Gaming has been a big part of my life. It started with Dragon's Lair back in 1983 and continues today with most of the modern games. I consider myself a hard-core life gamer, but there was a short time when gaming almost left my life. When I was 17, I joined the United States Army. There was no time for gaming in Basic Training or AIT and I was almost immediately deployed to Kosovo when I received my first permanent party assignment in 1995. The Army initially changed me as a person. I became more serious and left behind the things I enjoyed in my youth. I was in essence married to the military.

When I returned from Europe, I was assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas. For those of you who don't know about Fort Hood, it's a total hell hole. The only thing to do there for fun is drink and drink some more. While in the barracks, I overheard some commotion from a few rooms down and went to investigate. There were about 8 guys in the room playing an informal Madden tournament. Winning was certainly bragging rights and became a big part of the unit's social network. Before long, I found competitive nature drawing me to the evening game sessions in the barracks. Competing in Madden became an obsession for me and I was eventually buying systems and was back into gaming full force.

In a way, I really credit video games for bringing me back to my senses. The further into my military career I got, the more I realized I didn't want to be there anymore. It took me 2 re-enlistments to realize I was in the wrong place, but they say "better late than never". Games became a great way to pass the time and ignore reality from time to time. During my deployments to the Middle East, games and music became the best escape from a reality that wasn't so cheerful. Looking back on my Army days, it's hard to believe that for a moment in time, I actually considered giving up something that was a big part of my life. Games amuse me, challenge me, distract me and also serve as a social tool.

Currently, there are many charities on the web that collect games for soldiers in combat zones. I'd highly suggest getting involved with one. You'd be surprised how video games can really make someone's day over there. Plus, it's not like soldiers make much money. Privates in the Army make about $1400 a month these days. Video games have also been a big thing for combat veterans. I currently head up to the VA hospital once a week for appointments, and have talked with some of the younger vets who say playing video games help them with their PTSD issues. The Jack Thompsons of the world always claim games cause violence, but research has been proving that violent games can actual cure problems associated with real life violence.

In the end, I'm glad I am gaming and will probably play video games for the rest of my life. There's no reason to ever give up the things you love the most.

My Xbox 360 Elite bricked with the infamous E-74 error at the beginning of the month. While I am not an Xbox fanboy, I certainly did most of my gaming on the system. I posted an article on my site about the entire situation. A little time has gone bye, and I have decided I am swearing off the Xbox 360 permanently.

When I think back on the money I have invested in broken Microsoft gaming products, it's certainly depressing. I went through two original Xbox consoles and three Xbox 360s. When my first two Xbox 360s broke, I purchased new ones and simply sold the broken ones once repaired. I have spent over $2,000 on Microsoft game hardware and have nothing functional to show for it. Instant replacement was something I would continually do considering companies send me 360 games to review and I have also developed a long-term friendship with my Halo group. We go back all the way to the beginning of the series. I will miss playing certain games with my Xbox LIVE friends, but I can no longer justify giving Microsoft money for a poorly designed product. I never thought I'd say this, but I'd rather play my Wii than buy another 360. The PS3 has its issues as well, but I'd rather spend more time gaming on it than going back to the 360.

At this point, I have sold most of my Xbox 360 games and peripherals. I just have a few low-end games left that I might give away or sell for a couple bucks at a local pawn shop. My decision to abandon Microsoft could be unwise considering I make a little money writing about video games, but I simply cannot bring myself to throw away money anymore. Buying an Xbox 360 is like taking $300-$400, rolling it up and smoking it. Perhaps I am burning some bridges with the connections I have that send me 360 games, but there are plenty of Wii and PS3 titles out there to review.

In the end, I simply feel that Microsoft's Xbox 360 policies should be considered criminal. Their warranty is a joke, their customer service is laughable and their product is a lemon. Wikipedia has an excellent page describing the 360's technical problems. Only read this page if you have a lot of time on your hands. It's long! The only way I will ever play a Microsoft game again is if I am sent a free system. The days of Microsoft getting my hard earned money for an inferior product are over...

Why do people play games? There's endless reasons and I certainly have my own reasons for being really hyped up about Grand Theft Auto IV. I play UNO on Xbox LIVE when I'm extremely bored, but too tired to use my brain. I play Halo 3 to keep in touch with friends in far off places. I really have different reasons for playing the wide range of games I get into.

Grand Theft Auto IV is going to be my escape from reality. To be honest, I've been in a really bad mood for about a year now and have yet to really unleash my anger and rage on anything. I'm thinking there's no better way to do that than to smack down as many people as I possibly can during my time in the big city. This probably would make me sound like a violent guy to all the Jack Thompson douche bags out there, but who care? I'm actually extremely peaceful and the type of guy who would give my last nickel to someone who needed it more than me. Games have always been my escape from reality and I'm looking forward to escaping once again next week.

Dane Cook once mentioned that all guys have a secret desire to own a monkey and to be part of a heist. I guess I'm still too level headed in the real world to be part of a heist, but GTA IV will fill in nicely for the time being. It's too bad there's no pet monkey involved with GTA IV, but it's worth shooting the idea to RockStar for part V.

I’ve read several articles recently that claim video games can cause flashbacks…

I’m usually the first person to defend gaming and do truly believe that more positive things come out of playing games than negative. In this particular situation, I have personal experiences that lean towards the negative aspects…

On the morning of April 16, 2007, I was standing outside of Norris Hall on the Virginia Tech campus. I had just finished working a night shift for the VT Police Department (due to a non-disclosure agreement, I can’t get too into detail with what happened), but wasn’t tired for some reason. My dad worked in the building across from Norris Hall, so I was hoping to run into him so we could grab some breakfast at McDonalds. The strange thing about the day was the fact that the weather was colder and windier than usual for a mid-April morning. It also just seemed like a strange day from the beginning. I somehow knew it was going to be a bad day from the beginning. When I was leaving work, I heard about 2 students being shot in the dorms, but had no idea what was about to happen. I also didn’t know until later in the afternoon that one of the first victims was a good friend of mine.

After standing on the sidewalk for about 10 minutes, I was thinking about heading into Norris to use the restroom, but decided to smoke another Newport and wait for my dad. I pulled out my phone and started chatting with a few friends. Perhaps that cigarette saved my life. I often obsess myself with the scenarios of what could have happened. Sometimes I wonder if I could have done anything to stop the shooter if I was inside the building. Other times, I just assume I would have been killed. A few minutes later, the shooting started and the chaos of that surreal day begun. I saw more than I could have ever wanted to see inside Norris Hall and saw things I wouldn’t write about even if I could….

What happened that day has changed me as a person and as a gamer. I have since left Blacksburg, Virginia and will only return for short visits. Since the shooting, I’ve had a hard time with life. A day doesn’t go bye without thinking about it. During that time, Halo 2 was my favorite game. The shooting at Virginia Tech nearly changed the meaning of FPS games for me. While playing a CTF match on Headlong, a player on the other team was coming at me with dual SMGs. For a few seconds, I was no longer watching what was happening in the game. I just saw Cho coming at me with his dual weapons. I quickly shut off the console and was a bit freaked out. It took several months and a few therapists before I got back into Halo again. At this point, I started wondering if real life violence had changed the meaning of a game for me. The concept was strange, considering it was a popular belief to say that games cause violence. In this case, violence caused my game to change. I guess you could also say that a video game indirectly caused me to have somewhat of a flashback. The other strange thing about what had happened is the fact that I am a U.S. Army combat veteran. I saw some sick things during my time in the military, but it never bothered me. Perhaps what happened in Blacksburg was more bothersome because it was on a personal level. Although there are some negative aspects to games, for the most part gaming remains a positive force in my life. Halo is more about socializing with friends from far off and it’s a great support network in times of need. In the end, anything they blame games for usually has hundreds of factors that are a bigger cause. For example, when the wind blows a certain way, I’m reminded of April 16. Should I blame the wind?

The one-year anniversary of the shooting is only a few weeks away now and I’m not sure what to think about it. It still feels like it was yesterday and still feels very surreal. I suppose it’s just something that will be a part of me for the rest of my life.

When I first got into this fiasco we all call 'game journalism', I did it for fun and for my love of video games. Somewhere along the line, I lost my way. After spending a decent amount of time as a freelance gaming blogger, I was swept off my feet by a major gaming site with a decent paycheck and some perks to go along with it. At the time, I needed the money and it seemed like a really good deal.

I was hired primarily for my abilities in marketing and writing became a secondary priority. Although the experience working for a major media company was a great one, I realized that I was not happy with what I was doing. The mountains of restrictions in addition to other aspects of the job finally pushed me to toss them my resignation.

The site was more on the ‘family friendly’ side and as a result, there were mountains of restrictions to go along with the writing. I never lied in an article, because I certainly have a strong personal code of ethics, but I certainly held back my personal opinions from most pieces due to the restrictions.

I’ve been a reader of Destructoid for some time, but never posted a blog on the site due to my contractual agreement with my employer. Fortunately, now I’m free to write about anything at any time. Hopefully, you guys will be seeing a lot of content from me in the near future.