First things first: I think we can all agree that no magazine, least of all EGM, deserved to die with Hugh Jackman's horrifically ugly blown-up mug gracing its cover.

But secondly, let me say that I wish Electronic Gaming Monthly founder Steve Harris nothing but the best in his new (old) venture, and this blog in no way represents the opinion of Bitmob's staff as a whole. And I have no inside knowledge on any behind-the-scenes wheelings and dealings -- like all of you, I've only read Harris' press release and former EGM editor-in-chief James Mielke's 1UP blog on the subject. But the reaction to this news, from Twitter to gaming sites to gaming message boards, has been surprisingly optimistic and almost universally positive. My reaction's a little different -- and it's partly because of my personal connection to the magazine.

I touched on this lightly in my debut Bitmob post, but with retro remakes and reboots all the rage these days, I felt a certain subject needed to be addressed in its own blog entry. It's something pretty much every older gamer experiences, but we tend to sweep it under the rug and pretend it doesn't exist. But it's OK -- we shouldn't deny this virility-robbing condition. So let's talk about...the terrifying curse of old-man hands.

First, let's give credit where it's due. I first heard the term bandied about by Bitmob overlord Dan "Shoe" Hsu back in his EGM editor-in-chief days. Every time Shoe reviewed...well, pretty much every game that required quick-twitch muscle fibers and wasn't Mario Party, he'd blame his underachieving performances on his "old-man hands." The implication was clear: "I could kick your ass, young intern Brooksie, if only I were 10 years younger." As a thirtysomething gamer (but, just to clarify, still several years younger than Old Man Shoe!), those feelings resonate with me: I definitely feel like I've "lost a step," and the condition only worsens with each passing year.

Confession time: I haven't done much gaming for fun in the months since the 1UP layoffs. Oh, sure -- I've dabbled in a little Dragon Quest V here, some Retro Game Challenge there. (The fact that I associate games with losing my job probably doesn't help matters, either!) But I haven't been truly addicted to a game since Persona 4 late last year. I've been extremely busy working on localization projects recently, and a lot of my "gaming" time these days is focused on making sure sentences don't overflow text boxes. Still, like all of us, I do have my share of free time. But I think it's telling that even I -- probably one of the few dudes who can honestly say that Resident Evil plotlines "enthrall" him -- haven't "found the time" to crack open my copy of Resident Evil 5.