Blogging the experience of gameplayhttps://www.gamelog.cl/gamers/GamerPage.php?idgamer=255https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1368Going back to the game a second time, I realize this game taps into popular culture, namely the ghetto culture. Much of this culture is centered around gangs, violence, crime, theft and is really utilized in this game. Players have the ability to beat up anyone(except for law enforcement), steal cars and money, and crash into anything. Not only does this provide a 'wild' gaming experience, it easily creates conflict. There are the blood thirsty violent gangs and then the police officers, both of whom are after you. Grand Theft Auto is set in a 'naturally' violent atmosphere so the player really has to fend for his/herself because he/she really can not trust anyone. One thing that was really frustrating to me was the ability to turn with a bike or a car. When the player is backing up, the bike or car will back up in the opposite direction that the player turns the joystick. For me this was counter intuitive and made the succession of game play really slow and tedious since half the time would be spent trying to get the car or bike to go in the right direction.Fri, 23 Feb 2007 00:05:21 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1368&iddiary=2911https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1368This is my first time playing Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, but when I popped the disc into the PS2, I immediately ignored the intro thinking the game would be pretty intuitive. Unfortunately for me, it was not and I assumed that I was just supposed to jump into cars and beat people up. Even when I paused and the map screen came up, I just thought I was supposed to 'explore' the town. Then my housemate came in and asked if this game was fun, I told him I had no idea what I was doing. I finally gave up and started the game over, this time listening to the intro, and paying attention to the text on the screen. This helped me tremendously and I was on my way to playing the game for reals. Yes, the map at the bottom left corner helped, but when I got to the second mission, the blue dot that represented Sweet was really hard to see. I also found it hard to drive/bike on the screen while trying to make out where I was relative to the map.Thu, 22 Feb 2007 22:35:02 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1368&iddiary=2900https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1229Although I did not really enjoy playing Kirby 64 as much as the NES version, I think it makes for a good kids game. Players get the simplicity of movement like in the 2D platform games but with the benefit of 3D graphics, which was a huge deal when it was first introduced. Also, when Kirby came out on the NES, he had a bit of an edge, as a cute, squishy, little pink ball that could suck in air to float or enemies to emulate their powers and was the lone hero. But Nintendo really took Kirby over the edge as the cute, squishy, little pink ball. Sure he had the same abilities, and he could even combine them, but the storyline and the graphics are extremely child oriented. From crayon drawings to other cute friends who get into trouble, just like any child would. This game just does not seem to cater to really cater to anyone over the age of 12, except for maybe some girls.Fri, 09 Feb 2007 10:34:53 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1229&iddiary=2616https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1229I remember playing one of the older versions of Kirby's Adventures on the NES as a kid, and it was one of my favorite games to play. So when I saw that my boyfriend had it on the N64, I immediately felt nostalgia and wanted to play it. Unfortunately, except for the 3D animation, this game was not nearly as fun as the old one. The bottom line was that it was just too simple to play. Sometimes a simple game can be really fun, like Katamari, but the expectations I had for the Kirby game did not allow for such a simple design. The first problem I had with the new Kirby was the slowness of the character. As cute as he is, it got boring after awhile to watch him waddle across the screen, and I lost patience. Second of all, I noticed that there was not very much to do in each level. The old Kirby was very much like Super Mario Bros. where the player could kill lots of enemies, and collect coins. In the new Kirby, players just get to emulate and kill enemies in an almost straight walkthrough of each level. When playing it, I did not come across any secret worlds or secret anything. Even with a “boss” at the end of each level, there did not seem to be much range. I think this game would have been more successful if Nintendo had taken Kirby in the same direction it took Mario Bros. on the N64. It still had the same game concept, but in a fully 3D cardinality of game play.Fri, 09 Feb 2007 10:15:46 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=1229&iddiary=2615https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=918Like I said in the previous entry, Legend of Zelda is one of the most successful games of all time. It transcends time as well as game consoles. I have played multiple versions of Legend of Zelda and essentially they are all the same, taking place in a fantasy world and playing as the hero Link to complete a grand task. But what makes this game continue to be fun is how Nintendo adapted the game to utilize the capabilities of their game consoles, like n64 and the wii. In the case of the n64, there is a 3D cardinality of game play as well as 3D graphics, making the game more complex and therefore more challenging. Most recently, the wii revolutionized interactive game play by closely simulating real life movements. Instead of simply pressing a button to make Link perform an action, players have to swing the controller as if they really were swinging a sword in order for Link to swing his sword. I believe what makes Legend of Zelda such a successful game is its nostalgic qualities and Nintendo’s choice to adapt the game to fit the abilities of each console. This in turn almost makes each game completely different and certainly creates a new experience of game play. A smart combination indeed.Sat, 27 Jan 2007 22:48:22 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=918&iddiary=2036https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=918Legend of Zelda is one of the most successful adventure games ever created. I would not call myself a hardcore gamer, but as I was playing Legend of Zelda, I can easily see what makes it a classic game. First and foremost, as a relatively progressive game, it is in general pretty easy to play. This makes Legend of Zelda appealing to a wide demographic. Entity manipulation is another strong point of this game. Players get to use a wide variety of items to complete different tasks such as a slingshot to target items or enemies from a distance, or metal boots to scale a wall. Also, as a narrative driven game, players get to go to different places that represent something close to a real world, absorbing the player even more into the game. Zelda is a complex game but is simple to play and I believe that is what makes this game so fun.Sat, 27 Jan 2007 16:48:33 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=918&iddiary=2027https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=648 (This entry has been edited1 time. It was last edited on Mon, 22 Jan 2007 19:55:15.)Mon, 22 Jan 2007 19:55:02 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=648&iddiary=1944https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=649 After playing Katamari Damacy for awhile, I asked myself whether it was a progressive or emergence game. Even after applying Jasper Juul's definitions to this game, it is still tricky to define which one it is. At first it may seem like an emergence game because it does take a little bit of strategy to complete each level within the given guidelines. For example, it is best to pick up the smaller items first and once you start rolling to keep going forwards instead of going back to get the pieces that were missed. But this game can also be mistaken for a progressive game due to its simple nature. Simply just rolling a ball collecting things seems like a walk through, one of Juul's definitions of a progressive game. Mon, 15 Jan 2007 01:30:46 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=649&iddiary=1492https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=649In Katamari Damacy, acting as the prince of the Universe, it is your responsibility to restore the stars in the sky by rolling up objects on Earth. I think one of the great things about this game is its simplicity. This makes it an addicting game to anyone and the cute graphics draws in children and girls to play it. But this aspect proved to also be its downfall, for me at least. While it is fun when you first play it, the novelty runs out fairly quickly. By the third or fourth star, I was ready to turn off the game. The challenge to make a star a certain size within a certain amount of time does go up, or to pick up the most of the same item, but I still feel there is a lack of variety of challenges to keep me playing the game.Sun, 14 Jan 2007 18:37:59 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=649&iddiary=1489https://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=648Taiko Drum Master is essentially a drumming version of Dance Dance Revolution. A very colorful game, with lots of 'cute' visuals of drums, flowers, and other creatures; it is a great family game. Even if you are musically inclined, this game still manages to provide challenges by changing tempos and mixing up patterns, depending on your performance, as well as different difficulty levels. Taiko Drum Master also has a good mix of genres, from contemporary to classical songs. Some of the problems with the game is the lack of variety. Players can choose from mini games or taiko mode, but both are pretty simple in terms of objective and can get boring. Taiko Drum Master is a good game, but really caters to children and can get boring relatively quickly.Sun, 14 Jan 2007 18:06:30 CSThttps://www.gamelog.cl/logs/LogPage.php?Log_Id=648&iddiary=1488