What makes a good map? @srtrzinski.bsky.social offers a brief taxonomy of game maps while making the case that it can be okay to just want clear directions from point A to point B. www.gamerswithglasses.com/features/hel...

"Help! I'm Lost!": On Open and Linear Maps — Gamers with Glasses

How do video game maps invite us to understand space? Samantha Trzinski discusses the evolution of map design from linearity to open-world complexity, making the case that the straightforward way is s...

gamerswithglasses.com

I started trying out video game cookbooks as I was curious if their recipes were good. Check out these meat hand pies from Elder Scrolls! #VideoGameRecipeoftheDay

When I was at the bookstore earlier, someone went up to one of the workers and asked her if they had this “obscure” and “not very well known book” called 1984. Sir, everyone knows about 1984. The worker and I looked at each other like 😶

We made the list! It's so lovely to be included among such remarkable company; we're honestly just happy to be here. Game crit is the best, and so are all of you 😊

Chris Plante@plante.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Over 200 active video game publications. Text. Audio. Video. Reporting. Criticism. Analysis. Blogs. Sites. Networks and wikis. Even in its incomplete form, the document is a treasure trove! I hope it helps you find your next favorite blogger, essayist, reporter, video maker, podcaster, and more!

This Halloween, we invite you to remember the horror that is...Kirby: "Kirby is a shapeshifter, fueled by the essence of the living beings that he consumes...He shows up, he consumes all, and he leaves, with a trail of corpses in his wake." www.gamerswithglasses.com/features/kir...

Kirby is the Nightmare in Dreamland — Gamers with Glasses

For decades, Nintendo has tried to pass horrors beyond human comprehension as adorable cuties. Kirby may be cute while sleeping, but awake, he’s an irrepressible killer who wields the instruments of t...

gamerswithglasses.com

This week: 31 terrifying picks on haunted houses, costumes, Blue Prince, cozy games, friction, media literacy, and much, much more: critical-distance.com/2025/10/26/o...

I think that @srtrzinski.bsky.social is going to be okay, as long as Kirby doesn't come barreling through the door.

Kirby is the Nightmare in Dreamland — Gamers with Glasses

For decades, Nintendo has tried to pass horrors beyond human comprehension as adorable cuties. Kirby may be cute while sleeping, but awake, he’s an irrepressible killer who wields the instruments of t...

gamerswithglasses.com

Come for the great stuff in the roundup, stay for that critical chaser (feat. @corndruid.bsky.social, @srtrzinski.bsky.social, @aguaspoints.bsky.social, and @aetataureate.bsky.social)!

Critical Distance | Where’s all the good writing about games?@critdistance.bsky.social · 10mo ago

This week: history, ahistory, mythology, and much more: critical-distance.com/2025/10/12/o...

Had a great time wrapping up our summer series in this podcast episode with @corndruid.bsky.social!

Gamers with Glasses@gamerswithglasses.bsky.social · 10mo ago

Nate and Samantha set out to recap and wrap up our summer series on games, childhood, and nostalgia, and end up…somewhere else. We cover all the deep questions, like, “Do any of us leave childhood unscathed?”; and, “Isn’t Assassin’s Creed just Sly Cooper?” www.gamerswithglasses.com/gwgpodcast/t...

Featuring @aetataureate.bsky.social: "In a volunteer survey, we found almost no significant correlation between the zodiac sign and the favorite Mario items of respondents." www.gamerswithglasses.com/features/sup...

Super Midlife Brothers: Thoughts on Mario at Forty — Gamers with Glasses

It’s-a Mario’s birthday! Sort of. So here’s a Mario bonanza from your friends at Gamers with Glasses, which in typical fashion includes a scientific* study on Mario and the zodiac, elegiac expressions...

gamerswithglasses.com

This week: 21 articles on culture movements, maps, difficulty, dungeon crawlers, and much more. No Freddi Fish articles this week, sorry: critical-distance.com/2025/09/28/s...

September 28th

Welcome back readers. We’re two for two on this recent streak of on-time Sunday updates. I’m hoping to keep this up as I adapt my schedule to accommodate a couple of new work commitment…

critical-distance.com

@srtrzinski.bsky.social on horror sensation My Friendly Neighborhood and the actual horror of defunding the Corporation for Public Broadcasting: www.gamerswithglasses.com/features/my-...

My Defunded Friendly Neighborhood — Gamers with Glasses

In the horror game My Friendly Neighborhood , the puppets from a children’s show become monsters after a long period of neglect. Samantha Trzinski explores what we stand to lose, as parents, children...

gamerswithglasses.com

"The goose has become a ubiquitous figure in pop culture, appearing on shirts, sweaters, mugs, bumper stickers – and, yes, even in videogames." Unwinnable Feature Excerpt: @srtrzinski.bsky.social observes Untitled Goose Game's impact on videogames and culture:

Duck, Duck, Goose - Unwinnable

“All hail the goose,” we say, to which the goose simply replies, “Honk.”

unwinnable.com

My article “Duck, Duck, Goose” is in Unwinnable! 🦆

Unwinnable@unwinnable.com · 12mo ago

Ideas bigger than you can imagine. The latest issue of Unwinnable Monthly features @orringrey.com on Godzilla, @srtrzinski.bsky.social on birds in games, and @muditaheart.bsky.social on Prince of Persia. Buy: unwinnable.bigcartel.com/product/unwi... Subscribe: unwinnable.com/subscribe/

I had a great time talking with Erik Verlage about his research! Hear @aguaspoints.bsky.social and I dive into the world of game-based learning and STEM education in this episode of the Gamers with Glasses show:

Gamers with Glasses@gamerswithglasses.bsky.social · last yr.

Seriously, though - what actually makes learning fun? What are we even talking about when we talk about educational games? For this one, our crew of humanities nerds finally asked a research scientist for help. Is Portal edutainment? Only one way to find out www.gamerswithglasses.com/gwgpodcast/t...

The bound copies of my dissertation “Teaching through Sorrow: Romantic Women Writers and Melancholic Didacticism” arrived today! #phd #19thcentury #dissertation

Duck Detective has got to be one of my favorite games 🦆 Check out my thoughts on its latest sequel!

Gamers with Glasses@gamerswithglasses.bsky.social · last yr.

It's got jokes. Puns. Absurd in-game facts. How could we resist? Check @srtrzinski.bsky.social's impressions on Duck Detective 2.

Take a moment to read my piece on Pokémon Emerald and how it helped me navigate my parents’ divorce. It was cathartic to revisit the game and write about it

Gamers with Glasses@gamerswithglasses.bsky.social · last yr.

@srtrzinski.bsky.social also wrote our first feature in the series, about Pokémon Emerald, long car rides between houses, and realizing her Pokémon parents lived in different homes. www.gamerswithglasses.com/features/par...

I got my PhD from The Ohio State University today!!

Really enjoyed writing about Kiosk! Check out my review:

Gamers with Glasses@gamerswithglasses.bsky.social · last yr.

New on the site - @srtrzinski.bsky.social on the creepy/cozy dynamics of Kiosk!

My article on A Game About Digging A Hole is featured in this week’s Critical Distance! Check it out, and shout out to @gamerswithglasses.bsky.social

Critical Distance | Where’s all the good writing about games?@critdistance.bsky.social · last yr.

This week: Interviews, ungames, ARGs, matchroidvanias, and more: critical-distance.com/2025/03/24/m...

A Game About Digging a Hole was a fun — albeit short — game. Check out my review!

Gamers with Glasses@gamerswithglasses.bsky.social · last yr.

@srtrzinski.bsky.social is kicking off our big return to the airwaves with a game that delivers on every single one of its promises, because all those promises revolve around the opportunity to dig a big ol' hole www.gamerswithglasses.com/impressions/...

My article on Mettaton in Undertale was featured in @ludicamag.com! Shout out to @gamerswithglasses.bsky.social, and special thanks to @tofeklund.bsky.social who organized our Love and Robots series

Ludica@ludicamag.com · last yr.

La rassegna stampa videoludica di febbraio, con articoli, tra gli altri, di @bryantfrancis.me, @damienmcferran.bsky.social, @srtrzinski.bsky.social, @edwinet.bsky.social, @kimimi.bsky.social e @lewisgordon.bsky.social.

This week: Archive, abjection, art, audience, and lots more: critical-distance.com/2025/02/25/f...

February 23rd

Welcome back readers. Note to self: plug the Patreon! Ah, well met, fair traveller! Have you checked our fine Patreon? Every little bit helps! This Week in Videogame Blogging is a roundup highlight…

critical-distance.com

It's still the season for love! Maybe it's always the season for love in Undertale? Read all about its big star (no, not that skeleton, not that one, either) in @srtrzinski.bsky.social's piece on Mettaton in our Love & Robots series!

You Are Filled With Determination – and Narcissistic Robot Love — Gamers with Glasses

Undertale’s Mettaton may be a narcissist, but his love is real. Samantha Trzinski explores the relationship between player, performance, and the human-killing star of stage and screen in this entry of...

gamerswithglasses.com

Koji Suzuki’s novel Ring is easily the scariest thing I’ve ever read. I couldn’t put it down, but my heart was racing the whole time

I defended my dissertation today and am now Dr. Samantha Trzinski!!

My recent article on Leshy was picked up by Critical Distance 🎉🍃

Critical Distance | Where’s all the good writing about games?@critdistance.bsky.social · 2y ago

This week: indie dev, hobbyist crit, localization, joyful play, and more: critical-distance.com/2025/01/20/j...

I’ve noticed so many different versions of Leshy in recent games that I’ve played this past year. Check out my latest article with GwG!

Gamers with Glasses@gamerswithglasses.bsky.social · 2y ago

Have you ever noticed how frequently Leshy appears in contemporary games, and how often this character is an antagonist? @srtrzinski.bsky.social has! Check out her breakdown of this character's various iterations, from Cult of the Lamb to The Witcher 3. www.gamerswithglasses.com/features/les...

I had no idea how exciting it would be to print out my complete dissertation. Holding 300 pages of my writing is surreal. Excited and ready for my defense in a couple of weeks!