Lunchie Munchies

I'm doing what I normally do around this time - eating at my desk.

Speaking of food, we're lucky to have vending machines in the building (food and soda) where everything is only a quarter. Sometimes we don't have much time to eat and I dislike companies who try to take advantage of that by making some extra cash on the side. I once worked for a company that charged 1.25 for a single candy bar...but a) that roughly *8* years ago, so subtract inflation and b) we *all* made next to nothing. Here we pay for things at cost and I very much appreciate that. Now if you are trying to watch what you eat and you see donuts AND cupcakes for 25 cents each, well, I guess it can be an evil thing too. I'll NEVER take some things for granted, whether it be 25 cent snacks or something more important as say...health insurance.

The Best Video Game Review Show *Ever*

I don't know if anyone remembers this show, but it was called Judgment Day.** I believe it was mostly on when G4 and Tech TV were independent from one another. When the channels merged it did stay on, but my joy was short lived. It's been off the air for roughly two years now.

Or so I thought.

I'm a *big* fan of wikipedia, and I was wondering what good ole' Tommy and Lucas were up to these days. Alas - the show is still around!

It's now called "Reviews On the Run" and it is only shown in Canada. There have at least been some *talks* of bringing it back to the US market, so there is hope:

"Specific details about the negotiations have not been disclosed. As of December 2007, the show has not returned to U.S. airwaves."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reviews_on_the_Run

G4, please bring this show back to the US. I got nothing against Canada - in fact I like the country, and I personally don't want this jealously to get in the way of my feelings for Canada. Please don't let this tear two nations apart....

So why do I consider Judgment Day to be the best video game review TV show ever? (I say that like it's a big market to begin with, heh.)

It's simple. They wrote their own reviews. They didn't sound overly scripted and you can tell they actually played the game themselves. They are true gamers so they were rather passionate about their views. I have nothing against game industry folks who may not necessarily enjoy video games in their spare time (and yes, they do exist) but you can generally sniff them out. You can also tell that they have a lot of experience reviewing games on any platform, which is a big bonus. Many in the industry focus on console games ONLY despite the fact that PC online gaming is still huge. Their knowledge is simply well rounded.

And whether they like a game or hate it, you'll at least you know why. They did a good job explaining why a game may be frustrating to some (invisible walls do suck sometimes!) They also listed the pros and cons so you could get a feel as to whether YOU may personally like the game, even if they didn't. Naturally, every reviewer out there is going to have their own personal tastes. But they did seem to keep the general viewing audience in mind, and I liked that neutrality. So what's the bottom line when it comes to creating a game review: INFORMATION. And they supplied that.

They also made me laugh, and they truly seemed to enjoy themselves. And quite frankly, it was nice to see several reviews in a single show. I'm always trying to keep up with what's going on in the gaming industry and Judgment Day just made that process a little bit easier.

You know what I also learned from wikipedia?

"Lost cast member Evangeline Lilly's first job in television was as a "Hardware Girl" for Reviews on the Run."

That would be "Kate" from Lost. Ha. I never knew she was a hardware babe, which was their version of booth babes.

No matter what it's called, "Judgment Day" or "Reviews on the Run" or whatever, BRING IT BACK!!

PS: I'm jealous, Canada.

*shakes fist*

**This has nothing to do with the fact that Lucas gave CoH some really amazing reviews. I swear. Cough cough.