4 ms·

Perhaps "dumb" in the sense of "that looks like a dumb way to spend all your free time and money". I guess that the appeal of Pokemon and similar dumb phenomen

Perhaps "dumb" in the sense of "that looks like a dumb way to spend all your free time and money". I guess that the appeal of Pokemon and similar dumb phenomena (somebody correct me if I'm wrong, I'm too old to have played any of these games myself and too young to have children who have) is twofold -- there's the "game" part and then there's the "collection" part. The "game" part is pretty "smart" as a game, and one could easily imagine a card game with a similar sort of game mechanic that could be bought for a few dollars. But it's the "collection" part of the game that makes it so addictive, expensive, insidious, and the source of much needless (and dumb) social anxiety among children.

redcap 17y ago
Tell me about it - there's a summer activity here in Tokyo which involves kids going to various stations here and getting a Pokemon stamp - have to collect them all. The only thing they might learn is where all the stations are.
roundsquare 17y ago
The two end up being intertwined though. When I was younger I played Magic. At first, I did okay. I had some decent cards and, with some luck, would win often enough. However, as the game evolved, better and better cards came out and if I wanted to have any success I needed to keep buying cards. So no matter how much strategy I came up with, I just didn't have the cards I needed (its possible that I was too young to really come up with good strategy, but given that most of the other people were about the same age, buying cards was probably my best chance at winning). If this weren't the case, then the card manufacturers would not have a way to keep making money. I got into some other card games as well, and I remember one was particularly well balanced such that new cards weren't "better" than old ones. As I remember, the game didn't last long and was soon discontinued. Anecdotal, yes, but the key is that "game" and "collection" intertwine.
bastian 17y ago
Talking about the "collection" part of the game and how addictive it is, Mattel has some augmented reality cards up it's sleeves: http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/10/02/avatar-augmented-reality-toys-courtesy-of-mattel-and-total-immersion/ http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/10/02/avatar-augmented-realit... I personally would love to see more than just a simple animation. Think strategic missions, a decision engine etc. On the other hand, this might also take away a lot of imagination and storytelling aspect of these toys. All you needed for D&D was a good Dungeon Master and a couple of dices. :)

redcap 17y ago

Tell me about it - there's a summer activity here in Tokyo which involves kids going to various stations here and getting a Pokemon stamp - have to collect them all. The only thing they might learn is where all the stations are.

roundsquare 17y ago

The two end up being intertwined though. When I was younger I played Magic. At first, I did okay. I had some decent cards and, with some luck, would win often enough. However, as the game evolved, better and better cards came out and if I wanted to have any success I needed to keep buying cards. So no matter how much strategy I came up with, I just didn't have the cards I needed (its possible that I was too young to really come up with good strategy, but given that most of the other people were about the same age, buying cards was probably my best chance at winning). If this weren't the case, then the card manufacturers would not have a way to keep making money. I got into some other card games as well, and I remember one was particularly well balanced such that new cards weren't "better" than old ones. As I remember, the game didn't last long and was soon discontinued. Anecdotal, yes, but the key is that "game" and "collection" intertwine.

bastian 17y ago

Talking about the "collection" part of the game and how addictive it is, Mattel has some augmented reality cards up it's sleeves: http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/10/02/avatar-augmented-reality-toys-courtesy-of-mattel-and-total-immersion/ http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/10/02/avatar-augmented-realit... I personally would love to see more than just a simple animation. Think strategic missions, a decision engine etc. On the other hand, this might also take away a lot of imagination and storytelling aspect of these toys. All you needed for D&D was a good Dungeon Master and a couple of dices. :)