Headsets and Headaches: Xbox Live's Redemption

I learned something today. It was a truth that sunk in slowly and reluctantly; that my years of conditioning fought until it could deny the obvious no more. I had long trained myself to believe precisely the opposite, but through little more than sheer luck and a sudden revelation, I discovered what should have seemed plain but that was hidden by my ingrained biases. 

The overabundance of headsets on Xbox Live isn’t actually a bad thing.

Hear me out. I know it may sound crazy at first. Before today I would have thought the same thing, but I now believe there is validity to the argument that Microsoft’s widespread dispersal of headsets with all their consoles may been a boon instead of a burden. 

The argument has long gone that gaming on Xbox Live is a chore. You slap on your cheap headset and have to suffer through countless arrogant morons spewing profanity and racial slurs while kicking your ass and making you wonder what’s wrong with the world. 

Let me be clear. All of that is still true. Dealing with the lowest common denominator on Xbox Live is still a cause of many migraines. There’s something about the aggression of online competition coupled with the relative anonymity of the online setting that seems to bring out the worst in people.

Most people.

It’s in this qualifying statement that we begin to see the upside to the proliferation of voice chat.

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The Great iOS Game Search: On A Tilt

I am simply convinced that Apple’s iOS platform has a lot of potential for great gaming experiences. The powerful hardware, responsive touchscreens, and gorgeous displays of the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch are brimming with possibility. Unfortunately, the App Store is filled with shovelware and games that don’t do the OS justice. As such, I have decided to go on a search to find those digital diamonds in the rough that are not only great games, but are designed for the platform as well. 

On a Tilt perfectly exemplifies the difference between a good and a great game, only it winds up on the wrong side of the fence than the one it was probably aiming for.

The iOS App Store is filled with terrific titles that sell for next to nothing, yet manage to squeeze admirable amounts of creativity and fun out of simple ideas. On the surface, On a Tilt sounds like it might fit right in. The game presents you with four bars on screen, two horizontal and two vertical. In each bar is a tiny strip that is controlled by tilting the device. As each pair of bars (one vertical, one horizontal) is on an opposite axis from the other, you must twist your device (and your brain) in crazy ways so that the strips in your control line up with green target areas. 

This does make for a certain amount of fun, but On a Tilt never manages to overcome the feeling that you’re playing around with a hidden programmer’s tool rather than a full game.

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Maniacal Microtransactions

I was once a strong proponent of downloadable content (or DLC). I loved the very concept. The lifespan of my favorite games could be extended, giving me more reason to play a beloved title. New ideas could be injected into a finished product. Fresh concepts could be brought to a game already solidified and stamped on a disc.

Increasingly I find myself disillusioned and disappointed with what the reality of this idea has become. I find myself struggling to find things to spark my excitement in a digital marketplace strewn with blatant examples of publishers using DLC in all the wrong ways. Even when it’s used in the right ways, which is rare enough these days, it still brings some troubling trends to light.

Perhaps it would help to begin by demonstrating what lies at the root of the problem: cost. DLC could have been a fantastic way to extend a gaming experience in a meaningful way beyond what was possible on the disc, and indeed you do occasionally see it used for this purpose. More often than not however, it seems to be little more than a way to increase the cost of the game without actually having to mark up the price tag in stores.

As one example, consider the fighting game BlazBlue: Continuum Shift. It is but one example of a game simply riddled with DLC that overcharges and under-delivers, complete with a side dish of greed and deceit.

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Stacking Review - Miniature World, Full-Size Fun

We could use more games like Stacking. It’s charming, original, fun, and the perfect size for its ideas. Imagine Portal but with Russian nesting dolls. 

Double Fine’s latest downloadable morsel learns important lessons from the Portal school of game design. For a small fraction of full retail price, it delivers a compact experience that’s a good value without overstaying its welcome. It lasts long enough to charm you into loving it, but no longer. 

The question of value is one of the biggest issues the gaming industry is currently facing. Games can last anywhere between five minutes and hundreds of hours while costing as little as a dollar or as much as sixty. In other words, we spend a lot of time thinking about how much our games are worth these days and there’s no easy answers.

What is clear is that you don’t see many games like Portal. These gaming middle children, so to speak, can provide a dose of originality not possible with expensive games that have to play it safe while offering bigger budget thrills than what’s possible in the bargain bucket. 

The industry needs more great titles in this category, but it’s hard to find a place for them. Downloadable gems such as Limbo are leading the way in this area and Stacking will surely soon find its way into the hearts of many gamers as well for the same reasons as others of its ilk. Its concise tale packs the charm and satisfaction of a game many times its price.

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Mass Effect 2: The Arrival DLC Review

Fans of Mass Effect 2 have so far been spoiled by the downloadable content Bioware has seen fit to send our way. They haven’t been the lengthiest adventures, but they provided quality doses of Mass Effect action at reasonable prices while adding something to the overall lore. 

Kasumi’s Stolen Memory told the surprisingly poignant personal story of a young lady who proceeded to become a useful and unique party member after the mission’s completion. Overlord was a side story, true, but it was a good one, with an emotional finale that made the journey worth it. Lair of the Shadow Broker contained exciting action scenes, important plot revelations, and vital character development for Liara. Shadow Broker actually stands as one of my favorite pieces of DLC I’ve yet played. 

All of these extra missions I would recommend without hesitation to anyone who enjoys Mass Effect. It is admittedly a strange value proposition when analyzed closely, as $7 for a tiny fraction of the content contained in the full $60 game does seem a bit strange on the surface, but that’s missing the point. These are episodes, installments, bite-sized morsels, call them what you will. They provide a small fix of entertainment at a fraction of the price and extend the life of a fun game beyond what was provided on the disc. As long as I come out on the other end of my microtransaction with a smile on my face, I have no problem with it.

Considering Mass Effect’s rather good track record with this type of content, it’s disappointing to report that Shepard’s final mission under the Mass Effect 2 banner is a letdown.

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