Big Picture: MEMORIUM

Hiroshi Yamauchi, 1927 - 2013

The Escapist : The Big Picture : Memorium

End Of An Epoch

Hiroshi Yamauchi, the former president of Nintendo, has passed away at the age of 85. Video-Games have lost their Walt Disney.

The importance of this man to the gaming industry cannot be overstated. He was the one who decided to change his family company's direction away from traditional toys and playing cards toward electronics and ultimately video games. He made the decision to branch out into American and European markets. This was the man who tapped then-unknown Shigeru Miyamoto to create what would become Donkey Kong.

This was the man who willed home video gaming back into existence as a viable worldwide business when it was all but dead. It's neither exaggeration nor hyperbole to suggest that the entirety of modern video-gaming - everything from the first Game & Watch titles and every single thing that came after - was built on the foundation he laid. More incredible still, he remained in charge of the company all the way into 2002 and had an active role in all major company decisions well into the GameCube era. It's impossible to imagine what this industry would've looked like without him... or if it would even have existed at all.

Gomeifuku wo inorimasu, Yamauchi-sama.

REMINDER!

This is happening TODAY. Come on out and say hi :)

Call of Duty: Ghosts (Single-Player Trailer)

As near as can be discerned from this reveal trailer, the story of "CALL OF DUTY: GHOSTS" goes like this: Astronauts with machine guns take over a satellite-based weapon and use it to bomb America into "I Am Legend"-level ruin in advance of a ground invasion; which is opposed by a team of heroes - and their trusty dog - who've all adopted the signature look of a previous COD game's popular masked-hero "Ghost."

Okay. I'm paying attention now.

TGO Returns To YouTube

Okay, so, firstly: Most recent episode was a Top Ten of Generation 7 Countdown. Did you watch it? Watch it.

Secondly: I've decided to start putting old(er) episodes back up on YouTube, promotionally. The show is still going to live on Blip, and new episodes will make their debut there. But after a month or so, they'll hit YT for the sake of promotion and also because I know some folks have issues accessing the Blip player.

Episodes 78 through 86 went up today, find links after the jump. Also, don't forget: I'll be appearing in person this Saturday (9/14) at ACAM/FunSpot in New Hampshire from noon to 3pm to sell and sign copies of "Brick-By-Brick," so if you're in the New England area please feel free to swing by - if you've never been to ACAM, it's pretty incredible.

EPISODE 87: "Top Ten Games of Generation 7"

And now here we are. It's the end of a generation, which means it's time for a Completely Meaningless Top Ten List!

Dickwolf'd (UPDATED)

(Post moved from original location to allow for commenting)

So, I feel like I need to write this stuff down. And since the situation is still fluid and "evolving" (read: a clusterfuck) it's probably best that it be a blog post as opposed to an episode of this or that show. Plus, since there's no guarantee I won't say something stupid, this way it's all on me and not on any of my employers or partners.

Dickwolf'd

UPDATE: Someone or something managed to trigger the design flaw that makes this post use Blogger's shitty commenting engine rather than Intense Debate. I've locked those comments (because Blogger makes troll-policing next to impossible) and moved the text to a new location HERE.