I Game, Therefore I Am

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77551681866728845472011-08-03T20:50:32.237-07:00I Game, Therefore I AmFinding life in gamesDanny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.comBlogger181100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-5719037891217795982010-10-25T06:18:00.000-07:002010-10-25T08:21:33.439-07:00Getting to the Core: 36 Hours to Progress

I have waited long enough to form a judgment about the 36-hour timer on Guildleves (GL) in Final Fantasy XIV. With the Collector's Edition releasing on September 22, I now have over one month of playing time under my belt since the service went live. In that time, I have been able to assess just how casual-friendly the system is. I started Getting to the Core with the promise to focus on casual

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-18704511717418240372010-10-05T18:12:00.000-07:002010-10-05T19:32:52.517-07:00Getting to the Core: Theorycrafting is Alive and Well (Mostly)

I've enjoyed discussing character builds for as long as I have played MMOs. For evidence, see this old post from me on the EverQuest Online Adventures forums. The cleric interviewed for that guide was my lovely wife. Of course, that was just me being an excited member of the community, back in the dark days (6 whole years ago!) when wikis were not all the rage and the community mostly had to work

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-28307798597546201312010-09-21T10:11:00.000-07:002010-09-21T10:34:27.388-07:00Getting to the Core: Unspecial Olympics

This is not a research paper with a bibliography and two sources per page. If you want a scholarly journal, I can provide a citation for a terrific article from the Journal of Social Psychology I read recently that addressed how to mitigate stereotype threat by using challenge-framing. This, this is a rant about how stupid Square Enix's payment system for subscriptions to Final Fantasy XIV is.

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-63143643104497786192010-08-22T06:27:00.000-07:002010-08-22T07:42:25.456-07:00Getting to the Core: Is FFXIV the Game for You?

I started writing Getting to the Core with the promise that I would cater to the Core gamer, the guy who wishes he could play 30 hours per week but who can only manage 15. The Core gamer is the lady who really knows her stuff and can play her toon well but doesn't have the time to run with the top guilds or the energy to raid all the time. As we approach the launch of Final Fantasy XIV, I thought

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-73156704519290066192010-08-16T20:22:00.000-07:002010-08-16T20:33:47.575-07:00Hands on with Final Fantasy XIV in San Francisco

It’s not every day that a fanboy gets to live his dream, but I got to do just that when I traveled to San Francisco to take part in a demo of Final Fantasy XIV hosted by Square Enix on August 10, 2010. Since I am no longer working in the gaming media, this was the a major coup for me; I essentially won a contest. Once there, SE took us into a room with roughly 16 computers all custom built by

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-81519927752902913322010-06-30T14:55:00.000-07:002010-06-30T16:40:22.269-07:00Getting to the Core: Can You See the Value of the CE?

I am no newcomer to MMO releases (I've been aware of the details of pretty much every AAA release since Dungeons & Dragons Online in February 2006 because of my work in the media), but I have never seen a collector's edition (CE) that added enough value to make me want to shell out the extra money to get it. Had never seen, that is, until the CE of Final Fantasy XIV. While the Square Enix

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-17103414718571133152010-06-02T20:11:00.001-07:002010-06-02T21:03:46.382-07:00Getting to the Core: The Force behind FFXIVCore.com

My first four years of professional (paid) work in the gaming industry came with the Ten Ton Hammer network, a site that started small and through dreaming big has grown much larger. My volunteer work as a columnist for FFXIVCore.com has given me some insight into how the Curse gaming network runs things. I'm not here to compare and contrast the two networks (and I'd never reveal any secrets I

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-58532535988318280272010-05-09T20:20:00.001-07:002010-05-09T21:44:35.690-07:00Getting to the Core: Bizarre Bazaar

About a year-and-a-half ago, I wrote an editorial for Ten Ton Hammer called "Selling Lemons or Selling Hats." The main point of that editorial was why gamers should ignore their "gnawing sense of dread that item mall purchases will be necessary in order to enjoy" a game that uses microtransactions (MT). I attempted to do so by identifying the kinds of items that make for "fair" MT (the hats) and

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-86822029333483030152010-04-13T20:43:00.000-07:002010-04-13T21:00:46.857-07:00Getting to the Core: Get Outta My Sandbox!

During the past two years, I have encountered a great number of requests for a “sandbox” MMO. Forum posters in the virtual neighborhoods I haunt ask developers to make a game that removes conventions such as levels and upgraded skills in favor of systems that focus on progression through use of skills and gear upgrades. These hopeful gamers, like Arthurian knights in pursuit of the elusive Holy

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-18430276703215429622010-03-16T12:27:00.000-07:002010-03-16T12:40:58.428-07:00Getting to the Core: And Then Vanille Said "Ciao"

Immersion in a role playing game is like a soap bubble; only a delicate membrane of suspended disbelief held together with the surface tension of the illusion created by the narrative keeps the whole thing from collapsing. Nearly twenty hours into Final Fantasy XIII, engrossed in a story I enjoy and a world that contains the depth that gives the illusion of realism, I can’t help but feel the

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-24716037250612740762010-02-28T20:18:00.000-08:002010-02-28T20:39:36.979-08:00Getting to the Core: Monster Envy

I was reading one of my favorite websites dedicated to RPGs near the end of February when I came across an article highlighting the RPGs of the decade (according to the editors of the website) from 2000-2009. Of the top ten games, Square Enix held three slots with Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy XII, and Kingdom Hearts. I’ve played each of those SE titles, but FFX is the only one that draws me in

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-79090098951741466982010-02-07T11:23:00.000-08:002010-02-07T11:33:01.055-08:00Getting to the Core: Eorzean Dynamite

The official FFXIV website illustrates the versatility of the Armoury System through the tale of Leeroy, who starts his day as a Gladiator but exchanges his sword for a staff to become Thaumturge when he joins an adventure party. Once the party disbands, he whips out a pole to take the role of Fisherman. Finally, Leeory concludes his day by swinging the hammer as a Blacksmith.Fans of Final

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-90809698662438138552010-01-12T18:29:00.001-08:002010-01-12T20:49:44.261-08:00Getting to the Core: Fraidy Cats

Plain and simple, I know some real fraidy cats. I have talked to everyone I can about Final Fantasy XIV, sharing my exuberance over Square Enix's newest title, and some people genuinely are afraid to think about trying FFXIV. The reasons they give range from monsters under their bed (stuff they imagine to be in the game but isn't) to recurring nightmares (stuff that was in FFXI and could be in

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-49027947130725284142009-12-20T09:57:00.000-08:002009-12-20T10:49:22.561-08:00Getting to the Core: Beta Means Work for the Core

When Square Enix began accepting beta applications for Final Fantasy XIV on December 16, the hype meter for FFXIV practically exploded. All of the hopes and dreams we have for the game, all of the anxieties and dread--we're about to have the chance to see it all! But beta isn't about previewing a game. Beta is about helping developers find and correct bugs, tune balance, and assess which

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-85052467823017782102009-12-06T09:21:00.000-08:002009-12-06T11:52:57.109-08:00Getting to the Core: Massively Single Player Makes Sense for Final Fantasy

The knee-jerk response goes something like this: "It's massively multiplayer online role playing game. If you want to solo, play an offline RPG." Now, readers will never hear me call for an MMO to be entirely soloable, but I'll be the first to argue that massively single player makes sense for the Final Fantasy franchise. Just hear me out.Your Roots are ShowingFinal Fantasy has its roots as a

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-84938463648232915392009-11-24T08:24:00.000-08:002009-11-26T08:32:37.328-08:00Getting to the Core: Of Boats Missed

Plain and simple, I missed the boat when it comes to Final Fantasy XI. As I mentioned I did with EverQuest last time, I made a conscious decision to skip FFXI despite the fact that I was a huge Final Fantasy fan. My reasons for skipping FFXI were many, and all made sense from the perspective of the Core gamer.A Tale Worthy of HitchcockFirst and foremost among my reasons for not trying FFXI, I was

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-1931700514619975932009-11-14T20:43:00.000-08:002009-11-26T08:31:38.091-08:00Getting to the Core: What, Exactly, Does Core Mean?

I have long held the belief that the polarization of the MMO community into casual and hardcore subgroups ignores the reality of a major contingent of players who fall somewhere in between. Caught in gaming space akin to Purgatory, these people possess the knowledge and skill to be the best players on their servers but lack the time to make it happen. They enjoy the challenge of building a

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7755168186672884547.post-26512062248579079562009-08-17T20:19:00.000-07:002009-08-17T20:57:30.052-07:00What's the deal with Aion?

I don’t get the fuss over Aion. People act like they’ve never seen a pretty Asian grinder before. Hello? Lineage, Lineage II? Anybody?Look, I get it, Aion has decent graphics and we’ve been in a bit of a draught for MMOs lately, but what the fuck? Seriously. The story is only moderately good in the beginning and then the whole thing devolves into more of the same red team/blue team shit every

Danny "Ralsu" Gourleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12075264466816719724noreply@blogger.com0