After a year of loss and grief, Madison Marquer signed up to lead a team of gamers at a community college in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Brendan I. Koerner chronicles the journey. By early 2021, Walsh had gathered ample evidence to prove that esports could bring in as many as 20 student-athletes per year and boost the […]
games
Posted inNonfiction, Reading List, Story
For the Love of Wordle: A Reading List on Puzzles and Games
Seven longreads on the communal pastime of puzzles, games, and crosswords.
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Surprisingly Messy Culture Wars Within The New York Times Crossword Puzzle
“While the crossword remains a word game mainstay, what’s appropriate has changed with the times.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
On the Insanity of Being a Scrabble Enthusiast
“Any single word of the 192,111 can send a player as deep down a linguistic rabbit hole as she would like to go, through thick layers of definition, history, culture, immigration, war, conquest, colonization, appropriation, derivation, coinage, conjugation, translation, pronunciation, and selection. As the great player Marlon Hill once said about learning the Scrabble words’ […]
Posted inUncategorized
The Nontrivial Pursuit of Quiz Glory
Even in the age of the search engine, the pleasure of knowing the right answer endures.
Posted inEditor's Pick
Question Time: My Life as a Quiz Obsessive
From India and Ireland to the U.S., quiz tournaments are enduringly popular even — if not especially — as information has become more accessible than ever.
Posted inNonfiction, Story
Home Field Disadvantage
What will it take to get women’s baseball the recognition it deserves?
Posted inNonfiction, Story, Uncategorized
Every Mission is a Suicide Mission
Accompanying a contestant to a pro-level Galaga tournament to discover how many digital space bugs you have to destroy to find renown, community, and a modicum of inner peace.
Posted inBusiness, Business & Tech, Highlight, Quotes, Technology
Nintendo Can Keep a Secret
The untold art of the fairytale comeback, brought to you by Nintendo.
Posted inCurrent Events, Essays & Criticism, Nonfiction, Story
Anthony Bourdain and the Missing Piece
With magic, the goal is to give someone something they can carry around with them for a while.