The Kind of Problem You Want to Have

The holidays are fast approaching, and you know what that means, my gaming friends. It means a deluge of experiences, a flood of new games hitting the market and overwhelming our senses. As many of us finally hold in our hot little hands the objects of our prolonged desire, the problem becomes, frankly, deciding which of our new children comes first. Such a terrible dilemma! Just take a look at what has just come out, and what is coming in the weeks to come… Gears, Battlefield, Dark Souls, Batman, Skyrim, Modern Warfare, just to name a few. Many of these are absolutely huge games designed to take up as much of your time as possible, so they’re not going anywhere anytime soon. What’s a gamer to do?!

Rely on technology, that’s what. Let it make the decision FOR YOU. Rely on randomization and fate to determine your destiny! It’s what the Jedi would do, right? I think that’s right. Your new best friend is after the break.

The Web 2.0 Solution

The Randomiser (nevermind the spelling, Americans) is a useful, simple little tool that lets you type in a quick, comma-separated list, and it will randomly spit one choice out for you. Simple, elegant. Your one major downside here is that it doesn’t save your list for future use.

If you’re looking for a slightly less elegant but scientifically PROVEN solution, random.org has a list generator which will randomly re-order a list of items that you type in, and it does so using radios to pick up atmospheric noise. It’s… look, it’s complicated. Just trust me that it works.

The Windows Solution

If you’re looking for something that keeps your list around for you to reload and make changes to, a simple little Windows program that goes by The Hat is your new best friend. It gives options for reordering an entire list, or simply picking one choice out of “the hat”.
(There’s a malware-infested site that opens up when you run the program the first time, but the program itself is clean. Just watch your clicks. You’ve been warned.)

The Portable Solution

If you need a more portable solution for your choice assistance, you can go the REALLY nerdy route and use your SMARTPHONE. That’s right, people, there are tons of Android and iPhone solutions. Penny Arcade’s Decide-O-Tron has its place, but its recommendations are based on the assumption that you just might go out and buy something you don’t already own. Personally, a like the board-game-style touch of Choose, a simple little Android spinner. Just flick that finger across! Your list is even kept when you leave the program.

 
 
 
 
There you have it. I sincerely hope that in some small way, I’ve made your lives a little easier. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go… (spiiiiin) get some work done. DAMN.