I've heard often from people outside of geekdom that when we geeks get together we seem like we're speaking a different language. This is especially true amongst video gamers, because over the years we've found ways to shorten definitions of our games so communication is quick and direct.

Hey, isn’t that...? You know, that guy. The guy that always plays someone in the military. He was in, uh, Syriana, The Kingdom... Oh yeah! He was the father of the emo kid in American Beauty!

As a fantasy-loving nerd who came of age in the '80s, I was fascinated by the role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons.'' Fortunately, I didn't know anyone else who cared, so I didn't get drawn into the cult. But I've been a sucker ever since for the electronic games that were inspired by it, from 1981's ''Wizardry'' to the ongoing ''Final Fantasy'' series.

LAS VEGAS (AP) - Three critically acclaimed first-person shooters won top honors at the video game industry's most prestigious awards show. ''BioShock,'' ''Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare'' and ''The Orange Box'' garnered four prizes apiece Thursday night at the 11th annual Interactive Achievement Awards.

News from the virtual world: -BATTLE-SCARRED: I really like Electronic Arts' ''Battlefield'' games, although I have to admit that I'm a little intimidated when it comes to playing with strangers over the Internet.

2007 was one of the best years for video games that we have ever seen. We saw all types of triple-A titles, from new masterpieces like Bioshock, Mass Effect, Portal, and Rock Band to the continuing success of franchises such as God of War 2, Call of Duty 4 and Super Mario Galaxy.

News from the virtual world: -BEST OF 2007: It has been a terrific year for video games, and boiling it down to a top 10 list was difficult. But here are the games I enjoyed the most in 2007.

Video games like ''Mass Effect'' don't come around too often, and good thing: This new science fiction epic is so good it's basically sucking away all of my free time.