Paper #1 Super-Post!
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Tycho’s posting style is a little more educated than what you’d expect out of a gaming blog. When you think of “video games” you don’t think of a very wide vocabulary. In fact, I bet you didn’t think of a vocabulary at all. When you read the words “video games” you thought of a video game console, a tv, and people sitting around playing said console. Where does talking factor into that? I mean, if you did think of talking, it probably didn’t go farther than quick quips such as “pwned!” or “the ladder! the LADDER! HE’S ON THE FREAKING LADDER!” (followed by someone getting shot, dying, then yelling and complaining about it to their teammates and partners over the mic) All in all, pretty generic and unsubstantial stuff. Tycho, however, is quite a bit more wordy than that. And articulate.
Take this post, for example. It has to do with Devil May Cry 4’s insane load time on the 360 the first time you pop it in. To quote Tycho:
We crafted a comic on the subject, more out of a sense of civic duty than of any genuine feelings of betrayal. This is precisely the sort of thing that gets hauled out to show the 360 in a bad light, but until I pick the game up at lunch I couldn’t say if pulling the game off the DVD is actually onerous. For me, the graphical tearing of the 360 version (put forward by this 1up preview) is more dire. I’ll buy both versions when I head out later today.
His diction is precise. Words like “crafted,” “civic duty,” and “onerous” paint a detailed and fluid picture. I say fluid because his prose is very clear and followable. Look at the first three paragraphs of the post, for example. United by a common topic as they are, they still roll into one another. His thought about how capcom thinks complainers “are dumb” jumps straight into his reference to the “black eye” it could leave the company. In all honesty, it seems to me as if his posts are one long train of thought – a rant, almost – but that he’s taken his time to go back and make sure that its a rant that works.
His thoughts, sayings, and feelings, while perhaps separated by topic, are unified by the sense of cohesion his word choice gives it. His tone reinforces this concept – while it jumps between casual and scholarly (the diction giving the scholarly angle, the subject material, background, and our own relation to the topic/blog giving the casual angle), his tone consistently treats the topic at hand with fitting grace (or lack thereof, when its deserved – see his mockery of how “dumb” complainers are). This consistency reinforces his comments and thus proves not only respectable but more appealing and advisory, insofar that as we find his words agreeable we view his thoughts and feelings as correct.
That said, the fluidity of form doesn’t always translate to consistency of ideas. Tycho often titles his post one thing and then halfway through jumps to a completely different topic or subject. His post about his love for the Druid class’ travel form only speaks to that topic in the first paragraph. The entire rest of the posting revolves around a game he’s started playing and how it feels and plays exactly like another game he played a few years ago. To be fair his website is a business and as such he has the right (and responsibility) to talk about the games he’s enjoying (read: semi-promoting) and the merchandise updates to his site. Furthermore, his posts often shift focus - even his most on-topic posts deviate to something else often completely unrelated - so this variety (if not the relative disjunction) of content should be taken with a grain of salt when our discussion turns to consistency. However, this does not entirely break the fluidity of his postings. Often Tycho will find some humorous segue to the next issue-at-hand. Other times the second topic will be tangentially relevant to the first. Some posts even deal with/continue discussions from previous updates (in this case, the firing of game reviewers). In short, Tycho’s mind will meander from one topic to another but his treatment of those topics ensures that we can follow his lead.
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(2)
(note: When provided links to specific comic strips, please click the “news” tab underneath to view the associated blog postings)
Penny Arcade is a different kind of web log in that it has its origins as a comic strip. While this still serves as the central focus of the site, it has incorporated over the years an awareness of gaming culture and a commentary thereof, much like how South Park’s storylines now relate to some event or persona in popular culture. Reflecting this trend, certain updates began to be accompanied by blog postings from Tycho or Gabe (the main characters of the comic, representing site founders Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik, respectively) Whether they’re discussing Activision’s takeover of Blizzard or Gamespot’s firing of an employee due to a conflict of interest between honest game reviewing and advertiser’s interests, each and every comic and blog posting is relevant in some fashion to the happenings and goings-on in the video game industry. One could very well argue that since this awakening the blog postings serve as the inspiration for the comics rather than the other way around (an argument i adhere to). Chicken-and-egg aside, the point is that Penny Arcade possesses an awareness and a proficiency thereof that few other web sites or industry commentators wield.
Penny Arcade updates roughly three times a week (sometimes more, sometimes less depending on what’s happening in the industry, the author’s lives, or even if they feel like it). Tycho and Gabe, while today commentators of arguable influence in the industry, have no formal ties to it aside from reviewing games so as to authentically advertise on their site (they will not promote a game they do not sincerely feel is worthwhile). Their role in the industry, then, is both unique and hard to categorize – as far as “scholarship” in the gaming industry goes, they could be said to be both eminent and baseless; Eminent in that as constant viewers of and commentators on the industry they are supremely poised to render insight and advice regarding it, and baseless in that all such commentary is in the realm of pure opinion. If I had to categorize them, I would say they fall under a scholar-professional hybrid. Their work is by no means academic as their research falls more under personal opinion and experience than under bookish learnings and they profess an insightful understanding of the gaming culture (all of their commentary, while opinion, is poignant). It is interesting then that such a broad audience listens to them – everyone from casual web surfers to hardcore gamers and industry execs are fans, or at least readers, of the site. Is it because the comics are amusing? Is it because the tongue-in-cheek humor of the posts is relevant and on-topic? I would say a bit of both, though surely the fact that the site commentary is wise regarding industry activity plays no small role in its popularity.
This blog will feed my work in that it will serve as one of the prime sources of my reflections. Penny Arcade possesses a prime intelligence when it comes to video game culture and i would do well to listen to what it has to say. PA has at many times served as the voice for what many have thought regarding various goings-on in the gaming world. My site will differ in that while Penny Arcade addresses specific events and activities in the gaming community, I will be addressing the industry as a whole, and not just the industry but the self-awareness of the players in that industry (i.e. the actions and reactions of we gamers and consumers).
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(3)
The video game community is something else entirely from the playbook of consumer response. In no other industry is it considered participation by taking a marketed product and completely modifying it to your own desires. You can mod entire franchises and its A-ok! Crazy, huh? Even crazier, people share it with each other all the time – 24/7, 365. The modding community is alive and well, a vast ocean of innovation and origination for new games and mechanics to flow from.
And to think, this is only a small fraction of the entire gaming community.
There’s the modding community. The online emulator people. We got Halo-whores (turn off your mic!), Street Fighter Fanatics, and don’t even get us started on DDR. Shooters are popular, Tetris still has thousands of addcits, and acrobatics like those in Prince of Persia or Assassin’s Creed still have the power to wow people.
In short, there’s a taste for everybody in the gaming community. Everyone can enjoy something, be alive within their culture, but just stop and think about it: their culture.
That’s right. Even before the popularity of the internet brought mass communication and social interaction on a global scale to your front door, the gaming community was already social and united in bringing that crazy fun game back home to show everyone. How many nights were spent going nuts on a Final Fantasy, or a Super Mario World, or a Mario Kart? Hell, think about it in terms of today – how many millions spend more hours on Xbox Live or AIM then they do outside? The gaming community is vibrant and active, my friends, and I’m here to help bring it to you.
Welcome to Gamer Response, a place where we’ll be talking about industry rumblings and tournament humblings. I’m not here just to talk about my favorite game of the week – there’s stuff going on out there, in the gaming community at large. PA’s got the witty commentary, and Kotaku’s got the general information to keep you on the head’s up, but where can we go to find the intersection of the two? Not only to comment about industry happenings and events, but to talk about the talking? To see where we are with the community? Right here, that’s where.
I’ll be updating as I can regarding video game community. Developments and events in the industry proper will be covered, to be sure, but that’s only part of it, a place we can start. The meat and potatoes we’ll have going here will be dealing with the community itself. Xbox Live gone haywire and everyone’s raging about it? We’ll talk about that uproar here. Holiday season got everyone in a tizzy over the new releases? We’ll watch that buzz right here.
-Zhuge
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Paper #4! »« Summary of a Zotero Source: Steven Kent’s “The First Quarter”
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