Nerdy Stuff

Nov142015

Write for Slant News!

Have you ever wanted to be able to express yourself freely, write news articles, or generally get published? Better yet, would you like to get paid for doing so? Slant News is the perfect place for you. Born out of the principles of wanting writers to be able to publish freely and have ownership over their work, Slant News is an up and coming news source and it’s clear that it’s here to stay. It recently just opened to the public for any writer who would like to join (before it was closed application). Slant News represents something great: freedom and power. You have the freedom to write what you please, about breaking news, about what’s going on with the world. Double that with the power to own your stories without a news company taking that away and you have an amazing combination.

Nov132015

No Job Left Undone with SmartSwapp

Times are tough and it’s hard to say if there will be any changes to that soon. People are working full-time hours making $500 in two weeks. This might be reasonable for a high school student living with their parents, but with the increasing costs of college tuitions, you need to start working when you’re born to save up enough. Otherwise, you’ll get destroyed by student loans and end up paying ten of thousands in interest before paying off those four years of college. It’s a struggle for nearly every one of the 99%.

Rise and grind

Nov112015

Why Video Games Are NOT a Waste of Time

Although video games are slowly becoming more mainstream in our society, there is still a negative stigmatism of laziness that pervades the video game hobby. People think it a waste of time and time better spent. Yes, there are certainly lines to be drawn. There’s a big difference from spending a few hours a week on a good story game to spending all your free time in an online universe. Like with everything else in life, gaming as a hobby requires moderation. Know when to allow yourself to play (without feeling guilt) and when to say, “Okay that’s enough, time to get something done.” I’m here to tell you why video games are NOT a waste of time! There are some real benefits to immersing yourself in different games, different universes. Read below to find out why:

Sep292015

How to Keep Up Your Hobbies on a Budget

Here at Hungry and Fit, we know all about hobbies (from video games, to reading, to board games, to card games, to writing, to working out and more), but also know about how important it is to stay on budget! We’re happy to share this post from SuperSerp!

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We don’t need to be told twice – we’re all going through a tough time financially at the moment. The country is in a period of austerity, but does that mean we need to be living a dull and fruitless life? There are so many ways to keep active and engaged without needing to spend a fortune, and one way to do this is by having a range of hobbies. Here’s how to keep up your hobbies whilst on a budget:

Jul012015

The Greatest Games of All Time: The Master List

Dungeon Master. Game Master. Master Chief. Master Hand. Master Sword.

What is Link without the Master Sword? What is this group of games without the Master List?

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Jun182015

The #1 Greatest Video Game of All Time

This is it. The final entry in H&F’s Greatest Video Game of All Time series. This is big-time stuff. This is our ultimate FAVORITE game ever in the world. These games are important to us, tied to who we are, and in our hearts. We’ve finally arrived. If you missed the others on our countdown, please check them out: #25,#24,#23,#22,#21,#20, #19, #18, #17, #16, #15, #14, #13, #12, #11, #10, #9, #8, #7, #6, #5, #4, #3, and #2.

#1 Greatest Video Game of All Time

Kai – Morrowind – I struggled to decide which of my top 3 is my most favorite game, but in the end it had to be Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind. No other piece of art has ever transported me to another world like Morrowind. The art, the lore, the music, and the quests all contribute to an amazing world that you can truly get lost in.

Like most Elder Scrolls games, you start out as a prisoner, this time exiled to the island of Vvardenfell, home of the dark elves or Dunmer. You wake up as your ship reaches the harbor, with vague memories of a strange dream. With only a vague instruction to meet with an Imperial agent named Caius, you’re dropped off into this strange world, with the freedom to take part in any of the hundreds of stories taking place throughout the land.

I’m not sure what it is that makes Morrowind so much better than the other Elder Scrolls games. Perhaps it’s the lack of guidance and hand-holding, causing the player to feel like they’re exploring a wide-open world, rather than the set of fairly linear narratives in Skyrim and Oblivion. There are great secrets hidden within the world and the game allows the player to find them rather than leading the player to them. Also a tremendous amount of work and care was put into the art and lore to really make the world feel real and it really shows. The graphics don’t quite hold up anymore (at the time they were amazing), but the game is still really engrossing.

If you want to see the best of what gaming has to offer, you have to try Morrowind.

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Jun142015

The Future of Dragonball Z – Resurrection of F, Super, and Beyond

Akira Toriyama has provided us with quite the roller coaster since we met Son Goku when the Dragonball manga was first released in 1984. Two animes based off the original 42 volumes, 19 feature films, countless video games, trading card games, the infamous GT, and the remake of Z known as Kai, have been the highs and lows of that thrill ride. While highlights such as the Frieza and Android saga offset the dips of GT and some questionable films, fans are here… over 20 years later, wanting more.

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Jun112015

Hungry & Fit Gamecast: Launched on YouTube

This is an exciting moment for Team H&F and the Nerdy Neanderthal for taking the lead in creating and hosting the Gamecast. Just as the blog was a work in progress in the beginning (and it still is) this podcast will also see significant changes and improvements over time. We’ve introduced Scott, known as the Nerdy Neanderthal, before but here is a re-introduction. You better get used to him, since you’ll be hearing a lot more from him!

The Gamecast will be a little on the nerdy side, discussing various types of gaming, but we will let you know what the topics discussed are so you know if you want to listen. These are a great way to pass time during commutes, long sessions on cardio equipment, or wherever you fancy. The best part is… they’re free! We’ll have guests, different speakers, will invite our followers (YOU) to participate remotely so this will be a blast. They will be posted on our YouTube channel for now, until they are more developed. At that time, we’ll deliver them to you through downloadable files, on iTunes and such. (Still free, always!)

Here is the first one, a little sample, mostly for testing purposes but full of amazing information and discussion about gaming in 2015. Alana and Chris aren’t in this one but please give Scott your attention. Here are some fun cards to get a better idea about who you’ll be listening to. Credit for these amazing character sheets goes to Nerdy Neanderthal, all this was his hard and high quality work, as an important member of the team!

Jun082015

The #2 Greatest Video Game of All Time

We are down to the SECOND greatest video game of all time! I can’t believe we only have two games to review left! There are some really spectacular games in this list and each of you should consider playing all of them if you haven’t already! It’s funny that all the top games are RPGs, but hey, we’re kind of awesome so it’s to be expected. If you missed the others on our countdown, please check them out: #25,#24,#23,#22,#21,#20, #19, #18, #17, #16, #15, #14, #13, #12, #11, #10, #9, #8, #7, #6, #5, #4, and #3. Enough talking…check these awesome games out!

#2 Greatest Video Game of All Time

Kai- Half-Life series – Half-Life changed everything. It took the Quake engine and created an entire universe out of it. No longer were you moving level to level, killing everything in sight. Instead the entire experience is a seamless journey through the life of a scientist in a top-secret lab the day everything goes wrong. In fact, the first 30 minutes of Half-Life involve no violence whatsoever. It was the first FPS to succeed at immersing you fully in an alternate reality.

Not only that, but Half-Life also was extremely friendly to the modding community, producing the world-famous mod Counterstrike, as well as Day of Defeat and many others. Its lifetime was extended many times over by such mods, as well as several expansion packs exploring the story from other’s perspectives.

When Half-Life 2 was released it again revolutionized FPSs. It continued the trend of a seamless artificial world (this time a futuristic and alien Earth). It also had an amazing physics engine and multiple mini-sequels (“episodes”) which extended the story. I have no hope for a Half-Life 3, but the originals still stand up due to the quality writing, gameplay, and professional voice acting.

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Jun052015

The #3 Greatest Video Game of All Time

We have now come to the top THREE greatest video games of all time! Can you feel the heat? I don’t want to blab too much in the introduction so we can get right down to the fun stuff! If you missed the others on our countdown, please check them out: #25,#24,#23,#22,#21,#20, #19, #18, #17, #16, #15, #14, #13, #12, #11, #10, #9, #8, #7, #6, #5, and #4.

Kai – Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri – Alpha Centauri is my favorite strategy game of all time. It does a fantastic job combining strategic depth and science fiction theme. It takes place in the near-future, after a colony ship from Earth is sent to Alpha Centauri. During the journey, the colonists lose contact with Earth, the captain is murdered, and the colonists break into 7 ideological factions. The game does an amazing job conveying the transition from small compound in an alien wilderness to a planet-wide technological utopia.

In terms of gameplay, it was an enhanced version of the earlier Civilization games. Its biggest addition was customizable units (a base body with added components/weapons/armor). It still suffers from the Stack of Doom mechanic of the earlier Civ games, but the other elements definitely make up for it.

Firaxis created a pseudo-sequel with Beyond Earth, but it’s more of a mod than a real standalone game. If you feel the need to spend a weekend colonizing an alien planet, Alpha Centauri is your game.