There’s no doubt that today’s games have the ability to be far better than those we grew up with.  The graphics are smoother, the sound is clearer, the budgets are higher, and the greatly expanded computer processing power gives them the ability to render it all on a scale that could never have been imagined before.  However, often beneath that slick surface are game concepts we’ve seen so many times before.  For example, no matter how great Gears of War may be, it’s still just a simple run-and-gun game.  Since the games of yesteryear couldn’t rely on their outward appearances to sell games, they had to strive to invent something new almost every time.  The games had to be simple to understand but difficult to master.  And they had to have replayability often bordering on addiction.  Neave.com host several of these addictive games of the past in shockwave flash format.  You don’t need a special arcade translator to play them; just click and play.

http://www.neave.com/games/

Baseball season in full swing, pardon the pun, and the Red Sox are far ahead in the American League East division.  Since 2004, I’m filled with an ever-present faith in the Sox and am excited for this season’s roster.  The pitchers are doing their jobs, players are coming up with key plays, the bats are coming together.  It looks to be an exciting season and so with that in mind, I’m dedicating this posting to the Boston Red Sox.

Of course, the first stop has to be the great Red Sox web site setup through MLB.  The MLB team sites are packed with information, up to minute scores and updates, stats, rosters, schedules, etc.  The MLB has consistently hosted some of the best corporate web sites from the very early days and embraced a variety of technologies to deliver the best in baseball.  Fans can even subscribe to watch every game of the season through their new MLB.TV.

The Jimmy Fund is a charity for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute “where children and their families find hope”.  Dana-Farber does great work for children with cancer and they’ve held deep ties with the Red Sox organization since its inception in 1948 and the then Boston Braves joined forces to help a 12-year-old cancer patient.  Their site has a great selection of photo galleries.  The 50 Year Anniversery gallery is particularly nice, especially the photo of Mo Vaughn walking 11-year-old Jason Leader back from the mound after the young clinic patient got a chance to throw out the first pitch.

The Boston Public Library has many great sites and an extensive collection of photos including their Boston Cicra 1918 exhibit.  You can see what Boston looked like when Babe Ruth played for the Sox and Calvin Coolidge was governor of Massachusetts.  And when the Red Sox had won the World Series before a long, 86 year drought that finally ended in 2004.

There are lots of great Red Sox blogs available.  Red Sox Connection is a fun site that has a lot for all types of fans.  The Joy of Sox blog is an in-depth blog with frequent updates, analysis, and a long list of links.  Soxaholix is a very interesting site that features a daily comic strip about an office of die-hard Sox fans.  And of course, any discussion of Red Sox baseball has to include reference to the great Yankees Suck blog.

Go Sox!

Gears of War for XBox 360 will have two new free multiplayer maps available through the XBox Live marketplace starting tomorrow, January 10.  Titled Raven Down and Old Bones, the maps will expand upon the existing Gears of War game and provide a new killing zone for fans.  Raven Down is taken from Blackhawk Down and puts you in the middle of a firefight immediately after a helicopter crash in a war zone.  Old Bones dumps you in the middle of a Locust attack on Sera’s Museums.  Again, these maps can be downloaded for free.