The Life And Death Of Skyrim’s Lydia - Rock, Paper, Shotgun »

A while ago, I was banging on about the random events in the world of Red Dead Redemption and how they helped increase the sense of immersion and my fondness for that game (at least, the first time you encounter these random events. After six or seven attempted horse-jackings, it all becomes rote bullshit).

Skyrim, on the other hand, is genuinely amazing. There’s so much to do – not just story stuff, but random, one-off things – that you find yourself investing deeply in the characters. I found myself nodding along to John Walker’s story of ‘his’ Lydia. It’s a totally accurate description of how this game gets its claws in you and you find yourself doing things (and enjoying doing things) in the game that sound completely cracked if you try to explain them to other people.

Dead End Thrills does Skyrim »

Okay, I’ll admit, I’m a little obsessed with Skyrim right now. But look at these landscapes and tell me they’re not amazing. Everyone gushed over how great the facial animation system was in LA Noire. I think the cloud generation system in Skyrim is even more impressive. This one is my favourite of the lot.

Cultural Differences »

In Ireland, “bagels and garlic bread set for sharp price rise as VAT rules change”

The price of bagels, croissants, garlic bread and a range of other similar products is likely to increase significantly in the weeks ahead after Revenue decided they were not sufficiently bread-like to be exempt from VAT.

Meanwhile, in America, U.S. Decides Pizza Sauce Is a Vegetable

A joint Senate-House panel of American lawmakers has caved in to the frozen food lobby by voting to uphold school lunch regulations that stipulate that tomato sauce in pizza counts as a vegetable serving.

I never thought I’d say this, but maybe it’s time Pat the Baker and Mister Brennan got together to form a lobby group of their own.

Collection of Skyrim Panoramas »

Some of these are unfathomably beautiful.