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Thursday, June 3, 2010

Last blog entry

Well, time is out on the club for this year, as this is our last meeting. I hope you all had fun playing, talking, and writing about games - I know I did. Now, on to a summer of gaming!

For our last blog entry, though, check below, as no one commented on the "Big 3" post. Do so for those snacks!

And over the summer, if you play a new game, hop on here and leave a review so everyone else can see for themselves if it's worth playing or not.

Thanks - and happy gaming!

- Mr. M

Thursday, May 27, 2010

What do the big 3 need to do to "win"?

Only 2 more gaming club meetings left!!! I hope everyone's had fun so far this year; I've seen lots of good times had by many of you. I think we'll be back next year, too, so check in at the beginning of the year to see what's up.

On to today's blog - the E3 Gaming Convention is coming up. For those that don't know, this is the time of year when the gaming companies show what's in store for the upcoming year, as they try to gain some press and excitement for their company and product.

So, what do the big 3 - Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo - need to do, what should they show, that will make them winners in the eyes of gamers for this upcoming year? It's a tight race at the moment, and any big announcement could tip the scales for any of the 3 companies...

Your thoughts? What would you like to see - sequels, hardware, online, new systems....?

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Movie > Games, Games > Movies.....

Lots of recent videogames have drawn their inspiration from movies, and vice versa. Resident Evil, Halo, Doom, etc. have gone from game to movie, and others - Iron Man, Transformers, Disney movies, etc. - have gone the opposite way. Which are your favorites, and which might work that haven't yet been made into a game (from a movie) or a movie (from a game)?

Thursday, April 29, 2010

Videogames = bad?

Another common video-game stereotype held by society is that video-games promote violence - that nothing good can come from them, only violent, bad things.

I'm guessing many of you disagree with this stereotype - so, here's your chance to voice your opinions. What are three positive things that video-games bring to society? Basically, what GOOD are they to us all?

Discuss!

Oh, and a reminder - if you've played any cool games recently, please take a little time to create a review for the game. You can do so under the new "Reviews!" section of the blog - the format for the review is there, too.

Thanks!

Friday, April 9, 2010

Video Proof of Gaming Club's Vocal Talents! :)

Below is a video taken during one of the Gaming Club's Rock Band 2 sessions....in it, Dan Enright, Adam Malcolm, and Cody Small lend their vocal talents to Journey's hit song "Don't Stop Believing."

This leads us to the following prompt for discussion: Many people believe that videogames isolate gamers, making them solitary, lonely people holed up in bedrooms and basements with no social interactions. What are your thoughts on this? Can you disprove this gaming stereotype?



Tuesday, April 6, 2010

What do you want to play?

This club is here for you, the Gamer - so, for today's blog question, what are 3 MULTIPLAYER games you'd like to see here to play? We might be able to get them if you suggest them!

Thursday, March 25, 2010

The Wii - gaming's biggest seller, or biggest sell-out?

Everyone knows about the Nintendo Wii. It's the best selling console on the market, and is in more homes than any other new generation console. But, many hardcore gamers are against it, saying that it's only for families and little kids. So - today's blog question: Is the Wii a "real" system, good for gaming? Or is it leading to the downfall of hardcore gaming as we know it?

Monday, March 15, 2010

Gaming Club Survey

Please click the link below to take our club survey - we have to get everyone to take it!!!

Gaming club survey!

Thursday, January 14, 2010

I can't wait for...

There are plenty of great new games coming out for all systems - so, what 3 games are you most excited about, and why are you so excited for them? Give some detail in your explanation!

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Best games? Check. Now...what's the best FPS?

Some of you already posted your thoughts on the 5 best games ever made on an earlier entry - if you haven't done that already, please go ahead and do so now.

If you've already done it, let's focus your thinking a bit - what is the best FPS ever, with some detailed rationale? Don't let the fact that you love a game NOW (COD 2 anyone) cloud your judgement, although I think that one is definitely in the running in my mind...

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Wow...very interesting COD 2 article...

In helping students look at research paper topics (yep, seriously), I stumbled across this article...very, VERY interesting story about COD 2 and the ethics behind it...give it a read, leave some comments. Video games, my friends, are changing.

Check out the article here.

Best games?

There are literally hundreds of awesome games out there, from the earliest NES titles to the latest PS3 and 360 ones...so, what do you think are the 5 best games EVER MADE, with some reasoning for EACH choice?

Monday, October 26, 2009

Money!

As all gamers know, money is something that we never have enough of - games, systems, controllers - they're all very expensive. So, we need to budget the money we do have to make the best use of it. Do you really NEED that new Rachet and Clank game, or should you wait for the next Call of Duty to come out?

We have an awesome opportunity here at the gaming club to get a little bit of money to help our club run more smoothly. So we need to decide how BEST to spend that money. I'll put down three amounts of money below, and I'd like people to chime in as to how we should spend that much money if we were lucky enough to get it. Put links to the things you think we should spend it on from Amazon.com, and we can get a working list going.

First amount - $1000
Second amount - $500
Third amount - $300

So - how would you use each amount above? An example is below...

First amount - PS3 Slim - http://tinyurl.com/ykq9w84 - $300
3 PS3 controllers - $40 apiece for total of $120 - http://tinyurl.com/n4spcr
etc, etc...

Third amount - 2 PS3 controllers - $40 apiece for total of $80 - http://tinyurl.com/n4spcr
Power cable - $13.23 - http://tinyurl.com/yzmouod


Saturday, October 17, 2009

Game reviews

As a service to our fellow gamers out there, I thought it'd be cool to do some video game reviews - of games we own, games we rent, etc. You've probably read many so know the basics, but here's a format to follow in creating your own:

Specs: Title, cost, release date

Graphics: Both the technical quality of the graphics, as well as the artistic quality. How smoothly the game’s graphics run factor into this score, as well.

Sound: Covers sound effects, voice acting, and music.

Gameplay: In essence, how fun the game actually is to play. This covers things like the controls, difficulty level, design of levels, etc. For games that come from genres that rely heavily on their story (particularly RPGs), I may adjust this score slightly to reflect how well the story is executed, as well. Obviously, this is the most important component.

Value: Covers things like replay value, the length of time it takes to go through the game, the price the game is going for in retail stores, etc. For example, if a game has a solid multiplayer mode, lots of unlockables, and several modes to play through in single player as well, expect to see a high rating here. Also, if the game is solid, and comes out with a lower-than-normal retail price, it will also earn a high score in this category.

Overall: Overall impression of the game. Use a rating system - 9 out of 10, for instance, for an awesome game.

That's it! Now if you get a chance, post a review for a game you've been playing lately.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

First question for discussion...

One of the things I hope the gaming club can help educate people on are the many myths about video games and the gamers themselves. So, for our first discussion, I'd like us to talk about a very common video game myth -

"People can't learn anything from video games - they're only for entertainment."

So, gamers, in the space below, leave your reaction to this myth - remember, keep it in school appropriate terms! - and give some specific examples about things video games have taught you.

- - Mr. M

Welcome!


Come one, come all, to the spot on the Net for all that is video games. This blog is an outlet for a unique school-related group at Nokomis Regional High school in Newport, ME. Here's the setup...



We all know that video games are enormously popular - a multi-billion dollar industry that touches all areas of society, from film to books to education. It is that last tag - education - that ties in with this group, which focuses on everything about video games. Students meet once a week after school to do what they do best - game. It gets crazy at times, with upwards of 3 TVs, 2 projectors, and many systems going, but we have fun with it.

But this blog is an outlet for the other side of the club - showing others, including non-gamers, what gamers are all about. The group's members will post various things on this blog, from reviews of games to discussions of gaming tips to deeper, philosophical musings about gamers themselves. Anything and everything related to video games is, well, fair game, so hopefully you can find something of interest in this space, be you non-gamer, a newbie, or a gaming legend.

- - Mr. M, English teacher and Gaming Club facilitator