As a designer, parent, and I guess just video game ignorant person, I just have never got it! What make video games so appealing? Especially to parents, whom are usually the ones buying them for their children. In my opinion they are visually noisy, not to mention just plane noisy, aggressive and over stimulating. Although I will mention that graphically they are quite impressive as far as technical graphics, but just as a graphic image not to impressing. It doesn’t take much to make a real looking gun!
I have always said that I will be the bad parent one day when Natan wants a video game and say “Sorry, but no, never, not any kind ever!” So, to eat my words I have two recommendations to make to parents also questioning video game frenzy. The first is a Leapster. It is a handheld video game by Leapfrog for children ages 4 to 10, which as ONLY educational non-violent games. Natan got it for Christmas to help him with English, which he isn’t getting in school. It is great and from Christmas till now Natan has went from recognizing NO letters to knowing practically all of them, but it is in the end a video game and does have qualities of visual and audible noise, but I just figured this was unavoidable since I have yet to see a nice graphic video game, until…
The second example I just discovered from my sister Pam is an online game site that makes video games beautiful and calming. Almost like watching fish in a fish tank, but interactively. It is called Orisinal and it is brilliant, both the graphics and the sounds are lovely, calming, and soft and just plan cool graphics. This is the most amazing thing I have ever seen and makes me proud to be a designer to know that someone has broken the threshold of horrible graphically noisy video games and found a solution to calm and enjoyable play. Believe, me my mind has changed, just a little, and if they ever put this out in a handheld I am getting it.
Saturday, January 21, 2006
Is it possible to make a calming video game?
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1 comment:
Hey there,
Luke and James love the Orisinal website! I'll admit to playing the games too, they are fun and the graphics are really nice, definitely high-class arcade material. Thanks for sharing! Hope you are well and boys too. Just remember the best thing about chicken pox is that they never come back again! Actually I wish we were around to expose Aletheia. You know the vaccine is mandatory here once you're school age. I personally think that's crazy and would like her to get it before she enters Kindergarten. Maybe we should jet set over to you :) Take care and talk to you soon.
Sam.
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