Aaron Bolner
@bolnerap.bsky.social
I play too many tabletop games. Busy raising a small human who just keeps getting bigger.
#52: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Reread after ~10 years, I remembered broad strokes. Lots of overwhelmed people making tough and/or poor and/or VERY poor decisions. I found the book exhausting despite its relatively short length, which is likely the point.
December 17, 2025 at 11:41 PM
#52: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Reread after ~10 years, I remembered broad strokes. Lots of overwhelmed people making tough and/or poor and/or VERY poor decisions. I found the book exhausting despite its relatively short length, which is likely the point.
Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate #rollcredits Played on Steam Deck. My playtime was 2 hours of blitzing story, hitting a brick wall, 18 hours of learning how to play the game and work the system, then 2 more hours of blitzing story. Level up jingle drove my wife nuts.
December 14, 2025 at 3:18 AM
Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate #rollcredits Played on Steam Deck. My playtime was 2 hours of blitzing story, hitting a brick wall, 18 hours of learning how to play the game and work the system, then 2 more hours of blitzing story. Level up jingle drove my wife nuts.
#51: Animal Crossing. Primarily a history of the first AC game. Loved the development story and its info tidbits, with a brief look into its online community and how trading/visiting worked. Other series games mostly show up in comparisons. Would be interesting to see how the author views ACNH now.
December 7, 2025 at 1:00 PM
#51: Animal Crossing. Primarily a history of the first AC game. Loved the development story and its info tidbits, with a brief look into its online community and how trading/visiting worked. Other series games mostly show up in comparisons. Would be interesting to see how the author views ACNH now.
Not only that, it arrived and indeed, it’s never been played; three out of the four card boxes are still sealed.
For those not deep into board games like I am, that is absolutely wild. That’s like stepping into a time portal back to 2009 and buying it off the shelf.
For those not deep into board games like I am, that is absolutely wild. That’s like stepping into a time portal back to 2009 and buying it off the shelf.
December 3, 2025 at 7:12 PM
Not only that, it arrived and indeed, it’s never been played; three out of the four card boxes are still sealed.
For those not deep into board games like I am, that is absolutely wild. That’s like stepping into a time portal back to 2009 and buying it off the shelf.
For those not deep into board games like I am, that is absolutely wild. That’s like stepping into a time portal back to 2009 and buying it off the shelf.
Cannot believe the good fortune I had last week. Came into the weekend thinking, nope, not going to look for deals on board games or video games, I got the price I wanted on Zelda Echoes of Wisdom and that’s enough.
Then a copy of Glory to Rome ended up on eBay for 25 US dollars.
Then a copy of Glory to Rome ended up on eBay for 25 US dollars.
December 3, 2025 at 7:09 PM
Cannot believe the good fortune I had last week. Came into the weekend thinking, nope, not going to look for deals on board games or video games, I got the price I wanted on Zelda Echoes of Wisdom and that’s enough.
Then a copy of Glory to Rome ended up on eBay for 25 US dollars.
Then a copy of Glory to Rome ended up on eBay for 25 US dollars.
#50: Earthbound. I’ve long thought that part of the reason I never clicked with this game is that I’ve never been in a sufficiently altered state, and this book did nothing to disabuse me of that notion. The book certainly has interesting life stories woven together with the game’s wackiest bits.
November 26, 2025 at 3:41 AM
#50: Earthbound. I’ve long thought that part of the reason I never clicked with this game is that I’ve never been in a sufficiently altered state, and this book did nothing to disabuse me of that notion. The book certainly has interesting life stories woven together with the game’s wackiest bits.
“This means that when the Weeble is wobbled, as in position B…”
November 17, 2025 at 1:31 AM
“This means that when the Weeble is wobbled, as in position B…”
Super Mario Galaxy (replay from about 6 years ago) #rollcredits. It’s still a great game. Glad it’s back out there. All-timer of a soundtrack. Joy-Con 2 controls, detached from the system, were solid. Wish fire levels worked differently / were less punitive, but that’s a 3D Mario problem in general.
November 16, 2025 at 3:23 AM
Super Mario Galaxy (replay from about 6 years ago) #rollcredits. It’s still a great game. Glad it’s back out there. All-timer of a soundtrack. Joy-Con 2 controls, detached from the system, were solid. Wish fire levels worked differently / were less punitive, but that’s a 3D Mario problem in general.
#49: Queen Esther. This is being sold as a return to the world of “The Cider House Rules” - and indeed, that’s why I’m reading my first Irving since Last Night in Twisted River. This sales pitch, however, is a cynical attempt to sell more books.
November 8, 2025 at 3:05 AM
#49: Queen Esther. This is being sold as a return to the world of “The Cider House Rules” - and indeed, that’s why I’m reading my first Irving since Last Night in Twisted River. This sales pitch, however, is a cynical attempt to sell more books.
Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles #rollcredits. I played it as we did in the old days, a single-class party with only its own abilities. Mystics served me well with only three speed bumps, one of which was entirely due to guest AI.
I have a lot of thoughts, but I need to collect them.
I have a lot of thoughts, but I need to collect them.
October 30, 2025 at 2:16 AM
Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles #rollcredits. I played it as we did in the old days, a single-class party with only its own abilities. Mystics served me well with only three speed bumps, one of which was entirely due to guest AI.
I have a lot of thoughts, but I need to collect them.
I have a lot of thoughts, but I need to collect them.
#48: FFXV Dawn of the Future. Found this on the used shelf on summer vacation. Enjoyed it greatly, especially the first section. If the story of FFXV had been half this good or comprehensible when I played it, I sure would have enjoyed it a lot more.
October 28, 2025 at 12:01 AM
#48: FFXV Dawn of the Future. Found this on the used shelf on summer vacation. Enjoyed it greatly, especially the first section. If the story of FFXV had been half this good or comprehensible when I played it, I sure would have enjoyed it a lot more.
#47: Shady Hollow. Wife and I are headed to a book signing tomorrow, and I prepped by reading book 1! Enjoyed it, the story moved quickly and I liked several of the characters. Was also greatly amused by the extreme deep cut reference to a religious blog we read years ago.
October 13, 2025 at 12:20 AM
#47: Shady Hollow. Wife and I are headed to a book signing tomorrow, and I prepped by reading book 1! Enjoyed it, the story moved quickly and I liked several of the characters. Was also greatly amused by the extreme deep cut reference to a religious blog we read years ago.
#46: American Poison. A history of leaded gasoline and the corporate / industrial safety battles surrounding tetraethyl lead. Focused on Thomas Midgley (also responsible for CFCs!) and Alice Hamilton. Very relevant to my work, a quick read with good information.
October 5, 2025 at 3:44 PM
#46: American Poison. A history of leaded gasoline and the corporate / industrial safety battles surrounding tetraethyl lead. Focused on Thomas Midgley (also responsible for CFCs!) and Alice Hamilton. Very relevant to my work, a quick read with good information.
It’s not every decade your favorite video game gets rereleased. Welcome back, old friend.
October 2, 2025 at 9:29 PM
It’s not every decade your favorite video game gets rereleased. Welcome back, old friend.
Donkey Kong Bananza #rollcredits. I am happy I played this. The first 80-90% of my play time was a lot of fun, and I probably should have poked around more than I did. But the last 10-20% was aggressively annoying, and I couldn’t figure out why I was doing good damage when I actually succeeded.
October 1, 2025 at 2:10 AM
Donkey Kong Bananza #rollcredits. I am happy I played this. The first 80-90% of my play time was a lot of fun, and I probably should have poked around more than I did. But the last 10-20% was aggressively annoying, and I couldn’t figure out why I was doing good damage when I actually succeeded.
I wasn’t really looking to play this, but:
- my little video game crew, even the contrarian, is giving it universal acclaim
- the library decided to pick it up
So, banana.
- my little video game crew, even the contrarian, is giving it universal acclaim
- the library decided to pick it up
So, banana.
September 24, 2025 at 4:41 PM
I wasn’t really looking to play this, but:
- my little video game crew, even the contrarian, is giving it universal acclaim
- the library decided to pick it up
So, banana.
- my little video game crew, even the contrarian, is giving it universal acclaim
- the library decided to pick it up
So, banana.
Kirby and the Forgotten Land: Star-Crossed World DLC #rollcredits. Played coop with my daughter. The remixed stages were interesting and she (primarily as Kirby) enjoyed two of the three new Mouthfuls greatly. Are there some palette swaps? Yeah. But there was enough there for us for our $20.
September 21, 2025 at 10:42 PM
Kirby and the Forgotten Land: Star-Crossed World DLC #rollcredits. Played coop with my daughter. The remixed stages were interesting and she (primarily as Kirby) enjoyed two of the three new Mouthfuls greatly. Are there some palette swaps? Yeah. But there was enough there for us for our $20.
#45: The Big Time. Sought this out because of a fascinating podcast interview. The outline of the story was interesting, but the dialogue was often difficult to understand. Though there were two lines that will stick with me, including “Imagine a big enough conspiracy, and you can explain anything.”
September 10, 2025 at 1:19 AM
#45: The Big Time. Sought this out because of a fascinating podcast interview. The outline of the story was interesting, but the dialogue was often difficult to understand. Though there were two lines that will stick with me, including “Imagine a big enough conspiracy, and you can explain anything.”
Mario Kart World #rollcredits.
Been playing primarily on my daughter’s account when she wants me to jump in, but I finally went through the game single player. This is the first MK game I’ve owned, SNES Mini aside. Certainly the one I’ve spent the most time with.
Been playing primarily on my daughter’s account when she wants me to jump in, but I finally went through the game single player. This is the first MK game I’ve owned, SNES Mini aside. Certainly the one I’ve spent the most time with.
August 29, 2025 at 3:16 AM
Mario Kart World #rollcredits.
Been playing primarily on my daughter’s account when she wants me to jump in, but I finally went through the game single player. This is the first MK game I’ve owned, SNES Mini aside. Certainly the one I’ve spent the most time with.
Been playing primarily on my daughter’s account when she wants me to jump in, but I finally went through the game single player. This is the first MK game I’ve owned, SNES Mini aside. Certainly the one I’ve spent the most time with.
My local library’s staff wasted no time setting up a display
August 26, 2025 at 11:34 PM
My local library’s staff wasted no time setting up a display
#43: The Weather Machine. Picked it up randomly from the bookmobile. It was fine. The first half, with historical info about early forecasting technology and WWII German weather probe that landed in Canada, was fun and informative. The second half of supercomputers and government meddling, less so.
August 25, 2025 at 2:20 AM
#43: The Weather Machine. Picked it up randomly from the bookmobile. It was fine. The first half, with historical info about early forecasting technology and WWII German weather probe that landed in Canada, was fun and informative. The second half of supercomputers and government meddling, less so.
#42: (the making of) Titanic. I watched this film for the first time less than a year ago. Wife & I discussed aspects of the filming/framing, especially through the disaster portions, which led her to buy this fascinating look at the construction, tools, & visual tricks that made the movie possible.
August 22, 2025 at 2:17 AM
#42: (the making of) Titanic. I watched this film for the first time less than a year ago. Wife & I discussed aspects of the filming/framing, especially through the disaster portions, which led her to buy this fascinating look at the construction, tools, & visual tricks that made the movie possible.
