CHAPTER 1<br > DeMaria s Guide to<br > Games<br > by Rusel DeMaria and Donn Nauert<br >Playing games is hard work. That s right. It might be lots of fun，<br >but it s also hard work. You can spend hours， days..， even weeks<br >on some games. You ll get completely caught up in mastering<br >the story， or in developing a character in a role playing game<br >(RPG). Or you may want to test your reflexes in a fast-paced<br >arcade game. Whatever kind of game you re into， you ll play<br >best if you play smart. In this chapter， I offer some guidelines for<br >playing smart.<br >A GAME BY ANY OTHER NAME<br >Not all games are alike. Some require the reflexes of a lightning<br >bolt. Raw speed and joystick agility are primary skills you need<br >in those games. You also have to recognize patterns and be able<br >to make fast adjustments. These games are called arcade games.<br > Other games require a patient approach to puzzle solving.<br >Such games are made up of a series of situations with one or<br >more solutions. These games are called adventure games.<br > Another type of game features puzzle solving and character<br >building. In them， part of the fun of the game is to watch your<br >characters grow in strength and ability. These are role playing<br >games or RPGs.<br > Still other games combine puzzle solving with fast action.<br >Usually the action isn t quite as intense as in a pure arcade<br >game， nor are the puzzles so perplexing. There s just enough of<br >both to allow the joystick jockeys to have fun while the deep<br >thinkers get to exercise their gray matter， too. Such games are<br >called action adventure or action role-playing games.<br > There are some basic (and obvious) differences between<br >arcade games and adventure or RPGs. Therefore， I ve divided<br >my ~ame zuidelines into two sections.<br >