Game designer Jane McGonigal (of World Without Oil and Superstruct) explains how online gaming will change the world at TED2010. She describes four skills that we develop by playing games: Urgent Optimism: Gamers believe that success is possible and we can and should act immediately. Social Fabric: Gamers build strong social connections because playing games…
Read moreMy last post was targeted at a pretty narrow crowd… here’s one about games that more of you will enjoy. It’s always nice to know a few games that require little or no preparation and easily acquirable parts. Unfortunately, for most of us the first games that come to mind are childhood diversions that we’re…
Read moreI haven’t ever played in a tabletop RPG, much less GM’d, DM’d or refereed one. I’ve got the itch to try it out, though, so I’ve been compiling articles and tools about learning how to GM. Here’s a list of what I’ve found. Much of the material written on this topic is specifically about Dungeons…
Read moreI finally sat down and finished Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus (2002) yesterday. It was fun, but I would have enjoyed it more when I was younger and had more time for simple diversions like this. Quick summary: You play a raccoon cat-burglar in a cartoon animal world, recovering your family heirlooms from evil…
Read moreOne of my favorite games of all time is Chris Sawyer’s RollerCoaster Tycoon. I love carefully crafting a park layout, building coasters that work with the landscape and are fun to watch, and sitting back as thousands of digital denizens enjoy my creations (and hand over thousands of digital dollars). Piles of new games come…
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