Yesterday, I got an idea for a new Magic deck: red & black artifact aggro. It is still a work-in-progress, but you can see it here. I use the website TappedOut to manage my deck ideas and share them with friends; it's typically a friendly site with a ton of great ideas. While I perused… Continue reading I Just Want to Play a Game
A few weeks ago I wrote a piece about rediscovering Magic: The Gathering. The honeymoon isn't over yet, but my return to gaming culture opened my eyes to an intriguing phenomenon that occurs when nerds grow up. I call it the Neverland Effect. Let's rewind a tiny bit. When I moved to Portland a little… Continue reading The Neverland Effect
Last month, I had an extended trip back to my hometown: the bustling metropolis of Naugatuck, Connecticut. I helped my parents pack up my childhood home in advance of its sale, and was a groomsman in my sister's wedding. I expected it to be an emotionally difficult trip. Conventional wisdom says that going back home… Continue reading Reconnection and Rebirth
Admit it, you're a Trekkie. You've seen Star Trek Beyond, okaym maybe more than once, and now you're jonesing for more. You've busted out your DVDs of the previous movies. You've put on your headset and tried the latest Star Trek Online: Agents of Yesterday. You've even changed your cell phone notification to that communicator… Continue reading Live Long and Party: An Epic Star Trek Game Night
On my way home from work this week, I saw a young boy walking with his dad. I saw him slow down, look at a phone in his hand, and then excitement came over his face and he turned and high-fived his dad. I smiled as I drove by, because I knew that little boy… Continue reading The Outside is Cool Again with Pokemon Go
I had the pleasure to chat briefly via email with the art director for a fantastic Kickstarter game, Charmixy. Tess Young took some time to answer my questions about this unique, puzzle-based combat game. It's rare that I promote Kickstarter campaigns but I think this game has great vision, diverse characters, an intriguing game play… Continue reading The Charm of Charmixy: An Interview with Tess Young
I’ve been thinking about early access games a lot over the past six months. On the surface it seems like an incredible way for small game developers to raise the capital to get their games made and for the gamers to see behind the curtain and have input into development. And when things go really… Continue reading Early Access Doesn’t Work. At Least Not for Me. Most of the Time.
This is the game screen on my iPhone. And I spend the majority of my free time lately gaming here. For many people, that would make me not a gamer. Social and mobile gaming is considered by many not to be "true" gaming, or not "hardcore" or "core," or somehow lacking in significance. Many people… Continue reading You Might Call Me a Casual Gamer, and That’s OK
About two months ago, I got a text from our editor, Ryan, telling me I should check out this game called Spellfall. I generally listen to Ryan's suggestions since he's pretty good at identifying mobile games I'll enjoy. On top of that, I was in the market for a new game to play on my… Continue reading SpellFall and the Problem with Pay to Win
Well, I think we're almost done here. I started this article series back in July thanks to my mother needing a little help understanding gamer speak. I’ve talked to her off and on over the course of this series and she's told me that she thinks it's helped her. I hope it's helped others… Continue reading Gaming Terminology Primer: Wrap Up
