Hey guys, we are starting to get into the deeper planning stages for MidWestLAN10 and will be attempting a different plan then normal for our LANs.

This LAN we'll be trying something different with our scheduling in hopes of adding a bit of variety to our gaming lineup. We will be running a schedule that is similar to events such as the World Series of Poker where we will have simultaneous tournaments going on at the same time so if you don't want to play in one, you can take part in another.

As with all MWL events we are eager to hear your input for what games you want to see at the LAN! We are looking at 3 FPS and 2 RTS at the moment, with one of the FPS tournaments being our Main Event

Visit the MidWestLAN website at www.midwestlan.com for more info and to provide your input. We look forward to hearing it!

First off - I'd like to thank Mike for everything he's done for those of us who've attended NoG - and also for helping to keep LAN gaming alive in Wisconsin. With Network of Gamers having held its final LAN (for now at least?) the era of the "big 3" southeastern Wisconsin LAN parties comes to a close (with Epicenter having shut down several years ago, and the original MWL having ended around that time as well).

There are still several events running in the area for those of us living in the Wisconsin/northern Illinois area. AWOL LAN still operates out of Eau Claire, GBLAN hosts an occasional LAN in the Green Bay area, LANBASH is still going in Crystal Lake, and quite a few other LANs of various sizes can be found by checking out the MidwestLanparty forums.

And of course MidWestLAN is still going strong. We had to cancel our MWL9.5 event that was scheduled later this July, however, we aren't done by any means. MidWestLAN10 is now on the schedule - January 10th, 2009! We're still working out some details - however we hope to have a lot of information available within the next few weeks regarding the LAN's size, length, and potential tournaments.

As some of you our aware however, our MidWestLAN events are only held twice or so a year. We may temporarily revive Empire Gamers LAN until another smaller LAN steps up again, however as you are all aware, running LANs is a very time consuming matter, and trying to manage both MWL and EGL would probably drive the MWL staff insanse (well, moreso then we already are...just look at Zel). I would like to encourage anyone interested in starting a LAN in this area to PM me, I'd be glad to help you get things going. It'd be great to see some younger gamers to step up and start LANs in this area again to help bring some fresh blood in (for the vampiric gamers of course), and to help revive our LAN scene.

Also - with the end of NoG, these forums and this website will shut down at some point in time (whenever it expires). We have quite a nice community going here, and I extend an invitation to anyone who wants to keep in contact to head over to the MWL forums.

Once again, I'd like to thank Mike for everything he's done for the Wisconsin LAN scene - he's helped out the EGL/MWL admins numerous times, and on behalf of my entire staff I'd like to thank him for all his hard work. Enjoy being able to get some much needed gaming time in. Well, after you take out the time the kid, the wife, work, and getting a house requires. ;)

That about wraps this little nostalgic, shameless plug post. Hope to see all of you at MWL10, or at whatever LANs hopefully spring up in the next year.

Here is your list of games for the final LAN:

• Unreal Tournament 3
• Team Fortress 2
• CounterStrike Source
• Battlefield 2
• Command and Conquer Generals

While I know its futile to ask, please have all the games installed and patched before you arrive. Or, if thats not possible, install them as soon as you get to the LAN. See you all there!

Time to vote for which games you'd like to play at the June LAN! As always, list your 5 (at most, feel free to list less) games. Be sure to list them in order! I'll tabulate the results and post the official list once all votes are cast.

Sorry about the lack of updates, things are getting pretty frantic around here with the wedding and all.

The next LAN will be held on June 21st, from 10am until 2am on the 22nd. Sadly, this will be the last LAN I have run. It marks our 5th anniversary of running events, so it seems like a good time to wrap things up. Like many people who have run events before, its simply time to move on to other things, plus the only time I have to play video games is at the LAN party.

As a thank you for your years of attendance, this LAN will only be $5! That will cover the cost of the building and soda you guys inhale. As always, unlimited soda comes standard.

We'll have Mt. Dew Speed Drinking, Mouse Throwing, the PC smash (winner gets to keep the Doom Hammer!), and more fun stuff. We'll have swag to give away, plus some bonus treats. See you there!

Yes, at long, long last here is the PC smash video from the last LAN. I am sorry it took so very, very long to upload. But now you can relive these fond memories, as opposed to simply trying to remember what happened the night before. Enjoy!

On an unrelated note, we are currently thinking about doing a LAN in late June or early July (after the weekend of the 4th, of course). Let me know what dates work best for you guys.