Category: Gaming

Yes. Skyrim is a Big Deal

Alvin Holland

Well it’s official, I have a new favorite RPG. Skyrim, a game that I originally wasn’t super hyped about a few weeks ago, has managed to absorb any free time that I have. The fifth installment of the Elder Scrolls series is a major step in the right direction for Bethesda. I could go on for hours about why I am such a fan of this game, but I’ll restrain myself and just stick to a few key areas.

Graphics

The graphics are a double-edged sword. On one hand I am huge fan of how realistic and breathtaking the landscapes in the game are rendered. The huge mountains with clouds and fog rolling off them into the valleys are amazing nice to watch. The cities and towns are so well done that I almost feels like a real place. Then with all of this detail, come random glitches that at times can be jarring. Mammoths can spawn in the air and plunge to their death, characters getting stuck in chairs as they try to follow you out of a building, and a good hit can fling an opponent into the air like Superman hit him.

However, even with these sporadic graphical glitches you can’t help but find the game amazing to look at. I still hope they put out a patch that will fix some of these odd bugs, but even if they don’t I can manage.

Gameplay

The biggest improvements to the game are in this category. The fighting system in Skyrim is much more fast paced and, in my opinion, exciting than previous games. The game does away with classes and allows you to level-up and choose perks in whichever skill category you please whether its destruction, archery, or one-handed weapons. Which works out better because any skill leveled-up will add to your progress of reaching the next level instead of having 10 major skills like in previous games.

In terms of the actual combat, this game is a huge improvement. Finishing moves have been added which make some of your kills seem so much more epic and fulfilling. Yet they don’t happen so often that it gets annoying. The combat is much more fast-paced and exciting than it was even in Oblivion. The best evidence I can give of the improvement is a friend a mine who has hated every Elder Scrolls game that has come-out because he found the combat boring and not worth playing. He has now racked-up over 20 hours of game time in 3 days with Skyrim and can’t stop talking about it.

Everything Else

The biggest appeal to me that any Elder Scrolls game has is just how big in scope each game is. You can easily spend 40 hours doing side quests, becoming the biggest thief in Skyrim, and pillaging towns before even completing a single story quest. It’s like living a medieval second life in which you can do anything at any pace.

Conclusion

Skyrim is by far, my favorite game that has been released this year. The scope, the graphics, and the gameplay all work out to make a title that will keep your attention for a long time. Skyrim is a major step forward for Bethesda and I can’t wait to see how what they did with this game, may be carried over into either Fallout or the next Elder Scrolls. If you’re a fan of RPG games, then you would really be missing out if you choose to skip this one. Its more than worth the $60 or putting on your Christmas wish list.

How Women Can Cope with Dating a Gaming Addict

Alvin Holland

My boyfriend of over 3 years is a World of Warcraft addict. For over three years, I’ve had the pleasure of his company-and the nuisance of his addiction. I never realized the full extent to his gamer ways until we lived together. Here are some tips for women who are feeling neglected to cope when their boyfriends are gaming addicts.

1). Set a specified date night. If your boyfriend is a gaming addict, getting him to agree to one whole day or evening of no games may be quite the challenge. If he’s a good boyfriend he will do it, because the other days of the week he is not spending time with you, he is spending time on the game. Set a specified day of the week where he agrees no games and you two go to dinner, see a movie, or just hang around the house. If he is going to spend 90% of his time on a game, he needs to devote all of his attention to you one day a week at a minimum. Really, he should be doing more than one day a week, especially if you are in a serious relationship.

2). Understand this is what they like to do. I have long given up trying to understand the appeal of playing fantasy games for sometimes 12-hour periods. I have found though, that the best thing to do is accept that they have found a hobby that they love. It is unlikely to change. Making fun of them or yelling about it is not going to do any good. In fact, if you argue with them, they are likely to just whirl around and get right back on the game, which won’t bother them any. Trust me, I know.

3). Give them their space. While guys are on their video games, they might as well be on another planet. They won’t hear a word you say, so expecting an accurate answer on any question is pointless. When they are playing their games, don’t get mad if they aren’t giving you 100% attention (though it should never be so bad you feel like you can’t carry on a conversation).

4). Compromise. If they insist on playing games for hours every day, let them know what works for you. If you feel like a neglected housewife, be blunt about it. No woman should ever come second to games. If one date night isn’t enough for you a week, ask for two hours per evening before they play games after work to watch television or have him help out on chores.

5). TRY the game. This is a long shot, and by no means am I saying become a gaming whiz if you don’t want to. In my experience, I tried the game in question, World of Warcraft, and played it until I reached level 20. Once I realized the game wasn’t doing much for me, I stopped. It was fun to play together while it lasted, though, and my boyfriend appreciated me trying something he is so passionate about.

Confessions of a Girl Gamer

Alvin Holland

I’m a girl gamer. Four words that I swore I would never say, but now I say them with a wee bit of smugness. Let me explain a little; I married a man, who among other things is a gamer, so now, thanks to him, I currently enjoy a wide variety of games of the geeky kind. However, I am quite pleased that the influence goes both ways, and my husband now plays some traditional games, such as Bananagrams.

I grew up in a family that adored word games like Boggle and Scrabble, and card games like Hand and Foot. Every family get-together with Grandma meant we’d break out the Scrabble board and see if anyone could beat the reigning champion (Grandma). Holidays meant it was time for Hand and Foot, and we were pretty competitive!

But I was totally turned off to RPGs, trading card games, and video games because I thought they were weird, violent, and for lonely, greasy young adults who couldn’t get jobs. Being a teacher, I also didn’t like the fact that I could tell which of my students were gamers and which were readers just by the effort in class and quality of work turned in.

Now, however, after playing Magic the Gathering (trading card game), running an RPG (role playing game), and playing over halfway through Guild Wars (a massively multiplayer online role playing game), my husband proudly refers to me as a geek. He also gets a kick out of watching me play video games, but I must confess, I only play casual games-nothing with blood or swearing or killing. A point in my favor, however, is that I do have my own Xbox controller and headset.

Why the switch? What changed my mind? Aside from learning that some of these geeky games are actually really fun and complex, I learned that many of these games rely on the elements of story, strategy, and critical thinking. Being a geek is more sophisticated than it sounds! I’ll dive into each category of game in subsequent articles, but in this overview, let me say that while I’m still a light gamer, I’m quite enjoying this new subculture.

As with any subculture, too much of anything is harmful. A word to the wise [parents] here: games of any kind, especially video games, should never ever take the place of good, honest reading, school work, or social interaction. Even for boys! This recent article was particularly convincing.

And since many games do lean a little heavy on the visceral, parents need discretion to know what their children are playing. Many games do contain violence, sexual elements, and bad language. Even for adult gamers, moderation and balance should be important.

So to the gamer and non-gamer alike, get out in the sunshine, enjoy the company of friends, read a good book, and try a game! You might be pleasantly surprised.