Have Games Become Too Easy?

This is apparently a much-talked about issue, but I actually just realized that. I really thought I was the only one that was feeling this, and I wasn't even sure of it until I saw that other people had the same opinions. The question is this, are modern games too easy? Has the difficulty been toned down too much? Are developers too liberal with constant auto-saves? In a way, this is true. Games have definitely been made more accessible because it appeals to a much broader audience than before.

This isn't to say that all new games are just cake-walks. It's just that most serious gamers today grew up with games from the late '80's and '90's. Back then, almost every game was freaking torture. Remember the original Ninja Gaiden? Or the Contra series? Pretty much every classic platformer had it's ridiculous frustrations. Blind turns and pit-falls, limited lives, and you had to start over from the beginning if you died. There were no auto-save points. Remember how everyone made a fuss about how hard Devil May Cry 3 was? It was mainly because there were no save points. But if you stop and think...that's how EVERY game was in the 8-bit and 16-bit era.

One important point that I have to mention is that this isn't necessarily a bad thing either. A lot of people don't like it, but it's not an obvious flaw in the industry. In fact, the "easiness" is just a result of video games improving. Making tons of progress then having to restart is frustrating, so automatic save points take all of that frustration out. "Impossible" levels from the classic era were really just levels with design flaws, riddled with things like pin-point accurate jumps and totally blind turns. The same goes for boss fights. Basically, they're not technically making games "easier". They're more...fixing game design.

But anyway, I do agree that games have definitely changed in terms of general difficulty. Back when I was playing on my Super NES, every game required you to master all the gameplay mechanics and memorize every part of a level if you wanted to beat it. There was plenty of trial and error, but by the end of it, you felt incredibly satisfied. It was a long, hard fought battle. And that's precisely what modern games are missing. That sense of satisfaction. I don't remember the last time I played a game through, and really felt satisfied at the end. Every game has just been "do this, auto-save, do that, auto-save, quick-time event, auto-save". The game holds your hand for so long that by the end of this smooth ride, you think "huh? It's over?"

To name of few great games that were really just cake-walks: Assassin's Creed series, God of War 3, Vanquish, inFamous, Uncharted series. If you've noticed, these are some of the most highly rated games of this generation. That says a lot. And again, they're not bad games. Just...maybe not so challenging by the end of the day. But there's another issue here. Normal is basically easy mode now, but when you switch it to hard, it's suddenly completed unbalanced and ridiculous. I thought God of War 3 was easy, so it switched to Hard mode. My god, I was dying in 3 hits. What's with this imbalance?

What do y'all think? Are games too easy these days? If so, is it a bad thing?

Megaupload Shut Down

This place (the United States) is supposed to be the most freedom loving place on Earth. Well, recently I feel like I'm living in a place that's secretly trying to turn into a police-state. If you haven't been living in a cave in Afghanistan, then you obviously know about SOPA and PIPA. There's no need for me to talk about that. Just know that at the moment, SOPA has been pulled back due to the internet's incredible backlash. PIPA is in a similar circumstance as well. So for now, we've won. For now.

The current buzz is the shutting down of Megaupload. It's not SOPA related, but it definitely gives me the same Nazi vibe. Basically, the FBI shut it down due to it being involved in illegal activities. That's basically what SOPA was trying to do, wasn't it? It was trying to shut down entire websites for what a few individuals were doing. Well it looks like the government can do that anyway! Megaupload is one of the biggest download sites, and my personal favorite. How the hell are they supposed to control and monitor what EVERY fucking person puts on the site? I'd normally give a more intelligent argument, but I'm just furious. No need for holding back. These people are FUCKING.NAZI'S. 

Though, you can rest easy because our revenge has already been taken care of. The internet's freedom fighters, Anonymous, took down at least a dozen government websites including justice.gov and every major website tied to the music industry. That was a moment of triumph. But still, Megaupload is no more. That means a ton of things I've hosted on that site will be gone forever. That includes some links I have on this blog. Sigh...I don't know what to say. I guess I just wanted to talk about the big current event. I have nothing else to say. Just keep aware of the events that follow, and support any protests that arise again. And don't worry, they'll NEVER win. It's a few asshole politicians against this ENTIRE generation. 

As a side note...anyone else find it funny that nobody gives a shit about starving children or raising awareness for diseases on a daily basis, yet when the internet is threatened, every fucking person alive jumps on the bandwagon. I mean, its understandable. Nobody cares about anything that doesn't directly affect them. I'll be honest; I walk past homeless people, and I really, really, really don't care about any starving people overseas. And don't be a hypocrite and tell me I'm horrible, because YOU don't care either. Be honest with yourself. Either do something, or admit that you don't care. Don't be a fake.

$1000 Gold Cake

I was watching a special on the Travel channel, it was something like "Forbes top 11 indulgent foods", where it counted down the most fancy, decadent, expensive foods in the world. Among this list was a desert in a fancy restaurant in Istanbul, Turkey.

This...is a GOLD cake. And that's not just a fancy food coloring. That's REAL gold. 24k gold to be exact. And as you would expect, that little slice is $1000. It's called the Sultan's Golden Cake, and it's pretty much something out of an ancient king's ridiculous menu.

Yeah, this pissed me off a bit. I mean, really? A cake covered in gold? Is that really necessary? Is gold tasty? Its a fucking mineral. I thought it was just decoration too, but I think they actually eat the gold. WHY?! But yeah, this is why I have no respect for the wealthy. That sort of money can feed a small third world village for years, but rich people can just mosey over to a restaurant and throw it away on a fucking cake.

So to the wealthy, 1%....

Duodecim 012 Addiction

Sigh~ I really love this blog, even if it doesn't serve much of a purpose in my life and even if its not booming with comments or content. I just wish I had more time to work on it. As soon as school starts, you can pretty much forget about posts. Though, I'd like to report that...

I've been playing Dissidia 012 Duodecim, and its damn ADDICTIVE. I got this game a loong time ago, but for some reason I just never got around to playing it. Well, I randomly decided to start it up, and suddenly I found myself glued to my PSP for entire days, just playing this damn game.

It's not just the awesome, fast-paced action or the super fan-service selection of characters. Duodecim maintains that RPG element from Final Fantasy, so there's a lot of leveling up, mastering a HUGE list of battle skills, and farming for items so you can craft the best equipment. I literally spent hours just trying to get the rare components you need to get each character's ultimate weapon.

There's so much to spend your time on, and the story mode is long as hell too. I've pretty much decked out Tifa, Yuna, Lightning, and Cloud with mastered everything at Lv.100. That's how much I've been playing. It has much more content than the first game, and the new characters are great, so just pick up and play this game. If you're a Final Fantasy fan, it would be a crime not to play it.

Aiiiiiir~

Yes, I haven't updated in weeks. My average pageviews have definitely taken a huge dip. As usual, real life is taking a toll on my blogging. School work, demanding girlfriend and what not. Anyway, I've decided to post because I've fallen in love. Not with a person, but with MATERIAL (the best thing in the world).

Every now and then, I'll have a thing that I want more than anything in the world, and I focus everything in my life towards that thing so I can get it. A few years back it was the PS3, and I got that little bastard. But now, its something several times more expensive. Ready....its the MACBOOK AIR.

Now before you barrage me with insults, let me tell you that I don't know anyone who hated on Mac's as much as mwah. But this little machine is just too sleak to ignore. My laptop is really old (pushing 4 years), and it's getting to that time where I have to start looking for a replacement. As a traveling college student, I need something I can carry around campus, back home, and to class everyday. So obviously, I've been looking into this new line of "ultra portables". Unfortunately, there really aren't that many choices out there at this time.

As much as I hate the Mac OS, there really isn't anything that comes close to the Macbook Air in terms of power, speed, and sexiness. I have taken notice of the Samsung Series 9, but its very expensive and still doesn't quite beat the Air. So yeah, time to start pushing all of my finances towards affording this monstrous Apple product.

Steve Jobs Was a Great Man, Not God

The biggest news as of late is obviously the death of Steve Jobs. Now, I respected this man greatly and acknowledge all of the incredible contributions he's made to society. However, it scares me to see where people seem to place their values. Society worshiped this man for giving them iPhone's and Macbooks, and yet no one seems to even think about the scientists, doctors, mathematicians, engineers, and artists that have been contributing to society and dying for centuries.

I understand that it's perfectly understandable for the current generation to know only about Steve Jobs; the Apple brand almost defines the times. But that's exactly what's wrong here. What was the front page news, the top head line, the most popular google search, the most repeated tweet and Facebook status, and the latest internet meme in the past 3 days. It's like Steve was our God. I remember former presidents dying in the past few years, and that news never lasted more than a few hours.

I'm not breaking new ground here; everyone already knows that we worship celebrities and place our values on meaningless things. I guess it just took this death to realize just how far it has ingrained itself in our culture.

[PS3] All Future Online will Require PSN Pass

Sony recently confirmed that Uncharted 3 will require an online pass for multiplayer, and now it seems that this will be the case for ALL future releases with online play. Basically, games with online multiplayer with come with PSN codes, kind of like CD-keys for PC games. Read the source article here: http://www.gamesradar.com/sony-confirms-all-future-online-games-will-utilize-psn-passes/

I'm not really sure how I should feel about this. I mean, in general, it sucks. We're going to have to type in 12 digit codes every time we get a new game, but we'll only have to do it once so it's really no big deal. However, it's going to be near impossible to lend people games and expect them to enjoy online. Also, if you buy the game used, you'll have to pay a small fee to get a new code.

It is a bit of a let-down, but then again, I rarely ever play online multiplayer, and I always get my games new, so it won't bother me as much. The gaming community is obviously riled up, but that's to be expected when something changes I guess. The point of this is to encourage people to buy games new, but honestly, if games weren't so bloody expensive more people would be buying them new. I don't ever buy used games, but I rarely buy them when they just come out either. I mean come on, $60 for a 12 hour experience? I've spent less money on dinner and a movie.