Games Can’t Portray Addiction Right

“This will be the last cigarette I ever smoke” is something I tell myself about once a week after I finish a pack. It doesn’t take more than a few hours before I have a new pack sitting in front of me. —  Going out for a cigarette has become a habit that I do […]

80 Days: Once a Ghost, Always a Ghost

“For two weeks in July I will be on vacation, so there will be no class,” I tell my students. They smile and nod with understanding, most of them either recently returned from their own summer vacations or about to embark on their own. “Where are you going?” They always ask. “Oh, to visit some […]

Always Sometimes Monsters

I am shit at roleplaying bad people in games but halfway through Always Sometimes Monsters I stopped caring and orphaned four children to win a bet. In this RPG Maker game, you play a down and out author making his way across the country to get to their ex’s wedding. On the way, you have to […]

A Halo 2 Tournament Decides a Residence Hall Conflict

In University, I worked as an RA for two and a half years. An RA, or Resident Assistant, it is a student who lives in the dorms and whose job it is to support the residents and help keep order. On my list of responsibilities was community building, organizing events (both for fun and education) and […]