Bitmob.com

The Bitmob Mailbag is back and ready for your questions. If you want to be a part of the fun, submit a query to Letters@Bitmob.com subject: “Mailbag” and you just might get your question answered. There’s even a small chance it will be answered correctly! 

Hey Bitmob,

I thought you guys might get a kick out of the Castle Crashers animal orb coasters my girlfriend and I made. Check 'em out:

Pictures of the individual coasters are located here.

Thanks!
 - Alex

Aaron: I played about ten minutes of Castle Crashers and thought it was pretty dumb. However, I don’t find those coasters to be dumb at all -- they’re really cool! I think I like the angry-looking Cardinal the best, but the Troll is pretty awesome as well. Thanks for sharing, Alex!

4

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody:

Editor's note: Brian's choices in this second edition of the Ultimate JRPG Buyers' Guide for RPG Haters show that Japanse role-playing games are more than just grindy dungeon crawls. Never judge a genre by its stereotype. -Jason

One day isn't a long time, so unless you're one of my robot employees, you probably haven't had the chance to complete any of the JRPGs I suggested in the first portion of my Ultimate JRPG Buyers' Guide For RPG Haters. Even if you were able to devote a few hours of your day to Super Mario RPG, Mother 3, or Terranigma, perhaps you weren't as enthralled by those titles as I was.

Fortunately for those of you I've failed, I'm here with another round of unique JRPGs that may temporarily distract you from the antics of Marcus Fenix and Dom.

6

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody:

Editor's Note: I personally get a lot of enjoyment out of glitches in games, so long as they don't impede my progress. I've also been known to take advantage of bugs, but only in a single-player environment. Cameron makes a good point here -- sometimes bugs are just fun. - Jay

Most gamers and programmers see bugs as flaws that should never be present in a finished game. At best, we see them as breaking immersion -- taking the player out of the experience, even if only for a moment. At worst, they can completely sabotage the gaming experience by causing crashes or otherwise impeding progress. However, game developers are somewhat unique in their drive to eradicate all accidents from their work. It's time for that to change. Developers need to learn what artists and craftspeople have long known: mistakes can turn out to be an integral part of a finished work.

This is a subject I've wanted to write about for a while, and episode 45 of the Mobcast finally pushed me to do so. About an hour into the episode, during a discussion of the differences between Japanese and western developers, Mark MacDonald explains that Japanese developers typically put a far higher premium on fixing every programming glitch. As an example, he points out that no Japanese studio would ever let a game as buggy as Fallout 3 out the door. I say, "so much the worse for Japanese developers." Fallout 3 is one of the best arguments for why developers need to cultivate a sense of when to own their bugs rather than rushing to patch them.

12

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody:

Editor's note: Let's hear it for -- no, let's drink to -- timeliness! -Demian

Saint Patrick's Day is a holiday that calls for debauchery. Whether it be car bombs, drinking until you can’t feel feelings, or getting into rowdy ruckuses with guys who wear way too much green, the Irish stereotype calls for much celebration. While too much celebration may give the law a reason to lock you in the hold, there’s certainly no reason not to imbibe a bit of the spirit and allow these Irish video game characters to help you tip your hat to the holiday (c'mon, you try and make that segue):

Atlas (Bioshock)

I hope I don’t have to throw a spoiler warning on a game that came out almost three years ago, but, if for some reason you haven’t played it yet, go ahead and skip over this character, as it involves a pretty huge spoiler for the game.

3

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody:

If only there was a way to print those digital Final Fantasy 13 pictures, then you could make your own physical art book for under 10 bucks! 

News Blips:

Square Enix releases the Final Fantasy 13 Larger-Than-Life Gallery, a digital art book, for the iPhone/iPod touch. The app features high-resolution images of the FF13 world, a clock and calendar function, and costs $8.99. I'm left a bit confused how something on the pocket-sized iPhone could be considered "larger than life" -- whose life? 

0

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody:

I'm a little late on this month's top 10, but thanks to Andrew Hiscock (himself a familiar face in the top 10), I now have the 10 most-read community submissions from the month of February.

Did you make the cut? There's only one way to find out!

10) The Not-So-Secret History of Video Game Peripherals -- Jeffrey Michael Grubb   

9) Breaking Mafia Wars: Casual Gaming Meets Hardcore Gamer -- Sam
Bardelson        

8) BioShock 2 Review PS3 -- Michael Wenzel         

7)  Five Time Wasters That Are Worse Than Playing Video Games -- Brian Shirk      

6) Dudebro II: The Birth of a Meme and How NeoGAF Began Its First Video Game -- Andrew Hiscock    

Hit the jump for the rest of the top 10

18

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody:

If I ever apply for a game-design job, I wonder if I could put WarioWare D.I.Y. down on my resume.

Video Blips:

• This tutorial in making your own microgames is giving me all sorts of Mario Paint flashbacks. Based off of Lesson 2, though, I think that this would all be a little too much for eight-year-old me. [GameVideos]

Continue after the break for the Dragon Age: Origins -- Awakening and God of War 3 launch trailers. Plus, a Battlefield: Bad Company 2 spoof on a controversial Modern Warfare 2 ad.

0

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody:

Editor's note: We all have a different spin on it, but it seems like most people tend to game for escapism or empowerment. Is that good? You know what, I'm going to think about that more after I play some SteamBirds.... -Demian

Bitmob is a unique place. I know that isn’t really a special statement or even something that hasn’t been said before, but it's true. We have a number of different people from multiple locales all working towards a common goal: intelligent discussion about the entertainment and technology that we all love.

Because of our differences, we're in a position to learn about and explore those cultures, viewpoints, and backgrounds that we may not be familiar with.

We’re all here because we love to play video games and discuss the culture surrounding them. But the question this edition of Mob Rule seeks to answer is: “Why did we fall in love with gaming in the first place?”

So without any further fluffing on my part, here are the answers your fellow community members came up with:

Andrew J. Hiscock says: I play video games because I need something I can control. Few things in life provide the rules, the constraints, and the agency a video game does. You have distinct tasks, and the ability to perform them. I love achievements, beating games, and side quests, because these are minor goals that I complete with relative ease. Conversly, I don't control my job, my household, or much of what I do in my day-to-day routine. Not that I'm complaining -- most of the time I'm happy to be along for the ride.

But video games provide a balance for me. For a small portion of each day, I am at the helm and in full control. In the grand scheme of things video games are unimportant, sure, but even if the rewards are illusionary, they are nonetheless rewarding. The feedback loop in games is great enough that I can always rely on it, even if I never get that in real life most of the time. 

9

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody:

I’m not always playing, writing about, or reading about video games. On occasion, I leave my house and go out where that “sun” thing is. But lately, I’ve found that being out of the house isn’t enough to get away from games. It seems like no matter where I go, the ever-expanding influence of video games is present. Sure, I sound crazy now, but have a look at some of the weird stuff I’ve encountered lately!

I was in Oakland (aka: minus world) and ran into this question block beneath an overpass. The mushroom that popped out didn’t make me any bigger, but I did see a bunch of giant flying turtles after I ate it....

Hit the jump for more.

6

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody:

The only thing missing in Metro 2033's bleak landscape is Morpheus from The Matrix spouting quips about pills and deserts.

Video Blips:

• The launch trailer for Metro 2033 reminds us that a post-apocalyptic dystopia can still be endlessly fun. Gee, it looks like I'll still have to kill rats in a sewer -- but in Russia. [GameTrailers]

Continue after the break for some serious shredding in Power Gig, the high-octane hijinks of Need for Speed: World, and a most interesting meeting in 3D Dot Game Heroes.

0

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody:

Editor's note: Michael has got some fun and helpful guidance for those you looking to become better game-advocate emissaries. My advice? Do read this article. -James

You love games. They’re a part of your identity -- a part of your personality. You grew up stomping turtles, throwing fireballs, and toppling mad scientists. Now, you’re an adult -- or soon to be one. It’s time to be a responsible and productive member of society.

Thankfully, that doesn’t mean giving up who you are. It was OK to be a gamer growing up, and it’s OK to be one now. Regardless of the fact that video games are now more socially acceptable and prevalent in our society than ever before, we have a right to express our love of games in public. We don’t have to hide who we are.

Gamer Style

Do feel free to wear game-related t-shirts in public. Your attire should always be an expression of who you are, so wear what feels natural. The trick is to remain appropriate and presentable. Wear clean, wrinkle-free, tasteful shirts. Simple designs and abstract game imagery generally work best, though you can’t go wrong with retro shirts. Best of all, they act as great conversation starters!

As a side note, it may be a good idea to invest in some quality slacks and a blazer that complements your shirt selection. I’m no fashionista, and you don’t have to be either. But being able to break free of the “t-shirt and jeans” look will diversify your style and make your apparel suitable for all but the most formal occasions.

Don’t wear greasy, dirty, or faded game shirts in public. Save those for hot days at home or for house painting. You want to take pride in your appearance no matter your personal style, and that old Metal Gear Solid pre-order shirt just isn’t going to look flattering. In fact, game shirts with massive logos often look gaudy, so avoid them altogether if you can.

27

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody:

Pixels are squares. Lots of other things are squares, too. Nerds around the world delight in arranging all sorts of quadrilateral objects to form their favorite 8-bit characters. But have you ever seen this accomplished with bread? Well, that needs to change [via Epic Win FTW]:

0

Tweet

Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell everybody: