CHARLES BOLDES
By Student Reporter
Video games mean different things to different people.
From nerds to gamers, people have different perceptions of different video games as they play them. Depending on the gamer you are, you may like stories in your games, or maybe you like the mechanics that you have to learn while playing each game. Maybe you are the gamer that likes the very design of games; as you play them the aesthetics appeal to you.
If you are a gamer, or someone that would possibly like to design video games, there is opportunity for you on the Northwestern campus — the Computer Club, which meets at 7 p.m. Tuesday nights.
The club currently is planning the next game it will make for The Heartland Gaming expo this year. The club competed for the first time last year, even though it battled time constraints. Blake Williams, senior chemistry student, said, “I didn’t get to see much last year, but with what happened at The Heartland Gaming Expo. I hope be more involved this year.”
Northwestern’s club was able to gain the respect of their peers there and win a third place People’s Choice Award at the University of Tulsa’s second annual Heartland Gaming Expo. Adam Burnett, senior computer science student, said, “Most of us have played games all our lives, so it has been an interesting experience learning to make what we’ve spent hours playing. We’re learning a lot and I think we’ve really come a long way since we started in January.” As of right now, the competition will take place next semester, so club members will work to get any new members up to speed.
On Tuesdays, after the club meets for an hour, it turns into the video game club. If you are a computer gamer, that plays video games like the ever so popular “League of Legends,” “Minecraft,” “Civilization 5,” practically any game in general.
Some club members are concentrating on “League of Legends,” hoping to form a team for college competitions but as of now they know they need a lot of practice. Chance Spicer, freshmen student, said, “Teamwork is a big part of this club. Without team chemistry, the understanding of the game and proper usage of mechanics, there wouldn’t be any way to be successful as a team.”
Watching these guys play games, it’s obvious how much fun they have every single day as they play. “Evan, our fearless leader, charges into battle like no League player I’ve ever seen. Unfortunately, it usually gets us killed … a lot,” Burnett said.