GeekNights Tuesdays: Gaming

Games we played at PAX East 2026

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 02:51:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we talk about the games we played at PAX East 2026, including Spokes, Magical Athlete, The Third Man, Take Time, Tezuma Trick, Big Wave, QE, Catch the Moon, Robokraft, False Kingdom, Juggernaut, Peanuts Talent Show, and John Company 2.0. In the news, there's a Halloween game (not that one, and there's another Mario movie.

Puzzles in Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 11 Mar 2026 02:56:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider puzzles in games. In the news, New York is suing Valve over illegal gambling, Valve's new hardware release timeline is heavily impacted by the RAM crisis but might still come in 2026, Blades 68 is launching (Rym was in the playtest), and Nintendo is suing the United States over our president's illegal tariffs.

Paris Connection

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 04:24:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Paris Connection, also known as SNCF: France & Germany. It's no 1817, but it's a distilled real train game that's worth playing. In the news, Overwatch 1 is back and Diablo 2 is back.

9 Kings (early access)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 04 Feb 2026 03:10:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review the early access version of 9 Kings. It's got some good things going on. In the news, the Switch is now the highest selling Nintendo console and the Switch 2 is the fastest selling Nintendo console. Swords Without Master is launching more broadly, and Scott is considering running a game. Also Congress has a chance to dismantle ICE: Call your senators.

Big Shot (2001)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 21 Jan 2026 03:29:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Big Shot (2001). If you want some vicious auctions this is the game for you. In the news, the United States is in extreme crisis threatening to invade Greenland, invade Minnesota, terrorize the city of Minneapolis, and end the global world order as we know it. Also Mothership has good videogame journalism. Call your reps to tell them to defund ICE.

Magic: The Gathering (1993)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 24 Dec 2025 03:56:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review a card game called Magic: The Gathering. It's 32 years old, so you may not have heard of it. In the news, gamers don't like generative AI and The Game Awards happened. Rym posted his [video editing process](https://community.frontrowcrew.com/t/the-geeknights-lecture-video-process/3683 for producing GeekNights panel and lecture videos. We will be live at Super MAGFest 2026!

Initial Thoughts on Dispatch and Metroid Prime 4

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 04:06:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we share our early thoughts on Dispatch and Metroid Prime 4: Beyond. In the news, Frankfurt's Christmas market is lit, and the Netflix x Warner Brothers Discovery situation is even more dangerous than the baseline danger of capitalist consolidation of media.

23 Knives

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 26 Nov 2025 03:08:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights we review the historical and topical 23 Knives (2025). It's worth playing, and Rym is probably going to buy it. In the news, PAX Unplugged 2025 was smooth as butter, Doodle Puzzle is a good idea that's hard to make work, Gingham is more vicious than it appears, and Scott surprisingly is enjoying Octopath Traveler.

Messing Up the Rules

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 29 Oct 2025 03:19:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we talk about when one messes up the rules in games. In the news, EA is being aquired by Trump-linked private equity, and VRChat has recaptured some of the magic of the Old Internet.

The Gang

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 17 Sep 2025 02:33:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review The Gang, a fantastic cooperative tabletop game about pulling bank heists by ranking poker hands. In the news, there's lots to say about the Nintendo Direct, Borderlands 4 has angered gamers with its poor performance and Gearbox isn't handling it super well. 'Pitchford told people to “code your own engine and show us how it’s done, please,” and declared Borderlands 4 “a premium game made for premium gamers” whatever that means.

Donkey Kong Bananza

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 20 Aug 2025 02:40:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we share our thoughts on Donkey Kong Bananza. In the news, Gamescom happened, PAX West badges aren't sold out, and you should see The Relationship Between Game Design and Art Direction with Naoki Yoshida and Hiroshi Minagawa.

Tower Defense Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 23 Jul 2025 00:41:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider Tower Defense games like the famous Desktop Tower Defense (2007). In the news, Ozzy Osbourne made it to 76, the PS5 Store is full of AI slop, Steam is caught up in the war on "pornography", and Deltarune is fantastic.

Rym's solo version of Every Game is the Same Game from Zenkaikon is live!

Auction and Bidding Mechanics

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 09 Jul 2025 00:36:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider auction and bidding mechanics in games. In the news, DriveThruRPG chose cowardice, and Microsoft lays of 9,000 people. GeekNights will be live at PAX West with an all new lecture on the same topic as this show! Our talk The Everlasting Game from PAX East is on youtube!

Nintendo Switch 2: Day One

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 11 Jun 2025 01:51:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider day one of having a Nintendo Switch 2. In the news, Fortnite on the Switch 2 will support objectively superior FPS controls, REMATCH might do what Scott has always wanted, the Blades '68 playtest is done and you will soon be able to play Blades '68! The Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is actually worth buying, and Mario Kart World is fun but the tracks are too wide.

Flip 7, Krakel Orakel, and Context

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 28 May 2025 00:09:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review two Spiel des Jahres 2025 nominees — Flip 7 and Krakel Orakel — plus Context, a game that's harder the smarter you are. In the news, Rym has been diving deep into VRchat's true value, Shadow Labyrinth's mazes are revealed, Capcom Fighting Collection 2 dropped roll cancels from Capcom vs SNK 2, and Apple bought the creators of Sneaky Sasquatch.

Quacks (of Quedlinburg)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 14 May 2025 00:24:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Quacks, previously released as The Quacks of Quedlinburg in 2018. It's a push your luck game that is fun, but just short of greatness. (That's rare praise from GeekNights). In the news, Greater Than Games is forced to reduce staff in light America's ridiculous tariff war, and tabletop companies are suing our president over America's ridiculous tariff war.

Getting a New Game Console

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Tue, 29 Apr 2025 23:01:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider the acquisition of new gaming consoles. In the news, Overwatch competitive mode adds hero bans, the fourth of the old scrolls are remastered, and Scott has Hemorrhoids. The GeekNights content you crave.

Heat: Pedal to the Metal (2022)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 02 Apr 2025 01:20:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Heat: Pedal to the Metal (2022). It's a car racing game with well-tuned push-your-luck mechanics that is definitely worth a play. It's even better over multiple races. In the news, Cory Booker heroically and historically holds the Senate floor for over 24 hours in a powerful rebuke of Donald Trump's fascism (beating Strom Thurmond's vile "record"). Also torpedo bats are a deeply baseball thing to happen, Nintendo Direct number 1 brings virtual game cards and a bunch of games, and Nintendo Direct 2 will announce the Switch 2.

Power Grid: Outpost

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 19 Mar 2025 01:22:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Friedemann Friese's sequel to Power Grid titled Power Grid: Outpost. We highly recommend reading the second page of the rulebook closely. In the news, Pokémon Go (and all your location data) were sold to Scopely, there's something to this nemesis system, and this is the most important thing you can pay attention to in America's ongoing crisis.

Shogun (1986)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 19 Feb 2025 02:36:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights we review Shogun, released as part of the Milton Bradley Gamemaster series that we reviewed back in 2006. Renamed to Samurai Swords and then to Ikusa, we revisited it with pro tabletop players this past weekend. We're a lot wiser about game mechanics and game design here in 2025, and this game holds up surprisingly well except for a few notable flaws.

We're also trying an experiment. Rym is writing new rules in an attempt to refurbish this old game. Comments appreciated!

In the news, the Four Nations Face-Off has been lit, the Nintendo Switch 2 is coming, Nintendo is dropping their coupon pricing, we're playing the newly released Civilization VII to prepare a grand review, Magic: The Gathering announces Final Fantasy commander decks, and NetEase fired the people who made the hit game Marvel Rivals..

Moorland (2023)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 08 Jan 2025 00:32:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights we review Moorland (2023). We played it twice at PAX Unplugged and it's a solid game with two novel mechanics. In the news, New York's congestion relief pricing is already fantastic, Valve makes insane money per employee, and two Gundam tabletop games are coming.

PAX Unplugged 2024

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 11 Dec 2024 00:40:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider PAX Unplugged 2024. It was a top tier PAX. In the news, the Rangers aren't doing well, Marvel Overwatch is exactly what it looks like, and Fortnite has to pay back the kids it ripped off.

Obelus (2024)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Tue, 26 Nov 2024 23:55:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Obelus. A re-implementation of Dark Spires designed by Chris A. Williams, it's a quick abstract two-player game that's worth having in your bag. In the news, The Magic Commander Format, recently embroiled in capitalist drama, is getting a digital version, and the itch.io Creator Day sale is this Friday!

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Tue, 15 Oct 2024 23:17:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom. It's a Zelda game and you probably should play it. In the news, the big Nintendo leak isn't that exciting and Reiner Knizia’s SHOCKING Confession.

Friends vs Friends

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 00:43:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Friends vs Friends. It's a fantastic quick arena-duel FPS with cards. It evokes the feeling of playing weird mods against your friends online in 1998. In the news, PAX Unplugged is December 6-8, the keynote speaker is Elizabeth Hargrave (of Wingspan fame), "hard mode" is a great way to frame handicapping in games, Microsoft lays off even more people, and Sony's Concord failed in legendary catastrophic fashion.

Slay the Princess

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Tue, 20 Aug 2024 20:30:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, Rym and Emily review Slay the Princess. It's a graphic novel philosophical horror game in a sense. It'll give you a lot to chew on and it's definitely worth playing! From Black Tabby Games, you may recognize Abby Howard from Penny Arcade's Strip Search!

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 07 Aug 2024 00:22:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Four Swords, which was released in 2002 on the GBA as The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Four Swords. It's basically a tech demo/proof of concept for the real game released on the Gamecube which we reviewed back in 2009. You can play it online with friends on the Switch, and you probably should. In the news, Game Informer is no more, Go AIs can be attacked via exploits, and the new trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom has engaged the hype machine.

Beach Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Tue, 09 Jul 2024 23:19:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider the games one can play at the beach. We've previously talked about the beach, and also Yard Games, so now we bring an intersection of the two. Also Beach Soccer and Terraforming Mars. In the news, the Nintendo Direct had some good stuff (especially the long awaited Metroid Prime 4) and you don't need an Xbox to play Xbox games.

Bosses (in videogames)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 26 Jun 2024 01:04:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider the concept of bosses in videogames. In the news, the Panthers win the Stanley Cup in the longest season in NHL history, Connor McDavid is awarded the Conn Smythe trophy but doesn't come out to claim it, and Founders of Reyvick might someday come.

Animal Well (2024)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 12 Jun 2024 03:06:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Animal Well. It's a beautiful and well made metroidvania. In the news, Civilization 7 is coming and Blades in the Dark is fantastic from session zero to terminal endgame.

Don't Make a Game, Make a Store

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 15 May 2024 01:39:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, in light of one of many Helldivers 2 kerfuffles, we consider yet another way that late capitalism is ruining the games industry: the stores make more money than the games. In the news, a Roblox game's attempt to fix its in-game economy causes a bunch of gamers to lose their minds, Sportsnet streams have freaky noises, and Animal Well is good.

How to ruin your competitive card game

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 01 May 2024 00:11:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider how to ruin your competitive card game. Scott shares the original Sins of CCG design. This is all in the context of Marvel SNAP. In the news, the Rangers sweep the Capitals, Square Enix reported extraordinary losses, Dave & Buster's introduces real money gambling, and Fallout games don't work on modern PCs.

Klask

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 17 Apr 2024 00:16:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Klask. It's a well-designed extremely fun tabletop sport adjacent to but significantly distinct from Air Hockey. In the news, the Rangers are number one in the NHL, the Coyotes are moving to Salt Lake City, and Visions of Mana has quite the trailer.

Also if you ever need to help out an injured pigeon in New York City, you have a lot of good options.

Balatro (2024)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Tue, 02 Apr 2024 23:48:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Balatro (2024). From LocalThunk and published by Playstack, it's a roguelike deckbuilder in the vein of Slay the Spire, but in Video Poker. It's good. In the news, PAX East was all right but it's still a ghost town when the expo hall closes, the Rangers are top of the NHL coming into the playoffs, and you may not have played Crime No Crime before (but you should).

Anti-Cheat

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 03:41:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, having previously talked about Cheating we now consider Anti-Cheat. How do you prevent cheating? In the news, the Nintendo Direct is Feb 21 but the Switch 2 is likely 2025, and Helldivers 2's ugly anti-cheat in a PvE game leaves a bad taste in our mouths.

All Games are the Same Game

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 07 Feb 2024 04:20:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we riff on some of the ideas we're exploring for our new talk for PAX East 2024: All Games are the Same Game. Turns out you can factorize games into other games. Also we're back after Rym was gone skiing for a week. In the news, the Logitech G PRO X wireless headset is all right, it turns out US presidents aren't immune to all laws, and Roblox has a universal translator.

The Games of MAGFest 2024

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 24 Jan 2024 02:18:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss the extremely good games we played at MAGFest 2024, which itself was possibly the best MAGFest that has ever happened to date. Particularly, the MAGFest Indie Videogame Showcase (MIVS) and a shout-out to Nothing Good Can Come of This. In the news, Palworld surged onto the scene with massive sales and weird controversies, tabletop game bootlegs are becoming a major problem, and anime is mainstream.

Whale Street (2023)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 10 Jan 2024 03:53:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Whale Street. It is a solid concept, combining the stock/operating round structure of an 18xx game with poker hand mechanics, but it doesn't quite stick the landing on execution. In the news, Wizards of the Coast has an AI art problem, and Free to Play games like Overwatch and Marvel Snap have a new card/character power creep problem. PixelMeat is back. If you care about unions and good working conditions, consider calling Arsenal Scaffold to tell them workers need living wages.

Lethal Company (2023)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Tue, 26 Dec 2023 23:58:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Lethal Company from Zeekerss. Rym tried out that Zelda 2 remix. In the news, Nintendo killed the Wii U and 3DS servers early, and Valve banned people who deserved it in a fantastic way.

Ahoy (2022)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 29 Nov 2023 00:32:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights we review Ahoy (2022). In the news, kids want Robux for Christmas, ByteDance is restructuring Nuverse in a "retreat" from gaming, and Nintendo has to make an 18+ version of the N64 app.

Cobalt Core

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 15 Nov 2023 03:31:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Cobalt Core. It's a cross between Slay the Spire and FTL, taking the best aspects of both. It's also super cute. In the news, the Pickleball people are facing increasing drama, and it's good to "cheat" at Pokémon. We also make fun of AMD for a while.

The Jackbox Party Pack 10

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 01 Nov 2023 02:47:00 +0000

Tonight on the 18th anniversary of the first episode of GeekNights, we review The Jackbox Party Pack 10. It's got the streamlined TKO 2 and a trivia game that's like the ones we like. In the news, Rym keeps playing Overwatch, Super Mario Wonder is good fun, and Deltarune 3 and 4 will come out sooner than anticipated.

Counter-Strike 2

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 04 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Counter-Strike 2. We have been playing some form of Counter-Strike since 2000... We reviewed Counter-Strike in 2006 and Counter-Strike GO in 2012. In news that is as little as it is late, Unity backs down on much of their new monetization model, Epic lays off 16% of its staff, and Scott GeekBites Heretic's Fork.

PAX West 2023

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 13 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review and discuss PAX West 2023. The new venue is fantastic and it felt a lot like PAXes from the golden age of PAX. In the news, Scott suffered Airport Adventures yet made it to Chicaco, Steam (and our Steam accounts) are 20 years old, and the Unity game engine destroys itself with an actively hostile monetization model that is somehow worse than we expected from their 2022 merger with evil.

Quake 2 Remastered

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 23 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, having somehow never talked about Quake (except for Quake Live in 2009, we discuss Quake 2 and the Quake 2 Remaster. In the news, the Atari 7800 is back legit, Charles Martinet is moving on, and Marvel Snap is paying people to watch Twitch streams with .pngs in their app.

PitchCar (1995)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 09 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review PitchCar (1995). It's a flicking game. It's a sport. It's pretty fun. In the news, a livestreamer guy caused a riot in New York for which he is facing charges, Gen Con continues to live up to its reputation with a disaster over unmanaged Lorcana lines (remember Lorcana is the subject of a lawsuit from Upper Deck) and some extremely identifiable nerds who stole $300k worth of collectible cards from the floor.

Can't Stop and All My Diamonds

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 26 Jul 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review two games by the legendary Sid Sackson: Can't Stop (1980) and All My Diamonds (1969). They're both worth playing, but for different reasons. In the news, Overwatch League is in deep trouble along with much of the global esports ecosystem.

Game Mechanics: Worker Placement

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 28 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss worker placement as a game mechanic. We intend to turn this into a series of shows and panels following on from Mastering Game Mechanics as presented at PAX East 2013. In the news, Marvel Snap's Conquest mode is fantastic, and Valve is dropping Battle Passes for Dota 2 because "nobody buys them."

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 31 May 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. It's one of the best pieces of entertainment software ever made. 11/10. S-Tier. A case study in good game design. Just go play it if you aren't already. In the news, Overwatch 2 is banning 5,000 cheaters a week, Street Fighter 6's control modes are looking pretty good, and Wizards of the Coast called the Pinkertons on a youtuber.

Lore

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 19 Apr 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider lore in games. You know, all that text you didn't read in the tooltips of the inventory. Or what characters told you in Half Life while you tried to clip out of the room. In the news, the Rangers begin their first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog is a real game, SGDQ 2023 is imminent, and Ingress is getting a Monster Hunter skin.

Cat in the Box (2022)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 05 Apr 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Muneyuki Yokouchi's fantastic Cat in the Box. This is an S-tier trick taking game. A must-own. It takes about two minutes to teach (three if the player is unfamiliar with trick taking games) and we've had a blast with it so far.

In the news, the world is safer today as Finland formally joins NATO, a Florida man is indicted for fraud, Klaus Teuber, the designer of the timeless classic Settlers of Catan, has passed away at age 70, and the new D&D movie might be good.

Stacklands (2022)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Stacklands (2022). In the news, Counter-Strike 2 is likely coming, Disco Elysium gets a collage mode, and DPReview falls victim to Amazon layoffs and capitalism.

Gaming Furniture

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 22 Feb 2023 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss gamer furniture of the non-chair variety. In the news, Nintendo adds Game Boy and Game Boy Advance games to Switch Online, Microsoft adds Call of Duty to Nintendo, and Magic: The Gathering adds Lord of the Rings. We also streamed this show live on the Discord Stage in the official GeekNights Discord!

Mostly Dead Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 08 Feb 2023 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss games that are not fully dead, but are mostly dead. Dance Dance Revolution (at home), the resurrected Netrunner, The Realm, Steel Battalion, and whatever game you're mad we didn't include in this short list just now. In the news, The Last Rockstars have debuted, Rym has a high opinion of the L-TEK EX PRO 2 DDR pad, the Nintendo Direct is tomorrow, and the Nintendo Switch is the third best-selling console of all time.

Playing on Teams

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 14 Dec 2022 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider teams. Playing on teams, forming teams, team sports, team games. All that team stuff. In the news, Dwarf Fortress with graphics is here (recall we interviewed Tarn Adams on GeekNights back in 2008), the FTC sues to block Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Blizzard will need someone new to offer World of Warcraft in China in a story that keeps evolving, and we hope Diablo 4 will let us click until we kill satan.

Comms in Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 16 Nov 2022 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss comms in games. Text chat, voice chat, open versus restricted, and the like. In the news, Pentiment is available, and Rym is obsessed with Disco Elysium.

Marvel Snap (2022)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 02 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review the surprisingly elegant Marvel Snap. Released this year on phones and PCs, it's essentially a flavor of Knizia's Battle Line (2000), itself in a narrow class of similar games of a shared lineage.

In the news, Ross Chastain changed the meta in NASCAR with "Some Video Game Shit," Embracer rebranded Square Enix Montréal as Onoma before immediately shutting Onoma down, Dwarf Fotress with Graphics is coming in December, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 disabled Steam Family Sharing, a feature you should probably be using.

Moonbreaker (2022)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 19 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Unknown Worlds' Moonbreaker (2022). It's a turn-based digital miniatures game that shares a lot of lineage with Hearthstone, Magic, and possibly Neuroshima Hex (at least in terms of the net effect of some of its mechanics). It's all right, but it has a lot of issues and remains in early access.

In the news, Discord's Watch Together shows you ads and is broken by adblock (and also doesn't actually work very well), Discord launches a cheaper Nitro Basic, Rym is playing a lot of Overwatch 2 which itself is struggling with its new free-to-play model that you can ignore if you just pay for the game, and GUNDAM Evolution is terrible.

Online Game Servers

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss the history and current state of online game servers. Rising primarily out of competitive FPSs like Quake and Counter Strike back in the day, they were often the only way to play with a reliable community of people. There weren't matchmaking or friend lists or anything like that.

In the news, Rym and Emily are back from PAX where they did a panel on losing, Scott is back from Costco, the Nintendo Direct had a bunch of things to talk about, and GeekNights will have a roughly three week hiatus between Rym and Emily biking 500 miles and Rym going on a business trip.

Single Player Tabletop Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 31 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider single player tabletop games. Distinct from Solitaire and Simple Games or Solitaire Puzzles, expanding on our discussion of The Number of Players, we look at what it takes to have a regular old tabletop game for one. We cite Why No One Will Game With You in the course of this, but there are plenty of great single player experiences (so long as they are official rules and the game was designed with a solo mode in mind).

In the news, Blades in the Dark continues to be fantastic, Cult of the Lamb is moderately disappointing to Rym, Moonbreaker holds promise, the fake Amazon-buys-EA story was debunked before we even saw the bunk, and Disney is throwing the weight of its intellectual property around with a high-production TCG: Lorcana.

Casino Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 17 Aug 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider casino games like Roulette, Poker, Craps, Blackjack, and Slot Machines. In the news, Unity is having significant woes, Cult of the Lamb looks cute, MultiVersus is something we will review in the future, Nintendo is just like every other games company, Gen Con struggles with the evil government of Indiana, and TwitchCon again requires masks.

Streaming Games (to devices, not Twitch)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider streaming games. Not to Twitch, but to devices. From Google Stadia to Steam Link to Steam Remote Play to adjacent game library services like Xbox Game Pass it's a space that continues to evolve. In the news, blue states in America are trying to save lives, Scott geekbites Nobody Saves the World, Asmodee sells Keyforge, Ubisoft kills 15 multiplayer games, Counter-Strike is still the #1 game on Steam by a wide margin, Pokemon cards are now easy to get, and video cards are now easy to get.

Save Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 22 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider save games. Saving games, game states, save scumming, permadeath, passwords, batteries, statefulness, and more. In the news, The Stanley Cup finals are spicier than anticipated, PAX West badges are live (and not sold out), Street Fighter 6 is trying something interesting, and a strange attempt to take over Hasbro has failed.

Monetizing Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 25 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we discuss how games monetize. How can you make money making games? We've done at least three panels around this topic: Monetizing Games and Game Design (PAX East 2012), Money Making Games (MAGFest 2012), and more recently The Real Harm of Games (PAX East 2019).

In the news, the Rangers are still in the playoffs, Sony's Playstation Plus upgrade isn't going well, Arcs is coming from Patrick Leder (though it's unfortunately on Kickstarter), Reggie Fils-Aime thinks the games industry needs to embrace unions, and Raven Software's QA team has unionized, despite Activision Blizzard's uncomfortable opposition.

Playdate

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 11 May 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider the fascinating art project x portable game console: Playdate. It's neat. In the news, the contest for Lord Stanley's Cup is underway, EA Sports loses FIFA, Bethesda finishes off their PC game launcher, Square Enix continues its long fall from grace by doubling down on a scam, Embracer is embracing a gaming empire, Overwatch 2 is very promising for competitive play thus far, and American fascists are destroying basic human rights in overturning Roe v Wade.

Offworld Trading Company (2016)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 02 Mar 2022 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Offworld Trading Company. An RTS with a M.U.L.E. lineage, we're having fun with it and even playing some multiplayer. In the news, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are coming, and the Playdate has a nice dev kit.

In much more somber and tragic news, since the last episode we made, Russia has invaded Ukraine in what can only be described as a naked act of imperial aggression.

Lifestyle Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 02 Feb 2022 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider lifestyle games. You know the person who plays Magic and only Magic? Or the phase we both went through playing CounterStrike literally every day? Or Chess players? In the news, Sony acquires Bungie (completing the balance of power among the AAAs) and The New York Times acquires Wordle.

Inscryption

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 19 Jan 2022 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Inscryption. It's worth the price of admission even if you don't know that it pulls a Frog Fractions. In the news, Rym beat Zelda II again for some reason, and Microsoft is acquiring Activision Blizzard for ~$70BB. Also remember to aggressively confront any company that even hints at supporting NFTs in any capacity. The pressure works. Poison that well.

Lost Ruins of Arnak (2020)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 05 Jan 2022 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Lost Ruins of Arnak (2020). It's an elegant worker placement deckbuilder. We like it. In the news, COVID-19 is again an extreme crisis (please don't go to MAGFest this coming weekend), Square Enix made a repugnant New Year's statement, Kickstarter is dead, and the fake high school was indeed fake.

Metroid Dread (2021)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 08 Dec 2021 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Metroid Dread on the Nintendo Switch. It's a solid 2D Metroid, with a few horror elements and a lot of polish. In the news, Amazon is down and it's wreaking low-key havoc, Discord is competing with Patreon and Onlyfans (and Twitch), and Ubisoft is absolutely a garbage company.

Holiday Gaming Gift Guide 2021

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 24 Nov 2021 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we bring you our 2021 Holiday Gaming Gift Guide. What should you buy for that gamer you know? Our list might surprise you. In the news, the Legend of Zelda Game & Watch is a huge step above the Mario one, Epic Games has acquired Harmonix, and don't cross the Wirecutter picket line.

WarioWare: Get It Together! (2021)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 10 Nov 2021 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review WarioWare: Get It Together! on the Nintendo Switch. The last time we talked about a WarioWare on GeekNights was back in 2007 when we reviewed the awful WarioWare Smooth Moves on the Wii. In the news, Konami lost the rights to some archival video they licensed, forcing them to take a number of Metal Gear Solid games down (contributing to the hellscape that is the intersection of copyright and gaming), and Unpacking is a pretty cool game.

Splitgate

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 27 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review the portal-inspired multiplayer FPS Splitgate. It's free to play, not pay to win, and if you ignore the non-game-affecting skinz and lootz it's definitely worth trying. In the news, the Advance Wars remaster is delayed, BlizzCon is canceled to be re-imagined, and you don't need a rumble pack for your N64 Controller. Also, the OLED Switch doesn't appear to be selling well, but that's not actually a problem for Nintendo.

The Number of Players

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 13 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider a game design topic in the number of players a game supports. For this exercise, we only consider orthogames. We've talked about two player games before. The reality is that one player, two player, and three+ player games are fundamentally and formally distinct. A game that supports more than one of these groups is actually multiple different games for all practical purposes.

In the news, NIBCARD Games wins the Diana Jones Award for Excellence in Gaming, the Diana Jones Award trophy is missing, the Actraiser remake is more than you probably expect, Metroid Dread is solid, and it's hard to imagine PAX South happening in Texas in January considering the state has now banned vaccine mandates in a manner that very likely includes events in the convention center.

Gaming Magazines

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 29 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider gaming magazines. Notable mentions include Electronic Games, Nintendo Power, Dragon Magazine, Dungeon Magazine, Scrye (for those MTG prices), InQuest, GamePro, Game Informer, PC Gamer, Games Magazine, and more.

In the news, Asmodee is for sale for €2 BB, SEGA Genesis games are coming to the Switch (but you won't get the good controller in the US), Activision Blizzard is still in deep shit including an $18 MM settlement, and they released their Diablo 2 remake during all of this.

Oath: Chronicles of Empire and Exile

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 15 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Oath: Chronicles of Empire and Exile. It's a solid legacy game that's worth taking a look at. In the news, Rym finally played West of Loathing and is sorting out if we'll play Aliens: Fireteam Elite, The CEO of Broken Token steps down (but still owns the company...) after abuse and harassment allegations, the CEO of Tripwire steps down due to his abhorrent statements on abortion rights, and Twitch sues two individuals over ongoing racist and bigoted harassment rampant on their platform.

Deathmatch Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 01 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider Deathmatch games, particularly FPS deathmatches. Ostensibly beginning with Doom and Quake, the "genre" began already extremely refined, and frankly Quake 1 Deathmatch is literally worth playing today. In the news, Rym biked to Poughkeepsie again, Quake 1 got an update that makes multiplayer "just work" on modern PCs, China effectively bans minors playing online games, and tabletop game prices are going to skyrocket.

Pokémon UNITE

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 28 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Pokémon UNITE: the Pokémon MOBA. It's actually pretty fun, and it's a shame that it's microtransactional pay-to-win garbage. Only play it if you can play with friends who agree to never spend money, never grind, and never use any items.

In the news, the NHL Expansion Draft has released the Kraken, Activision Blizzard is rightly sued by the state of California for sexual harassment and discrimination, we join other games media in a complete blackout of all reviews or coverage of their games of any kind, as well as support their employees striking tomorrow, and Valve has released the Game Gear 2 (which they promise will run "the entire Steam library" at 30+fps)

Collecting in Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 14 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider collecting in games. Specifically, we consider "new in box" cartridges and people who like to tell you how many board games they own. In the news, Advance Wars 1 and 2 are coming to the Nintendo Switch, the Nintendo Switch Pro is exactly what we expected rather than what people seemed to imagine, someone buys a new-in-box copy of Super Mario 64 for way too much money, and we will be live at PAX Online East this weekend!

If you want Rym's copy of Ogre, you can have second dibs on it. If no one takes it before Rym has an excuse to see a certain person, you'll miss your chance.

New Pokemon Snap

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 02 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider the New Pokemon Snap. It's Pokemon Snap. It's exactly what it looks like. And it's probably worth playing. In the news, 1846 gets an update, An Airport for Aliens Currently Run By Dogs is out, the 3080 Ti is coming, Nintendo took down a rom site (but the buried lede is that the proprietor went pro se in court), and while Moon Hunters was a delightful game this article describes what was wrong with its level design.

Super Mario Bros. 3

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 05 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Super Mario Bros. 3 on the NES. It is hard to express how revolutionary this games was in 1988-1991 (depending on where you lived), and it holds up pretty well today. (Rym just beat it on a lark last week). In the news, Tom Wilson should be expelled from the NHL, Ravenloft gets a much better look, Twitch took action against 7.5MM fake accounts, the Epic Games store is not only losing money, but also doesn't lead to actual game sales.

PAC-MAN 99

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 21 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review PAC-MAN 99 on the Nintendo Switch. In the news, Derek Chauvin is (rightly) convicted on all three counts for the murder George Floyd, the European Super League collapses faster than anyone thought possible, Jeff Kaplan leaves Overwatch and Blizzard, Scrabble (rightly) bans racial slurs from the game, Sony backs off on shutting down the PS3 and Vita services, Nintendo is likely sunsetting the largely unsuccessful Labo, and Railroad Ink is coming to Steam.

Please consider donating to the Gianna Floyd fund, and keep protesting until there is justice. Black Lives Matter.

JRPGs

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 07 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider JRPGs. The "genre" is broad, and many people ignore a number of Japanese Role Playing Games that they wouldn't necessarily consider a "JRPG." In the news, PAX East 2021 is (rightly) canceled due to COVID (though there will be another PAX Online), E3 (rightly) moves online due to COVID, PS Vita games are disappearing forever, and Magnus Carlsen uses the "bongcloud" opening against Hikaru Nakamura, and Luck be a Landlord is a roguelike deckbuilder slot machine.

Golf

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 24 Mar 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Golf. This includes mini golf. In the news, Microsoft is likely buying Discord, Xbox Live is dead, Emily is Away 3 brings us to the Facebook era, Shredder's Revenge brings us a solid-looking TMNT game, and Magic: Legends is now in open beta.

Moon Hunters (2016)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 10 Mar 2021 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review the surprising and unique Moon Hunters, from Kitfox Games. It's on sale on steam right now for $2.24! In the news, Luke Crane made a bad situation worse that has shaken the tabletop rpg world, 3 million new users joined Roll20 during the pandemic, and you should check out these five great tabletop rpg kickstarters that weren't canceled by their creators:

Heaven's Vault (2019)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 24 Feb 2021 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Inkle's 2019 game Heaven's Vault for Steam, Playstation, and Switch. It's unique, in a good way. In the news, Daft Punk ends, the Root Marauder Expansion is on Kickstarter, The Legend of Zelda is 35 years old, you've probably never actually heard the original Legend of Zelda theme, Civilization VI's barbarians just got a lot more interesting, and Zinequest is live.

Asynchronous Play

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 10 Feb 2021 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider asynchronous play in games. It's an underserved niche in games that is especially relevant during the quarantine times. In the news, Counter-Strike is over 20 years old, hackers attacked CD Projekt Red (but at least they had backups), Battleborn is dead and gone, and Gearbox was purchased in the ever-increasing consolidation of the games industry.

Hades

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Hades. It's great, and exhibits a level of polish that is honestly rare. In the news, reddit nerds are gaming GameStop stock leading to interesting consequences, Microsoft continues to struggle with Xbox Gold vs Xbox Live, and the Internet sort of went down for a bit earlier today.

NERTS! Online

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 13 Jan 2021 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review the latest (free-to-play) from Zachtronics with NERTS! Online. It's a live online implementation of the classic card game Nerts, and is worth your while. In the news, a Republican mob led by disgraced president Donald Trump stormed the capitol in an ongoing coup attempt. Twitch rightly removes the PogChamp emote after the person it's based on supported this coup. Twitch replaced the PogChamp with a very cool idea that also reminded us just how racist gamers are. Thankfully, the first new PogChamp is a champ. LucasArts is basically back with LucasFilm Games, and they have announced a nazi-fighting game that we're all excited about. We also have a trailer for Bowser's Fury.

The last 10 years of Gaming (2010-2020)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 30 Dec 2020 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider the decade to date in games and gaming. Tabletop games, role playing games, video games, console games, PC games: we are living in an explosive and amazing era of gaming. In the news, the Star Wars Squadrons patch made the game significantly more fun, Graveyard Keeper is all right, and the Overwatch winter brawls are particularly good. Check out freeze tag with an eye to the game design going on there.

Hypnospace Outlaw (2019)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 16 Dec 2020 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review the delightful Hypnospace Outlaw (2019). It's a true sendup to the early Internet, and is definitely worth playing. In the news, Cyberpunk 2077 had a rocky launch with, among other problems, egregious safety issues, worker exploitation, abysmal performance on previous-generation consoles, and more. A bunch of indie titles are coming to the Nintendo Switch, including Among Us, as well as a Funimation anime streaming app.

1817

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 02 Dec 2020 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider what is likely now our favorite 18xx train game: 1817. If you have never played one of these before, you may want to check out our reviews of 1846: The Race for the Midwest or 1889: History of Shikoku Railways first. 1817 has short selling, acquisitions & mergers, and loans (with interest) that together serve to provide more player agency than other 18xx games we've played.

In the news, Nintendo makes it easier to share screenshots from the Switch, and the Super Mario Maker levels will disappear like tears in the rain.

Ricochet (2000)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 18 Nov 2020 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review the Ricochet Half-Life mod from twenty years ago. It's still playable! And we're playing it semi-regularly again. We talked about it briefly as part of an ensemble show about Tron games back in 2009.

In the news, thank you all for helping raise $4,006 for the Democrats in the Senate Runoff in Georgia, Hearthstone players are mad, Twitch streamers are mad, the Asmodee empire expands, and the 2020 Video Game Accessibility Awards are announced.

Among Us

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 04 Nov 2020 01:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Among Us. It's a social deduction game, but with intrinsic mechanics and surprising depth. In the news, there are unconfirmed reports (now officially debunked) that PAX South has delayed to February 19-21 (which would still be too early to safely attend any convention), and Twitch is trying to milk more money from advertising. Also, we have some early thoughts on 18MEX (which you can play at 18xx.games) and the Resident Evil remakes.

Star Wars: Squadrons

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 21 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Star Wars: Squadrons. It's great. It lacks some polish, but the gameplay is sound, the game is solid, and it's almost definitely worth your while. In the news, online chess has a cheating problem, Golden Axed was the product of unethical crunch, and some people are having problems using their Quest 2 due to Facebook.

Wolfspell

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 23 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we are joined by Epidiah Ravachol to talk about his fantastic Wolfspell. The tabletop roleplaying game of adventurers who turn to wolf flesh to fulfill a knotted quest. First appearing in issue two of Worlds Without Master, Wolfspell has been reborn now in print as the liner notes of a trifold album cover and illustrated in glorious proggy/metal fashion by Shel Kahn!

We also talk about calculators. It's great. Be a wolf.

Logitech G’s Playmaster

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 09 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider Logitech G's Playmaster software, a training program to master Counter-Strike skills. Like, actually learn those spray patterns. This is a major step in the maturity model of e-sports. In the news, MAGFest is canceled, Djokovic is a bad boy, Hyrule Warriors has a Breath of the Wild version coming, and 8BitDo has a fightstick.

PAX Pamir (Second Edition)

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 26 Aug 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we review Cole Wehrle's PAX Pamir (Second Edition). In the news, Facebook is destroying the Oculus brand, subsuming it into their social media hellscape. Also there's a new hockey stick in town.

How to be good at Modern Art

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 12 Aug 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider how to be to be good at Modern Art, a Knizia tabletop bidding game we're particularly fond of. In the news, the New York Rangers have the first overall draft pick, Fall Guys is full of cheaters, Dire Wolf Digital is bringing some sort of Dune deckbuilding worker placement game, Luigi's endowment informs us on Bowser's height, and we will be streamed at PAX Online with an all-new panel!

Exercise Games

geeknights@frontrowcrew.com (Rym and Scott - The Front Row Crew) — Wed, 29 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Tonight on GeekNights, we consider exercise games like Ring Fit Adventure, Dance Dance Revolution, and Super Team Games. Also those arm wrestling arcade cabinets. (Don't break your arm). Games where the game plays the player and not the other way around.

In the news, join us for some train games at 18xx.games, the Nintendo Gigaleak is a fascinating moment in games history that will take us months to fully explore, and Internet trolls take out the US Army on Twitch.

GeekNights Tuesdays: Gaming

Games we played at PAX East 2026

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Puzzles in Games

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Paris Connection

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9 Kings (early access)

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Big Shot (2001)

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Magic: The Gathering (1993)

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Initial Thoughts on Dispatch and Metroid Prime 4

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23 Knives

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Messing Up the Rules

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The Gang

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Donkey Kong Bananza

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Tower Defense Games

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Auction and Bidding Mechanics

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Nintendo Switch 2: Day One