Monthly Archive:: October 2021

A Reintroduction to the Wild World of Card Collecting

Card fight! Back in May, Target pulled trading cards from its stores after a fight broke out over them at a store in Brookfield, Wisconsin. The trading card industry has been experiencing a surge like nothing it’s seen in years—the demand is so high that PSA, a prominent grading service, closed its doors…

Super Animal Royale Is a Worthy New Entry in the Genre

Combining “battle royale” and “free to play” has the potential to result in a greedy combination filled with venomous microtransactions, but Super Animal Royale manages to avoid such pitfalls and offer a heck of a great time while doing it. If you’ve ever played a battle…

2D Con 2021 Succeeds in a Pandemic Limbo Year

Did you know Minnesota has a professional competitive Call of Duty team? I didn’t, until I saw the table of free swag the Minnesota Røkkr were giving out at the entrance to the arcade at 2D Con. Oh, the things you can learn from conventions that social media algorithms just can’t replace.…

This Week in Geek (10/11/21–10/17/21)

Welcome to This Week in Geek, your guide to events of interest to the Minnesota geek community for the week of Monday, October 11, to Sunday, October 17. Virtual Events 9th Annual Cine Latino What: Movies When: Monday, October 11, through Thursday, October 14 Where: Virtual event Cine Latino is a film…

2D Con Announces 2D Con: Unplugged

The Minneapolis-based summer gaming convention 2D Con has announced a smaller and more relaxed sister event coming in January, focused especially on tabletop gaming and hosted at the Great Wolf Lodge in Bloomington. Dubbed 2D Con: Unplugged and limited to only 300 guests (the website lists 200 registrations…

Venom: Let There Be Carnage Leans into the Buddy-Picture Dynamic

There was potential in 2018’s Venom. It was clear there was something here that wasn’t as present in other Marvel and Marvel-adjacent pictures. It was the scene of Eddie Brock jumping into the restaurant lobster tank and eating live lobster. It was the comedic back-and forth between the cynical Eddie…

Daniel Craig Says Farewell to Bond in No Time to Die

Of the 25 total entries in the franchise, no run of James Bond movies has been more daring, questioning, and brimming with deconstruction as that of the Daniel Craig era. Launching into the role with 2006’s Casino Royale, he reshaped the character for the millennium. And unlike the other James Bonds,…

Axiom Verge 2 Is Another Unique Entry in a Crowded Genre

Axiom Verge was a Metroidvania game that I loved for its unique spin on a classic genre. Though clearly influenced by Metroid, the way it allowed players to mess with the assembly of levels was a new way to explore that I had never seen before. The genre is defined by a large map that the player gradually explores…

This Week in Geek (10/4/21–10/10/21)

Welcome to This Week in Geek, your guide to events of interest to the Minnesota geek community for the week of Monday, October 4, to Sunday, October 10. Virtual Events SocietyX: Making a Home for Houseplants What: Educational When: Monday, October 4, at 10:30 a.m. Where: Virtual event Learn best practices…

You Can Get Your COVID-19 Vaccine or Booster at Twin Cities Con This Weekend

We at Twin Cities Geek are cautiously emerging from our COVID-19 lockdown to exhibit on October 2 and 3 at Twin Cities Con (no relation!), our first convention appearance since the start of the pandemic. The con is requiring proof of vaccination or a negative test dated within 72 hours for admission,…