This awesome new documentary just found its way into my lap via GameSetWatch. Reformat the Planet is being streamed free at Pitchfork, this week only (just follow the blips). I suggest you take advantage of it, cause who knows when you might get another chance to see this. I highly recommend it.

I have a soft spot for chiptunes in my heart, and wish that I could do what these people are able to do. Alas, my electronica skillz are lacking, so I'll just stick to software synths and mix samples the cop-out way.

The corner of the blogosphere that I tend to frequent has seen some discussion directed at narrative in video games as of late. It seems to have started with the Narrative Manifesto written by Michael Abbott at The Brainy Gamer. What followed was an almost immediate response by Chris Lepine at The Artful Gamer, titled Narratives and Interactivity Still Misunderstood. This in turn prompted the additional response of Choose Your Own Lover, written by Denis at Vorpal Bunny Ranch. All of these posts have naturally also seen a great deal of commentary, and the discussion has continued from there.

In short, it seems that many people are excited about the fact that narrative in games is becoming more important to many people, and enough so that creators are trying to find better ways of developing it in their games. The comments on The Brainy Gamer's Narrative Manifesto suggest that the theories are being split into two camps: player generated narrative and author controlled narrative. The new developments in technology seem to be pushing us towards the former, with player generated narrative coming to the foreground as an exciting and promising new frontier as evidenced by some of the buzz around Far Cry 2. Meanwhile, it would appear that some are all too eager to abandon authorial control as an old methodology which has outlived its usefulness.

On the other hand, some are still maintaining that author controlled narrative has perhaps not been explored to its fullest and still has a good deal to offer the gaming community. I for one am finding myself in agreement with one of Michael Abbott's statements...

I know I'm sort of arguing for game design that doesn't fully realize the potential you describe, but when I'm in the hands of a truly great storyteller, I'm perfectly happy to let her drive the bus I'm on. (link)

What is perhaps a more resounding consensus than what type of narrative structure games should follow, is the fact that there are just so very few games to have created a truly compelling narrative to begin with. Whether they be player generated narratives, or author created, quality just seems to be lacking altogether. On one hand you have your free-form adventure games a-la The Elder Scrolls, while on the other hand you got your Wing Commanders or Resident Evils or what-not. Those are probably some of the better examples, to say nothing of lesser fare.



Whatever the case may be, there is one element of this interactivity and narrative marriage which I can't seem to get past. I'm thinking that there's trouble in paradise, and the honeymoon between these to is just starting to go sour. Like many couples, interactivity and narrative are not very often well matched, and I find myself disliking one or the other in many a game. Metaphors aside, what gets to me is when I have a truly good story in a game and it's delivery is incongruous with the game's interactive aspects. This seems to be very much in line with Jonathan Blow's thinking, referencing Half Life 2 in particular, where "the gameplay is well designed, and so is the fiction, but '...they fit together disingenuously,'" (link).



That's just Half Life 2 though, and that's also Blow's position. So lets look at some other examples that I'm more familiar with. One of the best linear gameplay, authorially generated narratives out there, as far as I'm concerned, is the Wing Commander series. The best stories happen in parts II, III, and IV. Good stuff. It's presented to you in the old FMV flavor of cutscenes between missions, though some exceptions occur. The straight up cutscene/action dynamic is punctuated with old-school adventure-game-style clicking interaction in a largely static environment. That helps, but what doesn't help is the action. The story in these games is fairly well written, the characters are dynamic with a good bit of depth, and yet you are continually taken away from the story by silly little space dogfights! Don't get me wrong, I miss the old space opera shooters of yore, and think the genre should come back, but the action and the story just aren't good bedfellows.

I might even say that the story is too good for the game, because it makes me want more story and less space combat. Hence the whole incongruity notion. Many games that fall into the linear, author controlled narrative camp of the past tend to have this problem where I like the story and I really just want more of that. The gameplay becomes an obstacle to this, and at some point (usually towards the end) I begin to care nothing for the annoyingly difficult challenge of defeating the last bad guy. The end-game is always the hardest. Consequently it also tends to be the most annoying as a result, because game balance tends to go out the window. It has to be really hard, otherwise it would not be an "end boss." So what do I do in this case? Well, sometimes I just bite the bullet and try and try again and finally beat the sucker. Sometimes, I loose all interest in a game and just stop playing it completely (how many RPGs have I abandoned just before the end?). But sometimes, if the story is really good like it's supposed to be, I'll just cheat. I mean, to hell with it. I've suffered through the whole game, and now right when I'm about to see that fabulous ending I get stuck with this irrelevantly difficult obstacle. Get me a cheat code and I won't think twice about it.



On the other hand, when you get me on a game like Diablo 2, Gothic, or Morrwind, it's really something else. Those games are certainly on the side of player generated narrative in my book. For those familiar with them, let's just be honest here and admit that when it comes to story, well there just isn't much of it there. Maybe with the exception of Gothic. That doesn't seem to bother many of us. Reasons for which are quite simple: the gameplay is good enough to stand on its own. In fact, the mechanics are so well designed that they are enough to get us hooked. I played Diablo 2 for several years, and Morrowind for about two. Gothic for a bit shorter, but between Gothic 1 and 2 I have many hours invested there as well. The fact that you can just do as you please, taken to the extreme in Morrowind, is what makes these games worth playing.

However, before I get further into this, I'd like to make the important distinction between the above single player games (not counting multiplayer in Diablo 2), and similar renditions of the MMORPG variety. I have come to the realization that the presence of countless other players in a vast free-form world makes the game loose its charm for me. The magic is gone. It's gone because I'm no longer special. In all of my narcissism or egoism or whatever you might think it to be, I prefer to be the only (or at least one of very few) players in the game world. Being the only one in Morrowind makes me feel important, because it's like nobody else has been in this world before me, and I am discovering it for the first time. Nevermind how many people have played the game, the fact is that this save game file belongs to me and as such remains unique. That is an issue in itself, and I won't digress further into it here, but I did want to make it clear that I am talking about single player experiences.

Now we know where we are, in a vast, open, and free-form game world, and we are the only player there. That is when it becomes all about the gameplay experience. The combat, the action, the loot hording, and obsessive leveling, and so on and so forth. The playing experience becomes its own reward, while story becomes secondary. Or at least the pre-generated story of the game. The multitude of possibilities in such a game world allows the player to generate their own stories. We can recount them on our blogs, and to our friends.

You won't believe what happened when I made this new weapon today. Okay, so I searched all over for this giant Deadric two-handed sword, and imbued it with both fire and ice magic, right? Now whenever you use the sword on somebody it does like 100 points of fire and 100 points of ice damage simultaneously! It's so crazy, I just had to call it 'The Hell-freezer!'

That right there is narrative. Maybe not great narrative, depending on your disposition, but it counts. Alright, so it is just a silly little example (though I did actually do that). The point is that we generate our own narratives in such open-ended game worlds. We create our own quests even, and try to complete them. This is where I must applaud games which have no pretense of providing a story, and just focus on intense and solid core gameplay. These are few, but Universal Combat comes to mind. That was some of the most intense player generated narrative. Just try to learn and fly a ship in that game, I dare you.

Thus far I have given some of what I consider to be prime example of either end of the spectrum. There are many games which do well in one department or the other. There are some very strong story driven games, but often times the gameplay can get in the way of enjoying those stories. There are also many good gameplay driven games, some of which provide you with a world where you can create your own stories easily and have fun doing it. Of course there are an endless barrage of gameplay driven games where there is little or no story, and the mechanics themselves aren't very compelling either, but that's something else entirely. The question now, however, seems to be whether it is possible to reconcile this broken marriage between narrative and interactivity. My answer is a resounding yes, and I know just the game that did it right.



It's probably not what you might expect, but here it is: Indigo Prophecy (aka Fahrenheit). I can already hear the scoffing on the other side of the screen. Still, I think it's true. Out of all the games that I wracked my brain for, I can only think of this one where I am convinced that the balance was struck almost perfectly. I say almost, because I know the game is not without its flaws. Indigo Prophecy had some issues towards the end, but there was almost no part where I felt inconvenienced or irritated at the mechanics for keeping me from the narrative. Somehow, the narrative was woven so well into the gameplay that it worked really well. Admittedly, there is still cutscene/action structure in the game, yet it feels much more fluid than that same structural convention in many other titles. Still other sections of Indigo Prophecy present you with cutscenes and player interaction simultaneously, and that I belive is where the game is most successful.

The presentation choice of juxtaposing alternate perspectives and events with the player's gameplay and reality serve to create an atmosphere that feels vibrant and important. It may be true that Indigo Prophecy is largely an author created narrative, but when it's done so effectively I too don't mind. Not to mention that it may present us with a technique from which other games can learn and benefit to strengthen their narrative elements.

Bringing this already lengthy post to a close, I certainly consider myself optimistic of what is to come in the future of the gaming industry. I too believe that there is room for both types of games, and even some games that try to bridge the gap by giving us a little of both types of narrative. I have no doubt that it can be done, and I will not profess to forgo one experience in lieu of the other. I would get terribly tired of games if I only had one type of them. Sometimes I like to play games created with an authors iron grip on the story that really gets us emotionally involved. At other times, I just want to kick back and have the freedom to do whatever I like in a game. Something also tells me that most gamers out there feel this way too, and aren't obsesses with a singular type of experience. As long as that's the case, and I don't foresee a time when it won't be, there will always be room for variety in the market. Or, let us at least hope so.

At last I managed to get my hands on a copy of Scrapland. And cheap too, what with it having been out for a few years an all. More likely than not, there will be very few people out there who even know this game at all. So let me enlighten you, if ever so slightly.

Scrapland is the second game to be produced by Amerian McGee. His debut title American McGee's Alice got a lot of people's attention. It was an excellent game, which put a different twist on the classic fairytale, and targeted an older audience. Besides, who wouldn't want to run around as a goth rendition of Alice with a giant butcher knife hacking up card soldiers. The voice acting in Alice gave the game that final polish, where the Cheshire Cat's emaciated look was completed by a low and devious rumbling voice. In all, it was a fresh and unique game.

That's all well and good, but we're here to talk about Scrapland. After Alice, the designer in question put out another title under the name of American McGee's Scrapland. Like Clive Barker, McGee seems determined to forever plaster his name into every title he produces, for better or worse. My expectations were fairly high after the success of Alice, and I was looking forward to a scifi themed game from this creator. Here's what the official Scrapland website promises in this title:

SCRAPLAND is a third person action-adventure game set in a stunningly beautiful and futuristic world occupied by an amazing array of robotic characters. The play experience is driven by a solidly engaging, sometimes humorous adventure narrative. The game mechanic combines proven GTA3 style emergent action with an immersive storyline, diversity of player actions, and complete freedom of movement through the world. Throughout the game the player can: transform into any of 15 character types inheriting unique abilities, build and pilot ships with hundreds of permutations, engage in explosive combat, participate in life-on-the-line races, and freely explore a truly dynamic and living world.

Wow! That sounds incredible doesn't it? I mean, with this paragraph I'm visualizing a whole Gothic/Morrowind/GTA style game, but in a scifi setting and with nothing but robots! Seriously, who wouldn't want to play something like that.

At this point you've probably noticed the slight tinge of sarcasm in my words, and I confess it's true. It would be rather difficult to deliver on what that paragraph promises. Perhaps not overly so if you're Bethesda, or Piranha Bytes, or even Rockstar for the sake of consistency. The thing is, that Alice was developed by Rogue Software which was in large part an offspring of ID Software. That's some good game making muscle there, yet Scrapland's development was apparently handled by Enlight. That company created one other McGee game thus far, Bad Day L.A., which has a terrible IGN rating of 2.7.



All of which adds up to the high possibility that Scrapland is just an awful game, doesn't it? Well, that's not entirely it either. It's just that it promises one thing, and delivers another. That's really the issue here. It made me think that it had this awesome free-roaming and expansive, not to mention immersing, world that I could have a lot of fun in. Then it only gave me parts of that, and not even in the way that I expected. That is perhaps the real crux of the matter: my expectations. As I noted above, I was basically thinking I'd get Gothic but with robots. I doubted I would find the grand scale of Morrowind in this, which is why I figured a more tightly knit experience like those of the Gothic series might be comparable.

What the game is really about though, is more honestly depicted on the back cover of the jewel case the game comes in: "Diverse game world. Combat and racing. Dynamic characters. Multiplayer Intensity." I really don't know about the dynamic characters part, but the rest is pretty much on. In fact, the greater emphasis in this game is on the action, or the "combat and racing" part. So much so, that it becomes incredibly repetitive, where you keep on having to complete virtually the same objectives over and over again. The whole game, you run around shooting at enemies, killing robots in a handful of different ways, and racing and acquiring ship plans. Every mission is just "get me these plans," or "kill this robot," or "beat this robot in a race." That's pretty much all there is to Scrapland.

Okay, maybe not all there is to Scrapland, just most of what there is. The good parts are that there is a big world, and you do get a wide variety of robots to change into. Those things would have been fun, if there there was a greater need for them. The size of the world serves very little purpose, other than providing you with an arena for combat. Unlike other free-form adventure games mentioned above, there is very little that exploration of Scrapland's world gets you. There seems to be nothing of sidequests and choose-your-own-adventure in this game. It's about as linear as you can get, which brings me to reiterate how unnecessary the this pretense of a large "diverse" game world is.

Still, the one thing that truly shines in this game is visual design. Environmental and character design in this game is beautiful, clever, and even verges on brilliant at times. This element might be what really hooked me on Scrapland's promise initially. With a main character named "D-Tritus," I was expecting cleverness by the bucket loads. Another brilliant bit of design is the Temple area. Floors in the Temple do not exist, which might make you think that you'll just fall through when you step into the emptiness, yet as soon as you move forward, transparent tiles appear below your characters feet. How appropriate for the Temple, where you must walk forward based on faith!



The story itself, which is really what would hold all of the good elements of the game together, and make up for the bad ones, certainly deserves a closer look. The hook is its film noir style murder mystery plot. The fumble is its repetitive and very un-dynamic character development. To be quite frank, I was profoundly disinterested in the characters and their plight. The reason which I believe is the cause of all this, is that you simply don't get to interact with the characters enough to learn more about them. It's all about "the mission at hand" interaction, and no further development which might give these characters any semblance of depth.

As I look back at this post, I realize to my disappointment that it has turned into somewhat of a rant. I apologize for that. Nevertheless, maybe this is a testament to just how much I cared about this game. I wanted it to be so much more, and it could have been. Had the focus been taken more into character development, more into the motivations of these characters, things could have turned out quite differently. Some side quests could have been beneficial, very much so in fact. Having to acquire the ability to turn into specific robots could have been tied in very nicely into mission objectives, as opposed to giving access to all robots right of the bat. More diversity, and less combat and repetition, and this game could have been truly great.

Ultimately, I think that people with a greater penchant for action might enjoy this title more than I did. I suppose it's more my fault for wanting depth from what turned out to be an action oriented game. Even so, the action just got old. I think it's bound to, and when it does there isn't much of a narrative to fall back on. Even if the game looks very good, the names awfully clever, and the environmental design is quite brilliant and sometimes a little tongue-in-cheek, it still isn't enough if the story doesn't hold it together. Who knows, maybe American McGee's Grimm will bring back the quality we saw in Alice.

I am happy to announce that I will be participating in an art exhibition in September. It's a group show, and will take place at the Wilmington Art & Event Gallery, in downtown Wilmington. The show will be up from September 4 to November 28. That's a nice three month run, so it should be good.

You can join us for an opening reception there on Thursday, September 4, from 6 - 9 pm. The gallery is located at 18 South Front St. #4, in downtown Wilmington. Just in case, here's a map link. A possible closing reception may be scheduled as well. I'll post that information if and when it becomes available.

As of this time, I don't know what other artists will be participating in the show, but I think it's going to be a good mix. A couple other artists from the area that I know may be a part of this, but since that information hasn't been confirmed I can't really mention any names yet.

This just hit me. Really it did. Found via Vorpal Bunny Ranch. Thank you Denis for posting this. This is Amanda Palmer performing the poignant Guitar Hero single. Lyrics via Song Meanings.

I can't get them up at all
Hey ho let's go

Good morning killer king you're a star
That's gorgeous hold it right where you are
The weather's kinda lousy today
So what oh what oh what'll we play

Stratocaster strapped to your back
Its a semiautomatic like dad's
He taught you how to pause and reset
And thats about as far as you get

So whats the use of going outside
Its so depressing when people die in real life
I'd rather pick up right where we left
Makin' out to faces of death

And i could save you baby
But it isnt worth my time
And i could make you chase me
For a little price is right

It's a hit but are you actually sure
The targets in the crowd are a blur
The people screaming just like they should
But you don't even know if you're good

So tie them up and feed them the sand (ha! nigga!)
Try to tell us using your hands
A picture's worth a million words
And that way nobody gets hurt

And i could save you baby
But it isnt worth my time
And i could make you chase me
For a little price is right

You're my guitar hero

X marks the box
In the hole in the ground
That goes off at a breath
So careful don't make a sound

X marks the box
In the hole in your head
That you dug for yourself
Now lie in it

Shut up about all of that negative shit
You wanted to make it and now that you're in
You're obviously not gonna die
So why not take your chances and try

How are you going to turn this thing off
This isn't at all like the ones back at home
You shut your eyes and flip the cassette
And that's about the time that they hit

What the fuck is up with this shit
It's certainly not worth getting upset
His hands are gone and most of his head
And just when he was getting so good

I could save you baby
But it isn't worth my time
And even if I saved you
There's a million more in line

You're my guitar hero

A long time ago there was this post, on some site which I can't find anymore, about good female game characters. This started a bit of a discussion between some of us, most notably myself and Nick, about how the list was just cursory at best. So we had the brilliant idea of making a real list of good video game characters.

We wanted to show examples of what we thought were positive characters. By "positive" I think we meant multi-dimensional, dynamic, and non-stereotypical. And by "I think" I mean that we ourselves weren't too clear on what that meant exactly. What we did know, however, was that the girls from DOA: Xtreme Beach Volleyball would not be on that list.

This quest was further fueled by an experience Nick had at work, which made him think about "why [there are] so few genuinely interesting female characters in games.” Months later he finally posted an actual list of his picks, but at that point I think the enthusiasm had waned. Even though I tried to corral our other friends to get me their choices, such as Sarah, Joe, and Matt, everyone was probably just too busy. So basically it never really happened. Now all of their blogs are deserted wastelands.

I don't know why exactly I thought I'd finally finish this, save for my own sense of closure. Or maybe because of the upcoming GameFaqs character battle which got me thinking about this. For whatever it's worth, I still think those friends' opinions important enough to post them here I guess. Such as they are, these are the characters that we all picked, in no particular order.



My Picks: Yuna (FFX, X-2), Terra Branford (FFVI), Freya Crescent (FFIX), Quistis Trepe (FFVIII), Dr. Janice Polito (System Shock 2), Yuko Takao (SMT: Nocturne), Maya (Septerra Core), Amaterasu (Okami), Orta (Panzer Dragoon Orta), Xianghua (Soul Calibur).



Nikki's Picks: Yuna (FFX, X-2), Xelha (Baten Kaitos), Elena (Grandia II), Mist (Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance), Empress Sanaki (Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance).



Misty's Picks: Samus Aran (Metroid), Yuna (FFX, X-2).



Joe's Picks: Samus Aran (Metroid), Lara Croft (Tomb Raider), Jade (Beyond Good and Evil), Amaterasu (Okami).



Nick's Picks: Sonia (Dragon Blaze), Fumiko Odette Van Stein (Castle Shikigami), Marie Delacroix (System Shock 2), Silmeria (Valkyrie Profile 2), Alicia (Valkyrie Profile 2).



Matt's Picks: Meryl Silverburgh (Metal Gear Solid), Sheik (Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time), Tetra (Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker), Midna (Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess).



Out of all of these characters, the one to have come up the most seems to be Yuna. She's a strong, yet sensitive character who always tries to do what is good. Beyond that, she's one of the most likable female game characters out there, and is well developed to give you a real sense of her dynamic personality.

And there you have it. It's nice to think about these again actually, though it's too bad we didn't spend more time on this project, and provide reasoning behind our choices. Oh well. At least I put up links, and most of those have all of that info. Gotta love Wikipedia. That's all folks!

Every once in a while my thoughts drift back to my experiences at Odiyan. And every once in a while I check up on what's going on with it, and it's affiliated organizations, online. One bit of news is that www.odiyan.org has been redesigned and now reflects current information. That's a big plus, and something that was probably overdue.

I also browsed through the Nyingma Institute website, and the Tibetan Aid Project website. The latter has a wonderful video linked on it, which is available on Google Videos (higher quality) as well as Youtube. I recommend you watch it (above) if you have time. It explains the mission of the Nyingma organizations very well, and made me remember the purposeful sentiments I felt while working with them.



On July 24, I received a lengthy email with the official announcement that "Cintamani is done!" At last, the project which is contributed to has been completed. Cintamani temple is the largest temple at Odiyan, and the primary project which I worked on. From what I understand, it's also the largest Buddhist temple in America, and possibly the entire West (though I'm less confident in making that claim).

Someday I intend on seeing this completed project with my own eyes. Someday when I return to California...

I don't quite remember how I found Moon Kana. I think it was her Myspace profile I stumbled upon, but that is all I can recall. Either way, it's another testament to the Japanese peoples' infinite capacity for all things cute.

Moon Kana's taken the cute persona probably about as far as I can imagine. Though, having said that, I'm guessing that there's cuter still in Japanland. So there you go. Watch the video if you can stand it...