trickeyOne

Who's ready to rock Sin City? *raises hand*

That's right. The SOE FanFaire 2010 will be held in Las Vegas again this year. I'm a little sad but also happy that's it going to be in Vegas again. I'm sad because it's been there for the past 2 years and I wouldn't mind a new locale. However, on the flip-side, I'm happy that it's in Vegas because of the rockin' time I had last year and all the stuff I didn't get to do and see.

So, down to the nitty-gritty details.

When: August 5^th -8^th
Where: Bally's Hotel
What's to do: Tons!

• Special announcements and sneak peaks of upcoming SOE titles
• In-game tournaments and live, game-themed competitions and quests
• Developer forums and roundtables
• Cool giveaways and other fun items!

Visit the Fan Faire website at www.soefanfaire.com  for up-to-date information on registration, pricing and schedules. Tickets are expected to go on sale early this spring.

The Schedule is still pending, so keep an eye out. As soon as I know, I'll be sure to post it up here so you can know when the panels and events that you want to attend will be.

Never been to a SOE FanFaire before? Then come and have some fun! Join fellow gamers for discussion, talks, games, prizes and just plain fun. Get to talk to the people who make your favorite games and, maybe, even get to shoot them some of your ideas!

Oh, one last thing! I want to say a humungous KUDOS to the team at SOE for getting this info out quicker than I've seen in the last 4 years. And to that, a GI-NORMOUS Kudos to Tiffany Spence (aka Amnerys) who has been working her fingers to the bone getting everything together. Yay, Tiff! (I think I may die for calling her "Tiff" btw, so if no one hears from me post-FanFaire, you know what happened.)

I just spent the last hour in an futile attempt to track down a PS3. I first went to a GameStop, no luck. I then tried going to a Best Buy (that called 3 other area stores), no luck. After that, I braved The Mall and went a couple stores there, including another GameStop, again, no luck. I then went to a Target, who, unsuccessfully, tried 2 other stores, all no dice. I then called 2 Wal-Marts, nothing, all out.

After this disappointment, I came home. And then a lightbulb went off. "I'll try the ever-in-stock NewEgg" ... was I surprised to "Auto-Notify" beside each of the PS3 versions...

What has the world come to when a gamer can't get his fix, I ask you? It's inhumane! It's unscrupulous! It's devilish! It's... it's.... genius marketing.

There's only been one other time that I've seen a shortage of game consoles, and especially of the Playstation variety. When there is one of two things coming down the pipeline. Either a new model is about to come out, i.e. PS4 or, at the least, PS3.5. Or, and the far more likely, it's a plan to drive up hype to get even more interest in the best console out on the market today.

There has been a standing rivalry between the Playstations of old and every other console that has come out. Even when the Playstation was the new kid on the block, it was coming up against the big dogs. The original Nintendo, the Sega Genesis/Saturn/Dreamcast. The Playstation outdid them all and is still growing strong.

Even when pitted against a massive monster like Microsoft with the XBox, then the XBox360, Playstation still held its own.

So, what would make a Gaming giant like Sony pull back on manufacturing and distribution of these beloved consoles? Maybe they aren't. Maybe Sony isn't behind any of this. Seriously.

It would be heralded as a brilliant marketing move, but, if truth came to light that this was all a planned marketing scheme, there would be a huge backlash. The only thing that would temper such a backlash would be the release of, either, a new system or an upgraded current system. ie.e a new PS4 or a PS3.5.

Personally, I think we gamers are to blame for my current suffering. Over the holidays, a whopping 1.36 million PS3 consoles sold. Think about that for a second. That many being taken off the shelves in a relative short period of time has now caused a shortage. (And my suffering. Have I mentioned that yet?)

Sony's communication boss, Patrick Seybold, was quoted:

We’re working very hard with our retail partners to meet consumer interest, but the demand is tremendously high for the PS3 and we expect tight inventory in the coming months…

There's no telling how long this "tight inventory" might last, but this is one gamer that is hoping it won't be long. One good thing to come away from this shortage is the fact that the PS3 is continuing to grow in popularity, even challenging the XBox360.

So, now that my rambling has come to an end, I must go a stare at the games that I bought earlier today in the hopes that I will be able to find that gleaming, illusive prize called a PS3.

Wow, it's been a while, huh? I've meant to post more often but this last month has been h-e-c-t-i-c. For those in the know, I was selling my house and (cheers for me) it sold last week. I tell ya, moving from a house to a third floor apartment, up 2 flights of stairs, is not fun. My back was killing me for the better part of the last week.

Now that my excuse-making is out of the way, to good stuff.

STO, or the non-game savvy, Star Trek Online. I have to say, the game is better than what I had thought it would be. I was afraid it would be nothing but an FPS with NPCs telling you what's going on. Thankfully, this isn't the case, at least not entirely.

The best part of the game for me, thus far, has been the space combat. The maneuvering and handling of your ship is actually quite intuitive. If you've ever played a space-based game, then you'll really enjoy this.

Granted, I've only been playing since Sunday and only for maybe a grand total of 8 hours, but I've managed to struggle to the high rank of Lieutenant 4. That's "newbie" status, FYI. There are 6 ranks: Ensign, Lieutenant, Lieutenant Commander, Commander, Caption and Admiral. Each rank has 10 levels which you have to progress through to get to the next rank. So, basically you have about 60 levels.

Now, all this praise of the space combat and flight doesn't mean that the ground content is bad, far from it. In just my 4 short levels I've battled Orions, Klingons, the Undine and, oh yes, the Borg. Let me tell ya, none of them were easy. Ok, maybe a little at the beginning, but that's just so you get hooked and keep playing.

Keep an eye out here for more updates on my trek to strange new worlds, while I meet new civilizations and find new life.

It's about time a new Sci Fi MMO came out! I like fantasy-based MMOs and all, but I'm definitely a Sci Fi guy!

From what I've heard, the game looks to be pretty cool. Imagine being your own Capt. James T. Kirk or Capt. Jean Luc Picard. At the command of your own starship exploring strange new worlds and seeking new civilizations! I know there are some out there that are already having their own personal nerd-gasm.

But what if you don't want to be a stuffy ol' Federation dog? Well, you're in luck. You can also be a Klingon Warlord for the Empire! Seeking out your own glory and honor.

You'll get to visit distant and exotic planets and systems. Establishing communication and contacts with new worlds.

Ok, I know every geek has had the green woman fantasy, right? No? I'm the only one? No way. You can tell me.... Ok, fine.

I know you're lying. But I won't tell anyone.

Sadly, there may be Orion Slave Girls... but you don't get one.

Anyway.

You get to make the decisions. You make the choices that determine if your crew lives or dies. Do you save an alien race? Do you cause an interstellar incident? It's up to you.

Do you get in massive fire-fights? Do you vanquish your enemies for the glory of the Empire?

It's up to you.

Ok, not quite an "ode" as a funny.

This guy just doesn't have the right luck when it comes to making a fishing show. Either he has the worst luck in showbiz or he just has a lot of outtakes.