Gaming: Stop Lurking!

A fan-site for a game I'm stoked about has advertised for staff. I thought to myself that I would be good at that. I'm very interested in the game and have been following its development for a long time. Then I saw that you had to write about what you've contributed to the community as part of the application process. That killed it for me. There is a community of sorts but it's not very big and I've never contributed to it. I never saw the need because, even though game info started leaking around 2007, it was always the same people discussing it. So, I maintained my wallflower status. Now the game is in super-secret closed beta, the hype is heating up, and this opportunity presented itself. I'm wishing I hadn't lurked on the edges. Moral of the story? Don't lurk. Get involved. Even if all you do is say "Hi" at least you're participating in the community.

Gaming: Déjà Vu and Social Games

Where is the innovative and cutting-edge gameplay and design? It seems like everything is a rehash/remake/sequel of something else. I understand that there are no new, original ideas any longer, but gameplay should not evoke a serious feeling of déjà vu. Yet that's exactly what I've been experiencing lately while playing various social games.
Paradise Life by Ice Break Games is FrontierVille wrapped in a tropical island setting. The gameplay is identical. Granted, there are small differences but they're not large or unique enough to differentiate the gameplay.
Now, EA is developing The Sims Social for Facebook. Based on screenshots posted to the game's Facebook page it looks like The Sims 1 has simply been ported. In fact, I believe I had some of the furniture shown in the screenshots in my Sims 1 game. I will reserve complete judgement until I've actually played the game, but the screenshots evoked a serious feeling of déjà vu. I'm now less excited for the game than I had been.

(Note: The links in this post are broken as of January, 2023.)