Righteous Victory – Darksiders

I wanted to start a new series of posts that shines a light on exemplary effort displayed by lesser known game developers / publishers, and what better title to start with than Vigil Games sublime, Darksiders. Sure the title takes a lot, (if not all), of its influence from existing, proven tiles, but it weaves them all together with such quality and attention to detail, that it’s hard to fault them using established conventions to tell their story.

US Department of Defense - Gamers Simply Perform Better

We’ve all heard the old adage, (perhaps even used it against an anti-gaming acquaintance or parent), that video games improve hand-eye-coordination and that they enhance problem solving skills. Well, we may finally have the empirical evidence to back up the claim.

The US Department of Defense has issued a release that outlines an apparent 10-20% increase in aptitude displayed by gamers in areas of “perceptual and cognitive ability”.

The most telling part of the report states:

"We have to train people to be quick on their feet - agile problem solvers, agile thinkers - to be able to counteract and develop counter tactics to terrorists on the battlefield," Perez said. "It's really about human inventiveness and creativeness and being able to match wits with the enemy."

Our New Home!

Welcome to the new home of Video Game Virtues. After trying to use a free site builder for some time, I thought it was a smart move to use the streamlined, easy-to-access blog format instead of trying to reinvent the wheel. Going to www.videogamevirtues.com will now bring you straight to this blog.

I hope the ease of use will allow for more posts and more interaction with people that espouse the same viewpoint as myself. In case you don't know, Video Game Virtues is here to spread the good word about gaming and the gaming community.

In a world where video games are blamed for everything from childhood obesity to mass murder, videogamevirtues.com is here to spread the good word about this most excellent form of entertainment.

With your help, we intend to make this a centralized database chronicling all the good that video games can and have done since their inception. In addition, Video Game Virtues will be an outlet to discredit those who manipulate facts and leverage horrible tragedies to further their own agendas.

Again, welcome and I hope you’ll join in on the discussion!

ARCHIVE POST - Interview with Grant Henry from Metroid Metal

A few months ago, Grant Henry from Metroid Metal was nice enough to take time from his busy schedule to answer a few questions about his background, his musical influences and the amazing work he does crafting metal remixes of classic Metroid tunes. Enjoy the interview.

Video Game Virtues- When did you get the idea to create covers of video game music, and why Metroid?
Grant Henry – I didn’t have the intention of doing much in the video game music genre, but at the time I started, there really weren’t many rock redos of game tunes. I heard The Minibosses early on and it was just such an amazing thing. The idea of the retro kids growing up, becoming learned musicians, and paying tribute to those nostalgic tunes from their youth was attractive to me.
I popped in Metroid for the NES, and heard that theme music all over again. I knew that I had to try it, so I messed up the rhythms and do it almost exactly like the original melodically. I had no plans to record the entire collection of Metroid songs. I just decided to give the “rock treatment” to that tune, and it got a great response online. So I bought the url, did a few more tracks, and the rest is history really.

VGV - What was the first video game cover you produced? Is it available online?
GH – It was the title screen music for the original Metroid. It is by far one of the most memorable tunes from the series, and it’s still my favorite composition from any Metroid game.

VGV – I’d agree with you, I find the title screen of the first Metroid to be one of the most ambient, chilling songs in any entry in the series, (maybe in gaming all together). Which tracks from Metroid Metal are you most happy with?
GH – That’s a hard question. I have favorite original Metroid songs, and I have my favorite redos. My favorite songs from the Metroid series include the Title Screen Theme (NES), Phendrana Drifts (Gamecube), Kraid’s Lair (NES), and Lower Norfair (SNES). My favorite Metroid Metal tracks include The Ending (NES), Space Pirates (Gamecube), Metroid Prime 3 theme, and the Super Metroid Theme. Man, that WAS really hard.

ARCHIVE POST - September 11th, 2009 - Remembering Gunpei Yokoi

Vgchartz has posted a great feature about one of Nintendo's finest, (and by extension, the video game industry proper), Gunpei Yokoi. Today would have been his 68th birthday if he had not been killed in a tragic traffic accident.
Full Article Here

ARCHIVE POST - July 13th, 2009 - Penn & Teller take on Video Game Violence

I know it's circulating the inter-tubes like mad, but I needed to post links to the "Penn & Teller Bullshit" episode that focuses on the negative social connotations of violence in video games, (and the asinine nature of the connection). It's a must watch!
Watch part of the episode here!

ARCHIVE POST - June 15, 2009 - Spotlight on Video Games Live

I just wanted to take a few moments to draw attention to an organization that truly embodies the ideals and forward thinking that Video Game Virtues tries to espouse itself, but that has the ways and means to advance the stance. Last Summer I was lucky enough to live in a city that was part of the Video Games Live concert tour. It was an amazing show and a great time was had by all in attendance. As the Summer concert season is well underway, what better time is there to call attention to a show you might pass over in favor of a more traditional venue. If you're not familiar with the concept of Video Games Live, be sure to check out their site and look around. If you're a gamer and the tour comes to your hometown, you owe it to yourself to check it out. I promise, you won't be disappointed.