Dienstag, März 22, 2005

Here's, like, a really hilarious link, that, like, totally translates the web pages into, like, "Valley Girl" English - you know, like, with totally a bunch of, like, "likes" and "totally"s. Check this out for a, like, totally bodacious version of CNN:

Like, click!

:)

A bunch of other funny tools can be found here. Have fun!

Mittwoch, März 02, 2005

Hi everyone...
This is kind of a follow-up to the article on violence in computer games (see below for that): This is a really thought-provoking collection of answers from game developers on the question "Do game creators have any moral responsibilities in teaching values to their audience?"

Both sides give very deep, logical answers, here's my favorite answer on the "Yes" side:

Of course they do. Like most responsibilities, however, there's no external motivation to take it upon oneself to fulfill them. The only way we will begin to accept responsibilities like that as an industry is when we can grow up enough to accept that all games, including violent ones, affect people. They don't turn kids into stark raving serial killers, but it's not all safe exploration of fantasy either. I dare you to play Grand Theft Auto for four hours and get into your car and NOT think about side-swiping or stealing other cars on the roadway. The issue, as always, is more complex than the two extreme viewpoints would suggest.

Of course games affect people. We're betting our livelihood on it, aren't we? We can only be taken seriously when we take ourselves seriously.
- Borut Pfeifer, Radical Entertainment

And here's my favorite on the "No" side:
No - parents do. There's a rating system for a reason. Parents - know something about your kid's lives for a change. I can't count how many times an adult will mention their kid's playing video games and say something like, "I can't do those things... my kid can do them all." Yeah, you don't say. Those same parents can barely use a computer for anything more than an occasional email, or a favorite website. It actually excites me that when I have kids I'll at least be able to understand and participate in their computer/video game/technology-esque lifestyles, know what they're talking about, doing and have fun with them all while protecting them and doing my job as a parent.
- Bryan Erck, Shiny

I also found it very interesting that the majority of game developers asked back "Whose values?" Let the battle for truth in a post-modern world begin - hey, sounds like a cool, violent computer game! :-)