GeekNights Tuesdays: Gaming

Tonight on GeekNights, we review two games by the legendary Sid Sackson : Can't Stop (1980) and All My Diamonds (1969) . They're both worth playing, but for different reasons. In the news, Overwatch League is in deep trouble along with much of the global esports ecosystem. Related Links Things of the Day Rym -  German Community Gardens (Schrebergarten) Scott -  Chip Player JS

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss worker placement as a game mechanic. We intend to turn this into a series of shows and panels following on from Mastering Game Mechanics as presented at PAX East 2013. In the news, Marvel Snap's Conquest mode is fantastic, and Valve is dropping Battle Passes for Dota 2 because "nobody buys them." Related Links Forum Thread Game Mechanics: Worker Placement Things o...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom . It's one of the best pieces of entertainment software ever made. 11/10. S-Tier. A case study in good game design. Just go play it if you aren't already. In the news, Overwatch 2 is banning 5,000 cheaters a week , Street Fighter 6's control modes are looking pretty good, and Wizards of the Coast called the Pinkertons on a...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider lore in games. You know, all that text you didn't read in the tooltips of the inventory. Or what characters told you in Half Life while you tried to clip out of the room. In the news, the Rangers begin their first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs , The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog is a real game, SGDQ 2023 is imminent, and Ingress is getting a Monster Hunter ski...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Muneyuki Yokouchi's fantastic Cat in the Box . This is an S-tier trick taking game. A must-own. It takes about two minutes to teach (three if the player is unfamiliar with trick taking games) and we've had a blast with it so far. In the news, the world is safer today as Finland formally joins NATO , a Florida man is indicted for fraud , Klaus Teuber , the designer...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Stacklands (2022) . In the news, Counter-Strike 2 is likely coming , Disco Elysium gets a collage mode , and DPReview falls victim to Amazon layoffs and capitalism . Related Links Thing of the Day Rym -  Masami Okui - Live in Hibiya 13 - Toki ni Ai wa (ITARU ver.).mpg

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss gamer furniture of the non-chair variety. In the news, Nintendo adds Game Boy and Game Boy Advance games to Switch Online, Microsoft adds Call of Duty to Nintendo , and Magic: The Gathering adds Lord of the Rings . We also streamed this show live on the Discord Stage in the official GeekNights Discord! Related Links Things of the Day Rym -  The Super Mar...

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss games that are not fully dead, but are mostly dead . Dance Dance Revolution (at home), the resurrected Netrunner, The Realm , Steel Battalion, and whatever game you're mad we didn't include in this short list just now. In the news, The Last Rockstars have debuted, Rym has a high opinion of the L-TEK EX PRO 2 DDR pad , the Nintendo Direct is tomorrow, and the Ninte...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider teams. Playing on teams, forming teams, team sports, team games. All that team stuff. In the news, Dwarf Fortress with graphics is here (recall we interviewed Tarn Adams on GeekNights back in 2008), the FTC sues to block Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard , Blizzard will need someone new to offer World of Warcraft in China in a story that keeps evolvi...

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss comms in games. Text chat, voice chat , open versus restricted, and the like. In the news, Pentiment is available , and Rym is obsessed with Disco Elysium . Related Links Forum Thread GeekNights Tuesday - Comms in Games Things of the Day Rym -  Digital database documents vital infrastructure created by the New Deal Scott -  Adversarial Policies...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review the surprisingly elegant Marvel Snap . Released this year on phones and PCs, it's essentially a flavor of Knizia's Battle Line (2000) , itself in a narrow class of similar games of a shared lineage . In the news, Ross Chastain changed the meta in NASCAR with "Some Video Game Shit," Embracer rebranded Square Enix Montréal as Onoma before immediately shutting Onoma d...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Unknown Worlds' Moonbreaker (2022) . It's a turn-based digital miniatures game that shares a lot of lineage with Hearthstone, Magic, and possibly Neuroshima Hex (at least in terms of the net effect of some of its mechanics). It's all right, but it has a lot of issues and remains in early access . In the news, Discord's Watch Together shows you ads and is broken by...

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss the history and current state of online game servers. Rising primarily out of competitive FPSs like Quake and Counter Strike back in the day, they were often the only way to play with a reliable community of people. There weren't matchmaking or friend lists or anything like that. In the news, Rym and Emily are back from PAX where they did a panel on losing , Scott...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider single player tabletop games. Distinct from Solitaire and Simple Games or Solitaire Puzzles , expanding on our discussion of The Number of Players , we look at what it takes to have a regular old tabletop game for one . We cite Why No One Will Game With You in the course of this, but there are plenty of great single player experiences (so long as they are officia...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider casino games like Roulette, Poker, Craps, Blackjack, and Slot Machines. In the news, Unity is having significant woes , Cult of the Lamb looks cute, MultiVersus is something we will review in the future, Nintendo is just like every other games company , Gen Con struggles with the evil government of Indiana , and TwitchCon again requires masks . Related Links Foru...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider streaming games. Not to Twitch, but to devices. From Google Stadia to Steam Link to Steam Remote Play to adjacent game library services like Xbox Game Pass it's a space that continues to evolve. In the news, blue states in America are trying to save lives , Scott geekbites Nobody Saves the World , Asmodee sells Keyforge , Ubisoft kills 15 multiplayer games , Coun...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider save games. Saving games , game states, save scumming, permadeath, passwords, batteries, statefulness, and more. In the news, The Stanley Cup finals are spicier than anticipated, PAX West badges are live (and not sold out), Street Fighter 6 is trying something interesting , and a strange attempt to take over Hasbro has failed . Related Links Forum Thread GeekNigh...

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss how games monetize. How can you make money making games? We've done at least three panels around this topic: Monetizing Games and Game Design (PAX East 2012) , Money Making Games (MAGFest 2012) , and more recently The Real Harm of Games (PAX East 2019) . In the news, the Rangers are still in the playoffs , Sony's Playstation Plus upgrade isn't going well , Arcs is...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider the fascinating art project x portable game console: Playdate . It's neat. In the news, the contest for Lord Stanley's Cup is underway, EA Sports loses FIFA , Bethesda finishes off their PC game launcher , Square Enix continues its long fall from grace by doubling down on a scam , Embracer is embracing a gaming empire , Overwatch 2 is very promising for competiti...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Offworld Trading Company . An RTS with a M.U.L.E. lineage, we're having fun with it and even playing some multiplayer. In the news, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are coming, and the Playdate has a nice dev kit . In much more somber and tragic news, since the last episode we made, Russia has invaded Ukraine in what can only be described as a naked act of imperial aggre...

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider lifestyle games. You know the person who plays Magic and only Magic? Or the phase we both went through playing CounterStrike literally every day? Or Chess players? In the news, Sony acquires Bungie (completing the balance of power among the AAAs) and The New York Times acquires Wordle . Related Links Forum Thread GeekNights Tuesday - Lifestyle Games Things of the...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Inscryption . It's worth the price of admission even if you don't know that it pulls a Frog Fractions . In the news, Rym beat Zelda II again for some reason, and Microsoft is acquiring Activision Blizzard for ~$70BB . Also remember to aggressively confront any company that even hints at supporting NFTs in any capacity. The pressure works. Poison that well . Related...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Lost Ruins of Arnak (2020) . It's an elegant worker placement deckbuilder. We like it. In the news, COVID-19 is again an extreme crisis (please don't go to MAGFest this coming weekend), Square Enix made a r epugnant New Year's statement , Kickstarter is dead , and the fake high school was indeed fake . Related Links Forum Thread GeekNights Tuesday - Lost Ruins of A...

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Metroid Dread on the Nintendo Switch. It's a solid 2D Metroid, with a few horror elements and a lot of polish. In the news, Amazon is down and it's wreaking low-key havoc , Discord is competing with Patreon and Onlyfans (and Twitch) , and Ubisoft is absolutely a garbage company . Related Links Forum Thread GeekNights Tuesday - Metroid Dread (2021) Things of the Day...

Tonight on GeekNights, we bring you our 2021 Holiday Gaming Gift Guide. What should you buy for that gamer you know? Our list might surprise you. In the news, the Legend of Zelda Game & Watch is a huge step above the Mario one, Epic Games has acquired Harmonix , and don't cross the Wirecutter picket line . Related Links Forum Thread GeekNights Tuesday - Holiday Gaming Gift Guide 2021 Things of the...