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Great Art in Games in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Monday, January 30 2006 13:10 Profile #25
quote:
Originally written by SupaNik:

Did anybody play Silent Hill on PlayStation? That was awesome... especially the FMV in the hospital as...
Actually, one of my most favorite artsy moments in a game ever also is from Silent Hill in the hospital, but rather than SupaNik's scene, it would be when, after going up the elevator floor-by-floor to the top (third) floor, you return to the elevator to find a "4" button that wasn't there before... :D It's amazing how small touches like that can add so much to a game (as well as a spine-tingle).

For purposes of all-round great artistic design, I would put forward the Fallout series (for obvious reasons), and would also mention Eternal Darkness for the Gamecube. The Cthulu-esque theme was very well done, and I can still hear the voices of the entities reciting the names of the runes for spells.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Pied Piper Project 3: Revenge of the Boards in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Tuesday, January 10 2006 04:59 Profile #10
quote:
Originally written by The Piper of Hamlin:

"This topic comprises..."
Kudos on using "comprises" correctly! About 0.005% of the population of the U.S. appears to be able to do so. :)
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Favorite and Most Hated Music To Play in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Wednesday, December 28 2005 18:44 Profile #17
Or tin whistles, if you're from Ireland.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Longest Word in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Tuesday, December 20 2005 04:51 Profile #26
Glenelg in South Australia is a really nice place to visit, though definitely not for surfing.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
chiptruth: kudos for game informer raves in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Sunday, December 18 2005 14:11 Profile #2
IMAGE(http://www.wholesalewarehousesupply.com/images/240/XMAS4370.JPG)
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
The Worst Game Ever in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Monday, December 12 2005 18:25 Profile #19
Pools of Radiance: The Ruins of Myth Drannor sucked, and sucked hard.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Christmas Music in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Sunday, December 11 2005 16:58 Profile #17
Handel's Messiah.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Harry Potter 4 in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Tuesday, December 6 2005 13:42 Profile #31
Oh come on, Ash - surely you remember what it was like being a 14 year old? Hormones and craziness everywhere! Can't blame Hermione for that - after all, there's Harry in the next book to consider... ;)
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Its that time of the year again in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Tuesday, December 6 2005 05:05 Profile #17
Bah, humbug.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Movie Trivia Challenge: ROUND VI in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Saturday, December 3 2005 14:36 Profile #9
(Wasn't Zoso the city of thieves in Final Fantasy VI? - Sorry for interrupting.)
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Presto Change-o Disappear-o in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Friday, December 2 2005 06:07 Profile #13
Some schools have five-year reunions. Mine didn't, and I'm glad for it, as I now have time to finish law school and get an impressive-sounding job to rub in everyone's faces at the ten-year reunion, which is really what it's all about. Man, I hated high school. Of course, the people who aren't successful likely won't show up, but there you go.

My five-year undergrad reunion, on the other hand, was a blast.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
illogic boards in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Thursday, December 1 2005 14:34 Profile #0
So, it would appear that the logic board is yet again fried on my iBook, though I had it replaced under Apple's replacement program last year, which I qualified for. Has anyone else had the same experience? Considering that the program has officially expired, do you think they might still be willing to replace it for free, given that it's the same problem? $1400 items should last longer than three years. Grrr!
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Numbers in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Thursday, December 1 2005 05:14 Profile #7
Gadzooks! Truly an accomplishment worthy of a topic, if e'er there were. A bunny with a pancake for you!

IMAGE(http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/m/a/maw349/bunny_pancake.jpg)

[ Thursday, December 01, 2005 05:15: Message edited by: Drew ]
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Harry Potter 4 in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Monday, November 21 2005 14:16 Profile #15
I thought it was much better than the previous three. I'm looking forward to seeing it again over Thanksgiving. :)
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Kiwis ban virtual drugs in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Thursday, November 10 2005 06:00 Profile #70
Hey, cheapness is good and responsible - and far better than going into debt. Just be sure that you at least have you savings in an actual savings account or similar interest-earning device - there's no sense in letting inflation devalue your savings!
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Kiwis ban virtual drugs in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Tuesday, November 8 2005 15:50 Profile #44
TM, industry responds to societal tastes and demands. Brittany Spears is popular, and so we have Jessica and Ashley Simpson. "Survivor" is popular, so we have "Dog Eat Dog." Sure, there is some degree of industry saying "hey, look here, this is cool so you should like it," but nine times out of ten, their ideas fall flat on their faces - see Ashley Simpson. Industry just bombards us with so many products that it seems they have a stranglehold on our imaginations.

Despair at the times and the morals all you want, but you can only waive the victim flag so much - ultimately, it's your responsibility to turn off the television, not purchase that game, etc.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Aussies Come Here in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Tuesday, November 8 2005 14:23 Profile #6
... or have gone waltzing Matilda.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Kiwis ban virtual drugs in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Tuesday, November 8 2005 14:21 Profile #41
quote:
Originally written by Ash Lael:

Drew - you missed my point. I was seeking to demonstrate that the slippery slope argument was useless. Just as legalizing homosexual marriage isn't going to lead to lawful paedophilia, banning maybe 2 games a year isn't going to lead to the return of the Dark Ages.
It isn't useless, though. It's used in law all the time to prevent bad precedent from taking effect. You give censorship-minded people an inch, and they'll take a yard. You are obviously one such person that would want more censorship applied than just a couple games a year. You'd probably like to see porn banned, right? How about violent movies? And that painting in the National Art Gallery featuring the nude woman sure doesn't seem like art to you...

With regard to Walmart, it has a right to do what it wants. If it increases its bottom line by promoting the fact that it won't sell rated-M games, it should, as it has every right to do so. It's a great example of industry self-regulation - no government intervention necessary.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Kiwis ban virtual drugs in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Monday, November 7 2005 16:00 Profile #31
At the outset, I would point out that none of your examples have anything to do with a freedom of expression, which is what's being discussed. My Dark Ages reference is valid - the church imposed its strict morality on Western Europe, and I would argue that this act stymied cultural development for centuries. There's a reason the eras following were called "The Rebirth" and "The Enlightenment," after all.

quote:
Originally written by Ash Lael:

Yep, and allowing Gay marriage is a slippery slope to allowing adults to marry children.
No. The age of consent, certainly regulated in some way by each of the fifty states here and (I assume) in Australia, would intercede.

quote:
And banning heroin is unthinkable, because just think back to the horrible days of Prohibition.
There aren't compelling reasons to keep alcohol legal, frankly - the opportunity for people under the influence of alcohol to negatively effect others is very high. Chalk it up to the industries' lobbies.

quote:
And environmental laws are clearly going to lead to shooting people to cut down on methane emissions!
Now that's just silly.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Kiwis ban virtual drugs in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Monday, November 7 2005 14:47 Profile #29
It is a slippery slope, Ash. Consider the Dark Ages of Western Europe.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Name in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Monday, November 7 2005 14:31 Profile #19
Wife, mom, sister.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Ya wanna bet? in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Monday, November 7 2005 14:30 Profile #13
I ate a stick of butter on a bet for $5 once. No ill effects. :)
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Kiwis ban virtual drugs in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Thursday, November 3 2005 13:50 Profile #25
quote:
Originally written by Ash Lael:

A game that teaches kids to commit crimes is arguably causing harm maliciously and recklessly.
I forgot to include the word "deliberate" in my definition.

A game that's rated "M" for mature is not for children to play.

We're not just talking about children here, though - we're talking about responsible adults. My questions to you are (a) what harm do these games do, and (b) is there any legitimate proof that they do? I think that the answer to both is no. Barring maybe a couple exceptions, most of the consuming market recognizes that these games are fantasy and for entertainment purposes only.

Censorship is a slippery slope, Ash, and it doesn't take much before you're essentially living in North Korea or Utah. Where do you stop? Arguably, Avernum is worthy of censorship because its storyline includes defying authority, drug use, murder, and the occult. How do you feel about that?

[ Thursday, November 03, 2005 13:51: Message edited by: Drew ]
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Kiwis ban virtual drugs in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Thursday, November 3 2005 12:52 Profile #22
It isn't a matter of specific situations so much as intent, and in your example, as well as in the case of libel/defamation, false statements are used to cause harm maliciously and recklessly. This is not the case with art, however lurid.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00
Kiwis ban virtual drugs in General
Drew
By Committee
Member # 4233
 written Thursday, November 3 2005 04:49 Profile #19
Decency standards are restrictions, Ash. Any "standard" is.
Posts: 2242 | Registered: Saturday, April 10 2004 07:00

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