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There's a tornado approaching, can you feel it? I know it! I can even bet on it, but I would rather not do such a thing, since I hate gambling. Did you run in the cellar already? Well, if you have a cellar, and some bottles of wine there, I can't say going down is a bad idea, but first I have to tell you a few things about the tornado I mentioned and what comes with it...

...because I am not talking about the weather, since the December shopping spree is coming closer, and that's what I see as a tornado. If you think the economic climate is going to hold people back from shopping next month, then I think you're wrong. Of course, I could also be wrong, but that's what remains to be seen. Now, let's get to the Geek Squad, shall we?

If you don't have a console yet, I hope you'll get one for Christmas. I don't have any relatives in the industry, but I think about grabbing one for myself too, from time to time, so it's that kind of feeling you get when others managed to do what you still think about. Don't get me wrong - for me, it's a pleasant feeling - just knowing that "somebody got there..."

To make a long story short, here's what Best Buy's Geek Squad announced for this "shopping tornado" comin' up - in-store services including setting up and enabling parental controls on the console, and while the geeks can tell parents how to set up the controls, if in-home setup is chosen, they can help with game specific questions as well, with in-home setup options including connecting the console to the Internet.

All the above, and maybe a little more, for a $29.99 fee, if the console doesn't come from Best Buy, but we're talking about in-store service here, sicne there's no word out about the in-home setup. If only they would do it for cookies, that would really make video games consoles services something really nice to have around Christmas, don't you think?...

I always complain about not having enough time for gaming, so I won't say that once again, because today I will tell you something new. When I finally find time to play a game I've been trying to reach for at least a few months, in most cases, I save screenshots from that game in a folder. It's not for any specific purpose, just to check them in a few years and say to myself "oh, my, look how was that game looking "x" years ago, on that old video card of mine." This would surely lead me into talking about those glorious Voodoo days, but I will stop here and move to the topic I have in mind: Mass Effect, Bioware's new masterpiece.

Before I tell you anything else about this game, let me give you an idea about it: I got the game, I installed it, and I started playing. Obviously, I wasn't able to finish it in a day or two, but that's not the point. I played for a few weeks, half an hour now, and hour then... if you have something better to do than gaming, you surely know how that is.

The interesting part is that I didn't manage to save any screenshot from the game, and this is something unique, because I don't save any screenshots from those games that are so bad, that the only way for them to end up is in the garbage bin, without any second thoughts about selling them to somebody else.

This time, Mass Effect managed to make me involved so much in the story, that saving screenshots was exactly the last thing in my mind. But, what is this all about, after all?

The answer is pretty simple - take Neverwinter Nights, another amazing game from Bioware, and place that kind of story in the Star Trek era. What you get is a Sci-Fi RPG with a very well written story, and so many paths to take, that if you won't finish the game at least 3-4 times, then I am sure you didn't manage to finish it at least once.

In year 2183, you will assume Commander Shepard's role, and I find it rather funny that, despite the fact you can choose your surname and gender, everyone will simply call you "Shepard," but I am sure this was a compromise to keep voice acting as detailed as possible - and I must confess once again that the story and voice acting are way above average, especially the story.

What kind of story? Well, since I mentioned Neverwinter Nights a bit earlier, it's enough to say it's "that kind of story," but if you never played that game, let me put it this way - you have a "very simple" task - save the entire known Universe, and nothing more.

To do that, you will end up being above the law, and sometimes having to disobey your superiors' orders, but as long as everything ends well... you should enjoy the story, exploring planets in your Mako vehicle and shoot bad guys. Sometimes, intimidating people(and other species) you get to talk with can be even more fun than blowing their heads off, but that's for you to discover.

As most recent games, Mass Effect requires at least 1 GB of memory on Windows XP, and 2 GB on Vista, but who says "the more, the better," is absolutely right. Disk space occupied goes a bit above 12 GB, and if you have at least a NVIDIA GeForce 6 series or an ATI 1300XT video card, everything should work well, but...once again, "the higher, the better" goes into effect. Enough to say the game ran excellent on my AMD dual core CPU with 2 GB of memory and my "oldie but goldie" ATI X1950 Pro video card.

I guess I didn't say much about the game, after all, don't you think? Well, you already know why - Mass Effect is more than just a game, it's an adventure that will draw you inside each time you click the icon on your desktop(well, that happens if you're a PC gamer, since Xbox 360 ones can also get Mass Effect, although the PC version is a bit more advanced from some points of view), and all the world around you will fade away, but if you really want to know more, here's something...

For further reading:

- Testfreaks
- cnet
- Amazon
- Gamespot

If you're a console gamer, then I am sure that placing a Grand Theft Auto 4 preorder is not something you have in mind, unless you want to use it as a gift. In fact, buying Grand Theft Auto 4 as a gift now would be a great idea, since you will buy one gift, and get two! How's that possible? Well, it's very easy - you simply place a Grand Theft Auto 4 preorder now, and you will get the PC version of the game next month, along with Grand Theft Auto: Vice City as a bonus!

When talking about biggest holiday titles for PC gamers, Grand Theft Auto IV(or GTA 4, GTA IV, Grand Theft Auto 4, take it as you wish) is surely something you can't miss, and I won't, either, especially since I had to buy a truck full of beer for my console owner friend that I told you I had to visit a few times too many when we talked about GTA 4 cars.

Now, the time has come to give you a hint worth my weight in gold(I am not extremely fat, but wind doesn't blow me off the road, either) - while buying the retail copy is something most PC gamers usually do, this time you can get it on Steam, and the pre-purchase will bring you Grand Theft Auto: Vice City for free!

As you can see in the image a bit back up, you will have to take out of your account $49.99 for the Grand Theft Auto 4 preorder, but since Vice City currently sells for $9.99 on Steam, being able to grab them both at once is a pretty good deal, in my opinion.

Anyway, I will always love much more being able to hold a game in my hands, rather than getting some bargain for a digital download...