james harley

i would argue that we've already seen games that cover these themes -- what first comes to mind most notably is the Oddworld series, but the mechanics of even Scarface with its "balls" system for encouraging mayhem, or that Columbine game of last year. even "Postal" could be seen as a gaming attempt to sublimate real-world horrors. doesn't Rome Total War (or any number of sim-type games, for that matter) duplicate of historical hardship?

the real issue is weather we will encourage games to use metaphore and symbol the way we expect it in other media like film and literature.

hi,

i enjoy the site very much, but i think this "article" and its tonal inconsistencies underline the important issue of editorial responsibility. like a few of the responders above, i'm confused about the veracity of the quote attributed to the interviewee. is this article reportage or editorial comment? if it IS editorial comment, the article really should be labeled as such. unless a writer is highly skilled, sarcasm does not translate well in print. it is one of the pitfalls of online communication, so we need to be extra careful.

this may all seem a bit nit-picky, but i've only got a few hundred dollars to spend on a system and i'd like to get the most accurate information possible.

~ jim.

yoshi

you are absolutely justified in expecting journalists to be informed. it's a good thing, then, that the posters seem to be so WELL informed - helps keeps those journalists honest! but it is important to distinquish between reportage and opinion; the interweb sometimes makes that difficult.

thanks for your reply, by the way.

@ yoshi likes boys and others

i think it's pretty neat, all this discourse the wii is causing. just a few short months ago, it wasn't unusual to pronounce nintendo dead in the next generation water.

i do wonder, however, where all this vitriol is coming from. i read "joystiq" because it updates often and with clever language and spirited discussion. that said, name calling is never warranted, and unsubstantiated name calling is even worse. i don't know the age or education level individuals posting, but this rancor is really harshing my mellow. and it just makes miyamoto-san very sad.

may i suggest that if there are those whom you feel are uninformed, inform them politely. if you have special knowledge, you shouldn't use it to belittle others.

for what it's worth, all the footage we've seen of the wii looks pretty damn good to me! way smoother than the 'cube, at any rate. and similar architecture means the designers don't have to muck about in all that new tech, which in turn means game design artistry really has a place to flourish - and that place seems to be nintendo.

cheers.

i believe the most difficult thing to emulate in video combat, and the very thing we find most exciting in filmic combat, is quick, creative thinking and decision making. if we look at jackie chan, or jet lee, or even in kill bill, what is thrilling is the sensation that the events are ingenius and impromptu. the challenge facing video game combat, then, is giving the player myriad interesting choices (like lethal single strikes or a variety of possible environmental elements) that allow for spontaneous creativity - let the players participate in the creative thinking.

i admire mr. molyneux's philosophy, but suspect what he's talking about above really is just another button mashing solution - albeit with a single button. i wonder if it's possible to create a some sort of gestural, context-sensitive solution wherein each player's experience of the solution could be different. this could be as simple as: UP to leap to the chandalier, RIGHT to grab and smash bottle, BUTTON to use sword - no particular order, any combination thereof.