Another dream
Ever wake up from a dream and feel like you were given some key life-relevant information? And of course accompanied by the knowledge that you will never remember it? A few nights ago when I woke up I felt like there was some girl in my dream that just seemed right. I don't remember what she looked like, a name, personality, anything. It was a strange feeling though. But then I don't really go for the "meant to be"/fate stuff, so it was probably just some cute girl I saw at a restaurant or something. Oh Well...

So in this same dream I was at some kind of pool party, and I remember I was defending a girl friend who somehow pissed off 4 or 5 other girls. We often joke about how we would handle fighting a female: "I could never hit a girl", "I'd just dodge and block", "I'd beat the shiet outta her like it was the THANG to DO!" Anyways, in the process of defending my friend I did some punching and kicking sans gender bias. Needless to say, they got dealt with. So that's that. Moral: Bangs wins, even against girls.

I forgot to mention it earlier, but along with fire and clouds, dreams are deeply interest-grabbing. Where do our brains come up with this stuff? And all the dream/reality talk courtesy Steve over Thanksgiving weekend doesn't hurt. You never really know if you're awake or asleep, or which is which. Years ago I came up with one theory on dreams and life. Maybe our dreams are the true reality, and we just need to learn to control them. I have heard people say they have complete control over what they dream about (lucky fux). It's like The Matrix... you only utilize your power after you realize and believe you have it. Then, when we die in "real life", we live on in a seemingly endless final dream, which is in fact our reality. How much we like this eternity depends on how well we developed our dream-control. This could be linked to overcoming personal fears and inhibitions. We all have secret fantasies that we would never carry out in real life. But have you ever had the opportunity to do one of these things in a dream, but held back because you thought it was all real? When you realize you can do whatever you want, then you're free to truly be yourself. As far as the "seemingly endless final dream"... I've heard that when you die, your brain stays active for a brief moment after the body is done. Well, the time that passes in your dreams never quite matches up with the time it turns out you were asleep. So maybe that final activity in your brain is effectively an eternal dream. Maybe someday we'll find out.

The fun of games
Okay... Dr. Mario 4-way competition was a fiasco, but also an important lesson learned: Tetris Attack is still the only true skill puzzle game. Heheh just kidding Mrs. H... you dominated, and deserved it. But we shall return, with renewed vigor and determination. >=]

This brings me to my recent thoughts on what is, for me, at the root of fun and enjoyment in games and entertainment in general. It's the ideas and innovation, not the flashy showy enhancements. Examples follow...

Old Atari and NES games
These are examples of games made by ideas. When there was little video game history to reference, everything had to be from scratch. And the point of it all was to make it fun. I still think the classic Atari games are fun. Sure, there's a tremendous nostalgic bias, but the simple ideas were effective and straight to the point. Combat: Drive your tank around at super slow speed, hit the other guy's tank (ricochet shot if you're fancy), and what happens? A simple crash sound and he shoots around the screen and spins wildly. Raucous laughter ensues. What's more satisfying than that? No photo-realistic flame, particle system smoke effects, or digital surround cannon shell echoes needed. Just good simple fun. I can guarantee that if you had me play any modern game and then Combat, I will be having a much better time with the old 2600. If the game and controllers still work--argh that shiet is frustrating! Not the point.

Stuff since
I still seem to like 2D more than 3D. Something about it appeals more to me. The flat cartoony look... just seems so appropriate. But times have changed, oh yes. It seems like most games now (or the best/most popular ones) are just fancy 3D environments you walk around in. They're getting more and more realistic and fully interactive. I only saw a little bit of GTA2 (3? I donno), but the amount of player-environment interaction is amazing. There's a lot of potential there, but I'd rather be laughing than testing my punch or grab on every object in the room. Bottom line: there's too much emphasis on presentation, not enough on substance. Of course there are exceptions in the new generation of games... FightingMania is cool. I actually like this Konami huge-arcade-machine trend. They involve all new activities and challenges for video games. Play a guitar (and get called a Freak for it, no less), are you serious? Yes! Of course only fruitypies dance around on arrows. Hehehe...

SOCOM
Okay I've never played it, but obviously it's addictively appealing to several among us, superseding all other priorities scholastic and social. For too long I've seen these FPS games being regurgitated with IMPROVED GRAPHICS AND SOUND, NEW STAGES and NEW WEAPONS--and wondered how people think they're actually buying a new game. The game play is exactly the same, people. Okay I realize that I am likely unaware of one or two subtle differences, in which a true connoisseur would find delight and hard-earned-cash-value. AND, I am still the only one I know who owns 4 different Street Fighters for the SNES. Before you let the influence of video games send you out to the rifle shop (haha B3, there's a debate starter for you), this FPS-bashing is not the point of this paragraph. SOCOM... it has the fancy 3D graphics and shiet, but also introduces the element of real-time real-voice communication. That's a worthy innovation in my opinion. So even though I still won't be wasting my time playing it, I'll give it an ounce of respect.

Related movie example
I was watching Men In Black II the other day. Although the special effects are numerous and fairly impressive, and surely consumed many a man-work-hour, it was not at all what I liked about the movie. The only good parts to me were the quiet humorous moments, often between Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones. Switching seats in the car, or Will Smith bouncing off the big tubes. Unfortunately these moments were too uncommon for me to recommend the movie to anyone, but they were good when they showed up. This is why I like movies like Swingers and Made. They don't require a huge budget, flashy visuals, or any other fancy nonsense... the humor comes from the people--writers and actors--being funny themselves and putting good ideas on screen. All the effort goes into what matters most. Speaking of "Fav", have you guys seen his show... Dinner For Five or something... where he has dinner and discusses movies with actors and such. I saw it once, it was pretty interesting.

Related music example (well, somewhat... whatever)
Over T-weekend B3 and Steve said they like Dru Hill. They have a few good songs, but their style is a little off target if they want to be real R&B. By that I mean clear vocals, harmony, and smooth slow melodies. Some of the production is good, and I bet the Dru Hill guys have good voices, but (a) Sisqo gets too much of the spotlight, and (b) the rest of the guys' voices are mashed together like backup singers along with the rhythm tracks. I'd like to hear more harmony rather than everyone singing the same note loudly. So it's more a matter of vocal arrangement than vocal talent. This may be just because I've only heard the radio/video stuff, but I'd wager an overall comparison with Boyz II Men or Shai (which I'm listening to right now) would show you what I'm talking about.

Other games
Taboo... that was good old-fashioned wholesome family fun. That's why I love some "board games"... they let you joke around and compete all at once. Fun times indeed. On the other hand, there's "13" (we really need to start calling it Big Two or Deuces or one of the other aliases). It is really only fun for me when we're all talking and being goofy. The game itself isn't really fun... it's about the people sitting at the table with you. I've noticed that although we're often joking around and having a blast, many other times when we're playing 13, poker, whatever... we're all quietly trying to win rather than enjoy one another's company. And at the end of the night someone may even be upset. Before it sounds like I'm killing everyone's dream of another 13 Championship win, I realize that we've got two types of competition going on:

1) Pure competition... Skill for its own sake. You care about your performance. You care about improving. You care about winning. The enjoyment comes from tension during competition, excitement in times of triumph, and a feeling of achievement upon reviewing past victories. Activities I "enjoy" in this vein include tennis, shooting pool, high stakes poker ("high stakes" meaning an amount of money that will ruin your day if you lose it).

2) Fun competition... Play play. You're not worried about the outcome, so much as the doing. Talking, joking, having fun. If you lose you lose, no big deal, you come up with funny excuses and still find a way to talk trash. This tends to make for more funny memories and smiling faces at day's end. Examples include bowling, board games, pocket change poker ($5 buy-in) and other card games.

I've noticed that too much pure competition can make people wonder why they decided to hang out. My point here is that I don't give a shiet about winning 13. I take no pride in my skill in the game, and I pity the fool who does. I'm not gonna be excited when I win or depressed when I lose. I'm only gonna look back and hope to remember some good laughs. I'm not saying I don't want to play ever again. That time with Bryant, Tony, and Brendan and I was perhaps the goofiest we've ever been, and one of the funnest games I ever played in my life. I appreciate both of these types of competition, but I hope we can maintain a good balance of the two. And always end the day on a high note, i.e. fun.

p.s.
An article you might find interesting (if you bothered reading this whole post): Rush Magazine- Retro Gaming.
Keep on keepin' on y'all, peace.

p.p.s.
"And if you get some red meat, you better cook it the day you get it, cause THAT shiet gon' be ROTTEN in the MORNIN' baby. Now you got this nasty meat, you fed it to your kids, now THEY got RICKETS." True.