The Atlantic - Latest Comments in Open thread

Re: Open thread

white guy — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:45:16 -0000

In Africa, they don't have Atari's. They don't have video games. They don't have nuthin'.

So let us be thankful, y'all.

Re: Open thread

Andrew — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:20:43 -0000

I'm find myself gravitating towards the RPG and strategy type games on the consoles. There are exceptions, though. Both me and my gf had a blast playing through Devil May Cry 4, for instance, although that's not a game that requires ultra-precise aim.

I'm just getting a little to old for with cross hairs that require a lot of fast twitch action. There's no shame to that since everyone's reflexes slow down over time. Fortunately, there are still a lot of great titles that don't require you to precisely line up pixels in real time.

Re: Open thread

Shawn — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:04:19 -0000

Actually, Dr. Perky sounds like a name for something you'd find in and adult book store.

Sorry, it's Friday. I hadda say it.

Re: Open thread

Charles — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:52:02 -0000

@Persia - Mr. Pibb always had caffeine in it. I think they may have *slightly* tinkered with formula to justify a rename that was really meant to differentiate the brand from Dr. Pepper. I mean, Mr. Pibb is almost as obvious a knockoff name as Dr. Perky (a store brand I saw in Virginia at, I think, a Food Lion - absolutely the best store brand name ever).

Re: Open thread

shani-o — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:17:17 -0000

@ Tallape and ThatGirl:

Thanks, guys. I like tech as much as the next person, but the gaming world was pretty much lost on me... and I really don't feel like I missed anything.

Re: Open thread

Persia — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 11:10:02 -0000

@Shawn:

Damn, that Addams family game was the shit. I fed more quarters to that machine than any arcade game I ever have or will play.

Re: Open thread

Shawn — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 10:08:44 -0000

@JustSomeGuy:

The Addams Family pinball game was the best ever.

Also, while sports games, first-person shooters, and RPGs are all great, the greatest electronic game of all time is still the Civilization series - epsecially Civ II and Alpha Centauri.

Re: Open thread

OhKen — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 09:51:28 -0000

I can't do anything newer than pinball.... Gimme a mechanical game, these electronic thingies just leave an old fart like me in the dust.

Re: Open thread

Margaret — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 09:45:34 -0000

I fell for a gamer and we are both in our late 20s and play videogames an awful lot, sometimes together, sometimes apart. But before him, I picked up console gaming again in my 20s. There's just a learning curve involved. The controllers are intimidating and look like they have so many buttons and joysticks you'll go crazy, but if you start slow you get the hang of it again. But you just have to take your time and perhaps pick the right kind of game. Katamari sucked me back in, then I moved on to Okami and the new Zelda games. They're about the right level of difficulty for me.

Re: Open thread

Persia — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 09:10:18 -0000

and at the soda fountain was Pibb Xtra. What was so bad about the name Mr. Pibb?

Is Xtra Pibb with caffeine in it? I mean, they're putting that shit in everything else.

The one thing modern games have up on the old ones is save points. I love games where I can save early and often.

Having said that, the only 'hardcore game' I own is Resident Evil IV, and I haven't finished it in over a year. I'm still shooting shit in the face, though.

If you like the old-school games, get an Nintendo DS. They have all kinds of retro stuff on that system, and a ton of awesome puzzle games. And for people unlike treebeard who just pretend to be lawyers, the Phoenix Wright series is a trip.

Re: Open thread

treebeard — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 08:13:03 -0000

The greatest joy I had while I was in law school (with a family) was playing "Spyro the Dragon" with my young daughter. A family friend gave us an old Playstation (1) and a few games. We couldn't afford anything better.

Eventually I conquered the thing. I learned how to kill the bad guy, get all the gems, etc., and that meant more to me than getting good exam grades.

Great music from Stewart Copeland of the Police, too. The music would follow me all day long.

Re: Open thread

thatgirl — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 08:08:47 -0000

Shani-o, I'm 24 and I didn't play my first video game until after I was old enough to drink.

I still don't feel like I missed much.

But I do already see a generation gap between myself and my younger sister, who doesn't understand why I don't text message and why I still own cassette tapes when I could be using an iPod.

Re: Open thread

SeanH — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 07:06:54 -0000

I'm 29 and the Xbox 360 is still near impossible for me.

Clearly you guys don't have the Madden and NCAA football addiction I do or the controllers would fit you like a glove. As I get older, I find I'm more willing to wait on or even skip the newest Grand Theft Auto or bad-ass RPG, but football's exactly the same for me at 34 as it was at 24. Decades from now when we're all in holodecks or hooked up to the matrix I'll still be obsessively turning crappy football teams into juggernauts over and over again.

Re: Open thread

Bruce — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 06:23:38 -0000

When it comes to reminiscing things from the 80's and 90's...i often don't revert to video-games as much as i do to music ... and several groups and sub-cultures come to mind... if your'e a hiphop-head like me, u probably remember (of course)...wu-tang...but also one click that stood out when it came to sound. The Boot Camp Clikk...the sound that made Brooklyn (home of the OGC BAYBEEE) famous, before Jay and the rest of the Rock. Now, i'm a 80s baby...so i don't remember all of it, but most of has stuck with me...

1981 - the first year rap begun

The first time I saw a backwards spun

I was in my living room practisin

Watchin the tube, _Facts of Life_

Different Strokes in the afternoon

Scarface looked mean in the flicks

Everybody who pumped coke back then was fiendin for bricks

'86, no fades, afro tops

In those days your whole ave was the spot

The scene locked with Lee patches, Cazel glasses

Suede Pumas and rumors of rap not lastin

Till the class of '89 came through

High top fade, tailor-made Gucci suits

Jordan was champ, Mike Tyson was amped

Reagan was the pres and the border was a place to camp

Just think back like this

As you reminisce, reminisce

song... Boot Camp Click - think back

Re: Open thread

sv — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 04:52:29 -0000

speaking of side-scrollers, one word:

IKARUGA

Re: Open thread

Evan Narcisse — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 00:59:00 -0000

The big difference between today's video games and yesteryear's is the self-awareness on the part of the creators working in the medium. Whereas you kinda had to infer an emotional impact from games of the past ("What do you mean Samus Aran is a girl?!"), designers now are trying to deliver that same punch intentionally ("The cake is a lie!").

@Glaivester: Viewtiful Joe is a great retro-inflected game that gently plays around with some metatextual elements. It's not enough to beat up the bad guys, you get points by looking good as you do it. Great art style, too. I highly recommend Ico, Shadow of the Colossus and Beyond Good & Evil.

@AMT: Try to check out Castle Crashers on Xbox Live. It's an old-school side-scrolling beat-em-up that's really funny. There's a lot of cool experimentation with downloadable games and I think you're going to see a lot more.

@ethan salto: Preach.

Re: Open thread

Hicks — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 23:26:36 -0000

Nostalgia washed over me when I found an old Galaga game at a bowling alley while I was visiting relatives. Did anyone see that NewsRadio episode when Dave lost a whole night in front of a video game at the station? Just like Dave, I whispered wistfully "Hello, my old friend." My relatives were concerned. Disturbingly, I've also lost whole weekends to Doom. I told myself that those fight or die games were preparing me for Armageddon...and then hate myself for it.

Re: Open thread

Glaivester — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 23:07:04 -0000

I have a Playstation 2 and I have only used it to play "Taito Legends" (an anthology of arcade games from 1978-1996) "Taito Legends 2" (ditto), and the Activision Anthology (old Atari 2600-playable games). I bough "Viewtiful Joe" (it was $3.00) and some NRA-endorsed target-shooting game, but I have yet to play either one.

Re: Open thread

bakum — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 22:34:05 -0000

Unrelated to anything I'd like to have a contest wherein we make up stories about the worst fears of Obama haters come true. In their worst nightmares, what's gonna happen in an Obama presidency, day 1?

Like this:

-After Rev. Wright performs the swearing-in ceremony at the Inauguration, an upside down American flag unfurls on the (now) Black House lawn.

-All US Army balistic nuclear missles get sold to Iran and the proceeds go toward reparations.

-Ayers assumes the role of Attorney General, while Farakhan gets the first open seat on the Supreme Court bench.

-Biden scurries 'round the west wing wearing a jester's hat and tap-dance shoes, his new name is Boy Biden, Boy for short.

-Hawaii confesses Kenya holds the President's actual birth certificate and upon that certificate his real name is revealed: Apocalypse Jihad Obama.

*Note I have to admit I didn't make this stuff up, my friend did, I'm just posting it here.

Re: Open thread

Shawn — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 21:57:49 -0000

The Addams Family pinball game is my all time fave.

Re: Open thread

Michael Leung — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 20:33:18 -0000

I'm told, with great authority, that the Jonas Bros. are "today's Beatles."

Re: Open thread

DougEFresh — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 20:09:57 -0000

How open is an open thread?

Because I went to Del Taco today for the first time, and at the soda fountain was Pibb Xtra. What was so bad about the name Mr. Pibb?

Re: Open thread

tallape — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 19:52:22 -0000

Just had to say, shani-o, I feel your pain.

Re: Open thread

Charles — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 19:47:41 -0000

Damn, I had a question for you earlier and was like, "I wish there was an open thread for me to post this to," but now have no memory of what my question was...

Re: Open thread

Joel — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 19:32:27 -0000

For what its worth, if any of you haven't seen King of Kong yet, you absolutely must.

I'm going to be Billy Mitchell this Halloween...