Art with a twist

    And now for something completely different; time for a game I don't suggest to everybody.
    "A man builds a city at the bottom of the sea. That's a marvel. Another man happens to be on a plane that crash lands on the same city in the middle of the ocean. Why, that sounds more like ... a miracle."  -Andrew Ryan.
    And with those words of great portent you are once again reminded of the alien and awe-some (and altogether terrifying) atmosphere of Bioshock in the city called Rapture; the city that was built on the bottom of the ocean. Throughout this curious city vestiges of the forties remain. Old record players play swinging club music while deformed and twisted people yell out insane jargon and charge at you.
    Something in Rapture went terribly wrong. Where "...petty morals" don't bind scientists mad experiments, revised medical aid (unasked for surgery), and the discovery of a substance called ADAM were just the beginning. It was a city without limits. A kite without strings. When you arrive it has already fallen into chaos. Near everyone went insane, their DNA spliced to provide them with incredible benefits while robbing their minds of any humanity or will. Yes, fire can shoot from your fingertips, but that stops being neat when it is used to melt the people around you. 

   Taking up whatever weapons and personal splices you can find (without the effect of insanity for special reasons unmentionable to those who have not played it) you are launched into this twisted hew of sky-scrapers after crash landing (verrrry conveniently *wink*), into the Atlantic RIGHT beside it. There in the dark of a moonlit night rises the monolithic lighthouse in the middle of the ocean. With no where to go and no other survivors you step in and tremble as the doors slam behind you. 
    You are contacted by the few remaining survivors and you slowly start to understand the history of where you are. The poetic and callous recordings of people who retained their sanity lie scattered across the beautiful and artistic remnants of the once majestic city. You visit old hotels and taverns, theater houses and industrial sectors. You truly begin to understand the horrifying scope of the catastrophe that is Rapture. It truly has suffered from Bioshock. 
    This game is beautiful. The art and locale, the atmosphere all call out to be explored, understood. It mystifies. However, amidst the contrasting shadow and art is extreme (EXTREME) violence. This game is not a family game, it is more of a novel of classic literature on par with the horrors of Heart of Darkness or Crime and Punishment, only more violent and grotesque. It is a commentary on the times, the folly, the vice of man and their downfall. Furthermore the language, though often poetic and highly stylized, is scattered with swearing. I play with volume barely audible for the brilliant voice acting, though not just for the previously mentioned caveat, but because it is a delightfully frightening game. 
    For those of you looking for a story to sweep you off your feet, mystify you, horrify you, and ultimately leave you pondering moral dilemmas, I suggest to you Bioshock. However, with the shocking content I cannot suggest it to the general population who might be reading this. It is a game I am cautious to play, but one that is worth at least one ride through for the seeker of art, beauty, and truth who can stand to look at something with lots of dark shades; dark shades that bring out humanity and ultimately help us understand ourselves better. 
    Enjoy at your own caution and be ready to delve deep (no pun intended) into a fantastical science fiction setting. 

Images taken from IGN.com and http://bioshock.wikia.com 

Friends make great darwin awards

   HARK! The goblin troop approaches. Five strong and one with explosive balloons on his back, ready to lob. Lightning crackles at fingertips and fire exhausts from palms as a sign of our imminent retaliation, subtleties for the show that is about to begin.
   My companion is silent, waiting. Her spells are secrets and her plans shrouded. Does she plan, or merely wait for the razor's edge of a moment? I don't have time to think. Scorching flames and lightning stop several in their tracks (reducing them to red kool-aid), but another push is imminent.
   It was then she struck. With the flurry of a hundred tornadoes a gust shot from her outstretched hands forcing the approaching goblins back and those too close were launched into the air like so many naked chickens. Though, there was an anomaly among them. It looked to be some sort of fellow dressed in scarlet bath-robes. Yes! He, he was also launched through the air.

Oh.

Wait.

That was me.

Landing in the deep waters of the coastline I quickly and solemnly sunk to my demise because, as everyone knows, wizards cannot swim.

It was really no trouble at all, of course. A few seconds later and she revived me. But, I did have to wonder, was this payback for the 300 foot launch I accidentally sent her on two forests ago?

In Magicka friendly fire cannot be turned off and any number of wizards given near limitless power are prone to a few accidents. It's kind of the point...

Eat me

    Go ahead. Six heads or one, just try it. But, first I would like to point out some very substantial facts.
    One, I am made of pixels and vertexes. Two, I have the god sent ability to save my game. GET AROUND THAT slimeballs.
     Killed, eaten, used as biofuel, or treat me like a bunny? Goodbye. You have just been reduced to little more than a memory. I know where you are, how to beat you (eat you), and exactly how many psychic thwomps on the head it takes to stop your butchering ways. You can't stop me. You can't stop any of us. We will invade your world and treat you all like some sort of game.
     Do you ever get tired of defeat? Like us do you simply call it a day and turn off the code when you can't get past that super tricky a gajillion-to-one outnumbered part? That's why my  computer crashes...
     The ultimate gamers tool. Don't believe me? Try playing a game that doesn't let you make a time stamped reversal point. Don't want to? I don't blame you, but the alien/fantasy creatures equal-rights movement will be on you shortly. RUN.
     The next time you decide to call a game unfair just consider that you have traveled back in time more times than I can count with retained strategic knowledge that completely upsets the balance of the universe. How else do you think a hero such as yourself can be born?
      No wonder at that why game makers everywhere strive to challenge us. I once played King's Quest VI for over 20 hours before realizing that I had made a critical mistake and needed to restart the game. Was I frustrated? Yes. Did I ever try again? No. Newer games have learned from this.
      Schleets! PANTS THAT EAT YOUR EYES OUT! (Play Dragon Age Awakening).
      Further more, if more games would include Prince of Persia rewinding time features--the ultimate in convenience--I would be more apt to scream about them from the rooftops. It is unsurpassingly wonderful to actually see the creature regurgitate you before you side leap to foil his plans. Can you imagine how frustrated the geth would be? Point closed.

Ferelden and Greenwort

      Fantasy varies.
      Many designers take shadowed and brooding approaches. Dark fantasy. This is where the world is always leering on the edge of some horror and humans are children in a world of greater powers. Personally this viewpoint leaves me wondering what is even the point. How can anyone exist, and why would they want to? There are no children to raise and no smiles to encourage. Good deeds mean nothing in a dark fantasy world. You can save a village only to have it ravaged by some nightmare. One stops even caring after a while.
      In the alternative is the light and happy fantasy of childhood games. Dark things do exist in this world, but the foes are slain by noble knights to rescue lovely princesses. Dragons sleep on mounds of delightful treasure, and the village is always in need of saving. Perhaps everyone can just get along? This world is preferable only on virtue of positivity. Otherwise it is just as bland as the dark one. There is no point to their ridiculous happiness. They haven't accomplished anything because there is no way not to. Agonizing.
      The quest is to find a fantasy world, then, that contains both elements of dark and light fantasy. Happiness and children need to be on the line before we actually start caring about impending darkness. We actually need to care about death and life.
      Fine examples of gaming dichotomy: Dragon Age: Origins and King's Bounty: The Legend.
      Dragon Age leans towards dark fantasy. The world is a gritty one. Dishonesty, tricks, traps, and faith crisis plague the humans while the horrible creatures that are building their forces to invade are always an inch away from invading. But, there is good in the world that is worth fighting for. You meet children and families in small villages, beautiful forests, and large fantasy metropolis locations. The situations are horrifying because they take away from the beauty and innocence in many situations. The swearing is minimal but the violence extreme and some of the moral dilemmas downright frightening, but what would we expect from the makers of Mass Effect and Jade Empire? This game is serious, yet still makes time for humanity. A near flawless mix, though it can make you come away feeling a bit less than morally fulfilled.
       King's Bounty is a more recent conquest for me and seems like a sleeper. Here we have a bright fantasy world filled with intricate details. The caves are classic fantasy with bats and spiderwebs and creepy music, the world as bright as a fantasy picture book and just as filled with adventure. Here you take on the role of a king's servant and wander about the country side seeking out quests. You lead armies tactically in a turn-based map while expanding your influence, inventory, spells, and skills. A cheery and bright game with just the right amount of aura and a kingdom of troubles and fantasy adventure. Delightful (And only $9.99 on GOG. Shameless advertising).
       Maybe not all of you are fans of fantasy, high or dark or light or avante garde, but these games bear decisions and experiences that all will enjoy or at least find fascinating. Enjoy!

That was a joke, Shephard

       Machines can be difficult. Just this last week several computers have come in with motherboard failures and a few loaded with viruses. In fact, we see Windows blue-screens and internal errors on a regular basis. Cars don't start, remotes run out of batteries, and those nasty Reapers are threatening to destroy the entire galaxy and use us as some kind of biofuel. Machines.
       If subtle advances from an omniscient and ancient technological evil weren't enough the ships computer has recently opted to have a sense of humor.

Joker: So I have to go crawling through the vents again?
EDI: Yes. I enjoy nothing more than seeing humans on their knees.
Joker:....
EDI:That was a joke. Jeff.

       Poor Joker (Jeff) has faced the brunt of it. You see, as a helmsman for one of the most sophisticated and advanced ships in the galaxy he is in charge when I am away. Yes, I am the captain. During an invasion when all the regular fighting personnel have gone on a walk-about he finds himself, glass bones and all, faced with stemming a full fledged alien attack. Crew members and familiar faces are plucked away for use as organic ooze while Joker slips about with a hunch and a limp to the AI core so that the machine, EDI, can be difficult to the right people. "But if you start singing Daisy May..."
       Machines join the group, machines gain intelligence, machines kill, machines save lives. Some machines go rogue, others are just built that way.   Machines machines. The decisions start to gray out when this artificial intelligence, cognizant and opinionated, can be rewritten. Is this brainwashing a species? One only has two options to obliterate them all or rewrite. We don't reprogram humans, but can one really compare? I'll let you all decide.
       The moral dilemmas in Mass Effect 2 are often multi-tiered and difficult. Decisions need to be made and if you are a gamer like me these decisions can be extremely difficult. The game, thankfully, makes it slightly easier by adding a simple measuring device. Conversation options on the top of the ring are generally good (Paragon) and on the bottom become evil (Renegade) with the indecisive middle gaining you neither, a dangerous method to play the game. Fence sitters will lose team members and end situations destructively in many cases. A large price to pay for a little piece of mind; and, the game makes these characters matter. These are the people you help, laugh with, and even argue with. A father reunites with his son, sisters bond, home is secured, A nameless being finds purpose, and a 400 year witch-hunt comes to an epic finish, all because of you, and that is only a scratch on the surface. The lives you touch for better (or horribly worse as you may) resonate on emotional and intellectual levels that will entertain book lovers, thinkers, and moralists everywhere. Mass Effect 2 is a game of choice up to the very last moments. And, it is a game of consequence, some of which can be stifling and shocking. It is a dark game full of plenty of vices (Strong language, blood, and sexual themes to name a few), but in such darkness one can shine the brightest of all.
        A world of great sci-fi and beauty, I invite all those of proper sentiment, morality, and maturity to drift into space from the first game (much more family friendly) to the shadowy and epic sequel. Enjoy.

The choices we make

     We are all very aware of our ability to choose in life, but in the media that choice is grossly limited. It usually comes down to 'will we watch this movie, or not?' Editing seems irrelevant as a story will not shape itself well around what you have cremated so a movie is a movie and music is music. But, something delightful exists in the world of games.
     Dragon Age, Mass Effect, Jade Empire, Arcanum, Baldur's gate, Planescape: Torment, Oblivion, Bioshock, and more. All games that offer the ability to choose (more or less) in very moral, dynamic, difficult, or no-brainer ways. Now, let me put this very plainly. In these games you can be very, very wicked. The whole foray is offered in many of these games from murder to sex, but this also means you have the most appealing and heart-felt moments doing good as well.
    As a paragon in Mass Effect I talked a young lady out of suicide, promoted inter-alien kindness and forbearance, stopped a young man from foolishly joining a dangerous mission, and helped a delusional man return to his family. In fact in my entire gaming career I have stood up for honesty, morality, love (not lust), patience, mercy, God, independence, responsibility, kindness, forgiveness, diligence, loyalty, and almost every other virtue imaginable. And? the effects were wonderful. These were moments that left you thinking, applying, and desiring good in your own life. The decisions at times were hard with long running consequences on the line. And, sometimes these decisions were downright tempting, but dangerous; the effects irreversible in the game and in this life (Yes, that Witches Gone Wild achievement will forever be inscribed in my account).
    This ability to decide helps us choose in our own private imaginations and they let us shine in a world of darkness as a symbol and reminder to ourselves, that there is good in this life. I salute all games that bring with them thought, decision, and true good in the form of imagination. They do contain horrors (Oh truly they do), but as always in life we are free not only to avoid, but to remove and eventually heal them. Inspiring, moving, fulfilling, may we all make the hard decisions in our very own microcosms. Happy creating to you in all of your worlds.

"...Like butter over too much bread."

         I have been spread a little thin. I am currently playing: Age of Wonders: Shadow Magic, Half-Life 2 (For the umpteenth time), Mass Effect 2, Dragon Age: Ultimate Edition, Sacred: Gold, and reacquainting myself with why I don't necessarily adore Dark Messiah of Might and Magic. I am also hopelessly glued to Plants VS. Zombies. Reasoning and detailed elaboration will follow.
        First, let me wow you all with my very-budget gaming machine. My point being someone may game the latest without murdering their bank account. Now, I have heard it said that the human eye can only register 30 Frames Per Second (FPS) on a computer screen (give or take). With that in mind consider this: the lowest and most meager of graphical cards (the gamers catalyst) will easily cost the affordable $50 to $60 dollars and manage most of your games (even Crysis at gorgeous and playable levels) and pull off that frame rate. Power gamers (the ones who buy pricey graphical cards), of course, aren't satisfied with two things: having fat wallets, and 30 frame rates per second. Most of the cards they will spend their $120 and up on will provide far beyond the desired frame rates at ridiculous visual values. Let me state then that I am a power gamer. A very very poor power gamer who is cleverly disguised as a 'budget gamer.'
        
         The specs: 2.9 Ghz AMD Athlon 2 X2 True Dual Core processor.
                          3.5 Gigabytes of 533 DDR2 RAM.
                          One 250 Gigabyte Seagate 7200 Hard Disk Drive (HDD).
                          585W (Watt) Power supply by ORION.
                          $40 Cooler Master Case (And Orange!)
                          Used PATA DVD RW drive (Why get more in this wonderful digital age?)
                          And my glorious $60 EVGA Nvidia Geforce GT 220 Video Card with 1 Gigabyte of          GDDR3 Memory. Mmmmm.

         Age of Wonders is a beautiful fantasy turn based strategy game. The overland map is filled with teeming wild life and plants, mysterious ruins, and mythical creatures. The game itself is reminiscent of Heroes of Might and Magic, Master of Magic, and Disciples: Dark Prophecy, all wrapped into one with a dash of the classic board game Risk thrown in. You play an immensely powerful wizard king (or queen) with a variety of elemental schools to choose from (focus or mix and match).  You seek to unite the land either under your flag or through establishing allies. I have to admit that the diplomacy has seen little use from me as I am still getting down the basics, but the game play is soothing and still retains that 'just-one-more-turn' draw. There are always spells to be researched, darkness to explore, and cities to manage and grow. This is the latest edition in the franchise and features a remarkable random map generator so every scenario can be a new and drawn out experience. It is quite detailed too! The creatures and races are abundant. 10+ races with unique traits and powers, 6 elements of magic plus the mysterious Cosmo (mix and match) class, and plenty of quests and options. This game should run fine on nearly any modern computer (netbooks included) and the moral quality is wonderful, just avoid some of the more skimpy wizard portraits or enter your own picture if it bothers you (those scanty sorceress types never last long anyhow).
        Ohhhhh Half Life 2. Ours has been an off and on relationship. I still hail it as the king and conqueror of the first-person shooter world. The game is a battle between the resistant forces of, well, you (Gordon Freeman, a physicist with a crowbar), and the communistic and extremely conservative tyrannous Combine. They take away homes, the ability to have children,  and ultimately want to turn everyone into zombies or worse (ZOMBINE!). The game is presented cinematically yet without a single cut-scene (except for the moments when you are on the ground looking up, helpless). You feel as if the world revolves around you and your actions as a super MIT Alumni. You start out humble and by the end truly feel like you have become capable and ingenious in every way. A powerful experience in the gaming world. The game is a shooter and is gorgeous. This means that it can be quite gruesome. Minor swearing dots the game, nothing used in the extreme vulgar, and blood and violence are always apparent.
         Half Life 2 does an excellent job at making you, the silent hero, take on your own persona and still feel heroic, noble, and the right sort of fellow to save the world. The characters also need to be mentioned. They make all the dark and scary horrors contrast with their brightness and innocence. Among others Alex Vance, the game's female protagonist and personal companion for the player throughout much of it, is a delight. You will be taken with the first smile.The game will run on a wide variety of machines, from the old to the new, but with my current budget setup it will run on all settings set to max with full anti-aliasing and anisotropic filtering. Translation: crisp, clear, beautiful. Enjoy!

          Further updates will be made soon!