Paul Meekin

CHICAGO – Considering the hoopla surrounding “Aliens: Colonial Marines” it’s pretty fascinating that “Crysis 3”, is the best “Alien Vs. Predator” game of all time. With the small addition of a very versatile bow, “Crysis 3”’s Nano-suited leading man Prophet feels quite a lot like “Predator”’s namesake, down to the lethal arrows, fancy heat vision, futuristic technology, and jungle-esque environments.

CHICAGO – A decade or so ago, “Metal Gear Solid” came out and accomplished two things. First, it invented the stealth action genre for consoles. Sneaking behind enemies, choking them out, and making it through a particularly grueling area undetected achieved a cycle of stress, relief, triumph, and joy.

CHICAGO – I’m a Trekkie, tried and true. While not as obsessed as some, I enjoy the sciencey bits, the theoretical discussions between space and time, and the way “Star Trek: The Next Generation” employs real scientific consultants to fact check all sorts of data and concepts that were subtly inserted into the show. So as a kid I was always a Jean-Luc Picard kind of guy in a Han Solo world. Of course, it became a tough choice as time went on. Classic space games like “Elite 2” and “X3: Reunion” and they’re almost-limitless-as-space depth whisked past my peripheral vision, cajoling me bit by bit to dive in.

CHICAGO – It’s pretty safe to say the internet is the best things to happen to cats since the litter box. Unless you were born without a soul, the odds are you have a favorite LolCat Meme, too. There’s “I should buy a boat” cat, Lawyer Cat, Lime Cat, Monorail Cat, and everyone’s favorite, Grumpy Cat. With kittens as popular as ever, it was only a matter of time until someone made them the protagonists of a mobile game. “Meowzers: Action Cats” is one of those games, and like a kitten in a carrier, is a curious package.

CHICAGO – What happens when you combine the city building of “Sim City”, the art-style of “Pocket Planes” and the pointless, but still somehow fascinating Commodore 64 game, “Little Computer People”?

CHICAGO – In this world, there are very few places for the creatively minded B-type personality to massage their fragile egos. Sure, you can write a 13,000 word diatribe defending the “Star Wars” Prequels, get a PHD, get a writing gig, kick-start that graphic novel you’ve been kicking around, etc., but the ability to have an honest-to-goodness pissing contest is sadly privilege of the proverbially macho. We can’t arm wrestle, we might as well have mittens for hands when it comes to catching any sort of ball, and we want people to like us. So we play trivia.

CHICAGO – My relationship with “Super Meat Boy” isn’t unlike an early 90’s romantic comedy starring Meg Ryan. Despite spending years in my peripheral vision, and being told over and over and over again how great of a guy “Super Meat Boy” was (Yes, I’m Meg Ryan in this scenario), I didn’t have the special kind of feelings a lass needs to warrant a commitment.

CHICAGO – Since the advent of fancy 3D gaming graphics, it seems most space simulations believe gamers want action pew-pew. “Freespace 2”, “Wing Commander”, “X-Wing vs. Tie Figher”, and a litany of other games essentially presented classic combat flight sim gameplay *in spaaceee*. Now, all those games are excellent in their own ways. “Descent: Freespace” in particular is a *must* play if you’ve ever enjoyed anything related to Sci-Fi.

CHICAGO – The odds are if you own a “Borderlands 2” Season Pass, or are a member of its “Premiere Club” you’re very likely very pleased at the constant stream of high quality content being delivered to your Xbox 360.

CHICAGO – I’ve been gaming for two and a half decades. If I think about it, I haven’t even been potty trained that long. I played games before I rode a bike, kissed my first girl, danced my first jig, or wrote my first word. A controller is as familiar to my hands as a rifle to a rifleman.