Unplugged: 2009 Holiday Boardgame Guide
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Posted on November 27th, 2009 by
Since 2003, I’ve been taking a look at some of the best boardgames have to offer and serving up my recommendations to folks at this site. While video games have made great strides providing more social games, boardgames have always been an excellent way for friends or family to get together and enjoy a common experience. Boardgames also have an advantage over video games because they don’t go out of style due to changes in technology. Games from that first 2003 holiday guide are just as enjoyable today as they were six years ago. But to keep things “fresh” here are a few more recent titles that may be just the thing to get for your special people this holiday season.
Thanksgiving ’09
Posted on November 26th, 2009 by
Happy Thanksgiving to all! It’s T-Day, which means Linda and the kids are delivering meals for elderly shut-ins (yep, s’what she does, bless her). This is GamerDad’s favorite holiday because of the food, family, friends, fun and that whole heart thingie a while back. Today – and friday (my mom is hosting today, so we can be with my ailing grandmother and Linda LOVES to cook so on Friday we’re having friends at our table) – means football, and a great time for gaming, or not gaming at all. Here’s a list of what my family is playing, including yours truly. So enjoy the eats, don’t drink too much and stretch out to let the fabulous food digest:
Cary’s Koopa Kid Day Care
Posted on November 25th, 2009 by
Big news, folks! I own my very own day care center now. I’m taking care of eight kids! But they’re all from the same family! Their dad is a real tyrant, though, but he said that if I watched his children, he’d help me kidnap Princess Zelda. See, Link would always suspect Ganon, but never me! Muwa ha ha haaa! OK, so this is just a silly way to introduce my favorite part of New Super Mario Bros. Wii: the return of the Koopa Kids! And this whole blog is dedicated to them. It’s a little silly, but a little silliness is OK every once in a while!
Boardgames for the Video Gamer
Posted on November 24th, 2009 by
While any tried and true electronic gamer may have their holiday game lists already picked out, what if you wanted to try to expand their horizons with a gift that would move them out from in front of the screen and bring them a bit more face to face interactivity with other folks? As a big fan of games of all types, here’s a short list of candidate boardgames designed to fit within the gaming choices of any given type of electronic gamer.
Ask GamerDad – Coverage
Posted on November 23rd, 2009 by
A reader asks, politely, about the sparsity of GamerDad coverage from GamerDad (aside from the herculean coverage from Mr. Woodham). GamerDad takes the time to explain. So, Mr. Pip, here’s the answer to that question. I suspect you won’t like it, so be warned:
My Mom Goes to the Nintendo World Store in NYC!
Posted on November 18th, 2009 by
One bad thing about business trips is that you might get to travel to a new city or country, but since you’re on the clock, you might not be able to leave the hotel or convention center. My mom just got back from a business trip to New York City, and she had never been there before. Luckily, when she wasn’t working, she was able to find time to see lots of sights: Times Square, the FAO Schwartz toy store, and more. But one store she went to that I’m most jealous about is the Nintendo World Store!
Game Review: Guitar Hero 5 (PS2, Wii, 360, PS3)
Posted on November 9th, 2009 by
The first of its kind, Guitar Hero has spawned an entire genre of rhythm video games played with fake instruments. (OK, technically there were games using Maracas and/or Bongos first, but Guitar Hero was the first to go mainstream – primarily due to the rock-focused music selection.) The newest Guitar Hero, #5, has been out for a few months. While each title in the series adds a little bit more to the options available, this new edition has the most family-friendly options and gameplay modes of the lot – especially on the Wii version.
Free Wallace & Gromit Game!
Posted on November 4th, 2009 by
Normally I don’t like putting press releases up here on this blog page, but if it’ll help you folks get a free PC game, I don’t mind. In honor of the award-winning clay animated duo Wallace & Gromit’s 20th anniversary, TellTale games is offering one of their episodic Wallace & Gromit games this week for free! They’re excellent, family-friendly, point and click PC adventure games, so read on to find out how to get your free episode as well as other Wallace & Gromit goodies and tidbits.
Halloween Message from GamerDad
Posted on October 30th, 2009 by
First off and most importantly, Happy 11th Anniversary Linda! We got married on Halloween (I dressed as a Groom, I can’t remember her costume exactly — oh yeah! “Beautiful Lady in a White Dress”). Now we very much appreciate that kids get free candy and that people dress up on our special day. You guys are great! Also, I love all costumes, including the scary ones. The New York Times recently showed us parents and school districts who disagree. To me this is offensive. Oh, and also how this relates to video games.
Holy Invasion of UMD, Badman!
Posted on October 18th, 2009 by
Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman! What Did I Do To Deserve This is a unique PSP game where you make your own monster-filled dungeons to trap pesky heroes in. (Click here to read the review) Up until now, you could only buy this game through the PlayStation store, as it is a download-only title. But if you always wanted a UMD version of Badman (I know I have), NIS might be able to help. On their site at RosenQueen.com, they’ve started pre-orders for the UMD version of the game. If they get 1,000 pre-orders, they’ll go ahead and make it! So make your voice be heard if you want the UMD version of Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman!
