GeekNights

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Hayao Miyazaki's Princess Mononoke (もののけ姫). This 1997 film is a masterpiece. In the news, Donald Trump destroyed global trade , Murderbot is coming , the Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin manga gets a deluxe edition , and Spider-Verse 3 is coming on June 4 2027. Also Rym continues to love Common Side Effects . Related Links Forum Thread Princess Mononoke Discord...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Heat: Pedal to the Metal (2022) . It's a car racing game with well-tuned push-your-luck mechanics that is definitely worth a play. It's even better over multiple races. In the news, Cory Booker heroically and historically holds the Senate floor for over 24 hours in a powerful rebuke of Donald Trump's fascism (beating Strom Thurmond's vile "record" ). Also torpedo b...

Tonight on GeekNights, we muse a bit on the problem of discoverability. Nearly all experience is mediated , and this includes deciding what web site to look at. In the news, Rym is back from Zenkaikon , Moon Zooz is continuing to rock it, the cosmological constant might not be , niri is a scrollable-tiling Wayland compositor , and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is a dangerous idiot . Related Li...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Friedemann Friese's sequel to Power Grid titled Power Grid: Outpost . We highly recommend reading the second page of the rulebook closely. In the news, Pokémon Go (and all your location data) were sold to Scopely , there's something to this nemesis system , and this is the most important thing you can pay attention to in America's ongoing crisis. Related Links Foru...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review the Sakamoto Days anime. It starts with a strong premise, but in the end it's just a shounen fighting show. In the news, Flow wins Latvia's first Oscar , The Day The Earth Blew Up actually looks pretty good, you can see Princess Mononoke restored in theaters, and Common Side Effects is real good. Related Links Forum Thread Sakamoto Days Discord Chat Sakamoto Days B...

Tonight on GeekNights, we talk about MIDI . The Musical Instrument Digital Interface, which is still in use today. In the news, Donkey Kong ‘94 is re-released on Switch, Youtube adds translated dubbing , and Ontario (rightly) taxes Americans using their energy. Related Links Forum Thread MIDI Discord Chat MIDI Bluesky Post MIDI Things of the Day Water your yard FOR FREE !!! Rym -  Sound...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider Windows 11 and the fools who refuse to upgrade. In the news, the iPhone 16e arrives , Gmail is (correctly) dropping SMS two-factor , Twitch is capping uploads for 0.5% of streamers , and Germany represents a profound realignment of global politics . Related Links Forum Thread Windows 11 Discord Chat Windows 11 Bluesky Post Windows 11 Things of the Day Rym -&...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider the concept of retirement . I know what my plan is. In the news, James Bond is captured by an evil megacorporation , and supplements will destroy your liver . Related Links Forum Thread Retirement Discord Chat Retirement Bluesky Post Retirement Things of the Day Rym -  Tom's Diner (Cover) Scott -  The 88x31 GIF Collection

Tonight on GeekNights we review Shogun , released as part of the Milton Bradley Gamemaster series that we reviewed back in 2006 . Renamed to Samurai Swords and then to Ikusa, we revisited it with pro tabletop players this past weekend. We're a lot wiser about game mechanics and game design here in 2025, and this game holds up surprisingly well except for a few notable flaws. We're also trying an e...

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss electronic payments. We grew up in a world where credit cards were imprinted on carbon paper and cheques were on physical paper. In the news, the Baltics have disconnected from the Russian power grid , Football Manager 25 will be skipped , and there's one weird trick to stop Google's terrible AI summaries. Related Links Discord Chat Electronic Payments Forum Threa...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Ryan North's Fantastic Four (2022) . It's kind of fantastic. In the news, Diamond Distributors is dead and AnimeNEXT appears to be dead . Related Links Forum Thread Fantastic Four (2022) Discord Chat Fantastic Four (2022) Bluesky Post Fantastic Four (2022) Things of the Day Rym -  The Union Pacific Big Boy Scott -  Landing the Nostromo

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider all the ways to sell software. From shareware to software-as-a-service to "just buying it" it's evolved quite a bit over the years. In the news, CES happened , Republicans killed net neutrality , and Pornhub is blocked in the entire US south . Also we will be live at MAGFest , which is imminently about to sell out. Related Links Forum Thread Ways to Sell Software...

Tonight on GeekNights we review Moorland (2023) . We played it twice at PAX Unplugged and it's a solid game with two novel mechanics. In the news, New York's congestion relief pricing is already fantastic, Valve makes insane money per employee , and two Gundam tabletop games are coming. Related Links Discord Chat Moorland (2023) Forum Thread Moorland (2023) Bluesky Post Moorland (2023) Things of t...

Tonight on GeekNights, we talk about Terminals . From the VT100 to any modern Terminal Emulator , they are still a part of the computing world and are worth knowing about. In the news, Jimmy Carter has died at 100 , Chinese state-sponsored hackers attacked the US Treasury, and a hero has defeated a fake Nintendo lawyer . Related Links Discord Chat Terminals Forum Thread Terminals Bluesky Post Term...

Tonight on GeekNights, we talk about fear. Rym was on a panel about fear at PAX South back in 2016, plus a video essay . In the news, it turns out Santa Claus is a myroblyte , ChatGPT went down , Russia shot down another commercial airliner, and Finland seized a Russian sabotage tanker. Related Links Discord Chat Fear Forum Thread Fear Bluesky Post Fear Things of the Day Rym -  Caga Tió...

Tonight on GeekNights, we talk about drones. In the news, the common clay of the New West think they're seeing nefarious drones everywhere and we have WordPress vs WP Engine . Related Links Forum Thread Drones Discord Chat Drones Bluesky Post Drones Things of the Day Rym -  1-900-490-FREAK Scott -  Elevator Music

Tonight on GeekNights, we talk about knives . Learn to use the right knife for the right task with the right technique in the kitchen, and your life will be better. Also learn how to care for them . In the news, the assassination of a health insurance CEO brought a deep simmering anger to the surface of American society, surprising many , and the Interstella 5555 "remaster" isn't . Related Links F...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider PAX Unplugged 2024. It was a top tier PAX. In the news, the Rangers aren't doing well , Marvel Overwatch is exactly what it looks like , and Fortnite has to pay back the kids it ripped off . Related Links Forum Thread PAX Unplugged 2024 Discord Chat PAX Unplugged 2024 Bluesky Post PAX Unplugged 2024 Things of the Day Rym -  when the solo is so good the...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider blogging . In the news, Roblox is making a closed ecosystem Discord competitor , the US gave Intel a pile of money , and Intel's CEO hit the bricks . Rym has also consolidated all of his social media into rym.social and talks about how he set up cross-posting across microblog , Mastodon, and Bluesky. Related Links Forum Thread Blogs Discord Chat Blogs Bluesky Pos...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Obelus . A re-implementation of Dark Spires designed by Chris A. Williams , it's a quick abstract two-player game that's worth having in your bag. In the news, The Magic Commander Format , recently embroiled in capitalist drama , is getting a digital version , and the itch.io Creator Day sale is this Friday! Related Links Forum Thread Obelus (2024) Discord Chat Obe...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review the remake of Ranma 1/2 . It's a solid remake of the classic anime based on the classic manga by Rumiko Takahashi. In the news, stay strong as the fascists take control of the US government, and Sony is trying to buy Kadokawa . Related Links Forum Thread Ranma 1/2 (2024) Discord Chat Ranma 1/2 (2024) Things of the Day Rym -  The Ghosts of Misery Mire Scot...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider the humble tradition of carving pumpkins. You may recall in 2006 when we reviewed Pumpkin Scissors or our review of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown , but we have never dedicated an entire episode to the carving of pumpkins. In the news, tonight is the 19th anniversary of GeekNights . (The brave can listen to the remastered pre-launch beta episodes (with com...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review the Terminator Zero anime. It's a worthy Terminator entry, though we'd suggest watching Terminator and Terminator 2 (and nothing else ) before watching it. Eight episodes on Netflix and produced by Production IG , Skydance, and Netflix. In the news, John Wick is getting a prequel anime , and Animation Speak Easy is this Friday in Brooklyn. Be sure to make a plan to...

Tonight on GeekNights, we talk about widgets. Mostly status and telemetry widgets that people like to put on their desktops or their phones. They have their uses, but are usually useless. In the news, Cloudplane is shutting down in December , Adobe's Project Turntable is stunning , and Tesla's robots were (obviously) fake . If you are able to vote in the United States, make a plan to vote . You ca...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider the concept of debt. In the news, the FTC makes a move against dark patterns in subscriptions and North Korea blows up its connection to South Korea and decrees that unification is no longer possible . Related Links Forum Thread Debt Discord Chat Debt Things of the Day Rym -  Wireless Non-Electrical Remote Scott -  The woman who revolutionized...