U.S. Army Testing Out Recruitment "Arcades"
Comment by: Soldier_CLE
Nominated by: Witzbold
I'm late to this show, but I'm going to chime in, regardless.
The truth is that because The United States have an "all-volunteer" Armed Forces with only a "selected service" registration that hasn't been acted upon since the 70s, the recruiting branches need to find and do what they can to meet Obama's plan for 30,000 more troops for the Army.
Even in the 90s, when it wasn't taboo to be a serviceperson, the recruiting regiments of the different services still needed to maintain numbers to offset the attrition that occurs from discharges (PCS, ETS and Retirement). Every generation of the military needs able and competent troops FOR ALL FIELDS OF WORK. And with teens coming of age that don't know how they are going to pay for an ever higher college tuition, may want to really see the World with their own eyes (READ: No propaganda from the "boob tube"), or just want to see the realities of life from both the good and bad, I don't blame the United States Department of Defense for their methods.
Having been overseas myself on different occasions and different scenarios, I understand why people NOT from the United States may criticize the promo campaigns, but those not from the United States often fail to realize *WHY* The United States do what they do.
Personally, it wasn't a hard decision for me; as I saw it a "rites of passage". I come of a long line of Marines and Soldiers. It was my official test and mark of being a man. Because of my experiences, I got to see the vast differences of Capitalist, Socialist and Communist states, and how people live under those philosophies. I saw for myself who I thought had more freedoms, and who were only talking that rhetoric. I helped some, fired upon others.
But I personally gained experiences and saw some things that I could only have gained in uniform. It prepared me mentally, affirmed me spiritually and kept me from losing my physical abilities; as I am ever reminded to stay sharp regardless of my environment. My pride in myself, my country, my comrades, my god and my flag are instilled, not from the training and drilling that occured, but the lessons and the examples that happened in events that you may never know about. The media tells you tidbits of what happened, and my Government show you only a few small examples of shiny medals pinned in front of flashing bulbs, but those are nothing to the names and faces that are often washed away with each passing conflict.
People talk like they are experts because they watch a program, and everyone becomes analytical when they see body counts, but often most can't tell what the objective of the OPORDER was, what those men and women did, and what (if any) true example of bravery had been accomplished.
This being said, I don't object to the promotional concepts. As long as ALL fields are being shown/discussed, and the "experience" does not necessarily hound the potential recruits/supporters, then it is merely an edutainment facility in my eyes. I refuse to pacify the notion that every person that walks through any military promotional event is a dullard, and I see nothing wrong about educating (READ: Not conjecting) about the opportunities that the military has to offer.
The American potential recruit is no more a trigger-happy person than anyone else that plays videogames. And some people come into those ranks with the intent of finding different fields from the "combat arms" field. I am ever amazed that there are alot of ignorant (no offense) comments that conject what these recruit are like or what they aim to be.
As a person who proudly served in my nation's Armed Forces, I will tell you now that I am far better off for it. I am confident that today's United States military can and will breed future leaders.
Where Bad Games Go To Die (RIP Tabula Rasa)
Comment by: Aegd
Nominated by: luis
They should have thrown Richard Garriott in the same dumpster.
So How Long Do People Play Wii Games For?
Comment by: Komrade Kayce
Nominated by: Billkwando
@Ueziel:
Im not regretting selling it at all.
Dude. You dont get 36k gamerscore on 360 'passing by' on hot titles. Im a gamer through and through. If its a good game on the Wii, I've played it and most likely, beaten it, trust me. The example of my 360 score (and, if you look at my 360 list, you can see close to 200 games played) is only to show I play a stupid amount of games.
Is there a way to show off your registered Nintendo Products/Games? Because I GUARANTEE YOU Im going to stick my e-penis in your mouth if I can do that. I'm one of those people who will live on rice and ramen daily to afford his games and has money for nothing else. When it comes to video games, spending and consumerism, I have a seriously addictive personality and, some would say, problem. Do you want to see a picture of my current 360 collection? I've posted it here before. And I've only owned my 360 for one year. I owned my Wii for two. Just picked up a Playstation. The fact that I abandoned the Wii, when it was the first and ONLY console I wanted (didnt get a PS3 or 360), says something.
Don't give me your 'you probably havent played xx' game speech, thank you.
@Shachihoko:
Do you know when those games are coming out? I cant find any information beyond vague predictions. Have you seen screenshots and gameplay vids? I cant find any. I deal in tangible things now when it comes to game systems. I will not purchase your system on a 'promise to deliver'.
Fuck, the PS3 only recently started actually being able to give me some substance instead of loose promises. So I picked one up. PS3 owners used to say 'look whats coming, look whats coming... some day'. Now they can say 'oh awesome, look what exclusive or multiplat game comes out in a month, that looks intense'.When was the last time as a Wii owner there was something to be genuinely excited about coming out that wasnt merely a promise of something that *might* come out down the road? I bought the latest Tales game, its probably the best thing the Wii has. But did it sell? Probably not much at all. How much hope does that give Wii devs? Not much at all.
At least the Gamecube when it got ports of games got EQUAL ports. I can't stand ported games on the Wii. Unless its Resident Evil 4. They're just pale comparisons.
@dipsetboy17:
Thank you dude. You understand. The PS3 and 360 aren't delivering half baked promises. They're actually delivering. The PS3 might have been guilty of it before, but not now.
The Wii isn't delivering half baked promises either. They're delivering exactly what they want to deliver. Its the fans in denial that are constantly going 'BUT LOOK WHAT IT COULD DO! LOOK WHAT GAMES ARE COMING OUT BUT WE KNOW NOTHING ABOUT YET!'. Honestly. Can you 'Hardcorz' Wii'ers name a SINGLE Wii game that gets talked about constantly in the mainstream and still will generate buzz?
The last Wii game to do that was Brawl. And before that, Zelda. Maybe Mario Kart a little. The current ones? Madworld. And its not even out yet. If Madworld continues to get talked about long after release, I'll have been proven wrong. But once again, its a 'what if' future scenario.
Look, you guys can have your Wii. You can love it to death. I did too. But you're going to have to accept the fact that people going 'lolz the wii is stoopid' aren't always a bunch of jabberhead mcnuggets. Sometimes, they owned the system for a really long period of time, did everything they could with it, and decided it was just taking up space, however small, collecting dust and completely unnecessary with the gluttony of games preferred on another system.
Bionic Commando Will Be Out Before Winter 2009
Comment by: aw3str1k3r
Nominated by: ThursdayNext
Spiderman, Spiderman, does whatever Bionic Commando can...
Comment by: Soldier_CLE
Nominated by: shaunomacx: ArcadeMania.JPG
Yes, they still sell Walkman music players, and they have a pretty solid line if you're still in the market for them. Granted, I would also consider giving them the axe.
But they are not the first of the Sony line that I would cut. Close though...
I would ultimately close and liquidate the SonyStyle stores first. In this day and age (and having walked into two different locations in two different cities this past month), there are just not enough people walking into those stores. Much less buying them.
At the same time, I would close down those proprietary R&D divisions that Sony execs (I imagine) are so in love with. ATRAC was a bust. UMD for the most part is too. Sony just never got the notion that people want propriatary garbage for the sake of having something that makes it slightly more a chore to use on other devices. Sure, we have 5-in-1 readers now, but think about everytime they come up with something new that isn't embraced by the industry as a whole. There's a flaw in that strategy, and there are consumers out there that basically say "Screw Sony!" over that.
But really, I am still very critical of Howard Stringer. I personally find him a failure. A hack. A "Romeo Crennel" of the electronic world, in that "He's just happy to be there." In hindsight, I prefer someone who understands the "old Sony" way of thinking and culture. Stringer just looks like his entire plan were based on riding on old coattails of old Sony, and the mediocrity of some of their products have others wondering "Why am I buying this stuff?"
I'm rambling and digressing... Back to where I would cut.
1. Howard Stringer (The Board and Executive levels need a shake up in the worst way.)
2. Sony Style stores (physical locations): I foresee this coming anyway in North America.
3. Sony Walkman Division (I agree with you there. They don't have enough marketshare to compete, and some rivals are offering the same or more for less.)
4. Proprietary divisions (Seriously, why dump money on a division that creates stuff that people don't want? I NEVER WANTED ATRAC AND NEVER USED IT.)
RESTRUCTURING:
1. Sony Computer Entertainment: Already being done, based on what we are reading so far.
2. Sony Electronics: Too much clutter in their catalog. They should seriously consider redesigning some of the items in said catalog too. (I can think of at least 5 of their bookshelf stereos that look like "DDR rejects".
3. Sony Ericcson: Either seriously consider selling their stake to Ericcson (or another purchaser), or cut down their selection of "Oh I look different but do mostly the same stuff with the other phones from this year's selection (with exception of the P-series and Xperia line of phones.)
4. PRICING, PRICING, PRICING — It's not just Sony's Playstation line that I feel is overpriced. It is also their other products in general. Restructure it. Make them lower by at least 10% This includes their Vaio line.
5. LESS SKUs — I have to imagine that the more SKUs you have on a product, the more convoluted it is for a buyer to bring their selections to the stores. How many SKUs of an item could you possibly need anyway?
6. PLAYSTATION 3 BACKWARD COMPATIBILITY (SOFTWARE): If you are not going to put the Emotion Chip back in the PS3s, then consider an HDD-based software emulator. Sony is losing sales based on this fact alone. Being the inquisitive person that I am, I have asked people who carry the PlayStation 3 device why they feel they are not selling, and this is the number one reason why.
Lee Iacocca suggested back then that "If you want to know everything about your company, ask the janitor."
7. "DEVELOPER INCENTIVES": At this point, if I were an SCE person in charge, I would seriously strike up Sony "Happy to be here" guy, and STRONGLY SUGGEST that they give some sort of incentive for publishers to make games for their console. Be it less licensing fees, more profitsharing, whatever. Playing catchup is NOT going to make the SCE division any much more profitable, and in this point of the game (economy included), they are going to have to hedge what they can to survive.
I'll start with that...
...along with "FIRE STRINGER NOW!!!" (NO GOLDEN PARACHUTE FOR YOU!!!)"
Comment by: FarmboyinJapan
Shoko-tan is bat shit insane.
I remember when I first saw her, she was being interviewed on TV. She was asked; 'How old were you when you had your first love?'
'14' she replied.
'What was his name?' the anchor person asked.
'Sephiroth.'
I was so embarassed, that I lunged for the remote and changed the channel.
My girlfriend at the time turned to me, and said something to the extent of '...and you want to be in the video game industry because....?'
You know, half of me (the conspiracy theorist half) believes that Shoko-tan doesn't even play video games. The Japanese talent/entertainment industry is run by grumpy old salariman who care about nothing but profits and numbers. Part of me thinks that during the Akiba/Moe/Maid Cafe boom a couple years ago....that some talent agency just came up with the Shoko-tan character in order to appeal to the ever growing group of Otaku.
Want to nominate comments? Send to tips any insightful or funny comments you read from other commenters. (Read: NOT YOURSELF). Be sure to include the post's URL, the commenter's page, the actual comment and your commenter page.
Here’s a handy guide to commenting. Read it, learn it, live it, love it.