Update

I've found a lot of information on this. I've checked out reviews, video interviews with the creators of the game and interviewed some players through the game. I've played the game and I'm taking notes on all the things I like about and comparing it with other games and the COD before it. This game has a high rating for every system and all gamers love it. I want to write why this game has become so popular so fast and why its the game of the year. What hooks people into playing games.

Exploring Topics

I'm thinking of writing about Call of Duty4: Modern Warfare. What I want to write about why it has become Game of the Year. What makes games Games of the Year. The story mode along with the online play. How online play improves the game. Games similar to it and the ones before it.

Rays v Phillies Game 3

I'm just curious who here is keeping up with October baseball? I want the Rays to win. It's a hell of a story going from the worst team in baseball to potential champions! The series is now 2-1 Phillies up. Three hour rain delay worth the wait. They just won a hell of a game. It went down to the wire. Hit by a pitch put the winning run on base, wild pitch that went to the backstop, a wild throw that went to center field trying to catch a man stealing, set it up for the Phillies. A weak infield snub to third drove in the winning run. It was a great game both teams responding to each run put up. Phillies started off the game with a first inning run. Rays came back in the top of the second with a run from Gabe Gross. Phillies answered that with a Carlos Ruiz home run. Game went on without runs till the sixth when the Phillies went back to back, Utley and Howard each a solo shot putting them up 4-1. In the seventh Rays put up two on two fielders choice. In the eighth B.J. Upton scored on a wild pitch making it even at 4-4. Rays did not score in the 9Th giving the Phillies a chance and they took it winning 5-4. I still believe the Rays are taking it. They have an amazing team and excellent pitching staff. I'm a Yankee fan but this wasn't our year so I'm going with the Rays. I've always liked them anyway. Game Four Sunday night 8pm@Phillies. Game Five Monday night 8pm@Phillies. Game Six Wed night 8pm@Tampa and Game Seven Thu night 8pm@Tampa. All on Fox. Rays win it in seven. LETS GO RAYS 08!!

City Trip

We (David, Shakti, Depore, Nermin) started off at Toys R Us. We started off downstairs in the video game section. A toy is an object that you can play with and control with your hands. Usually toys need you to use your hands and play with by your own rules. The difference between a toy and a game is that in a game there is a set of rules and it has a purpose. The purpose of a game is to accomplish something by defeating a challenge. I believe a toy can't become a game but if you get several toys together you can make a game. Some cultural issues we can speak about particularly about games is that they can give children false facts about real life. The way the games are catagorized, their ratings. We hit Game Stop after that at around 1130 where we met up with Matt. On the way got some free samples from Starbucks. =) There are all types of video games, sports, action, rpg, simulation, racing and puzzle (not including rockband, ddr and guitar hero. don't know what to consider them). I would say the difference between a console game and a PC game is that they are formatted differently and the game play is switched around a bit. From my expiernce the quality is much better on newer consoles than PCs. I believe on PCs you are somewhat limited and don't get the graphics you do on game consoles. I feel like a control remote allows for a better gaming experience. On game consoles you can connect more things like with the new music games, guitars, drumset, microphone and dancing mat. We went to The Complete Strategist where we met up with Joel and Jacob. This store was interesting I have never seen so many game boards in my life. We saw all types of games, board games, puzzles, card games and even some dice games. No game really caught my attention. I'm not really interested in these types of games because they take to long. The differences I see between video games and hard games is that in games you take place of a made up character. You feel more into the game. In hard games you usually have to move piece or pieces. The main difference between these types of games is who you become not who you control. By the time we were done it was about 130 so I didn't have time to go to Neutral Ground.

Cluster

I've found it very helpful to be in a cluster because all the professors know each other making it easier for us. What I've found most interesting is English because this class helps us with our two other courses. Honestly the most challenging thing so far has been Lou's paper because I had to do a power point presentation along with the paper. Now that I have the presentation over I expect it to be easier. Some challenges I expect over the new few weeks are Lou's final project and Dr. Rheuban's report because I had no idea it was due so soon. I'm gonna have to get working on it and finish Lou's mid-term. I've learned a lot in this cluster. I've learned about media which is has been more interesting than expected and how to manage time between classes and assignments. In English I got a better understanding of The Matrix and all the MLA stuff. In Lou's I've learned about media history and Bill Gates my mid-term topic. In film I've learned about it's history and how it's changed. It really is cool how it's changed to todays movies but the movies we watch in class bore me and I believe many of you would agree lol. This cluster has made the transaction to college a lot easier.

Club Fair

There was plenty of clubs at the fair but the two that caught my attention the most were the newspaper 'the bridge' and Phi Theta Kappa. I'm interested in the newspaper because I took journalism in my highschool. I don't mind writing and I think it would be pretty cool to be part of such a big paper. I'm not sure if i want to join it yet but it is definitly at the top. David told me about Phi Theta Kappa and we walked up and it really interested me. At the moment we can't join because we need a 3.5 GPA and 12 credits. We can still participate as volunteers. What's great about it is that if we join we are open to scholarship opportunities. We took a membership application but we have to wait till next semester to submit it. I think once I have completed this semester I am going to join this because of all the opportunities that they offer. These were the two clubs that caught my attention the most and might join.

Gee Article

This article is great. This really brings forward everything I think of but can't explain. I love all the ideas he gets across. The way he uses the basis of learning in a game and school is interesting. If school would let you learn the same way you learn in games you would be more interested in things. The fact that he says failure is a good thing in games makes you wonder why it is not in school, don't you have to fail sometimes to learn? You can't always get everything the first time and most of the time people don't. Sometimes teachers are to harsh and react to quick to when they see students fail. I think the best type of learning is trail and error. In school you're always afraid of taking risk you wait for a set of instructions because you don't want to be the one who does something wrong. Sometimes we feel restricted, well at least I do. Restricted in the sense that why can't we do something the way we see it express what we really feel and see. Another thing that I strongly agree with is that Gee he says games talk back maybe not the character verbally but by the new things that arise like challenges. These challenges are what keep you going but the challenges given are not challenges that seem to big for you to handle. These challenges are small enough to push your mind but not big enough to make you want to give up. I believe that's what happens in school, the challenges given sometimes make you want to give up and not try anymore this is where failure would be good. Allow someone to fail in order to learn. I think the biggest problem we have in school is that at times they don't lead you with something small to get to something big. Some teachers believe if you get the big/hard stuff out the way everything will be easier, which is true but how does this big stuff effect ones thinking. If you do something and find it really hard and barely get by it and you do something else you doubt yourself whether you can do this next thing or not. When Gee says " the problem players face are ordered so that the earlier ones are well built to lead players to form hypotheses that work well for later, harder problems." This same way of creating video games should be applied to learning. Small problems help built theories and ideas so when you do come to the big stuff you have an idea as of how to tackle it. When he uses "just in time" and "on demand" I think it's great because sometimes teachers bore you thinking you need information but you already get it. Sometimes they don't give information when you don't get things. You should be able to ask the teacher at anytime to help explain, your on demand, without being afraid of slowing down a lesson and getting them mad. Slowing down learning is great because it gives you a better understanding and might help you grasp things further ahead. I think there is plenty more that you can learn from a game that you can apply to school. Games can really test you and push you in better ways than books sometimes. God of War is the perfect example, you must adapt your way of fighting in order to defeat new bosses and new puzzles. This gives you a more complex way of thinking which can help your mind develop.