Quickie update: pictures from this morning's COD: BO midnight release

Call of Duty: Black Ops officially released this morning at 12:01 am and tsudoku and I were (once again) near the end of the line to pick up our copy of the game. From what I heard from the Iraq vet standing behind us, the first guy in line showed up at 8 o'clock to take part in the festivities which included prize giveaways (I think) and lots and lots of NOS energy drinks.

We got there around 11:50 and this was what the line looked like; it stretched around GameStop, onto the sidewalk, and into the back parking lot:

Back parking lot. The GameStop manager said it'd be about 90 minutes from
this point until we reached the door

After taking this picture, I told 'doku, "Yeah I'm gonna go to IHOP and eat. You want anything?"

"How about some Jack in the Box?"

"How about no?" Eventually, I caved in and got Jack in the Box for the both of us when what I really wanted was a cup of hot chocolate. And a parka. It was freezing out.

Condescending LA Weekly article re: Call of Duty: Black Ops

Normally I would never, ever read anything the LA Weekly has to say about gaming, but my buddy @slimjimallen, author of the music and sports blog Partial Disclosure, tweeted me the link to this "piece" re: the midnight release event in LA for Call of Duty: Black Ops. Here are a few of my favorite tidbits from this"article":

"While you were sleeping, [the economy] partied with passive-aggressive stoners looking to blow some bitches up with toggles, middle-school Monster guzzlers looking to kill the pain with another epic bloodbath and bored-to-death businessmen looking for -- to be honest -- a reason to live."

"Last month, key "Black Ops" competitor (and neighborhood nuisance) "Medal of Honor" was released to give couch soldiers something to twiddle their thumbs with until the real deal was ready. But "Call of Duty" is like an iPod -- nothing's ever quite as good as the original."

"Inside this time capsule, new-age graphics are dazzling. The game is crisper, louder and far more customizable (think Wartime Barbie) than its predecessors or competitors -- and at a whole new level of frightening, against a backdrop of sporadic missiles and helicopters with minds of their own. Ever heard of a knife-dart or crossbow-rocket? Now you have."

Call of Duty: Black Ops - midnight release tonight!

Guess what I'm doing tonight? Expect an update to this blog post some time tomorrow about tonight's experience in line for the long awaited release of Call of Duty: Black Ops. Big ups to @fourzerotwo for the reminder that it was coming out this Tuesday because...well, I just forgot:

fourzerotwo Robert Bowling

http://fzt.me/1hrofblackops Have any questions about Call of Duty: Black Ops multiplayer? This hour of MP with @DavidVonderhaar answers it.

2 Nov Favorite Retweet Reply

in reply to @fourzerotwo ↑

@Vickipedia Vickipedia

@fourzerotwo I almost forgot Black Ops was out next week! Very excited! thanks for that reminder! :)

@fourzerotwo Robert Bowling

@Vickipedia You're very welcome.

2 Nov via web Favorite Retweet Reply

 

@Vickipedia Vickipedia

did I *squee* when @fourzerotwo, a blogger, creative strategist at Infinity Ward, and awesome geek respond to my tweet? Why yes, yes I did

2 Nov via web Favorite Reply Delete

Back from (New) Vegas: A Call of Duty recap

Woo!! It is so good to be back in town! Vegas, as much as I love you, your arid, desert environment combined with the constant cloud of cigarette smoke wrecks havoc on my skin. Overall, it was a great trip and believe it or not, quite relaxing. We took a lot of pictures with the fancy-schmancy DSLR, but I'm only going to show you the two most important photos from our trip to The Gun Store.

Heading to Vegas! (A Call of Duty related entry)



Las Vegas - The City of No Clocks

 Woo-hoo!! Vegas!!! Also known as "Sin City" and the "Land of Abandoned Inhibitions", and if you're not careful about where you sit, you may bring home something more than just an empty wallet.

I love Las Vegas. As a Southern California resident, it's only a four hour drive away - we don't even consider that outside of California! I've done many a turn-around trip from here to Vegas and back again - all in 24 hours (I was much younger then), and every time I go you can always count on one or the other happening:

1. You win (not very likely unless you're a really lucky person, in which case, let me buy you a drink), or
2. You lose (very likely, especially if you have a gambling problem).

Honoring the Geneva Convention in CoD

I've never, ever played Call of Duty but have seen tsudoku spend many hours laboring over it and to me, it looks like just another first-person shooter game (I really suck at those). But, it's one of the most popular games out there and it's probably one of his favorites, next to Lost Planet and Halo, of course.

Anyway, while on Twitter @fourzerotwo posted a link to a really interesting article that he came across on BoingBoing.net (fourzerotwo, if you're not already following him, works for Infinity Ward, which made CoD, Modern Warfare, etc., so go figure he'd be the first to bring this article to light). Written by regular joe Hugh Spencer, he talks about how one day his son Evan came up to him and said that he really, really wanted to play CoD - can I Dad, can I? Now Hugh, who's done some research on military history, took a look at the game and thought, yeah that's pretty accurate, but you're still blowing stuff up! What's in it for my kid?

Sooo, he asked Evan to Google "Geneva Convention" and essentially told him after he's done his research and discussed what the Geneva Convention was all about, allowed him to play CoD online with his buddies. The catch: Evan and his friends have to play by the rules of the Geneva Convention; any violations mean dismissal of the game for awhile.

Now THAT is what I call responsible and creative parenting. BRAVO!

Read the article here; oh, and the comments couldn't be more off-topic.

Missing Runaway Xbox Gamer Body Found

Xbox Gamer Brandon Crisp Likely Froze To Death

Crisp's body was found undisturbed in a wooded area near his Canadian home.

By Paul McDougall InformationWeek November 7, 2008 09:24 AM

Investigators eyeing the death of gamer Brandon Crisp are speculating that the 15-year-old likely succumbed to hypothermia, according to media reports Friday.

Crisp's body was found Wednesday in an undisturbed condition by deer hunters in a wooded area several miles from his home. Police said they do not suspect foul play. A post-mortem was scheduled for Friday.

Crisp had been missing for about three weeks from his house in Barrie, Ontario, a small Canadian city about 60 miles north of Toronto. Crisp bolted after a dispute with his parents over the amount of time he spent playing Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare on his Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) Xbox.

Crisp was "addicted" to playing online video games, particularly Call Of Duty 4, over Microsoft's Xbox Live online gaming service, according to reports. The game allows players to assume the character of a contemporary combat soldier.

The Center for Online Addiction estimates that between 5% and 10% of the population suffers from some form of Internet addiction. It defines the condition as "any online-related, compulsive behavior which interferes with normal living and causes severe stress on family, friends, loved ones, and one's work environment."

Microsoft contributed $25,000 to a $50,000 reward fund for information on Crisp. Beyond the funds, Microsoft aided the search by turning over to police Crisp's Xbox Live account information. One theory that made the rounds was that Crisp had run off to join a "clan" of fellow gamers.

In releasing the information, a Microsoft spokesman told InformationWeek that the company "expedited" its standard privacy procedures.

The move came following the launch of an online petition, called "Project Red Tape", that asked the software maker to hand over the youth's account data. Microsoft's spokesman said the company began cooperating with police as soon as it was asked to do so, and was not influenced by the petition.

The petition appeared on a Web site that was established to help the search effort. It noted that Crisp was 5' 3", 100 pounds with dirty blond hair and green eyes. He was last seen alive on Oct. 13.

Chuck of Duty?

It's been years it seems since I've watched a weekly series on basic cable (remember Friends?) Indeed, I used to watch a show like Grey's Anatomy, it was called ER. Is that still around? While eating my pizza for one frozen dinner, I happened upon a show called Chuck. Don't know much about it, other than the basic premise of an awkward geek who becomes an awkward CIA agent. It's cute. There's a hot chick in it and everything.

Anyhow, what struck my fancy was the fact that in tonight's episode Chuck's coworker-slash-friend (the one pictured in the green shirt, is his name Morgan? And by the way, Chuck is a not quite higher up at a store called Buy More) unrolled what was basically a game map to (drumroll) Call of Duty. In fact, Call of Duty played a recurring role in the first half-hour of the episode (if it came up again after that I wouldn't know...I had dishes to wash at that point). Morgan had a strategy and everything, including x amount of foot soldiers, x amount of helicopters, etc.

If it sounds like a product placement, looks like a marketing ploy, or smells like a deal between NBC and Activision, it probably is.