Team Balance

Archive for December, 2010

Over the couple years, we’ve been bumped with online games ads, emails and links. What happened with everybody, and why are people thrilled with online gaming?

Several types of online games are available for public; I will try below to describe a few of them. Online games are of 2 types: multiplayer online games, and single player online games. The first type is played on web servers, allowing people to interact with each other, and, on the other hand, single player online games are played alone, on games archives.

Multiplayer online games are:

MMORPG: known as MMORPGs also, comes from massively multiplayer online role-playing games. Is one of the most common type of multiplayer online games.
MMOFPS: comes from massively multiplayer online first person shooter.
MMORTS : comes from massively multiplayer online real-time strategy.
MMOTG: comes from massively multiplayer online tycoon games.
MMOSG: comes from massively multiplayer online strategy games.
MMMOG: comes from massively multiplayer mobile online games.

There are of course other types of multiplayer online games that are derived from the above ones.

The other category of online games are the single player ones. I said that they can be played on online arcades. Several types of single player online games exist, but of the most common type is the flash arcade.

On such a website you need only your browser to be able to play the games and of course, Macromedia Flash Player installed. Those games are categorized depending on type on action, arcade, sports, shooting, puzzle and casino. Each player is awarded with points, depending on number of games played. Top players are displayed on the main page. A nice source for free online games is MaxArcader.com, a flash games arcade with almost 1500 games.

Tennis has a wacky scoring system. In fact it is downright confusing at first, but once you get the hang of it, it is actually quite simple. The basic scoring system follows a four point game. However, rather than being scored 0… 1… 2… 3… 4… game, the points are scored love… 15… 30… 40… game. In other words, you must win four points to win a game. To win a set you must win six games. In a singles match you and your opponent alternate serving games until someone has won the match. Most tennis matches are two out of three sets, except certain professional matches, which are three out of five sets.

Easy enough, right? The difficulty is what happens when your opponent also wins points during the same game. To remedy any confusion, the server’s score is always called first. For example, if both players have one point in a game, the score would be 15-15, or in tennis lingo, 15-all. Now, if the server loses the next point the score would be 15-30 (not 30-15, this would be the case if the server had won the point)

To make things more confusing you must win a game by a margin of two. Therefore, if you get to 40-40 (also known as “deuce”) then one player must win 2 points in a row to win the game. This is where the “ad system” comes into play.

If a player wins a point at deuce they now have the “advantage”. If the server wins the deuce point the score would be “ad-in”, effectively meaning “advantage server.” If the returner wins the deuce point the score would be “ad-out”, or “advantage returner.” Once you have the advantage, you only need to win one more point to win the game. If you lose the point, the score returns back to deuce.

Let’s work through a mock game. Assume that I am serving the first game, and you are returning. We start the game at love-love (ie: 0-0). You blister a return and win the first point. I call the score correctly as “love-15″ (remember the server always calls his score first, with love meaning zero). In retaliation, on the next point I hit an ace (an un-returnable serve) to make the score 15-15 (ie: 15-all). On the next point we have a long rally that ends with me hitting a volley winner to make the score 30-15, but then you come back with a forehand winner to make the score 30-all. I double fault to make the score 30-40. You hit another great return to win the game. In tennis lingo you have just “broken my serve.”

Just as a game must be won by a margin of two points, a set must be won by a margin of two games. Now you could imagine that if both players had strong serves the set may go on forever, or at least until someone finally broke the other player’s serve. In fact, this is what happens in the final set of a Wimbledon match where set scores can get as high as 13-11, 14-12, etc! However, in all other matches you would play a tiebreak once the set score reached 6-6.

The tiebreak is one of the more confusing parts of tennis. The first point of a tiebreak is served from the deuce side, just like the start of a normal game. However, the player serving only serves one point. Once the first point is over, the serve returns back to the other player. Now here is where it gets very confusing! That player will serve two points, but they serve the first point from the ad side of the court, not the deuce side! The second point is then served from the deuce side. The next two service points then go back to the other player, so on and so forth. In other words, after the first point, players switch serving every two points. Furthermore, in a normal tiebreak, players switch sides of the court after every six points. The first player to seven points wins the tiebreak, but they must get to seven by a margin of two.

One final note on the scoring system… Most matches you play will not have an umpire on the court keeping track of your score (this is generally reserved only for high level tournament play). Since you and your opponent will be keeping score you may run into disagreements about what the score actually is. Should this occur the proper course of action is to return to the closest previous score that you both agree on, and resume play from that point.

Congratulations! You’ve just managed to work through a very complicated and confusing scoring system. Go out and practice until you feel comfortable keeping track of the score.

It seems strange to some people that anyone would want to cheat at a game. With some computer games, however, the occasional cheat goes a long to the enjoyment of the game. Sometimes, not being able to complete a stage of a game means that you have to continuously repeat that level. This can become quite tiresome as you are keen to get on and see the rest of the game.

The Nintendo Wii console is a huge step in the world of gaming consoles. It allows all ages to enjoy the same equipment as there is an ever increasing range of games available. Cheats for Wii games do have a legitimate place in the world of gaming. They are not just for people who wish to increase their scores by cheating and not telling! If you have two children of different abilities playing the same game, then it may be useful to allow one of them a little lea way by adding a cheat code. They can, however, be a bone of contention amongst friends as the games can sometimes become quite competitive and if one of the players has access to the cheats and not the others then there is an element of the unfair.

Some of the cheats are just walk throughs. This means that you are able to access places in the games which you would not otherwise be able to reach without having first resolved a puzzle or found a key. Some are even less than this and are really only hints. These can prove invaluable if you have found yourself unable to get passed a sticky point in the game and are becoming frustrated. Cheats for Wii games and just the same as those for other computer games and will vary in the level of cheat. Obviously there are very few people who would want to cheat to the degree of finishing the game without having worked through at least some of the levels. However, there will always be someone who wants to claim success when no congratulations are deserved!

On the internet you will find many websites where you can get codes for cheats for Wii games. Some of these include forums where keen gamers can meet up in the virtual world and discuss the merits and downfalls of various games. Here you can keep up to date with the latest games and products and chat to fellow gamers. Cheats for all games systems are available on sites such as these and you will find that spending time on a forum will give you access to a new world of cheats and hints. If you become involved with the other gamers on a forum, you are more likely to get hold of some cheats that are not so readily available on other websites. These are the more subtle cheats that enable you access to different parts of games etc but will still retain the competitive element and give the satisfaction of playing with gamesmanship.

Whatever level of cheats for Wii games you choose, you will find that they often open a whole new world of playing enjoyment. You should, however, make sure that you use them to benefit the game play and not just to benefit your ego.

Mass Effect 2 not only stirred the waters but caused a tsunami. With all the new features added in the game it proved to be a commercial success. Furthermore it sold two million copies worldwide within its first week. We shouldn’t be surprised because the gamers became stunned after 5 minutes of game play. Developers thankfully listened to the gaming community begging for some teaks here and there or some big changes.

So what’s new you are asking? First of all they have doubled the content, or at least this is what I think. It seemed bigger than Mass Effect 1. You now can explore 2 times more planetary systems, still in the same galaxy. On the one hand this is so cool because you will find some more side missions and challenges, plus it adds some valuable and really wanted variety by stepping away from your main mission just a bit. On the other hand more content means more game play hours plus more fun. Now you can also find more races, having their own history, habits and culture in general. Some of them participate in the main story a lot and some do not.

A really big thank you from us the gamers to the developers for removing the so slow elevators. Being stuck in an elevator for almost a minute is NOT fun. There were some random comments from the other NPCs or you could listen to the news on the elevator speakers but still it could make you cry of boredom. It is totally understandable why they did it. They tried to add some realism in the game. But it is more preferable adding realism in combat than waiting in an elevator. For crying out loud people!

No more heat sinks in the weapons. This was another black spot in Mass Effect 1. You could fire your weapons forever cause there was not any ammo restriction, BUT, if you did that your weapon could get overheated and block – get locked for the rest of the mission. This was really, really annoying when you had 3 of 4 weapons locked, because of your “Rambo shooting” habits or because of enemy skills causing overheat. Now there is an ammo restriction but no worries. You will never run out of ammo as long you are accurate enough. It is much more preferable to be out of ammo where you can replenish them than having a locked weapon.

People in this modern society demands better entertainment for them to relax after a long day at work or at school. There are different kinds of entertainment available today. Some people go to movie theaters, some play sports, some prefer watching TV or listening to music, while other prefer playing video games.The new generation of teenagers simply loves game online.

Today, video game systems are becoming more and more sophisticated and are now integrated with the latest technology in graphics and sounds. If you played with the latest video game systems before, you know how much fun it is to play with these machines.

Game systems are basically a great form of entertainment where you can interact with the TV. Since the beginning of the development of video games, people have been purchasing and demanding newer game system with the latest technology. Because of this demand, many game system developers are striving to provide the best game systems in the industry.

Games for the game systems or consoles are also becoming more and more realistic everyday. These powerful machines combined with the latest games available can really make you feel as if you are a part of the game itself and not just someone playing the game. The realistic environment that is integrated in these games is so good that it created the ESRB. The ESRB rates the games on what particular age it is recommended for.

However, because of the competition that is going on between game system developers and game developers, many people find it confusing on which game systems and games they should buy. First of all, game systems today are so close in terms of graphics and sound technology that it adds to the confusion among consumers.

So, as a consumer, you have to know which game system you should purchase. Since there are a lot of new game systems popping out in the market, you have to choose which game system you should buy.So lets try to demystify that a little bit.

Here are examples of the latest game systems available in the market today:

o Sony Play Station 2
o Microsoft Xbox 360
o Nintendo Game Cube

There are more system developer companies that are competing in the market today.All the systems are getting more and more complex as well. And, more and more new systems are being released. This adds more to the confusion of consumers. In order for you to know which game systems you should purchase, it is recommended that you should compare the different game systems that it is on your list and determine which game system is the best.

You should look for a game system with higher processor speed, has the highest transfer rate, the latest in graphics technology, the highest RAM, the best sound technology, and also other features, such as the ability to let you play online multiplayer games, and also a wide variety of games available.that way the modern online video gamer should enjoy more his hobby and relax even more while doing so.

You should also choose a video game system that has been tested and brought by a lot of customers worldwide. You can also ask your friends who owns a video game system and ask about the performance and also ask if he or she is satisfied with it. You can also gain access to different comments of game system owners through the reviews in the internet.The net is a great source of information about video games online and you can find almost anything there.Of course if you have already some experience with older system this is a plus value but to be careful with.

If you want a more in depth look at the newest game systems available in the market or one that is going to be released in the market soon, you should visit the website of the manufacturers. By doing this, you will know more about the video game system and know which new game system you should purchase.Look very closely at all the characteristics of the whole system and what do you intend to do with it.You have to look at the system as a total entity by itself wich will raccord to some peripherals.

Always remember that you shouldn’t only base on the price of the game system when you are shopping for one, you should also determine the different technology integrated in the game system and you should also know if the game system has a wide library of games available. Besides, you don’t want a video game system with limited game library; this will create boredom because after you get tired of the same old games, you will likely want to buy newer games for your game console.Remember games nowadays are very expensive to get and this can well overload a budget.

So, in case you are shopping for a new video game system, you have to remember all of the things mentioned above. Always remember that these machines don’t come in cheap and this is why it is recommended that you should first research about the machine before you buy.Think well before you buy,do a lot of research to buy the right console and all you have to do after is enjoying your entertainment online.

Let’s play games.

Carol lefrancois

Along with role-playing games, multi-player games are becoming one of the most popular types of games. This type of game allows the players to play or compete with the computer or with other players.

To be able to compete with the computer, you just have to click on the options provided in the game that will enable you to do so. On the other hand, to be able to play with other players, you will need to go online so that you can enter a network of people playing the same game.

As with role-playing games, players in multi-player games also take on different characters and are involved in a varied number of plots as well. Some of these characters include being a police operative in search of terrorists, being wizards with different powers, being on opposite sides during a war, and even playing a simple game of chess. The added thrill is that you will get to compete with other players, and there are games that allow you to form alliances with other players to defeat a common enemy.

Multi-player games are also available on the Internet and can easily be downloaded from various sites. Some sites offer very simple games such as checkers, chess, scrabble, and backgammon, while other websites offer more sophisticated games that may involve a larger number of players. In downloading these games, you follow the same procedure as you would when downloading other free games on the Internet. However, as has been mentioned, the difference is that to play the game with other users, a network connection is necessary.

Multi-player games have become widely popular because of the added thrill of being able to play the same game with other players online. This has enabled players to learn new skills from other players, form alliances, and learn more about strategy, which has greatly fueled the popularity of this type of game. It can then be expected that as technology continues to improve, there will be more multi-player games that are available online.