Not Quite the Future We Expected



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R18 certificates are not an excuse for being a bad member of society

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I've been a gamer for 3 decades, seeing the games industry mature from dots on a screen into a prolific mainstream industry. I'm not afraid of controversy in games. I want to make it abundantly clear: I'm not advocating banning anything.  I've seen many disturbing titles, far worse than Grand Theft Auto. But this was when games were a cult market, and the technology was so basic, it was easy to dismiss the phenomenon. Now, games have matured. They can do more and they reach more people. Like movies and other entertainment, they have the power to influence society. With this influence comes some level of responsibility. It's not an obligation - games are art and should be able to push boundaries - but rape in a video game is not art. It's gratuitous indulgence in a sickness, a sickness that hides behind freedom of expression. If we're going to get philosophical about it (and I guarantee the proponents will) you could ask “where does it end? Should we ...
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The Ethical Implications of Dismantling the Planet Mercury

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George Dvorsky's article about How to Build a Dyson Sphere was absolutely fascinating and I feel the concept deserves much further exploration. "By enveloping the sun with a massive array of solar panels, humanity would graduate to a Type 2 Kardashev civilization capable of utilising nearly 100% of the sun's energy output. A Dyson sphere would provide us with more energy than we would ever know what to do with" Now, this is the kind of ridiculous, overambitious idea that that really captures my imagination. It would be a hyper structure, like the Hoover dam but on steroids, where we would create unfathomable devastation, calling on the skills and labour of thousands, enduring the harshest that nature can throw at us in order to tame it - all in the name of energy. Where the Hoover dam transformed a country, this would transform our entire solar system. But it's not without cost. And that's what I want to discuss. In order to get the materials to...
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What’s the best gaming controller?

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A controller I “designed” during Art class, 1994 I think I’ve used every game controller that has ever existed. The first one I used was a handle with a knob on the end which you twisted to move the bat in Pong up and down. What about today’s 3 controllers? They all have such major pros and cons. If someone could put all the good features into one controller, it would be amazing. Xbox I owned the Duke , and I didn’t mind it, but I have decent sized hands and it still felt like a bowl with buttons so when they brought out the newer controller I felt it was a good move. Ever since then Xbox controllers have been the most natural, comfortable controller out there, without question. I had a 360 controller for over a decade and a half across the Xbox 360 and PC, and it just worked. I love the concave thumbsticks. None of this slippery nubs like the Playstation. I’m cool with the offset sticks, the buttons have always felt solid and the triggers get smoother with every release. It’s a so...
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