Video games - An addictive, but not excessive hobbie

By Simon Wright (Personal piece)

AS I sit in my place in Northampton, counting down the days until I go home to Milton Keynes for the best part of two months, I think a bit more about one of my hobbies that I have enjoyed and have entertained me for a long time, the video game.  However, before anyone jumps to any conclusions, it’s only an addictive trait of mine – I’m not one of those freaks who drink gallons of coffee, stare into the TV screen excessively and do permanent damage to my eyesight.  If you have that life, then that’s fine, but it must cost an absolute fortune in prescription glasses, so I hope it’s worth it!

     I remember my first console machine, which was the Sega Mega Drive.  Playing classic games like Sonic the Hedgehog, NFL 93, running rings around American football teams with the Miami Dolphins and the early FIFA games, which let’s face it, were terrible, as the players looked like mushrooms and the football was a paper ball, when you could make a better version in nursery!  Nevertheless, the Mega Drive was a great breakthrough in gaming technology and ultimately, Sega’s best attempt at a console.  The Dreamcast was an utter disaster and as for Sega Saturn, I don’t have any words to describe that are nicer than rubbish!

     My view of gaming changed in 1997, through one of the most powerful slogans I can remember and one of the best TV commercials I ever saw.  The ‘Double Life’ Playstation ad really spoke to me.  Sony had created a monster as far as I was concerned and what I mean by that, that’s a monster of beauty.  I mean, who couldn’t be appealed by ‘Do Not Underestimate the Power of PlayStation.’  I certainly didn’t and through the PlayStation and PlayStation 2 – I was blessed with Sony games for the next 12 years.  I have every single Formula One title, got appealed by Crash Bash, drove like a maniac on Crazy Taxi and The Simpsons Road Rage, became a legend on the WRC rally games and of course, the football battle between FIFA and ProEvo, which in those days, FIFA was winning hands down.

     What were my favourite PlayStation memories?  It’s difficult to choose actually, though I remember one of my friends commentating on some football game which I think involved Ronaldo (the chubby Brazilian that is!) and Barry Davies, the legendary BBC voice actually telling him to shut up!  Whether it was an error with the game or the console, I don’t know, but quite impressive I thought!  Then, there was Murray Walker, who’s excitement was crystal clear on the early Formula 1 games, with terms shouted out like; HE’S JUST HIT DAMON HILL! OR FISI-C-H-ELLA, Martin, it looked like he hit the wall there.  I like Murray’s dedication, even for your finish.  Say, if you had finished 19^th, he’d mention it.  “19^th; Shinji Nakano (Another Japanese idiot who had no credentials btw) – well his team boss won’t be happy with that result!”

SMART: My clever collection of XBox 360 games in my flat

     Ultimately, the PlayStation 3 never quite appealed to me, but the Xbox 360 did.  I often would trial the Xbox in Zaavi (an entertainment store before it went bust during the recession.)  I got a taste for the new type of gaming; the better graphics, the more virtual reality experience and I wanted a machine to myself.  In 2009, my brother and I got one of the Arcade versions and I bought a newer, 4GB elite version for myself last summer to go into my room whilst at University.  My greatest achievement on the Xbox has to be either winning the FA Cup on World Class difficulty with the legendary Coventry City (hope Farida’s still proud haha!) on FIFA 11 and winning the 2011 FIA Formula One World Championship with Virgin Racing, the ultimate backmarkers in the sport in real life!  So I guess, this proves I’m a king of racing games.  I’ve even taken the plunge into karaoke and been trying my art at the Lips singing games.  Sadly, I can’t sing but it’s still a laugh to perform classics like ‘Karma Chameleon’ and ‘Tubthumping,’ then also embarrassing songs such as ‘Barbie Girl,’ and ‘Wannabe,’ by the Spice Girls!  Oh dear!

CONTROL: The XBox 360 is the console to have at the moment

     For me, I like to play at least an hour a day if I can, because it means I can escape into the virtual reality world, especially if I have had a bad day.  I can have bad days on the Xbox and not get anything right on the game I’m playing.  For people who know me, they know that I can get really competitive.  I simply hate losing to the computer!  For me, it mocks me when that happens.  Sometimes, I can accept it and move on, especially when the computer beats you fair and square, but it gets frustrating when you batter an opposition with 36 attempts on goal, yet still lose 1-0!  That’s when you do think, Grr!  And don’t get me near a tennis game, because when I play a bad shot, the profanity that comes out of my mouth, because I’m annoyed tells its own story!

     So, as you can see, I love the video game and can have addictive crazes to certain games (The Sims 3, how sad am I!) but, I know when to stop and not carry on.  The most I’ve ever played without taking a serious break ever is around four hours.  Normally, an hour a day (two when I have nothing to do) is enough for me and gives me the satisfaction without becoming excessive.  Plus, it might be gripping, but how can playing the likes of Halo, Call of Duty etc like non-stop for 30 hours straight be entertaining, interesting and healthy!  Those who do that, its your life, but you are wasting away.  Enjoy your gaming in moderation and it will feel better is my tip.  I mean, it’s worked for me for the best part of 15 years, so why shouldn’t it for anyone else.  

     If you say to me ‘I love excessive gaming and it’s my life,’ then your need your brain testing!  Forget scoring an attractive girl if that’s the case, because she can do much better!  Balance is an important asset of life, so don’t go down the excessive gaming route.  I lot of people will just reject you, it’s as simple as that.  Good afternoon and goodbye!  

Deadlines, presentations and friendships - The final curtain

By Simon Wright (Personal Blog)

YOU ARE ABOUT TO READ A PARTY BROADCAST BY THE HAPPYDUDE88 PARTY!

SO, THAT is it.  It has been a powerful year and the recent events have proven to me that hope should be there for all of us.  What a year it has been, and it is scary to think that just one more remains before graduation.  For the final time for a while, I will reflect on events involving me from the week.

DONE: No need for any more of that constant stress!

     Monday was absolute madness, and I was the focus point, although not directly affecting me.  Although I had a couple of minor evaluations to type up, and one of those pain-staking, irritating Harvard bibliographies, Monday was deadline day as far as the rest of the journalism course was concerned.  Four key projects had to be handed in, and by the cut-off point of 7pm.  It was chaos in our journalism workroom.  Books, bits of paper, USB drives, and headphones – you name it, lying around in all directions.  I had to double-check and triple-check that I still had all of my equipment intact.  It felt like the last hours of the current football transfer window process and those final moments when managers are shaking hands on agreements to loan or buy players at the last minute.  I don’t think I was helping with my ‘24’ hour style timing countdown.  Probably should have just put the Countdown clock on repeat, because that’s how it felt like!  Thankfully, everyone beat the deadline and the relief was palpable in the SU bar afterwards.  The burden off many shoulders had just been lifted.  I was pleased to be there, and although I had done the more sensible thing of getting all my projects in and not doing a last-minute job, I couldn’t help but be there and try to offer my sensible advice and help to the best of my powerful abilities.  It did take it out on me by the end of the day.  I was exhausted, really hungry and wasn’t in the mood for celebration.  I can’t imagine how it would have been like for everyone else.  Thursday was a totally different story.

     It has just gone 10am on Thursday and all the tension of a hard year can be let out.  I exit the presentation room and do let out a ‘Fernando Alonso’ style of ‘COME ON, COME ON!’ as I realise quickly that my second year of journalism at the University of Northampton is over.  The year concluded with a magazine presentation infront of the usually, miserable lecturers – promoting my reasons for producing my 12-page TV Gold magazine.  Typically, the presentation times were changed at the last minute less than 24 hours earlier, but that was hardly surprising.  To be honest, having an organised slot is now more of a shock and I think most of us were just past the point of caring.  Luckily, I only had to whizz through a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation infront of one of the senior lecturers, rather than two and it made things far easier than they might have been.  Time to party!

PARTY: Celebrating the end with Rochelle, Emily and Stef

     In the evening, the journalism crew headed out into the town once again, for another wild and wacky night at the Balestra nightclub in Northampton.  We met up inside the club, having gone to various houses and bars in the build-up to the night.  Tom Campbell came in with a bottle of champagne, courtesy of us being on a special guest list.  There was a real cause of celebration within the crew.  As the bottle was passed around and we all took big gulps from the bubbly, you could feel the party mood everyone was in.  I must admit, it tasted good!  No more exams, no more presentations, no more deadlines, time to dance and enjoy!  It was so nice to see so many people make it, people who I don’t normally socialise with.  I was able to let my hair down (I don’t have much of that by the way), and not have a care in the world for where I would be in state of mind 24 hours later.  There was some wild dancing, to some cracking club tunes.  I think most will remember me for singing ‘Let’s Get Ready to Rumble’ and ‘Karma Chameleon,’ out loud.  I have one of the Lips singing games for the Xbox 360, so I am practicing, but let’s face it, I can’t sing!!  The majority of us belting out ‘Hit Me Baby One More Time’ by Britney Spears summed up the fantastic atmosphere inside the club.  It was all over, and the journalism crew was going out on a high!  Hopefully, there will be more of this next year. 

     As the year has gone on, I feel we have bonded far closer as a group.  At the end of the day, we are in the same boat.  We are on the same degree, aiming for the same ambitions at the end of the three years.  We see each other on a daily basis, so what’s the point of not getting on.  I know that there have been some disagreements or personality clashes in the past, but for me, there has to be a real domestic to not get on or share some form of communication with anyone, however small that may be.  Even I have had to admit that I’ve made mistakes and not treated everyone totally fairly this year.  One of these people is the ‘Beautiful Birmingham,’ herself; Ellie.

     I first met Ellie on induction day in September 2009 and we have had a friendship built on a solid foundation, and have about as much drama as a month’s episodes of Casualty could contain!  Even then, having made the first public introduction, I never thought she would have made the significant impact she has on my life as a whole.  Throughout the first year, we spent so much time together, in fact, almost inseparable.  This year, things have been more awkward for us, for a variety of reasons.  I won’t go into all the details, because that is totally unfair, but I haven’t thought about her feelings at times, particularly at the start of 2011.  Mistakes were made, by both of us, but more so by me.  In March, I nearly lost her as a friend for good and it did drive me to the brink.  In life, you need to make a success of yourself and you are your own person, but there are people who do build your strengths up and make up the rest of your overall character.  Some friendships you just could say ‘Screw it, what’s the point anymore,’ but I’ve never felt that way about Ellie.  Together, we’ve always tried to sort things out and we’ve come out stronger for the experience.  Around Christmas time, she was the one person I could turn to when I had a relationship issue and she was so caring, sweet and amazing about the whole dilemma I had.  That’s a true friend for you, not one who just would say; ‘It’s your problem, deal with it!’  No friendship can be perfect, I don’t think it is feasibly possible, and everyone makes mistakes.  After all, that’s why they put erasers on pencils!  Nobody’s perfect, or ‘Pobody’s Nerfect’ as they’d say Down Under!  However, Ellie has such a big heart and always looks out for me, no matter how much trouble I might be in.  She has always been there for me, and I’m incredibly lucky to have her as a big part of the jigsaw puzzle that is my life.  After all, I have so much drama in my life; it won’t be long before I appear on Piers Morgan’s Life Stories haha!! 

     I can’t complain about how this year has gone, and the final curtain has come down.  No more journalism until October 3^rd, ironically my birthday. 

Have a great summer everyone, I will ultimately reflect on the year 2010/11 at the University of Northampton as ‘I did it My Way!’

THAT WAS A PARTY BROADCAST BY THE HAPPYDUDE88 PARTY!