Kotaku: fahey

GC Stories - A Light In The Darkness

Mike Fahey — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 08:30:00 MDT

Since this is my first time out of the country, McWhertor and I have been sticking pretty close for the past week, going out to eat together after the show (time permitting), leaving together from the hotel in the morning, etc. Last night, however, McMike had some stuff to do and I needed to grab a couple souvenirs for the folks back home, so I made my way to the main Leipzig train station all by myself. Despite being a big boy now, I was feeling a bit lost, a little homesick, and just the general nervousness you get when in unfamiliar territory - at least until I took a random escalator and came across this beacon of hope.

Yeah, good old GameStop made me feel right at home, and why shouldn't it? 50% of my time out of my apartment is spent at the video game retailer, and this one is really no different from any mall-based GS in the states, except that there are a few more German words and the prices are in Euros. I almost bought a copy of Doodle Hex for the DS until I realized that with current currency values I would be spending approximately $10 million on it.

Germany - Ich Leibe Es!

Mike Fahey — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 09:00:00 MDT

Behold my first attempt to get in touch with my German heritage. Aside from the whole Games Convention 2008 thing, I think the most exciting thing for me about being in Germany was the chance to try new food. Upon arriving at the Frankfurt airport this morning I eagerly sought out German culinary delights. This is all I could come up with. Note that a McCroissant is polygonal ham and bad cheese on hard bread. Yum.

I've managed to sample a few European exclusives in the first half of my 9-hour layover, including some coffee that has forever ruined American coffee for me and a Coke product I've never seen before that sublimely combines cola and orange - two of my favorite flavors - into a product that has me weighing my clothes to see what I have to leave behind in order to fill my suitcase with it. I suppose I could just visit the Coca-Cola Museum in my hometown to get my fix, but that would mean going outside, and outside is big and scary.

This is my view as I write up this post. It's a dreary, rainy day in Frankfurt, and I would have probably been disappointed if it were anything but. In the "cool" Germany I see in the movies it's always raining, and every other person looks like they got their hairstyle directly from Second Life. Spikes, splashes of pinks, blues, purples...I see it around the U.S. as well, but here it just feels a bit more real.

I'd write more, but the airport internet is 8 euros for 60 minutes - roughly $12 - and I think we can all agree that me rambling on about the airport in Frankfurt isn't worth $24, especially with so many other neat things to spend my colorful fake money on. The newsstand across from me has a German-language Hello Kitty magazine in it. I must have it.

I've rested enough anyway. Time for me to get up and wander, trying my best to look meekly apologetic anytime anyone speaks to me in ~~Klingon~~ German.

Games Convention 2008 - The Adventure Begins

Mike Fahey — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 11:40:00 MDT

I've never been to Germany, but my father says it was nice.

Well, he said it was nice - he hasn't said much since the cremation, but I suppose that sort of thing would leave anyone speechless. The fact that he spoke at all after being born in Germany immediately following a rather nasty war is a comforting fact. If an infant can survive post World War II Germany relatively unscathed, I should have no problem surviving really really-post WWII Germany, what with my being a completely grown man perfectly capable of taking an infant in unarmed combat.

As you read this I am nervously sitting in an airport, preparing to take my first steps outside of the continental United States in order to aid Kotaku's Mike collective (McWhertor and I) in covering Games Convention 2008 in Leipzig. Soon my 6'6" frame will be crammed into a tiny seat in a metal tube shooting across the Atlantic towards my father's birth country, and while a great deal of this trip is for you people, I'm saving just a tiny bit of it for myself.

See you all in Germany!

Kotaku's Halo 3 Launch Plans

Mike Fahey — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 19:00:10 MDT

It's time to announce Kotaku's super-secret, hyper-exciting plans for the biggest game launch of the year! Tada! You can't see it from where you are sitting, but I just struck a dramatic pose. Yes, our plans for the Halo 3 launch, with the majority of our staff either traveling home from or still in Japan that evening, is me. Specifically me, in New York, attending the official Halo 3 New York launch at the Best Buy at 529 5th Ave, where there will be prizes, giveaways, local athletes I won't recognize (go sports ignorance!), Major Nelson, and at midnight - "a spectacle unlike any other." I don't know, I've seen more than my fair share of spectacles, so that's a pretty tall order there. Meanwhile, my copy of Halo 3 will be sitting in a GameStop in Atlanta, feeling terribly neglected. If you plan on hitting up the NYC launch, I'll be the 6'5" man with the shaved head carrying an uncomfortably heavy backpack around, possibly sweating profusely. Me, not the backpack. Hit up Major Nelson's blog for more details on the New York launch, as well as the official launch events in LA, Miami, and Seattle.

Fahey Gushes about Second Life

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 07:15:13 MDT

For the two people on Earth who've never heard of Second Life, The New York Daily News has an introductory article up. Swell! That's not the interesting part. Oh, not. Not at all. A "Michael Fahey" provides his first-hand insight on the SL community, saying:

Second Life is a world created from the undiluted dreams and desires of thousands of people. You can be anything or anyone you want.

Lovely, really. It *almost* even makes me want to play SL. What's more, the article even gives Fahey's in-world name: Caliban Karas. So write that down! Feel free to stalk him and attack him with a giant penis. A small one is fine, too!

Note: this is the second time Fahey popped up in a major news outline. Previously, he made a guest spot in Famitsu. We won't rest until the cover of Time has been Fahey'd!
SL Virtual Fun Fun [NY Daily News]

Georgia. Developer Friendly.

Brian Ashcraft — Wed, 09 May 2007 04:00:52 MDT

Georgia, home of Coca-Cola and media mogul Ted Turner, also boasts 50 video game companies. But Georgia ain't stopping there! The state is attempting to attract more developers by offering tax breaks and have even hired a liaison to the gaming industry. That person? Asante Bradford, who is described as a "digital entertainment guru." He says:

Basically, our sales pitch is Georgia.

Oh, good. I was worried that it would be Alabama or South Carolina. There are lots of big companies in Georgia, and Atlanta is growing super fast. Though, this Bradford guy? Never heard of him, but sounds like he's got a cushy gig. Brian Ashcraft

Georgia Wants Game Companies [Savannah Now via 1p Start]

The Life-Sized Mario You Can't Buy

Brian Crecente — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 19:00:41 MDT

No,. not the guy who does Mario's voice, though I'm sure that, much to Fahey's disappointment, he isn't for sale either.

Anytime we post about anything even slightly crafty, or cakeish or collectible, it seems we start a mini meme and over-sizeed Mario's are certainly not safe from the flood of emails and pictures that always proceed such a post.

So with that in mind (read not news), I give you Anthony's big-ass Mario, given to him by the manager of his Toys R Us after he helped reorganize the Rzone at the store. It's big, it's steel and it's totally not for sale. Brian Crecente

The Adventures of Link (the Kitten)

Brian Crecente — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 15:00:51 MDT

I believe this would be one of those posts that requires exactly zero comment. On a personal note: Fahey, I'm in your house stealing your pictures! Brian Crecente

Kitten Loves Zelda [VH1]

Party with the Kotaku Crew, Yes Even Ash

Brian Crecente — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 11:00:44 MST

For some reason I can't get Highlander out of my head.

Thanks to the wonderful largess of Gawker Inc. all of Kotaku's writers will be descending on New York City next weekend. Yes, that includes Luke Plunkett from Sydney and Brian Ashcraft from Osaka.

This will be the first time I come face-to-face with many of these guys, which is really weird considering how much time I spend working with, and talking to them.

Since it has the feel of one of those things that doesn't happen very often, we've decided to host a little party. Or, as I am apt to call it, Par-Tey.

So we're going to be taking over the Barcade in Brooklyn next Friday night and paying for a considerable bar tab. Besides the drinking, retro gaming and chance to touch McWhertor's hair or call Brian Ashcraft, Briana (he loves that), we'll also be giving away a few bits and pieces to you our wondrous readers.

I've already started throwing crap into a pile and Ashcraft promises to fill his knapsack with tons of that priceless game toy minutia that the Japanese take for granted. I might even ask Luke to bring some Oz-themed gaming nik-knacks like, I don't know, Vegemite flavored Nintendo candy. So far I've rustled up a World of Warcraft Collector's Edition of Burning Crusade, an unbelievably cool Resistance Fall of Man winter jacket and some PS3 games.

If you're interested in joining us, just swing by the Barcade next Friday, Jan. 26, at 7 p.m. We'll be the ones grossly intoxicated. Oh, and make sure you are at least 21.

More to come. Brian Crecente