Inflatable substitutes are nothing to be ashamed of!
While it'll no doubt wind up at a friend's house in his pool, this Crystal Caste inflatable d20 is a fine addition to any household... until the wife gets sick of it. :)
Gen Con 2009 has come and gone, and I failed to take in even a fraction of what was on offer, but it was still an event I'd recommend to anyone. I did get to participate in the charity auction of "custom dice baggery," where artists were asked to decorate a pouch for one's random number generators. The shape and seams of the bag suggested that a "20-sided" design could be made (and thanks to Tony Steele for showing me his beforehand, as I hadn't thought of drawing on the bottom), and so I scrawled: Here's the first side, second, third, fourth, and bottom. I didn't hear any rules lawyers complain about the selection of "events" for each number, though they're surely debatable.
And I was as surprised as anyone, given the economy, that the premium gaming table company Geek Chic was not only still around, but producing new tables like this one. Their designs are getting better and better, though I'm thinking they need to add a drain plug; surely some land war is going to be wiped out by a Big Gulp tsunami sooner or later.
The "Champions: Online" game has gone into open beta, and so more news has been hitting the 'net about the game itself. Here's a sampler of travel powers in action, and the inclusion of what appears to be an underwater area has a few of my friends jazzed to give it a spin. I wanted to give the fiery flight power a try, but I think their servers are getting hammered right now, so my attempts at patching the engine tend to peter out at about 30%. Ah, well, I need to be working, anyway. :)
Next up in the con rotation is DragonCon, so while I scramble for airline tickets, have a gander at these nuggets of distraction:
- Let's start with explosions: Building Blaster has you demolishing buildings via explosives (similar to a game posted here previously) with some puzzle elements. I'm not certain how it scores you, though it seems to have something to do with how much of the structure you propel off-screen.
- A couple, setting their camera to take a timed shot as they enjoyed nature, had their photo invaded by a curious squirrel. Naturally, he's becoming an instant internet celebrity.
- Not satisfied with taking our money at Woot.com, there has been an addition to the Woot family: Kids.Woot. I'm wondering what will qualify as "kid stuff" for this site, given the wide range of toys that Woot has tossed at us in the past. And will there be Kids Woot-Offs? If so, shouldn't they end at 9pm or some other reasonable hour?
- More puzzle-gaming: Hungry Shapes has you placing and propelling shapes so they get their fill of hamburgers. Just go with it...
- I'm a bad geek for not noticing that the G.I. Joe convention took place in Kansas City while I was in Indianapolis. A highlight was the parachuting of 300 action figures from the Hyatt Hotel downtown.
- Phil, Kaja, and Cheyenne have graciously accepted their Hugo award.
- They're inventing toys that can distinguish one kind of hooch from another, though your definition of 'rotgut' may differ from that of the readout. This is going to doom the "Pepsi Challenge," mark my words.
- There are several kids I know who would have an ecstatic meltdown if their birthdays included this Candyland Cake.
- Finally, more destructive puzzle gaming: Max Damage has you aiming a cannon at valuable items to cause "max damage."