Even the best versions of open-world Spider-Man bring the absolute bare-minimum when it comes to environmental detail. New York City streets never have enough traffic and the sidewalks always feel empty. What few cars there are only really look like the idea of a car; no personality. Rarely are there any particular points of nuance or variation in the sidewalk clutter or the general city architecture. The landmarks are there, but often only serve to remind you what isn't. Everything is usually swing-able, but like the monkey-bars from that playground by our old house, Spider-Man's open-worlds have never had a soul. There's a reason we have a screenshot from a GTA IV graphics mod above. Rockstar's last-gen Liberty City remains the most fully-realized, virtual rendition of The Big Apple, and we sort of wish we could just plop a beautifully animated Spider-Man right down in the middle of it. The most incredible thing about Rockstar's geographical recreations are their preservation of a city's specific flavors and general flow, condensed in a way that loses none of its implied scope. With the absurdly massive crowds we're seeing in Assassin's Creed: Unity, we know a city that feels populated is possible now. We want detail on a macro and micro level, with authentic inner-city vibes from every angle. New York should have sidewalks full of people during the day to contrast its sparse and seedy night crowds. In organic ways, the city should respond to you, with individual biases per citizen that can be swayed by larger crowd mentalities. It's about time we get to mess with random people on the street, if we so choose. Watch out, Balloon Kid.
Real Science Magazine called James' addiction to video games "sexually attractive." He also worked really hard and got really lucky in college and earned some awards for acting, improv and stand-up, but nobody cares about that out here in LA. So... He's starting over fresh, performing when He can. His profile picture features James as Serbian, vampire comic Dorde Mehailo with His anonymous Brother and Uncle at the Nerdmelt Showroom in West Hollywood. In James' spare time, he engages in acting, writing, athletics, hydration, hours of great pondering and generally wishing you'd like him.
