Idle Thumbs 131: Real Life

[clyde]

You also mentioned how Spelunky does not have any variation in the outcome of movement or physics interactions given the same input, and how this eschews what a lot of games do for "flavor." This also made me remember how much frustration I've found in various games that do use an element of randomness to enhance the flavor of the game, by providing variation to mechanics, or to make the world feel more real or alive. The most common example I have experienced is the randomness of bullet trajectory in a game where you fire a weapon, as a short-hand for the randomness introduced into your aim by the recoil of the weapon. In an attempt to create verisimilitude they undermine the ability of the player to understand how the system works. In certain games it can be used for artistic effect: by providing a reminder that life is too big a complex to understand, but most of the time no such message is implied and the result is just annoyance.

How does pinball fit into this? Maybe some sort of savant could predict the exact trajectory and ricochets of a shot, but for most of us it becomes a process of managing potential risks based on their possible rewards and likely dangers. But theoretically, the physics are foundational and consistent.

[Dualhammers]

How does pinball fit into this? Maybe some sort of savant could predict the exact trajectory and ricochets of a shot, but for most of us it becomes a process of managing potential risks based on their possible rewards and likely dangers. But theoretically, the physics are foundational and comsistent.

Actual pinball is a physical game, so it is actual physics rather than randomness as an attempt to poorly mimic the properties of our world. I also think Pinball isn't a game you beat rather than a task you merely try and perform as long as possible before your ability gives out. If you could completely master it the game would, effectively, never end. 

Also, Pinball is really frustrating.

[Berzee]

baboo? (skip to 1h1m55s if it doesn't do it automatically)

 

[Marquis]

Oh god, this really is wonderful

[sclpls]

Yay Jeff Green!

 

This actually kind of had the structure of a GFW podcast where it starts out and it isn't clear if anyone has anything to talk about, people start talking about the game that people are always talking about (Spelunky replaces WoW/CoH), and then it spirals into a bunch of fascinating tangents.

 

If for whatever reason Idle Thumbs decides it needs another former GFW person to appear as a guest, my vote is for Robert Ashley.

[Henroid]

Robert Ashley is the guy who was doing the A Life Well Wasted thing right? I miss those.

[sclpls]

Yeah, he does A Life Well Wasted. One came out this year. He mentioned working on another one on twitter, but that was many months ago so it'll probably be out in 3 years. ALWW is amazing, but I'd love to just hear him on podcasts about whatever talking about stuff. I definitely dig his outlook on things in general.

[Salacious Snake]

Rockstar Table Tennis is an excellent game! Classic Game Room recently made a video about it: 

 

I'm sure I saw or heard some major appreciation of it somewhere else just recently too. I suppose it's been coming up because of GTA V.

 

I imagine I only picked it up because there were so few games available for the 360 at the time, but it's a kickass game. It's tense and fast and about as strategic as these things get. I'd say it's at least as good as any given flavor of Virtua Tennis.

[TheLastBaron]

I have a bunch of CGW magazine covers pinned on my bedroom wall from a billion years ago, like one from when Alan Wake was just announced as this new rad PC game. I love Jeff Green. I'm one of the people that think of GFW as a magazine, I didn't even know about the podcast for so long.

In regards to the rage quitting screen punch, I got so mad at Tekken 5 when it came out that I threw my PS2 controller on the ground and broke it. At the arcade.

[Golden Calf]

man you guys should have Jeff Green on every week.

[Zeusthecat]

I punched a hole in my wall once when I got mad playing Worms 2.

 

I also broke no less than 2 Gamecube controllers playing Smash Bros.

 

Now I just handle this kind of stuff like a real man, with quiet squeals of frustration and exaggerated hand gestures. Also loudly whispering variations of "Come on!!", "Come the fuck on!", "Fucking come on!", and "Goddamn son of a bitch!".

 

Edit: I also once started crying out of frustration while playing NBA Jam on my Game Gear during a family trip.

[Henroid]

I kinda get jealous of extreme rage quit stories. Not of being the quitter, but at least witness to it. The only person I witnessed having extreme rage quits was my brother, but he was kind of abusive about it - my mere presence in the room while he was playing a game would be enough for him to start cursing me out and blaming me somehow, whether or not I was even watching.

 

So yeah unfortunately there's an uncool side to rage quitting.

 

At least I have Jake's angle to be amused by, it was kind of adorable to hear.

[tegan]

Is this still the pinnacle of ragequitting?

 

 

 

 

Confession: there was a time when I  used to chew on Gamecube controllers out of frustration. Now I'm super chill though.

[dmarlett]

Hmm... the kicking my feet in the air out of rage really resonated with me today.  But I finally beat Super Meat Boy.

[tberton]

Oh god, this really is wonderful

 

My favourite part is seeing all the dumb names for horror movies. The Gingerdead Man? Really?

[Faegbeard]

Isn't that more or less government mandated after a couple of serious health incidents in Korea?

 

 

It seems to be strongly encouraged due to the amount of people having strokes and heart attacks from sitting for too long.

[dmarlett]

My favourite part is seeing all the dumb names for horror movies. The Gingerdead Man? Really?

 

Not the

I've ever seen.

[Video Games Are Childish]

[Merus]

You know you've got problems when the best positive quote you can find comes from IMDB.

[Justin Leego]

Idle Thumbs 131: ༼ つ ◕_◕ ༽つ

[dibs]

I misheard medal of honour as Lego Harry Potter and wondered at how much rage such a seemingly Innoculus game could inspire such rage.

[Salacious Snake]

I feel a sense of vindication after hearing Jake talk about the pronunciation of Ubisoft.

 

When Ubi was ascending as a big, mainstream publisher, they actually put a video out explaining that it was Ubi as in Ubiquitous. For a time, the games media largely got on board and said it the intended way, but since then, I think most people have drifted back to the soft U, or Oobisoft pronunciation.

 

I've always stuck to my guns, but I was starting to feel weird about it, like I was being pedantic, or maybe just wrong. Like I had imagined that video, or maybe Ubisoft had changed their tune about it since then. I'm glad I'm not the only one.

[clyde]

I feel a sense of vindication after hearing Jake talk about the pronunciation of Ubisoft.

 

When Ubi was ascending as a big, mainstream publisher, they actually put a video out explaining that it was Ubi as in Ubiquitous. For a time, the games media largely got on board and said it the intended way, but since then, I think most people have drifted back to the soft U, or Oobisoft pronunciation.

 

I've always stuck to my guns, but I was starting to feel weird about it, like I was being pedantic, or maybe just wrong. Like I had imagined that video, or maybe Ubisoft had changed their tune about it since then. I'm glad I'm not the only one.

It actually doesn't help me because I don't know whether to pronounce it "eew-biquitous" or "you-biquitous". Even as I was listening to the podcast, I couldn't tell which one they were saying.

[Salacious Snake]

The preferred way is You, Biquitous.

[Jayel]

Yay Jeff Green. One of my favourite peoples