3D Graphics Bad for Video Games?

Do you prefer this?

Or this?

Interesting article over at techradar.com about why adding 3D graphics to games was a bad idea.
I may not totally agree with it, but I do understand where the article is coming from.

Why adding 3D graphics to games was a bad idea
By Luis Villazon
I'm getting a bit sick of 3D graphics. When 3D was first invented, back in the early cretaceous period, the first-person shooter, the flight sim and the RPG all got better.
But platform games got worse. I used to quite like Sonic the Hedgehog but all the 3D versions did was make me get lost and feel sick. And Tomb Raider? A gorgeous woman in tight clothing running round shooting endangered species with automatic pistols? What on Earth is there not to like? The camera control, that's what.
http://www.techradar.com/news/computing/why-adding-3d-graphics-to-games-was-a-bad-idea-489087?src=rss&attr=all

Top Ten Video Games for Christmas

If you're like me you don't have time to stay on top of all the latest video games and what's hot and what's not.
BUT Christmas is approaching and what do you get that game playing son, daughter, niece, nephew etc....
So here is a list of the top ten most popular games this season, and each one is a link to where you can buy them.
Wasn't that nice of me?
So think about making use of the time you'd spent racing all over town getting this stuff in other more fun ways.

1.Guitar Hero World Tour

2.Gears of War 2 Limited Edition

3.Fable II, Limited Collector's Edition

4.Fallout 3

5.Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning

6.Call of Duty World at War Collector's Edition

7.Sins of a Solar Empire Collectors Edition

8.The Lord of the Rings: Mines of Moria Collector's Edition

9.The Witcher Enhanced

10.LittleBigPlanet

Spike TV's 2008 "Video Game Awards"

Spike TV has announced the nominees for the 2008 "Video Game Awards".
The 2-hour extravaganza will premiere live on Spike TV Sunday, December 14 at 9:00pm, ET.
But if you don't want to wait, here is the list of games nominated for Game of the Year.....

Grand Theft Auto IV
LittleBigPlanet
Fallout 3
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Gears of War 2

And my prediction for Game of the Year?
I'm gonna have to go with Gears of War 2.

Violence in Video Games

A state lawyer tried Wednesday to revive California's ban on selling violent video games to minors.
Don't expect the major companies or players to take this laying down.
PC World has an interview with Texas A&M psychology professor Christopher Ferguson about violence in video games....

Violence in Games: A Conversation with Christopher Ferguson, Part One
Matt Peckham
I don't know much that'd pass scholarly muster when it comes to violent games and children, but since it's pretty much the hot button in video gaming these days, I'm constantly looking for people who do.
In April 2007, I spoke with Iowa State professor Doug Gentile (see parts one, two, three, four) about studies compiled in a book entitled Violent Video Game Effects on Children and Adolescents. Earlier this year, I spent some time on Drs. Lawrence Kutner and Cheryl K. Olson's book Grand Theft Childhood: The Surprising Truth About Violent Video Games. And I've had plenty to say about the issue's coverage in the media, in particular by people with no scholarly expertise in the area, or business talking politically about it.
Yesterday, news broke of a new study claiming to link violent games and increased aggression, published in the journal Pediatrics. It's author, Craig Anderson, who teaches psychology at Iowa State University and runs its Center for the Study of Violence, said: "We now have conclusive evidence that playing video games has harmful effects on children and adolescents."

You can read the full article here