Geek Venues (1/4)

Hey guys, this week I’m posting the first of a short series of guest posts from fellow DC Geek, Brannen, about a few fun spots he’s come across in DC. Give him a warm welcome.

Hello, DC Geeks. Brannen here, filling in for Aine this week. But for now, you’re stuck with me and a glass of something decidedly not coffee, so away we go.

The holidays are upon us, but I’m not going to talk about that. What I’m interested in tonight is venues. More to the point, venues for the geek around DC. Maybe its for a date, maybe its a new option for a family outing, maybe its a haven from family and friends. No matter the situation we need options. Below are a few I’d like to suggest as alternatives from the usual routine.

If your game center systems look like this, run.
You’re either in an art installation or an epilepsy study.
(via visual velocity pc)

Game Centers

Aye, it can seem a bit odd at first glance. Go out to some place and pay them for the privilege of using unfamiliar systems where I can’t lounge around in my boxers while my music throbs out of the speakers I got adjusted to just the perfect angle? And yet... and yet there’s an appeal to this. Maybe I’m odd, but I actually put this experience out there with going on a bar crawl or chatting up folks at a con. We’re all strangers, but we’re strangers together, an obviously shared interest and an excuse to interact. Or not. She may want to frag me while I just want to finish out the entire Zelda franchise.

That is another plus for game centers though: the collections. It may be tarnishing my reputation here, but I’ll admit that video games aren’t my primary area of fandom. I certainly can’t hold a candle to Aine’s collection (or obsession), nor that of several other of the DC Geeks writers. I’ll lose days at a time to a good game, but my collection numbers in dozens of titles, not in the hundreds. Its also a bonus if you’re trying to get family or friends interested in your specific interest (especially if they included folks who are completionists, like me. Poor souls.).

In Virginia you can take a look at GamePad for a start. In Maryland there’s Graphix Game Center. These are just a start, though. Whip out the Google-fu and keep looking. Its not a bad idea for a first date, a day just for you or a way to occupy your geek spawn for an afternoon.

Funny, I don't remember Zelda being co-op. (via Kevin)

Coming up on Saturday on DC Geeks... A counterpoint to tonight’s venues of the ephemeral. I’ll talk about local spots to make, build and craft.