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Sean Pettibone

Voice Module Archive

Buried under feet of snow, the world comes back to life, while the dawn that never seems to come feels ever more distant. Reaching backward through time, memories swirl underneath the drifts. Times that seemed to last forever now feel long gone. There was once a friendly voice in the darkness that kept me company. Once, we felt so alive - but that's behind me now. I remember the games we talked about, the times we shared. We walked the street together, we became one, and distance never felt real. Now it's all too real. The emptiness remains a shadow. It was only a short time ago, but it feels even more distant. The worst burden comes when I realize that I have to share our memories alone. A lonely future feels like it's never going to warm, endless cold is all that remains. My feet slowly lift, reluctantly prodding through the snow. Invisible barriers slow my steps, a ceaseless wind that cannot fill the speechless void. Ice forms over a formerly vibrant world - nothing feels alive now. I wander in this emptiness, marking each step forward that reminds me of how far I have had to go alone, adrift once again.

I can still feel you watching at me from the outer edges, a silent visitor appearing for fleeting moments in my dreams. I still wonder if you'll be waiting for me on the other side. I find no comfort in this uncertain promise, only a modicum of half-hearted faith, and a silent chill falls over me, closing down any warmth that still comes from our memories. No one here can fill this void - I have tried and failed to come anywhere close, and this sadness becomes overwhelming, paralyzing every step. I find myself adrift, again. Awaiting some kind of answer that I know will never come. I feel lost, wandering through the coldness alone, I still can't understand why you left. I can't seem to dig out from here, the drifts seem ever deepening. Any layers peeled away only lead to more useless questions, more crushing sadness, more inescapable emptiness. Back when you were still here, I used to dream of the future, and had spectacular times inventing a kind of alternate reality. In time, these dream worlds I invented, populated and desired became twisted, a sad reminder that the past is all we share now. I try not to become too attached to the present and not think of the time that lies ahead. I know that the best times we had are behind me forever. I feel completely alone, even the memories don't reassure me. They become increasingly painful. Reminders of a thousand lost chances, sometimes I wonder what I've done wrong, and what I've done to deserve such a punishment.

I've seen thousands of people, but there was once one who meant more to me than all of them, and in these faces I see none that can replace this consuming cold with any redeeming warmth. The sun offers only blinding light, but no warmth. The world grows increasingly hostile, things feel empty as the failure and darkness slowly comes. The world feels cold and dark, and I feel like I've never anticipated - a seemingly endless sense of loss, and none of this, no success, no money, no songs, no things, no one, no empty smiles, no reassuring voices, no consolation can ever come close to healing this frozen wound. I've read and thought, and all I'm left with is a constant reminder that freezes me in place, I wonder why I keep walking forward, when there's nothing to look forward to on the horizon. I fear that I am worried to drift, forever haunted by the things I know I should have done differently. It's too late for that now. My only companions are endless waves of cold snow and painful winds - no voices to keep me company as I drift forward alone. 

Voice Module - 'Classic & Current Games'?

You might have noticed our slightly different slogan, replacing our long running 'be one with fun' motto, and it signifies a new direction we'll be going in this year. Obviously, "classic and current" signifies a new approach, encompassing more of gaming's history while not neglecting the present. The use of the term "Electronic Games" isn't insignificant either, since it's a tribute to the original gaming magazine from the 80's, which has been a renewed sense of inspiration after re-reading the original issues.

Since the first of this year, you've probably noticed many somewhat retro reviews instead of our normal mix of the latest and greatest. This has been a somewhat purposeful change - we're expanding our focus to include more classic games, and reducing our reliance on new releases and news, a direction you've probably noticed recently. With the market completely oversaturated with sites that cover only the new stuff, it makes sense from our perspective, to give niche, classic and smaller games more coverage. To be honest, the recent disasters on the media front have given us a new perspective. It's probably not such a good idea to compete in a massively overcrowded area. The good news is that we aren't entirely abandoning our coverage of PS3, Wii and Xbox 360 titles, but we'll pay more attention to which games we cover. Instead of putting tons of effort into writing yet another massive Gears of War review, we're going to instead spotlight smaller releases like Castle of Shikigami or Soldner-X, which gives our readers an opportuntity to hear about titles that haven't received saturation coverage. Surely, we're still interested in covering the occasional biggie like Street Fighter IV or Resident Evil 5, but this is going to be de-emphasized for a broader approach.

Directly below, you'll also see that we've spent a lot of time over the past year on a load of 'classic' systems ranging from the Saturn, to the PC Engine and even the Neo Geo CD. We've even spent money to build up our archives of more obscure systems like the Arcadia 2001, VideoBrain and Vic-20. To what end? We'll be adding retro reviews into our regular mix over the next few weeks, to better give you a sense of the history of gaming. In addition, we've entered into a new partnership with Chasethechuckwagon.com, a growing classic game auction site, which will hopefully bring in a new audience to the Laser, We're also adding a few auctions of our own which should add an additional source of revenue to the site and make us less dependent on third-party ads. These changes add up to a new beginning for us here at the Laser. As we begin the new year, we hope all of you like our new direction and stay with us for a new chapter in our adventure.

Voice Module: The return of Saturn

We're starting a new series on the classic systems and one of the most important consoels for a lot of gamers was the Sega Saturn, a system that never got its due in the US. It enjoyed massive support, especially in Japan, that produced some of the greatest 2D shooters ever made with names like Radiant Silvergun still discussed today, more than a decade later. Inside, we take a look at this seminal console and discover why it's stood up to the test of time.

As things have changed so dramatically over the past two years, many older gamers are seeking some solace in the older games, the classic titles that defined electronic games. Part of this is nostalgia, obviously, but there's more to it than that. As the scale of difficulty declines to the point where no effort is needed, those looking for more of a challenge are more likely to find it in the older retro scene. One of the biggest is the Saturn, which seems to loom ever larger as time goes along, which is a strange thing to those of us who were there and saw the console absolutely buried by the Playstation's nearly flawless success back in the mid-to-late 90's. While the domestic Saturn releases had their share of brilliant moments with the likes of Panzer Dragoon Saga, Nights and more obscure releases like Burning Rangers, it was in the Japanese import scene where the console's best titles were released. 

If you loved shooters, there were an absolute embarrassment of riches. A major reason why so many of these games have stood up so well and are now highly-sought after collectibles is the console's 2D abilities which were exploited by many developers to create nearly flawless arcade conversions that gave players a solid experience, even before the MAME phenomenon. Needless to say, a collection of Saturn titles isn't complete without a selection of these games. A look at the console's library shows that these 2D abilities were put to extensive use. From the brilliant, cant-miss and legendary Treasure title Radiant Silvergun and numerous conversions of popular arcade games like Gale Racer (Rad Mobile), Power Drift and Elevator Action Returns, the system was probably the apogee of classic gaming for its era. The numerous compilations from the likes of Konami and Capcom reinforced this, with superb translations of Ghouls and Ghosts, Street Fighter II and the Alpha series, Darkstalkers, SNK's fighting games and other titles, there was nothing that even came close. Konami alone released several brilliant releases including Dracula X, which did the PSX version one better with additional characters and smoother gameplay plus released Salamander Deluxe Pack Plus, which included flawless translations of its most popular shooters, including the brilliant if little seen sequel.

A pair of Konami's best shooting series were never released in North America but made solid appearances on the Saturn. Twin Bee was a superb overhead shooter that was both challenging and inventive, despite its cutesy approach. Parodius was a satirical shooter in the mold of Gradius, and it appeared three times on the console - in compilation form, and with two complete sequels. Finally, Konami also released an extensive collection of MSX titles, with more than 30 games, giving western players a solid over-view of this obscure home computer line's abilities. Capcom was another huge Saturn supporter, releasing no fewer than 5 arcade title compliations, each of which included pixel-perfect translations of their legendary titles. There were also numerous fighting games including obscurities like CyberBots, a robot-themed take on the SF formula. Dig a little deeper and the Saturn had some of the best fighting games released with Groove On Fight, Night Warriors, X-Men vs. Street Fighter, and many more solid games that truly pushed the hardware. Other superb titles that gamers should be familiar with included a number of solid compilations from obscure companies like Irem which produced a solid, if largely overlooked collection of their hit games. The company's seminal shooter Image Fight appeared on other consoles, but the version on Arcade Gears was the most arcade perfect released and included the excellent R-Type-esque shooter X-Multiply as a fantastic bonus. SNK's numerous releases were all excellent, with Samurai Shodown and King of Fighters among the highlights, along with the legendary Metal Slug.

Players who are able to locate some of the rarer and more obscure titles will find some really cool gems. Batsugun was an excellent vertical shooter with quite a reputation. Dodonpatchi and its sequel are also hard to find, but worthwhile shooters that should please gamers. Other notable shooters available on the Saturn include the remake of Shadow Squadron, called Stellar Assualt SS and some oddities like Sol Divide and Sengoku Blaede, both of which put an odd spin on the shooter genre. Finally, you can't talk about Saturn Imports without mentioning the legendary Tecnosoft, developers of the legendary Thunder Force series, which had its early installments compiled on several discs, along with the brilliant TFV which was worth the import price alone. Two other extremely rare Tecnosoft releases, Blast Wind and Hyper Duel are worth getting if you loved the TF series. Going through the list of Saturn imports worth playing is like diving into an endless ocean, but most players who call themselves classic gamers will more than likely find this system to be the best of its era, and one that defined a generation to a much broader extent than it might have seemed like at the time.

Voice Module - Extremely classic

It’s been a few weeks since we’ve updated, but we look to be coming back to schedule soon. In the meantime, another uneventful E3 convention has passed, and lacking any significant announcements, seems to have not been worth covering anyway. While looking forward sees a kind of bleak continuation of industry trends such as a strict divide between companies producing unimaginative shooters and companies producing unimaginative casual titles, most of the excitement in gaming quarters, at least among the classic gamers involves the latest round of revivals. Capcom’s Street Fighter IV is easily one of the most anticipated games to announce in some time, and its reliance on retro appeal should make it quite successful. Capcom isn’t only adding this franchise to the mix, as the remakes of Bionic Commando and Mega Man have garnered much early praise for their 2D focus. 

With so much of the downloadable content on the mainstream consoles consisting mainly of classic games, remixed classic games (such as Pac Man World Championship), titles inspired by classics (Geometry Wars) or straight up revivals, there’s definitely an undercurrent of gamers out there that are obviously desiring something old that feels new. While its easy to become cynical, the harder path is to stay true to your roots, something that you come to realize is more successful in the long run than following every trend that comes along. There are a few bright spots in gaming still these days, and our review of Taito’s spectacularly inventive Space Invaders Extreme on the PSP, which we’ve posted as our comeback feature, should point you in the right direction. While there is so much attention paid these days to environments, special effects and physics, it’s definitely nice to sit down and play something simple, that doesn’t feel like an epic movie and instead reminds you of what made video games so appealing in the first place.

Tuesday

If you listened to Goldfrapp's Seventh Tree directly after listening to their previous album Supernature, you can be forgiven for wondering what is going on. However, go back a bit further to their first two albums and you'll see a band in a constant state of flux, reinventing and exploring different moods and styles with each album. It's best to look at each Goldfrapp album as a unique statement. Anyway, this time around, the group of Will Gregory and Allison Goldfrapp have taken a different approach and gone for a much mellower, yet more tuneful feel. You won't find the synths and techno/disco hybrids of the last two albums and instead acoustic, natural guitars and instruments take their place. Oddly, the style tempo and feeling of the album still has their distinct feel, which is hard to verbalize, but immediately apparent. The first song is called Clowns and sets a mellow mood that follows with Little Bird, an acoustic and somewhat 1970's feeling track. The deceptively upbeat Happiness comes next and while its the most upbeat of the tracks to date, there's a kind of sad underside. Road to Somewhere is a stunningly beautiful track that builds to a nice finish. Another quiet song is Eat Yourself which is kind of a slow burning thing that goes in other directions and finishes back where the album started. 

The somewhat humorous Some People takes on false perceptions and phony people and ties in nicely to the events next track, A&E which is probably the most emo track they've ever done, but with the trademark sense of musical drama and craziness that makes each Goldfrapp album so unforgettable. The most 'traditional' Goldfrapp song on the album is Colgone Cerrone Houdini, which has beautiful strings, and a slow dreamy pace that recalls their first record Felt Mountain while adding some layers of emotion. Caravan Girl is the danciest song on Seventh Tree and features a memorable chorus that will stay with you. The album's final track is called "Monster Love" and starts off slowly but gradually builds into something approaching psychedelic overload towards the end. Seventh Tree is a much more subtle and mature album, and while many of Goldfrapp's recent fans will probably wonder what's going on here, the slower and more natural pace should please those who were looking for something more like Felt Mountain. That basically is the album's appeal, it feels like they've come almost full-circle, back to their original 60's sound, though now it's more late 60's folk and psychedelic than early 60's cocktail music. It's a really solid effort and before we go, we need to mention that the singer has the one of the most mesmerizing voices we've ever heard. Seventh Tree is something special and definitely something you need to take the time to listen to and appreciate. 

Voice Module Not Quite There Yet

About a month ago, there was a massive amount of hype surrounding Grand Theft Auto IV, which launched simultaneously on Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. While we still haven’t yet completed the game to a large enough degree top write a full review, there are some issues that have cropped up. First, this isn’t the be-all, end-all game that many of the writers at larger sites and magazines have stated. Don’t get us wrong, this is a spectacular achievement on Rockstar’s end from a technical standpoint. The level of detail evident in Liberty City is immediately impressive and goes far beyond that seen in previous GTA titles. There new GPS and Cell phone based interface definitely makes navigating the large dysfunctional metropolis much easier and it’s much less difficult to find yourself lost. The open-ended mission structure helps to give players more flexibility, but there are some issues that nag a little. You can tell a lot of work has gone into the game’s mechanics and presentation, GTA IV’s elaborate and somewhat dark-humored storyline makes some real strides to creating an interesting narrative. The main character is surprisingly sympathetic and the game’s overall cinematic presentation is spectacular in this regard. Where GTA IV seems to lack is, surprisingly in its gameplay. Some tweaks have been made to make aiming and shooting a bit easier, but the missions themselves can be surprisingly predictable at points, and don’t seem to have evolved as much from San Andreas as the previous games did. This sense of déjà vu permeates GTA IV and makes playing it feel a bit too familiar. So even though it’s easy to be impressed by the game, staying entertained and engaged throughout the hours required can seem like more a chore than a game. This isn’t to say that GTA IV is a bad or terrible game, just that it seems a little less revolutionary than advertised. GTA IV has also had the unfortunate side effect of lighting up another debate about whether games are art. You know the drill, it's almost as boring, irrelevent and narcissistic as the media's current drab obsession with review scores. So, is GTA IV art? Our opinion is solidly in the affirmative. People can say what they want. Anyway, don't get yourself too bent out of shape if someone disagrees with you anyway. Turn off the message boards, relax and as we used to say in our fanzine days, be one with fun. 

Voice Module Playstation 3: Ready for Battle?

Its been a rough 18 months since launch, with several high profile mistakes, but with several high-profile releases such as Metal Gear Solid 4 on the way, Sony's Playstation 3 looks to finally be ready to battle its rivals for at least a respectable showing. The Laser examines the console's prospects and discovers whether the system is finally going into its long awaited comeback stage.

The past 18 months since its launch has been surprisingly rough for the PS3, with the console buffeted initially by a high price tag and a somewhat lackluster lineup. Early titles such as Resistance: Fall of Man were impressive but their impact was dulled with titles like Genji and Lair taking much of the shine off the system. Of course, that $600.00 launch price didn't help, and you can't underestimate the impact the Wii phenomenon has had on gamers' impressions of the system. On the other hand, Xbox 360 had a very impressive showing last fall, between Bioshock and Halo 3, the console definitely built momentum, which helped other titles such as Mass Effect build up a strong user base. Some of Sony's games last fall didn't quite pull in the numbers expected with Heavenly Sword and Lair the biggest titles that didn't deliver. There were several bright spots like Ratchet & Clank Future and Uncharted that began to showcase the console's true potential, but the Playstation 3 seems to have lagged behind the competition in terms of not just sales but also perception. Many gamers don't seem to see the value in the PS3, especially since many multiplatform releases like Call of Duty 4, Guitar Hero and Assassin's Creed offered nearly identical experiences on Microsoft's cheaper platform. It seems that the PS3 has become a system that seems overpriced on one hand, and underpowered on the other, in terms of expectations. Sony has seemingly built a system that's ahead of its time, but also one that feels a bit out of its era, thanks to the Wii. It's a strange paradox for the formerly dominant company to find itself in, but things seem to be turning around slowly but surely.

One of the year's key events so far has been the folding of HD-DVD in favor of Blu-Ray. It seemed like a sudden move, but the built-in advantage Blu-ray had was that it came inside every PS3, which despite its somewhat anemic sales of PS3, relatively speaking, still let the format dominate the other in a massive way that made it almost impossible for the HD camp to compete. This seems like a somewhat small victory but it will probably pay large dividends down the road. With the support of all the major studios now onboard, there's no stopping blu-ray, and having this technology built into the console looks to have been a brilliant, forward thinking strategy. Owning the only high-definition format will more than likely swing a few consumers towards the PS3, especially once the conversion of regular television to high-def begins in earnest. This seems like a smart, if expensive, long-term strategy that has actually worked out. Of course, the PS3 is still high-priced compared to the Wii and 360, but there should be at least one major price cut before the holiday season this year, which should make the console more competitive.

Sony's online strategy has been a little anemic, and while there have been a few highlights like Everyday Shooter and Flow that really showed the potential of online gaming, the awkward interface on the Playstation Store has been a massive hindrance to wider use, which is a real shame when you consider the high quality of Micosoft's Xbox Live offerings, which are brilliantly implemented, and the Wii's Virtual Console with its outstanding selection of classic games that leaves the PS1 titles available lacking in comparison. Sony seems to have listened to these critics and is relaunching their store in a few weeks and the console is also beginning to see more in the way of downloadable content with Guitar Hero and Rock Band, plus Sony's own Warhawk leading the way. Sony's biggest hopes in the online space seem to rest on two key titles, which are the virtual space of Home, which could be impressive if it launches in the near future and Little Big Planet, which could extend the console's appeal to mainstream gamers. However, both of these still feel far off, but its what's in the console's immediate future that has many gamers most excited.

After waiting and wading through the hype for a very long time, three of Sony's biggest franchises are set for their debut. First up, players who got a taste of things to come with Gran Turismo HD are going to finally have their appetizer in the form of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, a sampler of sorts that should show what Polyphony can do with the much vaunted Cell hardware, though it might be a bit short, having a high-profile on store shelves won't hurt. The year's biggest game, Gran Theft Auto IV is also scheduled to launch at the end of the month, and while it won't be a PS3 exclusive, this should also deliver explosive sales. Of course, the Xbox 360's exclusive downloadable content is probably going to be a sore spot, but we suspect it won't make a big difference in the initial launch phase since it won't be available until several months after launch, so it probably won't be too much of a blow in the short term. The final piece of the puzzle is probably the most-eagerly awaited by gaming fans, and that is of course, Metal Gear Solid 4 which is going to be the console's biggest game to date and should really propel Sony back into the race. Having three games launch weeks apart should help the console's sales and push it at least back in contention, though Nintendo is trying to negate some of this with Mario Kart Wii launching in the same window. While nothing in gaming is certain, these three titles are the closest things to sure bets we've seen in awhile and should help the PS3 take at least a better footing in the market, giving players something to look forward to at least. Its also a bit nostalgic for Sony. Looking through these high-profile sequels feels like old times, and it will be interesting to see if these standards can come to the rescue of the Playstation 3 this year.

Voice Module Unexpected Promise

We examine the rise of downloadable game content on consoles, such as Xbox Live, which has ushered in a new era for gaming that has the potential to change everything.

It's been interesting to watch the industry struggle to transition from the long standing model of pre-packed physical content into one with a more pronounced online element. While Xbox Live has been the biggest force in this change, Sony and Nintendo seem to be struggling with how to adapt. The Playstation Store has had some interesting content, such as Warhawk and Everyday Shooter, but it seems to not have lived up to its potential, offering mostly wallpapers, trailer downloads and the occasional interesting demo. However, its clunky interface seems rather primitive these days, especially compared to Xbox Live and many gamers are hoping that a rumored upgrade will at least get the store up to speed. Nintendo's most ambitious online component for the Wii seems to be the Virtual Console, which offers hundreds of classic titles, surprisingly even for systems not originally made by Nintendo including the Turbografx-16, SNK Neo Geo and Sega Genesis. While there have been a few dud weeks, looking at the broad catalog shows an impressive selection of titles, with well-known games mixed with more obscure titles. For instance, you can try and find a copy of The Dynastic Hero on ebay, and good luck matching the downloadable price on the Wii Shop channel, which is a fraction of the $300.00 US+ prices the game usually commands. So this service has really been outstanding service for classic game fans, offering great value and selection. 

The other major benefit gamers are seeing from these online services is the ability for developers to experiment and release odd and strange titles that wouldn't ordinarily survive in the market. An excellent example of this would be Geometry Wars on Xbox Live. A simple, addictive game reminiscent of arcade classics, this innovative title probably would never have seen the light of day had it needed to function as a $60.00 shrwinkwrapped title. However, thanks to the low overhead downloadable gamers have, it was able to leap into the market and challenge the status quo. There are also a few other cool things going on, and companies are able to release new add-ons, expansions and packages of new items for existing games, add enhancements and even entire game modes without much effort. Unreal Tournament III is another prime example of what lies ahead for games - the ability for user-created content and mods to be dpwnloaded has been around for awhile, but this phenomenon is new to consoles, and it's already changed people's percpetion of the console experience from one that's generally static to a more fluid, lively experience.   

Retailers are a bit confused as to how they'll fit into the equation down the road, but for now it seems like they're treating it like a novelty, though everyone knows that the threat is growing. Anyone who doubts this need only look at the rise of Itunes and music downloading, and what that has done to music retail over the past few years. Its a new world that's emerging, and while change isn't always for the better, this might be a good thing. Offering a simple online experience of downloading is incredibly convenient and sure beats the surly service and lousy selection you usually find in national game store chains. Anything that breaks their hold on the market is likely to be a good thing, for gamers individually and the industry as a whole.

Voice Module Re-Evaluating Sega's Master System

Looking through the console's selection of imports and obscurities shows there was loads more unrealized potential than anyone realized. 

I've been purchasing and playing a lot of obscure and interesting imports on the long-forgotten Sega Master System over the past few weeks and while I've always loved the system despite its reputation, this new wave of games has caused me to change my perception on what it was actually capable of. Many of the best games, like Star Wars and Land of Illusion were never released stateside and this is a shame, since they were well-designed and could have made at least somewhat of a difference. The biggest surprise to me was Ninja Gaiden which was actually quite excellent in many regards exceeded some of the later NES versions, which makes it double shame that this lost installment was never seen by the majority of gamers. Taito's Renegade is another well-known title that shines on the SMS, with slightly better graphics and smoother gameplay that makes for a superb version of the title. 

You can also see some impressive special effects with multiscrolling backgrounds in Disney's titles like The Jungle Book, which is a shockingly good platformer. Other games I've been playing have been surprisingly cool like an excellent version of Taito's Darius spin-off Sagaia that's nearly as good as the Genesis version. There are so many excellent games on the platform that weren't released and have become genuine collector's items, which is a shame since there are so many good ones. Any discussion on Sega wouldn't be complete with mentioning the rarely seen US version of Sonic the Hedgehog, which can be had much cheaper from overseas sources, while you're at it, you might want to check out some of the sequels as well, which weren't released here at all, despite the mascot's surge in the early 90's. Of course, there are a few clinkers like Running Battle and Chuck Rock that really don't share the same spark as other Sega titles.

Gaming history is littered with great games that never got the respect they deserved from the early 80's when titles like Zoo Keeper and Sinistar disappeared from gamers radars to more recent examples like Psychonauts and Okami, this has happened again and again. The Sega Master System had many innovative features, with its 3D glasses some of the coolest technology that never quite caught on. As I play more of these games, I am more and more convinced that this system is one of the most under-rated gems in history, sadly a history that Sega would repeat later on with the Saturn and Dreamcast. The good news is that this system doesn't have the demand that other consoles have and there's a huge number of outstanding games that can be had cheaper than you'd expect.

If you've been reading closely, you may have noticed something a little bit different about the Laser over the past few days. After spending a great deal of time thinking and going back and forth on this issue, we have decided to eliminate completely any ratings or grading system from all of our reviews going forward. Many of our most recent reviews have also had their grades removed retroactively.

While this is probably a minor issue in terms of the overall review structure and style, considering it's only a single line with a single character at the end of the reviews, it's actually fairly significant to the behind-the-scenes things that have been going on over the past few months as certain scandals and practices have come out and presented gaming journalism in a negative light. You probably wouldn't even notice this change if it wasn't pointed out to you, but some of our industry contacts are more than likely to. What this means, we have no real idea at this point but we hope that our friends at the game companies realize that instead of relying on a single point score, we'll provide a deeper more engaging review that will actually help them in the long run - a single letter grade isn't nearly as descriptive as a thorough recounting of a game's features, mechanics and options, which means we're actually providing the same amount of useful information without the needless distraction of an arbitrary score at the bottom of the page. This might seem counter-intuitive on the surface, since so much focus is on scores and the position of games inside a database average. Ironically, for the first year or so of publication, we didn't rank the games, and only added a fairly simple grade-rating to make things easier for our readers. However, since that time, the emphasis on these scores has increased to insane levels, to the point where developers are actually being rewarded with bonuses based on whether or not their game meets a certain average. Things have obviously spiraled out of control, when even a very positive review of a high profile title is pilloried on forums because it doesn't reach a certain arbitrary numeric threshold.

The inherent absurdity of this situation has been brought into sharp relief by the emergence of the new causal gamer paradigm embodied by Nintendo's Wii and DS. These systems offer a radically different approach to games and their audience. This is where the system of ranking and enumerating games completely falls apart. Does the audience for Wii Sports have the same expectations as the Crysis audience. Clearly, the answer is no. By implementing a phony rating system, games journalism has set itself up for failure. These ratings systems assume that all games are equal, and appeal to all gamers equally and should be ranked equally. Clearly, this has been proven false, since the expectations of the gamers themselves is completely different. Trying to pigeonhole reviews into some asinine ten-point scale can only become more confusing and present more problems as the audience broadens. Trying to stay faithful to these outdated perceptions only sets up the game review writer up for failure, muddling their communication with the audience. Does a "Ten" for Wii Sports present the same qualitative judgment as a "Ten" for Bioshock? Obviously, the games are targeted at such different audiences, with completely different expectations, that any comparison between the two literally becomes apples and oranges. The may have come to rethink this rapidly becoming obsolete approach and permanently put these old ideas out to pasture. What this approach, and the excessive obsession about these scores has effectively done, is place the cart before the horse. Instead of seeing a review in its totality, many focus solely on its summary. This approach has led game journalism into completely the wrong direction and has done a massive disservice all around. Readers have superficial reviews that fail to offer nuance or explanation, developers don't get accurate feedback and the real quality of games themselves are shortchanged, becoming commodities where reaching false check-points becomes more important than the overall experience. Clearly this isn't working.

The problem with this approach to excessively scrutinizing review scores in the long run should be immediately evident to gamers out there. Instead of seeing each game as a unique work of art, they instead become faceless commodities, measured and ranked with no difference between them except percentage points. As a life-long gamer, this doesn't even begin to become an effective measuring tool and instead becomes a counter-productive exercise in false measurements. On the other hand, many gamers like the quick reference a review score provides, but this has problems too. Does one tenth of a ratings point really make that much of a difference to gamers at the score, or is it a nonsensical means to judge. With the advent of so many review amalgamation sites, it seems to have become something much worse. Instead of accepting a review that's a bit lower or higher than the 'average', many gamers seem to have instead become obsessed with an average score that fails to take into account many factors, such as a reviewer's taste, the game's relative position within the industry, along with so many other variables to make these absurd comparisons seem almost worthless.

The situation has gone on for several years now, and after much thought, we have arrived at our decision. By the reactions and actions we've seen, especially in the past year, we at the Laser have come to the conclusion that running scores is counter-productive. With that said, effective immediately, review scores, whether numbers or letters, will not be published by The Laser going forward. It would be easy to sit here and criticize other sites and the industry at large over the various scandals that have erupted over the past few months, then watch as those words vanish while nothing changes in the long-run. However, by actually putting our words where our mouths are, and ending completely all of these arbitrary rankings, we hope to achieve at least some kind of mitigating solution to these problems.

While it's true that quotes can be taken out of context, and other game sites probably won't follow our lead, the harder path is to actually resist the temptation to reinstate ratings once we have the inevitable loss of traffic. However, we're confident that over the long run, keeping these numbers and grades off our reviews will benefit our readers by allowing us to communicate clearly without the crutch that has, ridiculously, become such a burden on so many gamers who seem to have lost track of what really matters in the long run. By reducing this false intellectual commoditization of games, refusing to go along with the flawed philosophy that everything about every game needs to be ranked down to the tenth of a percent, and instead look at each game on its own merits. We can hopefully begin to once again appreciate each game for the experience it provides for the player. In the end, its this measurement that matters most. Obviously, we're not naïve enough to think that merely removing the letter grade from the end of our reviews will mark the end of game journalism's problems, but this will hopefully be seen as a first step in the right direction.

Voice Module Taking a Stand

In its latest editorial, The Laser examines the more active and physical approach to gaming embodied by Guitar Hero and Wii and what its meant for the industry and the general public's perception of video games. We also point out how this new style has spilled over into our other gaming experiences and how it might change other game genres not directly affected by these new styles of play.

Ever since the arrival of Nintendo's revolutionary Wii console and the complimentary Guitar Hero frenzy, gamers have finally gotten off their couches and have finally begun to take a stand. While the phenomenon isn't entirely new to electronic gaming, it definitely marks a completely new style of play for consoles. Those old enough to remember the rows of stand-up arcade games from the early to mid 80's will probably not be completely surprised by this approach, but for many this new style of play completely changes their approach. This lies in stark contrast to the sedentary approach favored by home consoles to this point, with many game genres such as shooters and role playing games affecting a kind of passive gameplay approach. You probably won't find yourself standing and waving around for hours playing titles like Far Cry or Halo 3, but this is exactly what's required if you want to really get into something like Wii Sports or Rock Band. Sure, you conceivably could play Wii Sports sitting down, but this would be like trying to play soccer in bed, there's just an inherent requirement to get off your bottom if you want to fully experience what these kinds of games have to offer. Gamers who don't mind exploring new things probably find this social, active style of play a huge breath of fresh air, but many old-school gamers brought up on the PS1 and SNES era will probably find it a bit jarring. Unless gamers are willing to adapt their play styles, it looks like things will leave them behind. This new wave of social, physical games has definitely left their mark, and it will be interesting to see how many of the more traditional games, like shooters and racing games make use of this approach. We've already personally changed our own habits after thinking about them for awhile and now make at least a genuine effort to spend more time standing while playing. The strange thing is that the very act of standing, instead of sitting lends even typically passive games, such as arcade classics on the Neo Geo or compilations a much greater feeling of intensity than they'd otherwise have. These past few weeks have been somewhat of a revelation as we've put new pieces into the puzzle we hadn't previously realized, and this new more active approach seems to have added some new energy into our gaming experiences. 

Of course, previous to the past year, there was Dance Dance Revolution, which seems now in retrospect to have unleashed these twin phenomenon of music and physical games, though with very different results. It's been strange but fascinating to watch gaming evolve and change over the past year, and the games industry's wide embrace of new ideas and methods of play has been heartening, since there was a creeping feeling that things were becoming stagnant towards the end of the last generation of systems. For those used to the old-style of play, there are always going to be sedentary games, such as Mass Effect or Orange Box for this mouse and keyboard crowd, but you have to wonder how the professional leagues are going to adapt, or if they will at all. This sea-change is probably a good thing in the long run, for the couch-potato stereotype has propagates itself for far too long, leading to criticism of the entire industry that, while not justified, needs to be changed. Its an unfortunate byproduct of a passive-aggressive PR approach that has made the industry feel far too insular for too long, where these clichés were allowed to fester without response while the profits rolled in. You can argue about the relative merits, that many other worthwhile activities, such as reading books or painting are usually solitary and yes, anti-social by their inherent nature. However, most people know these things have value while most gamers are usually sneered at for wasting their time. The new, more active approach that companies like Nintendo and Activision are taking is a massive step in the right direction, one that should change the player's experience and the perception of the players themselves. 

Voice Module: The Laser's Best of 2007