Geek Fuel is a new subscription box for me. This was the first month I gave it a shot.
You can
Sign up here and the cost was $23.90 per month, but next month it goes up to $24.90 as they are increasing the quality of the t-shirts provided.
This is one of the geeky/ fandom-y/ video game-y boxes. Tracking emails are sent out after the box ships, and it ships on the 15th of the month. Now, if you want to stalk your package before it leaves the warehouse, you can see the tracking number early in your account portal. I may have a slight obsession with tracking numbers/ package stalking. Onto the box!
The box is larger and more durable than those of other subscription box companies.
The paper used to wrap the items inside the box is really high quality and quite thick. I ended up using it as a cover for my desk on a particularly messy project. It worked out great.
Next up was a little magazine. It provided information on the Nintendo Switch (a product that I'm still on the fence on - I love Nintendo, but the tablet controllers just aren't my idea of a good time), offered a discussion on past and future Zelda games (Breath of the Wild anyone?!), offered some "feel good" stories, and had a mini catalog in the back talking about some fandom specific products that you can find to purchase.
And then we have the info card. The back shows the difference between the men's and women's shirts. Now, I have developed a cheater method for shirts in subscription boxes. See - 90% of them are not preshrunk. So, I get them in my partner's size and eventually they shrink down to my size. I don't have to buy clothes, and he gets replacements for the clothes I steal from him. It's a win-win situation.
Here's the other side of the info card, detailing the different items in the box.
Up first is a Nuka-World Amusements t-shirt. For those not in the know, this is a Fallout themed shirt. I have issues with the way that many FPS are done - they cause motion sickness if I play on the newer consoles. I think the last time I got to play a FPS without issue was PS2/ Gamecube.
This shirt was incredibly soft and it fits true to size (at least before washing - I'm not yet sure if this is one that will start to shrink and thus become mine or if it will stay one of his). The little one likes it because "doggie!"
Next up was a pin. Now, I'm not big on pins, but to each his own. There's been a lot of excitement about this particular box, but the other reviews that I saw that went up earlier this week all showed the "common" pin. That makes this one automatically different. You'll see.
I haven't watched Stranger Things yet, but I've heard great things. I might be more interested in this after I watch the show, but maybe not. Anyway, each month the box includes a pin wherein they take their little robot mascot and turn him into different characters from a given fandom.
I ended up with #4/500 for the rare pin. A little carnivorous plant looking critter. I figure I will save this in a drawer until I watch the show, and if it's not my thing, I will go to one of the swap pages for subscription boxes and see if I can trade for something I like/ would use.
Next up was a harder piece of paper shaped like a little toybox, open on the fourth side. This was included in the box to protect what was inside.
There's a certificate of authenticity that comes with it, proving that the artist really did the print and what not.
And then we have the print that was included. It's baby batman! Pow! Wham! All his little toys are villains. It's so cute! I talked to my partner and we're going to get it framed and it's going up in his office on the wall.
This had a prize code on the other side and the website to enter it in. I did not win. I do not know what the winner gets. Still - if you loose, you get a code to put in here:
https://www.geekfuel.com/NukaWorldGiveaway The prize is an Xbox One, Fallout 4, and a Pip-Boy Deluxe Bluetooth Edition.
You do not have to be a subscriber to enter the giveaway - you just get more entries if you are a subscriber.
My console loyalties are to Sony and Nintendo, though my Nintendo love has tapered off since the Wii and Wii U, though we do have both systems. My partner has a 360, but we didn't feel the need for the Xbox One. Still, if someone's going to give me a chance to get one for free, I'll go for it. There are daily entries you can do and one time entries. With 17 days left in the contest, I'm up to 132 entries, so go get yours in now! Or don't and give me a better chance of winning. I'm okay with that too!
In every box there's a Steam game. This was one of the driving factors behind my decision to subscribe. The games over the past few months looked cheesy, fun, and quick. Now, I play Hearthstone while working, but let's face it - that gets boring. I like being able to take a quick few minutes break before getting back to work as I mull aspects of the project I am working on over.
This month's game was Archibald's Adventures. It's a quick little game - each level takes maybe 5-45 seconds, at least up to level 8, with the levels getting progressively harder. You can use the mouse or the keyboard to move and you have to solve puzzles to complete the level. It's a nice brain teaser and there are a good bit of achievements that you can shoot for on Steam, if that's your thing. I'm quite pleased with this one.
And then we come to the item that was, for me, the best in the box: Zelda Portable Power Charger!
This is a Geek Fuel exclusive. The packaging was really high quality.
I love this quote. I have actually set the box aside for destruction so that I can put this on my bulletin board. The charger's packed in heavy duty foam to prevent damage, and below the first layer of foam in the box was a second layer of foam protecting the charging cable.
It was thicker than I expected at first, but I'm completely okay with it. The little one has already snitched it from me twice and has been wielding it fighting imaginary monsters. The little dot next to the usb port is the charging light, letting you know when it's fully charged. I do not know if a light will come on when you need to recharge the charger; I haven't used it more than once yet. The charging cord is a usb to mini, and it fits a standard phone. When you're charging the charger, you plug the mini side into the charger and the usb into the computer. When you're charging a phone, obviously, you reverse that. You can also use it for charging anything that uses a usb port to charge, which is nice.
This box does so many exclusive items, getting a price value is difficult. Do I think this box is worth $24.90? Yes. A game, a t-shirt, a really cute art print (though art prints aren't usually my thing), and the charger are awesome. There's definitely a value here, particularly if you like geeky things. Were all the items a hit for me? Nope. Not my fandoms, save Zelda, but the originality and the fact that the only thing that isn't going to get used is the pin means that it's worth it. A charger, a game, and a t-shirt would have cost more in store. I can't wait to see what next month holds! This one gets to test out the three month rule!
