User:Hi-PolymerERASER877479

Bio

About Me

I am a college student in Western Washington. In my free time I like to sit down and read a book or watch one of my favorite shows. I am a musician most prominently skilled with the French Horn, but I am also proficient in Trumpet, Mellophone, and Ukelele. I enjoy sports and leap at almost any opportunity to participate in a physical activity. I live happily with my family and help take care of two wild dogs and one jumpy cat.

My Wikipedia Activities

I will lightly edit any problems I come across in Wikipedia, but I will not likely contribute much more than that. I may provide edits and clarifications to pages concerning dinosaurs, and I will defend that the Tyrannosaurus Rex did not have feathers until it is scientifically proven and not presumed. I will also be participating in class assignments that have to do with my activities on Wikipedia during my studies.

Article evaluation

Video games have for many years been a large part of my life, and as a result I wish for the information provided to be as useful as possible. I have mainly played games on console, so my searching led me to controllers or the proper term gamepads. "I visited the gamepad article on Wikipedia, and found three aspects of it worth commenting on: It's extreme lack of content, lack of information on how gamepads affected console games, and it's lack of content about Xbox and PlayStation's influence on gamepad design.

Lack of content

Throughout Wikipedia people have gathered and used information to educate those who wish to gain knowledge on subjects of interest. Many pages on Wikipedia are full of useful information and evidence to support it, however, the gamepad page offers a distinct lack of coverage on a very broad topic. The points touched upon are few and most details seem to be skipped over when explaining its history or uses. The lack of description is poor enough to warrant the page itself to be criticized for its brevity and lack of proper evidence. I am aware that there are many sources out there that would help fill the page with sufficient content and they must be explored.

Effects on games

The creation of the gamepad from the very beginning was a driving force behind the mechanics and gameplay of home console games. I see very little is touched upon in the page about the games and how they worked with gamepads. It is important to touch upon these points for they shaped the very games many of us hold so dear. A great example would be that for a long time, and still to this day, most games only have gamepad players play each other even if a computer version exists because how different the game plays for each group. The games effected should be covered on the page

Xbox and PlayStation

I find it strange that the page has such a severe lack of information on two of the largest influences of gamepads and their popularity. Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo are the biggest names in console gaming, and it isn't even close; all three use a personal type of gamepad and are the driving force behind the controller's continued popularity. The lack of information on how Xbox with their launch title Halo proved to the skeptical gaming community that a first-person shooter could realistically be successful on a console, or how Sony's DualShock technology have shaped the very games released on the console is disappointing and I wish those stories would be told on the site.

Conclusion

Overall, I'm disappointed that the article lacks so much information; the page feels as if it would do little to help someone who is unfamiliar with the subject matter, and even though there tends to be very few not in the know about gamepads that makes it all the stranger. The fact that pages like the joystick has so much more information is frustrating especially because it is arguably less well known. I hope that someone comes along and helps add more to the site, and heck, maybe one day if I have the free time, I'll add to it too.