okoctothorpe

@MattyFTM said:

Does Maxis still exist? In any meaningful way, anyway? I figured it had been quietly merged into one of their other studio's by now since we haven't heard anything from them for years now.

The short answer: maybe. Maxis had feelers out for employees in July 2010 (http://www.gamespot.com/news/6269152/maxis-hiring-for-pc-online-simulation-game) for a nonspecific PC online simulation game. It was speculated that it had nothing to do with Darkspore, which had just been announced around that same time. But no news in over a year - either they're working on some new magic or they're dead, Jim.

Y'know, I initially wasn't thrilled because of the game choice: a lot of the classic games are enhanced by the player's nostalgia, plus I'm not big into JRPGs. But then I remembered how Jeff and Vinny managed to make a game I had NO interest in (Persona 4) into my rush-home-from-work-gotta-catch-the-next-episode show this summer. I've been waiting for the next ER since forever, and here's hoping this one can step in to the very big shoes P4 and DP left.

I don't believe that I have the option to STRAP IT ON in Skyrim, but it's still got my vote. It'll probably give me more gameplay hours and I prefer the fantasy setting.

I wonder if the Bombcasters get weirded out by this stuff or if they're used to it by now.

(and always pick Jeff.)

Done! Good luck on your class, hon!

@Jeaz: agreed. If EA is able to put together a semi functional model, all the best to them to increase market diversity. But if origins.com is just a jazzed up EADM, then there's no way they'll be effective competitors.

I use the Kindle app on my iPod touch - joys of books and games in one!

I normally watch a QL or something as I'm falling asleep, so I have many, many Giant Bomb related dreams. I could use a few more with Jeff though <3

@JamesKond: while it's possible to have both dyslexia and Asberger's, they are two discrete diagnoses. Dyslexia is a learning/processing disorder (meaning your intelligence is normal, but the information can get jumbled up in the brain), while Asberger's is an autism disorder (mostly involved in communication and social interactions). Just so you know! :)

I wondered about potential not-strictly-gaming applications of L.A.Noire's facial animation technology after I first saw it. I'm a teacher with a number of special-needs students who have problems interacting socially, like Jeff. These students' IQs are all over the board (from below 70 to 130 or higher) but what links them together in my mind is their inability to pick up on subtle social cues. Watching the lifelike animations in L.A. Noire, I thought about the possibility of an educational game specifically built for people with social deficits to practice reading cues, develop empathy, and test interactions in a limited environment. Obviously, practicing these things with live human beings in realistic settings is ideal, but Jeff hit on something key: playing a game might reduce the feeling of failure compared to a real human's rejection.

Video games CAN be educational! :)