Assignment 13 - Culture Club (Not In Affiliation with Boy George)
Online gaming. A gift and a curse at the same time. Just like real life you're bound to find friendly people, anti-social cretins and confusing and weird 'freaks' (excuse the term, but some people bring it on themselves).
Once again mentioning my Metal Gear fandom, I was a part of the Metal Gear Online community until I accidently snapped my disc (remember people, cases are there for a reason) and I regularly played with strangers. Some of these people I befriended and chat to on MSN (arrange matches, talk about things outside of the game etc.) and others I would avoid because of their irritating habit of spamming babble on screen with their keyboards.
Trash talking is a big part of online gaming - though it really shouldn't be - and some people take things very literal. It adds dimension to the game (hold on, let me explain) because if you were to play offline/solo then the only competing factor is the game itself and very few emotions are experienced beyond what the game presents (suprise, suspense, etc.) but online can create a whole new atmosphere. You can have a laugh with people, do silly things like intentionally jump off ledges or blow eachother up with grenades and chase eachother round in boxes (I find a few brews always makes it that little more amusing) and you can set up fun little tournaments and inevitably all this can add replay value. Of course, if you let it get the best of you you can find yourself on the receiving end of some 'ownage' treatment and receive verbal abuse for being an inadequate player or a useless comrade. Unfortunately this behaviour can ruin the experience for people and soon enough some body cries. Moderators must control the content of the online play as personal information should not be distributed and the company is not directly responsible for any emotional damage caused - this is where a mature mind or a responsible set of parents come into play.
Magazine publications sponser and set up tournaments around the globe for beat 'em up titles so players can 'test their skills' outside the confines of a few local friends and with the help of LAN gaming and the internet gaming cultures have grown. It allows people from all around the world to engage in discussion and distribution of a growing popular media; furthering the global conquest to open the hearts and minds of the masses.
No longer are the days of multiplayer being defined by 2 controller ports and a beaten in sofa; MMO's are extremely popular with many series converting single player titles to online 'worlds' - and I feel the online element gives a game a greater sense of immersion - such as Metal Gear and Final Fantasy.
I wonder how long it will be before our homes and ourselves are digitally rendered into a virtual world where we can live our lives as vegetables roaming the virtual Earth...let's hope Microsoft isn't reading this right now.
Once again mentioning my Metal Gear fandom, I was a part of the Metal Gear Online community until I accidently snapped my disc (remember people, cases are there for a reason) and I regularly played with strangers. Some of these people I befriended and chat to on MSN (arrange matches, talk about things outside of the game etc.) and others I would avoid because of their irritating habit of spamming babble on screen with their keyboards.
Trash talking is a big part of online gaming - though it really shouldn't be - and some people take things very literal. It adds dimension to the game (hold on, let me explain) because if you were to play offline/solo then the only competing factor is the game itself and very few emotions are experienced beyond what the game presents (suprise, suspense, etc.) but online can create a whole new atmosphere. You can have a laugh with people, do silly things like intentionally jump off ledges or blow eachother up with grenades and chase eachother round in boxes (I find a few brews always makes it that little more amusing) and you can set up fun little tournaments and inevitably all this can add replay value. Of course, if you let it get the best of you you can find yourself on the receiving end of some 'ownage' treatment and receive verbal abuse for being an inadequate player or a useless comrade. Unfortunately this behaviour can ruin the experience for people and soon enough some body cries. Moderators must control the content of the online play as personal information should not be distributed and the company is not directly responsible for any emotional damage caused - this is where a mature mind or a responsible set of parents come into play.
Magazine publications sponser and set up tournaments around the globe for beat 'em up titles so players can 'test their skills' outside the confines of a few local friends and with the help of LAN gaming and the internet gaming cultures have grown. It allows people from all around the world to engage in discussion and distribution of a growing popular media; furthering the global conquest to open the hearts and minds of the masses.
No longer are the days of multiplayer being defined by 2 controller ports and a beaten in sofa; MMO's are extremely popular with many series converting single player titles to online 'worlds' - and I feel the online element gives a game a greater sense of immersion - such as Metal Gear and Final Fantasy.
I wonder how long it will be before our homes and ourselves are digitally rendered into a virtual world where we can live our lives as vegetables roaming the virtual Earth...let's hope Microsoft isn't reading this right now.
posted by The Horror @ 2:52 pm
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