Stormreach AD&D MMORPG

Stormreach is Atari's newly released Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) based on the 3.5 Core Rules of Wizards of the Coast / TSR's hugely popular Advanced Dungeons & Dragons.

Set in the new Eberron Campaign Setting, Stormreach is already being hosted by Turbine, and is the first game with voice chat. You can instantly marshal your party with this hands-free feature as you challenge the mysteries of Xen'drik.

The Sormreach Manual (4.73 Mb pdf) contains all the details you will need to create a character, log onto your Turbine account, and start hacking!The truly impatient can just read the Quick-Start Guide.

Two versions of Stormreach will begin shipping Tuesday (Feb 28, 2006) -- Stormreach Std. Ed., and Stormreach DVD. (Obviously, your Windows XP computer must be equipped witha DVD player to use this version.)

Initial beta-test reports indicate that the game-play is very smooth, and the quests are well thought-out and engrossing. Naturally, a number of stunning screenshots have been published.

Pop-Culture-Palooza

Pop Culture is a moving target. An ephemeral will o' the wisp nobody can quite capture. What's totally hot one minute is so last-century the next. Why would anybody attempt to pin it down and dissect it?

Who cares? Maybe I'm tired of checking out the Yahoo! Buzz Index and having no idea who or what they're talking about. Maybe I'm trying to recapture my misspent youth. Maybe I just want to become the Simon Cowell of the Blogosphere.

This week, American Idol shocked NBC, who's tape-delayed coverage of the winter olympics couldn't compete. Randy Jackson surged in popularity, as did Idol hopefuls Ace Young, Katharine McPhee, Becky O'Donohue, and Taylor Hicks.

Of course, tomorrow's another day. Clay Aiken, Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Bo Bice, and Ruben Studdard barely raised a ripple in the puddle of the collective consciousness, nor did middle-aged Laker Girl and one-time pop sensation Paula Abdul.

Perhaps their Grammys and lucrative contracts will console them.