Playing paintball is one of those things I always wanted to do as a kid but never got around to doing. I always viewed it as an activity that was too expensive (and it is) and I also figured I’d be really bad at it and “die” quickly, sucking whatever fun there was to be had out of playing. Well, now 10+ years later I finally got around to playing.

I hate to admit it, but video game hype works on me. Ever since I got my Xbox 360 I’ve been sucked into video game hype like never before. With a slew of good games coming out over the past year, I’ve become a sucker for getting games when they come out. And I don’t like it.

The arcade games on Xbox Live are typically pretty cheap, usually under the $20 price point, which makes them very appealing for cheap gamers like myself. But in the age of downloadable content (DLC), gamers expect a longer shelf life for games…even the cheap ones. Too bad developers are seemingly overlooking the DLC for arcade games.

I admitted being wrong about first-person shooters when I got Call of Duty at the beginning of the year, but never did I think I would find a new, decent shooter for under $20. But wait, there’s more! I have actually found two great games, both under $20, which to me is the cheapskate gamer’s breaking point. I figure just about any game is worth $20 if you play for more than a weekend. With $40 spent and Battlefield 1943 and Magic: The Gathering now in my game library, I …

If you’re a gamer then you have seen King of Kong, or at least you better have. A tale of one man’s quest to fight evil and become the Donkey Kong champion. King of Kong was a quasi-documentary, really only showing probably one side of the tale, but nonetheless it is extremely entertaining (even if you’re not a gamer). But on the other side of the spectrum lies Chasing Ghosts, a “real” documentary that looks at many of the same characters found in King of Kong.

I was over at 8bithacks.com reading a post about the Street Fighter arcade days and it had me thinking more about the impact of the loss of local arcades. Beyond the loss of honest to god face-to-face socializing, the baron arcade landscape robbed every small town of their local arcade hero.

We had a pretty good discussion about geeks and nerds on the latest CAVEradio show in relation to a little web project I’m starting with some of the CAVEcrew. The project is all about geeky stuff, but local geeky stuff. I’m tired of seeing local “lifestyle” magazines about trendy restaurants, indie music, and where to meet the best singles. Look, I’m married, I’m a geek, I’m a cheap ass, and I don’t feel any pressure to be particularly overly social. I’m not too concerned with whether or not I go …