What should I see on CNN Money this morning but an announcement by Vivendi Universal that Half life 2 will be delayed until April 2004, reportedly so they can rewrite the code that was stolen. Curses!

Ubisoft is apparently going to offer some kind of Special Pre-Order version that includes not only that content disk I've already mentioned about a billion times, but also it's own headset.

I really wish that these media outlets would stop pretending the N-Gage is a real game system.

AH-HAHAHA!

As soon as it came out that I was enjoying RPG’s I was literally bombarded with email from gamers offering to guide me through this strange new world of hit points and random battles. When I talked about how I was really enjoying Final Fantasy Tactics Advance I got mail from at least a hojillion people telling me I needed to play the original on the Playstation. One of my favorite things to do is find awesome games buried in discount bins at obscure locations. So when I was at my local Fred Meyer (a store known for its fresh groceries, not its electronics) I decided I’d spend some time digging through their old Playstation one games. As I pushed aside copies of You Don’t Know Jack and Bubbsy 3D I saw it sitting right there. The game everyone had been telling me I “simply had to play” and for ten bucks even. Right next to it was a copy of FF:VII for the same price, what luck!

I don't know what the hell is happening with him, though it does look like the turn-based strategy RPG thing is now a permanent element of his construction. He came back from EB with copies of Final Fantasy VII and Tactics, and other than a slight altercation at the store he doesn't seem any worse for wear.

Someone, or someones I suppose, managed to get their mitts on the source code for not only Half Life 2 but apparently Steam and Team Fortress 2, which looks as though it might make up the multiplayer portion. Then Gabe wanted to discuss it on some rational level, which was, you know, embarrassing for him. I'm thinking about just releasing him into the wild, maybe putting out one of those feeders so he doesn't eat one of the neighborhood cats.

So who really is the sexiest gamer?

So Scott made another jab at us. Too bad we already did that joke two years ago.

I tell secrets to people in order to make them like me. I also create fabulous Penny Arcade wallpapers for them to use on their computers.

My email is broken which means I didn’t get any new mail today. It was sort of cool actually. It also means I had time to go back through some of the mail that has been piling up. That is when I saw an email from the guys running Extra Life for Kids. I am an absolute jackass for letting this slip by and not mentioning it sooner. These guys are holding a 48 hour gaming marathon to raise money for the Children’s Miracle Network.

The creators of both Lobster Doctor and Gamer Hotties are at it again after two months of downtime, revealing their all-new project Wrench Farm.

When we saw Scott's Tuesday strip over at PvP, I must tell you - we were overjoyed. A couple months ago, I told Scott that we were waiting with much enthusiasm for the day he would act against us, and he has not disappointed in the slightest. We've always felt that Scott is at his best when he is at his most aggressive, and we relish this opportunity to return fire in what we hope will be a long-lived feud. Scott is the only one we ever let draw Penny Arcade, so having a foe we can actually respect is a real thrill. Also, we hope he enjoys the traffic. Helping out the little guy just feels good.

I think commas are a tool of oppression.

So today I got a phone call and when I picked it up it was a recording. It said, “This is not a solicitation. This is an automated call. Please call us back at 1-800-something, something, something.” I would have actually called them back but I could not write the number down fast enough and I have no short term memory. Is this how companies are getting around the do not call list? Is it not considered a solicitation if they simply call and ask me to call them back? Interesting.

So I am a bona fide Final Fantsy Freak now. I am watching Kara play through FF: X again. We are playing FF: IX together and once that is done we plan to go back through the rest of them in order. I play FF: Tactics on my GBA for at least three hours every night before I go to sleep. My Ninja Army is truly a fearsome sight. I am eagerly anticipating the release of FF: X2 even though I know full well that it sports a pop star Yuna and an all girl cast. I look at the teaser sight for FF: XII at least five times a day trying to get some new bit of information from the image there. I downloaded the new tech demo for FF: XI the other day and I like to press keys on my keyboard while it’s running and pretend I’m really playing it. I used to make fun of my friend Robert for being such a Final Fantasy fanboy and now I think of ways to break into his house and steal his collection of Squaresoft T-Shirts. Then I saw the new pictures of the direct to DVD FF: VII “movie” and I got so excited I actually went blind for about twenty minutes.