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I have always wondered where the dance moves in WoW come from. Wonder no more, this is absolutely awesome!

It is reviews like this one:

The reason for this is that it is easy: It just works. The first time you hand a Wiimote to someone and they point it at the screen, they know what to do. There's a little hand, representing where you're pointing, and each Wiimote has a different colored hand. Navigating menus is actually … fun, in an odd sort of way. Moving over UI elements with the little hand representing your controller causes a very slight rumble. The controller shakes just enough to give the entire experience a tactile element that, again, I've never seen in gaming before. It's the little things like this that really makes the Wii experience. Turning the Wiimote upside down inverts the hand. They didn't have to do it that way, but they did. Navigating menus is, mildly, fun. One of the first games my cousins played after they'd picked up the controllers was the "duel with their icon-hands" challenge. Odd, yes, but entirely understandable. The Wiimote, and the completely natural movements you make when using the device, require no explanation. When Nintendo went to the AARP event earlier this year, they knew what they were doing; this is the console your grandmother can use as easily as you can.

that put the Wii at the top of my post-holiday shopping list. The focus on the gaming experience and not just the raw video performance is what has distinguished this console from all others. I can't wait to get it!

Fascinating stuff in the virtual gaming world, SecondLife. Its becoming apparent that SecondLife can no longer be considered just a game. Something more is happening there. Its a rough raw experience but its getting better all the time.

 It seems that Marc Bragg is suing SecondLife because he discovered a flaw in their system. Over at the SecondLife forums Nimrod Yaffle posts what may be the method used:

What he did was look at the auction ID and put it at the end of the regular auction URL, so he got access to the auction before it was actually started by LL. It was not on the main auction page because a linden had not set it up yet, so it was 0.00 min price.

Clearly Marc discovered and exploited a bug. The case may get thrown out quickly because it is clearly spelled out in the TOS that Linden Labs can terminate any account for any reason. Hopefully, though, the courts will use this case to start taking up the question of virtual worlds and the law.

Marc's actions resulted in the termination of his SL account. But should that be allowed? Virtual worlds present some very interesting legal questions. As virtual worlds become more and more part of people's lives will the ultimate punishment of banishment for life be allowed without the courts stepping in? Should a user be completely cut-off from close friends and even loved ones? The company hosting the virtual world?

There is significant opportunity for an enterprising judge to really move the legal world into the 21st century. Lets see who rises to the challenge.

This is amazing, China just doesn't miss a beat.

MMPORG’s are the things to watch over the next few years. Here are a few links that have been sitting in my queue to blog about:

http://crystaltips.typepad.com/wonderland/2006/01/dance_mmo.html
http://www.furplay.com/swg/media/CCXVII-large.mov

When it comes to MMPORG’s I am presently big on World of Warcraft and Second Life of course (Max Doctorow, nods to one of my favorite authors, Cory Doctorow).

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