So, it's that time of the year again (or at least it was) - the time of E3. And with E3, you know what we need? Mandatory video blogs detailing what everyone thought of the show! So, without further ado, I present to you the Alt+F4 E3 Special, parts one and two. Enjoy!

Part 1

Part 2

So, there hasn't been an Alt+F4 in a while. It's not that I'm not interested in doing one, it's just that I don't really have anything to say. I didn't get the Bourne Conspiracy and Alone in the Dark hasn't arrived yet, and there really, really isn't that much you can say about the Incredible Hulk (the game, not the movie; the movie is awesome).
In the meantime, I wrote a review of one of my favourite games of all time, The Longest Journey, which you can find here. Enjoy!

In these crazy days we live in, I look at some stuff, be it games news/information or events on the news, or just some errant comment on a blog in the backwaters of the Internet, and I go to state my opinion on the matter, and I stop and wonder if I truly disagree with what's being said. Am I really angry about anything anymore? More and more I find myself treating things with more indifference than indignation. It's quite worrying to confront the fact that you may not really care anymore, but feel more compelled to disagree out of habit than actual stance.

So, it's with some small amount of relief that I read about Reverend Richard Patrick's proposal of a "burning" rally for games and CDs that are deemed "destructive". I'm going to whip out Godwin's Law early on in this editorial and point out the obvious comparison: the book-burning rallies of the Nazi Party. Have we really gotten so low as a people and a culture that we'd consider something that was once propagated by a group of killers? It's disgusting to me on the most base level. I'm one of those hippy-types that think of games as an art form - and music, that's not even worth pointing out - and to see someone encourage others to destroy these works is shameful.

Music is an expression of an artist's creativity. Similarly, games can be - and often are - a realisation of one person's vision. Do people think Tim Schafer set out to be a "destructive influence" when he started work on Psychonauts? That Warren Spector was intent on corrupting the hearts and minds of the world's little ones with Deus Ex? The idea is ridiculous. Yes, there are some people out there who create games and music in order to make a quick buck and have no respect for consumers or even themselves; but even these are hardly destructive, and forms of entertainment being vilified by anyone and everyone who can get their name in a daily rag went beyond the joke a long time ago.

One of the things that makes it even more infuriating is that Patrick jumps straight to stereotypes - the genre of music targeted is rap music, the games targeted are violent ones. I've long defended the rap genre - really, I should be used to this kind of thing - but this really struck a chord. Destructive? Hate-filled? Patrick should grab a copy of Straight Outta Compton. That album isn't corruptive, it's inspirational. Violent games? Shadow of the Colossus is a violent game. You stab living beings in the head, yet to me that was a beautiful, artistic masterpiece of a game. Patrick makes the mistake that many people do and is tarring every artist/developer with the same brush.

Reading a little of the Daily Press' interview with the Reverend, I notice he talks about how the youth of the area don't have an outlet. Games and music are an outlet! It amazes me how a man of the cloth, someone with so much trust placed in him by so many people, can be so ignorant. Man, that was just infuriating. I suppose I can't remove the man's right to his own opinion, but for some people, it would be nice, you know?

Oh man, I'm about to be Godwin'd, aren't I?

It'd be nice if Alt+F4 had reached 180 episodes, but for now, be happy with the eighth.
Also, on the subject of the Secret Apprentice being in Soul Calibur IV, which I reference in the Addendum: I think it's okay. Namco Bandai/Bandai Namco are going a little overboard with the bonus Star Wars characters, but at least this way, we actually get to see some lightsaber combat between the SA/Yoda or SA/Vader in the SCIV engine, which, let's face it, is going to look pretty as hell. Ah well....I'm still buying it. No go watch the episode

The seventh episode of Alt+F4 is up and running after a short absence.
Also, check out my awesome Pixelate WMM effect! Man, I'm so up on this video editing stuff