The other day I told Tycho that we needed to write a comic strip. He thought for a few minutes and then said “I have an awesome idea!” I assumed that he meant he had an idea for the next strip but I quickly realized that wasn’t the case. He moved to his desk and disassembled the scissors. Then, using a rubber band he attached one of the blades to the end of his cardboard tube. Then he spun around and waved it in my face proclaiming that he had fashioned what he referred to as the “DarkSpur”.

I wanted to really quickly direct your attention to a few sites that have PAX write ups and photos. If you are interested in that sort of thing check out:

We couldn't let the Acclaim bankruptcy go without comment, though we initially let it slide thinking about the ordinary gamers who lost their jobs there. They don't have anything to do with Acclaim's malevolent Public Relations mongrels, and it wasn't they who hatched the Titty Bike genre either. Then, we remembered that we have absolutely zero social conscience and love to say mean things.

We announced this at PAX, but now the PA Presents page has been updated with a new project. Brady Games upcoming World of Warcraft guide will actually be full of comics by Tycho and I. These are funny comics that will help teach new users some of the skills they will need to play Blizzard’s new MMORPG.

Kiko snapped some great photos of the convention, and Gabe went ahead and handled the commentary for each one - they're here, if you want them.

Now that I can see time does, in fact, continue - even after events of such magnitude that they warp space-time - I can start being excited about the games that find their way to stores. Pikmin 2 is just such a game - also, people in the second Q&A panel asked for a "watch" strip, and we have done as commanded.

There are quite a few more things to discuss, and I'll get to them all eventually - Red Vs Blue, and of course, our mighty Omeganauts - including Omeganaut Prime Sean Celaya, and his noble opponent Kevin Potter, who I have a feeling we'll be hearing from again.

It has always been my greatest fear that one of you will engage me in conversation when I'm going to the bathroom. It's not something I ever expect to happen, you understand - I don't think you're clamoring for the opportunity, it's just something I worry about. Thus far, we've been to cons where there was a certain percentage of readers among the attendees and it hasn't happened yet. In my apparently infinite wisdom, we chose to hold a convention populated almost exclusively by the readership. So it's starting to look less like my greatest fear and more like my secret wish.

It is not uncommon for Gabriels to deploy sophistry in the service of their goals, truly epic feats like sitting on the couch or watching television. In these situations, I can be counted on to act as his barely responsive interlocutor.

I like to play World of Warcraft. When I play this sort of game I tend to get attached to my character and I don’t really feel comfortable making new ones. I’m not sure exactly what it is, but once I’ve got my guy I stick with him no matter what. As each new patch comes out Blizzard opens up new classes for play. Once I started my Warlock though I never really saw any reason to switch. I guess that makes me a shitty beta tester, but I don’t really care. Besides, there are so many fucking hunters in the game right now it’s ridiculous. I was in Westfall yesterday and it was like Noah’s fucking ark.

I got this update from RedMachine regading the West Coast Super Trip. I’ll just go ahead and post it here:

You might already have read about those tragic events on Naboo, but there is no man alive who can pretend to be surprised by the predations of SOE's nefarious customer service at this point. Their behavior has been legendary since 1999, when they killed every tenth Everquest subscriber. They are the most diabolical force currently active on the world stage - teleporting player characters into orbit? Man, that's not even the main course.

I drew a new ad for Rainbow Six 3: Black Arrow. I ended up having to crop it a bunch to fit it in the template. I thought some of you might like to see what the whole thing looked like. Here you go.

The conversation is real, but he didn't have it with Kara - I'm given to understand that she has the equivalent of super strength in this "trimester" or whatever it is called, and has the capacity to deal aggravated damage. Gabriel informed me yesterday that she lifted a car over her head, and threw that car at another car and then climbed up an office building. After a spectacle like that, your discourse tends to bear the proper reverence.

Dana has a new blog entry up.

Surely this installment of Penny Arcade is a falsification of the worst sort! Friends, if only that were true. When he started telling me about Dust, as though it were a topic that was somehow alien to me, alien to the tens of thousands of people that play every day on "Dust Only" servers, I felt something pop inside my mind.