“Nothing”: The Hardest “Thing” to Do
One of the main reasons I play video games is because I enjoy the ACTION… after all, fast-paced battles with a timer counting down and the fate of the world […]
Restrictions: Punishment or Protection
Games are full of items that serve very specific purposes… the key to the water temple is of no use when we are trying to enter the fire temple, and […]
A “Difficulty Setting” Dilemma
Most games provide us with “difficulty setting” options during the initial game setup, allowing us to determine the level of challenge we want to face during our play through. Whether […]
The Difference Between a “Restart” and a “Respawn”
In our video games, there is a massive difference between “restarting” a game and “respawning” in a game. While the idea of pushing “restart” when things get out of control and […]
An Ending Designed From the Beginning
Approaching the end of a video game is always a bittersweet feeling for me… partially because I realize the game I’ve been enjoying is about to reach its’ final conclusion […]
Metroid, Samus, and a Helping Hand
Many of my favorite protagonists, like Samus from the Metroid series, are forced to face their challenges alone… no helpful teammates to support them in combat, no squad to belong […]
Kingdom Hearts: Actively Prepared or Passively Equipped?
Thoughtfully choosing which items my character procures, carries, and uses tends to be critical to my success in the game I’m playing… there are dozens of different armor sets, swords, […]
Patience in the Tutorial
I’m not a very patient gamer… my time to play is pretty limited, so when I start a new game I just want to dive right in. Tutorials? Skip… this isn’t my […]
Mission Prioritization: Treasures That Will Last
One of my favorite time-savers in games is the ability to look through my mission log, select my priority, and then set a waypoint to mark that spot… a visible […]
Grace, Truth, and a Guilty Spark
Of all the adversaries that we encounter on the Halo ring, 343 Guilty Spark may be the most dangerous. While most of our enemies have the decency to confront us […]
Finding God in Video Games 