It does seem like there’s a lot of waiting these days. I have some somewhat significant (bad and good) personal news to share, but it’s going to have to wait a bit.

My photography portfolio book finally arrived and I’m so excited to see it. I can’t wait to get home to see how it turned out. I’ve been editing the Holiday Boarding short mini snowboarding HD movie and it’s about halfway done. I should have it up tomorrow if all goes well.

In my gaming life, I finally finished Gears of War 2 (also finished Horde mode), and Prince of Persia. Both were fantastic. Next on the list: Trying out Left 4 Dead, Too Human, and eagerly awaiting Resident Evil 5.

Hockey/skating is going well in the mornings. I’m really enjoying the progress I’m making, albeit rather slowly. It feels good to skate around early in the morning before most of the world wakes up, and to get some exercise. I wish I was a better skater and I could just focus on the hockey portion, but sadly I’m having to start skating and stop being such a newborn deer As for snowboarding… yes! I am going up on Sunday to Cypress on some free passes which is always nice. Here’s hoping the weather cooperates (I hear that it won’t).

I no longer have my work Blackberry and so I’ve been thinking a lot about what I want to do about my personal cellphone. I have a really, really old Nokia from 6 years ago and I’m on Fido. The problem is that Fido doesn’t have any Blackberries, just the iPhone. I’m rather anti-Apple so that’s not really an option. Will Fido ever get Blackberries? I could switch to Rogers, but then I’ll lose the $240 Fido dollars I’ve accumulated. Argh. What should I do if I want to get a Blackberry?

In other Vancouver news, EA Black Box laid off 150-200 people today. They are closing down the studio. Also today, Microsoft announced they are going to lay off 5,000 employees. Scary, scary times. Let me tell you — no one is safe.

But I’m not all doom and gloom today… LOST was on last night and it was fantastic.

WARNING: SPOILERS BELOW. IF YOU HAVEN’T WATCHED LAST NIGHT’S PREMIERE EPISODE OR IF YOU DON’T FOLLOW LOST, I SUGGEST YOU STOP READING NOW.

Last night blew my mind. LOST never fails to deliver on season premieres and finales, but last night was special. I feel like, for the first time, I’m actually starting to understand the series. And I love it.

Best Moments of Last Night:

• Hurley throwing a hot pocket at Ben, and Ben’s subsequent eye squint
• Sayid nailing a guy with a frying pan right into sharp knives in a dishwasher
• Hurley’s gas station shirt
• Hurley’s 60 second recap to his mom
• Frogurt’s epic flaming arrow death (click here for animated GIF)
• Seeing Marvin Candle and Daniel Faraday in the same scene

Points of Interest:

• Richard Alpert gives Locke a compass to be Alpert’s “constant” during the time traveling. In previous episodes, Alpert gave the boy-Locke a test between a number of objects, including a compass. Alpert was intially excited when the young Locke picked up the compass, and was visibly disappointed when he chose the knife.
• The older lady from the end of the episode may look familiar. You’re correct. We saw Mrs. Hawking during Desmond’s time shifting as the lady who refused to sell him a ring for Penny, and as someone who tried to teach Desmond about the rules of time. You can read more about her here: http://lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Ms._Hawking
• Also of note about Mrs. Hawking is that she appeared to be doing some time calculations in the room under the church. She appeared to be plotting the locations of where the island has been. In Season 3 producer commentary, she is referred to as a “temporal policeman”… aka a TIME COP. COOOOOL! How cool would it be with a time police war? Mrs. Hawking and Ben vs. Widmore and co. Yes. Please.
• Is Jin dead? I really hope not. If he is I’m going to be REALLY upset. Some bright signs: His name shows up in the beginning credits for both episodes (usually reserved for main characters) and in the recap episode, the voiceover said that Sun “believe” Jin is dead. Maybe he’s not? Although showing the explosion again was almost confirmation that he is dead.
• In Season One, Locke found his legs not working… and in the premiere episode we saw him standing just about in the same place where this happened when he got shot.
• Desmond now an incredibly important character. The hatch implosion un-stuck him from time and fate, and so the rules no longer apply to him. It’ll be interesting to see how him and Faraday play out over the season.

Interesting Theories I’ve Read:

• That the numbers, which were of great importance in Season One, are part of the Velanzeti equation. They predict when the wortld will end. So perhaps Dharma Initiative’s goal was to change one of the values of this equation so that they can prevent the end of the world.
• Is Miles (the creepy guy who can talk to dead people) Marvin Candle’s son?
• The sickness and crazy behaviour that the French lady’s crew was talking about is actually time travel sickness, the same that Desmond had and now Charlotte is experiencing?
• Are the whispers on the island simply the survivors being able to hear themselves, except in the past or future when they time traveled?

MY HEAD IS GOING TO EXPLODE!

Image Credit: http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca

The video game company I work for recently won a Best Company to Work for in BC 2008 award. The list, published by BC Business Magazine, celebrates the Top 20 companies in BC whose employees have rated them the highest. The list is broken into the 10 companies with more than 100 employees, and the top 10 companies with less than 100 employees.

Of the 20 companies listed, 3 are video game companies. What is it about video game companies that make them so rewarding to work for?

In previous years (during university etc), I worked for a number of large Fortune 500 companies in business positions (Kraft Canada, Bell Communications, Citigroup Financial). Despite the massive amount of financial backing and resources that these companies had, they could never match the vibrant culture of the video game industry.

I started working in the video game industry immediately after graduation, and worked for a medium-large (~150 employees) Vancouver video game company known primarily for strategy games. The beautiful office was located in the Bentall 5 building, set amongst finance and law firms. Even though I was previously a “suit”, I enjoyed walking around the building in my jeans and hoodie. I missed the formality and confidence that business dress exuded, but I enjoyed the laid-back atmosphere of my workplace. Free pop, free beer on Fridays, an arcade machine, and a foosball table were among the many amenities.

The video game industry is well-known for its perks, from Christmas bonuses to limousine rides and big parties. That seems to be toning down a bit in the economy and with a number of large studios and publishers getting shut down, but the fun-loving culture is still there.

The current video game company I’m with is no different. Fun people and a great work environment. I love being able to come in at 10 AM if I’m tired, or come in at 8 AM and leave early if necessary. Flexible hours are so important these days with people being involved in a number of different activities. I love the champagne at company announcements, the cool company-branded gifts, and sweet parties and events. The benefits are great too at video game companies, from full health care coverage, massage, and more.

The darkest side of the video game industry could potentially be the long overtime hours that are worked. Many Electronic Arts employees I’ve talked to attest to staying overnight and working on weekends for weeks or months on end near a deadline. I’ve seen that at the previous video game company I worked for… late night overtime meals are provided and people work late into the wee hours of the morning. Mandatory overtime is sometimes even implemented to keep the project on schedule. Is it a small price to pay for all the other perks?

Fortunately, the current company I’m working for seems to really understand the work-life balance. Employees aren’t happy if they are are overworked, and the company benefits overall from the creativity and energy  of its employees if they are well-rested and happy. People aren’t allowed to work late here, they actually need permission to do so. It’s a breath of fresh air.

What do you think? Are video game companies the cream of the crop in terms of companies to work for? Are there other better industries out there? Is there a dark side to the video game industry? Do you think work-life balance is important?