Register Now!

Media

  • scannerscanner
  • scannerscreengrab
  • modern materialistthe modern
    materialist
  • video61 frames
    per second
  • videothe remote
    island
  • date machinedate
    machine

Photo

  • sliceslice
    with m. sharkey
  • paper airplane crushpaper
    airplane crush
  • autumn blogautumn
  • brandonlandbrandonland
  • chasechase
  • rose & oliverose & olive
Scanner
Your daily cup of WTF?
ScreenGrab
The Hooksexup Film Blog
Slice
Each month a new artist; each image a new angle. This month: M. Sharkey.
ScreenGrab
The Hooksexup Film Blog
Autumn
A fashionable L.A. photo editor exploring all manner of hyper-sexual girls down south.
The Modern Materialist
Almost everything you want.
Paper Airplane Crush
A San Francisco photographer on the eternal search for the girls of summer.
Rose & Olive
Houston neighbors pull back the curtains and expose each other's lives.
chase
The creator of Supercult.com poses his pretty posse.
The Remote Island
Hooksexup's TV blog.
Brandonland
A California boy capturing beach parties, sunsets and plenty of skin.
61 Frames Per Second
Smarter gaming.
Date Machine
Putting your baggage to good use.

61 Frames Per Second

Yahtzee Says, Support Your Local Independent Developer (He's Right).

Posted by Nadia Oxford

If you're 1) a gamer and 2) not insane, then one of your favourite all-time games is Cave Story. Cave Story was planned, designed and developed by one demigod, the radiant Pixel. One of the greatest games of all time came from two arms, two eyes and one brain.

Cave Story works so well because the graphics, sound, story and gameplay all compliment each other beautifully. But what if Pixel had proposed the title to, say, EA and had a hive mind work on the game? For starters, it would look and sound radically different because players today are all about the big noises and shiny things according to the Big Men In Charge (which is why Mega Man 9 has everyone leaping like dogs at a lambchop). The aesthetic shift alone would have sent Cave Story's delicate feng shui swirling down the toilet.

Yahtzee talks about the importance of indie games this week, specifically Braid on XBLA. His argument for indie titles against corporate titles is that too many cooks spoil the broth—or rather, too many faceless men in suits destroy the original intent. Sometimes we all need to step back and clear our heads with games that don't stray far from the man or woman who originally thought up the idea.

I don't feel guilty for playing the likes of Mario or Metroid or God help me, Mega Man.. I also very clearly remember a time when developers had a lot of creative control over their games and still managed to mass-produce a lot of cock-ups that clogged the industry's arteries and eventually felled it. I'm a person of balance; things like crooked picture frames drive me insane. Thus, I understand that corporate regulations are sometimes an evil necessity...but I wholly support the independent scene with my enthusiasm, love and moolah (since that's ultimately what it needs instead of the former).

I r dumb. I didn't really “get” Braid when I played the demo, but I will buy the game in full and try harder. Nothing thrives on homogenisation, the game industry least of all. It needs all the creative infusions it can manage.

Related Links:

Indie Dev Moment: A Game a Month from Kloonigames
Yahtzee on E3: Are We Gaming in an Age of Uncreativity?
Yahtzee and the Webcomics Plague


+ DIGG + DEL.ICIO.US + REDDIT

Comments

Demaar said:

Cave Story is also Actionbutton.net's 8th BEST GAME EVAR, which I had difficulty arguing. Damn, all this talk about it makes me want to replay it again... again.

Braid is good, by the way, but not $15 good. Bionic Commando Rearmed was $15 good and Capcom only charged $10 good for it. Also I paid the "our beaches are nicer" tax on them both like Yahtzee.

August 28, 2008 10:10 AM

Bob Mackey said:

I would pay for a port of Cave Story on XBLA.  Pixel needs more money.

August 28, 2008 11:04 AM

John Constantine said:

Like a fool, I have been waiting for the PSP release of Cave Story to finally experience it. You know, the one that was announced three years ago. Not smart.

Anyone know what Pixel's up to these days? Also, what's up with the clearly-inspired-by-Cave-Story Fez?

August 28, 2008 12:30 PM

Derrick Sanskrit said:

Apparently the DS port of Cave Story is chugging along at excellent speeds. I'm looking forward to that.

August 28, 2008 2:13 PM

in

Archives

about the blogger

John Constantine, our superhero, was raised by birds and then attended Penn State University. He is currently working on a novel about a fictional city that exists only in his mind. John has an astonishingly extensive knowledge of Scientology. Ultimately he would like to learn how to effectively use his brain. He continues to keep Wu-Tang's secret to himself.

Derrick Sanskrit is a self-professed geek in a variety of fields including typography, graphic design, comic books, music and cartoons. As a professional hipster graphic designer, his recent clients have included Hooksexup, Pitchfork and MoCCA, among others.

Amber Ahlborn - artist, writer, gamer and DigiPen survivor, she maintains a day job as a graphic artist. By night Amber moonlights as a professional Metroid Fanatic and keeps a metal suit in the closet just in case. Has lived in the state of Washington and insists that it really doesn't rain as much as everyone says it does.

Nadia Oxford is a housekeeping robot who was refurbished into a warrior when the world's need for justice was great. Now that the galaxy is at peace (give or take a conflict here or there), she works as a freelance writer for various sites and magazines. Based in Toronto, Nadia's prized possession is a certificate from the Ministry of Health declaring her tick and rabies-free.

Bob Mackey is a grad student, writer, and cyborg, who uses the powerful girl-repelling nanomachines mad science grafted onto his body to allocate time towards interests of the nerd persuasion. He believes that complaining about things on the Internet is akin to the fine art of wine tasting, but with more spitting into buckets.

Joe Keiser has a programming degree from Johns Hopkins University, a tiny apartment in Brooklyn, and a fake toy guitar built in the hollowed-out shell of a real guitar. He writes about games and technology for a variety of outlets. One day he will stop doing this. The day after that, police will find his body under a collapsed pile of (formerly neatly alphabetized) collector's edition tchotchkes.

Cole Stryker is an American freelance writer living in York, England, where he resides with his archeologist wife. He writes for a travel company by day and argues about pop culture on the internet by night. Find him writing regularly here and here.

Peter Smith is like the lead character of Irwin Shaw's The 80-Yard Run, except less athletic. He considers himself very lucky to have this job. But it's a little premature to take "jack-off of all trades" off his resume. Besides writing, travelling, and painting houses, Pete plays guitar in a rock trio called The Aye-Ayes. He calls them a 'power pop' band, but they generally sound more like Motorhead on a drinking binge.


Send tips to


Tags

VIDEO GAMES


partners