Glad to hear this news, because I've always enjoyed your writing at Ars.
My questions are: Do you think your perspective will or should change now you are writing at PA, which is philosophically aligned strongly to gamers and 'gamerview'? As a game reviewer, or game industry journalist, how can you insure your work is relatable in the way PA is to so many of us?
I think I'll have to spend less time explaining some things, and I'll be free to use vernacular most gamers are familiar with. I think it's going to be an easy thing to adjust to. I'm a hardcore gamer, you're a hardcore gamer, let's get together and talk, no big whoop.
I probably just horribly dated myself with that reference.
Hey Ben,
Been reading you at Ars for years and wanted to congratulate you on your move. I think you'll make a great addition to the PA team!
What inspires you to play video games?
Which is better in a game: a short artistic story with creative twist, or a well made adrenaline boosting multi-player match?
I enjoy playing video games because it's the only art form that, when handled correctly, can use almost every one of your senses. I enjoy reading, I like movies, and I listen to music constantly, but video games ideally combine all of those and more into a single cohesive experience.
I can not thank you enough for your work at Ars ( which i will keep reading as it is an awesome site ) and your Nerf Reviews and footage causes my Wife no end of Problems.
But the biggest fact is like all the staff at PA, you tell it like it is! Because of this, your reviews and articles over the years guides all my buying decisions when i have doubts or interests i wait for your reviews.
Questions time:
1. Since you are now at PA, what Special Child's Play event will you be suggesting? ( Please something us Aussies can enter for once, I love giving to these things...)
2. Will you be doing up and coming articles, like stuff we can help on Kickstarter or Indie titles? ( I have so much stuff from indies from Your and PA suggestions..)
3. Can you do a Kid Centric reviews/mini reviews? My boys are the same sorta age as yours and alot of the staff at PA, so anything will help...
And THANK GOD the Nerf reviews will continue!
1) I think the team here can handle Child's Play just fine, although I'm going to miss running my own slice of it over at Ars.
2) Yes, definitely.
3) I'm really not sure, although it's an interesting idea.
I think one of the big challenges is going to be finding what content works well with the Penny Arcade audience. I have a bunch of ideas, and we'll be adjusting things as we go, but you never really know how things are going to be received until you jump in and get started. ...
We have a lot of ideas, but the main one is fewer, better stories. We want to tell the stories no one is telling in a way no one is doing. That's not easy, and it's going to take time to perfect our approach
I've been reading Penny Arcade since their early donation days. Don't forget that at several million, the PA audience is probably quite diverse and that almost anything will please at least some of the audience.
As I wrote in my own blog, you are "one of the few writers in the industry whom I would willing call a “journalist”. ... [your] work involves research, technical and historical knowledge and experience, and is more often than not, entirely original in an ocean of retread and re-blogging."
Do go with the "fewer, better stories..." approach, though publishing them on the off days would be really nice. The focused and decidedly negative content of "The Trenches" isn't cutting it for my Tuesday/Thursday fix. Penny Arcade really needs to be a six day rather than three day site.
I feel a little like I am celebrating a wedding! Cheers! Very happy for you and PA.
0
AbsoluteZeroThe new film by Quentin KoopantinoRegistered Userregular
For the most part, the forums have been fairly well divorced from the content portion of the site; the Hub subforum is a relatively new feature and operates in a different dynamic than the rest of the jungle. You mentioned (or perhaps I incorrectly inferred) an intention to be involved in the forums - has there been much discussion in the depth of your involvement, and does this signal any shift in overall policy?
I don't think it's going to be a shift in policy, I just want to dip into the forums now and again to see what people are playing, what they're curious about, and what they want to learn about. I'm really hoping you guys are able to give me some guidance in terms of what you'd like to see explored in the industry.
I don't have a question for you. I just wanted to express my appreciation for your getting involved here. The forums may be a wretched hive of scum and villainy, but it's been a cornerstone of the PA fan community for years. I don't think you'll have any trouble gleaning some idea of what PA fans want to see if you browse the forums now and then.
Did you actually expect to be able to respond to all of these posts? I mean, dude, seriously.... it's just gonna go on and on and on and, etc. Crap, at the time I wrote this you had already made 58 comments!
(PS, you need an avatar like a baby needs milk. Let us see your smiling face!)
I know I'm a little late to the party, but I just wanted to welcome you to PA! You were my favorite writer at Ars (I've been reading Opposable Thumbs religiously for over a year now), and my favorite gaming writer second only to Jerry.
Did you actually expect to be able to respond to all of these posts? I mean, dude, seriously.... it's just gonna go on and on and on and, etc. Crap, at the time I wrote this you had already made 58 comments!
(PS, you need an avatar like a baby needs milk. Let us see your smiling face!)
I hope to at least make a dent! I'll add an avatar shortly.
I know I'm a little late to the party, but I just wanted to welcome you to PA! You were my favorite writer at Ars (I've been reading Opposable Thumbs religiously for over a year now), and my favorite gaming writer second only to Jerry.
So my question for you:
When do you think Diablo 3 will be released?
When we're ready for it, and not a moment before. Besides, I'm willing to wait as long as Torchlight 2 comes out soon.
Welcome, Ben! I'm mostly a forum lurker, not poster, but it's still nice to welcome you to the community. Here's my question to you:
What's your opinion on Nintendo's policy on story (or lack thereof) in their games? Context: I ask because Skyward Sword had such potential to tell a mature story about love and devotion in a context that relates to any age, and just kind of... didn't. I, for one, am waiting for mature themes in Nintendo games (love and loss in Zelda, the pain of isolation in Metroid, etc., etc.), and while the themes of Pokéslavery in Black / White and the (VERY small) nod to a possible relationship between Zelda / Link in SS are a good start, Ninty always seems to peter out and not tell compelling stories. Thoughts?
It thought it was an interesting set of ideas that wasn't executed as well as it could have been. I don't think it has much chance of a sequel. This may be blasphemy, but I think the iPad version was better than the console and PC version.
Hey Ben...
You were the guy who wrote about my Minecraft Enterprise on Ars.... Just want to say thanks for making my 15 minuets of fame last a little longer!
Welcome, Ben! I'm mostly a forum lurker, not poster, but it's still nice to welcome you to the community. Here's my question to you:
What's your opinion on Nintendo's policy on story (or lack thereof) in their games? Context: I ask because Skyward Sword had such potential to tell a mature story about love and devotion in a context that relates to any age, and just kind of... didn't. I, for one, am waiting for mature themes in Nintendo games (love and loss in Zelda, the pain of isolation in Metroid, etc., etc.), and while the themes of Pokéslavery in Black / White and the (VERY small) nod to a possible relationship between Zelda / Link in SS are a good start, Ninty always seems to peter out and not tell compelling stories. Thoughts?
Nintendo likes to paint in very broad strokes, and I think that works when you're younger and more emotional, and it's a big reason why we love those games so much when we're growing up. That's kind of how you feel when you're a teenager or younger. As you get older and embrace subtlety and you've been around the block a few times it gets harder to embrace that approach characters. I don't think Nintendo just makes games for kids, I think they're approach to character and story are meant to tap into the childlike parts of us, but I also think those wells are starting to run dry. I'd like to see Nintendo tackle a straight-up tragedy, or something a little darker.
In a lot of ways Miyamoto strikes me as a George Lucas who never started to suck.
You've asked for what people are interested in seeing; personally, I don't think that has ever changed.
It is the same as it always has been in the media, any media.
People wish to read about 'fun' dirt (namely, legal battles, appalling employment practices, so on) for general entertainment to wash away our own troubles in life from occupying the short-term memory.
They also very much enjoy great success stories (especially of how the 'little guy' made it to the 'big league') for providing encouraging spirits of how everything is possible if a human puts themselves all onto it -- it gives hope to keep on going and believing in the possibility of a better future, not unlike super-hero cartoons in a sense.
As a long time reader of PA and Ars, it's a bit strange to see you coming here. I'm glad that Ars isn't abandoning gaming coverage with your leaving; it lends a certain legitimacy to our shared pastime.
In your farewell article at Ars, you mention how indispensable your editors were in helping you to become a better writer and to continuously put out quality work. Without a traditional staff structure at PA, how are you planning on mitigating the loss of this role in your writing pattern? Will you be using Tycho as your touchstone, or are you pretty much flying solo?
Will you retain something like the Ars style scoreless review system?
On a related note, are you still a shill for/biased against every single game company ever now that you're in the pocket of Big PA?
Yeah, no one here is interested in scores. It's not going to happen.
Just remember I'm biased for/against Nintendo/Sony/Microsoft because Microsoft/Sony/Nintendo paid me so much more money. Circle different companies each week.
You've asked for what people are interested in seeing; personally, I don't think that has ever changed.
It is the same as it always has been in the media, any media.
People wish to read about 'fun' dirt (namely, legal battles, appalling employment practices, so on) for general entertainment to wash away our own troubles in life from occupying the short-term memory.
They also very much enjoy great success stories (especially of how the 'little guy' made it to the 'big league') for providing encouraging spirits of how everything is possible if a human puts themselves all onto it -- it gives hope to keep on going and believing in the possibility of a better future, not unlike super-hero cartoons in a sense.
I hear you, and those are actually great notes. I appreciate the input!
As a long time reader of PA and Ars, it's a bit strange to see you coming here. I'm glad that Ars isn't abandoning gaming coverage with your leaving; it lends a certain legitimacy to our shared pastime.
In your farewell article at Ars, you mention how indispensable your editors were in helping you to become a better writer and to continuously put out quality work. Without a traditional staff structure at PA, how are you planning on mitigating the loss of this role in your writing pattern? Will you be using Tycho as your touchstone, or are you pretty much flying solo?
That's a really good question, and I have a few strategies I'm going to try. Once we find something that works well and I'm comfortable with it, I'll come back with more details. It's definitely something that's been on my mind.
Glad to hear this news, because I've always enjoyed your writing at Ars.
My questions are: Do you think your perspective will or should change now you are writing at PA, which is philosophically aligned strongly to gamers and 'gamerview'? As a game reviewer, or game industry journalist, how can you insure your work is relatable in the way PA is to so many of us?
I think I'll have to spend less time explaining some things, and I'll be free to use vernacular most gamers are familiar with. I think it's going to be an easy thing to adjust to. I'm a hardcore gamer, you're a hardcore gamer, let's get together and talk, no big whoop.
I probably just horribly dated myself with that reference.
Earlier you revealed, and made me all envious, that you have literally every game on Steam. I know that there are a lot of gems hidden throughout Steam's valves, and so I'm wondering what game have you played that really surprised you because you enjoyed it so much when you didn't expect to? Or do you not have enough time to really explore your library of Steam games? I ask because I enjoy supporting quality games that, for whatever reason, did not find success. I know that my hidden gem would be Making History 2. Its Metacritic score really scared me but before I knew it it had consumed 26 hours of my life. It's a game that was released as a buggy, unplayable mess but it is now a really enjoyable game.
First, do you feel that it is a fair criticism to say that someone who was the dominant writer, and the editor, for the gaming section of Ars Technica, and is now moving on to another massively popular gaming related site, should have probably played an MMO at some point? I understand that you recently began playing The Old Republic as your first MMO and were not familiar with basic terminology or gameplay. While this information may not be required for you to write articles, don't you feel a responsible gaming writer (or in your case apparently a gaming news editor) should have, at some point, take it upon himself to become familiar with the genre that holds the records for most one day sales, most concurrent players, highest grossing overall, highest retailing and most popular overall genre in gaming?
Second, do you feel that you have matured significantly in the last 4 months? I ask because when I read this article, in which you express an opinion that a lot of your readers seem to disagree with, instead of addressing their comments and communicating with your own readers, you insulted and trolled them. I found this behavior off-putting and wouldn't want to see it continue on Penny Arcade.
First, do you feel that it is a fair criticism to say that someone who was the dominant writer, and the editor, for the gaming section of Ars Technica, and is now moving on to another massively popular gaming related site, should have probably played an MMO at some point? I understand that you recently began playing The Old Republic as your first MMO and were not familiar with basic terminology or gameplay. While this information may not be required for you to write articles, don't you feel a responsible gaming writer (or in your case apparently a gaming news editor) should have, at some point, take it upon himself to become familiar with the genre that holds the records for most one day sales, most concurrent players, highest grossing overall, highest retailing and most popular overall genre in gaming?
Second, do you feel that you have matured significantly in the last 4 months? I ask because when I read this article, in which you express an opinion that a lot of your readers seem to disagree with, instead of addressing their comments and communicating with your own readers, you insulted and trolled them. I found this behavior off-putting and wouldn't want to see it continue on Penny Arcade.
Definitely on the MMO front, and it was great to really dig into that genre with the Old Republic. I feel like I have a much better grasp on why people play and enjoy that sort of online game. I'm not sure if I think it's a necessity, but it's certainly helpful.
In terms of my communication with the readers in the other thread, I don't suffer fools gladly. Never have, and I'm not going to start. If you want to have a discussion I'm always game, but I don't have a lot of patience for hostility or idiocy.
Earlier you revealed, and made me all envious, that you have literally every game on Steam. I know that there are a lot of gems hidden throughout Steam's valves, and so I'm wondering what game have you played that really surprised you because you enjoyed it so much when you didn't expect to? Or do you not have enough time to really explore your library of Steam games? I ask because I enjoy supporting quality games that, for whatever reason, did not find success. I know that my hidden gem would be Making History 2. Its Metacritic score really scared me but before I knew it it had consumed 26 hours of my life. It's a game that was released as a buggy, unplayable mess but it is now a really enjoyable game.
It's not quite every game, a press account just gives you access to MOST games, and to be honest I'm usually so busy with games I'm covering that it's hard to go back and find the gems. I always like being pointed toward games other people think are worth the time though, just so I have a place to start if I find myself with nothing to play.
Are you allowed to use the excellent Buy / Rent / Skip system associated with Ars Technica?
I'm allowed to, sure, but I don't think we'll have any kind of summing up. Why not try to keep the entire focus on words and thoughts, and not arbitrary rankings? We have a chance to try something new and a little more challenging here, so let's really go for it!
Hey Ben...
You were the guy who wrote about my Minecraft Enterprise on Ars.... Just want to say thanks for making my 15 minuets of fame last a little longer!
That was a fascinating story, thanks for contributing!
In terms of my communication with the readers in the other thread, I don't suffer fools gladly. Never have, and I'm not going to start. If you want to have a discussion I'm always game, but I don't have a lot of patience for hostility or idiocy.
Posts
I think I'll have to spend less time explaining some things, and I'll be free to use vernacular most gamers are familiar with. I think it's going to be an easy thing to adjust to. I'm a hardcore gamer, you're a hardcore gamer, let's get together and talk, no big whoop.
I probably just horribly dated myself with that reference.
Man, Alan Wake is up there. I always remember really enjoying Final Fantasy 7, but if you go back and play it now that story is rather painful.
I like to play Cyberpunk and I like to look at Steampunk. Luckily there's room for both.
I am married to a wonderful woman and have three adorable children, although I'm flattered.
I enjoy playing video games because it's the only art form that, when handled correctly, can use almost every one of your senses. I enjoy reading, I like movies, and I listen to music constantly, but video games ideally combine all of those and more into a single cohesive experience.
1) I think the team here can handle Child's Play just fine, although I'm going to miss running my own slice of it over at Ars.
2) Yes, definitely.
3) I'm really not sure, although it's an interesting idea.
And yes, the Nerf fun will continue.
I've been reading Penny Arcade since their early donation days. Don't forget that at several million, the PA audience is probably quite diverse and that almost anything will please at least some of the audience.
As I wrote in my own blog, you are "one of the few writers in the industry whom I would willing call a “journalist”. ... [your] work involves research, technical and historical knowledge and experience, and is more often than not, entirely original in an ocean of retread and re-blogging."
Do go with the "fewer, better stories..." approach, though publishing them on the off days would be really nice. The focused and decidedly negative content of "The Trenches" isn't cutting it for my Tuesday/Thursday fix. Penny Arcade really needs to be a six day rather than three day site.
I feel a little like I am celebrating a wedding! Cheers! Very happy for you and PA.
I don't have a question for you. I just wanted to express my appreciation for your getting involved here. The forums may be a wretched hive of scum and villainy, but it's been a cornerstone of the PA fan community for years. I don't think you'll have any trouble gleaning some idea of what PA fans want to see if you browse the forums now and then.
Did you actually expect to be able to respond to all of these posts? I mean, dude, seriously.... it's just gonna go on and on and on and, etc. Crap, at the time I wrote this you had already made 58 comments!
(PS, you need an avatar like a baby needs milk. Let us see your smiling face!)
So my question for you:
When do you think Diablo 3 will be released?
When do you think your comic character would be appearing in guest strip outside PA? And which webcomic?
I hope to at least make a dent! I'll add an avatar shortly.
When we're ready for it, and not a moment before. Besides, I'm willing to wait as long as Torchlight 2 comes out soon.
What did you think of Mirror's Edge?
Do you think Mirror's Edge 2 will happen?
What's your opinion on Nintendo's policy on story (or lack thereof) in their games? Context: I ask because Skyward Sword had such potential to tell a mature story about love and devotion in a context that relates to any age, and just kind of... didn't. I, for one, am waiting for mature themes in Nintendo games (love and loss in Zelda, the pain of isolation in Metroid, etc., etc.), and while the themes of Pokéslavery in Black / White and the (VERY small) nod to a possible relationship between Zelda / Link in SS are a good start, Ninty always seems to peter out and not tell compelling stories. Thoughts?
It thought it was an interesting set of ideas that wasn't executed as well as it could have been. I don't think it has much chance of a sequel. This may be blasphemy, but I think the iPad version was better than the console and PC version.
You were the guy who wrote about my Minecraft Enterprise on Ars.... Just want to say thanks for making my 15 minuets of fame last a little longer!
Nintendo likes to paint in very broad strokes, and I think that works when you're younger and more emotional, and it's a big reason why we love those games so much when we're growing up. That's kind of how you feel when you're a teenager or younger. As you get older and embrace subtlety and you've been around the block a few times it gets harder to embrace that approach characters. I don't think Nintendo just makes games for kids, I think they're approach to character and story are meant to tap into the childlike parts of us, but I also think those wells are starting to run dry. I'd like to see Nintendo tackle a straight-up tragedy, or something a little darker.
In a lot of ways Miyamoto strikes me as a George Lucas who never started to suck.
3DS Friend Code: 2165-6448-8348 www.Twitch.TV/cooljammer00
Battle.Net: JohnDarc#1203 Origin/UPlay: CoolJammer00
On a related note, are you still a shill for/biased against every single game company ever now that you're in the pocket of Big PA?
You've asked for what people are interested in seeing; personally, I don't think that has ever changed.
It is the same as it always has been in the media, any media.
People wish to read about 'fun' dirt (namely, legal battles, appalling employment practices, so on) for general entertainment to wash away our own troubles in life from occupying the short-term memory.
They also very much enjoy great success stories (especially of how the 'little guy' made it to the 'big league') for providing encouraging spirits of how everything is possible if a human puts themselves all onto it -- it gives hope to keep on going and believing in the possibility of a better future, not unlike super-hero cartoons in a sense.
Are you allowed to use the excellent Buy / Rent / Skip system associated with Ars Technica?
In your farewell article at Ars, you mention how indispensable your editors were in helping you to become a better writer and to continuously put out quality work. Without a traditional staff structure at PA, how are you planning on mitigating the loss of this role in your writing pattern? Will you be using Tycho as your touchstone, or are you pretty much flying solo?
Yeah, no one here is interested in scores. It's not going to happen.
Just remember I'm biased for/against Nintendo/Sony/Microsoft because Microsoft/Sony/Nintendo paid me so much more money. Circle different companies each week.
I hear you, and those are actually great notes. I appreciate the input!
That's a really good question, and I have a few strategies I'm going to try. Once we find something that works well and I'm comfortable with it, I'll come back with more details. It's definitely something that's been on my mind.
I'd rather the quality of my writing fight my fights. If we bump into each other it will be as friends and lovers of games. Deal?
Deal.
Now give me back my chickens.
You're making me all verklempt here.
Earlier you revealed, and made me all envious, that you have literally every game on Steam. I know that there are a lot of gems hidden throughout Steam's valves, and so I'm wondering what game have you played that really surprised you because you enjoyed it so much when you didn't expect to? Or do you not have enough time to really explore your library of Steam games? I ask because I enjoy supporting quality games that, for whatever reason, did not find success. I know that my hidden gem would be Making History 2. Its Metacritic score really scared me but before I knew it it had consumed 26 hours of my life. It's a game that was released as a buggy, unplayable mess but it is now a really enjoyable game.
Check out the Penny Arcade World of Tanks thread to join us in some fun times.
First, do you feel that it is a fair criticism to say that someone who was the dominant writer, and the editor, for the gaming section of Ars Technica, and is now moving on to another massively popular gaming related site, should have probably played an MMO at some point? I understand that you recently began playing The Old Republic as your first MMO and were not familiar with basic terminology or gameplay. While this information may not be required for you to write articles, don't you feel a responsible gaming writer (or in your case apparently a gaming news editor) should have, at some point, take it upon himself to become familiar with the genre that holds the records for most one day sales, most concurrent players, highest grossing overall, highest retailing and most popular overall genre in gaming?
Second, do you feel that you have matured significantly in the last 4 months? I ask because when I read this article, in which you express an opinion that a lot of your readers seem to disagree with, instead of addressing their comments and communicating with your own readers, you insulted and trolled them. I found this behavior off-putting and wouldn't want to see it continue on Penny Arcade.
What's cooler than being cool?
ICE COLD
Definitely on the MMO front, and it was great to really dig into that genre with the Old Republic. I feel like I have a much better grasp on why people play and enjoy that sort of online game. I'm not sure if I think it's a necessity, but it's certainly helpful.
In terms of my communication with the readers in the other thread, I don't suffer fools gladly. Never have, and I'm not going to start. If you want to have a discussion I'm always game, but I don't have a lot of patience for hostility or idiocy.
It's not quite every game, a press account just gives you access to MOST games, and to be honest I'm usually so busy with games I'm covering that it's hard to go back and find the gems. I always like being pointed toward games other people think are worth the time though, just so I have a place to start if I find myself with nothing to play.
I'm allowed to, sure, but I don't think we'll have any kind of summing up. Why not try to keep the entire focus on words and thoughts, and not arbitrary rankings? We have a chance to try something new and a little more challenging here, so let's really go for it!
That was a fascinating story, thanks for contributing!
hugging you