I haven't posted here in forever (as evidenced by the fact that my last entry lampoons J. Allard for excessive pre-launch hype), but I felt compelled to after having completed the glorious Gears of War on Hardcore. If I didn't have to head to classes in a few hours, I'd probably make a stab at the Insane difficulty right now. Having not yet even scratched the surface of Gears' multiplayer experience, I am already prepared to say that I have not so greatly enjoyed a game since perhaps Resident Evil 4, which Gears has supplanted as my action game high water mark.

At present, the Xbox 360 is my only next-gen (or "new-gen") console, but I shan't be bidding on any eBay auctions in the near future. Twilight Princess is the only game calling to me on the Wii, and the highly Zelda-esque Okami has largely sated my appetite for that sort of action, anyway. The PS3 doesn't currently boast any games I couldn't do without. Resistance: Fall of Man looks mildly appealing, as I like the idea of an alien invasion's averting WWII, and sparing Jews the camps. Ani ohev otcha, Mr. Alien!

On a more personal note, in case any of you has been wondering what I'm up to, I am getting my learn on at Columbia University, where I study French, English and Hebrew. I have simultaneously been learning Gemora (commentary on the Mishnayot, or Talmudic lessons) at Aish HaTorah, with the goal of one day receiving smicha (orthodox rabbinical ordination). Being intensely studious and intensely Jewish really cuts into my gaming time, but it's kind of worth it.

I keep pretty busy, but occasionally have enough time to myself to start missing the GameSpot crew, with whom I spent 1.5 very formative years. I also still find San Francisco preferable to New York, but maybe that's just because it's 31 degrees right now.

For good measure, here are a couple of choice photos from my Central European sojourn: