Tag Archives: Gaming is a Gift 2022

On the Tabletop

2022 Tabletop GOTY: Dungeons and Dragons

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Introduction

I missed a couple of days of updates. I planned on doing this one on Thursday and 2022 Console GOTY yesterday. If I’m being honest, which I often am, console GOTY would be only slightly less difficult than choosing PC GOTY was. I played about an hour of the Red Dead Redemption II prologue this morning. Great game. Also, released four years ago. Other older games we enjoyed this year; Mario Kart and Mario Party on the Switch. Liam and Quinn played a ton of the new Pokemon, so I could have them write a guest article about that one. Thankfully, 2022 Tabletop GOTY is much easier to pick.

An argument that the choice is virtually automatic has merit. But, we tried other games this year. Quinn and I played Roll Player Adventures a couple of times. Our family broke out several family trivia games during the year. I know those aren’t traditionally thought of in the same category as Dungeons and Dragons, but they are all tabletop games. So, let’s explore why the old lady gets our 2022 Tabletop GOTY.

Dungeons and Dragons with Quinn

We started the year with momentum on the D&D front. I wrote one adventure that Quinn and I played through. That gave me ideas for other adventures. I finally followed up by writing almost all of a second adventure that starts on a haunted ship and ends in a harpy cave. I wanted to play that adventure during this vacation, but most of our plans went for naught this vacation.

I stole this harpy lair from one of The Witcher games and added D&D flair. Some puzzles, some fighting, and a little bit of mystery.

Just looking at that map makes me want to finish the adventure the whole way through and play it with Quinn. In fact, I just searched for the Starter Set box with all of our characters in it. And, I found it! So, after I finish this article, time to finish that adventure. We still have a couple of months until February vacation, but maybe I can convince him to play one of these weekends. I think this one might take a couple of play sessions to complete.

Dungeons and Dragons at School

I started running the D&D club at the high school at my old job a couple of years ago. Mostly, I just sat there and planned or corrected as my faithful group of 4 to 6 gathered in spite of the threat of Covid to play their favorite characters. The group expanded to 8 regulars last year and even grew as much as 12 during a couple of the meetings.

This year, they talked me into taking the middle school club as well. Before I left the job, my reputation (and, more likely, Stranger Things) helped grow the club to two high school groups of about 6 to 8 and three to four middle school groups. One played consistently from week to week. The other groups moved, merged, and sometimes fought among themselves. Mostly, we enjoyed our time together. I even ran a group for several weeks. We finished most of the prologue for Curse of Strahd and then played through some of the Dungeon of the Mad Mage in my last session with the group.

The Verdict

I think I made a case for Dungeons and Dragons as our 2022 Tabletop GOTY. Looking ahead, there might be some competition for the old lady. I bought a Pathfinder starter set from Humble Bundle that has a solo adventure that might inspire me to play that more. I also bought some Warhammer 40k books and want to make some characters for that game. Finally, I somehow acquired a starter set for a Fallout RPG that might or might not be discontinued. So, look out for them in addition to D&D in 2023.

Digital Playground

2022 PC GOTY: Yeah, About That…

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Introduction

I’m not sure what I was thinking when I wrote 2022 PC GOTY in my calendar for this week. I knew that I’d be home the whole week and able to write every day. Definitely, I wanted to fill the week with posts. Surely, I had an idea for this when I put the plan together, right?

Right now, goodness only knows what that plan was. While I have a laptop and recently accessed my Steam account again, I played little to no games on the PC. I loaded up 1 Screen Platformer a month ago to write an article and keep the page active. But, to call it the game of the year is a stretch.

No Time to Game?

When I set up the two computers in the basement to work on my IT stuff, I played some Magic the Gathering Arena and Hearthstone. Mostly, this year, I messed around on CodeWars and W3Resource to practice my coding because I thought I might go back to school for computer science focusing on data analysis.

More recently, I wrote a few programs for Raspberry Pi Pico W.

That still may happen. However, I found a new job that so far I enjoy much more than my previous teaching job. So, I postponed my enrollment in the Master’s program until next year. I will revisit it again over the summer depending on how the rest of the school year goes. Right now, though, things look positive.

I suppose I could take the cheap way out and name Magic the Gathering Arena or Hearthstone as the 2022 PC GOTY. Actually, now that I say that, I think my plan was to give the award to Hearthstone. So, let’s go with that one.

Congratulations? Hearthstone

Now this just feels weird. I mean, technically, Hearthstone is available on the PC and I played it on the PC. I probably played it the most of any other PC game this year. But, I played it mostly on the phone and consider it a mobile game at this point. Okay. Let’s make this work.

So, what’s the big deal with Hearthstone this year? Well, they are getting almost as bad as Magic the Gathering with the expansion releases. I count three major set releases plus 2 mini set releases in the calendar year. For some reason, I don’t feel the same fatigue, though. I think it might be for a couple of reasons, actually.

First, Hearthstone has varied game modes. The one that I play the most is Battlegrounds, but I also messed around with Mercenaries some this year. I never play Arena, Tavern Brawl, or Duels anymore, but they still exist. Also, since Hearthstone is only digital, I just have to buy the set digitally, where in MTG I buy online and in real life. That’s exhausting.

The Verdict

So, while Hearthstone brings me the same amount of joy and, more accurately, stress and anger as Magic the Gathering, I follow in the footsteps of the previous article and give this infuriating game an award for 2022. What this tells me is that I need to play more games on my computer next year.

On the Tabletop

2022 Card GOTY: Magic the Gathering

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Introduction

We continue our annual celebration at the end of the year with the 2022 Card GOTY. I wrote an article about a week ago trashing the game. That’s right, I spent a good 700 odd words talking crap about a game that I am about to give an end of the year award. Granted, the game is in the title of the post, so this reveal is a bit anticlimactic. Nevertheless, congratulations to Magic the Gathering for the win.

You might make the argument that this proclamation is obvious or by default. And, you’d probably be right. After all, how many card games are there out there. Probably more than I’d expect and certainly more than I ever have time to play. Nevertheless, allow me to make an argument that Magic wins in spite of these technicalities.

Magic the Gathering Digital

In spite of trying to talk him into it, I haven’t been able to get Chris to commit to playing Arena on a regular basis. I, on the other hand, sink money into every release by buying both combo packs to collect all of the packs and goodies. One of those goodies is the ever present reward track. That inspires me to play on a daily basis until I finish a quest and/or get 2 wins to the 15 week limit.

While I sometimes skip Hearthstone and recently deleted Eternal from my phone, I always log into Arena to both finish the quests and see what daily deals they offer in the shop. This keeps me connected to a game that I admitted in that previous article to losing some interest in the collecting aspect, at least.

Magic the Gathering Physical

Okay, so you play the game on your phone regularly. Notice that you said nothing about enjoying the game other than the cosmetics and other stuff they give away. Fair enough. I admit to spending much of my time complaining about land drops or my opponent’s luck. Plus, it remains to be seen if I ever buy product for binders ever again. There are just so many releases lately. Fatigue is a real thing.

But, I still found joy in the game again this year. I sat down and played Magic the Gathering against actual people more this year than the last three or so years combined. A student asked me to play some Commander and we ended up matching up for a couple of games. Chris and Jason inspired me to put some money into my precon decks to make them slightly more competitive and we played three or four games at the beginning of autumn. We planned to play again, but Chris and his wife got Covid again. So, the second meeting remains up in the air right now.

The Verdict

Magic the Gathering remains the frustratingly expensive and predictably unpredictable game that I love to hate. I also love to love the game. Opening packs brings me indescribable joy at the art, story, and possibilities of how to use those cards in decks. I goldfish my Commander decks at least once a week. I played around with the landfall one again a couple of weeks ago at Aiden’s soccer practice. Simply writing this post makes me want to go out into the car and grab them. All those reasons and more are what make Magic the Gathering our 2022 Card GOTY.

Digital Playground

2022 Mobile GOTY: Marvel SNAP

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Introduction

We debuted Game of the Year articles two years ago. I only wrote Console/PC, Tabletop, and Mobile articles last year and the year before. This year, I plan to add two new categories; card and a separate articles for console and PC. To be honest, I played less on consoles and especially PC than any other format, but I know what to do when I get to those categories later in the week. Today, I celebrate our 2022 mobile GOTY: Marvel SNAP.

As often happens lately, Chris texted me about the game to say that he tried it. I saw advertisements for it, but heard little about the game. So, he got a chance to play it before me. He told me a little about the game and said he mostly enjoyed it. That’s when I downloaded and gave it a try.

Marvel SNAP Humble Beginnings

Chris explained the game as “War” with additional features. Okay, I thought, how does that work? Exactly as I should have known. You build a deck of 10 cards with Marvel heroes and there are three “locations” in the middle of the board that sometimes have special abilities like modifying your cards or moving them to other spots on the board.

See? War with additional features.

I still only played part of the tutorial. The game seemed a bit too basic for me. What can this game offer in the face of other card games like Magic the Gathering and Hearthstone? As usual, I looked at it the wrong way. It wasn’t until a couple of students in my first block class at Conant mentioned the game again that I gave it another chance. I started playing it again shortly after that. I earned some new cards, tried some of them in new decks, and the game finally worked its way into my regular rotation.

Missions, Rewards Track, and All That

After playing through the introduction rewards, I opened the actual rewards track. I searched for the price a couple of times before realizing that I needed to unlock it and then pay. $9.99 seemed a bit high, but mostly worth it for daily play, so I paid the amount and regularly check the game to see if my missions refreshed (it happens about every 8 hours instead of daily, which is nice) in between other games.

The game still seems basic and almost too easy. I don’t have any actual statistical analysis, but it feels like I win 9 out of 10 matches. Until today, I couldn’t remember the last time I actually lost a match. I mean, as I play, I see strategy and misplays by my opponents, so maybe it is just in that weird space where everyone is learning the game and how to play. Maybe my opponents just don’t care all that much about winning. Honestly, the game offers little in the way of incentive to win. Most of the rewards simply come from playing the game.

The Verdict

In spite of that minor drawback, I enjoy the game and look forward to seeing the new upgrades to cards that I unlock periodically. Several of the cards made me say, “Oh wow!” But, we saw with the most recent Hearthstone set that isn’t always an indication that cards are memorable.

Is SNAP my favorite mobile game? No. Did I play it the most often during 2022? Not even close. I only started actually playing a month ago. Plus, seeing as how my play sessions are only about 5-10 minutes each, I don’t even anticipate playing it the most next year. Still, I like the game and have no problem naming it our 2022 Mobile GOTY. If you want to learn more about the game and give it a try, click the link.

Digital Playground

Hades is a Gift

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Introduction

Merry Christmas!

Welcome and Merry Christmas! Last year, my son bought me Hades for the Nintendo Switch on the recommendation of Chris. Therefore, truly Hades is a gift. I played the game some during the week of break. After that, I needed to concentrate on not losing my job, so I had little time for such frivolity. Then, I misplaced the game. Finally, I completely forgot about it until I realized break neared again.

I bought the game digitally in anticipation. Then, while putting my clothes away, I found the cartridge. So, if anyone wants a digital copy of Hades, I might be able to gift it to you. Send me an email and I’ll see what I can do.

What is Hades?

I never reviewed the game last year. I thought I did, but maybe I just included it in one of my Game of the Year articles at the end of the year. Hades follows your character, the son of Hades, through the land of the gods as he hacks and slashes his way to more power.

It resembles Diablo in game play. That alone gave me reason to try. I enjoyed all of the Diablo clones I played. Torchlight II became my favorite game for several months about 5 or 6 years ago. It was the subject of the lost episode 2 of the original run of the podcast.

Why is Hades a Gift?

Hades sweetens the deal with unique gameplay that follows the lore of the pantheon. One of the ways that you advance in the game is by dying. You come back and increase your abilities before plunging again into the dungeon of the Underworld. I like that wrinkle to the game. It takes a frustrating part of other games (dying and having to start over) and removes that frustration. Further, it almost makes dying an incentive. You die to take a breather from the dungeon crawling.

The game also has a unique, cartoon graphics engine that works seamlessly with the cut scenes to build a living, breathing world. The characters add to that with their own personalities based also on the lore of the gods if available. Some characters are specific to the game, but they still made me laugh more than once with their antics.

The Verdict

I played Hades again some last week. I managed to pull the Switch away from Quinn and Liam (they’ve been playing the new Pokemon game) to get a couple of games in. I still enjoyed playing even though it took me some time to get used to the controls again. In between games of Mario Party, Mario Kart, and them playing Pokemon, I hope to play more during this break. I also bought new controllers for the XBox, so I’m sure Quinn, Aiden, and I will get some Minecraft in, too. Be prepared for reports on all of it.

On the Tabletop

Magic the Gathering is a Gift?

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Introduction

Recently, I started a new job. That gave me more time to focus on things that are important to me. I discovered, again, that keeping this web page on life support is one of those things. And, so, I updated the page semi-regularly in October and November. I even came up with new theme banners for the page. Then, December arrived and things got chaotic again. I actually started the job. That required more time put into the previous job. Add in Christmas shopping and soccer and things went a bit sideways on the page. But, I started break at 10:30am today and prepare to plan the page for the next few months at least. I already know that next week brings our annual games of the year. Today, I ask the question of whether Magic the Gathering is a gift.

Gaming is a Gift

I got the idea for theme months several years ago when Chris and I still held a glimmer of hope of making the page a hub for a collection of podcasts. We, obviously, gave up that ghost a while ago. But, I continue to write here. Simply because I enjoy writing and, who knows, something might eventually make its way out there into the ether and get me more readers. To cut to the chase, the obvious theme for December is “Gaming is a Gift.”

Magic the Gathering is a Gift?

So, why the question mark? Surely, you think good things about this game you invested so much time, energy, and money into over the years. Of course I still enjoy the game. I play Magic the Gathering daily to finish quests and push my completion of the rewards track. Chris, Jason, and I share Magic the Gathering news and memes at least once a week.

Speaking of them, we actually gathered together to play Commander against one another for two games. I spent about 50 bucks and a couple of weeks of research to upgrade my preconstructed decks that I bought a couple of years ago. They didn’t help me win, but I put up more of a fight that I ever have against either of them. So, I consider it a success.

So, Magic the Gathering is a Gift!

Well, not quite that, either. For the first time in at least a decade, I texted Chris the following. “The collector in me just died a little bit, but I think I’m done buying product for binders.” He said something along the lines of how he just buys singles now, something that I already knew. I agreed and even admitted that I might get into whatever crazy formats that Jason wanted to play and invest my collecting money into that.

It seems like every other month, Jason discusses some new format. Old School, 93-94, Triple Lindy. Okay, I stole that last one from the Rodney Dangerfield movie, “Old School”. But, I wouldn’t be surprised if it actually was the name of a format. I usually just roll my eyes when he mentions something because I’m not one for the competitive aspect of these games. I just want to play and have fun with friends. So, why the possible change of heart?

Another thing Chris said when I texted him, “The set releases are just so ridiculous right now.” “Right?” I responded. “By the time Phyrexia comes out, I will be three sets behind and I just don’t care that much to get caught up right now.”

The Verdict

As it stands right now, I have no plans to buy product for Dominaria United, Brother’s War, or the new New Phyrexia. I’m sure that by the time the set actually releases, I’ll find it in my heart and wallet to purchase the product and put together the binders. Especially since the last time that we tried to get together, Chris and his wife got Covid and we had to cancel/postpone. Let me know if you still collect or plan to start again with any of the new sets.

Snap *censored* Pop Culture

December 2022 Hearthstone Battlegrounds Update

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Introduction

As you all know because you read my most recent articles, Hearthstone released a new card set. Blizzard brought us back to Northrend and one of the greatest fantasy story lines ever. The fall of Arthas still haunts my dreams. You all know what a sucker I am for story in video games. I assumed, perhaps wrongly, that this set came with an update to Battlegrounds, too. And, so, I planned to write a December 2022 Hearthstone Battlegrounds update.

Best laid plans, as they say. Spoiler Alert: No major new update to Battlegrounds ever came as a result of March of the Lich King. No new minion types or minions. No new quests. And, no update to the rewards track. I, and I assume most other players since I’m nowhere close to the top time played in this game, finished the track about a month ago. Now, I mainly play to finish the main weekly quest and advance that rewards track.

So, Nothing Then?

Not nothing, no. While I thought that the introduction of the “Undead” keyword into Hearthstone meant big things for the world of Battlegrounds, for now Blizzard kept them out of the game mode. I trust the developers and programmers, so I know they will eventually add them into Battlegrounds, but it’s curious that they didn’t as part of the new set release celebration.

What, then? A new undead hero to serve as a foil for The Lich King? Well, yes and no. Or, rather no and yes. They gave us a new hero. I played him the other day. He’s pretty fun. Technically, he isn’t alive, so you could argue that he fits the theme. Okay, I pulled a muscle stretching that metaphor. Okay, with little further ado, our new hero! *drum roll*

Yes, it’s true. Our intrepid new hero is Enhanc-o-Mechano. *cymbals crashing awkwardly* *a lone cough in the back of the room*

Yeah, a bit of a let down. But, along with this new hero comes a new quest reward. I admit to being underwhelmed by most quest rewards. I had a lot of fun with the one that gives your minions plus seven on stats, but they die after attacking. That took me to a first place finish a couple of weeks ago. Giving a hydra plus twelve stats in your hand every turn is fun, too, and figuring out when to finally play it adds some strategry. But, I think this one might be my favorite.

You can roll the usual bonuses; divine shield, windfury, and reborn are the most fun in that order. There’s also one that gives taunt, which pairs well with Leeroy and poisonous minions. Man, just talking about it makes me want to load up and play Battlegrounds even though I already finished my quest for the week.

The Verdict

Yeah, the December 2022 Hearthstone Battlegrounds update underwhelms for sure. I expected much more. Really, I just wanted them to add undead type to the game mode. That, alone, makes me sad. I hope you’re listening, Blizzard.

Digital Playground

Shaman, Warlock, and Warrior Lich King Cards I Love

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Introduction

Later than expected, but we arrive at the end of our March of the Lich King preview with Shaman, Warlock, and Warrior Lich King cards. As I mentioned more than once in previous articles, my reaction to opening packs from my bundle inspired me to write these articles. Then, as often happens, I found myself much less enamored with the cards when declaring my love for them.

Nevertheless, the articles kept me writing through the last couple of weeks when some of my other activities fell off. I have not worked out more than twice a week over the last month. I thought I might be able to work out more now that I switched jobs, but I still choose other things over working out right now. Oh well, a conversation for another time.

Shaman Lich King Honorable Mention

I’m sure one of the jank streamers out there figured out a way to work this into an OTK combo. When I first saw the Scourge Troll card, I gave it no second thought. Then, I looked at the Shaman gallery and saw they pushed Deathrattle Shaman a bit in this set. Then I saw these two cards and my brain went where all Hearthstone players brains go when they see something like this. How can I abuse this beyond recognition and annoy the entire community?

Shaman Lich King Card I Love

This is either the best board clear ever, a dead card that sits in your hand for the rest of the game, or most likely both at the same time. After all, Hearthstone cards often toe that line between functional and trash. Having played against this one a couple of times, I can confirm that this one at least works as a frustrating as hell board clear. Surely, when I put it in a deck, it fulfills the trash destiny.

Warlock Lich King Honorable Mention

I like the looks of this combo. Sure, it makes little to no sense to actually run it and looks rather medium. However, think of the possibilities! An entire board full of Walking Dead for free! Free! FREE! Muhahahahah!

Warlock Lich King Card I Love

Three mana to draw two? But, but, you fix your hand. Plus, more potential for walking dead en masse. I’m telling you, sooner or later, I’m getting that board state and posting it on our dead Instagram.

Warrior Lich King Honorable Mention

I tried playing World of Warcraft again a couple of years ago during a particularly long break. I signed up for three months of game time, played a couple of hours, stopped, and never signed in again after that. So, there might be some precedent in the game for Warriors and “fire” spells. As it stand, it surprised me to see such a mechanic in Hearthstone.

Warrior Lich King Card I Love

This thing sucks. It won’t see play in any deck in the top 95% of play. I guarantee that. Of course, now that I said that, some random Twitch streamer got his wings and figured out a way to break this in such a way that everyone will play it. You’re welcome.

The Verdict

For whatever reason, the Shaman, Warlock, and Warrior Lich King cards best capture my thoughts of what Hearthstone cards should be. Silly, fun, sometimes good, and occasionally game breaking. I enjoyed each and every one of these cards and I’m not joking. Be on the look out for Walking Dead Warlock on the ladder.

Disclaimer: All images taken from this page.

Digital Playground

Paladin, Priest, and Rogue Lich King Cards I Love

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Introduction

This article brings me to three for three in writing my review articles for March of the Lich King, the new expansion for Hearthstone. I already reviewed neutral (with two special bonuses!) cards and Druid, Hunter, and Mage in my previous articles. As the title so eloquently states, this one covers Paladin, Priest, and Rogue Lich King cards. (Editor’s Note: While three for three in writing them, I botched the release and pushed these two articles back into this week. I have a new plan to get to the end of the year, though.)

These articles came to me because as I opened my packs from the bundle I bought, I kept saying, “Wow!” “Cool!” and “Neat!” However, as I wrote in my previous article and reiterate here, the initial high seemed to have worn out or I read cards wrong. Because, as I look through the card listing, I find myself saying any of those words much less and struggling to find cards that I actually love.

Paladin Lich King Honorable Mention

The one thing I noticed while looking through the Paladin cards is that they are leaning into self damage as a mechanic. While not new to the game, it is new to the Paladin class. Usually, Warlocks (and sometimes Priests) have this mechanic on their cards. As a potential healing class, it makes sense in the priest context. This could also be fun if they ever end up doing another multi-class focused set like they did in Gadgetzan.

Paladin Lich King Card I Love

Not a great card. Heck you might even argue that it isn’t a good card. But, that’s not why we are here. We pick fun cards and I see this card being a ton of fun. Also, not for nothing, but it can serve some utility functions in the right deck. Phase your own minions against inevitable board clears or phase others to give yourself time to dig for your own.

Priest Lich King Honorable Mention

These cards look like they work well together in my least favorite priest archetype. I despise playing against thief priest. I know it stinks of logical fallacy, but I always feel like they steal the best cards from my deck/class/etc at the best time to counter what I try to do.

Priest Lich King Card I Love

I know what this looks like. But, I promise I’m not just picking Legendary cards for the cards I love. Yes, legendary cards often have powerful effects and lend themselves to being the “best” cards. However, I don’t always go for the “best”. You know that about me by now. I like this card because of the permanent card that you get. When Hearthstone first came out, Chris and I wondered how a digital card game might distance itself from it’s paper counterparts. Cards like this. That’s how.

Rogue Lich King Honorable Mention

I saw the word concoction and wondered why we needed something else when we already had poisons. I should have known that Blizzard’s development team knew what they were doing. Concoctions are like the old Kazakus spells in that they can be combined to do things. See all of the concoctions and combinations here.

Rogue Lich King Card I Love

See? Not a legendary. Hell, this one is even a common. And, no I didn’t simply choose a common to contradict the assumption that I chose only legendary cards for the cards I love. I genuinely think this card is cool. To my knowledge, it is the first Hearthstone card with two different minion types. Does this show the future of the game? Provide for a more diverse and deeper Battlegrounds experience? The possibilities are endless.

The Verdict

I left the previous article underwhelmed by the choices in my cards. I genuinely enjoy all of these cards and plan to play many of them over the next few weeks to see if they wow me as much as I hope they will. Paladin, Priest, and Rogue Lich King cards are truly some cards I love. See you in a couple of days for the rest of the set.

Disclaimer: All images taken from this page.