Comic Transcripts

[[A woman stands over a man in prone position who holds a video game controller]]

Woman: New game?
Man: Yeah! It’s amazing!
Man: It’s tremendously complex and adaptive. It’s never the same game twice!

Man: As you develop new skills and master new levels, it combines its challenges in wholly unpredictable ways.
Man: It’s really compelling! This is the kind of game you could play for years and it’s always new.

Woman: So as you get better at it, it gets better at challenging you?
Man: Yes! Theoretically there’s no ceiling to how elaborate the series of puzzles could become.
Woman: Sounds fun!
Man: I LOVE THIS GAME

[[ONE WEEK LATER]]
[[The man lies on his side, without the controller]]
Woman: Not playing the new game?
Man: Ehh
Man: It got hard

{{header: level up at WONDERMARK.COM}}
{{alt-text: He came to a level where you just keep dying without any way of predicting why or when or how. The developers call it ‘profound’}}

#621; The Challenging Amusement transcribed by in

[[A woman stands over a man in prone position who holds a video game controller]]

Woman: New game?
Man: Yeah! It’s amazing!
Man: It’s tremendously complex and adaptive. It’s never the same game twice!

Man: As you develop new skills and master new levels, it combines its challenges in wholly unpredictable ways.
Man: It’s really compelling! This is the kind of game you could play for years and it’s always new.

Woman: So as you get better at it, it gets better at challenging you?
Man: Yes! Theoretically there’s no ceiling to how elaborate the series of puzzles could become.
Woman: Sounds fun!
Man: I LOVE THIS GAME

[[ONE WEEK LATER]]
[[The man lies on his side, without the controller]]
Woman: Not playing the new game?
Man: Ehh
Man: It got hard

{{header: level up at WONDERMARK.COM}}
{{alt-text: He came to a level where you just keep dying without any way of predicting why or when or how. The developers call it ‘profound’}}

#621; The Challenging Amusement transcribed by in

[[A woman stands over a man in prone position who holds a video game controller]]

Woman: New game?
Man: Yeah! It's amazing!
Man: It's tremendously complex and adaptive. It's never the same game twice!

Man: As you develop new skills and master new levels, it combines its challenges in wholly unpredictable ways.
Man: It's really compelling! This is the kind of game you could play for years and it's always new.

Woman: So as you get better at it, it gets better at challenging you?
Man: Yes! Theoretically there's no ceiling to how elaborate the series of puzzles could become.
Woman: Sounds fun!
Man: I LOVE THIS GAME

[[ONE WEEK LATER]]
[[The man lies on his side, without the controller]]
Woman: Not playing the new game?
Man: Ehh
Man: It got hard

{{header: level up at WONDERMARK.COM}}
{{alt-text: He came to a level where you just keep dying without any way of predicting why or when or how. The developers call it 'profound'}}

He came to a level where you just keep dying without any way of predicting why or when or how. The developers call it 'profound'

#621; The Challenging Amusement

  — May 11th, 2010

[ Tags: , , , ]       Permalink: https://wondermark.com/c/621/

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Applications open for Genius Northwest – an IRL gaming competition

May 8, 2026 by David Malki !

Last year, I participated in Genius Northwest, a gaming competition inspired by the Korean gameshow The Genius and its ilk.

It’s a reality show without the cameras — a 3-day, all-inclusive weekend retreat structured around a series of challenges and puzzles, in which personalities and dealmaking matter as much as playing games.

It’s truly a remarkable thing. I came in dead last in the competition, but I still had a great time participating.

The event is held annually in the Pacific Northwest (hence the name) and applications are now open to participate in the 2026 competition!

Learn more — and apply — at GeniusNW.com.


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