The greatest bears in gaming
Posted: 2007-04-01 12:21pm
Ars technica is on a Bears roll
In the world of gaming, there are very few animals that have served to changed the very fabric of our hobby. Hedgehogs, maybe? Echidnas? You could argue about a few animals, sure, but the one animal we can be sure of is the bear. The proud bear has changed gaming on more than one occasion, and it's a tradition that we're happy to include in our coverage this Sunday. Let's take a look at some of the greatest bears in gaming.
Ghost Bear
Clan Ghost Bear serve as the focus for a Mechwarrior 2 expansion pack, and I can think of no other clan that so fits its name. Let's take a look at how this clan came by its name:
In a mountain cave, waiting for death, they encountered a ghost bear. Despite their circumstance, they would not go quietly, and roared a defiant challenge at the bear. The bear did not attack, but circled and investigated until the pair, succumbing to cold and hunger, collapsed into unconsciousness. For unknown reasons, the bear did not take them as prey while they slept, but warmed them with its body, and upon waking, brought them fresh meat to eat. For three days it tended them this way, until they regained their strength. Upon emerging from their shelter, they found they had not been adopted by a solitary hunter, but by a pack.
Inspired, they returned to the Founder and argued for the clans to embrace the virtues of family and communal strength as a supplement to that of the individual. Hearing their tale, he granted their request to remain together, and honored their wilderness trial by naming their clan 'Ghost Bear'.
Beautiful. The Bear brings us all together and allows us to better shoot missiles at other mechs.
Hunting bears on The Oregon Trail
Making the trip to Oregon was not for the faint of heart. From having to make your way across rivers, to suffering from dysentery, to giggling at the silly names your classmates put on the gravestones you passed, it was an intense gaming experience. While Native Americans at the time may have become famous for using every part of the buffalo, the white man making the trek to Oregon was able to do no such thing. If you became hungry you could enjoy the hunting minigame and shoot everything in sight. Of course, after the smoke cleared and you found that a few tons of meat were available, you could only carry back a small portion of it. The rest, apparently, rotted or was food for scavengers.
The travelers on The Oregon Trail were rarely conservationists, but they did love shooting the proud bear. The animal served as a dire warning to the slash-and-burn mentality of school children everywhere, and today whenever we consider buying 500 lbs. of meat and only carrying 10 lbs. out to our car we stop and say "No!" Because of the bear.
Extreme Sports with The Berenstein Bears
Bears live with their families and tell engrossing stories with good life lessons. This I know is true. What you might not have known was that they also take part in extreme sports on long-dead portables like the GameBoy Color. While the game didn't reach the same level of success that other bear-related games did, we'll always remember it for... including bears in the title.
And for this we are grateful.
Brother Bear
He was a bear, he was a brother, and he was in a forgettable movie. The game was made better simply by being about bears, which proves that this majestic creature can cause even the lamest of tie-in games to be elevated to the ranks of greatness, proven by the game's inclusion on this list.
Circular logic, or proof? YOU DECIDE.
The Shadow Man Teddy Bear
As you straddle the dark stream of despair between life and death you need a powerful talisman to allow you to move between the two worlds with ease. Mike LeRoi had such a potent item in the Shadow Man game, and it was a Teddy Bear. The bear is known for its magical abilities, and this seems to extend to toy-based extensions of the bear's spirit.
I'm sure I have left out a few; this is just the beginning of all the great things bears have given us in gaming. Can you think of any more? By honoring the bear we honor ourselves, and the proud tradition of large animals in games.
