Revenge

In September of 2011, ABC aired a new series called Revenge. I rarely become obsessed with TV shows, however, this show has me hooked. The plot centers around a mysterious and beautiful woman named Emily who moves back to the Hamptons, where she grew up, to seek revenge on the people who framed her father for a terrorist attack years prior. 

Emily arrives to the Hamptons with a new name, an unrecognizable appearance and a very malicious agenda. While she works her way into the circle of the Hamptons elite quite easily, her real intent is to get revenge on these people. She manages to ruin the lives of those involved in the framing by destroying their careers, ripping apart their families, exposing their secrets and even causing death on occasion. 

While it might not be totally obvious what this television show has to do with games, it is actually very relevant. Before Emily arrives to town, she does extensive research on every person that she intends to take down. From hacking their computers, to digging into their background and learning about their scandals, she is able to collect dirt on each person she wishes to harm. By learning about her opponents, she is able to strategically use the information she finds in ways that will cause the most damage. For example, when she finds useful information on one victim, she sneakily exposes it at a large ceremony honoring the person, thus embarrassing them and creating a total scandal.

In addition to her in-depth research and cunning strategies, her ability to use trickery, manipulation and deceit to work her way into the lives of these people while simultaneously destroying them is an example of the power of mind games. Even when suspicion rises, she is able to deflect it and have them completely fooled by manipulating their thoughts. 

Not only does Emily display skill when seeking revenge, but she is also extremely determined, another quality that is important in winning most games. In order to properly execute her plan of revenge she changed her name, moved to the Hamptons, and cut ties with anyone who knew her former identity. She also dedicates all of her time and energy to her plan, showing intense dedication. While revenge is no game to Emily, she uses tactics used in numerous forms of games to effectively execute her plan.

The Kentucky Derby

This past week I drove to Louisville Kentucky to visit my relatives for a three day weekends. Along with my moms 6 siblings and parents who live in Kentucky my brother attends the University of Kentucky as well. While making the long 5 hour drive I drove by horse farms after horse farms. I've grown up around horses and the famous race tracks such as Keenland and of course Church Hill Downs. My grandpa owns horses at Church Hill Downs and I've even been able to attend some horse races in person. While driving past all these horse farms I began to get very excited for the even that takes place every 1st Saturday in May...The Kentucky Derby.

I remember as a little kid my mom jumping up and down in front of the TV screaming for the horse she chose to win. I would attend countless derby parties as a child it was almost as though Derby Day is a bigger day for Christmas in my family and the whole state of Kentucky. ESPN after all does call it, "The most exciting 2 minutes in sport history."

"It is now or never for every horse in the race -- a single dash at immortality, a mile-and-a-quarter cavalry charge toward history. Unlike John Elway in the Super Bowl or Roy Williams in the Final Four or Phil Mickelson in a major, there are no second chances at the Derby. Thoroughbreds are only 3-year-olds once. Win and your name is memorialized on the paddock walls of Churchill Downs for as long as the place stands. Lose and you're assigned to the small type of the race charts, on your way to eternal anonymity" (ESPN.com).

Everything about Derby Day is exciting; getting to dress up and wear a giant hat, learning about the trainers and the horses stories, getting to make bets where you could become extremely rich or extremely poor in a matter of 2 minutes. It's exhilarating every one's heart starts to race; two minutes and it's over. all the training all hours put into these horses and jockeys two minutes and you get nothing back. It's what these people live for.

I know on May 5Th I'll be making the trip back to Kentucky to watch this exciting event that comes once a year. I'm hoping to suck up to my grandpa to see if maybe I can snag a ticket to the derby myself. Who knows maybe I'll be able to even make a buck or two...hundred.

Sorority Recruitment: It's A Game

Though I went through sorority recruitment well over a year ago, it is an experience that I'll never forget.

During first sets, each girl participating in sorority recruitment must visit every single house. These first few days are hectic, as the biggest challenges consist of finding each house, making it there during your scheduled time slot and finding your designated spot inline. Here, directional skills and time management skills come into play. Also, during these "mixers" it is important to make sure you are able to make a good first impression in the few minutes you have in each house.

As each round continues, girls must decide which houses they would like to cut from their list. They also must strategize the order in which they rank each house on their list. This involves evaluation of experiences in each house. Additionally, this involves thoughtful strategizing as girls must also take into consideration which houses may be cutting them during the given round.

As the rounds continue and the list of house options are narrowed down, the time spent in each house gets progressively longer and it becomes more important to make a good impression in the houses that you would like to keep visiting. At this point in time, the game consists of making sure you win over the minds and hearts of the members of the sorority, playing up your strengths and the qualities that make you a good fit for the house in question. Obviously, there is a limited number of spots in each house for new members. As the rounds continue, competition gets stiff.

As unfortunate as it may be, sorority recruitment possess many qualities of games. There is an element of competition as there is less space in houses than there are girls going through recruitment. There is the element of strategizing as girls must be sure to think about the cuts and rankings. Lastly, there is the element of being good at the game of interpersonal interaction. While some girls are able to effectively display their strengths and positive qualities during visits in houses, other girls struggle to give off an amazing impression, despite how personable they may be. All of these factors determine the success that one will have during sorority recruitment.

Ouija

It's not your typical game. There are no teams. There is no winner. There are no official rules. There is no competition. 

Ouija is a flat board marked with the letters of the alphabet, the numbers 0-9, the words "yes", "no", "hello" and "goodbye" and numerous symbols and graphics. Interestingly, it is a registered trademark of Hasbro Inc., a company which markets and distributes the Ouija Board as part of its line of board games. With this board, users can ask questions while lightly placing their hands on a pointer that moves across the board to stop on letters, spelling words and thus providing answers and advice. While Ouija believers feel that paranormal or supernatural forces are responsible for Ouija's movement, others believe that it may be explained by unconscious movements of those controlling the pointer, a psychophysiological phenomenon known as the ideomotor effect, according to Wikipedia.

In addition to lacking many of the common characteristics of typical boardgames, another thing that makes the Ouija board unique is that it is related to controversial topics given its connection to the belief of paranormal and supernatural forces. Compared to other boardgames, such as Life or Candy Land, there are heavy implications that come with the game as it touches on spiritual connection and communication. Additionally, these concepts are interwoven with religious beliefs, making this game the subject of criticism from some, depending on their religious background. 

It's very interesting that something that shares very few characteristics of common boardgames is produced by a company such as Hasbro and marketed as a casual board game. Additionally, the game's controversial nature makes it a product unlikely to be purchased by many demographics of people. Personally, I think the idea that a board game could be so powerful is a very interesting concept but I'm not so sure I believe it. Do you believe in the aptitude of the Ouija board? 

Magic the Gathering

This game is a trading card game, similar to that of Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh, I guess; however, it's 19 years old!  It was one of the first trading card games that came into existence.

My brother first got me into the game when I was in 3rd grade.  The game has so many layers of strategy involved, even outside of actually playing the game.  The strategy already starts with building your deck of cards.  There are 5 main colors in Magic, Red, Green, Blue, Black, and White; each of these colors correspond to certain kind of play-styles and you can mix and match as much as you want.  After you've built a deck, you start playing.  This is where even more strategy takes place.  Now, your deck is put to the test against someone else's deck, and you fight to win.  In the end, the winner is determined by who reacted better to each other's plays, who built a more balanced deck, and an ounce of luck.

The interesting thing about Magic is that the card is always right, even if it contradicts the foundation-rules of the game.  This attribute of the game makes it ever-evolving and full of surprises.  I mean, it's lasted 19 years so far.  

Recently, I've been rekindled into playing the game ever since I met some friends here at the University of Michigan who also shared interest in the card game.

The last time I've played the game was probably in middle school, and now that I've come back, I see how much the game has evolved since then (immensely).  So many new abilities have been introduced and the cards there's so much variety now that it's almost jarring!

Maybe it's my nostalgia, but the game is still as great as ever, and it's a great study break game with my friends.  Games can range from 10-20 minutes each and it's the perfect combination of luck and strategy!  So if you're looking to find a strategy-intense game to pick up, this is the game for you!  Hopefully you'll find some people around who have heard of the game to rekindle their childhood and play with you!

BirdHit! - A game of my design

For my major quest, I've been working on a video game for the Google Chrome and Safari only.  It uses HTML5 and Javascript.  I was hoping you guys could test it and possibly post your high score?  If there are any bugs you can identify, please inform me!

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~dustbui/birdhit.html

Quick Instructions:
WSAD or Arrow Keys to move around.
Hit the flying Gir as many times as you can.
Grab incoming power ups as they fall.
Press 1 to use Speed Up
Press 2 to use Stop Time
Press 3 to use Zero Gravity
**You get only ONE power up to use freely at first, but as you get a higher score, you can get more to use

Games and Gimmicks

Tonight was the debut of the Miami Marlins new ballpark, a $515 million modern addition to Miami. Ballparks are often admired for being majestic, traditional, and at times nostalgic. Old yankee stadium and Fenway Park are seen as great ballparks for these reasons.

Marlins Park could not be further away from those grand shrines to baseball.

Tell me if these things sound like they belong in a baseball stadium:
-2 aquariums that total over 1000 gallons of water
-A swimming Pool with a poolside bar
-A sculpto-pictorama with flamingos, marlins, and neon waves and colors
-A photography exhibit
-A bobblehead museum


Yes, these can all be found at this new ballpark.

A wild pitch will bounce up against bullet-proof glass that protects the aquariums at the backstop. A Homerun will lead to a 30-second show from the sculpto-pictorama.

Games, especially sports, seem to benefit from these gimmicks, albeit financially. Quirks like the ones found in this ballpark are important for the fans who follow these storied sports. These games have so much tradition and history, yet require new points of interest to increase attraction and fanfare.

The focus on fans is essential in sports and the eye-catching features of Marlins Park show the extent to which a team is willing to impress and invigorate its fan-base in order to make the atmosphere around the sport and team even better.