Greetings from Finland!

I'm an all around gaming geek who enjoys strategy games (to use the term loosely - my interest covers things like Smash Bros. and Street Fighter) but doesn't even play Go.
Wait, what?

I got hooked on spectating (commentated) competitive games via Starcraft, which was a blessing. So many interesting games out there that you can understand well enough to follow, only so many you can devote the time to be good at. So one quiet day when I was bored, being the Hikaru no Go victim I am, I started looking for commentated Go games. Stumbled upon gocommentary/countsheep and then Battousai/dwyrin and have been spectating a game every now and then ever since. Fighting naturally tends to go over my head a bit especially since but the struggle for territory is ever entertaining.

Right now I don't really have the time or determination for Go, but since the video game industry is trying to jump off a cliff, Magic's price is rising, rising and rising and WotC got the idiot bug, I might soon be deprived of a hobby or two. At least no one will mess with a three millenia old board game from China. At least hopefully.

Random factoids:
* Plays Magic at a decent level, fiddles with Smash Bros. and tries to learn Yomi.
* Follows the video game industry from a business point of view. Sometimes ignorance is bliss. Although the whole thing is probably the best circus in the world.
* All around geek, monster at remembering random obscure details about interesting things.
* Studies at an university, yet thinks academics should probably buy cement shoes and take a swimming lesson or two.

Welcome.

Howdy, and welcome. Pure observership is an interesting introduction to the game, so if you do start playing as a hobby, I'd be interested to hear how the experience affects your learning.

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Someday I want to be strong enough to earn KGS[-].

Welcome.

I am reminded of my life before marriage in reading your intro. I haven't kept up with the circus that is the Video Game Industry, but the description has been apt for at least the last decade.

You'll find that there is an MTG thread in the Off-Topic section, and there are a couple decent players there (and some n00bs like me who have dabbed in it for 14 years or so).

As for observing Go, welcome! Don't worry about determination; jump in whenever you feel you're ready to.

I'd recommend getting a KGS account, you can always observe the games, plus you may even decide to play! I'm sure anyone in the L19 room would give you a teaching game.

Braaaaaaaains!

Welcome!

Melee?

Probably Brawl, cause we all know it's the superior game.

No exaggeration - my face uncontrollably curled up in disgust when I read this .

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We don't know who we are; we don't know where we are.
Each of us woke up one moment and here we were in the darkness.
We're nameless things with no memory; no knowledge of what went before,
No understanding of what is now, no knowledge of what will be.

Both, although I prefer Melee by a lot. (not that I know how to wavedash or anything, I'm not a tournament player by any stretch, but Melee just feels like a sharper game. Plus all my favourite characters bar Zelda received unnecessary nerfs in Brawl. Far less enjoyable characters in Brawl than in Melee. At least I can play area control with Zelda in Brawl with the ridiculous buffs her fireball got)

EDIT: I also do a bit of tabletop wargaming, although not terribly actively. Have tried to learn a bit of Warmachine/Hordes (looking to start a small Everblight army sometime), and wrote an Alternate Edition patch to 7th edition Warhammer Fantasy to incorporate a couple good ideas from 8th Edition (Which is a one-dimensional, bug-ridden mess on the whole), with a some army book patches too.

Welcome!

You get +1 for well-written introduction.

Have you tried out any of the teaching applets online for go yet?

http://www.playgo.to/iwtg/en/ is a really good one.

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Tactics yes, Tact no...

Well, Black did get nerfed a bit with the introduction of those Booster Points for White with the Japanese Komi expansion. Too bad for Black players, but well, that side was clearly OP. Anyhow, top players these days are able to get good winrate with both the Black and White factions so I guess it's more balanced now.

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My name is Gijs, from Utrecht, NL.

When in doubt, play the most aggressive move