Beat Half-Life 2

Wow. Now that was a cool game. I finally beat Half-Life 2 yesterday and I'm still putting together the grandness of the whole experience. I think it's safe to call this the third best game I've ever played (right under Tetris and Starcraft). Not only does the game look pretty and sound great, but the gameplay is spot-on. Granted it could be a little harder and less linear, but I think that it's the perfect kind of pacing for your average gamer. What I love about it is how it makes you appreciate every new weapon you get so that you feel it's the best thing ever until you get your next one. Then you finally get the souped up gravity gun and you start going crazy throwing Combine soldiers off the edge into nothingness. The best part of the game though is how realistic and immersive everything is. As the game progresses there are no outside cutscenes but rather only what you see with your own eyes, and there's this feel that you really are the center of attention. The dialogue is never too corny, and usually you can screw with most games' progression of events for kicks but in this game if you don't like run when you have to you will get owned. It's just an awesome experience overall, especially with the smart AI. The only piece missing is the story, which you can discover here.

I was busy last night but I saved up some articles from the technology world for today. I enjoy Google News's combination of different news sources but apparently they didn't secure proper rights because they're being sued by a French news agency for using their stuff without permission. Google is actually coming under fire for a couple of other things too so I hope they can get their act straight, though I imagine it's hard (read the article and you'll see). If any of you love Wikipedia as much as I do you'll be happy to know that they've surpassed 50,000 articles! If you think that we take our free access to the internet for granted than you would be correct. In some countries there is actually a black market to access filtered web content! Think that market will be unnecessary in the next few decades? Speaking of the future, did you ever think about (or hear on Seinfeld) a world where you can do things just by thinking? Well scientists are getting closer to reading your thoughts, which could be a huge breakthrough for paralyzed people. Lastly, I have to plug this editorial about what CS majors should do in college and it's a very informative read.

Movie news is pretty scarce today but I'll do my best. The website for Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy finally went live and it looks very cool and creative. Coincidentally it was opened 42 days before the movie will be in the theaters, which is some sort of nod to fans of the book. Every once in a while Harry Knowles puts up some worthwhile opinions and so I thought I'd mention his thoughts on 3-D movies. It would be pretty cool since it would allow for a richer experience and it would prevent piracy, but don't some people have problems watching movies with those glasses? Anyway, Lex Luthor's main henchwoman for Superman Returns has been cast as Parker Posey, who has been in many random flicks and was likely looking for a big name. Recently there were some top secret screenings of Sin City and some of the audience members submitted their reviews to AICN. Most of them say that this movie will totally own and I even saw a few Pulp Fiction references so I'm even more excited now. All I have left is some meh stuff. Any of you salivating for Fever Pitch can embrace a couple of videos from it. IGN has a pretty good piece about what to expect in Revenge of the Sith over here. And finally, a trailer for the mildly interesting documentary flick called Rock School is now online.

Just a couple of quick video game items. IGN got a first look at the upcoming Batman Begins game and hopefully they're going back to the drawing board because they've come up with the idea of a fear meter now. You can now gauge your enemies' fear and scare them into submission. I hope things shape up well with that game.



IGN also gave God of War a glowing review so be sure to look into that game if you have a PS2 because it looks brutally violent and innovative.

I hope you all are ready for some Unconscious Mutterings:

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Stink::Toilet
   
2. Renewal::Library books
   
3. I remember...::Good BBQ last night
   
4. Loneliness::Blows
   
5. Ooooh::Ahhhh
   
6. For real::Fo' sheezy
   
7. Titanium::Hard
   
8. Get down::And boogey
   
9. Rupture::Eardrum
   
10. Dramatic::Million Dollar Baby