Once a dedicated gamer who paid great attention to new releases, reading the Gamespot reviews and spending an average of $200 a month on games, everything has now changed. I no longer find any pleasure in visiting my gaming store to browse through the assortment of games, checking prices and covers. My Playstation 2 is currently inactive, and has been so for quite some time now. So, what is the reason for this regression?

Well, the answer is very simple and spells: World of Warcraft. I went from being a level 10 to a level 33 in a few weeks, and is currently struggeling in the naked landscapes of the Desolace. “Highly addictive” – as i stated in my review – is the largest understatement ever. A fellow guildmember of AbSoLute, named Belthazor, once said that “someone might just as well have put a needle to my arm and shot it with heroine”. This statemant is so unbelievably true!

I have at this writing moment been away from the game for two days, due to the horrific fact that I needed to travel to my parents to celebrate my birthday, and I have never experienced such a powerful abstinence, as the one I suffer from now. I figured it might help to browse the countless World of Warcraft webpages that exists on the net, but this only made my suffering worse. This is indeed a very dangerous game! My girlfriend is constantly bitter about the fact that I spend so much time in the world of Azeroth, instead of the real one, and my continuated postponement of the creation of my school essay in history (20 pages), forced me to write it during a 24 hour study session. Exhausting to say the least. All because of WoW. Once more I send this warning to you all: think twice before buying this game, because it really possesses your soul and drain from you, whatever interest you have of real life... and other games.

I have in a previous journal addition described the pains a gamer has to overcome when a company announces the release of the next game in a series which you really like. I have also proclaimed my newly acquired passion for adventure games. Combine these two, and you'll have the receipt for a spring and summer characterized by it's wait for the new "Mortal Kombat" title "Shaolin Monks".

It was actually today I first saw that Midway is working on a sequel to the excellent "MK: Deception". I only wish I had seen this news a few days before the games release. Further connection this text with my previous journal entries, Midway has succeeded in creating an atmosphere and myth which really draws you into the "Mortal Kombat" games. The decision to make the next "MK" game adventure based is absolutely brilliant. The Konquest mode in "Deception" added flesh on the bones of the story of Mortal Kombat in a way that "Deadly Alliance" did not (who had the mental strength or time to read all those text signs?).

Since the release of GTA: San Andreas last November there hasn't been a game which I have really been exited about. "Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks" has changed all that!

Gamespot has Rockstar and the GTA series to thank (or curse) for me discovering this site. About two month before the release of "GTA: San Andreas" I spent about one hour a day reading about the game. This number did not go down as the launch drew near. "GTA III" was the game that made me buy a PS2 console, and ultimately what made me stick to it. "GTA: Vice City"made me ecstatic, and for one year I didn't purchase one single game, let alone played anything else. With this in mind it is not difficult to understand how slow time passed the weeks before "GTA: San Andreas" hit the stores.

Finally, 10 AM a rainy Friday, I stood outside EB Games in Stockholm hoping that the game had made the morning delivery. It had! For three days I did nothing else but play the game. I neglected my studies at university, my girlfriend and my friends, to be able to really get into the game. Already after this short period of time I came to realize that I wasn't going to love this game as I loved "GTA: Vice City". Even though it was crammed with new functions, sidemissions and a variety of exciting mini games (the pool mini game functions just as well as any regular pool game), there was something that was missing.

It became apparent to me that "GTA: Vice City" was unique, and that there never going to be another game of it's caliber. The decisive factor is the feeling and atmosphere that it supplies. This is highly subjective and I am sure that many gamers identify more with the ghetto life of America than the Miami Vice 80's feeling. But for me it is the other way around. So far I have finished the storyline in "GTA: Vice City" four or five times and I will do it again, and again, and again. As for "GTA: San Andreas", I may play it one more time or just replay the missions I liked the most.

Just as in the movies, gaming has moved towards identifying with your main character. Tommy Versetti was a bad ass go getter, whereas Johnson is somewhat servile in his attitude towards things in general. However amusing (CJ looks like a complete moron), the sequence when you take a girl to the wrong place for your date is not something which makes your hero a hero.

The essence of atmosphere is nothing you can ignore as a game developer, and I hope Rockstar takes this into consideration for future GTA games. For no matter what; GTA will still be the best games on the market.

I have decided to post a small list of things that really annoys me in some of the games that are in my possession at the moment.

"Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum De Laude": Loading screens.

Comment: Contrary to what most people who has written reviews on this game feels, I think this is an excellent game. To be able to enjoy it I believe you have to play it on it's own terms. It is not meant to be part of the "Final Fantasy" generation. Concentrating on burlesque humour and easy mini game events, it has succeeded in winning my favour. However, there is one thing that is really annoying and that is the loading screens. It is fantastic that "GTA: San Andreas" manages to create an entire state without loading time, whereas "Larry" cannot even create a university campus with little loading time. Step into the library, but be aware that it might take some time to get through the door. Since the animated girls in the game are cuter than the loading screen girls, it doesn't help very much.

Need For Speed 2: Cruising.

Comment: My expectations for this game was really high, since I loved the first game (mostly because it was so furiously fast). With the game finally in my possession I was greatly disappointed. Apart from some new racing events, the most substantial addition was the off-race cruising. At first I thought it was really cool to be able to drive around as I wished, but pretty soon it became obvious that this was going to be one of the more irritating aspects of the game. I wasn't wrong, and in the end this is the sole reason why I've marked "NFSUG 2" lower than it's predecessor.

"NHL 2005": Transfer limitations.

Comment: Since EA Sports (with the launch of "NHL 2004") has started to add European leagues, making it possible for me to play with the team which I love in real life, the series has taken a turn for the better. One serious mistake is not adding the function of being able to trade players from the NHL to the European leagues and vice versa. With the real life NHL lockout, many NHL stars are currently playing in the Swedish Elitserien. Not being able to put Olli Jokinen, Kyle Calder, Dick Tarnstroem, Nicklas Havelid or Scott Thornton in their real life team Sodertalje (FORZA SSK!!!) is one of this years biggest gaming frustrations.

"Pro Evolution Soccer 4": Names.

Comment: What makes a great sports game? Besides graphical and in game play value considerations, it is undoubtedly that you are attacked by the sensation that you are controlling some of the worlds greatest players. "PES 4" succeeds in almost every aspect and becomes one of the best soccer games ever made. However, I want Van Nistelroy to score, not Van Mistelroum.

Given the opportunity to purchase "The Legacy of Kain: Defiance" for only ten cents, as a part of a special offer when buying a full priced game, I was introduced to a new gaming experience. Previously I had not been particularly interested in role playing games, and the whole fantasy scenario, but to my amazement I was totally blown away by the aforementioned title. The combination of relatively tricky puzzles and breathtaking environments proved a successful formula for winning me over to the fantasy legion. Also, there are many things stated in the Gamespot review of the game, that I disagree on. First (and I realize this might be a result of my limited experience on this genre), the variety of foes in "Defiance" strikes me as quite diverse. Everything from ghastly ghouls in the spirit world to clanking statues suddenly attacking you in the material realm. Secondly, the low score given by Gamespot seem to be based pretty much on the reviewer being annoyed by details such as combat structure and the moves you are able to perform. I use the word "details" since it is nothing else, putting it in context of the entire game's outlook.

"The Legacy of Kain: Defiance" is responsible not only for me adding all previous games in the Kain series to my wish list, but also opening up a whole new dimention of gaming to me. The feeling transcends the action oriented genre of fantasy, and has already made me thirst for the highly praised "World of Warcraft". Also, if anyone, against all odds should happen to read this entry, feel free to drop me a line suggesting similar games as "The Legacy of Kain: Defiance". Perhaps you can make me realize that my passion for "Defiance" is based solely on my limited playtime with fantasy... or perhaps you will confirm what I have written above.