Xbox 360 owners should all be aware of the awesomeness that is the Xbox Achievements system. Microsoft managed to add a passive and competitive function to video gaming and, to steal a phrase from Apple, it just works – mainly as a result of seamless integration and its simple, speedy functionality. Comparing yourself against your mates is quick and easy – the bigger number wins – and the little flash up on screen to tell you that you’ve earned a new achievement is not too annoying, particularly because you immediately know how much this will affect your score. It just adds an overall sense of satisfaction to whatever awesome thing it is that you have just performed… In some cases, you might not have even realised you did something awesome – thanks Microsoft.
Sony, of course, has their own version of achievements, released some time after Microsoft debuted them on Xbox… They refer to them as PlayStation Trophies. At its most basic, the idea is sound – trophies of varying levels (bronze, silver, gold and platinum) are awarded for certain gaming events. Each trophy is worth a certain amount of points (based on the level of trophy), and after a certain amount of these points, you “level up”. It seems simple enough, and it’s not too far removed from the idea behind Xbox achievements… But why do I care so little when I score myself a trophy? Let’s investigation!
Microsoft has finally released “Game Room” for Xbox 360 and Games for Windows Live, and I must say, it’s pretty much what I was expecting. This is a good thing, though, because I was expecting a pretty funky service.
For those not in the know, Game Room is an executable program that creates a pseudo arcade in your system… so to speak. You can populate this arcade however you please, but of course, you’ll need to fork out some hard cash to buy arcade machines and decorations… Hey – a company has to make money, don’t they?? Impressions follow.
Music means a lot to a lot of people. In fact, there are very few people in this world that aren’t moved by music, or have little to no interest in it. However, in recent years, many of today’s youth have held music very close to their hearts, so much so that many of them thinking they are the be-all and end-all of musical taste.
But I digress… this isn’t a post rambling about how I’m sick of other people trying to force their preferences upon me or how I’m equally sick of the same people making themselves out to be the biggest music fans in the world – like no-one else likes music. Nope – this post is not about any of these things. It’s about a video game. A video game called Chime.
With talk of the Dreamcast’s ‘Sonic Adventure’ coming to XBLA, as well as the announcement of the “Game Room” for old school arcade/console games (on PC/Xbox), my mind has wondered in recent days to the golden games of old. Well, not that old, but turn of the millennium. And I’ve come to the realisation that one game in particular (although there are many) is due for release on XBLA and PSN – Crazy Taxi.
Crazy Taxi, for it’s time, was a great game. Going back and playing it again now – it still stands the test of time, and above all, it’s virtually the PERFECT arcade game. There’s no need to invest any of your time in story or characters – you simply get in your car and drive (after, uh… choosing a character). Just drive! – In any direction – To beat the timer. The faster you can deliver your passenger, the more time you get, and the more money you make. Very simple mechanics, and much more fun than you think. It really lends itself well to the odd 20-minute stint on XBLA, and the trusty ol’ high score battle with your friends.
Just a quick post to say that I’m excited – not in a long while has a video from a gaming/electronics conference made me excited enough to post here… But here it is. Xbox Game Room – a place to buy and share old school arcade games at a fairly low cost (click here for more info direct from Microsoft). Of course, you have to have an Xbox 360… or a PC running Games for Windows Live! I’m guessing you have a PC, so get excited, too!
Update: The old video I had posted wouldn’t work for some reason. hopefully I’ve fixed this with the below Youtube video!
Video gaming has had a stigma attached to it for as long as I can remember. From what I understand, it has never really been accepted by the mainstream community (I was a bit young in the days of Space Invaders and Pac Man arcades, so I can’t really comment on that period or earlier), and, in my experience, has been regarded as childish and geeky by the great majority…
However, things have changed somewhat in recent years. Sony’s Playstation brought gaming to the masses in the 90s, but it was still considered pretty geeky. More recently, Nintendo’s successes with the DS and Wii has lead to somewhat of a ‘revolution’ in gaming — gaming has gained a foothold among the majority by way of simple, intuitive controls and titles.
Still, some (including myself) would argue that the games are too simplistic, and as such, the popularity of the Wii is a fad that will fizzle over time… Every non-gamer I know that owns a Wii either doesn’t really play it anymore, or just keeps it for the kids. Myself? I haven’t played a really good game on the Wii for a long while, and I could count the titles I enjoy on the fingers of one hand… Still, I think the Wii is an interesting system for what it is – particularly for kids – but it goes to show that simplicity is not the only thing that people are looking for…
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Xbox 360 owners should all be aware of the awesomeness that is the Xbox Achievements system. Microsoft managed to add a passive and competitive function to video gaming and, to steal a phrase from Apple, it just works – mainly as a result of seamless integration and its simple, speedy functionality. Comparing yourself against your mates is quick and easy – the bigger number wins – and the little flash up on screen to tell you that you’ve earned a new achievement is not too annoying, particularly because you immediately know how much this will affect your score. It just adds an overall sense of satisfaction to whatever awesome thing it is that you have just performed… In some cases, you might not have even realised you did something awesome – thanks Microsoft.
Video Games
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c, games, gaming, impressions, Playstation Network, PSN, Sony, stupid, venting, Xbox Live 
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