I recently had the experience of trying GameTap. It's a pretty easy thing to try as they give you three days of mostly hastle-free trial. On the surface, the site is slick, the interface is intuitive and "sexy" and it looks very promising. Free trial? Why not! You just have to make sure you put it through its paces before your three days are up. And like the aforementioned song, it's supposed to be an orgy of gaming...thousands of games to play with and the world is your playpen. And you have three days to tap as much of it as possible.

Well, that's mostly true, but here's the problem. It's an orgy with old people and some people that don't have the functioning body parts to actually partake. Sorry for the visual, but let's get down to the nuts of it.

I first tried to load up Myst, as it was a game I used to have on my Old Mac II back in the day, and there is no real way to get a version of it now. First, you actually wait as it downloads the entire game to your machine, and then when it's done, you can start playing. And of course it doesn't work. Not even close to working. Quicktime version 2.5 or some such doesn't exist anymore and there really is no way that it was going to fly. Thus, we have an integral body part missing...or is it broken?

Now, I could also play 'Asteroids' or 'Joust', but really, I could probably find freeware or even a Javascript implementation of either of those games on the internet for free...and just as good. Hell, I can probalby get those games on my phone for crying out loud. Old...old and not attractive really (and free).

Then there's the middle ground. The NES or SuperNES games. These have some nastalgic qualities to them...the good 'ol days. However the really "good ones" are invariably already in a "Collection" of sorts on your up-to-date console. And Live Arcade is going to quickly catch up and curtail any of your desire for that type of...er...Tail.

I'm not trying to "K" someone's "B" here...I'm sure there is a great big 'ol market for GameTap'ers, just not me...I've had too much experience with the "High Class" stuff, to feel good about going into a room full of old, dirty, whore-ish games.

Who am I to complain about a game play mechanic? I'm actually a huge card fan...I just have a hard time having them integrated into a world in which the suspension of disbelief was attempted, and then completely thrown out the door. Take for instance the aforementioned 'Metal Gear Solid Acid Snake Raiden', in which our gun-toting hero now throws around cards instead of his tech-9 or the casual snap of the neck. It's not a card game...

Now, there are other RPG or card-based games in which a card battling system may be appropos, but you have to admit that there are times where it's just a litte too wonky. Can you imagine a GTA in which our young hero opens a car door and throws down the "Get out Car with a +10 neck grab and twist" and all the poor driver can do is throw out the "fight back with kick in groin" card in which there are only 2 in a 100 card deck? That actually probably describes the basic game mechanics of that entire ordeal, but yet, I don't have to see it, or bother having my world view interrupted by floating playing cards.

That's all i'm saying...I respect the game theory and game play that cards bring to the table. It's a great tangible abstraction to the basic game rules being tossed about in bits and bytes in the game code...but I don't like it when it interferes with my emersion in the game world.

But card games in general? Love 'em. In fact, Vastish has introduced a card game to me many a year ago that I hunger to play again. In fact, I hunger to play a video game of it. Maybe even write one. But we won't have Ryu in it, nor will we have Tiger Woods...we may have a small Anime characters here and there...(and if we get the nintendo license...well....you get the idea)

It has been recently suggested that games in which the primary strategic element is based on card mechanics is, well, dumb. Now, to be clear, we're not talking about rummy, poker, or the king of all card games -- spades. No, rather this is about those brave quixotic little video game gems that dare to shirk convention by creatively adapting one of the oldest game systems known to man.

Some titles for you to ponder before we go on. Baten Kaitos a card-based RPG of some acclaim. Metal Gear Acid helped sell the world Sony PSPs as a launch title in March 2005. For me, this was the first game that broke through my out-of-hand dismissal of the admittedly silly sounding card based action game. But let me assure you it's not just me who appreciates the genius at work here, and perhaps it would help if you read the opinions of someone more respected in the industry. Be my guest. I'll wait.

What I find interesting about those who cannot tolerate these games because of the cards is that the card system is really just an arbitrary metaphor for how to interact with the game. Final Fantasy's collection of weapons, spells, and potions are just a collection of things that do things within the rules of the game. The manifestation of the these objects could have been anything. It just so happened that Square went with the most obvious choice at the time, owing largely to (in order) fantasy fiction, Dungeons and Dragons, and Dragon Quest I.

But cards are no less apt a choice. They are the ultimate expression of what should be the heart and soul of any good game -- luck and skill. Indeed the use of cards as a gameplay mechanic is the quintessential evolution of how far games themselves have evolved. Game design has matured to the point that it has begun to eat its own tail.

We find ourselves, then, back at the beginning. And this is not a bad thing. If hip-hop as taught us anything, it is that wonderful things can emerge when we remix old ideas. And if that wasn't too much of a stretch for you, then you should be getting very excited at the prospects of re-imagining the mechanics of play when Nintendo adds how you move into this heady mix.

-Vastish

Video game’s soul
Unquenchable endeavor
Realized pixels

Yes, I’m starting with a haiku. One of the greatest books ever written started with haikus, and while I don’t presume to think that this will be the greatest blog ever, it grounds me in my wherewithal to write to the general public.

But yes, I’m proud of my two word middle sentence.

I picked up Saint's Row the other day. I should start out by saying that I’m a fairly competent Grand Theft Auto (pick a version) player. Check that...I’m actually quite good. Now, you might ask what makes a good GTA player, and I’ll say one that can make the game play out like a movie. A movie in which our hero drives at break neck speeds and doesn't hit anything; kills with one shot; jumps out of flaming cars and uses them as weapons...and when I play GTA with my 'Rage Against The Machine' soundtrack in the background, it is INDEED like watching Jerry Bruckheimer orgasm’ing all over film.

So, you can imagine my excitement to try out a next-gen GTA wannabe. It would be a little too simple to say that Saint’s Row is a wannabe…it has a lot of improvements that I certainly see Rockstar making in the next installment of the GTA series. It’s also inaccurate to say that Saint’s Row is the next-gen GTA (as I’ve just done) because it’s focus seems more integrated with the “gang life” vs. GTA dealing with a living, breathing environment for you to reek havoc. All in all, I believe there is a place for both GTA and Saint’s Row on my shelf…neigh, the game boxes are actually touching at this moment as I just completed a run through of San Andreas on the 360, and the box was just sequestered under Saint’s Row. But this post is not a review, my point is that I like this kind of game, and I’m excited that I don’t have to play SA for the fourth time.

As a “post of introduction”, I do like other games. Action/Adventure such as the Zelda series, Ninja Gaiden, and God of War are among my favorites. I do like a good RPG…of the D&D rules variety, such as Neverwinter Nights, but I have had occasion to play the “action” RPG as well as some of the “deviant” ones such as Oblivion, which I loved. As for sports games, the only ones I enjoy are of the driving and golf variety. Not that either of them are a sport of course (but that’s another post), but PGR, Burnout and Tiger Woods are always good time killers. Last but not least, I do like the occasional FPS. That basically leaves out Real Time Strategy and “real” sports games. I also have a hard time with card based action games…what’s with that? Cards as weapons? Give me a break. I know I need to try it out as I’m a fan of any sort of game theory/strategy…but I can’t get into a game where I throw out cards to destroy my card wielding adversary.

In any event, It’s a pleasure to post here, and I’m hoping I can stay on top of it and post more than that Vastish Slurry character who seems to come out with something rather thought provoking each FRIGGIN QUARTER.

-Socratic Processor