Cody Musser vs Internet: Take Two!

Lately, I've been having trouble with what I do. Generally, I sit down at the PC, grab a soda, and scour the netspace for news, just about every time I come home. That hasn't been going so well these last couple weeks, because I've decided to avoid certain news.

Rarely did I previously find it necessary to not read anything for fear of the mighty spoiler, but beginning with Okami, I found myself selectively avoiding specific information. The game just seemed so damn grand, that I didn't want to steal anything from that. I can say the same for Final Fantasy XII, although that one has been a little easier, because the story isn't really being divulged in any of the reviews.


I only know that bombs go BOOM.

It all culminates with The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, for which it seems I've been avoiding spoilers like the plague. I know what it seems everyone knows, from all the screenshots at the various trade shows, but this Friday the videos and impressions are going to drop from the 48 hour playtest that the majority of large news outlets are participating in. Matt Cassamasina, Jeremy Parish, and Rawmeat Cowboy from GoNintendo should all be writing up their impressions from this playtest, and those are three dudes who's opinions I regularly find myself indulging in. To not view any of these, is going to be what they'd call, "a test of my mettle." Although, I'm sure when they coined the term they meant it for much more laborious situations.

Regardless, I imagine I'll have to admit that I've become the 'Spoiler Granny' that I always feared. The real kicker is that it's working, and it's reminding how much I liked playing games when I was just a kid, with nothing else to do but play Final Fantasy: Mystic Quest for something like two solid days. It didn't so much matter to me that the game was terrible, I just had it to play, so I played it basically infinitely. That's a pretty amazing feeling, and all the news and impressions, reviews and previews, and other such hub-snubbery has, I think, stolen some of that away from me.


I played it to finish. TO. THE. TERRIBLE. FINISH.

Avoiding news made Okami not just an excellent game for me, but an experience. I conquered Nippon in 36 hours of playtime, all of which was achieved in less than two weeks. Maybe one week, but I can't seem to remember, it's all clouded with a slight haze of weepy glory. In the end, I wonder if I'll be able to maintain my newfound status of spoiler aversion, or will I bow to the gods of game previews.

EDIT: Funny now that I notice it, I called the one character in Final Fantasy: Mystic Quest 'TRISTRAM' for years. I always thought it sounded stupid. Now I know the source of said stupidity ...