E3

Oui OuiThat E3 expo thing opens today — conferences and hype began earlier, of course. (I dunno, it’s some game thing, supposed to be good for you.)

Few things I thought of this week: #1 – I’m not big on the future. I’m not much interested in what I might be able to buy some day. Tell me what I can buy NOW.

#2 – I hope no one ever writes a book called The Mathematics of Multiplayer Online Gaming because what a snooze that would be.

#3 – Please, please, please announce the new Alliance race for the World of Warcraft expansion soon. I’m not much interested, but I’m tired of the speculation and rumors. We all are. End it already. (UPDATE: Thank God that’s over. It’s Draenei. NYT wouldn’t print it if it wasn’t true. Also, longish NYT interview with Blizzard’s (Tigole) Jeff Kaplan.)

#4 – There’s no way in Hell I will spend $500 and change on a game system unless it will blow me too. What functions could said system possibly perform, short of the aforementioned blowing, that my other pieces of electronica can’t do already? None, that’s what.

#5 – This porta-crapper reminded me of the new Nintendo controller, Wii, the subject of much hype-o-drama at the E3 this year. I came back the next day to get a photo. That’s how dedicated to my craft I am.

They Make the News

I absolutely loved this story from last week, from Philadelphia’s Channel 6 ACTION!!!! News: The Nintendo DS System, which, according to the crack team of reporters at Channel 6 ACTION!!! News, can and is being used by creepy adults to stalk budding artists like 11 year-old Emily Keel. Here’s the punchline: even according to ACTION!!! News’ own web writeup, the creeps “… must also be using another DS system and be within 65 feet.” Umm, maybe that crack team of reporters could have scouted around Emily’s neighborhood and caught the stalker in the bushes. Or, they could stop making up stuff. ACTION!!! News had contacted GamerDad’s David Long about Pictochat, Emily’s preferred DS app, before their report aired. Long writes: “I also said at least three or four times that Pictochat was not Internet enabled …” and “I stated specifically that Pictochat would still not work because it doesn’t ever make any connection with a network as it has no means of connecting to an Internet Service Provider (ISP).” I still wish ACTION!!! News would have taken a walk around Emily’s ‘hood, beating the bushes, looking for the creepy DS stalker. (Originally tipped to this story at buttonmashing: Poor Reporting.)