I went on a vacation a couple of weeks ago and though I was very excited about the prospect of being at the beach for a week, I was having mixed feelings at the same time. This was due to the fact that I had just received my copy of GTA IV a couple of days before we were set to leave for the beach. I did have a chance to play – believe me, I took every chance I could get – but that was not enough to whet my appetite. I was mulling over the possibilities and came up with three:
-Postpone the trip.
-Take my PS3 with me.
-Forget about gaming for a while.
The second option was very very tempting. Until I realized that I had to take a ferry boat to the island and I didn’t really want to risk damaging the console. So option 3 it had to be.
It was not that bad, really. During the first day, I would think about gaming every now and then and wish fervently that I was at home in front of the TV. Those moments became rarer and rarer until they were totally gone by the 3rd day. However, when the 5th day came around, I was itching to play so badly I just couldn’t wait for the ferry boat to arrive.
So I guess that’s my figure – 5 days without gaming. I survived – and no scars to show for it. How about you, how long can you go without gaming?
Sony is coming out with a new game for the PS3 but it is quite unlike the run of the mill games that PS3 fan boys have come to expect. Dubbed Shiki-tei, this new PS3 game seems to be nothing more than having a garden on your PS3. Don’t get me wrong – I have nothing against gardening. In fact, I have tried my hand at it for more times than I can count. The problem is that plants – and anything remotely resembling a plant – do not seem to like me. If there is such a thing as a black thumb, or a brown thumb, then I have one!
The basic idea of the game is to create your own garden. You plan flowers, trees, and other shrubbery. You can also set stones and other ornaments that you would like to be present in your garden. Then you watch it grow. You can even set your own music – anything that you have in your PS3 – to play as you watch your creation bloom. That should make for a relaxing time, I think.
Anyway, this new video game is set for release only in Japan. The chances are that the rest of the world is not going to get their hands on this PS3 game but then again, since when has that stopped anyone from getting anything they wanted? I suppose the question is whether or not Shiki-tei will be fun enough to entice the countless PS3 fan boys all around the world.
Who said that video games were for kids only? You only have to look at the statistics and you will see that a lot of gamers are in their 20s, 30s, and 40s. Yet did you know that now, even senior citizens are getting into gaming?
Indeed, the older generation has discovered this activity that so many of the younger generation hold dear. In fact, even doctors are looking into the possibility of the existence of the health benefits of video games on senior citizens. An article on Newsday features this topic. It seems that casual games and Wii games are the most popular with the senior citizens. They have discovered a way to pass time and exercise both the body and the mind as well.
I have no doubt about the benefits that these games provide to senior citizens. After all, I am a firm believer in the benefits of video games to other age groups – why exclude the older generation? More so, I am observing first hand this kind of experience. My parents are retired – have been so for many years – and they just stay at home most of the time. My dad goes out and does odd jobs here and there but for the most part, when they are at home, their favorite pastime is to play casual games on the computer. I know how this activity makes them feel more relaxed and less bored.
Maybe the next step is to get them a Wii so they can have actual physical exercise? 
No one can deny it – social networking sites are one of the most popular things on the Internet today. Heck, even the head of my company has a Facebook account! In fact, he got one way before I got mine! Indeed, social networking sites are something else AND casual gaming companies are not slow to catch on to that fact.
We all know that casual games are not in anyway losing momentum with gamers. From age 5 (I have even heard of 3 year olds playing casual games!) to 65, casual games have become a hit and will continue to do so in the future. This kind of gaming is definitely strong in the market today. Yet with the connections that the casual gaming sector are making with the social networking sites, they are set to experience more success.
Mike Snider of USA Today reports:
By playing nice with social networks such as Facebook, expected to hit 100 million users by year’s end, the casual game category can only increase the stakes, says CGA President Jessica Tams. “The introduction of platforms which create opportunities for accessible and family play have raised the awareness of the fact that games are played by everyone, everywhere,” she says.
In the past two months, two new online gaming hubs, Cafe.com and Mytopia, have launched with features that let players connect with friends on the Web and through various social networks such as Facebook and MySpace, as well as Bebo and Hi5.
Ahh, I could name more than a few friends who would be happy to know that more casual games would be available on Facebook!
We had two boys aged 7 and 12 – I never knew how creative you had to be in order to keep little boys occupied for 2 days! Anyway, it was kind of a good thing that we have several toys – gaming consoles and computers, that is – that the boys loved.
There were moments of uncertainty for me, however. I had not finished GTA IV then (yes, I have finished it now – I finished it yesterday, to be exact!) and really wanted to play. I tried to avoid it but just couldn’t. So it was not really surprising that after watching me play for a while, the boys were clamoring to be able to play.
GTA IV for kids? I don’t think so! It is not only about the violence and sexually explicit content, really. Following the dialogue and completing the missions are quite complicated activities in themselves. But I gave in – ok, boys, each of you can play for 30 minutes and then go back to the GameBoy or the PC.
Boy, did they have fun! At first they had difficulty controlling the cars. After a while, they were able to do a decent job out of it. Of course, they didn’t really follow the storyline. All they wanted to do was to drive around, get nice cars, and shoot people.
So should kids play GTA? I think that it’s not all that bad. You just have to explain to them the difference between reality and the game. And I really didn’t even have to explain that much – they themselves stated the difference. The only thing I am slightly worried about is that they might become desensitized to violence.
We have to admit, stereotype dictates that gamers are mainly male. As with most stereotypes, however, it is not really an accurate depiction. Ask the people in Australia – it seems that the number of girls playing video games is on the rise out there. I don’t really need a formal report to believe this – I have always been a firm disbeliever of that stereotype – but for those who want hard proof, check out the article which was recently published on Digital Life.
The report says:
The average gamer in Australia is now 28 years old, up from 24 just two years ago. And despite being largely ignored by the game industry, 41% are female.
Women and older Australians are the fastest-growing audience for computer and video games and if trends continue, by 2014 the average age of Australian gamers will be the same as non-players - 42 - with an equal number of male and female players.
Trends are similar in the US, where 38% of gamers are female, spending an average 7.4 hours a week playing, according to the Entertainment Software Association.
Do you need more proof? I surely do not. This comes as no surprise, really. If you take into account casual gaming and other types of video games, you would see that many of them are targeted towards the female population. And even those games that are not really for females (from whose perspective, I don’t know) attract them. From the sports video games to GTA IV – I know quite a large number of females who love playing these games.
It’s been out for a week now and what are people saying about the latest installment in the GTA series? I seriously have not heard anything bad. Well, there is the fact that the game freezes for some PS3 units and for the Xbox but Rockstar was able to release a patch within days of the first reports. It hasn’t happened to me yet – and I am crossing my fingers that it never will, but in case it does, I am glad that the patch is available.
As for the game play – I have nothing to complain about really, at least for now. It is everything that I have been expecting. I think I am about at 20 something per cent of the game and I have been having all sorts of fun. No doubt that it is quite harder than the old GTA installments. Driving a car or a bike is not that easy – controlling that helicopter with the movements of the controller is worse – but it is all part of the challenge!
No more to say about that for now – GTA IV rocks!
Something on the lighter side – have you read Jeremy’s post on how his wife ruined GTA? It is quite hilarious, really. He writes about his wife tried her hand at it and obeyed ALL the laws! You should read it for yourself.
I knew this day would come! I have always thought that one day, hotels would feature video games as part of their offerings. It is but logical – video games are not only for children but adults as well. Actually, there are already many hotels which offer video game consoles in some of their rooms, especially those catering to families.
This concept being employed by the Westin chain of hotels is somehow new though – adding Wii consoles to their hotel fitness centers. Here is more information on it:
Looking for a fun way to work out on the road?
Hotel companies across the nation are putting more money into their fitness centers as surveys show travelers are putting a high priority on them.
The folks at Westin recently added a twist to their fitness offerings: a video game. Nintendo’s Wii system, to be specific.
Last week, the hotel brand by Starwood Hotels & Resorts installed the gaming system in its fitness centers at hotels in Bellevue, Wash., and Times Square in New York as part of a pilot program.
This month, the system will be added to Westin properties at the Galleria in Houston, Kansas City, Mo., Hilton Head Island, S.C.,
St. Louis, San Francisco, Toronto, Hollywood, Calif., and Savannah, Ga.
Other locations will be added later, pending guest feedback, a spokeswoman said.
The Wii systems will be integrated into the WestinWORKOUT program and will be preloaded with several popular games.
(Opt for boxing rather than bowling if you really want to raise your heart rate.)
The systems will also incorporate the Wii Fit program, which leads users through various exercises, including yoga and strength training, and is scheduled for release May 19.
Maybe I’ll stay at a Westin hotel the next time I hit the road…
…and I’ll tell you who you are. Obviously, this is my own version of the cliché “tell me who your friends are and I’ll you who you are.” Though I believe that this cliché can be true to some extent, I am not quite sure that it applies to video games.
I am actually not the first person to think along these lines. In fact, I got the idea from Crispin Boyer who wrote an entry in his blog entitled “Do we play what we are?” He, in turn, got his inspiration from a series of essays “Are we what we play?”
It seems that more and more gamers are digging deeper into the psychology of gaming – and why not? Gaming holds more meaning than merely mashing buttons or clicking the mouse.
So, do video games reflect one’s personality? Perhaps. Our choices, when it comes to video gaming, have something to do with our interests in real life. The person who loves basketball spends time playing NBA Live. The person who loves football plays Madden. Does this mean, however, that the person who is crazy about GTA is a killer and a violent person?
I suppose it is not as clear cut as that. I have a friend who has never tried skateboarding. Yet he is addicted to Skate. Then there is another friend who has never laid a hand on any other person and is opposed to violence in principle – yet he can’t get enough of God of War.
So what’s the deal? What do you think?
Another study gives much needed support to video games. According to Carmen Russoniello, a professor at East Carolina University, video games are potentially beneficial when it comes to relieving stress and tension. Here is more information from IT World Canada:
Carmen Russoniello, a professor at East Carolina University, recently finished a six-month study of people playing Bejeweled 2, Peggle and Bookworm adventures. The study concluded the games could have “potential therapeutic applications,” according to a press release issued by PopCap games, which by sheer coincidence happens to be the developer of these three games.
The school’s department of recreational and leisure studies observed the behaviour of video game players and measured their stress, psychological tension, anger, depression, vigour, fatigue and confusion. For example, people who played Peggle experienced a 66 per cent reduction in “psychological tension” while 43 per cent of those who played Bookworm Adventures experienced a reduction in depression. Rumour has it people who reached the fourth screen in Space Invaders also experienced confusion, though that game was not included in Russoniello’s study.
It is interesting to note, however, that only specific games were covered by the study. The GTA series, which could be the most popular game franchise ever, was not included in the study.
The East Carolina University study did not include Grand Theft Auto, a game where players can pretend to be criminals taking on rival gang members and robbing banks. The game’s developer, Rock Star North, also makes Bully and Manhunt.
Oh well, it is a start, isn’t it?
