Gadgets Blog » Video Games

In was but a wee one when the original “Tron” came out in 1982, but I was mesmerized by the amazing graphics and cool special effects. It has action and light cycles, and it involved computers, something not many movies were doing at that time.

Almost 30 years later, a much-anticipated follow-up movie premieres today, and the video game Tron: Evolution is already in stories. It got me thinking about when “Tron” first came out and the arcade game that was developed to follow the movie. I frequented a lot of arcades back then, and that game got me hooked far more than Donkey Kong or Pac Man.

Perhaps the most fun about it was that it was four games in one. It wasn’t just the same game over and over again with maybe a new terrain or faster enemies; there were four completely different games. While that may pale in comparison to the Mario Party and Carnival Games of today, back then, it was unheard of.

Everybody had their favorite game, and the one that they couldn’t stand but played anyway because it was the only way to beat the game. The arcade game featured black lights and fluorescent lights, and it just looked amazing on the arcade floor.

You have to remember that arcades of the ’80s were nothing like the arcades of today. They were loud and dark and filled to the brim with people. For teens and younger, the arcade was the only place to go and play for cheap. All you needed was a few dollars in quarters.

This holiday season many children will open up a new PlayStation 3, Wii and X-box 360 with Kinect and play the most graphically amazing games created, using everything from handheld devices to their own body as controllers.

I have been gaming for more than 25 years, so I remember the early days of Atari and Nintendo. For this reason, I thought I would take a look back at the technology of the past so that we can appreciate the technology of the present.

Atari: Who remembers using a screwdriver to connect the Atari to the television? This was before the days of the red, white and yellow A/V inputs. I still remember sitting on my parents’ bed playing Breakout for hours. The sound effects consisted of beep followed by a boop and then another beep. Whew, those were some crazy times. Space Invaders, Combat and a plethora of other classic games that anyone over 30 remembers. The graphics consisted of various block forms, and the controllers had one button.

8-bit machines: I like to call this the golden age of gaming. Nintendo debuted the Nintendo Entertainment System along with a little Italian Plumber named Mario bent on saving Princess Toadstool from the clutches of the evil Bowser. Some of you might also remember Robbie the Robot, who you could control to play a game called Gyroscope. Yeah, nobody else does either.

For years, Nintendo’s Wii has been the unrivaled leader in motion control technology with its nunchuk-like controllers that followed peoples’ movements and translated them to actions on the screen.

This year, both PlayStation and Microsoft unleashed their version of motion control, and Microsft Kinect for Xbox 360 seems to be leading the pack. Unlike both PlayStation and Wii, Xbox Kinect does not use a controller, instead using a camera to track the movements of the player.

When the player jumps, the character jumps. This controller and camera in one gives players the unique opportunity to have their direct image placed into the game screen, and it even reads clothes and colors and translates it to the screen for chats, etc.

Tech and gadget G4 recently tested this device’s capability to recognize specific clothing, from standard jeans and a T-shirt to a naughty school girl uniform, bikini and even nude. Jeans and even naughty school girl translated to the game, but the digital version of nudity was blocked. Unfortunately, it does not block direct video nudity, even though there are supposed to. That’s something for parents to watch out for.

5. Donkey Kong: He came into the video game world as a menace to Mario and his girlfriend, and has since become a loving father and avid race car driver. It’s obvious when Donkey Kong was created that they were going after the whole King Kong vibe, but just like wrestling, he ended up changing sides. His most recent game, Donkey Kong Country Returns, came out this month. He’s an old monkey, and it’s time to slip him his last banana and leave the tough stuff to Donkey Kong, Jr.

4. Lara Croft: Arguably, the first video game sex symbol when she burst on the scene her tight shorts and athletic moves had gamers playing with their joysticks for hours. She spawned many games and even two movies starring Angelina Jolie, and there is talk of a reboot in the works. Her latest game, Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, came out in September. Let’s face it, folks; she’s had the same outfit and hairstyle for 15 years. Just like Angelina needs to make way for Megan Fox (oh, snap), Lara needs to make way for someone else.

3. Pac Man: Just like Donkey Kong, Pac Man was one of the first true video game stars found in arcades around the globe. He even got his wife and kids in on the ghost-gobbling business. He spawned countless games, cartoons and breakfast cereals, and his most recent game came out this month. You want to talk about a workaholic? This guy was busy through his children’s entire childhoods and is still churning out the games. Put Pac Man to pasture so that he can actually enjoy his golden years with the Misses.

Few titles are as revered in the world of gaming as Gran Turismo. The signature racing simulator for Sony’s line of gaming consoles, Gran Turismo got its fantastic origins on the original PlayStation.

Over time, the series has become one of the most hotly anticipated and best-selling entries into Sony’s impressive lineup of titles. Along with the name recognition and revenues working in Sony’s favor, there has come a strong love-hate relationship with the game’s development. The series is no stranger to significant delays in production, pushing back the release of these essential titles for weeks, if not months, at a time.

All that is coming to an end for the title’s latest release, Gran Turismo 5. Sony’s got a little extra bit of fanfare in the works as well, gearing up a brand-new limited-edition version of the PlayStation 3 specifically for the event. Nov. 24 will mark the exciting return of the franchise. The premise behind Gran Turismo is part of what makes it so compelling. Unlike arcade-style racing games, the title focuses on the technical aspects of driving, pitting the player against competent AI opponents on a series of difficult road courses.

It’s difficult to talk about a new video game release these days without mentioning a sequel. In the current generation of consoles, developers have seen the stakes of their successful titles raised to new heights. The immense costs of creating a game with the current standards of graphics, gameplay and content have placed pressure on developers to deliver revenues to their companies. As a result, many of 2010’s biggest titles were sequels in successful franchises. Call of Duty: Black Ops is no different, but it boasts perhaps the most difficult challenge: filling the shoes of the hottest-selling video game of all time.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is the spiritual predecessor to Black Ops, and it was a divisive title in the gaming community. Utilizing current-events politics and contemporary weaponry, the title weaved a fiction dealing with global conflict, putting the player in charge of defending the United States from invasion. It was a great release with multiplayer, bringing users back to the title again and again. But it wasn’t perfect. The writing in MW2 served as a major downside, as the plot of the game relied too heavily on Hollywood-style melodrama and cheap tricks on the player, typically involving the “death” of the user in a cinematic cut scene.

Back when current generation gaming consoles were being released, a perplexing turn of events set Nintendo apart from its competitors. Where Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s Playstation 3 opted for high-powered machines that supported other kinds of multimedia, Nintendo kept the graphic capabilities on their Wii console relatively limited, embracing instead a motion-sensing control scheme that provided an extra dimension to their video games. Nintendo’s gambit seems to have paid off, with the Wii standing as a high-selling console with positive market trends on the rise.

Enter Microsoft’s reaction to the Wii. While the Wii controllers had motion-sensing devices built into them, Microsoft’s Kinect controller is entirely hands free. The device is capable of spotting human movement while mounted just in front of the television screen — no controller required. That person’s movements translate into in-game activities, creating an experience that Microsoft hopes will be perceived as more involved and compelling. The players don’t use a peripheral anymore. Instead, they use their entire bodies.

In an alternate reality, civilization as we know it has come to an end. The rivalry between the USA and the USSR never came to a peaceful conclusion, but rather a horrendous nuclear war fought sometime in the alternate 1950s. This is the world of Fallout, a franchise that has lasted countless technological advancements due largely in part to its unique setting and fascinating take on morality. The latest title in the series, developed by Obsidian in partnership with Bethesda, takes the series to a place its never been before: the wasteland surrounding Las Vegas.

Fallout: New Vegas appears at first glance to be more of the same from the two developers who have worked on the project. Bethesda’s Fallout 3 was a highly successful title in 2009, with tremendous sales on the computer, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. The new title operates on the same graphics engine, featuring many of the same gameplay mechanics. Things are different this time around, however. With a host of new features geared towards advanced players, early reviews of the game have pointed towards a classic entry in the series, and one of the best titles of the year.

The game puts the player in the shoes of a wanderer in this post-apocalyptic wasteland. After suffering from an attack by a band of strangers, you’re nurtured back to heath by a compassionate doctor. As the game progresses, the player encounters a large number of characters, all suffering in the same circumstances in the difficult living. A key element of Fallout has always been the exploration, and this title is no different. Some of the tasks given by strangers are required to successfully co

In the ever-popular world of first-person shooter video games, developers have been mobilizing quickly to play catch-up to a few successful titles. Every few years, a shooter manages to come along to reinvent the genre, causing excitement in the gaming community and inspiring dozens of rip-off attempting to capitalize on the bandwagon phenomeon. In the last year we’ve seen two iterations of successful franchises that have been oft-imitated but never overtaken. Halo: Reach was released earlier this fall, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was a smash hit last spring.

Call of Duty is perhaps notable for its modern weaponry, utilizing the military technology of today to create a fast-paced game with a Tom Clancy-inspired story. With fictional politicians deciding the fate of the free world, Modern Warfare 2 managed to encapsulate the intense atmosphere of 21st century global strife with a fictional story. Not to be outdone, rival developer Electronic Arts re-booted their Medal of Honor franchise for the 21st century. While the game itself features a strong story and similar gameplay, Electronic Arts opted to use the conflict in Afghanistan for their setting.