More Details on the 360's 16 Percent Failure Rate
Comment by: dbushik
Nominated by: cheez

I'm an adult owner and an engineer with a masters degree. I totally take care of my stuff. Even the ridiculous requests MS customer support makes like plugging it into the wall socket by itself (no surge protector or extensions or whatever or other devices drawing off that outlet). I've had the wall current in my house measured even to make sure that isn't an issue. (Even though it's ridiculous considering the power supply has to have voltage regulation.) I keep it in a well ventilated location away from any other electronics or sources of heat, have never used an intercooler with it (which actually works against you) and even make sure the cables coming out the back don't interfer witht he air flow. I generally treat the thing like it was a Faberge Egg, and I've had two hardware failures.

I'm totally happy for you still being on your launch consoles (hey, I still have my PS1 from launch that works like gang-busters too, and have a non-launch NES, SNES, GC and fat PS2 that all work great also), but you are seriously lucky to not have had issues with the 360. I love the thing, but it has seriously undeniable hardware issues.

Just saying, because it is annoying hearing people who have not had issues (god bless their lucky souls) talk like those that have are foolish idiots sticking PB&J sandwiches into their disc trays and wondering, "why-for thing no work and all sticky?".

Pikachu Zapped with 10,000 Volt Electricity
Comment by: Tei
Nominated by: Luis

Pikachu 1 - Evil Doctor 0

Nintendo Almost Used Microsoft Style Parental Controls
Comment by: misterthou
Nominated by: NeoAkira

I really dislike the Microsoft approach as it really isn't parenting, in my opinion. It doesn't teach the kid to have self control or to realize the consequences of "gaming his life away" — it simply prevents him from making the mistake in the first place. There's nothing noble about someone following a rule they can't break if he wanted.

I don't make rules for them to be followed — for my kids to obey me "because I said so" or "because I'm their parent". After 18 years, they don't have to obey me, and there's no relationship in adult life that requires obedience for the sake of obedience. The point of my rules is to highlite bad habits/behavior. The point is that my kids will break the rules, see the consequences off breaking those rules, and realize that "Dad was right...again". As the cycle repeats time and time again, my kids internalize my wisdom and "my rules" become "their rules" — things they'll actually follow as an adult because it's logical, not because "Dad said so".

I'd rather my kids game too much as children and realize the consequences of bad grades when they don't really matter than do well in K-12 and then fail college because they're too busy playing WoW and didn't setup a timer to kick them off after a few hours.

Having the best kids in the world is pointless if they turn out to be terrible adults. K-12 grades don't matter after college. The fact that your kids cleaned their rooms every weekend for 18 years doesn't matter in 30 years, etc. The wisdom behind the rules are the key, not the mechanical act of following them.

Mario Kart Wii Doesn't Even Have Proper Text Chat
Comment by: moviebob
Nominated by: Sasuntsi

Y'know... it's not that I don't understand why these posts keep going up AND keep getting hundreds of responses. I do. The Wii is not only popular but popular with 'uncool' people like seniors and 'soccer moms,' so it MUST be bashed into oblivion by anyone who cares about maintaining their cool-kid street cred. I get it, but it's still sad.

Why not just drop the pretense and just admit it: The Wii, for better or worse, outrages you because you're terrified it's success and the new audiences it's branching into are going to change the gaming landscape into something you don't like so you feel the need to undermine it at every opportunity... in other words, your the goes-around-comes-around new version of Ninty/Sega fans in the 90s ("pumping irony" you might say) getting cheesed off about 'dumb jocks' getting into gaming for Madden. It wasn't armageddon then, it ain't armageddon now.

What I DON'T see is where the actual logic of the mock-outrage is supposed to be coming from. It'd be one thing if Nintendo was announcing that the tracks were going to have fewer sharp turns or hazards because that makes it easier to steer with the Wii Wheel - THAT would be worth being pissy about because it's a downgrade from what could've been reasonably expected from the game. But this? Someone explain this to me, because from where I'm sitting if you run these headlines through a Flamebait-to-English-translator you get: "SUPERFLUOUS FEATURE THAT WAS NEVER EVER A PART OF MARIO-KART, NEVER EXPECTED TO BE PART OF MARIO-KART AND NEVER A PART OF ANY MAJOR NINTENDO FRANCHISE IN GAMING HISTORY WILL NOT BE PART OF NEW MARIO-KART GAME." From where I sit, actually being MAD about this as though they were taking out something necessary and/or expected makes about as much sense as complaining that "God of War II" wasn't compatible with a Guitar Hero controller.

US Gov't Ready To Spy on MMO Players
Comment by: thenino85
Nominated by: Albinobird

You wanted a bigger government, you got a bigger government. Do you really think that you could get a government that would feed you, clothe you, protect you from the big, bad businessmen, and treat you like a human being? You've already shown that you don't want to be treated like a human; you want to be treated like cattle, like a number. As long as you have American Idol on the TV, you don't care about your freedoms. As long as you have your big screen TV, you don't care about your liberties. You won't dare lift a finger to help another person in need; instead, you would rather have the government do it, and you feel like you've done something by having the government do it. No, you haven't. If anything, the rich have done something. It's their taxes that are paying for it. You've done nothing for the poor by supporting social programs. Talk is cheap, action is expensive. Now you act shocked when the government starts spying on you in your own house. You've already given them the keys and the access codes. This is your fault, pure and simple. Not Bush's, not Pelosi's, not Al Roker's. Yours, and the only way to stop this process before it gets any worse is to place the proper blame on yourself and start doing something to counteract the trend.

@baked ham:
The fact that you play Maple Story already flags you as a person of interest.

Take Two Stock Jumps 47 Percent in Wake of EA Proposal
Comment by: What The Geek
Nominated by: huginn

EA is picking up every company I love in the gaming industry, and I'm positive that they're gonna cock it up somehow. Whether it be overpriced DLC, or rehash after rehash of a popular IP (GTA '09 anyone?). First it was Bioware and Pandemic - may they rest in peace, and now Take Two.... I'd like to say something to anyone from EA that may be reading this, and I sincerely hope you take this to heart.

Dear EA,

I understand the strong urge to squeeze every penny out of every intellectual property you get your hands on - after all, what's the point of a business if not to make profit? I humbly ask you to consider the long term ramifications of your actions. If you continue to devour the best and the brightest companies under the sun, and reduce their works to homogenized sequels and overpriced downloadable content, you will irreversibly damage the industry in the long term. You'll see a higher profit today at the cost of a lack of interest in your products tomorrow, and this hurts us all. If the face of gaming becomes too similar to the face of hollywood, we'll all pay the price - and that price will be the death of gaming. Let me clarify - the reason I and many others have stopped going to the movies is that movies have become total crap for lack of a nicer word. It's the same movie over and over again with a different title, and I just can't bring myself to pay $9 to get in, and another $15 for snacks. A trip for two to a movie theater can come close to fifty bucks, and it's just not worth it anymore - and that's exactly what you are running the risk of doing to gaming. By stifling innovation, and charging for every bit of DLC (when was the last time EA gave away any DLC for free?) you are working to create a stale industry which will be replaced by the next form of media to come down the line. So please, PLEASE look at the big picture - don't condemn the video game industry to an early death for the sake of slightly higher profits.

Sincerely,
Mike K

A Chat with Sid Meier
Comment by: Groodle
Nominated by: gils0n

I have nothing intelligent to add, other than the fact Crecente looks like Vlad the impaler.

And that, my friends, is awesome.

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