Been thinking that they should really release Mario 3 again for all the gaming minded youngsters out there.
Releasing old modes of production or repopularizing older modes of production doesn't necessitate a regression; rather it seems to be a sound argument for the compatability of non-synchronous modes of production.
Plus, it was the only computer/ video game at which I haven't totally sucked.
We used to spend hours collecting the whistles, warping to "far away lands," rescuing the princess.
O.K. Maybe they should release a non-gender-biased version of the game. The princess can save Mario (in a non-flying, non-Mario 2 way).
The graphics were basic. You couldn't make a character that resembled your own face. You couldn't (Wiiiiiii!) wave your wands in the air to play tennis or bowl.
There was that duck-hunt gun. Hmmm.
Either way, it's a great option for contemporary kids. Bring it on, gamers. I'm ready.
From a different angle, I have a friend and fellow Carmike serf who is the beta tester of beta testers for computer and video games.
He spends his entire twice-monthly paycheck on games. He stays up gaming all night almost every night.
It makes me wonder about the technology.
How do we comare my friend's love for computer games with othes' love for books or fine arts? Is playing a computer game a form of reading?
He interacts with a symbol set albiet with pre-determined outcomes. In some ways, the computer game limits the outcomes. It's a puzzle that the user is supposed to solve. It's challenging, yes, but it's already been solved by the programmer. How does this compare to a Pynchon novel?
How do computers affect our capacity for subjectivity, our capacity to imagine new possibilities for ourselves as subjects? On one hand they might challenge our ideas about what is Real, if there even is a reality. On the other hand, computer games require our memory, something that has traditionally been on the other side of the theoretical binary of imagination.
I'm not sure what the answers are, but it sure is an interesting time to ask these questions.
1 comment:
I like the end of your blog. As an avid reader, I encounter so many who (and am probably guilty myself) judge how others spend their time with a pompous "Why don't you read a book?" But really, isn't it all escapism?
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