Video Games: The Future Part 1- Dystopian Worlds

Throughout the future unit we looked at how the world might look like in the future and how other people see the world. While playing Fallout 4 I was able to see that the world that has been created is very different from the one that we saw in Blade Runner. Even though both of these worlds look at the future and both have the possibility of becoming true, I would have to say that the world created in Fallout 4 seems like a more realistic fate for our society. This is because Fallout 4 is set in a post apocalyptic world where a devastating nuclear war has happened and I think that there is a great possibility that the today's world could end up like this because nowadays all countries have nuclear bombs and are always using them as a threat when another country is getting out of hand.

Even though Fallout 4 seems like it is more likely to happen, I still think that some things from Blade Runner could happen because we as a society are evolving so quickly that it seems possible that we could end up with AI at some point in the future.

Altogether I think that both of these futures are possible, I also think that we could end up with both of them happening, just at different times in the future. Like the whole idea of Blade Runner would most likely come first and then the future presented in Fallout 4 would most likely end up being quite some time in the future.

Video Games: Batman

Batman has been adapted into several different types of media. Some of these types it has been adapted into include comics, film, TV, video games and quite a few others.

I think that Batman's essence is expressed best in movies because they are an easy thing to follow and everyone can understand how Batman works better in a movie. Also when Batman is portrayed in movies it makes it easier to see how Batman spends his day to day life an how he becomes the character that we all know and love. Another reason that movies express his essence the best is because you can see his struggles and the image is right in front of you, whereas in comics you are left to create the image yourself even though you have the pictures to help you. 

Video games are an okay way to express his essence because instead of watching or reading about Batman, you are able to actually play as Batman and get a feel of  what his life is actually like. By getting the chance to play as Batman you get to experience how Batman works and all of the cool things he can do.

Although comics were Batman's first form of entertainment and most people would consider it to be Batman's best form, I personally think that they don't express his essence that well. This is because with comics you have to come up with the image yourself and you don't always have the background information that you need to come up with that image and the essence that Batman has.

Video Games: BlockBusters

One of the things we talked about in the Blockbuster unit was how a lot of big Blockbuster movies tend to have several sequels to them and they eventually end up becoming a franchise. Also that Blockbuster movies tend to have a lot of advertising that goes into them to make them the big success that they are. I think that this is also true for video games. This is because just like Blockbuster movies, Blockbuster video games can also have several sequels and end up having their own franchise. They also have a lot of money that just goes into advertising. Like a video game may have a trailer and posters just like movies. Also just like movies, in video games it seems like the more money that is put into advertising, the more successful the game becomes and if the game is successful than it usually leads to more sequels and a possible franchise.

Some examples of Blockbuster video games that have had several sequels and have created a franchise are:

• Halo
• Halo: Combat Evolved
• Halo 2
• Halo 3
• Halo 4
• Halo 5: Guardians
• Halo Wars
• Halo 3: ODST
• Halo: Reach
• Halo: Spartan Assault
• Halo: Spartan Strike
• Fallout
• Fallout
• Fallout 2
• Fallout 3
• Fallout: New Vegas
• Fallout 4
• Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel
• Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel
• Fallout Shelter
• Just Dance
• Just Dance
• Just Dance 2
• Just Dance 3
• Just Dance 4
• Just Dance 2014
• Just Dance 2015
• Just Dance 2016
• Just Dance Kids 
• Just Dance: Disney Party
• Just Dance: Summer Party
• Just Dance: Best Of
• Just Dance Now
• Just Dance Unlimited
• Assassin's Creed
• Assassin's Creed
• Assassin's Creed 2
• Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
• Assassin's Creed: Revelations
• Assassin's Creed 3
• Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag
• Assassin's Creed Rogue
• Assassin's Creed Unity
• Assassin's Creed Syndicate
• Assassin's Creed: Altairs Chronicles
• Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines
• Assassin's Creed 2: Discovery
• Assassin's Creed: Project Legacy
• Assassin's Creed: Recollection
• Assassin's Creed: Multiplayer Rearmed
•  Assassin's Creed 3: Liberation
• Assassin's Creed: Pirates
• Assassin's Creed Memories
• Assassin's Creed Chronicles
• Assassin's Creed Identity

Another thing that I noticed is that most Blockbuster video games tend to not just have a lot of sequels, but that they also seem to have several spin offs for the series and franchise. Altogether I would have to say that from the video games I looked at, Blockbuster video games tend to have a lot more sequels to them than Blockbuster movies, leaving them with huge series that would make the companies a lot of money.

How Important are Good Graphics in Video Games?

The Future Part 2: Zombies

In Left 4 Dead the graphics are quite important. This is because without the graphics the game wouldn't seem as scary and you wouldn't have the feeling that you are actually inside the game with the characters. Without the good graphics the game would become boring after the first few times playing it and you wouldn't get the same thrill while playing the game if the graphics are bad.

Blockbusters

In Wii Sports and Mario the graphics aren't all that important. This is because when you play blockbuster games, you usually aren't worrying about what the game looks like and when you play them you are more worried about how much fun you are having rather than what the game looks like.







Batman

In Batman: Arkham Asylum the graphics are pretty important. This is because when you play this game, you are in it for the story of Batman and want the graphics to be good. Also when you play a game where there is lots of fighting, than you usually want the graphics to be more realistic to bring the story to life and to make the fighting more realistic.





The Future Part 1: Dystopian Worlds

In Fallout 4 the graphics are extremely important. This is because this is a story based game and when you play the game you want to feel like you are in a movie or in the world itself. By having amazing graphics you are able to engage yourself into the game better and actually feel like you are a part of the world.

Video Games: The Future Part 2 - Zombies

In Left 4 Dead, the story still seems to focus on the effect the outbreak has on the human survivors. This is because the story follows a group of people who are trying to survive after an apocalyptic pandemic has happened. The survivors are put through different scenarios and have to survive as zombies attack them. Even though the story of the game follows how the survivors survive through the zombie apocalypse, it still seems to have an element of it that deals with the actual threat of the zombies. This is because the zombies are still the main threat in the game and at this point in the game they also seem to be the biggest threat.

Although this video game and most other zombie video games follow the survivors, there are probably zombie video games out there that follow a different route and have different things that happen in them. 

The fear and tension in the game seems to come from the not knowing when the zombies may pop out and how many of them may come in the attack. Another element that contributes to the fear and tension is how at any point in the game, the supplies that you may need may not be there when you need them meaning that at any point in the game you could die.

Rick Grimes as a Hero in Modern Society

Rick Grimes is a character from a comic book series and TV show series called The Walking Dead. Basically these series are about a post apocalyptic world where zombies have taken over and the humans that are still alive have to learn how survive in a world where they could turn into zombies or die completely at any moment. On top of trying to survive with zombies around them, they also have to survive with the threat that other humans are trying to kill you and that water, food, etc. can sometimes be very hard to come by.

The reason that I think Rick Grimes fits as a hero in our modern society is because he is a natural leader, even after waking up several months after the zombie apocalypse has started in the hospital. In every single episode and comic of the series you get to see Rick struggle with his own humanity as well as the humanity of everyone in his crew of his friends/family, but he always seems to be able to pull himself and his crew back together and ultimately do what needs to be done in the end. He's an ordinary man in a world that is falling apart and he is one of the only ones in the group with the ability to make it seem like everyone can survive in this impossible world. 

Rick is a hero from our culture that fits our society's values because first of all he lives in a society that our society believes is what the near future is going to look like with the zombie apocalypse being the ultimate destroyer of today's society. Also he represents how I think a lot of people would act if they were put into a situation like this. Like in the first few seasons of The Walking Dead, he starts off being afraid to kill and lose the people that he cares about. He starts off living and reveling in his past and never moving forward, but as the seasons go on he starts to adjust to his surroundings and he ends up becoming the leader of his pack. He represents the values that most people nowadays have. Like he believes that his family comes first in all situations even if he has to kill some one to keep them safe. This represents us because most people would do anything for their families even if it means that they might have to kill someone for it. This is the ultimate reason why Rick Grimes can be seen as a a hero in modern society.

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice

I preferred the movie over the comic, even though there was a lot of plot holes in the film. One of the reasons behind this choice is the fact that I don't really like comics and I find comics hard to follow and don't understand them most of the time. I also liked how Superman was portrayed as more of dark character in the film and that he was seen as a kind of bad character that is doing more bad than good, whereas in the comic he was seen as the godly character that was sent from space to save the world and he defeats the Batman. Another reason I liked the film over the comic is because the cinematography was amazing in the film even though the script wasn't the best. Some of the shots in the film were just amazing and seemed to have a lot of thought put into it. Like the shots during the flash back scene to his childhood were the best with all of the shallow looks at the gun and the pearls as the gun shoots and the pearls break.

As we all know the movie was a set up for the upcoming Justice League movie that is coming out within the next couple years. So there was cameos for characters that will be in the movie. One of the characters that had a scene in the movie was Wonder Woman and I absolutely loved getting to see her in the film. She was BAD ASS and I thought she definitely held her role even with the other two big characters in the film. I even think that she caught my eye more than Batman and Superman because when she came in it was a crucial part in the plot and I think that she brought more to it as well as maybe even doing more in that specific scene than Batman and Superman combined.

Now even though I liked the film better than the comic, there was still a lot wrong with the film that I think made the film worse. If these things had of been fixed than I think the film would have been amazing. The script was just terrible and there was a lot of useless and confusing stuff in the film that made it hard to follow, but not as hard to follow as the comic. Like all of the flash backs and dreams that happen throughout the film seem to make no sense and have no connection to the plot at all and I feel like if they were removed it would make the  movie better and wouldn't change the overall theme of the story. I also feel like Batman and Superman fight for no reason making the whole Batman v. Superman thing kind of useless.