The Professional Gamer - January 11, 2016

Hello readers!  This week has mostly been full of adulting. Went to a chiropractor to try and reduce the tightness in my neck (seems to be helping), scheduled a dental exam and cleaning, and did some more yoga and pilates.  All told, I'm feeling pretty good about things.  

Some cool things happening this week.  Of primary interest, we had another Steven-bomb this week.  I haven't watched the Friday episode yet ("Log Date 7 15 2"), but I have enjoyed all of the new episode so far this week.  I loved learning more about Ruby and Sapphire, and seeing some more development of Peridot's character.

I also spent some time this week watching the last few episodes of Community.  I'm sad that the series is over, although the finale was a lot of fun.  Now I have to find another casual show to binge through during the week.  Any suggestions?

In roleplaying news, I've got about a third of my systems information input into a game wiki and have started inviting my players to make some stories about some of the inhabited planets.  I'm hoping that we can make this game a bit more of a collaborative, storytelling game.  This would be in sharp contrast to our typical dungeon delver / combat heavy type games, but would hopefully be a welcome change.

Finally, I'm still playing through Knights of the Old Republic.  I'm a Jedi now, running around with a blue lightsaber in one hand and a vibroblade in the other.  Future goal: duel wielding lightsabers.

That's all I've got for this week.  See you next time, and game on!

The Professional Gamer - January 4, 2016

Happy New Year readers! I hope you all have enjoyed the end of one year and the beginning of a new.  I enjoyed a short week at work (probably the last until we get closer to summer).  And I've ended up spending most of my free time this week working on plans for my Traveller game.  And I've got quite a lot done.  For example, I've made a map of the sector where the players will start out:

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If you can't tell, I'm rather excited about this whole game.  I have Star Wars to blame for a large portion of that enthusiasm.

Speaking of Star Wars, I'm still reading Shadows of the Empire, and it has improved somewhat.  I still feel that reads a bit like a fan-fiction, with a lot of purple prose and too much telling, rather than showing.  I'm a bit surprised that I was so into these sorts of novels when I was in high school and college.  I suppose that imagining the action sequences, like the star fighter battles and the blaster shoot-outs, was more important to young Jim than artful prose and characterizations.  In spite of my concerns about the quality, I'm having a ton of fun reading it.

I also got back into reading The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage.  I haven't quite finished yet, though I think my favorite part is the visit from George Boole.  I just love the setup and build to the punchline.

That's all I've got for this week.  I hope 2016 treats everyone with care and respect, and that you all have a great year.  Have a great week and game on!

The Professional Gamer - November 23, 2015

I must report that I may have fallen off the the wagon this week.  You see, I started reading The Lord of the Rings again.  When I was middle school and high school, reading through LotR was an annual ritual for me.  As I moved onto college and, later, a career.  I found it harder to keep up with my regular habit.  I think the last time I actually read through the books was during graduate school.  I still really love Tolkien's prose, and the slow unfolding of the plot.

At other times, I read a few more pages of The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage.  As I've written before, this is a really fun comic, with a fun blend of slapstick humor and discussion of the historic context via footnotes.

That's all that I have going on this week.  I'll see you all again next week.  Game on!

The Professional Gamer - November 16, 2015

Hello again readers! I've had one of those weeks with a completely normal load at work, but way to many things to do outside of work hours.  I'm a bit limited on what I can talk about this week, but let's proceed anyway.

I discovered Seven Deadly Sins this week.  I find that I'm a bit ambivalent about the series.  It provides some fun action.  But, for reasons that I don't entirely understand, the male protagonists fits the lecherous trope that tends to be rather common in anime.  In spite of my ambivalence, I've already watched more than 13 episodes.  The world building is good, and the secondary characters are interesting.  Its available on Netflix streaming, which means you won't waste any "real" money if you give the series a chance.  I think it is worth at least that chance.

In postal news, I received my copy of Eat More Comics, which is a collection of comics the were published by The Nib over the past few years.  I haven't had a chance to read through much yet, but the book itself is beautiful.  If you missed the Kickstarter campaign, the book is for sale on TopatoCo. 

That's all I've got for this week.  Have a great week and game on!

The Professional Gamer - November 9, 2015

This has been an especially fun week for me, with two activities really dominating my geeky life this week.  For that reason, I'm going to change up my usual article format in order to focus more on those two activities. 

Mad Max: Fury Road: This movie came out earlier this year, and continuing in my long absence from the cinema (the only movies I've seen at a theater have been The Hobbit series).  This has to mark one occasion in which I am thoroughly ambivalent about missing a film in theater.  On one hand, the movie was a spectacle that could certainly be improved by a theater screen and sound system.  On the other hand, the whole thing could have become rather overwhelming very quickly.  Regardless, the movie was really great, with interesting character development among the protagonists.  I enjoy how, although they certainly share a common enemy, are not immediately ready to cooperate.  Also, the fact that there is a diverse cast really adds to the storytelling.  I especially loved the Vuvalini who make an appearance later in the movie.  The action is well paced, with periods of calm and narrative interspersed throughout.  If, like me, you haven't taken time for this movie yet, I recommend that you get to it soon.

Welcome to Night Vale Live: I also went to see a live version of Welcome to Night Vale.  The live performance included musical guest Eliza Rickman, who performed several songs prior to the main event, as well as performing as "The Weather".  Per request by the performers, I'm not going to reveal much about the plot of the episode.  I will only say that it involves murder most foul.  Keep an eye out to see if the WTNV crew is headed to your town, and pick up some tickets.  There was some great audience participation, and a whole lot of fun along the way.

The Welcome to Night Vale cast and musical guest Eliza Rickman.

That's all that I have for this week.  Have a great week and game on!