Tell me, what is it you plan to play in your one wild and precious life? November 19, 2024 12:09 PM Subscribe
It's been a minute since we've had one of these, and boy does it seem like a good time for it: what are you playing, lately? What are the games (video and otherwise) that are keeping your attention, keeping your eyeline off Other Things, giving you the distraction and joy and dissociation and etc. that you need lately? What's good, what's bad-but-good, what are you revisiting, what are you looking forward to?
keeping your eyeline off Other Things
Loving how many MetaTalk posts have made it through the queue in the last couple days!! ðŸ¤
posted by rule-abiding non-dead site-member at 12:43 PM on November 19 [11 favorites]
Loving how many MetaTalk posts have made it through the queue in the last couple days!! ðŸ¤
posted by rule-abiding non-dead site-member at 12:43 PM on November 19 [11 favorites]
Ever since I stopped spending the holidays with my family I started using that dead time between xmas and new year to obsessively play the original Rollercoaster Tycoon with all of its 6 original pixels for way too many hours a day until I fuse with my chair and my dogs call aspca on me. I get it all out of my system in one shot and then put it away again for a year. The weather has turned crisp and I can hear its siren's call...
posted by phunniemee at 12:44 PM on November 19 [10 favorites]
posted by phunniemee at 12:44 PM on November 19 [10 favorites]
The last time I played They Are Billions was supposed to be the last time.
But I am halfway through the campaign again this week, on the next highest level. I think this is the 5th(?) time through, and I am pretty good at it now! Finally.
I added Project Highrise (similar to SimTower) as an option for a while, but not lately.
posted by Glinn at 12:56 PM on November 19
But I am halfway through the campaign again this week, on the next highest level. I think this is the 5th(?) time through, and I am pretty good at it now! Finally.
I added Project Highrise (similar to SimTower) as an option for a while, but not lately.
posted by Glinn at 12:56 PM on November 19
phunniemee, I played Rollercoaster Tycoon SO MUCH. I spent a lot of my dough planting trees and decorating. Before Rollercoaster Tycoon, I was an even bigger Theme Park fanatic. I still remember it most fondly despite the vomiting sounds (particularly from the Bouncy Castle, but also from many questionably designed rollercoasters).
posted by Glinn at 1:04 PM on November 19 [1 favorite]
posted by Glinn at 1:04 PM on November 19 [1 favorite]
still remember it most fondly despite the vomiting sounds
I like the one in Rollercoaster Tycoon that sounds like someone's saying funky trunk.
On repeat
Every 90 seconds
For as long as the game is on
posted by phunniemee at 1:07 PM on November 19 [3 favorites]
I like the one in Rollercoaster Tycoon that sounds like someone's saying funky trunk.
On repeat
Every 90 seconds
For as long as the game is on
posted by phunniemee at 1:07 PM on November 19 [3 favorites]
I recently bought yet another handheld emulation device and am trying to beat Tony Hawk 2 again.
posted by bowbeacon at 1:20 PM on November 19
posted by bowbeacon at 1:20 PM on November 19
Tony Hawk 2
My brother and I turned on the bighead cheat and literally spent hours cracking up at it. Even still when I watch pro skateboarding today, like all the Olympic events, I think well damn this is cool but it'd really be so much better if they all had big fuckin heads.
posted by phunniemee at 1:26 PM on November 19 [4 favorites]
My brother and I turned on the bighead cheat and literally spent hours cracking up at it. Even still when I watch pro skateboarding today, like all the Olympic events, I think well damn this is cool but it'd really be so much better if they all had big fuckin heads.
posted by phunniemee at 1:26 PM on November 19 [4 favorites]
Just saw this was up as I came up for air after an hour with the demo for Bloodshed, which RPS called 'Vampire Survivors meets Doom'" which feels spot on. Just 20 minutes at a time of brisk old-school run and gun with big pixel sprite art and weapon/item powerups. Worth a wrangle if you like those sorts of things.
But I've been on a big Escape From Tarkov kick (again) the last couple months, after they made the new PvE mode available as a modest standalone purchase. Playing without being ganked by random hardboys and teamkilling human scavs makes this wonderful/terrible game feel a lot less like it's aggressively disrespecting my time, even though it's still one of the most player hostile games I've ever spent more than a few hours with. But tracking back to its inspiration, STALKER 2 finally comes out tomorrow and I am so so excited even though I will probably be running it on minimum specs and hoping even that is enough.
posted by cortex (retired) at 1:27 PM on November 19
But I've been on a big Escape From Tarkov kick (again) the last couple months, after they made the new PvE mode available as a modest standalone purchase. Playing without being ganked by random hardboys and teamkilling human scavs makes this wonderful/terrible game feel a lot less like it's aggressively disrespecting my time, even though it's still one of the most player hostile games I've ever spent more than a few hours with. But tracking back to its inspiration, STALKER 2 finally comes out tomorrow and I am so so excited even though I will probably be running it on minimum specs and hoping even that is enough.
posted by cortex (retired) at 1:27 PM on November 19
It's been a minute since we've had one of these, and boy does it seem like a good time for it: what are you playing, lately? What are the games
Arguably, we had one of these yesterday
posted by one for the books at 1:53 PM on November 19 [4 favorites]
Arguably, we had one of these yesterday
posted by one for the books at 1:53 PM on November 19 [4 favorites]
I’ve been running a game of Numenera for my family and a few friends, over the past few months.
Everyone has been having a blast. I'm enjoying being a GM again after along break, and the players are all thoroughly enjoying themselves. It's fun system, and a fun setting, what more could you ask for?
posted by june_dodecahedron at 1:57 PM on November 19 [1 favorite]
Everyone has been having a blast. I'm enjoying being a GM again after along break, and the players are all thoroughly enjoying themselves. It's fun system, and a fun setting, what more could you ask for?
posted by june_dodecahedron at 1:57 PM on November 19 [1 favorite]
In preparation for Civ 7, I've been playing a bunch of Civ 6 (and the complete pack was recently on sale for like $8 so I have been screwing around with some of the extra content, although I haven't tried Zombie Apocalypse Mode yet.)
Also have been playing Against the Storm, which has been described as "the first hundred turns of Civ, aka the good bits". It's a fun little city-builder roguelite with fantastic atmosphere. It's also gotten a DLC recently so I have been playing with the frog dudes.
posted by restless_nomad (retired) at 2:29 PM on November 19 [2 favorites]
Also have been playing Against the Storm, which has been described as "the first hundred turns of Civ, aka the good bits". It's a fun little city-builder roguelite with fantastic atmosphere. It's also gotten a DLC recently so I have been playing with the frog dudes.
posted by restless_nomad (retired) at 2:29 PM on November 19 [2 favorites]
Sounds crazy but I love it.
I totally get it! I've been learning how to massage data as I get more of my local historical society's images online. Which is both cool and also tricky, trying to figure out how much metadata to include, trying to be okay with imperfect images, scans and photos. It's as close to video games as I get.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 2:31 PM on November 19 [1 favorite]
I totally get it! I've been learning how to massage data as I get more of my local historical society's images online. Which is both cool and also tricky, trying to figure out how much metadata to include, trying to be okay with imperfect images, scans and photos. It's as close to video games as I get.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 2:31 PM on November 19 [1 favorite]
I've been playing My Time at Sandrock, which is apparently in the "cozy games" genre. It's a massive game which purposely slows down the main quest, so the gameplay loop is mostly gathering resources, building things, and interacting with the NPCs. There are a ton of minigames, enough that you can just skip the ones you don't care for. There's some combat, but think Minecraft-level, not Doom.
posted by zompist at 2:44 PM on November 19 [6 favorites]
posted by zompist at 2:44 PM on November 19 [6 favorites]
I am not letting myself finish RDR2 for the fourth time (I’m just la-la-la’ing indefinitely in Chapter 2 on endless camping trips) so I am looking for XBOX One games that 1) aren’t too taxing and 2) don’t have visuals that make me queasy. I found A Short Hike, where you’re a sweet little penguin trying to climb a mountain despite aggressively limited camera angles. Cute! And also Brothers, which is equally short, and the ending made me weep. Am considering revisiting Stardew since a lot of the update content is new, but it’s a time investment. Are there other cute short games that are sweet and not too thinky?
posted by mochapickle at 3:00 PM on November 19
posted by mochapickle at 3:00 PM on November 19
the "cozy games" genre
Oh, I was just spending a little time with "I Am Future", a recently released game literally subtitled "Cozy Apocalypse Survival" and which is fitting the bill well. You wake up from a hibernation capsule several years after humanity has fled a drowned world, on the rough of a tall building, and start putting together tools and creature comforts while cleaning up the roof and chatting with appliance with digitized human intelligences. No combat, very easy on the "survival" things, more of a sunny post-apocalyptic Stardew vibe than anything.
posted by cortex (retired) at 3:20 PM on November 19 [2 favorites]
Oh, I was just spending a little time with "I Am Future", a recently released game literally subtitled "Cozy Apocalypse Survival" and which is fitting the bill well. You wake up from a hibernation capsule several years after humanity has fled a drowned world, on the rough of a tall building, and start putting together tools and creature comforts while cleaning up the roof and chatting with appliance with digitized human intelligences. No combat, very easy on the "survival" things, more of a sunny post-apocalyptic Stardew vibe than anything.
posted by cortex (retired) at 3:20 PM on November 19 [2 favorites]
Very much in "video game catch up" mode recently. Played Chants of Senaar *very* quickly. Finished Disco Elysium that I'd barely started. Finished Outer Wilds, started but didn't get very far in the DLC. Loving Balatro but dropped off in intensity after a few run wins. Tore through Astro Bot (best platformer I've ever played). Started Cyberpunk to motivate myself to get the DLC but dropped off a little. Started Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth (can't wait to get to Dondoko Island).
Besides those I need to get back to BG3 and Nier: Automata.
posted by supercres at 3:32 PM on November 19
Besides those I need to get back to BG3 and Nier: Automata.
posted by supercres at 3:32 PM on November 19
Finally restarted a serious BG3 run, and have a couple of other characters preloaded on the beach.
Played through Pacific Drive a few months ago and liked it a lot, tho it is Spooky and Stressful and I think the anomaly density is a little much.
Tactical Breach Wizards is a masterpiece.
Tiny Glade is the perfect hang-out-drink-coffee-wake-up activity.
Played the Citizen Sleeper 2 demo, can't wait for full. I still maintain Citizen Sleeper is one of the finest video games ever, capital-a Art in what it does.
Vampire Survivors and its various DLC remains perfect couch game.
Poking in and out of UFO 50.
Caravan SandWitch was fun! Light and breezy, played through it in a few days after I got back from a vacation and brought C19 with me.
Terra Nil got an update and I sunk some time 100%ing the new areas and challenges.
Also have been playing Against the Storm, which has been described as "the first hundred turns of Civ, aka the good bits". It's a fun little city-builder roguelite with fantastic atmosphere. It's also gotten a DLC recently so I have been playing with the frog dudes.
I REALLY enjoyed my time with Against the Storm, but some of the choices you're (kinda?) forced to make in the post-game (latter half of the difficulty levels) turned me off. But I loved playing what was essentially an RTS with all of the building and none of the combat. The DLC looks great and I want to get back to it.
BUT.
Caves of Qud 1.0 drops in a few weeks and that's probably where I will go to live for a hot second.
Also I wish I had more local folks to hang out and play cribbage with.
posted by curious nu at 3:50 PM on November 19 [2 favorites]
Played through Pacific Drive a few months ago and liked it a lot, tho it is Spooky and Stressful and I think the anomaly density is a little much.
Tactical Breach Wizards is a masterpiece.
Tiny Glade is the perfect hang-out-drink-coffee-wake-up activity.
Played the Citizen Sleeper 2 demo, can't wait for full. I still maintain Citizen Sleeper is one of the finest video games ever, capital-a Art in what it does.
Vampire Survivors and its various DLC remains perfect couch game.
Poking in and out of UFO 50.
Caravan SandWitch was fun! Light and breezy, played through it in a few days after I got back from a vacation and brought C19 with me.
Terra Nil got an update and I sunk some time 100%ing the new areas and challenges.
Also have been playing Against the Storm, which has been described as "the first hundred turns of Civ, aka the good bits". It's a fun little city-builder roguelite with fantastic atmosphere. It's also gotten a DLC recently so I have been playing with the frog dudes.
I REALLY enjoyed my time with Against the Storm, but some of the choices you're (kinda?) forced to make in the post-game (latter half of the difficulty levels) turned me off. But I loved playing what was essentially an RTS with all of the building and none of the combat. The DLC looks great and I want to get back to it.
BUT.
Caves of Qud 1.0 drops in a few weeks and that's probably where I will go to live for a hot second.
Also I wish I had more local folks to hang out and play cribbage with.
posted by curious nu at 3:50 PM on November 19 [2 favorites]
Having finished Ace Attorney Investigations 2 -- which was, really, one of the best games in the Ace Attorney series. I picked up Rise of the Golden Idol when it came out last week, and I've already finished that. I've been getting into Yakuza: Like a Dragon, which is absurd and delightful. And I'm still working my way through Fallout: London.
When I'm feeling lazy and just need to kill a few minutes, I'll often fire up Dead Cells. When I'm in a high anxiety state, I'll play through Quartet (the Sega Master System version). And when I need to escape reality for a long, indefinite amount of time, Dwarf Fortress.
I'll probably replay both Paradise Killer and Control again soon -- both of those are pretty comfortable. And I think I might play through the Ace Attorney series again -- that'll be a good amount of time with characters I know and like. Very comfortable.
I'm looking forward to a few things -- particularly Promise Mascot Agency (made by the folks who made Paradise Killer -- it's looking like this, too, will have a kick-ass soundtrack) and Citizen Sleeper 2. Oh! And Civ VII.
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 4:23 PM on November 19 [1 favorite]
When I'm feeling lazy and just need to kill a few minutes, I'll often fire up Dead Cells. When I'm in a high anxiety state, I'll play through Quartet (the Sega Master System version). And when I need to escape reality for a long, indefinite amount of time, Dwarf Fortress.
I'll probably replay both Paradise Killer and Control again soon -- both of those are pretty comfortable. And I think I might play through the Ace Attorney series again -- that'll be a good amount of time with characters I know and like. Very comfortable.
I'm looking forward to a few things -- particularly Promise Mascot Agency (made by the folks who made Paradise Killer -- it's looking like this, too, will have a kick-ass soundtrack) and Citizen Sleeper 2. Oh! And Civ VII.
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 4:23 PM on November 19 [1 favorite]
I recently bought a book that's just a collection of the easy Monday NYT crosswords. They take about 10 - 15 minutes a pop, and are a perfect little break when I'm waiting for water to boil or an avoiding doing some other task. It's validating to finish them and even though they're easy as hell it feels like an accomplishment. And better than scrolling.
I'm also really enjoying playing https://gisnep.com/ each day, which I learned about on MetaFilter!
posted by kinsey at 4:36 PM on November 19 [1 favorite]
I'm also really enjoying playing https://gisnep.com/ each day, which I learned about on MetaFilter!
posted by kinsey at 4:36 PM on November 19 [1 favorite]
Kerbal Space Program FOREVER! Or at least until the various OSes can no longer support.
I keep thinking about getting an Xbox, just to play Halo, but am kinda glad I don’t have one to avoid that time sink. But getting Halo CE running on my 2022 Macbook might be fun.
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 12:38 AM on November 20
I keep thinking about getting an Xbox, just to play Halo, but am kinda glad I don’t have one to avoid that time sink. But getting Halo CE running on my 2022 Macbook might be fun.
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 12:38 AM on November 20
I bought a PS5 and I spend a lot of my time playing a 90's game on it. And then I also play Powerwash Simulator where you get to live out your dreams of cleaning everything with a power wash.
Technology is great.
If anyone has any better addictive games, let me know. I used to play modern warfare, but I guess I've retired to tend my fields on Township(iOS). Because years of ads finally got to me.
posted by hal_cy_on at 1:15 AM on November 20
Technology is great.
If anyone has any better addictive games, let me know. I used to play modern warfare, but I guess I've retired to tend my fields on Township(iOS). Because years of ads finally got to me.
posted by hal_cy_on at 1:15 AM on November 20
Nintendo recently had a Switch sale and I picked up Inside for a quid, and it's totally great. Properly creepy and compelling, and possibly the most fun I've had in a side-scroller. I rushed to snare the director's earlier Limbo before the sale ended, and it's similarly excellent.
Other than that, still clocking up the hours in TOTK... not got around to Ganondorf yet, or a couple of the sages, because I just like doing side quests and collecting stuff to max out my armour. Is it better than Breath of the Wild? I don't know, I'm just glad to have played both. They're the video game equivalents of a city-break in Europe and backpacking around southeast Asia combined. With bokoblins.
posted by rory at 2:31 AM on November 20 [1 favorite]
Other than that, still clocking up the hours in TOTK... not got around to Ganondorf yet, or a couple of the sages, because I just like doing side quests and collecting stuff to max out my armour. Is it better than Breath of the Wild? I don't know, I'm just glad to have played both. They're the video game equivalents of a city-break in Europe and backpacking around southeast Asia combined. With bokoblins.
posted by rory at 2:31 AM on November 20 [1 favorite]
i have been playing the hell out of baldur's gate 3. i keep wanting to try new classes, origins and species, and discovering whole new areas and storylines every time i play it
looking forward to trying the new dragon age but i'm not bored with bg3 yet
posted by Aya Hirano on the Astral Plane at 2:37 AM on November 20
looking forward to trying the new dragon age but i'm not bored with bg3 yet
posted by Aya Hirano on the Astral Plane at 2:37 AM on November 20
We're perennially one to three years behind the times in this house where video games are concerned, so my daughter and I are currently playing Eldin Ring, Balatro, and Hell Divers, but we just downloaded Dave the Diver and Disco Elysium and are very excited about both.
posted by saladin at 3:45 AM on November 20
posted by saladin at 3:45 AM on November 20
I spend way too much time playing Old World. The other games I have been dabbling in lately are ARA History Untold, Memoriapolis, and Manor Lords. My complaint about all three is that they are incomplete "early release" games that have a long, long way to go, but if they follow through on their promise could eventually be great.
And, of course, I eagerly await the arrival of Civ VII, even though I have some trepidation about what they have done to the game.
posted by briank at 6:01 AM on November 20
And, of course, I eagerly await the arrival of Civ VII, even though I have some trepidation about what they have done to the game.
posted by briank at 6:01 AM on November 20
Fun question:
1. Slay the Spire (too addictive frankly, I have to delete it periodically)
2. Frosthaven
3. DIE: The RPG
4. Ultraviolet Grasslands
5. Cyberpunk 2077
6. Dragon Age: Veilguard
I also like to ask LLMs how to complete the system of German Idealism.
posted by anotherpanacea at 7:43 AM on November 20
1. Slay the Spire (too addictive frankly, I have to delete it periodically)
2. Frosthaven
3. DIE: The RPG
4. Ultraviolet Grasslands
5. Cyberpunk 2077
6. Dragon Age: Veilguard
I also like to ask LLMs how to complete the system of German Idealism.
posted by anotherpanacea at 7:43 AM on November 20
Balatro. So much Balatro.
posted by slogger at 8:20 AM on November 20 [6 favorites]
posted by slogger at 8:20 AM on November 20 [6 favorites]
I've been playing the Factorio: Space Age update since it came out a month ago, and have finally (like, this week!) gotten to the part with all the new space stuff. It's fun - there are some more modest changes to how some parts of the base game work and generally I think they're improvements.
Factorio has distracted me from the thing I spend most of my video game time on, which is Oxygen Not Included. I'll need to get back to that before too long; I really enjoy the Frosty Planets Pack they released a few months ago. I try to buy everything ONI I can, including merch, because I play the game so dang much and it doesn't feel like there are enough ways to give them my money in exchange for all the fun.
posted by nickmark at 9:14 AM on November 20
Factorio has distracted me from the thing I spend most of my video game time on, which is Oxygen Not Included. I'll need to get back to that before too long; I really enjoy the Frosty Planets Pack they released a few months ago. I try to buy everything ONI I can, including merch, because I play the game so dang much and it doesn't feel like there are enough ways to give them my money in exchange for all the fun.
posted by nickmark at 9:14 AM on November 20
I'm still breaking my head on Go. I play on the Baduk pop app -- correspondence games of a move a day -- and suffer over every move.
posted by dhruva at 9:38 AM on November 20 [1 favorite]
posted by dhruva at 9:38 AM on November 20 [1 favorite]
Tiny Glade which is cozy, pretty, and helped me relax about the election.
I just finished playing Webbed which is a cute grappling hook platformer about a spider. It is inventive, excellent, just about the perfect length, and not too hard.
posted by surlyben at 9:46 AM on November 20
I just finished playing Webbed which is a cute grappling hook platformer about a spider. It is inventive, excellent, just about the perfect length, and not too hard.
posted by surlyben at 9:46 AM on November 20
YARG.
Silly rhythm games with plastic instrument shaped controllers are fun! After 12ish years it took a minute to not totally suck, but at least it's (barely) doable for my fingers, unlike an actual guitar. Next up is trolling Goodwill for an old Rock Band drum kit. And maybe a cheap USB microphone. The drum kits are stupid expensive online. Like actual low end MIDI drum kit expensive.
For some reason American Truck Simulator just hasn't been doing it for me of late, and neither has No Man's Sky.
posted by wierdo at 11:24 AM on November 20
Silly rhythm games with plastic instrument shaped controllers are fun! After 12ish years it took a minute to not totally suck, but at least it's (barely) doable for my fingers, unlike an actual guitar. Next up is trolling Goodwill for an old Rock Band drum kit. And maybe a cheap USB microphone. The drum kits are stupid expensive online. Like actual low end MIDI drum kit expensive.
For some reason American Truck Simulator just hasn't been doing it for me of late, and neither has No Man's Sky.
posted by wierdo at 11:24 AM on November 20
please let us know what platforms! I have a Fire tablet and am considering picking up a Switch and am looking for new games.
posted by corb at 12:11 PM on November 20 [1 favorite]
posted by corb at 12:11 PM on November 20 [1 favorite]
+1 for just balatro, probably the only time in my life I've spent most of a year playing a goty nominee
posted by terretu at 2:24 PM on November 20
posted by terretu at 2:24 PM on November 20
I currently have veilguard on ps5 when I have the energy for it (plucky squire on deck as well), afkjourney (it's a f2p gacha autobattler game but good production values & imo surprisingly generous if like me you don't want to pay anything), balatro, & vampire survivors on my phone, tactical breach wizards on the computer and I've been eyeing the Golden Idol sequel but not pulled the trigger and bought it yet.
posted by juv3nal at 6:18 PM on November 20 [1 favorite]
posted by juv3nal at 6:18 PM on November 20 [1 favorite]
I've been slowly working my way through The Talos Principle II. It's really great, and suits my mid-life status. On one hand, the story is great and it's aggressively humanist in a way I find refreshing. On the other, since most puzzles don't take more than 10 minutes (unless you get stumped by something) it's very flexible in session length. I also started playing Metaphor: Refantazio, and it's really cool, and the type of game my younger self would've gotten totally lost in... but yah. It's really hard to devote myself to a video game these days.
I should really check out Tactical Breach Wizards... bite-sized sessions yet great writing is sort of my key checklist these days. Probably the game I'll be playing after I eventually finish Talos II.
posted by Alex404 at 2:42 AM on November 21 [1 favorite]
I should really check out Tactical Breach Wizards... bite-sized sessions yet great writing is sort of my key checklist these days. Probably the game I'll be playing after I eventually finish Talos II.
posted by Alex404 at 2:42 AM on November 21 [1 favorite]
Goddammit cortex I lost all of yesterday to I Am Future and will probably lose today to it, too. It's charming and pleasant and repetitive in the good way, although I may yet turn the coziness slider up because I simply can't be arsed to deal with slugs eating my lettuce.
posted by restless_nomad (retired) at 4:46 AM on November 21 [2 favorites]
posted by restless_nomad (retired) at 4:46 AM on November 21 [2 favorites]
I'm only allowed to play the Ouija Board Game
posted by B_Ghost_User at 12:40 PM on November 21 [1 favorite]
posted by B_Ghost_User at 12:40 PM on November 21 [1 favorite]
I've been playing Settlers: Heritage of Kings (again) to distract me from some stressful stuff. Also far too much Candy Crush while listening to podcasts. My child is into games on his PC (various things in Roblox, Minecraft, Kerbal Space Program) and I'm thinking of getting our first console at Christmas so we can play together. Not sure if we want PS4, PS5, Switch or something else - it has to run Hogwarts Legacy, is the main requirement. I feel an Ask coming on.
posted by altolinguistic at 2:45 PM on November 21
posted by altolinguistic at 2:45 PM on November 21
This month I’ve been too swamped with work to play computer games, but before that I was making my way trough the Shadowrun trilogy of RPGs that Harebrained Schemes made about a decade ago. I decided to give those games a shot because the BattleTech game they made had been my lunchtime fun for about a year.
The first one, Shadowrun Returns, is pretty good. It’s fairly short, and it doesn’t have much in the way of character development. I enjoyed it well enough, but it absolutely did not prepare me for the second entry.
Shadowrun: Dragonfall is a masterpiece. It has a very clever narrative structure, in that a character dies early on, and over the next few hours you get to know how much they meant to the community, and through that process you build a retroactive relationship to that character, and feel invested in the community.
And the community is really interesting. For those who don’t know, Shadowrun is a setting where magic has returned to the world, which had already become fairly cyberpunky. Dragonfall takes place in Berlin, which is an autonomous city run by anarchists. Your little neighborhood becomes a home, as you venture hither and yon on your adventures. The stakes of the story become really meaningful, in a way I have rarely felt in RPGs, even the very best ones.
I’m in the middle of the last Shadowrun game, Hong Kong, and it’s very good, but hasn’t hit me as strongly as Dragonfall. The combat remains very fun (a feature of all of them) and the story is interesting, but it isn’t quite at the level of Dragonfall. But then I don’t think many games are.
posted by Kattullus at 2:46 PM on November 21 [2 favorites]
The first one, Shadowrun Returns, is pretty good. It’s fairly short, and it doesn’t have much in the way of character development. I enjoyed it well enough, but it absolutely did not prepare me for the second entry.
Shadowrun: Dragonfall is a masterpiece. It has a very clever narrative structure, in that a character dies early on, and over the next few hours you get to know how much they meant to the community, and through that process you build a retroactive relationship to that character, and feel invested in the community.
And the community is really interesting. For those who don’t know, Shadowrun is a setting where magic has returned to the world, which had already become fairly cyberpunky. Dragonfall takes place in Berlin, which is an autonomous city run by anarchists. Your little neighborhood becomes a home, as you venture hither and yon on your adventures. The stakes of the story become really meaningful, in a way I have rarely felt in RPGs, even the very best ones.
I’m in the middle of the last Shadowrun game, Hong Kong, and it’s very good, but hasn’t hit me as strongly as Dragonfall. The combat remains very fun (a feature of all of them) and the story is interesting, but it isn’t quite at the level of Dragonfall. But then I don’t think many games are.
posted by Kattullus at 2:46 PM on November 21 [2 favorites]
I made sourdough after not making it for over a year. Got some starter from my FiL who I taught how to make it and has been making it for several years. Mine died of neglect earlier this year because I've been obsessing over my baguette making and trying to learn about that craft. So I made some sourdough today, and I guess it's like a bike. It came back and the bread was pretty good except the Kroger parchment paper didn't parchment and stuck to the bottom. I fucking hate Kroger.
For dinner tonight I wanted some comfort food so I made a variation on this white-suburban-mom recipe that my mom used to make and that I love. It's called Swiss Ham Ring-a-Round and it's a winner of a Pillsbury Bake-off from back in the Seventies and my mom found it in one of Pillsbury's cookbooks. You normally take the triangles from their crescent rolls and make a circle out of their short ends creating a sunburst of raw dough. Then around that circle but not in the center, you spoon a filling of ham, grated Swiss, chopped cooked broccoli, minced onion, mixed with mayo, mustard, and a splash of worcestershire to remind you this is from the Seventies. You spoon that around and then you take the pointy end of the sun rays and fold them over the filling into the center of the circle creating a kind of savory ham and cheese bundt cake. Bake that and serve it in slices, was what the recipe recommended.
But I bought the Pillsbury full sheet crescent dough and I used it to transform those ingredients into a flakey Swiss
ham brocc pizza, and it was pretty good.
Learning about food and cooking. Experimenting. Going outside my culinary comfort zone. Finding ingredients in unfamiliar places and exploring my city for its culinary treasures. That's what I'm doing to pretend that la la la nothing is happening. Unfortunately, my anxiety is reeking havoc on my stomach so I generally only get a little taste of what I'm making and I'm actually losing weight. But the novelty and education are sufficiently distracting, so far, and my family has never had it better. I like this learning at least. And I like making my family happy and sated.
posted by Stanczyk at 4:45 PM on November 21 [1 favorite]
For dinner tonight I wanted some comfort food so I made a variation on this white-suburban-mom recipe that my mom used to make and that I love. It's called Swiss Ham Ring-a-Round and it's a winner of a Pillsbury Bake-off from back in the Seventies and my mom found it in one of Pillsbury's cookbooks. You normally take the triangles from their crescent rolls and make a circle out of their short ends creating a sunburst of raw dough. Then around that circle but not in the center, you spoon a filling of ham, grated Swiss, chopped cooked broccoli, minced onion, mixed with mayo, mustard, and a splash of worcestershire to remind you this is from the Seventies. You spoon that around and then you take the pointy end of the sun rays and fold them over the filling into the center of the circle creating a kind of savory ham and cheese bundt cake. Bake that and serve it in slices, was what the recipe recommended.
But I bought the Pillsbury full sheet crescent dough and I used it to transform those ingredients into a flakey Swiss
ham brocc pizza, and it was pretty good.
Learning about food and cooking. Experimenting. Going outside my culinary comfort zone. Finding ingredients in unfamiliar places and exploring my city for its culinary treasures. That's what I'm doing to pretend that la la la nothing is happening. Unfortunately, my anxiety is reeking havoc on my stomach so I generally only get a little taste of what I'm making and I'm actually losing weight. But the novelty and education are sufficiently distracting, so far, and my family has never had it better. I like this learning at least. And I like making my family happy and sated.
posted by Stanczyk at 4:45 PM on November 21 [1 favorite]
This is where I admit I'm way too swamped to play games in my free time right now so instead I got my Limnology students hooked on both the EPA Stormwater Calculator and Model My Watershed.
posted by hydropsyche at 4:02 AM on November 22 [3 favorites]
posted by hydropsyche at 4:02 AM on November 22 [3 favorites]
i played this yesterday: https://doodles.google/doodle/rise-of-the-half-moon/ from google
(i appreciate the comment field note 💙)
posted by HearHere at 6:00 AM on November 22 [1 favorite]
(i appreciate the comment field note 💙)
posted by HearHere at 6:00 AM on November 22 [1 favorite]
I've been slowly working my way through The Talos Principle II.
At first, I wasn't sure how they were going to follow up the first game, but the society of cat-loving humanist robots on their individual and collective journeys of self-exploration had me sold pretty quickly. It was one of those games I didn't want to end* not just because I'd be out of clever puzzles but also -- moreso -- because I'd miss the characters. Especially Yaqut. Yaqut is adorable.
* okay, it hasn't quite ended: I'm stuck on the last 3 puzzles of the Into the Abyss DLC.
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 10:00 AM on November 22 [1 favorite]
At first, I wasn't sure how they were going to follow up the first game, but the society of cat-loving humanist robots on their individual and collective journeys of self-exploration had me sold pretty quickly. It was one of those games I didn't want to end* not just because I'd be out of clever puzzles but also -- moreso -- because I'd miss the characters. Especially Yaqut. Yaqut is adorable.
* okay, it hasn't quite ended: I'm stuck on the last 3 puzzles of the Into the Abyss DLC.
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 10:00 AM on November 22 [1 favorite]
Currently playing the little addictive puzzle game on the latest version of the Jacquie Lawson advent calendar. Keep matching and smashing as many Xmas ornaments as I can in three minutes. Let's try another three minutes. And another. Whoa, it's 10:30 PM already?
posted by The Ardship of Cambry at 2:35 PM on November 22
posted by The Ardship of Cambry at 2:35 PM on November 22
I'm halfway through Outer Wilds right now but then work got busy and I ran out of playing time. hope I can get some time to play this weekend. One thing I learned about myself while playing is that I absolutely cannot land a spaceship and will crash every time.
I played an absolutely amazing game recently, Viewfinder. sooo cool! If you like puzzle games like Portal or Manifold Garden, check it out. highly recommend
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 3:20 PM on November 22 [1 favorite]
I played an absolutely amazing game recently, Viewfinder. sooo cool! If you like puzzle games like Portal or Manifold Garden, check it out. highly recommend
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 3:20 PM on November 22 [1 favorite]
Stalker 2, which is great, just immaculate creepy east european stalker vibes. Free if you have gamepass, though fair warning it's a gigantic install. Also the a-life Zone simulation is currently a little broken but they've said they will fix it
posted by Sebmojo at 2:09 PM on November 24 [1 favorite]
posted by Sebmojo at 2:09 PM on November 24 [1 favorite]
I seem to be a dozen hours into a third run through Cyberpunk 2077. There's so much to dislike about this game, there's so much in-your-face stupidity and offensiveness-for-the-sake-of-offensiveness ... but it turns out I really like the story? I really like listening to Keanu Reeves' ghost slowly develop as a character? I have emotions about him. There's a scene toward the end if you do all his sidequests that's just ... really something.
And then there's enough significant variety in the possible builds to make three playthroughs feel substantially different (hacker, melee, now beeftank machinegun boy).
Also are modular synths a game? Because they're pretty good. The resource-allocation aspect of it feels very game-like. It's like theorycrafting a build.
I plunked down some cash to support Path of Exile 2 although if Cyberpunk is still going strong I may not get to it right away.
posted by neuromodulator at 3:12 PM on November 26
And then there's enough significant variety in the possible builds to make three playthroughs feel substantially different (hacker, melee, now beeftank machinegun boy).
Also are modular synths a game? Because they're pretty good. The resource-allocation aspect of it feels very game-like. It's like theorycrafting a build.
I plunked down some cash to support Path of Exile 2 although if Cyberpunk is still going strong I may not get to it right away.
posted by neuromodulator at 3:12 PM on November 26
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So while I'm learning, it's actually fun enough that I'm spending my own time (as well as time on the clock) trawling the internet for Financial Accounting 101 tutorials and creating my process from scratch. I'm sure this will get a lot more boring once I know what I'm doing, but right now it's pretty exciting and filling a knowledge gap I've always felt in my "manager" skill set. Sounds crazy but I love it.
(Why not learn from and use tools from the people who did it before? you might ask! - long story, but that's the problem that instigated the whole change)
posted by ctmf at 12:28 PM on November 19 [3 favorites]