Media Meditation #4, Half Life 2, We don't go to Ravenholm anymore

This game has been out for quite some time, but I have unfortunately only just been exposed to it. Half Life 2 is one of the best and most well made games I have ever played. You take the role of a man named Gordon Freeman, a scientist with a degree in theoretical physics.

This is your character, Gordon Freeman. Image from pwned.com

I’m sorry to say I haven’t played the first game in the series, but there isn’t an edition of it released for Xbox 360. From what I gathered, Freeman created a portal to another world. The inhabitants of that other world did not take kindly to it, and took over earth. Freeman went to that other world and was imprisoned. Half Life 2 starts with Freeman being released and brought back to earth. You then play as Freeman, trying to take back the planet in an underground resistance movement.

One of the best aspects of this game is the way it’s played. For the most part, it is a first person shooter. Every once in a while though, the game changes pace throws puzzles at you to get to the next level. There has not been a puzzle that has not impressed me yet. For example, there’s a mission where you have to get to another resistance base by way of boat. There’s one instance where you need to make a ramp to get over an obstacle by putting weight on a piece connected to a ramp to make it high enough.

Half Life 2 incorporates a number of production techniques into the story and game play. Because you play as Gordon Freeman, you are a symbol. Everyone knows you in the game as the one who started this whole ordeal, and as the person who can put a stop to it. Fear is another big aspect of the game. After an attack breaks up a meeting with your allies, you have to escape through a zombie-infested area called Ravenholm. Videogames have been a significant part of my life since middle school, and this game was one of the first games to actually instill fear in me. Group dynamics also play a role in this game. After defeating a massive alien (called an antlion) leader, you get to control the smaller peons.

This is one of the antlions you get to control. Image from giantbomb.com

Media Meditation #3, The Simpsons, Most Iconic Show on Earth

Can you identify this family?

Image from toucharcade.com

If you said no, then get out from under your rock, find a television, and witness the phenomenon that is The Simpsons.

Created by Matt Groening, The Simpsons have been one of America’s favorite families. Along with them are a consistent range of characters that can also be found in just about every episode. The show started out as a sketch on the Tracey Ullman show, and was soon re-formatted into a half-hour program aired on the fox network.

Image from unrealitymag.com

The Simpsons live in a town called Springfield, but Groening and the producers have kept the state a mystery. In and effort for a personal shift, The Simpsons challenged the United States to persuade them which Springfield they were actually from, and Springfield Vermont won! All celebrations aside, I don’t agree with them. Since coming to Vermont myself, I just don’t see it. In most of the episodes, the characters are in t-shirts and shorts. The weather is just too cold here.

The Simpsons hook their audience mainly with humor and timing. Most episodes poke fun of familiar real life situations in a hyperbolic exaggerated way.

One of my favorite aspects of The Simpsons is the level of comedy they project. Unlike shows like Family Guy, the viewer actually has to be somewhat educated to get all of the jokes. Some of my favorite episodes are the ones where they poke fun at religion. Watching them the viewer can tell that the writers really know what they’re talking about.

Oral Presentation: The Champlain Current

THESIS: The Champlain Current gives the latest news and updates on campus life, keeping students informed.

FIVE FACTS

• · The Current covers news stories, feature articles, profiles, reviews, columns, and commentaries.
• · There are currently 28 staff members consisting of reporters, writers, and photographers.
• · Seven issues are published: one every month excluding January.
• · There is a circulation of 1,100 copies.

· The Current is always looking for more employees.

TRIUNE BRIAN: The Current forces a lot of NEOCORTICAL thought. For the most part you need to read the articles to get any substance. The last three pages are made up completely of pictures celebrating spirit week, appealing to the LYMBIC part of the brain.

7 PRINCIPLES: There’s an article in The Current for everyone, giving it INDIVIDUAL MEANING. There are a number of articles written with the intent of helping students along with their college experience, giving them certain VALUE MESSAGES such as eating right and actually paying attention to the core classes.

8 TRENDS: The Current calls for more to PARTICIPATE and contribute to it. There are tons of PERSONAL stories from the staff, as well as letters to the editor from students, faculty, and staff.

29 PERSUASIVE TECHNIQUES: There are a number of persuasive techniques present in The Current. It uses HUMOR in the form of cartoons, STRENGTH, and a combination of GROUP DYNAMICS and PLAIN FOLKS. The Current tries to unite the student body by giving it stories and news to read in a way it can relate to.

Midterm Reflections: Oh crap, those were this week?

The biggest and most important thing I’ve learned in this class is how to blog. I’ve never messed around with blogs before, or even read them for that matter. This class is showing me that they’re really not that bad, and if anything, they can be pretty fun.

I’ve learned it helps a lot to blog about what I’m reading in the textbook. The class blog really helps me remember what I’ve read. I’ve also learned that my thinking and writing voices are different. When I try to write a personal blog post, I feel like what I actually write down is slightly different from what I was thinking in my head.

I would spend much more time studying the power tools if I were to take this class again. I joined the class late and the importance of the power tools didn’t set into my mind until I had failed a couple of quizzes. I would have loved a stronger start than I experienced.

At first I was going to talk about how obnoxious the quizzes are every class, but they really made me study the power tools more. I know I wouldn’t have studied them as much if we weren’t tested on them regularly. Honestly I don’t think there’s anything I would change about this class.

Power Tools – The power tools really help me keep an analytical eye on the media. Most of the power tools are just common sense, like using humor as a production technique, but it really helps to have those ideas on paper in front of me.

Course Blog – The course blog helps me remember what I read out of the textbook. If we didn’t have to blog about it, I would probably skim each chapter and not really get anything out of it. The course blog also helps because it gives an example of what a good blog should look like when I write my own blog posts.

Personal Blog – I groaned internally when I heard we were going to have to write our own blogs. I’ve never been much of a blogger, but I’ve found its actually pretty fun. I’m still not very good at it, but I guess practice makes perfect.

In-Class Quizzes – The in-class quizzes keep me on my toes. I thought I hated them at first, but they keep me honest when I’m doing my homework.

Films – I’ve really enjoyed the films we’ve watched in class. I particularly liked the one about the WDEV community radio station. The films teach us something about media today, and they help reinforce the power tools.

Book – This textbook is one of my favorite textbooks ever. When I think of textbooks I think of thick history books filled with dates I don’t really care about. This textbook deals with contemporary topics I can relate to.