Forget for a moment that libraries are supposedly places where one can go for some quiet reading. Forget too that librarians are typically known for being shushers and squelchers of anything resembling fun. Finally, forget that there's an inverse relationship between time spent exercising and time spent sitting in a library.

Now you're ready to accept the wackiness of a situation in which a teenaged librarian uses DDR (Dance Dance Revolution) to settle disputes between patrons and to determine whether an overdue fine should be waived. Totally awesome, if completely inappropriate in a library environment.

[Via BoingBoing]

[Image via flickr user Librarian Avenger]

Blizzard's just-released Burning Crusade expansion for World of Warcraft appears to have inspired customers (old and new) to return in droves. The screenshot above was taken moments ago. It demonstrates that the huddled masses, yearning to breathe digitally, are forming long lines at the borders to Azeroth. "Let us in," the wretched refuse cry!

We're confused about Apple's plans for games on their new Apple TV device.

Marketing copy running across the top of the official "Apple TV" website promises "If it's on iTunes, it's on TV," yet small, grey text at the bottom of the screen takes that promise back: "iPod games will not play on Apple TV."

Further confusion results from the image at right, showing a screenshot of a Harris Poll administered back in October in which consumers were asked what sort of content they might like to purchase for an Apple TV device. Games are listed.

Is the absence of gaming from Apple TV an indication that poll respondents showed little interest in games? Is the absence of gaming due to technical limitations that might be fixed in future versions of Apple TV hardware? Is the absence of gaming an indication that iPod gaming itself might not be faring so well in the iTunes marketplace? (EA's embrace of iTunes gaming indicates otherwise.)

Whatever the case may be, it looks like consumers will have to stick to their latest-gen consoles if they want to play inexpensive, digitally downloaded games from the couch... for now.

Four hours into a Reno 911 marathon, we stumbled across a short, cautionary tale that highlights the dangers that await those who would dabble in the dark arts of D&D. It's no Dark Dungeons (Gor Bless you, Jack Chick), but we hope this clip proves just as educational. Forward to timestamp 17:41 to jump straight to the relevant moment.

Ayiti: The Cost of Life is a simple, web-based strategy game built by NYC-based developers gameLab and students from Brooklyn's South Shore High School. The game's purpose is to teach about poverty in developing nations, but don't let the game's educational mission deter you from giving it a shot.

It's not easy. In eight attempts to win with the "Money" strategy, we lost eight times (Cholera being the leading cause of death in the game). If you find a strategy that keeps your family from crapping themselves to death, do share, because the game's not at all easy.

Then again, maybe the point is that you're not supposed to be able to win this one.

Scholastic News reporter Aaron Broder (pictured here) needs another four years before he'll be able to play M-rated, thrice-platinum Gears of War, a situation that put Xbox chief Peter Moore in "the difficult position of advising a reporter not to play one of the top games for the company's Xbox 360," according to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

See also: Aaron Broder interviewed, Aaron Broder's report from CES.

[Photo credit: Aaron Broder, Scholastic News.]

According to readings taken with an analog sound meter that audio geeks like to use to calibrate their home theater systems, the Wii is the loudest of the three consoles when reading disc-based media. Surprised? Us too.

[Via Engadget]

So you've beat the latest Zelda and you're still jonesing for more of the pointy-eared boy-hero in green tights? TV Links compiled this handy link listing pointing to 13 episodes of the series that originally aired in 1989 and 1990.

1. The Ringer part 1, part 2
2. Cold Spells part 1, part 2
3. The White Knight part 1, part 2
4. Kiss n Tell part 1, part 2
5. Sing for the Unicorn part 1, part 2
6. That Sinking Feeling part 1, part 2
7. Doppelganger part 1, part 2
8. Underworld Connections part 1, part 2
9. Stinging the Stinger part 1, part 2
10. A Hitch in the Works part 1, part 2
11. Fairies in the Spring part 1, part 2
12. The Missing Link part 1, part 2
13. Moblins are Revolting part 1, part 2

[Via Plusmail]

As often happens during lunchtime jaunts through Flickr, our stomach led us to pictures of food, where we happened upon Mr. Bento sets, which subsequently led to this delectable Ms. Pac-Man bento box. It may look like Ms. Pac-Man's about to gobble the ghost, but truth is both were munched by one "nadja.robot," the creator and the destroyer of this gastronomical artwork.

Adorable and nutritious? See, games are good for you.

We saved this post for after midnight, because the linked-to content features some racy rap in response to a cease-and-desist letter Sega Europe allegedly sent to YTMND on January 11, 2007. (Click subsequent links herein at your own risk.) Sega's lawyers maintain that consumers "may be confused into believing that [Sonic-related YTMNDs are] in someway [sic] linked to or associated with [Sega]."

Ok, pop quiz time. Reader, tell us, are you confused between this site and this site? How about between this site and this site? Or this one and this one? Didn't think so.

Therefore, a little anger on the part of the YTMND community seems warranted. Sega just threw water an on oil fire. This response, in particular, seems particularly creative. Check it out, but brace yourself for some salty language.

We've left a voicemail with Sega Europe's legal department, we'll let you know if we hear back from them.

[Image credit: Flickr user Zacharo2000.]

The most successful MMORPG of all time just got successfuller: Blizzard today announced that World of Warcraft has surpassed 8 million subscribers. Two million of those subscribers are in North America, 1.5 million in Europe, and 3.5 million in China (the remainder are scattered throughout other parts of the world).

Will nothing stop this juggernaut? We recall attending a GDC 2005 session in which pundits asked (and failed to answer) the following question, "When will we see our first truly mass-market MMORPG?"

[Image credit: World of Warcraft Coke cans spotted at a supermarket by Flickr user hey-gem]

[Via WoW Insider.com]

Looks like reports of Wii damage aren't going away anytime soon: people are still damaging their television sets, lamps, windows, pets, and selves as they flail about living rooms designed more for lounging than energetic indoor video games.

Rather than fight it, flow with it. The KNOCK-OFF LAMP's beautiful, white polyproylene exterior echoes the Wii aesthetic, and it's made to be knocked over. At just $22.00, it's also probably cheaper than non Wii-proof lamps, too.

[Via funfurde]

When Nintendo unveiled the controversial "Wii" name, many readers noted the unfortunate similarity between the English slang term for a certain human reproductive organ. The resemblances don't stop there. The Wiimote's unique shape is a touch more phallic than the humble television remote control.

No surprise then, that the fan community has produced this PG-13 video making the implicit a little more explicit. Enjoy.

Before you lynch us for recommending entertainment that's neither electronic nor interactive (books, they're the ultimate retro portable), know that GEEK MAFIA ain't just any book. First, it's hella cheap: $5. Second, the book features as hero protagonist a video game designer who gets entangled in a comic book counterfeiting scheme and uses game design skills to pull off a big con.

Author Rick Dakan's bio includes a hint of the intrigue that may have inspired the novel. According to his bio, Dakan dreamed up the idea for popular MMORPG City of Heroes, helped found Cryptic Studios, and was fired by his business partners three years later.

The kid's got chops, the book's getting props, and the price is right. We bought one.

[Via Seth Godin]

We should have included "give cash not gift cards" as one of our gamer-focused resolutions for 2007. See, most companies that we buy our games from offer gift cards. Problem is, of the $80 billion in gift cards purchased last year, experts estimate that $8 billion (some 10%) will never be redeemed -- an amount that dwarfs credit- and debit-card fraud together, according to the New York Times. Heck, Best Buy alone earned $16 million from unredeemed gift cards last year, the Times said.

Go redeem those cards. $16 million buys a lot of game loot. Don't let it rot.

[Photo credit: Flickr user XoXoAndy&LebronXoXo, who has accumulated $365 worth of the cards.]