61 Frames Per Second

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• I Would Go to War for Laguna Loire

  I have always liked Final Fantasy VIII's secondary protagonist, Laguna Loire, because he carries a machine gun and he doesn't know what the Christ he's doing. 1UP.com did a good thing by putting Laguna in their list of Top Ten Video Game Politicians. True, Americans don't need another befuddled circus poodle as a President. They've already endured eight years of hind-leg jumping and yelping and it stopped being cute once they actually noticed that the poodle's eyes were rolling and saliva was trickling from the corners of its wide-open gob. Laguna doesn't make the best choices either, but at least he doesn't drool. Not when he's in good health. Not only would I vote for the sheepish and shy Laguna Loire, I would put on my stylish anime soldier uniform follow him into battle, likewise confused about how to successfully fight one of these "war" things. What counts is that Laguna means well and has an ample supply of luck that seems to counter personal disaster. All he has to do is believe and try, and everything works out for him. He might step in poo, but it comes up as gold. Except for breaking every bone in his body. Except for being torn away from the love of his life. Except for being miles away from his girlfriend while she dies giving birth to their son (JRPG females still need to evolve thicker birth canals that can handle spiked hair). Read More... Posted Nov 04 2008, 07:11 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 5 comment(s) Filed under: 1up, nadia oxford, politics, final fantasy viii, laguna loire

• 1UP's Top Ten Videogame Politicians

  In an idea I wish I would've thought up(seriously), 1UP scribe Scott Sharkey has picked out ten popular video game politicians and placed them in an order which may signify their importance.  I thought the entry on Final Fight's Mike Haggar was especially telling: The spitting image of future Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura, Mike Haggar was the original trailblazer of former pro-wrestling politicians, beating "The Body" to the punch by nearly a decade. His "personally pound the crap out of everyone" platform has sadly failed to enter the realm of life imitating art. As is the case with most political Internet articles that allow comments, some of the best material can be found in the venomous responses filled with inappropriate rage--no offense to Sharkey, of course. Take this comment from a fellow named IronTigerMonkey; I'm not sure if he's being satirical, but you shouldn't really count anything out in these scary days of Web 2.0: ... If I am to understand the structure of a top ten list, you guys are basicly saying that you would rather Saddam Hussien (albeit video game version) to be the next president then Abraham Lincoln. Either that or you shouldn't use a headline that makes it sound like top ten worst vid politicians. Way to screw up everything 1up you suck gecko dick diped in coconut sauce. It is people like you 1up that are be puting George Bush in power, quit promoting your hidden adgendas with misleading top ten lists!!!!! To all of you faithful commenters on 61 FPS: I love you. Really. Read More... Posted Nov 04 2008, 02:00 PM by Bob Mackey with | with 4 comment(s) Filed under: 1up, top ten, final fight, bob mackey, politics, election

• Watcha Listening To: The Final GFW Radio

  I'll admit that I'm a lapsed PC Gamer; there was once a brief period when I split my time equally between computer and console gaming, but my meager budget eventually made me cut the more-expensive option out of the equation. It wasn't until a little over a year ago that I was brought back into the PC gaming fold--budget be damned--by a little podcast called GFW (Games for Windows) Radio; and now that it's over, I am very, very sad. The death of GFW Radio comes at a surprising--yet somewhat expected--time; with keystone member and 17-year Ziff-Davis veteran Jeff Green leaving to work for EA last week, I immediately thought, "Co-host Shawn Elliott is going to leave for Valve next." I was half-right--he's leaving Ziff, but to work for Ken Levine at 2K Games in Boston. There's no doubt these guys are lucky bastards; but in exchange for their personal success, we're losing out on one of the best gaming podcasts in the universe (you heard me, outer space). We, the listeners, are merely victims of this job-leaving spree. I ask you, when will it all end? Read More... Posted Sep 18 2008, 02:30 PM by Bob Mackey with | with no comments Filed under: 1up, bob mackey, watcha listening to, gfw radio, podcasts

• You Should Be Reading Sore Thumbs

  When long-time EGM staffers Dan "Shoe" Hsu and Crispin Boyer both left the magazine just a handful of months ago, it was a pretty big shock.  The two were basically the last of EGM's "old guard," meaning that Dan and Crispin's tenure began in the mid-90s, back when Electronic Gaming Monthly was based out of Illinois.  Since EGM is the only magazine I've continually read for 18 years--I still remember an entire school bus in awe of their Super Mario World import coverage--it was more than a little disappointing to see such veterans of games journalism decide to call it a day. Of course, if I cared about Dan and Crispin as much as I thought I did, I would've known about their new blog less than three months after its launch. Pardon the massive oversight on my part. Read More... Posted Sep 03 2008, 08:30 PM by Bob Mackey with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: 1up, egm, crispin boyer, dan hsu, games journalism

• Aliens and Games and TV, Oh My: The Jace Hall Show

  Videogames, they’re played on televisions. Well, they’re played on computer monitors too, but those have all but turned into televisions in recent years, right? Right. Of course, 61 Frames Per Second has been pondering and expounding on the relative merits of televised programming based on and about videogames of late. As our very own Amber Ahlborn made the point the other day, videogame television aimed at avid players is typically schlock ridden garbage, marred by a need to come off as both cool enough for the cool kids and geekily informed enough to appeal to the really cool kids. Amber’s spot-on in saying that the best game television is on the internet. When it comes to quality, the comedic characters created by Yahtzee and the Angry Video Game Nerd are joined by the first truly successful preview/review show, The 1up Show. Ryan O’Donnell and Jane Pinckard found the winning formula of scripted dialogue, personality and informed journalism lacking in every other attempt at the form, and O’Donnell has kept it strong for three years running. The golden rule of entertainment is that when you make something that works, someone is going to imitate you on the quick. Read More... Posted Aug 28 2008, 06:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, 1up, yahtzee, angry video game nerd, fear, monolith, aliens, gearbox, television, condemned, borderlands

• Watcha Listening To? Retronauts Episode 48

  In lieu of actually playing video games this week, I've spent most of my time contacting local landlords to determine if it's actually possible to live in America on the salary of a teacher/freelance writer <SPOILER>It's not</SPOILER>. So outside of wondering which nearby dumpsters offer the most headroom, I've been filling my mindless travel time with god's gift to commuters: podcasts. And I'll be damned if the latest Retronauts isn't the best one I've heard in quite some time. Read More... Posted Aug 22 2008, 06:30 PM by Bob Mackey with | with 3 comment(s) Filed under: 1up, nes, retro, bob mackey, famicom

• Interview Round Up: Suda 51, Shinji Mikami, and Mikami’s Replacements on Resident Evil

  This is what happens when Shinji Mikami and Suda 51 work together. The greatest interviews in the gaming world can’t all come from 61 Frames Per Second, dontcha know! While we’ve been chatting with the OCRemix crew about Street Fighter II HD Remix, Gamasutra’s Christian Nutt has been chatting with director Yasuhiro Anpo and producer Jun Takeuchi of Capcom about their controversial sequel, Resident Evil 5. Read More... Posted Aug 15 2008, 02:00 PM by John Constantine with | with no comments Filed under: gamasutra, ea, shinji mikami, resident evil, 1up, grasshopper, jun takeuchi, suda 51, killer 7

• Kenji Eno Is a Mule of Epic Proportions

  Mule [myool] – noun – an individual, male or female, who exhibits qualities of sweetness, silliness, generosity, enthusiasm, exuberance, exaggerated sexuality and adventurousness simultaneously. Some things just pass you by. Sometimes you turn on the radio and hear a song that makes you perk up and when you find out who it was, turns out it’s your all-time favorite band. You never heard that song before and it baffles you that something like that could escape your attention. I felt that way after checking out the unedited Kenji Eno interview put together by Shane Bettenhausen and James Mielke over at 1up. Not only have I never played a single game by the maverick designer, but up until today I didn’t even know who he was. Which, I have to admit, is frustrating the ever loving hell out of me. Eno is responsible for some of gaming’s most infamous cult creations (shooter/point-and-click adventures D, D2, and Enemy Zero) and other oddities that I have trouble believing are even real (off-the-wall minigame collection Short Warp came packed with a condom. It was for the 3DO. I shit you not.) Read More... Posted Aug 08 2008, 01:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, 1up, shane bettenhausen, sega, dreamcast, Panasonic, 3do, d, d2, warp, james mielke, enemy zero, Kenji eno, Saturn, real sound

• You're a Filthy Cheater! ...Right?

  It's like yin and yang, light and darkness, vanilla and chocolate: wherever there are rules directing life, there is a means of going against those rules. Since video games' conception, enthusiasts have proved themselves champions of cheating and game-breaking. But it's not as if cheating at video games is as simple as being cheap about tag-backs or peeking during hide-and-seek. I wrote an article for 1UP that looks at the long, twisted history behind game breaking. I'm putting the link up here because I'm a pimp, but also because I find the subject matter pretty fascinating. It's very difficult to draw a line between "Cheating" and "Okey-Dokey" with video games because there are so many variables to consider. Is it "cheating" if you use an in-game trick like the exhalted Konami Code? Or is the term reserved for third-party peripherals like the Game Genie and Gameshark? How about the exploitation of game mechanics? Put Mario Kart DS and "snaking" in the same sentence on any game-related message board to launch a war. Read More... Posted Jul 08 2008, 09:01 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: nintendo, 1up, atari, retro, game genie, adventure, zelda ii the adventure of link, gameshark, cheating in games

• Going Vertical: How Capcom’s Developers Are Changing the Landscape of 3D Games

  Development teams Airtight Games and GRIN are both working on titles for Capcom with unique hooks for three dimensional gaming. While both trade in that most common of play mechanics, shooting things, they’re both predominantly focused on providing the player with a unique way to move about their respective worlds. GRIN’s revitalization of the Bionic Commando franchise is built around a grappling hook and Airtight’s Dark Void is built around having a jetpack. Superficially it might seem that these sorts of tools are little more than a gimmick, shallow expansions on the sort of gravity play that has been essential to gaming since the first time Pitfall Harry jumped on a vine. But what they really offer is new solutions to the problem that’s plagued 3D games since Mario 64: precision control on the Z-axis. Read More... Posted May 20 2008, 03:00 PM by John Constantine with | with no comments Filed under: john constantine, nintendo, capcom, 1up, bionic commando, grin, dark void, mario galaxy, mario 64, airtight games

• Raised on the Stuff

  As I listened to this past Friday’s 1up Yours podcast, lazily typing away and sipping coffee, I perked up when the crew got on the topic of how they planned to introduce their children to videogames. While What They Play’s John Davison is already raising two very young gamers of his own, the other three gents still aren’t fathers but they all mentioned that they definitely want to see their kids weaned on classics from a young age. This is interesting to me because I’ve given the subject quite a lot of thought. My plan? Bed time stories. Read More... Posted May 13 2008, 03:00 PM by John Constantine with | with no comments Filed under: john constantine, 1up Yours, john davison, garnett lee, mega man 2, 1up, legend of zelda, shane bettenhausen, what they play, shawn elliot