I Shot a Man in New Reno, Just to Watch Him Die

Video games are pretty darn violent. With the exception of the cutest, cuddliest 'rated E10 and under' releases, most video games involve some sort of protagonist running around with an oversized weapon of choice (sword, gun, lollipop, cabinet, paintbrush, what have you) sending baddies to the hot place with some well-timed use of attacks and Special Hyper Combos. Concerned parents often get up in arms about the games where the sole focus is the destruction of thine enemies (although I've noticed a decrease in this kind of uproar within the past few years), saying that it shows too much crude and gory violence. Games like Grand Theft Auto and Mortal Kombat (especially the most recent release) have an almost pornographic violence to them, and to be honest I don't see the appeal of teaming up with a shadow copy of yourself and pulling a man in half by his legs (definitely NSFW, definitely bloody. Just FYI).

I think that kind of ultraviolence is a minority of the video game population. Like I said, video games are violent, but in most cases, the violence does have a justification to them. Take Commander Shepard in Mass Effect. Shepard is a murder machine, wasting geth, krogan, reaper, ice cream stand, and intergalactic government official with little remorse. But it's war. And while a lot of people would argue that war isn't a good thing, it was good enough to save the world from a crazy man bent on world domination 70 years ago. No one had a problem with that kind of violence, because guess what? It was necessary. When Shepard kills a wing of vorcha mercenaries keeping him from curing a plague in a poor community, those jerks totally got what was coming to them. If a bunch of bad people are doing bad things to innocent people and can't be reasoned with, most people would advocate getting out your level 72 +9 holy smiting claymore and going to town on them to protect those in need. Weapons and violence are a tool, just like anything else, and when used in a righteous manner, I don't think it's any cause for concern.

And not even every release makes violence a necessary part of the game. From the very beginning of its franchise, the Metal Gear Solid games stress that unnecessary bloodshed is bad, and the highest ratings you can get in those games can only be gotten through not killing a single man. The same goes for the latest Deus Ex game (and maybe the other ones too I don't know), and in all of the Fallout games, almost every major enemy or challenge can be overcome through words or stealth. These kinds of things teach kids that there are other answers to violence and that with a bit of cunning, challenges can be overcome without it. But again, in most cases, no one would begrudge Solid Snake or Adam Jensen for using deadly force against a bunch of terrorists/rogue government agents/crazy Illuminati.

That's it for now. Lucky episode 7 is up. Check out our youtube page and I'll see you kids later.

--D Marx

Who Do You Think You Are? The Style of PCs

Let's compare Commander Shepard of Mass Effect fame with the Courier from Fallout: New Vegas, shall we?


Take my Shepard, Wren. Wren Shepard grew up on a space station, never setting foot on a planet until she was in her teens. Her parents were proud members of the Human Systems Alliance Navy, and when Wren came-of-age, she followed in her parents' footsteps and joined the Alliance Marines. When Batarian slavers attacked the human colony of  Elysium, Wren single-handed protected the colonists from the invaders, earning the Star of Terra and being selected into the prestigious N7 program. During this time, she rose through the ranks, eventually becoming the Executive Officer of one of the most advanced ships ever built, the Normandy, under the command of Captain David Anderson. And that was before the game even started.

Now, let's look at one of my Couriers, Adam. Adam is a courier. He ran afoul of Benny and his Great Khan cronies outside of Goodsprings whilst carrying the Platinum chip. Annnnnd that's it.

These are two pretty different kinds of PCs. One is a fleshed out character in a long story: creating Shepard in Mass Effect involves deciding who Shepard is, and where he/she has come from. Deciding the story of Shepard comes even before deciding what Shepard looks like. In ME1, the first scene of game comes with the knowledge of the kind of person that Shepard is. It's fairly important to the story; Shepard's past changes and informs how the NPCs of the galaxy interact with him/her, and even comes back to haunt him/her at certain points of Shepard's story.

The Courier is, of course, almost the exact opposite, a blank slate. While snippets of who the Courier is comes out occasionally in conversation with other NPCs, really, it almost doesn't matter the roads that the Courier has walked. The world continues turning even without knowing every detail of the Courier's life.

So who's the stronger PC? The obvious choice is Shepard; after all, Shepard is a fleshed out PC with a lot of hooks, a fair amount of depth, and that's reflected in the world around it. But really this isn't a fair comparison. What the Courier lacks in backstory he/she more than makes up for by just being a set-piece in a bigger story around them. Shepard is the king of the Mass Effect chessboard: the most important thing on the board that, by the end of the third game, becomes the single focal point of all the galaxy's attention. The Courier, by contrast, is really a pawn in the big scheme of things, especially to those he/she chooses to work for throughout the course of the game. The Courier slogs along, one square at a time, until the Battle of Hoover Dam where it meets the other end of the board and becomes the queen, the most powerful piece on the board. This is the second biggest difference between the Courier and Shepard: Shepard is a child of circumstance, a (wo)man who happens to receive a message from a long-dead civilization fortelling the death of the galaxy, setting him/her on a course of the its salvation from the Reapers. The Courier is a child of nurture, someone who makes decisions based on what's best for him/her as opposed to what needs to be done. While both PCs are ultimately the arbiters of their own fate, making the decisions that shake the world around them, the motivations for the characters are radically different.

I like Shepard. I like being able to choose who (s)he is and what happens to him/her. But I like the Courier too. I like being able to put myself in the Courier's shoes, pretending that I'm lynchpin of the war of attrition between the New California Republic and Caesar's Legion. And it's that ability to be in New Vegas that makes the Courier every bit as memorable as Shepard. In my opinion.

--D Marx

Harder. Better. Faster. Stronger.

Hello loyal Sons supporters! Apologies for the lack of updates as of late, but your Sons have been busy working on our brand-spanking new Youtube account! That's right; now you can watch your favorite Sons do quick reviews, play-throughs (or 'Let's Plays' to those in the biz), and whatever else we feel like throwing on. Go there, watch the videos, and ENJOY them!

Also, this week's podcast is up, detail the Sons' views on how homosexuality is portrayed in video games; who does it right, who does it wrong, and who doesn't do it at all. Also they talk the new fighting game sensation, Skullgirls, which can be downloaded on the PSN and Xbox Arcade. And, of course, the legendary SONS OF VIDYA SPEED REVIEWS!

Thanks as always for the support and don't be afraid to email us with  anything that's on your mind!

--D Marx

Second Episode! TOP 5

Hello hello! D Marx here with your Sons of Vidya update. We have now released our second podcast, which we've conveniently been able to link right to this blog for you, the fans. This week, the Sons discuss the Top 5 games of this generation. Who made the list? Who got snubbed? Be sure to send us tons of emails agreeing with us or a few emails disagreeing with us. We also discuss what's currently in our consoles right now, and of course our famous Speed Reviews. Download, listen, and enjoy!

--D Marx

Fall of the Samurai and Scheduling News

Hey everyone! D Marx with another Sons of Vidya blog update. Today I'm talking recommendations, and that is for the newest expansion for Shogun II Total War, Fall of the Samurai. The latest from the Total War team takes you to the Meiji Restoration period of Japan, where the old ways of bushido begin to conflict with the oncoming of Western military technology and ideology. Fight as six different clans, three traditional samurai and three that embrace the ways of the West. New units like devastating Gatling guns and ironclads will give the traditional samurai the truest challenge a warrior can face. Fall of the Samurai will be released this Friday, the 23rd, and you can preorder it now through Steam.

In addition, the Sons of Vidya are now releasing our glorious podcast every Tuesday. Be sure to subscribe to us on iTunes or check our RSS feed for the latest releases. Thank you for all your support and don't hesitate to pop us an email.

--D Marx

First podcast is best podcast

Hello listeners; we at the Sons of Vidya are proud to bring you our very first podcast! This week we discuss Mass Effect 3 (there are some spoilers, be forewarned), we discuss Playing This, Not That with Guilty Gear over the newly released Street Fighter X Tekken, and the classic Sons of Vidya lightning review! Be sure to drop us a line at our email (sonsofvidya@gmail.com) and you may end up with a fabulous prize. You can find the podcast here or you can find us on iTunes!

And be sure to keep checking the blog! Thanks for the support!

--D Marx