Color Palette: Villains 01
Tag: Video Games
Geekly News: January 11, 2026, MCU X-Men Reboot Updates
Happy Sunday, Geekly Gang! Kyra Kyle here with the first Geekly News of the year. The year is still ramping up, so we only have a few new releases. We’ll get to the new board games and video games, but first, let’s check in with the MCU and the upcoming Mutant Saga. There’s a lot to discuss.
MCU Reveals Its Blueprint for The X-Men
We’ve been radio silent about the MCU for a while, not because the MCU had few updates, but because those updates didn’t feel large enough. Black Panther had a recasting rumor. We still don’t know for sure if Shuri (Letitia Wright) will remain as the Black Panther beyond Avengers: Doomsday. Heck, a new Black Panther could reveal themselves during the next Avengers film. Ryan Reynolds is working on a new Deadpool or Deadpool and Wolverine movie. Hugh Jackman will return as Wolverine for at least the next Deadpool film and potentially a new Wolverine solo film. But the biggest MCU news may be Marvel’s direction for the X-Men.
According to trusted industry insider Daniel RPK, Marvel will release solo projects for the core X-Men members, leading up to an X-Men team movie. Marvel wants to avoid the errors they made during the Multiverse Saga. Going back to what made people care about the Avengers during the MCU Phase One is a step in the right direction. Unlike Avengers actors (who were in their forties and fifties), Marvel intends to cast younger actors in X-Men roles, even a younger Wolverine. Speaking of Wolverine, rumors suggest he won’t be included in the first X-Men film. That may be for the best.
We still don’t know how Marvel plans to introduce the upcoming X-Men characters. My guess is that we may see more Marvel Studios Special Presentations. Disney/Marvel will want to cash in on The X-Men as soon as they can, and some sources suggest the first MCU X-Men film will release a year or two after Avengers: Secret Wars. That doesn’t leave the studio too much time to introduce these characters. Several 1-hour specials could help.
And speaking of Marvel Studios Special Presentations, the Punisher Special will build off of the second season of Daredevil: Born Again and should also tie into Spider-Man: Brand New Day. This news, added with the rumors of upcoming X-Men character solo projects, makes it appear that the MCU may require viewers to–once again–do some small homework in preparation for upcoming movies and shows. I’m torn. I’ve liked the MCU’s recent trend of not requiring a lot of homework ahead of watching a movie or show. On the other hand, I’d love to see more Special Presentations. And there was a time when Marvel fans didn’t mind doing a little homework. Hopefully, the X-Men will find a good balance.
Yokai Forest Duel Launches on Gamefound
Bring on the games. Two to eight players face off in fast-paced tournaments or league-style matchups. Outsmart your rivals through clever strategy, deduction & bluffing with mind games as you fight for victory in intense best-of-three duels. Be careful though: investing too much time in your current match and your opponent might crush you before you even reach the finals.
Yokai Forest Duel’s concept reminds me of a character-driven version of Challengers!, and if that’s the case, Yokai Forest Duel will be loads of fun. Godot Games claims Yokai Forest Duel can be learned in under three minutes but offers plenty of strategic choices. Again, this reminds me of Challengers!. Yay! The artwork and game graphics differ, and so does the fact that players assume the role of a specific character. I don’t know how any of the characters work, but Yokai Forest Duel features eight different 80-card decks. Yokai Forest Duel’s pledges range from $27 to $74. If you’re interested in Yokai Forest Duel, check out its Gamefound page.
The Last in the Woods Launches on GameFound
Forget comfort. The Last in the Woods is about survival. You’ll have no safety net. As the game’s name suggests, you’re handed a few tools, and you compete against the other players to be the last in the woods. I’m unsure if The Last in the Woods includes direct player versus player combat. Typically, I don’t care for direct combat between players. But I love the idea of a competitive survival game, and if that involves a little PVP combat, I’m all for it.
Variable player powers (like the one for George, who only needs one stone to craft a knife, pictured above) should give The Last in the Woods a little spice. But this isn’t the only element The Last in the Woods uses to shake up the gameplay of each game. Random events and equipment allow for diverse strategies during each playthrough. As of writing this post, The Last in the Woods hasn’t listed their pledge rates. I can’t imagine the game costing more than $40. It could cost as little as $20. We’ll see. If you’re interested in The Last in the Woods, check out its GameFound page.
Code Violet Releases on PlayStation 5
During Code Violet, players uncover the secrets of the Aion colony, who use time travel technology to kidnap women in the past. These women are then used as surrogate mothers in an attempt to save humanity from destruction. I love this hook. Code Violet combines story elements of Children of Men and The Handmaid’s Tale with a time-travel twist. Excellent! Add in the fact that Code Violet is a third-person action-horror game and the spiritual successor to Dino Crisis, and Code Violet may be a PlayStation 5 title to place on your radar.
And that’s a great thing because Code Violet is our only new video game release for this week. I wasn’t kidding when I mentioned 2026 hasn’t yet fully launched. Plenty of great board games and video games are on the horizon. We just may need to wait another week or two. Or even a month or two.
That’s all the geek news we have for you this week. Which MCU project are you the most excited for? Let us know in the comments. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.
Whatcha Playing, Geekly: January 2026
Happy Wednesday, Geekly Gang! Kyra Kyle here. Today, our writers share what they’ve been playing over the past month. We should have plenty of games to share because our Christmas haul of games was immense. I’ll start things off, but don’t be shy with sharing what you’ve been playing over the past month. We’re all part of the Geekly Gang.
Kyra’s Board Games
I heard of Abomination: The Heir of Frankenstein, but never got around to playing it, and honestly, I forgot it existed. I love the theme. Abomination occurs twenty years after the events of Frankenstein. Players assume the role of scientists tasked by the creature to build them a partner. The game pulls few punches. It leans into its subject matter, seldom shying away from gore. Abomination: The Heir of Frankenstein’s choice of Paris as its setting is perfect. I like how execution via the guillotine factors into the gameplay. Yes. Abomination is on the longer side (and some turns can feel repetitive after a handful of rounds), but I can see myself breaking out this game every four to six weeks.
Canvas is another game I knew about and was interested in, but never played, and forgot about it. Despite picking up a 3D printer this year (I may have to share pictures of some of my 3D prints), my Christmas haul of board games rocked. In short, Canvas is gorgeous. Just look at that cover. We may need to do a battle of beautiful board game covers this upcoming March for March Madness. Anyway. Canvas’s core mechanism revolves around adding transparent cards (with painting elements to them) to set backgrounds inside card sleeves. The game’s scoring feels familiar. And while the game’s core mechanism leans toward simplicity, Canvas stays engaging. This is one competitive game I don’t mind losing. I care more about making an awesome painting. And it doesn’t hurt that each completed piece earns a name. I’ll take “Whimsical Nightmare” for zero points, because it’s Whimsical Freaking Nightmare. Metal!
I didn’t know what to expect with Challengers!. Yet another game on my to-be-tried list that made it under the tree. Challengers! accommodates up to eight players. I don’t have a lot of games that do that–outside of party games–and I suppose Challengers! can be considered party game adjacent. Turns and rounds are quick. The game plays out like the classic card game War with plenty of fun twists. Players attempt to capture the flag from their opponents. The last player with the flag–or the last player standing in one of up to four arenas–earns a trophy for the round. The player with the most points after seven rounds wins. The name of Challengers!’s developer, 1 More Time Games, fits. I seldom play just one game of Challengers!. And I can see why Challengers! was a Spiel des Jahres finalist.
I knew little about Hex Effects. It’s a small card game one can find at Barnes & Noble, but Hex Effects surprised me. I love the tarot cards. Not enough games use this card size. They feel great in your hands. And I love the theme. In Hex Effects, players have accidentally hexed themselves and must cure themselves before any other player can do the same. I’ve only played Hex Effects with two or three players. I can only imagine how zany turns can get with more players. Hex Effects plays up to eight players. Another new eight-player game. But I can see Hex Effects dragging with more players. If someone gets close to curing their final Hex, I can see the remaining players ganging up on them. At two and three players (maybe even four) Hex Effects works. This is another game I’ve never only played once during a sitting.
Rolling Realms is the only board game I’m including on this list that I didn’t get at Christmas. But it is yet another game I forgot–only this time, I forgot I owned a copy. Not only is Rolling Realms a great series of roll-and-write mini games (think Yahtzee meets WarioWare), it’s a great marketing tool. Jamey Stegmaier seldom makes a bad board game, and each Rolling Realms mini game is a fun and simplistic roll-and-write variant of a previously published Stonemaier Game. Each turn, one player rolls two standard six-sided dice. Then, players simultaneously plug the numbers on the dice into two of the three mini games. Some game combinations are better (or easier to score) than others, but I love the challenge of getting the highest possible score. And Rolling Realms is a lightning-fast game. Any game with simultaneous play skews toward shorter run time.
I could go on about other board games, but I’ll let Season share which games she got for Christmas. Before I pass this post to Season, I’ll share the one notable video game I began playing again this past month.
Kyra’s Video Game
It has been almost two years since I last played Apex Legends. It’s official. I stink at the game. Despite some gripes with the updated battle pass system and a new in-game currency (both of these are money-grubbing tactics🙄), I enjoy Apex Legends’s core gameplay. Sure. I’ve experienced plenty of lag. Matchmaking is atrocious at times. And the Apex Legends community may have gotten more toxic in the past two years. I encountered plenty of people who were salty that not enough people play the game. Maybe, don’t be jerks.
Then, there’s Respawn itself. They punish people for leaving meaningless games (we’re not talking ranked games with the casual play of mix tape), even when other players cheat, and plenty of players cheat. I’m tempted to report people who pickoff others at respawn points (if you play long enough, you’ll know where people respawn). I don’t know how many times I die before I reload into a game because I have just enough latency for someone else to take advantage. This reminds me of a famous video game design quote: When given the chance, players will optimize the fun out of a game. This quote sums up Apex Legends.
But don’t report anyone who cheats. The devs are so brain dead that they’ll ban the person who reported a player, rather than the actual player who cheated. And still, Apex Legends’s mechanisms hold up years after its initial release. Oddly enough, few legends were new to me despite my nearly two-year hiatus. I have no idea what the meta is, but I’m having fun–whenever everything works correctly, and no, being the beneficiary of cheaters on my team isn’t fun either. I hop into a handful of mixed tape matches most days. I don’t know if I’m back for good. An Apex Legends lobby can be hell on Earth.
Oh. And delete Control from mixed tape. The other two game modes within mixed tape’s rotation (Team Deathmatch and Gun Run) have ten-minute time limits. Control has a thirty-minute time limit. Cue Sesame Street. One of these things is not like the other.
Now, I’m ready to hand over the post to Skye. Let’s see what games she’s been playing over the past month.
Skye’s Video Games
I hope y’all had a good Holiday Season. Mine resulted in quite a few new games for me to play, with Resident Evil 2 being among them. I’ve had a blast (literally and figuratively) running and gunning my way through the virus-riddled streets of Racoon City. Despite my masochistic tendencies to start all my games on the hardest difficulty setting, I somehow managed to make my way through Resident Evil 2. It was a hard-fought but satisfying battle. While Resident Evil 2 is supposed to be played multiple times from both protagonists’ perspectives, I decided to hold off for the time being. I have plenty of other games to get through anyway, such as the next game on my list.
Huh, I suppose it was a very game-sequel Christmas for me. Either way, both Resident Evil and Silent Hill are game franchises I’ve been meaning to play for a while. With Resident Evil, I decided that it’d be fine to skip the first one since it’s not very story-driven and more of a proof-of-concept for the series. In Silent Hill’s case, I wanted to start with the first one. I just couldn’t find a copy of it that was compatible with any of my consoles. Bummer. But Silent Hill 2 is just as good, if not even better than the original. I’ve been on edge every moment. Resident Evil 2 could be tense and thrilling, but Silent Hill 2 is legitimately creepy. There’s fog everywhere, no explanation for anything that’s going on, enemies on the prowl, and all you have is a stick for protection. Hold me.
Hey, hey! Kyra Kyle here again. That’s all our writers have for the video games and board games we’ve played this past month. Let us know what you’ve been playing in the comments. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.
Free-to-Play Video Game Review: Clicker Heroes
Hey, hey, Geekly Gang! I haven’t done a free-to-play video game review in a handful of months and figured I’d give the treatment to a game I played a lot of this past summer, Clicker Heroes. Yes. Clicker Heroes has been out for over a decade, but it’s still available on multiple platforms: PC, mobile, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Clicker Heroes started as a Flash game, so this free-to-play video game has been around for some time. But just because a game is “free-to-play,” does that mean that it’s free-to-play friendly? Let’s subject Clicker Heroes to our review criteria.
Mechanisms: 2/10
Clicker Heroes doesn’t cover new ground, so its mechanisms score suffers as a result. Don’t get me wrong, I like idle games. I played the heck out of AdVenture Capitalist. I did the same with Clicker Heroes. I sunk hundreds of hours into this game, but it doesn’t do anything more than click on heroes, like the game’s name suggests, allow you to upgrade the heroes, and then face the next goofy-looking boss monster.
I do like how you can choose to upgrade your heroes by factors of 1, 10, 25, and 100 levels each time. This makes leveling up lesser heroes like Cid, the Helpful Adventurer (your first Hero), a breeze. Goldfish and Bees will flash on the screen with button prompts, but this does little to shake up the stale gameplay.
Above Image from GameDesigning.Org
Gameplay Loop: 2/10
I know I just said I sunk hundreds of hours into Clicker Heroes, but most of that time I spent AFK (away from keyboard), and that’s by design. Clicker Heroes is one of those games you log in once, maybe twice, a day, check on your heroes, and put the game back to sleep.
You’re encouraged to “ascend” your world, which erases much of your progress, and then you must climb back to where you just were. This is what keeps Clicker Heroes’ gameplay loop score from reaching even lower, because Clicker Heroes’ most engaging gameplay is at the beginning. Waiting for your power-ups to recharge or your characters to defeat enough monsters to upgrade your heroes becomes tedious.
After some time, you can use hero souls (from ascending) and purchase Ancients that can help you progress faster in the game, but once you reach Level 300, you’re given the choice to “transcend” your world. This is another layer of ascending that erases your gilded heroes (upgraded heroes through relics) and your Ancients. So, after “ascending,” you go all the way back to the game’s tedious beginnings.
But you do obtain “Outsiders,” which are supposed to be stronger Ancients, but it takes a long time to accrue enough ancient souls, what you get for “transcending,” before you begin to see a tangible difference. Plenty of websites offer ideas on how to speed this process, but I don’t imagine too many players will sink enough time into learning Clicker Heroes’ math to take full advantage. Clicker Heroes becomes a slog.
Respecting Time: 1/10
Clicker Heroes is an idle game, so it’s supposed to be more of a time waster, and it does indeed do that. I can forget Clicker Heroes exists for several days and return to my heroes. But Clicker Heroes makes upgrading your world so difficult that it goads gamers into either spending hours of research to get the perfect set-up or spending money to make the hurting stop. Is the drop of juice you get worth the tens of billions of squeezes? I don’t think so.
True Cost: 3/10
While Clicker Heroes offers skins for auto-clickers (Why would anyone want that?, but okay), it gains most of its money through the purchase of rubies. Fortunately, players can earn rubies by sending mercenaries on missions, opening relics, and clicking on goldfish. But I still struggled with how to grade Clicker Heroes’ “True Cost” or its “free-to-play friendliness,” because I can see players getting caught in a trap. Heck, I got baited into that same trap: reviving mercenaries.
Every once in a while, one of your mercenaries may perish while on a mission. You can spend rubies to revive a mercenary, but there’s some math (I haven’t done the research) where the mercenary’s level and/or the amount of time they have remaining for a mission dictates the number of rubies you’ll need to revive them. In my experience, reviving mercenaries takes a mountain of rubies. Players have little chance of having enough rubies to revive advanced mercenaries, like the “Demigod +13 level” mercenary pictured above with the low, low revival price of almost 5000 rubies. Looks like time to open another credit card and buy 5000 rubies for about $400.
With one exception, outside of reviving mercenaries, I see little use for spending rubies. That one exception is a one-time damage boost for your Heroes. This costs somewhere between 50-100 rubies, and once you buy it, you’ll have it for the duration of the game. 100 rubies or less is a steal.
But the remaining ruby purchases involve buying gilded Heroes, which will reset after you ascend, some version of speeding up Clicker Heroes’ glacial pace, or buying an auto-clicker. Eh. I almost gave Clicker Heroes an average score for “True Cost.” Reviving mercenaries aside, few of the other ruby purchases can be avoided.
User Interface: 2/10
Clicker Heroes doesn’t have that many menus and submenus, but what is there is confusing and difficult to navigate. I’ve played the game for months and still get turned around, not knowing where I can find certain information. I can’t imagine a noob looking at the screen above and being able to tell what does what. And several buttons have multiple functions, so it’s easy to misclick.
Graphics: 3/10
While simplistic, Clicker Heroes’ graphics are pleasant. I’m grading this one on a little bit of a curve, because Clicker Heroes is over ten years old. But the game hasn’t received too many graphic updates through the years, so I can’t get too crazy with this score.
Audio: 6/10
I had to average Clicker Heroes’ audio score. Clicker Heroes has epic music. It often gets stuck in my head. But the sound effects are as annoying and repetitive as clicking a button thirty-five times a second. Ow! My ears. Those moments when I don’t use an ability and listen to Clicker Heroes’ soundtrack make all the difference for this score.
Aggregated Score: 2.72
Clicker Heroes is an idle game, so don’t expect much. While it has charm, the graphics haven’t been upgraded too much to keep up with modern devices. Clicker Heroes can be a slog if you don’t research how to maximize your Heroes or spend money, and I worry about gamers who fall into the ruby pit of reviving their “good” mercenaries.
Color Palette: Heroes 01
Timeline: Eighties Arcade Games
Matching: Video Game Creators 04
Geekly News: December 7, 2025, Netflix Buys Warner Bros.
Happy Sunday, Geekly Gang! Kyra Kyle here! I haven’t done a Geekly News article in a week or two, so we may have a handful of new releases (board games and video games) to cover. But before we get to new releases, we just received big news. Netflix buys Warner Bros. What? I was surprised by Warner Bros. putting itself up for sale a couple of months ago, and the twist of the streaming giant Netflix purchasing Warner Bros. is shocking.
Netflix Buys Warner Bros.
The Warner Bros. sale escalated quickly. In October 2025, Paramount had offered a large deal (rumored to be around $100 billion) for the entirety of Warner Bros. Discovery. Quick question. How many banks/investors would be needed to raise $100 billion? Anyway, the deal fell through, and Warner Bros. Discovery suggested splitting its various business pieces. This allowed Netflix to enter the bidding.
Netflix was only ever interested in Warner Bros.’ streaming business and studios, and (according to a Hollywood Reporter article) early Friday (December 5, 2025) Netflix purchased Warner Bros.’ streaming business and studios for $82.7 billion, financing $59 billion through banks and investors. After Warner Bros. suggested splitting its assets, the Netflix purchase was less of a surprise. While Netflix hides its viewing numbers from the public, it has shared that Warner Bros.’ titles have dominated Netflix viewing numbers in recent months. Why not buy the studio? It makes great sense from a business perspective. But this merger raises concerns.
The first concern is that mid-sized, legacy studios–like Warner Bros.–cannot survive in the current media landscape. The second is that Netflix never releases films in movie theaters, and if it continues this trend with Warner Bros.’ properties, this could be the death knell for movie theaters. And currently, the European Union questions whether this merger works within its anti-monopoly statutes. There’s a lot to discuss. I’ll try and be brief.
First, it doesn’t look good for mid-sized studios. The media landscape has been mirroring the United States’ wealth gap for well over a decade. You’re either a massive studio or you’re an indie filmmaker. Sorry, Fox. There is no middle class. Netflix’s acquisition of Warner Bros. furthers this trend.
Second, I’ve always enjoyed going to movie theaters. It’s a vibe. But I’ve gone to fewer movies at the theater in the last several years. Call it a COVID hangover. Major cities will most likely have a movie theater or two, but smaller cities may lose theirs. Again, this was already happening. Disney demands more profits than other studios, especially for Star Wars and Marvel movies (making these films less profitable for theaters), while Netflix refuses to release films in theaters at all. We’ll have to wait and see if Netflix will extend its policy to Warner Bros. releases. I’ll be sad if the next Wonder Woman movie never makes it to a theater near me, but at least the DCU will continue. More on that later.
Third, monopolies are on the rise. Okay. Some folks may correct me and say that these are oligopolies (a market structure with few competitors controlling most of the market), not monopolies. True, but semantics. Fewer competitors mean that these companies have more power during negotiations. You know, like Disney demanding more profits from theaters. These negotiations also extend to consumers. While Netflix insists it will not raise its subscription price (yet), I imagine a $59 billion loan might tempt it to raise prices in the not-so-distant future.
What does this mean for the future? Nothing much will change in the next year or two. Famous last words. The DCU’s slate of shows and movies remains the same, as far as we know. I can’t wait for Lanterns in early 2026. I can’t imagine Netflix firing James Gunn or Peter Safran. They’ll stay onboard for the DCU’s next chapter. And there have been some hints that the Snyderverse could return. What?
Netflix has stated that some of its newly acquired intellectual properties (including DC Comics and DC Studios) will allow other creatives to release content for those IPs on Netflix. Fans of the Snyderverse interpreted this statement as the Snyderverse returning. And it makes sense if it does. James Gunn has already okayed a second The Batman movie, despite actively casting a new Batman for the DCU. No. We still don’t know if Gunn has cast anyone as Batman. We’ll keep you posted. Gunn fully embraces the Elseworlds framework. So, multiple interpretations of the same characters can exist. Bring on the Snyderverse.
Ultimately, I can see why Netflix’s acquisition of Warner Bros. has people on edge. I’m concerned, too. We lost one more mid-sized, legacy film studio. That sucks. Thanks for the memories, Fox and Warner Bros.. Netflix insists it won’t stop releasing Warner Bros. films in theaters. Perhaps. Fingers crossed. Netflix also says it won’t raise its monthly subscription cost. But $59 billion is a lot of money to repay. We’ll wait and see.
The Great Library Launches on KickStarter
The dynamic duo of game designer Vital Lacerda and artist Ian O’Toole reunite with The Great Library. I have yet to play a Lacerda original, and The Great Library looks as if it’s right up my alley. Players attempt to reconstruct the fabled Great Library of Alexandria. I adore this theme.
Lacerda is known for his strategic board games, and O’Toole is one of my favorite board game artists. The biggest reason why I’ve hesitated to pick up a Lacerda/O’Toole collaboration is that I fear I may make a wrong move on turn one that’ll come back and bite me. But I may make an exception for The Great Library. Look at the detail in this game. There’s a reason O’Toole is one of my favorite board game artists.
With a little context, one could make out what they can do during a turn. O’Toole is one of the best at graphic interpretations of game rules. The Great Library offers a couple of pledge levels. The base pledge of $118 offers a few add-ons. It’ll ship around September of next year, but gamers could back the advanced copy pledge at $225 and receive The Great Library a month earlier. If you’re interested in The Great Library, check out its KickStarter page.
Queen of Spies Launches on GameFound
I love historical board games. Queen of Spies is based–loosely–on Louise de Bettigries, who is known as the Queen of Spies. The Queen of Spies board game has players organize a network of spies to turn the tide of World War I in Belgium. Bettigries did exactly that during World War I. I love it! A solo game steeped in history should surprise no one with a Salt and Pepper game. This board game publisher has produced some of the best historical games in recent memory: The Voynich Puzzle, Witchcraft!, and Resist!.
Ah! I know little about Queen of Spies’ gameplay, but I can’t wait to get my hands on this game. Gamefound campaigns are notorious for showing little of the game before launch. We also know little–if anything–about Queen of Spies’ pledge levels before its release. If you’re interested in Queen of Spies, check out its Gamefound page.
Byzantion: The Justinian Era Launches on Gamefound
Truth time. I hate Take That as a mechanism, especially when used in a longer game. So, when I saw the following image on Byzantion: The Justinian Era, I cooled on the project.
Everything else looks amazing with Byzantion: The Justinian Era. I’d like more board game companies to include graphics like the one above. This gives players an idea of what kind of game to expect. While I may dislike strong Take That in an hour-plus game, other games may enjoy it. And to be honest, everything else on this graphic looks like it’d be something I’d play, so I could overlook the strong Take That. And why not? While publisher Meeple Pug is new to the gaming space, they’ve had some interesting releases over the past year with Mesopotamia and Dark Blood. Meeple Pug games include stellar miniatures, and Byzantion: The Justinian Era is no exception.
While the image above is most likely from a digital tabletop engine like Tabletop Simulator, one can’t generate files like this without files from the core game. I love the upstart Greek board game publisher Meeple Pug. They stick to their roots, and I can’t wait to see what they release next. If you’re interested in Byzantion: The Justinian Era, check out its GameFound page.
Dragon Eclipse: The Grand Quest Ventures onto GameFound
Dragon Eclipse returns with its first full sequel, Dragon Eclipse: The Grand Quest. Honestly, I haven’t considered too many Awakened Realms games, because they tend to get pricey. Like hundreds of dollars pricey. If that doesn’t give a frame of reference for how expensive Awakened Realms games can get, Awakened Realms is the board game publisher attached to GameFound, the crowdfunding site that thinks board games should be so expensive that games should be able to pay for them in monthly installments. But Dragon Eclipse’s standalone sequel, Dragon Eclipse: The Grand Quest, is affordable. About $70 for the standard edition and $139 for the deluxe.
At $70, I may pick up a copy of Dragon Eclipse: The Grand Quest. From what I hear, Dragon Eclipse plays like a fusion between Gloomhaven and Pokémon. And I dig the storybook feel. Ah! My heart skipped a beat. My biggest issue with Gloomhaven is its setup, and two flipbooks should limit the amount of setup. And I love Pokémon. I may not have grown up with Pokémon–like my children–but I have a soft spot for cute mythical creatures, and Dragon Eclipse: The Grand Quest has plenty of cute mythical creatures. If you’re interested in Dragon Eclipse: The Grand Quest, check out its GameFound page.
Marvel: Cosmic Invasion Releases
Classic video game arcade players, rejoice. Marvel: Cosmic Invasion captures the feel of classic arcade games like The X-Men, The Simpsons, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Side-scroll fight your way through the levels and defeat denizens of the Negative Zone. Not gonna lie. Annihilus (ruler of the Negative Zone) is one of my favorite Marvel villains, and I’m stoked for this game. I didn’t know Marvel: Cosmic Invasion existed before writing this post, but I’m so in.
Let me at those bad guys. As I write this entry, I have no idea what the reviewers will say about this game. Does it matter? If classic side-scroll combat interests you, Marvel: Cosmic Invasion may interest you. Depending on the version you purchase, the cost varies from $40 to $60. Marvel: Cosmic Invasion is available for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, and Xbox Series S/X.
Sleep Awake Releases
I didn’t know Blumhouse made video games. Surprise! Undoubtedly, as a result of Blumhouse’s involvement, Sleep Awake was included in the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival. How many video games are included in a prestigious film festival? Not many. I don’t know much about Sleep Awake other than people disappear in their sleep, and it’s up to you to save the last remaining people on Earth. From the designer of the stellar Spec Ops: The Line, Cory Davis, and featuring the music of Robin Finck of Nine Inch Nails, Sleep Awake blurs the lines between dream and reality.
Like Marvel: Cosmic Invasion, I knew little about this game, but the more I learn, the more I want to see more of Sleep Awake. Sleep Awake is available on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox Series S/X.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond Releases
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond needs no introduction. The Metroid series is one of Nintendo’s greatest, and we haven’t seen a new entry in this series in over a decade. No. I don’t count Metroid Prime: Federation Force, released for the Nintendo 3DS. Handhelds are a separate animal. The last main console release for a Metroid game came in 2007, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption for the Wii. The Wii!
And I’m grateful that Metroid Prime 4: Beyond will be available for the Nintendo Switch as well as the Nintendo Switch 2. I can hold off upgrading my Switch. I picked up my Switch late in its cycle. I deserve to have the occasional high-profile game. And Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is certainly a high-profile Nintendo release. Let’s hope it lives up to the hype.
Octopath Traveler 0 Releases
Okay. Another truth time. I picked up Octopath Traveler for the Nintendo Switch several years ago and have yet to play it. Eek! The series looks amazing. Sure, Octopath Traveler features pixel art, and even though I have written for a website called The Pixels (they tended to give every pixel art game a baseline 8 out of 10 for graphics that I’d call 4 out of 10), I don’t automatically say a game is gorgeous because it uses pixel art. But look at Octopath Traveler’s pixel art. It’s stunning. Look at that detail. It’s delicious.
I love the graphics, and from what I hear, Octopath Traveler has an amazing story to match these graphics. Yes! Octopath Traveler 0 is a prequel to the original game. While I’m not a fan of prequels, I can enjoy them, given the proper context. I don’t yet know what the context is for Octopath Traveler 0, but we’ll keep you informed. What I do know is that Octopath Traveler 0 features town-building gameplay. What? Players may construct 500 buildings on the Nintendo Switch 2 and 250 buildings on the original Nintendo Switch. This is yet another title I love that gets an original Nintendo Switch release, despite the older system’s limitations. But players may also pick up a copy of Octopath Traveler 0 on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
That’s all the Geek News we have for this week. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.
Whatcha Playing, Geekly? December 2025
Happy Wednesday, Geekly Gang! Kyra Kyle here! Today, our writers share the games (video games and board games) they’ve been playing over the past month. Feel free to share which games you’ve been playing this past month, because we’re all part of the Geekly Gang. I’ll start off this post with what I’ve been playing this past month.
Kyra’s Video Games
I received Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles two weeks ago. Thank you, Season. And it didn’t take me long to finish the game and earn the platinum PlayStation trophy. Oh, yeah!
I’ve played most–if not every–rendition of Final Fantasy Tactics. It’s one of my favorite video games of all time, and Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles does a fantastic job of updating this classic. Let’s begin with some of Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles’ best new additions.
It’s easier than ever to see turn order during combat. Character portraits line the left-hand side. Numbers show whose turn is coming next. When you choose an action that requires any charge time, like a spell or jumping as a Dragoon or aiming as an Archer, you’ll see where your action would fall in turn order, should you choose to pick it. I love this update. In an instant, I can see if I want to commit to an action or not. While many of the charge times have been reduced (making some classes like Dragoon and its jump viable and borderline overpowered), the Archer’s aim ability still takes too long. Better luck next time, Archers.
I went into Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles knowing I would enjoy the game’s combat (and mix-matching job abilities, like dual-wielding monks), but I didn’t anticipate how this version would step up the game’s story. I always liked Final Fantasy Tactics’ story, but with The Ivalice Chronicles’ “State of the Realm” interactive map, I can better follow the story. If you’ve ever struggled to keep Final Fantasy Tactics’ political intrigue clear, The Ivalice Chronicles may be the perfect edition. Throw in some great voice acting–by whom my spouse dubs as out-of-work Shakespearean actors–and Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles elevates a story that may resonate more today than when the original was first released in 1997.
Even with all the great additions Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles brings to the table, I do have some gripes. I loved the War of the Lions’ cutscenes. The art is unique and has an ethereal quality. These cutscenes are available in Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles, but gamers need to surf submenus to find them. I don’t think many gamers will do this. I would prefer an option to insert these cutscenes during my playthrough. This could be included in a simple update. Speaking of simple updates, Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles brings back all original unlockable characters and jobs. I’d like the game to include all the unlockable characters and jobs from every version, making Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles a definitive version.
I could go on with other nitpicks. I love the fast-forward option, but I’d like it as a toggle button, not as something I need to press and hold down, and there are a handful more, but Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles does more things right than things wrong. If you’ve been holding off playing this classic, Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles is the closest to a definitive version of the game. And I’ve heard that Square Enix may release a sequel if Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles does well. Fingers crossed!
Auto Chess just had a major update (November 30, 2025, literally a few days ago). When this update posts, I’ll still be trying to understand all the balance changes. In short, I’m not enjoying this new update. Egersis is eliminated from the normal unit pool, but you can still gain Egersis units through a relic. That’s kind of good. Unfortunately, a couple of unit types have gained similar abilities to Egersis, so effectively, Auto Chess has quadrupled down on the game mechanism I hate. Great!
Certain units (like the Hill Clan Swordsman or the God of War) would dominate Auto Chess lobbies in the early to mid-game before this patch. After the patch, these units may have gained more power. Again, I haven’t had much time to play this new major patch, but there are far too many match-ups where I don’t know why I lost. That’s bad. I should at least know why I’m losing. Maybe I have inferior units or poor synergies or fewer units in general. But during the early stages of this latest patch, I’ve lost to opponents who had no synergies (poor or not), cheaper units, and fewer units. Evidently, my seven great units with six good synergies can’t defeat a team of four weenies with no synergies. I’m left scratching my head with Auto Chess.
Maybe I didn’t add the correct weenie.
Kyra’s Board Games
This past month, I’ve played board/card games I forgot I enjoyed. I rediscovered some favorites. The first of these favorites is Rüdiger Dorn’s Las Vegas. I remembered shockingly little about Las Vegas’s scoring rules. Lol! Players roll standard six-sided dice, take turns placing all the dice of one number on one of six casinos (numbered 1-6, corresponding to the numbers players can roll). Whoever has the most dice in a casino wins the pot. The player with the most money after four rounds wins.
And that’s how to play–for the most part. Las Vegas has simple to learn rules but offers plenty of strategy. After playing Las Vegas for the first time in years, I remembered why I love it so much. It’s a game I love bringing on road trips. In fact, I believe I brought Las Vegas to my Vegas trip almost ten years ago. Who needs to gamble when you can play Las Vegas?
Wolfgang Kramer’s 6 nimmt! is another classic I played this past month. I’m going to take this moment to thank one of our game night regulars (Kenneth) for remembering how to play Las Vegas and 6 nimmt!. 6 nimmt! was another game where I could remember how the game was played but forgot to explain specific rules or edge cases. In 6 nimmt!, points are bad. You want the fewest points. Small bullheads (shown in the middle of the top and bottom of each card) score players points at the end of each round. Every round, players are dealt 10 cards. You will be playing all cards. Players simultaneously pick one card to play and then, in number order, play those cards to rows. If a row gets filled (has five cards and you would then play a sixth card), you claim all five cards in that row and start a new row with the sixth card you played.
6 nimmt! is another easy to learn game with plenty of strategy. Who am I kidding? 6 nimmt! is pure chaos. You may attempt to play a card, squeezing it into a tight window of numbers, only to find someone else played a card that torpedoed your plans. And that’s the fun.
There are equal parts strategy and luck with 6 nimmt!. Are you the least bullheaded?
Those are the games I played this past month. Let’s see what Season has been playing.
Season’s Video Games
I’ve been getting into Fallout lore lately, so I decided to try the first Fallout game. I know Wasteland came before Fallout, but I’ve yet to check it out.
Fallout was a different experience from other games of the franchise after Bethesda took over. I like the isometric movement. It’s definitely reminiscent of earlier computer games. I get distracted easily in video games, so side questing and taking my time to explore the world is what I’m used to. I wasn’t anticipating being put on a timer to find the water chip. I think this adds to Fallout’s replayability. If I don’t get to everything, I’ll definitely play again.
What have you been playing, Skye?
Skye’s Video Games
Mass Effect is my newest video game obsession. “Obsession” is the right term. Mass Effect suddenly fell into my lap. I’m lucky enough to have a copy of the Legendary Edition, which contains the three games from the original Mass Effect trilogy. I’m fully submerged in the Mass Effect rabbit hole, and I don’t expect to be out until mid-2026. Especially since, if I really like a game, I’ll grind until I get all three Platinum Trophies. Wish me luck!
Skye’s Board Games
I played Castle Panic during this week’s game night, and it was a fun and engaging experience. I enjoyed the amount of planning and collaboration involved, which made each of our team members feel important. A lot of what happens in Castle Panic is discussion about which threats are the most pressing and how to deal with them. In a way, Castle Panic felt like we were all military commanders deliberating in the war room. Despite the good experience I had with Castle Panic, I can see how the game can turn sour. Castle Panic could suffer from Alpha Gamer Syndrome (one player making decisions for everyone). Remember to stay calm, work together, and get rid of those monsters. The kingdom is at stake!
And I’m hungry now. Pizza Roles is a party game that leans hard into its premise. The game is quick and entertaining. While I don’t see myself regularly playing Pizza Roles, I’d be happy to argue with a large group of friends about which toppings do and don’t belong on pizza. In a lighthearted way, of course. Since Pizza Roles can be played competitively or cooperatively, one can tailor the game to almost any friend group. Just make sure you order pizza.
Hey, hey! Kyra Kyle here again! Those are the games (video games and board games) our writers have played over the past month. Let us know what you’ve been playing in the comments, Geekly Gang. Thank you for reading, and wherever you are, I hope you’re having a great day.
Cozy Video Game Review: Dorfromantik
Inspired by tile-laying board games, Dorfromantik offers the relaxing gameplay of creating a pastoral landscape of trees, villages, water, railroads, and fields. Designed by four German and Swiss students (Timo Falcke, Sandro Heuberger, Luca Langenberg, and Zwi Zausch) in a game design master’s program at HTW Berlin, Dorfromantik is a peaceful, minimalist game that lives up to the title, cozy. Hey, hey! Kyra Kyle here. We’re back with another cozy video game review. Even though Dorfromantik has crossed over into an award-winning board game, we’ll be discussing the equally stellar indie video game by Toukana Interactive. Get ready to build a gorgeous landscape with Dorfromantik.
Game Mechanisms: 7/10
Dorfromantik takes a simple concept of tile laying and does it exceptionally well. I’d wager the idea of Dorfromantik stemmed from playing board games like Carcassonne. Dorfromantik’s game mechanisms lend themselves well to board games, so there is an excellent, cooperative board game by the same name. Sometimes, you don’t need an elaborate set of mechanisms to make a game sing. Sometimes, you just need to do a simple concept well, and Dorfromantik does just that.
Chain similar land types with each other to gain points and finish goals (that the game presents) to score even more points and to increase the number of tiles you have to draw from. Dorfromantik can be played competitively–there is a leaderboard–or you could watch the countryside bloom as you place tiles. Dorfromantik‘s ability to make me invested in a landscape reminds me of another cozy video game we covered, Terra Nil.
Gameplay Loop: 9/10
Whether you play Dorfromantik to get the highest score possible or casually place tiles and find your Zen, you can’t deny Dorfromantik’s gameplay loop. Once you get started, you won’t build just one pastoral scene. You’ll want to go farther with your next run, reveal new tiles like the windmill (pictured above), or watch your boats and trains traverse the landscape. And yes, the scene above is animated. It’s so neat watching your creation come to life.
Because the tiles can come out in different orders, no two scenes in Dorfromantik are exactly the same. This adds spice to the simplistic gameplay. Dorfromantik is an easy game to get into, but a difficult one to master if you want to climb that leaderboard. Or you could be like me. I just want to discover new tiles and watch my landscape get bigger and more diverse. I’m so glad Dorfromantik has been ported over to the Switch. It’s the perfect game to play on the go.
Narrative/Storytelling: 1/10
I should’ve excluded this element, but I didn’t with other video games that had little to no story, so narrative/storytelling is staying in the lineup. Let us know what you’d replace this element with for games that have little to no story. Dorfromantik has no story to speak of, so it receives a low mark in this category.
User Interface: 10/10
Dorfromantik has a stripped-down but effective user interface. The tiles feel great to manipulate. They almost feel like placing a board game’s tiles. The picture above shows how Dorfromantik will highlight the spaces where a tile can be placed. Gamers can only place the tile on top of the draw pile. Dorfromantik does an excellent job of not only showing where a tile can be placed, the callouts show where you can gain extra points, and whenever you hover a tile over a space and begin rotating it, Dorfromantik will make the matching tiles shimmer.
Dorfromantik’s elegant and minimalistic user interface makes it accessible. Like I said, Dorfromantik may use a familiar board game mechanism in tile placement, but every element Dorfromantik adds is handled with care and purpose. I had to give Dorfromantik top marks for user interface.
Graphics: 8/10
Dorfromantik has excellent graphics for a top-down isometric video game. The art style works well, and I appreciate the small details. Look at the clock towers, cottages, and windmills in the image above. Like I mentioned before, Dorfromantik uses small animations to denote movement. The boats (if you’ve unlocked the boats) move along the waterways. Smoke puffs from chimneys. While all of this is great, Dorfromantik does venture into cartoony graphics.
These cartoony graphics work well when one zooms out and sees more of the landscape, so I understand why Dorfromantik chose a minimalistic, cartoon-like art style. Players are meant to take a macro view of their village. But I dock Dorfromantik a point or two for graphics because the game doesn’t quite hold up on closer inspection.
Audio: 7/10
Dorfromantik’s music exudes the concept of a cozy game. I’ve listened to Dorfromantik’s soundtrack to fall asleep. It’s that soothing. Unfortunately, the game’s sound effects detract from this calm. The clacking and clicking of the tiles often takes me out of the game’s vibe. I would’ve preferred more pastoral sound effects accompanying the mechanical sounds of turning and placing tiles on the board. Yes, I could reduce the sound effects’ volume or turn them off altogether, but that would eliminate half of Dorfromantik’s audio. We’re grading the game’s entire audio. If we were only grading Dorfromantik’s soundtrack, its audio would score much higher.
Replay Factor: 10/10
Dorfromantik has an addictive gameplay loop, so the replay factor is through the roof. I can see myself playing Dorfromantik on my Switch while waiting in line. Heck, I’m surprised Dorfromantik hasn’t yet made it to the mobile game space. I could see plenty of people playing Dorfromantik on their phones. It may be an even better game for smartphones. The Switch tends to be a game’s first foray into mobile gaming. Fingers crossed that this cozy game classic makes it onto more mobile devices.
Aggregated Score: 8.6
Sure, I gave Dorfromantik a story/narrative score, but I’m not including that score with its aggregated score. Sometimes you need a cozy video game to find your Zen. Dorfromantik is a great game for that. I’m hoping more gamers will have the opportunity to play Dorfromantik on other platforms soon.
jkgeekly.com 