Memorial Day is a time to remember military servicemen and women who lost their lives serving their country. It's also a four-day work week here in the United States, which means there was a bit more time for Americans to catch up on some gaming, BBQ, and whatever else has been hanging over their heads.

　　Despite being shorter than most, this work week was not skimping on the gaming news, as the federal holiday was followed with legislative, executive, and even a bit of judicial news hitting the wires.

　　On the legislative front, Minnesota passed a proposed law that fines minors $25 for purchasing Mature- or Adult-Only-rated games. This is a twist on other laws, which sought to fine retailers for letting naughty games slip into the hands of kids. The law was immediately contested by the Entertainment Software Association, which declared its intent to file suit against the state of Minnesota.

　　"I'm not stupid, you're stupid."

　　Over on the executive side, plenty of Electronic Entertainment Expo aftermath was still flowing from the mouths of company higher-ups. The outspoken president of Sony's Worldwide Studios, Phil Harrison, had a few notable quotes this week. He first addressed accusations that Sony copied Nintendo's motion-sensitive controller, saying they were "stupid," and then claimed that the PlayStation 3 would replace PCs as entertainment devices. Bill Gates, head honcho at Microsoft, said that Microsoft was looking into the portable gaming space, adding more fuel to the "Xboy" rumor fire.

　　Taking a look at all things (okay, one thing) judicial this week, former Gizmondo chief Stefan Eriksson stood before a judge and plead "not guilty" to charges involved in the infamous Ferrari Enzo case.

　　But enough of the boring stuff, what sort of crrrrazy happenings hit the game world this week? Amsterdam, home of legalized prostitution and loose drug laws, is opening a clinic to treat gaming addition. A security guard at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant was so engrossed in a handheld game, that he failed to notice a surprise inspection. And last, Iran is reportedly working on a game in which players rescue a nuclear scientist from the evil clutches of US troops.

　　Finally, the winners of the Game Critics Awards: Best of E3 2006 were announced. The panel of voters consists of gaming journalists from a variety of outlets, and the big winner was Nintendo, which wowed with the Wii, taking home Best of Show and Best Hardware awards. Spore had a strong showing for the second year in a row, scooping up three awards, and Gears of War was tough enough to grab two.

　　And without further ado, here are The Last Word's winners of top stories of the week (but no need to unroll the red carpet):

　　TUESDAY

　　Shutter opened on 360 camera

　　Halo 2 PC details spring up on Bungie.net

　　New Paper Mario, Children of Mana get dates

　　Ex-Gizmondo exec pleads not guilty

　　North Carolina ponders tax incentive for game developers

　　WEDNESDAY

　　Wii tops Game Critics' Best of E3 2006

　　Harrison denies Wii influenced PS3 controller, says PCs unnecessary

　　360 Hacker: Microsoft made me do it

　　Spy Hunter flick targets July '07

　　Thompson-penned game bill moves ahead

　　THURSDAY

　　360 backward compatibility's days numbered

　　Half-Life 2: Episode One online

　　Foundation 9 scores $150 million

　　Alienware assimilates Blu-ray drives

　　Next Oblivion add-on detailed

　　FRIDAY

　　MS "not done" with 360 backward compatibility

　　Minnesota game bill signed into law

　　GameSpot on Game Head

　　Perfect Dark Zero unmapped

　　Iwata: "Nintendo is not working on a next-generation console"

　　RUMORS OF THE WEEK

　　360 Camera bundle $40, 256MB MU $60, wireless headset $60?

　　DS Lite launches early?

　　Microsoft handheld coming in late 2007?

　　RELEASES

　　Shippin' Out May 29-June 2

　　CHARTS

　　ChartSpot: April 2006

　　UK game charts: May 21-27

　　US PC game charts: May 14-20

　　US console sales charts: May 21-27