Generation www.

You'll often hear politicians, social commentators and people born before 1970 lamenting that society has lost the ‘community spirit’ it once had. And to be fair, it’s easy to see where they're coming from. We’re a nation that lives in ignorance of our neighbours, is terrified of the under-educated and hyper-active youths terrorising the streets, and which has become utterly dependent on an economic philosophy that values the pursuit of individual wealth above all else.

In other words: we’re selfish, self-obsessed, self-loathers who are too scared to say hello to each other in case someone suddenly pulls a knife.

Yet how true is this picture? Sure, the only time I’ve met my neighbours is when they’ve come to complain about the noise I’m making. And yes it’s an inescapable fact that violent crime is on the rise. And okay, most of my friends are sufficiently worried about the (tens of) thousands of pounds of debt they got into at university that finding work with a generous salary has become more important than they might have wanted it to be back when they were younger and full of grand ideals. But but but…

Canabalt

This game really stinks. People all over the Internet are writing love letters to it right at this very moment, even people I respect, like Charlie Brooker and Alec Meer.

Please don't believe them. It's a horribly unfair game. There's only one button. And death is frequent and cheap.

I must also have JUST ONE MORE go before bed.

Play for free here if you want the next fifteen minutes of your life to magically disappear.

Fire Action! - I am Boring (but you are Bad Bad Bad)

I should get out of the habit of staying up too late and making crap videos by throwing together a bunch of Google image results. It's no good for me. Or for the song they accompany.

Oh well:

The 25 Greatest Games of the Decade

The final 25. Which of your favourites have been disgracefully overlooked? Which left-field choices have been arbitrarily placed in the top ten?

If you missed it, you can see which games were ranked between 50-26 here. Alternatively, you can tell me to get a life here.

The 50-26 Greatest Games of the Decade

Everyone loves a list don't they? This being the final month before we head into Space Year 2010, the whole world's going list-mental. So being the bandwagon-jumping-fiend that I am, here's what I think have been the best, most important or most influential games of the decade. Putting them in a numerical order is obviously a little ridiculous, but I suppose I'd say the ones closer to "1" are slightly more essential than the ones nearer to "50".

The top 25 can be found here.

Cutting Teeth

You should form a band because you want to entertain. Only the most desperate, naïve or utterly corruptible can start making music with a belief that they’ll ever make money from it. That’s not the point. The point is to play. Have fun. And then hope that your play is infectious enough that anyone listening starts having fun too.

At least, that’s where I come from whenever I play a musical instrument in front of someone else. Admittedly there will be some who approach music making from other angles, perhaps with some great political or philosophical points to make, and some even pull it off. But for the amateur pop or folk musician (and I use “pop” and “folk” in the broadest possible senses there), entertainment has to be key.

So... does it sound like we're enjoying ourselves?

Fire Action! - "Who You're Gonna Be"


Fire Action! feat. Pankita - Improvisation

Rationalisation

I’m practising my dumb grin again. I smile and nod at my colleagues, and try to ignore the feelings of despair that spring from the inanity of it all.

Seizuredome Review

I mentioned it here shortly after I first played it, but now you can find my full review over on Savygamer. I aimed for a slightly more personable style this time, which I think has sort-of worked, although reading it back now I feel like I should have done better with that clunky fourth paragraph.

Great Words about Great Games

"Oh. So you're really into videogames. Urm. Why?!"

I get asked this question a lot. I think anyone who admits to having more than a passing interest in computer games will be.

"Aren't they just a waste of your time?"

"Yes," I usually reply a little feebly, "but isn't everything?"

"Err..."

You should worry when real life feels like being stuck in a text adventure game