You've got to be kidding me....Vol. I

Yup, folks, welcome to the "blog within the blog". Here, I'll take my place in the cyberworld, and hoist myself up on my soapbox, and complain about the stupid and ridiculous things that are going on in the world of video games.

First up, Thailand has decided to ban Grand Theft Auto IV.

Yup, you read that correctly. The entire country is banning a video game. Not guns, not poverty, not hunger, etc. Video games. Apparently, the government was running out of things to do, and decided to come up with this gem of an idea.

Check out http://www.electricbandits.com/2008/08/04/grand-theft-auto-iv-banned-in-thailand/

for more details.

Bottom line, some 18-year old kid decided to act out his inner "Nico", and kill a taxi driver. In an effort to combat this horrible incident, Thailand decided to ban GTA IV, because taxi-driver killing is the norm in Liberty City.

So, let me get this straight. Some degenerate, homicidal lunatic kills a taxi driver, and the government's response is to ban a video game. What's next, banning FIFA 09 is a kid gets hurt in a soccer match?

Why are politicians so ignorant when it comes to entertainment? Why are people in positions of power and influence so quick to blame the media and its various outlets and mediums, when something goes horribly wrong?

Instead of outlawing a video game, how about doing something more constructive, like, I don't know, trying to ensure that everybody's got health care, or making sure that every child can go to school, or that your politicans don't waste people's money by trying to LEGISLATE AGAINST VIDEO GAMES!!! (Just a thought)

There is a reason why politicians go after video game makers and other people in the entertainment and media industries. The reason's quite simple really. They're easy targets. It's easy to blame societal problems on video games, music, television, etc. It's easy to just point the finger, and say "get rid of that".

But, the truth is that the larger problems that plague Thailand aren't that easy to solve. It requires work to ensure that every child can go to school. It requires work, and money, to ensure that poverty is ended. It takes effort to make sure that gun violence is under control.

All of those idea take work. And, politicians don't want to really work. Heck, none of us do. But, I'd like to think we should expect more from elected officials than just having a game banned because of a violent crime.

Of course, that's really the problem. When you expect too much from politicians, it's almost a certainty that you'll be disappointed.

The Summer of Gaming...

Well, to wrap up my last blog, my power did come back. Actually, it came back sooner than I thought.

Which now means that I can kick back, relax, fire up my X-Box 360, and return to the digital world that I sometimes call home.

So, summer officially started on June 21st. For gamers, however, summer really began this past week, with the release of Battlefield: Bad Company. As Brent has been saying, the game's worth every penny. And, the Gold Edition is definitely worth the extra ten bucks. More guns and more features? Always a bargain.

With Battlefield: Bad Company, EA has once again made a name for itself in the gaming world. From sports, to movie-based action games, to exaggerated sports games (i.e. NBA & NFL Street), Electronic Arts continues to venture into just about every corner of the video game world. With this newest entry in the Battlefield series, EA once again shows why it's one of the premier game companies in the world. The sales numbers are speaking for themselves. Battlefield: Bad Company Gold Edition is already sold out on some retail sites. Sold out, and it's only been available for a few days now.

Leave it to EA to set the tone. As the summer season starts, EA has most definitely laid down the gauntlet. It'll be up to the other game companies to answer the challenge.

With the success of Bad Company, EA looks like it's going to start AND end the summer with a huge splash. Don't forget, as it has proven for the past few years, August BELONGS to EA, as fans anxiously await the arrival of Madden '09, which'll be due out mid-August.

A Night Without Gaming, Day 1....

June 10, 2008.

It was perfect. No night out with friends. No staying late at work. Just going home, grabbing some fast food, and enjoying TV. And, when the time was right, grabbing my controller, and blowing some Brutes to pieces. Yep, I was ready to go back to work on Halo 3.

And, then it happened. The lights started to flicker, while I was watching TV. It happened twice, and then the third time, which is usually considered a "charm", turned out to be quite the opposite.

Total darkness. The only light coming through was from the street light that could partially be seen from one of the windows of the Bat-cave (i.e., my basement). And even that light was starting to flicker.

So, it was me, still eating, and nothing else. No TV, no lights, no cable. Nothing.

No gaming for me. Not tonight, which especially sucked because I was planning on doing nothing but gaming until I couldn't keep my eyes open. (Wednesday's my late-day at work, so staying up late on a Tuesday is de rigeur for me.)

Fortunately, I managed to fight off boredom by gathering enough candles, to create enough light to read. (Yes, gamers. I do read occasionally, when I'm not shooting or slashing my way to victory in the current game of choice.) At the moment, I"m reading the novelization of the upcoming Hulk movie. (I just can't wait for the movie. Plus, I'm a comic book geek, so reading a book about one of my favorite comic book characters isn't a new thing for me.)

As I write this now, while I'm at work, and should probably actually "working", the lights are still out at my home. And, considering the number of power lines that are down on my street alone, it's a safe bet that the lights won't be back on when I get home tonight. So, another night without gaming (or electricity, for that matter) possibly awaits me.

We shall see...

Video games, and the "desert island" question...

What's up on a humid Monday night from Jersey?

So, you ever hear that "desert island" question? You know, the one where somebody asks you what items you would bring on a desert island? Most people ask about cds, books, items from your house, etc.

Well, as a gamer, I had to wonder: what five games would I bring with me on this fictitious island?

Now, you have to understand, I'm horrible with lists. What I say to you now could change in a heartbeat. But, while I was at work today, (and seriously wondering why I haven't quit yet, haha), I decided to come up with my list. I even invited some of my coworkers to make up their own lists as well.

So, for the moment, were I on a desert island, my top five games would be....

(drum roll, if you please...)


1. Devil May Cry-(still my favorite PS2 game, and the first one that I ever bought for my PS2)

2. Prince of Persia: Warrior Within (favorite action game. The cut-scenes alone make this game worth it.

3. Gears of War-(best shooting game. period. unlike Halo's repetitive enemies, GoW introduced us all to some of the scariest looking baddies we've ever encountered. Plus, the "over the shoulder" camera positioning causes a lot less headaches then playing Halo's first-person view)

4. Donkey Kong-(I admit, "The King of Kong" did it for me. I realize now that there is something awesome about being able to score the most points on Donkey Kong. Plus, the game's flawless, and the gameplay's still easy to pick up.)

5. Any Super Mario Bros. game for the NES. (More likely, Super Mario Bros. 3)

Okay, okay. I know I'm cheating a little with Number 5, but seriously, any of the Mario Bros games would work. Well, maybe not Super Mario Bros. 2, where suddenly everybody decides to take acid and trip throughout the game.

So, here's my list. I invite you to do the same. And, I invite you to change, it, as I inevitably will at some point.


Keep on gaming,


Gamer Z