Peripheral Apocalypse My biased outlook on the peripheral phenomenon, and more accurately, my bitching and moaning about the Kinect and Playstation Move being pieces of garbage.

I am old-fashioned when it comes to gaming peripherals, I enjoy some fancy new controller for say, Duck Hunt, which for you kids out there was a game that shipped along with the original Nintendo Entertainment system, sometimes on the same cartridge as Super Mario Bros. and some track jumping game that even had a padded mat that could sense when you ran and jumped. For those of you are too young to remember a cartridge is an old-fashioned medium to play video games on, in-which a block or square shaped piece of carbon holds a motherboard that maintains a video game, and is stuck into the video game console. This came bundled in a second/third wave of Nintendo systems to the U.S., and spawned the age of peripherals to the NES console. Sure, that awesome orange gun was perfect for bringing down ducks, and it didn’t take away from the overall accessibility of the NES controller, if not being far more comfortable than that little rectangular hand-cramping plastic marvel that had killed my thumbs for thousands of hours of my life. Peripherals are now even more accessible on the next-generation consoles, and even this current generation, but they do not always add the comfort seen by peripherals of the past. Some even go so far as to eliminate an entirely fun gaming experience with the lack of any tangible interaction (as if you couldn’t already guess who I mock) but look at it this way: most peripherals are great ideas on paper, and horribly executed in the marketplace. The worst peripherals I have ever seen is the U-force, which is the grand pappy of the Kinect. Sure, it was new-age technology leading full-footed into the digital mainstream, but it was horrendous, and barely worked, and was a solid example of a piece of trash that sucked up money, and gave the player no added value to their games. Wow! You wiped your hand across this over-glorified Xerox copier, and send Mario careening off a cliff like a blind suicide bomber. The system came out for the original NES, and I am not sure if it actually worked for a SNES, but all I know is I sold the damn thing after I found it in a closet years after anyone ever bought it. Nintendo is great at making very stupid peripherals, and sometimes I wonder if that is all they actually do! Gamers do not want a means to play a game that look hip and cool, they want practicality, and really the money spent on R and D, marketing, and selling this peripherals could be better spent in making peripherals like standard controllers, touch screens, and even handless controls better. Nintendo’s Wii U was a smarter move, and it allowed for backwards compatibility with the Wii’s nunchaku, so you didn’t just have to toss them away forever. Nintendo was smart to also incorporate their Wii U touch-screen controller into a second-screen experience, so you can literally use it like a second television, if someone else wants to use the T.V. to play a better gaming system like an Xbox or Sony system, so the grownups can play real games. (Just kidding) Then again…let’s look at these “grownup” systems, and their shellacked peripherals that suck a big one. (That’s an industry term). Xbox is the pinnacle of disgraceful peripherals, they have shoved their ridiculous Kinect down people’s throats so much, that they are now bundling it with the Xbox One, just to insure those who haven’t met this horrific style of gaming, are forced to have an ugly, obnoxious camera that can barely work with any of its ten games. Xbox’s Kinect is proof that making money schemes never backfire, because people like shiny, white or black technology whenever they come across it, and will shell out top-dollar just to make sure they were the first to buy some hyped piece of technology. As a gamer, I sometimes fit that, and many other unsettling descriptions, but I also know when I am being deliberately sold a piece of garbage that will only ruin my experience further. Microsoft is the biggest export of broken dreams, and the Kinect is just a sad, sad example of misplaced technology into a corporation’s greedy, sausage-fingered hands. The Kinect looks great on paper, a sound idea that could very-much revolutionize the gaming world in a heartbeat, but instead, turns out to be nothing more than some Ponzi scheme for making gamers fund Microsoft further, preventing their much-requested downfall. I hate how they marketed their peripheral, as if it was “bad-ass” or “awesome”, which shows that Microsoft is not a company that gives two shits about you as a gamer, but tends to fail yearly on every account when it comes to marketing a global piece of technology that people actually want to buy. They are so desperate to make the margins go up on sales of units for the Kinect, they are sinking low enough to sell it with the Xbox One. Sony would never, ever try to push misguided, mishandled technology onto their consumers in a ruse to move units! Would they? Sony, my openly bias video game company, how I have enjoyed your many, many first party titles over the years. You, truly know how appeal to gamers. Why! You would never sink so low as to market a trashy product/peripheral to the masses of adoring fans would you? So to prove I am not just some sell-out piece of shit talking head/ writing retard, I’m going to tell you about the “fun” peripherals Sony has in store for us in the upcoming years. First, I would like to start with Sony’s ability to make an ice cream cone into a controller. The Playstation Move is a prime example of why peripherals, no matter how technologically superior they may seem at the time are just a ridiculous way of not giving anything back to the gamer, who could easily enjoy the game with a regular controller. The only smart thing they had done was make many of their games available with or without Move compatibility. They did not force their fans to by a Move, and for that they show some integrity, not much; but some. The Playstation Move is not something I would gloat over in the R and D department of Sony, and I understand that with the trends being what they are, they will integrate a touch screen into their console as well, because it is trendy, and forces all other forms of entertainment to conform, but what I find unique to the integration of the handheld peripherals into the market is that none of them truly make you feel as if you are controlling the game! Sure they mimic movement, but none of them actually immerse the player in a way that seems as interesting as Sci-Fi modules for Virtual Reality. If anything, that stupid watch that Sony just released that acts as a communicator is more advanced than these ridiculous peripherals. Secondly, and perhaps leads better into the little tease up top in the last two paragraphs is the Playstation Vita. This handheld is the successor to the Playstation Portable, which was met with wishy-washy acclaim, but it was the only handheld out there that allowed you a clear-vision of playing your favorite games on the go. Basically it was a handheld Playstation 2, which made it the best handheld on the market, but that was before tablets and iPhones and even the iPad were ever introduced into the market, changing the strategy for gaming for the next decade, and possibly well beyond if the current trends stay true. As an adult gamer, one well above the age of eighteen, and even further above the age of twelve, I don’t see a reason why I would be interested in playing games on the go, because I am too preoccupied to do anything involving games when I am outside. I would much rather take in the scenery, go shopping, eat out, or most currently, work. I don’t have time to play games on the run, maybe kids do, but I certainly don’t have a reason to use one of these things. I’m sure many gamers will either agree, surely most will disagree, but I believe the Playstation Vita was just a very bad move for Sony. Microsoft was smart to not build a handheld console, but I can only see limited value from a handheld system. I really just don’t have a reason to use it, and although I am for competition in the market, technology is pretty much an open-and-closed case when it comes to the winners of the handheld markets. The Vita is now selling so piss-poorly, they are now destined to bundle the system with the Playstation 4, which is a great value for gamers, but I ask you gamers out there that would indeed by the Playstation 4: do you really want the handheld? Are you really going to use it so often that it is a legitimate buy? This ploy is mostly to bring down the resale value of the PSV, and not nearly for the convenience of the so-called “two-for-one” console deal. Although the Playstation Vita is a relatively powerful system, and does deserve credit in some ways for its very compelling mechanics in such a small handheld, it will suffer under the fact that it is just another piece of very expensive technology to carry around with you wherever you go. You know are forced to carry your phone and music, games, and this handheld, so why would you carry nearly a thousand dollars worth of technology on you, just so you can have a gaming experience that may rival, if not-equal the Playstation 3’s core game design? Personally, I think it is a ruse like every other damn peripheral, albeit a far better one than most to bundle up to just push units, when really they are losing money, and will legitimately hurt the company more when we go back to the core reason for buying these overpriced, (and let‘s be honest here), over-glorified systems. Now, I am not trying to counter my arguments about Sony, Nintendo, or Microsoft from past posts, but with Sony, I feel this move is a damned if you do, damned if you don’t situation we are always precariously thrown into when it comes the rudimentary understandings of videogame marketing. Even if they push thirty million units come Christmas in America, Sony will have only sold an extended thirty million PSVs, and still have lost money on them. The sad fact that I have to point out that most people can play online, and not necessarily want to play on anything other than maybe a long bus ride will find this product a gimmick, along with the ridiculous load times, and game sticks replacing UMDs. I hate this system, and I’m sure most will agree that the age of handhelds has belonged to smart phones, and probably will for a good long while. If not, then obviously the market trends are not showing the proper data, and the PSV is a gift from God that we have all ignored. Maybe in Sony’s Dreams Department. We learned today that peripherals suck, except for the awesome orange gun for the original Duck Hunt, and very few peripherals will ever replace the dexterity, comfort, and control of a videogame controller. Want an example? The remote control for your television, though it can be a Universal remote now-a-days, has barely changed from its inception, nearly sixty years ago! So stop giving us peripherals we don’t want, and we’ll stop complaining about horrible RPGs that people buy because they look pretty. Also, please stop making Final Fantasy games, I’ve been playing this “last game” by square soft since the 90s! I’m sorry, but I just can’t stand Final Fantasy, and I blame you, all of you, for its continuing success. Especially you! Thank you for reading the Malacast Editorial

Editorial: The Short-sided Opinion on the likes of DLC and Digital Distribution

The last time I checked, it was illegal to digitally downloaded material that was considered by the RIAA as "pirated" software. Recently, I've taken notice that many companies, big and small, are allowing free distribution of certain copyrighted materials, and are using the global marketplace as a think tank for freely marketing original content by struggling artists who are not getting the proper pay and to me this is promoting the very illegal distribution that so many feel hurts the entertainment industry. Sadly, you have to deal with contemporary mediums for outsourcing materials like new albums, digital books, and even podcasts in the form of free samples, which hardly ever help the "little guy/gal" indie entertainer. This mostly relates to advertisers taking hard-working entertainers to the cleaners more heavily than ever before.
In recent months, there have been so many digitally distributed resources for people to manage to transfer via the world wide net, that it is almost impossible to imagine there being any income or capital of any sort for the modern-day musician. The art is thrown around by mega structures, that the artist is starving more now than ever before. I am not talking about the likes of Lady Gaga, although she is digitally downloaded enough that she losses hundereds of thousands of monies from income, but her work is so wildly popular with the demographic, it becomes pennies on the dollar.
Digital Distribution, whether through a source such as iTunes, or Bit Torrent for the illgeal distributer, pirating is now a threat more to the start-up artist, rather than the hit-making machines that are artistic elite. Granted, stealing from any artist who has actually put the thought and heart into their achievements should be wrong on levels from both sides of the spectrum, but I worry mostly for the likes of the classic independent, struggling artist who has no means to survive except for the fruit of their own labor. In this modern digital age, we see the likes of film, music, and even pirated software for videogames going against the developers who try the best to make the most out of what they can. Most monies are made within the first month of release for most games, films, and albums, after that, it's back to the drawing board, and the artist must struggle to rise to the top again.
Game developers use a tatic that sometimes pays off, and that is downloadable content. This is used for most gamers, who spend a lot on new-age technology to support their favorite passtime,to further enhance the gameplay of their favorite games. Developers do at times insult gamers who feel that DLC stands for vapor-ware, or uncompleted software, but in the struggling times, such as is with the music industry, developers and producers simply try to give the best possible experience with their software, in hopes of having gamers and sometimes new gamers to a said genre or series, to come back ravenously for more.
In the spectrum of gaming, the internet has at times allowed for positive conditions to the entertainment platform, considerably in the aspect of updates, and patches to fix all bugs in a game. For some, this is seen as a "lazy" form of developing, but meeting unrealistic deadlines for encoding thousands of lines of information can sometimes be haphazardous to those who try to get the best version of the game on the market. Most people do complain games should be finished before being shipped onto the shelves, but considering that the games patches and updates are usually free, complaints are respected, but not taking as serious as with the prices of DLC.
In the lines of the DLC, this is where games are usually made better with added bonus content that will run a gamer a full $75 to $100 (including purchase of the said game disc) when all content is officially uploaded onto stores like the PSN Store or Xbox Live. Content is not needed to experience the full-fledged game, but what once was included in most games on previous systems, now cost the player extended investments, and is rarely available in another format other than digitally downloaded versions. For some, although a rare minority, DLC is impossible do to internet scarcity, or the sort of connection only available in their area. Believe it or not, some places in the world, even the United States, are without the access to broadband or cable.
The gamers left out of the DLC movement, can at times find certain DLC available to buy on disc format at their local videogame store, but these options are scarce, if ever existant. The worst part is that developers who do deserve the extra services are bound to find, even at the lowest minority, pirating of the above software outlets, hence much money spent to distribution, but more importantly development, is taken out of the hands of those who create these billion dollar titles, and they recieve and even lower portion of the slave wage already the minimum.
Over the years, I have always been pro business to these, and other individuals who spend much of their lives developing the entertainmetns we now take for granted. The monies poured in are never the return, and if only for the love of the job do the individuals who create such entertainments continue to go along, and continue creating these amazing games, albums, and films. Although I do not talk much about the banking industry that is Hollywood here, I will say that even the highest paid director sometimes develops a movie worth his salary.
Thank you for reading the Malacast Editorial, I hope you've enjoyed this short editiorial on the basis of DLC and Digital Distribution, its pros and cons, and why examples of commisions like the RIAA are sometimes right about pirating digital content. I will give a further analysis on this topic, as it's always a blowhard one I deal with and am questioned about on the more-than-rarest of occasions. Thank you again for reading.

Ghostbusters: The Video Game

CLICK BLOG TITLE TO LINK TO GAMESPOT.COM'S REVIEW AND IMAGES


We all know the song, we all know the characters, and the amazing actors behind those characters. We all know the writers, directors, and producers of the movies, and we all know who we gotta call: Ghostbusters. The movies were great, classics, and were some of the best comedic works of Akroyd, Murray, and Ramis, names that need no introduction. Surely we can see that the Ghostbusters franchise is a dead-set cultural iconic franchise at that, but how does the video game (based off the potential third film's script) measure up to the movies, animated series, and the merchandise that makes all Ghostbusters fans go ga-ga?
Simple, it just does! If you loved the movies, you will love the game. If anything, it will get you psyched for a possible third film, if one ever does occur in theaters. I'd throw in a few ghostly puns here, but at the moment, I just want to give you the hard news on the game, first, Gameplay.
Video games, whether they be rehashes of older games, based off movies, or even original series that grow into crappy movies ( i.e. Silent Hill, Resident Evil, Super Mario...you get the point) gamers all desire one important aspect of all these games: great gameplay. Gameplay is the stone scaffolding to any game, it may be an old model, but it builds up a pretty skyscraper of a game. If I can't get around the controls, or if I can't handle the flow, I just throw the game out, so in a huge, huge, mind you fucking huge line of terrible video games based on movies, does Ghostbusters the Video Game fall in line, or does it cut ahead of the class?
I think the game is honestly far above the par of major movie-to-video game titles, but what I like is that it is easy to fall into the controls, and learn the game. The controls handle well, but it may take a few moments to become familiar with the game. I picked this game up 12 in the morning,a dn played until four, just so I could write this review early, and luckily I can give you an idea of everything that needs to be covered. If you need to worry about anything in this game, controls are the least to worry about. You may need to read the manual though, as I have yet to find a fair customization for the controls. They just have a few defaults that are self-made, and I find that annoying, but I didn't play around much with that, I jumped excitedly into the video game.
Ghostbusters The Video Game, is quite amazing in its graphics, as the characters really do look like the actors that have become the embedded images of Dr. Venkman, Egon, and Stantz. The characters truly look and word just like the characters of the movies. I was absolutely amazed at the detail put into these characters, figuring that Atari would just hash some bad renders, as this game took forever to come out, due to the companies falling out after finishing the game, and Atari swooping in and touching the game up just a bit. I was happy to see that the graphics of the ghosts, although the renders at times get repetitive, follow through with the major ghosts from the movies. Other characters from the films do return, like Peck, the dick-wad EPA Administrator that completely boasted an ugly-ass goatee, and put New York in peril during the first film, he becomes part of a special paranormal investigative corporation from the state government called P-COC becomes tied into the Gozer-themed story that follows the video game.
The story pretty much opens up at the New York Museum of Natural History, and there is a new Gozer exhibit, so you can expect some crazy things to start-up. These sightings of ghosts lead to be something larger than ever seen on the paranormal spectrum, as ghouls and goblins from movies past make a triumphant return, and look very pretty doing it! I especially love how how they made Stay Puft's images looked awesome, and I know awesome may not be a professional term, but come on! You get to fight the Marshmallow man, how professional does it get? This game is sheer satire, it's awesome, and it's funny, and if you don't want to play it, fine, but you're missing out.
The game does get a bit laggy, and yes, a bit repetitive, but what I think is the least-satisfying is that there are not really enough cut scenes that develop the plot enough, although enough of it is done in real-time. The game is actually a bit creepy in some cases, taking a few pages from survival horror, and yet still being a tad cartoonish, it is a game that hasn't really decided what genre it wants to be. Without giving much away, the game basically plays like the next movie, so it's not an combined attempt on both movies, it is literally the next chapter in the Ghostbusters trilogy, and that alone makes it a collector's item. Ghostbusters is available for: Playstation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, and PC.
The game also boasts a few minigames to be played online through multiplayer challenges of groups of five. Some of the games include: protecting generators that need to be charged from ghosts, protecting artifacts, capturing ghosts the fastest, and sort of king of the hill style games where you have to move from one point on the other on the game's map. This part of the game is quite laggy, but when it's working, it is just pure amazing, because you can play any of the four original ghostbusters, or the "rookie" from the game, and you play and can even chat to the other players, while you slam ghosts into traps. This can lose its flavor after a while, but you can do some awesome stuff, like dunk slimer, and other fun games that are a little avant-garde, it's still fun to do. For more information on the game, check my link to all the pretty pictures of the game from gamespot, and follow this blog on twitter, just search mceasteditorial on Twitter, and get your tweet on! How lame would that be if that was there by-line?