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The original Xbox could have been named one of these wacky acronyms
Had Seamus Blackley and his hardware team not vetoed the anagram-based suggestions made by Microsoft's mad men, the original Xbox could have been called the Microsoft FACE – which stood for "Full Action Center" – according to a list of rejected names for Microsoft's debut console provided to Edge by Blackley. Or, alternatively, the Microsoft O2 ("Optimal Ozone"), MEA ("Microsoft Entertainment Activator"), OM ("Odyssey of the Mind") or any other number of ridiculous things. Blackley said that, while "Xbox" was originally an internal shortening of "DirectX Box" used in email threads, it was the only contender to survive the four-stage naming process. Out of the entire list, we think the most historically interesting option was Microsoft TSO, which meant "Three Six Zero." Sound familiar?
Storyboard: The RIFT project
The biggest problem with roleplaying in an MMO is that there's a certain amount of enforced stasis. No matter how determined you are to bring about long-term change in your group, there's the simple fact that you generally need to have characters working together and staying alive. Game considerations force you to refrain from anything that would rock the boat too severely. So most main characters have plot armor, most relationships need to stay at a functional professional level, and most villains have to be guest stars. It's a compromise we make so that the game itself remains playable. But what if you didn't have to make that compromise? This isn't a story about RIFT, and it isn't a story about PAX East, but both of those elements come into play because that's how the idea came to me. What would it look like if you had a month during which there were no restrictions on roleplaying? How would things play out if you could feel confident about a month of play that's completely self-contained, with no need to preserve characters any longer than the story required? Would it make roleplaying more interesting, or would nothing change?
Overheard@GamesCom: The adorable little beers in Cologne attack
OK, we're gonna level with you, some folks working Gamescom aren't looking their best this morning. Between a full day of press interviews yesterday and a couple evenings of ... well, stuff, it all appears to be taking a toll. In one meeting this morning, a developer was not looking his best. He cleared his throat, apologized, and said, "I'm suffering from excess."Considering the main beer served in Cologne is Kölsch, which comes in a deceptively small 0.2 litre glass, "excess" requires the dishwasher getting a good workout. [Image]
