Back when I was eleven, I was terrified of the idea of being labelled a nerd. Like every other worry I’ve ever had, I’ve come realize that I was scared over nothing — but at that young age, I was petrified that my love of Nintendo games would earn me a label that my sensitive self didn’t want to wear.
Fast forward to 2017 and all of a sudden it’s cool to be a nerd! Dungeons and Dragons is once again popular, comic book franchises are universally beloved, Silicon Valley start-ups are perpetually the “next big thing” and “nerd chic” has become a fashion category of its own. I barely touch my Nintendo 64 these days, but it appears that the rest of the world has hopped on the nerd train. So for all of you poindexters out there, here’s some particularly nerdy clubs on campus.
UBC Sci-Fi and Fantasy Society
As their name suggests, this club is a space for sci-fi and fantasy fans to come together and bond over their common interests. What’s particularly notable about is it its gigantic library — it’s stacked with over 2,400 items, most of which are old-school sci-fi/fantasy books with beautifully cheesy covers.
UBC Wargamers is a club dedicated to tabletop board games, collectible card games and role-playing games (RPG’s). Think Dungeons and Dragons, Magic the Gathering, obscure fantasy games with plenty of characters, etc. — not the likes of Monopoly and Uno. They host weekly board game nights on Wednesday nights and have a big library full of board games and RPG books that members can check items out on their own. Many of these games are quite dense, but the club often hosts introductory events to introduce newcomers to them.
This one should be a no-brainer. The UBC eSports Association started out as Starcraft club, but over the years they’ve evolved into a large community of gamers that host plenty of local events and crush it it in competitive tournaments. Seriously, these gamers are a big deal — they’ve been hailed the best League of Legends university team in North America not once but twice in a row. And what have you done with your spare time?
Chess is a tricky game that takes a lot of practice to get good at, but it's also a very rewarding game that has challenged and enthralled people around the world for hundreds of years. The UBC Chess Club has chess-playing sessions every Friday from 5 to 8 p.m., so whether you’re a seasoned chess professional or new to the game, consider stopping by to try out your skills.
Even if you haven’t touched it in years, it’s pretty hard not to like Lego — and it’s basically impossible not to admire the skill and dedication that goes into the most elaborate Lego creations. For the nerds who continue to embrace the endless possibilities that can be created with a shit-ton of Lego, the UBC Lego Club is for you.
Nerdfighters are an internet subculture birthed out of the fan community for the VlogBrothers, better known as John and Hank Green. A large part of their community involves pop-culture fandom, but they’re also dedicated towards “decreasing worldsuck,” which involves contributing to charity work. The UBC Nerdfighters’ clubs day booth suggests that they’re fans of franchises such as Harry Potter, Star Trek, Doctor Who and Star Wars — likewise, their community events range from Halloween mask-making to film screenings to Jeopardy.
AMS Game Development Association
Sure, video games are cool, but have you ever wondered how they’re made? Or how you can make one yourself? The AMS Game Development Association (AGDA) can guide you through all that. Every year they create teams that collaborate to make video games, and they accept everyone from experienced developers to those looking for a place to start. They also host introductory workshops for newcomers and occasionally bring in speakers from the video game industry.
In lieu of the success of Your Name, the recent anime ad for Canadian tourism and various bizarre anime-themed Facebook events around Vancouver, one could say that anime is having a bit of a mainstream moment right now. For those who want to dive deeper into it or who are already diehard fans, the UBC Anime Club should be worth checking out. Every Friday they get together to watch anime in a lecture hall, but that’s not all they do — they also host cosplay events, game nights, workshops, contests and social events as well. So for all you otakus out there looking for a community to nerd out with, congratulations — you’ve found the right club for you.
Basically any academic club ever
What, you mean to tell me that you love your studies so much that you’re in a club dedicated to them? And that you might consider contributing to the academic journal that they run? Well, I only have one thing to say about that.
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