Gamer's+Perspective

By John Becker

=__**NINTENDO**__= Nintendo has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. I remember playing the original Nintendo Entertainment System and the Super NES like it was yesterday. As a matter of fact, it was yesterday! When one thinks of video games, they think of Super Mario and Nintendo. They are looked at as the originators, although that isn't true, but many like to believe that. Nintendo has a special and unique way to create their games. They make their games mostly for children, but the reason they are so successful is because they are continually attracting new faces, but since many who are older have grown up with games like Super Mario Bros and The Legend of Zelda. These are just two of the MANY Nintendo success stories. I said that I was playing the NES and SNES yesterday. That is because I still own the two consoles and proudly play them once in a while. My favorite games on the two consoles are Super Mario Bros. 3 for the NES and Super Mario RPG for the SNES. These games are timeless classics for me and I play these games with no shame. I say this because there are many "new" gamers who frown upon or look down at older games. That's their problem, and I have no problem with them playing Call of Duty all day long. ;)

=**__NINTENDO WII__**= The Nintendo Wii is a very successful console and has changed the gaming industry, probably forever. It introduced motion gaming and a new controller. At first, I have to admit I had a blast playing it. I usually play games with my brothers, cousins, and friends, but with the Wii I was able to add my parents to the fun. They enjoyed every minute of it and I sometimes found them playing it more than I did. Unfortunately, the Wii got old. It became very repetitive and even boring. That of course was until Super Smash Bros. Brawl came out, the last of one of my favorite game franchises of all time. I played the hell out of this game and the fun never stopped due to the fact that I have tons of skilled people to play with, that helps a lot when it comes to fighting games. I still play this game regularly and can proudly say I am the best at the game when compared to everybody I know. I even entered a few competitive tournaments and won them all. I'm open to all challenges. Other than Super Smash Bros. the Wii does have some games for the hardcore that aren't "completely" motion-based such as Metroid: Other M, Donkey Kong Country Returns, Super Mario Galaxy, and others. The motion isn't a bad thing for the Wii, but the hardcore gamers may not like it too much.

=**__PlayStation 3__**= The PlayStation 3 in my opinion is the best of the three next-generation home consoles. The reasons for this are not only because of its many many rich multimedia features, but because it has some sick games. From titles such as Resistance 1 2 and 3, Uncharted 1 2 and 3, Metal Gear Solid 4, Socom 4, Call of Duty, Final Fantasy, Heavy Rain, and the many AAA quality games, the PS3 has a lot to offer. The great thing about the PS3, unlike the Xbox 360 (I'm a 360 gamer as well so don't take it as hating 360 or anything :) ), is that the PS3 has a variety of games. The Xbox 360 has a ton of shooters, which makes it very difficult for "regular" gamers to enjoy the 360. This is what kept me from buying it during its first few years of being in the market. More on the Xbox to come soon....... Back to the PS3, things are starting to change for this home console. Much like the Wii, the PS3 has introduced a motion controller called the Move. It works much like the Wii but surprising is more accurate and just feels better than what Nintendo's console has to offer. It's probably because they had the chance to see what Nintendo did and correct mistakes that they have made. Compatibility for the motion controller is being put into AAA games like Killzone 3, Socom 4, Resistance 3, LittleBigPlanet, and other future titles. As an owner of Killzone 3 and the move controller along with the SharpShooter gun peripheral, I can say that Sony has a very good product in the Move. Along with the quality of what the PS3 already had to offer, the Move makes it that much better.

=**__Xbox 360 and Kinect Sensor__**= The Xbox 360 is my second console of choice because of what I mentioned about it earlier. There isn't much variety when it comes to game selection for this console. If you are a gamer looking for shooters, this console is for you because it seems like that's all you're going to get here, This isn't a bad thing, however. With titles such as Halo, Call of Duty, Gears of War, and others, you have many options and they're all excellent depending on your taste of shooters. For example, Gears is a third person shooter and Halo is a first person shooter. These two games are two completely different beasts and play very differently. One allows you to run and gun, while the other forces you to play stealthily. Microsoft's take on the motion gaming scene is the Kinect sensor, which in my opinion is the worse of the three. In terms of technology, it probably could be the best, although Sony's is a bit better in image quality and accuracy. Where the Kinect fails is in game selection. The Kinect literally has like 7-10 games to choose from and they're pretty lame to say the very least. I own the Kinect along with three titles for it and while I had fun with it for a little while, it got very old. The Wii and PS3 managed to incorporate their motion counterparts into their AAA games and succeed in doing so. Until the Kinect finds a way to successfully do the same, it will be a failure in the eyes of gamers everywhere.

=**__Violence in Video Games__**= Violence in video games seems to be the staple of video games these days. It isn't anything new because it existed in many of the best games of the past such as Doom, 007 Goldeneye, and Mortal Kombat. It has just become more widespread and it seems as though every game has violence in it. I've seen my nephew playing Spongebob Squarepants and noticed him beating up enemies. I don't recall Spongebob doing this in his cartoon show...maybe I'm wrong, but even the childish of all child games has violence in it. This is a bad thing because kids mimic things they see and I can personally tell you all that my little nephew likes to punch and kick things although I tell him it isn't good to do so. As a gamer, however, I love it. Violence in video games is awesome. In games such as Mortal Kombat, Call of Duty, Killzone, etc. if there were no violence, these games wouldn't exist or wouldn't be as fun. Gamers have trouble explaining why they like to play games like this when they need to explain it to their parents or other adult figures, but it is just fun. It excites you when you play and do bad things, although most gamers with a brain know they would not replicate these things. But, unfortuantely, there are people without brains playing these games and, yes, they do replicate what they see and do in these games.