The Great Gaming Experiment:

Gamers and non-Gamers, unite! (for we all know that you're soon to become Gamers anyway, correct?) Check out the new forum for all things "gaming", The Great Gaming Experiment! You may access the site here, or click on the link to it on the right, in my "PC Gaming" section.

What is the GGE, you ask? Let me reference their slogan to clear away any confusion: "Where gamers and game-makers connect." Simply put, it's sort of like a YouTube site has mated with a Blogger site, and produced an offspring of (hopefully) epic proportions, and near-infinite capabilities? :-) Ok, perhaps that's a bit too much hyperbole - but it IS set to become a forum for both fan and publishers alike, allowing anyone (gamers, non-gamers, and potential-gamers) to post their favorite games, rate them discuss them, chastise them, etc., while at the same time allowing publishers and distributers an arena to solict fan feedback, gain beta-testers, take polls for various artistic and business decisions, and even present downloadable demos, maps, mods, files, etc. for their various games. Perhaps most important, however, is it will become a venue for the "indie" projects out there, whom are alive and well, but often overshadowed by the larger corporations. It will allow these small but vital companies, an integral part of the entire gaming machine, to be right upside the big guy, and present their games to the public, which are often as compelling and original as the "triple A" titles, but with a fraction of the price (and consequently, the advertising dollars).

Whatever this venue ultimately becomes, I love its arrival, which to me heralds yet another step towards bridging the gap between the continuously evolving and growing world of consumer and game publisher relations. The growing technology will only allow this open forum and discussion to become easier for ideas to grow, and feedback to be exchanged; this, in turn, will lead to better made games, which will lead better received games, both publically and critically; this, in turn, will produce more games sold, which leads to larger profits, happier shareholders, and a (hopefully) continued succession of good, well produced (and published) games. Sure, there'll be pitfalls along the way, but hopefully with a successful effort, these will be few and far between. What's more, negative fan and gamer feedback on this forum will hopefully lead to the abandonment of projects that would've normally been headed for the abyssmal "bargain bin" or worse, and avoid searing our brains with half-assed gaming, and wasting time, money, and effort. Positive thinking, perhaps, but a potential nonetheless. And let's not forget the benefits of this venue being able to discuss all the glorious games of Yore - the beloved fixtures of pixelations of the past. Could it possibly lead to reincarnation of certain titles, or maybe even resurrection of defunct classics? Time will tell, fellow gamers.

I for one am very excited about this new manifestation of emergent technology, which involves video, blogging, posting, discussion, etc. But instead of discussing something trivial such as the shaving of an ex-pop star's hair, we might be able to actually get into something deep, important, and relevent to our time - the expansive, growing, and extremely versatile world of digital gaming.

In the immortal words of every kid who's ever played a day in his or her life: GAME ON!