Inspired by the recent Gamasutra article, Opinion: Let’s retire the word ‘gamer’, the Duck, Hatm0nster, and I take a point-counterpoint approach to discuss what we think about the “gamer” label. Should it be “retired” as the article suggests? Do we accept the label ourselves? Is there some way for the term to escape the stereotypical…
Tag: gaming
“I’ll Definitely Need This Later…” (Probably Not)
When it comes to RPG’s I’m what you would call a hoarder. My character’s house in Skyrim is filled with old armor, weapons, potions that I’ll never use, and gem I will never sell. In traditional RPGs like Final Fantasy VII, Chrono Trigger or Mario RPG, I never use the best items, even as they…
Gaming And Me – My Identity As An Intermediate Gamer
Many of you may not be familiar with me or my blog over at simpleek. If you visit my blog, you may notice how I call myself the “intermediate gamer.” Ever since I started blogging over a year ago, I’ve been thinking a lot about my experiences and my identity as a gamer. I consider…
Being the Controller
By now, nearly everyone with an internet connection has heard something about the Xbox One reveal. Most of my next-gen predictions were proven correct as I read several round-ups on the matter: Usual banter about hyper-speed processing and superior graphics, Check. Profile-specific purchases and the supposed downfall of the used games market, Check. Baffling denial…
When You Know It’s Right
I’ve been playing Dragon Age II (very slowly) for a couple weeks now and I think, finally, we’ve clicked. How do I know? Because the gameplay and my characters from the game pop into my thoughts when I’m not playing. And when that happens, distracting as it may be, I starting thinking about where I’m…
Whaddya mean you don’t play games together??
My husband and I have bonded over lots of things during our years together. And early on, we found common ground in video games in that we each liked playing them. We’re both continually interested in games, new and old, and we do our best to stay in the news loop concerning games. But what…
Getting Ready to Rumble
It is so strange to think that over time; nearly all innovations become commonplace fixtures. Whenever new technology comes along to shake things up for the better, the whole world marvels at the novelty, eager to own a fresh gadget (or condemn it as witchcraft). But over time, what seemed so brilliant and beneficial becomes…
Premium Content in Games
Day 1 DLC, online access codes, the “PSN Pass”, each of these a different version of “premium” content meant to encourage buying new. Premium content is a tough issue to take a stance on, since there is a valid argument for each side. On one hand we have the developer/ publisher essentially offering a more…
They Always Respawn
As someone who grew up playing video games, I often take for granted just how many tropes have become commonplace to me. Recently, I was watching my wife’s first play-through of Aladdin on the Super Nintendo. While she was playing, Laura became quite upset at the idea that enemies were respawning the moment she wandered off-screen. “It makes no sense! When…
United We Game is Accepting Submissions!
Hello Everyone! We are excited to announce that as of Saturday May 4th, United We Game (referred to as UWG from here on) will be accepting post submissions! We’ve been looking forward to doing this since we began back in March and are incredibly excited to start working with our fellow games bloggers as UWG…
VIRTUAL BASTION 