Pokémon GO - First Time for Everything

If you haven't heard of Pokémon GO in the last week you might be living under a rock. Pokémon GO is a free to play, location based AR (augmented reality) mobile game. It was developed by Niantic and published by The Pokémon Company and released almost world-wide on July 6, 2016. 

Now. That was a whole lotta words to describe a mobile game so let's break it down a bit. 

• Free to play: just means the app is free but there are in-app purchases.
• Location Based: gameplay evolves and progresses based on your location, typically using the built in GPS on your phone. 
• Augmented Reality (AR): is defined as "a live direct or indirect view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented by computer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data. Graham, M., Zook, M., and Boulton, A. "Augmented reality in urban places: contested content and the duplicity of code." Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, DOI: 10.1111/j.1475-5661.2012.00539.x 2012.

Basically you're entire environment is now teeming with Pokémon 

and with your phone you're able to see them and catch them. 

LIVE: Street Fighter V Stream - Laniray aka Gruvbox

Watch Laniray go back to his Street Fighter roots!

Watch live video from Gruvbox on www.twitch.tv

Here Comes A New Challenger: My Origin Story

When I think of how long I've been playing games, an obvious answer is..."My whole life." Quite literally I've spent my whole life playing games. But after reading Tina's blurb about how she became a gamer, It only seemed fitting that I share my origin story as well.

The Rapture is coming!

BIOSHOCK: THE COLLECTION

Guys, guys! Bioshock: The Collection is a real thing!  This is what happens when you send out vibes to the Universe. All that meditating-"I will play Bioshock on the XBOX One. I will play Bioshock on the XBOX One."-worked!

The original Bioshock for me was an eye opening experience. It was the first time I remember getting the "feels" from a game. It's dark. It's tragic. It's heartbreaking. It speaks to the ridiculous standards we try to achieve and very often fail at. And it's Mother F'n scary. Well, at least it was for me. The first time I heard a Big Daddy clomping around in the darkened, wet hallways of Rapture, the long, low anguished moan, it is something I will always remember. I've played the first Bioshock twice, and the subsequent games once each, but I for one can't wait to get back to Rapture and start the whole journey all over again. 

Bioshock, Bioshock 2 and Bioshock: Infinite are first person shooter games developed by 2K Games, Irrational Games and various other 2K studios. Games one and two are set in the underwater, dystopian utopia known as Rapture. Designed as a city managed outside of government control, Rapture is meant to be the pinnacle of architectural, societal and scientific achievement. But like most grandiose, God-like plans, they fall down and wreck havoc upon all of Rapture's residence. While Bioshock: Infinite is not a direct sequel to Bioshock and Bioshock 2, it is set in the same world with similar game play and world concepts. The DLC for Bioshock: Infinite, Burial at Sea ties all three games together in a neat, disturbing bow.

Bioshock: The Collection is coming to XBOX One, Playstation 4, and digital PC on September 13th in North America and September 16th Internationally. 

Have you played any of the series? Tell me your thoughts!  Do you think revamping older console games isn't worth while, or do you have a laundry list (like me) of games you want to see remastered?

Tina
OBSIDIANBLADE31

Image: 2K Games

Confessions of a Gamer Mom: My Origin Story

My evolution into a gamer began way before the name "Mom" ever came into existence in my reality. Growing up, my family and I spent many a weekend playing boardgames like LIFE, Monopoly, and Clue. We also grew up with a healthy dose of card games such as Spades and Pinochle tournaments. It was a time when home computers weren't a staple in every house and video game consoles were still "babies in diapers". The word "gamer" wasn't found in the dictionary. Getting the picture yet?  Yes, sounds a bit post-apocalyptic in this tech everywhere world, but it was a "simpler time" as the old folks say, and I'm NOT including myself in that category.

Game of Thrones S6 Wrap-Up

Well, another season of Game of Thrones is finished. I'm excited, shocked, amazed, sad, and depressed all at the same time. With the last two mainly being because we now have to wait at least 9 months for Season 7. We might as well review how this last episode has perfectly set up the series finale as well as changed the course of the show as we know it...

First look at Elizabeth Banks as Power Ranger Villain Rita Repulsa!

We all know that it was bound to happen. With Power Rangers being as widely popular show that many adults now grew up with, it was a matter of time that The Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers would get it's  hollywood movie reboot!

Elizabeth Banks as Rita Repulsa