Mass Effect 2 just came out, and it is incredible. It's not without fault -- if I wanted to, I could pick out plenty of gripes both minor and less than -- but these faults are only apparent to me when I analyze it from outside the experience. At any time that I have actually been playing the game (and that's nearly 40 hours at this point), I have been absolutely enthralled by the characters, the story, and the gameplay.
One thing that the developers did in an effort to make the game more accessible was to streamline the combat and the bookkeeping. There's much less equipment to deal with and fewer abilities for each character to sink experience into. Looking at reviews on Amazon, I see that this has caused a furor among many shut-in genre snobs complaining about how this somehow diminishes the game as an RPG. To these folks, I have one word: bullshit.
In the days of pen and paper role playing, stats were assigned to player characters to allow the game master some way of determining what was feasible for the players to do in the game world. It's that simple. In the modern era of videogames, no human being needs to determine what players are or are not capable of doing. We can write elaborate rules that determine that for us and hid them away behind the scenes in physics engines and other computations. Even if hit points and damage modifiers are in effect, the player only needs to be made aware of their existence and general impact, not every specific facet of how they work. This allows us to have rules governing player behavior that are infinitely more complex, which allows for scenarios that are more consistent and more elaborate, and the players' blindness to the exact functioning allows for an experience that is more engrossing.
In the early days of videogames, it wasn't possible for players to have any control over the plot or the game world. For the most part, if there was any sort of significant plot, everything ran on rails with the player being the vehicle for advancing the plot, not an agent actively participating in its progression. Combat, then, was the only thing that the player had any sort of say in. So, in order to give a sense of individuality, games gave players more control over how they were to engage in it. Statistics and customization, tools that formerly existed to provide regulation of the game world, turned into mechanisms by which players were allowed a sense of personal identity in their character. Certainly, pen and paper games had player controlled proficiency development of this nature before the era of videogames; but they weren't essential to the genre. Unfortunately, the proliferation games allowing player directed character growth and boasting that they have "RPG elements" has apparently made it the defining aspect of the genre.
Truth be told, these sorts of customization options only lead to min-maxing and metagaming, the eternal enemies of immersion. Agonizing decisions about what's best instead of what's fitting; elaborate plotting of intended builds and ideal combinations; overwrought mappings of stimulus to optimal response. How can an interactive story survive when the player is more concerned with how he or she intends to play it than with how it will unfold? How can you effectively extend yourself into a character when you are entirely preoccupied with controlling him or her?
Statistics and customization are not the defining characteristics of the ideal role playing game. They are a cancer. What was once a healthy, functioning component of the genre has swollen and now threatens its very livelihood. They are a parasite, slowly killing the host on which they rode into popularity while simultaneously attempting to assume its identity. The folks at Bioware recognized this and have made an attempt to put them back in their proper place, and the result is hatred.
Statistics do not make an RPG. Role playing makes an RPG, and the Mass Effect series, taken as a whole, allows for deeper role playing than any computer game I've ever seen. I never could have predicted the way that certain decisions I made in Mass Effect 1 could have impacted the game world in Mass Effect 2; and I've spent the last couple of days consumed with questions about what the final effects of choices I made in this middle chapter will turn out to be. I am very nearly as curious about what this universe would look like for characters with other tendencies (as anybody who has heard me discuss a hypothetical "violent space lesbian" is aware). I am more attached to the character of Commander Shepard as I have brought him to life than I have been to any other character I have ever played.
Certainly, there is nothing wrong with player control over statistics or ability development. They allow you to impart some notion of who you feel your character is and how they interact with the reality around them. When they become the focus, though, something has gone terrible wrong, at least if you're trying to create a pure Role Playing Game. Anybody who discounts Mass Effect 2 not as a game, but as an RPG because they tried to relegate character growth to its proper place is missing the point and shutting themselves out of one of the best gaming experiences of all time.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Letting Life Live Me
Wow, I am an idiot. I was double checking a couple of due dates on grad school applications that I'd finished recently because I got this strange paranoid feeling about when they were supposed to be in. Turns out I was right and that I'd screwed up the deadlines for applying to the MS and PhD programs. Turns out that, out of my list of 6 schools, I only applied to two of them on time and in time to be considered for funding. Those two schools are CU-Boulder and Brandeis.
Oddly enough, these are kind of the two schools I've been most subconsciously attracted to, even if both of them have things that could keep me from going there as well. Further coincidence is that, ever since I actively decided I didn't have the time to apply at Carnegie Melon, I've been fairly seriously considering taking a year off and doing something like Americorps (something where the pay isn't great, the purpose is important, and the federal loans don't accrue interest). It would be a good way to have some new experiences and figure out how much I really want to do the whole PhD thing without giving myself a good excuse to give up on it -- an excuse like a high paying job.
Now, I have a long tradition of kind of sitting back and letting life take its course and of delaying decisions until time makes a decision for me. I wound up at Calvin in large part because I liked it well enough and didn't feel like filling out applications for the other schools on my list. The whole National Merit thing and needing to accept admission early was a nice excuse, but it didn't really factor at the time. Honestly I've been pretty satisfied with the course my life has taken living this way. Calvin has been great, and even this weird fifth year has ultimately been for the best; but I'm still anxious about this habit and what will happen if I keep on only allowing myself minimal say in my life. I just know that those few times where I have tried to be the active decider haven't turned out too well for me. Usually life kicks my ass a bit and throws me back on the path it had me going down.
Oddly enough, these are kind of the two schools I've been most subconsciously attracted to, even if both of them have things that could keep me from going there as well. Further coincidence is that, ever since I actively decided I didn't have the time to apply at Carnegie Melon, I've been fairly seriously considering taking a year off and doing something like Americorps (something where the pay isn't great, the purpose is important, and the federal loans don't accrue interest). It would be a good way to have some new experiences and figure out how much I really want to do the whole PhD thing without giving myself a good excuse to give up on it -- an excuse like a high paying job.
Now, I have a long tradition of kind of sitting back and letting life take its course and of delaying decisions until time makes a decision for me. I wound up at Calvin in large part because I liked it well enough and didn't feel like filling out applications for the other schools on my list. The whole National Merit thing and needing to accept admission early was a nice excuse, but it didn't really factor at the time. Honestly I've been pretty satisfied with the course my life has taken living this way. Calvin has been great, and even this weird fifth year has ultimately been for the best; but I'm still anxious about this habit and what will happen if I keep on only allowing myself minimal say in my life. I just know that those few times where I have tried to be the active decider haven't turned out too well for me. Usually life kicks my ass a bit and throws me back on the path it had me going down.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Year in Review
Last year was interesting to say the least and difficult to say a little more. I can't really talk a lot about the last 12 months without getting on the pity train, as certain events paint even the happier memories in a dimmer light. As always, I'm fairly content when I remain in the moment, but reflecting on the past and pondering the future both put me in a bit of a down mood these days as I question my decisions and where they are bringing me.
So, instead of actively talking about my life over the last 12 months, I'll look at some of my favorite movies from the time period and reflect on why they've impacted me as they have.
500 Days of Summer:
This may be my favorite movie of the year. I identify with it in a way that I haven't identified with a movie since Little Miss Sunshine. I have a bad habit of expecting too much out of my relationships and of reacting poorly when my expectations turn out to be completely unrealistic. This has been a huge problem for me especially in the last year as I struggle to find proper footing to maintain relationships that life has determined must change. Tom's flight from the rooftop party in particular will be a powerful cathartic experience for awhile to come.
Up:
Pixar comes through again with what I'm willing to call my third favorite movie in their oeuvre (after Wall-E and The Incredibles). If nothing else, the first ~15 minutes are the best film making of the year. I don't know of the beautiful depiction of Carl and Ellie's life together will ever not make me tear up, and the way Carl places his hand on Ellie's hand print when he's checking the mail is the most subtly profound image in a movie this year. Again, this movie deals with accepting that life is never what we want it to be. It reminds us that we need to make our own adventures where we are instead of dwelling on those we wish we could be having.
Moon:
Moon ranks in as my favorite sci-fi movie in a year packed with great entries in the genre. It didn't impact me as personally as the previous two movies, but it does show a gradual shift my tastes have been taking. I still enjoy adventure and high action, but more and more I find myself inclined towards slower, more thoughtful narratives. Under its skin, Moon asks some interesting questions about how much our personal growth is influenced by our environment.
Coraline:
I'll admit, I'm a Neil Gaiman fanboy; but this wouldn't have come about if his work didn't tend to be of such exemplary quality. The most interesting feature of Coraline is one that it shares with Gaiman's (deservedly) much lauded Graveyard Book: the level of respect it shows for its young audience. Coraline refuses to give everything away. It lets you put together the pieces for yourself and offers a few genuinely frightening moments for viewers of all ages.
Julie and Julia:
As much as the fanfare around the release of Julie Powell's latest book, Cleaving, disappointed me, I don't think it can do much to dilute the pure enjoyability that Julie and Julia offered. Many people were primarily taken with the Julia Child aspect of the story, and Meryl Streep's performance in the role was exceptional, but Amy Adam's performance as Julie Powell was equally potent if you can identify with her position. The NPR pop culture blog Monkey See, which is spectacular, has a great write-up on the importance of the two stories here.
That's it for now. There were plenty of other good movies this year (Zombie Land, A Serious Man, District 9, The Hurt Locker, and Avatar among others), and a couple I still want to see (chiefuly, Up in the Air and The Princess and the Frog), but these are the ones I had the most to say about. Hope all of you are in a good place as this new year kicks off and blessings to all of you.
So, instead of actively talking about my life over the last 12 months, I'll look at some of my favorite movies from the time period and reflect on why they've impacted me as they have.
500 Days of Summer:
This may be my favorite movie of the year. I identify with it in a way that I haven't identified with a movie since Little Miss Sunshine. I have a bad habit of expecting too much out of my relationships and of reacting poorly when my expectations turn out to be completely unrealistic. This has been a huge problem for me especially in the last year as I struggle to find proper footing to maintain relationships that life has determined must change. Tom's flight from the rooftop party in particular will be a powerful cathartic experience for awhile to come.
Up:
Pixar comes through again with what I'm willing to call my third favorite movie in their oeuvre (after Wall-E and The Incredibles). If nothing else, the first ~15 minutes are the best film making of the year. I don't know of the beautiful depiction of Carl and Ellie's life together will ever not make me tear up, and the way Carl places his hand on Ellie's hand print when he's checking the mail is the most subtly profound image in a movie this year. Again, this movie deals with accepting that life is never what we want it to be. It reminds us that we need to make our own adventures where we are instead of dwelling on those we wish we could be having.
Moon:
Moon ranks in as my favorite sci-fi movie in a year packed with great entries in the genre. It didn't impact me as personally as the previous two movies, but it does show a gradual shift my tastes have been taking. I still enjoy adventure and high action, but more and more I find myself inclined towards slower, more thoughtful narratives. Under its skin, Moon asks some interesting questions about how much our personal growth is influenced by our environment.
Coraline:
I'll admit, I'm a Neil Gaiman fanboy; but this wouldn't have come about if his work didn't tend to be of such exemplary quality. The most interesting feature of Coraline is one that it shares with Gaiman's (deservedly) much lauded Graveyard Book: the level of respect it shows for its young audience. Coraline refuses to give everything away. It lets you put together the pieces for yourself and offers a few genuinely frightening moments for viewers of all ages.
Julie and Julia:
As much as the fanfare around the release of Julie Powell's latest book, Cleaving, disappointed me, I don't think it can do much to dilute the pure enjoyability that Julie and Julia offered. Many people were primarily taken with the Julia Child aspect of the story, and Meryl Streep's performance in the role was exceptional, but Amy Adam's performance as Julie Powell was equally potent if you can identify with her position. The NPR pop culture blog Monkey See, which is spectacular, has a great write-up on the importance of the two stories here.
That's it for now. There were plenty of other good movies this year (Zombie Land, A Serious Man, District 9, The Hurt Locker, and Avatar among others), and a couple I still want to see (chiefuly, Up in the Air and The Princess and the Frog), but these are the ones I had the most to say about. Hope all of you are in a good place as this new year kicks off and blessings to all of you.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Videogame Round Up
As most of you know, I play lots of videogames. And yet, I have only talked about games a couple of times in this blog, both back near its very beginnings. As such, I'm going to go through a quick back-log of the various games I've played for the last several months (maybe ranging back past the year mark). I tend to do pretty thorough research before committing to buying or playing a game, so it's safe to say that all of these are quality titles. Because of this, I'm not going to give any sort of elaborate review so much as a quick run down.
Wii/Gamecube:
For the two years previous to the current year, I was fortunate enough to have roommates who owned Wiis. I took ready advantage of this to get in some quality gaming time on the console.
Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
I started this game in December of 2007, played it and enjoyed it thoroughly for the better part of a month, and then wound up putting it down when life got busy. I picked it back up and finished it in September/October of '08, and I have to say: it ranks among my favorite Zelda titles. I know this is a controversial statement, but the entire game was just fun. Sailing never got too tedious for me (I collected all of the sea charts while I was chilling with people and never paying too much attention), and the vibrancy of the animation was just captivating. I loved simply watching this game, which made controlling it a treat. There weren't terribly many dungeons, but after the "meh"-fest that was Twilight Princess and its bevy of single-purpose items, I didn't really care. Also, as much as I cussed out Zelda for stealing my bow (which is and always will be my favorite item), the final Ganon fight was probably the best in the entire series. Also: Splüsh.
Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
I hit this one up over the summer on the Wii's virtual console. It seems that everybody either adored the game or couldn't stand the 3-day contrivance. I can honestly say that I'm not in either camp. There were only a couple of times that the 3-day thing proved to be a hindrance, and only one of them was in a dungeon (and that was entirely the result of me being OCD and needing to collect faeries). In general, I loved the way the game played -- *when I was Link*. Link seemed to move more naturally than in Ocarina, and the bunny hood made things even better. The problem was with the alternate link forms. Deku link worked fine, even if he was a bit powerless. Goron Link and Zora Link, however, were seriously lacking in precision when rolling and swimming respectively. I can appreciate rolling Goro-Link being unresponsive. It makes sense with the nature of the movement. But if you're going to do that, don't require precision in navigating certain dungeon features. The crap-shoot movement of Zora-Link, though, was unacceptable, and made the entire 3rd dungeon a way bigger chore than it had any cause to be. The end game was also completely unfulfilling. Maybe that's because we never had any meaningful interaction with the final villain (a la way too many Final Fantasy titles), but not only did I have no clue who I was fighting, I didn't really care when the game was over. I'm not even going to get started on how useless Epona (who was the whole reason for the adventure) was. It's a game that's worth playing, but definitely more on the Zelda 2/Twilight Princess end of the spectrum rather than the OoT/LttP end.
Paper Mario and The Thousand Year Door:
I took this one on over the summer, too. Just a straight-up enjoyable time. Not terribly difficult, but not overly easy, either. The game constantly threw you in new situations and kept me grinning with its humor even if I didn't laugh out loud at much of it. There's not much to compare it to other than the first Paper Mario or the GBA/DS Mario and Luigi titles. Turn based battles with some minor real time elements to keep things interesting. Environmental puzzle solving with a bit of simple platforming. Lots of great Nintendo humor.
Super Paper Mario:
I actually got to this one right after I finished Wind Waker. A very different game from the previous Paper Mario games in that the emphasis is much more strongly on the environmental aspects and the turn based battles have been done away with. This game actually did have moments that made me laugh aloud (the World 3 "boss battle" comes to mind), but the more active nature of the normal gameplay eliminated a lot of the constant stream of light humor from its predecessors. Being able to swap characters was a lot of fun, but I wish they'd done more to make Mario useful outside of "flipping". Bowser's fire breath, Luigi's super jump, and Peach's impenetrable umbrella all kept me from playing as Mario except when I needed to.
Mario Kart Wii:
This game served as an apartment OCD outlet as we finished unlocking everything. While my multi-player experience is limited, I'm comfortable saying that it's a solid Mario Kart experience. I was skeptical of the addition of motorcycles at first, but when I started playing, I changed my mind. The reason? Kart handling between Mario Kart 64 and Double Dash changed significantly, and Motorcycles basically handle like the 64 karts (with which I am infinitely more familiar). Track design seemed good, and I *adore* playing Sherbet Land (one of my favorite tracks of all time) with the wider lanes.
Smash Bros Brawl:
As much as I enjoy the game, it ultimately receives a resounding "meh" from me. I find that, even though Ness (my favorite character) is much improved in Brawl, I prefer Melee in nearly every way. It's faster, more technical, and less random. Brawl is most certainly the better party game, but it will never touch Melee for sheer 1v1 fighting quality. For lots of people, this isn't an issue, but it's entirely what had me addicted to Smash for nearly 2 and a half years.
PS2:
I've owned my PS2 since launch day, and it has served me well ever since. For the last couple of years, though, my play time on it has been rapidly diminishing. While I occasionally grab a used PS2 or PS1 game on the cheap intending to give it my full attention, I haven't actually finished a new game since...oh...Okami? FFXII, Rogue Galaxy, and Disgaea are all on the list of games that I've begun, enjoyed, and ultimately left by the wayside for something shiny and new. Sadface.
Xbox 360:
I finally gave in to peer pressure in late August and bought myself a new console. Hooray for sizable tax returns. While my game library is still fairly small, I've been mightily impressed by what I've played so far.
Shadow Complex:
The best Metroidvania style game since either Super Metroid or Symphony of the Night. Take your pick. Shadow Complex was a delight and, at $15, possibly the best gaming investment I've made in years. As implied above, it's and action/adventure game in the style of Metroid and the "more recent" 2D Castlevania games (i.e. PlayStation era on). You run around shooting fools, find new equipment that lets your revisit old areas in new ways, and shoot more fools. It's not terribly long (maybe 7 or so hours to get 100% completion on your first run through and 3-5 after that), but it's good enough that I played through the main game at least 4 times. "Sequence breaks" abound as well, especially as you unlock new perks for leveling up (unlimited foam? yes, please). It's even possible to beat the game with only 4% of the items (my minimum was somewhere around 11%). If you have a 360 and $15 lying around, which I know most of you do, I can't recommend this game enough.
Mass Effect:
Simply put, one of the best RPG experiences I've had. Most of the cast is incredibly interesting (unfortunately, the two possible love interests are the chief exceptions); the combat is fun once you adapt to it (though not without its challenges); and the plot actually had me going "oh shit, oh shit, fuck, shit, reapers, gotta stop the reapers" come the end. The game has a few hitches (crappy squad A.I., texture load, boring planetary exploration), but the overall arc of the game is absolutely excellent. Being an old-ish game, you can grab it new for $20, and the sequel is dropping in late January making now an excellent time to check it out if you haven't already.
BlazBlue:
I wish I had somebody to play this game with. From what I've played, it's an outstanding free-form 2D fighter. Everybody in the small cast plays incredibly differently, even if the fundamental controls are the same fire-ball and shoryuken motions those of us weaned on Street Fighter have known for years. I spent a good week just fiddling around in training mode, learning what cancels into what and I still find new ways to mix things up every time I go in. Please, please, please, somebody pick up this game so I have an excuse to pop it back in.
Team Fortress 2:
I would list the entire Orange Box, but I played through Half Life 2 years ago and I've tackled Portal more times than I care to count. Both are stellar experiences. TF2 is where I've sunk most of my time on my 360 copy of Orange Box. It's been a lot of fun, but I can't help feeling let down when I know how gimped the 360 version is compared to the PC. No new maps. No new game types. No new alternate equipment or hats. Valve says they're waiting until they've done all of the class updates so they can provide it as a single batch of DLC; but who knows when that will be. If I knew more people playing this on the PC (and if I had a mouse and a proper gaming surface), I'd probably be online on a regular basis.
Borderlands:
This is where the bulk of my last month has disappeared to. Celebrated game designer Cliff Bleszinski has called it "Diablo for the generation raised on FPS", and I can't agree more. The cooperative mob grinding, shoot & loot experience is both incredibly nostalgic and fundamentally new. The best fun, by far, comes from playing with others, but I've still sunk in plenty of time by myself. My level 50 hunter now has maxed out sniper rifle proficiency and is getting close with pistols and SMGs making most of the game a joke, but I still find myself booting up to run through the same old areas hoping that maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to improve on my current equipment. I can't wait for the "Zombie Island of Dr. Ned" DLC pack to drop so I have new places to pillage with the horde of friends who picked this up with me.
DS:
The little handheld that can, I have spurts where I'll play my DS more than any other system.
Prof. Layton and the Curious Village:
A great puzzle game with a remarkably thorough story. I mostly figured out the plot before the end, but it was still a fun ride; and a couple of the puzzles really made me think. Some of them even did so because they were actually clever and not just kind of stupid! I really enjoyed the ambiance of the game and plan to pick up the second game as soon as I find it for a reasonable price.
Scribblenauts:
Another puzzle game, but with an incredible fresh conceit. Scribblenauts is a game where you enter in words and the object appears in reality for you to interact with and solve the task at hand. I actually haven't played this one as much as I probably should have, but that's because my roommates became immediately obsessed with it after I got it. I'll have to bring it with me on vacation for de-stressing. I will say that I have had few videogame experiences more thrilling than seeing a ledge too high for me to reach, typing in the word "kangaroo", and riding on a kangaroo as it jumped up the ledge.
Dragon Quest IV:
A great entry in a great game series. Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen doesn't do much to differentiate itself from other games in the series. It doesn't have the spectacular plot of DQV or the class system of DQVI. It doesn't have the pseudo time-travelling aspects of DQVII or the gorgeous, immersive world of DQVIII. What it does have is a solid balance of characters with unique, playable back stories and some very interesting subplots (which, as always, are the driving force of the moment to moment gameplay). Being a DQ game, it's got some pretty tough bits, but it's a fun ride overall.
Final Fantasy IV:
Holy shit. I've played lots of incarnations of FFIV. I played it on the SNES. I played it on the PS1. I played it on the GBA. I played roms of the Japanese SNES original. This is, by far, the most difficult iteration of FFIV ever put to game code. Enemies have been toughened. Equipment options have been changed (Cecil can no longer use bows? Edge can no longer use claws?). This version of the game has forced me to use spells and abilities that, in previous versions, I always looked at as simple novelty. Blink (and Edge's Mirage) quickly became my favorite spell in the whole game. And even still, there will be times when you arrive at a new area and you will have no choice but to accept that, if you run into a certain enemy mob, you will die. Despite all this, though, it's still Final Fantasy IV. It's one of the best stories in the whole Final Fantasy series, and the new translation and presentation only make it stronger. Pick it up.
Okay, I think that about covers it. Hopefully some people found this interesting. If nothing else, I enjoyed having the diversion.
Wii/Gamecube:
For the two years previous to the current year, I was fortunate enough to have roommates who owned Wiis. I took ready advantage of this to get in some quality gaming time on the console.
Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
I started this game in December of 2007, played it and enjoyed it thoroughly for the better part of a month, and then wound up putting it down when life got busy. I picked it back up and finished it in September/October of '08, and I have to say: it ranks among my favorite Zelda titles. I know this is a controversial statement, but the entire game was just fun. Sailing never got too tedious for me (I collected all of the sea charts while I was chilling with people and never paying too much attention), and the vibrancy of the animation was just captivating. I loved simply watching this game, which made controlling it a treat. There weren't terribly many dungeons, but after the "meh"-fest that was Twilight Princess and its bevy of single-purpose items, I didn't really care. Also, as much as I cussed out Zelda for stealing my bow (which is and always will be my favorite item), the final Ganon fight was probably the best in the entire series. Also: Splüsh.
Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
I hit this one up over the summer on the Wii's virtual console. It seems that everybody either adored the game or couldn't stand the 3-day contrivance. I can honestly say that I'm not in either camp. There were only a couple of times that the 3-day thing proved to be a hindrance, and only one of them was in a dungeon (and that was entirely the result of me being OCD and needing to collect faeries). In general, I loved the way the game played -- *when I was Link*. Link seemed to move more naturally than in Ocarina, and the bunny hood made things even better. The problem was with the alternate link forms. Deku link worked fine, even if he was a bit powerless. Goron Link and Zora Link, however, were seriously lacking in precision when rolling and swimming respectively. I can appreciate rolling Goro-Link being unresponsive. It makes sense with the nature of the movement. But if you're going to do that, don't require precision in navigating certain dungeon features. The crap-shoot movement of Zora-Link, though, was unacceptable, and made the entire 3rd dungeon a way bigger chore than it had any cause to be. The end game was also completely unfulfilling. Maybe that's because we never had any meaningful interaction with the final villain (a la way too many Final Fantasy titles), but not only did I have no clue who I was fighting, I didn't really care when the game was over. I'm not even going to get started on how useless Epona (who was the whole reason for the adventure) was. It's a game that's worth playing, but definitely more on the Zelda 2/Twilight Princess end of the spectrum rather than the OoT/LttP end.
Paper Mario and The Thousand Year Door:
I took this one on over the summer, too. Just a straight-up enjoyable time. Not terribly difficult, but not overly easy, either. The game constantly threw you in new situations and kept me grinning with its humor even if I didn't laugh out loud at much of it. There's not much to compare it to other than the first Paper Mario or the GBA/DS Mario and Luigi titles. Turn based battles with some minor real time elements to keep things interesting. Environmental puzzle solving with a bit of simple platforming. Lots of great Nintendo humor.
Super Paper Mario:
I actually got to this one right after I finished Wind Waker. A very different game from the previous Paper Mario games in that the emphasis is much more strongly on the environmental aspects and the turn based battles have been done away with. This game actually did have moments that made me laugh aloud (the World 3 "boss battle" comes to mind), but the more active nature of the normal gameplay eliminated a lot of the constant stream of light humor from its predecessors. Being able to swap characters was a lot of fun, but I wish they'd done more to make Mario useful outside of "flipping". Bowser's fire breath, Luigi's super jump, and Peach's impenetrable umbrella all kept me from playing as Mario except when I needed to.
Mario Kart Wii:
This game served as an apartment OCD outlet as we finished unlocking everything. While my multi-player experience is limited, I'm comfortable saying that it's a solid Mario Kart experience. I was skeptical of the addition of motorcycles at first, but when I started playing, I changed my mind. The reason? Kart handling between Mario Kart 64 and Double Dash changed significantly, and Motorcycles basically handle like the 64 karts (with which I am infinitely more familiar). Track design seemed good, and I *adore* playing Sherbet Land (one of my favorite tracks of all time) with the wider lanes.
Smash Bros Brawl:
As much as I enjoy the game, it ultimately receives a resounding "meh" from me. I find that, even though Ness (my favorite character) is much improved in Brawl, I prefer Melee in nearly every way. It's faster, more technical, and less random. Brawl is most certainly the better party game, but it will never touch Melee for sheer 1v1 fighting quality. For lots of people, this isn't an issue, but it's entirely what had me addicted to Smash for nearly 2 and a half years.
PS2:
I've owned my PS2 since launch day, and it has served me well ever since. For the last couple of years, though, my play time on it has been rapidly diminishing. While I occasionally grab a used PS2 or PS1 game on the cheap intending to give it my full attention, I haven't actually finished a new game since...oh...Okami? FFXII, Rogue Galaxy, and Disgaea are all on the list of games that I've begun, enjoyed, and ultimately left by the wayside for something shiny and new. Sadface.
Xbox 360:
I finally gave in to peer pressure in late August and bought myself a new console. Hooray for sizable tax returns. While my game library is still fairly small, I've been mightily impressed by what I've played so far.
Shadow Complex:
The best Metroidvania style game since either Super Metroid or Symphony of the Night. Take your pick. Shadow Complex was a delight and, at $15, possibly the best gaming investment I've made in years. As implied above, it's and action/adventure game in the style of Metroid and the "more recent" 2D Castlevania games (i.e. PlayStation era on). You run around shooting fools, find new equipment that lets your revisit old areas in new ways, and shoot more fools. It's not terribly long (maybe 7 or so hours to get 100% completion on your first run through and 3-5 after that), but it's good enough that I played through the main game at least 4 times. "Sequence breaks" abound as well, especially as you unlock new perks for leveling up (unlimited foam? yes, please). It's even possible to beat the game with only 4% of the items (my minimum was somewhere around 11%). If you have a 360 and $15 lying around, which I know most of you do, I can't recommend this game enough.
Mass Effect:
Simply put, one of the best RPG experiences I've had. Most of the cast is incredibly interesting (unfortunately, the two possible love interests are the chief exceptions); the combat is fun once you adapt to it (though not without its challenges); and the plot actually had me going "oh shit, oh shit, fuck, shit, reapers, gotta stop the reapers" come the end. The game has a few hitches (crappy squad A.I., texture load, boring planetary exploration), but the overall arc of the game is absolutely excellent. Being an old-ish game, you can grab it new for $20, and the sequel is dropping in late January making now an excellent time to check it out if you haven't already.
BlazBlue:
I wish I had somebody to play this game with. From what I've played, it's an outstanding free-form 2D fighter. Everybody in the small cast plays incredibly differently, even if the fundamental controls are the same fire-ball and shoryuken motions those of us weaned on Street Fighter have known for years. I spent a good week just fiddling around in training mode, learning what cancels into what and I still find new ways to mix things up every time I go in. Please, please, please, somebody pick up this game so I have an excuse to pop it back in.
Team Fortress 2:
I would list the entire Orange Box, but I played through Half Life 2 years ago and I've tackled Portal more times than I care to count. Both are stellar experiences. TF2 is where I've sunk most of my time on my 360 copy of Orange Box. It's been a lot of fun, but I can't help feeling let down when I know how gimped the 360 version is compared to the PC. No new maps. No new game types. No new alternate equipment or hats. Valve says they're waiting until they've done all of the class updates so they can provide it as a single batch of DLC; but who knows when that will be. If I knew more people playing this on the PC (and if I had a mouse and a proper gaming surface), I'd probably be online on a regular basis.
Borderlands:
This is where the bulk of my last month has disappeared to. Celebrated game designer Cliff Bleszinski has called it "Diablo for the generation raised on FPS", and I can't agree more. The cooperative mob grinding, shoot & loot experience is both incredibly nostalgic and fundamentally new. The best fun, by far, comes from playing with others, but I've still sunk in plenty of time by myself. My level 50 hunter now has maxed out sniper rifle proficiency and is getting close with pistols and SMGs making most of the game a joke, but I still find myself booting up to run through the same old areas hoping that maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to improve on my current equipment. I can't wait for the "Zombie Island of Dr. Ned" DLC pack to drop so I have new places to pillage with the horde of friends who picked this up with me.
DS:
The little handheld that can, I have spurts where I'll play my DS more than any other system.
Prof. Layton and the Curious Village:
A great puzzle game with a remarkably thorough story. I mostly figured out the plot before the end, but it was still a fun ride; and a couple of the puzzles really made me think. Some of them even did so because they were actually clever and not just kind of stupid! I really enjoyed the ambiance of the game and plan to pick up the second game as soon as I find it for a reasonable price.
Scribblenauts:
Another puzzle game, but with an incredible fresh conceit. Scribblenauts is a game where you enter in words and the object appears in reality for you to interact with and solve the task at hand. I actually haven't played this one as much as I probably should have, but that's because my roommates became immediately obsessed with it after I got it. I'll have to bring it with me on vacation for de-stressing. I will say that I have had few videogame experiences more thrilling than seeing a ledge too high for me to reach, typing in the word "kangaroo", and riding on a kangaroo as it jumped up the ledge.
Dragon Quest IV:
A great entry in a great game series. Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen doesn't do much to differentiate itself from other games in the series. It doesn't have the spectacular plot of DQV or the class system of DQVI. It doesn't have the pseudo time-travelling aspects of DQVII or the gorgeous, immersive world of DQVIII. What it does have is a solid balance of characters with unique, playable back stories and some very interesting subplots (which, as always, are the driving force of the moment to moment gameplay). Being a DQ game, it's got some pretty tough bits, but it's a fun ride overall.
Final Fantasy IV:
Holy shit. I've played lots of incarnations of FFIV. I played it on the SNES. I played it on the PS1. I played it on the GBA. I played roms of the Japanese SNES original. This is, by far, the most difficult iteration of FFIV ever put to game code. Enemies have been toughened. Equipment options have been changed (Cecil can no longer use bows? Edge can no longer use claws?). This version of the game has forced me to use spells and abilities that, in previous versions, I always looked at as simple novelty. Blink (and Edge's Mirage) quickly became my favorite spell in the whole game. And even still, there will be times when you arrive at a new area and you will have no choice but to accept that, if you run into a certain enemy mob, you will die. Despite all this, though, it's still Final Fantasy IV. It's one of the best stories in the whole Final Fantasy series, and the new translation and presentation only make it stronger. Pick it up.
Okay, I think that about covers it. Hopefully some people found this interesting. If nothing else, I enjoyed having the diversion.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Summer Move Round-Up
Lots of movies came out this summer. Many of them were very good. Some of the more high-profile ones were very bad. I saw a lot of them. Here are my thoughts:
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Awful. Simply terrible. The acting was crap, the plot was fragmented, and the level of respect on hand for not only the previous movies in the series but the greater X-Men cannon was abysmal. It might have been worth the $4.50 I paid to see it if the theater had been empty enough for me to be willing to yell at the screen. D+
Star Trek
A great reboot to the series. J.J. Abrams managed to remember that Star Trek really is about the chemistry between its ensemble, and the entire cast managed to reinvent their characters in a way that stayed true to the spirit of the original cast. The action never slowed up to allow time for reflection or to introduce any deeper themes, but everything remained coherent and enjoyable throughout. B+
Up
Up was fantastic. Breezy and entertaining while still touching on universal issues of loneliness, Up may well edge out Ratatouille as my third favorite Pixar film. The animation and voice acting are spectacular, and I can't foresee the early montage of Carl and Ellie's married life not making me tear-up at least a bit any time soon. A
The Hangover
Everybody was blown away by the box office performance of The Hangover. This little raunchy, over-the-top bachelor party comedy starring no well known actors (though Zack Galifianakis and Ed Helms both have their dedicated fans) somehow managed to gross $275 million dollars. I'm not quite certain it deserved that kind of gross, it most certainly was a crazy ride. There are situations that arise in this movie that are entirely original, which is something that few comedies can say; and watching these ultimately likable guys get into so much trouble is made even better by the fact that they simply aren't very good people. In a summer dominated by action movies and family films, a male-oriented comedy was going to be a million grosser no matter what, but The Hangover had the novelty and quality to earn its legs. B
Transformers 2
A confusing mess of a movie. The tone and pacing were inconsistent, the over-arching plot made essentially no sense, and the visuals were so cluttered that I rarely knew what was going on in the supposedly spectacular action scenes. This wasn't helped by the fact that virtually none of the decepticons had the same sorts of visual or personality distinctions that the auto-bots had. I'll admit that I enjoy watching Shia LeBouf do his thing more than I ought to, but not nearly enough to enjoy this movie as a whole. D-
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
Upon my first reading, the sixth Harry Potter book was my favorite. I enjoyed the various romantic subplots and how they contrasted with the more somber tone of life beyond the gates of Hogwarts. I liked how they fleshed out Lord Voldemort's character. Unfortunately, these are not quite the things that translate well to film, and yet Yates, Radcliffe, Gint, Watson, and company managed to make this a greatly enjoyable film. All of the major subplots were stripped down to their bare minimum, and the humor that accompanies the awkwardness of adolescence was ramped up to keep things entertaining. The addition of the Christmas action sequence half way through is understandable, but the scene didn't contribute much. I'm glad that they left out most of the ending battle, though. It may be the climax of the book, but it ultimately distracts from the rest of the ending. They kept the important aspects. Since this is the first Harry Potter movie I've seen since reading the books, I feel like I need to see it again before issuing a final verdict. I missed certain scenes from the book, but I was also more strongly disposed towards liking it than I was past movies in the series. For now, though, I'm comfortable giving it a solid B.
(500) Days of Summer
This may be my favorite movie of the summer. Up is its only serious competition. In an age where everybody is trying to hard to be "indie" and instead coming across as cloyingly manufactured, (500) Days of Summer captures the hipster essence by focusing on its characters instead of its ambiance. It's a story about love that isn't a love story so much as a look at our expectations of love and relationships. People who know me well ought to know why this resonates the way it does. My adoration for this movie doesn't just follow from my appreciation for the subtext, though. The writing, performances, and soundtrack are all just pitch-perfect. It even manages to end on a hopeful up note that, if it's contrived, is fittingly so. A+
The Hurt Locker
As intense a movie as you're ever likely to see. By focusing on bomb-squad soldiers, The Hurt Locker manages to avoid much of the direct controversy associated with the Iraq war and instead helps us to understand the psyche of men who never know which moment could be their last. The Hurt Locker manages to be unbiased in its depiction, presenting characters honestly without any attempt at evaluating them. It's not a movie I could watch with any regularity, but it's a movie I would readily recommend to anybody who can stomach the suspense. A-
Moon
I really enjoyed Moon. In an age where the sci-fi genre is universally associated with pulpy, high action space operas/fantasies, Moon is a slower, more contemplative in the original tradition. There's a great subtlety to Moon, and my friends and I were still talking about it, putting the pieces together days after we went to see it. I'm looking forward to seeing more from this first-time director. A-
Funny People
Funny People is a strange movie, and I doubt that anybody who went to see it knew what they were in for. It's a movie from an acclaimed comic director starring an acclaimed comic cast that isn't a comedy, not really. This is a drama about how funny people, people who are used to diffusing difficult situations instead of confronting them, handle their personal lives when confrontation becomes necessary. It's a well made film, but not necessarily an immediately enjoyable one. I think that it will be recognized for what it is and shown greater appreciation in the future, though. B
Ponyo
Overall, I enjoyed Ponyo even if I was disappointed by it. It was a light, fun movie that was artistically gorgeous. Still, I take certain issues with the plot, and I was annoyed by the title character as often as I found her endearing. In general, I think that a love story about children (and whether you want to admit it or not, in this case it was plainly about a romantic attraction and not platonic love) is not appropriate. I was also incredibly frustrated that Ponyo, who, in her "free spiritedness", to be polite, caused every single bit of conflict in the movie, was never held accountable for her actions. Instead, she was praised and given exactly what she wanted. Maybe I'm being overly-analytical. Maybe I'm too distracted by my love of Tina Fey (whose character, unknowingly, suffered the most at Ponyo's hands). But I can't help feeling that somebody, at least, should have been upset with this little girl come the end of the movie. In any case, it's an good enough children's movie, but not quite up to par with Totoro, Spirited Away, or the other greats of Miyazaki's oeuvre. C+
District 9
The third great sci-fi film of the summer approaches the genre in yet another way. Where Star Trek was pulp entertainment and Moon was a subtle contemplation, District 9 was a powerful allegory. With a very interesting protagonist and a fascinating alternate history, District 9 does a great job of pulling viewers in and lending weight to the action pieces. For lots of people, this was the movie of the summer. I didn't appreciate it quite that much, but I can understand what they see in it. A-
Inglourious Basterds
A Tarantino movie by just about any measure. The writing and characterizations were outstanding. The direction was unique. The plot was outlandish. It occasionally broke tone in jarring ways. It needed more editing than it got. I really liked this movie, but I think that, with a bit of work, it could have been even better. Some scenes just went on too long, and there were a few too many self-indulgent moments. B-
There were too many movies here for me to try and rank them beyond this, especially considering how long it's been since I saw most of them. As disappointing as a lot of the larger "tent pole" films of the summer were, though, I think this list is a testament to the quality of independent film making right now.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Awful. Simply terrible. The acting was crap, the plot was fragmented, and the level of respect on hand for not only the previous movies in the series but the greater X-Men cannon was abysmal. It might have been worth the $4.50 I paid to see it if the theater had been empty enough for me to be willing to yell at the screen. D+
Star Trek
A great reboot to the series. J.J. Abrams managed to remember that Star Trek really is about the chemistry between its ensemble, and the entire cast managed to reinvent their characters in a way that stayed true to the spirit of the original cast. The action never slowed up to allow time for reflection or to introduce any deeper themes, but everything remained coherent and enjoyable throughout. B+
Up
Up was fantastic. Breezy and entertaining while still touching on universal issues of loneliness, Up may well edge out Ratatouille as my third favorite Pixar film. The animation and voice acting are spectacular, and I can't foresee the early montage of Carl and Ellie's married life not making me tear-up at least a bit any time soon. A
The Hangover
Everybody was blown away by the box office performance of The Hangover. This little raunchy, over-the-top bachelor party comedy starring no well known actors (though Zack Galifianakis and Ed Helms both have their dedicated fans) somehow managed to gross $275 million dollars. I'm not quite certain it deserved that kind of gross, it most certainly was a crazy ride. There are situations that arise in this movie that are entirely original, which is something that few comedies can say; and watching these ultimately likable guys get into so much trouble is made even better by the fact that they simply aren't very good people. In a summer dominated by action movies and family films, a male-oriented comedy was going to be a million grosser no matter what, but The Hangover had the novelty and quality to earn its legs. B
Transformers 2
A confusing mess of a movie. The tone and pacing were inconsistent, the over-arching plot made essentially no sense, and the visuals were so cluttered that I rarely knew what was going on in the supposedly spectacular action scenes. This wasn't helped by the fact that virtually none of the decepticons had the same sorts of visual or personality distinctions that the auto-bots had. I'll admit that I enjoy watching Shia LeBouf do his thing more than I ought to, but not nearly enough to enjoy this movie as a whole. D-
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
Upon my first reading, the sixth Harry Potter book was my favorite. I enjoyed the various romantic subplots and how they contrasted with the more somber tone of life beyond the gates of Hogwarts. I liked how they fleshed out Lord Voldemort's character. Unfortunately, these are not quite the things that translate well to film, and yet Yates, Radcliffe, Gint, Watson, and company managed to make this a greatly enjoyable film. All of the major subplots were stripped down to their bare minimum, and the humor that accompanies the awkwardness of adolescence was ramped up to keep things entertaining. The addition of the Christmas action sequence half way through is understandable, but the scene didn't contribute much. I'm glad that they left out most of the ending battle, though. It may be the climax of the book, but it ultimately distracts from the rest of the ending. They kept the important aspects. Since this is the first Harry Potter movie I've seen since reading the books, I feel like I need to see it again before issuing a final verdict. I missed certain scenes from the book, but I was also more strongly disposed towards liking it than I was past movies in the series. For now, though, I'm comfortable giving it a solid B.
(500) Days of Summer
This may be my favorite movie of the summer. Up is its only serious competition. In an age where everybody is trying to hard to be "indie" and instead coming across as cloyingly manufactured, (500) Days of Summer captures the hipster essence by focusing on its characters instead of its ambiance. It's a story about love that isn't a love story so much as a look at our expectations of love and relationships. People who know me well ought to know why this resonates the way it does. My adoration for this movie doesn't just follow from my appreciation for the subtext, though. The writing, performances, and soundtrack are all just pitch-perfect. It even manages to end on a hopeful up note that, if it's contrived, is fittingly so. A+
The Hurt Locker
As intense a movie as you're ever likely to see. By focusing on bomb-squad soldiers, The Hurt Locker manages to avoid much of the direct controversy associated with the Iraq war and instead helps us to understand the psyche of men who never know which moment could be their last. The Hurt Locker manages to be unbiased in its depiction, presenting characters honestly without any attempt at evaluating them. It's not a movie I could watch with any regularity, but it's a movie I would readily recommend to anybody who can stomach the suspense. A-
Moon
I really enjoyed Moon. In an age where the sci-fi genre is universally associated with pulpy, high action space operas/fantasies, Moon is a slower, more contemplative in the original tradition. There's a great subtlety to Moon, and my friends and I were still talking about it, putting the pieces together days after we went to see it. I'm looking forward to seeing more from this first-time director. A-
Funny People
Funny People is a strange movie, and I doubt that anybody who went to see it knew what they were in for. It's a movie from an acclaimed comic director starring an acclaimed comic cast that isn't a comedy, not really. This is a drama about how funny people, people who are used to diffusing difficult situations instead of confronting them, handle their personal lives when confrontation becomes necessary. It's a well made film, but not necessarily an immediately enjoyable one. I think that it will be recognized for what it is and shown greater appreciation in the future, though. B
Ponyo
Overall, I enjoyed Ponyo even if I was disappointed by it. It was a light, fun movie that was artistically gorgeous. Still, I take certain issues with the plot, and I was annoyed by the title character as often as I found her endearing. In general, I think that a love story about children (and whether you want to admit it or not, in this case it was plainly about a romantic attraction and not platonic love) is not appropriate. I was also incredibly frustrated that Ponyo, who, in her "free spiritedness", to be polite, caused every single bit of conflict in the movie, was never held accountable for her actions. Instead, she was praised and given exactly what she wanted. Maybe I'm being overly-analytical. Maybe I'm too distracted by my love of Tina Fey (whose character, unknowingly, suffered the most at Ponyo's hands). But I can't help feeling that somebody, at least, should have been upset with this little girl come the end of the movie. In any case, it's an good enough children's movie, but not quite up to par with Totoro, Spirited Away, or the other greats of Miyazaki's oeuvre. C+
District 9
The third great sci-fi film of the summer approaches the genre in yet another way. Where Star Trek was pulp entertainment and Moon was a subtle contemplation, District 9 was a powerful allegory. With a very interesting protagonist and a fascinating alternate history, District 9 does a great job of pulling viewers in and lending weight to the action pieces. For lots of people, this was the movie of the summer. I didn't appreciate it quite that much, but I can understand what they see in it. A-
Inglourious Basterds
A Tarantino movie by just about any measure. The writing and characterizations were outstanding. The direction was unique. The plot was outlandish. It occasionally broke tone in jarring ways. It needed more editing than it got. I really liked this movie, but I think that, with a bit of work, it could have been even better. Some scenes just went on too long, and there were a few too many self-indulgent moments. B-
There were too many movies here for me to try and rank them beyond this, especially considering how long it's been since I saw most of them. As disappointing as a lot of the larger "tent pole" films of the summer were, though, I think this list is a testament to the quality of independent film making right now.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Life update
I don't blog about my life much, but I'm now all moved in to a new apartment with brand new roommates, so I figure it's worth talking about what's up.
Being a fifth year senior is definitely weird already and classes haven't even started yet. Seeing friends looking for work or getting married or settling down in new places is hard. More than that, though, it really feels like this isn't Calvin as I know it, though. There are so many changes on campus - new and departed faculty, building projects - to accompany my missing friends that it's almost like the school is taunting me for staying beyond my welcome. I know I made this choice almost a year and a half ago and that this surrealness of my current position isn't any sort of punishment for failing to grow up or achieve to some desired level...but it's hard all the same.
The new living arrangements will be good, but very different from what I've experienced before. I'm used to living with fairly meek individuals, people who give me room to expand my role and my personality and act out a bit in order to liven things up. The social dynamics of my three roommates, though, are established well enough that, instead of expanding to fill in gaps, I'm fighting to figure out how I fit in. So far, I feel like I'm the guy who cooks and plays videogames. Not terribly glamorous. More than that, this is much more of a typical guy apartment. A bit more crudeness, a bit more testosterone than I'm used to living in. It's an environment I can survive in just fine, but I'm definitely going to need more escape from the heightened level of subliminal conflict and competition. Also, they actually watch sports here, which will be fun from time to time, but it's definitely going to be odd seeing the TV in heavy use for something other than games or binging on TV on DVD.
One nice thing about this being a more typical guy apartment, though, is that I'll also have more chances to expand my cooking. Cooking for one is a pain in the butt, but cooking for four doesn't feel nearly so bad. The guys fastidiously track receipts and what was bought any time anybody goes to the store and will be paying for their share instead of me always treating when I make larger meals (which I didn't mind at all when I only did it once in awhile). In the last week, I've already tried my hand at a few new things without even using any recipes (chicken soup, salsa) that have turned out pretty well. I'm looking forward to doing some more, and especially cooking with wine/alcohol. (beer brats at home! =D)
As far as classes go, things shouldn't be too bad. I've got Physics, which should be a breeze considering I've basically done the work before and I'm living with 2 engineers. I'll probably need to break down and buy a new calculator, though. My 8-year-old TI-86 now has as many dead lines of pixels as it has working ones. That's an unexpected expense that I keep on forgetting to incorporate in my budget planning. Lit and Theology shouldn't be too bad. My (comparatively) slow reading speed will probably make the work a bit of a pain time-wise, but I still write well enough and I like the fields. I'm also taking Intro to Logic, a 100-level Philosophy course, to keep myself full time. Considering all of my experience with deductive logic, the first part of the course, at least, shouldn't pose any difficulties. I can't imagine the inductive logic being much harder (especially since, again, it's an intro level Philosophy course).
In the mean time, I've also got to start getting down to business with grad school research and applications. My intentions to continue work on my senior project in hopes of presenting on it somewhere kind of fell apart over the summer as communication with my advisor dropped off, so I won't be looking quite as impressive as I'd hoped. The list right now isn't terrible long:
Carnegie Mellon (the ideal school, probably won't get in)
University of Michigan
Virginia Tech
University of Colorado at Boulder (where I'm not as likely to go, but I'm hoping they'll pay for me to come visit so I can see some friends for free)
I figure I've got a decent shot at the last three, but I want to expand my options a bit, anyway. Also, I'm looking chiefly at the HCI/Cognitive Science programs at all of these schools, and I'd like to find schools doing cool stuff with programming languages research. In any case, I need to get started researching the profs at these schools and getting my materials together. Having Tuesdays and Thursdays completely free should help a lot, assuming I can actually keep myself on task.
Fortunately, the novelty of my new X-Box 360 is starting to wear off. I've completed Mass Effect and Shadow Complex (two of the best games I've played in recent years), and I'm not looking at buying anything else that will be a major time sink for a good while. The only other games I have are a few multi-player ones I can play with my roommates or online with friends back home. If any of you play Castle Crashers, BlazBlue, or Team Fortress 2, let me know.
That's about it, I guess. I'll probably have some more "profound" thoughts to share in the not too distant future. At the very least there will be a summer movie round up.
Being a fifth year senior is definitely weird already and classes haven't even started yet. Seeing friends looking for work or getting married or settling down in new places is hard. More than that, though, it really feels like this isn't Calvin as I know it, though. There are so many changes on campus - new and departed faculty, building projects - to accompany my missing friends that it's almost like the school is taunting me for staying beyond my welcome. I know I made this choice almost a year and a half ago and that this surrealness of my current position isn't any sort of punishment for failing to grow up or achieve to some desired level...but it's hard all the same.
The new living arrangements will be good, but very different from what I've experienced before. I'm used to living with fairly meek individuals, people who give me room to expand my role and my personality and act out a bit in order to liven things up. The social dynamics of my three roommates, though, are established well enough that, instead of expanding to fill in gaps, I'm fighting to figure out how I fit in. So far, I feel like I'm the guy who cooks and plays videogames. Not terribly glamorous. More than that, this is much more of a typical guy apartment. A bit more crudeness, a bit more testosterone than I'm used to living in. It's an environment I can survive in just fine, but I'm definitely going to need more escape from the heightened level of subliminal conflict and competition. Also, they actually watch sports here, which will be fun from time to time, but it's definitely going to be odd seeing the TV in heavy use for something other than games or binging on TV on DVD.
One nice thing about this being a more typical guy apartment, though, is that I'll also have more chances to expand my cooking. Cooking for one is a pain in the butt, but cooking for four doesn't feel nearly so bad. The guys fastidiously track receipts and what was bought any time anybody goes to the store and will be paying for their share instead of me always treating when I make larger meals (which I didn't mind at all when I only did it once in awhile). In the last week, I've already tried my hand at a few new things without even using any recipes (chicken soup, salsa) that have turned out pretty well. I'm looking forward to doing some more, and especially cooking with wine/alcohol. (beer brats at home! =D)
As far as classes go, things shouldn't be too bad. I've got Physics, which should be a breeze considering I've basically done the work before and I'm living with 2 engineers. I'll probably need to break down and buy a new calculator, though. My 8-year-old TI-86 now has as many dead lines of pixels as it has working ones. That's an unexpected expense that I keep on forgetting to incorporate in my budget planning. Lit and Theology shouldn't be too bad. My (comparatively) slow reading speed will probably make the work a bit of a pain time-wise, but I still write well enough and I like the fields. I'm also taking Intro to Logic, a 100-level Philosophy course, to keep myself full time. Considering all of my experience with deductive logic, the first part of the course, at least, shouldn't pose any difficulties. I can't imagine the inductive logic being much harder (especially since, again, it's an intro level Philosophy course).
In the mean time, I've also got to start getting down to business with grad school research and applications. My intentions to continue work on my senior project in hopes of presenting on it somewhere kind of fell apart over the summer as communication with my advisor dropped off, so I won't be looking quite as impressive as I'd hoped. The list right now isn't terrible long:
Carnegie Mellon (the ideal school, probably won't get in)
University of Michigan
Virginia Tech
University of Colorado at Boulder (where I'm not as likely to go, but I'm hoping they'll pay for me to come visit so I can see some friends for free)
I figure I've got a decent shot at the last three, but I want to expand my options a bit, anyway. Also, I'm looking chiefly at the HCI/Cognitive Science programs at all of these schools, and I'd like to find schools doing cool stuff with programming languages research. In any case, I need to get started researching the profs at these schools and getting my materials together. Having Tuesdays and Thursdays completely free should help a lot, assuming I can actually keep myself on task.
Fortunately, the novelty of my new X-Box 360 is starting to wear off. I've completed Mass Effect and Shadow Complex (two of the best games I've played in recent years), and I'm not looking at buying anything else that will be a major time sink for a good while. The only other games I have are a few multi-player ones I can play with my roommates or online with friends back home. If any of you play Castle Crashers, BlazBlue, or Team Fortress 2, let me know.
That's about it, I guess. I'll probably have some more "profound" thoughts to share in the not too distant future. At the very least there will be a summer movie round up.
Friday, August 7, 2009
On Fantasy (the genre)
Today I started reading Furies of Calderon, a novel that starts a fantasy series that I've been assured by people whom I trust to be very good. Forty pages in, there's already been considerable action and some interesting seeming characters...but I really don't give a shit yet. I'm going to push through and see if things change, but I think I'm starting to figure out what it is about traditional fantasy (and the space fantasy sub-genre of sci-fi) that has made it so hard for me to get into it for the last several years: I don't have the patience for the window dressing.
In order to effectively engage their audience, any author needs to suck their readers into the world of their story. With fantasy, that's an even more ambitious task because the world often looks so little like our own. The author needs to help the reader understand not just the social and physical environment in which the characters reside, but the social and physical properties of the world. This makes fantasy a very visual genre. Often times, we are introduced to the realities of this world through elaborate set pieces or plot sequences designed to illustrate way things work. Since I'm not a visual thinker, I'm easily distracted by overly visual descriptions. They get me working to create an image as opposed to comprehending the idea.
Best case, for me, is that the author quickly establishes these things as mundane and moves beyond the overly ornate descriptions. Worst case is that the window dressing becomes not just a fact of the universe but a major part of the plot; the author remains enamored of his or her imagery and the novel trades proper character and plot development in favor of a series of ever escalating set pieces - like a bad action movie in text form.
Now, urban fantasy (and many genres of sci-fi) manage to get away with things for me because they exist on top of our world. Instead of establishing whole new realities, they propose an altered version of ours. This frees up their ability to focus on what is unique and lets me, as a reader, establish a means of contrasting this world with mine instead of needing to construct it from the ground up. The other way that urban fantasy (though not most sci-fi) tends to be able to effectively introduce its world is by having the reader learn about it along with the protagonist. This is a device that is utilized effectively by most of Neil Gaiman's urban fantasy as well as by Harry Potter (which, I believe, would also be considered urban or modern fantasy).
Maybe, if I stick it out, Furies of Calderon and further books in the series will show me the light. Maybe they will reignite a love for traditional fantasy in me and help me find the patience to give some other books a chance. I'm a bit worried about the overly-capable young female rogue type character and the underdog young boy who will rise to great importance; but I've read enough of the Dresden Files to know that Jim Butcher is a capable author who is willing to toy with cliches enough to keep them interesting. I'll make sure to report back when I'm done.
In order to effectively engage their audience, any author needs to suck their readers into the world of their story. With fantasy, that's an even more ambitious task because the world often looks so little like our own. The author needs to help the reader understand not just the social and physical environment in which the characters reside, but the social and physical properties of the world. This makes fantasy a very visual genre. Often times, we are introduced to the realities of this world through elaborate set pieces or plot sequences designed to illustrate way things work. Since I'm not a visual thinker, I'm easily distracted by overly visual descriptions. They get me working to create an image as opposed to comprehending the idea.
Best case, for me, is that the author quickly establishes these things as mundane and moves beyond the overly ornate descriptions. Worst case is that the window dressing becomes not just a fact of the universe but a major part of the plot; the author remains enamored of his or her imagery and the novel trades proper character and plot development in favor of a series of ever escalating set pieces - like a bad action movie in text form.
Now, urban fantasy (and many genres of sci-fi) manage to get away with things for me because they exist on top of our world. Instead of establishing whole new realities, they propose an altered version of ours. This frees up their ability to focus on what is unique and lets me, as a reader, establish a means of contrasting this world with mine instead of needing to construct it from the ground up. The other way that urban fantasy (though not most sci-fi) tends to be able to effectively introduce its world is by having the reader learn about it along with the protagonist. This is a device that is utilized effectively by most of Neil Gaiman's urban fantasy as well as by Harry Potter (which, I believe, would also be considered urban or modern fantasy).
Maybe, if I stick it out, Furies of Calderon and further books in the series will show me the light. Maybe they will reignite a love for traditional fantasy in me and help me find the patience to give some other books a chance. I'm a bit worried about the overly-capable young female rogue type character and the underdog young boy who will rise to great importance; but I've read enough of the Dresden Files to know that Jim Butcher is a capable author who is willing to toy with cliches enough to keep them interesting. I'll make sure to report back when I'm done.
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