Friday Fun Stuff

So you don't play computer games, but you have thought about it. Or you have kids and want to find them something to play with less violence than Final Fantasy. You know, something that exercises their brain not their trigger finger. Maybe you just want to try a game and see what everyone is talking about. Well, I have been reviewing games for Adventure Gamers for a long time and I am going to recommend a few for you.

For tweens and teens I recommend Her Interactive's Nancy Drew series (I love them and I am definitely not a tween or teen anymore). Now before you write off getting them for a nephew or son, I give copies of these games to my nephews (10 and 11) and they love them. They don't care Nancy is a girl, they only care that she has really cool adventures.

For Adults, try either of these 3 games: Myst (starting from the second game in the series) these games are eset on different world where you have to explore, read and puzzle out clues to find out the answer to a number of questions. Amazing graphics, great story, very little charater interaction. Syberia, another straight forward adventure, where exploration is the name of the game, you need to winkle out clues, and piece together mysteries. Great graphics and more character interaction than Myst. Grim Fandango, based on Mexican Day of the Dead mythology all the characters in this game are fashioned after the Calaveras (sugar skulls) used in this festival. The main character has to cross the land of the dead to get to heaven, and it is up to you to help him navigate the tricky after life. Nice graphics, amazing storyline, fantastic challenges, this game has it all.

Plus, you should be able to play any of these games on your desktop. That's right, no X-Box, no Game Cube, no Playstation. Just a computer and a mouse. Wasn't that easy?

Finally, I love, love, love Kate Winslet. I have ever since I saw her in the movie Sense and Sensibility. Recently, I caught the trailer for her new movie The Holiday. This movie looks like so much fun! And just tell me if the opening bit doesn't just make you wonder if she would have made a better Bridget Jones than Renee Zellweger.