And Now For Something Completely Different

 

Beer and Video Games. A match made in heaven.

As you have probably gathered by now, we here at 8-Bit Tavern enjoy beer. On any given day, whether we're thumping in Firefall or blasting our way across the Borderlands, we often have something at hand to quench the thirst. Over time, we've developed tastes and understanding of the character of a variety of brews and have determined, through reflection and rigorous application of science, that some beers and brewers are very similar to some of our favorite games out there. If you disagree, we expect a well-reasoned argument in the comments. Or you can just troll us like the merry band of keyboard-mashing monkeys we were meant to be. I mean, this IS the internet, right?



World of Warcraft & Samuel Adams: Stay with us here. Sam Adams and their varieties were some of the first beers to become a staple in our fridges. In some ways, Sam Adams is one of the first widely successful craft beer makers of it's kind. It paved the way for other craft beers. Every once in a while they come out with something new that you just HAVE to try. There are also days where you go out and experiment with other beers and expand your tastes. However on those dark thirsty nights, sometimes you just want our trusty old Sam Adams brews.


Diablo Series & Blue Moon: Blue Moon brews were one of our first favorites once we evolved past the watered-down fare of our college days. Those early memories are not without discoveries. We remember the first time a bartender served a draft of Blue Moon with an orange slice. We were taken aback at this notion of re-discovering a beer we thought we knew. The same could be said for Diablo I and Diablo II. We thought we knew just how fun the first one was and we were blown away with how fun the second one was. And then we discovered the varieties of Blue Moon. These were the seasonal varieties such as Harvest Moon and Honey Moon. Clever and delicious at first. Very much enjoyable in fact. However, we still enjoy the basic Blue Moon just as much if not more than all the new-fangled varieties. They did a good job and we give them credit for mixing things up, but was it necessary to try to be more like Samuel Adams when you had such a good thing to begin with? Sound familiar Blizzard? HUH? DOES IT???


Borderlands (1 & 2) & Flying Dog: The art style of both Borderlands and Flying Dog labels are instantly recognizable. One is that gritty and styled cel-shading and the other looks like a 3-year old taking art direction from someone abusing LSD. If you've ever seen the tone of the labels of the various Flying Dog beers, you can tell that the brewer doesn't take itself too seriously. Their Oyster Stout dubbed "Pearl Necklace" (yeah they went there!) can be a bastardly psychological challenge to drink if you have a particularly feral imagination. And if you've ever paused Borderlands because you were still too busy laughing to aim properly, you would probably agree that Gearbox Software subscribes to a similar philosophy. Damn good humor. Damn good games. Damn good beers.


Guitar Hero/Rock Band Series & Shipyard Pumpkinhead (With shots of Stoli Vanilla Vodka in it for the brave): This combo is a great combo if you like getting hammered and pretending you are the next Slash, Ringo, Flea or even Freddy Mercury. WF and I have dabbled in this experiment. The test was successful on the fun scale but the aftermath was concerning though. We made it about 3/4 of the way through Green Day Rock Band, when I found my inner Billie Joe and WF found his inner Tre Cool, when we realized we were a little more than three sheets into the wind. After this successful experiment, we found out there were repercussions. As any good night of combining beer and liquor, we were shackled to the couch the next morning watching a Scrubs marathon, and avoiding the light like vampires (not the f**king Twilight kind).

So on those nights that you are your friends are hanging out with nothing to do, there is always that one person who suggests Rock Band/Guitar Hero. You know you want to because friends are there and it is a great group activity, but you will certainly regret this decision upon regaining consciousness in the morning.

You have been warned.


Indie Games & Craft Stouts: Here you are again. At a new micro brewery, looking at this daunting list of amazing beers. Do you want one of the 3 craft wheats? What about one of the few ales? Wait... Whats this? A craft stout? You have had one once at your usual place and it was so delicious but went down so quickly. This one is an Irish cream stout though. You don't skip a beat and order this fine piece of work and cannot wait to see what the beer gods have blessed you with. Before you know it, your chugging this down and, oh man, it is so rich and perfect in every way. You could drink this until the end of time. You want to find the person who created this hidden gem and sing their praises. After a few hours of quenching your palate, it's gone. Your glass is dry and so is the keg. You want more but that's all she wrote. You just have to wait until creator releases something new, or even an improved version of the original. You're extremely satisfied but back on the hunt for something just as good, or even better.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (All of them) & Keystone Light: Yeah, we said it. Here's our analogy. Playing the CoD: MW series is to gaming culture, as drinking Keystone Light is to college culture. CoD and Keystone Light are like the entry level aspects of gaming and college-age partying respectively. They're entertaining and watered-down enough that it attracts those just getting acquainted with the idea of social interactions within their respective communities.

And before you object, consider this: Are you more likely to be called any number of racial, sexual, or intellectual slurs by A) a 12 year old on CoD voice-chat, or B) a college bro whose had one too many Keystone Lights in a night? Let that one roll around in your noodle. The good news is, one may eventually outgrow each of these things and develop a taste for finer things, but there's always those people who don't.

A word from EF: If you drink this, this makes you THAT guy. Yeah you know who he is. The guy who gets all god/bro mode when he drinks and no one is worthy of his godlike presence. You are the master of everything that is digital and if you die in game it was because it was hacked or broken. If you are not recognized online just by the mere sight of your user name, that person is clearly living under some form of a rock and will never live up to be anything. You are, the Keystone Broguy.

Firefall & Two Roads Brewery Co.: You can imagine our surprise that we found the perfect match for a game currently in beta that is already near and dear to us. In a town near WF, there is a brewery opening up called Two Roads Brewing Co. They take their name from the first line of Robert Frost's poem The Road not Taken. If we know anything about the gaming industry, Red 5 Studios has certainly taken the road less traveled by working to create a game like Firefall. To even further support our reasoning, the guys at Two Roads have something in common with the guys at Red 5 Studios. They've all come from different places, areas of expertise, and have had achievements of their own in previous jobs. They also have come together to work on something they are passionate about, which is why they're both doing what they are right now. We hope it all works out for both Two Roads and Red 5.

This was a good start! We got more matches made in drunken heaven for another time!

Sláinte and stay classy, Internet.
-WF & EF