Roller Derby. It’s “the
sport that is sweeping the nation” (according to a roller-derby website I
clicked on as I desperately searched for some kind of information whilst
researching the sport for this article). In reality it’s a niche sport, with a
relatively small, if dedicated fan-base in the UK.
On paper, it sounds great.
Teams of five race against each other in a circuit, with one
from each (the ‘jammers’) attempting to lap the other team to gain points. The
other four (blockers) have to stop the opposition’s jammer with a mixture of
tactical skating and body contact.
An all-female contact sport played on skates, with an
emphasis on action – what’s not to like? But is it really “sweeping the
nation”?
Since its modern revival in the early 2000’s in Texas, it
has gained some ground. In 2013, the BBC reported that it was “the fastest
growing women’s sport in Wales”, which sounds impressive, but actually means
they went from just four teams in 2010 to twelve teams three years later.
Not exactly giant strides, but it’s definitely progress.
It’s also reflected in changing attitudes to the competition itself, as it was
officially recognised as a ‘roller discipline’ by The British Roller Sports
Federation (BSRF) in 2011.
The sport has suffered from issues with funding, as well as
the logistical problems of finding somewhere large enough to host games, given
the large size of the racing area and the wear and tear that skates can do to
the flooring, often leaving venues wary of hosting games or training.
A bid to be included in the 2020 Olympic Games was also
made, and whilst it was declined, it does show the progress the sport is making
globally, despite a lack of media attention and funding in the UK.
If it continues to grow in popularity, they can’t keep it
off the agenda forever.
First off, I want to say that
FIFA is fundamentally a fun game.
It’s great to have a session with friends, or even online,
when the EA servers are working, and I still play it nearly every day.
The problem is, EA keep aiming for the bare minimum when
they release the yearly update, and it seems to be because of the massive
amounts of money they can milk from the Ultimate Team mode, and it’s killing
the franchise slowly.
In theory, Ultimate Team is a great idea. Pick a squad of 11
from any (current) players in the world, and play against other teams, either
online or offline. When you add in the chemistry links, which give players
boosts based on nationality and their current club, it gives a tactical edge,
and it should help to balance the game out.
But the way in which you obtain
players is incredibly unfair. You can either buy packs with coins earned from
games, which randomly generate players and items for your club, or you can buy
or sell direct from the in-game transfer market. On its own it seems fair
enough.
Alternatively, you can pay real-money for ‘FIFA Points’ to
fund your search for players. I’ve opened so many packs over the years, and
you’re probably best off using the transfer market directly. Despite what some
videos might tell you, it’s really unlikely you’ll pack somebody like Ibra or
Messi. The best I’ve had over the years is Yaya Toure, and I actually spent
FIFA points to get him.
My point is, people are willing to spend money to fast-track
their team’s progress, but it’ll probably take an obscene amount of money/time
to do so.
In the past, some people would
turn to coin-sellers, as it always worked out much cheaper when compared to the
traditional gold pack, which costs either 5000 or 7500 coins for a slightly
better variation.
EA have since been cracking down on the illegal coin
selling. FUT producer Marcel Kuhn had this to say:
FHN: What
would you say to someone who buys coins because they think it offers better
value for money compared to buying packs?
MK:What would I say? That it's not
legal, that it's against the terms of service and that if we catch you doing
that we'll ban you, so consider if it's worth losing out on the fun of playing
FUT just to fast track a little bit.
Note how he completely disregarded the issue. It’s not about
fast-tracking. It’s the fact that it works out so much cheaper to buy coins
from anyone other than EA. EA love the Ultimate team revenue stream, and not
just because it rhymes. They want their money, and they’ll actively ban you if
you refuse to pay.
Another interesting issue is the
contract situation. You have to buy contracts for your team and with the
cheapest gold usually going for 200-300 coins, it can cost more than your
entire match bonus.
It could be considered as another aspect to juggle, but it’s really
more useful as a tool to keep players investing real money into the app, or
wasting valuable coins on contracts.
But when you only earn 500 (more often less) coins per
match, it’s a tough slog, which could take 10 matches to achieve. The game is
also plagued with connection issues, which lower the coin numbers from matches
even further depending on your Did Not Finish (DNF) rate, which is often out of
your control.
But what about the actual
gameplay? Goalkeepers veer from erratic to superhuman, and the refereeing is
for the most part a joke. Penalties are given way too often for the slightest
of touches, and the advantage system doesn’t even work properly most of the
time.
Every match tends to start with a glitchy attempt to run
through my team as my defence mills around, both static and stupid. Pace is
stupidly overpowered, and headers have been nerfed. (Unfortunately for Andy
Carroll.)
With 1000’s of players to choose
from, most gamers probably use less than 100 in their lifetime. You end up
playing back-to-back games against the same old XI’s with the same old players.
Aguero up front again? Or if they’re poor and sweaty make that Ibarbo.
Who would honestly have Ibarbo in their real-life ‘Ultimate Team’? Of all the players in
all the world, Ibarbo comes up time and again. (Obviously his relative
cheapness, four star skills and 91 pace make his virtual counterpart pretty OP.)
Most of the time team selection isn’t through choice. People
have to fight fire with fire. In FIFA 15 that usually translates to pacey
skillers, scoring from that tight angle close to goal that the keeper would
most probably have covered in real life. Nobody wants to be on the receiving end
of an ‘I can’t hear you celebration’ + watching the goal replay three times like
many griefer’s seem to love, especially with the crazy amount of last minute
goals that always seem to be conceded.
Strangely, I also regularly score in the 69th minute
specifically. (No, not with John Terry.) It’s possible I only remember because
of the connotations of the number, but it often happens twice in a row in
hard-fought 2-1/1-0 wins.
When FUT does work it can be close to perfection, which is
why most people play, despite the many issues and cash-grabby nature.
FUT may have been mediocre when
it first released last year, but the recent introduction of price ranges in an
update has further spoiled the game for many players. The price ranges mean
that all players now have a min/max price at auction. I used to buy loads of
gold players for 400 and insta-sell them for 650, but obviously that’s now
impossible.
It means there are some bargains
on the market for the average player, but the best players are still
incredibly overpriced. While the likes of Rooney and Costa can now be bought
for roughly 9k and 17k respectively on PS4, Messi still has a minimum price of
4m coins – so most FUT players will never get to use ‘the best players’.
(Having played against a few 98 rated TOTY Messi’s, maybe that isn’t such a bad
thing.)
Instead, Ibarbo gets yet another run out, and most players
languish in the transfer lists at their minimum price.
It was another hypocritical move
introduced to stop coin sellers, but they still offer their services across the
web, at a fraction of the price of EA’s ridiculous FIFA point system.
Nobody is forcing anybody to buy FIFA points, and they can
help people with less spare time upgrade their team. I see how they can be
useful in moderation, but the game shouldn’t be so grindy for people unlucky
with packs.
A couple of weeks ago I came up against a guy playing with
Lampard, Gerrard, Ferdinand and Terry as the spine of his team. I turned on my
mic and asked him why. I mean, it’s not 2006. He responded;
‘Oh. You know, contacts… And I have no coins.’
I do know.
So, now that EA have introduced price
ranges, what could they do to make the game a little fairer for those unwilling
to part with real money? It’s simple really. Give players more coins for winning
games, or lower the ridiculous prices gold packs. Most people already spent
£40+ at launch, it’s not a free-to-play mobile POS.
Obviously they won’t, because hey, who wants to kill the
golden money-shitting goose? Not EA.
Is buying coins from sites worth the possible insta-ban?
Probably not. But buying FIFA points is definitely never worth the money. If you liked this why not check out my book; Video Games: the Modern A-Z.
Just a quick post - I've finally updated the cover of my book, available on Amazon - and it looks a lot better! It was produced by @4z_L, why not give him a follow on Twitter or check out his channel on YouTube. Cheers.
Over a week has passed
since the shocking events that saw 12 people killed in the Paris offices of
Charlie Hebdo, but the social and political ramifications are still unclear for
the most part.
As a journo student the murders were especially jarring, (I generally cover the relatively safe
subjects of sports and TV) as journalists, workers and policeman ended up
paying the ultimate price for an offensive cartoon that depicted the prophet
Muhammad.
I was on the Underground in London during the 7/7 attacks so
I have some prior knowledge of ‘domestic
terrorism’, but for the most part it was hardly at the forefront of my mind
during the start of 2015.
The Lee Rigby murder in 2013 served as a reminder of the
perils of rampant extremism, (and the UK also raised the terrorism threat level
to ‘severe’ last year) but they could be seen as isolated incidents, from an
unperceivable bogeyman that might not even exist.
The stark reality of that line of thinking was exposed just
over a week ago.
Of course, it’s wrong
to blame Muslims as a group for the attack, in the same way Christians
aren’t responsible for the actions of the Westboro Baptist Church or Anders
Breivik. Nonetheless, it should serve as a warning for those brave enough to
criticise Islam – there’s a chance it could cost you your life.
Pope Francis (of all people) soon waded in to the debate,
saying:
“One cannot provoke, one cannot insult other
people’s faith, one cannot make fun of faith.”
But the thing is, one can.
As an individual, I have the right to make up my own mind as
to whether or not there’s an all-powerful deity overseeing the minutiae of my
life, and I have the right to critically question any belief system. I firmly
believe that everyone is entitled to their own belief system, but a line has to
be drawn when it comes to the personal safety of others.
But what can we (as a society) actually do to prevent
incidents like this occurring in the future? In short, probably nothing.
We can’t expect to curtail individual acts of extremism, yet
we shouldn’t allow these incidents to effect freedom of speech and theological
discussion. Nonetheless, the images were crass and offensive, but so was the
killing spree that followed, which was simply unjustifiable – no matter the
offence caused.
I have none of the answers - I just want to pay my respects to those that lost their lives.
Forum boards are often filled to the brim with Destiny fans,
defending the game despite a number of perceived flaws.
“But, but, I’ve played
300+ hours and I’ve really enjoyed it. My friends and I had a great time.”
Fair enough buddy - but
I thought it was a pile of steaming crap. And that’s my opinion.
If it’s likely you’ll
find the article offensive due to your love for Destiny, you should probably
stop reading now.
Are those guys gone? Okay, I will admit, Destiny is by no
means the worst game of 2014. It’s not even close. Nevertheless, it was one of
the most disappointing games of 2014
for me, with a gradual decline in quality after the first couple of hours.
I mean, at first, it could be mistaken for a GOTY contender.
The environments look luscious and detailed, and as you start to explore Old
Russia (weirdly, modern day Kazakhstan) and the Cosmodrome, gaining access to
your vehicle and starting to upgrade your equipment, it makes for a great
experience to introduce the player to the world.
You’re quickly introduced to the top-notch shooting
mechanics, and luckily, I had a few friends who also bought the game so I got
to experience the multiplayer aspects of it, which ran incredibly smoothly at
launch.
The PvP multiplayer (Crucible) is also passable, but it's a shame that it's limited to just twelve players, especially on next-gen consoles.
Despite enjoying the first 5-10 hours, there were problems within the game that were hard to ignore. I could possibly get past the non-existent story and Peter Dinklage's painfully stilted narrative, but everything was starting to become insanely repetitive.
Nearly every mission is pretty much the same. Go to the map marker, (in a reused location) deploy Dinklage Ghost robot to sit there scanning a box, fight off waves of generic enemies, occasionally fight a large bullet sponge, and that's about it.
Even the planets that you travel to during the game are similar. What's the point of going to the moon if the gravity is the same everywhere else? I don't care about the terraformed space magic explanation, I wanted to jump about and fight on the actual moon, not a random white rock with Earth's gravity.
There was also the somewhat cynical move to stop reviews going out to publications before the games release date, stifling any dissent before the all important first two weeks of sales. (AAA games traditionally sell extremely well at launch before petering out after the first fortnight.)
Bungie employees also embellished the game beyond recognition before release.
In an interview with TSA, David Dague called the game "an exploration fantasy", in which Bungie wanted "to instil in the player that sense of wonder and exploration".
That's complete rubbish. Even the most hardened Destiny fan would have to admit there's no real exploration - and the planets and moon (singular) are devoid of anything worth interacting with, unless it's to once again deploy that bloody Ghost. There are a few chests scattered around the levels, but when compared to similar titles like Borderlands, Destiny pales in comparison.
During gameplay, you can collect Grimoire Cards which help you to understand the lore of the world, but to actually access them you would have to go online via their website or sign in via a smartphone app. This consistently broke my immersion, and I considered it a major design flaw - why not have a separate menu for the Grimore cards available in game?
In an interview with Metro, Destiny's senior writer Eric Osbourne said:
"We have a great story arc, our team is working really hard on the narrative we're building in the world".
Personally, I found the narrative to be non-existent, but having the extra lore available in game would have obviously helped people like me who felt a complete disconnect from the "narrative", which was usually - SHOOT ALIENS IN THE FACE. MOAR SHOOT ALIEN FACE. "THAT WIZARD CAME FROM THE MOON." GO MOON SHOOT WIZARD ALIEN.
Or possibly the worst line of dialogue ever written:
"I don't have time to explain why I don't have time to explain".
What? Somebody was paid to write that?
Above all, I wasn't impressed, and no amount of £35 DLC is going to help me to change my mind. Destiny might look the part, (and the shooting is great) but it often feels like a bare-bones experience.
A severe lack of content (other than loot-farming) holds the game back, and the repetition of cut-scenes, areas, enemies and bosses means that after a while you end up playing the game on autopilot, as you've probably seen it all before at least ten times.
At times Destiny can be fun, and working in a team to complete a raid can be exhilarating the first few times, but even the late-game content is similar, and the expansions have led to new problems with level caps and equipment. A lot of hard-earned equipment has been rendered useless with the influx of new items, but the hours 'wasted' gaining the obsolete equipment probably numbers into the tens of thousands.
If you found 'the grind' enjoyable then that's fair enough, but most of the people I know sold their launch copies after a few weeks. (In fact, one of my friends sold his PS4 after his Destiny experience.) For the sake of impartiality, it is worth noting there are people on my friends list that seem to only play Destiny, so it really does divide opinion.
For me, it felt like I was only playing roughly 40% of the actual game, and the whole thing felt quite cynical and empty, but pretty nonetheless. After a while it just got stale. Maybe I'll wait for the inevitable Destiny II. So much for the ten year plan.
