Sumwun: /* Explanation */

2023-01-29T07:49:20Z

‎Explanation

Davidy22: Reverted edits by Explain xkcd server admin (talk) to last revision by 172.69.33.123

2022-05-21T02:55:39Z

Reverted edits by Explain xkcd server admin (talk) to last revision by 172.69.33.123

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Explain xkcd server admin at 21:39, 20 May 2022

2022-05-20T21:39:36Z

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172.69.33.123 at 03:30, 12 May 2022

2022-05-12T03:30:41Z

162.158.159.31: Undo revision 266527 by 👖🔥 (talk)

2022-05-11T18:43:37Z

Undo revision 266527 by 👖🔥 (talk)

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👖🔥 at 17:42, 11 May 2022

2022-05-11T17:42:20Z

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Jacky720: rv

2022-05-04T23:55:14Z

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Ex Kay Cee Dee at 23:55, 4 May 2022

2022-05-04T23:55:11Z

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Jacky720: rv

2022-05-04T23:54:36Z

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Ex Kay Cee Dee at 23:54, 4 May 2022

2022-05-04T23:54:34Z

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 The song "{{w|Still Alive}}", which the lyric "This was a triumph" comes from, was previously referenced in [[375: Pod Bay Doors]], and later referenced in [[1141: Two Years]].
-The title text also points to another flaw in this strategy: multi-player gaming requires other players, so if you play a game five years after its release, there's often nobody else to play with. It's even worse with online gaming, as the company hosting the online server may have shut it down a long time ago. However, {{w|StarCraft (video game)|some game communities}} do last longer than others.
+The title text also points to another flaw in this strategy: multi-player gaming requires other players, so if you play a game five years after its release, there's often nobody else to play with. It's even worse with online gaming, as the company hosting the online server may have shut it down a long time ago. The idea that some games change over time was revisited in [[2189: Old Game Worlds]]. However, {{w|StarCraft (video game)|some game communities}} do last longer than others.
 ==Transcript==

@@ Line 9: / Line 9: @@
 ==Explanation==
-''{{w|Half-Life 2}}'' is a computer game, specifically a {{w|first-person shooter}}, released in 2004. In the above comic, [[Cueball]] plays the game in 2009 since newer games usually require more recent and powerful computers which are more costly. However, even a very weak computer developed in 2009 will comfortably run a 2004 game as the technologies are much more likely to "match up". Newer games simply require more CPU power, more RAM and pricier graphics add-ons.
+''{{w|Half-Life 2}}'' is a computer game, specifically a {{w|first-person shooter}}, released in 2004. In the above comic, [[Cueball]] plays the game in 2009. Newer games usually require more powerful computer parts, such as GPUs and RAM. The prices of these computer parts usually start expensive but drop quickly, so even a very cheap computer developed in 2009 will comfortably run a 2004 game.
 Additionally, the price for an older game is considerably less than those of the more recent variety. Even the price of a once-new, highly anticipated {{w|Video game industry#Economics|AAA}} game is almost definitely guaranteed to have fallen due to the presence of newer games and the relative maturity of the present game. Most of the expected sales of a game happen near the release. A game would not be deemed that lucrative after 5 years, prompting a price drop to justify its sales or even printing. Sometimes, a game will be released with several, if not all, expansion packs at a fraction of the price of purchasing them all separately during the initial release.
-However, the downside to Cueball's strategy is that your gaming knowledge will be five years out of date. In a subculture that moves as fast as video games, it's almost impossible for Cueball to embarrass himself harder.
+However, the downside to Cueball's strategy is that his gaming knowledge will be five years out of date. In a subculture that moves as fast as video games, it's almost impossible for Cueball to embarrass himself harder.
-On the last panel, "The cake is a lie" and "This was a triumph" are references to ''{{w|Portal (video game)|Portal}}'', a video game released in late 200'''7'''. The cake references originate from the promises of cake that {{w|GLaDOS}}, a character in the game, makes to the player. Exploring the levels reveals several hiding places that seem to have been used, in one of which the player can find the words "The cake is a lie" repeatedly scrawled on the wall. As predicted, ''Portal'' was indeed considered old-fashioned by early 2013, with the developers themselves stating they were sick and tired of the endlessly parroted jokes. Both ''Portal'' and ''Half-Life 2'' were released by the same company, {{w|Valve Corporation|Valve}}, and ''{{w|Portal 2}}'' was released in 2011.
+On the last panel, "The cake is a lie" and "This was a triumph" are references to ''{{w|Portal (video game)|Portal}}'', a video game released in late 2007. The cake references originate from the promises of cake that {{w|GLaDOS}}, a character in the game, makes to the player. Exploring the levels reveals several hiding places that seem to have been used, in one of which the player can find the words "The cake is a lie" repeatedly scrawled on the wall. As predicted, ''Portal'' was indeed considered old-fashioned by early 2013, with the developers themselves stating they were sick and tired of the endlessly parroted jokes. Both ''Portal'' and ''Half-Life 2'' were released by the same company, {{w|Valve Corporation|Valve}}, and they released ''{{w|Portal 2}}'' in 2011.
 The song "{{w|Still Alive}}", which the lyric "This was a triumph" comes from, was previously referenced in [[375: Pod Bay Doors]], and later referenced in [[1141: Two Years]].
-The title text also points to another flaw in this strategy: multi-player gaming requires other players, so if you play a game five years after everybody else, there's nobody else to play with. It's even worse with online gaming, as the company hosting the online server may have shut it down a long time ago.
+The title text also points to another flaw in this strategy: multi-player gaming requires other players, so if you play a game five years after its release, there's often nobody else to play with. It's even worse with online gaming, as the company hosting the online server may have shut it down a long time ago. However, {{w|StarCraft (video game)|some game communities}} do last longer than others.
 ==Transcript==
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 [[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
 [[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
 [[Category:Video games]]

606: Cutting Edge - Revision history

Sumwun: /* Explanation */

Davidy22: Reverted edits by Explain xkcd server admin (talk) to last revision by 172.69.33.123

Explain xkcd server admin at 21:39, 20 May 2022

172.69.33.123 at 03:30, 12 May 2022

162.158.159.31: Undo revision 266527 by 👖🔥 (talk)

👖🔥 at 17:42, 11 May 2022

Jacky720: rv

Ex Kay Cee Dee at 23:55, 4 May 2022

Jacky720: rv

Ex Kay Cee Dee at 23:54, 4 May 2022