Half-Life / Half-Life 2
I was not a huge PC gamer prior to Half-Life. My Nintendo 64 made up the bulk of my gaming in 1998, but my introduction to Half-Life changed that. While I was comfortable playing Quake II and Battlezone '97 on the PC, it was my purchase of Half-Life that really glued me to the family computer. My reasons for loving Half-Life are basically the same as they are for everyone else: the story-driven gameplay and great pacing blends well with the run-and-gun intelligent battles. I was quite stunned when I first heard an enemy marine yell "Shit, grenade" before running to avoid the blast. Since Quake II and Doom (my only first-person experiences up to that point) were a bit more mindless, this kind of enemy intelligence was fascinating to me.
More than the technology of Half-Life was the setting. The Black Mesa Research Facility was a fantastic place for a geek like me to fall in love with. Lots of high-technology mixed with military facades on multiple occasions during the adventure, and the fantastic even blended as well: experimental technology and alien locales kept Black Mesa interesting at every turn.
I cheated my way through my earlier games, especially the final third of Quake II. Half-Life was a game so awesome that I demanded myself to play through it honestly and completely, and after four months with the game, I finally did. I also spent countless hours, weeks, and months playing with the world editor that was available from Valve. I sculpted my dream levels and different playgrounds in my own original worlds - my imagination had not been so active since I was introduced to Mario Paint in 1993.
The wait for Half-Life 2 was an excruciating one. While the original Half-Life left a larger impression on me, I cannot discount that since 2004 I have revisited the Half-Life 2 universe at least once a year. With the same kind of story-action blend present in Half-Life 2, I really consider both games one and the same, but chose to detail my time with the original game. This is an awesome franchise.
Next Up, Number One: The princess and the world need saving yet again, but it has never been this awesome before.
B3 out.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Thursday, April 29, 2010
7 Days, 7 Games: Number Three
Super Mario 64
I watched Super Mario 64 grow from a featurette about the "future of gaming" in several mid-nineties video game magazines into a day-and-date launch product priced at $60 on the brand new Nintendo 64 console. I was thrilled to see my favorite gaming series expanding into the third dimension. My first night with the game, the week of my twelfth birthday, I stayed up until 2:30am playing "Bomb-Omb Battlefield," the first level of the game. As my introduction to 3D games, I spent much of that night sending Mario stumbling around; the Nintendo 64 controller was a beautiful thing in my hands, however, and I worked at it with great persistence.
Super Mario 64 holds a special place in my heart, not for its great game design, but because I collected every one of the 120 stars in the game and had a blast doing it - long before I knew what great game design was supposed to be. For me, Super Mario 64 is the essence of discovery and exploration, and as a kid I could not have asked for anything else.
Up Next: A resonance cascade worthy of being called awesome.
B3 out.
I watched Super Mario 64 grow from a featurette about the "future of gaming" in several mid-nineties video game magazines into a day-and-date launch product priced at $60 on the brand new Nintendo 64 console. I was thrilled to see my favorite gaming series expanding into the third dimension. My first night with the game, the week of my twelfth birthday, I stayed up until 2:30am playing "Bomb-Omb Battlefield," the first level of the game. As my introduction to 3D games, I spent much of that night sending Mario stumbling around; the Nintendo 64 controller was a beautiful thing in my hands, however, and I worked at it with great persistence.
Super Mario 64 holds a special place in my heart, not for its great game design, but because I collected every one of the 120 stars in the game and had a blast doing it - long before I knew what great game design was supposed to be. For me, Super Mario 64 is the essence of discovery and exploration, and as a kid I could not have asked for anything else.
Up Next: A resonance cascade worthy of being called awesome.
B3 out.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
7 Days, 7 Games: Number Four
Harvest Moon
Harvest Moon for the Super Nintendo was released in North America in 1997, and it was my game. During a time when the Nintendo 64 was at the center of my life and platforming games ruled my dying Super Nintendo, Harvest Moon came as a challenge - a game about farming? Really? Was this a joke?
Despite its ridiculously silly concept, I was still intrigued into at least renting the game to try it out. I picked up the only copy available from the Video Connection in northern Bowling Green and over the next four weekends played it through to completion. I was hooked. Not since Mario Paint did a game capture my unrelenting attention so well. From morning to night every weekend, my SNES was fired up so I could toil away in my virtual farm fields to raise a large and profitable farm with a wife and kids to go with it.
While there have been dozens of Harvest Moon games on various gaming platforms since the original, including my personal-favorite Rune Factory series on the Nintendo DS, the original Harvest Moon is an experience unmatched in simplicity, fun, and accomplishment.
Next Up: My favorite platformer was reborn in glorious 3D.
B3 out.
Harvest Moon for the Super Nintendo was released in North America in 1997, and it was my game. During a time when the Nintendo 64 was at the center of my life and platforming games ruled my dying Super Nintendo, Harvest Moon came as a challenge - a game about farming? Really? Was this a joke?
Despite its ridiculously silly concept, I was still intrigued into at least renting the game to try it out. I picked up the only copy available from the Video Connection in northern Bowling Green and over the next four weekends played it through to completion. I was hooked. Not since Mario Paint did a game capture my unrelenting attention so well. From morning to night every weekend, my SNES was fired up so I could toil away in my virtual farm fields to raise a large and profitable farm with a wife and kids to go with it.
While there have been dozens of Harvest Moon games on various gaming platforms since the original, including my personal-favorite Rune Factory series on the Nintendo DS, the original Harvest Moon is an experience unmatched in simplicity, fun, and accomplishment.
Next Up: My favorite platformer was reborn in glorious 3D.
B3 out.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
7 Days, 7 Games: Number Five
Rock Band 2
Never have I had an internal conflict as big as the Guitar Hero 2 versus Rock Band 2 debate. Really, which of these two games were more influential for me? Guitar Hero 2 entered my life during a very rough period of my life and immediately became one of the few all-too-important games in my life. Rock Band 2 turned out to be a much more refined and tight gaming package, with infallible, perfect gameplay and limitless expansion via the Rock Band Store. Both games have been highly influential on me, but Rock Band 2 outdoes Guitar Hero 2 by just a bit, if only because Rock Band 2 is the brainchild of Harmonix, just as Guitar Hero 2 was, and the former is a perfect evolution of the latter.
Everything about Rock Band 2 reeks of evolution and experience. The song selection is solid, the gameplay refined to near perfection, and the overall "you're a rockstar" experience most definitely present. Rock Band 2 is all about the music first and foremost, and more than any other game, I can return to a jam session without much hesitation, with or without friends. That is a property that not many games possess, and I can only place Rock Band 2 in my top five for that notion.
Next Up: A surprisingly deep experience is found in the fields.
B3 out.
Never have I had an internal conflict as big as the Guitar Hero 2 versus Rock Band 2 debate. Really, which of these two games were more influential for me? Guitar Hero 2 entered my life during a very rough period of my life and immediately became one of the few all-too-important games in my life. Rock Band 2 turned out to be a much more refined and tight gaming package, with infallible, perfect gameplay and limitless expansion via the Rock Band Store. Both games have been highly influential on me, but Rock Band 2 outdoes Guitar Hero 2 by just a bit, if only because Rock Band 2 is the brainchild of Harmonix, just as Guitar Hero 2 was, and the former is a perfect evolution of the latter.
Everything about Rock Band 2 reeks of evolution and experience. The song selection is solid, the gameplay refined to near perfection, and the overall "you're a rockstar" experience most definitely present. Rock Band 2 is all about the music first and foremost, and more than any other game, I can return to a jam session without much hesitation, with or without friends. That is a property that not many games possess, and I can only place Rock Band 2 in my top five for that notion.
Next Up: A surprisingly deep experience is found in the fields.
B3 out.
Monday, April 26, 2010
7 Days, 7 Games: Number Six
Wave Race 64
Wave Race 64 was not just a beautiful game back in 1996. For me Wave Race 64 was the first game to "feel right." While Super Mario 64 and Pilotwings 64 (my first two N64 games) each had their own unique mechanics and experiences, it was Wave Race 64 which introduced me to the idea that games do not have to be long or complicated to be extremely fun and immersive.
This was the game that introduced me to and defined an awesome "feel" in a video game - smashing over waves, getting awesome air to fly over an obstacle, and landing with just enough cut on the jet ski to slice around the next corner, all to do it again before the next turn. The feeling of control in Wave Race sits somewhere between complete chaos and perfect harmony, a player always on the edge of losing everything while gunning through turbulent waves to win everything. This kind of controlled chaos makes Wave Race 64 a classic game that I revisit year after year with the same renewed excitement as the day I first played it.
Next Up: Rocking oh-so-hard never felt so good.
B3 out.
Wave Race 64 was not just a beautiful game back in 1996. For me Wave Race 64 was the first game to "feel right." While Super Mario 64 and Pilotwings 64 (my first two N64 games) each had their own unique mechanics and experiences, it was Wave Race 64 which introduced me to the idea that games do not have to be long or complicated to be extremely fun and immersive.
This was the game that introduced me to and defined an awesome "feel" in a video game - smashing over waves, getting awesome air to fly over an obstacle, and landing with just enough cut on the jet ski to slice around the next corner, all to do it again before the next turn. The feeling of control in Wave Race sits somewhere between complete chaos and perfect harmony, a player always on the edge of losing everything while gunning through turbulent waves to win everything. This kind of controlled chaos makes Wave Race 64 a classic game that I revisit year after year with the same renewed excitement as the day I first played it.
Next Up: Rocking oh-so-hard never felt so good.
B3 out.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
7 Days, 7 Games: Number Seven
World of Warcraft
World of Warcraft may seem like a bit of a cop-out for appearing on a list of favorite games; after all, it is an immensely popular game. I really debated if it is really this far up on my list, if it should come above games such as The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening or Super Mario Kart. World of Warcraft is one of my most-played games, period, and that is almost enough to put it on this list, but there is more.
What makes WoW such a great game for me is not its core multiplayer or advanced end-game loot and rewards. I do not consider myself a "core" WoW player by any means, although at one time I did. The truth is, when WoW is good it is really, really good. WoW is as close to a complete, functional, parallel world to our own as I have yet experienced. While definitely a game by any and all respects (with clearly defined goals and progression), there is an oddly immersive, comfortable, and totally familiar feeling to WoW. Stepping into Stormwind after several hours of hard questing is relieving, like coming home after a long day at work. Traveling about the full world of Azeroth seems as exhausting as jumping in the car and driving across Ohio. While there is not much left to explorer in WoW after four years of playing it, I still find myself discovering new nooks and crannies, new items, new skills, and new ways to develop my character.
My warrior character, Symba, is my unique twin in WoW, an avatar into a world that is judged differently from our own. This kind of complete escape means that the World of Warcraft is among my top seven favorite games.
Next Up: A game that gets wild and wet in all the right ways.
B3 out.
World of Warcraft may seem like a bit of a cop-out for appearing on a list of favorite games; after all, it is an immensely popular game. I really debated if it is really this far up on my list, if it should come above games such as The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening or Super Mario Kart. World of Warcraft is one of my most-played games, period, and that is almost enough to put it on this list, but there is more.
What makes WoW such a great game for me is not its core multiplayer or advanced end-game loot and rewards. I do not consider myself a "core" WoW player by any means, although at one time I did. The truth is, when WoW is good it is really, really good. WoW is as close to a complete, functional, parallel world to our own as I have yet experienced. While definitely a game by any and all respects (with clearly defined goals and progression), there is an oddly immersive, comfortable, and totally familiar feeling to WoW. Stepping into Stormwind after several hours of hard questing is relieving, like coming home after a long day at work. Traveling about the full world of Azeroth seems as exhausting as jumping in the car and driving across Ohio. While there is not much left to explorer in WoW after four years of playing it, I still find myself discovering new nooks and crannies, new items, new skills, and new ways to develop my character.
My warrior character, Symba, is my unique twin in WoW, an avatar into a world that is judged differently from our own. This kind of complete escape means that the World of Warcraft is among my top seven favorite games.
Next Up: A game that gets wild and wet in all the right ways.
B3 out.
Friday, April 23, 2010
What If... Guitar Hero II
The Event
In October of 2006, my sister's then-boyfriend bought Guitar Hero II as a present for her, and I hesitantly tried the game to see what the fad was about.
The Fallout
I am re-introduced to video games in a way that I desperately needed.
What Happened
My troubles with school, work, and girls all fell away as I dove deep into Guitar Hero II. My first month with the game was an endlessly clunky experience, but after a few months I was rocking through a ton of my favorite songs on Hard and Expert. I had not loved a game so much since 1998's Ocarina of Time.
What If...
Guitar Hero II never came into my life? In 2006 I had only vaguely heard about the Guitar Hero series and I did not pay much attention to it. In the short-term, without GH2, I would have very likely continued my incessant whining and bitching to Lacey about how miserable I always felt because of our breakup. Work was boring and miserable; depressing to go to and depressing to leave since I rarely had anything to look forward to do at home. School was the same. I was simply not very into video games at the time, so my life was all about school, work, and being miserable. I do not want to even consider how much longer this would have continued.
I would have never experienced the excellent game design that Harmonix perfected in Guitar Hero II. I would not have gotten Guitar Hero III, or World Tour. I would likely have not so eagerly purchased Rock Band 2 as I did in 2008. I would not have four plastic guitars all about my apartment and a fake drumset to have to store. I would not have a second LCD TV in my living room dedicated to just music-rhythm games.
I do believe, however, that I would have eventually gotten onto the Guitar Hero or Rock Band bandwagon, but the experience might have been much different. In 2007 I bought a Wii, so it would have been likely that I passed Guitar Hero II altogether, skipping to the decent-but-lackluster Guitar Hero III. If I never had a chance to play the second game, how would I have known that GH3 and GH4 were such sketchy products compared to the excellent RB2?
My gaming life would certainly have been a lot different without Guitar Hero II in my life, so in many ways I greatly thank my sister and her then-boyfriend for bringing such an incredible game into my life. Like many other life-changing events, this was one that I will never forget and will definitely look back upon for reflection and perhaps even inspiration one day.
B3 out.
In October of 2006, my sister's then-boyfriend bought Guitar Hero II as a present for her, and I hesitantly tried the game to see what the fad was about.
The Fallout
I am re-introduced to video games in a way that I desperately needed.
What Happened
My troubles with school, work, and girls all fell away as I dove deep into Guitar Hero II. My first month with the game was an endlessly clunky experience, but after a few months I was rocking through a ton of my favorite songs on Hard and Expert. I had not loved a game so much since 1998's Ocarina of Time.
What If...
Guitar Hero II never came into my life? In 2006 I had only vaguely heard about the Guitar Hero series and I did not pay much attention to it. In the short-term, without GH2, I would have very likely continued my incessant whining and bitching to Lacey about how miserable I always felt because of our breakup. Work was boring and miserable; depressing to go to and depressing to leave since I rarely had anything to look forward to do at home. School was the same. I was simply not very into video games at the time, so my life was all about school, work, and being miserable. I do not want to even consider how much longer this would have continued.
I would have never experienced the excellent game design that Harmonix perfected in Guitar Hero II. I would not have gotten Guitar Hero III, or World Tour. I would likely have not so eagerly purchased Rock Band 2 as I did in 2008. I would not have four plastic guitars all about my apartment and a fake drumset to have to store. I would not have a second LCD TV in my living room dedicated to just music-rhythm games.
I do believe, however, that I would have eventually gotten onto the Guitar Hero or Rock Band bandwagon, but the experience might have been much different. In 2007 I bought a Wii, so it would have been likely that I passed Guitar Hero II altogether, skipping to the decent-but-lackluster Guitar Hero III. If I never had a chance to play the second game, how would I have known that GH3 and GH4 were such sketchy products compared to the excellent RB2?
My gaming life would certainly have been a lot different without Guitar Hero II in my life, so in many ways I greatly thank my sister and her then-boyfriend for bringing such an incredible game into my life. Like many other life-changing events, this was one that I will never forget and will definitely look back upon for reflection and perhaps even inspiration one day.
B3 out.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Coming Next Week: 7 Days, 7 Games
Next week I will be running a seven day feature entitled "7 Days, 7 Games." Beginning Sunday at noon, and posting every noon for the rest of the week, I will be counting down my top favorite seven video games. While much of the list is probably predictable, I am taking a much more personal look at how each of the games came into my life and how my early experience with each came pass.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Thursday, April 15, 2010
All Sorts Of Fun Stuff
I have an interesting weekend coming up.
Because I will be working from my parent's house Friday afternoon, I will already be in the middle of things, so to speak, when I get off work Friday night. With relatively decent weather ahead for this weekend and potentially no work obligations (although I'm really up in the air about that), I could spend this weekend eating, biking, running, exploring, geocaching, hiking, or eating some more.
But what to do?
Because I will be working from my parent's house Friday afternoon, I will already be in the middle of things, so to speak, when I get off work Friday night. With relatively decent weather ahead for this weekend and potentially no work obligations (although I'm really up in the air about that), I could spend this weekend eating, biking, running, exploring, geocaching, hiking, or eating some more.
But what to do?
Friday, April 09, 2010
Hello, 2004
I'll be spending this weekend doing a ton of writing, and it begins with these two phrases: "Transclucency" and "monkey's paw."
Sometimes I find it easiest to inspire my future writing by looking to the past.
B3 out.
Sometimes I find it easiest to inspire my future writing by looking to the past.
B3 out.
Wednesday, April 07, 2010
What Happened Sunday
This past Sunday evening I had a mental collapse - the kind that I have not experienced since high school.
Throughout high school I occasionally experienced immense amounts of stress from all areas of my life as they converged all at once. Social stress - from friends, peers, and crushes; academic stress - pressure from my classes to do well; work stress - balancing a paycheck with my free time - and personal stress - am I on the right path in my life?
In college I learned to deal with these stresses by diversifying my routines and achieving balance among the stresses in my life. I balanced my time with my friends, my girlfriend, school, and work as best as I could, although school sometimes got the short end of the stick. I stayed as happy as I could and that was all I could ask for.
In the past year, however, despite having what I consider a pretty damn good life in Findlay, I have been stressed yet again. What is causing this stress? A variety of things, but it is not the obvious things such as work and money that worry me. There is something more to it; something personal that bugs the back of my mind and keeps me from feeling "just right."
While I am still trying to narrow down what I feel and why I feel it, I do know that I am beginning a long-term process of change that is long overdue and very necessary. Now more than ever, I need to do what is best for me.
B3 out.
Throughout high school I occasionally experienced immense amounts of stress from all areas of my life as they converged all at once. Social stress - from friends, peers, and crushes; academic stress - pressure from my classes to do well; work stress - balancing a paycheck with my free time - and personal stress - am I on the right path in my life?
In college I learned to deal with these stresses by diversifying my routines and achieving balance among the stresses in my life. I balanced my time with my friends, my girlfriend, school, and work as best as I could, although school sometimes got the short end of the stick. I stayed as happy as I could and that was all I could ask for.
In the past year, however, despite having what I consider a pretty damn good life in Findlay, I have been stressed yet again. What is causing this stress? A variety of things, but it is not the obvious things such as work and money that worry me. There is something more to it; something personal that bugs the back of my mind and keeps me from feeling "just right."
While I am still trying to narrow down what I feel and why I feel it, I do know that I am beginning a long-term process of change that is long overdue and very necessary. Now more than ever, I need to do what is best for me.
B3 out.
Tuesday, April 06, 2010
Reboot Weekend Coming Up
This coming weekend will be one of my long-overdue Reboot Weekends, and I plan to fill it with nothing but hiking and writing. Until then, B3 out.
Thursday, April 01, 2010
A Great New Opportunity
Thanks to a wonderful friend and some former contacts of mine from South Africa, I have been presented with a wonderful opportunity that I cannot pass up.
I have recently completed phone interviews for a very lucrative programming job available in Johannesburg, South Africa. I would be a complete stranger to the city of four-million people, but I would love the chance to develop software in a bustling metropolitan city. Being a sub-tropical climate, I imagine that I would rarely miss the cold, blustery days of northern Ohio.
Just as a reference, Johannesburg is roughly 8,500 miles from Findlay, Ohio via a straight line. See!
Click image to enlarge
Critically Correct will become a huge and important part of my life even more so as a means of keeping in contact with my friends and family back here in Ohio. Facebook is still obviously the fastest, easiest way to get a hold of me during my transition. I won't have a cell phone in Johannesburg for quite some time, and even when I do, I am sure international calling will be expensive. I recently set up a Skype account, however, so everyone can still call me for free via the web :-)
I'm very excited about getting a fresh start in a new country, even if I'm genuinely scared about such a huge move. More than anything I will genuinely miss Elli and my family the most, as well as all my friends. This move is the best thing for me and my career. I have never wanted "just a job" - I want a career that lets me influence many thousands of people through software, and I cannot wait to start doing so later this year (end of summer, I believe).
For anyone interested, I will be developing military and operations software for a company called Multi-National United and will quadruple my salary from the get-go.
I intend to make yearly visits back to The States to see my friends and family. I have waited until now to announce this move because of the apprehension my friends and family would have to such a move. I did not want to make an announcement until I was absolutely sure that this job would work out.
I will be back with more updates soon.
B3 out.
I have recently completed phone interviews for a very lucrative programming job available in Johannesburg, South Africa. I would be a complete stranger to the city of four-million people, but I would love the chance to develop software in a bustling metropolitan city. Being a sub-tropical climate, I imagine that I would rarely miss the cold, blustery days of northern Ohio.
Just as a reference, Johannesburg is roughly 8,500 miles from Findlay, Ohio via a straight line. See!
Click image to enlargeCritically Correct will become a huge and important part of my life even more so as a means of keeping in contact with my friends and family back here in Ohio. Facebook is still obviously the fastest, easiest way to get a hold of me during my transition. I won't have a cell phone in Johannesburg for quite some time, and even when I do, I am sure international calling will be expensive. I recently set up a Skype account, however, so everyone can still call me for free via the web :-)
I'm very excited about getting a fresh start in a new country, even if I'm genuinely scared about such a huge move. More than anything I will genuinely miss Elli and my family the most, as well as all my friends. This move is the best thing for me and my career. I have never wanted "just a job" - I want a career that lets me influence many thousands of people through software, and I cannot wait to start doing so later this year (end of summer, I believe).
For anyone interested, I will be developing military and operations software for a company called Multi-National United and will quadruple my salary from the get-go.
I intend to make yearly visits back to The States to see my friends and family. I have waited until now to announce this move because of the apprehension my friends and family would have to such a move. I did not want to make an announcement until I was absolutely sure that this job would work out.
I will be back with more updates soon.
B3 out.
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