The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, January 30, 2002, Page 6, Image 6
CONTACT US THEY SAIDIT
THOMAS HUXLEY: “It is not
Story ideas? Questions? Comments? who is right, but what is right,
E-mail us at gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com that is of importance. “
ROLE-PLAYING GAMES TAKE CAMEL-OT BY STORM
I ~
PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK
This “Dark Age of Camelot” screenshot shows improved graphics from previous MMORPGs. The game takes place just after King Arthur’s death as anarchy spreads across the land.
Internet a haven for gaming fans
BY ANDY EVANS
THE GAMECOCK
Welcome to the world of
massive multiplayer online role
playing games (MMORPGs):
traditional role-playing games
with a huge online player base.
MMORPGs are growing so
successful that they’re bechming.
big investments, jobs and
careers, as well as high-quality
ehtertainment.
To play an MMORPG, you
simply buy the game’s software
and install it on your computer.
The software will contain a way
to log on to the game’s server,
where you create a character and
a place for yourself. You can then
play with and against other
people from all over the
countryon the server. Most
MMORPGs charge a monthly fee
of about $10-$13 to play. Your
characters are saved on the
server, so you can always pick
up where you left off.
MMORPGs are hard to
classify and judge; to get the full
effect, you need to experience
them for yourself. They usually
let you choose your character
within a fictional fantasy type of
world. Perhaps the most
interesting (or frustrating) thing
about MMORPGs is that they
don’t actually have endings. The
games’ creators are always
developing them to keep players
entertained and happy, and the
many character choices, races
and classes create innumerable
possibilities and outcomes.
Every new MMORPG claims
improvements, graphics and
options the others don’t. Every
MMORPG constantly struggles to
keep its player base entertained.
MMORPGs are more
concentrated in the PC gaming
industry. But with the introduction
of new technology that will allow
gaming console users to connect to
the Internet, MMORPGs aren't for
just computer users anymore. One
major developer, Square, is
developing its next “Final
Fantasy” series to have MMORPG
capabilities and play exclusively
on PlayStation
BY ANDY EVANS
THE GAMECOCK
“Dark Age of Camelot” is one
of the newest MMORPGs on the
market. The game takes place in
the Arthurian Era, just after
Kinp Arthnr’Q
2. With the use
of broadband
connections
and ethemet
links in the
gaming
oonsoles, you’ll
be able to play
your favorite
video games
with and
a^inst people
from across
the nation
and the
world. Plan
tn enn fVmon
death. Chaos is
rising across the
three realms of
Albion (humans),
Midgard (trolls)
and Hihemia
(elves). Each
realm has its own
central problems,
and other realms
always pose a
threat to their
forts and relics.
Each realm has
two relics that
new games
hit home a lot
harder in the years to come.
o* r'' *■ •
Because the game never
ends (a defining feature of
MMORPGs), “Dark Age of
“DARK AGE OF CAMELOT”
Mythic Entertaiment
★★★★ out of ☆☆☆☆☆
Camelot” has no definite end
goal. It offers a great variety of
races and classes, and each
realm has its own. You choose
your character’s focus: power,
professional excellence or world
domination. Whatever your
goal, it’s impossible to achieve it
without cooperating with the
other players on the server.
You advance through the
game by doing quests and
killing monsters. In doing this,
you gain experience, which lets
you gain levels. As you gain
levels, you get specialization
points to put in different areas.
Once you hit level 5, you’re
given the chance to join a
specific class guild. Starting at
level 15, every time you hit a
five-level increment, you’re sent
on epic quests from your
trainer; these quests appeal to
your class and give you more
reason to go kill that monster or
evil person.
The graphics and landscape are
beautiful, and it’s easy to waste
your time simply wandering
around looking at everything.
The environments are realistic,
with snow, rain, sunrises and
sunsets, but what’s really
stunning is seeing spells cast.;
What makes “Dark Age df
Camelot” fun are the real-life
players you meet. You get fb
make lots of friends and hint
with them. Player guilds,"
associations and alliances form.
For a lot of players, it’s the;
people in their guild who make
their game experience
worthwhile. The camaraderie is
the game’s best part. With its
almost endless replay value,
this game is highly
recommended.
RPG picks up after Arthur’s death
♦ The Gamecock WANTS and NEEDS you this Valentine’s Day! ♦
SEND US THE STORY OF YOUR WORST VALENTINE’S DAY EXPERIENCE, AND WE WILL RUN THE MOST HORRIFYING ON WEDNESDAY, FEB. 13.
Stories must be 100-200 words typed with name, phone number and e-mail address, and are due by Feb. 8 at 5 p.m. They can be e-mailed to gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com or dropped off at RH 333.
The Deadlines
5. “BLOODSPORT"
Sneaker Pimps
6. “PERMANENT STRANGER”
EP
Masters of the Hemisphere
7. “PLAYING WITH MY
FRIENDS...”
_ Tony Bennett
8. “THE ANNIVERSARY
AND SUPERDRAG”
The Anniversary and Superdrag
9. “SONGS FOR THE
FRONT ROW..."
J)cean Clour Scene
10. “ONE AMAZING KID”
One Amazing Kid
WUSC Top
Ten Albums
FOR THE WEEK OF
JAN. 21-28
1. “I’M WAKING UP TO US”
Belle and Sebastian
2. “MUSIC FROM THE
MOTION PICTURE ‘OCEAN'S
ELEVEN’"
Various Artists
3. “SONGS IN THE KEY OF
YOU”
Huntingtons
4. “FASHION OVER
FUNCTION”
CD REVIEW
Hank III doesn’tfill country boots
“LOVESICK, BROKE AND DRIFTIN’”
Hank Williams III
out of ☆☆☆☆☆
BY WILLIAM MILLS
■THE HAMBCOCK
A picture in the booklet of Hank
Williams Ill’s new album, “Lovesick,
Broke and Driftin',” accurately defines
his musical style. He’s entering a club
wearing a cowboy hat (a tribute to his
country heritage) and a Misfits shirt
(a symbol of his punk-rock
tendencies). His newest release,
however, is filled to the brim with
country tracks, keeping the tradition
of good ol’ country twang that the
name Hank Williams is known for. His
father and grandfather left some
pretty big shoes to fill, and it seems
young Hank has turned more toward
his grandfather's style on “Lovesick,
Broke and Driftin'.” '
On this album, Hank III uses a blend
of upbeat and slower songs. He
occasionally even breaks into a yodel
on “One Horse Town” that makes your
head turn. When he isn’t yodeling, his
lyrics comprise mainly generic
country music subjects such as a wife
who left, his dog dying or a lonesome
cowboy. The third track on the album,
“Cecil Brown,” has a Wild West twinge
and sounds as if it should have been on
the soundtrack for “Young Guns.”
Other songs, such as “Lovin' and
Huggin’,” will probably be played
frequently in country line-dancing
clubs. This upbeat, harmonica-driven
song makes you want to grab your belt
buckle and give a “yee-haw.”
Hank III uses a variety of
instruments besides the harmonica to
persuade listeners that he’s as much of
a cowboy as his grandpa was. A stand
up bass, steel guitar, fiddle and
mandolin are just a few of the
instruments he uses to create his old
fashioned country sound. Among the 13
artists who play on the album is
Klayton Roberts, whose biography can
be found inside the album booklet.
Roberts plays the stand-up steel guitar
on the album, and has played with
country music legends such as Dolly
Parton and Randy Travis. ■
Famous country musicians, family
or otherwise, have clearly had a lasting
effect on this rock-‘n’-roll cowboy. This
album’s music, however, seems a little
forced. Hank III tries too hard to be
country and ends up with somewhat
superficial songs. The twang in his
voice and the shallow lyrics make the
entire album seem fake. Maybe this is
because he sounds like a completely
different person without his hard-rock
voice. This contrast becomes as clear
as night and day at one of his concerts,
where he often plays a country music
set and then a punk-rock one. Once he
fixes on one musical style, he will still
grow as a musician. But he definitely
won’t be as interesting.
CD REVIEW
‘Six Degrees’pays homage to fans
- ^ j
“SIX DEGREES OF INNER TURBULENCE”
Dream Theater
★ ★*outof#tfr**<r
BY MIKE LUKE
THE GAMECOCK
Just by looking at the length of the
songs on Dream Theater’s new double
album, “Six Degrees of Inner
Turbulence,” you get the feeling they
don’t really care what I or any other
journalist has to say about the album; it’s
all about the fans, and progressive bands
such as Dream Theater have always
relied on their fan base rather than
reviews and videos. This is Dream
Theater’s newest studio release since
1999’s “Scenes from a Memory.”
Off the top of your head, what’s the
longest song you can think of? Classic rock
fans might think of Yes’ “The Gates of
Delirium,” Pink Floyd’s “Echoes,” The
Allman Brothers’ “Mountain Jam” or
Rush’s “2112.” The first thing that will grab
your attention about this album is the 42
minute title track, “Six Degrees of Inner
Turbulence,” which is the only song on
Disc 2. The song comprises eight parts and
tells the story of a girl’s descent into
insanity. Part four, “The Test That
Stumped Them All,” is arguably the
album’s best music. The song, in its
entirety, is strangely more entertaining
than some of the 13-minute songs on Disc 1.
Though the structure of the vocal
melodies isn’t as strong or catchy as it
was on previous albums, the lyrical
content makes up for it. As far as
understanding the lyrics, you’re on your
own. But for those of you who like your
brain to hurt when you listen to music,
Dream Theater should still be your band
of choice. “The Great Debate” is a song
about stem-cell research, of which the
band obviously takes a negative view.
The song’s haunting introduction is
laced with news clips about the research.
This album, which is much darker than
any of the band’s albums to date, finds
.Tamps T.aRrip sinpineless and erowlinp
more, a style that is quite possibly more
appropriate for Dream Theater’s music.
The three-part, 14-minute “The Glass
Prison” is a great representation of Dream
Theater’s essence: progressive rock that
never stays in one groove long enough to
bore you, with unfathomable guitar from
John Petrucci and intricate, thunderous
drumming from Mike Portnoy. The
album’s other songs, “Blind Faith,”
“Misunderstood” and “Disappear,” are
much the same, but the backward
tracking and production on some of the
songs make me wonder how easily this
album will be reproduced live.
Overall, “Six Degrees of Inner
Turbulence” isn’t as strong an album as
“Scenes From a Memory,” but it remains
much better than all the other albums in
the Dream Theater catalog. Plus, the
point the band has reached in its career
«is one in which creative inspiration
doesn’t have to battle corporate demand^
for a marketable album.