You’re lookin’ swell, Dolly
adult
Review: Halo 3
02 years ago
[JP's note: Let's welcome 8bitlibrary.com's newest contributor, Brandon, who's reviewing one of the best games of the modern gaming era.]
WHAT? Arguably the flagship game of the Xbox 360, Halo 3 is the conclusion of the much-loved Halo trilogy that began on the original Xbox and is one of the most-played online multiplayer games in existence. In the single-player campaign, gamers take on the role of Master Chief Petty Officer John-117, a Spartan super soldier born and bred to combat the theocratic Covenant, an army of alien races who believe they are on a holy mission to eliminate humanity. The real draw for this series, however, is the highly-competitive, fast-paced multiplayer, which pits players against each other in armed combat on some of the most well-designed maps ever seen in a video game. Gamers who aren’t very competitive need not worry about being left out; up to four players can work together to finish the game’s campaign mode.
WHY? The Halo universe is one of the richest, most engaging fictional universes out there, rivaling that of Star Wars and Lord of the Rings. Even gamers who aren’t fans know the story of Master Chief and his unending fight against the Covenant. The multiplayer mode sees over a million unique players a day. Unless your library has a definitive hard-line policy against M-rated games, not having Halo 3 on the shelf is akin to not having the Twilight series, the Harry Potter series, or anything by Stephen King in your fiction collection. As for programming possibilities, you could spend an entire gaming festival around Halo 3; there are so many game modes for both “lone wolf” and team play, you’ll never run out of ideas.
WHO? The elephant in the room is the M rating; the ESRB has determined that this game is inappropriate for anyone under the age of 17. You’ll want to keep that in mind as you circulate this game and plan programs around it. Also, this is definitely a hardcore gamer’s game: you’ll probably not want to set this up beside Wii Sports and Guitar Hero, games which are more relaxed and tend to draw new gamers in, not scare them away. Halo 3 gamers are competitive and dedicated, so be prepared to possibly entertain a bit less of a laid-back social crowd than you are accustomed to. It’s not all about the pwnage with Halo 3, however. The rich fiction in the game has spawned numerous books, comics, and even an anthology of short animated films; it’s an exercise in multimedia advisory all by itself.
3,2,1…Mario Kart tourney!
22 years ago
Eli Neuberger, Ann Arbor District librarian and author of Gamers? In the Library?, suggested using GT System for the hardest part of running gaming tournaments, the ‘heavy lifting’ of creating brackets, points, matches. You create brackets online without the frantic scribbling on paper or on an spreadsheet. There hasn’t been a 2010 announcement of events, but contact information is found on the wiki to find out more.
GT System is a framework and a set of web tools for producing videogame tournaments of any size for players of any age or experience level. It gives you everything you need to promote and run a videogame tournament at your institution, and it allows all GT system players to see where how they stack up on local, regional and national leaderboards!
Patrons drop and add on-site to tournaments, so all the pre-game work can get blasted by surprises.
One experience:
I ran a Mario Kart tournament without this system – our library had an Under 12 years and Over 12 tournament. The children’s librarians did not fully get across to some kids/parents that they were wait listed, so all showed! Had to work quick on my blank ppt to change the brackets and matches I worked on.
Also, there were going to be 4 adults working the tourney, and two couldn’t come. Left a lot of work setting up controllers, announcing brackets for one while the other worked the room, helped sign in kids, talked with parents, took photos…
I was fielding calls from college students about using cheats and their own controllers. Having played Mario Kart, I was familiar…but not the endless hours these kids had! You might just have to make decisions on the spot– just stick to them!
Eli told us that if you have elementary kids, someone will cry. I think at least three kids cried. It’s hard when their parents are there, and you want them to have fun. But competition is a fact of life, and not everyone gets the blue ribbon.
Siblings bring their own twist; I had a set of triplet boys, and two made it to the finals of 3. The great thing was the parent who told me the triplet who won was not athletic or academic, so it was a win on a big stage for him, a first.
I created certificates for the top three winners, and a gave a gift card for GameStop to the winners in each age group.
The library I’m at now has weekly teen gaming, monthly elem. level gaming, and many tournaments. I’ve offered to try a MK tourney again- loved the cheering and laughing a whole room of parents and siblings made.
No whammies!
52 years ago
Come on down! You are the next contestant…
Press your luck
You can have a big dose of 80′s nostalgia for the game show Press Your Luck. Yes, the “Big bucks, big bucks, no whammies!” show that in its heydey featured whammy characters dressed as Boy George, Michael Jackson.
Gamefly sent this and we took to the family Thanksgiving gathering, knowing the siblings would remember and enjoy. What surprised us was how long they played it– hours! The questions can be absurdly easy “What number follows 1,2,3?” Uh, 4? So much family laughter passing and spinning to win. In a library setting, at least a few rounds for 3 players can be done in an hour.
Press your luck 2010 edition Wii, DS, and PC/Mac
The Price is Right 2008 and 2010
My mother loves the Price is Right, and even likes Drew Carey replacing Bob Barker to our surprise. We gameflied (Game Fly, the Netflix of games) this to play with her, then just picked up a $10 copy of the 2008 version. Yes, you bid to get on stage, play classic games like Plinko and Cliffhanger, spin the wheel, and have the Showcase Showdown. There are small videos inserted so when a prize is shown (A brandddd newww carrr!) it feels more interactive. The actual PiR girls show you the item you are bidding on, along with the delightfully horrible puns for the Showcases.
Price is Right 2010, Wii and DS
The Price is Right CNET review
More Game Show Games include -Family Feud, Trivial Pursuit-
Gamespots Top Wii Games
These may not be the games for the hardest core gamers playing Xbox360, but fun for small groups and definately when playing with older adults. There’s more than just Wii Bowling for seniors out there for libraries!
Game Archive and Superman
22 years ago
Superman is a librarian at the University of Michigan, and he has created an amazing Video Game Archive.
Seriously, you can contact him at superman@umich.edu, under his secret identity of David Carter.
In November, I traveled to Ann Arbor, MI to meet Dave Carter, librarian and comics blogger at Yet Another Comics Blog. I had seen some press about the Computer and Video Game Archive he created at the Art, Architecture & Engineering Library. My husband and his three sisters all went to the University of Michigan (Hail to the Victors!), so it wasn’t a hard sell for him to visit the alma mater.
My thoughts were that we could play some old school games. I was surprised, and pleased, to see almost every station full! There were students playing Sega; students playing the brand new Call of Duty: Modern Warfare on a large flat panel; and everything in between.
From current generation (PS3, Xbox360, Wii) to previous generation consoles, to classic consoles…PC games and classic PC games…the archive has it all, and they aren’t just to look at—they are all functioning!
PS2, TRS-80, Intellivision, Atari 2600, Tandy, Turbocrafx 16, Nintendo 64, Game Boys, and more!
I just wanted to be a student there for a few days to take advantage!
Dave was a superb host showing us the library, recording studio, virtual reality area, and of special interest to me- the Graphic Novel collection.
Yes, as a librarian Dave is a teacher, reference coordinator, graphic novel collection specialist, and video game archivist. I know you are drooling with jealousy!
Original collection plan post for the Computer and Video Game Archive.
You’ll find some background details at Eaten by a Grue: http://libgames.blogspot.com/, especially the early posts.
And if you are anywhere near Ann Arbor, make the trip up to see for yourself!