WYGamers Top eight games of 2016

2016 was a year of adjustment. I was adjusting to a new family dynamic, and trying to work out the best solutions to a variety of problems I had never encountered before due to now being a dad for the first full year.

The first half saw me have to give up writing for a time, as I didn’t have the energy or the time to play games effectively for the site I was working for, while also going away a lot for my main job. The second half had me figure something’s out, and start to plan around my now much more limited spare time.

In all this, however, I did manage to play a few games. While I did play more than eight, a couple fell a bit flat, so rather than contradict the reviews I had written in the interests of giving an actual top ten list, here are the eight games I felt were the ones that made 2016 a great year for the hobby.
 

1.That Dragon, Cancer

This was one of the first games I reviewed/played this year, and the fact that it shows up as my number 1 pick says a lot about how it has stuck with me.

Every time I thought about games I have played over the year, my mind always wandered back to the often surreal, deeply personal and emotionally affecting That Dragon, Cancer. The story of a four year olds battle against the eponymous disease, told from his parents eyes, will stick with me for years to come. The emotional barrage entailed, especially for a new parent, is relentless and all I wanted to do after finishing it was hug my daughter.

One scene in particular had me almost in tears, and ask my wife if you want to know how often that happens. A haunting game that shows the type of stories the medium can tell, this is one that will hit you hard and a leave a permanent mark.

2.Doom

My number 2 pick has no right to be as good as it is. Doom 3, frankly, lowered everyone’s expectations. It fundamentally altered what Doom was, taking on a more survival horror slant that not everyone liked. I enjoyed it, but freely admit it was a different take on what the series is.

Doom 2016 scraps all that and reverts back to what made the original games so good. It’s blazingly fast, revels in gore and blood, has a metal soundtrack Iron Maiden would be proud of and actually provides an engagingly goofy story. The multiplayer and snap map features aren’t great, but the campaign is everything you want out of a Doom game.
 

3.Titanfall 2

I don’t have a lot of time to play multiplayer games these days, and I especially don’t have many friends that play them, but with Titanfall 2, I can play with randoms and feel great afterwards.

The feel of the game is pitch perfect, and battles are intense without being overwhelming. Add to this a campaign that introduces good characters, builds on the universe and is a hell of a lot of fun, with some fantastic levels and sequences thrown in, and Titanfall 2 is a brilliant package.

4.Firewatch

This game made me want to go and spend a lonely summer in a watch tower in Wyoming. The slightly cartoon visuals take nothing away from the stunning vista’s Campo Santo crafted as the background to a personal and well written story.

Playing as Henry, only communicating with fellow ranger Delilah via radio, it effectively feels like you're isolated, while at the same time developing a relationship that could become slightly more than friendship. Nothing fantastical is required, as the mystery that unravels as you progress delivers a compelling reason to keep going.

5.Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

As the final (potentially) chapter in the Uncharted franchise, A Thief's End is a fitting swan song. The action is as top notch as ever, Naughty Dog have finally listened and not included any supernatural elements, and they have taken all the things they learned from The Last of Us and applied it to Nathan Drake.

In that lesson, Uncharted has benefited the most. The story is stunning, with well realized characters that interact in a believable fashion. Nate’s relationship with his wife Elena, his restlessness with life they have built and the return of his brother are portrayed with the deft touch only Naughty Dog can muster.
 

6.Dark Souls III

I came to the souls games very late, starting with the re-release of Dark Souls II on PS4. The third game is an evolution that has taken inspiration from spinoff Bloodborne, giving a faster spin on the already great gameplay.

That's not to say that this has suddenly become Devil May Cry, you will still die, brutally and often, unless you proceed carefully and plan your battles well. As always there are some stunning bosses, and the atmosphere almost seeps out of the screen. Since all the souls games are self contained, Dark Souls III is a great place to start your adventure if you haven’t ever played.
 

7.Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4

This is a game I wouldn’t normally play, and I went into it thinking it wouldn’t be particularly great. How wrong I was. The story mode is a spectacle of nonsensical Anime, featuring giant multi-tailed foxes, ninja’s with the ability to clone themselves and world destroying fireballs.

It assaults your senses with color, light and sound, leaving you bewildered as to what the hell just happened and presenting cut scenes that rival Metal Gear Solid in terms of length and total confusion, and is all the better for it. This was a genuine surprise in 2016 and while I still couldn’t tell you what happened in the story other than “They Won!”,  I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Naruto and co.

8.Gears of War 4

More than a few classic franchises were revitalized in 2016, but Gears of War 4 was one of the bigger names. Unfortunately it had mixed results. The core action is still brilliant, and it took less than five minutes for me to feel right at home with the new generation of gears.

The problem is that they brought back the locust. The opening few levels had you fighting the current COG government and their robotic DB’s as outsiders, but soon everything falls back to old ways, leaving a much more compelling and interesting story in a grave. That, coupled with the ‘Hey this is a trilogy!!!’ ending, left a bitter taste in my mouth. Using the Lancer to chainsaw through bad guys is still just as fun and gory as ever though, and that was more than enough to earn it a spot on my list.

There you have it, my top eight games of 2016. If you haven’t played any that sound interesting, do so and let's have a chat about them, see if you agree with me!

Diary of a Geek Dad: Artful Relationship

*this was originally posted on thisismyjoystick

Welcome to another edition of Diary of a Geek Dad. To kick things off, let me say that baby’s first Christmas was a success. We had very little crying on the day, even managing to get her off for a half hour nap. The crackers didn’t scare her, and while she clearly had no idea why the house was suddenly filled with new stuff, she was very happy the whole time.

I think future Christmases will prove much more fun than the first, just because she will understand what is happening more and we can do things like put a glass of milk and cookie (or mince pie) out for Santa. It was fun though, and I can’t wait for next year…

So, what have I been thinking about over the last couple of months? Well, the thing about this series, and I found, being a dad, is that you are constantly thinking about the future. I think about what my daughter is going to be like in just a few months time, in a few years time, when she is a stroppy teenager, and I try to plan out the key points of what needs to be taught to her, trying to work the best way to do so…

Don’t get me wrong, I quite enjoy this process, it’s a fun thought experiment but is ultimately a bit fruitless because I know the actual situation that will arise will be completely different from what I have come up with my head. That, plus there is so much to the world, it’s tough to know what to teach her about and what to let her discover on her own. There are things I was never taught about when I was a kid that I will definitely show her though, and one of these is, quite simply, art.

I am not a good artist, by any stretch. My creativity comes from my ability to write and, even though I have been doing it for years, off and on, I know I am still not considered a particularly good writer either. I have made my peace with it, but if you think otherwise I thank you. When it comes to drawing, I am shockingly bad. I tried to pay attention in art class, doing my best, but my brain simply isn’t wired to take pride in my artistic endeavours if it doesn’t look exactly like the image and/or style I am trying to ape.

I am a bit like Emmett at the start of The Lego Movie. Must. Follow. Instructions. Another thing I made my peace with this a long time ago. This part of the reason I now have a small collection of Lego Star Wars models, rather than the massive tub of loose bricks I used to have. All of this doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate good art, and I have come to realise what I like when it comes to art.

My best friend is a professional artist, and he is amazing. I have watched him grow up and his art change with him and it has been great to watch. My daughter, I hope, will take inspiration from him and do something creative with her life, not just end up with a desk job she fell into. To be fair, she might want to do that, and if she does I will not stop her, but I hope she will take a more creative and artistic path.

The problem I have is teaching her about art. Writing, playing and talking about games means I am exposed to a lot of amazing artwork, and I love the art style of many sci-fi and fantasy movies, but because I am a rubbish artist and I have really bad impostor syndrome, I feel I am a massive hypocrite for even attempting to critique it.

I went to Paris with my wife a couple of years ago and we saw the Mona Lisa. She asked me what I thought and I my response was it is the reason professional art critics are arseholes. To me, it was just a portrait of a lady, well made, but not this all knowing piece of priceless work that art critics the world over have lorded for so long.

That is my opinion on one piece, but it’s the damn Mona Lisa, if I can’t look at that and go “that’s a great piece of art”, then surely I have no business talking about the subject, especially if I can’t draw. Recently though, I have come to a bit of a understanding with myself.

As I say, my opinion on one of the world’s greatest paintings is just that – my opinion. So I don’t particularly like it, who cares? it’s not like I am ever going to be able to own it so I am not bothered. So what I need to teach my daughter is what I like when it comes to art. The aforementioned best friends work is, admittedly, a little bias, so that isn’t what I am talking about. It’s the other art, the games, comics and movies that I need to teach her about, and let her decide for herself what she is into.

I like art that is… clean, I suppose that’s the best way to describe it. Clearly depicted, good lines, cool poses that sort of thing. As an example, I love the art of the new Transformerscomics, but hate the original 1980’s comic art. It is the same for Marvel/DC comics, if the artist in question is a little ‘rough and ready’ then I have a tough time getting into the book, no matter how good the story arc.

When it comes to movies, sci-fi is more my jam than anything else. A good depiction of crazy future tech really gets me, so movies like Minority Report and Jupiter Ascending are really sweet in terms of visuals. I also kinda like the ‘dirty’ technology represented by movies like Aliens and the original Terminator.

In games, I have a somewhat broader scope. It’s strange to say, but due to the very nature of the medium the art style of a game only counts to part of it, and a relatively small part in my eyes. The act of playing becomes far more important, and yes, visuals are important in that but I love the art in Wind Waker just as much as the attempt at photo realism that is Heavy Rain.

This is because the visuals complement the other aspects to make a compelling whole. It is kind of the same with movies, but I find passively watching a movie lets me notice the art of the visuals more than when I engage with playing a game. I think this might be because my brain is also having to concentrate on making the controller do things to get the game to respond.

When reviewing games I have to make the conscious decision to look at the art style/visuals and analyse them so that I can give my honest opinion on it where required, but if I was playing a game not for review, as I did recently with Ori and the Blind Forest, I can lose myself and get sucked into the world. Some say that if a game can do that then it is doing something right, and I have to agree.

These are the types of art I like. It’s not a bad thing, and I am no hypocrite for saying that one thing is bad to me over another, the whole world does it too. This revelation has given me a new perspective on the subject, and I fully intend to teach my kid about art. She might not like what I like, and that is something to be encouraged, because that will give us something to talk about and discuss, and those are the conversations I am really looking forward to with my daughter.

Diary of a Geek Dad: Spartan Woes

*this was originally posted on thisismyjoystick

Welcome to the first in what I hope will be a regular feature: The Diary of a Geek Dad. I am hoping for this to be more a collection of thoughts, worries and obstacles that lie in front of me as I traverse the minefield of fatherhood as an open and honest geek; sometimes stupid, sometimes sweet but, most of all, real.

So, just to get this out of the way, I have a beautiful baby daughter now who is doing brilliantly, despite the fact that I may have thought she was a boy when I first saw her (don’t judge, Homer Simpson did the same thing). We spent about a week in the hospital just due to mum having an infection and a clerical cock up, but have been home for a couple of weeks and all are getting into the swing of things.

So what is this first post going to be about? Well, knowing that I would have some downtime while we waited for my wife’s labour to kick in properly, I invested in a copy of Halo: Mortal Dictata, the third book in the Kilo-Five trilogy. At this point, it’s probably fairly obvious that I am a massive Halo fan, and I love the extended universe novels. Bungie, and later 343 Industries, have strived to create a universe that feels coherent across everything, telling stories that aren’t just rehashes of the games plots (looking at you Assassin’s Creed).

The Kilo-Five Trilogy consists of three books: Glasslands, Thursday War and Mortal Dictataand centres on the ONI special forces team Kilo-Five, whose mission is simple: cause a civil war within the ranks of the Elites or Sangheili. This is going to get a bit lore and spoiler heavy, but hopefully not too confusing because there is a specific part of these books, and the overall Halo fiction that I want to talk about.

The Kilo-Five team consists of the next in-line to be Head of Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI): A former Spartan called Serin Osman, two Orbital Drop Shock Troopers (ODSTs) in Vaz and Mal, pilot Deveraux, communications specialist Philips, smart A.I. BB (Cortana’s equivalent) and, finally and most importantly for this, Spartan Naomi-010: An active Spartan II. Why is Naomi important? It is because she is a Spartan II.

Master Chief is a Spartan II, the same type as Naomi. The Spartan II’s were created to fight insurgents during a rising, galactic civil war within the human colonies, but the alien Covenant presented a more pressing threat and so they were deployed to battle them instead. The most successful Spartan is obviously Master Chief, but many others were created, such as Naomi and Serin Osman, but the augmentations required to fully complete the transition to Spartan weren’t always successful, which is why Osman is a former Spartan.

The Spartan II project is the crux of the matter here. The program required its candidates to meet certain requirements in terms of physical and mental attributes and, most importantly, age. The required age was five-to-six years old. This means that the kids were kidnapped from their families, replaced with flash clones and sent to the planet Reach to undergo the training and other procedures required for the project to be a success.

The clones were designed to die after a certain amount of time, leaving families to believe that their kids had simply died from natural causes. Some family members didn’t believe that previously healthy kids could suddenly become so sick, and in some cases they didn’t believe that the kid in front of them was the same child they had raised for the last few years.

This is where Naomi-010 comes in. In the book Mortal Dictata, Kilo-Five are diverted from their mission on Sanghelios (the Elite home world), having instigated a civil war, to a backwater planet called Venezia. Here they find Naomi’s father, Staffan, a man who has spent the last twenty years trying to find the truth of what happened to his daughter. Staffan has acquired a Covenant battle cruiser, the kind they used to destroy entire planets.

Staffan never believed that the clone was his daughter, and actively sought out others in the same boat. He managed to find several others and become increasingly sure that Earth’s UNSC government has something to do with her disappearance and apparent death. This built over a twenty year period and culminated in his attempting to use the battle cruiser to get the answers he wanted, whether that meant glassing a major city on Earth or not.

Honestly, was I in this Universe myself, I cannot say I wouldn’t do the same thing. If my daughter was taken and replaced by someone who looks and sounds the same but just… isn’t, I would want to find out what has happened too. If I discovered others had the same thing, I would want to find out more, but I still wouldn’t be prepared for the truth of what my daughter had gone through.

Sure, she would be a Spartan, a super soldier capable of running at 60mph, wearing high-tech battle armour and taking on massive alien creatures single-handed, but what she would have gone through to get there is unmistakably cruel.

Ripped from her family at six, taken to an alien world with other, scared, crying children and forced to endure years of rigorous military training before she even had a full vocabulary, she would have her childhood torn away. Her name would be reduced to first name and a number, no personal belongings and possibly even told I had agreed to let her go. That is before a gene therapy and physical augmentation process that could have killed her or left her seriously deformed.

EDITORIALS

DIARY OF A GEEK DAD: SPARTAN WOES

SEPTEMBER 24, 2015, AUTHOR: DAN MOORE

Welcome to the first in what I hope will be a regular feature: The Diary of a Geek Dad. I am hoping for this to be more a collection of thoughts, worries and obstacles that lie in front of me as I traverse the minefield of fatherhood as an open and honest geek; sometimes stupid, sometimes sweet but, most of all, real.

So, just to get this out of the way, I have a beautiful baby daughter now who is doing brilliantly, despite the fact that I may have thought she was a boy when I first saw her (don’t judge, Homer Simpson did the same thing). We spent about a week in the hospital just due to mum having an infection and a clerical cock up, but have been home for a couple of weeks and all are getting into the swing of things.

So what is this first post going to be about? Well, knowing that I would have some downtime while we waited for my wife’s labour to kick in properly, I invested in a copy of Halo: Mortal Dictata, the third book in the Kilo-Five trilogy. At this point, it’s probably fairly obvious that I am a massive Halo fan, and I love the extended universe novels. Bungie, and later 343 Industries, have strived to create a universe that feels coherent across everything, telling stories that aren’t just rehashes of the games plots (looking at you Assassin’s Creed).

The Kilo-Five Trilogy consists of three books: Glasslands, Thursday War and Mortal Dictataand centres on the ONI special forces team Kilo-Five, whose mission is simple: cause a civil war within the ranks of the Elites or Sangheili. This is going to get a bit lore and spoiler heavy, but hopefully not too confusing because there is a specific part of these books, and the overall Halo fiction that I want to talk about.

The final book in the Kilo Five trilogy is fantastic and harrowing in equal measure…

The Kilo-Five team consists of the next in-line to be Head of Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI): A former Spartan called Serin Osman, two Orbital Drop Shock Troopers (ODSTs) in Vaz and Mal, pilot Deveraux, communications specialist Philips, smart A.I. BB (Cortana’s equivalent) and, finally and most importantly for this, Spartan Naomi-010: An active Spartan II. Why is Naomi important? It is because she is a Spartan II.

Master Chief is a Spartan II, the same type as Naomi. The Spartan II’s were created to fight insurgents during a rising, galactic civil war within the human colonies, but the alien Covenant presented a more pressing threat and so they were deployed to battle them instead. The most successful Spartan is obviously Master Chief, but many others were created, such as Naomi and Serin Osman, but the augmentations required to fully complete the transition to Spartan weren’t always successful, which is why Osman is a former Spartan.

The Spartan II project is the crux of the matter here. The program required its candidates to meet certain requirements in terms of physical and mental attributes and, most importantly, age. The required age was five-to-six years old. This means that the kids were kidnapped from their families, replaced with flash clones and sent to the planet Reach to undergo the training and other procedures required for the project to be a success.

The clones were designed to die after a certain amount of time, leaving families to believe that their kids had simply died from natural causes. Some family members didn’t believe that previously healthy kids could suddenly become so sick, and in some cases they didn’t believe that the kid in front of them was the same child they had raised for the last few years.

A Spartan II isn’t necessarily Master Chief you know…

This is where Naomi-010 comes in. In the book Mortal Dictata, Kilo-Five are diverted from their mission on Sanghelios (the Elite home world), having instigated a civil war, to a backwater planet called Venezia. Here they find Naomi’s father, Staffan, a man who has spent the last twenty years trying to find the truth of what happened to his daughter. Staffan has acquired a Covenant battle cruiser, the kind they used to destroy entire planets.

Staffan never believed that the clone was his daughter, and actively sought out others in the same boat. He managed to find several others and become increasingly sure that Earth’s UNSC government has something to do with her disappearance and apparent death. This built over a twenty year period and culminated in his attempting to use the battle cruiser to get the answers he wanted, whether that meant glassing a major city on Earth or not.

Honestly, was I in this Universe myself, I cannot say I wouldn’t do the same thing. If my daughter was taken and replaced by someone who looks and sounds the same but just… isn’t, I would want to find out what has happened too. If I discovered others had the same thing, I would want to find out more, but I still wouldn’t be prepared for the truth of what my daughter had gone through.

Sure, she would be a Spartan, a super soldier capable of running at 60mph, wearing high-tech battle armour and taking on massive alien creatures single-handed, but what she would have gone through to get there is unmistakably cruel.

Ripped from her family at six, taken to an alien world with other, scared, crying children and forced to endure years of rigorous military training before she even had a full vocabulary, she would have her childhood torn away. Her name would be reduced to first name and a number, no personal belongings and possibly even told I had agreed to let her go. That is before a gene therapy and physical augmentation process that could have killed her or left her seriously deformed.

While, in the Halo universe, the end results of the Spartan II program cannot be argued with, what had happened to those kids was horrible. It made this book an incredibly tough read after my daughter was born. We had no idea of her sex beforehand, wanting it to be a surprise, and afterwards the book’s story of a man looking for answers about his daughter and the overall fiction of the Spartan program took on a whole new gravitas.

I wasn’t expecting this!

The site’s editor, after reading the first draft of this post, prompted me to think back on both The Last of Us and the first season the TellTale’s The Walking Dead and see how I felt. I loved both of these games the first time around, and have re-watched the opening scenes of The Last of Us on YouTube. They were heart-wrenching before, but goddamn, I was almost in tears, and that was the first fifteen minutes!

Looking back on that game and how Joel ends up protecting Ellie by any means necessary, it brings me closer to him in a way I didn’t think possible. I can be fairly cynical when it comes to matters of the heart, so the first time around I appreciated what the developers were trying to do with these characters. If I were to play it through again, I would now get a real sense of what Joel himself was going through, especially during the closing scenes. It takes the incredible story and acting to a whole new level. This isn’t a character in a game, he is a dad, struggling to deal with terrible things in a terrible world.

The Walking Dead has similar themes, with Lee just trying to do what is right for Clem, even though she isn’t his daughter or even a relation. Again, the final scenes now take on a whole new level, and to be honest, it was an aspect of fatherhood I wasn’t expecting. Sure, everyone tells you about the sleepless nights, the never-ending nappy changes and military operation nature of doing anything, but they don’t tell you how fiction can take on a whole new perspective.

To be honest, it has knocked me for a six. I have suddenly been given this new outlook on themes of family, parent and fatherhood, and the fiction I consume that deals with it has all the more impact, which has been the most surprising aspect of it all. I managed to prepare myself for all the practical stuff, but how do you emotionally prepare for something you have absolutely no real context for, even if you are around kids of your friends and family a lot?

Obviously, you can’t know how you will feel in a given situation until you are in it. With the zombie apocalypse unlikely (just deal with it!) and even less chance of being transported five hundred years into future where an alien collective is attempting to wipe humanity off the face of the galaxy, I cannot say for certain if what I have said is definitely how I would react, but it wouldn’t be far off.

The Worries of a Geek Dad

*this was originally posted on thisismyjoystick

I am less than a week away (potentially) from being a father for the first time. It’s an incredibly exciting, scary time in my life, one that will change it permanently, and I honestly cannot wait to meet our little bump.

It’s strange because anyone who has had kids before me gives me advice on anything to do with them, which is absolutely welcome because I know no matter how hard I try to be prepared, I’m simply not. Not for the real deal, not one bit. However, a lot of people know I am a big geek and a massive games player, which then leads to comments like, ‘you won’t have time for any of that crap soon!’.

It is highly likely that my game time will become limited for the rest of my life and I won’t have the disposable cash to spend on collectibles to go in my man cave at all. The thing about all this advice is that not one of my friends with kids are as much of a gamer/geek than I am, presenting a somewhat unique problem.

This got me thinking, and in fact worrying, about my very nature – about the person that I am. I know I can be a total jackass and I have my faults like anyone else, but I have embraced this idea and learnt from it, trying to be the best person I can be, for me and now my child. I like to think this is the best way to handle life, and while I do admit that this can cause me some grief in its own way, this is how I prefer to conduct myself.

Some of the ‘faults’ I am talking about, however, are only seen as faults by others. My geekdom is seen by many, including members of my family, as childish behaviour that has no place in parenthood, and that if you want to raise a child right you have to show them what being an ‘adult’ is and how to conduct themselves accordingly. Granted, this will not hit me for several years, but society seems to deem it necessary that the second you become a parent everything that came before is petty, childish BS.

To a certain extent, I agree with this. My life will change and things that seemed like massive problems will become a fading memory pretty quickly, but it’s these past experiences which made me the person that I am today. That core will remain for however long I am on this planet, though the stuff around it will change and inform a personality that will change and evolve over my entire life. Yet the person at the centre of all that will fundamentally be who I have always been, and that person is a geek.

I know I am one, and I embrace it, possibly a little too much. I have said for many years that I could try and hide it, but five minutes in my company will prove I am just lying to myself and everyone around me. I might as well be honest about it. I spend silly money on collectible toys to keep for display purposes only. I devour as much information on games as I can get my hands on, play as much as I can and get deeply passionate about cool fiction across all kinds of mediums.

At times, though, it feels like this is still frowned upon, especially if you are a parent. While the last few years have seen the mainstream start to embrace and accept this comic book and video game-loving subculture, being open and honest about it as a parent still feels like you are being judged harshly. That is absolutely not the way to bring up a child. A child must be prepared for what life throws at it before it becomes an adult and must know the line between the two. My question is, why is there a line in the first place?

The concept of the ‘guilty pleasure’ features heavily here. If you really like a song, book, tv show, movie or game but the rest of the world have judged it and found it lacking, people seem to think that they have to hide their fondness for it away. Same deal with being a geeky parent. You might like all of that stuff but because you have a child to take care of you can’t be seen to do so, and must be seen to be this omnipotent being who oversees every aspect of your kid’s lives, making sure they grow up right.

Therein lies the rub no one tells you about: make sure your kids grow up to be good, kind, honest people, just make sure they do it in a way everyone else in world thinks is okay. However, being a geek, in my humble opinion, is the ultimate version of that ideal. Simon Pegg, star of Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and the later Mission Impossible movies, has the following to say on the subject:

“Being a geek is all about being honest about what you enjoy and not being afraid to demonstrate that affection. It means never having to play it cool about how much you like something. It’s basically a license to proudly emote on a somewhat childish level rather than behave like a supposed adult. Being a geek is extremely liberating.”

If society wants me to raise my child to be honest, then why does it keep asking me to hide the person that I am because a father shouldn’t be seen to like such ‘childish’ things? Surely the best way to teach my kid about being honest is to be honest myself?

I want my son or daughter to grow up knowing that is okay to like whatever you like, and that you shouldn’t hide it away. If they like a show their friends say is stupid, I want them to accept that is the friend’s opinion, but continue to like said show anyway, because if they like it, watch it. Or read it, play it or collect it. If that is what you enjoy, don’t be afraid to enjoy it, openly and honestly.

It is entirely likely my spawn will not even be into the more traditional ‘geeky’ things that their dad is into, and that is okay too. My point with this is to say that I want them to grow up confident in the person that they are, not to be shy because others around them don’t like the same stuff. You want me to raise a good, well-rounded kid? This is the best way I know how to do so, and you won’t change my mind on that.

EDITORIALS

THE WORRIES OF A GEEK DAD

AUGUST 11, 2015, AUTHOR: DAN MOORE

I am less than a week away (potentially) from being a father for the first time. It’s an incredibly exciting, scary time in my life, one that will change it permanently, and I honestly cannot wait to meet our little bump.

It’s strange because anyone who has had kids before me gives me advice on anything to do with them, which is absolutely welcome because I know no matter how hard I try to be prepared, I’m simply not. Not for the real deal, not one bit. However, a lot of people know I am a big geek and a massive games player, which then leads to comments like, ‘you won’t have time for any of that crap soon!’.

It is highly likely that my game time will become limited for the rest of my life and I won’t have the disposable cash to spend on collectibles to go in my man cave at all. The thing about all this advice is that not one of my friends with kids are as much of a gamer/geek than I am, presenting a somewhat unique problem.

This got me thinking, and in fact worrying, about my very nature – about the person that I am. I know I can be a total jackass and I have my faults like anyone else, but I have embraced this idea and learnt from it, trying to be the best person I can be, for me and now my child. I like to think this is the best way to handle life, and while I do admit that this can cause me some grief in its own way, this is how I prefer to conduct myself.

Some of the ‘faults’ I am talking about, however, are only seen as faults by others. My geekdom is seen by many, including members of my family, as childish behaviour that has no place in parenthood, and that if you want to raise a child right you have to show them what being an ‘adult’ is and how to conduct themselves accordingly. Granted, this will not hit me for several years, but society seems to deem it necessary that the second you become a parent everything that came before is petty, childish BS.

A small selection of my figures

To a certain extent, I agree with this. My life will change and things that seemed like massive problems will become a fading memory pretty quickly, but it’s these past experiences which made me the person that I am today. That core will remain for however long I am on this planet, though the stuff around it will change and inform a personality that will change and evolve over my entire life. Yet the person at the centre of all that will fundamentally be who I have always been, and that person is a geek.

I know I am one, and I embrace it, possibly a little too much. I have said for many years that I could try and hide it, but five minutes in my company will prove I am just lying to myself and everyone around me. I might as well be honest about it. I spend silly money on collectible toys to keep for display purposes only. I devour as much information on games as I can get my hands on, play as much as I can and get deeply passionate about cool fiction across all kinds of mediums.

At times, though, it feels like this is still frowned upon, especially if you are a parent. While the last few years have seen the mainstream start to embrace and accept this comic book and video game-loving subculture, being open and honest about it as a parent still feels like you are being judged harshly. That is absolutely not the way to bring up a child. A child must be prepared for what life throws at it before it becomes an adult and must know the line between the two. My question is, why is there a line in the first place?

The concept of the ‘guilty pleasure’ features heavily here. If you really like a song, book, tv show, movie or game but the rest of the world have judged it and found it lacking, people seem to think that they have to hide their fondness for it away. Same deal with being a geeky parent. You might like all of that stuff but because you have a child to take care of you can’t be seen to do so, and must be seen to be this omnipotent being who oversees every aspect of your kid’s lives, making sure they grow up right.

I see no issue here, others do…

Therein lies the rub no one tells you about: make sure your kids grow up to be good, kind, honest people, just make sure they do it in a way everyone else in world thinks is okay. However, being a geek, in my humble opinion, is the ultimate version of that ideal. Simon Pegg, star of Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and the later Mission Impossible movies, has the following to say on the subject:

“Being a geek is all about being honest about what you enjoy and not being afraid to demonstrate that affection. It means never having to play it cool about how much you like something. It’s basically a license to proudly emote on a somewhat childish level rather than behave like a supposed adult. Being a geek is extremely liberating.”

If society wants me to raise my child to be honest, then why does it keep asking me to hide the person that I am because a father shouldn’t be seen to like such ‘childish’ things? Surely the best way to teach my kid about being honest is to be honest myself?

I want my son or daughter to grow up knowing that is okay to like whatever you like, and that you shouldn’t hide it away. If they like a show their friends say is stupid, I want them to accept that is the friend’s opinion, but continue to like said show anyway, because if they like it, watch it. Or read it, play it or collect it. If that is what you enjoy, don’t be afraid to enjoy it, openly and honestly.

It is entirely likely my spawn will not even be into the more traditional ‘geeky’ things that their dad is into, and that is okay too. My point with this is to say that I want them to grow up confident in the person that they are, not to be shy because others around them don’t like the same stuff. You want me to raise a good, well-rounded kid? This is the best way I know how to do so, and you won’t change my mind on that.

Hopefully this will be us one day!

I do worry that my nature will cause the child some grief though. I don’t want them bullied because they have a dad who isn’t into football or sports in general. I don’t want them to be beaten up because I have as many toys as they do. With all my heart, I hope they are not bullied at all, and that by the time their days are spent at school, my reason for writing this has been rendered moot. I can’t see it, but it’s an ideal I will hold onto.

I have this silly fantasy that my son/daughter will grow and be talking about me to one of their friends, telling them how the thing they admire the most about their dad is that he isn’t afraid to be the exact person he is. That he doesn’t hide what he loves from the world, and knows exactly who he is. Like I said, it’s a silly fantasy.

The aim of just about everything put onto the internet these days seems to be to go viral, and get out to as many people as possible. I hope, out of all the reviews and articles, status updates and tweets I have put out, that this is the one that does it. Why? because I want to change the world.

If I can reach as many people as I possibly can, then maybe, just maybe, they will read this and think “Yeah! why should I hide this about myself?”. If enough people do that, then maybe we can change how the world sees what a parent should be, and maybe teach the next generation how to honest and good not just with others, but with themselves as well.

It’s an idealistic goal, but one I am absolutely fine with having. It’s a noble one, one that everyone reading this will be able to implement by simply being themselves, proudly. Don’t hide away; just be yourself, true to that person, and it will have already started changing the world. I want my child to grow up in a society that embraces them, not shuns them because they aren’t into the same stuff as everyone else. I hope you do too.

Won't somebody think of the Children!

*this was original posted on thisismyjoystick

Stood outside a sports centre with friends after attending Taekwondo class, our conversation turned to the weekend and what we would be doing. A nine year old boy was one of our number and, when asked what he would be doing on Saturday, he said with a smile “Sitting on my butt playing Xbox!”

This, of course, made me smile. Gaming is a great hobby that more and more people are getting into, but when I was growing up it was always seen as something of a taboo by the people around me. So now, when I hear things like that it warms my heart and I love the fact that so many people are openly admitting that they get enjoyment from playing.

We asked the boy what he would be playing, and my first thought was Minecraft. I was right, but he also rattled off a few other games he enjoyed before asking “Do you play Call of Duty?”

This gave me pause, but knowing it wasn’t my place to say anything with him on the subject, I didn’t engage. I was then asked if I play Grand Theft Auto. I said yes, quickly followed up with “You don’t do you?” I breathed a sigh of relief when he said no.

The next thing the boy said instantly got me stewing. “My parents have said I can play eighteen rated games when I am twelve.” My mind began to race. I knew there was little point in saying anything to him or the people around me as they wouldn’t understand why I was stressing about it, so I said nothing, but it kept eating away at me.

Over the years, games have come under heavy-fire for their use of violence, and have been linked to various atrocities carried out by clearly mentally unstable people who just happened to play games. While the discussion on whether games need to rely so heavily on any kind of violence is worth having, especially as the medium expands to include different experiences, but that is not what I am here to write about.

The previously stated ‘heavy-fire’ comes from people who say that games shouldn’t depict excessive gore, horror and violent acts at all as they will end up the hands of children, and this is a threat to their well-being. Yet, how do they get into the consoles, PC's and tablets of minors in the first place? The children cannot buy those games, as they either do not have the money or are below the legal age to purchase, so it must be their parents.

In this case, you cannot blame games, developers or publishers. All games released now, especially in retail stores, come with packaging clearly displaying their content and an appropriate age for the person playing. So a game rated 16 (going by UK PEGI ratings) should only be played by people 16 and above.

If a game with that rating is played by someone younger, at some point in the chain a person of said age bought the game and allowed them to play it. Generally, this is the parents who, rather than bother to actually look at the markings on a game box, simply hear the word ‘game’ and think it must be okay for kids.

This is why I have been stewing about my conversation for the last few days. A twelve year old shouldn’t be playing Grand Theft Auto. It is clearly shown as age inappropriate for them on all forms of packaging, but because parents think that gaming is just for kids they buy it blind and allow their children to play, then have a pop at games when they are linked to violent, real life acts.

I used to work in a well known games retailer in the UK, and I have never seen a more hateful look from a kid when the following happens: Parent and child walk into store, parent picks up latest copy of GTA, asks me if it is appropriate for their child, who is clearly around ten years old. I explain that no, this game might just scratch ‘okay’ if you turn the sound off completely, make sure the subtitles are off and carefully watch to make sure a gun is never picked up. You are still a one-man crime wave, doing what a crime wave would entail in real life – murder, corruption, drugs, theft and general violence. Parent thinks for a second and then says “Oh, yeah, you’re not having that”. Cue that hateful look from the minor.

However, that was a worryingly rare case. Instead, it was all too frequent that I was ignored and the game was bought anyway. In fact, most walked in, picked up the game, went to the till with kid in tow and, despite the staff having to tell them it is an 18 rated game, bought it anyway, giving it to the child before even leaving the store.

Yet, I have been told constantly that I need to grow up and stop playing, suggesting that games are only for children, even though I play games clearly rated and meant for an adult audience. I can spew forth a list of games appropriate for any age that don’t feel like they are meant only for kids, but rather provide an experience that can be enjoyed by all. Nintendo, for example, are arguably the kings of this, and almost all first party games can be enjoyed by anyone regardless of age.

The problem is that it is seen as cool to play something meant for older people, and kids feel left out if they aren’t able to play what friends are playing. If you consider yourself a responsible parent, however, then you should realise that those games are not appropriate and provide experiences that are just as much of a challenge, just as much fun, are are meant to be played by minors.

People need to stop saying games shouldn’t contain violence. If that was the case, neither should books or film, but you don’t get the same argument for them. If a game is meant to be played by a 16 year old or above, then only a 16 year old or above should play it. It isn’t a hard concept to get your head around: the age restrictions on games are there to protect children from inappropriate content, so don’t let them play them. Choose something different.

If a ten year old wants to play Call of Duty, pick Splatoon (upon release) or Portal. If they want to play Grand Theft Auto, pick Crackdown (still has some violence though so be warned). If you want something to replace the driving sections of GTA, pick Mario Kart. It isn’t hard to find replacements, and though your kid might be a little disappointed, they can still play great games that are appropriate. You can rest easy in the knowledge you are responsible and are teaching what is and isn’t okay in this space.

Of course, I am not currently a parent. My thoughts on this when I become one and my kid gets to the age where this applies might change, but I like to think not. I know enough about about games, and indeed, can read a label to be able to provide great games without compromising what they should and shouldn’t see.

Your child can play safely, but don’t be blind. Pay attention to what they are wanting and simply check if it is okay. It isn’t hard, just read. I can and so can you.

The Celebration that is Video Games Live

*This was originally posted at thisismyjoystick

Many different things make up a video-game. There are the graphics, gameplay, controls, story (sometimes) and sound effects, but the thing that really binds it all together is the music. Be it a full orchestral score or plucky chip tunes, the overall soundtrack can really bring a game together and make it all work as a coherent whole. Note: I am talking about original music made specifically for a game here, not licensed.

It’s these original compositions that are the basis for Video Games Live, the multi-media concert tour that recently stopped in Manchester UK and I had the privilege to attend.

If you don’t know what Video Games Live is, it is a concert tour started by Tommy Tallerico, a noted game composer. He is in the Guinness Book of Records as the composer that has worked on the most games ever, with over three hundred under his belt. The idea is to celebrate game music by playing live versions of the themes to some of the greatest games ever made.

I have to say that my expectations were a bit out of place for this event. I thought that every third person would be a cosplayer and merchandise would be everywhere, with small games vendors selling their wares in the lobby to Link and Cloud Strife. I actually saw two people in cosplay, though I have to admit the number of people in gaming related T-Shirts was quite high and some were very cool, so my list of potential buys became rather long.

After realising that I was being a bit daft with that, the night became a normal theatre going experience for a time. We went to the bar and ordered some drinks, found our seats and awaited the show to start. The stage was lit up with three massive screens and the seats for the various band members to sit in, with the screens showing the usual promotion ads.

The screens then changed and started playing a couple of videos from various YouTubers inspired by games. There was a live action video of Ms Pac-Man being chased around New York by three ghosts, another where a cover of Louis Armstrong’s What a Wonderful Worldchanged the lyrics to fit with Super Mario World. It put the audience in a great mood and then the show began proper with opening number Castlevania.

Wonderful World redone for Super Mario World...

Many different things make up a video-game. There are the graphics, gameplay, controls, story (sometimes) and sound effects, but the thing that really binds it all together is the music. Be it a full orchestral score or plucky chip tunes, the overall soundtrack can really bring a game together and make it all work as a coherent whole. Note: I am talking about original music made specifically for a game here, not licensed.

It’s these original compositions that are the basis for Video Games Live, the multi-media concert tour that recently stopped in Manchester UK and I had the privilege to attend.

If you don’t know what Video Games Live is, it is a concert tour started by Tommy Tallerico, a noted game composer. He is in the Guinness Book of Records as the composer that has worked on the most games ever, with over three hundred under his belt. The idea is to celebrate game music by playing live versions of the themes to some of the greatest games ever made.

I have to say that my expectations were a bit out of place for this event. I thought that every third person would be a cosplayer and merchandise would be everywhere, with small games vendors selling their wares in the lobby to Link and Cloud Strife. I actually saw two people in cosplay, though I have to admit the number of people in gaming related T-Shirts was quite high and some were very cool, so my list of potential buys became rather long.

After realising that I was being a bit daft with that, the night became a normal theatre going experience for a time. We went to the bar and ordered some drinks, found our seats and awaited the show to start. The stage was lit up with three massive screens and the seats for the various band members to sit in, with the screens showing the usual promotion ads.

I definitely knew where I was…

The screens then changed and started playing a couple of videos from various YouTubers inspired by games. There was a live action video of Ms Pac-Man being chased around New York by three ghosts, another where a cover of Louis Armstrong’s What a Wonderful Worldchanged the lyrics to fit with Super Mario World. It put the audience in a great mood and then the show began proper with opening number Castlevania.

It was fantastic, and my heart was pounding as the instruments ran through the iconic score. As it finished, the crowd went wild, the stage now set for a great night. Every so often Tommy would come out on stage and talk to the crowd, giving insights to the inspiration behind Video Games Live, his favourite scores and amusing titbits and anecdotes. What I didn’t realise is that the set-list actually changes from show to show, as he creates an events page for each show on Facebook and asks attendees to submit requests.

I didn’t know every single song played, but the ones I did were great to hear live, and the few I didn’t gave me a chance to hear music I wouldn’t have known about otherwise. I had never seen a live orchestra before, and that added to the experience as there was really no other way to do the tracks being played.

The best thing was it isn’t just a celebration of game music, Video Games Live is a proper celebration of games. The videos played at intervals honoured great games while also being funny and cool, and the fact that they had managed to get the likes of Hideo Kojima to introduce the Metal Gear Solid segment was great.

Everything was played flawlessly, and the whole experience was enough to make me want to go back as soon as they are in town again. I will say this though: go with gaming friends, as I went with my wife who’s not a gamer, and it would have been a bit more fun to really geek out with people into the same things. To be fair, though, even she came out of the night with a better understanding of game music.

Video Games Live is a wonderful experience for those who love the material, and embraces the fact that games can be a little silly and fun. It is a great night out and I cannot recommend it enough.

Hands on: Randal's Monday

*this was originally posted on thisismyjoystick

Randal is having a strange day. He’s been fired, twice, seen his best friends corpse, twice, and been accused of stealing on several occasions. Of course, Randal is a kleptomaniac, so the last one is kind of understandable, but still it is a very strange day.

He has somehow managed to get himself in a Groundhog Day situation, and must now figure out how to set everything right, get himself out of the loop and save his best friend from various gruesome, though hilarious, deaths.

This is Randal’s Monday, a new point and click adventure that feels very old school, and I mean old school. You play as Randal, voiced by the Randal, yes, the one from Clerks, Jeff Anderson himself.

In this preview, I played through the prologue and first three episodes, and it caused me to remember why I stopped playing games of this type before. Not because they were bad, far from it, but I couldn’t never quite work up the patience to sit and figure out how to get that particular object to interact with another in just the right way to make something happen.

That is what Randal’s Monday is all about, picking up objects, potentially combining them together to make new things, then using them on objects or people in the world to get past puzzles and advance the story.

At first, I thought the story was really slow going, and had to start it again as it lost my attention part way through the opening scene, but once I let it in, Randal’s Monday started show its true colours and I started to really enjoy my time with it. It is definitely not suitable for work, or kids, or anyone slightly sensitive to offensive language and sarcasm, but that is the charm lying just under the surface.

There is tons of dialogue here and, but as it stands right now, some of it can go on for a little too long. If you are a fan of gamer and pop culture, then this could be right up your alley as Randal is constantly referencing movies and games, and the visuals are stacked with winks and nods, like the Proton Pack in the pawn shop or the Q*bert poster in his best friend’s apartment.

Visually it’s great looking, with a very neat cartoon style that could easily transfer to a late night TV series. It actually reminds of the cartoon version of Clerks, but this is much better.

The biggest problem, as it stands, is the total lack of a hint system. It encourages you to think logically about the puzzles in order to solve them, but in several cases there is no logic so, true to genre-form, you end up trying to combine everything in your inventory with everything else, or use everything on something in the world rather being able to think about the logic involved and go from there.

For example, a puzzle involving a cocktail requires the use of a battery, rat poison and a razor blade so you can make a drink to knock a priest out. The poison is understandable, but the battery and razor are not things you would logically put into a beverage. A simple hint system would solve this problem, even if you have to wait around for Randal to give the hint or go to someone specific for help.

Obviously it is still in development, so this could be changed before release, but my time with it made me want to play the full game to see what other insane things and witty comebacks the developers can throw at me.

Randal’s Monday is shaping up to be a very good, very old school point and click adventure through time and space. I just hope a hint system is implemented or the puzzles made more logical as right now frustration can easily set in.

Randal’s Monday is set for release later this year on PC.