It’s a week away. I found out I was going to PAX two weeks ago, and the excitement hasn’t dimmed in all that time. If anything, it’s becoming a more constant companion as the day approaches. It’s settled in my stomach and flops a little whenever I think about the upcoming marathon of gaming goodness.

I’m really looking forward to seeing the games from E3, only closer to being finished and being played by rabid gamers rather than pompous journalists. I fully intend to bring a tent to camp out in front of the Prince of Persia 2 trailer, and anyone who brings food or caffeine is welcome to join me in abject admiration of what appears to be the greatest game ever in development. Should be fun.

Failing that, I think I’m going to spend a lot of my time over at Myst IV. While I’m currently playing Rainbow Six 3 and Black Arrow a great deal, my roots are in the Myst series. The original was my first PC game and set me on the path I have traveled to this day. I feel I owe it something for that, and since I can expect it to be every bit as beautiful as its predecessors I doubt the experience will be any less than enchanting. I’ll also be interested to see other Myst fans. I know that a lot of gamers look down on the series as somehow “non-gaming” but I also know that most Penny Arcade fans are absolutely not like that. It would be neat to be able to chat with someone about Myst-ish stuff. I’ve never been able to do such a thing before.

Aside from those two games, and the Black Arrow competition, I’m really looking forward to the experience of an enormous collection of Penny Arcade fans. I’m imagining it to be like a giant LAN party, only 100x better. I can’t resist. It’s a godsend that I actually get to go. I think I need to kiss someone.

In Rainbow Six 3 news… I think I’m getting worse. How does that happen?

Jinx