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We like to believe that games in now way affect our behaviour, but I'll now admit that in some small ways they do.
I've been playing role playing games for twenty years or so (yeah, I know, I should get out more), and they now affect the way I think.
My kitten today learnt how to make a big jump from the computer chair to the bed without making the chair swivel and falling short of his mark. The phrase 'Hurrah, my cat just levelled up' popped into my head before I realised that I was thinking of my cat in terms of something that I controlled, as in a game character.
I suppose in a way we all 'level up' as we gain new skills and knowledge and edge our way through the years, but this was the first time I realised that the way I think can be affected by the games that I play.
Books can seriously affect the way people think, and their outlooks on life can be drastically changed. A picure paints a thousand words. A Dreamcast game can throw 60 pictures per second infront of your eyes. There is a HUGE potential to place messages in games for many people to see and be affected by, but not many examples where this potential has been used.
There are games out there that try to make you think. Metal Gear Solid had a firm anti-war stance, but so did Cannon Fodder in its own quirky way. There are other games out there with thinly veiled messages (most WWII wargames will portray Nazis as the enemy for example).
So maybe one day we will start to see games that really do attempt to change peoples' outlooks on life, and hopefully when that happens then the right sort of messages will be put across, not the wrong ones.
I've been playing role playing games for twenty years or so (yeah, I know, I should get out more), and they now affect the way I think.
My kitten today learnt how to make a big jump from the computer chair to the bed without making the chair swivel and falling short of his mark. The phrase 'Hurrah, my cat just levelled up' popped into my head before I realised that I was thinking of my cat in terms of something that I controlled, as in a game character.
I suppose in a way we all 'level up' as we gain new skills and knowledge and edge our way through the years, but this was the first time I realised that the way I think can be affected by the games that I play.
Books can seriously affect the way people think, and their outlooks on life can be drastically changed. A picure paints a thousand words. A Dreamcast game can throw 60 pictures per second infront of your eyes. There is a HUGE potential to place messages in games for many people to see and be affected by, but not many examples where this potential has been used.
There are games out there that try to make you think. Metal Gear Solid had a firm anti-war stance, but so did Cannon Fodder in its own quirky way. There are other games out there with thinly veiled messages (most WWII wargames will portray Nazis as the enemy for example).
So maybe one day we will start to see games that really do attempt to change peoples' outlooks on life, and hopefully when that happens then the right sort of messages will be put across, not the wrong ones.
FantasyMeister wrote:
> The skills acquired through playing TOCA 2 are life skills which you can continue to use in other environments. They cannot be faked.
A degree is a piece of paper that just allows you easier access into MacDonalds or ICI. Photocopy your mate's certificate.
An excellent point well put! Who needs a computer science degree - i'm sure i can blag my way into some over paid job where they train me everything i need to know anyway! Just gimme some programming to do and i'll be fine (as long as it aint assembly code - hate the stuff)
:D
-- Gangsta "the blagging" Hamsta
> The skills acquired through playing TOCA 2 are life skills which you can continue to use in other environments. They cannot be faked.
A degree is a piece of paper that just allows you easier access into MacDonalds or ICI. Photocopy your mate's certificate.
An excellent point well put! Who needs a computer science degree - i'm sure i can blag my way into some over paid job where they train me everything i need to know anyway! Just gimme some programming to do and i'll be fine (as long as it aint assembly code - hate the stuff)
:D
-- Gangsta "the blagging" Hamsta
Haven't had a game that changed my life.
Because it's a game.
I enjoy them, but my life is what change my life outside of playing computer games.
Never had a moment where playing a game has aided my life in any way whatsoever.
Now if you'll excuse me,I'm off to play "Windows NT Simulator"
Because it's a game.
I enjoy them, but my life is what change my life outside of playing computer games.
Never had a moment where playing a game has aided my life in any way whatsoever.
Now if you'll excuse me,I'm off to play "Windows NT Simulator"
I noticed something like this a while back.
After playing WWF No Mercy for 3 months, I watched on of the WWF programmes again - something I hadn't done for a while.
The Undertaker performed the Irish Whip on the Rock.
I thought to myself "The Rock has to grab onto the ropes here, or the Undertaker will get a free move on him..."
The Rock bounced off the ropes and bounced back towards the Undertaker, and then ducked UNDER the clotheslone.
I was gobsmacked. How on earth did the Rock manage that?
I then realised. I'd been think in Game terms where when your opponent has been whipped, you get to do a free move on them unless they hold onto the ropes.
I also found myself thinking that the wrestlers should should be cheering to the crowd to get their "special meter" up. Strange that, that my mind saw wrestling as the WWF No Mercy had shown it, rather than the real thing...
After playing WWF No Mercy for 3 months, I watched on of the WWF programmes again - something I hadn't done for a while.
The Undertaker performed the Irish Whip on the Rock.
I thought to myself "The Rock has to grab onto the ropes here, or the Undertaker will get a free move on him..."
The Rock bounced off the ropes and bounced back towards the Undertaker, and then ducked UNDER the clotheslone.
I was gobsmacked. How on earth did the Rock manage that?
I then realised. I'd been think in Game terms where when your opponent has been whipped, you get to do a free move on them unless they hold onto the ropes.
I also found myself thinking that the wrestlers should should be cheering to the crowd to get their "special meter" up. Strange that, that my mind saw wrestling as the WWF No Mercy had shown it, rather than the real thing...
The skills acquired through playing TOCA 2 are life skills which you can continue to use in other environments. They cannot be faked.
A degree is a piece of paper that just allows you easier access into MacDonalds or ICI. Photocopy your mate's certificate.
A degree is a piece of paper that just allows you easier access into MacDonalds or ICI. Photocopy your mate's certificate.
Games that changed my life: hmmmmmm...
Well nothing educational that affected me in the way you were talking about but Mario Kart on the SNES made me nuck up a load of GCSE's and now, thanks to you FM, Toca 2 is about to loose me a degree. Never mind though!
:D
Well nothing educational that affected me in the way you were talking about but Mario Kart on the SNES made me nuck up a load of GCSE's and now, thanks to you FM, Toca 2 is about to loose me a degree. Never mind though!
:D
I suppose, in reality, the PlayStation wasn't such a bad platform... but still... in my dream world of flowers, mushrooms and plumbers, I don't care. :D
I wish there was a Horse Racing game... I'd love to make all the men fall over the fence. I'd love the see the horse, just running about cluelessly as well...
Heh.... lol @ horses... they're so damn ugly!
I hope they release Sonic Racing 2 on Gamecube... or PS2... or X-Box... that franchise had so much potential... shame they fmucked it up... :<
I wish there was a Horse Racing game... I'd love to make all the men fall over the fence. I'd love the see the horse, just running about cluelessly as well...
Heh.... lol @ horses... they're so damn ugly!
I hope they release Sonic Racing 2 on Gamecube... or PS2... or X-Box... that franchise had so much potential... shame they fmucked it up... :<
I did a quick search for 'Educational Playstation games' on the web and got this lot for example:
Scrabble
The Weakest Link
Tweenies
Who Wants to be a Millionaire?
Who wants to be a Millionaire? 2
Who wants to be a Millionaire Junior
Winnie the Pooh: Tiggers Honey Hunt
Elmo Letter Adventure
Elmo Number Adventure
Mary-Kate and Ashley Magical Mystery Mall
Rayman Junior Stage 3
The Rayman range IS quite good, I got a couple for my nephew who loves them as he's a Rayman fan to begin with. But there's nothing really lifechanging about 'The Weakest Link' except perhaps the ability to turn people into Anne Robinson stalkers.
Developers seem to be latching onto the fact that play and learning go together in the pre 8-year-old market and so are bringing more and more games out for them. But I'm still waiting for 'Quake IV - MMaths Mathematics'. I might be waiting quite a while...
Scrabble
The Weakest Link
Tweenies
Who Wants to be a Millionaire?
Who wants to be a Millionaire? 2
Who wants to be a Millionaire Junior
Winnie the Pooh: Tiggers Honey Hunt
Elmo Letter Adventure
Elmo Number Adventure
Mary-Kate and Ashley Magical Mystery Mall
Rayman Junior Stage 3
The Rayman range IS quite good, I got a couple for my nephew who loves them as he's a Rayman fan to begin with. But there's nothing really lifechanging about 'The Weakest Link' except perhaps the ability to turn people into Anne Robinson stalkers.
Developers seem to be latching onto the fact that play and learning go together in the pre 8-year-old market and so are bringing more and more games out for them. But I'm still waiting for 'Quake IV - MMaths Mathematics'. I might be waiting quite a while...
I've always said that learning games should be used through PlayStations and Nintendos... I've never seen it, but I suppose games like PaRappa the Rappa and other timing games are starting the trend.
I wouldn't have said games have effected me in any way... sure I should get out more, and I do favour a quick game of Pro Evolution to a number of other things...
My cat's quite clever... well, all 2 of them... they fight like err.... (What fights a lot?)And they know where they can go and where they can't...
My dad's office is piled high with shelves of books.. and the cat jumps... from the floor, to the chair, to the 5th shelf, to the 8th adjacent shelf and onto a cardboard box (Flat) and lies there.... damn smart...
The other one's like a Brick hit house.. she's like the Jonah Lomu of cats... she's the boss.... quite cute looking, but she's got a well-feared right... :D
Game: Straying from the Subject...
I wouldn't have said games have effected me in any way... sure I should get out more, and I do favour a quick game of Pro Evolution to a number of other things...
My cat's quite clever... well, all 2 of them... they fight like err.... (What fights a lot?)And they know where they can go and where they can't...
My dad's office is piled high with shelves of books.. and the cat jumps... from the floor, to the chair, to the 5th shelf, to the 8th adjacent shelf and onto a cardboard box (Flat) and lies there.... damn smart...
The other one's like a Brick hit house.. she's like the Jonah Lomu of cats... she's the boss.... quite cute looking, but she's got a well-feared right... :D
Game: Straying from the Subject...
We like to believe that games in now way affect our behaviour, but I'll now admit that in some small ways they do.
I've been playing role playing games for twenty years or so (yeah, I know, I should get out more), and they now affect the way I think.
My kitten today learnt how to make a big jump from the computer chair to the bed without making the chair swivel and falling short of his mark. The phrase 'Hurrah, my cat just levelled up' popped into my head before I realised that I was thinking of my cat in terms of something that I controlled, as in a game character.
I suppose in a way we all 'level up' as we gain new skills and knowledge and edge our way through the years, but this was the first time I realised that the way I think can be affected by the games that I play.
Books can seriously affect the way people think, and their outlooks on life can be drastically changed. A picure paints a thousand words. A Dreamcast game can throw 60 pictures per second infront of your eyes. There is a HUGE potential to place messages in games for many people to see and be affected by, but not many examples where this potential has been used.
There are games out there that try to make you think. Metal Gear Solid had a firm anti-war stance, but so did Cannon Fodder in its own quirky way. There are other games out there with thinly veiled messages (most WWII wargames will portray Nazis as the enemy for example).
So maybe one day we will start to see games that really do attempt to change peoples' outlooks on life, and hopefully when that happens then the right sort of messages will be put across, not the wrong ones.
I've been playing role playing games for twenty years or so (yeah, I know, I should get out more), and they now affect the way I think.
My kitten today learnt how to make a big jump from the computer chair to the bed without making the chair swivel and falling short of his mark. The phrase 'Hurrah, my cat just levelled up' popped into my head before I realised that I was thinking of my cat in terms of something that I controlled, as in a game character.
I suppose in a way we all 'level up' as we gain new skills and knowledge and edge our way through the years, but this was the first time I realised that the way I think can be affected by the games that I play.
Books can seriously affect the way people think, and their outlooks on life can be drastically changed. A picure paints a thousand words. A Dreamcast game can throw 60 pictures per second infront of your eyes. There is a HUGE potential to place messages in games for many people to see and be affected by, but not many examples where this potential has been used.
There are games out there that try to make you think. Metal Gear Solid had a firm anti-war stance, but so did Cannon Fodder in its own quirky way. There are other games out there with thinly veiled messages (most WWII wargames will portray Nazis as the enemy for example).
So maybe one day we will start to see games that really do attempt to change peoples' outlooks on life, and hopefully when that happens then the right sort of messages will be put across, not the wrong ones.