When Modern Warfare was 3.5" tall

I came across some pictures that took me back.

I grew up in the early 80’s forging a friendship and stimulating an industry. The friendship and industry is video games. I didn’t just sit in front of the TV with some version of a controller in my hand. At that same time there was something else big for a young boy to play with. Good old GI Joe. I had to look and see all that I had.

I have to thank my parents for what I had as a child growing up. I had quite a few figures and vehicles. The VAMP (the green jeep), the Skystriker (the F14 Tomcat), the Skimobile with Snowjob, the Chameleon with Zartan (he had a face to disguise his own), the Killer WHALE (the hovercraft), the Skyhawk (a cross between a helicopter and a plane), the Farret (an ATV), the Snow Cat (a half track), the Conquest X-30 (the jet with the forward swept wings), the Develfish (a small single manned orange boat), the Tomahawk (a dual prop transport helicopter), the Sea Ray (a Cobra single manned submersible). I’m not going to name the figures, there were way too many.

With all of this stuff I spent a lot of time planning out battles either in my room or outside. Oh, and I did have my own designated area in the backyard for my battlefield.

Thinking about my childhood, I had a revelation. Infinity Ward has provided me with the chance to play out all of my GI Joe imagination battles. Modern Warfare has tied in two of the most beloved things for a boys’ childhood from the 80’s. If you think about it you could draw similarities to the cast of characters in the GI Joe cartoon to Soap, Ghost, Capitan Price, and General Shepherd. Even Makarov and Zakhaev would fit in well with Cobra.

I ended up shooting some of my GI Joes with my BB gun pretending that they were being taken out by enemy artillery. Ahh, the good ol days!

So, thank you much Infinity Ward for bringing back my childhood.

Intrinsic Values: Self Restraint

Around 2001, when I graduated from JMU and started a real job that paid actual money, is when I started coming to grips with my gaming habit and let loose a little cashflow to support it. I was making a ton of money (in my mind) so I started buying back all my old game systems off of eBay and the games to go with them. I also started buying memorabilia for my room and books about gaming and audio soundtrack cds.

But now as a full-fledged adult with a mortgage that's twice the size of my post-graduate townhome with all the bill trimmings and basically the same income, gaming has taken it's toll financially and psychologically. I just haven't gotten my body to stop it's habits.

Habits such as my fingers typing in "http://www.ebay.com" into my web browser. Or my legs from walking into Gamestop while I'm really just trying to grab a burger at Five Guys. Either of even just these two actions can result in an expenditure of $14.99-$60. And sometimes a burger. And even for the times that I do have the money to throw away, I still catch myself in an inner gamer tussle: do I buy this awesome game now or do I finish all the awesome games I have at home first?

But fortunately I do have that pretty big backlog of games I used to want to play and have no reason not to. So when I do find myself browsing a game shelf, I almost immediately think about when I play this game between games I already own, not to mention mowing grass, installing molding in the basement, or cleaning out the future baby room.

And there is where the intrinsic value is: time and money management. If an example like this had ever come across my 6th grade desk, I think I would have understood it a little more. In life, the important things come first. Whether it's fixing up a new baby room or deciding that level grinding in Call of Duty is time that could be used finishing Grand Theft Auto IV. It's almost like have separate to-do lists in my head for life and gaming and I'm constantly battling myself to take care of them.

Intrinsic Values: This Gaming Life

As I listened to a Bungie podcast whilst soaking in the tub (yes, I take proper baths), I really started to think about the gaming world that gamers live in and how it compares to other hobbies that people have. There are certainly more people that just play games and maybe pick up magazines to read about what's coming out, but the world is so much deeper than that and I suspect that there are not many others like it. The following is my grasp on this world and what I believe to be the state of our union.

The industry is comprised of many things: developers, publishers, the console makers, and the media. It's like the music industry with less glamor and more nerds. But gaming came from the computer/software world where there are huge press conferences spanning days where the media looks at the year to come as showcased by the game makers and console manufacturers. Developers get together and theorize and hypothesize about gaming technology and human interaction at developer conventions. There are small groups that fit in garages that make games many never see (and really should) as well as big companies that make games that everyone sees (and probably shouldn't).

The big dogs in the developer world are the publishers. EA is probably the biggest today. They are the Microsoft of the game software world. Like recording houses in the music industry, publishers gobble up developers (the musicians) and offer them the ability to publish their games (the albums). The developers, in turn, get better advertising, better quality control (supposedly), and better paychecks and budgets. But they also might get 18-hour work days coding and the possibility of their games being manhandled by suit-types who just want higher profits. Recently, the gaming monopolies are under fire by everyone from journalists to developers themselves. But gaming as a business is alive and monstrous. Big budget movies and fast food chains get video games for marketing. The Army develops for training and recruiting. And games are blamed for school shootings and dysfunctional families.

Then there is the media. Journalists that couldn't get enough of games and had a knack for writing made it in print and on the web. Gamers have their favorite magazines, blogs and even writers. We trust them too much to decide what games are going to be good and where we should spend our hard earned cash. Recently, stories about bad games have gotten people fired because those publications also solicit advertising from those developers and publishers. As critics, some follow them blindly and others barely glance (but glance at least) at their written drivel. But their insight into the gaming world is intriguing and captivating at times. Today developers now keep blogs and community sites. They produce and record rss-feed audio and video podcasts with themes and programmed content.

The console makers are in a battle to differentiate themselves. Never before have a group of companies been so closely matched to win the "console war". Historically the market was dominated by just one console until Sony's Playstation 2 met competition from Microsoft's Xbox and Xbox 360 and Nintedo's Wii. Nintendo took the first step with the Wii to peel away a huge layer of gaming market for themselves with their radically designed console, leaving Microsoft and Sony to spar over the traditional gamer market. With console makers, the battle for sales dollars lies solely with the developers to make games that push the hardware. Games drive the market. That's why even the console makers develop and publish games, hoping to carve their market niche with custom content.

And lastly, the public. We have die-hard fans of practically everything: games, developers, consoles, etc. You can probably search for anything game related and find a Google Group for it. While you mom is at home with her Wii bowling the night away, a 20-year-old is dressed up as her favorite Dead or Alive fighting character posing for cameras at video game music concert. Gaming is becoming as popular (or moreso) than going to the movies. As the diversity in the community increases, video games now have a presence in politics and culture.

After seeing what the whole big picture is, it's hard to see any comparison in another market. Music and movies are all very one-sided, one trick ponies. Complex, but only on one dimension. Video games have become not only a pastime, but a way to communicate with other people and the outside world. They act as not only an art form, but as a cultural mirror to reflect on humanity and our state of awareness. If you ever thought video games were a waste of time, there is a whole world to discover and learn about. And most likely you'll learn a lot more than you bargained for.

At first, this post wasn't going to be an "Intrinsic Values" post, but I realized that there is value inherent in being immersed in a subject that offers so much to learn from. I just hope writing it conveys that mindset that I feel I've gained from it.

Intrinsic Values in Gaming: Memories

A thread over on Penny-Arcade is titled, "Well, at least play this part...", asking for people's submissions of what they think some games best parts are that should be experienced by everyone.

I love these kinds of topics because they make you think back on your game collection and gaming history. The kinds of emotions that you attach to some games and experiences really proves that gaming isn't just a waste of time. It's like listening to a song and remembering exactly where you heard it that impacted you the most. Or re-reading a book and consciously awaiting your favorite part.

So for me my list includes (but is not limited to):

• Riding the horse, Epona, around on The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
  
• All 18 battles in Shadow of the Colussus (and riding that horse around, Argo)
  
• Shooting the three guns in the air support level in Call of Duty 4
• Reaching the highest point in the map in Crackdown, then jumping off
  
• The final mission in Halo 3, driving the vehicle as the space station collapses from underneath you
  
• Rolling up the countries in Katamari Damacy at the end credits
  
• Playing any song that all four band members love in Rock Band
  
• Snowboarding down the whole mountain in SSX: 3 in surround sound
  and music off

I realized going through my game list that a lot of the "must play" experiences I could rattle off really wouldn't apply to people who
don't play games or don't like certain types of games. I tried to pick things that either someone would like to play or would at least enjoy watching.

You can probably find all of these on YouTube, but you really need to experience them in a dark room with 5.1 surround sound.

Intrinsic Values: Self Confidence

So we're playing Rock Band. Brian is tired of the guitar. Mary is tired of singing. The next song is one I know. So I grab the microphone and belt out Blackhole Sun by Soungarden.

I've been in high school musicals and one act plays. I've taken a public speaking class and passed with flying colors. I've sung in church as a kid. All in all, I'm no newb to being in the limelight. But singing, nope. I hate my voice. I'm nasal, congested and of narrow range. Perfect pitch, but crap quality.

But I didn't care playing Rock Band. The gamer side of me took over to try and beat the song. Everyone else had sung and by that point, I didn't want to be the one that didn't even try it. So I grabbed the mic and sucked it up with my crew. Most of the songs I really couldn't hit the high notes, but Rock Band recognized octaves and harmonies, so I made it just fine if I had to in a pinch.

Party games aren't new by any means, but singing to music with all your friends around is an idea most people are afraid to do. Yeah, we used to sing our Boyz II Men songs in the car cruisin the strip in high school. To our imaginary girlfriends. With the windows up and the bass over compensating. But there's no excuse in Rock Band not to shred the guitar with style, rock the drums with flare, and belt out your favorite song. I can't wait for another 5 a.m. Rock Band session.

Past Intrinsic Values posts.

Intrinsic Values: Zen Moments

Playing video games is sometimes relaxing. It's a de-stresser. Takes your mind off your worldly, corporeal drama. But with some games you can achieve a higher state of gaming.

I was playing Forza Motorsports 2 last night and was just having a heck of a time tuning a car to suit a set of races. It was constant starting a race, losing control of the car, quitting and retuning. It took about a half hour of work to figure out what was wrong with the car to get it running right. A pretty taxing task.

Then I went in for one more race. Surprisingly, the car was hitting the corners just right. I caught up to 1st place and passed him in a few turns. Then it was me, out in front, the competition eating my dust. I had 8 laps to go around the winding course.

After the first few laps, I realized I wasn't tense anymore. At first I was fighting the turns, learning the break points and acceleration points, but now they were programmed into my fingers. The visual check points for breaking and accelerating were almost automatically transposed by my fingers. I was on auto pilot, increasing my lead, soothed by the sounds of the car's engine and the wheels on the pavement. I barely had to think to stop from over accelerating or breaking to stop the squealing tires. It was a pure zen moment.

Not many games can do this. I would maybe imagine a baseball game, where you knew all your players movements and could hit any ball the pitcher threw. Or maybe a puzzle game, where you could see 5 moves ahead of your computer player. I know I've done that in Hexic many times.

Games can be violent and exciting. They can cause you to throw a controller across the room. But they can also relax you so much you could hear your own heartbeat.

Intrinsic Values: Online Voice Communication

For the most part, I've thought that online gaming (whether it be PC or console) was inevitable as a feature in new games. Consoles are all now online and we finally have the ability to play against people across the globe. Computer gamers have almost always had this, but since I'm not a PC gamer, this is still a relatively new world that has just been discovered.

The Sega Dreamcast was the first console to go online full-tilt, followed by the PS2 and the original Xbox. But it wasn't until the hi-def generation of consoles came out that developers started really marketing online features and weaving it into every aspect of their consoles and games. Not only can you play games online now, but you can buy small, sub-$15 games, surf the internet, download new game demos, buy episodes of tv shows and even rent hi-def movies.

Wow. That's like 5 more Intrinsic Values articles right there. Way to layout my writing schedule!

But most recently, I found voice chatting to be more than just for yelling back at those 11-year-olds to quiet down. On a personal note, my cousin whom I've only really known through instant messaging, recently got an Xbox 360 and a Live account. We've been talking online for a few years now, but this is really the first time we've really been able to hang out and do something we both share in common.

Of course, I wouldn't suggest telling all of your estranged friends and family members to get a 360 just so you can recoup those long lost relationships, but as far as things to expect when buying video games, connecting with a distant cousin isn't something they bullet on the packaging. But it is a cool bonus.

It's also been really nice to play games with people and chat about something other than the game your playing. I've heard people talking with their friends in games about just about everything (which is good and sometimes bad). When you get in a game like that, the atmosphere is more relaxed and you feel like your sitting at a restaurant talking over dinner. It completely changes the dynamic of online gaming. It becomes the hobby that you enjoy alone instead of an adrenaline pumped frag fest that it can usually be.

Also, you can really consider this to be a really cheap form of world wide communication. For $50 a year, you can chat with anyone who has a 360. Of course that doesn't count the cost of internet and the $350 console, but you get the idea.

Flickr Photo Mode Success

I might be calling it early, but if things keep going the way they are now, our Video Game Photo Mode on Flickr is really going to be a nice place to check out some crazy in-game photos. I've been pimping it on every website forum I can think of (just a few really) and it's got over 70 photos already.

Some really good examples are OOOHHHHmyDamn's Tourist Trophy blooper photos and Falce_2001's photos of Halo 3's non-player characters (or story actors). I absolutely love this one. I've never thought about watching the NPC's when your supposed to be out doing things. The programmers could have put in all kinds of actions for the characters to do that 95% of people never even see.

Here's the link again for the Flickr group.

Intrinsic Values: On Photo Mode

Gaming, for all it intents and purposes, is valued almost solely intrinsically. There's not much more you can get from it. The physical disk is worth money, but as games grow like technology, they end up being worth dirt as short as 4-6 months later.

I say "almost" because lots of people have heard of selling online characters for thousands of dollars online. But even then, your only selling and buying time.

So developers and gamers have a huge interest in what games can offer their consumers. So under this label of Intrinsic Values, I'll cover all things sought after in video games by gamers. There is a huge range of things to talk about. But I think this will also offer a peak inside of what drives gamers to play.

So to start off, I'll mention the latest thing that I've had a lot of fun with in the past couple of years: Photo Mode. This applies more so to console gamers because PC gamers have always had a way to screen shot their games: the Print Screen key (and I won't even get started on video capture).

Master Chief from Halo 3

But to us 25 and older console gamers, long gone are the polaroids and shaky home video footage with horizontal refresh lines. Now developers are starting tap into the consumers a little more to ask them what they want. As a result, a way to record and save images and footage is now being introduced. The PS2 started it all off with Gran Turismo 4, a racing sim. The built-in, full featured camera had all the complicated settings as any $400 camera on the market. And after you've tuned the picture to your hearts content, you could save it to a usb flash drive and put it anywhere your digital heart desired. I must have taken tons of pictures with that thing. To me, it was like Photography 101. I learned so much about camera settings, being able to see the effects live instead of taking a photo and waiting to get home.

The latest round of photo friendly games have bumped up the technology a bit and allowed you to share the photos online right from the game. Forza 2 for the Xbox 360 included the ability to have an account on the Forza 2 website and send pictures to it. Basically it just took the usb drive out of the equation, but if you were an active member constantly customizing paint jobs and taking action photos, it couldn't have been much easier.

Halo 3 is the newest game to offer photo mode inside of game replays. A first for a non-racing game if I'm correct (and I may be). Halo 3 records your last entire session of running and gunning and lets you go back through and take pictures. But not only that, it lets you "detach" the camera and move it anywhere around the level you want, sometimes spanning miles of virtual map space. It's even a tactic some people used to find hidden items buried in the levels.

I just created a Flickr account and Flickr group for Video game photos. Enjoy!