ds106 assignment – replay value
by jm82temple
Assignment: Tell an original story/scene by re-appropriating a screenshot from your favorite game.
Process: In team-fortress 2 I just took a screenshot and cropped out the rest of the game HUD/GUI. The screenshot was taken using team-fortress 2’s internal screenshot taking function because the game initializes the display in full-screen mode which can cause issues when you try to take a screenshot using windows’ internal function for taking system screenshots. (due to the display coming from a different optimized frame buffer (directx’s) instead of GDI’s). I cropped out the unwanted stuff by using mspaint’s rectangular selection tool and copy/pasting the portion I wanted to a new image. I added the “hi-5 me bro” caption to clarify that the character is actually raising his hand for a hi-5 and not just incidentally in that pose.
Story: This is easily the most nerd/geek/otakutastic assignment I’ve done yet, and for those who play tf2, they would easily recognize that I’m wearing a very $$$ expensive hat (I won’t say how much here :), and I’m also using the high-five action slot tool which allows me to hi-5 other players in-game. See http://wiki.teamfortress.com if you’re interested in the game. I enjoy this game a lot because I get good pings from Japan to the west coast (< 150ms) and at the higher levels of the game it’s heavily skill/experience intensive and has a lot of violent fun if you find the right servers. TF2 is also brilliant in that you need more than just a good shot to play, you need good strategy and teamwork to win against the most difficult teams and situations.
a site about jay 
As someone who doesn’t play online games, I’m alway intrigued to learn a bit more about this world. I understand that players form teams and accomplish some sort mission while encountering other teams of people doing similar things.
Still, I can’t seem to get my head around it. One of these days I’m going to have to try one.
I imagine a game like Team Fortress wouldn’t be a good environment for a newbie with no game experience. Which brings a question. Can you recommend a good game for someone to begin with that wouldn’t be too overwhelming in terms of experience and skill.