To Wait or Not to Wait: Another Midnight Release

Pre-orders were invented so that you could purchase a game outright and not have to worry this kind of scenario. But now, apparently, it's not enough to secure a copy, but to touch it at the exact moment of it's release. To wait in line with other people that pre-ordered. It's a cultural phenomenon that only fans of the product can understand. Japan actually has a sub-race of people that only know how to do this. I kid, but it's true. The only other people in America that do this are either watching a new Star Wars/Lord of the Rings film or are waiting for an iPhone. And maybe a concert. But mostly Apple products.

I've waited for one or two movies before. Star Wars: Episode 1 was my first "line" and I've done a few more since then. But when I got the phone call from Gamestop to come and wait in line for Grand Theft Auto's midnight release at 6p.m., I almost immediately felt the need to go home and do laundry or dishes or clean the litter box. I mean, come one, six hours?

The Halo 3 line was pretty boring last year. We all stood around (some people brought chairs) and we were all pretty bored. Some JMU students brought books to study before they wasted their life away for days with the game. Some brought their DS/PSP to game on. Then there was that woman trying to sell that awful Halo 3 Mt. Dew for four times the actual price. The only positive thing that happened in line was when Cold Stone came out and hooked a small group of us up with free fat ice cream.

I know though that if I don't show up there at 6pm, I could be waiting well after midnight to get into the store and walk out with the game. And with expectations across the country for GTA4 to be a bigger release than the highly anticipated Halo 3, we're talking a couple hundred people in town tonight all ready to rape digital hookers and jack virtual rides (if that's what they choose to do).

But my thoughts are leaning against waiting and going home and doing some work in the basement. And of course some Mario Kart and Call of Duty.

Grand Theft Auto is Coming - Guard Your Kids!!!

It's going to be a busy week next week with two of the biggest games of the year coming out this week: Mario Kart and Grand Theft Auto 4.

EB Games in the local shopping center is going to have midnight releases for both games, Mario Kart on Saturday and GTA4 on Tuesday. I plan on going to both of them for a couple of reasons. I want to see what kind of line forms for Mario Kart for the Wii, what I believe will be the only midnight release for the Wii ever here. I plan on taking some pictures and posting them up.

The only reason I want to go to the GTA4 release is because I want the game. Now. It will be interesting at that midnight release to see how many cars get jacked, hookers get beaten up, and pedestrians run over. The police presence should be huge, if Fox News had their way.

A recent quote I read said that M-rated games basically have the reputation of X-rated movies. It's sad how true that really is. I can't wait for the next thing to come along to get the focus off video games. Women voting, black people, comic books, rock music, and now video games. Come on people. Learn from history.

I wonder what would happen if women voted to let black people read comic books at a rock concert where they sold video games.

Ian Bogost on Colbert Report

Ian Bogost, who wrote a new book on persuasive games, makes a run on the Colbert Report, a bold move for any man (I'm a fan of the show).

Ian does a good job defending games as a medium and artistic expression. Colbert offers that Pac-Man is nothing more than a pill popping simulation, games Ian calls abstract.

Ian is interested in political and social issues in games. Oil God, for instance, is a game a lot of people might be interested in, while maybe shying away from the one about being a disgruntled copy store employee.

Games like Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas offer up true life situations like eating food. The only food you can eat in San Andreas is from fast food restaurants. A stab at life in the 'hood? I don't think that was the best argument he could have used, but he was able to make the point.

I'll offer another one: Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas also employs a fitness management model. Your character can go to a gym, work out over the course of a 5-10 gym sessions and see an increase in muscle mass, which makes your character run faster and longer. Or you could assume the roll of a fat guy, eat food all the time and be lazy by only getting around in vehicles.

What is interesting here is that while these types of simulation models work themselves into every game genre, gamers and game creators realize that the nature of gaming demands we have both types of games: games with simulation and games without. Some gamers like the meta-gaming built in so they can manipulate details and character statistics. Others don't want to deal with the hassle of management while gaming and just want to have fun.

Luckily the industry can support multiple types of games and the store shelves hold something for everyone.

GTA IV: Trailer

I still haven't finished San Andreas, but with this trailer flying around the internet today for GTA IV, I'm definetly going to have to put SA back into the rotation.

And thank the gaming gods it's coming out on the 360, or I might go through some sort of guilt syndrome with the addition of not being able to play Gran Turismo as well.