There
must be many of you who, much the same as I’ve recently encountered, have been
invited to a friends for an evening of light hearted chat and a small amount of audio
visual entertainment, only to be confronted with the fact that your choice of companion
this evening was not the wisest, as the latest RPG has come to claim their concentration.
And it’s not just RPGs that decidedly infringe on my cohorts valuable time
either. A recent culprit unrelentlessly absorbing any attention they once wished to cast
upon my person would be the unremitting Animal Crossing. Although being a heavily
community spirited game, allowing up to four players to interact on one save file, the
title does not allow simultaneous play – which only intensifies the four hour wait.
Don’t get me wrong, Animal Crossing is an inherently beautiful game –
using ideas that push boundaries far beyond its cartoon-esque exterior would let you
believe. I can easily see the appeal of the first - and still only – game to enter
the fourth dimension and I love to utilise the entire NES game conversions which now Animal
Crossing insists are merely mini-games. However, after the intrigue and often
down-right astonishment has washed away, watching a pixie travel from shed to shed with
clothes and furniture packages isn’t the most exhilarating way to spend an evening.
There must be many of you who have spent such free time sat in the corner quietly
plotting the downfall of Nintendo, SquareEnix and RockStar games – to name but a few
of the main culprits. The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker and Final Fantasy X-2
have recently misled me also. Appearing to be heavily story driven interactive games, they
become life absorbing symbiants that not only seem to take over the owners time, but also they’re mind – as nothing that
comes from their mouth can be related to anything but the current script.
Like myself, fighting, shooting, driving and sports titles are probably more
appealing to those of you who have stuck with this article. Their quick-fire nature allows
for the control pad to switch hands not only randomly, but also more frequently than
never, or close to never. I view gaming as a social activity, and being able to co-operate
or compete directly allows for a much grander scope than hours spent levelling-up. These
games are no less addictive, but often they do allow you to pull yourself back into
reality for a brief moment.  Games such as the
mighty Halo 2 are rammed with vastly impressive attention to detail with their
multiplayer features and Co-Operative play. The Legend Of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures
is a perfect example of how to pull RPGs into the multiplayer arena without losing any of
the playability. It seems a shame that the days of mainstream Co-Operative gaming is
limited to the 90’s, with Golden Axe adventures, rampages in the Streets Of
Rage series and mushroom picking in Super Mario Bros. 3 often being unparalled
by today’s hour-hungry programming. |
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