Drew and Dan Digress: July 2013

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Friday, July 26, 2013

'Firefly Online:' Is the Upcoming MMO Game a Cause for Excitement, Or Concern? [VIDEO]

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Last week, I almost lost my mind with excitement. I was sitting at my computer, near-mindlessly scrolling through my Facebook news feed, when my eye caught a series of key words all grouped together that gave me goosebumps: "Firefly Online Game Announcement."

The "Firefly" TV series is one of a select few pieces of media that I rented first, and had to own later. When I was in high school, I ordered the series through Netflix, one disc at a time, and watched all the episodes on a disc in one sitting before immediately sending away for the next one. Sometimes, it takes me several episodes of a series to decide I like it; but I was hooked on "Firefly" after 20 minutes.

Alas, I knew my enjoyment would be short-lived, due to "Firefly" being cancelled by Fox after only 14 episodes. As I watched the DVD's, I dreaded the inevitable last moment of the final episode, when there would be nothing more to see. And when that moment came, I was honestly very sad.

So, of course, I had to have the series to own, to experience over and over again at my leisure. There was no alternative. I had become a dyed-in-the-wool "Browncoat," and nothing would ever take that away from me. Unfortunately, being a high school student with no gainful income to speak of, the $30 cost of the box set was out of my reach. Luckily, I received it as a Christmas present several months later, and all was right with the world.

Then, in 2005, a friend of my college-freshman-self told me there was a movie trailer that I "absolutely had to see." I walked to the computer, saw the word "Serenity" scrawled across the screen, and my jaw hit the floor.

A "Firefly" MOVIE!? Eposode 14 isn't the end? Am I dreaming??

Luckily, no, I wasn't.

I saw "Serenity" as soon as it came out; and to this day, it remains one of my favorite movies of all time. Though I own it on DVD, I've yet to pick it up on Blu-Ray, which still bothers me constantly; but I'll get it someday, I assure you.

I can only denounce "Serenity" for one reason; and it has nothing to do with the film itself, but rather, the hope it gave me. Even before the movie was released, there were rumors about sequels and/or more TV episodes. I tried not to get excited, but I couldn't help it. This was a franchise that, despite it's short life, was so expertly crafted and executed, that I was very emotionally connected to it (as are all Browncoats). I wanted so badly for the saga of "Firefly" to continue, at least in some form. But here we are, eight years later, without so much as a passing phrase about anything new.

That is, until those words on Facebook caught my eye last week.

At San Diego Comic-Con, developers released a very short teaser for an upcoming MMO game set in the "Firefly" universe. Simply titled "Firefly Online," the trailer boasts a few seconds of imagery and music that would make any fan giddy. And that's exactly how I felt when I watched it: giddy.

But after looking into it further, I found that the game is only going to be released on mobile devices, at least at first. Now, I understand the appeal of that concept on paper. When you have a vast game set in such a popular universe, why not let players constantly stay connected with their smartphones and tablets, right?

But how many people currently play those types of in-depth, time-consuming MMO games exclusively on their phones? To me, mobile gaming is about easy, simple, and instant fun; not about hunkering down and questing for hours. Battery life alone would be a huge issue!

Although, maybe "Firefly Online" isn't going to be that type of game. Maybe we'll just select ships and crews from drop-down menus and send them out on automated jobs that we check back on later. I really, really hope there's more to it than that, but it's a possibility nonetheless.

I guess my bottom line is this: they better not screw this up. Making a game from a franchise with a devoted following is already risky enough; but add in the fact that Fox has broken the Browncoats' hearts at least once already, and that puts all parties involved on very shaky ground.

Right now, I guess I'll just try to stay optimistic. After all, something is better than nothing, right?

Here's the teaser. What do you think?

Sunday, July 21, 2013

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Monday, July 8, 2013

Welcome to Our Web Site!

Hi there! You've landed on the official Web site of the "Drew and Dan Digress" podcast! We're just starting out, so you can expect this site to change quite a bit in the coming months. Exciting stuff, right?
While we fine-tune things, feel free to check out our first two episodes below. Then please share us with your friends, and leave us feedback in the comments section (including what you'd like us to talk about next). This is gonna be awesome!

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