What an absolutely miserable week it's been. One I wish I could forget, and never will.

Anyway, I'm a bit behind the curve on this one but I just wrapped up Braid and I figured I'd blow a line or two on whatever the hell it was that just happened. Braid, as you all probably know, is an "art game," and I could tell because when it was all over I realized that it had a much deeper meaning that your typical Princess-rescuing platformer, and that I had no idea what it was. I have a few guesses, sure, but I've never really been a fan of interpretation. I like to know. But that's not going to happen because, like all good artists, creator Jonathan Blow isn't going to make it that easy. Rather than get caught up in that particular trap, however, I'll instead just tip my hat to his "more hit than miss" treatise on the nature of obsession and move on to an obsession of my own: Game boxes.

I waited for Braid to get a regular retail release because I like boxes. And to be honest, I don't like digital. Digital just doesn't convey that sense of ownership that comes from actually going to the store and laying down some bucks for something you can cart home in a bag. I've done it with similar titles in the past, like World of Goo and Plants vs. Zombies. And yes, I paid more for Braid in a box than I would've through Steam or somesuch, plus the time and expense of driving to the store to get it, but that's fine. Because I own it now. It's right over there, just above Cryostasis and Hawx.

It's mainly a psychological thing, I suppose, but that's obsession for you. And while I don't consider my thing for boxes an "obsession" by any stretch (more of a preference, really) it strikes me as a bit interesting how it's reflected in the theme of the game itself.

Or maybe I'm reading too much into it. And I cheated through probably half of the game with YouTube walkthroughs, which leads to some possibly interesting conversations about the nature and accessibility of art in games but is also a bit of an indictment of my mad gamer skillz and may further dilute my opinion. I dunno. Either way, that's something for next time.