We finished up the Pillars of the Earth miniseries, and it's surprisingly good. I never really saw many ads for it on TV, but with actors such as Ian McShane, Donald Sutherland and Matthew Macfadyen, and with Ridley Scott and Tony Scott as executive producers, it can't be too bad.

My former "CrimeCrash" teammates and I have been looking around to see if we can find another MMO to get into, and after trying out Eve Online, Vindictus, and Stronghold Kingdoms, we ended up in Genesis A.D, the free-to-play MMOFPS from ijji.com. While it's still way too early to claim victory, the game has decent graphics and fast-paced combat, but it remains to be seen how the clan system plays out. The option currently seems grayed out, so either it has not been implemented yet, or I'm too low-level. Time will tell ...

Well, that's that with that. The holidays are over, so it's back to the grind.

Things will probably be quiet for a little bit longer, but normal coverage will now resume. Hope you have enjoyed our Top Games of 2010 feature, and we are currently also having a DC Universe Online beta key giveaway (for both PC and PS3 codes), which will be ending soon. Be sure to have a go at it.

Yesterday was pretty subdued. We ran some errands and watched TV for the rest of the day. We got sucked into the Pillars of the Earth miniseries and two of the Millennium Trilogy movies.

The New Year has begun!  We had a relaxing NYE, no craziness, and yesterday we spent most of our time watching movies (Predator, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince) and a few episodes of Supernatural.

Today will be equally quiet, apart from doing some grocery shopping, we have nothing planned, so we'll have done quite a bit of catching up on our DVR over the past few days. Go us!

We've been debating about upgrading our phones and switching to the iPhone, but we've been waiting for Verizon to announce their version. However, my current cell was getting on my last nerve (battery kept dying after 1-2 calls or text messages) and on our way back from the movies earlier this week, we decided to get it over with and we got ourselves a pair of Droid 2 phones. We picked that one over the Droid X because it works internationally, and now we get to play Angry Birds wherever we go!

The entire WorthPlaying team wishes everybody a Happy New Year! We hope everybody had a safe transition from old to new, and may 2011 be even better than last year. We're working on a few more things behind the scenes (*cough* comments *cough*) so keep an eye out, hopefully in the near future. Thank you for sticking around, spread the word, and let's make things even better!

We continued our movie streak with another visit to the theater, this time to watch True Grit, a remake of the 1969 western starring John Wayne. While there were surprisingly a lot of laughs in the movie, it is a good flick with a few gritty scenes.

We also finished off The Amazing Race season and watched some more Psych.

No major plans for tonight, apart from some dinner, drinks and watching fireworks on the balcony. We have a few more Netflix movies lying around and other goodies on the DVR, so we'll be spending a cozy night in the couch in front of a roaring fireplace and watching TV; it may not be the most exciting thing to do, but it'll be a fun and relaxing way to kick off the new year!

As you may have noticed, we have kicked off our top titles of 2010 feature, with more coming over the next few days. I must say that there are a few surprising results in there. Interesting ...

Yesterday, we saw Black Swan, which is quite surprisingly entertaining, not in the least aided by the makeout scene between Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis. Sizzling! Beyond that, it is quite the mindtrip. It's not as hardcore as Inception, but it's boggling enough to keep it surprising and puzzling enough to keep your focus.

Why the late start today? Well, it involves drinking wine, and by now, we all know that is my kryptonite.

Home Sweet Home!

It was a slightly bumpy flight, but we made it home in one piece. While traveling for the holidays is fun, it's even more fun to come back home to our comfy couch, bed, and cozy office.

We're not really big football fans, but on Christmas day, we did watch the Dallas Cowboys lose in the last minute by failing to convert the extra point. That would have tied the game, and who knows what could have happened in overtime?

I agree with governor of Pennsylvania, Ed Rendell when he stated that "we've become a nation of wusses," in response to the NFL league's decision to move the Eagles' home game against the Vikings from Sunday night to Tuesday evening due to the bad weather, but I already knew that a long time ago. Why else would you wear all that padding in a rugby game in the first place? ;)

The packing has begun. A week at the in-laws is about all we can handle, so we'll be glad to get back to our own digs. The weather wasn't as bad as predicted; there wasn't severe rain and flooding, but it was damn cold.

It was a lazy day with lots of Call of Duty: Black Ops (brother-in-law is amazingly good), Stronghold: Kingdoms and watching Sorcerer's Apprentice, Planet 51, and The Amazing Race.

As soon as we get back in the office, we will be closing the Bejeweled 3 contest and kickstart the Greed giveaway, so the clock is ticking. Get in on it NOW!

We are back at the in-laws today, and we're leaving tomorrow to fly back home. Looking forward to our own cozy home already ....

We are working on our holiday features for the best games of 2010 and most anticipated games of 2011, so you can look forward to those in the very near future.

Over the holidays, we will also have a few more giveaways like the recent Bejeweled 3 contest. For instance, there will be beta codes for DC Universe Online, download codes for Xbox Live titles and so forth.

Yesterday we did some post-Christmas shopping, and I got some new sneakers, socks and hoodies. Good stuff! Spending money is tiring, even if it's at an outlet, so we watched some The Amazing Race and Get Him To Greek (decent, but not as funny as I had hoped).

We had a wonderful Christmas with no snow but plenty of food and presents. We had an awesome BBQ on Christmas eve and stuffed ourselves with turkey on Xmas day. I'm quite sure that my recent two-pound weight loss has been magically transformed in a five-pound gain. Weird how those things happen.

Later today, we are going out for some post-Christmas shopping, maybe grab a movie and then drive back to the in-laws place. In a few days, we are flying back home, and we can start thinking about what to do for the New Year holiday.

The entire WorthPlaying staff would like to say "MERRY CHRISTMAS" to our readers all around the world. We hope everybody has a wonderful holiday, loads of good food, and a joyful time with friends & family. May Santa bring you all the games you wished for, but above all, stay safe! Our news coverage will not slow down, but the news itself might be lacking. If there is anything worthy of your attention, you can be sure to read it here ....

We've arrived safely at the in-laws, and later on today, we are going to help out a friend with some house renovations and then on to Christmas Eve dinner. Tasty turkey ahoy! I've also put in a request for a BBQ, but since it's winter, we'll see how crazy people think I am.

So far the weather has been decent and cold, but no downpour and flash-flooding like the weather forecast had predicted.

Stronghold Kingdoms just got a whole lot more interesting — not in terms of the game itself because nothing has changed — but one of the largest houses is getting its ass handed to itself by a smaller team, and people are defecting all around. It just goes to show that being the biggest isn't always the best if you don't take any action.

We'll be traveling later today, so hopefully, the airport won't be a total madhouse. Apparently the new full-body scanners have the adverse effect of making lines even longer than they were before, so that ought to be interesting.

We've purchased our gifts accordingly, so there won't be any last-minute surprises at the security gate that will send us to the full cavity search line.

Off to take a nap, do some laundry and pack. For all the readers out there who are going to be on the road as well, we wish you safe travels.

The weather woes continue! While it is still raining over here, the in-laws had a warning that the strongest storm yet could bring flooding, tornadoes, hail and high winds. Granted, it is supposed to have passed by the time we arrive, but we know that forecasts aren't always punctual, so flying out there isn't exactly comforting.

Velvet Revolver is auditioning for a new lead vocalist, and speculation is going wild, ranging from Slash's solo project frontman Myles Kennedy to Black Eyed Peas singer Fergie. Either way, Slash says it will be interesting.

Another day of rain. Why are the weather forecasters mostly right when it comes to bad weather? When we went out yesterday, there was thunder, lightning, a heavy downpour and some serious hail. I'm sure some of you will laugh at that while Europe is covered in 8 inches of snow, but around these parts, it usually doesn't get this bad. I'm ready for the summer already!

Yesterday morning, I was woken up by one of my Stronghold Kingdoms faction members telling me to get online right away because a rival house (consists of 24 factions) was on the warpath and taking over villages like crazy, and we had to beef up defenses in a hurry. Luckily, I had done a few favors for some of the neighboring parishes and we've been left alone ... for now. About a dozen other parishes were not so lucky, though.

We had a good time last night, maybe a little bit too good. It's safe to say that my college days are behind me, a time when I could drink 3-4 six-packs and still be reasonably fine. It's not that I was drunk off my ass, but those few cocktails sure made me sleep well.

What kind of bar has a "stew" evening but doesn't serve any stew, or much food of any kind? Go figure.

Anyhow, this week we'll be traveling to the in-laws to celebrate Christmas. Preparations are being made, and we've already started packing. News will most likely be non-existent, but we'll be around to cover whatever pops up, and we will also working on our best games of 2010, as well as most anticipated titles of 2011 features.

The rain keeps on coming! It's so depressing. It never snows here, so we can count out a white Christmas, but the damn rain is annoying. Unfortunately, we're traveling to see the in-laws later this week in the southern part of the state, and it's raining there as well. Lovely!

We did most of our errands today, so that means tomorrow we'll have all day to lounge about and watch the DVR. We got a head start today with a few episodes of Burn Notice and Psych, as well as feel-good movie Love Actually. We've already seen TRON: Legacy a good week ago, and nothing else of interest is playing at the movie theater, so that's out.

Our Halo: Reach contest winner seems to be quite happy with his prize. Enjoy, buddy!

This weekend we have no big plans. Christmas cards to write, some various mailings to send out, and a few chores, but mostly catching up on our DVR and maybe a movie left or right. It's storming outside, with heavy winds and rain, so it's not really prime time to go hiking or doing outdoorsy stuff.

We got some more decorations, mainly lights, to hang outside, so maybe if it lets up for half an hour here or there, I can get that started before it actually IS Christmas.

Now that my gaming computer is up and running at full speed, I'll be doing some tinkering with the office computers. It'll be quiet anyhow, so it's the perfect time to take them all apart.

The Christmas cards are starting to roll in, and we usually hang them on a wall in the office, but this year, it seems a lot of companies are opting for electronic greeting cards in e-mail. It's too bad because it was always a cool sight to have them on display, and it makes the place look nice and festive as well.

A few days of no TV/DVR watching, and the thing jumped to 86% full. Guess it's time to make a dent. Last night, we watched Hell's Kitchen (the finale) and The Good Wife, but it's mainly the HD recordings that take up a whole lot of space.

I still have two computers to re-assemble, but that'll have to be for this weekend. My main gaming rig is done, and that's what matters.

The computer migration has started, and as expected, nothing is ever easy when messing with PC innards. There hasn't been a whole lot of cursing yet, but I'm getting really close. The room is filled with 5 video cards, 10 hard drives, tons of cables, fans, and screws lying everywhere. It's a battlefield, for sure.

As I started writing the MOTD an hour ago, I had an epiphany, and we're up and running. Woot! One computer fixed, two more to go ....