And so it begins... Comcast tries its hand at gatekeeping

Comcast and Level 3 Communications are getting into a pissing match over Internet traffic, and who pays how much to let Netflix-streamed content get to your eyeballs. I've seen a few brief news items about the mess, but this link to an Ars Technica article is the best, most thorough walkthrough of what the issues are, based on publicly-available information, that I've seen. Even so, it's not as clear-cut as I might care for... but it sure has the whiff of Comcast trying to charge Netflix for the data I've already paid Comcast and Netflix for. As usual, here's hoping somebody works out a decent alternative to Comcast for Internet access in my neck of the woods, soonest. Heck, I might even have to look into what I can get through commercial channels, once the car's paid off.

Kirby's Epic Yarn

If you're looking for some truly innocent fun in a game, especially something to play with younger children, you could do far worse than Kirby's Epic Yarn on the Wii. Visually, it's a wonderful game, and a fine entry for the debate on "are video games art", with every element defined by the concept of a world made entirely of fabric and yarn (well, and the occasional button or zipper, but you get the idea). Gameplay-wise, it's that rarest of game types, a relaxing platformer... I suppose there might be some challenge for the youngest of players early on, but I'd put it about a notch down from the various Lego games, maintaining the "you can't really die" feel while eliminating the odd camera angles that sometimes result in your untimely demise. Story-wise... well, that's pretty straight-forward, your basic "rise of the villain looking to take over the world, until you stop him cold" line, as told by a narrator with a definite reading-to-children bent. I played through the story line in single player mode, and had a fair deal of fun, but there is also a two-player simultaneous mode that could be quite fun, again especially for younger children. All in all, I'd say it's a worthwhile play for all gamers under 10, and any older gamers that can don't think a game has to have a BFG to be worth playing... but it's only about 10 hours to get through, so whether it's worth full-price to you, well, that's entirely up to you.

Imperfect, but worth a shot... Hulu Plus

I've been wanting something resembling Internet TV for a while now... movies I've got covered by Netflix instant streaming, and sports, what little I watch of them, I can get over the air or through ESPN's widget on my Xbox360, but recent, episodic content has been a dead space to date. That changed today, with Hulu Plus going live on my Roku box, with a price drop to $8/month. Mind you, the vast majority of what they offer is of little to no interest to me, and much of the content I do care about is already available to me through Netflix streaming... but I did see a couple of longish anime series in the mix which are available only by disc through Netflix, at least one of which I'm part-way into already, so it's not a total waste of time to give it a go. Still, I'll probably hold off until just before Thanksgiving to start the week-long free trial period... nothing like a long, holiday weekend to get some serious vegetation out of the way... :)

We now interrupt your regularly-scheduled shooter...

Looking back, April's the last time I talked about Activision... the short reason being that, by and large, their style of games aren't the ones that make me reach for my wallet. Add to that the ongoing legal mess with their past developers, and my urge to buy is that much less. However, just because I'm sworn off their software for now, doesn't mean that I can't recognize their developers' good works... such as the recently-released Call of Duty: Black Ops.

Mind you, I'm still not a huge shooter fan... but, last I looked, it rated over 90 at Metacritic, which is unusually good for starters. More interesting to me, though, is a little "easter egg" they hid in the menu screen... allowing you to play Zork, a text-adventure game from the last century, and even earn an achievement for doing so (link). Oh well, I guess I'll have to check it out at some point down the road, likely used by then, and cheaper to boot.