I've been playing Animal Crossing: New Leaf since it came out at 12am EST on June 9. When I first launched the game, I was giddy and couldn't wait to start fishing, picking fruit, catching bugs, and digging up fossils. Then I realized it was 12am EST and no in-game store was open, so all my plans were killed by the game's real-time clock. What did I do? I time traveled. I did the one thing I find most despicable among Animal Crossing players, but I had been waiting so long and couldn't bare waiting ten hours just because the game is as good as dead in the middle of the night when you have no tools or anything other than a backpack full of fruit you can't sell or plant. And so, I time traveled for a brief moment, bought myself a shovel and a fishing rod, and then immediately time traveled back to where I came from; for those unfamiliar with the franchise, time traveling is not a part of the game, it is done by changing the console's internal clock, thus, tricking the game into believing it's a time different than the actual time. I have not time traveled again since.
Nothing against those who time travel, but you guys and gals are stupid. Alright, that wasn't nice, but I find time traveling in Animal Crossing--unless you've been waiting years and just need some tools because the game is empty at midnight without them--pointless. The charm of Animal Crossing has so much to do with its use of real time; having to wait for something that is only available at a specific time or during a specific season, etcetera, makes the game feel special; if you time travel, you rip out all that makes the game special. If you feel inclined to time travel in Animal Crossing, you might as well time travel in real life, to a point in the future when you've already beaten the game and have no more reason to play.
Click to read more ...
Marc Kusnierz | 
Look everyone! I've managed two episodes in a row! Do you know what that means? Nothing; though, it does mean you get to hear my lovely voice once again; not after a visit with the dentist like in the first episode, but this time after a visit with the asthmatic idiot who decides to run and then immediately records a podcast upon his return. I don't know what I'm talking about, but I bet you're all thinking, "Why don't you get to the actual topic of today's show, eh?" That's a great idea! Today's show is all about The Last of Us, the hot, new, sexy (?) game from Naughty Dog that almost everyone loves. Am I loving it too? I guess you'll just have to listen to find out.
