This will be my first blog entry on gamespot.com. With all the E3 commotion about, it's a time packed with updates and information that makes it easy for many gaming bloggers to spit out textbooks full of ideas and complaints and comments, etc.

I'll have a few sub-topics in this and I'll try to break it down; because if you're like me, you glance at a long-winded article and say "pass!" :-p

E3:

Of course it is the headline of every gaming website/magazine out there right now. There are a few games that interest me quite a bit: Alan Wake (360), Assassin's Creed (PS3), and Twilight Princess (Wii). These are probably common picks among gamers. I should say that I've had my eye on Alan Wake since pre-360 release when some preview screens were released of it. I read about the concept and was hooked! The trailers kick ace and actually showed a bit of gameplay (unlike many other teaser trailers) :-D

A few friends and I were sitting on the couch the other day and I discovered Comcast TV's OnDemand service. It's a way cool service that gives you a library of recent airings to view. I checked out some E3 stuff on there (from G4 TV) and we saw the trailer for Call of Duty 3. That brings me to my next topic.

Call of Duty 3:

The first thing out of one of my friend's mouth was "that uh ... kinda looks just like the other one." I kinda felt the way Lt. Dan expressed himself after Forrest says "... but you ain't got no legs Lieutenant Dan" ... "yes ... I know that."

My friend isn't slow, however, he was quick to recognize that as smooth as the textures were ... it appears to be the same game. In my review for COD2, I mentioned that I felt the WWII genre was just played out by the COD series for the time being. I think that it is just bursting with potential in other war eras. It totally upsets me to see that we're going to be played for fools! Well I say ... no more! *sigh* I'll see you on XBox Live on COD3.

The Waiting Game ... and eBay:

With the PS3 and Wii both having Q4 release dates ... I'm anticipating another horrible situation where gamers have to deal with a form of "console scalping". Many are probably familiar with the annoying guy in line that makes it clear that they're just buying the console to turn around and sell it online. I don't care how many units they're shipping to what stores ... it's happening again. I don't know that there's any legal way to crack down on people that buy consoles and immediately turn around and sell them for twice the price they paid for it. It's more of an ethics thing, I suppose.

Many props to those that stuck it out to get a 360 to actually play it instead of sell it. Some might say that if Microsoft had shipped out more units, then there would not have been an issue like that. I personally don't agree with that ... and I think the upcoming console releases will tell the tale well.

Anyhoo ... enough rambling for now ... I'll try to keep the dust off of this area.

Peace and Happy Gaming

- Brian