Geeks & Grounds is an asynchronous, monthly game club where we play video games and brew good conversation, together! β Each week, receive a newsletter with a reflection question and curated materials meant to help you thoughtfully connect with the games we play.
The End β Return of the Obra Dinn [Geeks & Grounds #91]
this week's brew π§
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I'm back home from Boston! PAX East was incredible - the food, the friends, and the (f)games. π₯³ We'll kick off today's episode chatting about my time there as well as Joel's first DDR experience, our continued love for Expedition 33, and more.
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βReturn of the Obra Dinn has already proved to be a mind-bending game to talk about. We start slowly - but steadily - this first episode, digging more into the non-spoilery bits: the mechanics, the visuals, our first impressions, and the first two chapters we encountered: The End (Chapter 10) and The Doom (Chapter 7). Listen to the episode on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts!
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| Check out our Playthrough Guide |
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While we're not in too deep with the story quite yet, I already feel like I need to hunker down for this one. I've got my game journal, I'm taking notes, and I'm amazed at how Obra Dinn is already enlisting multiple senses as it's taking me through my work as an insurance inspector figuring out what went wrong on this fateful journey.
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One of my favorite parts, so far, is the first time you witness a memory. Dramatic music plays, and you have a limited time to walk around, gain an initial sense of what's going on, and begin to build your argument for what happened and to whom. That initial exploratory moment in each memory only lasts a minute or two, and I've enjoyed seeing just how much I can observe in that time.
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There's PLENTY I do not catch in that first pass through. It's had me considering the ways that we use our power of observation in daily life and how, without the aid of a magical "memento mori" compass, there are so many things we don't catch or notice. Like in The Office when the cast tries to remember: does Stanley have a mustache?
More seriously, I've been reflecting on the ways that observation -- even knowing that it's malleable and impacted by factors such as stress, whether or not the observer is paying direct attention, visibility, and other societal biases -- are used to determine the fates of people every day. Organizations like The Innocence Project directly deal with what happens when eyewitness observation leads to wrongful conviction, for example. Even in Obra Dinn - a relatively low-stress activity - when the music's playing, I'm running around the deck trying to see what's going on, and while I'm actively trying to pay attention, I know I miss things (and misremember things).
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And this leads me to the reflection question for the week....
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Reflection Question
Share your response by writing back to this message, submit a voice recording to be included in next week's episode, share in the community Discord, or simply ponder as you play. Of course, if you have other thoughts on the game you'd like to share not related to the question, please do so!
- What are you learning about your powers of observation? Do you have any tips for folks playing that you've found helpful?
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Pour Over
Supplementary recs to expand on what we're playing ~
- What can you remember? Sometimes I like to play small mini-games with myself to see how much I can remember about a space, and this week, why not give it a try? Whether in your own room, while people-watching at a cafe, or somewhere else, give yourself a minute to look around. After that minute, close your eyes or take some notes: what are you able to recall? What did you miss?
- Have you seen the HMS Leopard? : According to Lucas Pope, this is the real-life inspiration for the Obra Dinn! Read a bit about it here (the final voyage of that ship seems MUCH nicer than the Obra Dinn, that's for sure).
- Listen to the OST: Once you've checked out some of the game, absolutely go listen to the soundtrack! I feel like if you run D&D campaigns, some of these may be SUPER fun to use as background music as you're setting the scene for an epic battle or huge reveal.
- Already finished the game, like Joel? Check out the more chill and playful Duck Detective franchise. Want more sordid and cursed mysteries? The Golden Idol series would be right up your alley! And, of course, I'd be remiss if I didn't also recommend you check out other observational puzzle games like Outer Wilds and Blue Prince. Very different from Obra Dinn, narratively, but they are also first-person adventures that channel your skills to identify patterns, catch anomalies, and connect the dots.
the pastry case π₯
βour grab-bag of topics related to the industry and other media we've engaged with.
PAX East 2025 was a lovely time ~ if you'd like to check out what was on the show floor, the PAX Rising selections and expo hall demos are a great place to start adding to your wishlist.
- Some specific demos I enjoyed: OFF (which I totally forgot to mention in the podcast!), Fretless, On Any Journey, Tanuki: Pon's Summer, Undusted (which I think I also forgot to mention), and Constance.
βGiantBomb is BACK and 100% independent! Hell yeah!
Play/Watch/Listen/Read
Jenny -
- Play: PAX East demos!
- Listen: Gnarly (Katseye)β
- Read: Blue Communion (1000xResist Fanzine)β
Joel -
- Play: Expedition 33β
- Watch: Love on the Spectrum: Season 03β
- Listen: San Fermin Jackrabbitβ
- Read: The Antidote by Karen Russellβ
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This Weeks' Game Releases
Two titles that I'm keeping an eye on, and that may be worth picking up if you'd like something new to enjoy!
Stay in the loop -- listen to the weekly podcast on Spotify and Apple, hang with the community in Discord, and find us on Instagram!
βThanks for joining our digital cafΓ© this week -- talk soon!
Jenny
Jenny | Geeks & Grounds
Geeks & Grounds is an asynchronous, monthly game club where we play video games and brew good conversation, together! β Each week, receive a newsletter with a reflection question and curated materials meant to help you thoughtfully connect with the games we play.
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