From Aliens to Zombies: Completing the Video Game Challenge

Apologies for taking time between posts to blog (perhaps I'm slacking on this "hobby" and not in a good way), but life gets in the way and video games get in the way of life.

I've spent the last three weeks playing my way through video games to complete my video game hobby challenge.  If you remember from my last post, I had been introduced to a kid's video game (although hilarious for adults) called "Doki-Doki Universe."  I had learned how to turn on the console, use the controller, and actually play the game.  Once I had finished all of the planets challenges, I was at a loss for what to do with my extra time.  I turned my energy into zombies.

My boyfriend and I are big fans of the TV Show, "The Walking Dead," with Sunday night date nights to watch the show (even when we were suffering through long distance... thank you, Skype).  So I was super psyched when I found a video game of "The Walking Dead" to play on my iPad.  This is available on other gaming consoles, but the fact that I could freak people out on my daily commute to and from work by killing zombies on my iPad was intriguing.

The best part of this TellTale Game is that you are playing a character and get to make choices that effect the game and where it goes.  There are several chapters that lead you to meet new characters and scenarios, but how you react to the game decides what gets thrown at you next.  While it was fun the first time to play through as "myself," choosing what I think I would choose in a zombie apocalypse, it was even more fun to choose to play as an upstanding man who always tells the truth and wants to make everyone happy and fair with his choices, or even an asshole who keeps to himself and refuses to let anyone get in his way.  Either way you play, the game changes based on your reactions and that keeps you on your toes.  Granted, there were gross parts to this game that made me cringe and question why I would be playing such a game, but I loved feeling like I could be part of one of my favorite TV shows.  I'm excited because I was introduced to this game in time for me to download their expansion packs (400 Days and Season 2) which were recently released.

This alone would have completed my challenge of playing through 2 video games to try them out, but I couldn't get enough zombies and had to play another game that thankfully reduced nightmares, Plants versus Zombies.

Much less frightening than "The Walking Dead," "Plants vs. Zombies" allows you to create defense against your house with plants.  This strategy game is addicting, as my sister and even my mother (yes the one afraid I was dating someone from The Big Bang Theory), became addicted as well, playing for hours at a time.  Luckily I had a few road trips to get through the entire game, but my favorite part is that there are mini games and puzzles that you can play to keep the game going once you've played through all the levels.  Similar to "The Walking Dead" I'm excited that a sequel was just released for me to continue my addiction.

So now that I've completed my first hobby (2 video games played through to completion), I have to say that I enjoyed my video gaming experience.  I know it wasn't as intense as the games that typical gamers may play, but it showed me that when I go into Game Stop with my boyfriend, I see games that now interest me instead of bore me.  I'm not sure that this will be my one hobby that I consistently stick with and proudly state when asked "What are your interests and hobbies?," but I also don't see me giving up on them altogether either.

Feel free to comment below - I'd love to hear from you!
Any other video game suggestions for me?
Even more importantly, what hobby should I try out next?

When you date a self-proclaimed geek...

I met my boyfriend almost 10 years ago in college.  He was handsome, sweet, and overall a hilarious guy that was fun to hang out with.  However, it wasn't until we started to date (fast forward 8 years) that I realized that he not only had a lot of hobbies, but that a lot of them were pretty nerdy.  In fact, when my mother would learn about some of his hobbies she worried I was dating someone from the "Big Bang Theory."  I assured her I was not, but that she loved that show so she'll love him too.  (And she does...)

Not only was he one of the inspirations for starting this hunt for a hobby, but he also inspired me to try out some of his hobbies.  While he loves many things (that wouldn't even be considered "nerdy"), his many passions are around podcasts, comic books, and video games.  This, plus a snow day, means I'm trying out my first official hobby with video gaming!

As, stated in the Logistics part of this blog, I will make a goal to complete and then decide to keep it or keep hunting.

Goal: 2 Video Games (played to completion)

I started with a video game called "Doki-Doki Universe"

My boyfriend just found a PS4 and has been enjoying downloading various games onto his new gaming system.  This was one of the first games he downloaded and while watching him play, at first I thought he was crazy.  What was this kid-like game that he was playing and why was his goal to give people hugs and summon presents (from balloons to flowers to poop...)?  However, the more I watched, the more I became intrigued and would laugh/interject along side him like a backseat driver.  He played the whole way through the game, so I asked if I might give it a try.

Lesson #1: How to Use the Controller

We are at the beginning stages, my friends.  Once I learned what the buttons did (although I still find myself having to look down every once and again), I was off to learn how to turn on the console.  (I was serious when I said I had a lot to learn.) He taught me how to get to the game and how to navigate.

Lesson #2: The Concept of the Game

Doki-Doki Universe is a philosophical adventure that allows the player to take on the character of a robot (QT3) and travel to different planets.  You must find gifts of presents (that you summon for other characters on each planet) and have goals to help out the characters on the planet.  The main goal is to help out each planet and gain friends or be turned into pieces of metal at a scrap-yard.  So while there are times the sarcastic side of me wants to be a jerk and choose the hilarious options for my own amusement, I don't want to become scrap metal.  Although the interesting part is that at times you need to get a character to like you to earn presents, while other times you have to get them to hate you.

Lesson #3: Turning Off the Game

I found that I came home every day this week and after relaxing for a bit, catching up with my boyfriend on how our days went, I felt the itch to play just one more planet and make just one more friend.  This game is slowly becoming addicting and I have to learn not only how to stop after one planet (okay maybe two small ones).  I also have to learn how to turn off the console, which he has to remind me almost every time.

So far my rating is to keep this hobby, but this is only 1 of 2 video games I have challenged myself to complete.



As said before, feel free to leave comments below.  Suggest video games for me to try, or even better, suggest more hobbies for me to try.

Now if you excuse me, I've got another planet of friends I need to make...

The Logistics

While this blog may explore how teaching took over my life and ghosts of hobbies past, the main format of this blog will be me searching for new hobbies that I may enjoy.

I'll take a list of bobbie, pick one, and dedicate a certain amount of time to the hobby, complete with an end goal or project.  I'll rank the hobby and make a choice to keep it or keep hunting.

I have started a list of potential hobbies, but the best part of this experiment would be to have my readers give suggestions of what I should try.  Perhaps there's something you enjoy and think I should try.  Feel free to leave a comment or follow my Facebook page and send me suggestions.  I'd love ideas that I may not be thinking of!

So far, here's my list of potential hobbies I'll be trying out:

• Cooking
• Baking/Decorating Cakes
• Gaming (my boyfriend will love this one)
• Jewelry Making
• Knitting/Quilting/Sewing
• Painting
• Playing guitar
• Running
• Yoga
• Photography

I look forward to hearing suggestions and look forward to getting started!

An explanation please...

Hunting a hobby.  Why would anyone need to hunt for or search for a hobby?  Aren't normal people led towards natural interests and hobbies that sustain them for the majority of their lives?  Maybe I'm not a normal person, or maybe I'm a very normal person who is in search for something more.  Either way, I've decided to document the journey (and quite possibly hilarity) towards finding a hobby that is mine.

When I was younger, I was always into a lot of different things.  I took dance for several years (thank goodness I can't find the pictures that document this hobby because I'm sure they're good for a laugh) until I decided I wanted pretty feet instead of permanently blistered feet... and let's be honest the lycra, non-flattering jazz outfits complete with sequins weren't quite the fashion statement I wanted to be making throughout high school.  I tried different sports, soccer being a main one, until I realized the older you got, the more they expected you to run.  I wasn't a big fan of running.  I also really hated that I had soccer practice after dinner time and a big helping of mac and cheese plus two miles of a "warm up jog" didn't do well for my stomach or enthusiasm of the sport.

The older I got, the more I was surrounding myself with hobbies and interests that consumed a lot of my time, which I can share in a future post.  The true meaning of this first post is an explanation of why now, at almost 28 years old, I need a hobby.

Here it is in one simple sentence: I became a teacher.

Let's not argue the fact that "You're job shouldn't be your life!"  Or the best loved argument of, "You get a whole summer off! What did you do with all your time?!"  Simply put, I was a teacher and teaching became my life.

More posts are sure to follow with more explanations of how my job became my hobby, but I found myself at a crossroads this past year.  I found myself in a position where teaching no longer could be my life without it ruining me, bringing me down, and making me hate the profession.  So now I look forward to the opportunity I have to bring new things into my life: positive forces, new opportunities and above all, a hobby.

My goals for this blog?  To learn how to not allow a job to consume my life anymore.  To try new things and share my experiences.  To find successes and failures in these attempts.  To find a hobby (or hobbies) that I can call my own.

Hobby Attempt #1: Blogging