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Role Playing (Games)

Why Computer RPGs Waste Your Time 476

spidweb writes "RPGVault has an editorial about two particularly noxious qualities of computer role-playing games. Spiderweb Software's Jeff Vogel goes off on a tear, discussing how you work forever to earn the right to do anything exciting, and must 'prove yourself' by expending tons of your time. From the article: 'So now, thinking about playing an RPG just makes me tired. I'm tired of starting a new game and being a loser. I'm tired of running the same errands to prove myself. The next time I enter my fantasy world, I want it to not assume that I'm a jackass.'" I think Oblivion handled this well, scaling the world as you went and giving you really interesting things to do from the get-go. What other games dodge this bullet? Do you see this timesink as an inevitable part of the RPG genre?
PC Games (Games)

Submission + - 'Losing For The Win' In Games

simoniker writes: Designer Ben Schneider (Empire Earth, EyeToy: AntiGrav, Titan Quest) has written a new article exploring the possibility of enticing your players through the power of defeat. From the piece: "Some of the most memorable moments in games depend heavily on reversals to kick their dramatic arcs forward, from Planetfall to Fable to Beyond Good & Evil to Deus Ex. And yet, as an industry, we clearly have a lot to learn — and a lot to invent. So, then, how do you draw a clear line between player failure and dramatic reversal? It is a question well worth pondering." In other words, if the game forces the player to get his ass kicked, can the player ever forgive it, or is it the key to some really interesting moments when used in a positive way?
Media (Apple)

Submission + - Music execs think DRM slows the marketplace

MacGod writes: "From BBC News comes a story about a Jupiter Research survey conducted before Steve Job's anti-DRM essay, indicating that most music industry execs see DRM-free music as a way to expand the sales on digital tracks. To summarise: 54% of music execs think the current DRM is too restrictive and 62% think selling unencumbered music would be a way to boost sales. Even limiting the survey to the record labels themselves, 48% believe this. Yet, many also believe it's not going to happen without significant governmental intervention-even though most insiders think DRM is harmful, the labels are keen to stick with it.

Is this yet another sign of the typical media industry "head in the sand, refuse to change" approach, or might we be seeing the early stages or some actual change? After all, admitting you have a problem is the first step to fixing it."
The Internet

Submission + - Ted Stevens calls Wikipedia ban in Schools

DJCacophony writes: "Ted "series of tubes" Stevens has introduced his next piece of proposed legislation. Going by the interim name S.49, the bill aims to block access to interactive websites from schools and libraries. The wording of the bill is vague enough to apply to Wikipedia, Myspace (and other social networking sites), and potentially even blogs.
The bill is apparently so similar to the failed "Deleting Online Predators Act" of last year that it has been termed "DOPA jr." by some."
Role Playing (Games)

Submission + - Why Computer RPGs Waste Your Time

spidweb writes: "RPGVault has an editorial about two particularly noxious qualities of computer role-playing games: They make you work forever to earn the right to do anything exciting, and they make you have to prove yourself by expending tons of your time. From the article: "So now, thinking about playing an RPG just makes me tired. I'm tired of starting a new game and being a loser. I'm tired of running the same errands to prove myself. The next time I enter my fantasy world, I want it to not assume that I'm a jackass."

The article is at:

http://rpgvault.ign.com/articles/763/763050p2.html "

Comment No such thing as Security ROI (Score 1) 64

IMHO, you can't try to get any useable ROI figure for security features. Whatever security feature you add, it's supposed to handle an unlikely event. Should that event never happen, whatever money invested would prove totally worthless. However, _if_ you encounter an issue, then you'll be happy to have spent enough money into security.

AFAIK, you consider security the same way you consider insurance (or as an insurance complement): How much your business continuity's worth? Should you be hacked/DDoSed, how will it affect your revenue? How much money would you need to get it all back online? You'll also need to consider how intrusive your security is: data backup solutions sometimes require you to stop services while they are processed. If you want backups to be non-intrusive, again, you'll consider how much these stopped services cost. Same goes for services availability (clustering, replication, off-site disaster recovery plans).

In short : your security investments are business specific. No easy rule of thumb in here, I'm afraid.

Hope this helps.

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