit: Fixed it.
38
Way of the Game / What's Your Top Ten?
« on: May 07, 2010, 09:32:41 AM »
If you've listened for a while, you'll know that we ask all our guests for their Top Ten list because we feel your favorite games give you a unique Gamer Identity. How they organize these lists and what criteria they choose for games that show up on those lists is entirely up to them. We'd like to ask you guys to do the same for us.
We have three rules:
In regard to #2, you can name series on your lists. Mike from the Bear Swarm made some valid points about why he put series on his list rather than individual games, but we made him pick the standout game from those series, and we'll make you do the same.
We've compiled enough Top Tens now that we have a pretty good selection of games that appear on multiple lists. Since I really, really don't want to do my homework, I went through and boiled them down to a list of
WotG's Greatest Games EVAR!!1!11!!!
So, what's your top ten?
We have three rules:
- 1. They've gotta be video games.
2. You have to pick a specific game.
3. List them from least to best, ten to one.
In regard to #2, you can name series on your lists. Mike from the Bear Swarm made some valid points about why he put series on his list rather than individual games, but we made him pick the standout game from those series, and we'll make you do the same.
We've compiled enough Top Tens now that we have a pretty good selection of games that appear on multiple lists. Since I really, really don't want to do my homework, I went through and boiled them down to a list of
WotG's Greatest Games EVAR!!1!11!!!
| Rank | By Mentions | Rank | By Points |
| 1 | Final Fantasy Tactics | Final Fantasy Tactics | |
| 2 | Deus Ex | Deus Ex | |
| 3 | Metal Gear Solid | Mass Effect | |
| 4 | Mass Effect | Metal Gear Solid | |
| 5 | Baldur's Gate 2 | Baldur's Gate 2 | |
| 6 | Portal | Portal | |
| 7 | LoZ: A Link to the Past | Super Metroid | |
| 8 | Bushido Blade | Final Fantasy 6 | |
| 9 | Super Metroid | LoZ: A Link to the Past | |
| 10 | Final Fantasy 6 | Bushido Blade/Super Mario Bros. 3 |
So, what's your top ten?
39
Way of the Game / WotG 21 - An Interview with Dr. Hilarie Cash of reSTART
« on: May 06, 2010, 06:54:13 PM »
This was a really good conversation, folks. The reSTART Internet Addiction Recovery Program is a rehab center in Washington state for people addicted to the Internet, video games, texting and other internet-based "vices." Gotta say, I was skeptical about this interview, but Dr. Cash, the director of the program, proved herself to be an intelligent, reasonable person without any sort of Jack Thompson, anti-video-game tendencies.
Also, at the end of the episode, Alex and Chibi pay their respects to the late Carl Macek.
Also, at the end of the episode, Alex and Chibi pay their respects to the late Carl Macek.
40
Video Games / [Blood Bowl] League Season 3 Brainstorm
« on: May 01, 2010, 03:16:38 PM »
I had two ideas that I wanted to toss out there for next season.
First, the playoff trigger: can we set a minimum season time of a month? I can't guarantee I'll be able to pull of another five-game week again, but I figure I can manage two games a week. The three-week timeframe this season just felt too short, and (for me at least) I feel like a month would give a better opportunity to get a team up to the ten-game cap. Not a big deal, but I figured I'd see what everybody else thought.
The other idea was inspired by Brad's reasoning behind the seeding of the Toilet Bowl. What do you think about starting season 4 at the same time as the season 3 playoffs begin? Anyone in the playoffs is ineligible to play, while everyone else can begin working on hitting the cap and leveling up their teams. I think that would help avoid the sudden inclusion of high TV teams at the bottom of the rankings (though that didn't seem to really matter this season), and it would also allow everyone knocked out or not playing to keep playing without cheating the league.
Just a thought. Hope that makes sense.
First, the playoff trigger: can we set a minimum season time of a month? I can't guarantee I'll be able to pull of another five-game week again, but I figure I can manage two games a week. The three-week timeframe this season just felt too short, and (for me at least) I feel like a month would give a better opportunity to get a team up to the ten-game cap. Not a big deal, but I figured I'd see what everybody else thought.
The other idea was inspired by Brad's reasoning behind the seeding of the Toilet Bowl. What do you think about starting season 4 at the same time as the season 3 playoffs begin? Anyone in the playoffs is ineligible to play, while everyone else can begin working on hitting the cap and leveling up their teams. I think that would help avoid the sudden inclusion of high TV teams at the bottom of the rankings (though that didn't seem to really matter this season), and it would also allow everyone knocked out or not playing to keep playing without cheating the league.
Just a thought. Hope that makes sense.
42
Games and Hobbies / Time Travel RPGs
« on: March 04, 2010, 11:02:38 AM »
I feel like the topic title isn't the best way to phrase it, but I wasn't sure how else to condense it. I'm looking for recommendations for history-spanning RPGs. They can either go forward or backward in time, jump decades or millennia, cover individuals or nations.
So far, I'm interested in Time & Temp (theme sounds like InSpectres with time travel), TimeStream (I've got no commentary), and Hellas (has a generational aspect, from what I understand).
Time travel's fairly easy to find, but history-spanning.... I dunno how to even search for that. Any thoughts you guys have would be greatly appreciated.
So far, I'm interested in Time & Temp (theme sounds like InSpectres with time travel), TimeStream (I've got no commentary), and Hellas (has a generational aspect, from what I understand).
Time travel's fairly easy to find, but history-spanning.... I dunno how to even search for that. Any thoughts you guys have would be greatly appreciated.
43
General Discussion / Business Cards
« on: February 17, 2010, 01:44:37 PM »
So, I'm looking to have business cards made. (I already have a very talented and handsome designer working with me, so that bit is covered.) The question of what to put on the cards is plaguing me, though.
I now have The Way of the Game podcast. I have Dreams & Dragons, my on-again-off-again blog. I have my writing for Game Cryer, and my soon-to-hopefully-be-resumed writing for Back Seat Producers. I also own jonathanholmberg.com as a hedge against future fame. I have (or at least can have) email addresses based around any of those sites.
What would you include on your cards? Should I throw everything on there? Should I be responsible and turn Dreams & Dragons into an aggregator site, at the risk of it not being its own thing in the future? (I think I prefer it to the vanity URL; it seems less.... less at this stage of my career.) Some halfway point?
I now have The Way of the Game podcast. I have Dreams & Dragons, my on-again-off-again blog. I have my writing for Game Cryer, and my soon-to-hopefully-be-resumed writing for Back Seat Producers. I also own jonathanholmberg.com as a hedge against future fame. I have (or at least can have) email addresses based around any of those sites.
What would you include on your cards? Should I throw everything on there? Should I be responsible and turn Dreams & Dragons into an aggregator site, at the risk of it not being its own thing in the future? (I think I prefer it to the vanity URL; it seems less.... less at this stage of my career.) Some halfway point?
44
The Pimphouse / The Way of the Game on GLN
« on: January 13, 2010, 11:00:56 AM »
I feel a little silly posting updates in a thread titled "Game Locus Network Begins," since we're well past the point where GLN has begun. As such, new thread!
Anyway, episode 6 of The Way of the Game is live! In this episode, Mollarom and I talk about all the games we want to play in 2010, but won't have time nor money for. Listen in now!
Anyway, episode 6 of The Way of the Game is live! In this episode, Mollarom and I talk about all the games we want to play in 2010, but won't have time nor money for. Listen in now!
45
General Discussion / You Should Have Seen This
« on: October 16, 2009, 08:31:30 AM »
I have seen 34 of the things on this list at http://youshouldhaveseenthis.com/ and I have been online since 1995. I feel like such a failure.