They might not be raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, but that doesn’t mean that we love them any less. Welcome back to My Favorite Things, a weekly column where we gab about the greatest in geek. This week’s column includes a television show tailor made for Game of Thrones fans, more love for the Suicide Squad soundtrack, and not one, but two apps that both fun AND good for you. Read on for more details.
Nicole’s Favorite Thing is… Vikings!
I’m not sure what it was that made the History Channel decide to join in with the creation of an original TV series (everyone else was doing it? Game of Thrones was super popular?), but whatever the case, they developed Vikings — and they did a damn fine job of it. Part history-based, part fiction, and with a smattering of the supernatural (visions, omens, the occasional Odin raven), it’s the kind of show that fantasy fans can easily get behind. Love Game of Thrones? Vikings has all the battles, intrigue, betrayal, and yes, sexy time, that you can throw a sword at. Let’s face it — all you’re really missing is a triad of dragons. At the start you may be hard-pressed to pick a favorite character, and at the end of the first season, hard-pressed as to who you want to die the least. I’m finally caught up, and at first wondered if this would be the final season, but the total cliffhanger answered that question. The sad part? I’ll have to wait until 2017 for it. But hey, at least that gives the rest of you plenty of time to catch up, as well as something to watch while you suffer that Game of Thrones withdrawal.
Venessa’s Favorite Thing is… Habatica!
So My Favorite Thing isn’t actually spec media. It’s a productivity app that makes my inner geekgirl happy! It’s called Habitica and it’s a way to gamify your tasks. You start out with a level 1 adventurer. You can set up things you want to make good Habits (exercises, eating more veggies, writing, reading, etc) and penalties for engaging in bad habits (eating too much sugar, procrastinating, watching too much TV/spending too much time playing video games, etc). You can set up your regular Dailies, which are the tasks you do every day or on certain days (every Tuesday, for example). Then there is a general To Do list, for those random things you have to get done. Each time you check something off, you get Experience, Gold/Silver, and Mana points. At level 10, you choose which class you want to be in, which comes with special abilities and the ability to buy class-specific equipment. There are Quest scrolls, pets to “hatch,” feed, and eventually turn into Mounts to ride. There are game Rewards and you can set specific rewards for yourself (maybe an hour of game time or buying a new book). There is an entire Social area where you can connect with other Habiticans, do Challenges, and join Groups to do Quests together. About every quarter, there is a giant site-wide event where the entire place battles an uber-monster and gets special equipment once it’s defeated.
All in all, this is probably my favorite productivity app ever! And with web access and mobile apps on both Android and Apple, you can access your tasks and your little adventurer from anywhere. If you give Habitica a try, let me know how you like it in the comments below!
J.L. Gribble’s Favorite Thing is… Pokemon GO!
Like approximately 97.3% of the world’s population, I have been sucked down the rabbit hole of Pokemon GO. As in the case of most nerdy things, I’m doing it in a way that would horrify “traditional” gamer nerds. I don’t go out of my way to collect Pokemon, instead firing up the game when I take my daily walks and catching whatever happens to wander in my way. I’m not really interested in the combat aspect of capturing gyms, though that might change once they introduce player-versus-player battles. But how I play, or anybody else plays, the game doesn’t matter. What matters is that I’ve walked more outside this summer than on a treadmill in the gym. I’ve wandered around my town in the evening rather than hiding at home with Netflix, saying hi to other people playing the game. And I know a lot of other people have experienced the same things. I could give a lecture on the gamification of health, but instead I’ll leave it at this: People are outside, people are getting exercise, and most importantly, people are having fun.
Nu’s Favorite Thing is… the Suicide Squad Soundtrack!
I confess, I’m a Marvel girl, but I’m going to check out Suicide Squad. Not only am I a big fan of some of the actors, but also anytime bad guys come together to be the good guys, I’m in! Right now, I haven’t seen the movie, but I’m in love with the soundtrack. I’ve had it on repeat for almost a week. I’m used the “superhero” soundtracks with the grand orchestras and sweeping score music. For a movie like Suicide Squad, they featured rap and rock. It’s a heavy album, symbolic of the villains in the movie. After listening to the soundtrack, I’m eager to get to a movie theater to see how the music plays out on screen!
What you’re favorite thing this week? Any thoughts on the selections above?