(no subject)
Friday we took Dennis out to lunch for his birthday. Thursday was actually the big day but we all had a lot of work to do that day, wrapping up a software release. We went to Golden Chopsticks in RTC with Stacey, Jeff (PM Jeff, not Michigan Jeff) and our boss Winthrop. I wanted to go someplace nicer but Dennis didn't want us spending too much money. During dinner Winthrop told us he had his own birthday a couple of days ago, so we treated him as well.
That afternoon Dennis and I joined Mark in his office while kids of employees trick-or-treated in the hallways. All three of us forgot to bring candy, and we felt like the biggest jackasses in the world everytime a kid would walk by. Sorry kids, no candy here, only middle-aged assholes.
On the plus side, I'm getting a new slim edition PS2! Mark found out about a weekend trade-in deal at EB, where you could trade in an older model PS2 and get $100 in store credit, and up to five PS2 games for $10 apiece -- even crappy ancient sports titles! So you could get $150 in store credit which is what the new PS2s cost.
Now I bought my PS2 used from Paul, a guy at work, two years ago; it was a sweet deal. For $100 I got his barely-used PS2 and the following games: Gran Turismo 3 A-Spec, Grant Theft Auto 3, Metal Gear Solid 2, and FIFA 2001. I've already got four games to trade in! I don't play sports or racing titles, and I'd rather play GTA3 and MGS2 on Xbox, both of which are pretty cheap now. So I traded the system and the four games plus another that I'd bought and never played, Onimusha 2. I bought it for $10 last summer and never even unwrapped it, so I just got my money's worth from it. (My PS2 collection is now down to Xenosaga 1, Armored Core [forgot the number], and a borrowed copy of Final Fantasy X.)
I brought the stuff to EB at RTC on Saturday evening. Mark walked in ten minutes later with his own trade-in. He'd been hesitating about doing the trade because the newer PS2s weren't in stock which meant if he traded in his old PS2 he couldn't play his GTA San Andreas until the new models arrive. And San Andreas is to Mark like crack is to a crackhead. It's not a pretty sight. Even while at the store, he was having second thoughts. So I said, "Dude, just finish Fable in the meantime. Finish some of your backlog of games." He eventually did do the trade.
Over the weekend, the MMORPG Guild Wars had a free "World Preview" event and I played it for a couple of hours. Really pretty game, and was moderately fun. I'm considering buying it when it comes out. The fact that there's no subscription fee is a big bonus.
I read most of the novel Halo: First Strike on Sunday. A quick read, with some good story moments, and it does a good job of connecting the first Halo game with the next. But there's not much depth to it -- it's like Hardy Boys for the new videogame generation.
That afternoon Dennis and I joined Mark in his office while kids of employees trick-or-treated in the hallways. All three of us forgot to bring candy, and we felt like the biggest jackasses in the world everytime a kid would walk by. Sorry kids, no candy here, only middle-aged assholes.
On the plus side, I'm getting a new slim edition PS2! Mark found out about a weekend trade-in deal at EB, where you could trade in an older model PS2 and get $100 in store credit, and up to five PS2 games for $10 apiece -- even crappy ancient sports titles! So you could get $150 in store credit which is what the new PS2s cost.
Now I bought my PS2 used from Paul, a guy at work, two years ago; it was a sweet deal. For $100 I got his barely-used PS2 and the following games: Gran Turismo 3 A-Spec, Grant Theft Auto 3, Metal Gear Solid 2, and FIFA 2001. I've already got four games to trade in! I don't play sports or racing titles, and I'd rather play GTA3 and MGS2 on Xbox, both of which are pretty cheap now. So I traded the system and the four games plus another that I'd bought and never played, Onimusha 2. I bought it for $10 last summer and never even unwrapped it, so I just got my money's worth from it. (My PS2 collection is now down to Xenosaga 1, Armored Core [forgot the number], and a borrowed copy of Final Fantasy X.)
I brought the stuff to EB at RTC on Saturday evening. Mark walked in ten minutes later with his own trade-in. He'd been hesitating about doing the trade because the newer PS2s weren't in stock which meant if he traded in his old PS2 he couldn't play his GTA San Andreas until the new models arrive. And San Andreas is to Mark like crack is to a crackhead. It's not a pretty sight. Even while at the store, he was having second thoughts. So I said, "Dude, just finish Fable in the meantime. Finish some of your backlog of games." He eventually did do the trade.
Over the weekend, the MMORPG Guild Wars had a free "World Preview" event and I played it for a couple of hours. Really pretty game, and was moderately fun. I'm considering buying it when it comes out. The fact that there's no subscription fee is a big bonus.
I read most of the novel Halo: First Strike on Sunday. A quick read, with some good story moments, and it does a good job of connecting the first Halo game with the next. But there's not much depth to it -- it's like Hardy Boys for the new videogame generation.