Summer in the Mecca of gaming

Summer 2010, for me, will be unlike any other. I will see my family for less than twenty days before I return to lovely Keene State College in late August.

No, this isn’t an admission of guilt for some crime that’ll lock me away for the summer months, rather it’s an expose on my summer plans and what the video game world will shove down gamer’s throats from May to August.

I’m moving to San Francisco, the twelfth most populous city in the country and home of the Tanner household from Full House, on the first of June.

I’ll be working at GameSpot, the world’s largest video game website and a division of CBS Interactive, as the company’s Summer 2010 News Editorial Intern.

I can’t even begin to fathom what the office space looks like.

A crew of men and women, eyes fixed on screens, placing words together about Halo this, or Activision that, for eight hours a day, forty hours a week. It’s going to be a sight that’ll make my jaw drop for sure.

But it gets even better. I’m traveling with the GameSpot crew to the annual Electronic Arts Expo, much more commonly known as E3, in Los Angeles from June 15-17.

I’ve never been to L.A. before and will certainly have to see the sights in my downtime, though I’m assuming I’ll have very little of that.

But what of the games of summer? If the sun is too hot and your couch is too attractive, what’s on tap for the gaming crowd this summer? Well, it’s already begun.

Earlier this week, Bungie and Microsoft released a multiplayer beta for the studio’s final “Halo” effort, “Halo: Reach.” Great timing, right? What really should have been on our minds this week was studying, but come on now, this beta lasts a mere two-and-a-half weeks. So you’ve got to get in while the going’s good, right?

Also releasing this month is “Super Mario Galaxy 2.” A sequel to 2008’s original, this Mario platformer set in a wildly colorful and wholly imaginative Mario galaxy, introduces famed creature Yoshi to the experience. Hop on the green guy’s back, race around, stomp some enemies and have a great time.

Outside of video games, there’s so much I’ll be wrapped up in this summer, it’s literally not even funny.

Summer blockbusters that I need to see this summer include “Iron Man 2,” “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time,” “The Last Airbender” and of course, “Toy Story 3.” Outside of the theater though is where my main television watching will happen.

This year, as you should know, is a World Cup year. I know, I know, this is the United States and soccer is about as welcomed and appreciated as a Taylor Swift song at a death metal concert. However, the United States vs. England match is June 12 at 3 p.m. Eastern.
Unfortunately, by then I’ll be in California, which, for some reason, decided it’d be cool to live three hours behind.

I’ll be at work and literally be itching to watch the game. I’ll have to DVR it and not check the Internet. Well, that’s impossible.

Whatever you do this summer, make sure you surround yourself with appreciative and genuine company (they’re the only ones that matter). And whether you’re fragging away enemies in “Halo: Reach,” watching the United States try really hard and maybe make it out of the group stage, or enjoying “Toy Story 3” even though you’re a 20-something college student, enjoy yourself, because that’s what matters.

Eddie Makuch can be contacted at emakuch@keeneequinox.com