thisStrangeEngine.com

I was at my local Fry’s the other day and saw that they had a bunch of Game Boy Advanced games on clearance. Obviously it was a bunch of the lesser popular titles, and by the looks of the amount of titles on sale, they were looking to clear considerable shelf space.

Most of the games weren’t worth a second look, of course, but there was one I ended up picking up figuring it might be worth my $10. It was “The Pac-Man Collection”, which contains the original Pac Man as well as a couple slightly more modern variations of the game (”Pac-Mania” and “Pac Man Arrangement”) as well as a Tetris-like puzzle game (”Pac Attack”).

I took it home and broke it out, and was surprised with how much I actually enjoyed playing this old and simple game. When I really concentrated on playing it, it continually kept me on my toes, especially when I went up a few levels. For the first time, I think I finally understood how this game could’ve been such a phenomenon when it first came out in the early 80s. It demands your constant attention, and there’s lots of on the fly strategy involved, because you pretty much had to keep moving and your situation was constantly changing. Do you compromise the main task of completing the maze just to go for the extra-point goodness of the fruit in the middle of the maze? Should you go for the power pellet NOW? Should you save it for when you’re in a bind or have an opportunity to nab as many ghosts as possible?

I always liked the game and appreciated its importance to video game history, but I think for some reason, it has only now just really clicked with me. I finally understood the game’s nuances and why people still enjoy playing it today. I don’t think it’s too far fetched to say that it is similar to classic games like chess or checkers in that way: its strength lies in its few but crucial rules and simple goals, but it is open enough so that it’s often not obvious what the best next course of action is. Quite a few other video games do this, sure, but I don’t think any distills the concept so purely as Pac-Man does.

I’m not entirely sure, but I think just saw a pig fly by.

BEHOLD! The most important invention of the 21st Century!

I saw this on TV last week, and I thought it was one of the best things I’ve seen on late night television in a long time. Craig Ferguson (you may remember him from the Drew Carey Show) hosts a late night talk show on CBS at the same time as Conan. He’s turned out to be a natural. Not only is he naturally very funny by starting out every show with a really long monologue that flows more like a story than a bunch of one-liners, but he’s also probably the most sincere and thoughtful guy on late night television.

Here’s a monologue he did where he forsakes his usual schtick and talks about the media’s obsession with the falling of celebrities and relating it to his own battle with alcoholism. Good stuff.

On occassion, I’ll visit the website of my hometown’s newspaper to see if anyone I know got married recently. It’s a little habit I picked up from my friend Doug. I came across one that I wanted to share. While I don’t know either the bride or the groom, I just thought this was a clever wedding picture.