Friends, I’m going to tell you an incredible story; the story of how I met my best friend. Now, am I telling you this story because you’re being punished for something? No. You’re not being forced to read this. Is this story going to take awhile? Well, it won’t take 9 seasons, but it will take a few hundred words.
I’ve played Call of Duty games since the original in 2003 and they have slowly evolved into something completely different. What used to be a shooter with an emphasis on skill has turned into a funhouse of bullets, airstrikes, and wall riding maniacs. It has transformed from a shooter of historical realism to a shooter of arcade-like science fiction. This year, Activision has said that they are “going back to [their] roots” with the series. What does this mean for the direction of the series and will this be the direction it desperately needs?
It was the summer of 2016 and the air was scorching hot. All I wanted to do was sit in my room and enjoy a game of Overwatch but my friends dragged me outside to play some Pokemon Go instead. This was Nintendo’s first foray into mobile gaming and no one really knew what to expect from it, but the idea of playing Pokemon with friends was just too good to pass up. I laced up my shoes, caught a few Pokemon, and went about my day as normal. The game was fairly simple: all you had to do was “catch ‘em all,” and, at the time, it seemed like it would be just another mobile game. Little did I know this little game would become one of my greatest addictions.
I can read a book and pull themes from subtext and narrative. I can observe a Monet and take in the beauty of its color. I can watch Rogue One (for the 4th time) and appreciate the effort put forth by its actors. You know what I can’t do? I can’t get past the wind tunnel level of Battletoads. If you know what I am talking about, you have my deepest sympathies. This game and many others have made me appreciate what video games require as an artform. Video games are the only pieces of art that demand you “beat them” in order to fully appreciate them.