Sunday, January 06, 2008

I made myself a new desktop wallpaper since I'm pretty free these days. I like how it turned out. The Wipeout franchise has been around for a decade or so, and it will always have a special place in my heart. It's also pretty safe to say that it has defined the racing genre, along with other notable games such as Nintendo's F-Zero.

I could list all the reasons why it's awesome, but if you were the sort to care about such things, you'd probably know them all already. So I won't bore you.

Back when I started this whole gaming thing, I got my first console, a PS1 and - lo! - a copy of Wipeout 2097. I like to think it has shaped the way I approach things ever since, because the franchise is well known for being unforgiving. It's not easy to master, but damn it's good when you finally do.

So I taught myself to learn fast and effectively. You rewire your brain on the spot, training your synapses to fire faster and faster. I'd say it's about as difficult as learning to play the piano. Hey, I would know. I've done both. Either this game is really hard, or playing the piano is really easy. *Hint, it's both.*

Anyway, some friends of mine will be enlisting pretty soon, some next week even. Same here, although for me, 'pretty soon' means sometime in March. Good luck to you all.