It was a fun ride

Well now the cluster is over and i will miss all the new friends i made and i am greatful to dr.smith, dr.lucca and dr.rheuben for all they have thought me and i wish all the people i met in class the best of luck. I hope you all succeed in life and maybe well see each other down the road some day. goodbye for now.

Progress on Essay 5

My essay is going good as planned. I recently researched on some films which are based on video games. I've got information on the movies and receptions from fans. Movies I have found information on are Max Payne, Super Mario Bros, Mortal Kombat, Resident Evil and a new movie coming out based on a computer game called "American McGee's Alice". I also have found information on a director who is known for making crappy movies based on games called Uwe Boll. This information could be valuable to me in my research. Right now i just need to sum up my ideas. I'm just concerned about whether my people will make sense and people will understand it or not. I will try to be as clear as possible so people can understand where I'm coming from. I just need a little more information on the impact of some movies on video games. I know one movie which I liked that was turned into a video game was "The Warriors" so I can progress from there. I'll keep you posted.

topic for game research paper

my topic will be how video games have impacted movies and ill list some movies that have turned into games. I just want to see the impact it has and the reception it recieves from actual gamers. I think it will be a fun paper and this is my basic idea for now.

The Trip to Manhattan

The trip to the city was great. I arrived at Toys R' Us at 10:00 so I waited for my group (Derek,Depore,David,Nermin). I had no idea how big this store was but it was gigantic. We then went downstairs into the video games section and played some video games there on the PS3. Afterwards we made our way upstairs passing a huge ferris wheel and went into the lego star wars section and saw a giant T-rex statue and Captain Jack Sparrow. It was interesting to see all the children interacting with toys and many children crying over toys they wanted lol. We saw a little girl playing with a wind up toy car on a rail road track model. She looked like she was really into it and she kept trying to make her car stay on the tracks. Afterwards we made a little pit stop to the Virgin Megastore and looked at some different games and cds there. We couldn't resist lol. We then walked to Game Stop and looked at all the different games there and I noticed heavy advertising for the new Xbox360 game "Fable II". David and Depore then played some "Rock Band" lol it was pretty cool. I thought to myself "games are really fascinating" and "how can games have such a big impact on people?". It was a little interesting to think about. We then made our way to The Complete Strategist and I was blown away at how many board games they had. They had a bunch of different types from horror to comics to midevil. I even saw a large chess board for sale but I couldn't afford any games lol. We left the store at 1:30 and decided to call it a day since it was getting late. It was a fun day and analyzing the different types of games was interesting. I hope it can help me in my research paper.

The Cluster

So far in this cluster I have learned new things. I learned more about MLA formatting, communication in media and different types of filming techniques and correct vocabulary used in film. The most interesting was learning about filming techniques and learning about Johnny Cash for my Mass Media midterm project. I learned more about him and the person he was. I also got to learn the connection of The Matrix and Allegory of the cave which was interesting. The most challenging was learning all the film techniques and correct vocab words to use. I think it is hard for me to remember all the different types of shots, angles and everything else. I'm not really interested in film that much so it doesn't appeal to me. In the next few weeks I can expect other challenges like trying to do other essays and attempting to pass my film tests.

The Club Carnival

The fair was pretty cool. I went there not intending to join any club but I was a little persuaded to join the newspaper club. I enjoy writing and I think it would give me a chance to show my skills. The best part of the fair was the free fruit drink samples they were giving away. They were great especially the purple one lol. I saw many clubs and it was a little crowded but I got to see most of the clubs. I also got to meet some new faces and talk to some people so that was great. All in all it was a cool experience and I enjoyed it. I left a little early though but I should have stayed longer so I could see more clubs.

"Good Video Games and Good Learning"

I just read the article "Good video games and good learning" by James Gee and I think it is very interesting. I agree with him about the challenges video games seem to have and when he says “What you learn when you learn to play a video game is just how to play the game”. I agree with this and I think it applies for every and all video games. Being a video gamer myself I can see where he is coming from and you definitely have to take risks and have interaction. I become the character I play such as Snake from Metal Gear Solid 4:Guns of the Patriots or Leon S. Kennedy from Resident Evil 4. You have to have commitment and dedication as you would have in school. I also agree with the principle of agency and challenge and consolidation. They are both principles I feel and use when I play games. I also like the challenge and frustration the games give me because I am determined to try harder and use my problem solving skills as discussed in the principle 11. The principle of production reminds me of a game I have played called "Indigo Prophecy" in which you must make a choice and decisions and each decision leads to a different outcome. Risk taking reminds me of "The Matrix" because Neo took a risk when he took the red pill and he also applied the principle of production as he made a choice to take the red pill and his outcome was living in the matrix.

The Third Blog: Game.Play.Simulation

Words are like an enigma. They are mysterious and have a lot of meanings. Three words that I would like to discuss today are Game, Play and Simulation. When I hear the word play I think of it as being something you put into action. For example I play video games so I'm interacting with the video game and I'm putting it into action. When we use the word "game" we are talking about something competitive and puts you into a challenge. Many examples are football, hockey and boxing. I know when I see a game because there should be competition and challenges. Simulation is the toughest word for me here as I think it would mean to immitate something or put yourself in the place of another real thing. An example of simulation is acting because you put yourself in the place of another and pretend to be them. These are my definition of these terms and please do tell me what you think of them.

The Matrix

The Matrix film by the Wachowski brothers was a very interesting and action packed film. The film had a very talented cast of actors and the plot was very unique. The film had its array of unique characters all with different personalities and styles. The most interesting character to me was Cypher who infact betrayed his friends and join Smith in order to have a luxurious life. The real stars of the film are Morpheus, Trinity, and Neo who are the most heroic and overall cool. The film makes you question our own reality and if this is reality. Are we living in a matrix or a reality? These are some good questions that come up when you really think about the film. If you were Neo which pill would you have taken? This is another question in which I think about after watching the film. The Matrix is also similar to Allegory of the Cave in which it shows Neo who is similar to the slave and who is thought to believe that the wall he stares at is reality. One day Neo chooses to leave out of this so called reality like the slave and he sees the real world or the “matrix” and sees everything clearer. He believes he is “the one”. The film made me wonder if this is a reality we all live in or are we thought to believe this is real. Are we like Neo and the slave? Are we staring at a wall but don’t follow the noises? This film is a phenomenal film and the questions it left me with are what I look for in a movie. I would give this film a 3 and a half out of 4 stars and the action scenes are awesome as well as the characters is very video game like and is an interesting style. The fight scenes are reminiscent of old fighting games like Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat. If you have never seen this movie you must see it now!

Greetings

Hey there, My name is Shakti. I know it's a difficult name to pronounce for most of you and im sorry. I'm going to be talking about myself in this blog and introducing myself. I am of Indian Descent and I was born and raised in Elmhurst, New York. I am eighteen years old and this is my first semester at LaGuardia Community College. I love hearing people's ideas or thoughts about things and once you get to know me you'll see im a very caring and funny person (or so iv'e been told). I enjoy watching movies, listening to music and writing poetry. I am a little shy at first but after a while I begin to open up. I look forward to talking to all of you and hearing your opinions on things. Farewell for now...

-Shakti