Perfect Video Games

Tags

gamer, games, gaming, hardspace shipbreaker, list, listicle, lists, mega man x, mixolumia, perfect game, perfect games, splatoon, xexyz

Today’s post was inspired by a question tweeted out by Eric Bailey, a Christian gamer (though I suspect he’d prefer the former be put more far forward than the latter) and… I guess I can also call him an accidental satirist? Honestly, his Twitter content is equal parts wholesome and random. He should be in your social feed if he’s not already. And don’t let his faith scare you off: He’s actually one of the good guys.

Anyway, back to the post’s point. Bailey had tweeted out for examples of the perfect video game, citing Contra and Tetris as examples. This prompted one response out of me, but the more I think about it, the more I kind of pondered other video games that I would think fit the bill. Mostly because the question is so complex yet simple. It asks not about favorite game or favorite game story or favorite genre; it asks you to consider a video game condensed into its “purest” form. To consider gaming as perfect means it fits its function and executes its idea so flawlessly and so brilliantly that you don’t even have to think about it. At least, that’s my interpretation. So, I decided to write about it.

A Shortlist of Long-Term Gaming Goals

Tags

dauntless, elite, elite dangerous, elite dangerous odyssey, ffxiv, final fantasy xiv, gaming, gaming goal, gaming goals, goal, MMO, mmorpg, mmorpgs, multiplayer, multiplayer gaming, xiv

Yep, I’m pretty much ripping off other bloggers’ post ideas for today’s posting. In my defense, I don’t make this a regular feature on my blog, so I think that gives me a free pass. Also, like, it’s Blaugust 2021, y’all. Sometimes post ideas are hard to drudge up.

Whining notwithstanding, I actually am beginning to find that putting down some long-reaching gaming goals is pretty helpful for keeping motivated in multiplayer and MMO titles. So with that in mind, I felt that I should share a few of the things I’m reaching for in my favorite titles.

The 40 Year-Old Content Creation Virgin

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age, content creation, content creator, creative, creativity, gaming, holy shit i'm doing this, online gaming, random thoughts, stream, streaming, twitch, twitch stream

As I write this blog post I’m at the cusp of another livestream for Massively Overpowered. I promise that’s not a plug for the channel or for my stream (though perhaps it should be), but it’s basically a marker in the sand of where I’m at right now in my professional career as a writer for the site.

Let me provide a little context: MJ, the site’s primary livestreamer, suffered a pretty spectacular lightning strike at her house. Mercifully everyone is fine, but she’s been mostly knocked out of streaming, which she used to do every day. By comparison, I did streams for the site barely once a month, if that much, mostly because I wasn’t confident in a lot of things about my ability to be a streamer or a content creator. However, since the weather incident, I’ve done my part to keep the MOP Twitch channel alive by doing weekly streams every Sunday and Wednesday. And I’m having a lot of fun dong it.

All this despite the fact that I’m 40 years old. Which, at least in the grander scheme of Twitch things, is ancient.

The Silent Support of Awful, Awful People

Tags

games, games industry, gaming, gaming community, hogwarts legacy, industry, red dead redemption 2, social, society

Take Two Interactive’s boss bragged about working his devs to the bone in order for Red Dead Redemption 2 to make it to market. Ubisoft has been demonstrably shown to keep miserably sexist and racist people in its upper management. J.K. Rowling has pulled off her mask to unveil a transphobic goblin beneath.

In spite of all this, I absolutely bought RDR2 day one, am interested in Riders Republic, and am at least curious about Hogwarts Legacy. All of which come with the extraordinarily complex baggage that feeling this way means I stand alongside vile humans and their even more vile opinions and behaviors.

The Best Anticipated List of Video Game Awesomeness for 2018 and Forever (Until Next Time I Do This List Thing)

Tags

games, gaming, list, listicle, new games, new releases, upcoming games, upcoming releases, video games, videogames, videogaming

Okay, enough of the sad crap.

My previous blog posts have been kind of droll, with me saying goodbye to a loved MMO and before that having a bit of a whine about people not having fun.

So, in the interest of that whole spreading fun thing, I’m going to take a few moments to look forward to some of the awesome stuff that’s coming our way in video gaming. Because dammit, that totally deserves a moment of excited flapping.

This kind of flapping.

The Colors of Nexus

Tags

carbine studios, closure, games, gaming, MMO, mmorpg, shutdown, sunset, video games, wildstar

Of course I was going to write about this story. Even though I’ve seen the writing on the wall for this game a long time ago, it doesn’t make ultimately saying goodbye to WildStar not suck. Just suck a little bit less, as I’d made my peace with the matter a while ago.

Still, I’d be remiss if I didn’t provide a few final words regarding what was one of my favorite flawed MMO gaming experiences.

And this bright pink bastard in particular.

Welcome to Joy

Tags

chill games, community, fun, gamer, games, gaming, MMO, mmorpg, silliness, silly, silly games, video games, video gaming

As much as I like how “legitimate” video gaming things like esports are becoming, I’m often left reminding myself that legitimacy should always take a backseat to being fun. For every game that tries to be art or weave a genuinely complex story, I’d much rather there be about three times as many games that just have a good, goofy time.

It’s a lesson the Devil May Cry series seems to be taking to heart.

That sense of overwhelming fun has catapulted some games into high points on my mental list of favorites, and it’s something that I felt is worthy of elaborating on. Both as a self-reminder and perhaps a reminder to anyone reading this who might be taking this stuff a little too close to the vest.

On Jacksonville

Tags

community, competition, esport, esports, gaming, jacksonville, video games, video gaming

As I write this, it’s a little after 4am locally here. Blame the humidity or my own rumbling head for the poor timing on this post, then, but I had to get a few things off of my chest regarding the events at Jacksonville, Florida.

I love esports. I’m not one of the diehard sorts who roots for a specific org and there are some game genres that hold my interest more than others, but the overall field of esports from a spectator’s point of view is one of my favorite new things that has come out of the modern age of gaming. So to see something so horrible as a shooting come out of this new pastime has struck me more deeply than I thought it would.

The Acceptance of Not Understanding

Tags

battle royale, community, fortnite, fortnite battle royale, fortnite br, gaming, gaming community, multiplayer, multiplayer gaming, pubg, video games, videogames

So there’s this rap song made by this kid who is very, very clearly a fan of Fortnite Battle Royale. It crossed my Twitter feed a week or so ago and it took me just about as long to process, as this young boy was trying to turn his ability to play a shooter well into several bars’ worth of lyrics about their own superiority.

At first blush, it sounds a lot like 2018’s answer to the Numa Numa Dance. But after some introspection, I’ve concluded that the problem isn’t him, but me. Its reinforced something of a lesson about how some games or genres are beyond my comprehension and that’s okay.

Who knew this little dude would pack so many mental exercises into two-and-a-half minutes?

My Top 5 MMO Tank Classes

Tags

gaming, mhw, mhworld, MMO, mmo class, mmo classes, mmorpg, mmorpg class, mmorpg classes, monster hunter, monster hunter world, multiplayer, multiplayer gaming, tank, tank class, tanker, tanking

My past couple of posts this Blaugust have been Debbie Downer-y, so I decided to take my own advice and focus on making a little love wave. And this time I’m going to show some of that love to my all-time favorite class to play, the tank.

I actually wrote about tanking early on the last time I participated in Blaugust, so I suppose we’ll consider this something of a natural progression from that thought on why I love tanking; I’m going to take a moment to think about the best games that gave the best MMO class the best treatment.