The Parental Cheat Sheet:

After my last post I felt that some parents just are being out smarted by their kids as kids know their media well and have the upper hand. Having an niece and nephew whom may one day go gaming nuts I feel this is a good time to express the benefits of a Parental Cheat Sheet. So parents out there take some notes or fire your printers up now. Kids are media strong and you don't always have the time to check out a game or research it before your kids get ahold of it so please use the following to level the playing field in your favor.

• If there is a question check the ESRB ratings this will give you a strong handed approach to what may be in the game. I say strong handed because well sometimes the rating may be a little high for what may show for 20 seconds or less.
• Always look to see if there is a Demo. If there is a demo download it and play when the kids go to bed or with the kids depending on age. This will give you a nice cross section of gameplay and detail of the game. From this you can determine if this is a game you want your kids playing.
• Just because it's cartoony does not mean it's kid friendly. If something is questionable simply take a moment to watch a video of it on You Tube or even off the game networks. You may see why your kids want it and what they may be trying to slide past you.
• Take a moment to make an informed decision. Which simply means don't "Ask the guy at gamestop" when purchasing or even the people at Walmart. Just because someone sells the game does not mean they know it. Look into some ratings and reviews online or any of the above. Some idiot 17 year old clerk may not have your kids best interest in mind.
• Learn some of the game details. Is it all blood and guts or is it a story that is mostly fantasy. Don't just take your kids word for it and learn something. You don't want to blame a game for something your kid did while you were not looking.

Now I'm sure some of the younger gamers out there may be cursing my name or even thinking how I'm screwing them over here. Let me set you straight. This is the parental cheat sheet which can work in your favor. Be honest and really explain the game you want. I've stated the ESRB can be heavy handed younger gamers may be well of age for something that the ESRB has rated mature, and trust me not all kids want to play the games rated E for everyone. Sometimes they are just filler or crappy games. I am addressing both you the gamers and you the parents out there with this next list of necessities in gaming.

• Be honest and fair. Don't get mad at a game for something some idiot said online while playing with your kid. You can't control the internet or who logs into a game online.
• Make sure you know what the gist of the game is. Think of a game like a book sometimes a great story has some blood gore and adult themes but is a great story. It's all about focus.
• Understand Kids will be Kids. You may hear a lot of smack talk from your kids when they play online, but this is just the way kids are. If you don't like their language express it, but don't blame the game developer because your kid has a potty mouth.
• Take a free day and play the game yourself (I'm talking to you parents). Not only will this give you and your kids something to talk about but you just may find yourself caught up in a great story.
• Explain something that may be questionable. If the game uses something like crass language explain the plot and character, your parents may not like it, but if you explain how this is not just a guy cussing and saying nasty shit they will respect your honesty and you may just give them a reason to let you buy another game of the same caliber.

Now Parents whom have done the quick skim of this. Stop being a douche and actually read to understand. I'm doing this not only as a public service but to keep your ass out of a sling. You are THE PARENT.... ACT LIKE IT. I understand you're busy, but your kids are not only learning from these games, but from you. If you speed through something without understanding it, they will too. So realize that and when it comes to gaming and your kids you have the power to express why something is wrong. To save you the "Why did you..." later in life, take a moment and understand what is going on around you.
- William Dreimann.

A taste.... The benefits of a Demo

    Felt I had to post as I just finished toying with the "Castlevania Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate" HD demo. As a Castlevania fan I find this to be intriguing enough, yet sorta short of what I've come to expect. The tutorial is a little heavy handed even on easy, yet once into the game it lightens greatly. In playing this I felt the need to express my gratitude of the Demo. Not for just specifically this game, but for the gaming genre.
     A demo can make or break some games many games I've purchased usually was due to playing the demo and well.... drooling over being able to play the full game. Some of my favorites the demo was enough to sway my purchase. Sometimes though the demo puts you either too far in or too far out from the gameplay that it can sway you the other way. These games either fall to obscurity or didn't give enough to be remembered. I used to love downloading Demo's for the PC because it greatly expanded my gameplay beyond what I could afford. The current gaming options and platforms also have made the demo almost invaluable to players whom are looking for a new game. Some games don't require a demo as they've got a legacy either newly born or as old as gaming such as Mario or even Borderlands 2. Yet some game the demo is enough to pique your interest such as if it was on another platform and ported over or a game you know nothing about. Some are just fun for the physics of the gameplay. A great example here is "Fairytale Fights". I'll be honest the story was good, not great but that wasn't the selling point. The selling point to the game was not only the blood and gore, but the blood physics. Now many may question what I am referring to here. The beauty of this game was you could use the blood of your enemies to maneuver the battle field. Either sliding forward or using the slide defensively. The demo was simply just killing and playing in a pool of blood.
     In the early days of the PS3 I downloaded all demo's just to see if the game was something I wanted to try or even just something to do. Some lead to me purchasing the game, others was more for simple amusement. Now many of you gamers out there are going "Duh this is something we already know". I'm not aiming this specifically at you. Whom I'm aiming this to is not only the game companies (some of which refuse to demo) and parents whom know nothing about their kids games. Let me explain this as sort of the Parental Cheat. If your kid is excited about a game and the demo is available download it and try it yourself. Game developers like to show a bit of their best here so you get a nice cross section of the game. As well if there is any coarse language or something questionable, you get a taste of it and can make an informed decision on if this game is for your child.
Now game developers whom refuse to give us a taste. C'mon I'm showing you some very strong beneficial reasons to demo. This will help your sales and get some of the good games out of the shadows.
- William Dreimann.

RPG: a lost art or is social media ruining life...

   I've always been a fan of RPG's it's made me a geek in certain circles of my life, but to be honest they are the longest video games and well I don't usually beat them in a single sitting. I like to see as well how in depth the writers get with their stories. Lets take a good example of a good RPG (I'm sorry I'm about to show my age)... The classic Final Fantasy. Series wise this is one of the longest running RPG's out there. They've always written a rather well told story even if their approach to playing the game has gone from rather standard to way out there. Yet as the years pass and the newer pieces of the franchise come forward there is a feeling of loss. I'm speaking plainly of the MMO and XIII. I'm not bashing these games yet they do leave something to be desired, and if you haven't followed me thus far I'm speaking of 13 and 14.
     I have a numerical affinity with the number 13 so thus a new storyline and approach made this game rather desirable yet it seems the story hit a lacking fatigue and an over desire to grind to move forward. Now don't get me wrong grinding isn't bad, but when it puts a story in full halt you lose some of the pleasure of following what's going on. 13 part 2 continued and further explained some things yet had a lot of the zombie apocalypse moments and again the story hit a halt requiring grinding to move forward. Here's hoping part 3 isn't the same.
     Fourteen the MMO which is quite beautifully done and well put together if you can get past the control scheme feeling off or just clunky (for ps3 and PC if using a controller). Yet the story seems lacking the missions are fun but some seem like a lot of work for something so minor. My best example here is the mission for goblin cheese. For a simple piece of cheese you have to face a nightmare of a dungeon and defeat an acidic dragon just for a npc to have a wine and cheese party. Yes you read that right the over story is that they are testing you to choose if they should help you face the greater threat to the land, but I felt quite irritable after that boss fight just for cheese. Now again I'm not bashing the game but trying to pull forward a point to the game makers. As I shall further explain.
     An RPG is supposed to be an epic tale where a hero goes on an adventure and the story helps the player get involved into the goings on of the world. The player want's to be inspired to journey to explore not to be a bounty hunter and just kill for profit directly. Yet this can be part of the story. Lets look at another example of a good RPG that being the cross with a FPS Borderlands. This is truly innovative. You are a Vault Hunter you do quests to get money guns and well help you survive, yet you feel a camaraderie with the cast. Even the most annoying character is someone you somewhat care about. Yet even Borderlands falls into some faults... that being DLC.
     I'm not saying DLC is bad, but there is this fine line between a good game with DLC and well DLC ruining your experience. I understand technology is improving we people as consumers need to buy things to make things better yet my claim here is for things such as a Season Pass. This is a great idea, but when you put up things the player would like to play with more outside of your season pass, well you're just being mean. The digital age is hurting in a strong way yet improving in others the way of the RPG and here is the fine line I'm trying to point out folks. A lot of gaming today is being based on what you can offer via DLC this is actually killing some of the storylines that make a good game. I don't think gaming should be about how much money you can pull in via levels needed in DLC yet I feel the DLC and the add on should help enrich the game. I understand the need for exclusiveness yet sometimes it's like putting up a barrier between players. One with money can go anywhere one who has to limit his or her spending can only go so far. Videogames should not emulate life but allow us an exploration outward. An RPG is the great exploration so why are we limiting the adventure seeking warriors to realms limited by real money. Back before the whole internet feature of gaming even shortly after games were detailed and everyone got to explore  the great worlds of owning a game, why are we slowly taking that away from the player?
- William Dreimann