Communication

Quakecon is going on. I played a sort of demo version of the original Quake and was the proud owner of Quake 2. I even participated in online multiplayer back when you needed a carrier service like gamespy to play online. I didn't play all that seriously. I mostly derped around with god mode and no-clip cheat codes. But I did encounter one seriously aggravating problem: talking. This was way before voice chat was prevalent. The online way to talk was to type in the chat box. Now its pretty obvious what the problem with that is; on a computer the keyboard is your game pad. You can either move or type, not both. Nowadays, voice chat is more common, but by no means universal. And I would like to thank Valve for developing three different methods of streamlining communication for those who don't have voice chat.

First was Team Fortress 2. It includes text chat, but its not anymore convenient than on Quake 2. What was included was quick chat keys. There are three keys (z,x,c) that open up a menu of 9 convenient quick chats for your character. Some are silly like battle cry, but most are useful, like building requests and command calls. The best inclusion was the medic call button. By making the E button the button that draws the attention of healers was genius; its right next to the movement buttons. There is also a basic auto speak, where your character will say things independently of your control when it appropriate.

While it certainly works, its very basic. Left 4 Dead 2 includes these key commands but builds on the idea that characters auto talk. Its really clever. When a special zombie comes into view or sound they make is heard, characters will automatically say something about it, regardless of what you are doing. Same thing with health warnings and map navigation. But whats most useful is the way characters relate discoveries. If you walk close to weapons and items, your character will say what you found and usually refer to it by name. This takes a lot of the worry out of play but it stills requires voice chat for more nuanced communication.

Portal 2 included a multiplayer mode, and as a puzzle game it needed a nuanced communication system that didn't require voice chat. So Valve got creative and invented the ping tool. Its a sort of point and click flagging tool. You point at the spot and select the flag: portal, stand, or button. This will stand out to your partner and draw there attention. Another good addition was a way of seeing in a little window exactly what your partner see's in live movement. While all these wouldn't work in FPS's were time is more of a factor, the ping tool and auto speak should definitely be looked into by other developers. Not everyone has voice chat, and for the foreseeable future some people still won't.

Music of Games

Really, how could games ever set atmosphere without the music. Yeah Silent Hill is creepy, but it wouldn't be nearly as creepy without the bone grating music at every corner. The best games use music to set the tone like a Hollywood block buster. Square Enix is pretty famous for this, in and out of Final Fantasy. Some of the more recent Final Fantasy games included some J-pop, which really doesn't sync with the FF setting. I wonder if any readers know the game "The World Ends With You" Square made for the DS? That was an RPG set in the fashion district of downtown Tokyo. That whole games sound track was J-pop, pop, and Rap. I'm not really a fan of any of those genres, but man did it ever fit the setting.

Then you have the game music that transcends atmosphere and becomes an icon in of itself. Green Hill Zone, Mario theme, Legend of Zelda, Tetris (my favorite was theme C, but no one remembers that one). Still Alive from Portal almost topped them all to become a pop culture phenomenon.

So the point of that whole lead up is that the Turret Opera at the end of Portal 2 is the most amazing piece of gaming music. Ellen McClain, the voice actress for Glados and the turrets, is a professionally trained opera singer and really got to show her stuff for this piece. The following video doesn't contain any major spoilers, but it does come at the end of the game so watching it may sully some of the impact of a first play through. All I can say is it almost made me cry.

COG: Animal Crossing: Wild World
Well, I got the next house upgrade and now have three floors. My next mortgage costs 598,000 Bells (!!!!). My palm trees are growing (phew) so I should start catching some rarer bugs soon. Still working on getting the golden watering can. Redd visited town today and sold me a counterfeit painting. I have insurance, but thats also a scam. Oh well.