TrickyBuddha Studios

I’m heading to Chicago today for a show (The Dears, Secret Machines) and when I get back I’ll probably be playing Fable 2 - so I may not have time to post. I’m taking the lazy route and excerpt a couple (in my opinion, great/must read) links for today’s entry. If you want to read the full post, click on the links. Comments on the articles?

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McCain’s Hero: More Socialist Than Obama!
McCain can call Obama a socialist or he can call Teddy Roosevelt his hero. He can’t do both.
By Timothy Noah

Imagine that instead of telling Joe “the Plumber” Wurzelbacher that “when you spread the wealth around it’s good for everybody,” Barack Obama had said the following:

We grudge no man a fortune in civil life if it is honorably obtained and well used. It is not even enough that it should have been gained without doing damage to the community. We should permit it to be gained only so long as the gaining represents benefit to the community. … The really big fortune, the swollen fortune, by the mere fact of its size, acquires qualities which differentiate it in kind as well as in degree from what is possessed by men of relatively small means. Therefore, I believe in a graduated income tax on big fortunes, and … a graduated inheritance tax on big fortunes, properly safeguarded against evasion, and increasing rapidly in amount with the size of the estate.

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“Socialist” Is Not an Epithet
posted by John Nichols

John McCain hopes to revive his campaign by suggesting that Barack Obama is some kind of socialist.

The Republican nominee for president says that his Democratic rival’s plan for stimulating the economy sounds “a lot like socialism.”

In another discussion, VP Stupid raised the question as to how many Americans actually believe socialism leads to communism – in response to the fear many Americans are now showing after Obama explained his tax plans are there to help the poor.

Because I spent too much time playing Spore today, I’m basically stealing my response and making it a new post. :p

(today’s post: 199 words)

It’s not even the point that one could lead to the other. To most, it’s the point that one may as well be the other.

I believe socialism is a good thing! In the short term, it’s about setting minimum standards for the people - on education, income, health care, etc. And the very people who would benefit are fighting against it. The rich have a laugh and taunt the poor/middle with claims that “you, too, could be rich like me! So long as you don’t embrace evil socialism/communism!”

Look at Joe the Plumber. He represents the very large group that is absolutely convinced that life would be better under McCain - even if facts say otherwise – because the Republicans are using “spread the wealth” to keep him from temptation.

Ultimately, you’re right. I’d guess capitalism is a natural evolution of our prior systems, a great system to lead us into the era of prosperity, education, health, relative safety and comfort we now enjoy. But I don’t know that it can take us any farther than it already has. There are ways we can advance. And I think socialism is one of the ways we can achieve it.

I was tempted to write about yesterday’s debate (Obama is so steady) and the inglorious (non-) plumber Joe but it already seems overdone so instead I’ll talk about Spore.

(today’s post: 390 words)

(The above is a widget highlighting some of my (and Candice’s!) creations.)

Coming into Spore, I didn’t know what to expect. The premise (start with a cell and end by exploring the universe) sounded overwhelming. But once you play the game it’s pretty simple. You design your creature and its personality through gameplay, strategically colonize your planet, and then do whatever you’d like in the vastness of space. (Or you ignore the game and play with the toolset.)

I’d argue it works and is successful, despite the simplistic gameplay, because of a few smart decisions (in order):

• Creature Creation: Every creature piece is associated with an ability. Legs let you walk. Eyes let you see. Some feet are good for jumping. Others dancing. It’s natural to pick parts that let you play how you want. And it’s natural to try different pieces to see how else you can play the game. Snapping pieces together and re-sizing them is easy. And no matter how well or badly you throw something together - i.e. snap eyes to its hands and four legs to its head - it always works. That inspires creative experimentation.
• Community: Maxis took their Sims-like approach to community building and evolved it (pun intended?). I add a buddy to my Spore account and his weird creatures entered my world and Candice’s cool pumpkin houses were added to his world. Not only that, but your creations get shared around the community and you receive back updates on them – such as the game letting you know that some other gamer conquered one of your species. The whole process keeps the game from becoming stale and tightly integrates and encourages the community.
• Achievements: I think Microsoft hit the nail on the head when they introduced achievements with the Xbox 360. Spore is one of the first non-360 games that I’ve played that pops-up achievements while you play. You receive achievements for anything from creating a creature with three heads to sharing videos of your creature with a friend to using that creature to beat a stage quickly to spending hours playing - and your achievements are logged to your account page.

Spore isn’t perfect but it’s a game that was designed to appeal to many on different levels. It’s also a game built on upgradability. I’m excited to see how it evolves (*groan*) in the years (yeah, years) to come.

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(Yes, I know this post went over 250 words. By 56%. Sorry.)