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Influence of video games

Virtual ghost

Complex paradigm
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1.Do you think that there would not be large chuncks of your personality in the case that video games do not exist ?

If nothing they can effect you through someone who is close to you if he/she plays them regulary.


2. Some people say that they got alot of wisdom from The Bible. While some people claim that they go the same thing from Star Trek. So I am wondering does anyone thinks that they got any wisdom from a video games?
Or that video games greatly influenced their political and social views?




3. I am interested in what you have played and do you think that this has largely effected your personality? So feel free to post pictures , videos, and comments about it.




Discuss.
 

JocktheMotie

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I don't really think my personality has been affected by video games. Like other media, I think my personality is what attunes me to certain types and genres of games in the first place, and my personality directs my video game consumption to a degree, and not the other way around.

I tend to think of video games as any other kind of storytelling and experience medium, just one that is more interactive than say, books and movies. Some people have books that change their social perspectives, movies that change outlooks, for me I have certain games. I'd say the game that had the biggest impact on my political and social views was Deus Ex. Specifically, the conversation with an AI locked inside some guy's closet. I always think about that conversation, and it remains one of the best ones I've ever had, if that makes any sense.

I like to play more western games: sandbox style of games where I'm given the freedom to roam and dictate my interaction with the game, although I do love games with a more linear pace and good storytelling experience, puzzle solving experience [OMG Portal], adventure/collecting experience, etc.
 

Fluffywolf

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1. I think that if there weren't any videogames, I would have gotten inspiration elsewhere. In that sense things could be different, but it wouldn't be in the sense of missing personality. There is also no arguement to measure which course would have been better or worse. There simply is no comparison.

2. Definatly, in the sense that people that made videogames put wisdom into them, and as a player, you are sampling that. Just like there is wisdom to gain from the bible, and also from Mein Kampf. My point, wisdom can be aquired everywhere.

3. I started with games like Xenon, Space Invaders, Depthbomber, Hotel, etc. Moved on to more graphical games of all kinds. Defender of the Crown, Street Rod, Lotus, Wolfenstein, Castle of the Winds :p, etc, etc.
When things went 3d I focused mainly on first person shooters, in particular the Quake 2 mod called Action Quake. It was the first 'real' internet multiplayer game I played and I played it together with many people in our school. After that scene died down, I lost the taste for first person shooters and went into the RPG scene. Fallout (1 and 2), Arcanum, Diablo (1 and 2), Nox. As well as strategy games like command and conquer serier up to Generals I've owned all of them. And also all of the dune games, from dune 2 up to Emperor: Battle for Dune.

When World of Warcraft came out I went there, and there isn't a game I've played as much as this game since. When I stopped playing WoW a little over a year ago, I started playing some multiplayer games that didn't require constant attendance. A good example of late is Heroes of Newerth. And I've also went back to single player rpg's, like Dragon's Age and Fallout. Basicly games I can put away for a week without falling behind to others like in MMO's.

I think what has affected my personality the most, are probably the multiplayer games. Where you play and interact with other people directly. So in that sense, it wasn't the games but the people that had most effect. Other influences are gained from inspiration like stories, rpg's, etc. Sampling the creativity of the developpers.

Long story short, my personality is unaffected by games in a direct sense. But rather indirectly through other peoples ideas, creations and interactions.
 

Spamtar

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Games that made the greatest impact on me no particular order:

Grand Theft Auto series
Soul Caliber
KOTOR
Mass Effect
Fallout 3
C/o Riddick: Butcher Bay
Rock Band
Bioshock
 

JocktheMotie

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Games that made the greatest impact on me no particular order:

Grand Theft Auto series
Soul Caliber
KOTOR
Mass Effect
Fallout 3
C/o Riddick: Butcher Bay
Rock Band
Bioshock

Any particular reason? Some of these are favorites myself [KotOR, Soul Caliber, Fallout 3] but for very different reasons. I wonder what you got out of them.
 

Spamtar

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Any particular reason? Some of these are favorites myself [KotOR, Soul Caliber, Fallout 3] but for very different reasons. I wonder what you got out of them.

Admittedly this sounds nerdy and cornball but its true, at least to some extent, of the magical ways video games have effected my life.

GTA - enjoyed the sense of freedom/sandbox game play. It transcended to irl and found myself taking more risks, being bolder as well and incorporating its style of humor in my dialog.

Soul Caliber - Got a good deal of camaraderie when matched up against another person playing this game.

KOTOR - The good and evil choices had a much stronger impact on my psyche than I expected got me considering ethics irl more.

Rock Band: Playing that game with my nephew and niece when they visited was a coolio experience. It one cool feel the camaraderie which I believe would be similar to what real band mates feel.

Fallout 3 - Similar to KOTOR and the music became part of the mental soundtrack to my life.

Mass Effect: The romance gimmick actually worked well on me. Also what I said about KOTOR but to a lesser extent.

Butcher Bay: Made think about how flawed the prison system can be in our own world not to mention outer space. Inspired me to write a letter to a incarcerated bank robber friend.

Bioshock: Simply one of the most beautiful and artistic games I have ever scene. Made me think about the philosophies and critiques thereof of Frederick Nietzsche and Ayn Rand.

Just imagining about upcoming games and the future possibilities as to games or gaming technology applied to other areas of life fascinates me.
 

Randomnity

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I don't feel like I've been "impacted" or inspired by video games, though I play them often (computer games, almost never console games). They reflect my personality, not the other way around.

I enjoy:

real time strategy (warcraft 3, starcraft, age of empires, etc)
city building/managing (sim city, pharaoh)
RPG (diablo 2, warhammer online)
turn based strategy (heroes of might and magic 3, civilization 3, masters of orion!) my favourite!
and similar things.

I really, really hate shooting games and puzzle/"mystery" games.
 

Arthur Schopenhauer

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I don't think any games have influenced my personality, in any way, but I do know that a rare few have inspired me, and influenced my emotions. I prefer those games that invoke within me a feeling of awe, and it is these games or moments within games that stick closely to me. Games are like stories to me, at least, some games are - FPS, fighters, some RPG's, etc., are not so maginificent and I don't consider them stories, but "games"/generic and mindless thrill objects, instead.

Games that have influenced me:

Shadow of the Colossus (PS2): This is my all-time favorite game. The story, while it left unanswered questions, was still beautifully dark and inviting; I've yet to play a game in which the story felt so amazing. The scenery was beautiful, the music superb, and the enemies felt like enemies. Climbing to the top of a giant Colossi and stabbing it until it dies is extremely fun, as well. The Wanderer, the protagonist, was a great character even though he was silent, and Dormin, the antagonist, was a great antagonist even though he never made a real appearance in the game.

An exellent game. I want to play the other titles released by Team Ico, but my ps2 went and died on me.

Final Fantasy 3?4? - can't rememer - It was the one with Celeste and Kefka. My favorite FF title thus far. Also, Alan Wake - TLoZ: OoT - Bioshock 1&2 - Metroid Prime 2 - That's all I can think of right now - Are notable games as well. Various scenes in those games, not the entire game, influenced me.

/Nerd.
 

ryb

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An exellent game. I want to play the other titles released by Team Ico, but my ps2 went and died on me.

Final Fantasy 3?4? - can't rememer - It was the one with Celeste and Kefka. My favorite FF title thus far.


Final fantasy 6 I guess. Kefka is mad.

HD versions of both ICO and SotC are supposed to come out on the ps3 :=)
 

KDude

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Some well written games or memorable characters affect me in the same way as any other storytelling would. I can't really gauge how much, but fiction in general doesn't affect to the point of obsession or anything like that. I might find a nugget of wisdom or inspiration here and there, and those will stick with me.

The mechanics behind games probably affect me in positive ways. Most games are basically just...pattern recognition. I'm sure that helps on some level, like a mental exercise or something.

I've mostly played platformers/racers/RPGs/adventure titles...as far as storylines go, most of the themes are Japanese or western fantasy/sci-fi based. I'm bored by military shit (including movies) and most of the FPS genre..nor do I care to be, like, some psychopathic ghetto character in South Central LA.. so I don't think I play enough games with gratuitious violence to affect me negatively even subconsciously.

edit: Wait, the Metal Gear series is badass..but then, it's kind of an anti-war game (and in MGS4, even a commentary on the negative influence of war games)
 

ryb

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I think Braid has had the most impact on me.
 

Arclight

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I don't feel like I've been "impacted" or inspired by video games, though I play them often (computer games, almost never console games). They reflect my personality, not the other way around.

I enjoy:

real time strategy (warcraft 3, starcraft, age of empires, etc)
city building/managing (sim city, pharaoh)
RPG (diablo 2, warhammer online)
turn based strategy (heroes of might and magic 3, civilization 3, masters of orion!) my favourite!
and similar things.

I really, really hate shooting games and puzzle/"mystery" games.

You have similar tastes to me.
I am no fan of RT strat or shoot 'em ups.
But I love turn based strat (CIV3 and Panzer General2 (yes STILL ) are my faves )
Love Diablo 2
Love Sim City
Love Heroes of Might and Magic

I don't think games have influenced my way of thinking though, or had any impact on my personality.
 

MacabreCharade

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Not sure whether gaming has influenced me, but there are a few titles I remember more clearly. I began gaming at the age of 5, since I got my PS then. I managed to go through quite a bunch of games and today have managed to pick out one or two games from the PS, which might've somehow influenced my imagination.

One of them being Spyro the Dragon, which I played at the age of 5. I've also gone through a bunch of other Spyro titles, but none of them appeal to me as much as Spyro did. The soundtrack and atmosphere tends to have quite the effect on me. Copeland did a very good job on the soundtracks for the three Spyro games. In the recent years, I've gone through that game once more completely and I have to say, it hasn't really lost much. The game is simple, yet manages to stay very magical.

Now this has to be my favourite game of all time. Medievil. The nostalgia I get from this game can be overwhelming. The soundtracks are the best I've heard for any game. The graphics have aged, yes, but that's what makes it even better. Sort of makes it seem distorted. It's a classic gothic horror game. A remake was made years ago, but I found it to be fairly disappointing. The soundtracks were redone by a philharmonic orchestra and choir, but there's something missing, in my opinion. The game has also been made all cartoony, which ruined it a fair amount for me. There was also a sequel for the first game, which was okay, but it wasn't clearly as good as the first. I'd imagine this game to be fairly interesting for INJ's to play. I'm also putting some soundtracks here.

YouTube - MediEvil (Soundtrack) - The Enchanted Earth... (From the original. Unfortunately it wasn't redone by the orchestra.)

YouTube - MediEvil (Soundtrack) - The Hilltop Mausoleum (Again, from the original.)

YouTube - Medievil Resurrection- Hilltop Mausoleum suite (In comparison to the last one. Done for the remake.)

YouTube - MediEvil Resurrection - The Spell (From the remake. The original also had this one, but I think that this one is superior.)

YouTube - MediEvil 2 (Soundtrack) - The Museum (From the sequel.)

Then there are two more games which I have played quite the amount in later years. Diablo II and Spore. Again, both have some outstanding soundtracks.

As for Spore, I only enjoyed the space stage. That might aswell have been the entire game for me and none of the previous stages, because the others felt like filler to me. Brian Eno's soundtracks for it are very much enjoyable.

YouTube - Spore Soundtrack: Among the Stars

I also play MapleStory every now and then with specific friends. Suppose communication is an important aspect in this game.

So apparently the music has an importance for me in a game. Also, sometimes I'd prefer if there wasn't any character conversation. That seems to be offputting for me. I'd rather have the silence than some cheesy waffling going on.
 

Jon Snow

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[YOUTUBE="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SovM_ExoVg"]Zelda[/YOUTUBE]

Guys, seriously.
 

Verfremdungseffekt

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Ocarina is clumsy reiterative bullshit. And it has aged even worse.

The first two Zelda games still have the most to say.
 

KDude

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The Metroid series were always my favorites out of the Nintendo stuff.
 
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1. Actually, I'm more inclined to believe that video games have stifled my 'personality'. I don't play to socialize, I play to escape into a world that provides the illusion of authoritative control, or at the least the ability to manipulate autonomous processes to some degree. I still occasionally enjoy booting up the old Halo 1 disc and jumping onto one of the Race servers for a gritty competitive/cooperative Hog-fest, particularly when I'm lucky enough to have a teammate who's a good Hog gunner. 9 years of practice has allowed me to achieve a high level of skill, and it's the only game I'm good enough at to get my rocks off by shameless grandstanding.

2. Political and social views? In the unlikely event I happen to be carrying such burdens, I leave that shit at the door when I'm gaming. Actually, that's likely to be the reason why I'm gaming to begin with...immersion within an alternate reality is a central draw of gaming for me.

What I've learned from video gaming? The best thing I've learned is that warthogs can fly, but I've also gained advanced hand-eye coordination, gained understanding of effective management in stressful/distracting situations and environments, gained a practical/working understanding of cooperative tactical planning and execution (playing capture the flag and other squad-based game forms in games like Halo). I'm also REALLY good at analyzing AI script and developing enhanced styles of play that milk every last drop of sustained replayability from my pitifully small video game investment fund. I'm also a shameless mod slut and love to experiment with every third party app I can get my hands on, which is another way of saying that I'm fairly skilled at file manipulation and have dabbled to a degree in things like custom map and object creation. If I ever develop a fundamental understanding of code, PC games will be my classroom.

Games I like, taking into account that what I play is highly dependent on what I can successfully rip (I'm poor).

I love games like A-Train, Sim City, Roller Coaster Tycoon and to a lesser extent The Sims. RCT3 is a personal favorite...I could have built a real theme park with the hours I've burned on that game.

Real Time Strategy ie: Command and Conquer, Warcraft/Starcraft and Warzone 2100.

Anything vehicular based, though linear NASCAR-esque racing sims have limited appeal. I love sprawling open-ended free range exploration-based games like Interstate 76, Mafia, Driver and GTA. Vehicular combat ie: Twisted Metal, Vigilante 8 and others of their ilk is a platform I can't get enough of. I endured the pain in the ass process of setting up a functional PS1 emulator strictly so I could play Twisted Metal 2 again, and I still play it, despite the medieval graphics and my severely retarded controller to keybord transfer abilities.

Turn-based Strategy ie: X-com, Panzer General and similar grid-runners.

FPS...I love STALKER, though I've never completely warmed up to their physics engine, weapon ballistics, or user interface, those minor annoyances are barely noticeable due to the fact that the environments and atmospheric elements are the most immersive and realistic I've ever seen. If I were forever banished to a virtual environment of my choosing, I'd be more than happy wandering the Zone for eternity. Also, the mod community supporting the STALKER games is the highest caliber in terms of quality I've yet to encounter. STALKER oozes everything I love about Russians, and I'm stupified at the levels of passionate intensity coursing through the veins of this series.

Half-Life 2 and it's equally impressive third party mods run a close second. Halo, strictly in terms of it's FPS elements, runs a distant third place, though I think it's vehicular aspect is Halo's greatest virtue. Halo 1 race mode is a monument to eternal replayability.

I've played too more FPS games than I can remember, or maybe just played too many that were forgettable in comparison to the above-mentioned three, but there are some gems out there...Dues Ex, Thief, Call of Duty, Goldeneye...

I also like the Resident Evil games, though third person games like Tomb Raider are not my forte. Zelda annoys me for some reason, Final Fantasy's perpetual chatter openly provokes me to eject it's CD's and grant them new lives as high-velocity projectles (excluding Final Fantasy Tactics, which is another old PS 1 favorite)

Games I've loved, lost and intend to love again if I can ever find fucking replacements include Sea Dogs and Wargasm.
 
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