Composer vs. union, E3 madness, pigeon love, and more.

Super Nintendo reviews written with historical perspective, humor, and a passion for gaming.

By James Renovitch, 8:30AM, Wed. Jun. 11, 2014

If you follow the video game industry, then your Twitter feed is probably lousy with reports of new games and characters and controversies and questions and conjecture from E3. This is what Brooklynites must feel like during SXSW. Here’s the local gaming news; some of it is related to E3, sorry.

You may know Austin Wintory as the composer behind Journey, the first video game soundtrack nominated for a Grammy. Recently he posted a YouTube video taking his union, the American Federation of Musicians, to task. There’s a lot of legalese and contract speak, but the main issue is with the AFM’s most recent union contracts that dictate terms for working with game companies. The AFM's contract has been all but ignored since it was written in late 2012. Video game producers have universally and flatly refused to sign these contracts making them useless and forcing composers to work outside of the union. Wintory recorded the soundtrack for The Banner Saga in Dallas with the wind symphony there because Texas is a right-to-work state which allows even union musicians to work in nonunion capacities. This is a common tack to avoid trouble with the AFM.

Trouble seems to have found Wintory though. The AFM is suddenly enforcing its policy and threatening Wintory with a $50,000 fine and possible expulsion from the union for his work with local game studio Stoic. Wintory, a long time critic of AFM's gaming policy, took to YouTube to make his point (you can watch the video at the bottom of the page). Wintory claims the union is targeting him for speaking out against the policy.

The E3 announcement that the Halo catalog was being remastered for the Xbox 360 means work for local guns-for-hire Certain Affinity. The team there has a history with the Halo franchise and will be working on creating new multiplayer experiences for the Halo 2 reboot. Audio wizards gl33k (who recently got our feature treatment) will supply the appropriate blast noises and splatter sounds.

You probably know local production company Rooster Teeth as purveyors of some of the finest in attention-span deficient Web entertainment. If you've watched Red vs. Blue, RWBY, Achievement Hunter, or any of their shows, you know we mean that as a compliment. Well, if Rooster Teeth can get their fans to sit still long enough Rooster Teeth wants to make a feature-length movie with the promising title of Lazer Team. Rooster Teeth took to crowd-funding, and their rabid fan base didn't disappoint. The team wanted $650,000 to make the film and earned that in the first 10 hours, breaking all sorts of Indiegogo records along the way. At the time of this post the team has around $1.2 million. In other words, this movie better be good. The campaign ends July 6, which coincides with the final day of RTX, Rooster Teeth's fan fest.

Local publisher and promotional maniacs Devolver pledged a certain amount of allegiance to Sony PlayStation at E3. Their games Broforce, Hotline Miami 2, The Talos Principle, Not a Hero, and Titan Souls will be debuting on Sony’s console. However we were more interested in Devolver's earlier announcement that they will be publishing a remake of Hatoful Boyfriend. Never heard of it? That’s because the game never got a proper American release. The player of Hatoful Boyfriend is the only human at her school and must navigate the social land mines associated with adolescence. The real twist is all the other students are pigeons. So it’s kind of like Mystery Date where your only options are the rats of the sky. Did we mention this game was Japanese? Yeah, it’s awesome like that.

Now, if you don't mind, we have to play the 59 entrants of Venus Patrol's Space Cowboy Jam. We'll report back with a few of our favorites in the coming days.

Any essay that you write should be well-written, accurate, and interesting to your audience. That begins with finding a great topic for your essay. Check out our list of the best essay topic ideas. You should be able to write a great essay about gaming with one of these topics. If you struggle with it, you can always order a custom essay on video games.

Topics on Social Issues

The topic of video games comes up quite frequently when various social topics are being discussed. If you are taking classes such as sociology, public health, political science, or journalism, your essay might focus on the many social issues relating to video games. Writing essays on violence in games is always an option, but there are others as well. Here are a few topic ideas:

Persuasive Essays Related to Social Issues

• Do Violent Games Cause Behavior Problems?
• Convince readers, in an essay about violence in games, that the average person will not be affected in a negative way.
• Should video game rating systems be more stringent?
• Are parents ultimately responsible for what their kids play?
• As a society, do we unfairly blame video games when we should be focusing on personal responsibility?

Narrative Essays on Video Games And Their Impact on Society

• Write about a video game that you played as a child that was too violent for you
• Have you ever been addicted to online gaming? What was that like.
• Talk about an incident of harassment that you witnessed when playing online video games.
• Write essays on violence in gaming and the impact of that in early dating relationships

The Angry Video Game Critic

Expository Essays on The Social Impact of Video Gaming

• Write a short essay on the impact of video gaming on health and wellness
• Compose a research paper that addresses the effects of allowing young children to do violent video games
• Write a case study about a young adult who has never been exposed to video games vs. one who has been

General Essay Ideas That Relate to Social Issues

• What should be done about sexism in gaming?
• How can the gaming industry become more inclusive as a whole?
• Why is sex and violence such a common theme in video games?
• Does early exposure to video games impact the ability of children to self-regulate?
• What are the biggest social problems related to gaming?

Video Game Essay Topics New Technology

If you are an avid gamer, you probably keep up with the latest technologies, reading specialized magazines, and eagerly await the latest and greatest releases. You may have even been part of a beta testing new things or involved in open source gaming projects. Most importantly, you likely have lots of knowledge and opinions on gaming technology. Check out these essay ideas:

Persuasive Essays on Gaming Technology

• Will virtual reality impact video game technology or is it simply a fad?
• Which release is causing the most buzz?
• Streaming will replace consoles, yes or no?

Expository Essay Ideas on Gaming Technology

• Pick an up and coming technology and explain how it works
• Explain the history and development behind an upcoming technological advancement in video tech
• Discuss the trend of gamers as designers

Video Game Critic Vs Pigeons

Other Video Technology Essay Ideas

• Write a compare contrast essay on virtual reality in gaming vs. augmented reality
• Write a review of a new gaming system that you have recently tried out.

Topics About Educational Games

Persuasive Essays on Video Games in Education

• Should children spend more time focusing on lectures and hands-on work than gaming?
• Argue which educational video game parents of toddlers should choose
• Video games have no place in education. Argue a side
• Is gaming a possible solution when dealing with disengaged students?

Expository Essay Ideas For Gaming in Education

• Explain how gaming is used in special education
• Describe the features that make a game educational vs. entertainment
• Research and explain the process educators use to integrate gaming into the classroom

Video Game Critic Vs Pigeon Play

Other Educational Essay Ideas

Video Game Critic Vs Pigeon Forge

• Review the most popular educational games that have been released this year
• Write a paper about the differences between educational games today vs. 10 or 20 years ago
• Write a case study about a school that incorporated gaming into their classrooms

Essay Topics For Passionate Gamers

If you don’t find anything that interests you above, don’t fret. You can still improve your writing skills while expressing your passions for gaming. If you have an interest in gaming, you have many options when it comes to writing essays. This is especially true when it comes to classes where you have a bit more flexibility in your writing assignments. Check out these topic ideas:

• Write a descriptive essay about the first gaming experience you have had
• What are your predictions about the future of console gaming
• What is the funniest thing that happened to you in an online gaming experience
• What 10 worst things that impact the world of video gaming be opinionated!
• Compare and contrast the first release of a video game with the most current
• If you could invent a video game, what would it look like
• Write a review of the most popular game available today

Conclusion

Remember that you must balance your passion for the topic of gaming with good writing skills and factual knowledge. You will still have to research, cite your sources, and do the other work that goes into writing a good paper. As always, if you need help with a gaming essay remember that we are available to help as we are top essay writing service. Happy gaming!