GameSpy has a new piece up in its 'My So-Called Live' column praising and berating the addictiveness of the Xbox 360's 'Gamerscore', for which gamers worldwide are striving hourly to complete obscure challenges.

Author Will Tuttle points out a few balancing issues, though: "There are some titles that pretty much give their achievements away, and playing these games can be an easy way to (some might say artificially) inflate your score. The most obvious example is King Kong, which gives the player 1000 points for doing stuff that's essential to finishing the game. One playthrough (of a fairly short game, we might add) will net you all 1000 points."

Tuttle ends by suggesting that "...as more and more games are released and an increasing number of people get their hands on the system, I believe that achievement addiction will begin to sweep through the world like wild fire." Have you got Gamerscore Fever yet (myself only v.mildly, since it's via the GSW office offline Xbox 360), and is the cure cowbell?