I was supposed to be working on a bunch of crap today but instead I drew this picture of Samus. Click on the thumbnail for a high res version.

If you attend NYU and you are a fan of the webcomics, you might want to stop by the Kimmel Center at 7:00pm on November 17. There will be a webcomics panel with the lord of all hipsters, Mr. R. Stevens as well as Jeph Jacques and Squidi. Man I really wish I could see this shit. If anyone goes and can take a little video or something I’d be forever in your debt.

I'm thinking there must be some kind of Noon embargo on them, because Gamespot's got a timer going. It looks like their server is getting the shit beat out of it, but the review should be here when the huns let up a bit. If it's an emargo thing, and not an exclusivity thing, there should be more scattered about as well.

Here is a little Half-Life 2 comic for you. I'm writing this post at 11:30pm on Sunday, wondering idly to myself whether the game I have purchased on Steam (as well as the one some readers purchased in stores) will become available at midnight tonight, on the 15th, which is technically the "ship" date. Since it has already been "shipped" in a sense, and since most stores have the fucking thing and are just being told not to sell it, the term is absolutely incoherent anyhow. Basically, I'm wondering if I'll be up doing the same thing tomorrow night.

Gamespot's "Final Hours Of" articles have always really entertained me, and they've got one up for HL2 today. Gonna head over there now.

If we behave as civilized people do and omit Prince of Persia 3D from the true continuity of the series - relegating it to the realm of the misremembered and apocryphal - I can rightly be called a fan of the "whole shebang."

I updated the PA Presents page with teaser images for a couple of our new projects as well as a new wallpaper. As you can see we are doing two projects for Brothers in Arms. I can’t say anything about the first one except to say it’s not what you expect. The second one is similar to what we’ve done in the past. It’s an eight page story and tells the incredible if perhaps slightly exaggerated tale of one “Jumpin’ Jack”, a soldier in the 101st airborne.

I'd heard the rumor about there being no hard disk in the new Xbox, I've heard the rumor after that where it is suggested that you will store your content on a separate, Microsoft created "iPod killer" portable drive as well. Until Wednesday, I hadn't heard that Microsoft was planning fully three machines. Actually, we've heard that there are no less than three and a perhaps as many as six new versions of the Xbox hardware - this information is, of course, from our Truth Department. It needn't be said that this department abhors lies and strives in all things towards greater accuracy.

One of the bonus feats given to our people - at the very moment of character creation - is the ability to focus on something to the exclusion of all else, indeed, the exclusion of our own welfare.

There is a considerable amount of Halo wisdom to be imparted, and it may take the rest of this week and lo even unto the next week. I've had time now to check out the multiplayer a bit, though not as much as I'd like - I think I understand the system now at least, which took some doing.

Anyone who is on Microsoft's press list received an email on the sixth of this month, describing with a fastidious precision the sorts of things you can't say in your reviews. When taken in aggregate, these taboos cover virtually everything I want so desperately to tell you. Sorry. On the other hand, I don't have a copy of the game any more than you do - my playthrough was based largely on skullduggery. Not the leak, you understand, and certainly final code but still not precisely through official channels. So the release version of multiplayer - the only thing one can realistically depict without fear of reprisals - is a topic utterly outside my knowledge. So, now I have to apologize again. I do strive to be useful to you.

It is very strange to think that - with the acquisition of a house - I am now in possession of my own horrifying basement, which I am loath to enter.

When I said that Kara and I played Shadow Hearts 2 together I should have been more clear. Kara stole the controller from me around hour 12 and then I watched her play for the rest of the 50 hours it took us to beat it. So when I heard that LOTR: The Third Age had Co-Op I was pretty excited. I know that it's limited and amounts to me getting to control a character during random encounters and not much else but at least it's something. FF IX had the same feature and when you're talking about games that take forty or fifty hours to beat, the ability to occasionally input some commands is a real treat.

Fixes:

Grabbed Lord of the Rings: Third Age yesterday, and regardless of anything that is implied by the strip I'm perfectly happy with it - probably because I know what it is and I don't expect it to reform the genre. It is a delicious electronic pork rind, and I'm going to sit right here on the Goddamn couch and eat it.

Gabriel would be angry with me if I did not at least mention the Episode III teaser they have over there at File Rush.