2014 worldwide communication network intersects with the primate brain

Because of Phasebook, smart phones, and suchlike, people act very strange in 2014. They pay lots of attention to people they dislike and never talk to. People casually know the goings-on of even distant acquantances they never talk to. They compulsively addictively check their pocket-sized cancer-generation device, devoid of any actual individual personality or ability to think abstractly. They check a user-regulated encyclopedia for factoids they'll forget in 2 minutes, just because it's convenient. They get jealous and hide things from their procreation partners, sowing distruct between both parties, so much that they don't trust each other enough to respect each others' individual privacy. People focus on taking a picture of a moment to reflect on later and add to some collection to show off to others, instead of simply enjoying that moment right now. People are losing themselves to a mass mind. Individual identity is being weeded out. Brains online instead of on-mind. Smart phones instead of smart people.

I'm so glad I don't have a smart phone to make me look stupid.

T

Sitting, reading. Grab tea mug for a sip. Nothing in it.
=[
A few minutes later, still reading. Grab tea mug and sip… oh yeah I forgot.
=[

Ahh, I've had my coffee now and I feel great!

2004:
Develop and polish game for years. A couple bugs crop up post-release, and they become legendary to fans, increasing the value of the original product. Fans play these games over and over. They become legendary, rooted in popular culture and memory.

2014:
Pre-order to get a cheap trinket, even if the game is mediorce! See everything about a game before it even releases! Release it early in order to meet a deadline! Yearly franchise installments! Patch it! No glitches allowed! Play the game once, get "100%" plus all the "achievements". Tweet and Face about it, then forget about it and never play it again, and immediately buy the next 60$ game to impress your friends! Also, buy our DLC since we never actually finished the game, so now you're paying 60+ dollars for a game! Also, include a tutorial for everything - the player is an imbecile, and the artistic vision behind the game is compromisable, and so derivative, faded, and dead! Movies are popular, right? Add a bunch of cutscenes! Oh, focus testing showed that players get frustrated when they can't get past this part the first time? Just turn it into a QTE, press A to win! Players don't need to build skills and familiarity!

• On 100% Complete
• Who Needs Interactivity?
• ‘You Can Sleep Here All Night’: Video Games and Labor
• Marketing, Dumb Luck, and the Popping of the Indie Bubble.
• 30 Years Later, One Man Is Still Trying To Fix Video Games

Indie dev Nirvana syndrome

We're at a really interesting turning point in the history of gaming. Indie developers are becoming famous, and then the gaming press act like starved shark paparazzi any time they say anything. At what point does it become wrong? They just want to have small, normal conversations and be themselves, not have their newest conversation plastered all over gaming news. They want to keep making a hundred silly little crappy prototypes, not feel pressured into making things just because they showed an completely uncertain-future sketch.

Thoughtless Twenty Thirteen Trend

Maybe this isn't new, but it has definitely amped up this past year or so. I'm getting very tired of internet drama over mindless junk that goes nowhere. Game Developer X has an opinion! There's a new word for a new subset of sexual preference! People argue over this stuff incessantly lately, and it even morphs the way they used to do things and damages relationships. For fictional example:

1993: 
2D platformer Super Jump Guy releases to huge acclaim. People have a lot of fun with it, and all discussion is about the game. People love playing it over and over, for years, always finding new fun things. People still adore and play Super Jump Guy 20 years into the future, and still know little to nothing about how it was made.

2013: 
A CrowdFarter campaign gets popular because it mentions Super Jump Guy, and that is really the campaign's only merit. The person behind the CrowdFarter campaign has never made a game and has no actual proof of being able to make fun things. Mostly he just has a neat idea and namedropped Super Jump Guy. But in the end, he gets a million donated dollars anyway, and proceeds to spend only about a year making his first game.
2D platformer Ushanka releases, and to huge popularity. But it is not because of the quality of the game, no! It is a game known to every gamer because the developer, Bob Bear - the person who made it - expressed his personal opinions and people paid too much attention to him. A vocal portion of the buying public publicly disagrees with that opinion, and thereby boycotts the games the person makes. So now, to be clear, people don't even care about games anymore. Games must first pass a filter. Before even trying the game, these people must analyze a developer's opinions and moral choices. Not to mention whether or not the game comes with a cool keychain or Limited Edition box set DLC. For several months afterward, more new DLC is released and people buy it and never play it again. After the DLC stops, people forget about Ushanka, and jump into the next shiny new drama game - never to play Ushanka again.
After release, despite everyone knowing the name of the game, most people don't even know what Ushanka is like as a game. They've only heard of the drama regarding Bob Bear.
Not only does Ushanka have a lot of weird press drama junk, but the entire game's development was documented day by day on blogs after the CrowdFarter campaign ended. From the very first concept art and prototypes, the audience knew exactly what was coming, and even got to play alphas and betas of the game before the actual release. The developer couldn't make a game by himself, so he forces his players to make his game.

There is this shift from
-Sometimes some press a couple months before release. Game Release.

to

-Pre-release, pre-orders, pre-order bonuses. pre-release development documentation, public  alpha/beta testing. Press, speculation, and general hype surrounding the impending release. Game release. Judgement and drama. Public forgets. DLC. Resurgence of the same discussion. Public forgets again, too distracted by the latest version of all this.

A new power is HORIZON

HORIZON is basically an indie games press conference.

Historically, every year, I was very excited about E3. I'd look forward to it for weeks. During the expo, I would keep up with every detail of news. Yesteryear, I felt this enthusiasm measurably wane. This year, I only watched Nintendo's E3 Direct, aftwards saying "Alright. I'm all set." I didn't feel compelled to watch every extra trailer, nor watch every trailer repeatedly, nor refresh game news sites every 15 minutes. I just felt like "Hey, these games look okay, and I look forward to trying them some day."

I think HORIZON has supplanted what used to be E3's place, for I. I honestly don't care about the big console games anymore. The extent of my excitement for larger budget stuff is home on 3DS, and even Vita and PC - which were previously alien worlds for I. Handhelds have really always been my home. It's a comfortable place which I have complete control over, a mobile home with everything I need in one little package. No need to keep up with LCD 3D HDTV surround sound 1080p graphic upgrade 2000 BC v4.0 DX. They just sell me one system, and then it's ready for over half a decade of new game releases. My little mobile home that fits in my pocket, a personal space. Entire worlds existing in my pocket, worlds I can transport myself to any time I want, anywhere I want.

More and more, I'm becoming less interested in boarding the hype train and ingesting the months/years-long, spoon-fed, addictive propaganda drug before a game launch. All I need to do is watch some gameplay footage, or read a developer interview, and from that I can determine whether or not I'll enjoy the game in any capacity, and whether it meets my personal criterias enough to support it with my money. After that, it's simply a matter of waiting until after release. I keep a list of release dates and games to keep an eye on, since not all games have release dates.

Of course, this approach doesn't apply to all games. There are a few where I'll follow every update. For example, I've been keeping an eye on Peter Molyneux's _Godus_ every Sunday, when 22cans releases a new development video update. I think whenever Gaijin Games stops milking Runner2, I'll follow their development closely as well. Alex Neuse is a smart dude and has some awesome ideas.

Since Pokémon Gold and Silver, I spoiled so much of nearly every Pokémon game before it even released. Looking at every latest screenshot, watching every new trailer, reading all the latest news and interviews. Starting with Black and White, though, and continuing this 2013 autumn with X and Y, I am intentionally avoiding all the news, screenshots, and trailers. I can tell you for certain that playing Black and White for the first time, without spoilers, was one of my most thrilling game experiences in recent memory. While I didn't end up totally liking that pair of games, I'm still so happy I chose to keep it spoiler-free, and I'm _really_ looking forward to doing the same with X&Y.

Somehow, now, I can appreciate almost all games. I used to be very critical and picky. In many ways I still am - you must maintain your own tongue and manage your money, time, and effort budgets. But so many quality independent games are special in some way to the people making them, and they offer me something special to experience with them. A memory to build and come back to in 20 years. A thought generated which can germinate into a great oak of change or a new way of approaching some aspect of life. The amount and variety of experiences hiding in the grass for me to encounter are both overwhelming and exciting.

1) Kid plays through ＭＯＴＨＥＲ upon release in 1989. Takes him several months to finish the game at a relaxed pace. Hears the same songs over and over. Each battle and character and moment in the game mean something, and memory is formed. He figured out every problem and obstacle on his own with no help. This memory sticks with this person forever. They hear the music, see the images, and they look back fondly perhaps playing it over and over because they have become so familiar with it.

2) Hasty Modern Adult plays through ＭＯＴＨＥＲ in 2013 with Easy Patch and Fast Forward. They blast through the game in a weekend. They didn't have to work to beat it, they just hit Fast Forward To Win, probably followed a guide. This person's goal is to finish the game, instead of take it easy and play the game. They finish the game "Wow that was pretty unsatisfying. On to the next game!" And they forget about it mostly, passing it off as some old dated grindy NES RPG.

      Metroid: Aug     1987
4 years elapse

   Metroid II: Nov     1991
3 years elapse
Super Metroid: Apr 18, 1994
8 years elapse
 Fusion/Prime: Nov 17, 2002

       F-Zero: Aug 23, 1991
7 years elapse
     F-Zero X: Jul     1998
3 years elapse
Max. Velocity: Mar 21, 2001
2 years elapse
    F-Zero GX: Aug 25, 2003

Recently I've been thinking about the state of F-Zero as a franchise, and how it's release cycle reminds of how Metroid was during the N64 era. There wasn't a Metroid game for a long time, at that point, and people were asking "Is Metroid done?". Recently I've heard people pondering: Is F-Zero dead? And that reminded me of Metroid's doubt days.

It's been 10 years since GX released. Is F-Zero indeed dead? They brought back Kid Icarus after 26 years, so I don't think so.

It's been a long time, cough cough

[6:37pm] pocketroid: How did buzz buzz carry a whole freakin sound stone
[6:40pm] Penguin: he probably used the same strength that he used to do several times more damage than a kid with a baseball bat
[6:51pm] Tenda: you should play my Earthbound: Realism hack
[6:51pm] Tenda: where buzz buzz is a bee
[6:51pm] Tenda: and you just die to the young starman
[6:55pm] Penguin: you get stung and die of an allergic reaction
[6:55pm] Tenda: what happened to meteor watching guy anyway
[6:56pm] Tenda: you think he'd be the first up the hill after they move the blockade

Jools Watsham's Blog: 3DS Piracy!

Jools Watsham's Blog: 3DS Piracy!: According to a report from Tiny Cartridge , hackers are starting to delve into the 3DS, illegally. This may open up pathways for pirates to ...


I posted this as a comment in response to Jools' post:


From TC:
"He adds that he has no interest in allowing others to use the hack to load pirated software."

In circumventing the region locking of 3DS, I will have greater motivation to buy 3DS. My two biggest deal breaking problems with the 3DS so far are the battery life and region locking. I'm very excited to support eShop games on 3DS, as I have with WiiWare and DSiWare. I'm especially looking forward to finally playing games like Mutant Mudds, Fractured Soul, Mighty Switch Force!, and NightSky. In any 3DS discussion, I am diligent in mentioning such titles. Also, with retail stuff, I even own BIT.TRIP SAGA already.

In regards to Try-before-buy,
I have tried several DS games and later bought them. Including (but not limited to):
Etrian Odyssey, Mega Man Battle Network 5, Mega Man Zero Collection, Ghost Trick, Custom Robo, Dragon Quest/Monsters, Final Fantasy, KORG DS-10, Lufia, Monster Rancher, N+, among others.
The funny thing is that most of these remain on my SD card, while the actual game box remains unopened. Now I'm not saying everyone is like this, but with my friends I can think of more than one example who are either, in another country and have to wait, or simply have to save up money, who pirate a game first but buy it later.

Piracy is invaluable for any creative medium. Piracy, to me, carries a positive connotation rather than the common negative one.
In speaking against piracy, usually a person isn't seeing the entire scope of effects, but rather only the first few dominoes that fall. Two example scenarios with different end results:
1) Person doesn't own the game. Can't pirate it or demo it to even try it. This person does not experience the game at all, and so ignores it and then goes on to play other games instead, which are spread around instead, as in the next scenario.
2) Person does't own the game. Can pirate it, plays it a bunch. Tells all his friends, off and on line, about how he's playing this new game and how fun it is. Personal recommendation is much more influential than a commercial or a review. Out of all those friends, some may even end up trying the game out, and in turn they tell all their friends, and lo - the word of mouth free-marketing domino effect. 10 people hearing about a game is superior to 1 person ignoring a game.

Supporting small developers is important. For a long time I've done my best to be aware of the scene to help promote these great games to people who otherwise don't take the time to wade so deep into the scene. While it is unfortunate that there are some who wholly and maliciously pirate things, I think there are an equal or greater amount of good people who instead support, contribute, and promote.

Also, in response to a previous comment,

"Case in point: Bob Sabiston, developer/publisher of the successful DSiWare app Inchworm animation and head of industry-acclaimed film studio Flat Black Films, was denied a license to develop for 3DS/Wii U for no specific reason, even though he has a solid reputation, meets/exceeds all the requirements and already has a successful app on the DSi Shop Channel."

I'm very disappointed to hear about Bob Sabiston.

iTop

[12:22pm] (person): Waiter just came by and was totally impressed with my setup here
[12:22pm] (person): iPad 2 and keyboard dock. He says he'll have to go get one, now
[12:22pm] pocketroid: aka a laptop
[12:23pm] (otherperson): lol, (person)... that happens to me all the time when I'm out with my iPad 2 and keyboard

From a fantasy community IRC channel.

In 2012, there are two major screens in all homes: the computer monitor, and the television set.

Once upon a time, a large source of entertainment was the radio. A group of persons, or a single people, would sit around a radio and enjoy the programmes. Then TVs came out and served the same function, but they still kept their radio around. Stored media formats came out since radio - records, music cassettes, VHS, etc, and there were indvidual devices to play those, all of which now connected to the TV. Then computers came out and served all of these functions at once, and it all fits on a single desk, in one machine. On this machine, the computer, one may even listen to that very first thing: the radio.

Computers can do all things TVs used to do. TVs require an obtuse amount of wires and add-ons. That's why they still have 'entertainment centers' - furniture designed specifically to organize the mess of Blu-ray/DVD/VHS players, CD/cassette/radio players, cable/satellite box, and any number of video game consoles. But glance over at your computer, and it serves all of those functions in the space of about 3 breadboxes or less. At some point in the future, TVs will simply be a another monitor connected to your computer. 

Television is still popular because the population at large is used to the media consumption model which was modeled around the television - buy DVDs to watch movies/shows, pay for cable/satellite to watch varied pre-recorded programming, buy set-spec computerlike consoles to play video games. But again, all of this is now on the internet. The old radio-like television model is doomed to die, and will give way to the new era of the internet.

But it's still okay to connect a television-like monitor to your computer and have the TV function as usual. So rest assured, you can still sit on your couch and enjoy whichever moving pictures you desire while eating your processed corn products and drinking your high fructose corn syrup.

Quantality

There is this interesting dynamic of one-shot/few entry franchises, in stark contrast to yearly-game franchises. Both are obviously loved by each's fans.

Really Big Review Remix

Through my internet vagabondage, I often see people discussing game reviews for big titles. As for myself, I've never seen reviews as a personal attack on a franchise I enjoy, as everyone seems to think they are. If I happen to find myself choosing to read a review(s) (not too often), I'm doing it so I may learn what the game is like, and whether or not it's worth it for me. I extract the necessary information from the review in order to form an idea of what the game will be like. Any opinion stated in the article I will consider, but take with a grain of salt, and certainly won't take it personally. People who bicker about game reviews are missing the point of the whole thing, especially when, in a lonely bout of social desperation, they hastily blurt out "Did you hear? GaemSiteX gave PopularFranchiseX a 7.5! How dare they!". At that point they're just advertising GameSiteX for free, for GameSiteX, and thusly GameSiteX gets tons of traffic, and therefore money. The whole review numbering/rating system is also a sham - numbers don't really matter when there are so many aspects of a single game. If you want to know what a game is like, you're not going to buy a game just because it's a "10" - you'll read several reviews, research, and watch videos. Reviews themselves have now become a source of hollow entertainment rather than enlightenment.
But on the sunny side the gaming globe,

Recently I heard about this Steam game called Really Big Sky. I don't normally pay attention to Steam or PC games, but this one is exceptionally pretty, and the music is lovely - you can download the soundtrack for free here. At first it reminded me simultaneously of BIT.TRIP because of the 'retro' font, and Rez - both because of the dark background and great music. I have yet to play Child of Eden.

Some VG, Science, and Politricks links after the break.

The Almost Daily Pocketroid News

"But if modern games are pieces of art, then they’re quickly evolving into realism. If looking like a photograph is the standard for what is highly esteemed, then it’s no different from some lady praising a wall calendar from some bank."
-Shigesato Itoi

Touch Your Tamagotchi of Today

In 1997, I bought and became obsessed with Tamagotchi. They became so popular that schools were confiscating and banning them. Soon after, the Digimon virtual pet was released (only later did the anime come out, which ended up feeling a lot different). Digimon replaced my Tamagotchi and I was hooked for a few years - I even kept detailed journals of everything I did so I could understand how the monsters grew. Well at the end of this year, Sega Toys and Activision are releasing something similar for DS, titled Wappy Dog. Except you don't just take care of a virtual pet - there's a physical counterpart to the pet. It's not as exciting as a Digimon, but it's still a very unique DS accessory (other cool ones being the DS keyboard from Battle & Get! Pokémon Typing DS, or the Paddle Controller with Arkanoid DS). I think the physical/virtual pet DS game is an idea that has huge potential. I hope other companies run with the idea and release something awesome, perhaps for 3DS. You could even use the AR technology to spruce up the experience around your physical virtual pet. Perhaps changing it's form, or adding accessories to it. Maybe it could have AR card symbols as part of the hardware, or even a screen that changes the AR trigger image. 

Our World in 2011

Powers greater than ourselves are controlling our lives, in the most real, part of your life, right now, serious way.

DNA is being patented, packaged and sold. The food we eat is heavily modified at a genetic level and controlled. The weather above your head is being controlled. The thoughts in your head are being charted, listed, and learned from in real time thanks to sites like Facebook and Twitter. Thusly the media is fully controlled according to your trends - not to mention your locations, doings, and communications are being monitored and charted any time you use a computer, cell phone, or credit card. And plenty more. People are even servants to dangerous legal vices like alcohol, drugs, and sex.

Every aspect of our lives are being monitored and orchestrated. All world citizens today - of any country or profession - are only cogs in a corporate, capitalist, materialistic, oligarchical system. Drones which will die as a statistic to be laughed at and learned from by far-future humans who have evolved beyond our current dark age. We are living in "Nineteen Eighty-Four". What is the lone cog to do at present?

I live in hope of a beautiful white future I will never see. A future where humans have transcended petty social issues. A future where humans control all of space and time like legos. Where near-immortality is a thrilling prospect. A future where racism and religion are as ancient as the first apes having territorial disputes. The advancement of science, interuniverse relations, and all kinds of art are the hot topics of social subject trends. For me, it embarassing to be part of this current world. Where boobs, tweets, beers, pop music and media remakes are dominant social forces, and the masses could care less science, space, art, or government.

Food, Inc.
What in the World Are They Spraying?

A Case for Blues

Hiyaki Ikari

Mega awesome, but I can't justify spending that much. If you want to, go ahead - and let me know so I can drool along with you, and listen to your sweet compositions.

Goteking 

Electronics cases, made out of Game Boys. Though I do feel a bit bad about the mutilated Game Boys.

Also, here is a good site for Mega Man info, incase you've ever wanted to try out the series:
The Mega Man Home Page

7 - Control DS with stylus, urinal with ...

NL: As a gamer yourself, what Nintendo titles stand out as your particular favourites?

Stu Robinson: As for my favourite Nintendo titles (I’ll stick to 1st party titles only): [lists many Nintendo franchies] and Pokemon - although I feel slightly embarrassed to admit that last one!

NintendoLife

Why are people still embarrassed about Pokémon? I can think of only a few franchises which command such an audience, history, and respect as Pokémon.

SSB3D
Tails Prower -  Pit+Snake
DQIX avatar - Connect DS, and it displays your custom character.
Tom Nook - Final smash: he gives you a house and puts you deep in debt.

TECH TIME

Urinal games
Google Translate your voice in phone conversation.
First minute of the video:

CNET

Laptop DS! Imagine the endless control customisation options. This is going to become standard. On the subject of controllers, apparently China toyed with the idea of custom keyboards a while ago. Check this one out.
An idea I had: imagine if you could save state your laptop. You always have everything a certain way, and you could load that state.

THOUGHTS

-How many people actually use original firmware any more, on any device?

-It's funny how young people are dumb and that's the ideal look.

6 - Guess Guess Revolution

GBA           June         11, 2001

Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire          March      19, 2003

SP             March       23, 2003

Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen    September 9, 2004

Pokémon Emerald                          May            1, 2005

Micro       September  19, 2005

DS            November  21, 2004
Lite           June          11, 2006

Pokémon Diamond and Pearl          April        22, 2007

Pokémon Platinum                          March      22, 2009

i               April            5, 2009

Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver March      14, 2010

XL            March        28, 2010

Pokémon Black and White               March        6, 2011

3DS         March               2011

With this crudely formatted text as a guide, we should expect:

Spring           2013 - 3DS hardware revision
Spring           2013 - Pokémon Gen VI
Spring           2015 - Pokémon Gen VI 3rd version
Spring 2015/2016 - 3DS 2nd hardware revision

RSEmakes are up in the air, as these past two gens were irregular for remakes. Maybe I'll come back and add GB/C, GBA, and Gen I and II, to compare. Always, the most thrilling question for me is,
What's next?

5 - Riding on the Wave

I don't play PC games, but this Switchblade laptop from Razer is awesome.

Nintendo World 2011 (day one)

BlazBlue on 3DS! Fantasies have come true.

• Nintendo launches DS and Wii with "everyone" attitude
• Nintendo launches 3DS with "core audience" attitude

Perhaps Nintendo will pull out the "everyone" scheme again in a new 3DS marketing campaign when Wii2 launches. "Buy Wii2 bundled with 3DS and Brain Age for one lower price!" How big will the gap be between 3DS and Wii2? 2 years again, for a 2013 launch? What shortsights will crop up on Wii2 because of the staggered launches? Staggered console/handheld launch is probably a great model, but it also hinders potential interaction between the systems. The Dual Screen line is the new Game Boy line, and I wouldn't be surprised if the 4DS is still basically a DS phat. I will put forth the prediction that 4DS brings us multi-touch bottom screen, perhaps even both screens.

• 3DS 2011 - Rehashes and safe bet games
• 3DS 2012 - Unique games and new IPs begin to crop up

I look forward to seeing what innovative ideas are bred from the advent of the 3D screen. But how innovative? I bet independent developers could barely handle DS budget. Perhaps we'll only see them on 3DSWare, now. Speaking of which, let's hope Nintendo keeps their promise of improving their -Ware service.

“I am convinced that in future we must change the price of games – they’re too expensive for the audience.” 

-Namco Bandai Partners VP Olivier Comte

"Looking at the industry as a whole, I feel like it's getting harder than ever to find something really new out there. Original properties are far less common than once upon a time, and I think this era we're in with strong franchises going on for ages and ages has lasted too long."

-Masahiro Sakurai

A bit more after the break