So, what am I to do with my existing consoles, with the next generation consoles coming out? Well - I think I'll start a revolution and keep my old ones. My PS2 affords me a superb collection of games, the GameCube is still cute and the Xbox -- I know what 360 means -- turn completely around to start where you began. I already have music, videos and photo viewing and I don't need to spend $10 more per game to get Halo 3. This is what happens when you let techie values take over. More graphics, more blood, more speed -- No, no, no.

At what point are graphics good enough? Lets look at the intro firefight in Star Wars III. A techie explains excitedly -- "three whole minutes of CG without a cut." Me, I'm waiting for a voice to break in so I can tell who the good guys and the bad guys are. Is it worth the expenditure for effects that only few can appreciate? And while I am at it -- how about making puzzles less difficult so that the rest of us can play through the game we bought. Why are designers afraid of making a game too easy? Afraid of the wimpy factor? A game not played through is a bad game and should be returned as defective.

In the less is more factor -- I vote for the new handhelds. I look at "kids" showing off their Dual Screen Gameboy. It generates a lot of excitement, best of all, it goes with you - - school, plane, to friends. The Sony PSP, is a little pricey for kids but not for guys. Besides games, I've seen them used for house tours for real estate dealers. These handhelds do not sit at home, they are out there in the mobile world generating excitement, making contacts and sometime even doing business. The other big stuff -- feels like your Dad's machine.