It's not difficult to hate frivolous games. The world is always looking for depth. Meaning. Purpose. There is an an inherent shame with the so-called shallow.
"I play RPG's" they proudly announce to the world. As if they are some kind of superior being. "Japanese RPG's". The hardcore - the mans-man of computer games. They play Japanese RPG's online. It's like an arms race. My dad is bigger than your dad. 76 hours online. 136 hours online. 217 hours line. - What do they want? A medal?
These aren't games - they are substitues. Stand-ins for real life. If you can't be a buxom six-foot tall blond with an axe in real life - hell, be one online. That's a game? A video-game? Or an outlet for a personality disorders - personality disorders bought about by constantly playing games 'online'. A self full-filling prophecy perhaps?
Real gamers - people who get a buzz from the game - not from the escapism - not the fantasy - but the challenge. How do I become quicker? If I do this will I be faster? Better? Can I defeat this machine? I don't want to be a gunslinger in the Wild West. I don't want to find Mad Dogs gold - I just want to beat the game. I'm frustrated - not in life - I don't want to walk around with boobs and a leotard and a golden staff - I'm frustrated because the machine beat me - the machine beat me again and again and again. I know where I am going wrong - I know, if I'm quicker, if I use just one less bullet to get this far, I can beat this level - I can beat this machine.
When the game-Nazis had finished hunting down and burning on their righteous pyres Interactive movies and Edutainment they went after the Arcade. It's too linear - we want interactive freedom. Freedom to be freaks. Freedom to be a digital elf. They pinned the blame on powerful home consoles. They pinned the blame on the track-suit wearing youths. They pinned the blame on the escalating price-per-go. But it was their own quest for depth - rendered never ending skies - digital caverns - meaning - pointless escapism into worlds where they were powerful. Popular. Desired. Do and say and be, all the things they could not be in the really-real world. It was their wet little cyber fantasies that destroyed the real video games.
Real gamers don't eat quiche. They stick another 50p in and try again. The arcade is dead - long live the arcade.
Mad Dog II sucks. Nice sets. Bad acting. Lousy without a light gun.
Not rare on the 3DO either.
3DO Kid.
