Zen Of Design

The design and business of gaming from the perspective of an experienced developer

Month: August 2005 (Page 3 of 3)

Collection of Hot Coffee Links

August 7, 2005 /

I’ve been collecting links and whatnot related to the Hot Coffee Incident for my own research purposes, and to share with others who may be looking for a cohesive timeline and some of the more coherent analyses on the subject. If anyone has any good links, or compelling points in the timeline I missed, noting them in the comments would be dandy. Continue reading

MMO Designers Can Learn from LARP

August 3, 2005 /

A documentary about LARPers.

MMO designers should study LARPs more. If you think about it, they’re actually a much better analog to MMOs than the tabletop experience everyone tries to emulate. Tabletops are about cooperative storytelling. LARPs are much more self-running, with a small cabal loosely managing a large herd following fairly simple and cut-and-dried rules. They also do a better job of thinking of events that involves the whole populace, and still feel world-changing.

But this is all from anecdotal data – I’ve never taken part. Humorously enough, though, I had a girlfriend once who swore she would dump me if I ever LARPed. I’m pretty sure she meant it, too.
The original comment thread is here.

China Bans Children Player Killing

August 3, 2005 /

Sara points out that China has just banned children playing games where they can Player Kill.

Effective immediately, all minors are banned from playing online games in which players are allowed to kill other players, an activity that has been termed Player Kills (PK). China’s Ministry of Culture (MOC) and Ministry of Information Industry (MII) have also ordered the country’s online game operators to develop identity authentication systems that prevent minors from playing games These authentication systems would require all players to first enter their Citizen ID Card numbers before being allowed to play games that allow Player Kills. No timetable was given for when these authentication systems must be implemented.“Minors should not be allowed to play online games that have PK content, that allow players to increase the power of their own online game characters by killing other players,” Liu Shifa, head of the MOC’s Internet Culture Division, which drafts policies governing the online gaming market, told Interfax.

“Online games that have PK content usually also contain acts of violence and leads to players spending too much time trying to increase the power of their characters. They are harmful to young people.”

Say what you will about Jack Thompson and Hillary Clinton — at least there’s a debate over here.

The Rise of Manga in America

August 3, 2005 /

I found this article about the emergence of Shoujo Manga in America to be a fascinating read. The general thesis is that Manga is taking the American girl market by storm, largely because American comic book producers simply refuse to make content for that market. Sounds like another industry I know. Relevant quote:

Speaking for myself, the straw that broke the camel’s back fell during this year’s Emerald City Con in Seattle. I’d stepped out to smoke a cigarette and was watching the passersby. I noticed a family leaving the convention — a Mom, a Dad, and a little girl no older than eight years of age. The girl was decked out in a beautiful, elaborate kimono and clearly distressed by what she’d just encountered. “But they didn’t hardly have any manga at all!” she said as they walked away.

When I was done with my cigarette, I went back inside and relayed this story to an acquaintance prominent in the art-comics publishing scene. “I hate to say it, but good,” was his reply. Indeed, I told the story several more times that day, to both indy-comics and superhero-comics professionals, and the reaction was more or less the same each time. A young reader disappointed by the selection offered to her? Good. The future of comics walks out the door, unable to find what she wants? Good. I left the convention early, lost in a foul mood. I swear: I love the comics art form with a passion, but my utter contempt for the American comics industry grows like a cancer with each passing day.

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