Editor’s Note

Building Community Isn’t Always Fun. Do It Anyway.

How fighting for a working elevator taught me how to talk to strangers.

03/17/2026 By Brooke Jackson-Glidden

Roll the Dice

The Best Portland Venues for Tabletop Role-Playing Games

These bars and breweries host sessions for players of all levels.

03/09/2026 By Alex Frane

IRL

22 Free Ways to Connect with Your Fellow Portlanders

Dance lessons, movie clubs, sea shanty sing-alongs, and more no-cost ways to be where the people are.

02/24/2026 By Rebecca Jacobson

Get Lucky

The Best First Dates, According to Portlanders in the Business of Love and Sex

Streetcar loops, emo karaoke, mini golf, and more ways to spark romance.

02/23/2026 By Rebecca Jacobson

Level Up

The Rise of Public Tabletop Role-Playing Games

A once-niche hobby exits the basement and enters the bar.

02/17/2026 By Alex Frane Illustrations by Stephen Dybus

Wild World

This Portland-Made Game Is a Crash Course in Animal Sex

Sisters Christa Berce and Gina Berce Lipor learned a lot about duck genitalia.

12/08/2025 By Rebecca Jacobson

Love Letters

An Illustrated Ode to Secret Roller Disco

Portland's best pop-up dance party on wheels.

07/23/2025 Illustrations by Shay Mirk

Winter

Will It Sled?

An unscientific analysis of Portland’s best, worst, and most ridiculous toboggan alternatives.

12/16/2024 By Portland Monthly Staff

Game Time

Local Artist Jordan Mishra Johnson Is Releasing an Illustrated Culinary Card Game with Bunnies

Drawn Hungry has players competing to create the best meals.

11/22/2024 By Alex Frane

Birthday Etiquette

20 Classic Portland Gifts for Kids and Adults

Gift cards, cash, and high-fives are out of the question. Use our guide instead.

03/15/2024 By Portland Monthly Staff Photography by Michael Novak

Beer and Games

Portland’s First Tabletop-Roleplaying-Devoted Brewpub Will Open This Spring

TPK Brewing wants to be a haven for beer lovers and gamers.

11/15/2022 By Isabel Lemus Kristensen

Fun and Games

Roll the Dice on these 4 New Portland-Made Board Games

Space races, superstition, feeling through vocabulary, and an updated version of Monopoly's predecessor.

09/21/2022 By Julia Silverman

Fun!

Portland Night Market Returns With Food, Performances, Stalls, and Crucially Libations Galore

The event in the Central Eastside Industrial District has free admission, and boasts in the region of 150 vendors.

04/22/2022 By Shannon Daehnke

Shopping

Where to Buy and Play Board Games in Portland

Tabletop squad, assemble! We're heading to Master Goblin Games, Mox, and more for game night.

03/15/2022 By Gabriel Granillo

Skating

Oaks Park Gay Skate Is on a Roll

A look back at 30 years of Oaks Park Gay Skate

12/21/2021 By Karly Quadros

Wellness

Not Into Spas? Try These Stress Relief Alternatives around Portland

Break s&%t at OutRaged, do nothing at Float On, or pet some cats at Purrington’s Cat Lounge

10/20/2021 By Gabriel Granillo

Video Games

After Several Delays, Panic’s Playdate Finally Gets an Update

The new console includes a larger game roster, new accessories, and a no-code creation tool called Pulp. (And yeah, it still has the crank.)

06/08/2021 By Nick Campigli

Election 2020

Play the Multnomah County Voters’ Pamphlet Scavenger Hunt!

Can you find these items in that 120-pager that just dropped?

10/12/2020 By Margaret Seiler

Entertaining Guide

12 More Awesome Ways to Party in Portland

From axe-throwing contests and rooftop get-downs to wine-and-cheese platters and pizza parties, there's really no excuse not to throw an epic party.

08/27/2019 By Heather Arndt Anderson, Kelly Clarke, Fiona McCann, Marty Patail, Conner Reed, and Benjamin Tepler

Video Games

Portland App Maker Unveils New Handheld Game Console—With a Hand Crank

Indie developer Panic's new Playdate console looks like a yellow box of joy—and it's already a source of controversy.

05/30/2019 By Marty Patail