Let me talk nerdy to you...

Those stupid, stupid, console wars.

Over the past year or so my guitarist and fellow Mega-nerd Nick have had a playful argument over whether or not the xb360 or PS3 is the superior console. Also by playful argument i mean full on yelling that totally does not sound like girly shrieking whatsoever…From his side he argues that the PS3 is a time honored powerful console that sports the latest cutting edge technology in any home gaming console (which to be fair, it does.) On top of that 90% of its online content is free. This includes online gameplay and some Downloadable content (which you are charged for on the 360)  not to mention Brilliant console exclusive titles like the Uncharted series, the metal gear franchise, and newer but still important titles like the Little Big Planet games. When on the offensive he states that the 360 holds back the technological potential of the PS3. There is much more to both sides of the argument but I’m just bullet pointing the main ones right now. When arguing my side i typically state that while the PSN is free in my view that’s a bad thing. Don’t get me wrong I’m typically all about free shit, but i know that when i pay for online gameplay I’m paying for moderators to keep everything running smoothly and efficiently. As is evident by the no shit seventy million PSN users who lost their online information. When it comes to titles and technology, i have always been of the belief that you dont need graphics and fast rendering to make a good game. They do help draw you into a story, But they are not the only component that accomplishes that goal. in Mass Effect the graphics help but its the story and the characters that bring me into the world. In Skyrim the fact that i can walk from a house in Whiterun to the top of a bajillion foottall mountain and then sleep for 24 hours because fuck mountains is nice its the “freetodoanythingyougoddamnwant” aspect that allows the player to absorb completely into the story. Not to mention that more third party developers go to Xbox for their games resulting in more titles in its roster than The PS3. Now believe it or not the point of this article is not to bash PS3 lovers or the PS3 itself. I think the PS3 and its games are impressive, fun, and downright inventive works of art that you should never knock on and while the Xbox live network runs smoothly it’s almost worth the PSN network crashes and lag problems to not have to deal with the racist, homophobic, and elementally stupid kids that seem to gather exclusively in Xbox live lobbies. What that should tell you is that while i think its fun to have a little competition with my friend over the reasons behind our brand loyalty. The conclusion that i have reached is that they are both devices who do one thing very elegantly which is facilitate hours of fun for you and everyone else with the money to burn. So yes have your friendly competition, just remember that your tone might change when the next gen gets announced or you chill out and learn to have fun =)

-Jardy

Mass effect, and the importance of modern games.

Despite how much i love them, modern games have hit a bit of a wall lately. With games like the now infamous Call Of Duty series floating around a huge chunk of the video game fan base have begun losing their minds over “the death of modern gaming,” or that “Developers are creating a wall between their games and the player by using Downloadable Content.” Well i’m here to tell you that, while i understand your Zelda/Megaman boner never quite went down and the lack of blood in your brain might literally kill you. Much less allow you to think rationally. These mindsets are actually in my opinion, seriously damaging  the industry and its art. Juts think about it. art has never been able to jump forward without a radical paradigm shift. Talk to any visual artist about Pollock. As much as it my pain some of you, we need Call of Duty. We need DLCs. Why? Because without these steps forward the nostalgia of platformers and First Person Shooters like Serious Sam. Would quickly stagnate the pool and video games would never have a chance to grow as an art. Dont get me wrong many developers have made MANY mistakes in the pursuit of this shift in thinking.( see oblivion horse armor and try not to rage vomit..i dare you) But we have to make these mistakes. We have to fuck up MASSIVELY. Why? because when Bethesda released their horse armor DLC the backlash from their die hard fans taught them to NEVER make that mistake again. And guess what, the same people who hate fucked their T.V.s into type 2 diabetes over that terrible mistake are eagerly awaiting the Skyrim DLC coming out (hopefully) soon. When i want to remind myself that these trial and error session are working, i need look no further than Valve and Bioware. These people consistently Release games that remind us why we love video games in the first place, But also, and maybe more importantly they show us that it’s possible to use the tools most fans have shunned and black listed and create an amazing product worth buying and investing your time in. The example I’m going to use here is (you guessed it,) The Mass Effect Series. I just recently played and beat the 3rd installment and i’ll tell you right now, i haven’t felt such wonder and satisfaction with a story since i was a kid. over the course of these three games i developed emotional attachments to every single character i encountered. When the game presented me with a tough decision that had the life of one of my squad mates riding on the line, i paused the game, Walked outside and chain smoked for 20 minutes before i came to a decision. Do you get what im saying? A video game forced me into a ethical battle with myself. And guess what? That particular decision involved the Prothean character Javik who is only available through Download. (Or free if you bought the game brand new…You rich Twat.) Either way his involvement in the game is not defaulted or involuntary. But it is very important to the games story. Yes you have to pay money for it, and yes im sure that you were saving up that fat stack of cash (i think its like 10 bucks) for much more productive things like taco bell or 40 gumballs. but heres the thing, these developers charge you money not because they are evil wealth hoarding criminals twisting their snidely mustaches with one hand while they stab your puppy in the neck with the other. They charge you because making video games is a long arduous expensive  process, and companies like Bioware use every single cent of that money just so you can have fun and fall in love with the story that they sincerely wanted to share with their fans. And for the fucking record, I’m not going to get into it in great length right now, but if you are complaining about the ending of ME3 and are demanding a re-write. please do the following

1.) break your own knee backwards and kick yourself in the teeth repeatedly then bunny hop you and your obscene sense of entitlement to the nearest dentist, ask him to fix your mouth and the use it to apologize to everyone whos news feed you clogged up with your nonsensical bullshit.

 2.)  while the dentist replace al the teeth in your stupid face just ask yourself this…what would happen to art if it became crowd sourced?

3.) See step one.

Okay maybe that was me getting into it at great length…The point is this, don’t lose faith in this industry because while it makes mistakes (even though it is far less in amount relative to other more popular industries) I believe video games aren’t done growing and im looking forward to being amazed.

-Jardy

8 simple bits. A manifesto.

For most of my cognizant life three things have mattered. Music, Humor and video games. From a very early age these things have all been passions of mine. i picked up a pair of drumsticks before i started middle school, played my first video game at the age of 6, and the first time i made a complete stranger laugh i knew that i would never stop trying to recreate that exact moment in time. But as you get older(ish) you start to realize some things about growing up. Mainly, you realize how fucking rad it is. My name is Jardy and i am 23 years old, I work. I sleep. I have responsibilities. I also play video games ALL THE DAMN TIME. And despite everything i was told, video games have always been a positive artistic outlet for me. Sometimes even more so than music. So over the past few years i have decided to stop looking at video games as a hobby which is at best, viewed as a pointless distraction or, at worst as a productivity killing addiction. But instead i have chosen to embrace my passion for what it actually is. A growing living, breathing, gorgeous form of art capable of telling stories from, by, and for a new generation of Thinkers and Artists. And the best part? You get to Live these stories. From the 8 simple bits of the first Mario games, to the sweeping majesty of the Mass Effect universe. We, for the first time have the opportunity to save the princess and save the world. Or not. Its up to you. What i’m getting at is that i no longer apologize for the loving the things i love. So i plan on talking about it at great length here. 

and please by all means remember to laugh.

-Jardy.K