GunslingerX1983

I have had this idea in my head for quite a while and never really known how to go about it. Lets put aside just for the moment that I have no knowledge of business whatsoever and focus on the idea. I know these things have been done before mainly cyber cafes etc but i was thinking more along the lines of the following.

wall mouted tv's with 360's and ps3's hooked up with large sofas around for group gaming sessions. Imagine a large open room with about 20 machines running. Not sure whether it would be feasible to get it all hooked up to live to actually have online or who you would go about networking them together form the group play as i have only ever either gone online myself. Live has roaming profiles now doesn't it?

maybe better to have a private network though i guess for more of a community feel. can arrange leaderboards and tourneys etc and ideally would have a lounge area and possbly a cafe type area involved as well to be more social.

Basically a kind of friendly place that kids and young adults (or older) can come and play games and be social at the same time. I was thinking about setting this up or more accurately thinking about thinnking about setting up something along these lines as a business and wondered what peoples thoughts on the idea are.

As i said no business knowledge so not really thinking about that side of it right now. I mean the most i have thought about that is comparing it to a local snooker club which basically charges me about £7 for 2 hrs so would consider similar rates and taken into account various leases and licences and bills etc. I have only run the most basic on numbers.

Consider this the beginnings of market research. If such a thing was open in the centre of your town or city would you go? What would you want to see there or more appropriately what would attract you to a place like this to play your games socially?

All thoughts and opinions appreciated.

Ok i realise this may land me in some hot water but here goes its just an observation... with regard to the 3ds games? Are the great ones original or are they the Marios and Zelda rereleases that have been around years? If i was going to pick up a 3ds for myself being a 28 year old guy. I can see myself enjoying Ocarina but i played it to completion back on the n64 and can always play it on there if i wish or master quest on gamecube, i have little to no interest in a Mario platformer these days or Mario Kart so what is there for me that will have significant depth that will hold my interest. I know that sounds like i am knocking it but believe me i am not because all those that have one enjoy what they play. I am just asking that without the interest for those key Nintendo franchises that i previously (as a younger man/child) would have played, what else is there? As i have said i feel that out of the handhelds out there nintendo have the best shot at it but it does baffle me somewhat as i struggle to see the worthwhile content.

With the 3DS I think Nintendo has the best shot at keeping the handheld going because i think that the main audience for it is children. As like when i wanted the game boy, kids are like Wow I want a 3ds etc. With the PSP that is a great example of when a handheld device could be very useful as i can imagine it occupied you in a time of stress and need when you would otherwise smoke. Otherwise though in the adult market i do not think that the PSP did well did it and i fear that the Vita will not survive very long either. Times are a changing.

Still got Sniper:ghost warrior in from Friday... not sure whether to keep it in and play or switch it for AC: Revelations or Rage maybe?

Once upon a time when i was a child i really really wanted a Game Boy.

For some reason the idea of having Mario or Tetris in my pocket was amazing and i was desperate for one of these fantastic pieces of handheld technology. Today kids enjoy their 3DS's to the same extent but something is different. I get the feeling that the market for handheld machines is slowly coming to an end. I do not think it will be soon or that it will disappear completely but the desire for handheld gaming is a very different desire than i had when i was a boy.

The highly publicized launch of the 3DS did not shock me in the sense that it was a huge disappointment and gamers a currently going through the exact same experience with the launch of Sony's PS Vita.

I think the reason for this change is that of mobile gaming. Apple with an app store with pick up and play games at 0.69p is enough for your average person. Children are the only guaranteed avenue for a dedicated handheld now as who else has the time to get really stuck into a session on Uncharted on Vita when they are out and about. More often than not we go out for a reason and do not have the time for a lengthy gaming session. That is why the rise of the app store has been welcome. it provides enough of a quick fix for your average gamer on the move. Only a child who is on a car journey or been dragged somewhere with their parents is likely to have enough time away from home to play a decent amount of time.

besides if i have the choice of playing Uncharted on my PS3 or a Vita, which am i likely to spend £40 on honestly. I just can't see the handheld market lasting much longer (or more accurately a dedicated handheld market) with the advent of mobiles and the price of the current gen of handhelds.

What do others think? What are peoples experiences with their 3DS or Vitas, PSPs etc?, who has them here, who has kids who have them here? where do you use them and for how long at a time?

As I have said before in recent times I have become a bit of an achievement junkie. This not only goes for Xbox but ps3 trophies, steam achievements and gamecentre too. Now I don't claim to have completed many games in the achievement sense but no when I play a game I tend to look at what kind of things will be involved. So looking at the games I have played and have yet to play I notice that a fair few games have achievements for reaching certain levels in multiplayer matches, coming in top of leaderboards, certain kills streaks and various other things and I have found myself thinking recently that to me many of these are not obtainable. Obviously certain players favour certain types of games and maybe multiplayer just isnt my thing, I normally get owned on Modern Warfare and battlefield, other shooters and even FIFA. For some reason as soon as I get online it just doesn't work out for me. So anyway I am now questioning whether achievements for multiplayer tasks should really exist as for me and many others I am sure it makes some games incompletable (probably not even a word). Also some older games that I own have now shut down their servers which rules out me ever completing older nba titles and others. Now I appreciate that certain tasks should be rewarded in these games but maybe there is another way that doesn't alienate those that favour the single player experience and still wish to 100% a game. So I imagine many people do not share this option and I appreciate that but would be keen to hear people's thoughts, opinions and ideas on the matter. Take care chaps :-)

In the past i have had periods where my gaming has dried up immensely to the extent where i have barely turned on my 360 at all. By contrast the past few months have been quite the opposite as looking back since September last year I have played some very awesome games. I imagine that many other people have as well since last autumn as there was a massive influx of quality Gamage released in the run up to Christmas which has no doubt carried across for many people into 2012 as it has for me. It is not only new games that I have been playing mind, i have taken some time to revisit a few classics that i had previously missed and some recommendations from friends that have gone down a treat (and a couple that haven't). I have to admit to my fair share of achievement whoring i really have played some dire games too in the interest of improving my below average gamerscore.

Anyway to run few a few of the games that I have put the most time into here goes.

First and foremost comes Skyrim, no i don't imagine that many of you are surprised in the slightest. The world and its dog have been playing this game. I literally only got excited about this game about a week before it released as prior to that i had no intention in picking it up at all. I had tried Oblivion and not got very far with it so not even sure what it was that suddenly made me want to buy it... posssibly Dragons, who doesn't love Dragons. Anyway 170hrs later I emerged victorious, the best game for me to ever 100% complete achievement-wise.

Prior to that I had already rinsed the generic shooters (both of them), Batman Arkham City and Gears 3, put many hours into Forza 4 and Fifa 12 while getting started on Deus Ex HR and Rage. So that was last year. By the way to date i still need to finish the last two there. Oh i also managed to slip in some left 4 dead co op with a few mates too.

Once i put Skyrim aside I decided I needed to get started on a series of games that needed to be played before March 9th, in case you haven't guessed it then yes, its Mass Effect. I neglected to play these when they first released and never had gotten around to it. So after some hassling from friends i picked up both 1 and 2 and went about it. Finishing the first in around 25hrs comfortably while not leaving too much not done. The second which i have just completed in just under 30 hrs (however i only managed to reach lvl 24 so far) and have a wedge of assignments still to do. I can honestly say that i cannot wait for 3 to hit shelves now.

Shamefully I managed to find time to play the atrocious childrens game, Megamind: The Ultimate Showdown for a solid 1000G... i hang my head in shame.

In amongst the ME series i have managed to squeeze in more Fifa, some multiplayer on both Battlefield and Modern Warfare with friends (although i really do suck at both), playthrough The darkness in the run up to the release of Darkness 2 (which i still need to buy), finally finish the ancient Fight Night Round 3 (see my previous post) and get about half way through Saints Row The Third. Most recently in the past few days I have started a 3 player co op on Dead Island which i am absolutely loving to bits and also borrowed and started Sniper: Ghost Warrior tonight which has surprised me as i thought it was going to be rubbish but is actually not too bad.

Anyway thats my recent habits. Think i will start writing in some detail about my weekly games played and my thoughts on how I am doing. Would be keen to learn what others are upto and what older games they might be trying to juggle alongside a Wall of newer releases.

Anyhoo later people :-) Who would have thought i have a job HA! Not enough hours in the day.

If Crytek has there hands on it then I will hold out some hope but i think they should leave it alone. The helicopter bit was quite laughable I smacked into the mountain above the tunnel as there had been nothing to say i needed to control my pitch, but the mechanics were so naff that i didn't even take damage, then scuffed my way along the ground in the tunnel. i was nearly crying.

Its a shame because it did have potential. the opening sequence was pretty damn good and i was into it but then the game just fell apart.

I recently borrowed THQs Homefront from a mate and thought i should get around to playing it. I had heard things that its not great and that the campaign is short but having just finished it I can say oh... my... god!

Disappointed is not even close.

The story goes literally nowhere and by the time it is getting remotely interesting the credits roll. I already heard that they are prepping Homefront 2 so i can see this being a saga like Modern Warfare (or trying to be) but i can honestly say that this campaign makes MW3 look like an epic in comparison and i don't think any kind of "first part of a series" is any kind of justification for just how short it really is.

I also have major beef with the amount of cheevos you get for going through the game. I have ended up with 160 gamerscore from it which i wish i could wipe from my profile. 10 pts per play through is rubbish. Ok another 10 for going through on hardest but i didn't enjoy it enough to do that. As for not dying... no thanks. Also it has a significent amount of multiplayer cheevos which is a whole kettle of fish i want to discuss another time.

Anyway i just needed to rant there for a minute, i am now calm. Anyone else have any thoughts on this?

All i can say is thank god for Saints Row :-)

Its never great losing save games i feel your pain. Hopefully it will become a thing of the past with cloud storage.

It did seem like a hell of a journey but i am glad i finally beat it. Need a break before hitting up round 4 though i think i'll get through ME2 first methinks.

Thanks for the welcome chaps :-)