(20) Interactive Gaming

Games Games GAMES!!! I was just at Barcadia the other night… It’s a bar on Henderson that focuses on all the classics, Skee-ball, Pinball, the ultra throw backs -Pac-Man, Dig Dug, Street Fighter, Mortal Combat…. as well as other retros, a 5 foot giant version of Connect Four, and Jenga tables where the blocks are made out of 2X4′s! It was like sensory over load for me… I had to do everything and as fast as possible! My eyes wide open with red spirals spinning. I was the Mad Hatter! Even before all the yelling, cheers, applause, and high-fives the alcohol induced. I guess I know how to completely enjoy myself.

Games are apart of the culture. We are conditioned early with Jacks, Pick up stix, Tether Ball, Four Square, then any sports… it’s only natural that as we develop we want/need more; increasing the level or intensity from the simpleton game play we once knew. It’s the mental stimulation spawned from the imagination that becomes exciting. Narratives take place on almost any interactive game you can currently buy on the market.

As we see in American McGhee’s, Alice: Madness Returns (which looks completely awesome btw), they take a children’s story that most people know, and add danger, killing, blood, confusion, and panic. After seeing every piece of video teaser including a press release forum with the creator American McGee explaining the meaning behind the game… I can’t help but think that this man is an genius at creating narratives. I like that he says that he is known for taking children’s stories and flipping them and making them scary. You mean taking scary stories and making them scarier? Hello, Hansel and Gretel? Red Riding Hood? Jack and the bean stalk? All of these involve death or some aspect of run for your life! I like that McGee has created more than what we know of the character… he has made it so Alice is unsure of what she is thinking. She appears to be remembering a memory that may or may not have existed. As the paddle holder, it is our job to help Alice find out.

(19) E-Bookery

Regarding the easy reading style of eBooks; Pro’s: I like that I don’t have to have the light on while I’m reading on my giant screened smart phone. Also I know that I am not going to miss an important text or phone call. I can also stream some classical music on Pandora and listen to it softly in the background.

Con’s of paper books: If the entire room in not entirely lit, I have to position the book in such a manner that the page is filled with light, so that there isn’t a shadow lurking in the center of the books crevasse. I know, minute, yet incredibly annoying. Books can be cumbersome, weigh a lot, to big and bulky, they take up space on a shelf. I am not a fan of clutter and really don’t see myself enjoying a book after it’s been read through once… that is unless, it is a book that I am actually quite fond of. Not every book is going to be a favorite and the miracle of getting through it once will suffice.

Publishing houses are in a major dilemma because they are not generating the revenue that they used to when printed books were the only medium to get the works out into the hands of the public. Ebooks have made a lot of the costs cheaper, avoiding ink, paper, binging, distribution, storage, shipping etc… so with all this saving… you would think that these companies would be as concerned for drying up and dying.

Why should you have to buy any book if most books are available on Google books for free? Why spend my time and money searching for a physical book, or scouring the Internet looking for the best deal, cheapest shipping, signing up for memberships, giving out private credit card numbers to websites that claim they are legit… when all can be avoided with a simple google search.

Yes this way the author does not stand to make money, but I’m sure google is giving them some sort of incentive to have their whole published work appear online for free.