I don’t consider myself a “gamer,” per se, but I do play a number of games, first and foremost City of Heroes. COH is a MMORPG, (massively multiplayer online role-playing game) similar in scope and function to World of Warcraft, but with super heroes. The game has been around since 2004, and I’ve been playing since 2008. In the game, you create one or more super heroes (playing one at a time) using a variety of components, including their origin, archetype, and primary and secondary power sets. The game boasts perhaps the best costumes in the genre, allowing you to choose from an exhaustive amount of options and colors to visually create the hero that exists in your mind’s eye. I play many different heroes, but one of my favorites is Gentleman Gladiator, a hero who has existed since people first started keeping history. When one Gentleman Gladiator falls in battle, another rises to take his place. The current incarnation of the Gentleman Gladiator is British and was called to service in London during the second World War, after the last Gladiator fell in battle in Nazi Germany. Legend has it that he was a Royal Air Force ace pilot on his deathbed after a skirmish with a Luftwaffe squadron, and was magically healed of his wounds at the moment of his predecessor’s death. He doesn’t appear to have aged a day since then. Gifted with amazing prowess with a blade and a magical shield, the Gentleman Gladiator fights for the opressed, the down-trodden, and the innocent. Nerdy, huh? But I love it!

Lately, I’ve also been playing a lot of Texas Hold ’em on-line poker. While I mostly play for “fake” money, at Party Poker, you can not only play with real money, but also take part in all sorts of online tournaments. For those new to the game (or for those, like me, who want to learn more) there are a copious amount of free tutorials, including how to play, the best hands, poker theory, the psychology of the game, how to play multi-table tournaments, etc. It’s an incredible resource for the poker enthusiast, and you can choose from a multitude of different languages, including Slovenian. I just finished viewing a fascinating tutorial about betting strategies and “stealing blinds,” which is the concept of forcing the opposing players to fold before seeing the flop. There is a lot of great information here that will really help you improve your game and maybe even win some actual green stuff.

Though I despise Farmville and all of the various “Mob” games, I do play a few games on Facebook. Farkle is one of my favorite go-to games when I have a few minutes to kill. Farkle is similar to Yahtzee, though also completely different. The object of Farkle it to score at least 300 points by rolling ones and fives or at least three of any number. If a roll doesn’t produce a usable score, you “Farkle” and lose your turn. I also play The Ville, a game similar to The Sims (some may say too similar) or Yoville. You create a character and build up their house, wardrobe, and net worth. I’m level 42 now, and it goes to 60, so it’s about time to look for something new!

And those are some of the games I play. Next time, I’ll write about writing. I promise!

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From Joe's writing

Her lips sent electricity through my soul, and in an instant I knew that those lips had once upon a time graced the mouth of Monique Giroux, the French exchange student I’d made out with a couple of times in my senior year of high school.

— A Stranger With Your Hair, from Odds and Endings