Questions & Answers: August 19th, 2020

Matt Koster Asks
For a while, I've felt like Microsoft (and specifically Phil Spencer) were finally righting the ship moving towards the next generation. However, after recent announcements, I'm wondering if it was all marketing hype. Is Halo: Infinite's delay going to seriously damage the Xbox Series X's launch?

I can't say for certain, but we will certainly find out. I can't remember the last time a video game console released with such a barren line up of games since the PS3 & Wii, and the Wii didn't need it because what sold the Wii wasn't games, but the console itself. Xbox Series X doesn't give parents a brand new way to hit their kids via Wii Sports Tennis, and as such, I assume will struggle to convince people of its purpose.

The Great Leveler Asks
What is your favorite story in any form of media and what makes it so compelling?

That's impossible, but almost all of my favorites have to do with character. Fight Club's an absolute classic because everything in the main character's world is constructed by him, and from that, the drama writes itself. Whether it's Fight Club, 100 Bullets, Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, Black Lagoon, Black Mirror, etc.

Great stories are ones you can put yourself in the shoes of, not for empowerment, but for introspection. What would you do if you've unleashed a new terrorism cell, lost enough to thirst for vengeance, need to pay 150k in a week, abandoned by your company for Pirates, and the 800 questions in the best of Black Mirror?

To this day, I still think about the conclusion to films like Gone Baby Gone, because as many times as I can run through the situation in my mind, I'm not 100% certain what I would truly do, and characters serve as beacons for what happens in one of those scenarios. Apologies for not being able to give a direct answer, but I can say...

Character > Plot

Sandraincloud90 Asks
What are some indie games that you think deserve more attention than what they got?

I would've said Synthetik, but SSeth's video very much changed that game's status. The automatic go to will be Reflex, however, I also understand the game doesn't do a great job for newcomers in any fashion, other than maybe tutorial. Unless the game goes free to play, it will never build up an audience. Frozen Synapse is an ancient game that had its 15 minutes but never really built traction afterwards, a shame, because it's one of the few turn based combat systems I enjoy.

But I think my real answer will be Consortium, a little Source Engine game that feels like the only real expansion of the immersive sim popularized in the 90s, a first person story heavy game that never actually takes control away from the player. It's been so long since I last played it, and so long since its sequel was announced, that I've wanted to go back and confirm my experience for sometime. Even conceptually though, Consortium punches well above its weight, and deserved to inspire further iterations.

(Full warning, it's not a looker.)

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