How to Write a Video Game Script

Writing a video game script offers a challenge that goes well beyond the normal realm of writing. But it is also something that can be tremendously rewarding in the scope of its creativity. Here are some guidelines and tips for writing a video game script.

Today's video games are based in complex worlds and they tell stories. No longer does a player simply advance through repetitive screens slaying goblins and ghouls in a quest toward the goal. A player now expects to progress through a world where there is a rich history and a plethora of decisions to be made. This adds to the complexity of writing a video game script and it also adds to the richness of the creativity involved.

The first thing you need to think about is that writing a video game script is that it is not the same as writing a movie script. The two processes are similar and you do write a movie like script for your video game but that is only part of the process. There is a whole host of accompanying materials that you need to write for your game script. Here is an overview of what you need to write and why.

Write An Executive overview of the story in prose

This is the most important part of your game script and this is what will sink or float your script. This overview has to tell a compelling and unique story and it should tell the complete story from the opening scene of the game through the major steps all the way to the completion of the game. An overview like this can be almost any size and it would be very easy for this to be ten written pages or more. Remember that today's video games are very complex and the stories can be very complex. This overview is also the most important part of the script. You would shop this to game developers to see if they are interested in developing it into a game.

Write a History and Background of the world

Video games are complete worlds and game designers need to know what the world is like and what kind of history it has. This will help the designers to visualize what the world will look like.

Create a Flowchart for the entire game

Your game is going to be very complex and there will be many decisions that the player will have to make and each decision opens up a whole new path for the player to take. Creating a flowchart is the best way to keep track of all the possible paths through the game.

Create sub-quests and write a prose overview of each quest

Sub quests can be simple or complex but each one is a story in itself and you must tell these stories.

Create character descriptions and bios for all the major characters in the game.

Game designers need a complete picture of the characters in the game. Many of the non-player characters you create will pop up time and time again. And their story is woven deeply into the fabric of your world. You need to describe this relationship in detail to the game designers.

Write interactions with non-player characters

Your game will probably involve interaction with non-player characters (NPC's). You should write out the dialogue and flowchart the choices the game player can make. These interactions are often critical to the story and they can take the player on very different paths toward the conclusion of the game.

Write Cut scenes

Cut Scenes are short animations or movies that come before or after major plot points in your story. A cut scene should always be written to enhance or describe the story. A cut scene is also a reward given to the player for achieving a major milestone in game play.

Writing the actual storyboard script

This is the final step in the whole video game script writing process and it is the most detailed. You do this step last because you need all the supporting materials to understand and describe this correctly. This part is very similar to that of a movie script. You progress through each scene of your story and you detail all the necessary information. Here is an example:

Scene 1:

Location: A dark cathedral with stained glass windows. An NPC is kneeling before a stone casket in the center of the main room

Music: background music of an organ playing introduces the scene but subsides

Characters: Main player, NPC named Thomas, seven were creatures

Player Goal: Discover the location of the underground lair

Action: Player must initiate discussion with Thomas, upon first contact we activate cut scene (1) where Thomas morphs into a were-creature and summons his were-minions. Main character must battle the were-minions then re-initiate discussion with Thomas.

Flowchart: No decisions made at this point: If battle is completed Thomas reveals the entrance to the underground lair and player advances to that level. If player is defeated in battle revert to death cut scene (11) and move to try again screen.

Notes: Player is locked in the cathedral and there is no exit. The only viable way out is to initiate contact with Thomas. Random were-creatures can be activated if player explores cathedral before talking with NPC.

Scene End

When writing a video game script you have to remember that your primary audience is not the game player but the game developer and what the developer needs is a complete picture of what your game is about. This means that you are not just writing a story but you are creating a world complete with a tone, sounds, characters, story, plot, and subplots. To successfully communicate this to the developer you need to use a whole set of creative tools and this is where video game scripts depart from normal scripts and open up a whole realm of creative possibilities.

Will Kalif is the author of two self-published epic fantasy novels. You can download free samples of his work at his personal website:
Storm The Castle.com - Creativity and Medieval Fantasy with an edge

Or you can visit his site devoted to Amateur Video Game Design at:
The Amateur Video Game Designer Resource

How to Save Money On Video Games

If you are a keen video game player like myself you will know the fun and excitement that can come from buying a new game for you game system. However there is a catch, these games are really expensive! It does not matter which games console you own, new games for Xbox, Playstation and Gamecube are all highly priced.

We understand that some games do have high development costs, the programmers, sound engineers, animators and testers all have to be paid. But once a game is finished it can sell all over the world and some titles sell in really large quantities. The game development houses must make a serious amount of profit, most customers pay the full retail price for their new games.

One way of saving money on video games is to buy from wholesalers. Now I know that in general wholesalers only sell in bulk quantities. It's not much use to you in having 100 copies of the latest game, you can only play 1! But now there are some wholesalers who sell in single units. The thing to do is search on line for wholesalers which sell the games you are interested in that also sell single units. Using this method you can save up to 60% off the retail price for your brand new video game.

Another option is buying and selling second hand video games, it is not as difficult as you might think. Once you have finished playing a game you can take it to your local game exchange store where you can swap it for a new game or cash. This is a great way to save money on video games, how many old games do you own which you know you will never play again? You might as well sell them when you have finished playing with them and use that money to buy your next new title.

You can also sell your used video games on eBay, there is a good market for games on the auction site and you can often get a better deal than if you take your old games to a game exchange shop. If you do this it is worth noting that games drop in price as they get older. If you try to sell your games as soon as you are done with them you will get a better price.

Now this method is better than saving money on video games - you can actually get them free! Games developers require game testers to check out their new titles before they go on general release. You may not know this but you do not need any special skills or qualifications in order to test games. If you know the right people to contact and you go about it in the correct way you could become a video game tester. They send you a copy of the game they want tested along with how they want you to report on the game. You play the game, fill in the report and send it back to them. You can get paid anything from $8 - $80 per hour to test games, you just sit back and wait for the cheques to come in. A great perk of the job is that you get to keep the games you test, if you become a game tester you may never have to buy a new game again!

Rich Heaney is the web master at Game Testing Guide [http://rjheaney.com/gametesterguide/]. Find out how to become a video game tester [http://rjheaney.com/gametesterguide/video_game_tester_jobs.html] right now at rjheaney.com/gametesterguide [http://rjheaney.com/gametesterguide/]

Video Game Ratings Do Actually Mean Something People

There is one thing I've always thought was pretty annoying when I hear news and reports about people criticizing the content in video games. I really think everyone got their mindset about video games all wrong and people are so consumed with either defending, or bashing video game content that the reality of things are dropped by the waist side. Video games are really popular, everyone plays them...From elementary school age kids, to teenagers, young adults, to retirement age adults. But I think the title..."Video Game" makes everyone think of toys ......for children. I remember reading one time where a lady bought Grand theft auto for her 14 year old son...then later saw the violence in the game and wanted to sue Rockstar. I remember thinking, if you were worried about the game's content, why would you buy a game with the big letter "M" for mature on the cover. "Not recommended for someone under 17" is what the majority of those violent games say right on the cover. Halo, GTA, Manhunt, plenty of games has that large letter "M" stamped right on the games container. I cringe, every time I hear someone tell me their 7 year old's favorite game is GTA. Maybe I'm wrong, but I kind of look at that letter "M" on those game boxes like the letter "R" on a DVD movie's container. Not for kids.

That's where the problem lies I think. People see the word "game", and think that it's automatically for kids. They just cannot get it out of their heads that it's not the case in all situations. Gaming has grown up, along with the kids in the early 80s that use to play when video games first started to become really popular. The Gamers has grown, technology has grown, and gaming as a whole has grown, thus matured. It's not geared towards children all the time anymore. People need to start looking at video games the same way they look at other content ie movies, and television. People need to familiarize themselves with videogames, so they at least have a clue what they are buying their kids. Many parents out there will check out a movie if they think the content may be questionable before they let their kids watch, that needs to be done with video games also. I know if your not a gamer, you probably rather remove your fingernails with a pair of pliers before you sit down to play a video game but that is what needs to be done. Get familiar with what you allow your kids to play.

People don't want to admit it, but video gaming is now just another form of electronic entertainment, it's not just for kids anymore, it rival's the box office every year with production cost, profits, and in some cases story and acting. And there are all types of games geared towards all different ages and interest. I understand though, it is hard to say the word "game" and think anything other than toys for children. Maybe the word "game" should be dropped, just call it an "Interactive movie" or something. Something that takes away the "it's for kids" mentality.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not condoning the content in video games, nor am I not saying that something better needs to be done or managed to make sure the cover of a violent game doesn't look like it's a game for children, which in some cases, just looking at the cover of a video game box can be misleading about its content. But one thing that has been pretty consistent in the past 5 or more years is the ESRB labeling of the games content rating on the box of the video game. And on another note, I also do not feel that video game content should be banned or censored, no more than a movie's content is banned or censored. People just need to fix their minds to think of the 2 in the same light. If a game has mature content... that letter "M" stamped on the cover, and you don't want your kids to play, don't buy it for them, the same way you wouldn't let your 8 year old watch Saw 3, or any other rated "R" movie. And yea, people always say "If I don't let my kid play he or she will just go over to his friends house and play" and yes you cant always be there and cant help that but it has to start somewhere. And the more parent and people in general that change the way they look at video game ratings, the more it will catch on and the less of a chance your kids friends will have parents that isn't paying attention and buying every game on the shelf regardless of rating. You can't just give up and put the responsibility completely on the game developers. Mainly because there are people like me, a mature adult who like to play games, that a lot of these games are geared towards.

David L Jones is a blogger / podcaster for the website [http://www.jonzee.com] where you can find this article and more like it

For more information about ESRB ratings visit http://www.esrb.org/ratings/ratings_guide.jsp

5 Keys to the Kingdom - How to Conquer Any Online Video Game

Today's online video games (MMORPG's) are extraordinarily complex worlds that take a lot of time to master. Whether you play a couple of hours a week or a couple of hours every day there are some fundamental rules you should follow to maximize what you achieve within these online worlds.

Kingdom Key 1: Tracking and managing your time spent

This is the most important key. Regardless of how much time you play you have to make the maximum of your time. This means keeping track of what is going on and what you learn in the game then applying a simple rule: Do what makes the most use of your limited time. Let me give you an example of what I mean. Often times you will embark on a quest or harvest and mine raw materials. Let's say you do a specific task that takes you 1 hour to complete and your reward is 1,000 gold. This is great. You now understand that for this particular task one hour is worth 1,000 gold. But this isn't the end of your learning. There are many other tasks that you can do. Maybe there is a simple harvesting task that reaps you 100 gold every five minutes. Well if you do the math on this task you will see that in one hour you can actually earn 1,200 gold. This is a 20% improvement of your time. By doing this you will actually be squeezing in an extra hour of game time every five hours. See how this can be significant? This careful tracking of your time also works in the other direction. There may be a complex task that takes you a five full hours to complete. But this task rewards you with 10,000 gold. If you were to do the original one-hour task for five hours you would have earned 5,000 gold. This more complex task has earned you twice as much gold.

The simple rule here is to keep notes on the various tasks you do and to record how much of a reward these tasks earn you. You will quickly see which tasks earn you more money for the time you spend.

I will often do a very specific task for one full hour and include all the ancillary necessities in the task, which might mean trips to the shop, repair of equipment, buying, selling or anything else that the task entails. At the end of one hour I have an exact count of what I earned. This gives me accurate data that I can compare to other tasks.

Kingdom Key 2: Harnessing the Power of other People

This key is also very important whether you are new to an online game or a seasoned player. There are people in the game that know things about it that you don't know. This is plain and simple, and you have to get them to help you to get better faster. There are three things that you can do to maximize your benefit from other people. The first thing you should do is join a guild or clan as soon as possible. It should be a medium to large clan because this will give you access to a wider variety of people, and it should be a clan that is in alignment with your goals for the game. If you really like PK (Player-killer) action then you should join this type of guild. If you really like magic or a certain type of character you should join a guild that focuses on that. The second thing you should do is join online forums that are devoted to the game. Forums have an absolute wealth of knowledge about games and they give you a quick understanding of the people that are knowledgeable. You can quickly form a friendship with an experienced player after just a few friendly forum comments and posts. The third thing you can do, and this is the most difficult, is to start your own guild or clan. If you have the people skills and leadership ability this can be the absolute best thing you can do because you can guide groups of people toward tasks that benefit your guild and you can achieve your personal goals at the same time. The wealthiest players in many games are almost always either guild leaders or in a leadership position. You can even assign other people to gather information and keep notes for you and for your guild. This is a great savings of your time.

Kingdom Key 3: Keeping track of the enormous amount of information.

You are playing a game that is enormously complex. It is probably more complex than the city you live in. There are more people, more tasks, more quests, more locations and more opportunities. Do you know every location and every street in your city? Probably not, and when you need to find something where do you look? In the Yellow pages or on map quest! You need to create your own yellow pages for the game you play. Get a brand new empty notebook and take extensive notes. Where are the interesting things? Run into something unusual and don't know what it is all about? Write a note about it in your book. I guarantee you that at some point in the future you will need that note! Draw small sketches and take down all sorts of information you discover. Did you find an interesting mine or a nice plant that you can harvest? Did you find a den of goblins and can't fight them yet? Having all this down in a notebook will make you so much better as you progress through the game. This step is hard for some people to do because it means actually taking your hand off the mouse and not playing the game for a minute but it is well worth the effort. It is also a very good idea to make notes about other players in the game. Did you meet somebody that is an expert on a certain topic or quest? Write that person's character name down and a quick note about them. You will be able to look them up in the future when you need that type of information.

Kingdom Key 4: Do your Out of Game Research

But Don't Cheat! Every popular online game has lots of websites, forums, and chat rooms affiliated with it. People are very passionate about these games and many people give lots of tips, hints, and ideas about the games. Spend the time out of the game surfing the Internet for good information that will help you solve quests, find resources, and make more money faster. But, never do anything unethical, don't use cheat programs, automated programs, or any other type of software or information that the developers of the game would consider a violation. And always avoid any website that offers these kinds of cheats. If a website will help you cheat the game company they will have no problem cheating you too. Some of these websites lure you to them then secretly load programs, viruses and worms on your computer so they can steal your game password and login information. Trying to cheat is just not worth this risk. At the minimum you will get caught by the game company and banned and at the worst your account could be hijacked by an unscrupulous webmaster and you could log in to your character one day to find all your stuff missing and your account emptied out.

Kingdom Key 5: Remember to have fun!

It is after all just a game and that's the whole point. If keeping track of all this stuff becomes a chore to you then scale it back a bit and spend time just enjoying the game and chatting with other characters. Acquiring the skills I have outlined here takes time. They are habits you will get into over time. Just don't give up on them. Do them a little at a time and before you know it you will have a great compilation of information about the game and you will gain a reputation as one of the best players in the game.

Will Kalif has been a guild leader in three different online games and has attained a respectable rank in several others. If you like video games, fantasy and medieval stuff visit his website at =>Storm The Castle.com - Creativity, Fantasy, and all things Medieval

If you are interested in making video games and would like to learn how to make a video game absolutely free visit his amateur video game makers website at =>The Amateur Video Game makers tutorial and resources

Classic Video Games

Video games have evolved as one of the best forms of entertainment over the last three decades and growing immensely in popularity. Video games serve as one of the best means for spending time with loved ones or simply having fun with friends. The modern trend of video game popularity was not always visible. Conventional designs for video games were sluggish and unattractive and had more of a scientific value rather than entertainment value. Initial designs for video games focused on creating a video display using interactive visuals complemented by in game responses and feedback as the game continued. Over the years, the designs for video games have been completely revolutionized. However, few games are considered by casual and hardcore gamers to be classics.

Classic video games were produced in a time when graphics and animation were of poor quality and gamers were attracted only by the great game play these games offered. They belonged to an era when video games used 8-bit to 16-bit microchip technology. They were introduced around the 1980s and included games made for popular game consoles such as Commodore 64, ZX81 ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo, and Sega Genesis/Megadrive. Some arcade games are also considered as classics and were invented by large game developers such as Sega, Atari, and Williams Electronics. Classic video game designs required little work and were not as complicated as today's game designs. These games were recognized by attributing them to individual programmers like Eugene Jarvis, Dave Theurer, Jeff Minter, Tony Crowther, and Andrew Braybrook. Classic video games are usually played on the original hardware while some are played through emulation. Emulation usually attracts controversy as the software used within emulation may be illegally copied. Some classic video games are designed again to form a better version with the same story line and game sequence.

Classic video games can be acquired from websites online. They can be downloaded for free or need payment of a fixed sum of money before download. Classic video gaming is also referred to as retro gaming.

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Top 10 News for Video Gaming Industry in 2006

The world is fast changing a few centuries ago the focus was on nations, economies, and science. With the onset of the cyber world gaming shares a platform along with important happenings in the world today. The year 2006 for avid gamers was full of expectations and excitement. According to statistics the US totaled more than USD 10.5 billion in hardware, software, and accessories sales alone setting a new record. Sony PSP and Nintendo DS took portable gaming to new horizons and many predictions were proven wrong in 2006.

The year 2006 brought excitement and thrills:

1. Three gaming consoles vied with each other for supremacy and the Xbox360; Sony PSP; and Nintendo Wii set pulses racing with gaming reaching new heights with the latest technology.

2. Gaming designers and companies like Vivendi Games, Activision, Rockstar, and Electronic Arts brought new games, revitalized games, and futuristic technology to gaming. God of War won accolades at DICE where game developers unveiled great plans for 2006.

3. The E3 or Electronic Entertainment Expo held in the Q2 of 2006 unveiled press conferences by giants in gaming as well as launches of new games like Assassin's creed, Haze, Command and Conquer 3, and Wii Resident Evil among many others. Gaming gurus studies and reviewed the event and presented expert opinions on gaming delights.

4. Gaming watchers NPD kept a finger on the pulse of gaming and established that gaming was here to stay and figures were up by 29% over July 2005, 17% in August, and 38% in September.

5. The leaders in Q3 were Madden NFL 07 and Lego Star Wars II: The Original Triology which crossed the one million units sold hurdle. Consoler gaming reached new delights with announcements that Half-Life 2 rejuvenated, Street Fighter II' Hyper Fighting and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion were all reaching out for Xbox360, PS#, and PSP.

6. Q4 reached new heights with launches of state-of-art gaming consoles like Wii and PSP3. Each had its fans and gaming was all a buzz with expectations, some joys as well as disappointments. Blizzard drew considerable attention with its massive multi-player role -playing masterpiece World of Warcraft.

7. NDP industry tracking revealed that Q4 reached new heights and that PS3 sold 197,000 systems while Wii sold 476,000 systems. According to the trackers 400,000 copies of the Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess was retailed.

8. Technological advancements in the gaming world reached new heights. High level graphics, speed, clarity, and multi-player gaming took gamers to new adventures. The gaming industry went all out to take gaming into the future with designers and hardware manufactures redefining gaming.

9. Change is inevitable and the Entertainment Software Association will have a new head as Douglas Lowenstein the founding President of ESA decided to move on.

10. The year laid the foundation of futuristic gaming hardware which set the trend for designers to focus on better software and greater games. 2007 will introduce multiplatform games like Grand Theft Auto IV, Army of Two, BioShock, and more.

The Gaming Industry is all set to reach new heights in the coming year with gaming gaining popularity world over. The World Wide Web, popularity of the internet, and tech savvy gaming consoles has caught and sustained the interest of gamers young and old. Gaming has expanded its base and become multi-player with gamers from all over the world vying their skills against opponents from all over the gaming universe.

Barry Allen is a freelance writer for Free Online Games, the premier website to play thousands of free online games including arcade games, action games, card games, flash games, strategy games, puzzle games and more. His article profile can be found at www.1888articles.com/games-articles-121_11.html

Video Games Overview

The gaming industry has been exploding in the recent years as games are not only enjoyed by the young generation. The adults are in on it too. Thanks to the computers, being one of the main contributors to this gaming phenomenon, the gaming industry has been very busy with the race of who is going to come up with the more appealing game to take over the market.

The popularity of computer and video games, as a whole, has been increasing steadily. The average age of the video game player is now 29, belying the myth that video games are largely a diversion for teenagers.

Outstandingly, computer games are becoming more and more popular and widely accepted by all generations. In the recent years especially, the so called "console gaming" has swept the world.

The end of 2005, and 2006 saw the next generation of console gaming in the form of continuing advances in processor technology, graphics technology, design innovation, and even platform specific gaming community infrastructure.

Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft are all participating in this "technology race". The second generation Microsoft offering, the Xbox 360, is powered by a multi-core CPU. The PlayStation 3 is powered by cell processor technology. And the Nintendo Revolution allows the gamer to interact with the game via a wireless motion sensing controller.

Nowadays, some of the most popular are computer games, or sometimes called pc games, online games, consoles games, handheld games, and even believe it or not, mobile phone games.

Computer games are often more powerful than console games because of early market releases of their external architecture and graphics cards. They are played on the personal computer with standard computer interface devices such as the keyboard and mouse, or additional peripherals, such as joysticks.

Online gaming originally began with PC games, but has over time expanded to include most modern consoles. It is now a key feature of modern games, with the inclusion of Internet connectivity in consoles such as the PlayStation 2 and Xbox, and also in mobile phones.

Console games are specialized computers specifically designed to play games of a certain format. The player usually interacts with the game through a controller, and video and sound are typically delivered to the player via a television, although most modern consoles support additional outputs, such as surround sound setups.

Handheld games are played on handheld game consoles, such as the Nintendo Game Boy, Nintendo DS, and Sony PSP. Because they are designed to be played on the go, they are usually small enough to fit into an average pocket (the virtual boy is an exception to this). Due to their small size, handheld consoles have reduced processing power compared to larger consoles, meaning that games are shorter and until the release of the DS, were limited to 2D only.

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Classic Arcade Games

The new millennium is the millennia of PC games. But before PCs became a household phenomenon, the only games of its kind that kids knew, and a whole generation of Americans have grown up playing, were arcade games.

Arcade games consist of a simple, yet bulky machine, with a colorful screen, and some sticks or buttons to play with, and a device to put coins in, which allows the game to be played for a particular period of time.

Today, you can find arcade games that run on computers, using emulators. But before that had happened, arcade games were typically found, apart from the especial entertainment centres and video arcades, in restaurants, malls and movie halls. Kids and grown ups alike played mainly three types of arcade games: the famed pinball, video games or redemption games.

Yet, the ancestry of arcade games could be traced to the hugely popular games commonly known as the "amusement park midway games" like ball toss game and shooting galleries which were popular at the beginning of the 20th century.

The 1930s saw the first coin-operated pinball machines. Though being made of wood with all functions mechanical rather than electronic and being a far cry from the electronic ones that were to come much later, they were still quite a hit. The late seventies would see these mechanical pinballs being replaced by electronic games.

The change in fortunes of arcade games happened with the formation of a company called Atari in 1972. This company created the coin-operated machines, beginning with the electronic ping pong game, called Pong. Pong was a huge hit, and led to even more home video game systems being introduced onto the market.

Many games like Pac-Man, Donkey Kong and Space Invaders became huge hits in the late seventies and early eighties, paving the way to a revolution. The last breath to the arcade games was provided by the emergence of two player fighting games like Street Fighter II , Mortal Kombat¸ Fatal Fury, King of fighters etc in the early 90s. However, this was not to redeem the fate of arcade games completely, as the growth in computers and video technology saw the emergence of new type of games, including PC games and games that ran on special consoles such as the Playstation, Game Boy and the X-box pushing arcade games into the sidelines, to almost the end of their existence.

Arcade Games provides detailed information on Arcade Games, Free Arcade Games, Online Arcade Games, Real Arcade Games and more. Arcade Games is affiliated with Online Computer Games [http://www.i-ComputerGames.com].

How to Play Card Games

Card games can be played by one player, two players, multiplayer and online. Different kinds of card games include trick taking games, casino or gambling games, solitaire games, shedding games, rummy style games, collectible card games and multi-genre games. The players in a card game usually arrange themselves in a circle around a horizontal surface. The cards in a pack are identical in size and shape. Each card has a face and a back side. The dealing in a card game is either clockwise or anticlockwise.

Solitaire is a single player card game. The well known form of solitaire game is called Klondike. The player arranges cards from a shuffled deck. Then he attempts to reorder the deck by suit and rank. The solitaire can be played with one or more deck of cards. Use of more deck of cards increases the rules and skill levels. Different types of solitaire games are converted into electronic forms and available as computer games.

Spade is a popular multiplayer card game. It is often played as a partnership game by four players. It is played with a pack of 52 cards and each player receives 13 cards. The first dealer is chosen at random. Each partnership must make a bid. The bids of a spade card game are nil and blend nil. The player who wins the trick leads to the next game. Poker is a popular casino card game. It is played with a pack of 52 cards. The cards are ranked from high to low. They are straight flush, five of a kind, four of a kind, full house, flush, straight, two pair and high card. All poker hands contain five and the highest hand wins. Online poker is gaining in popularity these days, as well.

Chase the ace or cuckoo is a shedding card game. This game can be played by two or more players. The object of the game is to dispose of all cards without picking up an ace. The last card left at the end will always be an ace. The player who holds the ace card will be the loser. Poke is a multi genre came. A hand of poke consists of two phases. In the first phase, players draw cards to poker hand. In the second phase, players proceed to take tricks. Collectible card games are played with specially designed sets of cards. Each card has additional text explaining the effect of the particular card. Players select cards from the available group of cards.

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A Family Friendly Video Game That Anyone Will Love

One of the favorite games for the game cube is Mario Power Tennis. It is great for all the sport lovers and game lovers in the world. It all began years ago with Pac Man, Mario Brothers and the list goes on and on. The game world has come a long way since the days of Pac Man and Ms. Pac Man. There are adventure games, sports, racing, karate or ninjas, and many more. There are games to please everyone.

Today's games are looking more like reality than ever before. Mario Power Tennis is however just a game for fun so they are still more like the basic Marios. Some people like the reality games but they are also scary when it comes to your kids knowing how to distinguish the difference between a game and reality. Much like some television shows and movies, there are some games that children should not be able to play.

Some of the games can mess up a child's mind. Parents should control what games their children play. Mario Power Tennis for Game Cube would be a fun and safe game for them to play. The characters are fun and very distinguishable from reality.

Some of the more reality killing games are hard to deal with because they even look real like adults. There is enough killing and crimes without playing the games and killing others. We are at war and killing is a reality so we do not need games with people killing other people in them. It isn't near as bad if we are slaying a dragon. The games today are so realistic, they include blood and everything to make it look like it happened right on the street. It is bad enough to make even some grownups have nightmares so we can only guess as to how it is affecting our kids. Thanks to games like Mario Power Tennis, there is still hope for the world.

There are many testimonials of game players who are very pleased with the Mario Power Tennis game and claim that it is a lot of fun and very up to date in their maneuvers and plays. The power shots like the slice, topspin, drop, flat, and lob are all included, and different positions are an added plus to the game as compared to the basic game.

The game is exciting to play if you are a tennis player and even if you aren't. The game can be great fun especially with multi players. But for the single players, they can still challenge Mario, Luigi, Peach, and the gang. Mario Power Tennis may just be the favored tennis game of all time. Some may not agree about Mario games and other not so realistic games but they are some recommended games for children and adults who do not want to see all of the blood and hear all of the foul language.

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Kids Online Games: Get Phat!

Kids online games are games that kids can play when they are connected to the Internet using either a computer or a video console [Examples: Playstation 2, Xbox]. Kids love games, and with kids getting net-savvier by the day they have latched on big-time to online games. If you compare today's kids online games to how kids used to assemble together to play board games, you will be surprised to see how fast kids are growing and how rapidly they are maturing.

Kids Online Games: Devices And Games

Kids can play online games using - (1) A computer: In this case the games are most likely to be browser-based, simple, fun or educational type, involving sports (racing, baseball), knowledge (Hangman, Scrabble), arcades (Space Invaders, Mario), etc. Many kids cannot play massively multiplayer online games (MMOG) because there is a monthly subscription involved. However, companies such as Disney have started developing MMOGs for kids. (2) A video console: Kids really freak out on a video console. They just love video console gaming because the learning curve is easy and there are not too many buttons to push (as in PC online games).

Pros And Cons Of Kids Online Games

Online games can keep kids entertained, and apart from that, improve their knowledge too if they play educational games. In fact, the University of Victoria is developing a game called "Let's Face It" that teaches autistic kids to recognize faces. While playing MMOGs kids can learn real-world skill concepts such as commerce, barter, mining, chemistry, all of which can be useful in real life. Kids online games also teach them interactivity, and also how to talk to strangers and how to make friends.

The flipside is that if playing these games is not controlled then kids might get addicted to them and this addiction is dangerous - almost as dangerous as taking a banned substance or even as dangerous as smoking. If kids squat for a long time playing these games, they might get obese. Some browser-based games can be graphically violent and leave a deep impression on their psyche (e.g. some browser games may involve shooting a politician). While playing multiplayer games online, a kid might get in contact with a stranger who might be up to no good. Many video console games feature too much graphic violence and that is not nice for a kid at an impressionable age.

Conclusion

There is a silver lining to this dark image depending on how you look at kids online games: statistics show that 62% of the video console and 66% of the PC game market customers are over the age of 18 years. Also, stricter laws related to kids and online games are slowly being passed across the major game-playing nations. And sooner or later, the entire hullabaloo is likely to settle down.

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Old Video Games

Over the last three decades, video games have evolved as one of the best forms of entertainment and have grown immensely in popularity. Video games serve as one of the best means for spending time with loved ones or simply having fun with friends. The modern trend of video game popularity was not always visible. Conventional designs for video games were sluggish and unattractive and had more of a scientific value rather than entertainment value. Initial designs for video games focused on creating a video display using interactive visuals complemented by in game responses and feedback as the game continued.

Recent video games incorporate quality 3D animation and graphic detail, with excellent game play. Old video games on the other hand, had comparatively poor graphics and relied more on game play for success in the market.

The genre of old video games corresponds to games that used 8-bit and 16-bit microchips. Most of the old video games were introduced in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Video games such as Mario, Super Mario, Contra, Street Fighter, Packman series and so on were extremely popular in these years. Some are even played today due to their brilliant game play and excellent story line.

Old video games are generally played on game consoles from Sega, Atari and other game consoles. Some can be played on arcade machines and on computers. These video games are played today, using emulation software on computers. Emulation is however attracts a fair bit of controversy as the software used for emulation may be illegally copied.

Old video games can be availed of online on a plethora of websites offering the same for download. The file size for these video games is usually small and can be downloaded for free. Some rare video games may however require prior payment for download. Search engines such as Google, Yahoo!, and MSN can be used to obtain links and sites offering downloads of old video games. Old video games can also be acquired from select vendors at different parts of the country.

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A Guide To Starting A Career In Video Games - Prepare Yourself For A Break-In!

Starting a career in the video game industry used to a difficult thing; there were very few options and very few schools that could teach the required cutting edge skills. If you wanted to choose this path you had to be self taught. Today this dilemma has been turned upside down. You now have a plethora of schools to choose from and lots of programs and specialties to decide amongst. Here is some advice on what the industry has to offer and what you can do to prepare yourself.

The video game industry has changed over the past ten years. It has matured and is now a full-fledged industry. This means that there are plenty of opportunities to find a rewarding career without being a hot-shot game programmer. As a matter of fact, the days of the hot shot developer are pretty much over. In today's world the creation of a state of the art video game now requires a dedicated team of employees with a wide range of skills and interests.

What does this mean for you? It means opportunity in a lot of different disciplines and it means that you have to specialize within a subgenre of the big picture of "Making Video Games". But before you pack off and go to a video game school or dish out the dollars for an online school there are some things you should do and some things you need to know.

1. Learn the basic concepts of game design

Have an understanding of video games, how they're played, and what they're all about. You should have a feel for the game industry; know what games are out there, what styles of play they have, and how they handle the game playing experience. Chances are good that you already fulfill this requirement.

Have an understanding of the underlying principles of game design. There are several ways that you can do this. I recommend one or both of these methods to get you started in this:

Build Mods - Mods are modifications of existing games. Quake is a famous game for this approach. You use the mod builder software and you build levels or worlds that can be added right into the game itself. The Mod sub culture is very vibrant and you can find a lot of support and help. To gain even better experience that translates well into a corporate environment you should join a volunteer Mod development team. This gives you good teamwork experience and gives you insight on how a video game project is broken down into pieces.

Get a free or inexpensive Game engine development suite and build your own games. You can build adequate and fun to play games on your own this way. I recommend you do this with the Genesis 3d Game development software. It is completely free.

2. Get familiar with some of the professions in the industry and the tools that are used.

There are a whole host of tools that game design teams use. And the tools you would use are dependent on what role you would play on the team. Here is an overview of some of the different jobs in the industry and what software tools they would use.

If you like drawing and painting with traditional tools you might want to consider being a concept artist. They do all their work with off computer art tools. They would conceptualize and draw the scenes and the creatures in a game.

If you think you might like computer designing worlds and scenes in a video game you should consider being a 2-dimensional artist. They create all the structures, textures and backgrounds in game worlds. Photoshop is the de-facto program for this job. If you can afford a copy of this program you will get a definite insight into this career path. If you cannot afford Photoshop you should consider getting Paint Shop Pro. It is less expensive and very similar to Photoshop and it will give you a good foundation into the world of 2-dimensional artwork.

If Characters and models are what you are enthusiastic about you should consider becoming a 3-Dimensional Model Artist. This type of artist is concerned with making the characters, monsters, creatures and objects that inhabit a video game world. In this area of game art the choice of software is not as straight-forward as in the 2d art. The most accepted software is 3D studio Max. Two other popular programs are Maya and SoftImage. If you are looking for a free 3d modeling tool that will get you started you may want to get Milkshape. It is a tool designed for the game Half-Life.

The concepts of modeling are universal so the skills will transfer from one tool to the other. You will just have to learn the specifics of the new tool which will be easy enough.

Animator - This is the person that makes the characters and objects in the game move. It is a very specific skill and it takes good understanding of animation to get things right. There are many software programs that are used for animation and they include Macromedia Flash, Alias/Wavefront, 3D Studio Max and Lightwave 3D.

Programmer - This is something that is a little more traditional when we think of video game making "Programming" and it is a very wide field that can find you doing almost anything in the video game making arena. A programmer could be called upon to do any number of things from managing a database to designing the artificial intelligence within a game or creating specialized software tools that other designers use to create the game.

Other Opportunities in Video game design - There are many other jobs in the video game industry ranging from Script and story writer to even network administrator or computer maintenance and repair technician.

Today there are many different career paths that can be taken into the video game industry. This requires you to specialize in a set of skills. Understanding what these different skills are and getting a head start now will increase your marketability in the very competitive video game industry.

Will Kalif is the author of two self-published epic fantasy novels, an avid classical guitarist and an amateur video game designer. You can download free samples of his work and tutorials at his website:
Storm The Castle - Creativity and Fantasy with an edge

Or you can visit his site devoted to fantasy on the web at:
The Webs Fantasy Guide

The Perils of the Playstation 2 Game System

Are you crazy about video games? Oh, come on don't be ashamed! Nowadays this is so normal. So many people love to stay lazy at home and play video games all day long. Some even claim that video games are the best entertainment on the Earth. Let me be more specific, guys just love to waste their time playing video games. I admit, there may be women who play video games but I know none of them!

I usually have fun watching how playstation 2 game system can control peoples' lives. This playstation 2 game system just absorbs them. Do you know that there are people who make their living in the video game contests? Yes, they earn their money with video games! They play for the big cash prizes. Does it sound strange to you? What is so ridiculous? There people love to play video games. What is better than to make your living out of your hobby? It is all because probably these playstation 2 game systems have something addictive!

I believe you know at least one person who has a playstation 2 game system. It is just impossible that any of your friends or even you do not have a playstation 2 game system. These playstation 2 game system can be seen everywhere. They are getting more and more popular each day.

Personally, I am trying not to get in touch with any kind with video games in order not to waste my time. The same goes playstation 2 game systems even. I value highly my time. I have no time to give to this playstation 2 game system.

However, if you cannot give up playing video games, before you sit think of how much time are you going to play. Don't you think that the playstation 2 game system will take too much time from you? People become addicted with playstation 2 game system and they cannot quit playing. They always say, "This is my last game" or "just one more game." The time they spend in front of the playstation 2 game system seem to them like minutes. But it is not. Guys do not realize that while they are pushing and pushing repeatedly these buttons, time flies away.

When I was at college, I worked at a Hollywood Video. Every day, different people were coming in search of new video games. I always asked myself whether they had not something better to entertain themselves. These people were mainly adults. Come on, when you cross the teenage years, can you spend all your time with the playstation 2 game system?

I remember a girl who worked with me. She just hated video games! She felt so bad that her 26-year-old boyfriend was playing video games constantly. She guessed that may be he was feeling depressed that he couldn't find a job. As a result, he was playing video games all day long! He didn't even want to go anywhere. Oh, yeah, that is my boy!

I admit that video games are entertaining. However, can you spend your entire time with your playstation 2 game system? The trick of giving up video games is not to get sucked in ever. You'd better explore the real world outside. I mean the world that is beyond your playstation 2 game system.

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What Software Should You Use to Make a Video Game?

The answer depends on a couple of questions you have to ask yourself? What skill level do you have with the computer and programming and what are your goals for making video games? I answer these questions and help you find the right software for achieving what you want.

Video game design used to be the realm of crack shot programmers who could write programs, troubleshoot computers, write tools and even draw out the graphics needed. You had to be a writer, artist and programmer all wrapped up in one. But today this is no longer true. There are plenty of programs that do most of the hard work for you and leave the fun part of actually designing a game to you. But every software tool is different and each one is suited to a particular type of game making. Here is a guide for understanding some of the major game design suites and choosing which one is right for you.

For Absolute Beginners to game design and for pre-teens or young adults -

You are the type of person that knows how to use a computer but you don't know how to do any programming at all. You would like to make a few small video games without having to learn too much software stuff. You have lots of ideas for video games and you like the arcade style and side scrolling games. This kind of game would be a thrill for you to make for you and your friends to play.

My Recommendation:The Games Factory or Games Factory 2 by Click team

This is an enormously successful software tool you can use to make arcade style games. Everything is drag and drop so you don't have to learn how to program and you don't have to draw up your own graphics and images. You will learn some of the fundamental concepts behind game making and have a blast doing it.

For Medium Skill Computer Users, for High school age to adult

You have a bit of Savvy with the computer and have tried and used different kinds of programs. Maybe you have done some level design for a popular game. You would really like to make something three-dimensional like Quake and you have the thought that maybe you would like to make whole worlds and dungeons. You really want to make a game that you can walk around in.

My Recommendation:The Reality Factory

This is a shareware program that is built on the Genesis 3D game engine. It is a legitimate game engine with a great workspace that you can actually design whole worlds in. The process is similar to something an architect would use -picture drawing out blueprints because this is what you do with the Reality Factory. This software is free to download and within an hour you can actually have a single room game up and running where you can walk your character around and shoot weapons. To do a more involved game you need to spend a significant amount of time drawing out the rooms. If you get proficient with this free software you will have set for yourself a good foundation in legitimate game making. You will have an understanding of game processes and items like textures, models, scripts and more.

For high skill computer users and adults age 18 and over

You are considering A career in game design and want to set out a good base foundation for your career. You want skills that will transfer to the Real world but you are not yet sure if you want to invest the years it takes to master a high level programming language.

My recommendation: Dark Basic

I recommend you look into the program called Dark Basic by The Game Creators. (They also have a Dark Basic Lite version). This is an excellent way to learn how to make games while you learn the protocol and logic of programming. This is a powerful tool that can make professional games. The good thing about Dark Basic is that it is specifically tailored to making games.

You are going to be a Video Game Maker - no doubts about it

My Recommendation: C++ and Direct X

- Although this is a matter of opinion I recommend you learn how to program using C++ and you learn how to develop with something called Microsoft Direct X. This is some professional and very serious stuff and you will spend months learning the languages without ever seeing a single game pixel. But this route is how to lay out a professional career. This software is also pretty expensive. But imagine the rewards?

Making video games is a wonderful pursuit that can fully tap your creative powers and whether you are doing it just for fun or for a career there are lots of tools available to help you reach your goals and make some great video games.

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RPG Games: Achieving Your Goal Successfully Through Role-Playing Game

Video games are not just purely about entertainment and fun only, which adults or parents claim as negative influence to their kids. If you look towards the positive sides, there are certain games that can help you develop your personality. These kinds of games may stimulate your inner character development e.g. how you will act on a certain situation and what to decide on particular instance. This game is known as RPG or Role-Playing Game.

RPG Games is a type of game where you assume the roles of a character and produce stories. You have the freedom to improvise your characters and what its destiny would be as long as it is within the game's rules and regulation. The characters you select or create will shape the direction as well as the outcome of the game. Therefore, it is advisable, to select a games that have a good characters in it prior to purchase. You will be the one to determine the actions of your character/s based on its own personality, and the success or failure of such actions will depend on the system of rules and regulations of the game.

This game is more into collaboration and interaction type of gaming than competition gaming type. Typically, an RPG objective is to unite you and other player into a team (which known as party). Playing in group, you share the blessing of each success that you will achieve as you play the game.

The game system used is roughly similar to the game engine (the core software component) of a video game, which take several forms such as:-

oGame systems that depict a particular genre or style of play (such as Dungeons and Dragons).

oSystems that are not genre-specific yet come bundled with a particular campaign setting (such as the RuneQuest).

All RPG game systems require the participation of a Game Master who will create the game environment and act as an intermediary between the players. The Game Master will field a story goal for the players to fulfill through the actions of their in-game characters. It involves interaction with NPCs (non-player characters), other occupants of the game world (which is commonly played by the Game Master), puzzle-solving, combats, and negotiations.

Role Playing Games can be your platform in developing your personality, through this kind of value added entertainment. You should learn the game system so that you can achieve your goals successfully and full of glory in a role-playing game.

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How to Become a Video Game Tester

What is a video game tester? How to become a video game tester?

Let me start by giving a brief history of video game testing. In the early days of

Computer game development, the games were much simpler in scope, usually about 2 testers are used for simple games and the programmers were able to do all the testing and bug finding. With the acceleration and rapid increase of computer hardware power, modern video and computer games are a much more complex software and design. Larger and wider variety of video game testers are needed to ensure success of the video game. If there is a glitch in the game after it is released commercially, the company would stand to lose big bucks. Therefore, through testing and quality control before release is of tantamount important.

What does the video game tester actually do and do I need a degree to do it? In a nutshell, the video game tester is usually hired or get involved in the development cycle at half to 75% stage. The role of the video game tester is primarily to analyze video or computer games to find software defects, commonly called bugs. To be a good video game tester, you need to have attention to details, good at communicating your finding to the developers and able to play the same game over and over in a certain period of time, in return, you can expect to get paid. The pay level depends on your experience. You do not have to have a degree to be a good video game tester, a lot of people became a video game tester while holding another job or still at school.

How to become a video game tester? Not many of these kinds of jobs are advertised in job.com or monster.com. Therefore searching in those sites is usually not productive. If you know a game developer, then it is usually a good connection to get involved as a game tester for the game that developer is developing. In addition, the developer could potentially introduce you to other game developers. Another way to find a job as a video game tester is to actually go to the websites of game developing companies and search for job listings in their website, there are many game company out there, you can spend a lot of time just to find them though. Or you can get to a site that has already done that research for you, with a database of jobs as video game tester, become a member of that site, directly go to the website member's area and apply for those jobs.

This article is meant to give you an introduction to a potentially very lucrative job. If you are a gamer, you are already spending time playing games, it is a very good way to make some money while having fun. Visiting here to Get More Information and start making money playing game

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Basketball Arcade Games

When arcade games gained popularity in the 1970s, they were the traditional type like the first pinball games, Pac-Mac, Pong, and Space Invaders. However, over time, the creators of these games realized they had to innovate and improve constantly to retain the attention of their players. This led to them diversifying into games like the High Impact Football game series. This was a completely new format for arcade games. However, these games did not do as well as their ancestors. Perhaps players took time to adjust to them.

It was not until the release of basketball arcade games that this type of game really caught on. The first that really took the arcade games by storm was NBA Jam. This genre got noticed immediately with its release and became popular worldwide.

NBA Jam was unique in a lot of ways. First of all it was more expensive than the other games, where finishing a game required no less than $2. It was also the very first game that used real teams, real players with their real names, with the digitized version of these players playing the game on screen.

Playing the game was akin to watching a game on TV, only better, since here the game players could make control every move of their favourite basketball players. More so, one could defy gravity to make them do what a player wanted them to do. This has been one of the criticisms of the game, that it featured unrealistic effects, with the players flying as much as their heights to score a point. Fans of the game however maintained, that this was actually a great high.

However, the game continued to climb on the popularity charts and featured basketball greats of their times like Karl Malone, Chris Webber, Colbert Cheaney, Jeff Hornacek, David Robinson, Charles Oakley among others. After a time people discovered other features of the game like Easter eggs and other special features to be activated by use of buttons and joysticks.

The game saw many sequels and spin-offs, including the NBA Jam: Tournament Edition, NBA Jam Extreme of 1996 and even a 3D version of the game featuring a commentary. The other games in the line were NBA Hangtime and NBA Hangtime Extreme. A college version of the game, called College Slam was also introduced in 1995.

The huge success of basketball games also gave rise to other sports games, which centred on games like football and baseball.

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Computer online games

Computer online games leverage Internet to deliver an exquisite gaming experience. Online video games are of four types. You can play any computer online games with a browser window. For that you need to log on to a specific web site. Some computer online games are based on text. You can play these games in a forum on the web. If the games are loaded with a lot of graphics, you need independent software packages. Players challenge each other over the Internet. Some computer online games can be played with the email. Email computer games were the first stage of the revolution in online computer games. Sludges or multi-user dungeons, were extremely popular during the age of e-mail computer games.

Consider now what you need to play those games. If you want to play online computer games, you need to have a high-quality Internet connection. Also be sure that you have the hardware support to play the game. Not only that, need to have software installed on your computer to run the game. It is always useful to have a software able to locate Active game servers. This will make your job easier. As mentioned previously, you can play computer in a web browser-online games. The best of online games is that these games have passed successfully the geographic barrier between the players. Players of distant physical locations can now participate in online games. That is the secret of his popularity.

Lineage, half-life, Quake, counter-strike and EverQuest are some popular online computer games. Internet users have especially found the team online game quite interesting. If you want to enjoy games of chance, card games or online games, need to remove do video games online for it. There is no denying the fact that online games are here to stay.

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Creating the Ultimate Home Game Room

Creating the "Ultimate Home Game Room" isn't as hard as you may think. "Ultimate" doesn't necessarily mean the most expensive game room either. It just means it's ultimate for you, your family and your friends.

The basics for every game room include "games & signs". That's all it takes to create an ultimate family room. Of course some organization is also needed, you don't want a mess of posters, pub signs and neon signs taking up your walls.

Creating Your "Ultimate Home Game Room"

To do this you start with the wall colors. The best looking family rec rooms have two-toned wall color schemes. This means a top border around the room that's 12-24 inches in width. Then paint the rest of the room a complimentary color.

It's fun choosing a color scheme. Use your favorite sports team, your high school / university colors, the colors of your home country or a favorite painting or place you've visited. If those colors aren't good just select Two Great compatible colors. It's usually best to make the darker color your border color and the lighter color as your main wall color. This brightens up the room and helps your cool signs and posters to display better.

Next comes the flooring. There is a variety of flooring you can use. A few examples would be hardwood, vinyl, cork, bamboo, carpet tiling, ceramic tiling, area rugs and wall-to-wall carpeting. If your gameroom is located in a basement that eliminates most if not all hardwoods because of moisture problems in basements.

So what's best? Checkered tiling is what "Ultimate Game Rooms" are all about. Match the tiles up with your wall color for the ultimate effect. Whether you use 6x6, 8x8 or 12x12 tiling squares it's a checkered floor that makes your room "Ultimate".

Now comes the "FUN PART". You can either theme your game room or create a general all out fun game room.

Let's start with furniture. If you're creating a theme then your furniture must match. For example if you want a "Beach or Hawaiian Theme" then the best pub tables, pub chairs and accessories would be made of wicker or rattan. If you're creating a Green Bay Packer's Theme then you'd want chrome bar stools with green or yellow vinyl cushion covers to match. Otherwise if you just want a great game room make sure you bar stools and pub tables match.

The next thing to consider is the lighting. If you have a theme, say a sports theme, then find pub lamps, swag lights and floor lamps that have your favorite sport or team's name on them. For an Asian theme you'd want bamboo lamps and hanging lanterns. For general game rooms, bar lights with your favorite drink or food would be perfect!

Now you're ready to decorate your walls! Posters, Tin Signs, Neon Signs, Clocks and more are what you'll need to get started. Have a movie theme then find some great movie posters online to fill up your room. Actually it's best to have an assortment of each. Leave gaps and spread all your cool stuff out. You want them to be noticed and admired not lost in a mess of other posters and signs. Remember you just spent a few days painting your game room so don't cover it up. With a general game room theme vintage tin signs are always a big hit. Plus one or two neon signs add atmosphere. Don't overdue the neon though just choose a few favorites.

Now it's time to find the best TABLE GAMES . Besides the cost it's room size that determines which games to include in your game room. By far every "Ultimate Game Room" needs a billiard table. Now days you can get a variety of fabric colors besides green. Also you can find themed billiard tables like NASCAR and more. Two other great additions are foosball and air hockey. Easy to play fast paced games. They also come in a variety of sizes and fun designs. Table Tennis is a fun game but not everyone knows how to play and they take a lot of space if they don't fold up so you may want to add other games first. One game that is overlooked too much is Shuffleboard. It's GREAT for the whole family and it's easy and fun to play.

Think about "Other Game Room Games". For example if you have a 1950's Theme then an Elvis Pinball Machine fits right in. Also a retro slot machine would be fun to have. A Pachinko Game or Pachislo is a great family game from Japan worth mentioning. And "Dart Boards & Poker Tables" are in high demand these days and there is such a large variety out there you'll have no problem finding one for your game room.

A variety of games, some for the adults and some for the kids are what you need. Games can get a little expensive so don't buy new, buy second hand from an online auction site or look in your local paper for used games. It's not how new they are it's how FUN they are! Don't have enough space? Then try a "Combination Game Table". They have combos from 3 in 1 to 15 in 1 game tables.

It's time to liven things up with "Music". You can't have an ultimate game room without music. A Juke Box is best when it comes to game room music. Whether it's a 1946 Rockola or a retro looking CD Juke Box it doesn't matter. It's having a jukebox that counts most. Yes a 400 CD changer with a nice surround sound stereo system works even better but looks mean a lot when creating a game room. Just hide your CD or stereo in the corner.

Finally to create the "Ultimate Game Room" you need a TV. One should be mounted on the wall in the vicinity of the pool table / poker table and the other in a sitting area for kids to play video games. This is a must. No game room is complete without a TV or two for the big game.

Now you have all the ingredients you need for creating the "Ultimate Home Game Room". There are always fun and different accessories you can add to spice it up even more but with the basics covered you're ready to start having the best parties and get-togethers on the block!

Visit Game Room Decorating Ideas dot com to find other fun and interesting information on creating your ultimate game room. You'll find information on other decorating themes like Western and Hawaiian themes and much more on our Game Room Themes page. To view game room posters go directly to our Game Room Posters page.

Free Games

Last year, the video game industry had made a whopping ten billion dollars selling their products to "gaming fanatics." Prices of popular titles going for forty dollars or more, so to find out if buying a new title is worth it, try downloading free demos or reading reviews written about it. The majority of game developers provide the public with websites about their new games. These websites provide consumers free demos on the latest games, updates on their latest games, and sneak peaks on upcoming games.

Have you ever found yourself longing to play that favorite computer game that you lost? It's possible that you can still find and relive those moments. Do a search on any popular search engine, and you just might find the same game or a variation of your favorite game.

Another great way of enjoying free games is by visiting MSN, Yahoo!, and other popular web portals. These web portals often offer single player 2D puzzle and action games. Some provide multiplayer games for those who enjoy playing these kinds of games with their friends. By simply typing keywords such as "free games," "games," or "free online games," you can enjoy playing a wide variety of games online.

All of these are just variations or simulations of the games that you want to play. If you really want to enjoy the games that you once played, the best thing to do is look for emulators. An emulator is software that lets you play games in their original coding. This means that you can enjoy every bit of the game you once loved playing without any modifications. Looking for the games that you want to play in your emulator is easy. By using search engines and the title of the game, you should be able to find a version that is compatible with your emulator.

Free Games [http://www.z-FreeGames.com] provides detailed information on Free Games, Free Online Games, Free Mobile Games, Free Kids' Games and more. Free Games is affiliated with Free Online Kid Games [http://www.i-FreeOnlineGames.com].

Videojuegos violencia-¿qué pensar?

From video game designers were able to put red pixels on his imaginary characters who had died recently, there have been people crusade against its subversive forms. The outrage in video games seems to be cyclical, disappearing very briefly before the explosion in the public eye once again with renewed frenzy. The dispute seems to have raised up again in recent times, with numerous crimes blamed on the corrupt influence of video games. There have also been several "controversies" surrounding the latest video games and its content in the areas of violence and sexuality.

The first game to receive wide critical attention and media was the martial art fighting game "Mortal Kombat". This game includes streams of blood issued from the attacks and "Deaths" who could perform in stunned opponents after his defeat. These deaths were sequences of animation gruesome showing the victorious player killing his opponent defeated in a variety of ways. The players he managed in this new experience and the controversy surrounding the violence caused massive hype who reported to the less informed players that the game was there. As a result players played the new game just to find out what all the talk was sobre, thereby significantly increasing revenues.

One of greatest sparks of controversy has been the recent "Hot Coffee" modification of "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (GTA:SA)". This involved unlock a sexually oriented mini-game that had removed the game before release, although obviously not from source code. The creators of the game, Rockstar Entertainment, obviously gave notice that this part of the game was not suitable for the video game public and removed the access to it. An enterprising fan of the game found out and changed the original code to provide access to the content once more. Demands were presented against Rockstar to include that content in their game, although the validity of the demand must be questioned. If the game is simply bought and played as expected by the developers, they would never find this mini game certainly tasteless and inappropriate. It is not until the modification made by the user is downloaded and installed the player is able to access the content.

Regardless of who is the blame, "GTA: SA" was reassessed in America and banned the sale in Australia. Curiously the gratuitous violence and encouraged in the game went unnoticed in the wake of the "scandalous" scenes of sex with dresses, cartoonesque people.

When examined objectively almost all games contain a certain amount of violent content. The bright kid-friendly and colorful "Mario" Nintendo Games presented a character stomping on the head of the animated creature. In fact most games, even children's games, involve the protagonist giving against a horde of enemy of some kind and generally "elimination" of them in some way, if they be striking with a weapon or part of the body (feet, hands, possibly a tail depending on the nature of the character). The stand only difference is that in the children's play the 'bad' characters usually bounce back in a cute way and exploit with a sound of humorous puff pastry (or simply disappear) whereas in a game oriented old mature players, the characters are more likely to be (somewhat) realistic, spraying a gusher of red to their demise.

When some young people somewhere commits a violent crime these days seems to get blamed for a video game "Duke Nukem" and "Earthquake" being accused by the Columbine High massacre, a more recent incident between a group of juvenile attributing their violent actions to "Mortal Kombat" video games. Without any solid evidence either way it is difficult to say whether or not violence video games really have much influence on the players. It would be really sure that probably have a group control of isolated children who have never seen a violent movie or play a video game bloody. History however show that they were committed brutal crimes long before video games or movies even came into existence.

Children are very easily influenced by something that are excited and I have seen this happen much. Often playing a video game wrestling with a group of eight years leads to the eight year-old stridently so screaming and trying to fix each other down on the ground. Pre-teens often punch and kick their way out of a cinema in terrible combat positions after having seen a martial arts film. The current system of classification of content on the site is not geared towards the restriction of consumption; largely aimed simply to inform the public about what you will experience. Legal restrictions not are actually implemented until the ratings higher, more severe as in the movies x-rated. Parents, guardians and society in general need to start taking an interest in who is seeing certain types of content. Rather than complain about the entertainment that is enjoying a child, the father could be there at first looking at the classification that is clearly printed on the packaging of all entertainment. A simple "do not think that it is appropriate, what you think about this game?" "He has a lizard!"It distracts the child a surprising number of times. In my experience, children really want only to people interested in what you are interested in, not only murmurs interchangeably, "Yes dear, that is good." as the child settles the most recent violent game.

What happens with the children who are playing in the categories of restricted classification? The only way that can even get the game in his possession is if a parent (or someone of legal age) acquires the game for the child, or if the store ignores guidelines for qualification in the place and sells them independently. Either way the fact that the content of the game has fallen into the hands of a minor is not fault of the video game developer.

I wasn't defending the integrity of artistic vision presented in video games, as many other players. Frankly there seems to be little artistic integrity in the delivery of blood which is becoming more fluid in appearance. However I enjoy playing some games that are very violent in nature and in many cases the violent nature of games increases my enjoyment. Games are escapism, (possibly) is useless playing a video game that simulates something only can leave and do (and even sports games of somehow constantly sell in large quantities... curious...). Curiously I've never felt the overwhelming desire of breaking a murder of stance and confirmation of kung fu. Perhaps more important that simply prohibit questionable video games content could be studying why this content is so attractive to today's society?

Daniel Punch
M6.NET Web assistants
http://www.M6.NET

Video Game Rentals - The Future of Video Game Renting

Video game rentals have always been a great way for gamers to enjoy a variety of games without forking out major cash to do so. For many years, video game fanatics have enjoyed the ability to test out their reputable games before they make that commitment to purchase. With new developments emerging within the online video game rental arena, such online services like GameFly and Gottaplay have been providing even more trouble-free way of testing out a variety of video games. We'll take a closer look at these services below.

GameFly - The First Video Game Rental Company Emerges

GameFly is the very first online video game renting provider to step out on the scene as of early 2003. This company established its presence due to the lack of classic and newer release video game titles that were absent from many of the brick-and-mortar type companies (Blockbuster & Hollywood Video) found within your local area. The founders of GameFly Sean Spector and Jung Suh were very frustrated with the lack of choice, quality, and selection displayed from these video establishments. This led them to search online where they could not find anyone serving the online video game market. Shortly thereafter, both founders decided to leave their full time jobs to pursue their dreams with their very own web based video game rental service. This innovation has changed video game rentals as we know it today.

Renting Video Games Made Easy

GameFly has always followed the beliefs of the majority of video gamers around the world. This belief system was formed during the inception of GameFly and still stands strong today as the backbone structure for all other online video game renting services. This structure is contains the following:

· Gamers need easy access to both classic and newer titles within one company.

· Gamers want to have the choice of keeping a game for as long as they want for a reasonable rate.

· Gamers do not want to spend their money on bad games and should have the choice to send these games back without spending more money.

· Gamers like the ability to receive their favorite video games to their home address without making another trip to the local rental store.

· Gamers should have the option to view other gamer reviews, ratings, and comments as to avoid wasting their time on bad games.

· Gamers should be able to purchase high-quality used games with significant discounts off the retain pricing.

Setting the Standard for Online Video Game Rental Companies

Ever since the GameFly established its presence within the online game rental marketplace, many have followed in their footsteps. Countless game rental companies have come and gone with the trends of the industry, but there are a few that plan to stay. Gottaplay Interactive Inc. is one of these companies. Gottaplay seems to be the only company in 2006 that has gained a lot of credibility and market share within this industry in such a short amount of time. This company is currently giving GameFly a run for its money, with over 2,500 visitors subscribing to the service monthly. They have spent over 18 months developing their premiere game distribution software and currently launching 1 distribution center a month at the beginning of 2006. Even though Gottaplay Interactive has not launched their commercial advertising yet, they plan to focus primarily on their word-of-mouth referrals and online presense for the next year.

Other video game rental businesses are following close behind with Intelliflix trailing a close third. This company has established their own genre within the rental realm by dabbling within the movie rental, game rental, and mature movie rental arena. Even though Intelliflix does not plan to take over the game rental industry, they do plan to offer families the ability to rent for all their household member entertainment needs within one established group. Customers will enjoy a wide variety of entertaining media from this company for years to come.

Video game rentals will always exist as long as there is a market for the industr, which we all know won't be going away for at least the next century. Crack your fingers, grab a soda, and get situated in your favorite chair because there are a lot of video games to be played out there and with so many choices to choose from, the only hard part is...where to go.

For the most comprehensive video game rentals overview, reviews, articles, and rebates, come visit us at: GameRentalGuide.com

Games online - popular game types

This article provides summary information on the popular online games team. Today's games are becoming very popular. It is important to know about the types of games that are available.

Action and adventure games: games that come in this genre are those involving fighting games, space adventures, situational games where the player is required to achieve some goals, etc.. Most of the games of this genre is rich in animation and can also come with a story line.

Games: Arcades of games used to be the place in the neighborhood, where game machines were installed. To play a game, one must put some coins in the machine. Online games are simply another term.

Table games: these are some of the most popular games. Table games, played online are the same, that we play in our real life. They are traditional animated versions of Board games and Favorites.

Card games: they do not need explanation. Card games are always popular with the population of games. There are a lot of games designed with tiles.

Casino games: now once again, these are quite addictive. They simulate the games available in real casinos. When you play with virtual money, there is nothing to lose. So you'll get a lot of people playing online casino games. Can you believe it or not, but a lot of online casino games may involve even real money transactions.

Strategy games: these are the games that take a long time to play and complete. The player has to apply his mind to devise strategies to play and win. Some people may not like strategy games, but others like this. These games may take some time to master.

Sports games: people likes to play games of sports on the Internet. Not much time is needed to understand the sports games, if one already understands the real sport. One can have many levels of play. And there the possibility of competing against a second player or the team itself may be.

Shooting games: these are great stress busters. People can play these games and he left to escape his wrath on shooting enemies and objects of virtual games. There may be a variety of shooters. These can also be included in the action and the genre of adventure games, but was kept separate due to its popularity.

Puzzle games: these new games are very popular for people who do not like too much action or violence. These can really help you focus your mind. Puzzle games are loved by all ages. Actually there is no age for puzzle games group.

The author that c.d. Mohatta writes fun quizzes and tests of fun in http://www.funquizcards.com/ on topics such as love, personality, dating, relationships, friendship, films, tv, music, business, etc.. The author also writes articles, tips and ideas in http://www.yourromanceguide.com/ on topics such as love, dating, marriage, relationships, breaks, etc.. The third site associated with the author http://www.yourfungames.com/ - has free games that anyone can play online.

Free Arcade Games

Arcade games are an age-old tradition. They have existed as a term since the heyday of the pinball machine, and even earlier in many cases. There are several websites that offer free arcade games including solo player, multi-player, action, adventure, card/casino, racing or skill games. Some of the popular free gaming sites on the Internet are game.co.in, free-games-online.com, freearcade.com, ultimatearcade.com, Cnet’s download.com, and freeclassicgames.com. Arcadenut.com, Funny-games.biz and GameAlbum.com are other great entertainment sites which offer free arcade games.

Free Games (www.free-games.au) is an online directory of free games on the Internet, which also reviews and ranks the most popular games. Per their lists, the five most popular games available on their site are The Mafia Boss, Real Mud – the 4th Coming, Runescape, Aegis and Terraworld. All these games are massively multi-player online role-playing games (MMORPG).

Some popular arcade games from the 1980s are available at Triplets and Us (http://www.tripletsandus.com/80s/80s_games/arcade.htm). These include PacMan, Frogger, Space Invaders, Mario Brothers, Asteroids and Tetris. The site also contains links to several Java arcade emulator game sites.

Flash Games ([http://www.t45ol.com/flash-game/arcade-games.php]) offers all free arcade games in Flash. The site contains the traditional arcade games in flash format like Space Invaders, Pong, Super Mario Brothers, Tetris, Donkey Kong and Street Fighter.

Arcade RockStar (http://www.arcaderockstar.com/) is a free gaming network where members participate in daily tournaments, and win cool prizes like cell phones, iPods, gift cards and Sony PSPs, among others. Since it is an ad-supported network, the members must be prepared for different forms of ads such as sponsorships, sweepstakes, banners, text links or pop-ups.

Arcade Games provides detailed information on Arcade Games, Free Arcade Games, Online Arcade Games, Real Arcade Games and more. Arcade Games is affiliated with Online Computer Games [http://www.i-ComputerGames.com].

Game Design Software

Game design has never been easier than today, where you can create the games of your dreams with game design software. Game Editor is one of the most used game design programs. Little or no programming or technical knowledge is required to use this software.

With game design software, one can design and develop 2D and 3D games, and animated games for personal computers and mobile devices. With Game Editor, there is no need to worry about system issues or compatibility; you only have to come up with ideas for games. With no worry about systems issues, you can create your game with a few clicks, using the game design software to generate an executable file for Windows, Pocket PC/Windows Mobile and Linux. You just have to create your game and then export it to Windows, Pocket PC and Linux. The game looks the same in all platforms.

With the game design software, you manipulate the parts of the game as required. You build a game prototype, which has graphics and sound, with minimal programming. This is because the game design software has a set of predefined actions, where any event fires one or more actions. Once the game is defined with the game design software, you test the game play, and see the game's look and learn the feel before the final game concept. With game design software, you can use your own images, animations, music and sounds in the game product. This is because it supports almost all image and audio formats.

Some of the game design software has no royalty issues. Anyone is allowed to create games with the software, and then sell the games. There are some specific sites that allow you to sell games you make using the game design software created by them.

Game Design provides detailed information on Game Design, Video Game Designs, Game Design And Development, Game Design Software and more. Game Design is affiliated with Kid Board Games [http://www.i-BoardGames.com].