Oct 22, 2010

Nintendo is in the fortunate position of having a clearly established brand identity and a consumer base that includes almost every demographic you could name. Their name is synonymous with quality and accessibility. There is worldwide recognition, nostalgia and brand identification that few companies can rival. In fact the very omnipresent nature of Nintendo...

Oct 22, 2010

In every sense Microsoft is the most advanced of the three in its attempts to foster an online community. As mentioned in the entry relating to Sony, their inclusion of a headset with every Xbox 360 has made Microsoft’s console the most communicative online experience. However, the next step for them will be far more challenging, and where they choose to take...

Oct 22, 2010

Sony had two excellent opportunities to create a strong online community but due to a lack of foresight failed to do so. The first was not to include a microphone free with every PS3. When it comes to voice chat in games there are a large number of people who do not want to hear other people talking and with good reason. When it leads to being abused or...

Oct 21, 2010

Censorship and video games have always shared an uneasy relationship. By and large, the industry has successfully  self-regulated, with a few notable exceptions. Any controversy relating to graphic violence or sexually explicit content has been generated by fabricated moral outrage through mainstream media. Japan, on the other hand, still suffers from a more...

Oct 19, 2010

One of the glaring problems of this generation of consoles has been its failure to produce truly great traditional Japanese RPGs. Certainly there have been plenty of solid efforts, and the likes of Lost Odyssey, Eternal Sonata, Resonance of Fate and Final Fantasy XIII all have their charms. We have even had excellent deviations from the standard style of...

Oct 18, 2010

When it comes to dancing, it’s not that easy outlining my abilities. The best way to describe how I look when clunkily plodding around the dance floor is like how an enchanted tree uprooting itself and walking for the first time may look, or possibly a dinosaur trying to get its leg over a lamp post. I think it is probably with this in mind why my superiors...