Wrath of the Impromptu Book Critic
Hot on the heels of his previous gaming philosophy book, The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy (you can read our review here), editor Luke Cuddy has followed suit by assembling various members of academia and all-around gaming junkies for his next book in the gaming philosophy series, World of Warcraft and Philosophy: Wrath of the Philosopher King.
It would seem that WoW would be a perfect fit for philosophical discussion, what with the constant accusations of the game’s addictive properties as well as its real-world defying economy, and for the most part, this is true.
Like Zelda and Philosophy, WoW and Philosophy organizes itself into individually written chapters that attempt to tackle a specific topic relating to WoW using philosophical tools. For instance, WoW’s economy is studied to determine whether it is the perfect or ideal form of capitalism, and if so, whether it can be reproduced in the real world.
Though each chapter is written by a different author, often causing the quality and consistency of the book to vary, the chapters are broken down into sections to help facilitate out-of-order reading based on specific topics. The book even prefaces each section with humorous quest-based introductions, complete with aged-looking paper laying out your objectives, that claim to give you +5 Intellect! and other rewards after reading. It’s a nice little touch that’s meant to reinforce the authors’ hands-on understanding and experience with WoW and help them connect with the reader beyond an academic-based approach.
Getting down to the actual content of the chapters though, I find that the book is a bit haphazard. At times it feels like each author is attempting to appeal to a specific WoW player at the point of being boring or going over the top for other readers. For instance, Chapter 5, “A Mage in Motion,” is written from the viewpoint of a mage in game – not the player behind the keyboard. The author then unfolds a philosophical discourse between the mage and the higher power controlling said mage – the player behind the keyboard.
While the chapter’s style can at least be noted for its novel approach to discussing philosophy, the conversation between the mage and the player regarding the laws of physics just isn’t as interesting as the more straightforward chapters.
Chapter 20, “Future Pasts of Magic and Deceit,” is simply all over the place. The authors jump from one topic to another without warning or transition and at the end of the 8-page ordeal, you’re left wondering what the hell you just read.
Wrath of the Impromptu Book Critic
Hot on the heels of his previous gaming philosophy book, The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy (you can read our review here), editor Luke Cuddy has followed suit by assembling various members of academia and all-around gaming junkies for his next book in the gaming philosophy series, World of Warcraft and Philosophy: Wrath of the Philosopher King.
It would seem that WoW would be a perfect fit for philosophical discussion, what with the constant accusations of the game’s addictive properties as well as its real-world defying economy, and for the most part, this is true.
Like Zelda and Philosophy, WoW and Philosophy organizes itself into individually written chapters that attempt to tackle a specific topic relating to WoW using philosophical tools. For instance, WoW’s economy is studied to determine whether it is the perfect or ideal form of capitalism, and if so, whether it can be reproduced in the real world.
Though each chapter is written by a different author, often causing the quality and consistency of the book to vary, the chapters are broken down into sections to help facilitate out-of-order reading based on specific topics. The book even prefaces each section with humorous quest-based introductions, complete with aged-looking paper laying out your objectives, that claim to give you +5 Intellect! and other rewards after reading. It’s a nice little touch that’s meant to reinforce the authors’ hands-on understanding and experience with WoW and help them connect with the reader beyond an academic-based approach.
Getting down to the actual content of the chapters though, I find that the book is a bit haphazard. At times it feels like each author is attempting to appeal to a specific WoW player at the point of being boring or going over the top for other readers. For instance, Chapter 5, “A Mage in Motion,” is written from the viewpoint of a mage in game – not the player behind the keyboard. The author then unfolds a philosophical discourse between the mage and the higher power controlling said mage – the player behind the keyboard.
While the chapter’s style can at least be noted for its novel approach to discussing philosophy, the conversation between the mage and the player regarding the laws of physics just isn’t as interesting as the more straightforward chapters.
Chapter 20, “Future Pasts of Magic and Deceit,” is simply all over the place. The authors jump from one topic to another without warning or transition and at the end of the 8-page ordeal, you’re left wondering what the hell you just read.
Fancy schmancy Tomb Raider art book
The Art of Tomb Raider is looking like a must-have hard-edged coffee table book for any fan of the series and its curvy protagonist. Published by Dreams and Visions Press, the 568-page book actually comes in two volumes, with the first covering “every significant piece of Tomb Raider art” through Angel of Darkness, and the second featuring Legend to Underworld.
The set is priced at $110 and only 2,000 copies of the book are being printed. It appears that pre-orders are still being accepted and the books should ship in late February. Guess we can put this right next to our The Splendid Magic of Penny Arcade: The 11½ Anniversary Edition book.
[Via Big Download]
Fancy schmancy Tomb Raider art book originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 09 Feb 2010 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Fancy schmancy Tomb Raider art book
The Art of Tomb Raider is looking like a must-have hard-edged coffee table book for any fan of the series and its curvy protagonist. Published by Dreams and Visions Press, the 568-page book actually comes in two volumes, with the first covering “every significant piece of Tomb Raider art” through Angel of Darkness, and the second featuring Legend to Underworld.
The set is priced at $110 and only 2,000 copies of the book are being printed. It appears that pre-orders are still being accepted and the books should ship in late February. Guess we can put this right next to our The Splendid Magic of Penny Arcade: The 11½ Anniversary Edition book.
[Via Big Download]
Fancy schmancy Tomb Raider art book originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 09 Feb 2010 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Fancy schmancy Tomb Raider art book
The Art of Tomb Raider is looking like a must-have hard-edged coffee table book for any fan of the series and its curvy protagonist. Published by Dreams and Visions Press, the 568-page book actually comes in two volumes, with the first covering “every significant piece of Tomb Raider art” through Angel of Darkness, and the second featuring Legend to Underworld.
The set is priced at $110 and only 2,000 copies of the book are being printed. It appears that pre-orders are still being accepted and the books should ship in late February. Guess we can put this right next to our The Splendid Magic of Penny Arcade: The 11½ Anniversary Edition book.
[Via Big Download]
Fancy schmancy Tomb Raider art book originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 09 Feb 2010 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Fancy schmancy Tomb Raider art book
The Art of Tomb Raider is looking like a must-have hard-edged coffee table book for any fan of the series and its curvy protagonist. Published by Dreams and Visions Press, the 568-page book actually comes in two volumes, with the first covering “every significant piece of Tomb Raider art” through Angel of Darkness, and the second featuring Legend to Underworld.
The set is priced at $110 and only 2,000 copies of the book are being printed. It appears that pre-orders are still being accepted and the books should ship in late February. Guess we can put this right next to our The Splendid Magic of Penny Arcade: The 11½ Anniversary Edition book.
[Via Big Download]
Fancy schmancy Tomb Raider art book originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 09 Feb 2010 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Dante’s Inferno special edition printing provides ‘unique insight’ into game’s creation
Perhaps best used as a bargaining chip for kids desperate to convince their parents that they should be allowed to play a game based on a literary classic, however “mature” it might be, this damned tie-in is unlikely to ascend to the heavenly gates of the bestsellers list. Still, if Visceral Games’ clone adaptation inspires even a single player to check out the original poem, then that would be a beautiful thing. Hell, it would be divine!
Dante’s Inferno special edition printing provides ‘unique insight’ into game’s creation originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 12 Jan 2010 11:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Dante’s Inferno special edition printing provides ‘unique insight’ into game’s creation
Perhaps best used as a bargaining chip for kids desperate to convince their parents that they should be allowed to play a game based on a literary classic, however “mature” it might be, this damned tie-in is unlikely to ascend to the heavenly gates of the bestsellers list. Still, if Visceral Games’ clone adaptation inspires even a single player to check out the original poem, then that would be a beautiful thing. Hell, it would be divine!
Dante’s Inferno special edition printing provides ‘unique insight’ into game’s creation originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 12 Jan 2010 11:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Dante’s Inferno special edition printing provides ‘unique insight’ into game’s creation
Perhaps best used as a bargaining chip for kids desperate to convince their parents that they should be allowed to play a game based on a literary classic, however “mature” it might be, this damned tie-in is unlikely to ascend to the heavenly gates of the bestsellers list. Still, if Visceral Games’ clone adaptation inspires even a single player to check out the original poem, then that would be a beautiful thing. Hell, it would be divine!
Dante’s Inferno special edition printing provides ‘unique insight’ into game’s creation originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 12 Jan 2010 11:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Dante’s Inferno special edition printing provides ‘unique insight’ into game’s creation
Perhaps best used as a bargaining chip for kids desperate to convince their parents that they should be allowed to play a game based on a literary classic, however “mature” it might be, this damned tie-in is unlikely to ascend to the heavenly gates of the bestsellers list. Still, if Visceral Games’ clone adaptation inspires even a single player to check out the original poem, then that would be a beautiful thing. Hell, it would be divine!
Dante’s Inferno special edition printing provides ‘unique insight’ into game’s creation originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 12 Jan 2010 11:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Top 10 Best Selling Games
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