Thank you for the article and thank you for the comments! It feels good to be liked. =) Just so you know, I plan to continue to read Avault, troll the forums, and get into arguments with all of you just like before.

So far as the changes go, since I’m moving two time zones to the left – Michele can now expect me to give her a peace of my mind at 3 AM as opposed to 1 AM. And I will, of course, continue being hot, hateful and popular – much to the dismay of poor Booth. =)

Other than that… all will be the same really. Well, except the reviews and stuff. Either way, thank you again, and I’ll be seeing you around!

Cheers!

What is the allure of his posts?

I believe it rests in that smug, professionally done portrait that Booth singled out.

The Freaks and Geeks (and I mean that with love) that visit this forum on a regular basis and bow before Alaric’s “greatness” gaze upon that photo and find the nearest human example to Viggo Mortensen’s Aragorn. He is their once and future king – a guy they’ll follow blindly into battle as he takes it to any developer who dare protect their product under the watchful, all-seeing gaze of DRM.

Seriously – print out that pic – work you magic marker on his chin giving him a little scraggly beard – and you’ve got Strider at your service. And while you’re at it – add in a pitch fork and horns too. For me.

I kid. I kid.

I kid Alaric because he’s driven me nuts for so many years. As a console guy who toils in front of a PC day and night and therefore refuses to game with a mouse in hand – I am clearly a denizen of Mordor in Alaric’s eyes. And he’s been quite clear that console gamers (and our games) relish nutrient-free junk food. It’s like jumping in on that Games as Art argument that all of gaming has been waging against Roger Ebert. The gamers are never going to move on and not care (as Ken Levine suggested) not is Ebert ever going to hang a Pong paddle in his foyer.

So, you agree to disagree.

And that’s where I am with Alaric.

Beyond all of that – I salute Alaric for his passion and for sticking to his guns. And for making cogent, educated thoughts. In short – for caring. That can be a rare commodity in this wild frontier so when you run into somebody who flashes it – you ought to tip their cap to ‘em.

I wish you luck Alaric. As a writer in your fellowship, I offer this in tribute.

“You have my ink.”

Anyway, Alaric you will be missed. The corporate culture at Valve is quite unique, hopefully it will suit you well.

Having said that I hope your hatred for everything imperfect keeps valve on the right track in the future in whatever capacity they have you in!!!

I’m going to miss his input here and I’m going to miss the opportunity to contradict him whenever possible but at the same time I hope that whatever he has planned for himself in future works out well for him.

Best of luck Alaric.

Alaric, you rock. Your reviews will be missed, but I will continue to stalk you and happily apply Google Translate when appropriate (or inappropriate).