Digital Game: Origame Digital: Penguin Colony (New Zealand 2026) H.P. Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness is one of the great classics of Antarctic literature, especially if judged by how many adaptations in other media it has inspired. Penguin Colony is one of the most original ones I’ve seen, transforming the Continue Reading
Antarctica
Research Blog Antarctica #186: The Ship Beneath the Ice
Non-fiction: Mensun Bound: The Ship Beneath the Ice (Pan Macmillan 2022) The Endurance is, alongside the Fram, perhaps the most famous ship in Antarctic history. It was the ship Shackleton and his crew sailed on to Antarctica on an ill-fated expedition which was to see them shipwrecked and marooned on the Continue Reading
Research Blog Antarctica #185: Polarmuseet
Museum: Polarmuseet (Tromsø) The Polar Museum in Tromsø is located in what looks like a red barn, but it’s surprisingly spacious and charming once you get inside. Most of the museum’s exhibits are focused on the Arctic, not surprisingly because it’s located in the Norwegian polar north. There are displays about Continue Reading
Research Blog Antarctica #184: Mountains of Madness
Non-fiction: John Long: Mountains of Madness (Joseph Henry Press, 2001) Mountains of Madness is an account of two trips the Australian geologist John Long made to Antarctica, in 1988 and 1991. In some ways, it’s a pretty routine book about working as a scientist in Antarctica in that it goes through the Continue Reading
100 Boardgames (28/100) / Research Blog Antarctica #183: The Thing – The Boardgame
This is a series of posts where I play 100 boardgames. Game: The Thing: The Boardgame Designer: Davide Corsi & Andrea Crespi Year: 2022 Country: Italy Publisher: Pendragon Game Studio The Thing: The Boardgame is based on John Carpenter’s classic scifi horror film The Thing in which the staff of an Antarctic research base attempt Continue Reading
Research Blog Antarctica #182 – The Ferocious Summer
Non-fiction: Meredith Hooper: The Ferocious Summer (Profile Books, 2008) Palmer Station is a research base on Anvers Island in Antarctica, operated by the U.S. It has been the site of long-term studies of penguins and other wildlife, their breeding patterns, migrations, diet, and so on. In Meredith Hooper’s book The Continue Reading
Research Blog Antarctica #181 – The Thing: Infection at Outpost 31
Boardgame: Joe Van Wetering: The Thing – Infection at Outpost 31 (Mondo Games, 2017) The Thing is the topic of three separate boardgames, this one, Who Goes There? and The Thing: the Boardgame. If Infection at Outpost 31 is any indication, its a fruitful source of inspiration because it recreates Continue Reading
Research Blog Antarctica #180 – Oceanwide Expedition Cruise
Expedition Cruise: Oceanwide (Ushuaia-Antarctica-Ushuaia, 2024) I’ve long wanted to visit Antarctica but it’s expensive and difficult. In the beginning of 2024, I finally had my chance as we went on a cruise where we spent five days on the coast (and two days in each direction being seasick in the Continue Reading
Research Blog Antarctica #179 – Antarctica’s Lost Aviator
Book: Jeff Maynard: Antarctica’s Lost Aviator (Pegasus Books, 2019) Books about Antarctic exploration tend to focus on heroic, driven men seeking to test their mettle against the unforgiving forces of nature. Amundsen, Shackleton and in his own way even Scott were tough, strong individuals. In contrast, the main character of Continue Reading
Research Blog Antarctica #178 – Terra Nova
Roleplaying Game: Robert Poppe: Terra Nova (2006) Terra Nova is a roleplaying game scenario designed for the Gamechef competition inspired by Scott’s ill-fated attempt to be the first to the South Pole. Scott’s fatal expedition was called Terra Nova, granting the game its title. The scenario is tightly designed, relying Continue Reading