Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Pong
Pong, a basic table tennis simulation, has gone down in history as the first video game ever created. Now available to play via the internet, you can re-acquaint yourself with its gloriously addictive gameplay.
The aim of the game is to score points against an opponent by deflecting a ball back and forth until you can force it past the other player. The angle you hit the ball at alters the speed and trajectory of its return. Unlike the original two player version you play this against a computer controlled opponent, who is exceedingly good at sending the ball back your way.
This is the entirety of Pong; it gets no easier or harder. Not that this detracts from Pong’s appeal, though. It is easy to loose half an hour or more batting the ball back and forth. Pong is proof of the adage that gameplay matters more than graphics.
That said it doesn’t live up to the excitement of the original. In my opinion Pong belongs on a TV screen. It should be played against a friend of sibling whilst seated on the floor, about two feet away screen if at all possible. The option to play Pong on the internet is one that should not be passed up, but neither is it how I would like to remember this classic point in gaming history.
Matt Stone
Pong, a basic table tennis simulation, has gone down in history as the first video game ever created. Now available to play via the internet, you can re-acquaint yourself with its gloriously addictive gameplay.
The aim of the game is to score points against an opponent by deflecting a ball back and forth until you can force it past the other player. The angle you hit the ball at alters the speed and trajectory of its return. Unlike the original two player version you play this against a computer controlled opponent, who is exceedingly good at sending the ball back your way.
This is the entirety of Pong; it gets no easier or harder. Not that this detracts from Pong’s appeal, though. It is easy to loose half an hour or more batting the ball back and forth. Pong is proof of the adage that gameplay matters more than graphics.
That said it doesn’t live up to the excitement of the original. In my opinion Pong belongs on a TV screen. It should be played against a friend of sibling whilst seated on the floor, about two feet away screen if at all possible. The option to play Pong on the internet is one that should not be passed up, but neither is it how I would like to remember this classic point in gaming history.
Matt Stone
# posted by Matt @ 9:38 AM 
