Desicritics Category: Media: Games

Confessions of a Facebook Addict

Purba — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:49:46 EST

I blame the Aggarwala brothers. Had they not created the eminently buzz worthy Scrabulous on FB, they wouldn’t have featured prominently in the papers, and my interest would not have been aroused.

It was two years back that I read about this exciting new word game on the block that had taken the cyber world by storm. Am not much into gaming, the dexterity required eludes me. But I am hopelessly hooked on to word games. The joy of discovering new words (khi, titi, dado, apod) is unmatched. The game can get ruthless at times, but showing off your vocabulary has never been this fun. I wasted no time in creating an account on FB. Thus began my dalliance with the world of social networking.

So far I had successfully (well almost) managed to evade the lure of such sites. I had joined Orkut briefly. But the lack of privacy always rankled. My mailbox was inundated with enquires from strange males curious to know whether I was the elusive Purba they had been looking for years. All these years I was under the mistaken impression that mine was a unique name, until now. Within a few weeks I had managed a few stalkers and men desperate to have an affair. Disgusted I deleted my account.

My first few months on Facebook were uneventful. I had ventured into this unchartered territory with a gaggle of my friends. We were a close knit circle of thirty, playing Scrabble with passion. New terms baffled me: a wall to scribble messages on, status updates, notifications, getting poked. There was an exciting new world on my desktop waiting to be explored. What a convenient and novel way to keep in touch with your many friends and relatives scattered around the globe, I would often muse. I even managed to unearth my brother under a Jim Morrison inspired pseudonym. Here was a forum where everyone was sharing their opinions, sentiments and even trivial details of their lives. It was through FB I saw my nephew grow up from a cuddly baby to a cherubic angel in far off Baton Rouge. Shared my friend’s excitement as she traversed the East Coast on a solo trip to the US through her many pics and posts. A lyrical ode here, a scene captured there, the seduction was gradual but irreversible. Whenever I could manage some free time I would plonk myself in front of the system, gleefully share links, leave comments or just play my turns on Scrabulous.

On FB you cannot remain anonymous for long. My many ex-students sniffed out my trail and I was bombarded with friend requests. I did accept a few and was now privy to the psyche of the young Indian mind. I am in lurvvvv...teehee....Luv is nyc... Noooo...Yess?? (Subject to interpretation) My powers of deduction were getting severely tested and I was experiencing mild trauma. My news feeds were definitely getting spicier. X took a quiz “How good are you in a bed” Result: Man, you are a nympho. Y just downloaded the Lady Timer. Z just tagged you as “The one with the best body”. I had a choice between squirming and sighing in relief. It could have been worse (the indomitable optimist speaks) - “Best Hag” would have certainly incurred my wrath. To preserve my sanity I now use the hide function to protect me from unsavoury truths of life.

It never ceases to amaze me how even perfectly sane adults are capable of taking the most inane quizzes and add insult to injury by having the results published. Which shoe do I resemble the most?? Which female superhero are you? Which musical are you? A bunch of retarded questions masquerading as a quiz with even more retarded results.

And the status messages some of us write. Agreed the name Facebook stems from the colloquial name of books given to grad students at the start of academic year with the intention of getting to know each other. But posting details about your breakfast or your latest splurge at Bodyshop is definitely not welcome. Some people can write the dullest status messages. “Waiting for the flight to Dallas at Newark airport” “Have a toothache” “The avocados just gave me a rash”. To me it sounds more like an exchange between a husband and wife. CNN went to the extent of listing the “The 12 most annoying types of facebookers” “The-let-me-fill-you-on-every-detail-of-my-life bore” “The self promoter” (is that me?) “The friend-padder”, “The lurker” to name just a few.

They forgot to add the Farmville enthusiast. You can spot this individual from a mile. Farmville, Mafia Wars, Hatchlings or any new fangled application is their raison-d’être. Their wall is chock-a- block with gargoyles acquired, warehouse eggs hatched and fertilizer collected. Their status messages read more like Oscar acceptance speeches where they often thank their friends for helping them build the barn or some such thing. I admit I had joined this strange breed albeit briefly. For a few weeks my routine centred on the endless cycle of ploughing, sowing and harvesting crops. I was saving lost kitties, collecting eggs and tending to my cows. On my trip to Jaisalmer I actually logged in just to save my dying crops. Thankfully my fascination did not last long. I was becoming the butt of jokes of my family members and one fine day I bid adieu to the fascinating world of virtual farming.

But I have been fiercely loyal to FB. There have been temptations galore - Twitter, Myspace and now Google buzz. But I am content with my hundred odd friends on FB. I still play Scrabulous, now in its new avatar Lexulous. I owe my interest in blogging to a note I shared with my friends on this network. The overwhelming feedback made me think of taking writing seriously. Yes, I have this obsessive compulsion of checking my account every few hours and on days I can’t I end up feeling restless. My husband has a new term of endearment for me.....addict. Of late I have been reading about a new movement called virtual suicide i.e deleting all your social networking accounts in one go. Has that thought ever entered my mind? Not even for a fraction of a second. The kind of trash they now show on television I’d rather be the addict I am made out to be. And isn’t Internet one of the nominees for the Nobel prize for peace. So here I am logging in yet again for the sake of world peace.

Game Review: Farmville

Deepti Lamba — Thu, 7 Jan 2010 12:00:44 EST

I was anti-Facebook for a pretty long time and sometime back deactivated my account as well. I found it to be juvenile and a waste of time but I reactivated my account after convincing myself it was just another form of social media and a good way of getting to know people.

I had seen Ideasmith talk about her Farmville farm on Twitter off and on. I gave in to curiosity and decided to create a farm of my own and that was my undoing. I was plowed under and soon an avid farmer.

The game has become part of my daily routine. After sending kids to school I check my farm before I read the papers, watch the news and head off to the gym. I remember the harvest time of my crops and ensure I’m online to harvest the crops and play the game.

Initially it took some fortitude to play the game at lower levels. Money was scarce, the plot of land limiting and the rich neighbours with their gorgeous farms enviable. When I visited deserted farms I realized lack of interest in the game couldn’t be excused by lack of time but lack of consistent will power and discipline.

In many ways Farmville is like real planting and harvesting. After plowing and seeding one has to wait for things to grow and one can only plant what’s available at the level and though Zynga has the option of buying cash and coins with real money most of us realize it’s just a game and don’t give into temptation. It is best to go up the hard way from level to level and be helped initially by Ribbons and extra cash thrown our way by having bountiful harvest. Facebook reports that there are more people on Farmville than even Twitter.

Ribbons: Winning Ribbons means extra coins and XP. There are all kinds of ribbons.

Free gifts: Free gifts section opens up as one goes up the levels. There are trees, animals, objects and currently presents are still lingering around from Christmas season.

Neighbours: The more neighbours one has the more XP one can gain by fertilizing their plants, getting rid of weeds, bugs or animals by single clicks. More neighbours one has more the chances of getting one’s land fertilized and the number of gifts one gets also goes up. Also one needs certain number of neighbours before one can expand their farm.

Seeds: There are all kinds of seeds available and the crops are time bound. Some are for easy money making and others can be planted for three four days and then harvested. The most profitable plants are at the higher levels. A useful guide to the economics of Farmville is on Mahalo.

Animals and Trees: One can have a steady stream of money pouring in from animals and trees. Some can be bought from the market and others gained as gifts from neighbours. They mature and can be harvested. Horses are brushed for their horsehair while truffles can be picked from pigs.

Buildings: Buying buildings such as cottages, villas etc are expensive but they help one gain the architect ribbon, more XP and even get to the next level. Its a good idea to get a chicken coop and dairy farms to make your cows and hens more productive, and don't forget to adopt a bull for your dairy farm so you can occasionally share a calf with your neighbors.

Tips and Tricks sites: There are lot of sites which promise tips and tricks to get to the higher levels but its best to go up the regular way instead of falling for these gimmicks. One useful and legal Facebook application is the Farmville Bonus Checker, which periodically scans your neighbors' walls to check if there are any bonuses on offer.

Currently I am on Level 29 and saving to buy a manor for my farm and plan to stick it out at my farm for a while before I throw in the towel.

Aaman joined Farmville a few days after I did and after he had peered over at my farm and muttered about what a waste of time it was. Predictably enough, he soon figured it all out and was racing ahead of me, gathering the moolah, presents, and the most profitable crops. He quit suddenly over Christmas, after reaching level 31. He deleted all his crops, sold his villas, trees, and animals, and left a parting note for us hardworking farmers.

PC Game Review: Plants Vs. Zombies

Deepti Lamba — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 00:01:34 EDT

I have done my best to stay away from video games but my romance with pc games has always run strong. I used to spend hours playing Tetris, Solitaire, mahjong, Bejeweled and now find myself enamoured by the game Plants Vs. Zombies.

The game begins with easy steps where plants save the humans from the zombies. It starts with planting sunflowers which strengthens the sun and helps in buying plants like pea shooters, barrier forming walnuts etc that help in killing the zombies. The killing spree goes well into the night by the second level where one can also use toxic mushrooms that kill the zombies and if the zombies get the porch they get run over by the garden rollers.

The zombies are a quirky lot from newspaper reading zombies to cheerleaders and bucket headed janitors and as the game progresses, it naturally becomes complicated and difficult. On higher levels one can even landscape and have a Zen garden and kill the zombies with all kinds of creative tools.

What I liked about the game is the interest my son professed in gardening after playing the game and he is very strategic about the planting of various plants and using of tools against the zombies and the game has diverted his interest from the idiot box to a large extent.

The visuals are rich and quite cute to look at and the game is available at Pop Cap Games.

Another game that seems to have struck the fancy of many Facebook users is Farmville where they known their own farms with animals, have crops etc and like most video games its very addictive. But since I deactivated my FB account I have not fallen prey to the game, yet.

On Plants Vs. Zombies, I am on level three and the game has become quite complicated but it continues to be fun to play. Its only negative thing about the game is that its very addictive and difficult to quit. So play at your own peril.

Virtually Real - How Life Imitates Art

karachi khatmal — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 08:16:25 EDT

(This post was written earlier in the year, in the aftermath of the latest subcontinental chicken dance. With events as they stand now, it makes for an intriguing look.)

How many of you remember Hollywood movies making jokes about masturbation before the movie There's Something about Mary came out? I can’t seem to think of any other movie making such a blatant reference to it – in fact, I remember thinking back in the day that the only reason people were so excited about that movie was that gag involving Cameron Diaz’s hair “gel”. Otherwise, was it really THAT funny?

iMDB says *drum roll* 7.2

That’s not really worth the hype generated about it in 1998, when the movie came out. I remember the sheer awkwardness of it all when the movie was chosen by people in their cousin get together movie-thons - when younger and even older family members would turn and ask the person laughing what the joke with her hair was about.

Just a year later, American Pie came out. Till then, summer movies about teens falling in love and all that shit was as American as American pie. By attempting to fornicate with the pie his mother made, Jason Schwartz’s character deliberately desecrated the clean-as-pie image of the summer movie.

Ten years later, EVERY summer movie, and every teen movie is just about getting laid and its associated pains and little else. (Look up Euro Trip, Road Trip, Superbad, etc)

I’m not complaining, but I was trying here to trace out a path of the time mainstream entertainment felt it was ok to bring sexual misadventures into the non-taboo realm.

(Of course, it goes without saying that the original summer teen movie is Dazed and Confused.Don’t watch it now, because you’ll find it too boring. Why? Because every joke in that movie has been repeated ad fucking nauseam. Its iMDB rating is 7.5, which I think is reflective of people who heard about what a classic it was, and then were disappointed when they saw it. However, the fact that it came out six years before American Pie, and that everyone else expropriated all of its gags says a lot about how ahead of its time this movie really was.)

The point I am trying to make is that humor slowly brings that which is taboo towards acceptance. But equally importantly, that process doesn’t necessarily make things better. An avalanche of movies with jokes about semen and masturbation and messed up sex haven’t done much to change sexual behavior or make it more responsible. Some would argue that mainstreaming these things has actually allowed people to be more comfortable with disgusting and irresponsible attitudes towards sexual behavior.

But what do I know, I’m just a model.

Even if I don’t know much, I am aware of the long running debate over the amount of profanity, violence and perceived vulgarity in movies. The same argument has also been extended to video games, which also involve an unholy amount of sex, drugs and violence within their confines.

Few games however have gained the level of notoriety as that veritable series – Grand Theft Auto. Each installment of the game unleashes a tsunami of controversy. And each installment is so goddam good, so terribly addictive and enjoyable that even if you oppose the graphic content within the game on principle, once you play the game you can’t help but be hooked.

The first version I played was the one in which you had a bird’s eye view and could run over a line of jogging Hari Krishnas.
The last version I played involved the indefatigable CJ and his Grove Street bro’s. And playing GTA IV – San Andreas was literally a ritual while we were in college, with CJ’s endless adventures a continuous source of stress relief and humor in equal measures.
Ahh, the good old days.

An argument trotted out in defense of GTA (an argument made its most recent entry into our collective consciousness in the lead-up to the release of GTA-IV, where you could beat up strippers and such) was that people who played such games were well aware that the whole thing was just a fantasy. Anyone who was inspired by a video game to commit such acts probably would have committed such acts anyway, and blaming the video games was just a convenient excuse.

In fact, the whole fun was the insanity it allowed you to propagate.

Imagine the fun when loaded up with weapons you managed to steal a police car. Immediate upgrade to two stars on the police radar. Now you can drive around the city, running over people at random and shooting them up all over the place.

They have stolen a police car and were driving around shooting, and the police took a taxi and were chasing them and they were shooting each other and as they were passing the main road a guy was sitting there watching and he was shot

Once you get bored with the police car situation, you can get off at some place, any place really - like a train station maybe -

and start mowing people down. Take out your big guns and just randomly kill all the people you see. Especially when those huge pools of blood splatter all over the place. You can literally waste hundreds without even pausing to think.
By this time, the heat would be really on. I mean this is the part the choppers start appearing, and the national guard is called out. The only way to survive is to hide inside some building or something. Once inside, its easier to take pot shots at all those trying to nab you and you can make your survival last much longer. Plus you can kill loads of civvies just to pump up the fun.
Of course, your health bar might be going down – so you can take food, or better yet, drugs.

That should allow you the superhuman strength needed to last for a really really long time. Because by now the cops and the commandos and the rest are gonna be all over you.

They’ll be storming from the roofs,
and they’ll be firing from all angles,
and they’ll be surrounding you from all ends. This is when the game gets most intense, when it’s really not about the game anymore but just firing your way to oblivion. If you get really lucky, and you keep up the intensity, you can actually make it last for really long. But of course, you know there’s no way out. Which induces an even greater sense of fatalism, a sense to fight it out until the bitter, bitter end.
But of course, all this only happens in video games.

MTV Roadies - Hell Began In India

Deepti Lamba — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 10:33:07 EST

I used to consider TV game shows to be below my dignity. Yeah, add your idol frenzy to it or that damn dance Nach Baliye type of crap till one fine day my husband made me see two bald men take the trip of goonks who had come to audition for MTV Roadies - Hell Down Under. (I woke up to the show on the sixth season; shame on me)

I watched them fuck around with people who could best be classified as losers (of course there were exceptions) with dreams of being the next Roadie in their eyes. Raghu and Rajiv, the two bald twin brothers had this strange synergy between them that only twins apparently have. They picked up each others' conversation as if they knew what the other was thinking and they ripped apart the participants' self esteem within a matter of few minutes and that too in classic Hindi vulgarity that I so love.

Some left with tears in their eyes. Yeah, well, they had been warned. The two brothers weren't there to make social chit chat but to select people who had nerves of steel and sadly the one who truly was Roadie material in my books was voted out in the first episode itself- Sufi.

It was obvious why Sufi had been voted out. The man had the makings of a Bollywood hero. He had camera presence, seemed to be a man of stable character and integrity. When he was voted out he said he wanted to use the money to help build his parent's business. His words seemed genuine and I felt bad watching him go.

But a man like Sufi seems to have the will to make it big and I sure hope to see him make it big in Bollywood.

There are three other people I have taken a liking for - Bobby, Roop and baby faced Sandeep.

Bobby and Roop seem to be the only girls with intelligence in the show and I especially liked the way Roop took Gurmeet's trip.

Gurmeet tried her best to project herself to be a hip girl with a devil may care attitude but she turned out to be a chicken shit babe unable to deal with criticism when it came at her headlong from Roop. At the truth or dare game she tried to put Roop in a spot but when Roop turned tables on her she pulled the - 'I don't want to play this game' shit and had the other contestants guffaw.

The less said about Gurmeet the better. Actually the less she shows of herself the better for the viewers. Her bulky curves in tight t-shirts and thunder thighs in tiny shorts are complete eye sore. But the one person who beats Gurmeet hollow is Paulami.

Paulami thinks she is da bomb! Wait! she thinks she is a Bipasha look alike and thinks she is the best dressed and hottest babe amongst the Roadies. Fact is anyone who meets Paulami would die to ask her if her plastic surgeon had botched her face.

The woman looks like witch out of one those horror Ramsay brother flicks but even witches are allowed to think they are hot- its a matter of self esteem and who am I to disabuse them of these notions.

The women of substance on this show are Roop and Booby. They are witty and can easily take the other women up and shred them into bits and on Roadies cat fights are always hot especially when the air headed 'I am so hot' babes gets slammed by the real street smart goddesses.

The men become insignificant at that point. But the men I am rooting for are Sandeep and for Pradeep.

Pradeep is a street smart surd and knows how to manipulate his way through the game. He understands its better to have a wise enemy than a foolish friend. He sidelined Gurmeet when he backed up Roop. Gurmeet, he seemed to have realized was nothing more than a dumb babe with a loud mouth and he didn't want to be seen siding with her. Clever dude.

Sandeep till now has stayed out of controversy but been yakking a lot in front of the camera. I know this baby faced dude with thick Delhi-ite accent would not last on Roadies Down Hell Under but then again it would be fun to see how a gentle giant handles himself amongst poisonous snakes.

The other Roadies wanna be players are insignificant in my mind since they have not done much to get my attention. And for those who want to read up more on them there is stuff about them on the main site but it would do them good to get a bit more in the limelight because the audience doesn't care much for wall flowers no matter how pretty (yeah like Suzanne with her hooked nose) may be.

The behind the scene peek was also fun to watch and Ragu's departure was indeed a loss to the show but these people are weird enough to keep us entertained in Hell Down And Under for an entire season.

Racist Web Game Muslim Massacre Taken Down By Developer

Aaman Lamba — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 05:38:07 EDT

The limits of free speech are tested more sorely on the Internet. While protecting the space where wrongs can be criticized freely, and truth can be spoken to power is essential, there are obvious limits to what is appropriate and what needs to be held to account.

Freelance developer Sigvatr found this out the hard way when he released an online game Muslim Massacre in which the protagonist is an "American hero" who lands in the Middle East with the mission of 'wiping out the entire Muslim race', training his guns on Muslim civilians and terrorists, "the Muslim leader Osama bin Laden, their radical cult leader Muhammad and finally Allah" . He went on to defend his actions, saying,

"Ultimately it's just a game where you blow the gently caress out of Arabs...I don't even know how to interpret it myself any more. The bottom line is that I enjoyed making it and it's fun to play.

The Muslims represented in the game aren't meant to be based on actual Muslims. If I was to try and come up with a meaning for the game at this moment, it would probably be something along the lines of metaphorically destroying the stereotypical depiction of a Muslim.

The initial reaction of gamers ranged from "love the audio" and "can you fix the spawn points" to "why would you do this?". Other quarters were less forgiving, calling for the game to be taken down. The developer finally took the game down and cleared the website, posting an apology.

I would like to make a public apology for any offense that I might have caused through releasing this game, and to Muslims in particular. My intentions when releasing this project were to mock the foreign policy of the United States and the commonly held belief in the United States that Muslims are a hostile people to be held with suspicion. I would like to make it clear that I have never shared such a belief and my intention was to mock those who actually do believe these things.

It quickly became obvious to me that releasing this game did not achieve its intended effect and instead only caused hurt to hospitable, innocent people. I believe removing this game and website will do much more to attain my desired effect than leaving it on the internet, so I am doing just that.

I would like to ask for the forgiveness of Muslims around the world and to make it clear that I did not release this game with ill intent. So without further ado, I would like to say that I am truly apologetic for what I have done and will take full responsibility for all offense that has been caused. I can only hope that any further misgivings can be laid to rest.

While there can be no doubt as to the offensive nature of the game, and self-censorship was the right step in this case, it is likely there will be renewed calls for blanket censorship on games and the like, a policy which is difficult to enforce, and which prefers to err on the side of caution, and thereby limiting potentially important creative efforts.

Genocidal Indigenous Forces: Teaching Kids War Games

Harold Bergsma — Fri, 8 Aug 2008 03:28:30 EDT

Kids love it! They get to ride in Humvees or Black Hawk Helicopters and hold weapons and shoot at the evil ones, the genocidal indigenous forces. The American soldiers and uniforms are real but the enemy they shoot at is sort of vague, but they are the genocidal forces that will kill you unless you kill them. Terrorists!

Joseph De Avila’s article, War Games: Army Lures Civilians by Letting them Play Soldier (The Wall Street Journal, July 28th, 2008) describes the new war games that the army has developed as a recruitment device. They present a new way “…to relate to the public, they also present an opportunity to shape their tastes,” says Col Casey Wardynski from West Point. Some $9 million have been spent to develop these war games as recruitment devices. And, they are realistic. When you shoot the bad guys they fall down dead. Try not to hit the friendlies; that’s a no, no. How exciting to shoot at the ‘genocidal indigenous forces.”

In the Old Testament it says, “Train a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” (Prov.22.6) They knew their stuff back then, long before Christ, even if they didn’t have military psychologists to tell them how to motivate youngsters. Somehow, what you learn as a kid, particularly about modeling adult behavior, seems to have some effect on them in later years. Amazing. The US Army sure got it right. The way to get young people to enlist as soldiers is to make them feel it, put a gun in their hands and go bang, bang. That’s powerful stuff. A bit violent, perhaps, but hardly any different from what the kids watch on T V. Oh, I almost forgot, soldiers are trained to kill the enemy.

Of course teenagers also play the Army game and if they are over seventeen, they soon get a call from recruiters with ideas about incentive packages and the like, and it seems to work. You see, the terrorists are out there, but you can’t really see them. Sure there was 911, but even Bush got it wrong, where the terrorists came from, but look, if they are ‘genocidal indigenous forces’ that are radical and insurgent, go for it. The war on terror is frustrating because the enemy doesn’t play fair, doesn’t show his head, just sneaks in and explodes a bomb or two and kills a bunch of innocent people and then later in the press, some strange group takes happy credit for it. The “genocidal indigenous group” called the faithful warriors of the almighty was responsible for the latest killings. Sound familiar? It happened in India not too long ago, bomb blasts, and revenge killings for past killing of the ‘faithful’. The old Pathan ethic, the pushtunwali, still is very much alive, revenge, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. But the problem with bomb blasts and suicidal killing of others is that so many innocent die or are maimed.

The US Army recruitment efforts, targeting kids and young people to enlist, is not a new idea. One of the earliest schemes to use children to foster the state’s programs occurred in 1948. The Stalinist apparatchiks established a children’s train and recruited hundreds of children to run a train with the intent of creating a cadre of enthusiastic rail workers for the state, and to “instill political obedience in youth.” By the way that same train system has been modernized and is back in service in Hungary and, yes, the kids run it. To be admitted to this training program requires high admission standards but the pay is great, and the added bonus, they get a good dose of “old style discipline.” See Daniel Michaels’ article, ‘Is this any Way to Run a Railroad, In Hungary, They Put Kids to Work.” (The Wall Street Journal, Aug. 8, 2008.)

But wait, it is not only the western world that is targeting kids with subtle messages to gain their support. Have you heard about Islamic Superheroes who battle injustice in America? The new series is called The 99 and is a whole series of comic books which feature hero characters that each; personify the 99 qualities that the Koran attributes to God. Interestingly enough, the comic book series is doing well in the Islamic world after the creator of the series, Naif Al-Mutuwa guaranteed that great respect would be given to Islamic religious beliefs, which resulted in a major Islamic bank supporting his project. Imagine, “Jabbar the Powerful” or “Noora the Light” fighting the, now get this, the evil indigenous forces of evil in America. An illuminating review of this by Camille Agon, called Islamic Superheroes Going Global was reported in Time on 8/7/2008.

Yes, bring them up in the way they should go and when they become adults they will not depart from it. Ancient wisdom is being applied in modern situations by many different groups, and the system works.

I wonder how youth are trained and motivated to support and even become Taliban, Al Qaeda? War games in which vague figures are dressed like Americans which can be shot at in video games? Hardly, no. Madrassas are sometimes the answer! The difference is dramatic. In the American War Games, they shape their tastes: the youth sit in a Black Hawk Helicopter, safe and secure and kill genocidal insurgent militant forces from a distance and don’t even see the blood and guts, just hear the roar and the thunder of the explosions. How different from the youths, say from the NWFP of Pakistan, whose religious beliefs are so honed that they will put explosives on their own bodies; beautiful young men and women, and blow themselves up for the sake of the Cause. That is real commitment based on very strong faith and belief that the rewards in the next life will be great and eternal. With US Army war games, they “shape their tastes” now for active recruitment: for the faithful, religious training could lead to personal suicide shaping their eternity in the great bye and bye based on a combined set of motivators, hate for the infidel Zionists and a passionate love for Paradise.

The beauty of the American system is that it is supported NOW, not by eternity, now, with lots of high tech killing machines and lots of computers that make striking the target an almost certainty with a feeling of anonymity as the trigger is pulled. Training, simulated killing of the enemy, the evil ones and that is sort of fun; and you even get to keep score while you are at it. Play soldier. What a strange concept. There is nothing playful about killing another human being, whoever she is. Certainly, for the suicide bomber, play does not enter the picture, nor is there anonymity involved, it is highly personal and by pulling the trigger the ‘game’ is over. It is not a game but a choice for death based on a belief in life everlasting with a knowledge that as you die you take a hundred of the enemy with you, you know the accursed American infidels who are in Afghanistan and Iraq. Madrassas may get a bad rap because a few of them do train youngsters to do violence for a greater cause and even teach them how to handle weapons and explosives. The US Army should get a bad rap for developing a recruitment tool that is insidiously and philosophically awful; motivating young people to become killers with a game. But, oh well, as long as it is for a good cause, you know, obliterating ‘them-thar’ genocidal indigenous forces. We all know who those guys are, right?

We have a generation of youth whose ‘tastes have been shaped’ by violence on television, daily doses of it. Even as a pre-school youth, long before television was invented, I remember running around playing cops and robbers, cowboys and Indians, a toy gun in my hand going bang-bang, you’re an Indian and you are dead. I had no idea who Indians were, nor even where the Punjab was located. Later it was water pistols and now I see they have graduated to guns that shoot blobs of dye so that you can record a ‘kill’ with colorful evidence. Yes, mea culpa. I loved guns. I was an excellent marksman and a pretty good shikar and shot many helpless critters in India, Nepal, Africa and America. Jim Corbett was my idol. Yes, my tastes were shaped, and I think the war games will be effective recruitment tools for the Army since many American youths have a taste already established. Is that called appetite? Yes I think the Islamic Superheroes comic books will be a big success and create the zeal for justice that the authors’ seek.

My huge problem now is that I no longer believe that the world’s problems can be solved by violence and by killing each other. In Luke 3 vs.14 it says, “Do violence to no man.” I must have missed that verse earlier on in my youth. Strange, how selective our perception is based on age, taste, experience and belief. Consider this; “Not one blow, O Madhusudan! will I strike to gain the rule of all Three Worlds; then, how much less to seize an earthly kingdom! Killing these must breed but anguish, Krishna!” Out of context, assuredly, but not out of mind.

We maintain the right to bear arms in America, and this is a deeply held liberty based on the 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Most American homes have a gun or two. I checked on this and came up with the figure of 215 million guns in homes in 1999 and that since that time about 60 million more have been added. (You see, there are many gun collectors who have many guns.) Imagine a country with 250 million guns in the hands of its citizens. Yes, I can see that the U S army has developed a recruitment winner with its new war games, especially since they have connected shooting and killing with patriotism and getting the bad guys, the evil genocidal indigenous forces that live over there somewhere and speak weird languages and scribble stuff from right to left and set the price of gas way too high. Let them play soldier. A satirical cartoon would be redundant in an atmosphere in which comic book cartoon superheroes bespeak the reality of international nuclear control, not mere guns.

Travel Review: Bangalore's Innovative Film City

Anuradha Goyal — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 00:11:55 EDT

If you have enough money in your pocket, all the wonders and attractions in the world will walk up to you and park themselves near you, so that you can visit them as and when you want, without having to go around the world and hop cities. The Innovative Film City is one such ambitious project that brings a lot of world attractions to India. It is a place that is aiming to be one stop shop for all forms of modern day entertainment.

The Innovative Film City is located about 40 kms from Bangalore on Mysore road, a good strategic location as it will be accessible from both Bangalore and Mysore. The whole city is said to be spread over 58 acres, but to me it looks slightly larger than that. The place is still under construction but was opened formally in April, 2008. There are few attractions and amusements which are operational, some are in the process of coming up and some are planned to come.

The Film City is planned to provide 360 degree solutions for entertainment, both for the customers of entertainment industry and the industry itself. Its website says three major planned sections of entertainment. The first is Innovative Attractions which covers amusements, attractions, museums and entertainment. The second is Innovative Style which covers shopping, dining, leisure & lifestyle. The third is Innovative Studio which would have an academy, studio and facilities for film shooting and production.

Of the attractions, most are ready or almost ready. There are museums like Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum, Ripley’s Believe it or Not! Museum, Guinness Book of World Records and Jurassic Fossil museum. There are attractions like Dinosaur world, miniature city, Snow Park, mock sets, cartoon city, haunted mansion. In Amusements, they have Funplex where you can play many video and high end games and also see a 4-D movie. Then there is go-karting, mirror maze, mini golf, aqua kingdom where you can go and play around for some time. There are two amphitheaters - one an open one with a seating capacity of more than 5000 people and another for children. A 21 screen multiplex is planned too. The other two segments Style and Studio are yet to come up.

The facade of the city gives a magnificent look. As you take a turn from the road, and enter the city it makes you feel as if you are entering something majestic. As you go inside, at this point in time you see a lot of construction going on, but you can also see that something world class is being built, both in terms of attractions and the way the facility is being managed. There are a lot of employees spread across the length and breadth of the city who keep guiding you towards various places, though there are well printed maps and guides that they hand you over with the tickets. The facility is very well maintained even though half of it is still under construction. There is a food court where you get various cuisines at reasonable prices, and there are Cafe Coffee Day outlets for your caffeine and snacking needs. Drinking water is available at various places.

Entry to the city is priced at Rs 50/- per person and each attraction comes at an additional cost which ranges from Rs 50/- to Rs 200/- . You can plan for Rs 800-1000 per person for a day to visit to the film city, and I am sure you can see only a part of it in a day. Once it is complete, it looks like there will be many things that will keep bringing people back to the film city, especially the huge and well designed amphitheater. I think this is going to become a major destination for the future shows in the city. Parking is outside the film city on the road at the moment, I am not sure if a proper parking area is planned, but I hope there is one, otherwise that may become a bottleneck very soon. Probably they may also want to come up with differential pricing for people who might not be able to afford the current or the future pricing. Maybe something like happy hours on weekdays…

Overall, this is a good project that brings something new and different to the city to keep it engaged. I usually do not like visiting artificial places but I would still say that it is definitely worth one visit, post which you can take a call if you want to visit it again.

Book Review: Quondam by Jayel Gibson

Deepti Lamba — Mon, 2 Jun 2008 02:10:02 EDT

Avid video gamers tend to gravitate towards story lines that are action packed, are believable or as such bring strong magical realism to the games. Movies based on games such as Lara Croft, Resident Evil etc have been box office hits. The influence of video gaming has not only heavily influenced contemporary literature especially in the Scifi and Magic genres but have also reflected the strong feminist presence in modern times.

Take for example Jayel Gibson's book, Quondam which happens to be the last of the four part The Ancient Mirror Series. It has strong female characters. The main character Cwen finds herself falling through a portal to a world devastated by the cruelty of a nymph of the woods who is cursed to live in the flesh and becomes a cruel queen driven to destroy magic and extends her rule over mankind and only through Cwen can the world be saved. A lot rides on her shoulders and the other female characters in the novel are as strong in Cwen in spirit and in magic.

The feminist tone in the book is as strong as it is in the gaming world where the women fight shoulder to shoulder with their male warriors. And like the characters in video games the women in Jayel Gibson's book are beautiful, feminine and yet burn with fierce inner spirit.

What makes this book a novelty is that Jayel Gibson is herself a gamer and believes that video gaming is actually good for people. And her books prove her opinion as the characters are complex, their missions difficult and the storyline is action packed. The books are immersing and deal with human frailties as well which not only hooks the readers but also lend the story lines credibility for in the end its not only about good winning over evil but about the indomitable human spirit - a concept that many games are based on where one continues to try and overcome hurdles and conquer missions despite repeated failures.

Jayel Gibson's novels are well written, refreshing and are light reads. For more information on the books visit: Wix.com

Laser Questing

Blokesablogin — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 12:47:56 EST

I was all set to take the boys to yet another birthday party. My friend, the mother of the birthday kid, suggested if I would like to go Laser questing too. I said, "What is the harm in checking out what goes on behind those closed doors?" I had no clue what awaited me behind those doors.

We were taken into an antechamber that was totally dark except for some strange lighting that picked out our teeth and made it look like Dracula's and made our eyeballs become milky white. We looked totally weird. The only thing visible were strange doodlings in fluorescent colors and the eerie light that made us see the outlines of the other bodies in the room. We were taught the basic rules of no touching each other and no covering our epaulets and chest and back "strike" zones.

We were led to a hallway where we picked up our gear- a heavy laser jacket that had the "strike" zones on it surrounded by flashing lights and a laser "gun" just as you would see in Star Wars, only there was no "shhhh" sound coming and neither was a steady light band. Thin red streaks of light emitted from these guns when the trigger was compressed that could "strike" the jackets of the other players in the game room.

The trick was to strike others as many times as you can while protecting yourself from getting hit. The game room was a labyrinth of passageways, hideouts, corners, wire meshes, stairs, corridors and outposts. When you get hit, your laser ceases to work for 5 seconds and all your lights on your jackets goes off. You become invisible to get back on.

It was easy to make out the "pros" from the amateurs. They had clear strategies that ensured a high score. Every hit won 10 points and if you get hit, you lose points. My 7 year old was so innocent, his score was in the negative! It was interesting to observe sweet children becoming obsessed about winning at all costs- ganging up on some as a group and striking, covering their strike zones on their jackets.

Within 5 minutes, I could see my brain function from a sense of preservation. When I was outside, it was calm and serene. Inside, it was like, where can I hide so that I will not get hit and which will be the right "ambush" point to take a strike at others without being noticed.

There are many fans of this game and I saw a championship advertised for the veterans at the entrance. There are local awards and points for the highest strikers. Within 15 minutes (duration of one game) I had a score of 230 while the top scorer had 900 plus points in the same game.

It was an extremely illuminating experience but it also set me wondering if I would like my child at such a young age to learn to win at any cost. I am sure, this could be an interesting psychological study.

PS: While looking up Amazon for books on this subject, I was amazed at how the virtual reality of video games has reinvented our vision of this world. The best joke is, that it is now a myth within a myth, if the Maya (illusory) concept of the world is to be believed!!