Random Internet Things I Love
The internet might be a shell of what it once was, but there are still a lot of cool people on it doing cool things. Here are a few of my favorites.
Final Fantasy VIII is the Best - A tongue-in-cheek blog covering the most underappreciated title in the Final Fantasy series. FFVIII is my personal favorite, in large part because of the characters. I loved getting to know each of them and experiencing the epic time-spanning love story of Rinoa and Squall. This blog has a lot of posts that are simply fun to read and humorous, but it also covers the game in-depth, and I'm so happy it exists.
Puzzmo - A puzzle site created by game designer Zach Gage and engineer Orta Therox that features a bunch of different puzzles that are easy to play and difficult to master. As a word game aficionado, my favorite is the crossword, which I make sure to complete daily. After you finish it, you get a little blurb about the puzzle's construction from its creator, which really highlights how these puzzles are made by human hands. I also love Pile-Up Poker, because I'm always a fan of a neat twist on poker. Puzzmo is run by a few dedicated folks, as opposed to a large and questionable corporation. You can support them by subscribing, which unlocks access to the archives, extra puzzles, leaderboards, and more. But otherwise, it's free to play and a ton of fun!
The Pudding - The Pudding is a digital magazine that focuses on datasets and produces some really fascinating interactive articles. A recent favorite is this piece on exploring New York City's street view via words. Some articles are really important. Some are just really cool. It's run by a small team, and it's just a super interesting project that's easy to sink an afternoon into.
The hardest working font in Manhattan - A deep dive into the Gorton font commonly seen around NYC (and elsewhere!) that's meticulously researched and endlessly fascinating. I've always loved typography, and Gorton has possibly the longest history of any font. This essay is structured in a way that makes it easy to get through despite its length, and the author's passion for the subject is apparent.
Aftermath - This is a worker-owned games site run by former Kotaku staffers that has a heavy focus on labor issues in the games industry. It has become my go-to for games news, and I also love it because it has articles like this, which are just about the joys and struggles of playing games. I will yell from the rooftops about Aftermath every chance I get, because it's rare these days to find a games site that's not owned by a corporation pushing SEO and their own agenda. Support worker-owned sites if you can!