Vintage Game Club - the next game
October 17, 2008
Deus Ex wraps up this week, and on behalf of my co-moderators Dan Bruno and David Carlton, I want to thank all of you who joined in the lively discussion. The VGC now has 135 members from all over the world, and our Deus Ex discussion generated 928 posts and well over 60,000 page views from members and visitors. That's what I call a conversation. :-)
So, what game next? After some discussion we agreed to choose a (mostly) non-narrative console game this time. Having played two story-heavy PC games - Grim Fandango and Deus Ex - we'd like to zero in on game mechanics and level design this time. Gamers don't often have a chance to discuss or analyze these elements, and we rarely share our personal experiences playing platformers or side-scrollers, other than to say we beat a certain level or boss.
We also want a shorter play session this time. Deus Ex has been great, but it's a long haul. Looking at the release calendar of AAA games on the way this month, we decided to go with something shorter that would lend itself to briefer play sessions.
So, with all this in mind, we tossed open the doors for suggestions, sorted through all the submissions, and narrowed the list down to a final three:
- Super Mario 64
- Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee
- Super Metroid
This is where you come in. Between now and Sunday we'll discuss these games and patiently endure the high-pressure lobbying campaigns waged by passionate advocates of each. Voting will take place from Sunday until Tuesday at 7pm EST, and we will begin playing on Monday, November 3. We hope this will give folks time to get their hands on whatever game we choose, and allow the Deus Ex players a bit of a breather. So if you're a member, come on over and join the deliberations about these three great games.
If you're not a member and wish to join us, what's stopping you? We'd love to have you, and now would be a great time to jump in. Just hop over to our discussion forum, sign up, and you're in. If you'd prefer not to join but simply want to follow the discussion, you're welcome to do that too.