My gaming tastes have been all over the place recently. I recently bought Microsoft Train Simulator (MSTS), which represents a fairly drastic departure from my standard gaming fare. As a train enthusiast, I've quite a blast running the BNSF Dash-9 and GP38-2 up the Marias Pass line in Montana. Pulling 40 to 50 mixed freight cars up a 2% grade is a surprisingly difficult endeavor. I've learned a great deal about railroading from this game, so if you enjoy trains and haven't tried this game out, I highly recommend it. The game is not without its problems, but it provides an excellent escape for any rail fan. Also note that the pacing of this game may be too slow for some, so your mileage may vary.

When I get tired of running freight and passengers over the world's rails, I take in a nice game of Assault in Unreal Tournament 2004. It's such a shame that Epic is doing away with this game type in UT 2007. Supposedly the new "Conquest" game type will replace it, but to me it sounds a little too much like the immensely popular Onslaught (which I must admit, is incredibly fun). I guess I want to have my cake and eat it too.

Although UT 2004 and MSTS have been keeping me good company, it's time for something new. I think my next purchase will be the recently released (to the PC) Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. I have both GTA 3 and GTA: Vice City, the latter of which I enjoyed most. From what I've been reading, the game is nothing but a good time, and nearly 3 times as big as Vice City (which was already huge). Unfortunately, the $49.95 price tag is a little more than I'm willing to pay for a game. Unless I can find a hot deal on it, I may have to make due with what I already have for a few more weeks. Which isn't that big of a deal. I still have several empty grain cars that need to be set out at Essex siding #4. :-)