The only reason I bought my PS4 was because of Insomniac’s Marvel’s Spider-Man game. This game was so good. I played through Miles Morales earlier this year, which allowed me to reminisce about playing through Marvel’s Spider-Man. I have been a big fan of Insomniac ever since, and when I saw they announced Marvel’s Spider-Man #2 plus a whole new game about Wolverine, I was ecstatic. I wanted to summarize my thoughts on both games.

After watching the Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 trailer, my first reaction was how much of a presence Venom will have in this game. Venom is one of the most well-known Spider-Man villains. If there’s any villain to incorporate into a game to generate buzz, Venom is it. There was an after-credit scene in the first Marvel Spider-Man game, which leads into who Venom could be. I won’t discuss this here because it’s a major spoiler. This trailer provided just enough without feeling like it’s giving away the entire game.

Marvel’s Wolverine

This trailer was quite short. It shows a blood-stained Wolverine in a bar after he’s fought many men. His knuckles are bloodied, as he’s sitting having a bourbon or a whiskey. It’s been a day. I’m surprised it’s taken this long for Wolverine to have his own game. I imagine this game will be more violent and gritty if Insomniac is staying true to the character. I think there’s a lot of potential in turning this into the ultimate Wolverine game.

I’m still utilizing my PS4 as I haven’t upgraded to the PS5 yet. Both games are slated to be released in 2023, which is probably when I will buy a PS5. For now, I will continue to extend the life of my beloved PS4 as I try to wait patiently for both games to be released.

As someone who collects board games, it’s normal for me to have an unwrapped board game waiting to be played. My brother gave me Mysterium two years ago as a birthday present, and until last weekend, I never opened it. I was determined to finally open this game, especially because it’s going to be Fall / Halloween season soon. Mysterium is one of my favorite games I have ever played, and as someone who’s a big fan of Clue, Mysterium adds a supernatural element to the classic game.

Mysterium is a collaborative game, meaning all players will win or lose. Mysterium is set in the 1920s, with the characters playing as psychics performing a seance. One of the characters will play as the ghost who will display visions to relay to the psychics who killed him at this mansion twenty years before. The objective of the game is for the psychics to guess correctly what the ghost is trying to say in seven in-game hours. The ghost wants the psychics to guess correctly, so the murder can be solved. If the psychics don’t guess correctly within the seven in-game hours, everyone loses as their spiritual connection to the ghost is severed.

This is where the inspiration for Codenames comes in. The ghost has vision cards that the ghost will play in front of psychics to try and get the psychics to guess the correct person, location, or object. In all the games our group played, I was always in the psychic role. The toughest part is trying to put the pictures together to then make a correct guess. Both roles, whether they be the psychic or the ghost, are challenging for different reasons.

One of the major highlights of playing Mysterium is the art. The art on the vision cards was ethereal and mysterious. Each card fits into the setting of the game. The vision cards had so many artistic details to them that I wasn’t sure what was important on the card. Another highlight was the level of detail in the components of the game. On the front page of the rules, each psychic character has their own back story, which I loved. I changed characters throughout our playthroughs to have someone different to play as.

In our three total games, our group only won one game. In Mysterium, there are three different difficulties. Our group played on easy, and that still was tough. I like playing tougher, collaborative board games because when our group wins on a greater difficulty, it’s so satisfying. In future gameplay, I want to try playing on the medium or the hard difficulty.

Mysterium was a blast to play! Everyone in our group had a fun time learning the game, setting it up, and making the guesses. Being a fan of both Codenames and Clue, I felt Mysterium embodied both.

I’m on a Nancy Drew video game streak! I played this game right after playing through Nancy Drew: Alibi in Ashes. I was looking for a creepier game with more jump scares. I still haven’t found a Nancy Drew game that’s scarier than Ghost of Thornton Hall. Nancy Drew: Message in a Haunted Mansion wasn’t one of my favorite games, as I found the gameplay convoluted at times.

In this adventure, Nancy Drew is asked to come to a mansion outside the San Francisco area. As she’s staying at the mansion, she interviews Rose Green, who plans on turning the mansion into a bed and breakfast. The mansion has been plagued by several accidents, which worries Rose. Rose has asked Nancy to help investigate as she’s on the verge of abandoning her efforts. Nancy is always willing to help, and she begins exploring the mansion to uncover what’s going on.

In this game, Nancy has to rely on time. Each suspect she can interview is only available at the mansion for a certain time. This allows Nancy a limited window to interview or explore certain areas. Once I memorized the schedule, this didn’t become an issue. I did mention how the gameplay was a bit convoluted. Some of the next steps in the game didn’t unlock until I talked to everyone. For example, I was told to find this man’s briefcase, and I couldn’t find it in the room. It wasn’t until I had a dialogue with one of the other characters that, when I re-entered the room, the man’s briefcase was there to unlock. Without the help of a walkthrough, I would have been stuck.

I was hoping for more jump scares in this one. There was a ghostly figure wandering around the mansion and creaks as Nancy ascended the stairs, but that was about it. There also weren’t any mini-games either. The mini-games are fun, and I find they often make a Nancy Drew game memorable. I felt this game was a bit boring to play at times.

Overall, I’m glad I played this, as my goal is to complete all the Nancy Drew games; however, this one wasn’t the best. It was a bit boring, and the gameplay left me feeling stuck at times, where I felt I needed to use a walkthrough to get through the game. The next Nancy Drew game on my list is Nancy Drew: Shadow at the Water’s Edge.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is devouring all my gaming time. I’m still nowhere near done with decorating my island, although I wanted to play other video games simultaneously. I wanted to play a video game with a start and an endpoint. This led me back to Steam to play through another Nancy Drew game. The latest Nancy Drew game I finished was Nancy Drew: Alibi in Ashes.

Alibi in Ashes starts with Nancy receiving a note to go to the town hall in River Heights. As she investigates why she was sent there, she’s locked in a room where a fire starts. After escaping the town hall, she’s questioned by the local police, leading to her arrest. Alibi in Ashes is a unique Nancy Drew game, as Nancy spends the majority of her time in jail. As the player, Nancy can switch to either her boyfriend Ned or her friends Bess and George. Nancy can send her allies to various parts of River Heights to look for clues, play mini-games, and gather evidence.

I liked being able to switch between Nancy’s friends. I found myself relying on Ned for the most part because certain situations required him to talk to the NPCs. While I liked being able to play as Nancy’s friend, I thought the mechanics could have been better. To switch characters, Nancy would call her friends. However, I couldn’t switch from Ned to Bess, for example, I would use Ned to call Nancy, who then had to call Bess to switch the game to her. If they are all friends, why couldn’t I seamlessly switch between Nancy to Ned, to Bess without having to go through Nancy? I didn’t think this was a big deterrent to playing the game, although it was a bit of a nuisance at times.

Each Nancy Drew game is known for its puzzles or mini-games. There was a fun antique box mini-game that could be played in the antique store in River Heights. The box opens with various numbers on the screen. In the game, you have to click numbers 1 – 41 at a certain time. I think I spent about thirty minutes playing this mini-game over and over again. Out of all the Nancy Drew games I have played, this mini-game was the most enjoyable and addictive.

Towards the end of the game, it’s revealed early on who is the one who framed Nancy. The climax of the game is having to prevent the suspect from revealing incriminating information about Nancy. I enjoy the Nancy Drew games, where it’s more of a jump scare of who the evil villain is. It didn’t distract from the game, but I felt a little let down with the villain reveal.

Nancy Drew: Alibi in Ashes is a solid Nancy Drew outing. It’s a fun take on the other Nancy Drew games by allowing other playable characters and being able to navigate around Nancy’s hometown of River Heights. Out of the thirty-three Nancy Drew games out there to play, I only have twenty-eight more to go!

Last year, it seemed like everyone was playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons. I was envious as I adored Animal Crossing: New Leaf on my 3DS. One of the highlights of my sophomore year of college was playing New Leaf on campus in between classes. I wanted to purchase a Switch, but never ended up going through with it. Recently, my work had a contest with a prize of accruing Amazon gift cards. Now felt like the perfect time to purchase my Nintendo Switch with my remaining Amazon gift cards.

I purchased the Animal Crossing: New Horizons Switch. I could have gotten the regular Switch for a better price; however, part of the reason I was buying the Switch in the first place was to play Animal Crossing: New Horizons, so I felt like it was fitting to pay extra for this version. My Switch arrived on Thursday, but I didn’t want to play it until the weekend. I named my island MaplePeaks. As a side note, all my town names have never been creative. I didn’t want to think forever on a perfect town name, so I came up with something generic. I’m still new to the game, so I don’t want to show off my island just yet.

Besides Animal Crossing, my fiancé wants to play The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Purchasing the Switch was a great idea for both me and my fiancé to play games we don’t have any other way to play.

While I may be late to the Animal Crossing: New Horizons party, please leave your friend code down below, so I can visit your island!

I decided to participate in another Seriously Geeky Sunday theme. If you missed my previous Seriously Geeky Sunday post, this was created by Heather at Just Geeking By. Every Sunday, Heather comes up with a theme. The first theme I participated in was centered around comic books; today’s theme is Science Fiction. This prompt had no questions; instead, it allowed for freedom in what to write. I decided to create a list of science fiction-themed board games that I love to play.

Cultists & Cthulhu

Cultists & Cthulhu is an easy game to teach people how to play. I like this game because of my love for all things Cthulhu, and the dice rolling puts players on the same level. Some board or card games give an advantage to those who have played the game before due to knowing the game’s overall strategy. Cultists & Cthulhu with the added dice component makes for a different game every time.

Star Trek Ascendancy

Playing Star Trek Ascendancy makes me want to become a Star Trek fan. This game is a bit more complex as there’s a lot more to keep track of. I liked being able to develop my faction and travel around space, attacking other players. Since this game takes more time to play, I would recommend devoting a whole day to learning the rules and seeing who wins in intergalactic domination.

Doctor Who: Time of the Daleks

Doctor Who: Time of the Daleks is cooperative, meaning the players work together to achieve a common goal. Cooperative board games are some of my favorite types of games to play, especially if I’m not in the mood for something competitive. This game can be challenging with relying on dice to pass certain challenges. I always play as the tenth or eleventh doctor; however, expansions have come out that feature other doctors. This is always a blast to play.

Pandemic

I haven’t been able to play Pandemic for a bit because it felt too real. I like Pandemic because it’s also cooperative. It’s easy to learn, and there are ways to make the game more difficult. I like how Pandemic is somewhat educational, teaching the geography of major global cities and the various roles individuals play in trying to stop a pandemic. This may not be considered science fiction, but oh well, I already included this game on my list.

This turned into a longer post than I had expected! Let me know what science fiction board games you are playing in the comments, as I’m always looking for recommendations! Another shout-out to Heather for putting on Seriously Geeky Sundays. It’s nice to have a prompt, so I don’t have to brainstorm what to write.

I’m back with another Nancy Drew game review. I still have four other Nancy Drew games I purchased that I haven’t played through yet. I tend to play each Nancy Drew game on Sundays because I usually have a couple of hours I can spend playing the game before I go to bed. Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill is the first installment of the franchise. While Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill was released in 1998, the game was remastered in 2010 and released on Steam. This was another fun outing, but it’s a bit clunky as the Nancy Drew video game formula hasn’t been established yet.

Nancy Drew visits her Aunt Eloise in Florida. Her aunt is the librarian at a high school, and Nancy is looped into investigating the murder of one of the high school students, Jake Rogers. Since Nancy is in high school, it’s assumed she can get information from the students. Nancy is introduced to the staff, several students, and works with an undercover detective to gather evidence as to who murdered Jake. From Nancy’s investigations, it seems every person Nancy interacts with would have a reason to want Jake dead. Who killed Jake, and will Nancy be able to solve the mystery without putting herself in danger?

The answer to the above question is no. There are several instances in this game where Nancy can die if she doesn’t solve the puzzle in time. This includes being trapped in a boiler room and accidentally setting off a gas explosion in a diner. Neither puzzle was tough to solve, and while I died at least once, I was able to figure out the puzzle quickly. There is one broad puzzle that encompasses the entire game, which involves searching for periodic elements Jake has hidden on student boards. The puzzles were fun to solve, and it helps to have a notebook handy while playing through the game.

I will say, this game has a twist that I didn’t see coming. There’s a videotape Nancy discovers that illustrates who could have been involved with Jake’s murder. I had my mouth open for a little bit because it genuinely came out of left field. This bad guy suddenly appears behind Nancy, which gave me a bit of a scare.

Although this was a fun game, I wouldn’t start with Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill first. While it’s the first game released in chronological order, it’s a bit clunky, and the graphics, while remastered, are still not the greatest. I would recommend trying Nancy Drew: The Haunted Carousel or Nancy Drew: Ghost of Thornton Hall first before starting this game. I think I liked this game more because I had played other Nancy Drew games first.

Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill was worth playing through. Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill can be purchased and downloaded on Steam.