1. Pokémon X/Y; so excited!

    October 17, 2013 ♥ Posted in: Geek Events, Journal, Nerd Topics by Kristina Horner

    I was a bit late to the game on grabbing the newest installment in the Pokémon series – when it came out last Friday, I was on an airplane, and then I was much too swamped at NYCC to stop by a game store. Trust me, it was tough collecting street passes all weekend and watching the “what I played most recently” show me Pokémon over and over again. But alas! I got mine last night, only six days late.

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    I made the arbitrary decision to go with X, based solely on aesthetics. The celestial fairy deer looks cuter than the flame bird, in my opinion. According to a bit of reading that I did, the games are virtually identical, so here’s hoping that holds true.

    The most important question of all comes in the first five minutes of the game – not your name and gender, of course – I’m talking about your starter Pokémon. This was a hard decision for me! I was a diehard Squirtle fan growing up (starting at the very beginning with Pokémon Red), and that allegiance has kept me on Team Blue Starter in nearly every subsequent Pokémon game I’ve ever played. But look how cute Fennekin is!

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    I was really interested in the fire/dark type split he becomes, especially since he literally becomes a fire wizard. He’s got a little wand that sticks out of his tail that he pulls out during battle. It’s adorable. And since my main character in WoW is a fire mage… I couldn’t resist.

    The real question is what I’ll pick as my secondary starter. This is new to this version: apparently a bit into the game we get to pick again, between the three classic starters. My gut says to pick Squirtle, obviously – but the smart choice could be Bulbasaur. My opponent will pick Froakie, the advantageous type to my Fennekin, so I should pick grass to combat that. But… Squirtle, though. It’s been a rocky twenty four hours for my morals, guys.

    Anyway, I’m not very far into the game, but I am hoping to be able to keep you updated as I collect my gym badges and make my way through this amazing game of out-of-this-world graphics. Playing Pokémon always takes me right back to being 11… my parents got me a Gameboy Color and Pokemon Red for Christmas, and I remember ignoring all the kids at my birthday party (on Dec 27th) because I wanted to play so badly. It was truly innovative, and the first moment I really considered myself to be someone who liked video games.

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    It’s amazing (and a little emotional-making) to think back to playing the game then, and what it looked like… knowing fourteen years later it can still captivate my attention.. and look like THIS:

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    When I think about things that have been there with me for my entire life, Pokémon is definitely siting incredibly high on that list. I’m just fortunate so many others feel the same way, and that we can still all enjoy it together.

    Did you play Pokémon as a kid? What was your first or favorite version? And have you picked up X/Y yet? Let me know in the comments, so we can all Poké-geek out together.

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  2. Games I Want to Play After Attending PAX ’13

    September 4, 2013 ♥ Posted in: Geek Events, Nerd Topics by Kristina Horner

    While I was at PAX, I kept a notepad list of all the games that caught my eye. From console games to app games to indie games, there’s just so much exciting stuff filling the halls of this convention that it would be impossible to remember everything. As promised – today’s blog post is going to be the list of games I wrote down on my list.

    Lovers in a Dangerous Space Time: This was a co-op indie game I watched a demo of that looked colorful and fun and potentially good for the Team Hypercube channel. It takes place in space inside a pink Death Star where you’re running around controlling a ship while simultaneously fighting bad guys in space. Keep an eye out for playthroughs of this one.images

    Escape Goat 2: This was a simple but fun puzzle platformer where you play a goat progressing through a dungeon. I got to test this game out and I enjoyed it quite a bit.

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    Mount Your Friends: I actually don’t remember how this game got on my list (because I didn’t actually see it at PAX), but I think someone just recommended it to me? From what I have read online, you use your friends bodies and a goat to climb to certain heights? Or something? I don’t know.steamworkshop_collection_1370628196_collection_branding
    Adventure Time : Explore the Dungeon Because I Don’t Know!: This game just looks amazing. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the previous Adventure Time game (Hey Ice King Why’d You Steal Our Garbage?) but this new one that comes out in the fall is a co-op multiplayer where you battle your way through a dungeon as various characters from the Land of Ooo. I need it.


    Prison Architect: This is a Steam game that was recommended to me because of my recent obsession with the show Orange is the New Black combined with my love of Roller Coaster Tycoon. I can’t wait to play it.

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    Peggle 2: Peggle is one of those really standard games (hit all the orage pegs before you run out of balls) but the first version of the game was my standard go-to on long airplane rides. I’m excited to see what’s different in this new version.
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    Bastion: I’m a big fan of great iPad games (which I’m sure you probably already know) and this was one that was recommended to me for that reason. It looks cool, though I know very little about it right now. It’s also available on PC, if you don’t own an iPad.


    Super Mario 3D World: This just looks awesome. I’ll give any new Mario game a try, and the combination of co-op Mario with 3D graphics should be pretty awesome. Plus it’s about time we get some new WiiU games!


    Windborne: This was a game I got to demo, mostly because there was a prize wheel at their booth that I wanted to spin and you had to play the game to get to do so. It was a lot like Minecraft but sort of prettier, which I liked. I would give this game a try.
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    Hate Plus: I don’t know anything about this game, but the art was amazing and they were offering QR codes for special Animal Crossing clothing items, so on the list it went.
    Delver’s Drop: I saw this game in the Indie corner! It looked amazing – the art was beautiful and everything was pink, but not in a condescending way. It’s a 2D action RPG and I can’t wait to give it a try.
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    Have you heard of or played any of these games? What did you think of them? Which would you be interested in watching me play on Team Hypercube? Let me know in the comments – or as always, feel free to leave other game suggestions based on the type of things I’m already into!
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  3. August Ipsy Glam Bag Review

    August 27, 2013 ♥ Posted in: Fashion/Beauty by Kristina Horner

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    I got my Ipsy Glam Bag for August, and I love it! I used every single product in my routine today, so figured I would do a write up/review of them, now that I’ve developed my opinions.

    First is the Vanilla lip balm from Noya. I’m not going to lie, this was pretty much just lip balm. Maybe I’m a naive lip balm consumer, but it’s all sort of the same to me. I tend to buy more fruity flavors on my own, but I was pleasantly surprised by this vanilla one. I will definitely toss it in my purse and keep using it. Also, a plus, Noya doesn’t test on animals or use preservatives. Hooray!

    Next was Lash Booster Mascara from Pixi. I only recently discovered Pixi brand cosmetics, at VidCon actually – Subblime was giving them out to people! I have been very impressed with everything I’ve tried from Pixi so far, and this mascara was no exception. In fact, I think this was my favorite product in this month’s bag. I have really thin eyelashes, but this lash booster mascara made them look fuller than I’ve ever seen them! Will definitely buy again.

    I really enjoy trying new facial products, so I was excited to try the Jojoba Charcoal Facial Scrub by Michael Todd True Organics. Right away it kind of freaked me out – the charcoal in the formula makes the scrub itself black – which is a scary thing to rub on your face! It was extremely gentle though, for an exfoliant. Which I really appreciate, as my skin is sensitive and acne prone. I’ll be interested to see if I notice a difference at all in my skin over time, but it feels lovely today.

    Moving on, next was the All-In-One Multi-Mineral BB Cream by Pacifica. I’m a little wary of BB Creams (since my skin is so temperamental) but I’ll try anything once. This claimed to be color matching, but it was a little dark for my skin. Also, the tube barely had anything in it, so it was kind of tough to get a good sampling out of it. I’m sure this product is decent, but I’ll probably stick with my current face products.

    The final product from this bag was a NYX Blush in Espresso. I wasn’t quite as excited about this one, because I already own a lot of NYX products. I often buy more coral type hues for blush though, so it’s kind of nice to add a more brown tone to my collection. It’s not bad, but again, it’s NYX. Nothing new.

    I also got that adorable unicorn themed nail polish in Lime Crime for referring at least two people last month. Thanks guys! If you’re interested in joining Ipsy and getting fun products each month, it’s only $10 and I think it’s totally worth it.

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