I Just Want to Be Noticed!

How is it that in the time since I last posted, I've completed the likes of Psychonauts, Bastion, and Professor Layton and the Curious Village, with nary a post discussing them? Three excellent, very diverse games, these: play them when you can.

Recently I was published in MediaPost's Gaming Insider for pointing out a dirty secret of pop entertainment: every story we love convinces us we're special, if only someone would notice. That point is augmented for the brands-and-advertising crowd with some follow ups for how content creators can use that truth to manipulate us all for their own dark purposes.

Is it true? Do we really play games because we're all narcissists? Am I ignoring the very real possibility that I'm the only one who thinks like this? Let me know with a comment - it's the only way I know that anybody notices me, after all, and that makes me feel special.

Now Playing:

Rayman Origins (Xbox 360)

Breath of Fire II (Game Boy Advance)

What's on the 21st Century Tube

Disclaimer: The title of this post contains an anachronism. You've been warned!

In April I said I wanted to play more games. My last game purchase was Portal 2 (a great investment), but I told myself I wasn't allowed to spend another penny on games until I had completed that game and at least nine others to some level of satisfaction. This gave me a goal, some pressure to play quickly, and would theoretically help me tick a few boxes off on my long list of "games to play."


Well, it turns out that I have great timing! Two weeks ago I moved into Queens (bye bye, Jersey, though my heart belongs to you). When my father learned that Lori and I were saving money by not signing up for a cable TV bill, he reminisced about the days before cable TV and said, "Wow, so you're living in the 70's, huh?" I pointed to the piles and piles of games and DVDs, and though the irony was apparent, I had to drive it home:

"No, dad, this is the 21st century - I pay for my internet bill and Netflix, and I have my games. I don't need cable!"

But really, what's been my go-to source of entertainment after work, now that I don't have 100 channels of 24-hour entertainment? Games, of course! Games that might have previously seemed like too large a time investment this late at night, or too alienating for the other people in the room - now, games are my nightly pastime, and that just feels right.

The move also means I'm closer to work, which means a shorter commute (bye bye, bus! I never really loved you!), which means my gaming balance has shifted from being all mobile games on my DS, to weigh much more heavily on couch-gaming on my Wii. Change is good!

Now that I'm more than halfway through, I'm afraid what happens at 10! Most likely I slip right back into my old habits of compulsively picking up cheap used games at a faster rate than I can play them - but maybe, just maybe, I'll be playing a little more often than before. We'll see!

6/10 games complete.
4 games to go before I can buy games again.

Play More Games

I was this close to starting a new Final Fantasy VII file the other day! Thiiiiiis close. Why? Because of this excellent series of open letters between gaming bloggers Leigh Alexander and Kirk Hamilton, chronicling the former's obsession with the game and the latter's recent introduction to it. I defy anyone to read and not let nostalgia get the better of them.

That being said, I have "a thing" about replaying single-player narrative games. Since I fancy myself a connoisseur (full disclosure: spellcheck helped me out on that word) of the interactive arts, I have it in my head that I need to be constantly broadening my pallet, so to speak. Of course there's nothing wrong with replaying games, and in fact games in their purest form are meant to be re-played. Still, I think there's something to be said for trying new things.

In the last two years I have taken to buying used games at a rate that far exceeds my capacity to play them. I'm not really averse to playing decade-old games for the first time (this year I've played and finished Metal Gear Solid 2, Chrono Trigger, and Metroid Zero Mission, amongst others), so after my recent purchase of Portal 2 I set a temporary rule for myself:

I'm not allowed to buy another game until I beat ten games that I own but haven't beaten before.

I'm willing to be flexible, of course, since some games don't focus on their "completed state" (i.e. Rock Band 3) and others perhaps have unrealistic goals for theirs (i.e. Pokemon Black). That being said, I need some help sorting through the stockpile of games I've amassed. That's where you come in! Help me choose games! See anything that sets off a wave of nostalgia? Want to play through any of these alongside me? Let me know!

In no particular order, the list of games I own that I should probably play:

Left 4 Dead 2
StarCraft
Braid
Machinarium (pictured)
StarFox: Command
Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift
Gish
Aurora

Magicka
Monday Night Combat (pictured)
Cortex Command
Osmos
World of Goo
Penumbra
Aquaria
Lugaru

Ben There, Dan That!
Time, Gentlemen, Please!
Revenge of the Titans
Rayman (pictured)
Chrono Cross
Elder Scrolls - Daggerfall
Nier
Okami

Monte Python and the Holy Grail
The Darkness
Deus Ex
Eternal Darkness (pictured)
Dragon Quest VII: Journey of the Cursed King
Shadow of the Colossus
Link's Crossbow Training
Psychonauts

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
Skies of Arcadia Legends
Rayman 2: The Great Escape
Banjo-Tooie
Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
Red Dead Redemption (pictured)
Rock Band 3
Borderlands

NBA Jam
Starfox
Baten Kaitos
XIII
Viewtiful Joe (pictured)
Lost Odyssey
Super Mario Galaxy 2
Fallout 3

Lego Indiana Jones
Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen
Retro Game Challenge (pictured)
Breath of Fire II
Zack and Wiki: The Quest for Barbaros' Treasure
Tales of Symphonia
Golden Sun: The Lost Age
The Legend of Zelda
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
Sonic & Knuckles

I completed Portal 2's single-player campaign (excellent! great fun) and I'm looking forward to the rest of the co-op. That will be game one of ten!