I had my first video recording session for the documentary I’ve been asked to participate in. It went okay, I guess. It was fun to do, sure… In fact it was very similar to how Matt and I conducted an episode of our Alpha Counter radio show. Heh, technical hurdles and all.
The big thing that the director later discussed with me was that during the entire thing, I had plenty of interesting things to say, but I didn’t offer much visually. He’s right–I kinda stayed in “business mode” the whole time, approaching each question clinically with little animation. Not good cinema.
With that feedback, I’m reviewing my positions on the subject and digging up some relevant personal stories. I think that if I engage the thing like a conversation rather than an interview, I’ll give a more lively performance.
I’m quite certain that I’ll have another shot at recording the material covered today since the video files came out painfully choppy. So unless the co-director is the Gandalf of video editing, we’re going to have to use a different method of getting usable footage.
The guys are still looking for people to contribute to the film, so if you have any expertise or notable experience in dealing with video game addiction or side-effects of a techy lifestyle, contact them through the link I posted above.
Mike Krahulik, also known as “Gabe” from Penny Arcade, shared via his Twitter feed one of his newest creations. It isn’t a comic strip or a print…it isn’t even an illustration. Below you can see his engineering marvel, perfect for any avid gamer also looking to get into shape (which is most of us), the “WoW Treadmill“.
The idea’s quite brilliant. While you’re legs are working hard, what are your arms doing for you? And as we all know, the devil finds work for idle hands.
I’ve thought of similar means burning calories while level grinding. Whenever I’m seen in the gym, I’m usually kicking back on a cycling machine, peddling furiously with my PSP or DS drawn to my face. By the time the workout program sounds off, I’ve broken quite the sweat and my party has grown three levels. If I had exercise machines in my own home, I’m certain I’d pimp them out in the same fashion.
Quick Disclaimer: This article is very NSFW. There’s talk of sex, politics, video game porn and other stuff your boss or parents don’t want you looking at.
While luckily we hear about it less frequently these days, there are always stories popping up in the news covering some tragedy or mishap that the mainstream media has connected to playing video games. This recent episode of natural selection is just another link in the chain.
I think that most of the controversies are stemmed from the same issue, but for the sake of an example, I’ll be discussing the most popular topic: Video game violence.
In Akihabara, Japan you’ll find this little stand that offers watermelon milk, among other mixed fruit drinks. This alone would pique my interest in that I’m certainly down with fruit-flavored milk-based goodness to cool me down on a hot day. However, the stand felt it needed a little something extra in it’s marketing. It claims that their drinks are a sexual aid, increasing one’s sex drive. They base this claim on the pretense of a supposed discovery by an American research group that eating watermelon is just as effective as taking Viagra.
I think we can chalk this one up to over-sensationalism of the media and then by someone trying to market the concept. I can see how watermelon can affect one’s circulatory system, but I’ve yet to eat some magic seedless that gave me an 8-hour erection. Both playing on men’s desire to increase their sexual prowess. I can see how it would work out for the guy hosting the milk stand since, let’s face it, what isn’t considered an aphrodisiac in Asia? Between rhino horn and bat’s balls…at least I can palate some watermelon.
Ever wonder how cosplay girls get that wide-eyed, cheerful, “moe” look? It’s more than simply good genetics. It’s not even an illusion of eye shadow. No, it’s far more involved than that.
This mind-blowing video demonstrates a product that helps Asian women achieve that wide-eyed look, through the use of an eyelid adhesive and a two-pronged fork they shove into their skull. This is not for those who are squeamish about their eyes, since the device is used to push he eyelid back into the eye socket to the point to where you can see the top portion of the eyeball.
I will hand it to them, though, you can see from the “before” and “after” footage that the product does give visible results. I give a lot of respect to the girls who are willing to put themselves through that for their costumes. You have to have either a deep passion for cosplay or work in the field professionally in order to make the ordeal worth it.
According to this recently released article, studies show that gamers that play first-person-shooters experience as much positive emotional response from the death of their own character as that of their opponent, if not more. If I’m translating the psychobabble correctly, players often feel more anxiety than joy from victory. And when their own character dies, they experience much less anxiety.
This makes quite a bit of sense, if you ask me. I can see is possible that when you kill an opponent or complete an objective, you get anxious about whatever the next mission will be. Heh, or when the guy you just whacked will re-spawn and come hunting you for revenge! Yet, whenever I die, I do kinda feel a brief period of relief since for that moment, I’m free from the pressure of whatever task is at hand. If it’s a death match, the moment I die is when I can quit running around avoiding that very death. It’s just like what they say, it’s waiting for the bomb to drop that’s the worst.
There’s something that’s been brewing in my brain for a couple years now and I think it’s time I finally put it into writing. One Animazment, I became enamored at one of the weapon booths with a spiked club. Not just for the sheer novelty of it being a brutally barbaric weapon that could easily fall into my possession for a mere $19.95, but because of the epiphany that struck me the moment my eyes lay upon it.
I would like to take the spiked club and market it as the ultimate rape deterrent.
Cuz here’s my thinking: Let’s say that you have this college-aged girl walking home to her dorm late at night. A rapist (or gang of rapists) lunge from the darkness with intent to force themselves upon her. Assuming she’s armed with it, she hits the guy in the face with her trusty pepper spray and escapes. But in this day and age, that’s about all you hear about it, if you do at all. Now, if the girl defended herself by unleashing a spiked club on the sick bastard, that shit will make the fucking papers!
It becomes not so much a method of protection, but to also set an example. If a dude sees in the news how some guy got bludgeoned into a bloody mess after trying to rape a girl, he might be less encouraged to do the same himself. A little can of pepper spray is hardly in any way as intimidating as what kind of pain and damage you can expect from a spiked club.
It also just seems more practical to me… With pepper spray, it’s really only effective on the eyes, so you’re forced to rely on your ability to aim for the offender’s face. All within fractions of a second of an already frantic experience. With a spiked club, you can swing that fucker anywhere and neutralize the threat. Shit, it’s usually best to aim low so you can take his legs out and finish him off while he’s on the ground! You nail a guy to the floor with pepper spray, but what you gonna do then? Spray him again? Even if the spiked club doesn’t get him all the way down, it buys you plenty of opportunity to take another swing at any region of the body, until he’s subdued enough to make an adequate get-away. Plus, with pepper spray, you have limited ammo… No telling when you’ll run out. The spiked club is always locked, loaded, and ready for action.
Yeah, I know, spiked clubs are naturally a lot larger than a can of pepper spray. Well, most women’s bags that I’ve seen have plenty of room to hold a good 12-18″ spiked club. And one of the things I’d like to help develop is perhaps a collapsible model for smaller handbags.
And speaking of development, I see loads of potential for adapting the spiked club for this function. Maybe for those who want to hold on to tradition, we can design a spiked club with a pepper spray built into the handle. That can give the girl options. I also got to thinking about those hand grips that women have on their key chains so they can turn their keys into a weapon… Well, why not have–even if it’s just for novelty–a spiked club with a key chain built onto the handle? Hell, make a Hello Kitty spiked club for that extra girly touch. Why the fuck not?
My point is that I think a spiked club is a far more effective means of protecting women than pepper spray. And if I have enough cash, I’d not only buy one for myself, but also for my girlfriend and my sister to carry around for their own safety.
It’s that time to look back at the year’s past and, take what we’ve learned, and direct ourselves into where we want to go in the future. Put simply, let’s get to those new year’s resolutions!
I’ll stick with my usual lot of eating better, exercising more, saving money, and making more time to see friends. But I have a few more to tag on for good measure.
First, I want to keep on the guys at work for getting me involved in web development. I want to be working in that department full time by this time next year. Ideally to the point where I can do my work remotely, from home or anywhere. The goal is to be able to stay gainfully employed by the time Ashley gets her teaching license next year so that I’ll be free to follow her wherever she may go with it.
I also want to continue working on this site. Last month, I set myself up with the challenge of making five posts per week. I was inspired by a job listing looking for a game reviewer that had that as one of it’s requirements. I’m proud to say that I’ve been doing a pretty good job so far! I may bend the rule a bit by counting any day that I work on the site, not just writing posts. I’ve been reading up on how to manage a site and possibly capitalize on it. I don’t expect to make any real money (if any), but I would like to prove to myself that I can do something significant with it. Though it will be hard to top David Sirlin’s comment here.
Those are my biggest resolutions. I have tons of minor things I’d like to improve upon myself, but those are key. The only other thing I can think of is playing more Street Fighter. Even if I only play single-player like a loser. With all the hype around the franchise next year and the game room events at Animazement, I’d like to stay somewhat fresh.
Thanks to my Christmas bonus, I’ve finally been able to pick up one of those sonic toothbrushes that my dentists keep hounding me to get. I hope this thing gives me the help that my teeth badly need.
I’ve never doubted that the sonic toothbrushes work, it’s just that I could never find the extra cash to feel justified in buying one. What always gets me though is the poor argument that my previous dentists tried to counter me with. And this is something that you hear most physicians use: I tell them I can’t afford $100 for a toothbrush and they respond that it’s better than the thousands of dollars it will cost to fix my teeth. Uh…I don’t have $100.
You see, it doesn’t matter if it’s $500, $5000, or $50… If I don’t have it, it doesn’t matter. You might as well tell me that it costs 5 diamonds. Or 5 dinosaurs. Either way, I can’t buy the toothbrush. And if I can’t afford the toothbrush, chances are good that I can’t afford any of the corrective surgeries, either. It’s unfortunate, I appreciate the concern of my long-term health, but as things look at the moment, it’s gonna be bad times.
I did have some money that I was saving up to buy a sonic toothbrush as soon as I could. My recent deep teeth cleanings and Christmas bonus gave me the extra boost that I needed. So at least this story has a happy ending. But whenever I hear that wanna-be logic, it twists my titty.
While luckily we hear about it less frequently these days, there are always stories popping up in the news covering some tragedy or mishap that the mainstream media has connected to playing video games. This 
