Taking a break from researching an article about the role of orgone energy in the time portal in order to play a couple of old games and talk about virtual worlds . . . .

The recent interest in the Avatar movie affirmed something I had suspected already -- that Native Americans and especially shamans would be very interested in the concept of virtual reality. Gaming should fascinate people who regularly explore other worlds in more traditional ways. I'm always looking for games like Spellforce Platinum Edition that in some way reproduce that experience, which ideally involves meeting strange beings and unusual people, exploring places I've never been, and using both strange technology and old magical systems. I've thought that if the right combination of story and technology came along it might be a useful training ground for the real shamanic shift to other realms of perception. So far I haven't found that, since the worlds games describe aren't the ones I visit in those other ways, but there may be some longterm value to it anyway. Plus, I find it entertaining.

One of my recent disappointments is that the gaming stores at the mall where we occasionally shop have shifted over nearly completely to console gaming and stock very items in their PC department. PC gaming is changing, evolving away from the private user to the social networker who wants to mingle in the online MMO's. I'm more of a private adventurer, and I like tactical problems, so many of the games which appeal to me are older and simpler. A great advantage to that genre is that they'll run on my machine, which can just barely handle Oblivion if I turn off all the bells and whistles.

Follow up:

I have a desk drawer filled with these older games, some that I've finished and some that I haven't. A couple of days ago I checked at Gamer's Gate to see if any are listed there and many are still on the market and rated highly, so I guess I'm not alone in thinking that the older games still have clout.

One of those games -- Spellforce or its bundled version Spellforce Universe -- is still on my to-do list since it's nearly endless in scope and eventually you do have to decide to move on, but I hope to go back to it before long and set about things in the right way. Usually the first time through a game I've made so many mistakes in setting up characters and learning the quirks of gameplay that by the time I get several levels deep in the dungeons I'm too filled with regret to enjoy myself.

Spellforce was that game for me, with many quirks of gameplay that you can't skip if you want to succeed and have fun. It's turn-based strategy with an armed party you control, and two options of play -- play with a time limit on decisions or give yourself plenty of time to think. I like time to think.

I had fun with Spellforce until I reached a deep level with characters too powerful to successfully pummel. Going back through lower levels to gain more experience didn't appeal to me -- I'd been adventuring there long enough and needed a new landscape. But I did enjoy this simple game and would recommend it to players like myself, who like to wander and think through chains of tactics and spells. Today's games aren't being written that way any longer -- it's mostly point and shoot in games like Oblivion, and mob rule in World of Warcraft. If you like combat in terms of enfilade and defilade and classical squad tactics mixed with magic, you'll like Spellforce.