At and around the time of 9/11, I was a Counter-Strike addict. It sometimes struck me as odd while I’d played the game, but it never felt wrong. Should it have? It was a game, it was a whole mess of fun, and it didn’t matter much to me how topical the game inadvertently was. I was a teenager. I wasn’t smart enough to see that yet.

During 9/11, Naomi Alderman wasn’t playing terrorists vs. counter-terrorists on de_dust. She was playing Paladins and Sorcerers vs. Mephisto and Duriel in the Durance of Hate. She was playing Diablo II, for 30 hours a week. It was her way of dealing with the tragedy surrounding her in the streets of Manhattan. And, looking back, she sees absolutely nothing wrong with that.

As gamers I’m sure we all know the therapeutic power of playing games. A good Gears of War session can leave us satisfied, fulfilled, maybe a little less grouchy than we were before we started. Games as stress relief, sure. But games as a method of grieving, or of dealing with absolutely earth-shattering tragedy? That’s another level. Alderman writes:

I remember surfacing from four-hour Diablo II sessions feeling as if I’d been on holiday, so grateful that I’d been able to blot out the images of genuine horror filling my city. The game was so mind-filling it left no room for the anxious brooding that I was experiencing the rest of the time. This was a tremendous blessing.

As life began to brighten up, Alderman says, her desire to play gradually waned off – proof that the game served her as therapy more than anything else.

I sympathize with Alderman – people read (and write) books, watch (and make) movies in response to things like 9/11. Playing a game is really no different, and it’s only a result of our culture’s disdain for the medium that we should feel compelled to think otherwise. But that’s my opinion. Is playing games an appropriate response to tragic events, both on a personal and a national level? What do you guys think?

Source: The Guardian via RPS

Do you know what time it is? It’s time for The Watercooler again. This happens every day at the same time, so you shouldn’t really be surprised. This is the best thing you will see on the Internet today, mainly because it is the best thing I saw on the Internet yesterday. Eventually, I will run out of different ways to say the same thing every day, but clearly that day is not today. Wait a minute… that’s exactly what I said yesterday!

Today’s Watercooler is surprisingly political again, this time dealing with John McCain and his brother. This may seem like it’s showing my political affiliation since yesterday’s Watercooler was about Sarah Palin, but I’m one of those people who refuse to take part in a broken system irresponsible dicks that don’t vote.

This video is something that I had overheard people talking about today, but I thought it was a joke.  I looked it up and, unfortunately for some rich old whiteys, it is not a joke.  John McCain’s brother was recorded on a 911 tape complaining about traffic.  That’s right, he called 911 to complain about traffic.  The operator seemed surprised and asked if he was really calling 911 to complain about traffic, to which Joe responded “Fuck you”.  Classy.

Check it.

Seriously, does McCain even have a chance any more?  What an embarrassment… I think I may vote for him just to cheer him up. And I’ll send him a card with 20 bucks in it like my mom does for my birthday. Everyone likes money, right?

Think you have something that could be Watercooler material? Send it to dlandis@ripten.com. If your submission gets featured, you will win a prize package full of pride and accomplishment.

With all the positive press out there showcasing the great things that can be made using the LittleBigPlanet level editor, it was only a matter of time before someone made something not so great.

If you thought the use of Space Invaders to mock the events of September 11th was tasteless, then you will likely cringe when you see Sackboy pilot a plane into the twin towers in this user created LBP level.

The video is available after the jump, though we completely understand if you decide to pass on this one.

Level created by Bushkiller85 (PSN ID) and recorded by onQ (PSN ID).

Edric Stanley, digital artist and all around space cadet, began to pout over the public outcry that ensued when Kotaku brought his “Space Invaders blows up the World Trade Center” art to the attention of the internet masses.

Upset with what the artist deemed an “immature” response to his work, Stanley has requested that his work be removed from the Leipzig Games Convention show floor.  The image above is a photo of the letter he wrote which now stands in the spot his art once was.

In this he claims that he was not pressured to remove his work, and states that:

“Due to these profound misunderstandings, I simply feel that from an artistic point of view, the work has lost the ability to have any valuable impact, poetic or otherwise.”

Wow, someone is definitely not taking his meds.

Source: Kotaku