I just came across this rant in the New York Times on a familiar topic--why are modern games so inspid?

When it comes to the old "computers vs. consoles" debate, I've always come down on the computer side. Even though nowadays the PC has lost much of its edge when it comes to graphics and what-not, you can't beat it in terms of versatility and software diversity.

From "What's New Now from Ziff Davis" Newsletter (commentary below the excerpt):
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2071091,00.asp

Microsoft seems to have won over skeptical robot developers with the release of its new Robotics Studio product. The product's pretty neat, it lets you program real robots, or virtual instantiations of them that live inside your PC. Even better, it's free to download and play with - you'll just pay when you actually use it to control an autonomous mechatron of your own design. Our story is chock full of details on how Microsoft won over the robotics community, what's new inside the software, and where to download it yourself, for free.

Spike's Sea Snap Safari: Concept ImageThe prolific homebrew GCE/Milton Bradley Vectrex game developers, Vectorzoa, known for cartridges such as "Logo", "Star Sling" and "Spike's Circus" (which I've mentioned previously on Armchair Arcade) have an interesting way for ANYONE to contribute to their next game, "Spike's Sea Snap Safari". While label art and level design contests are popular at AtariAge, this is one of the few times that I've seen one for a non-Atari system.

This looks like fun and hopefully some of the Armchair Arcade faithful will take up the challenge and report on their results. From the Website:

Every now and then I find a true gem on the net--more than just some tidbit about a new piece of hardware or some developer ranting about the lack of innovation in modern gaming. When I find something like Culture: Games and Metaphor, I like to slow down and really see what the author is trying to get across. Waugh's point in this essay is to get us to think about metaphors--specifically, metaphors in games and how they relate to the real world as well as the game world. He also talks about how the videogame industry has essentially been inbreeding for a few decades, rehashing and making questionable "progress" as it attempted to "revolutionize" the previous generations' hardware and games: Ever since Super Mario Bros. came out, basically all we've done is build on it. Waugh would like to see a revolution in game metaphors--rather than merely point back to earlier games, it's time to start thinking sensisbly about a new kind of metaphor, one that functions like great metaphors in books and films. Waugh uses a number of great examples to illustrate his points, including several from classics like Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy.

Namco's Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga Anniversary Arcade MachineApparently, just for registering your free copy of Microsoft's Visual Studio Express at this Website enters you into an interesting drawing for a full-size Namco Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga anniversary arcade machine, t-shirt or Atari TV game. The intent seems to be to spur "arcade game" development.

According to the Website: