Posted by We’re back with our “thinking about thinking” series! If you’re interested in our previous deep thoughts, check out the Metacognition series. Join us for some deep thoughts (and maybe the occasional not-so-deep thought) about gaming. If you find one you’d like to answer, you can either comment below or write a post and share the link so we can all read your fantastic thoughts!
What is one upcoming gaming/blogging project, and what inspired you?
Dragon Age Month, and because I am a BioWare fangirl and it only seems fair after all the Mass Effect stuff I post.
Boom.
No, no, I’m kidding. I mean, I’m not. That is a thing that’s happening, but honestly my inspiration is that the Dragon Age universe does handle a lot of thought-provoking topics that I’d like to talk about. Additionally, I would like to revisit my review for Dragon Age II, and also try my hand at writing a fair review of Dragon Age: Origins, just to prove to myself I can totally be objective about that game when I want to.
What I’m looking forward to the most is comparing and contrasting Mass Effect to Dragon Age, as I thought Mass Effect was fascinating before falling in love with it, and fell in love with Dragon Age before being fascinated by it. So, I suppose I am most excited for running a little experiment on myself, and taking you all along for the ride.
What gaming/blogging projects do you have planned? How to you fall in love with a game first: with your heart, or with your brain? Does it vary between games? Can someone be mindfully objective about a game that he/she loves? Let me know in the comments!
Thanks for stopping by, and I’ll see you soon!
~Athena
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My gaming projects tend to also be my blogging projects, as I’ve found that is the way I tend to enjoy the hobby as a whole the most these days. Which is fine by me! It encourages me to play things through to completion rather than take a “scattershot” approach and never finish anything. I’ve finished more games in the last few years than I ever did throughout the rest of my life, I think…
As for specifics, well, having finished with Atelier Arland this month, I’m going to do 428: Shibuya Scramble on PS4 next, then probably a Suda51 feature, including his older adventure games, No More Heroes and the recent Travis Strikes Again. Also this year I’m planning to look at some or all of the following: Mary Skelter Nightmares, Death End Re;Quest, Unlimited SaGa, maybe some more Atelier, Punch Line, Song of Memories, The Eden of Grisaia and a million and one other things I’ve got lined up just waiting for me to start… One at a time… one at a time…
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I like that idea of just sticking with a blogging theme that matches whatever game you’re playing. And I’m glad you’re finding more enjoyment in that! I’m not sure I’ve ever really been able to master playing more than one game at a time; I usually wind up tending toward one or another and then finishing them one by one anyway. I can see how playing in bits and pieces would diminish enjoyment…
That’s quite a list! You and I should compare “to play” lists sometime haha. But you’re right. One at a time. The year is still young!
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“What I’m looking forward to the most is comparing and contrasting Mass Effect to Dragon Age, as I thought Mass Effect was fascinating before falling in love with it, and fell in love with Dragon Age before being fascinated by it.”
I find that statement really interesting because I felt the exact opposite way. I was head-over-heels in love with ME1 by the time the second cut scene was over – it just pushed all the right buttons. That affection only deepened over the course of the game and, by the end, when the credits song played (‘M4 Part II’ by Faunts – cracking song), I knew I’d just played the best game ever.
In terms of projects, my blog *is* my project (as it were), since I’ve only just put it up and it doesn’t have a single serious article yet. I have two things I’m working on, one of which is a long form critique of Mass Effect 2 but I still don’t know how to structure it. I sometimes think it would be best to separate my essays by topic and, other times, I think I should take a reaction-style chronological approach. At the moment, I’m veering towards the former and have a piece on the Genophage (and the krogans) half-written.
I think that one *can* be objective about beloved games, since I’ve interrogated some of the stuff in ME1 and found it wanting but it doesn’t hurt to say “I may be being too harsh here” or “not harsh enough” depending on one’s personal preferences.
I’m looking forward to your DA:O revisit.
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Interesting! It’s fun to see how fans relate to the Mass Effect and Dragon Age games, and I wonder if the series one plays first is the one they love “first,” if that makes sense.
Blogging is a project by itself, for sure. I have a few very long posts here, and there are times I look back and wish, for the sake of the blogging format, that I had broken them into smaller chunks. it’s something I still am trying to find a balance for, as well. I’d be interested to read your thoughts on the Genophage!!
Ah, I’m glad you think objectivity can even be had with favorite games. I suppose we’ll see, for me. It’ll be a good challenge, either way! 🙂
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