I’m a creature of habit. I tap the dashboard three times when I drive through a yellow light. I’ll eat the exact same meal for weeks in a row. I rarely alter my jogging routes. I’ll latch onto a podcast and listen to every single episode, or even continue watching a show long after my interest has waned.
These stubborn tactics and silly quirks carry over to video games. I don’t know if it’s perseverance that gets me through long games that I hate, but I do know that I’m almost incapable of adjusting my behavior, even when it makes complete sense to do so. It may prevent me from playing an outstanding title, or cause me to play a game I don’t even want to play. All I know is that if there is a game series, I’m going to start with the first one. READ MORE
2013 was a good year for my unplugged gaming, but it could have been amazing. Unfortunately, Kickstarter delays are a fact of life. Of the dozen or so projects I backed scheduled for this year, at least four were delayed beyond my deadline for this column, and two more are currently on-schedule but sadly also due to arrive on the wrong side of my cut-off date. Those five or six games and could have made a strong impact on my list. Instead they will join the various projects already scheduled for 2014 in what could be a crazy year-end process in twelve months’ time.
And then of course there were all of the new games I played this year that had nothing to do with Kickstarter. It can be tricky to balance supporting independent designers and publishers while still making contributions to the bottom line of my FLGS, but both goals are their own reward. After all, without the store I would have far fewer opportunities to play anything, Kickstarted or not. With that, here are the ten new games I enjoyed playing the most this year. READ MORE
Ah, the holidays. It’s a great time to gather with friends and family, appreciate the things you have, eat good food and get some much-needed rest.
Oh, and play games! We like that part, too.
We’re not going anywhere. From now until January, we’ll be sharing what we think, both individually and as a group, are the best that 2013 had to offer. If you do need something to pick up, rest assured: we’ll put you on the right path! Also, in this holiday season of peace and joy, maybe check out these games with winter-themed levels? Or settle down at the table with a good unplugged title? Maybe even use our Amazon page to order some things, and give us the gift of being able to pay our hosting bills.
Mostly, though: have a happy holiday! And bundle up out there.
We’re human. We don’t always get to every game before the end of its year of release. This is our way of making amends: the best games we missed out on until 2013. Because we can’t go back in time and honor them in a more timely fashion. READ MORE
