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~ A Podcast About the Writing Life

The Drunken Odyssey

Tag Archives: McMillan’s Codex

McMillan’s Codex #56: Homicide v. Everyone

05 Wednesday Oct 2016

Posted by thedrunkenodyssey in McMillan's Codex

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Bro Team Pill, CT McMillan, McMillan's Codex

McMillan’s Codex #56 by C.T. McMillan

Homicide v. Everyone

Back in April I reported on a lawsuit against Jim Sterling by developer Digital Homicide. DigiHom was suing for $11 million on 10 counts of libel after Sterling negatively reviewed their games. It has been almost two years since the feud began and there has yet to be a resolution. I sympathize with DigiHom, because when artists are criticized after devoting a lot of time and effort into their creations in a very competetive field, trying to just move on can be difficult. Criticism is an attack and I understand why they would have this sort of reaction.

And now I am going to take back everything I just wrote.

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I am not the most active on Twitter, but when I see something that interests me, I pay attention. Bro Team Pill is on there daily, perusing the Internet for madness that brings him comfort in knowing there are people more insane than himself. Since the Crash Override Network leaks ironically exposed the anti-trolling group as trolls themselves, he has found great pleasure in posting screenshots of documents with his reaction.

One day I was looking at all the nonsense and spotted the above excerpt from what looked like a court document. I know whom Karl Pilkington because he is the whipping boy of Ricky Gervais on Idiot Abroad and The Ricky Gervais Show. The use of his name is obviously a joke. What caught my attention was that this was somehow a serious piece of evidence. I searched through Bro Team’s tweets and found another choice quote:

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I thought back to the interview between Sterling and DigiHom’s Robert Romine. The game Shooter Tactics described in the post was the subject of Sterling’s criticism and the developer responded with a tirade brought upon by trolling commenters. I was reminded of the interview because Romine described the emotional turmoil that Sterling inadvertently caused by creating a movement of trolls to target his games. I asked Bro Team if the excerpt was related to the Sterling/Digihom feud and found myself vindicated.

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I did more digging and discovered the would-be developer had sued an entire Steam Group. (A Steam group is like any other social media group, but on the Steam digital distribution service.) The members of the Group in question, “Digital Homicides,” are being charged with harassment, stalking, and tortious interference for $18 million. Because the 100 members use screen names, James Romine, DigiHom’s representative, did not have anyone to target. The company that created Steam called Valve was then sent a subpoena for the personal information of the “Digital Homicides” Steam Group members. In response, Valve pulled every one of DigiHom’s games from distribution. As of now, there has been no word from the Romines on the situation.

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Often we root for the little guy, the downtrodden that are so low they cannot easily fight back. For a while I was on DigiHom’s side. I have never been criticized to the point I felt offended because I do not take anything that seriouslyly. Nevertheless, I could still feel sorry for them. But the drama with “Digitital Homicides” is beyond the pale of inappropriate. To sue average commenters for not liking your terrible games is attempting censorship. Their recent behavior has not only changed by opinion of the situation, but my feelings on them as a “developer” and individuals. They are pissed off hacks so desperate for recognition that they have made themselves an enemy to all, and utterly destroyed any credibility they might have had in the videogame world. I hope they learn a hard, expensive lesson from the mess they have made.

Aristotle once said, “Criticism is something we can avoid easily by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being nothing.” Because DigiHom is so driven by ego and arrogance, they could not ignore the negativity deservedly heaped upon their games.  Criticism of games is like any other medium, but these days some of us have become too fragile to take even constructive criticism.  If you cannot tolerate criticism, just say, do, and be nothing.

Or listen and grow stronger.

_______

CT McMillan 1

C.T. McMillan (Episode 169) is a film critic and devout gamer.  He has a Bachelors for Creative Writing in Entertainment from Full Sail University.

 

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McMillan’s Codex #48: Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare

20 Wednesday Jul 2016

Posted by thedrunkenodyssey in McMillan's Codex

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Black Ops 3, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, McMillan's Codex, Modern Warfare 2

McMillan’s Codex #48 by C.T. McMillan

Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare

Call of Duty is the mascot of missed opportunity. Modern Warfare 2 had decent stealth mechanics that should have been used more often, Black Ops 2 had drones that were not incorporated enough, and Ghosts was a total mess. Not until Black Ops 3 did the series give players full control of the cool stuff whenever they wanted. The last game to restrict players was Advanced Warfare (AW), which should have been more accessible as a revitalization of the series with so many new things.

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AW was a paradigm shift. Improved graphics aside, the game marked the core Call of Duty titles’ transition into the future. Exoskeletons, power armor, and walking tanks have become the norm in the game’s fiction. AW stays grounded in relative reality where nothing is too shiny or impossible to conceive in speculation. What you see is still conceptual today.

One interesting aspect of AW is the examination of private military corporations (PMCs). The game images a world where one such corporation has become a monolithic entity with influence and resources to rival the world’s militaries. The fictional Atlas Corporation (how original) is the Disney of private security. They have the power to end wars, rebuild whole countries, and provide humanitarian assistance in the wake of disaster.

What AW tries to convey with Atlas is that contemporary PMCs have the capacity to grow bigger than conventional government forces. Imagine China or the US being outmanned and outgunned by a body that does not answer to a country or set ideology. This entity is a superpower that does not operate by constitution, but by committee. The presence of such a corporation creates a massive moral grey area where anyone with enough money can pay them to do whatever they want. You could order the genocide of a whole ethnic group and the PMC will do so as long as you have the cash.

Call of Duty 2

With this moral ambiguity the motives of this corporation are nebulous, yet AW explores this idea in the most run of the mill way possible. Atlas is just an evil corporation bent on world domination and the fact that Kevin Spacey was the CEO did not help. Instead of exploring the ambiguity of PMCs, AW postulates that absolute power corrupts absolutely without trying to broach the central idea that makes PMCs controversial. In the end, the game is trying to say that if you are Keyser Soze with a giant army, you are bad.

Oh, and there is a story about the main character having daddy issues, but this plot was so trite there is no point in explaining why.

The trend of missed opportunities continues in the gameplay. With the introduction of EXO Abilities you can jump higher, quick dodge, and scale walls, but only when the game lets you. Each level restricts you to a set number of abilities and weapons when they could have been useful. Access to accelerated movements, micro drones, and gloves that let you climb walls would have helped you out in a number of situations. At one point you can bounce from side to side avoiding incoming fire and then you cannot come the next level because I guess the developers did not want players to have fun.

The futuristic side of the game is realized less so in the overall world. On the first mission you are shot out of an airship in a drop-pod like a soldier in the Mobile Infantry. You land in a skyscraper and make your way down to the street where a full-blown war is in progress, walking tanks and all. Later there are hover bikes, an experimental hover tank, and power armored heavy troopers with Gatling-gun arms. There is so much cool stuff in AW that I do not understand why the developers chose not to exploit such content.

Call of Duty 3

Advanced Warfare is everything Call of Duty has been for years: A set piece simulator. You have all these things you get to experience only once before they are gone completely. There is no meaning behind what you do because they are so superficially included just to break up the monotony of the gameplay. If the set pieces were better applied, then the gameplay would not be monotonous. While space dogfights and the ability to choose your missions in the upcoming Infinite Warfare seems great, I have been tricked one too many times to believe such a paradigm shift will happen. Maybe the developers have learned to have fun, but after all this time I am not holding my breath.

_______

CT McMillan 1

C.T. McMillan (Episode 169) is a film critic and devout gamer.  He has a Bachelors for Creative Writing in Entertainment from Full Sail University.

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McMillan’s Codex #19: Shogun 2: Total War

30 Wednesday Dec 2015

Posted by thedrunkenodyssey in McMillan's Codex

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Charles McMillan, McMillan's Codex, Shogun 2: Total War, Total War

McMillan’s Codex 19 By C.T. McMillan

Shogun 2: Total War

My fascination with samurai culture is not often documented on here or my other blog. As someone who grew up in a military environment and learned a great deal in the latter years of my education, the appeal of bushido and the samurai way of life was nonetheless strong. They are warriors utterly focused and disciplined when it comes to loyalty. Their dedication goes both ways, willing to kill for their lord, and always ready to commit suicide if they dishonor themselves or those they serve. In comparison to other martial cultures, samurai are the most aesthetically pleasing. Their complex and detailed armor trumps anything the finest European artisans could ever accomplish and the katana is arguably a superior blade to conventional swords in both creation and method of use. And so, Shogun 2 caught my eye when it was first announced, and the possibility of commanding giant armies of samurai made the anticipation all the more great.

Shogun 2.1

The Total War series is derived from the real-time strategy (RTS) genre, which is exactly as it sounds. The player is dropped into a large map, pitted against an enemy or enemies, where he or she must exploit resources, build production structures, and make soldiers to fight back until only one is left standing. The player has complete control over their units, directing when and where they move and attack. That is the basic idea behind the RTS that many have followed throughout the years. Total War takes the traditional formula and applies it in a way that complements its own unique trappings.

What sets the series apart is the use of history and culture for its building and battle mechanics. Every current Total War game is based in reality with accurate events, people, and places that once existed. All of the games take place in ancient and medieval times with the exception of two that base themselves in pre-Napoleon Europe and 19th Century Japan.

Shogun 2 takes place during the Sengoku Period, a time of countrywide civil strife where clans fought each other for supremacy. In reality, the Tokugawa Shogunate would take over, but the game uses this period to set-up its gameplay. Players have the option of choosing a number of real life clans with a select range of territory they must defend from rivals. The end goal is to conquer Japan by taking other provinces and securing Kyoto, the Japanese seat of power.

The building and battle mechanics are not only separate in terms of gameplay, but also segregated entirely.

One half of the game is managing your territories on a world-map. With your view situated high above, the islands are rendered with realistic topography of mountains and forests. Provinces are color-coded according clan, each with a single city. At these cities you must form an army, manage the morale and economy of your clan, and defend it from attacks. The structures you choose to build in each city determine what units are available. Archery ranges yield better marksmen, while stables allow more adept cavalry. There are also special buildings that open up the ability to develop agents like ninja, priests, and secret police that can influence and help you take rival provinces. The building mechanics are so complex and fully developed, that you can play and complete the entire game without entering a real battle.

Shogun 2.2

Another side of the world-map gameplay is managing the politics of your clan. Whether it is the religion you impose upon your people or your actions after attacking a city, the decisions you make affect how other clans see you and the probability of successful actions in diplomacy. It is all based on honor, the founding principle of bushido, and your actions determine how much you have. This could mean accepting volunteer leaders that ask to serve or using ninja to further your ambitions. There is also the option to engage with other clans in negotiations. You can organize trade routes, ask for payments, or make weaker clans vassals to get ahead. Like everything else, it affects your standing in the world, but the most efficient way to get exactly what you want is the other half of Total War games: the battle mechanics.

The typical RTS set-up for battles is a bird’s-eye view of the map. Total War is a series that not only puts you in the middle of the battle, but also gives you a full view from an asymmetrical perspective that you can change between high above to an up close and personal. From there you can command your units in the same way you do in all RTSs, organizing them into elaborate formations that play a very big part in the strategy of gameplay.

Like the building mechanics, detail is essential to what makes the battles standout. Imagine a scene from a movie, with an army of hundreds of actors in costume, and you can command them like a real general. The units in Shogun 2 consist of 80 to 100 individual soldiers, each with culture specific attire and weapons. The game’s scale is massive, but when you look closer, every piece of armor is rife with detail in the placement of the pieces and the stitching between the plates. There are many different variations of soldiers with distinct looks dependent on both clan and type of unit. They even have special animations where when two armies fight each other, the soldiers will have separate battles within the larger battle. These animations are modeled after real-life kendo techniques thanks to motion capture.

Shogun 2.3

While historically inaccurate, Shogun 2: Total War is a great experience for any fan of Japan and samurai culture. It gives you the ability to influence how you take control of the country and how you fight the many battles that lie ahead. Its wealth of detail and unique battle mechanics set it apart from many RTSs. If you are a fan, look no further than the natural evolution of what has become the future of the genre.

_______

CT McMillan 1

C.T. McMillan (Episode 169) is a film critic and devout gamer.  He has a Bachelors for Creative Writing in Entertainment from Full Sail University.

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