Category: Games

Easter Eggs and Space Invaders

02/10/2012

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

A blast from the past, set in the future.

Whoa. I know. You’re mind, is like, totally blown.

Here’s most of what you need to know: The author photo on the inside back leaf shows him leaning against a DeLorean. Which he owns. Yeah, that kind of book.

This is a debut work for Ernest Cline, and honestly, if it hadn’t been on the New Fiction shelf at my library (and thus, free) I might not have picked it up. It sounds so gimmicky. Granted, it’s a gimmick that appeals to me, so that helped.

The set-up goes like this: a computer genius spends his teen years in the 1980s. Due to a complete lack of social skills, he spends all his time writing computer games and playing D&D. This earns him a ton of money. He goes on to create a massively multiplayer online roleplaying environment that begins as a game, but as the world falls apart becomes almost everyones favorite alternative to reality. Kids go to school in this virtual environment, all media and entertainment run through it, etc.

The story opens, somewhere in the 2040s, with his death. Having no heirs, he puts up his vast fortune as a prize for the ultimate game. A single clue is given. For five years people try to solve the clue and fail, knowing only that an in-depth knowledge of the 80s, with which the deceased was obsessed, will be necessary.

It’s a good set-up, with lots of candy for someone like me, who shares a certain nostalgic fondness for 1980s games and culture. And yet, that wouldn’t be enough. Thankfully, it doesn’t have to be. The story stands alone, and I suspect you could enjoy it without caring about the 1980s, though that’s a hard premise for me to test objectively. I really enjoyed the main characters, and the theme of under-resourced independent freelancers vs. over-wealthy, win-at-all-costs corporate drones fits the story well and is handled more gently than you might expect. Subplots (a romantic line and a reality vs. fantasy line) mesh nicely and fill out the story well.

Highly recommended to anyone in my age-bracket, though I’d particularly like to hear from someone who isn’t and read the book anyways.

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Getting my Tabletop Nerd On

10/06/2011

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I have previously maintained a kosher-esque separation between this website, which is mostly writing oriented, and my other odd hobbies. No longer. I'm a gamer-nerd, and I'm proud of it!

Soapy-clean little models

A new game I've been wanting to get into is called Dystopian Wars, by Spartan Games out of the UK. It's a 2mm scale game, meaning the models are all vehicles and not individuals. The game is set in an alternate history and has a definite steampunk flair going on.

After the week-long game-fest this past June when I went to Colorado to visit my brother Isaac, I bought the starter sets for two different factions of the game. Last weekend it started raining and I decided to bust one out and get painting.

The models are resin, which I've not worked with before, but I hear you're supposed to clean them really well so that the chemicals used in the molding process don't later react with the paint. The photo above is a fleet of models drying after their dip in soapy water.

FSA Battleship and Cruisers

In the world of Dystopian Wars, these models represent The Federated States of America. The background of the world is fascinating, covering the second half of the 19th century and postulating a hidden cache of alien/ancient technology that is discovered under the antarctic ice, spreading over the world and leading to global conflict as different nations struggle to incorporate newly powerful weapons and the vehicles that deploy them.

The game incorporates land, sea, and air units, a variation unique in my experience and one I'm excited to try out.

Bombers on megneto stands

The above picture is of the two bombers included with the FSA starter kit, which I'm trying to mount on magnets to their stands, making storage easier. I'll have to report back on how that works, since I'm waiting for the glue to dry before testing them out.

FSA Frigates, with basecoat paint

Here are three Frigates with a trial run of paint. I'll do a coat of stain/poly for shading once I've got the whole lot of them done. I've never painted at this size before and am not quite sure how much of the microscopic detail to try and hit. I've just used three colors on these guys and am hoping the stain will make them look epic, at least from a few feet away.

Areoplanes, which are more steampunky than Airplanes

As of this posting, I am still working on the SIXTEEN bases of areoplanes included in the set. I hope these guys are useful in game, because they are annoying to paint in this quantity.

That's all the modeling/gaming news for now. Stay tuned for more, unless you now think I'm crazy (hint: you're right).

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The Binding of the Runes (Caution: High Nerd Content)

08/31/2011

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I've been on a board game kick this past week and thought I'd share.

Last Thursday I rode over Chinook Pass on Hwy410 and down through the Yakima Valley to Tri-Cities, where lives my childhood friend, Brian. I love these visits in part because they are excellent motorcycle rides, and in part because my time there consists entirely of B.S.ing and playing games: a great short-term getaway.

With a play time of three to four hours, Runebound is not a game lightly begun. We managed to cram three plays into less than forty-eight hours, and I enjoyed every minute of them.

You can check out Runebound on Board Game Geek, and if you like board games and have not heard of the Geek then OH MY GOD YOU ARE WELCOME!

In short, it's a DnD/Tolkeinesque style adventure game in which you are represented by a little plastic dude (or dudette) who runs around a map slaying monsters, visiting towns, and generally getting all medieval on the place. The basic game is fun for several plays, and there are any number of expansions, from full boxes to smaller packs of cards that add monsters, allies, and items.

If you like these kinds of things (swords and sorcery, also Dragons) I highly recommend Runebound. If you're close enough to my physical location, let me know if you'd like to try.

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