Foreword : A recent PressSpotting article talked about the coverage of professional gaming, which prompted this entry. If you have not read it already, I recommend you do so before reading this. Please note that this is long; I intended to break it up into multiple parts, but felt some questions might be raised in one part that would be addressed in another, so I have submitted it as one entry.

Gaming as sport
One area of contention appears to be simply referring to professional gaming as sport at all. I took a look at wikipedia for some definitions. An excerpt from the Sport entry:
Sport is an activity that is governed by a set of rules or customs and often engaged in competitively. Sports commonly refer to activities where the physical capabilities of the competitor are the sole or primary determiner of the outcome (winning or losing), but the term is also used to include activities such as mind sports (a common name for some card games and board games with little to no element of chance) and motor sports where mental acuity or equipment quality are major factors.

According to these criteria, I would consider competitive video gaming to be a little bit of physical capabilities (mainly reaction times and co-ordination) plus a lot of qualities you would need for mind games. Some comments in other related sports articles also seem to be analogous with video games. From Professional Sports:
Most sports played professionally also have amateur players far outnumbering the professionals. Professional athleticism is seen by some as a contradiction of the central ethos of sport, competition performed for its own sake and pure enjoyment, rather than as a means of earning a living.

That sounds pretty analogous to me. I've heard of people who have the skills and opportunity to play professional football, but they choose not to because they didn't want to lose the love of the game; they wanted to play because they loved the game, not because they wanted the big bucks, or were obligated to train and play at certain times. I'm sure there are video gamers who have the skill to be professional gamers, but may not enjoy sticking with one game for an extended period of time to learn all of it's nuances, even if it meant the potential to earn income. They may rather just move on to another game instead.

The entry for poker, which is certainly non-physical, also specifically mentions it as a sport:
Poker's popularity experienced an unprecedented spike at the beginning of the 21st century, largely because of the introduction of online poker and the invention of the hole-card camera, which turned the game into a spectator sport.

Poker is a game of odds, where professional players (presumably) can figure out the odds of certain hands coming up. They also have to consider the play sty1e of other players at their table. I don't see how professional video gaming can be seen much differently. The main difference is that video gamers (in most games at least) are constantly making decisions as opposed to the singular large decisions made in poker, but I think that should be to the gamers credit. Take a first person shooter for example. You could be constantly weighing up which weapons and ammo you have, where your opponents are, where you think your opponents are if you can't see them, which weapons they have, which weapons you want to acquire, and the safest way of doing so, etc. You also have to use your skills of perception to determine how your opponent(s) are playing, and see if there is a particular pattern that you can use to your advantage.

So the evidence is that professional gaming, where players primary goal is to win and earn money at the highest level (regardless of whether they are having fun at the same time or not) could be considered sport. That said, I'm quite content to just call it professional gaming. Note that I think it is quite possible for someone to be exceptional at games without liking them. Before anyone asks why would you bother if that was the case, look at people working in jobs. They do it for the money. I know some people say they like their job, but if they no longer got paid, do they like it enough to make it into a hobby? In most cases, probably not. If someone can be good enough at games to earn money from them, regardless of whether they enjoy it or not, how is that terribly different from a job?

What needs to happen to move forward?
I confess to only have a vague idea about how professional gaming is currently run, but I imagine it is mostly scattered tournaments without any overarching structure. I think the implementation of such structure is what will progress professional gaming over the next decade.

The tournament template I got my inspiration from was from another game; Magic : The Gathering, a collectible card game (hereafter referred to as MTG). I used to play casually, but I did follow coverage of their tournaments, which was known as "The Pro Tour" (note that I haven't followed this for over a year, so this information may be outdated, but still provides a good template). Players would play in regional tournaments, and top players would be invited to Pro Tour events, which I think was about 8 per year. Ranking highly in the Pro events earned you Pro points, and those with sufficient Pro points received automatic invites to future Pro events. Last I recall, Wizards of the Coast (MTG's owner) gave away $2million in prize money each year on the Pro Tour, and began offering free flights to the highest ranked players (Pro Tour events occurred all over the world). They also ran some other tournaments outside of the Pro Tour that complemented it.

The Pro Tour for MTG has one huge advantage over video games; it is a single game owned by one company, and the Pro Tour is governed and funded by that company. Even if we only include high profile ones, hundreds of video games are released by dozens of companies each year.

I don't pretend to know the entire purpose of the ESA, but I think they might be in the prime position to implement the tournament structure. First up, they make a 12 month dollar commitment as prizes. I don't know how much this should be, feasibility studies on all the factors would be required. I'll talk about games selection in a minute, but we will go over structure first.

Players interested in playing a Pro event need to play at regionals. These could be team events or individual (more on that later). Players would need to pay a fee to enter these events. Presumably these fees would cover the prize money and the cost of hosting the event. Also presumably, players would be willing to pay the fee for the chance to not only win some of the prize money at the regional event, but to be invited to a Pro event, where the promise of bigger dollars lie.

Pro events would need to be high profile and well presented, and be an event run like any of the major game days we see. Plenty of big screens for spectators to watch, professional commentators as the game unfolds, and well planned camera cuts between commentators, players and the onscreen action. Perhaps interviews with players after they finish a game to gain some insight as to what they were thinking when they played, how tense it was, and whether they learned anything. To add some variety, other activities could be available to the public. Developers could buy floor space to show off upcoming games, much like current game days. Perhaps the public could play biased matches against some of the Pro players who have been knocked out in early rounds, for example a Pro player vs a team of 2 or 3 in a FPS or RTS game.

To go over a problem I briefly presented earlier, which games are going to be played? That's a tough one. For such an event to survive, the games need to be the ones that people want to play, and that spectators are interested in watching. I expect that some sort of public voting would be required. I think publishers of the games might need to be asked to pony up some cash to sponsor the game, but that could be a challenge. It could also be a great opportunity for developers to preview a new game as an opening exhibition match. Let all the players participating in the event try out the multiplayer in a new game before its release. It gives the game some pretty big exposure, and potentially a game that those Pro players might recommend join the roster of regular games played.

I think figuring out the choice of games, or more importantly how they are chosen, will be the make or break for any such series of events. Remember that these events will have to be planned well in advance, and the games, maps (if applicable) and rules will need to be locked down ahead of schedule. It might be interesting to have each Pro event focus on only one game, and have an annual major event that takes place over a few days, where the gamers play multiple games over different genres, and have points tallied up to determine their success as an overall gamer.

Who is the audience? What do they want to see?
One of the questions raised in the original article was, who is the audience for professional gaming? If it is going to be turned into a spectator event, what is the demographic? I think I'm one of them. In the comments, several people commented that they would rather play games than watch others play them. I think people will watch professional gaming for the same reason some people watch professional physical sports; to witness a display of skill that we can not match. It's also an opportunity to learn tactics from some of the best.

I agree with the person in the article; I would much prefer to watch teams play than individuals. This would show how critical communication is in teamwork, how certain players are designated roles in certain games and how it impacts the teams performance, and generally brings a social aspect to the gaming at hand. This is likely to be more unique to spectators, as they may not have been able to participate in such highly organised teamwork while playing the same game. The most popular physical sports are all team games.

As I said earlier, I think coverage of such events needs to be the right mix of ingame footage, cameras on players, interviews or snippets between rounds/games, and professional commentary. I'd like to hear about what players are thinking about when they are playing or what strategy they will adopt for the next match, I'd like to hear commentators giving us a rundown of what team tactics are being used during play, and I'd like to see recaps of awesome moments in the game.

Closing Notes
Another thing that I think will be part of this evolution is that more game developers will begin to add tournament options into their games. An example of such a feature is Battlecast, which was included in Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars for the PC. Features like the movie making in Halo 3 will be more common place, so players and teams can review their tactics. In addition to standard features such as leaderboard tracking across maps and modes, I'd like to see features that would enhance spectating in the tournament environment. In FPS, an overhead map that displayed the location of all players could give spectators a better idea of the flow of the game. Similarly a fully revealed map on RTS games for a commentator or tournament organiser to explore would be great.

Whether you consider it a sport or not, I think professional gaming is set to grow and gain acceptance. A structured tournament environment would allow both professional players and spectators an easier way to track the world of professional gaming. Perhaps that is one of the factors holding it back; any news we hear about game tournaments is lost on most of us because we can't relate to a bigger overall picture.

What are your thoughts? Do you think an overarching structure to tournaments are the way to grow professional gaming? Is there another way? If we are looking at interlinked series of events, what are the best options for determining which games are going to be played? If you were going to spectate live, what would you like to see? If you were going to spectate from home, what would you like to see?

Play Protector at Kongregate

Protector is Tower Defense strategy RPG flash game, which has a bare bones story. The land is under attack, and it is up to you to set up defenses to make sure enemies don't make it through. That's pretty much it, but it is all you need to give you a world map and serves as a reason for the meat of the game; the strategy. A few easy maps are available to play from the outset. As you complete maps, more of the world becomes available to explore and play. Therefore you don't need to play them in a specific order, though you will likely want to finish all the easy maps before moving onto medium ones, and finish those before moving onto the hard ones.

The brains on the other side of the map must be more tasty than those of your mages.

Once you start a map, you survey the isometric grid, figure out where to place your men on any available tiles, and start hiring troops with your starting gold. There are 5 basic unit types; the 4 mages are virtually identical, except for their elemental alignment and specials (more on those later), while Dexers are the fighters, who have less range and can't hit flying enemies, but have more raw power. Once you are ready, you can launch the first wave, and have the enemy run along a set course through the map (sometimes through multiple entry and exit points), getting blasted by your mages or hacked by your Dexers. Your troops gain experience points based on how much damage they deal (not on kills), and you gain gold for each enemy killed. Should an enemy make it through your defenses, you lose a life. The amount of lives you have differs on each map, and if you lose them all, you have to start the map again.

Once the first wave is over, you can hire more troops, or if they have earned enough experience, level up the ones already on the field. Troops that have earned the requisite experience are surrounded by a red aura and easily discernable. Leveling up troops also costs gold, so you will have to decide whether it's more important to level up, or to place fresh troops. Further adding variety is that each time you level up one your troops, you can do so generally, or focus on their specialty. Each time you upgrade their specialty, they get a smaller damage increase than normal, but increase the power of their special attack. For example, specialty blue mages slow down enemies, which allows nearby troops to attack them for longer; the more specialised a blue mage is, the slower he is able to make the enemy. Good placement and management of specialty troops can make a great difference in the later maps.

Each wave of enemies also has an elemental strength and weakness. As should be obvious, they take less damage from attacks that match their strength, and more damage from attacks that match their weakness. A bar at the bottom of the map lays out the sequence of the waves, and they are coloured in their elemental strength, which you can use as a guide to think ahead. You can click on a particular wave to get a few more details about that enemy, if you also want to plan a few waves ahead to exploit its weakness. Enemies can also have abilities, such as flying, absorbing (which gives them a few hit points when hit by their elemental strength instead of just reducing the damage) and regenerating, as well as having immunities to certain specialties.

The first time you beat a map, you earn a skill point. Skill points can be spent on a basic tech tree that upgrades certain types of troops, unlocks advanced units, and a few other abilities. While I used the advanced units to test them out, they are much more expensive to buy and upgrade than regular units, and didn't feel like value for money. You will need to earn some skills points before you can tackle the harder levels (I failed a number of times on my first medium map before I realised this feature existed!). You can always reassign your skill points between maps, so you don't need to worry about long-term ramifications of choosing your skills.

All of these different gameplay elements add up to allow you to think of various strategies to go about beating a map. Do you pour all your skill points into upgrading one type of troop and spam the map with them? Do you place troops at the back of the map and work forwards, before units at the front soak up all the experience, or build a really strong frontline? Do you put more troops on the map, or upgrade the ones you have? What is the best placement to upgrade specialty troops, and make the most advantage of their skills? How will the decisions I make now affect me in several waves time? These are all questions you will ponder on each map. The maps and the paths the enemies take are varied enough that each offer their own puzzle.

The game is great fun while you are learning the units, how their specials work, and what mix you need to deal with the enemies at hand. In the early game, I felt the learning curve was spot on while learning all these skills. Towards the end of the medium maps, I did find that the challenge was beginning to drop, partly because most maps featured no or only a few waves of a particular element, making it easy to focus on one troop type, and there seemed to be too large room for error. So I looked forward to getting into the hard maps, hoping that the wave patterns would mix it up and have no obvious weakness that could be exploited for the entire map. Unfortunately most of the hard wave sequences were copied verbatim from other maps, meaning most of the same strategies you used before would work here again. You certainly had to be a little more careful how you placed your troops and spent your money in the first several waves, but I often reached a point where I felt there was little chance of me losing the map. As I was playing the final hard map, I hoped there was an ultrahard map to unlock, but alas this is where the game ends.

The game does also score you depending on how well you are doing. The notes on scoring are a little ambiguous, but it does give you a reason to play maps again to go for a higher score. It appears the best bonuses are based on how much money and many lives you have left at the end of each wave, which is incentive to have just enough firepower on the board to take out the current wave, and therein lies the challenge. You won't want to worry about this until after you have completed the game, as the skill point system will factor heavily into improving your score. There is an option to submit your high score and view scores*. It should also be noted that the game saves automatically presumably in cookies*, and allows you to continue the next time you load up the game. This is an essential feature, as you will get at least 10 hours of gameplay.

This is a very enjoyable and accessible game for those who enjoy forward thinking, thinking about all the variables, and want to solve the puzzle presented on each map. It's main shortcomings are the lack of challenge and need to explore new strategies towards the latter parts of the game, but it is still worth seeing all the way through. With some polish, a better difficulty curve, and a few more maps, I think this game has potential as a game for any of the major downloadable services currently available. It costs nothing to try, and is perfect for a bit of strategy during your work lunch break.

* I used Internet Explorer, and did not play on Kongregate's own page for Protector, and the score submission process did not work for me; I imagine it will work on Kongregate's own site.

I was rather excited when Developer for a Day was announced. I'd had an idea for a game (or more specifically, a set of game mechanics) for a while, and I thought this was a great opportunity to present it. I got several pages in, and then it was hard going. Game systems can play out well in your head, but sometimes getting the idea across on paper is a lot harder. What was more difficult is that the game systems had to exist in an actual game, with characters, a story, and a reason to use said game mechanics. I got a bit stuck, had another idea, worked on a bit, but didn't finish it. I could have, but just didn't apply myself. So I thought I would share those ideas, and a few others.

Action RPG mechanic
Yes, that's a pretty generic title, but the game never had a name. My mechanic was a different take on magic systems, and types of spells. While traditional attack spells and melee attacks would exist in the game, I wanted the focus to be on summoning monsters to attack alongside you. The catch was that the monsters would cost a little mana to cast, but also drain mana for as long as they remain by your side. Do you summon 4 lesser monsters, or 1 large monster? Do you summon monsters that drain your mana at the same pace as it regenerates, or summon more powerful monsters and hope the battle finishes before you run out of mana?

The role-playing element would come into play with your standard level up, which increases the amount your mana regenerates, thus allowing you to summon more monsters or larger monsters that you would learn throughout the game. The spells themselves would also have a level-up system similar to what was in Baldur's Gate 2 : Dark Alliance. When you levelled up, you would earn points that could be used to improve your monster spells, such as making them stronger, drain less mana, and learn new attacks.

Which brings me to the third part of the equation. Monsters can be set to have different behaviours. Monsters can guard you and not leave your side, can be aggressive and hunt down enemies, or other monster-specific abilities. For example, an Imp that had a 'run and gun' tactic, where it would whiz past enemies with a light attack, but would also be hard for enemies to hit or chase, and a Phoenix that had an 'explosion' attack, where it would, well, explode. Those were the core elements that I was excited about, but once I started writing the document, I had a hard time actually putting it into a game, and making a story and mission progress mesh was the hard part. I could do it, but I would need more time than I had.

Dual-Stick Unreal Tournament
Not actual Unreal Tournament made into a top-down dual stick shooter, but that was certainly my inspiration. We've seen plenty of Dual-Stick shooters. Most of them are of the more arcade variety, where enemies appear, and you take a billion of them down, whether in an enclosed space like Geometry Wars, or a scrolling shooter like Assault Heroes. Undertow is the only dual-stick shooter I can think of that adopted one of the standard modes of Unreal Tournament (Domination).

My game applied most of the team modes of Unreal Tournament (team deathmatch, Capture the Flag), in a league setting. But you also had to manage your team. AI players that you hire would have different attributes, such as speed, accuracy and health; the match type might affect your choices. For example, you may choose the fastest player to be a flag runner for CTF matches. You would also be sponsored by different companies. The level of sponsorship dictates how much money you have to spend before each match. At the beginning of each round, you get to buy weapons and equipment for your team. As well as traditional weapons and armour, you can also buy placements, which are placed before a round begins; turrets, health pods, ammo dispensers, and the like. Of course, these can be destroyed by the enemy.

While you control the team captain on the battlefield, you can also control your AI teammates, and assign them behaviours (my theory for controls was having a corresponding face button for each teammate and using a radial menu). For example, the aforementioned fast player could be assigned CTF duty, a couple of other players can be set to follow him to protect him, while the rest stick to defending the flag.

All the rest of the ideas are fairly standard. Plenty of multiplayer modes, drop in/drop out co-op, and boss-type fights to advance to the next grade in the league are a couple of other features. I think this could make for a great XBLA or PSN game.

Resident Evil 4 Multiplayer
Yeah, this is a mode rather than a game, but I knew I wouldn't have it in me to design something that wasn't an exact rip-off. All I want is Resident Evil 4 controls, enemies, and atmosphere, and give it co-op multiplayer. A few additional tweaks could keep the same tension. Players would need to be able to share weapons and ammo, and weapon placement would have to be designed in such a way that throwing them to other players becomes a must. Level design would of course be tantamount to the success of such a endeavour.

Vampires Take Over The World!
I have no idea what genre this game would be. I think it would be interesting storywise to be the head of the vampires, bent on building up an army and taking back the Earth. Real-time strategy? I don't know. Not sure what you would do for vampire units, I guess you would have to introduce your own mythology so that you have more options for units. Turn-based strategy RPG? Maybe. Perhaps it could take place in the near future where vampires have already ravaged many cities, and now the resistance is fighting back. You can take control of a particular pack of vampires that go from city to city to 'clean up'. This would allow for character development, which would be lacking in an RTS. Not sure what other genres would really fit.

Hoverboard Racing/Combat
I've had this in mind ever since the Wii's Balance Board was announced. I want to be on a hoverboard in F-Zero sty1e going around a futuristic race track. I want to collect weapons, use my nuchuck to free-look, and my remote to aim those weapons at other racers. Some sort of grapple system that lets you swing faster around corners would also be awesome. Developers, please make this game happen.

So, do you have any ideas for games? Soph obviously does; congrats on the Developer 4 a Day finals, I guess we will hear about your game soon! And raven has shared an idea or two. I've got a couple of other ideas in mind, but maybe if I actually work on them, I might have one of them finished for next years Developer For a Day!

This is an entry for a short story competition for the Monkeys Writing Shakespeare Union.

Two of the Regal Guard stepped from the passage into the entryway to the main chamber of the Great Basilica. Their mane and fur was trimmed short, in accordance with their position. They crossed the high-ceilinged chamber, walking in perfect synchrony, their lightweight armour clinking quietly in time, yet echoing across the otherwise quiet hall. They walked between the vaults that held the high ceiling in place, some fifty feet above them. They approached the throne on its raised platform, both carved exquisitely from marble.

"Ellendreel," one of the Guard addressed the person upon the throne as he knelt and bowed his head, while the other stood his vigil.

"You may rise," intoned the seated man, in a calm and collected voice. As always, his tone was confident; in the time they had known the Ellendreel, he had never lost his temper, and the only time his voice became excited and betrayed much emotion was during Acts of Suppression. The Guard rose, and the Ellendreel could tell he was nervous from his uncertainty as he began.

"A... A man seeks your counsel. Tseone has come to seek an audience." The Ellendreel's face gave away no emotion. His deep, almost-white eyes did not flicker nor did his brown pupils dilate. He sat regally upon the throne, his arms laid down on the armrests, palms curled around the marble ends. His white-grey mane was pulled back and tied near the back of his neck. The hairs of his chin were braided, a custom of those in his position.

"And he shall have it," the Ellendreel said without pause.

The Guard hesitated as he stared momentarily. "He... Tseone has requested the right to bear arms in the Basilica."

"And he shall have it," the Ellendreel repeated, with more conviction in his voice, a tone that indicated this statement was not to be questioned.

The Guard stared momentarily with his mouth slightly agape, as realisation dawned on him. "I understand. May the virtues of our ancestors guide you."

"Before you take your leave," the Ellendreel began as he stood from the throne, "I would have you deliver a message to the Council of La Vesh." He reached into the cream robe he was wearing and pulled out an envelope, stepped forward from the platform and gave it to the Guard. "Please do not return until Tseone has left. I give him free passage." The Ellendreel turned back to the throne, and swung out his coattails before seating himself once more.

"Yes, your Holiness." The Guards, both the speaker and the one who had remained silent throughout, turned and left at their normal pace back the way they had come.

It was not long after they had left that another figure entered the chamber, from the same way the Guards had left. His name was Tseone. He was lightly garbed, wearing what appeared to be a leather overcoat, lightweight while offering some protection from combat. His fur was a very pale yellow. His hair, both the top of his head and the greying strands on his chin, were not untidy yet obviously not well treated. Two of his teeth protruded slightly from his lips, though this was not a sign of anger; perhaps a good half of their race had a similar trait. A scabbard hung from his side, and its condition indicated it was far better looked after than its owner. It was safe to assume that the sword residing within it would be equally well looked after.

He paused only momentarily to look from one side of the Main of the Basilica to the other, then strode across the open space between himself and the throne, until he was perhaps a dozen paces from it. Meanwhile, the Ellendreel had not moved.

"Orden", the newcomer addressed the seated figure.

"Tseone," the Ellendreel responded in kind. "I wondered how long it would take you." There was a momentary silence, then he slowly rose, and with a deliberate pace walked down the three steps that separated the main floor from the throne. Again there was a momentary silence before Orden continued.

"How is Ralina?" There was the slightest crack in his voice, one that only Tseone recognised, given their history.

"She fares well enough for one with a broken heart."

Orden's head fell to look at Tseone's feet, his first open show of emotion for many months, an indication of his shame.

"I had hoped she would have forgotten about me, and found another. I did not wish her heart to be filled with emptiness." Tseone merely nodded in response.

After another brief pause, Orden nodded to the scabbard at Tseone's side. "May I?"

Without a word, Tseone drew the blade to the sound of the slightest whisper, reversed the sword, took a few steps forward and offered the blade to Orden.

Orden took the blade carefully, and tested its weight. As he had suspected, the straight blade was perfect, and had been looked after. "Another of Jarrod's creations I take it?" The words were meanlingless, for he already knew the answer. Tseone nodded in response. Orden reached towards the back of his robe with his free hand; Tseone did not flinch. Orden brought forward one of the silk tails of his robe, and flicked it into the air, so that it would fall across the blade. As it drifted across the blade, the silk split in two. "I am sorry about your previous blade, but this is a superior replacement".

"And yours?"

Orden smiled wanly. "You know I am no longer allowed to keep such weapons." He reversed the sword and offered it back to Tseone, who took it.

"I know that your doctrine dictates as such," Tseone said as he sheathed the sword, "But I know you have it."

"Of course. I knew this day would come." He sighed before continuing "I believe in what I do. Acts of Suppression are for the greater good. But I know you hold a different view, and I know you well enough, that that view will not change. You will kill me, but another Ellendreel will take my place."

"You are also aware I am here for vengeance, not disagreement of policy."

"Well, in this case, they are interlinked. I knew I was dead the moment that Clay-ja was chosen for the Act of Supression. But I did not make a mistake. His life saved many others, and ensures the peace of our cities and realm. His life and mine were lost that day, but it was a sacrifice I was willing to make."

"Is there anything else you would have me know?"

Orden reached into his robe, and pulled out an envelope. "I wrote this for Ralina after the Veerkamin took Clay-ja's life." He rubbed the hair on his cheek. "I was hoping you would be kind enough to give it to her. Knowing she still mourns for me, I might change some things, but obviously there is no time for that."

Breaking his controlled state for the first time, Tseone spoke in anger. "How could you just kill one of our own? Someone who had been a friend for over a decade? Your lovers best friend?"

"I understand your love for your sister, for her friend, and even for me. I was not turning on my friends, Tseone. I was protecting them. I believe in a higher purpose now."

"Your blade?" said Tseone, with a hint of impatience, as he reached forward and grabbed the envelope.

"Ah, I see it is time. I knew eventually my words would bore you. I can't give you the answers you seek. The only thinkg I can do is satisfy your thirst for revenge." Orden unclipped his robe, walked up to the throne, and laid it across it. He wore the regal suit awarded his position; it would be sufficiently comfortable for combat. He knelt down and manipulated the bottom of the throne, to pull out a large hidden drawer. In it lay his blade in it s scabbard. He raised it out, and pulled it from its scabbard. He raised it up, turned it over, and inspected it. "It has not seen use for such a long time. But being of Jarrod's creation, it scarcely needs attention. This will do just fine."

Tseone unclipped his leather overcoat, and flung it aside to land on the marble floor. He wore nothing underneath to cover his fur-covered chest. Orden stepped away from the throne, until they were several paces away from each other. He took a few swings to get used to the blade once again.

"We both know what the outcome will be, but I will do my best. You deserve nothing less." With that, Orden inched forward, and Tseone followed suit until they were within striking distance. Both held their swords in two hands; an observer viewing them side-on would have seen the tips crossed, though they were not touching. Then it began. Had anyone been watching, it would have been instantly clear that both were master swordsmen. Though the cat-people were agile by nature, the scene unfolding was a beautiful sight to behold. The ring of steel on steel, the fluid motion of their steps, the echoes that played out through the chamber, the way the muscles of their torsos contracted beneath their short fur as they moved to defend or inititiate the next strike; it all appeared beatifully choreographed.

And then there was blood. The two men stepped back, Orden with a puzzled look on his face. "Well that was unexpected."

Crimson began to stain on Tseone's face, blending into his fur. He reached up to his face to touch the wound, then wiped the blood off on his chest before gripping his sword again. "Your duties as Ellendreel have not diminished your ability at all. You impress me."

"As I said, you deserve nothing less." Then it began again. The two swords met, slid upon one another until the two were up close. With his hands underneath, Orden pushed up on his haunches to force Tseone backwards, using the same force to spin and land a kick on Tseone's hip while his sword simultaneously blocked Tseones next strike. This put him slightly off-balance, but he was able to recover to parry the next strike. The back and forth continued for a few more moments.

And then, the bells rang. The Ellendreel backed away. Tseone did not advance "Those bells. They signify an attack by Veerkamin, don't they?" Orden nodded. He stood ready, sword raised. Before he could determine what the next course of action should be, they could hear running from the hall that led to the Basilica. "I guess that means your Act of Supression did not work."

The two guards ran into the hall, and seeing the Ellendreel apparently in combat, drew their swords as they continued to race towards them.

Tseone sheathed his sword. "I know your skills will be required to close the rift. Do what you need to to save the people of your city."

Orden nodded, turned to the closing guards and raised his voice "Put away your swords."

The guards recluctantly did so. "Your Holiness, Veerkamin have breached us," he looked from Orden to Tseone, unsure as to whether the Ellendreel was in a position to help.

"Take me to the rift. As I said before, Tseone has free passage." The guards nodded. He turned to Tseone. "Until we meet again, Tseone," he said as he bowed. Without pause he turned, ran to the throne, put his sword in its sheath, and grabbed his robe. He nodded once more at Tseone as he ran after the guards while clipping on his robe, and exited the chamber.

"Yes," said Tseone as he began to casually stroll from the chamber, "until we meet again."

Following the lead of some others, I thought I would share a few bands I like to listen to. There are a couple I've looked into that others have suggested that I'll probably pick up in the near future. So I thought I'd return the favour.

I will take a slightly different tack than some others. I'm going to give a couple of links to songs from specific albums, for a couple of reasons. One, albums are what people usually buy (although singles might be available from itunes, but I don't use it). Giving at least a couple of clips to look at gives a little diversity as to what the band is capable of. I'll also only focus on a few bands at a time (I think I'll make this a semi-regular feature). I'll also make it clear that I know little about music lingo, genres, or whether stuff is technical or not; I just know what I like.

I was going to start off with some now-defunct Australian metal bands from the last decade, which I still think deserve to be heard, but they broke up before youtube was big, and no-one else has seen fit to upload videos. I'll look into doing that for next time.

I will start off with a local act, Mark of Cain. While I've heard some other songs and they have released stuff since, the only album I own is Ill At Ease, which is superb. Superb enough that I've bought it 3 times. I guess you would call it hard rock. Power rock? I don't know. I don't think it quite fits into a metal genre. This album was produced by Henry Rollins, and you can certainly hear his influence in their sound. The two videos I found sound a bit flat; the production on the album is fantastic, but these clips will give you a taste of what to expect.
Tell Me
LMA

When intending to go to bands and festivals (which is not very often these days) I tend to look up the bands who are playing that I don't know ahead of time, to see if there is something I should check out. This is how I discovered Battles, who played Big Day Out this year. They have been coined as math rock. The first couple of times I played their singles, I went "WTF is this?" It took a few listens to 'get it', and now I love it. While they have a 'singer', the vocals are fed through filters so that they sound like another instrument, not actual vocals. These tracks are off their album Mirrored.
Atlas
Tonto

Enter Shikari was another band that I discovered via Big Day Out, who call themselves trancecore, which sounds like an ample description. My highlight for the Big Day Out, higher even than Rage Against The Machine. They just had so much energy. Some screaming, clean vocals, some trance, some hard rock, and you get Enter Shikari.
Sorry You're Not A Winner
Mothership

Now that you have acknowledged that my musical taste is better than yours, it's time to do something about it. So without further adieu, here are the bands you must listen to so that you can be qualified as having good musical taste.

Disturbed, Bon Jovi, Metallica, Linkin Park, Dreadnought, Cradle of Filth, Nine Inch Nails, Nightwish, Prodigy, Pantera, Enter Shikari, Mindless Self Indulgence, and Battles.

There. I am happy to have enlightened you. Please discard any albums you may have that are not by these artists, and replace them with the above at your earliest convenience.

What? You want to argue that one, some, or all of those bands are bad or not to your taste? Try harder.

Still? Now you are just being unco-operative. You just don't get it. Are you really listening to them?

Huh? Some of the stuff I want you to discard is actually good? Have you compared it to any of the above?

OK, façade over. I don't expect you to like all of those bands. Heck, I don't expect you to like any of them. But I like them. Yeah, even Bon Jovi. And guess what? You can listen to whatever you like, even if I don't like it. I'm not going to stop you. In fact if you enjoy listening to them, I strongly encourage you to listen to them. So let's break down some of the annoying stances people take when it comes to music.

Number 1. It annoys me when people want to decry others choice in music, as though certain bands or genres are not legitimate, or just plain bad. I chose a couple of bands which I know get decried sometimes. Linkin Park in particular. "That's not real metal", "Nu-metal is fake, get some taste" blah blah blah. Go to a Rock Band or Guitar Hero board, and you are guaranteed to find this sort of stuff. Get over yourself. You do not decide what other people are allowed to like. I tend towards heavy rock and metal, and people have invented terms for about a billion subgenres, and I couldn't frankly give a damn. I have no idea what defines grindcore, blastcore, or melodicgrindsuperthrashrappopextreme. If it sounds good to me, I'll listen to it, even if I can't label it.

Then there are those that decry music that sells that they don't like. Guess what? Britney Spears, The Spice Girls, Robbie Williams and Shakira sold a bucket load of albums. People like them. They are not misguided fools wrapped up in a corporate vortex. They don't need to be saved. They just like the music.

Number 2. Genre freaks who expect you to be one too. This perhaps applies more to certain genres. When it comes to metal, you probably aren't 'really a metal fan' if someone can list some supposedly c1assic bands, and you haven't heard of them or like them. Of course, that changes depending on who you talk to. Some might say Slayer, Bathory, or Iron Maiden. Guys, we can't all listen to everything. There are some 'c1assics' that I'm not going to have heard. You don't like a genre and suddenly know its entire history. Don't be a dick about it. There is not some be all and end all to any genre of music. By all means suggest a band you think we might like, but don't berate us if there is some popular band we don't know.

Or look at it another way. You can be the one that guides us and gives us the same sense of awe and discovery that you felt when you first heard the band. Wouldn't that be more empowering? We still don't have to like it of course.

Number 3. Band Fanatics. Many bands have a number of albums. I find it annoying when people accuse you of not being 'a real fan' because you don't own all of the albums. Or further more, that you don't know the lyrics to all of the songs, you don't know the meaning of song X, or a detailed biography of the band. I can name very few members of any band. That doesn't mean I don't like the band or the music. Those are details I do not need to know to enjoy said music. Owning all their rare songs does not make you better than me.

As the above list would indicate, I like diversity in my music. I'm not going to shell out $150+ so I can buy a bands entire catalogue just so I can be a 'real fan'. Sometimes even bands I really like it takes me a couple of years to acquire their catalogue, during which time I also experience a bunch of other bands.

Conclusion

To sum up, if someone doesn't like the music you do, or likes music that you don't, don't be a dick. Share your tastes with your friends, but don't feel slighted if they don't like it. Even if you have similar tastes, it is unlikely you will find someone whose collection matches yours almost perfectly, and you are bound to disagree on some band or song. Put it down to different taste. Move on, and enjoy the music.

Note to Moderators : There are some racial connotations in this post. I have assumed they will be acceptable in context of this post as a whole. It should be obvious I am not trying to offend anyone.

I like jokes that play to stereotypes. Whether they be religious jokes (hello dirty priests!), sexist jokes (hello white goods, I mean women!) or even hair colour jokes (hello dumb nymphomaniac blondes!), there is something that appeals to me about taking a stereotype to the extreme.

Of course, as the topic title would imply, I love racist jokes. Am I racist? No. Am I careful who I say such jokes to? Yes. I understand other people may not have the same sense of humour as me, and what I find funny, others may not. The purpose of a joke to me is to make someone laugh, not offend, so if I think it will offend, it remains unsaid. Sometimes I think jokes are so far off the deep end, so far into offensive territory, that they become funny.

Recently I posted a racial joke on my business' intranet site; a site where we share business ideas with others in our group, as well as our standard 'Friday Funnies' where we put up jokes to add some hilarity to our work week, but it was removed by an administrator in case it might offend someone. The joke in question:

Kathy Freeman runs into a chemist, and keeps jogging on the spot as she reaches the counter.
"You've got to do something for me. I just can't stop running. Is there something you can give me?"
As she keeps jogging on the spot, the chemist lays out a couple of lines on the counter and says "Here, snort that up."
Kathy Freeman eyes it suspiciously and says, "That's not cocaine is it?"
And the chemist says "No it's Omo. Stops colours from running."

In case that joke is lost on anyone, Kathy Freeman is a successful Australian Olympic Runner who is Aboriginal. Omo is a washing detergent with the slogan 'stops colours from running.'

I don't consider that joke to be particularly offensive. While it contains connotations of a persons colour, it doesn't actually play to negative stereotypes like many others in my repertoire; it just sets up the punchline. But it got me thinking. We have had plenty of other jokes on that board that I consider would have more potential to offend; like the naughty priest joke, and sexist joke categories that I opened with.

It is my perception that racist jokes in general have much more potential to offend than many of the other categories. Again, I'm not sure exactly why. You can make jokes about African Americans. You can make jokes about Aborigines. You can make jokes about Asians in general. They are likely to find them to offensive. But…

Are the Irish immune? I have been hearing Irish jokes for many many years. Irish are dumb. They invented the solar powered flashlight, and a screen door for submarines. What is Irish and has an IQ of 120? Ireland. The stereotype is that they are completely stupid. We have had plenty of those on our notice board. What I have never heard is an Irishman taking offense to these jokes… maybe they are just too stupid to realise?

This is really a rambling post, with no real point, just some musings. It does seem that some races/ethnicities are more sensitive to racial jokes than others. I'm not sure how it started, but Australians joke about New Zealanders having carnal relations with sheep, and apparently they use the same joke about us. I'm certainly not offended. I think Australian men are also joked about as being underperformers in the bedroom, but that might just be a sexist joke within Australia (i.e. our women say it about our men). Again, I'm not offended.

Have you heard about the new game 'Entertainment Venue?' It sounds awesome! Depending on what day you play it, you do different things. It comes with a microphone, so you can do karaoke on karaoke nights. It comes with a dance mat, but not just any dance mat; it covers your entire floor so that many people can dance together. It's got drum kits, guitars, bass so you can play standard rock. That will be Wednesday nights. You can also get the piano peripheral, and the saxaphone (which detects how hard you blow while holding down the buttons) for jazz night. It also comes with a turntable, and strobe lights so you can turn your living room into a club. Drugs and booze will come in the expansion pack.

OK, I'm being a bit silly obviously. The music rhythm genre has been dominated, at least recently, by the Guitar Hero franchise, and Rock Band. In the wake of Rock Band, Activision have stepped up, and are including drums and vocals in Guitar Hero 4. They have also added a feature we haven't seen yet in this genre; being able to make your own songs. I don't really have an opinion on that, and I doubt I would use it, but it is still neat none-the-less.

Then Konami, who kickstarted the genres with Guitar Freaks and Drummania (so I understand; I don't know these games myself) a decade or so ago, recently announced Rock Revolution. Seems like the same feature set as what Guitar Hero 4 is aiming for, including being able to make your own songs. One point that may ruffle some feathers is all of the 40 planned songs are covers. That doesn't really phase me a lot, but it's still something. Gamespot's coverage didn't make it entirely clear to me, but looking elsewhere it seems that vocals will not be included in console versions (but will appear in the DS version). That's a far bigger detractor for me.

Now, Rock Band hasn't been released yet in Australia. Yes, we are still waiting to slap down our $450946 (my estimate, price not yet confirmed) when it arrives in September. I am still very keen to play this game. But if these other contenders get here about the same time (although knowing our luck, they will be delayed here just like Rock Band) I might have to reconsider. I mean, I can make my own songs with the other games. Like I said, I might not use it, but it's better to have the option than not.

So here is what it comes down to; cross-compatibility. I think Activision is moronic for locking out Playstation 3 users from using their guitars they may have had for GH3 on Rock Band. If it was possible, people might go and buy that extra guitar from you guys instead of the Rock Band Guitar. Or maybe if Rock Band was their first choice of rhythm game, they might buy a GH3 bundle to complete their Rock Band quartet instead of buying an additional Rock Band guitar. But that is hardly the cross-compatibility issue I'm talking about. I'm talking about drums.

Rock Bands drum kit has 4 pads and a kick pedal.

Guitar Hero's proposed drum kit has 5 pads (3 normal pads plus 2 cymbals) and a kick pedal.

Rock Revolution's proposed drum kit has 6 pads and a kick pedal.

I'm not going to say that those drum kits are not going to be fun to play, but I question their choice to design new kits that in all likelihood will not be compatible with other games. I think Rock Band really has the advantage here. Harmonix designed a guitar that in most ways was the same as what was already on the market. On the Xbox 360 at least, solo guitarists didn't need to buy any new gear if they had a GH3 controller, which I'm sure sold them more units than if such compatibility had not existed.

Rock Band also has the only drum kit currently on the market. Are those who forked out the biscuits on a full set of Rock Band going to be able to use their drum kits with Guitar Hero 4 or Rock Revolution? Not likely. Are those people willing to fork out for another drum kit to play a similar experience? That's debatable. I enjoy peripheral games because they are usually a new way to play. I own a dance mat, but I'm not likely to buy a competing game that is not compatible with the one I have. I'm interested in Buzz when it comes out on PS3, but I don't want Scene It for the Xbox 360. Do I think Scene It is a bad game? No, but I'm not willing to fork out for another set of buzzers to play a similar experience on a different console.

Similarly, these new proposed drums (which I guess still have time to change) do look interesting to play. I'm willing to fork out $400 (my revised Australian price estimate) once for the band experience. But I'm not willing to pay another $800 for two more slightly-different-but-still-quite-similar experiences. By introducing gameplay that will not be compatible with Rock Bands drums, I think these competitors are going to alienate the owners of the established brand. They'll just pick up Rock Band 2, because the other games are far less attractive options (unless Harmonix decide to change their hardware for the next iteration, which I highly doubt).

I must admit Konami's kit looks perfect for a whack-a-mole minigame though. That would be sweet.

I don't usually pay much heed to flash games. I've played the odd few, but the vast majority seem like minor distractions, with one-note gameplay that is fun for 5 minutes, or maybe an hour, but gets boring after that. After reading a news article here a few days ago about Defend Your Castle being released over Wiiware, I clicked the link to check the original flash game by xgen studios. That game was ok, but I saw another game that piqued my interest, Protector. It's an RPG Tower Defense game. I imagine this genre has been around for a while, but I've never really paid it much heed. Turns out it is fantastic, and exceptionally deep for a flash game.

Each map has a certain number of waves of enemies. You start the map with a certain amount of gold, and you use that to hire mages and dexers (fighters), plus some more advanced units which I haven't even used yet after several hours of play. The 4 mages employ different elemental attributes. Each wave of enemies has an elemental strength and weakness to be aware of.

So you hire a few people to do your bidding, place them on available tiles on the map (which are limited), and launch a wave of enemies. They waltz along a set path, and your hiree's attack them when they get within range; the enemies don't attack you, they just try to get to the exit. You are given a certain number of lives on each map, and for each enemy that escapes, you lose a life. Each enemy killed earns you gold, which you can use to buy more units. You can do this at your leisure between waves, or during a wave if you need to.

So far, so good. But units also earn experience for each point of damage they deal. Once they earn the requisite experience points, they can go up a level, but this costs money. So you have to weigh up whether you want to place additional units, or upgrade those that are in prime positions.

Going through the easy maps was, well, pretty easy. Then I played my first medium map, which had 15 waves. I made it to wave 3. Subsequent goes I got to 4, 5, 5 and 6, before scratching my head thinking about the enormous jump in difficulty, and wondering how insane hard levels must be. Then I discovered another level of depth I hadn't realised. When you beat a map, you get a skill point. These can be used to buy universal upgrades or perks. So after spending my points upgrading my red mages, I made it through the map comfortably, given that most of the enemies were weak to fire.

A couple of medium maps later, I got to wave 13 of 15 before being slaughtered by a huge wave of slow moving, tightly packed rats. Now, they were weak to fire, and my defense was mostly made of red mages. But each time they had gone up a level, I had chosen 'Generalist' instead of "Specialist'. Each of the unit types has a special ability, but you will never access it if you train them all generally. The next time I played, I upgraded a few of my frontline red mages specially; they dealt less direct damage than if they had been trained generally, but it improved their splash ability, spreading damage against tightly packed units. There might be another way, but I don't think you can beat that map without a couple of specially upgraded red mages. I can see some of the other specials being useful too, for example blue mages have a chance to make enemies slow, which means your troops further down the line get more time to fire on them.

Basically, this is a rant to say I'm thoroughly impressed by the amount of depth that this game offers, especially given that it is a flash game. While the medium levels I've played thus far have been pretty easy to build for (for example, many waves of enemies are strong to cold and weak to fire, meaning hire lots of red mages and no blue ones), I'm guessing that the waves in hard maps will have much more diversified strengths and weaknesses, making sure you don't rely too heavily on one type of unit, lest one particular wave slaughter you.

I'm also impressed that you don't need to know all the nuances of the game straight away. I didn't even know about the skill point system until I got to medium maps, and I didn't need to bother with specialising until I think the 3rd or 4th medium map. I also still haven't tried the advanced troops; I'm guessing using them effectively will also be critical to beating the hard maps. It's all presented pretty well for a flash game. The only minor downers is that there is some trial and error, that it can be a little annoying to restart a map right at the beginning if you are fairly far into it, and you can't save your game; looks like my work computer is going to stay on for about a week!

I purchased your Playstation 3 console today. I must confess to your console being the last one I purchased this generation; I already have an Xbox 360 and a Wii. One of the main reasons I purchased it was it's blu-ray capabilities. I decided it was time to watch higher quality movies on my HDTV. As my HMDI cable will not be arriving until later this week, I have not tested this feature yet.

Another thing that your console has over its mainstream competitor is that you do not charge for your online service. Personally, I do not have a problem paying for Microsoft's Xbox Live service if I had a desire to use it; I have not done so because I mainly play single player or with friends in my own home. So the Playstation 3 offers me the perfect opportunity to play very casually online if I want the odd game here or there. With that in mind, the first thing I needed to do was register with the Playstation Network.

When attempting to join the Network, I was advised I needed to do a system update. No problem, this was expected. I don't know why it gave me directions on how to get there in the XMB; I thought it would have taken me straight there, seeing as it was something I needed to proceed. Oh well, a little nitpick. So I begin the update. Wow. This is going to take a little while. So I will switch over the channel and play some Xbox 360 while I wait. While playing, a friend sends me a text message, as he is keen to play Grand Theft Auto 4 multiplayer with me on my brand spanking new Playstation 3. So I switch channels to see how the update is doing. It is at 33%. At that moment, it decides to give me an error message, stating a problem with the network connection. So I click Circle, and try it again.

What? Your system does not have some form of download manager? I have to start the entire download over from scratch? Rather than risk a drop out via wireless, I connect an ethernet cable, hoping for a faster and more stable connection. A few hours and several disconnects later (while playing my Xbox 360 in between), I give up. While my internet connection does drop out on the odd occassion, it does not have problems like this. I'll download the update via my PC, put it on a disc, then pop in the drive. The download speed seemed a little unstable the few times I checked on it (when I don't otherwise have issues with speed when downloading anything else), so maybe the Playstation Network is a little bogged down, given it is GTA4 week. Oh well, a little teething problem.

So I eventually get the 140mb file, put it onto a CD, and put it in my PS3's drive. After waiting to see if it would do anything automatically, I selected system updates, and opted to find it on media storage. Nothing found. What? The PS3 is detecting the 'data disc' as it is listed under the music and video tabs, and disappears when I take the disc out of the drive. At this point, I am no longer content to go through the motions, and I am unhappy. I figure maybe it has to be on an USB drive, which is not helpful to me, as I only have one with a capacity of 100mb.

I wonder if there is something else, so I check your website again. Ahah! I think I have discovered it. I need to make it in a folder, /PS3/UPDATE. I guess it needs this path for the PS3 to look there specifically for the file. This is on your website AND NOT IN THE SECTION OF YOUR MANUAL WHICH MENTIONS MEDIA STORAGE. So, I reburn the file, with the appropriate folders. I put it in the drive, do a system update, looking in media storage. Nothing found. What? Are you serious? You can download from USB drives and flash sticks, but you can't download it from a CD or DVD? Why the hell not? The manual states that some games may come with updates that are required to play them; why can't the system identify the the update when there is no game involved?

So now I have GTA4 for the PS3, which is useless to me without multiplayer, as I have already put several hours into the Xbox 360 version single player and I am not interested in repeating it.

So in summary:
Why no download manager? (Unless you have it for games and downloadable content, just not system updates, but I don't see why not)
Why doesn't the system jump straight to system updates when it is required?
Why can't I go manually looking for a file that the system needs?
Why is the pathing required not written in your manual and only on your website?
Why can't it find system updates on CD's and presumably DVD's, which are very common forms of media, that the PS3 is otherwise capable of using?

I guess the HDMI cable will be here by the end of the week, so your system won't be totally useless. I'm off to play some Xbox 360.