BrockNRolla

I purchased the same set up just a week ago. I too was very impressed. For all the negative press people seem to throw at the system, I think if people actually gave it a fair shake, they too would be surprised at just how good the game pad and its usage feels. Mario was a bit of a let down, but Nintendoland is a fantastically meaty game, even single player, and ZombiU has been downright incredible. Maybe the most fun I've had with a game this year.

@Spoonman671 said:

Are you getting payed? No.

Are you doing a favor? Maybe?

Which, I think we can all agree, will be adequate enough justification if the kids go missing.

Gaming: Giant Bombcast.

Non-gaming: Tempted to say Giant Bombcast again, given the content. But probably either MBMBaM or NPR: Planet Money.

Play the game the way they made it. For better or for worse, that's the experience they intended for you to have. Buying and downloading a bunch of add-ons to make the experience better might make you enjoy it more in the long run, but you'll have supported a system in which a developer can sell a game and then fix it later on your dime. If you're already reticent to spend the money, I'd say even from an academic perspective, playing the game as it was originally created is reason enough not to add anything else to it.

@Dogma:

I haven't notice that with mine. If fact, I remember thinking the sound of the rumble in the Wii U controller was unusually consistent, kind of a single-tone whir instead of the rattle, which I presumed to be normal, I get out of my 360 controllers.

@ArtisanBreads said:

Video games have been art from day one. Some are shallow, some reach deeper meaning. This is no different than paintings or movies or any other thing that some say is "true art". Video games just haven't been around as long.

Truth.

Also, if your friend "hates" games, they aren't going to receptive to any message one might find within one. This has nothing to do with whether not video games are art. Show them whatever game you want, they aren't going to get it if they aren't willing to get it.

I know it rumbles, but I never noticed that it rumbled in any way stronger than any other controller. As a soon to be lawyer though, I can attest to the notion that people are willing to sue over and get away with suing over just about anything.

@I_smell:

I was speaking of PA, not you. Your post seemed to me more an expression of personal indignation rather than something with a point you hoped to be proven. I wasn't apply any sort of theoretical journalistic standards to what you wrote. Blowing off steam, as long as that's made clear which I thought it was in your closing, is a valid sort of writing as long as the author doesn't claim any deeper truths.

Your link example is very indicative of the problem and that sort of thing is the same reason I stopped going to Kotaku as well quite a while back. It's a post without any real thought, just a few words and images. Conclusions? Unclear, unexplained. So what was the point? Controversy and clicks. Where does that get us? If we're lucky, precisely no where. If we're unlucky, a bunch of rage directed at what is otherwise an important and relevant topic.

@rebgav said:

I'd still prefer to read a well-researched, well-written article that I disagree with vehemently than the rehashed press releases and pointless op-eds that most sites trade in.

A really fantastic sentiment and one I wholeheartedly agree with. I'd bet that's an extreme minority view though. As far as site-traffic vs. writer-time-committed, I imagine it doesn't pan out.

The best way to combat traditional gaemz jurnalizm is to engage in actual journalism. I'm a believer that good writing and research can produce top quality, worthwhile articles with nary a game trailer or advertising hook in sight. But that requires a lot of work. There are plenty of very real, very relevant issues to be considered about misogyny and race in the video games industry, but doing the leg work to create quality postings isn't worth the clicks (Which is what most websites are interested in generating). Far easier to just say, "Here are my thoughts on the evils of the industry," and move on to something else.

The problem is, navel-gazing articles about the state of games media, without well-thought-out arguments and evidence, rarely add anything to the conversation. Whether they be about advertising in the media, a lack of female protagonists, or some other potentially troubling issues, the half-considered thoughts that are much of the content coming from folks like Ben Kuchera only add to the noise of controversies. Worse, they pull attention away from real solutions and insight.

I don't blame people for getting mad about these bandwagon posts. I'm all for standing up against ills you see in the world, but people also need to think clearly about their position and its implications rather than just spewing forth their thoughts. But I suppose if we could convince people in any profession or pursuit to stop and "think" about what they were doing, we'd solve a lot of the world's problems altogether.