Being Geek Chic is a blog about one woman navigating the male-dominated industries of production and tech. It's written by Elizabeth Giorgi, Founder, CEO and Director of Mighteor - one of the world's first internet video production companies. Learn more about Mighteor here.
We’ve all heard that famous quote “Find what you love and let it kill you.” Well, I don’t really relate to that and I actually believe it’s not healthy to do such a thing; nevertheless, I can understand loving something so much that you simply can’t resist doing it. I’m not sure where your thoughts wandered, but what I’m talking about is gambling.
Fellow players will most certainly understand me when I say surviving a geek gambling binge may be one of the top five hardest things in the world for a slot machine fan like me. Luckily, the selection of online destinations where you can enjoy such games is pretty great, with over 200 listed here at this site only. Moreover, you can play on a wide range of devices too; for example, you can register with an operator such as Gday Casino and then access it via desktops, laptops, smartphones, tablets and etc. This option makes gaming sites available anywhere and anytime.
So, let’s learn more about dealing with such binges. The first and most common scenario of you going through a crisis is when you’re at home. Instead of leaving the house and looking for a brick and mortar casino, you can simply sign up at an online casino and play hundreds of games. The slot selection at these gaming sites is fantastic, plus some of them have amazing live dealer platforms. These platforms provide you with live streaming from studios where you can see real tables hosted by real dealers. Awesome, right? No need to worry if you’re a Mac user because leading online casinos usually provide an instant play option that supports such devices too. Thus, regardless whether you own a sleek Windows 10 PC or any of the Macs, you will be able to play a wide range of casino games from the comfort of your home.
Since we saw how easy is to survive your urge to play when you’re at home, let’s imagine you’re outside; maybe you decided to take a walk or go to a party, it doesn’t really matter. Right there, you feel the desire taking over your body and all you want to do is spin some reels, win some cash and breathe in the thrill. As long as you have your smartphone with you, you’re good to go. Online casinos often have their mobile friendly versions in the form of web apps or native mobile applications; whatever the case, you’ll be able to either download an app within seconds or simply visit the casino and start playing. It has to be noted that mobile casinos support tablet devices as well. Hence, you have quite a decent number of channels to access your favourite games on the move. All rules and payouts on a particular title are the same, no matter whether you play on desktops of smartphones; the only difference is in the gaming experience. Namely, when you play on mobile devices the screens are usually smaller and the sounds are a bit worse; nevertheless, you get to play using your fingers and enjoy an easier navigation.
The last resort to those that for any logical reason can’t play on a desktop or laptop, while their smartphone is not available too is a smartwatch. Yes, that’s right; world’s best smartwatches can be used for playing table games, slots and video poker online. Even though their small displays may not offer as attractive gameplay as other devices, smartwaches can definitely safe the day when a gaming binge comes knocking on your door.
Well people, those are all the ways for a responsible casino player to access various types of games and get a daily dose of entertainment. As technology evolves faster than ever, we can expect for this list to be extended pretty soon. However, for now, I believe that these devices are more than enough to provide you instant access to your favourite casino title regardless of your location or time of the day.
Favorite movies. TV shows. Video games. As strange as it may seem to non-geeks, for a geek, a potential partner’s taste in media of all kinds makes a big difference in whether or not they’re worthy of dating in the long-term. Some of my fondest memories with my former boyfriends involve playing Mario in the middle of the night together or conquering the latest indie game over the course of a weekend. Those times will always be beautiful memories even if those relationships didn’t last.
LFG Dating is a site that understands this. So when they approached me to try out their site focusing on setting up fellow gamers, I was excited to check it out. After all, there are lots more games to play and even more connections to make.
The first and most profoundly different thing about signing up for this site, which you won’t find elsewhere is the type of questions. Things like: how often do you game, which consoles you prefer to play and what kind of games do you play most often? This alone made it so much more fun to go through the process of signing up for an online dating site. I’ve signed up for them all and the LFG Dating process is so much more on par with my actual life that I immediately felt like I could trust it. The founders, Casey and Patrick, are real geeks and it shows in every thing that they do to make the site fit geek needs.
After signing up, I was amazed at just how many people were in my area. It wasn’t long before I was talking with a few guys who also play a lot of indie games on PS4. I definitely appreciate having something to talk about that isn’t the weather, my job or where I like to eat in my city. I know how tedious all those conversations are because I’ve engaged in them regularly for the last few months to less than desirable results.
If you’re a geek, you may already know this, but dating a gamer makes those first few days a hell of a lot easier. It gives you something to do together. Eases the transition from hanging out in bars and coffee shops to hanging out in one another’s spaces. These kinds of dates are truly so much less awkward than the standard dating affairs, because well, video games give us purpose! It allows us to have built in competitive prodding, which makes flirting easy. If you play co-op, you can try to win together, which is always a bonding experience.
There are so many games that make for great date nights. Super Smash Bros. Vintage picks like Super Mario Brothers and Duck Hunt. Even more modern games are insanely fun. Take a spin at multi-player Little Big Planet together and I dare you not to have an awesome time. Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture is also brilliantly worthwhile if for no other reason than the lovely art.
Online dating is a damn drag. Let’s just admit that now. So if you’re looking for a totally different experience, I really must recommend this geek-friendly version of online dating. After all, we can all use more reasons to make time for a little time with our favorite games, right?
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This post was brought to you by our sponsorship partner: LFG Dating! We love our sponsors because they help make Being Geek Chic happen through financial support. Being Geek Chic content is written and produced by real geeks and never comes from content mills. LFG Dating is the world’s only premium geek and gamer dating service. With members all over the world, they want to help you find what you want - someone else to game with! And date! Check out their services on LFG Dating.
There’s this truth that many of us female gamers have come to accept: strong, artistically sound female characters are the exception, not the rule, when it comes to video games. That is true when it comes to story AND design. We know this is a fact, and yet we play. But that shouldn’t stop us from asking for more.
The video game industry and its designers are rightly criticized for not featuring enough female characters, or featuring them as weaker characters. Sure, criticism is good and helpful for shedding light on problem. But perhaps pointing out the positives is a better place to start?
I say we start with small realities of acceptance: Women have been present in games for a long time. And as far back as Samus Aran, they kick ass. But when they aren’t the principle character, I think we have to take acceptance in the fact that it’s at least an available choice in many games. Such as the fact that we can play Mass Effect as FemShep. Every year, there are more and more games that let players customize their gender in the character creator portion of the game. The fact is, for a long time, it was too easy previously for developers not to offer this choice, because they didn’t have a case study to build off of. Would people (not just women) customize their characters to play as women? The answer was: YES, OF COURSE.
The second step towards this peace or treatise with the industry comes at the point of wardrobe. It’s an accepted fact that body shapes are going to promote the same boring, impossible dimensions, but we can at least relish in changes to exterior options. When developers take the time to at least acknowledge this, it gives me hope that we can update even more elements of the physical form of women in games. Look at games like Child of Light, which promote a different age and type of player. No sexuality, just character. Similarly, I look at a movie like Wreck It Ralph and I see more diversity there that could easily be transported into the actual gaming industry.
The third step for improving our relationship with the industry is getting behind their nostalgia improvements. For example, when they take classic games and update them for modern times. This history is so hard to face: but even Mario, a game beloved by all, has promoted bullshit gender roles. But today, Nintendo are making amends for this now as Mario’s Princess Peach now has her own range of games in which she’s the hero. So Super Princess Peach might not be the most exciting game on the planet, but I definitely played the shit out of it. And you know what? I enjoyed kicking ass in a dress. But this step away from traditional roles in gaming is refreshing and more manufacturers should strive to emulate this. Imagine bringing back Ms Pac Man in a new way? Or how about more of Zelda kicking ass?
Beyond console gaming, the online gaming world can be just as fraught with garbage. And while we can all act like gamers should have a narrow definition, we need to embrace the things that are happening elsewhere that are positive for the industry. We need to find the pockets where gaming for women is safe and celebrated and take a lesson.
The online gaming world can be just as fraught so it can be pleasant to find a network that caters to females. 888 Ladies, featured on bingo-apps.co.uk, is a site with a real sense of community between the female players. They also partner with Race for Life to encourage players to make a difference and it’s great for women to have their own space to talk about these issues. The truth is: as more and more women play they want to be represented in a respectful and positive way.
Women in video games are becoming better represented, and not before time, many games now feature strong female leads. Dragon Age: Inquisition is a new title from Bioware, featuring a whole host of powerful female characters, far from being a man’s world this game shows true equality. The game is tailored to the gender that the player picks, so there are different conversation choices and reactions for each.
Traditional gender roles in gaming are changing, as more and more women play they want to be represented in a respectful and positive way. The change in the way developers treat female characters is really down to women speaking out about what they want to see. It’s great to be able to play games and not have typical female character tropes thrust in your face, and the more developers that cater to this the better. It also means that games are becoming more creative as they look for new ways to examine gender stereotypes and create more 3 dimensional characters. It also makes for more interesting stories as players don’t automatically know how characters will act based on their gender. Gaming is becoming far more accessible to women and is in turn showing them in a better light.
This post was brought to you by a Being Geek Chic partner who helps make this site possible. Being Geek Chic content is written and produced by real geeks and never comes from content mills.
We still have a few more months before Game of Thrones returns to our screens and who knows when George RR Martin is going to get his next book finished. And while we can watch some of the kick ass characters on other shows (Hi, Natalie Dormer, love you!) - it’s just not enough.
Here’s a few ways to survive:
Soak yourself up in the fun facts about the show so that you can totally use to impress your friends:
Play games inspired by the show:
The new Game of Thrones online game by Microgaming, immerses fans in the mythology of the show. Imposing castles, misty backdrops and fire-breathing dragons are all part of the adventure. It’s not available until Dec. 2014, but that’s only days away! You can find online locations featuring this game at Microgaming Tribune as well as other nerdy betting games.
Get immersed in the books from the series and beyond:
My brother is a HUGE fan of the books and he is always giving me the details on what’s different between the show and the text. I mean, there are six freaking books to read! And a brand new universe with an encyclopedic volume to give you behind-the-scenes facts. Also, don’t forget about all the show’s art books.
Go Outside and Enjoy Winter like a true Northerner:
There’s something about putting on a pair of snow shoes and wandering through the woods that truly makes you feel like Jon Snow could be your brother. I’m a huge believer in embracing winter to survive it and perhaps putting on your best fake fur and throwing on a fuzzy winter hat that makes it all feel more bearable.
Platformers are sort of this weird thing in gaming. It’s like a super niche band that people like enough to sport the vintage throw back tee, but don’t actually listen to all that often. I can’t get enough of platformers, though, and I especially like when they reinvent some element of game play to make them fresh.
Here’s three I suggest you try if for no other reason than they aren’t the simple platformers you’re used to:
Bit.Trip’s Runner 2:
Why It’s Awesome: Well, running shouldn’t be this fun. I’m serious. The speed and difficulty of the Runner games always accelerates so quickly that you honestly wonder how you managed to complete each level immediately after you completed it. Like some kind of platform amnesia. This sense of accomplishment is addictive, so keep running!
What’s New About It: So Runner is all about running, but the thing that’s new is the additional moves beyond jumping which up the difficulty. The dive feature is something we’ve seen in other platformers, but the ability to extend the dive position for long periods of time is totally new. It also serves as an attack of sorts, which is rad.
Thomas Was Alone
Why It’s Awesome: It’s super rare for me to feel like…deeply depressed about a game about blocks to be over. I mean, this may be because there are so few games about blocks. But, you get my drift. The story is weirdly heartening and the game play is so well-integrated that you start to feel for these various colored shapes.
What’s New About It: Part of the challenge and fun of this game is that each of the named shapes have different skills. Individually, they can’t do much, but together, every level can be tackled. Instead of leveling up to get new skills, you essentially level up to acquire new characters with new skills. This creates a certain amount of favoritism (Sarah is the best.) - but it also keeps you engaged in the story. Also, it’s now available on Android, so you should probably get on that.
Ibb and Obb
Why It’s Awesome: Let’s talk about gravity. It’s not nearly well-examined enough in any game of any kind. Pretty much, it exists and all games obey it. That seems short sighted. Thank goodness Ibb and Obb came around.
What’s New About It: Ibb and Obb takes our universal concept of gravity and says: eh, enough of that. The most important element of the game experience is that you can play both on the top and the bottom of the platforms. Sometimes, it’s to avoid enemies or blockades and other times it’s simply to get rewards. Either way, I don’t know why we haven’t always been able to run on the bottom of platforms.
