Recent content by Mr. Jims

Interesting question. Video game sequels tend to work like any other form of media. The company keeps producing them until people stop buying them. With films and television, the actors and directors sometimes halt a series from continuing... That's why a massively popular show like "Lost"...

Waaaaaaay back in the day, SimEarth for SNES. I picked it up used for, like, ten bucks. It seemed like it was going to be a bigger version of SimCity, in which you can manage entire civilizations. It just seemed like a cool idea. But, no. It was just an educational simulator about evolution.

Most sims. When SimCity 2000 came out in the mid-90s, I liked it a lot. Played it a ton, and then got tired of the shtick. Zone the land, put power lines, add pretty stuff... And then, boom. Land value. All the later SimCity games, while more polished and slightly deeper, just feel like...

Geez, you didn't try to pull the "Oops, I didn't realize I had a flush" stuff with the Psycho Poker *****? That's the best part about having those people around. I think most people reach a point where they become pretty jaded by whatever activity they've mastered. When you experience...

Now that you mention it, one's favorite game really doesn't say that much about you. Well, maybe if you chose something somewhat flawed already. But to say your favorite game is one that got 10/10 everywhere only proves that you supposedly have good taste. Either that, or your opinions on...

The backlash against linearity isn't particularly surprising, as many people have fallen in love with "sandbox gameplay," due to Grand Theft Auto and other games that became famous in that respect. Since that style is so much fun, it's pretty easy to start railing against linearity. In my...

Tetris. They used to have those kiosks at Wal-Mart that looked like a giant Game Boy, which was the best thing ever. I remember my parents used to let me play it when I was 4-5 years old. I think it was a demo game, so you didn't have to put in quarters... But I might be wrong. When you're...

Good review. A little dry in tone, but very informative. I especially liked your observation about how clear the stakes are in the game, that Olimar's toast if you don't collect the pieces. It made a sorta cutesy game a little stressful. The gameplay alone is a little stressful, but having...

It's an interesting argument, and I do wish games would try to make a legitimate philosophical point more often. Well, maybe not in terms of philosophy itself, but you get what I mean. Of course, these difficult questions shouldn't bog down the gameplay itself or ruin the vibe of certain...

Ye gawds. That is a lot of gaming for one sitting. I don't even know if I could get through 5 hours of gaming straight. The longest I can think of was (sadly) Pokemon Red, on a roadtrip when I was in middle school. I probably played 3-4 hours straight. Even then, I had to stop and gaze...