Weekend Question: Did you get any gaming presents last year?

[PCG Jody]

I ask the PCG staff a regular Weekend Question and post the answers on the site. If you'd like to throw in an answer here, I'll squeeze the best into the finished article!

This week's question is: Did you get any gaming presents last year?

Whether you celebrate Christmas, Festivus, or Saturnalia, you may well have scored some videogame-related loot last month. Maybe your workplace Secret Santa delivered and you got a mousepad you'll actually get some use out of? Maybe some blessed soul bought whatever game was at the top of your wishlist? Maybe a distant relative sent a wad of cash in a card and you just bought it yourself? Maybe somebody gave you a new GPU, in which case can I be adopted by your family please?

 

[DXCHASE]

I got a Nintendo game boy mug that, when something heated is added to the cup, it changes the screen of the gameboy to super mario, so it looks like it goes from off to on, pretty neat.

 

[McStabStab]

I got a new mechanical keyboard with cherry blue switches. I had a cherry blue "equivalent" keyboard at home but it just wasn't the same. Now I have my old keyboard at the office and my new one with the good switches at home.

Thank god I have my own office otherwise I'd drive my coworkers crazy with the clicky-clacky!

 

[ZedClampet]

I got a Steam gift card from my wife, and my dad gave me the traditional card with cash. It's always nice to get a boost during the Steam Winter Sale.

 

[Krud]

This week's question is: Did you get any gaming presents last year?

Thanks to a certain virus making the rounds, our Christmas has actually been delayed to this weekend, so I'm not sure what all I'm getting. That said, I have already been gifted two new [to me] board games [Imhotep and Forbidden Island], a set of heavy metal dice [not Led Zeppelin themed or anything, just literally heavy and made of metal], and a Quest-a-Day RPG calendar. Nothing PC-related, however.

Edit to add: Really, once computer games went primarily to digital download format, the number of games-as-gifts dropped significantly for me, mostly because too many non-gamer people (aka most people I'd get presents from except my wife) don't seem to understand how game cards work, even though they understand Amazon and Google Play well enough.

 

[ZedClampet]

Thanks to a certain virus making the rounds, our Christmas has actually been delayed to this weekend, so I'm not sure what all I'm getting. That said, I have already been gifted two new [to me] board games [Imhotep and Forbidden Island], a set of heavy metal dice [not Led Zeppelin themed or anything, just literally heavy and made of metal], and a Quest-a-Day RPG calendar. Nothing PC-related, however.

I love dice. Every now and then I'll buy a set just to collect.

 

[Krud]

I love dice. Every now and then I'll buy a set just to collect.

Same. I love physical dice, and HATE having to use an online die roller, it never feels properly random to me, whether it is or not. Spent most of 2020 playing pen-n-paper RPG's via Roll 20, and their die roller was garbage. (At least in the games I played.) SO many low rolls, it was ridiculous, and I say that as someone who's been rolling dice for many decades. I know, randomness means never knowing what it's going to be, but when EVERYONE is not getting above, say, a 10 (out of 20), something is up. Thank you for coming to my ZED talk.

 

[Withywarlock]

Not for Christmas, but my girlfriend got me some Call of Duty: Warzone socks as part of our first anniversary. A nice topper to our week away in Bristol. Not gonna lie, those are the comfiest socks I've ever worn in my life.

Same. I love physical dice, and HATE having to use an online die roller, it never feels properly random to me, whether it is or not. Spent most of 2020 playing pen-n-paper RPG's via Roll 20, and their die roller was garbage. (At least in the games I played.) SO many low rolls, it was ridiculous, and I say that as someone who's been rolling dice for many decades. I know, randomness means never knowing what it's going to be, but when EVERYONE is not getting above, say, a 10 (out of 20), something is up. Thank you for coming to my ZED talk.

I too prefer physical dice, but the closest I get to that with my currently online D&D game is DND Beyond's dice, which I'm glad they explained how the rolls are calculated (they are physics based, not just a predetermined outcome and then showing an animation to match). Plus with the Beyond20 browser extension you can use your DND Beyond page to transfer things like dice rolls, ability descriptions and so forth to Roll20.

But that only reall works if you're playing 5th Edition, DND Beyond doesn't support older editions.

 

[JCgames]

I got a Steam gift card from my wife, and my dad gave me the traditional card with cash. It's always nice to get a boost during the Steam Winter Sale.

Well she's a keeper. <grin>



Ditto though, on the steam card. Now the wait begins for Flightsimulator to go on sale.

 

[Pifanjr]

Same. I love physical dice, and HATE having to use an online die roller, it never feels properly random to me, whether it is or not. Spent most of 2020 playing pen-n-paper RPG's via Roll 20, and their die roller was garbage. (At least in the games I played.) SO many low rolls, it was ridiculous, and I say that as someone who's been rolling dice for many decades. I know, randomness means never knowing what it's going to be, but when EVERYONE is not getting above, say, a 10 (out of 20), something is up. Thank you for coming to my ZED talk.

As a software developer myself, I'm suspicious of any software, including random number generators, no matter how well it's tested. I've found too many bugs in code that should have just worked and was tested extensively.

And nothing goes above the feeling and sound of physically shaking the dice and letting them roll on the table. As a DM, I always let my players roll their own ability scores, even if I wasn't around to see them roll, because I'm not going to take that joy away from anyone and I trust my friends enough not to cheat (at least not too much).

 

[WoodenSaucer]

We were putting a new desk in my youngest son's room and found 3 Xbox cards adding up to $90 that he hasn't used. I guess he got them from different people for Christmas.

I, myself, didn't get any gaming stuff for Christmas. At around that time, I did buy myself a new wireless, rechargeable generic PC controller that I'm really liking. I also bought myself Horizon: Zero Dawn on the Steam Winter Sale. The stuff other people gave me was all non-gaming, though.

 

[Colif]

We didn't really have a Xmas here this year as I was recovering from a fall, my brother had a twisted ankle from week before and my mum was just not up to it. Shopping in weeks approaching Xmas was therefore non existent and I am yet to decide what I want for Xmas as we all just gave each other cash.

I am worst to buy for anyway as I always just buy what I want and then think, oh... I could have suggested that. I couldn't think of anything I wanted. Every year its the same, I try to think about it early enough for it to not sneak up on me... this year I thought of it in July but was told its too soon to think of it yet... and promptly forgot again. Doesn't help my Bday in same month as Xmas.

I got new PC, new monitor, new keyboard, already in the last 2 years... I don't need anything.