cruelty
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Why do games prompt cruel behavior?
Games like DayZ and Rust have become a whole genre unto themselves: open-world survival sandboxes that quickly turn into simulations of human cruelty. But why is that, exactly? Why do people in a sandbox devote so much of their energy to tearing one another down with such vigor? A recent article on Wired asks exactly that question, exploring these open-world games and why they tend to provoke such abject cruelty in their participants. The piece comes to no hard and fast conclusions, speaking both from personal experiences and from interviews with other players. One player speculates that the core of it is that these games give you nothing but tools, so players invent their own fun by using other players as content. Another possible explanation is the very nature of catharsis, envisioning dark behaviors whilst knowing that you would never carry them out in the real world. Take a look at the full article if you'd like a deeper look at why players spend so much time in games where anything goes by clubbing others with rocks.
Pimp My Profile: Derongar, protection warrior
Welcome to Pimp My Profile, the column in which the WoW.com staff turns zeroes into heroes. Don't think you're performing where you should be? Not sure how your class/spec is supposed to be gearing up? E-mail us with your Armory link, and you might be next to receive our help! I WANT TO RAID GOOD. Please, teach me to raid gooder than I already raid. -Derongar While I believe that your gear is pretty solid (at first I was confused by the lower stamina but then I realized you'd logged out in arms spec but tanking gear) there are a few places that can be adjusted.
PAX 2008 Music Video: Jonathon Coulton's 'Flickr' and 'Not This One'
Last night we attended the first PAX 2008 concert, featuring The OneUps, Freezepop, and Jonathan Coulton headlining. There are a multitude of great moments (highlight reel to come later this weekend), but one thing that stuck out was Coulton's performance of "Flickr" and special song "Not This One," both songs featuring video accompaniment aided by sound guy Bart Brad. Check out the live performance, embedded above.
Cruelty-free web gaming with PETA's Super Chick Sisters
"Colonel Sanders and his minions have kidnapped Pamela Anderson for revealing to the world that KFC's secret recipe is cruelty to chickens." So begins PETA's trippy Super Chick Sisters, a web-based Flash platformer that pushes allegations of mistreated chickens as you play.Vegetarians will like the game for its message, but gamers will like the surprisingly decent controls and level design in this quick, five-level game. They'll also appreciate infringement-tastic cut scenes featuring Mario and Luigi sidelined with Wii-related injuries and beat up by People for the Ethical Treatment of Turtles. Oh, and did we mention the final boss: A robotic spider Colonel Sanders wearing a Bowser mask? Spoiler alert!
Breakfast Topic: Acts of cruelty
In stark contrast to yesterday's wonderful tales of altruism, today we're looking at the flipside -- unwarranted cruelty. Have you ever ganked someone just because you could? Pulled a quest mob knowing that those nearby would have to wait another 15 minutes for it to respawn? Given a newbie purposefully bad directions? Summoned people to their death?There are quite a few nasty tricks you can play on others in WoW, whether they deserve it or not. I like to think I'm a nice person, but I've done my share of "run in, get the named quest mob before anyone else can, run out" -- sometimes it's an easy way to finish a quest, as everyone nearby will fall on the mob in hope it becomes theirs. On the other hand, the excuse "everyone else is doing it" doesn't hold much weight amongst grown adults. What are your tales of cruelty and horror towards other WoW players? What's the worst trick you've fallen victim of?
