jayplay The University Daily Kansan Thursday January 17,2002 1B
DOUBLE THE PLEASURE Jayplay introduces two new sex and relationship columnists for Spring 2002. SEE PAGE 3B
Gabriel Alsina, Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, freshman, plays around on a tutorial of the computer game Everquest in his room at Stephenson Hall. Alsina said that when he was a regular player he would spend two or three hours every night on the game, which is why he hasn't re-subscribed lately.
THE GAMES PEOPLE PLAY
Online games popular among students
Story by Adam Pracht = Photo by Aaron Showalter
Gabriel Alsina,the powerful wizard, knew that the battle was lost. Though he led his men over deserts and fought enemies, the foes were then so strong that he could not cast spells fast enough. He called for his group of 20 to retreat for home.
Once safe, he shut off his computer monitor and wearily went to bed at 3 a.m.
Alsina is actually a Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, freshman, and he "became" a wizard through a program called Ultima Online.
Programs like Ultima Online, Everquest and Dark Age of Camelot are known as massively multiplayer online role playing games (MMORPG). For a typical fee of $10 a month, people from widespread areas are allowed to gather online as fantasy characters and portray a unique personality.
"While you're doing this, your heart's pumping,"
Alsina said. "You're all worried that you're going to die."
Although the graphics are impressive, Alsina said that it was the social aspect that drew him to the game.
Many enjoy graphically based games like Ultima Online. Andrew Giessel, Larned junior, enjoys text-based role playing games called
playing games called Multi User Dimensions (MUD). He said that MUDS were typically free and that a person with a vivid imagination could create more vivid pictures than a graphical game could produce.
Although the mediums seem different, both MMORPGs and MUDs have a common characteristic: They are habit forming.
"I've always liked reading," Giessel said, "MUDs have all the addictiveness of normal chat channels and all the addictiveness of a role-playing game. It was a really rich environment to explore."
Giessel said that one summer he spent more than 10 hours a day playing a text-based game called Medevia.
However, Wes Platt, Florida journalist and creator of a text-based game called OtherSpace, said that the games should not be blamed for excessive play, but instead human nature.
"You're going to have some people who don't know when to quit," he said. "But that's true with anything that can be abused. MUDs are great in moderation When they start replacing your real life, that is a dangerous thing."
Fortunately for Alsina and Giessel, heavy online gaming was something they stopped when they came to the University of Kansas. Alsina stopped paying his subscription during finals to concentrate on school, and Giessel stopped playing text-based games when he came to college.
Not all are so lucky, however. Giessel said he had friends who flunked out of college because they were plying MUDs all day.
Platt said that in his experience at OtherSpace, he found that most players were high school or college students between the ages of 16 to 25. He said most of the players were male.
Platt gave advice on how to balance playing the games with college.
"Deal with your real-life issues. Don't abandon a social life in real life," he said. "And make sure you're having fun with these games. When you feel yourself getting so angry you can't stand it because of some silly thing that happens online, log off and take a break for a while. Put things in perspective."
In fact, Platt said that there could even be benefits to playing these games.
"Games like OtherSpace — I think — help increase literacy because we're focused on storytelling and we put a strong emphasis on writing," he said. "I can't think that's a bad thing. Downside: I don't sleep as much as I probably should."
Contact Pracht apracht@kansan.com. This story was edited by Brooke Hesler.
Bruce Willis draws die-hard fans to show in Kansas City
Amanda Beglin Jayplay writer
The puns are easy.
ROCK SNOB
The puns are easy.
A-list movie star "moonlights"
as a musician. John McClane tries
John Coltrane.
Anyone who follows Willis closely enough to know that brucewillis.com is not yet a registered Web site likely knows that Willis, 46, has been a longtime musician, releasing studio albums and performing at the grand openings of Planet Hollywood restaurants around the world.
The tougher task is determining whether Bruce Willis the R&B musician can overshadow Bruce Willis the celebrity, if only for tonight.
but for the rest of it." "Bruce Willis what?" is how a lot of people have reacted," said Mario Bonilla, a Blockbuster Video employee. The flyers for
But for the rest of us.
SEE WILLIS ON PAGE 2B
Tragic cowboy tunes sound better with sad cowboy tales behind them
Within our culture's lexicon of popular music, certain names maintain a revered, legendary status rooted in the brilliance of their artistic output and enhanced by stories of the bizarre, often tragic lives they lead.
By Andy Gassaway Jayplay writer
As VH1 and the E! Network continue to crank out countless documentaries chronicling rock stars' descents into seclusion, drug addiction and madness, it is becoming increasingly difficult to hear a Marvin Gaye song without being reminded of his death at the hands of his father, or hear the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds without thinking of a demented Brian Wilson in his bath robe playing an organ with a fly swatter.
For those who love for their record collections to serve not only as archives of grade-A audio bliss, but also as stimulating conversation pieces, there are other artists of interest to pursue when Sid Vicious stories and Kurt Cobain conspiracy theories start to get a little stale.
The following are albums by lesser-known artists who not only recorded
Andy Gassaway agassaway@kansan.com
worthwhile music, but lived colorful lives to serve as their backdrop:
Though Barrett is widely known as the original lead singer and guitarist of Pink Floyd, his music is not nearly as well-known as that of his radio-dominant ex-compatriots.
Wouldn't You Miss Me?, Syd Barrett, Capitol, 2001.
suttering from schizophrenia and crippled by a horrendous intake of psychedelics. Sid was kicked out of the band following the release of its second LP, and he went on to record two solo albums in 1970. Since then, Syd has simply disappeared into seclusion. This compilation includes material from the two solo albums, drawing attention to his knack for shaping
bluesy dissonance and nursery-rhyme-style lyrics into three-minute pop journeys.
Oar, Skip Spence, Sundazed, 1969.
Our, Skip Spence, Sunuzade, 1963.
Another mythical character of psychedelic proportions, Skip Spence was the original drummer for Jefferson Airplane. He went on to sing, play guitar and write for the legendary San Francisco band Moby Grape.
Skip's acid intake caused him to become a difficult bandmate, however, as he is said to have chased the other members of Moby Grape around a studio with a fire axe during one of his particularly bad freakouts.
Oar, his solo record, consists of dense acoustic blues and folk songs that resemble a more whimsical, yet no less endearing take on early Leonard Cohen.
Skip passed away in 1999 and has since been honored with a tribute album including the likes of Tom Waits and Robert Plant.
Fruit Tree, Nick Drake, Hannibal, 1986.
Cheaper compilations of British singer/ songwriter Nick Drake's work
SEE ROCK SNOB ON PAGE 2B
LIVE MUSIC CALENDER
TODAY
DADY
The Granada
The Dark Star Orchestra (adv.
tickets needed), 8 p.m.
The Bottleneck
Thulium/Faceplant/Trump
Dawgs, 18 to 21-$6, 21 and over-
$4
The Bottleneck
TOMORROW
The Jazzhaus
The Bottom Line
Jose PH/Full Feature, 18 to 21-$6,
21 and over-$4
Lawrence Community Theatre phone: 843-7469 Don't Dress for Dinner (comedy), 8:00 p.m.
Abe and Jakes Landing
The Jazzhaus
Guitar Shorty/Smokin' Electric Blues
Pomeroy ( rock and roll)
The Jazzhaus
The Jazzhaus
The District/Rock n' Roll From
Minneapolis
Grand Emporium (Kansas City)
Li'l Ed and the Blues Imperials
Hurricane (Kansas City)
The Creature Comforts, The People
Eastside Live (Kansas City)
Thinline, Bent
SATURDAY The Bottleneck
The Bottleneck
Milemarker/Plot to Kill the President (early 6 p.m.)
Ultimate Fakebook/Creature Comforts ( late)
Lawrence Community Theatre
Don't Dress for Dinner, 2:30 p.m.
Grand Emporium
Michael Burks
Hurricane
Panhead, Trouble Junction
Davey's Uptown Rambler
Malachy Papers
SUNDAY
SUNDAY
The Lied Center
Phoenix Bassoon Quartet, (from Costa Rica)
The Bottleneck
Live Action Trivia, 8 p.m.
Fred P. Otts (Plaza)
The Big Iron w/ The Buddy Lush
Phenomenon
MONDAY
The Bottleneck
Open Mic Night, 18-21,$2, 21
and over, $0
TUESDAY
WEDNSDAY
TUESDAY
The Bottleneck
John Dee Grahm/Arthur Dodge
Abe and Jakes Landing
Elizabeth Ashley (folk)
Grand Emporiom
The Karlens
WEEKDAY
The Bottleneck
TJ Dovebelly/Tea Tree (formerly
Life on Earth)
The Jazzhaus
Matt Buff's Comedy Show, 8:00-
10:30 p.m.), Wryly Bent, Original
Rock
THURSDAY
Liberty Hall
O.A.R.Howie Day
FRIDAY
FRIDAY
Abe and Jakes Landing
The Schwag
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