It seems like every game has a DLC these days, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe included. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great way to extend the playable experience of a family favorite. Bigger maps, more characters, extra features. It all comes down to value for money. Does the DLC really add anything to the game? […]
Continue Reading
Strap yourself. This is going to be a ride. Thor has returned to the big screen with the latest MCU offering to the geek gods, Thor: Love and Thunder. Chris Hemsworth and Taika Waititi are back with as much flair and flashy lights and mad-house music as ever. Think along the lines of a 1980s […]
Continue Reading
In this month’s Between the Bookends, Sophie and Scott look at five books they read in June including contemporary middle grade, fantasy YA, and a non-fiction look at the history of women in video games. Please note: This post contains affiliate links. Author/illustrator images are credited to themselves. If You Read This Cover Image, Delacorte […]
Continue Reading
Thursday evening the Paley Center for Media in New York City held a screening of Ms. Marvel‘s first episode followed by a Q&A with cast members Iman Vellani (Kamala Khan) and Zenobia Shroff (Muneeba Khan), Executive Producer Sana Amanat, and Director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy. The audience was packed with fans, many in costume, and the atmosphere […]
Continue Reading
After a long COVID delay, Stranger Things has finally returned. As one of my favorite shows of all time, I was highly anticipating the newest chapter in the upside-down misfortunes of Hawkins, Indiana. Here are some of what I found to be key highlights from my several day binge sessions. WARNING: The remainder of this article […]
Continue Reading
If you were to walk into our house before 6 am, you would find three sleepy kids sitting on the couch trying desperately to wake up before mum yells out “Breakfast!” On any given day, you would also find them watching Big City Greens on Disney+. Big City Greens is the cartoon masterpiece of brothers […]
Continue Reading
What Is LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga is the latest in a long line of LEGO video games, this time covering all nine of the Star Wars movies that make up the Skywalker Saga: Episodes I through IX. Although Episodes I through VII have been released previously, this […]
Continue Reading
Trivia games have been pretty popular (at least in some circles) since Trivial Pursuit came out in the 1980s. Though many of their versions cover general knowledge, some are more focused, including their Baby Boomer, 1960s, and 1980s versions. Having been born in 1973, I really enjoy ’80s trivia, since it’s the one decade that […]
Continue Reading
Though I got bored with them pretty quickly as a kid (apologies to my sister), I’ve realized as an adult that I actually enjoy putting together jigsaw puzzles. They’re a good meditative, unwinding activity that I enjoy sharing with family members. I do enjoy doing puzzles I’ve put together before, but it’s even more fun […]
Continue Reading
Gullet Cove is not our first time playing Animal Adventures, and I feel confident in saying it won’t be our last, but it’s probably been our most exciting set of adventures so far. I have two kids A (age 11) and W (age 8) who helped me first test out Animal Adventures from Steamforged Games. […]
Continue Reading
My kids have been into Minecraft for a long time, their obsession dating almost back to the stone age, ahem. We have playsets and LEGO kits, we have stuffies and action figures. We have interactive toys, and wall art. When Ravensburger came out with Minecraft: Builders and Biomes in 2019, I knew it would be a hit. […]
Continue Reading
The sixth and final season of Peaky Blinders is here, and fans of the Shelby family and its allies are bracing themselves for what looks to be an explosive final chapter. One of the things I absolutely loved about this fictional story inspired by the real turn-of-the-century Birmingham gang of the same name is the […]
Continue Reading
Back in November, I got the chance to review one of the first three puzzles from Ravensburger’s new Escape Puzzle Kids line. For anyone not familiar, these puzzles are one part standard puzzle and one part escape room with a scenario and a series of clues hidden in the completed puzzle. Recently, Ravensburger sent me […]
Continue Reading
My two sons A (age 11) and W (age 8) have recently joined the world of tabletop gamers. The thing that really kicked off their inner tabletop gamers was the Animal Adventures line from Steamforged Games. We used the Animal Adventures RPG Starter Set to let them get a feel for things (I wrote about […]
Continue Reading
Voyager has always been my favorite Star Trek series, and as I write this I’m partway through an (admittedly very slow) rewatch, so when I spotted The Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway edited by Una McCormack in my Audible recommendations, I knew it was a must-read. Even more exciting, the audiobook is narrated by Kate Mulgrew […]
Continue Reading
When I was a kid, my dad and I would retreat to the living room, snuggle up on the couch, and watch The Simpsons together. Most of the humor went over my head, but what I loved I loved. To be honest, I think my dad got as much out of watching me not get […]
Continue Reading
When I was a kid, my dad and I would retreat to the living room, snuggle up on the couch, and watch The Simpsons together. Most of the humor went over my head, but what I loved I loved. To be honest, I think my dad got as much out of watching me not get […]
Continue Reading
I love a game with tactile elements. Something you can touch, feel, and blame on your uncoordinated chonky fingers when everything goes pear-shaped. Floating Floors is precisely that, and more. It was first previewed with PAX Aust 2021 (I mentioned it here) and is now ready to launch via Kickstarter on February 8, 2022! Time […]
Continue Reading
Last year my kids discovered the wonders of Disney’s Alice in Wonderland thanks to Mad Tea Party from Funko games. It was only recently we realized that they hadn’t actually seen the movie. Watching it with them was surprisingly joyful: they were taken aback by the absurdity, taken in by the episodic nature of the […]
Continue Reading
Last year my kids discovered the wonders of Disney’s Alice in Wonderland thanks to Mad Tea Party from Funko games. It was only recently we realized that they hadn’t actually seen the movie. Watching it with them was surprisingly joyful: they were taken aback by the absurdity, taken in by the episodic nature of the […]
Continue Reading
About a week ago, a series of promotional stills for the second season of Netflix’s Bridgerton dropped, and if it is possible to squeal in “Dearest Reader,” then that’s effectively what I did. Also, if you read that in Julie Andrew’s voice, we just might be able to be friends. Regency romances are one of […]
Continue Reading
Many of us have gained new hobbies while we’ve been at home in the past two years. (Yes, it really has been that long.) One of mine has been dipping my toes in the world of being a GM and not just a player. My kids have started picking up being tabletop role-playing gamers. These […]
Continue Reading
In plenty of time for Women’s History Month in March, Ridley’s Games has come out with a couple of products that highlight notable and inspiring women from the past couple of hundred years. We can learn about them and be reminded of their accomplishments and struggles as we put together a 1000-piece circular puzzle or […]
Continue Reading
Many of us have gained new hobbies while we’ve been at home in the past two years. (Yes, it really has been that long.) One of mine has been dipping my toes in the world of being a GM and not just a player. My kids have started picking up being tabletop role-playing gamers. These […]
Continue Reading
One of the most common questions I am asked about Role Playing Games (RPG) is: How do I start? Followed closely by: How do I introduce it to my kids? In all honesty, it all comes down to storytelling. Bonus points for cute characters and visual cues but the real appeal comes from a game […]
Continue Reading
One of the most common questions I am asked about Role Playing Games (RPG) is: How do I start? Followed closely by: How do I introduce it to my kids? In all honesty, it all comes down to storytelling. Bonus points for cute characters and visual cues but the real appeal comes from a game […]
Continue Reading
I have lately been obsessed with K-dramas, bingeing series after Netflix series as this pandemic continues. While I began this journey into the unfamiliar (I’ve never been to Korea and don’t know the language) as an escape from reality, I was surprised to realize that the series Her Private Life helped me uncover a truth about […]
Continue Reading
The (brief) entirety of The Golden Palace has dropped on Hulu, and I am more than here for it. If you weren’t dedicated to The Golden Girls in the 80s, here’s what you missed when it ended: Dorothy (Bea Arthur) got married and moved away, and the remaining three girls bought and moved into a […]
Continue Reading
The (brief) entirety of The Golden Palace has dropped on Hulu, and I am more than here for it. If you weren’t dedicated to The Golden Girls in the 80s, here’s what you missed when it ended: Dorothy (Bea Arthur) got married and moved away, and the remaining three girls bought and moved into a […]
Continue Reading
My son and I continued our trek through the MCU this summer and into the fall, with phases three and four. We still have yet to see SpiderMan: Far From Home but feel adequately complete having watched through Avengers: End Game. It was rough going through these last movies. The themes get heavier and more […]
Continue Reading