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I love Lucasarts adventure games. Sam and Max, Day of the Tentacle, Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis... the Monkey Islands... brilliant, brilliant games, that have been lost under the sea of pointless, pointless games that involved horrible level design, all based around how cool the character looks, instead of how cool the character really is.
But for all their greatness, they're hard to pick up and play again. Well, they're easy to, but that's the problem.
Half the fun of Sam and Max is figuring out what to do next, how to solve puzzles. But because the voice acting and story telling is superb, you'll love to play it again anyway... but the puzzles you already know, and can walk through.
So that's point one.
Point two is, virtual reality. We're all supposed to put on these helmets and walk into fantastic worlds, and take on games ourself. This would be cool, but wouldn't work. Helmets only affect our vision, everything else is still not quite there.
So here's an odd little idea that wouldn't work but could be worth discussing. Dream design.
It all goes back to putting chips in your head and so on... but ignore that. What if games designers could get right inside your head. They wouldn't have to worry about how many polygons they use, because if they imagine it, you can reproduce it in your mind.
Somehow tapping into the very concious that allows you to dream, and wiring it up, so instead of "what normal people seem to have" dreams of falling and being chased around school with no clothes on, you take up fantastic journeys, gun fight in the old west, or fly space ships in a giant spacey war thing.
Or a good old fashioned detective story, that you can play again and again, because, after all, you forget dreams when you wake.
That would be odd too. It'll probably blow your mind to have such strong deja vu... in a dream though, it may not be easy to notice.
There are obviously some huge problems with this.
1) You don't want to wake up. Huge problem. Perhaps a save function for when you wake would be nice... but alarm clocks are a neccessity. :0)
2) Reviews would be impossible. Not such a huge problem for a lot of companies, then. :0)
3) You'll have no desire to go back to it. Not that much of a problem I suppose. If you did, there would be a problem of addiction... but you could just resume your game at night, echoed through your brain, to make the dream as real as possible.
Ok... it's only a take on the chip idea Strafex had... but there's a question I want to ask, that meant I had to write all this stuff out.
What means more to you? The actual feeling you get from playing a game... or the memory of playing that game?
Deep, I know. But does it mean more to you to be absorbed in that game so you can have fun for THAT moment... or would you rather be only partly absorbed, and have the memory of it to revisit?
Personally: I'd rather have the memory. Skies of Arcadia, best game ever. I preach it to people because it is.
But what if you couldn't even remember that best game ever... it would have no affect on your life whatsoever, and that's not what design is about.
Game designers, well, at least why I want to design games, is because I want to have an affect on the way people look at things. I don't want to just entertain them for a few minutes, I want to make them think, to make them talk about their experiences in it, to revisit it because they enjoyed it so much the first time... not so they can pass the time.
Sure, fast actiony shooters are great to pass the time, and yes, pretty addictive. But I couldn't make a game like that, I just wouldn't have the patience, and I'll get bored with it.
That's why I like Nintendo and Rareware especially so much. Instead of trying to make simple "pass the time" games, 'press a to fire' sort of things... they really put a lot of time into encapturating the feeling of the entire game. Making you want to progress, instead of simply finish the game. Mario 64 was like that. Getting all 120 stars would be excellent... but it was so much fun getting there, you didn't much care. It's called excellent level design, and you hardly ever see it.
Exploration. Forfilling dreams, passing through what you've learned, and fighting on to the last boss, not a huge clash to the horribly drawn out and boring game, but a finish, a moment for you to look back on what you've achieved through the whole of the game. That's why Nintendo games rule.
And hopefully, that's why my games will rule too. ;0)
But for all their greatness, they're hard to pick up and play again. Well, they're easy to, but that's the problem.
Half the fun of Sam and Max is figuring out what to do next, how to solve puzzles. But because the voice acting and story telling is superb, you'll love to play it again anyway... but the puzzles you already know, and can walk through.
So that's point one.
Point two is, virtual reality. We're all supposed to put on these helmets and walk into fantastic worlds, and take on games ourself. This would be cool, but wouldn't work. Helmets only affect our vision, everything else is still not quite there.
So here's an odd little idea that wouldn't work but could be worth discussing. Dream design.
It all goes back to putting chips in your head and so on... but ignore that. What if games designers could get right inside your head. They wouldn't have to worry about how many polygons they use, because if they imagine it, you can reproduce it in your mind.
Somehow tapping into the very concious that allows you to dream, and wiring it up, so instead of "what normal people seem to have" dreams of falling and being chased around school with no clothes on, you take up fantastic journeys, gun fight in the old west, or fly space ships in a giant spacey war thing.
Or a good old fashioned detective story, that you can play again and again, because, after all, you forget dreams when you wake.
That would be odd too. It'll probably blow your mind to have such strong deja vu... in a dream though, it may not be easy to notice.
There are obviously some huge problems with this.
1) You don't want to wake up. Huge problem. Perhaps a save function for when you wake would be nice... but alarm clocks are a neccessity. :0)
2) Reviews would be impossible. Not such a huge problem for a lot of companies, then. :0)
3) You'll have no desire to go back to it. Not that much of a problem I suppose. If you did, there would be a problem of addiction... but you could just resume your game at night, echoed through your brain, to make the dream as real as possible.
Ok... it's only a take on the chip idea Strafex had... but there's a question I want to ask, that meant I had to write all this stuff out.
What means more to you? The actual feeling you get from playing a game... or the memory of playing that game?
Deep, I know. But does it mean more to you to be absorbed in that game so you can have fun for THAT moment... or would you rather be only partly absorbed, and have the memory of it to revisit?
Personally: I'd rather have the memory. Skies of Arcadia, best game ever. I preach it to people because it is.
But what if you couldn't even remember that best game ever... it would have no affect on your life whatsoever, and that's not what design is about.
Game designers, well, at least why I want to design games, is because I want to have an affect on the way people look at things. I don't want to just entertain them for a few minutes, I want to make them think, to make them talk about their experiences in it, to revisit it because they enjoyed it so much the first time... not so they can pass the time.
Sure, fast actiony shooters are great to pass the time, and yes, pretty addictive. But I couldn't make a game like that, I just wouldn't have the patience, and I'll get bored with it.
That's why I like Nintendo and Rareware especially so much. Instead of trying to make simple "pass the time" games, 'press a to fire' sort of things... they really put a lot of time into encapturating the feeling of the entire game. Making you want to progress, instead of simply finish the game. Mario 64 was like that. Getting all 120 stars would be excellent... but it was so much fun getting there, you didn't much care. It's called excellent level design, and you hardly ever see it.
Exploration. Forfilling dreams, passing through what you've learned, and fighting on to the last boss, not a huge clash to the horribly drawn out and boring game, but a finish, a moment for you to look back on what you've achieved through the whole of the game. That's why Nintendo games rule.
And hopefully, that's why my games will rule too. ;0)
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This is usually associated with a change in file structures since the program was last started. Either this user has updated their software or the files have been updated in structure from a program update on another desktop.
Look for the button with TWO CHEVRONS on it in the lower left hand corner of the error message screen. Click on this.
It will give a lot of information but the crtical words to look out for are 'the description of the logical file stored in the analysis is not compatible with the one stored in the physical file'.
If this is the case then re-install the program but click on the button that says ADVANCED settings. It will allow the data in a directory which is not on this computer to be altered to the new format.
At the end of the installation it will ask for additional directories to update. After this all will work fine again.
Note that all users should be logged out as any active file will be skipped over during this process.
Look for the button with TWO CHEVRONS on it in the lower left hand corner of the error message screen. Click on this.
It will give a lot of information but the crtical words to look out for are 'the description of the logical file stored in the analysis is not compatible with the one stored in the physical file'.
If this is the case then re-install the program but click on the button that says ADVANCED settings. It will allow the data in a directory which is not on this computer to be altered to the new format.
At the end of the installation it will ask for additional directories to update. After this all will work fine again.
Note that all users should be logged out as any active file will be skipped over during this process.
"Bernaaaaaard!" Heh... I still have that game.
"Come over here so I can punch you!"
There were some quality moments in that game... There's nothing like completing it first time around.
I was so happy.
Bernard was so funny. Laverne wasn't too great, but I liked Hoagie.
Oh, and I liked that guy who blasted Bernard about the Pony Express stamp,...
"You've ruined my Pony Express stamp - not to mention 16 years of therapy!"
Hehehehe.
"Come over here so I can punch you!"
There were some quality moments in that game... There's nothing like completing it first time around.
I was so happy.
Bernard was so funny. Laverne wasn't too great, but I liked Hoagie.
Oh, and I liked that guy who blasted Bernard about the Pony Express stamp,...
"You've ruined my Pony Express stamp - not to mention 16 years of therapy!"
Hehehehe.
It's bit bit of both really. All games (should) bring some instant enjoyment, but others you can also take with you the spirit of the game, or even learn something from it.
Sports games, on the whole, tend to be all about instant gratification. Yay, I scored some wicked goals, and Danny Gofen chipped the keeper, and it's pretty much forgotten. Even watching your team lift the cup doesn't stick with you, but it was good at the time.
Other games seem to stay with you longer, you actually like the characters, and get wound up when they announce a movie based on it, as you know they just won't portay them right....
Sports games, on the whole, tend to be all about instant gratification. Yay, I scored some wicked goals, and Danny Gofen chipped the keeper, and it's pretty much forgotten. Even watching your team lift the cup doesn't stick with you, but it was good at the time.
Other games seem to stay with you longer, you actually like the characters, and get wound up when they announce a movie based on it, as you know they just won't portay them right....
But the good guys win in the end, you know that.
Yup, Grim Fandango was great, as was Maniac Mansion. Only one I haven't really played was that Zak Makracen one, or whatever.
But...
This topic isn't about putting chips in heads, and so on. I was just using that as an example to the actual rant:
Do you play games for the time of the moment, or so you can look back on them and smile?
I'm sure we're split pretty evenly on that. Gamers that just do it for fun, and the rest that really want to get something out of it.
Yup, Grim Fandango was great, as was Maniac Mansion. Only one I haven't really played was that Zak Makracen one, or whatever.
But...
This topic isn't about putting chips in heads, and so on. I was just using that as an example to the actual rant:
Do you play games for the time of the moment, or so you can look back on them and smile?
I'm sure we're split pretty evenly on that. Gamers that just do it for fun, and the rest that really want to get something out of it.
Yes - to everything.
Sorry, was that too short a reply? Well, I agree, bar the problem that we already know Nintendo chips will malfunction due to Microsoft's ruthless takeover...
Sorry, was that too short a reply? Well, I agree, bar the problem that we already know Nintendo chips will malfunction due to Microsoft's ruthless takeover...
I dare say that videogames technology will increase so exponentially in this century that we are incapable of imagining what we'll be playing in 2050. Just my opinion.
I absolutely adore lucasarts games, the Monkey Island games standing out for obvious reasons. MI2 remains one of the most enjoyable games I have ever played, and no, chasing pirates is not realistic, there was little guns/blood/etc, just a riveting plot, great storyline, developed characterisation and side-splitting gags.
Long live Ron Gilbert.
P.S. You forgot to mention Grim Fandango? I hear its sequel is coming soon.
I absolutely adore lucasarts games, the Monkey Island games standing out for obvious reasons. MI2 remains one of the most enjoyable games I have ever played, and no, chasing pirates is not realistic, there was little guns/blood/etc, just a riveting plot, great storyline, developed characterisation and side-splitting gags.
Long live Ron Gilbert.
P.S. You forgot to mention Grim Fandango? I hear its sequel is coming soon.
Dream Idea sounds cool but there is a major floor: what happens if you start dreaming about penguins?
maybe the ability to control time and space, make the world go bullet time/matrix style would be a my idea for a brilliant character
another ideal game character for me would be a true chamelion (spelling) character with the ability to stealth at ANY time, or a shapeshifting ability (not change shape to match task you're doing but the ability to change your shape to anything from a huge dragon when attacking an enemy head on to a vase for stealth missions
one thing that always annoys me about games is how contrictive the landscapes are. You must follow this route because these invisible walls are here to stop you having any true freedom. I would love it if you could truelly choose where you want to go and how you want to get there, whether it be by land, air, sea or by other methods.
Also i'd like to descide how my character progresses not just through its skills (Deus Ex) but through the plot. In most games the plot descides how your character is played, but i would like the ability to shape the plot as i go along, knowing that it is MY descisions shape how my character grows and how the plot grows
So in other words the best game would have to be one that gives you true freedom how you play
maybe the ability to control time and space, make the world go bullet time/matrix style would be a my idea for a brilliant character
another ideal game character for me would be a true chamelion (spelling) character with the ability to stealth at ANY time, or a shapeshifting ability (not change shape to match task you're doing but the ability to change your shape to anything from a huge dragon when attacking an enemy head on to a vase for stealth missions
one thing that always annoys me about games is how contrictive the landscapes are. You must follow this route because these invisible walls are here to stop you having any true freedom. I would love it if you could truelly choose where you want to go and how you want to get there, whether it be by land, air, sea or by other methods.
Also i'd like to descide how my character progresses not just through its skills (Deus Ex) but through the plot. In most games the plot descides how your character is played, but i would like the ability to shape the plot as i go along, knowing that it is MY descisions shape how my character grows and how the plot grows
So in other words the best game would have to be one that gives you true freedom how you play
V.V.V.V.V. wrote:
> The "dream design" thing you mentioned already kind of exists.... it's
> called lucid dreaming.
If we all could flawlessly master the art of lucid
> dreaming, there would be no need for videogames.
Every night we'd fall sleep,
> realize that we were dreaming and then control our dreams, and go anywhere we
> wanted to, and do anything we wanted to - all within our dreams.
I've had a
> few lucid dreams and you can actually not only see everything clearly, but you
> can also "feel" everything.
It's like natural virtual reality, but
> with lucid dreaming you can make anything happen just by wishing it.
The
> ultimate videogame? I think so.
It's very difficult to master though.
I've had that once or twice but they were all in nightmares when i was about 13. I realised it was a dream So i blinked about a million times to wake myself up! And it worked!
> The "dream design" thing you mentioned already kind of exists.... it's
> called lucid dreaming.
If we all could flawlessly master the art of lucid
> dreaming, there would be no need for videogames.
Every night we'd fall sleep,
> realize that we were dreaming and then control our dreams, and go anywhere we
> wanted to, and do anything we wanted to - all within our dreams.
I've had a
> few lucid dreams and you can actually not only see everything clearly, but you
> can also "feel" everything.
It's like natural virtual reality, but
> with lucid dreaming you can make anything happen just by wishing it.
The
> ultimate videogame? I think so.
It's very difficult to master though.
I've had that once or twice but they were all in nightmares when i was about 13. I realised it was a dream So i blinked about a million times to wake myself up! And it worked!
The "dream design" thing you mentioned already kind of exists.... it's called lucid dreaming.
If we all could flawlessly master the art of lucid dreaming, there would be no need for videogames.
Every night we'd fall sleep, realize that we were dreaming and then control our dreams, and go anywhere we wanted to, and do anything we wanted to - all within our dreams.
I've had a few lucid dreams and you can actually not only see everything clearly, but you can also "feel" everything.
It's like natural virtual reality, but with lucid dreaming you can make anything happen just by wishing it.
The ultimate videogame? I think so.
It's very difficult to master though.
If we all could flawlessly master the art of lucid dreaming, there would be no need for videogames.
Every night we'd fall sleep, realize that we were dreaming and then control our dreams, and go anywhere we wanted to, and do anything we wanted to - all within our dreams.
I've had a few lucid dreams and you can actually not only see everything clearly, but you can also "feel" everything.
It's like natural virtual reality, but with lucid dreaming you can make anything happen just by wishing it.
The ultimate videogame? I think so.
It's very difficult to master though.
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