You like gaming. You also like the Unreal series of games, or you probably wouldn't be here reading this. The technology has evolved, and what we see in UT2004 is light years ahead of Unreal 1 (not even mentioning the games that came before). Still, at the core of it all, what really makes it fun are the people we meet and get to know.Two recent European LAN events prove this (again) beyond any reasonable doubt. The J.E.L.P. 2004 event, which hal mentioned yesterday, brought together a large collection of Jailbreak 2004 enthusiasts in Lutzel, Germany for this, their second event. Even Mychaeel stopped in to make an appearance and play with the crew there. By all accounts, everyone had a great time, and the fact that they all enjoy UT2004 and Jailbreak 2004 was just a portion of what they all had in common. There can be no doubt that friendships that will last a lifetime were made.Also held in August, ELAN 8 was held in Bath, England, and also involved good food, good drink and comradery between people who genuinely like each other. The fact that this is the eighth meeting already should give you some idea how much these particular people enjoy each other's company.Our #beyondunreal chat room on irc.enterthegame.com is always full of BuFers talking about pretty much anything. It's gone so far beyond being an Unreal-related channel - it's like a big family, complete with laughing, crying and fighting. Rarely at a loss for words, the BuF community is always ready to stir things up.The BU Forums continue to be busy, with both Unreal and non-Unreal content. It's amazing to see how they've evolved over the years, and how many people have really gotten to know each other as a result of almost 1.5 million posts.Our own admins have been re-energized by playing in the FragBU events on Friday and Saturday nights. While it's always cool to pop on a public server from time to time, it's even more fun to play with and against people we all know. My older son, Bonedigger, who was only 8 years-old when he first tried Unreal 1, has joined in, and takes great pleasure in wreaking havoc against the likes of the BU admins and our loyal community of BuFers. It's a whole new world for him, and it's good.The bottom line in this diatribe is that, while the game is fun, the relationships made as a result of the game and BeyondUnreal is what's really cool about all of this. If you're a 'lurker', hanging out in the periphery of it all, take a chance and dive in. Register for that forum membership. Stop by our chat room. Join a clan. Be an active part of the community, and see what I'm talking about. You won't regret it!