Fruit
Tonight on GeekNights, we consider fruit (except apples). In the news, someone figured out how to dispose of old TVs for free, China's bot game is mad weak, Youtube's takedown policies have changed for short musical clips, and Scott has some chair woes. Also, Grapefruit.
Mario Maker 2
Tonight on GeekNights, we consider Mario Maker 2 on the Nintendo Switch. In the news, Loot Crate is bankrupt, Dire Wolf Digital is bringing, among other things, Root to digital, System Shock 2's patch history is fascinating, and it's getting an "Enhanced Edition."
See us live at PAX West 2019 and check out the GeekNights Patreon!
Urusei Yatsura (manga)
Tonight on GeekNights, we review the recently re-released Urusei Yatsura manga by Rumiko Takahashi. It's a fine read if you never got ahold of it the first time around. In the news, after some night market adventures and a search for yuzu paste, Aggretsuko is getting a third season, Megumi Hayashibara Joins the cast of Carole & Tuesday, Disney enters the fray (for now) at $12.99, Bananya gets a second season, and She-Ra is really coming into its own with its third season.
Don't miss Rym and Emily talking about Disney theatrical animation!
USB-C
Tonight on GeekNights, we consider the cable to rule them all: USB-C. Note that this is not the same as USB 3 (or even 3.1). In the news, Cloudflare de-platforms the hateful and vile 8chan, followed quickly by Voxility de-platforming the equally vile Epik and Bitmitigate, Amazon continues to support white supremacist hate sites, Apple iPhone rumors are probably close to the truth, and there might be an almost usable Android smartwatch.
Live at PAX West 2019
GeekNights will be presenting live at PAX West 2019! Come say hi!
The 40 Tabletop Games You Must PlayFriday, August 30th at 12:30pmHippogryph Theatre
These may not be the top 40 board games ever designed, nor is it the top 40 influential or otherwise important games. If you aspire to really understand tabletop, or if you have visions of designing your own games, these are the 40 games that, if you play them, will give you the widest possible perspective on what it means to make a good game (and what "good" even means). Join the GeekNights crew for an exploration of the boundaries of tabletop gaming. There are some gems in there.
The 40 Games You Must Play
Saturday, August 31st at 11:00am
Hippogryph Theatre
These may not be the top 40 games ever designed, nor are they the top 40 influential or otherwise important games. If you aspire to really understand games, or if you have visions of designing your own, these are 40 games that, if you play them, will give you the widest possible perspective on what it means to make a good game (and what "good" even means).
The Real Harm of Games
PAX East 2019
In the 80s, we were told Dungeons & Dragons would make us all satanists. In the 90s, first person shooters and Mortal Kombat were supposed to make us all murderers. Games have joined the long and storied history of books, music, movies, and television being primed to destroy us all. Thankfully, most of the fears around how games might harm us have proven false, misleading, or downright ridiculous. So what’s left? Lootboxes? What is the REAL harm of games? And what can we do about it?
Book Club - The Tale of Genji
What better selection for the book club than the first novel of all time? And of course, we have to read the best possible unabridged translation. No baby mode here at GeekNights
The plot revolves around Genji, who is the son of the Emperor and a low ranking concubine. Genji is removed from the line of succession, and proceeds to go on an epic journey. The journey involves tons of romance and court drama. Spicy!
Despite being older than any other novel, The Tale of Genji has a tremendous amount of relevance to the geeks of the 21st century. The influence of Japan on nerds around the world is undeniable, and a surprising amount of things we see in pop culture are present here in a book from the 11th century. I'm quite confident after reading it how we will notice how many newer stories have been making references to this tale without us realizing it.
Also, I feel the need to point out that this first novel ever written was written by a woman. For all these reasons and so many more, this is more than worthy of book club selection.
