Jenny just recently rediscovered the joys of Tetris, so last week I found myself in the unusual position of hanging around with time on my hands while she was wrapped up in a game.  I looked around the room for something to do, and spotted Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time sitting on a shelf unopened.  It’s probably been there for a good three years; I don’t really go near the ol’ XBox much anymore.  But with nothing to lose I finally cracked the seal and popped the game in. 

Turns out this game is a spiritual successor to the amazing cult classic Ico.  The visual art direction isn’t quite as lustrous, but there are a number of strong parallels. Both games are essentially puzzle platformers in 3D with lots of climbing, jumping, switch triggering, and crate-stacking required to move from one area to the next.  And both take place in and around the sprawling ruins of an abandoned castle.  Most of the action is in the interior chambers, but occasionally you’re forced to crawl along a ledge or scale an exterior wall where a nicely executed skybox gives you a glimpse of the surrounding — also deserted — countryside.

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When I first heard about the EA acquisition of Bioware/Pandemic back on the 11th, I knew I had to say something about the deal.  The news hit me (and a lot of other gamers) like a punch in the gut.  But then came the ALCS playoffs and the World Series, and I promptly forgot all about it.  So has a solid two weeks of hindsight and a beautiful 4-0 BoSox sweep of the Rockies brightned my perspective?  Nope, not really.

Here’s the problem: Bioware has been one of a very small handful of studios that consistently turned out solid, traditional RPG’s with high production values.  With the release of Baldur’s Gate in 1998, Bioware revitalized the AD&D brand and set the new standard for computer role-playing adaptations.  Over the next decade, the company became kind of like a little Disney of CRPG’s, introducing and cementing a number of gameplay elements (e.g. optional plot sidelines exploring the background of party NPC’s, parallel storylines for both “good” and “evil” PCs) that grew to define the genre.

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I don’t care who you are or where you live — unless you’re a Cleveland fan, you’ve got to give it up to the Red Sox for an amazing effort in the ALCS.  The Indians faithful are probably filling up the message boards right now with complaints about the call on Manny’s throw to Pedroia @ second to tag out Kenny Lofton in the top of the 5th.  In the replays, it looks like Lofton got his hand on the bag before the tag connected with his arm, and that would have been a big run for the Tribe.

But that’s really not the defining moment of the game, on either offense or defense.  There’s plenty of competition for that honor, including:

• Lofton being held up at 3rd on Gutierrez’s monster single in the 7th.  That was a sure thing, and nobody to blame but the Indians 3B coach for keeping Lofton from reaching home plate.
• The double play immediately following that hammered two quick nails into Cleveland’s seventh inning coffin, sending the Sox to the plate with Lofton stranded on 3rd and no runs scored for the Indians.
• Papelbon’s coming in to relieve Okajima with two men on and no outs in the 8th — and immediately striking out Hafner with 3 decisive fastballs, then pitching out of the inning with no runs scored.

And although the Red Sox trailed the series 3-1 coming into the 5th game, let’s not forget that the 2nd game was 6-6 until the 11th inning, and Boston wasn’t exactly blown out of the water in the 3rd either (losing 4-2).  The whole Red Sox Nation can feel rightfully proud of the Sox for hanging tough, playing hard, and coming up big when it counted!

Even a Yankees fan would have to admit that the team really got it done against their biggest post-season threat.  Remember, the Indians really picked it up at the end of the regular season, ending with the same 96-66 record as the BoSox.  (And of course the Yankees went down to Cleveland 3-1 in the divisional playoffs, so a Yankees might remember that too.)

If not knowing what I’m reading has been keeping you awake nights, then this post will hit you like a prescription-strength dose of Ambien.  After plowing through Octavia Butler’s “The Kindred” in time for book club late last month, I picked up Rudy Delson’s debut novel, “Maynard & Jennica.”  Full disclosure: I went to school with Rudy about an eon ago, and we were both on the staff of the Stanford Chaparral.  Whether that makes me more likely to praise his writing or mercilessly mock the fruits of his labor in a belated, yet well-meaning display of bonhomie is (so far) up in the air.

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I didn’t watch this game live.  What was the point?  Stanford’s been playing at the absolute bottom of the PAC-10, their sole win this season coming in a non-conference game against San Jose State.  It’s never fun to watch your team play poorly, especially when they’re likely to be manhandled by a powerhouse team like USC. 

To add injury to insult, T.C. Ostrander (Stanford’s starting QB) was sidelined by a seizure earlier in the week, so Tavita Pritchard made his first start as QB in an NCAA game.  Before the USC game, Pritchard had made a grand total of three passes for Stanford. So the 41-point spread didn’t really seem too farfetched.

Of course, the outcome of the game is now the biggest sports story of the weekend.  Thank God Jason had the game on PVR, so I got a chance to see what I’d missed.  I’m not going to even try to give a blow-by-blow breakdown of the game, but I do have to say that despite the freakishness of this win (I don’t expect to see Stanford steadily climbing through the ranks of the PAC-10 over the rest of the season), this wasn’t entirely a case of USC beating themselves.

Yes, there were dropped passes that probably cost the Trojans around 10 points.  But Stanford’s defense was phenomenal, including two HUGE plays: a blocked field goal on USC’s first TD that made this game a legendary upset instead of just a cautionary dodged-bullet tale in overtime, and an incredible goal-line stand preventing USC from scoring just before the end of the half.

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Gamespot had some nice things to say about the new Xbox360 shooter “The Darkness,” so I added it to my Gamefly queue and took it for a spin.  The sense of atmosphere in this game is terrific, and the beautiful artistic style makes an otherwise mediocre title into an enjoyable experience.

The Darkness has a lot going for it graphically.  The textures are absolutely stunning, from the writhing tentacles on the title screen to the hundreds of subtle variations on stone and tile that cover building exteriors.  The lighting is incredible too: harsh fluorescents, warm floor lamps, and tinted vapor bulbs bathe scenes in a varied palette of lifelike tones.  Several times I’d get off the in-game subway and just stand around idly for a second before realizing the game was live again.  The hazy glow of overhead lighting reflecting from ceramic tiles onto dirty brick looked so good that I assumed I was still in a pre-rendered transition cutscene.

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Apparently the 40-ft wooden namesake effigy of the Burning Man festival got torched a little early this year;  presumably the timing of the fire was chosen to coincide with the lunar eclipse.   So is this an act of vandalism that spoils everyone else’s party?  Or is it a spontaneous bit of creativity that truly exemplifies the spirit of the festival?

I’m leaning toward the latter.  Yes, it’s disruptive and destructive, and if you’d planned out your circle dance and mud-painting for the appointed hour of conflagration, you’re going to feel cheated.  But I always thought that Burning Man was supposed to celebrate a kind of benevolent socialistic anarchy, a self-organizing commune unbound from the restrictions of a bureaucratic society.  It’s not like the Superbowl half-time show, or the apple drop in Times Square.  At least, it’s not supposed to be, right?

According to the Burning Man website, the 10 principles of Burning Man are:
Radical Inclusion, Gifting, Decommodification. Radical Self-reliance, Communal Effort, Civic Responsibility, Leaving No Trace, Participation, and Immediacy.  So let’s break this down and see how well it fits those principles.  Here’s my report card on the early burning (skipping those tenets for which there’s no real relevance either way):

Radical Inclusion:                 C
On the one hand, not as many people get to participate in the bonfire ceremony.  On the other hand, “no prerequisites exist for participation” sounds like it’s not about setting your alarm for the party either.  Radical inclusion should embrace non-conforming individuals, even at the expense of communal consensus.  Maybe especially at the expense of communal consensus.  I call this a wash.

Radical self-reliance:            A
It’s all about the individual, baby.

Radical self-expression:      A+
This act doesn’t just defy the cultural norms of the city hives in a comfortable, officially sanctioned (and hence largely meaningless way).  It flouts the rules and regulations of the festival itself.  ¡Viva la revolución!

Communal Effort:                 F
It’s a rude slap in the face to cooperation and collaboration.

Civic Responsibility:            D
Clearly breaches the rules imposed by the festival organizers.  The only thing saving it from a complete F is that public welfare and safety aren’t at risk.

Participation:                      C
It’s transformative change, sure, and actions speak louder than words.  But not everyone gets invited.

Immediacy:                         A
“Immediate experience is, in many ways, the most important touchstone of value in our culture.”  Well there you go – carpe diem.

Overall grade:                   B-
It’s not a home run, but definitely a passing grade.  I don’t expect the organizers of the festival to see it this way… that’s part of the problem with trying to brand and commercialize counter-culture.  Before you know it, you ARE the man, and you’re sticking it to yourself.

I don’t watch much TV.  I haven’t subscribed to cable for about ten years, and other than the occasional longing for the History Channel, I don’t miss it.  I get the local networks in HD over the air, catch up on the good HBO/Showtime series on Netflix, and that’s and about all I need.

But last night I was flipping through the channels looking for something to distract me while I waited for the media PC to finish backing up, and I came across Bill Moyer’s Journal.  The topic was the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina: what have we learned, and what should we be doing about it today.   It was a good discussion, with some very interesting points made about both the political and environmental climate of New Orleans.  The show was too short to address any of this in-depth, but there were plenty of leads you can follow up on yourself.  Take a sec to watch a bit of the program (or read the transcript) here.

On a slightly different note, a one of the program comments on the PBS site says:

…the discussion was unfortunately sidetracked by the extraneous comments about “enslavement” and Melissa Harris-Lacewell’s grandstanding about being a black woman who has made it.

WTF!?  First off, I was really impressed with Melissa Harris-Lacewell in general: she was an articulate, insightful, and vibrant contributor to the discussion.  And secondly, what’s with the scare quotes on enslavement!?!

…stay outta da kitchen!

I’ve got a bunch of “foodie” friends, so I’m at least peripherally aware of the reality TV show Hell’s Kitchen.  It’s like The Apprentice, but for cooks.  Some hot-shot head chef (with an ego all puffed up like a fresh-baked souffle) bullies, insults, and throws temper tantrums at the aspiring chef constestants.  I haven’t watched the show, but don’t really have a bone to pick with it either.  At least someone’s skill in preparing dishes seems to say more about their chances of success as a head-chef than, say, selling lemonade in a miniskirt can tell you about a future corporate veep.

But what caught my eye the other day was a promo for a spin-off series called “Kitchen Nightmares.”  The setup is essentially the same, except that instead of bitching out eager aspirants, the same guy apparently heads to established restaurants and gives an equally over-the-top dressing down to the actual chefs working the kitchen there.  The 30-second promo highlighted a near-fistfight, an in-your-face tantrum, and lots of tossing around of pots and pans.  So let’s see… on the plus side, these restaurants get some national attention under the “no such thing as bad press” mantra.  And on the down side, that coverage consists of their being trashed & humiliated by a prima-donna.

I guess it all started with Simon Cowell on American Idol, at least as far as the US market is concerned.  But I’m a little disappointed in how much folks apparently love to tune in and watch people get verbally ripped apart.  There’s really no other reason to watch “Kitchen Nightmares.”  There’s no dark horse to root for in an ever-winnowing pack of contestants.  There’s no smug asshole who you can’t wait to see get booted out.  The only asshole is the star who’s running the show.

Maybe I’m going out on a limb, but I bet this guy isn’t such a total prick in real life.  This is all about ratings, and apparently Fox thinks more yelling == more ratings.  The sad thing is, they’re probably right.  Boo on us.

“You’re thinking of this place all wrong. As if I had the money back in a safe. The money’s not here!” – George Bailey, It’s a Wonderful Life

I’m a little behind on news, and I just saw this article in Technology Review this morning. In a nutshell, there’s a crisis of capital for the so-called banks of Second Life. (I say “so-called,” because although you can put money in, there’s really nothing guaranteeing that you can take it out again. The FDIC doesn’t insure Linden savings & loans.) Apparently it was triggered by a recent ban on gambling in Second Life, which immediately led to the pullout of the big cash depositors: the (former) casino operators.

Now there’s a bunch of trenchant observations begging to be made about this situation, and the Technology Review article touches on a number of angles: the lack of regulation in “virtual banking,” the potential opportunities for far-sighted entrepreneurs to get in on the ground floor of a whole new economy, the gradual perforation of the barriers between the virtual world and the real world, etc. etc.

But what I found most fascinating about the whole business was the user commentary following the article. (It’s worth noting, by the way, the relative dearth of name-calling and pointless flames in there. Whether this is due to a higher caliber of reader than just about every other site on the Web, stringent moderators, or just a general lack of traffic to the article, I can’t say.)

“Now, we can get through this thing all right. We’ve got to stick together, though. We’ve got to have faith in each other.” – George Bailey, again

There aren’t a ton of comments here – only are a couple dozen at the time I’m blogging this – but check out the number of Second Life advocates, and read what they’re saying. Essentially they blame the RL (that’s “real life”) media for creating the problem, grouse about how the naysayers are looking for any excuse to pooh-pooh what they obviously don’t understand (i.e. the future of the metaverse, of which SL is a harbinger), and patiently explain how in-game returns of 40%+ APR are eminently feasible given the lack of brick-and-mortar overhead of purely virtual banks.  Suddenly the 5.5% APR I’m getting from PayPal feels like a huge ripoff! (Anyone else remember First Citywide Change Bank?)

I know I’ll come off as snide & pedantic by saying this (and I guess it wouldn’t be the first time either), but I abso-freakin-lutely LUV reading this stuff! The capacity for folks to cocoon up and explain away the signs of trouble is limited only by the intensity of their emotional need to really, really believe everything’s going to be OK. And it’s easy to laugh at the little computer-geeks and their pretend money, but think for a second about the US exchanges. Look at the debt instruments and credit assumptions that have been propping achievements like the Dow’s recent climb to 14,000. Are the bulls in that market any better?

Hey, wait… pretty much all my money is invested in those same markets. Crap. I’m going to go cry now…

P.S.  Here’s a quick update on the situation: virtual bankruptcy/liquidation. I almost feel bad for Gwyneth Llewelyn. Almost.