Game On or Game Over hits 100!

Microsoft versus Sony, Battlefield versus Call of Duty and Forza versus Gran Turismo. These are some of the rivalries that can get people talking about console wars. “Game On or Game Over” is your place to get inside the minds of Nicholas and Andy as they seek to find the true meaning of gaming and tackle some of gaming’s most controversial subjects. Both are award winning authors – although the awards haven’t been mailed or created yet — but trust them. Would they lie to you?

Andy: Man, I am usually not an overly sentimental person but sometimes you have to break the mould. About two years ago I stumbled across what I thought was a decent idea for an article talking about all things gaming. At the time I wrote for a smaller site and on a whim I reached out to this really weird Australian guy, whom I really didn’t know and never really talked to much, and said “Hey, here’s this idea I have. You don’t know me except from exchanging a few random tweets with each other. Want to do this with me?” I expected one of two things. Either the sound of silence you get when being ignored; or laughter and something along the lines of “That sounds idiotic, no way.”

Fast forward two years and quite a bit has changed. One thing that hasn’t changed though is we are still writing these Game On or Game Over articles. In fact this is a milestone piece right here, it marks our 100th article. We’ve covered many topics from violence in gaming, questionable DLC practices and Gamer Gate. We’ve covered things we love about the industry and things that make us grind our teeth when we see them. None of that would have been possible without the support of our readers giving us ideas to write about, reading our pieces and letting us know when they agree or disagree with us. I think I can speak for both of us and say “Thank you to everyone who has taken time out of their day to read our – at times – rambling discussions.” I would be remiss though if I didn’t thank Steve Wright and John Elliot for agreeing to allow us this avenue to talk about games. It’s been awesome and I hope to keep this going for a long time to come.

Instead of us tackling a really deep topic this week, let’s just shoot from the hip here and let readers know who we are, where we come from and what has shaped our love of all things gaming related. To kick things off this week, what are some of your earliest gaming memories that really got you to love gaming and pursue writing about them? Is there one game that really grabbed you early on that influenced you and made you want to keep gaming?

Nicholas: It’s hard to recall when I technically started gaming, but one of my earliest gaming memories was playing the original Super Mario Bros. at a relative’s place on their SNES. I don’t think I was particularly good at it (being around five years old or so) but I loved it, and that essentially is what got me started all those years ago. I also look at when I first placed Pokémon Blue at my cousin’s place and that is what got me started on that franchise. For me, that was a significant moment given how much I continue to love the series to this day.

As far as writing about them goes, that developed about a decade later when I was in high school. I was pretty late getting a computer (around when I was 13 years old or so) and I remember stumbling across the forums (something I was foreign to) during my holidays in Year 9 or 10. I started posting slowly but eventually I was hooked with communicating with other gamers and helping them out with tips and just general banter. That slowly developed to me writing online guides and FAQs for Need For Speed titles at the time (which were my favourite), and then eventually that moved to me blogging using sites like MSN Spaces. Eventually I was asked if I wanted to review games for a small US-based site, which I agreed to, and then after a while I decided to leave and join an Australian site. A few site migrations later and I ended up at Stevivor.com, which I’ve been proud to be a member of for over two years now.

My passion for gaming has just evolved over time really. What I might be enjoying at the time might change from Mario to Need For Speed to Assassin’s Creed, but I’ve never loved and dropped a franchise over the past 20 years, I’ve only added to what I love, and I think that’s what I love about gaming the most. It’s about constantly building on new experiences and writing is just an extension of that, not only getting the chance to write about arguably my most favourite pastime, but to communicate with other gamers who share what I’m feeling. How about you though? What got you into gaming and what made you step into the world of writing about them?

Andy: I have a couple early gaming memories that really stand out, the first being when I was the odd kid. All my friends were begging their parents for an Atari, but me on the other hand, well I begged my parents for an Intellivision. I figured that if my friends had an Atari I could play it at their house, so I wanted something different. I can’t count the number of hours I spent playing Astrosmash, man I had a love-hate relationship with that game. I also remember having a paper route as a young kid and going to the local Kmart every two weeks to put $5 on my pre-order for Super Mario Bros. It was a pretty cool feeling when the it came out to walk in, and walk out with the game. I still remember an older kid offering me more money than I paid for the game because they didn’t have any more.

The most traumatic game memory I have is from playing Metal Gear on Nintendo, this was before we had memory cards and game saves. In order to save a game you had to go into the menu, click save, and then copy down a string of letters and numbers. When you restarted the game you had to enter in those letters and numbers. I had been playing the game for a while and my mom said it was time for supper. I clicked save and dutifully wrote down the string of letters and numbers. I went and ate the spaghetti (yes it was that traumatic I remember still what we had for supper), got back to the game and entered the code and got a message “Invalid code”. I tried for fifteen minutes and ended up a sobbing mess. That was my first introduction of what would be many incidents across the years of game saves gone bad.

In regards to my writing about games, I seem to have followed a pretty similar path to you. I started off on a couple different game forums, then stumbled across Twitter and finally across a post that said  something about “we’re looking for writers.” I wrote for two smaller sites before landing at Stevivor. It’s been an amazing journey to get a glimpse of the inner workings of the industry, how fast paced it is and even start to recognize trends and start to guess where things are going. I think it’s kind of ironic that you and I are from different countries and backgrounds etc. yet we have both followed a similar path to where we are now. We have joked before about being brothers, maybe this is just further fuel to those ideas.

You mentioned above how you have never really loved a franchise and then dropped it as your tastes have changed. We’ve talked a little bit about this in past articles, but it seems like a perfect time to touch on it again. What are some of your favourite games/franchises you’ve played? On the flip-side of that are there are games/franchises that you have tried that no matter how good others think they are you just can’t get into them? Any really memorable moments over your gaming career that you still think about today?

Nicholas: Need For Speed instantly springs to mind when you ask me that. I entered the franchise with Underground and it was particularly important because that was the game that instigated my fascination for cars and speed to begin with. If it wasn’t for my friend taking me to an internet café over a decade ago and checking it out, I would still be thinking that cars were lame. Other franchises that I’d consider my favourite would have to be Pokémon, Super Mario and Banjo-Kazooie too. We’ve had the pleasure of playing some truly amazing games the last generation or two, but it’s the stuff from the GameCube, N64 and SNES era that I think I remember and am fond of the most. That to me is my childhood and it’s shared my gaming tastes to where they are today.

When I think of franchises that I couldn’t get into, I think of Dishonored and Far Cry 3. Both are games that I purchased hearing high praise. I played the first hour, really didn’t enjoy it and never touched them again. Interestingly enough, for both titles it was because I felt the stealth mechanics weren’t right, and when I think about it further, I think it’s because of the first-person camera that both games force you to play in. I can do stealth fine in Batman, Hitman or Splinter Cell, but I just don’t think first-camera works when you need to sneak around and you need to see where your body is in-relation to the world around you. Then again, perhaps I’m taking nonsense but there aren’t any other games that I’ve only played once and never touched again.

As far as memorable moments, I think back to school holidays during primary and secondary school and there are a lot of fond memories regarding gaming that I do think about from time to time. I remember playing Pokémon Crystal and being blown away by how much the second generation had improved upon the first generation of the franchise. I think about the countless hours playing The Simpsons Hit & Run and how I’d either speed around Springfield drifting and sometime playing by the road rules and overtaking and staying within the lines like I would within real life. There’s heaps of fond memories of all the Mario games over the series, because for me, he was, still is and will forever be my favourite gaming character. There was such an innocence but also joy to gaming back in the late 90s and early 2000s that I don’t think modern gaming is able to replicate. Gaming today is undoubtedly fun, but it’s just different. Then again, perhaps with age I’m different too?

To flip it back to you, what are your answers to the three questions you asked me? Furthermore, like my Need For Speed example, is there any game that you played which changed your gaming (or real-life) interests that was totally unexpected?

Andy: The first one that comes to mind won’t surprise you, Fallout 3, just not for the reason you think though. The first time I played it I absolutely hated it. I did the tutorial, got out of the vault and looked around for a good five minutes before I wandered in a random direction and ended up quitting about 30 minutes later. A year or two later I had nothing to play, saw Fallout 3 on my shelf and said “what the hell” and gave it another go. The rest they say is history, the second time I came out of the vault was just amazing. Maybe it was a mood I was in the first time, maybe my gaming preferences had changed just enough, but to this day Fallout 3 is one of the top 3 games I have ever played. It changed my view on RPGs, and what a true open world experience could be.

Unlike you there is a franchise, or rather an entire genre, that I once enjoyed that I have walked away from. That would be fighting games, which is odd because as a kid I’d go to the arcade and spend hours playing Mortal Kombat, Tekken, or Virtua Fighter. I played in some local tournaments and did quite well in many of them. I also had fighting games on most of my home consoles. Heck, I even had Bloody Roar on my Sega Genesis. Somewhere along the way though I lost interest in them. They stopped being fun for me. I heard a lot of good things about Mortal Kombat X and I gave it a shot and realized that my disdain for the genre had not changed. I played maybe 30-45 minutes of it and took it back. That’s just not a genre I can see myself trying again to be honest. I have some good memories from playing fighting games, but they just aren’t fun anymore for me.

As far as memorable moments the first one that pops into my head is the ending of Red Dead Redemption. It is one of the few times I set the controller down and just stared at the screen feeling like I got punched in the gut. Such an awesome moment from a game. I already talked about coming out of the vault in Fallout 3, that’s just such an iconic moment as you’re blinded by the sun and then the landscape comes into focus and you get a small sense of how big the game is. Some of my other favourite memories aren’t necessarily from the games themselves, but from who I have played them with. With the advent of online gaming, playing co-op has never been easier. From taking down bad guys in Army of Two Devil’s Cartel with my friend Matt, to racing the country side in Forza Horizon 2 with my friend Nick, all the way to slaughtering thousands of other players in whatever MP game we were playing with the gang of Chris, Ryan, Justin, Brad and Aidan. While the games are fun, if I can have a great experience playing it with friends that’s what I’m really after.

We’ve talked a little bit about ourselves, games we like, how we got into gaming and flowed into the writing part. I’d like to talk a little about the industry as a whole now. We’ve both been gaming for quite a while now and have seen games come and go, we’ve seen trends come and go and we’ve seen developers try ideas and make it big or fizzle out. What are some of the trends that you can recall seeing that you either loved, or hated and maybe are there any trends that you think we’ll be seeing more prominently soon?

Nicholas: I’m not sure if you’d call it a trend or a phase, but I think the 90s were great for gaming when we embraced platforming wholeheartedly. Like I’ve mentioned in past articles, a few months ago I replayed the original three Donkey Kong Country games and boy, what a joy they were to play. It was simple gaming but not necessarily easy, and even 20 years later, even though gaming has advanced and graphics have improved a million-fold, they still hold up and they still offer hours of entertainment. Again, I’m not sure if it’s a trend you were asking for, but it’s certainly something we don’t see nearly enough anymore, and looking back, I’m really glad I was around to experience it.

As far as hated, I don’t think there was ever really a period in gaming where I felt overall things were bad. Sure, DLC has been sketchy over the years, but gaming as a whole has only gone from strength to strength, and I think things will continue to go down that path. So as far as bad trends, there’s nothing that really bothers me to be honest.

As far as the next trend we’ll see, after attending PAX AUS last week, I think virtual reality is the next big thing. I’m not sure I’d ever like to see it completely change how we play games, but if we can occasionally partake a truly immersive experience, sure, I’d be down for that. Perhaps playing Forza Motorsport 7 where I’m wearing the Xbox VR headset and I can look anywhere and examine all aspects of the dashboard and the environment around me. Speaking with my friend Jesse over the weekend and his experience with Sony VR, it wasn’t so much about playing games, but just being truly enthralled in another world, and I think that would be cool to see. Being able to see what it’s like to be submerged in a cage and see sea creatures float around you – it sounds pretty awesome.

Once again, let me throw it back to you. What are trends you loved, would love to see again and would rather avoid? Is there anything else that you think will taking the gaming industry by storm in the next few years (or even beyond)?

Andy: For me, one of the trends that I’ve seen during my gaming life that I love in online gaming. Not so much the huge multiplayer shooters, though I do enjoy having fun in titles like Battlefield, but more so like I mentioned above about being able to play with a friend(s) and works towards a story objective. From Gears of War to Zombie Army Trilogy I just get a lot of enjoyment about experiencing story related things with friends. More recently I like how there is more and more support for the smaller non AAA games. Looking back over the past couple of years some of my favourite moments were with smaller indie type titles. Dust an Elysian’s Tail will always have a really special place in my heart.

For things I hate, well maybe hate is too strong of word, but there are a couple things I don’t care for. One is the over reliance on DLC – it just irritates me that to get a “complete” game and the full experience I have to shell out some extra cash to do it. I know me griping about it here won’t change a thing, but it still bugs me. The other thing, and I think we touched on this in a previous article actually, is that many games – not all – but many of them have become too easy. I remember games where I had three lives and that was it. No loading last save, just fewer check points. If you screwed up, well that sucks, don’t do it two more times or you have to start over. It sounds weird to say, but I miss the days of being punished by a game.

I think you nailed the next trend in gaming. There is a real big push right now to get us excited and invested in VR. I can see the appeal for a lot of people, and I can even appreciate the things that can be possible with it. I haven’t had a chance to try it out, so my opinion is fairly muted on it. Plus, I am one of those who get motion sickness easily so it will take a lot for me to even try it. The other trend I see is the continued push towards mobile games. Sure the AAA big hitters will still be there, but I think we’ll continue to see a lot of push from the mobile side of things.

As we wrap up this week’s article I am still somewhat amazed that you and I have managed to hit the 100 milestone. I mean we are both sexy as hell, charming, witty and amazing writers… speaking of which, where are all the awards we should have been winning in that time? In all seriousness though, I hope there are some people out there that enjoy reading these as much as you and I enjoy writing them. I have really enjoyed this, and to hit 100 is something I never thought we’d do. I’m going to throw you a curveball here though. I don’t have any question for you to answer, no lead in or anything. I’m just going to go ahead and say; go ahead and finish this one up with any closing thoughts you have. Here’s to 100 more of these, if Steve can put up with us that long, that is.

Nicholas: I have to completely agree with your sentiments at the end there mate. I still remember the first article we wrote over two years ago about the announcement of the Xbox One and it’s DRM features, and it’s amazing to see that we’ve continued to keep this going. We’ve covered a ridiculous amount of topics over the past 100 features and I’m excited to see what the future brings. We’re at a great advantage that the community and industry never ceases to provide us with interesting topics to share our thoughts on, and I really do hope that our readers enjoy these as much as we do writing them.

All in all, the only thing left to say is thanks to everyone who’s been with us on this journey – from Steve by allowing us to have this platform to put our thoughts out like this week on week, to all our readers and friends who inspire us with content to discuss each time and most importantly yourself Andy, for coming up with this idea back in 2013 and asking me to write these with you. Here’s to our 100^th article, and another 100 to come!

Tune in next time for the next instalment of Game On or Game Over. If you have any ideas for our next article, feel free to contact Andy or Nicholas on Twitter.