Link Out (18/3/08)

March 17th, 2008

link out aurthur ghosts and gouls

Its funny how even though I had never planned to post up this feature every month, ever since I started I have unknowingly been doing just that. Which would make this a monthly segment. Over the past month I have been considerably busier than normal outside of the blog and as such my list of links aren’t as strong as last time. But as always they make great additional reading if you enjoy reading what I have to say.

Brainy Gamer Podcast #10 – Brainy Gamer

In the past month I have come across Brainy Gamer; a blog dedicated to intelligent discussion on a variety of important issues relating not only the industry but also software and design. The blogger over there; Micheal Abbot, is the most sincere and genuine bloggers that I have come across. He has a real passion and interest in games and it shines through with both his writing but even more so his podcast.

I have selected Podcast #10 for two reasons; firstly it is the latest podcast and has a bunch of interesting observations about GDC and the snark among some bloggers and journos which I find very interesting. Secondly after the main interview there is a 20 second advertisement for this blog (by Matty Jay) followed up by some generously kind words from Micheal. The Brainy Gamer blog comes highly recommended by me and I think that you’ll really enjoy it.

Best Of GDC: ‘Making Games For PlayStation Network - The Facts’ - GameSetWatch

GameSetWatch will be running through some of the best GDC lectures that were perhaps lost amongst the crowd. This time they are looking at a lecture by Chris Eden from Sony talking about some of the more internal Playstation Network information such as what is open to PSN developers, cost and a few interesting statistics. Quite an informative read.

Character Profile: Moblins – Man Bytes Blog

Corvus from Man Bytes Blog shares some thoughts about the Moblin characters in Zelda: Wind Waker. Out of all of the personality in The Wind Waker I find the moblins the most interesting. There is just so much charm in the character design and animation.

You are Lose! Blog

I discovered this blog from a reader comment and have been impressed by the recent slew of content. Much like this blog;You are Lose is an enthusiast gaming blog with a keen eye for notable, game design observations. Korey’s blog is mainly about the game software, so I think that you’ll enjoy this one as well.

1Up Network Director Dan Hsu Explains his Company’s Recent Overhaul – Level Up

N’gai Croal interviews Dan Hsu from the 1Up Network about the recent changes with staff positions and the new alphabetical grading system. Rather insightful.

Pure Pwnage Series Review + Episode 16 - Ed Borden PWNING 9-5

Ed Borden over at PWNING 9-5 has shared his thoughts about episode 16 of the internet show; Pure Pwnage and provided a series run down. If you haven’t already heard of this show then head over, read the summary and see if it sounds like something for you.

Posted in Link Out | Comments (3)
Tags: 1up, blog, gdc, Link Out, playstation network, podcast, pure pwnage

Building the Ultimate Gaming TV Channel

January 23rd, 2008

A few weeks ago Gloria from Girls Don’t Game posted up an article titled The Rise and Fall of G4 and Gaming TV where she shared her thoughts on the lack of quality video game coverage on TV. Considering that I’m an Australian gamer and am unfamiliar with shows such as G4 and X-Play I found the article very insightful but it also got me thinking about what would make a great Gaming TV channel.

So I spent a few minutes to ponder this question while I was reading the comments that were left in the article. It wasn’t long before I had compiled a list of popular internet gaming shows and a few other ideas that could make up the TV channel. So I put all of these ideas together in a timetable to form my own program for one day of broadcasting.

So here is a break down of my fictional TV channel:

gamer tv program

Further Clarification

Most of the shows on the list are taken from some of my favourite pre-existing internet gaming shows. You can find links to all of the shows below.

Modification Show

Some of my own ideas such as the modding show and pro gaming competitions have a lot of potential for success on a television network. There is such a variety of options available for a game modification show. Ideally the show would feature a series of DIY modifications. So everything from tweaking your PSP to access more media to ripping apart consoles and putting them into other devices. There are plenty of possibilities. I think that a show like this would work well in a Tekzilla like template with reader questions etc.

Pro Gaming Competitions

Another show with plenty of possibilities infact so much so that the ESPN has recently tapped into pro gaming. With gaming competitions regularly occurring worldwide every week there is never any shortage of content. Also with the rise of gaming commentating and shout casting quality presenters are never too far away.

Late Night Time Advertisements and Trailers

Basically once the majority of viewers go the bed the network could just run game trailers and advertisements in order to real in their income.

Further Possibilities

There are loads of other internet shows and reader videos that could be tapped into for a video game TV station. The timetable that I made up is just an example of shows and ideas that I am familiar with. If you there is anything that I’m missing then please let me know via the comment box.

Internet Shows

1up Show
ScrewAttack
Mega 64
Bonus Round
Zero Punctuation
Game Head
Red Vs Blue
Pure Pwnage

Posted in Culture | Comments (6)
Tags: 1up Show, Bonus Round, Game Head, Mega 64, pro gaming, pure pwnage, Red Vs Blue, ScrewAttack, Zero Punctuation

T-Bag = Total Fag

November 17th, 2007

I’m a big fan of the Internet gaming show; Pure Pwnage and if you’re a fan like me then you’ve probably already seen the latest episode that was released a few days ago, episode 15. Episode 15 had a consistent theme which was Halo 3 and Team Fortress 2. In the episode the main character Jeremy meets Terrence Brown “one of the best Halo 2 players in the world”. Now I don’t know a lot about this guy or even if he is what the show claims he is but I know one thing, the guy’s a douchebag.

Before I explain why, let me share my opinions on the Xbox and Xbox 360. Much like PC LAN culture, I’m not terribly interested in Microsoft’s gaming venture. In fact both the Xbox/Xbox 360 and LAN gaming have always annoyed me a little bit. Theres just something about the whole Americanized PC orientated style of gaming that really doesn’t sit right with me. Maybe its the fact that Xbox gamers seem to think that they are the more elite than the rest of us or that I grew up on games that aren’t currently on Microsoft’s consoles. I’m not sure but in anycase I always find myself frustrated with the ‘macho’, ‘manly’ 360 crowd. In saying this, I am a fair man, the Xbox 360 has a fantastic slew of games, so I try to not let these people affect my interest in the console.

This is an example on how I’m trying not to let fan jerks like Terrence affect my perception of a console, its games and gamers.

So now that you know this, let me explain why I think this guy is a douchebag. During the Pure Pwnage episode Terrence does a little rap, letting us all know that he thinks he is so awesome at Halo and that non 360 games suck. Lemme pull out some lines here:

“Yeah, if you can’t handle me, then you better go play with your Wii”
“Kirby playing bulls**t”
“Wario and all that s**t”
“Its a me, f**k that bulls**t”
“Lets a go, get the f**k outta here, b***h”
“Aight, check it, all you PC gamers out there with your keyboards, with ya little mousy pads, wit tatata da mousees, f**k that s**t”
“Dual analogue, b***h”

Way to go Terrence, you just made you and all of your 360 owning friends look like complete ignorant assholes. I feel totally reassured that Halo 3 on Xbox Live is not full of angry, testosterone fueled people like yourself.

Terrence is probably the perfect example of my experience with the 360 crowd. Cocky children from the PC gaming scene who seem to think that they have 1uped all of us long term console players because they own the best console ever made. Of course not all 360 players are like Terrence. In fact the majority of them are seriously great gamers but like with all of the major gaming consoles, guys like this bring down the name and reputation of that consoles gamers. So although Terrence probably thinks hes pretty cool for doing this rap it actually makes other gamers unfairly frustrated with the 360.

So thanks for doing that Terrence, thanks for pissing off Wii and PC gamers and for fueling our disliking towards 360 owners. Appreciate it.

DPs note: Wasn’t particularly happy with that post, I rewrote it over and over. Couldn’t really express my frustration the right way. But it feels better sharing

DP’S 2nd Note: Before you decide to post a rude comment informing me that I am some sort of idiot because I didn’t know that Terrance Brown was a fictional character then don’t because it will be deleted. I am not a Halo enthusiest so I had no idea if he was real or fictional. And it seems that this is the case with a lot of people because I have recieved a good deal of traffic from people googling his name.

Ironically some of the comments that I have been recieving just prove how justified the main points of this article are.

Oh and yes, of course I know that Pure Pwnage is also completely fictional. I never said otherwise, so please don’t claim that I did. Thank you.

DP’s third and final note: I’m sick of some people not reading what has been written and ignorantly slagging me out. I’m going to lock the comments.

Posted in Culture | Comments (10)
Tags: gaming internet show, halo, patriots, pure pwnage, t-bag, Terrence Brown