It seems that the only way to acquire Half-Life 2: Episode Two will be to purchase the entirety of Half-Life 2 (+ expansions) again, and use only the one product code. This seems like a really absurd idea…and I cannot imagine why it was difficult to get just the expansion and extra content into a nice retail package. But someone deemed it unworthy.

I like how they describe what you should do in the official statement:

_Those who purchase the PC version of The Orange Box will get three separate Steam product codes: One for the three new games, one for HL2, and one for Episode One. This way a PC Orange Box owner can give away their Half-Life 2 or Episode One unused Steam product codes if they don’t need a copy of those games. _

Ah. So, you buy the game, and if you already have Half-Life 2 and Episode One, then you have to barter with your friends to find a buyer. That’s just special.

Starcraft II has just been announced. It’s official. And they are right. It is about time.

Check here for some gameplay footage. The Protoss have a new unit called the Immortal, which has a shield that activates when it receives a heavy blow (a shot from a siege tank). However, light hits will easily mow it down. The Terrans have some unit that uses a jetpack. Very cool, since they can actually scale cliffs by themselves (no dropship required).

This game is going to be awesome.

In other news, Super Smash Bros. Brawl will be getting a big announcement and a website overhaul in two days. Keep your eyes peeled for the outcome of that.

Before you react to the name of the post, I should inform you that there is - in fact - no Professor Confidence currently employed at the University of Waterloo. He certainly does not appear in a UWDIR search using that last name, so I can only assume that the name is completely fictitious. No. Instead, this post is something that has been a long time coming: a post about how I’ve begun to fall into step with the rest of the returning students at UW, complete with a brief assessment of my professors. So, here is the rundown:

For Math 136 - Linear Algebra, I cannot say I have any problems with the professor. He is a little excentric and he mumbles, but I think it is fair to assume that this is merely a sign of a mathematical genius. The only problem that I have with the whole situation is that he has this annoying little quirk where he stutters and says “Uh…” a lot.

For Math 138 - Calculus II, there are a few grievances. First of all, the professor speaks (as usual) with a thick accent. She also had extremely messy writing, and constantly pronounces words incorrectly. For example, she constantly refers to the constant Pi as “pee”. Very frustrating. But, as long as I can keep up with her and decipher the diagrams, things seem to be working out okay.

For ENGL 208C - Children’s Lit, there are no grievances at all. The professor is a competent lecturer, he is interesting, and he runs a good class. The only thing I dislike is the constant employment of group activities. I do not like group activities. I thought that moving beyond high school has removed those shackles from me. But, alas, this was not the case.

For ENGL 108M, the professor has forbade us from bringing laptops to class. This is a pain, since he provides basic slides for us on the main website, and it is convenient to throw in notes on those slides. Also, considering I coughed up two grand for this machine - plus $6000 for the whole university experience this term - it would be nice to have no restrictions on my learning experience.

For CS 134, this is my worst lecturer. I’m sitting in a section of it right now, and my real professor is sitting down the row from me. Yes. The person that is supposed to be lecturing my section is sitting in another guys section taking notes for her lecture later this evening. I’m so glad I started going to the earlier section.

Although Stargate SG-1 is cancelled, it seems perfectly appropriate to have this Foxy Friday feature the lovely Amanda Tapping, who portrays Lt. Col. Samantha Carter. Don’t really have time to post an explanation on why she is featured here, although she is pretty hot. For the most part, this is to appease Binkle who commented on the absence of a Foxy Friday. Well, here she is. Enjoy. Next Friday, I will have it up on time. Also, for next week, I’ll have Binkle’s resolution of 1400 x something (his words) up for you all to enjoy.

Amanda Tapping - Wide (1280x800)

Amanda Tapping - Full (1280x1024)

Oh my God. Oh my God. Denis Dyack was at the University of Waterloo!

He was actually here. He was here with Silicon Knights (his production studio operated out of St. Catherines), at the Tatham Centre, recruiting full-time staff for game development.

If you don’t know who he is, then you probably do not game as much as you should. Here. Let me help you and he become acquainted.

Here. Here.

And, of course, if you Google ‘Too Human’, you are bound to find something about him. Denis Dyack is a game developer. A prolific one in many ways. And one of Canada’s best. He created Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem, which is widely heralded as being one of the greatest Gamecube titles in existence. He also brought Metal Gear Solid to the Gamecube with The Twin Snakes. And now, he is working on what could possibly be his opus, the epic trilogy Too Human, based on Norse Mythology.

And he was here. On campus. A guy named Adam from N5 who is always over at N3 working with the engineers went to the Tatham Centre to drop off his work report, only to notice a sign that said there was a Silicon Knights presentation coming up. So he thought, “What the hell? I’ll sit in.”

And Denis Dyack was there. He was talking about the glorious positions they were recruiting for. And, perhaps the most cool thing, they showed the students one of the most recent builds of Too Human. This is the kind of thing that you would pay thousands to witness first hand at a press event, or event like E3. And UW students got to see it for free. I mean…wow…just…fucking wow.

When he came to N3 afterwords and told us, I thought he was lying. But it is a true story…and I missed the whole damn thing. Of course, I was the only one freaking out because the other people in the room were PC gamers (and Dyack’s realm is the console). So, the magnitude of this news was lost on many, but not on me.

sigh

Maybe Nintendo will recruit at UW, and I can meet Miyamoto.

Okay. We’re playing Gotcha again in our house this term, and I am actually taking a more active and daring stance than last term’s “hide in my room until it is down to me and another person” strategy. Although it worked out pretty well, I eventually got caught by Katie Warner, who is playing again this term.

Today, I was getting a spicy chicken wrap and a giant bottle of water from the cafeteria. I finished ringing up my purchase, turned, and saw Margueritte coming towards me with a gesture of friendship: what appeared to be a high-five. But, in her haste to claim victory, she started to say the word Gotcha before actually touching me, and I dodged nimbly out of the way. After running through the V1 Main Building, and smashing through a door, I escaped to the outside. My wrap was crushed in my hand, but I kept on running. Eventually, I got enough distance between her and myself to turn and say, “You made a mistake today Margueritte. A grave mistake. Now, I know it is you.”

So, I took an extremely long way to get back to North 3 (I was out by MKV at this point), and ducked back into my house safe and sound. And now, I will not be so foolish as to leave my room without my safety item. No. Never again.