Mary Jane Irwin is a Chronological Liar

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Dec
8th

Famous by Association

I moderated the SD Forum’s “Fireside Chat” with gaming icon Bernard Stolar last Friday. Now I’m apparently famous by association (or so say emails).

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Ditch Your TV

The Internet is offering (almost) all the programming you need, at little or no cost.

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In Pictures: 12 Cheap Ways To Watch TV

You can access content via the Internet from your TV, laptop and game console.

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Dec
4th

Betting On Sex And Gore

Namco Bandai’s new Surge brand will publish mature videogames aimed at the U.S. market.

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Musicians 'Tap Tap' iPhone

Recording artists hope ”Tap Tap Revenge” game app will drive album sales.

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Dec
3rd

'Games Are The Convergence Of Everything'

”Bioshock” creator Ken Levine would rather swing from a noose than stop making games.

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Dec
1st

A Very Fresh Prince

Ubisoft learns to let its games breathe.

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Nov
26th

The celebrity culture is infantilizing us. We are being trained not to think. It is not about the disappearance of film critics. We are the canaries. It is about the death of an intelligent and curious, readership, interested in significant things and able to think critically. It is about the failure of our educational system. It is not about dumbing-down. It is about snuffing out.

The news is still big. It’s the newspapers that got small.

— Roger Ebert, The Sun Times

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Nov
25th

Tech's Bleak Friday

The economy may wreck Christmas, but some tech products are expected to sell well.

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The ‘better sequel’ mentality is damaging both to the games industry and to the quality of games journalism. It is a deferral of critical responsibility, a patronising pat on the head for the developer who dared to dream and fell short in some mythically vital way. I don’t want to be frustrated by dodgy controls either, but then I’m willing to blunder through if I’m going to get an experience I never had before. I felt the same about Killer 7 and Shenmue and the mobile game, Nom – flawed every one of them, but I don’t begrudge the creators a single second of the time I spent toiling with imperfections.

—

Keith Stuart, The Guardian

A few folks in the videogame critics circle have risen up to address Mirror Edge’s review score disparity. It’s a hot topic among those in the trade—the idea that we’ve grown too obsessed with technical flaws to look at the bigger, brighter picture.

My conclusion: Those who gave Mirror’s Edge poor marks just don’t get it. (Personally, I would have branded it an 8.5 on the IGN review scale). They simply don’t understand the game.

The combat is clumsy…but you’re not supposed to fight. The game doesn’t allow for trial and error…that’s why you die and try again. Some challenges are controller-flinging frustrating…sure, but it is the journey that’s more rewarding. The story is horrid…but so are a lot of videogame stories.

It seems like most critics malign Mirror’s Edge because it’s not the game they wanted it to be—instead of critiquing the experience that it is.

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	Go Home Archives Chronological Photos Chronological Liar RSS Let's be friends: iam [at] thechronliar [dot] com Navigate culture business musings shameless videogames Beautiful People Chewing Pixels Collision Detection Infinite Lives Sexy Videogameland The Brainy Gamer Level Up Rock, Paper, Shotgun MTV Multiplayer	Dec 8th Tumblr Link Famous by Association I moderated the SD Forum’s “Fireside Chat” with gaming icon Bernard Stolar last Friday. Now I’m apparently famous by association (or so say emails). Comments Tumblr Link Ditch Your TV The Internet is offering (almost) all the programming you need, at little or no cost. Comments Tumblr Link In Pictures: 12 Cheap Ways To Watch TV You can access content via the Internet from your TV, laptop and game console. Comments Dec 4th Tumblr Link Betting On Sex And Gore Namco Bandai’s new Surge brand will publish mature videogames aimed at the U.S. market. Comments Tumblr Link Musicians 'Tap Tap' iPhone Recording artists hope ”Tap Tap Revenge” game app will drive album sales. Comments Dec 3rd Tumblr Link 'Games Are The Convergence Of Everything' ”Bioshock” creator Ken Levine would rather swing from a noose than stop making games. Comments Dec 1st Tumblr Link A Very Fresh Prince Ubisoft learns to let its games breathe. Comments Nov 26th Tumblr Quote The celebrity culture is infantilizing us. We are being trained not to think. It is not about the disappearance of film critics. We are the canaries. It is about the death of an intelligent and curious, readership, interested in significant things and able to think critically. It is about the failure of our educational system. It is not about dumbing-down. It is about snuffing out. The news is still big. It’s the newspapers that got small. — Roger Ebert, The Sun Times Comments Nov 25th Tumblr Link Tech's Bleak Friday The economy may wreck Christmas, but some tech products are expected to sell well. Comments Tumblr Quote The ‘better sequel’ mentality is damaging both to the games industry and to the quality of games journalism. It is a deferral of critical responsibility, a patronising pat on the head for the developer who dared to dream and fell short in some mythically vital way. I don’t want to be frustrated by dodgy controls either, but then I’m willing to blunder through if I’m going to get an experience I never had before. I felt the same about Killer 7 and Shenmue and the mobile game, Nom – flawed every one of them, but I don’t begrudge the creators a single second of the time I spent toiling with imperfections. — Keith Stuart, The Guardian A few folks in the videogame critics circle have risen up to address Mirror Edge’s review score disparity. It’s a hot topic among those in the trade—the idea that we’ve grown too obsessed with technical flaws to look at the bigger, brighter picture. My conclusion: Those who gave Mirror’s Edge poor marks just don’t get it. (Personally, I would have branded it an 8.5 on the IGN review scale). They simply don’t understand the game. The combat is clumsy…but you’re not supposed to fight. The game doesn’t allow for trial and error…that’s why you die and try again. Some challenges are controller-flinging frustrating…sure, but it is the journey that’s more rewarding. The story is horrid…but so are a lot of videogame stories. It seems like most critics malign Mirror’s Edge because it’s not the game they wanted it to be—instead of critiquing the experience that it is. Comments « Previous Next » Powered by Tumblr

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