Breaking: Video Games Popular In Seattle

For some reason our collegiate system places very few demands on the time of its participants. Undergrads may not believe this, aspiring undergrads couldn't be convinced of it, but post-college types generally admit that those five years were scheduled pretty lightly. Not that there weren't commitments. Parties had to be attended. Frisbees had to be thrown. Bongs have evolved, but they have yet to smoke themselves. And there's no better environment for game playing than the residence hall. Bar none.

And the kids are still playing WoW. World of Warcraft, right? The site MapWOW.com is some kind of Google Maps/World of Warcraft mashup that's neat for a fraction of a second if you don't play the game and they list the University of Washington as their top visitor, just edging out the University of Michigan. MapWow.com says, "Washington is known for its computer software and game development programs, so it's not too much of a surprise."

Apparently it is a surprise to the school. The UW Daily says:

UW administrators are largely unaware of the gaming trend that's taken students by storm. Representatives from the Office of Undergraduate Education said it has made no inquiry into the impact of online gaming on student life, while Computing & Communications officials were unaware of World of Warcraft's popularity at the UW until the MapWoW.com information was released.

Good company, though. The top UK school for visiting the site is Cambridge.