Unwinnable Monthly – March 2020

This is a reprint of the letter from the editor in Unwinnable Monthly Issue 125. You can buy Issue 125 now, or purchase a monthly subscription to make sure you never miss an issue!

———

Welcome to March, gang. It is getting weird out there, but a new Unwinnable Monthly is here, as ever.

This month, our cover story, by Daniel Lipscombe, takes a look at the work of Surrealist artist Leonora Carrington and ponders what videogames can learn from her and other Surrealist artists. Our second feature, by Scott Roepel, looks at the curious world of tabletop roleplaying games based on videogame roleplaying games. In our third feature, Ryan Cooper finds some acceptance for loss while playing Outer Wilds. Finally, in our sponsored feature, we take a look at the forthcoming puppet-themed puzzle game A Juggler’s Tale.

Noah Springer leads off the columns with a new batch of hip hop records worthy of your attention. Harry Rabinowitz takes a look a the comic series Space Boy. Blake Hester surrenders the world to hardcore band Code Orange. Amanda Hudgins looks at Real Person Fanfiction and gets annoyed at late night host Graham Norton.

Declan Taggart attempts to convince us that weightlifting and playing videogames share the same baseline. Deirdre Coyle retreats to Seers Isle. Ben Sailer muses on the coming extinction of GameStop. Matt Marrone has dinner in a ninja village. Justin Reeve appreciates the Brutalism of Control. Rob Rich hopes the forthcoming remake of Final Fantasy VII changes his mind about the game. Adam Boffa wishes movies were more boring. Jason McMaster loses himself in Escape from Tarkov. Finally, Jersey City artist Chris Malec finds his work under the Artist’s Spotlight.

A few things.

First, by and large, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Unwinnable’s day-to-day is minimal, but I expect things to get a bit more rickety as the days go on. No matter how wobbly things might get, though, all of us here appreciate your support, and we hope that our stories provide a momentary oasis of calm in uncertain times.

Second, I hope you’re staying safe and healthy at home. To help folks fill their time while social distancing and sheltering in place, we’ve released the entire archive of Unwinnable Weekly, Unwinnable Monthly and Exploits for free, for the duration of the pandemic. So stock up on those missing back issues! There is a donation button on that page – all funds gathered through it will be put toward an emergency fund for our writer pool. I’d be obliged if you spread the word.

Third, we’re working on setting up some streams for y’all, mostly games (Subterfuge, anyone? Netrunner?) but possibly an online streaming replacement for Geek Flea. Keep an eye on our Twitter for news on that.

That’s about it. See you in a couple weeks with the next issue of Exploits. Be well!

Stu Horvath
Kearny, New Jersey
March 17, 2020