"You know what this little bad boy can do?" the Gizmondo guy asks, not even looking up from the portable he's playing.

Yeah, I do. The Gizmondo guy behind the counter finishes his game and finally gets off his duff. His baseball cap is decorated with holly. Its four days before Christmas, and nobody else is in sight.

"Can I take a look at it?"

The guy hands me the handheld. It's small and fits snug in my palms, even if it does look like some wack alien steering wheel.

"When did it go on sale in the US?"

"About a month ago. How do you know this device isn't American?"

"I like videogames," I say, holding back. "What do you think of the product?"

"I wouldn't trade it for the world," the guy says. He tells me all the things the Gizmondo does. The handheld plays games, music, takes pics and some other stuff. His voice is metallic, and I tune him out.

The handheld itself ain't so bad. And the guy's right, it can do a lot of things. The demo I am playing (a ball spinning through a maze) sucks, though.

"What were you doing before?"

"Contract labor, working on a dock," the guys says, stroking his goatee.

"How do you like working here?"

"Wouldn't trade it for the world. I got my music, my games. I love it."

"Is the Gizmondo sold only via kiosks like this or in stores?"

"Like this. In fact, this is the only shop in all of Texas."

Here I am at the sole Gizmondo outlet in a state larger than Japan. What an honor.

"Are all the titles third party?" I ask.

The guy looks at me puzzled. Crap, I'm showing my hand.

"Does Gizmondo make all the games?" I try again in English.

"There's other companies making games. In fact, we're gonna have Mario and Sonic."

"Software?"

"Yeah, or online for download. That's what everyone's been asking about."

"How do you know this?"

"Oh," the guy says, "I know people and got everybody's number on my speed dial. So I get all the juicy details."

Mario and Sonic on the Gizmondo? Geez, I don't know whether to smile or cringe. I hand the guy the handheld back, adding a "Merry Christmas." Hope I see him next year.

Gizmondo [Official Site]

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