Online is Un-connection

For the longest time since the PS3's launch, I have only had a PS3 while the rest of my gaming friends only had 360s.  Sure I could go over to friends' houses to play, but it meant I had no one online to play with, which is so essential to many games now that don't offer split-screen co-op or multiplayer.  Really... whatever happened that gamers can no longer go over to friends houses to play a game together.  Everything has to be done online only now if people want to team up.  This keeps us lazy and sitting at home in our darkly lit rooms essentially by ourselves.  Even though we might be playing against friends and strangers alike online, those online buddies may as well be bots.  Among the name calling, bitching, and ten year old boys that sound like little girls, there is no real life social interaction like punching your friend in the shoulder when he killed you five times in a row.
 
Whatever happened to the days of LAN parties where people would drag their PCs or XBOXes over to one friends house, put out a couple liters of vodka and mixers, order a few pizzas or a shitload of Taco Bell, and game until the sun rises?  Do people really do that anymore now that its so much more convenient to sit at home without having to shower or even bother putting on clothes?  And if people don't have the same hardware is a LAN party even an option?
 
I may have to start LANing again.  I have a couple new gaming friends that for a while had strayed from their gaming.  Recently they both just got brand new PS3s.  One of them has been buying any game that has moved into the $30 range, which is great, since I've been broke since the whole recession thing and have been getting to borrow his games.  The other I've been trying to show him the ropes and get him into some of the great games that have come out in the past year.  I've been pretty excited that I finally have some PS3 buddies, but still the problem surfaces that I can't go to their house and play a multiplayer or co-op game, without it having it need to be online.  I also have lost my cable internet at home so I couldn't even play that way if I wanted.  Seems my only choice is to drag my PS3 and clunky TV over to a friends house and hope they also have gotten copies of the same games.  In the meantime, passing the controller whenever we get too freaked out in Dead Space will suffice.

For the longest time since the PS3's launch, I have only had a PS3 while the rest of my gaming friends only had 360s.  Sure I could go over to friends' houses to play, but it meant I had no one online to play with, which is so essential to many games now that don't offer split-screen co-op or multiplayer.  Really... whatever happened that gamers can no longer go over to friends houses to play a game together.  Everything has to be done online only now if people want to team up.  This keeps us lazy and sitting at home in our darkly lit rooms essentially by ourselves.  Even though we might be playing against friends and strangers alike online, those online buddies may as well be bots.  Among the name calling, bitching, and ten year old boys that sound like little girls, there is no real life social interaction like punching your friend in the shoulder when he killed you five times in a row.
 
Whatever happened to the days of LAN parties where people would drag their PCs or XBOXes over to one friends house, put out a couple liters of vodka and mixers, order a few pizzas or a shitload of Taco Bell, and game until the sun rises?  Do people really do that anymore now that its so much more convenient to sit at home without having to shower or even bother putting on clothes?  And if people don't have the same hardware is a LAN party even an option?
 
I may have to start LANing again.  I have a couple new gaming friends that for a while had strayed from their gaming.  Recently they both just got brand new PS3s.  One of them has been buying any game that has moved into the $30 range, which is great, since I've been broke since the whole recession thing and have been getting to borrow his games.  The other I've been trying to show him the ropes and get him into some of the great games that have come out in the past year.  I've been pretty excited that I finally have some PS3 buddies, but still the problem surfaces that I can't go to their house and play a multiplayer or co-op game, without it having it need to be online.  I also have lost my cable internet at home so I couldn't even play that way if I wanted.  Seems my only choice is to drag my PS3 and clunky TV over to a friends house and hope they also have gotten copies of the same games.  In the meantime, passing the controller whenever we get too freaked out in Dead Space will suffice.