Cooperation and Competition in Video Games

First off, a belated Merry Christmas to all readers of this blog. God bless each and every one of you!

Here's what my dad and I bought my younger brothers for Christmas:



I was under the impression that this game was just a "wii-make" of the Nintendo DS game of the same name from three years ago. Turns out I was wrong, and good thing, too: it's as if the game was designed with the Kirchoff clan in mind. It's more cooperative than competitive, which seems to be a rarity for video games these days outside of the shooter genre.

My brother Tim has introduced me to another cooperative game, Resident Evil 5. My aversion to blood, gore, and the like isn't preventing me from enjoying it, either. In fact, I feel like I'm playing some Indiana Jones spin-off more often than not - except for the blood and guts, of course. It may be worth re-examining the last blog post in light of this game, as well.

All that for later, though. The important thing: cooperative multiplayer gaming is AWESOME. Period. And as much as "playing a sport" could probably do this just as well, you can't play basketball outside when there's snow on the ground.

I'll (hopefully) post more detailed impressions of both of these games later (or, alternatively, another poster will!). For now, though, less typing, and more, you know, actual game-playing. Merry Christmas, everyone!

Wii Gamers! Buy this game!

It's called Mercury Meltdown Revolution, and I found it at Gamestop yesterday for $10. Knowing the stellar reviews the game has received from critics and fans alike, I bought it - without having any real idea of what the game would be like. I hadn't even seen a screenshot before!

I've played it for all of 30 minutes. It's easily worth the $10 I spent, and though I'm a little miffed that I need to unlock the multiplayer "party games," the single-player game is more than enjoyable enough in it's own right; I'd play through it with or without the promise of unlockable mini-games (doesn't the wii have enough of those already, anyway?).

Anyone out there ever play with one of these as a kid?



The game is basically like that, except the game is more like an obstacle course than a labyrinth. There's some nifty puzzles to solve, too.

Here's a comparison for the gaming initiated: it's pretty much everything Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz should have been, but wasn't. The fact that it's STILL cheaper than the aforementioned gaming disappointment of the millenia just goes to show you how that quality gaming on a budget is still possible in this day and age.

Viva Mercury Meltdown!