I'm sure this is an old topic—as old as the advent of widespread online multiplayer—but it's something that I've only had to come to terms with since I started playing online on my PS3 this past year. When I was growing up, I would play games with my friends at our houses. Since our only opponents were each other, whoever was the best among the group would consider themselves 'the best' at that particular game and enjoyed all of the associated bragging rights.

Not so anymore.

Now, with online multiplayer, one's pool of opponents has grown from one's close-by friends to all connected players over the world, and it's much harder now to think of oneself as 'the best' at any game. This can be brutally hard on the gaming ego. To be the best, you now have to focus a huge amount of time and effort on even a single game, let alone your entire gaming library. (And us married-with-kids-and-a-full-time-job types don't have that time or, by the end of a long day, the energy.)

However, the upside to this is, with more and harder competition more readily available than ever, we have the opportunity to become much better at the games we choose to play. But where does this leave most of us who were once used to the days of being 'the best at X'? (For me, in high school, it was Dr. Mario—until some girl in university trounced me mercilessly and repeatedly. I haven't been 'the best' at any game since.) Most of my friends don't even play games anymore, so, with the experience I've gained from online competition, I am far superior to any of them at, say, Street Fighter IV or WipEout HD or Critter Crunch, to the point that there is no point in even playing against them. However, I am nowhere near world-class at any of these games and don't have the time or motivation to become so. So, like many others whom I imagine to be in the same boat, I am left in this limbo of being 'okay' at a game, sometimes slightly above average, sometimes—probably most of the time—below average. But pretty much always in that middle realm of mediocrity. That's the consequence of moving from the small pond to the online ocean.

But I'm okay with that. I still have fun. These days, I just set my sights a little lower than 'the best at X'. How about you?

Today, the Charter for Compassion was launched (http://www.charterforcompassion.org/). The charter is a one-page document calling for everyone to treat everyone else with compassion. That is: EVERYONE (even me; even you; not just people who are religious) to treat EVERYONE ELSE (even our enemies; even the anonymous opponents in our multiplayer games; even other gamespot/gamefaq posters whose opinions differ from our own; even celebrities) the way they themselves would like to be treated, with dignity and respect.

We all play games because we love them. We talk about games because we love them. We want to have as good a time as we can playing and talking about games. And we lose nothing from helping others have a good time too, whether we beat them or they beat us or they play a different way from what we're used to, whether they agree with us or disagree with us or write and spell in a different manner than we do.

Games can be competitive, but they needn't be divisive. Much love to you all.

• My next PS3 purchase: God of War Collection. I've got my pre-order in. Just waiting for it to arrive. The GoW games were great on the PS2. Can't wait to play them again in HD, and with trophies. Nice! Now, if only we could get HD PS3 ports of Okami and Shadow of the Colossus, I would be an even happier PS3-owner than I already am.

• My next PSN purchase: Super Stardust HD. I really like dual-stick controls: One stick moves. One stick fires. It's straightforward, and it makes for some fun gaming times. I had a blast with Smash TV back in the day. I remember it being one of the more replayable titles for my SNES.

• Awaiting the Blizzard: It feels like we've been waiting so long for Diablo III and StarCraft II to come out that I've just altogether lost interest. I'm not sure I even want to bother playing them when they come out. (We'll see if I'm eating my words when they finally do come out. It wouldn't be the first time.)

• Speaking of Diablo: I think I've grown tired of the action-RPG genre altogether. A couple of years ago, I would have been drooling over Torchlight: a $20 perfection of the click-click-click-4-phat-lewt formula. But now, I just haven't had the drive for an action-RPG since Titan Quest. I want to want Torchlight, but I don't. (Again, maybe I'll eat my words later.)

Speaking of devils (speak of the devil?): I asked for it. No, really, I did. The Divine Comedy is one of my favourite literary works, and I always thought it would be awesome to make a game of it. Now, EA is making a God-of-War-esque adventure of Dante's Inferno (cleverly leaving themselves the option of a trilogy with Purgatory and Paradise). And already there is no shortage of controversy.

Actually, the controversy so far has centred less around the game itself and more around EA's marketing. EA staged a fake religious protest of the game, which received backlash from real religious groups. EA presented a lust-themed contest—and game show booth babes were subjected to undue harassment—and this received more backlash. Apparently one of the game's trophies, called Bad Nanny, is also receiving backlash from nanny groups. Backlash aplenty and the game isn't even out yet. Is EA being reckless here? Or are they doing this precisely to evoke these angry reactions from people? (Anger is one of the deadly sins, after all.) A game about hell is bound to be controversial to begin with, so why not just go with it, eh?

I like EA's greed- and anger-based promos. For greed, game reviewers were openly sent $200 cheques in exchange for good game reviews. For anger, reviewers were sent wooden boxes that, once opened, would perpetually Rickroll unless they were smashed to pieces with a hammer (included in the box). (I just hope that EA got Mr. Astley's permission to use the song or there may be even more controversy... Waitaminute. Does that mean Rick Astley gets royalties for these Rickrolls?! Awesome!)

Is this all ridiculous and irresponsible? Marketing gone out-of-hand? Or is it brilliance and bringing the themes explored in the poem and game into real-life to urge us to reflect upon sin? Either way, I asked for this game, so, for better or worse, I'll have to get it and play it. I might have to learn my lesson about being careful what I wish for…