Christmas is for Gamers

Four days until Christmas! Christmas is many things in many cultures - particularly fear, pain, suffering, loneliness, overly high expectations, and ultimately, disappointment.

But if you're a geek (and you're reading an online gaming blog, so yes - yes, you are!), then congratulations! While others struggle to find the "perfect" gifts for their loved ones, you have it easy! Because buying gifts for other geeks is incredibly easy! I mean, between the bargain bins at EB Games and the pants-tighteningly good value found within Steam's Christmas sales, you have it easiest of all people to provide a perfect Christmas to all your geek buddies. So, I bet you're now thinking, "oh boy, I can see what you're getting at, Andy! Buying games for people is really easy. But... what games?"

Well at first I'd say, check out my game reviews and buy everyone a million copies of VVVVVV and Super Meat Boy, but then I'd stop, because if anything, people hate it when I present any sort of authoritarian policy towards game reviews - if I say "buy this" or "buy that," everyone complains and questions my opinion. So instead of getting you to buy games I think are great, I'm going to get you to think carefully about what you think your friend would like.

For example. If the giftee is a white 13 - 24 year old white male with Xbox LIVE, he already has 14.08 copies of the biggest games of the season - Call of Duty: Black Ops, Fallout: New Vegas, blahblahblah. I mean, if only there were gifts for people who already have the most popular stuff! HOLY CRAP, THERE ARE!! They're called indie games! As you already know, I love independent developers because they have souls, and not just scrunched up pieces of the Halo design documents where their hearts should be. But as far as varied, imaginative gifts go, indie games sure do indeed! An indie a game a day keeps the CoD away. So that's my recommendation to geeks - an indie game for your geeky pals! There are millions to choose from, of varying quality, but usually all for cheap as chips - so go for it. Your gaming friend this season, should get a quirky original game from an independent developer.

Failing that, a million copies of VVVVVV and Super Meat Boy, methinks.