Geek Culture – Page 2 – EightBitBlonde

After re-watching The Office for the 36th time, I decided to give something new a shot when The Dragon Prince premiered on Netflix earlier last month on September 14th (my birthday coincidentally). Don’t worry, this review will be spoiler-free so don’t be scared to read on.

So, if you haven’t seen the series advertised anywhere: The Dragon Prince is an all-ages fantasy series that explores the story of a world torn in two over magic, a tenuously-held peace between races and the friendship that forms between an Elven assassin and the human princes she’s sent to kill as they try to right the wrongs of their peoples’ pasts.

(via IMDB)

Brought to you by Wonderstorm, a new creative team founded by some of the key players behind Avatar: The Last Airbender, The Dragon Prince is their first kick at the can as a new studio. It looks like they’re in it for the long haul too, with a video game already in development. Definitely intriguing, given the team also consists of some ex-game developers from studios like Riot Games and Naughty Dog.

Continue reading “Worthy of Royalty – Review of The Dragon Prince” →

Gaming Goodness, Xbox Lifestyle

Xbox Game Pass is Making Me a Better Gamer

September 12, 2018October 4, 2018 Alicia 'EightBitBlonde' Alexandra

I’m a bit of a commitment-phobe when it comes to games. So much so that it’s become an ongoing joke with my community that I “change games more often than I change my underwear”. I think it’s partly because I’m a variety streamer but also because I’m just really… fickle about how I spend my time and I’m hyper aware of how expensive gaming as a hobby can be.

When it comes to spending 60 dollars or more on a AAA release I don’t usually leave my comfort zone of fantasy RPGs and sci-fi FPSs. If I try something new and it doesn’t click, I find myself feeling bad for not sinking hundreds of hours into a game I paid full-price for. It seems kind of silly but I’m the first to admit that there’s a certain amount of guilt that comes along with one’s backlog growing as you add a barely played game to your pile of shame.

So, when Xbox announced Game Pass, a Netflix-esque digital library of over 100 games with a low, monthly fee of $9.99 USD, it felt like the perfect way to get over my gaming hangups and try something new.

In the 17 months that I’ve had Game Pass, it has let me explore games that I once considered out of my depth or uninteresting with little to no risk. I download something, I give it a shot and if it doesn’t catch my attention: I uninstall it. It’s that simple (and my pile of shame remains the same size).

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General Geekery, Out and About

A Day in the 16th Century @ Bristol Renaissance Faire

September 6, 2018August 11, 2019 Alicia 'EightBitBlonde' Alexandra

My husband and I went on an overnight trip this weekend to Kenosha, Wisconsin. It was a special trip for us as its the first time we’ve been able to travel since getting married but, more importantly, it was our first ever visit to a renaissance faire.

Bright and early on Saturday morning, amid the pouring rain and mud, we made our way to the Bristol Renaissance Faire. (After a pit stop for rain-appropriate shoes.)

20180901_132837 — (via Alicia Alexandra)

As corny as it sounds, stepping through the gates of Bristol feels like stepping through to another world. I’ve always imagined renaissance faires as migratory events, “tents in a field” sort of deal and some of them may be like that, but Bristol completely surprised me. It’s an entire city. A living, breathing, permanent construction with storybook-like architecture, landscaping, winding paths, and water features. We spent a lot of time marveling at the sheer “realness” of everything around us.

Continue reading “A Day in the 16th Century @ Bristol Renaissance Faire” →