A pro game post at the Huffington Post?

 Posted by (Visited 6194 times)  Game talk
Oct 252006
 

Yep, written by Danielle Crittenden.

  12 Responses to “A pro game post at the Huffington Post?”

  1. Jay Barnson says:
    October 25, 2006 at 11:37 am

    Dang, that’s an awesome article.

    It’s funny how the mainstream still talks about videogames as if it’s all Space Invaders (not that Space Invaders isn’t good fun, mind you…) played exclusively by pre-adolescent boys. Or Grand Theft Auto, if they listen to Wacky Jacky Thompson. But at least some folks are waking up and realizing how much has changed in the last 25 years.

  2. Faith says:
    October 25, 2006 at 11:52 am

    […] Comments […]

  3. Allen Sligar says:
    October 25, 2006 at 12:01 pm

    Its nice to see an article with a positive spin.

  4. Morgan Ramsay says:
    October 25, 2006 at 1:56 pm

    I thought the comments were interesting. Most comments were positive, but one author—iamthewalrus109—is clearly demented. I hope that someone addresses his/her blatantly false assertions.

  5. Grimwell says:
    October 25, 2006 at 9:59 pm

    Morgan:
    The walrus needs to be ignored directly, and ringed with sane posts. As is already evident there. 🙂

    That way he stands out in stark contrast and there is no melt down.

    As to the article, it’s great to read. We are moving closer and closer to the point where the major media accepts the fact that most people play some form of game, and computer games are just another means to that end. Pop culture acceptance is already close at hand. Just need a little more patience. I figure after Jack Thompson lights his hair on fire for attention, the negative side of things will seem as kooky as it is.

  6. Amaranthar says:
    October 26, 2006 at 5:29 am

    That’s great. I’ve always thought that games can have a very positive influence in educational ways like this. And here again, “realism” and “world” can be big contributors in MMORPGs. Kids can learn the basics of real life aspects of trade skills. They can learn about smithing metals, growing crops, woodworking, and anything the developer wants to put in.
    It’s more than just learning though, there’s also the little matter of raising interests in subjects among kids who otherwise might not care to look. This can extend to archaeology, astronomy, history, economic development, or again anything the developer wants to put in.

    I can look to myself as one example. I was a dumb jock, to put it simply. I was an outdoors kind of kid. I hated to read, and to say I was a “C” student would be putting it kindly. Untill my brother got me interested in D+D. From that game alone I gained new interests in fields such as history and metallurgy, just because of being exposed to things from both the game and other players. When UO came out, I noticed that it had lots to offer kids in this way also. It’s not just the game, but the conversations they cause between players. The little tid bits of info that inspire curiousity.

    I can also look at my son. He had trouble reading and comprehending, but once he started playing Multiplayer games, he improved dramatically. Along with this came the little tid bits, and from there greater interests in new things. Not long ago, he got an A+ in his math course. He knows where parts of the world are, he knows a great many “tid bits” that I can see are starting to raise some interest in him. As a parent, I am ecstatic about this. I’m watching him go from “lost” to “found”, right before my eyes. Games and their social environment has had the most influence on this, I am certain.

    I would really like to see a greater effort in this aspect of game making. It can open up the world of possibilities to kids, all while they’re having fun.

  7. Amaranthar says:
    October 26, 2006 at 5:43 am

    BTW, thought I’d add this. My son does not seem to have suffered at all in the social aspects due to games. He has a steady girlfriend, and she comes over to our house often. He’d rather spend his time with her doing other things than be on game machines. The other day he was telling me about how he stayed after school to help her on a project in the school library, along with his buddy and his girl. They were downloading fart sounds and playing them for laughs, in the library. I could only think “life is good”. And it all started with him getting interested in things.

  8. Allen Sligar says:
    October 26, 2006 at 8:26 am

    Just reread the comments, iamthewalrus, is clearly insane or lives in a cave and is writing a manifesto against technology….

    Amaranthar-
    great stuff you wrote there 🙂

  9. Psychochild says:
    October 26, 2006 at 12:59 pm

    As with most things, once you learn a bit beyond the stereotypes you can find out some amazing things. I found it humorous that the author criticized TV for being passive, then went on to say that video games were likely worse. Games are not passive, and the interactive nature of computer games (and games in general) make them excellent for learning. Stuff that most of us here have known for a long while.

    But, it is nice to see other people catch on, hmm? 🙂

  10. Amaranthar says:
    October 26, 2006 at 5:06 pm

    I think everyone knows this. But people tune into ideas just like they do TV channels. Just like TV being called the vast wasteland, but at another time those same people will speak glowingly of public television.
    The gaming industry just needs some people within it to change the channel and remind them of other aspects, so the industry can move on to better things, instead of getting bogged down on whatever’s currently on.

  11. Morgan Ramsay says:
    October 26, 2006 at 8:03 pm

    Amaranthar wrote:

    But people tune into ideas just like they do TV channels.

    With Cox Digital Cable, sometimes you just can’t change the channel. You have to wait until the box resets. In the meantime, you just have to sit there, staring blankly at an empty window imagining what life would be like with another cable service provider.

    Analogize that! 🙂

  12. Board Games and Gaming Blog from Jerusalem, Israel - Yehuda: 10/01/2006 - 10/31/2006 says:
    November 24, 2006 at 4:37 pm

    […] One of the major lessons of Go is when to give up. Playing in an area in which you have no hope of acquiring is not merely futile, it is counterproductive, because a) you lose more points in lost stones and b) each play represents a lost opportunity to play elsewhere.In other words, the lessons Go teaches us about giving up come with several caveats:1) That we are absolutely sure that what we’ve given up on is totally lost2) That trying anyway is counterproductive, or even more harmful3) That the energy spent on a lost cause is robbing us of resources better spent elsewhere that will actually do us goodItem number one is the hardest one to wrap your head around. All of the inspirational thinking in our world teaches us exactly the opposite. The game isn’t over until it’s over. You never know what you can do until you try. Great geniuses can accomplish what others consider impossible.The funny part is that they’re right. The game isn’t over until it’s over – that’s because you have nothing better to do with your time anyway, so playing it out and hoping for a million to one chance doesn’t represent any lost opportunity. You never know what you can accomplish until you try – because the evaluation about what is absolutely lost is often premature. Accomplishing the impossible – because some people don’t seem to follow the rules.I find these latter people to be the most annoying, actually. I have a friend who took various illicit drugs in high school and college while maintaining a straight A average and doing all sorts of extra curricular activities. He slept around without causing any major social problems or contracting any diseases. He smokes one cigarette a year and has never gotten addicted to anything.So sue me. I still don’t condone cigarettes, drugs, and promiscuous sex just because some few wierdos can beat the odds. Naturally, this person thinks it was a great experience and doesn’t think fooling around with these things is as bad as others make it out to be.Another seemingly blessed person is Scott Adams, creator of Dilbert, who claims to be the first person to ever recover from a debilitating speech problem, from which no one else has ever recovered, by sheer force of will. In previous posts he talks about all of the other odds he has overcome, despite everyone around him telling him that he can’t do it. He always does.Is he an inspirational story for the rest of us? Or a freak, whose inspiration will lead others into attempting, and then failing, the impossible?Although I would like to condemn him to being a freak because I don’t like his bloated ego, all of his persistence stories never actually violated any of the three above rules: either what he tried to accomplish wasn’t really impossible, or his attempts didn’t make things worse, anyway, or his efforts didn’t represent a waste that could have been better used elsewhere. He tried various techniques to regain his voice, because why not? And he succeeded.One other point needs to be made regarding giving up: often people fail at things simply due to lack of persistence. 99% of people won’t accomplish X because they get discouraged by the fact that 99% of people won’t accomplish it. The 1% who succeed are sometimes the 1% who are willing to continue after the attempt becomes less popular and then find themselves with more space on the playing field. The 99% self-selected themselves to failure.As to when to really recognize that something is not worth the effort because it is an absolutely lost cause: either you really know it to be true from experience, or you are happy to direct your efforts elsewhere, regardless of whether it’s true or not.GamesI tried Lexicon again with my daughter and reconfirmed my belief that word based card games are simply too easy, as it is very easy to meld words from a handful of letters.I also taught Go to a non-gamer friend. She bemoaned her lack of understanding what she was doing throughout the game. I told her that that was normal. We will see if she asks to play again.I am working my way through the Go based anime series Hikaru No Go via the magic of YouTube.LinksBaby Blues is becoming a favorite of mine for board game related linking. In the latest, Hammie explores the nature of cooperative games.The Huffington Post posts a nice article about a parent finally cluing in to the positive aspects of video gaming. (via Raph)Sinister Dexter asks about museums of gaming and gets a batch of wonderful replies. Check out the link to see a dozen links to museums or museum displays on gaming around the world.Yehuda […]

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