| Well, how cool is that? Hop on a bus, flip open your laptop, log into MSN Games, and it’s Text Twist or Jewel Quest all the way to work. Commuting would seem a whole lot less annoying if you were dealing less with that idiot in the other lane and more with that doofus who just ruined your shot at a double nil (yes, I am talking about Spades, and doofus, you know who you are).
…on second thought, that would be every bit as annoying, but a whole lot more fun.
Anyway, Wi-Fi on buses. Sweet! | |
| Vacation, all I ever wanted…
You might have noticed that I haven’t done a new Coffee Break for a while… much as I adore working here, even I have to take a vacation sometimes! I love visiting family, particularly during the summer when there’s something fun happening in nearly every little town along the way. No matter where you go, there’s a picnic, or a craft-filled swap meet, or a county fair, or one of those Renaissance Festivals with the knights and costumes and (if you’re really lucky) a hollowed-out bull’s horn full of authentic mead. (And did I mention the knights? I’m a sucker for a man in armor.)
On the other hand, summer vacation does mean sunburned ears, long lines everywhere you go, money vanishing like a Sahara mirage, and in many places, mosquitoes the size of RC planes. Rising gas prices make it cheaper to dig and stock a backyard pond than travel 500 miles to your favorite fishing hole. And, of course, some people just have to work all summer, which kind of axes any potential vacation plans.
So for those who are eschewing the family road trip, avoiding that crowded tropical beach, or just California dreamin’, I have assembled a handful of summer-themed digital substitutes. I call it the Vicarious Virtual Vacation, and it’s only an arm’s reach away from your own home, office, or one of those new Wi-Fi-enabled buses. Don’t forget your sunscreen.
Granny in Paradise
Island resorts, stripy beach umbrellas, and evil tiki men… two out of three say summer vacation, and the other one’s just icing on the cake. I’m fairly certain that I’ll be turning into a crazy cat lady around age 72, so Granny’s just my style of resort-hopper. Honestly, there’s two reasons I love this game: first, it’s very similar to a primitive Apple II game (anybody else remember the Apple II?) that I played incessantly in my youth. And second, any game that involves rescuing cats is an automatic thumbs-up for me. I am so going to be that crazy cat lady.
Saints and Sinners Bingo
What’s a summer fair, or the annual company picnic, without a good game of Bingo? The fluttering pavilion tent or huge, sail-like awning, the smell of corn dogs and funnel cakes, the lure of a shiny new electronic gadget (or, better still, big box of homemade baked goods) as a prize, and fair-goers a-plenty hunched over their cards and mentally willing the next number to be a good one. This game does a great job of capturing the competitive feeling of playing against other people, since some of the “charms” can be used to distract your virtual opponents at critical times during a round. It’ll make you wish that worked in the real world!
Tradewinds 2
Although I’m ostensibly including this series because it involves traveling to exotic locales, the real reason Tradewinds seems so summery to me is because it’s chock-full of pirates, and here in Seattle, pirates are synonymous with our summer festival, Seafair! (Although they’re not as much fun any more, since the city made a bunch of new rules and now they’re not allowed to kidnap small children and comely wenches. Feh.) Anyway, Tradewinds is great fun, very addictive, and full of all the boisterous, irreverent attitude that our old-fashioned summer Seafair pirates used to embody. (But I’m not bitter.)
Big Kahuna Reef
I don’t even need to explain why this game reminds me of summer. It is summer. Sparkling blue seas, tropical themes, all the nifty creatures you find on an island beach… it’s like snorkeling off the Big Island, but with more puzzles and less sharks. Back when I first tried the download version, I got so hooked that I played this game exclusively until I’d managed to win every level. Since I usually have two or three different games going at once, that’s saying something.
And that’s the itinerary. Whether you plan to vacation for real this year or just hit the digital hotspots, have a wonderful time! | |
| Tech Time
Two notes today on the technical side of things. First, MSN Games now officially supports Internet Explorer version 7. Woohoo! Second, a few folks have written in to ask how to switch between their different nicknames, now that we’ve changed the system.
Well, here’s the deal. Each MSN Games account now has only one nickname associated with it. If you want to have multiple nicknames, you need to sign up for additional (free, of course!) accounts. For more information on nicknames, MSN Games accounts, and nuclear physics, please see the Nicknames section of this handy document.
Okay, there’s no info on nuclear physics. I just wanted to see if you were still reading.
See you next week! | |
