Link Blogging Two: Electric Boogaloo

The big buzz in Piston Nation following the Sixers waiving of Chris “Mr. Time Out” Webber is that he might, somehow, land in Detroit. Which, you know, is going to work out great. The tread's coming of the tires a bit but he might well make a decent addition in the wake of the inexplicable loss of Big Ben. But, if you ask me, there's far too much baggage involved in Mr. Webber trying to come home again and he'd be better off going elsewhere. I remember him. And I'm sure I'm not the only one that doesn't mean that in a good way.

Speaking of signings, Beckham going to the Galaxy could be huge. And I'm not just talking about the record setting salary. Although he's never been the best football player he's certainly the best known one. He's a major international star (albeit one on the back end of his career) and now he's going to be playing in the major media market of Los Angeles. Reminds me a lot of when Gretzky signed with the Kings. That move was what really placed hockey into the mainstream of American sports. And although trying to move it from a regional sensation into a national pastime with all the overexpansion that entailed was, in retrospect, a giant mistake that doesn't mean that it didn't make a lot of people interested in that sport. I've seen people shrugging their collective shoulders over this – figuring that it's generated a lot of publicity but it's going to fade away quickly – because it isn't a “real” sport but football is one of the biggest youth sports in America. Lots of kids play it and even if only a small number of them grow up to be fans of the sport and pass that love along that's a big demographic to draw on. And, you know what, when the world cup was going on people my age were enthralled by it – and I can't tell you how many closet fans of Man U or Tottenham or Bayern Munich or Real Madrid or whatever are out there just that, to a certain set, having an overseas football squad to root for is a mark of honor (Bundesliga adherent myself, here.). This, to me, might be just the catalyst needed to push a different kind of football into the American public. The thing here is to remember that this is just the first step and continuing to build on the current wave of publicity is crucial. Over and over, one step at a time because changing people's opinions is a long term project.

On rotation in my brain: Two: Put your junk in that box.

The latest issue of the GW newsletter/lore dealie the Scribe is out and it perks my ears up because it promises ch-ch-cha-changes to the Tombs. Again. Because, you know, for me the place just changed to being 6 person teams. But, anyways, I've heard some rumblings about this being in the pipes and if the changes I've heard are put in place then, well, I'll be happy. What's also interesting is the part in the Scribe about this being a test, of sorts, and encouraging people to give feedback (Um, don't worry guys, I will.). That, to me, is a smart way of doing this. No matter who they have in the test at the moment, the best PvP is going to be taking place on the live servers. There's more people playing, after all, and the stakes are real. The only reason to play on the test servers is to play around with new skills and the combinations thereof or with new maps and formats. Throwing the Tombs into chaos and inviting everyone into the testing phase of these changes is going to result in not only a lot of improvements but a lot of buzz among the PvPers. And, done right, the invitation for everyone to take part with suggestions and testing can engender a lot of support if not trust from that facet of the community. Of course, if they feel like they're being ignored and unserved then, well, it could all backfire. PvPers are, as a rule, a pretty selfish, impatient, petty group and they don't give the devs much leeway. I should know, I'm one of them.