Rockstar Casual Games, part deux at Suttree - Casual Games, Social Software

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They’ve done it before with table tennis, now they’re doing it again. Rockstar have morphed their violent Grand Theft Auto engine into a SimCity hub for using Casual Games as a method of progression. From the EuroGamer review of Canis Canem Edit (emphasis mine):

You’re a student too, of course, so there’s the clock to keep in mind. With two set periods to complete, before and after lunch, you’ll need to head off to class when the bell goes, with several subjects to attend - chemistry, English, art, maths, gym and photography the ones mentioned. Each is set up as a mini-game, with five levels to work through during the term. Chemistry is a rhythm-response, for example, about bashing buttons as the corresponding symbols move through a Bunsen burner, while art is a sort of Snake clone where you need to move a pen from the top to the bottom of the screen without having the line you’ve drawn severed by a roving rubber.

So that’s Snake and DDR contained within a game engine which seems to be retroactively turning into a SimCity/The Sims clone. Clearly, in the face of some serious outcry over the nature of the Grant Theft Auto series, Rockstar are looking to Casual Games for redemption. First came Table Tennis, then came Snake. Despite that, plenty of people have talked about using Casual Games as a way of perpetuating mainstream games - using match-three puzzles as simple,repetitve tasks that earn you rewards. Puzzle Pirates does this expertly, and it’s not going to be long before a game like Halo has a mobile match-three companion that rewards your online avatar.

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Links for Monday, September 4th, 2006

Guardian Unlimited Arts | Arts news | Media giant drives off other Pimps
http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1864213,00.html

First Impressions - Canis Canem Edit // PlayStation 2 /// Eurogamer
http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=67228&page=2 Links hosted by

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Suttree.com: Casual Games, Social Software by Duncan Gough