Mission Statement

Here's a really good article from Cracked.com, it'll give you an idea of what I'm fighting against.

At its most absurdly ambitious, Double Jump aims to change the way people think about videogames.

Like movies before them, games are in a transition phase, especially lately. Technology has made it possible to express a lot more than before. I know that the vast majority of games can't really be considered "art", whatever that even means. But there are some.

Shadow of the Colossus completely changed the way I look at games. I was so affected by that game that I was trembling during the last portion of it. I've never had a movie or TV show do that to me. SotC is a perfect example of how games are different than anything else.

This is the minority, I absolutely understand this.

David Wong's article brings up a really good argument, that gamers are partly to blame for the state of gaming today. As gamers, we have a lot of built-in expectations for games, and get upset when a game doesn't conform to them. We have to get rid of, or change, our expectations if we want gaming to move forward. That's what I want Double Jump to do, on however small a scale as it could.

I love videogames, and not just because they're fun. Shadow of the Colossus gave me a glimpse of what the future of games could be, and it single-handedly brought me back into gaming after a years-long hiatus. I'm really serious about this, as you can tell. If you haven't played this game, if they rerelease it for PS3, that would be a perfect chance to experience it. I could write a book on why I love that game.

Double Jump is a fun show to make (hopefully that makes it fun to watch). But I take gaming as a medium very seriously and I really want to use the show to explore gaming in a way most other shows don't. This blog is a chance for the discussion to expand beyond the show. I hope a lot of people watch the show and relate to its mission, then come to the blog to contribute to the conversation. With how I look at games, I can't be alone.

More Double Jump Info

If you want to get in contact with me, Dan Hartley, I will provide some very necessary information below:

Twitter:

LCCTVDoubleJump - the official Double Jump twitter

AnonymousDonor - My personal twitter account

I'm just getting these twitter accounts started so bear with me while I learn your strange ways of communicating.

Email:

DoubleJumpTV@gmail.com - Have any cool ideas that we could do on the show? Let me know!

Website:

http://edge/tv/shows/doublejump/index.aspx

That is the official Double Jump LCC-TV page. From there you'll soon be able to watch the show on demand instead of moving your whole schedule around to watch it on Comcast. Also any other awesome videos from LCC-TV.

Are these games on drugs or something?

Now, I don't endorse the use of drugs, I need to be absolutely clear. That being said...

Have you seen Rez?

Holy wow. Was that game on drugs or something?

Actually it's based on the work of Russion painter Wassily Kandinsky. His paintings were trying to express the idea that music has color and shape. This was how he claimed to experience music, so he probably had a form of synesthesia. Synesthesia is where the senses are cross-wired in the brain. So what happens is a person could "see" music or "taste" color.

Rez is the fullest realization of that idea. On a side note, some psychedelic drugs have been known to cause temporary synesthesia. So... you know.

So is this game on drugs? Um...kinda?

You've seen Katamari Damacy, I'm sure.

This game was the result of a thesis project at the Namco Digital Hollywood Game Laboratory.

So is this game on drugs? Um, sorry, no.

The creator was Keita Takahashi, and what he really wants to do is design playground equipment. Which makes sense considering:

What is the what? What the heck is that? Answer: Noby Noby Boy. Again, designed by Keita Takahashi.

"That doesn't even look like a game!" you say. "That would be correct," I say. It's not really a game, it's more of a virtual playground. It's for those times when you're at a real playground and wishing, intensely, that you could stretch yourself into a giant technicolor worm and swallow passers-by.

So is this game on drugs? Uh, YES! (not based on any factual evidence, but I mean just look at it) Actually, it's from Japan, so they probably think it's really generic and boring or something.

I know there are many more out there, so what say you?

Double Jump Info!

OMG OMG

Double Jump Info time!

We will be debuting the show on May 24th. Check out www.lcc.edu/tv for more updates.

If you want a sneak peak, LCC-TVs Facebook page has a little preview of the first episode. Click Here for that. Be sure to become of fan of that page for the most bleeding edge updates.

Also, here's a little promo of the show. I've been told that it's very "Dan Hartley". Meaning my "acting" in the promo isn't much of a stretch for me.

STAY TUNED!

Things all games should have

As my inaugural post on this, the Double Jump Blog, I will share things I believe all videogames should have (feel free to contribute to this list in the comments section):

1. The ability to change difficulty at any point in the game.

I hate it when I choose a difficulty that starts out fine, but by the end of the game it's so difficult that I start hating it. I don't want to hate a game by the time I finish it.

2. Chapter Selection

CDs and DVDs can do this, why not videogames? If someone wants to jump to the end and ruin it for themselves that's their problem. This also stems from the fact that capturing footage for the show is much easier when I can jump to any point in it.

3. Limited tutorials, or skippable ones

Playing a game multiple times makes the tutorials a total drag.

4. Skippable cutscenes

This just goes without saying...

5. New Game Plus

Having the ability to start a game over with all your gear and abilities intact is a good way to get you to play the game again right away. Sometimes I want to start a game over again, but the idea of having to start from zero is a little off-putting. Being able to blast away the weakest enemies with the biggest guns is always welcome (just please scale up the difficulty to keep it from becoming boring).

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Now what do you guys think? I want this blog to be a forum for discussion since it's a lot easier than doing that with a pre-recorded TV show.

COMMENCE!