Couple Gaming

I have been a fan of the Alien and Predator movies, books, comics, etc for a long time, and the old Aliens vs Predator game was one of my favorite games, it had everything a fan wanted and more.  So it goes without saying that I am looking forward to the new Alien vs Predator game, and now they realease in the U.S. the Hunter Edition.

As a fan, I can say I will be buying this without even knowing if the game is as good as it looks, just so I can have a facehugger and new comics.

Hunter Edition confirmed for US consumers! There, I can finally say it; the Hunter Edition which was announced fairly recently from our European friends is now 100% confirmed in the US with an added bonus – a hardcover graphic novel from Dark Horse Comics featuring the original Aliens vs Predator comic!

PlayStation 3 pictured, click in to see the images of the Xbox 360 version as well

Don’t worry, all the other goodies are still included, such as the four Multiplayer maps (before they release to the general public), a fully articulated and disturbingly creepy Facehugger model, Weyland Yutani sleeve badge, and a 3D lenticular postcard. To sweeten the deal, if you pre-order you can pick up some exclusive skins for all three species in multiplayer.

OK so how is this for awesome, in my previous post about games we missed I talked about Mechwarrior being one I missed and would love to see again.  And look!! A new Mechwarrior!!!  Obviously this is a teaser trailer and there isn’t really any details listed yet, but it still gets me excited just to see.

Now all we need to do is get a Mechwarrior MMO to make this series the best ever!

So, a professor at BYU (everyone in Salt Lake, please commence vomiting now.  Everyone else, please place your bias regarding mormons here as well.  Done?  OK, let’s continue then shall we?) did a study showing how Video Games influence the life of college students.

Evidently, the media in general stole what they wanted out of it, stating that gaming and bad relationships/drug use are directly related.  Kotaku has gotten to the bottom of this and the professor has stated more the thinking below:

“Also, please remember the nature of the statistics shows that as one variable goes up the other went down. For example, the more one played video games the lower their quality of relationships. That suggests that, as with almost anything in life, that the more extreme you get in its use the more problematic it becomes. That doesn’t therefore show that moderate use is bad. Not by any means. Also please remember, these are averages. Just because you happen to be an “exception” doesn’t mean that the results cannot be “true” for a good number of young people. Right?”

OK, that makes sense.  It becomes interesting when the BYU website seems to clarify, as well as muddle…

“It may be that young adults remove themselves from important social settings to play video games, or that people who already struggle with relationships are trying to find other ways to spend their time,” Walker said. “My guess is that it’s some of both and becomes circular.”
…..
Statistical analyses also revealed that the more young adults play video games, the more frequent their involvement in risky behaviors like drinking and drug abuse. Young adults who played video games daily reported smoking pot almost twice as often as occasional players, and three times as often as those who never play.

Wait.. hold on a second.  Both of these statements are leading to same thing, but can easily lead people to believe two different things.

If you see someone going from playing 1 hour of video games a week to 10 hours, and see them fighting with their parents more & increasing drug use… which act could be causing the other??  How do you WANT to see it?

Of course, the same could be said of reading 1 hour a week to reading 10 hours a week.. or going out with friends 1 hour vs 10 hours, or watching TV.    Shouldn’t the study also have included other “escapist” activities, instead of trying specifically for this study?

Couple Gamings stance is that the study should be ruled inconclusive.  Also, we’d like to volunteer for the next study, as long as it is truly well thought out.

As aside note, when the Couple Gaming Daughter & Sometimes Test Subject fights with her parents, she does homework (as it’s the only time she can really be alone in her room without us calling her Emo).  Maybe we can use this study to link homework with drug use as well?

Wow.. There are so many things I could say about this…

A) This is what happens when your WoW server goes down… and why you should switch to WAR/WHO.

B)  These two obviously do not have kids… and if there is a Goddess, they never will.  This just wouldn’t be the same with PB&J smeared all over it.

C)  This would SO be worth it, just to have the deathstar float over head & yell “OMG! Inc Vader!”  heh.
 http://www.wowinsider.com/2008/11/11/15-…

Sure, playing Rune in two different rooms and killing your spouse is a GREAT way to blow off steam.. and taunting your spouse mercilessly when they fail on the easy level at their favorite game is a perfect CoupleGaming way to get back at them for not taking out the garbage or buying you flowers… BUT.. there is a line.  This woman crossed it:

A 43-year-old Japanese piano teacher found herself in jail after viciously murdering her ex-husband…in MapleStory. According to reports, the woman’s virtual, big-headed anime husband suddenly divorced her in mid-May, which lead to her logging on with the 33-year-old man’s username and password and deleting his character. When the man discovered the death of his character, he called the police. The alleged virtual murderer has now been jailed for suspicion of illegally accessing a computer and manipulating electronic data, which could carry a five-year prison sentence or a fine of up to $5,000.

In completely unrelated news… Ymiris & I have both changed our passwords on our Warhamme Online & WoW accounts.  Thanks Kotaku for alerting us of the danger!

Finally the Penny Arcade second game goes gold, this game was something both Ophilye and I loved, and that’s saying a lot considering I usually don’t like this type of game, but the gameplay and humor were just to good to ignore.

Wooot finally one of the best family games out there is finally here,

“Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise” lands at North American retailers today. Rated “E” for Everyone and retailing for $39.99, this Xbox 360 exclusive transforms players’ living rooms into a tropical utopia filled with bright, exotic piñata animals that you attract and nurture as you create your own colorful garden paradise.

In “Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise” players of all ages and abilities use their greenest thumbs to create and grow a garden paradise that provides a desirable home for more than 100 diverse piñata animal species. In a dual role that’s part conservationist, part wildlife biologist, your task is to attract various piñata animals to your garden as well as explore the Island’s nether regions retrieving some it’s most rare species for the purposes of cataloguing each of them in the Island’s central database. On your adventure you’ll encounter 30 newly discovered species as you explore the Dessert Desert in search of such exotic creatures as the S’morepion (aka scorpion) and Piñarctic where you’ll find equally captivating inhabitants such as the Jeli (aka Yeti or Abominable Snowman). But you’ll have to use your instincts and wit knowing full well that Professor Pester and his Ruffians will do anything to thwart your efforts to nurture these animals prior to sending them off to entertain at piñata parties around the world.

For the first time, players can experience the charm of Piñata Island together with cooperative gameplay modes that allow up to four people to work on a single garden over Xbox LIVE and by sharing photos of their garden inhabitants via Piñata Vision cards and the community Web site. With new areas to explore, more gameplay modes to enjoy and more ways to customize your garden, “Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise” presents a world where players will love getting lost in the endless charms of Piñata Island.

PSN network has a new game, one that supposedly is best played with someone else, since I have yet to try it I can’t actually say if this is true or for that matter if the game is fun, but I have included the video and will let you decide. If you have played it let us know what you think.

I have seen the Wii Fit being bounced around on review sites and in stores, but I’ve been rather hesitant to get my hopes up.  The last Wii Sport-ish game we bought, the one where you could play pool, was a huge disappointment, and so I was going to wait for something good.

Family gamer Paul Govan has written a great preview of Wii Fit at parent site WhatTheyPlay.com, and I’m a lot less hesitant.  It looks like a Brain Age for your body, keeping track of your starting weight (via the included scale), calculates your BMI, and then keeps the info password protected.  Yay!

The activities have a pretty good range as well, another thing I was worried about.

There are games and activities for all ages spread across Strength Training, Aerobics, Yoga and Balance categories.We found that younger players were drawn to the Balance and Aerobic activities which provided mini-games that require the player to either balance accurately on the board (Ski Jump, Tightrope Walk), or maintain a particularly active physical motion (Hula-Hoop, Step Aerobics, Jogging). ….  Older players may get more out of the Yoga and Muscle workouts that feel more like a true exercise routine.”

Check out the review for the full story if you’re curious about whether Wii Fit is worth giving up your nightly GTA-fest… at least once in a while.

Was tweeted this article from @PaulGovan, “Family Gamer”

TWO THIRDS OF PARENTS SAY SOCIAL GAMING HAS A POSITIVE IMPACT ON FAMILY LIFE

The article presents research that parents are finding out gaming isn’t pulling their children away from them, especially when they do it together. Here are my favorite parts:

60% of all parents who have played games in the last six months say their family now like to play social games like the Wii together – rising to 68% for parents with 10 to 15-year-olds

And more about why I am such a proponent that the Wii is better as a Couple Gaming “Gateway Console” :

Nearly as many women as men (29% vs. 32%) have played the Wii at least once in the past six months. In comparison, traditional gaming consoles such as PS3 or the Xbox 360 are played two to three times more by men than women. A significant 15% of Wii users are aged between 45 and 64