Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (21st September)

Fate/stay night REMASTERED – 3 Servants were defeated. 4 Servants currently remains. 14th Day.
Update #1:
Fate/stay night REMASTERED – still 14th day. 5(?) Servants were defeated. 2(?) Servants remains. Got Tiger Stams 9 and 10.
Well, for now, it's all what I've played on this week. Have a nice gaming weekend, everyone.
Edit: You know... It's kinda ironic and pathetic that a 2012 all-ages remaster of a 2004 erogē(Fate/stay night) has a more stellar seiyū cast than a 2024 console exclusive(Nintendo Switch) VN, Emio, lol.

Ring Fit Adventure: I’m approaching the end of the post game and I’m interested to see what happens and create new goals for myself.
Cannon Dancer: This is a strange and worthy sequel to Strider. I don’t appreciate that it makes me murder tigers.

I am interested in playing Yakuza: Kiwami next month. LaD was the first game in a long time to actually make me laugh. I’m also hoping for a Switch release for UFO 50.

For me, this weekend is jam packed:

• Animal Crossing New Horizons
• Persona 4 Golden
• The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure
• Pokémon Brilliant Diamond
• Pokémon Ultra Moon

Alot of big games for me haha. Happy weekend everyone

Nice weather, so not much gaming. Did play RE4 Separate Ways on XSS over the course of the week. Enjoyed it more than the main campaign, tbh.

I know what I'll be playing next weekend... For now, enjoy this weekend everyone!

Playing deedlit in wonder labyrinth and shovel knight specter of torment. After playing shovel knight sor on ps4, pc, wii u and 3ds I think I'll seriously finish this game on switch lol, already finished the main shovel knight game on ps4 way back then, it's a really great game.

Also I'm not using hori switch splitpad compact anymore, the analogue stick is good, but the splitpad make the switch feels big and uncomfortable, to the point that I rarely use my switch. After I put the joycon back, the switch feels small and fun to use again, and I'm back playing games on it again 😃

This week I will be mostly playing

Two Point Hospital
Wario’s Super Picross

I am continuing with Ghost of a Tale on Switch, I am still really enjoying my time with the game, discovering all its secrets.

Command and Conquer Remastered.

"Unable to comply. Building in progress. Building" 😄

Would double dip in a heartbeat if it came to Switch. PC will do for the mo.

"Unit lost. Unit lost. Our base is under attack. Unit lost." Doh 🤣

Before all the excitement of the new Zelda, I’ll be plugging away at Red Dead Redemption 1 on my Switch.

Master Detective Archives: Rain Code, in chapter 2. It’s good, but so slow that I often fall asleep while playing. I read that later on story would be mind-blowing, so sticking to it.

Grand Theft Auto III - The Definitive Edition - Nintendo Switch

It's been 23 years since I first played GTA3. It blew me away then and it still blows me away now in terms of how good it is as a 2001 game. The first 10 hours are just endless fun and it's still so playable (albeit in its Remastered form) today.

As I go further into the game and the playable area of Liberty City expands, I am sorely reminded of how the game starts to drag, missions get longer but rarely any more sophisticated, and the lack of mid-mission check points leaves me cursing the time I'm spending on in-mission driving. But that doesn't mean I no longer think it's brilliant. Regardless of how much time I spend reattempting missions, the way those cop cars fling themselves into every nook and cranny never seems to get less hilarious.

It has been the only thing I've played this last week, so I am starting to want a break from it, but I cannot immediately think of what I should fall back on to balance the insane fun I've been having. Playing it on Switch is an absolute dream.

Peace, love, pixels and kamikaze cop cars to you all!

Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble. I am in World 6 EX now. What a great Monkey Ball, I think this is my favourite.

Happy gaming everyone!

Stellar Blade: The combat has impressed me with its depth and variety of different moves, combos, and upgrades, with the different exospines providing customization that actually feels applied in-game.

EVE is very endearing and you want her to avenge her comrades, but it's the side quests (particularly Enya's) where the story really shines. It's also nice to have a huge variety of outfits, earrings, and glasses to customize your look.

In other words, it's a really fun ride.

On PS5 i WAS playing the Plucky Squire but I've encountered a major bug, last night I finished on chapter 8 and turned off my game, went back to it this morning and my save says chapter 5 which was 3 days ago, so yeah it quickly got deleted.

Instead il be focussing on the Sword Art Online Fractured Daydream Beta and Visions of Mana

On Switch I will be playing Tokyo Mirage Sessions and some Splatoon 3.

Recently built a PC! Currently plugging through god of war in glorious 120fps and 4k HDR!

Emio - The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club
Chapter 6.

Wildfrost
Game Trial. Started yesterday. Fun and pretty deck-building game. Lost my first attempt while getting accustomed to the mechanics but succeeded on my second and third attempt. Just lost my fourth attempt because I was so confident on the last turn of the final boss that I forgot to move my hero.

Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA Mega Mix
Excellent or better from all songs, including DLC, on Normal. Playing mostly on Hard now which still has some songs I've not done yet, though I've already cleared all the hard songs excluding Negaposi*Continues which I've attempted twice.

Nodame Cantabile
Unlocked the rest of daily puzzle modes in Picross DS so I switched over to another game I bought while in Japan. Certainly a more casual rhythm game experience compared to Miku.

Catching Pokémonkeys with my local community group in GO tomorrow afternoon. Hoping to nab a couple of Shadow Raikou as well.

I want to play Sega Genesis games. All of them. At the same time, to save time

The Mask of Darkness DLC for PoP: Lost Crown.

It’s tough! Definitely wouldn’t recommend buying it before finishing the main game since I think it unlocks long before you finish it- it’s definitely made to be post-game content. Enjoying the challenge of it though

Trying out Brown Dust 2, since I heard they were gonna have a collab with Senran Kagura. Dunno if I can say I'm enjoying it so far since I just got started, but I like how it feels like a console turn based RPG. Unfortunately, the devs didn't have the forsight to add controller support natively, so I had to do some tinkering with non-steam games and controller settings just to get it to work. All that said.... I have seen the Live2Ds of the game and ooooh boy are certain characters just cute and funny! 😭

Also, more Blue Archive! Just got done with another valentine's day event that was added to the permanent events. It was pretty damn funny getting chased by the yandere just to be given valentines chocos while she's ripping the city apart just to do so.
I still have Clumsy Sister & the Magician of the Old Library event to read, as that's the most recent one. Might do it when I wake up, cuz it's not every day you get to know Stinky Ui

On and off been replaying Great Ace Attorney 1, need to finish Astro Bot, wondering about either getting back to GTA5 or starting a run of Kingdom Hearts 1.

The Silver Case and Xenoblade Chronicles 3, baby! Oh, and some Splatoon for good measure.

Skyward Sword! Got a second hand copy really cheap this week, so gotta be playing that. Maybe some runs of Wildfrost now that it's on NSO, who knows.
Happy gaming everyone!

Collection of Mana! Having another play through of the first Mana game (Mystic Quest/Final Fantasy Adventure). One of the best GB games, in my opinion.

@Qwiff Separate Ways was a pleasant surprise to me, really good DLC. About 5h of gameplay for me, considering Capcom sells RE3 remake for five times the price of the DLC with the same game time SW is worth the purchase.

Currently playing: Skyward Sword.

Finished Marvel's Spider-Man Remastered on PS5 at 3 a.m., so I guess this is it for me gamingwise this weekend. Even more so with little kids at home.

After very belatedly getting into the game on Switch, I've been finally playing the Witcher 3. I picked up the PS4 version too as it's so cheap and looks better, but found myself mostly playing on Switch portable.

Also bought the Mavel vs. Capcom collection on Switch. X-Men vs. Street Fighter was one of my favourite Saturn imports way back (I still own it). I'd not played The Punisher game before and it's a really nice extra. Might also contine some DS Castlevania in the Dominus Collection, those games are still really enjoyable to play.

On the topic of Mario Oddessy, I have yet to play it! Part of me would like to and I know it will be brilliant, but I am not good at collectathon games. If I get it, I will NEED to get all the moons, and I know I won't be able to, and it will stress me out playing for the sake of playing. Same happens for any game like that.

Astro Bot still for me this weekend.
Patiently waiting Switch 2 and games reveal.

Undecided as I'm kind of wasting time waiting for Zelda to arrive. Will probably revisit Splatoon 3's Grand Fest venue to listen to more music though.

@larryisaman the DLC content unlocks after you get Shadow of the Simurgh power, which you get 1/3 into the game so it's definitely not post-game content, plus when you enter there you lose access to most of the upgrades you earn in the main game so it's not like entering there after you beat the game will make any difference

Blasphemous 1 & 2 BABI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pikmin 4 - thought I was almost at the end but apparently not! Love this game but I am about ready to be done with it now.

Also slay the spire, just fully addicted again

Finally finished the main Pikmin 3 Deluxe campaign, with all fruit recently. Not a difficult game, just kept getting distracted with other things. Working on some of the side missions, and once done I may finally treat myself to Pikmin 4, having completed Pikmin 1 + 2 earlier in the year. Otherwise, challenge rooms on Arkham Asylum and mopping up the Skywalker Saga, which currently sits at 96% complete.

The main game, that I'll be playing, is Coromon, which I've been enjoying. I’ll also be playing some Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, with my kids. With Battletoads & Double Dragon being added to Nintendo Switch Online, I’ll play that for a bit as well.

Well, I played The Sims 4 PS4 on my PS5 machine since yesterday as I tested the loading speed and performance. It looked better on PS5 machine so I proceed to download again my purchased DLC onto my PS5 and I tried to copy the save data from my PS4 and transfer to my PS5. It's a whole long day process.

I have spent an alarming amount of time playing Night Driver on Atari 2600 this week. I had played it before on various collections, and really didn't like it. But playing it with a paddle controller makes a lot of difference, and I'm now trying to get the best runs possible.

I'm also playing more Yakuza: Like A Dragon, Stitch and, hopefully I'll find time to start Mario vs Rabbids.

Enjoy your weekends, everyone.

Discovered an old Crazy Taxi disc for the Cube that I didn't remember owning. Plenty of arcade fun!

I’ve picked back up Persona 4 and been really hooked on that.

I’ve been playing/reading Tavern Talk, but I’m not a fan of D&D (My fault for not doing more in depth research) so I’m debating on dropping it. Besides the D&D stuff, the mini-games aren’t creative to me.

I wave of nostalgia has hit me recently so I decided to start playing a game I was obsessed with when I was about…9 or 10? But it’s called A Dog’s Life and it’s on the PS2.

Similar to Ollie, I’ve decided to revisit the awesome Zelda Oracle Series before EoW comes out. Started fresh in Oracle of Seasons but my old file is only missing 4 of the 64 rings, so I might put in a little work on that old, oh so close to 100% completion file too.

I’m just going to play whatever before Epic Mickey and Zelda Echoes launch next week.

It’s been months since I’ve played Splatoon 3’s Side Order, so I think I’ll go and do some rounds in that again, along with some Tableturf Battle. It feels surreal to have largely dropped Splatoon 3 now that’s it’s pretty-much done, but I’ll come back for the repeat seasonal Splatfests, Big Runs, single-player modes and an occasional Salmon Run with a good rotation.

Despite earlier hopes, my Echoes of Wisdom investment seems to be drifting into October after all, but I did manage to allocate a smaller sum towards Cursed to Golf and the Edna & Harvey bundle - which are expected to feature among this weekend's Switch sessions alongside the ever gluttonous whim range like Xenoblades and Oninaki, RFs and the finally fixed Portia (a prior update having reportedly messed the progression with existing save files), GTA Trilogy and SR4, Isaac and Tallowmere 2, Borderlands 2 and Doom 3, 13 Sentinels and Silent Hope, Dredge and Dave the Diver, Torchlight 2 and Carto, Atelier Marie and Dying Light, YesterMorrow and Princess Farmer... and then I might just scratch the lingering Zelda itch with more time in BotW and Adventure of Link. Which may not even be the extent of NSO sessions, with Yoshi's Island, Metroid Zero Mission and even a Battletoads Double Dragon revisit in the cards. The potential TES and Tales time on Deck (besides a chance of Xenogears, Disney Infinity and Nights of Azure) could spill over into a Skyrim or Symphonia session, too.

The rest of the hardware will be dealing with its own possibilities like NFS 2015, FlatOut Head On, Exist Archive, Unwound Future and Valentia - a total larger than life as usual, but the expectations of a busier next weekend don't motivate much planning restraint today either.😅

Trying not to play anything this weekend: need to save my aging hands and wrists for Zelda on Thursday.

I finished 'Torna - The Golden Country' this week and I absolutely LOVED it. The ending was just pure cinematic brilliance and now I really want to get on with Xenoblade 3.

... But before I get stuck in, I need a little RPG break, so I'm playing 'Kaze and the Wild Masks' on Switch and 'Uncharted 4' on PS4.

The usual Risk of Rain 2. Attempting to unlock the “secret” survivor from the DLC.

I’ve also been playing quite a bit of Astro Bot. Very cute game, though just a tad bit slow for my liking. Still, I’m gonna go for 100% completion since that doesn’t seem to be that hard of a plat.

I've just finished Splatoon 3's Side Order DLC and now am considering Steamworld Dig 2, I really enjoyed the first one and the sequel should be better. Also my weekly Ring Fit Adventure workout.

To the Moon Beach Episode

Replaying AC: Origins. Seven years on, this game is still amazing.

Broken Sword "Reforged" (aka the new remaster)...

A great poster-child for everything a good remaster should involve - graphical upscaling, improved UI, QoL/accessibility features etc. Also an easy/story mode for those who don't want too much of a challenge. A beautiful game! (Playing on Deck due to Switch release delay)

Aiming to have Broken Sword done by Thursday/Friday so I can get stuck into Echoes

It’s a drizzly weekend with no special plans so I hope to make more progress in Grounded, which really has hooked me despite its modest Switch performance. A beefier tutorial would have helped with the learning curve, too, I think. But now that I’ve got a decent grip on the game and the guts and equipment to face the scarier spiders and bees, the game world has opened up and there’s plenty of equipment upgrades and base-building to be done. Sadly, I doubt I can rush through and finish it before Echoes of Wisdom arrives next week.

I’ve also picked up a bunch of action/arcade carts lately, like Black Bird, Valfaris, and Tengo Project’s Shadow of the Ninja: Reborn, Ninja Saviors, and Wild Guns Reloaded. Several preorders trickled in since I’ve been “Grounded,” too, like GleyLancer/Gynoug 2-pack, Contra: Operation Galuga, and Wild Ba$tards, among others. I don’t know how I’ll find the time, but I’m resolved to play all these someday - probably when games go all-streaming, all-AI and I go all-retro!

Wishing everyone a whiz-bang weekend! 😄🕹👾

Uncharted: Golden Abyss (Vita) - Nearing the end of my Hard playthrough.

Microsoft Wordament (Android) - Dailies and Adventure mode.

Free Slots Fun Factory (Windows Phone) - Won't stop crashing. I'm not sure I'll be able to play this.

It took some time but I finally got to dig into Emio and it exceeded my expectations! The writing in that game is excellent, so now that I'm in a FDC mood I'm replaying the remakes once again. Then I'll more than likely play through Emio again too, to see what details there are to catch knowing what I do now about how the whole thing unfolds.
It's my GOTY.
I've also been playing Ys VIII on and off. That one has been a treat so far, but it keeps getting shafted by ZZZ dailies lol.

This weekend on PS5 I'm playing Astro Bot, Stellar Blade (only 3 suits left to find) and Alan Wake 2 ng+. I love how they integraded the DLC into the main story, very nice touch.
On Xbox I'm doing some sidequests in Witcher 3.
On the Switch I'm doing some sidequests in TotK.
It's not often I'm jumping between all 3 consoles but when I do I absolutely love it.

Astrobot all the way for me.

Even Nintendo need to take note of this one, is totally superb and dare I say up there with any Mario game!

I’m currently trying to get all P- Ranks as The Noise in Pizza Tower. Currently on floor 3. I also picked up a copy of the Link’s Awakening Remake yesterday. I might play that before getting Echoes of Wisdom.

Army Men: World War (PC) and Toree Genesis (Switch)

I'm still in my phase of playing through my huge RPG backlog (Suikoden V is next on my to-do list), however I don't want to start a new one just before Zelda comes out, 'cause any time a new Zelda comes out, that'll always be top priority.

For now, I decided to buy UFO 50 which was recently released on Steam. It's basically a modern take on the "Action 52" concept - a compilation of 50 completely original NES-style games, except it differs from Action 52 in that the games are actually good. It's a really cool package, especially for retro enthusiasts.
Kind of just browsing through them at the moment, though one of them titled "Mooncat" really fascinated me with its completely unique control scheme and otherworldly aesthetic

Yesterday was Moonstone Island’s birthday so i’ll be playing that. A big free update is in the works and set to release on the 30th, and it is hotly anticipated in the Diogmites’ household. I am still searching for the Winter temple, and hitting some of the higher level dungeons i missed.
I didn’t really play much this past week as again, i had a busy week punctuated by our annual apartment building inspection. So i had to spiffy up the ‘ole lair and it looks positively spanking, if i do say so myself.
Take care of yourselves and game well!

• Pokemon Legends. Just reached the end credits for the first time, finally! I kept backlogging it and took until now to properly beat the game, but what a blast! Legends really is perhaps the best Pokemon game made to date, with so many new innovations and ideas that make PLA feel like the most immersive Pokemon experience ever. I just need to chase down the titular legends of the game's namesake before feeling like I can put it down again for something else.
• Animal Crossing New Horizons. I can't believe it!! One of my less favorite villagers offered to move a few days ago, and on a whim I told her yes. The last time I searched for an ideal villager with like 30-40 tickets in a row turned out to be a complete dud, so I was feeling more jaded about doing it again, and only had about 15~ tickets to use this time. But lo and behold, on just my third island I find MAPLE! I'm so happy because she's one of my favorites, but I never bought her amiibo card. Ahh I'm going to redecorate her house SO hard, gonna go with like a cozy cabin vibe, with lots of honeyed pastries adorning her tables <3
• TOTK. Still working my way through the fire dungeon! Had to teleport back out to make some more food. But hopefully I can get this done quickly since the Goron race is my least favorite >_> Sorry Yunobo! I'm looking forward to exploring the Gerudo Desert afterward.
• Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin. This game is really immersive when you come back to it, reacquainting yourself with the intricate rice mechanics. So easily I can realize I've been spending over an hour just farming rice! I hit a road block the last time I put the game down, and thankfully I was able to push past that this time. Only quibble with this game is that the quest descriptions aren't the most specific when you come back after an extended break!

@RubyCarbuncle Gunfire Reborn is sweet! At one point a Switch version was in the works, but i haven’t heard tell of that in years. Hopefully, we’ll get it on the Switch2.
Hope your work goes well, and i dig the new avatar!

Skyrim and maybe some Vigor.

Ace Attorney Investigations, Emio the Smiling Man, and Easy Come Easy Golf.

I have managed to narrow my backlog down to just four titles. In theory I’d like to have it complete before THE FLOOD starting with Epic Mickey and Echoes of Wisdom. That’s fine for the first three titles Gylt Emio: The Smiling Man and Curse of the Sea Rats which have all been great fun in their own way!

But the last title is Outer Wilds and I have waiting 5 years for this. I feel so much pressure to love it, to live it, to be changed by it! That I need to find JUST the right time to dive in

I’ll probably be playing Super Mario Bros Wonder and maybe some Paper Mario TTYD. Those are the most recent games I got day 1, both great experiences!

Space Marine 2, UFO 50, and Astro Bot, elsewhere.
But I do think today is the day I start The Smiling Man-Emio: Famicom Detective Club.
Just don't quote me on that!

I did almost six and a half hours on Balatro last night. So I'm down until Sunday-night Balatro.

This game is insanely addictive and starting to push its way into consideration for top-five status in my Switch rankings.

The Plucky Squire

Pretty much the same for me this week as usual. 😂. Octopath traveler 2 is my main game. Finishing up people’s chapter 2’s and some chapter 3’s. On Hikari’s chapter 3 now.

Did play and finished the reynatis demo just a little while ago. It sadly isn’t that great although I kinda of expected that. 😂. Don’t know if I will get it. Probably later down the line as the combat has potential. But the demo ran awful towards the end. Even crashed.

For non switch, I probably will go do some drakengard 3.

This weekend I'm going to be putting the finishing touches on Bakeru, which I've been adoring! It really gives me nostalgic vibes of playing 3D platformers back on my Gamecube and PS2 when I was a kid. As for what's to come this next week...hoo boy! This next week is gonna be packed for me. With all this talk about the Switch successor, I've been feeling in the mood to play some Super Mario Odyssey. It just feels like the perfect thing to get me hyped up for what's to come, you know? Not only that, but Echoes of Wisdom comes out on the 26th, and FNaF: Into the Pit FINALLY releases on Switch on the 27th! My gaming schedule is going to get crazy in the best way. I honestly thought that by this point in the console generation, my excitement would hit a bit of a mellow point. Yet as of right now, my excitement is only growing, and that's a-ok with me!

:]

Yes. That one. The one that shall not be named.

On Nintendo Switch:

• Brotato: 40 hours and going...
• Mario Golf Super Rush: Adventure Mode, Dunes Map
• • Undernight in-Birth 2 Sys:Celes: playing with my new Hit Box Controller

I AM ASTRO BOT!

I plan to play a bunch of multiplayer games with my siblings to make up for the fact that next week I will finally be able to dive into Echoes of Wisdom (!!!) and therefore, our newly acquired copy of Nintendo Switch Sports will be getting a good bit of use.

@FishyS How did you put those links into your reply? Very nicely written, I must say.

@Sylamp No, but that’s what I’m saying- it unlocks early on but the difficulty seems to be high right off the bat. The fact that it strips you of your health upgrades and powers suggests to me that it’s designed to make you re-adapt to a weaker form of Sargon after playing through the main game and getting used to all the abilities you’ve gained throughout.

Sure you could play through it on your first playthrough but I doubt even the devs would recommend that. It would make a difference if you’ve already experienced the hardest challenges in the main game which come through a gradual rise in difficulty (I didn’t find there to be any huge difficulty spikes throughout). If you’d only played a third of the game and went into this expansion though it would feel like a huge shift in challenge IMO. Why you’d buy DLC without even finishing the main game is beyond me anyway

I'm playing tons of hours of Tears of the Kingdom the second quest these days. I finally beat the game for the second time (the first time was a couple months after it released), but this time I had all the dragon's tears so I got the extra ending scene. What a lovely experience! TOTK is my favorite game and I cannot get tired of it. I also got the earthquake manual for the first time this week. I was having trouble getting it so I went online and saw people saying it's easy, you just have to beat 9 Yiga in 1 minute. Well, in the second quest they buffed it to 20 in 1 minute! I still completed it fairly quickly, but burned through a lot of resources and used the Mystic Headpiece to maintain almost constant bullet-time firing puffshrooms (also nerfed in 2nd quest!) and other powered up arrows constantly. I've still never found the climbing shirt or any zonai armor, so I'm looking forward to hunting down armor in the depths and caves. I'm so grateful to Nintendo, echocolat, masagrator, maxlastbreath, and all the modders and programmers who love the game as much as I do.
On Miyoo Mini I've been playing super fun Pico 8 games: Pico Tetris seems no frills at first, but I found it hard to stop playing and realized it is very well made, Hybris is a really fun shootem up that feels like it could've been on Atari 2600, Cyclo 8 is like Elasto Mania for 2600 and I love it! Also on Miyoo Mini + I've been enjoying Picross 2 (trans from Japanese gameboy game), Super Mario Land, and Dimahoo.
On OLED Deck I've been blown away by UFO 50 (totally agree with Damo's 10/10 over on Time Extension!) which I've only played 30 minutes of, but can imagine playing for at least 30 to 40 hours and not being even close to done with all the awesome games included in the package. Amazing music, gameplay, variety, etc! Also just started Parking Garage Rally Circuit and it has made me smile over and over! In the options it has "PC port" which kinda makes it look like a decompilation! It plays perfectly with awesome controls, lovely music, fun tracks, great online play (the opponents can be low frame rate while the track and everything stays locked at 90fps), and it simply nails the Saturn look and feel. I'm also very impressed with Cato, a physics platforming sort of puzzle game that feels ultra polished and fun. Night Reverie has also amazed me with it's music, atmosphere, and visuals! And I've been having fun with Shogun Showdown, Loddlenaut, Plants and Zombies, and Wipeout Phantom Edition (still can't get enough of this absolutely incredible version of wipeout!).
I'm also continuing to not buy anything from Nintendo, but now I also don't have hardly any interaction with them online. If they're going to threaten people's jobs and be jerks then I'll treat them as the obscene shady corporation they are (I love how people are posting videos with blurred Nintendo gameplay, like it's obscene footage!). I wish there wasn't backwards compatibility with the next system since I love what fans do and hate the way Nintendo acts.
Well, happy gaming everyone, and take care!

Zelda Tears (its time to face ganon) lol.
I am going to boot smashbros again, Mario Kart with my fam.
Tomorrow it will be gaming on my pc.
Because my wife plays animal crossing l, almost every day lol hahahaha.

@Burning_Spear That game has you so by the b@lls Every week when I see your post I already know what you're all about. I totally get it that game is awesome and 'all hope is lost' at the same time for me. Meaning I could be having the most bulldozing run and then I hit a wall of a boss blind that just torpedoes me. I've unlocked most of the decks so to keep my sanity I hack at it on and off. Otherwise I'd be like you

This week I was playing Space Marine II but we're on vacation, so it's Switch time! Which means, Prince of Persia for me these days.

Oh man I think I can honestly say now that I've stepped in it big time. Early last week I picked up Snowrunner (Switch) and it's all I've been playing ever since. I have no desire to touch anything else and my backlog run I've been so good at getting through just got put on ice. I've never thought in all my years of gaming that this of all games would just have unexplainable voodoo black magic over me. I've put in hours and I'm still in the beginning area.

As I'm typing this, I can't wait till I can continue trying to deliver medium and long logs across town with low tier vehicles that will probably get stuck all the time and I have to grab another vehicle to hopefully winch them out. Why is this so freaking compelling!?

Remastered weekend! Broken Sword: Reforged and Dead Rising. Both look absolutely awesome and am excited after the few hours put into both. This should be smooth sailing into Echoes of Wisdom(!!)

(Only minor nit I have on Broken Sword is some of the audio quality of voice acting seems really uneven, but this is a very very minor quibble)

Secret of Evermore (SNES)
Yakuza 0 (xbox)
Pokemon Trading Card game (GBC)

About to begin the fourth chapter of Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair, so I’m roughly at the halfway point. Just like Trigger Happy Havoc, this one knows how to hit you where it hurts. A lot of plot connections to that game are buried in here, though it’s impossible at this point to tell where the game is headed.

There are a lot of things I’d like to talk about regarding this game, but that’d be tough without spoiling anything. But this definitely isn’t just some retread of the first game.

@Ganner Oh, man, glad to meet a fellow Balatro addict. What are you working on now?

I've unlocked all the decks and beaten every stake but Gold, which I've been attacking for a few weeks. Last week I had it. Perfect joker build. Six hands available for every round. Everything in order. I was there. At the finish line. And then the Ante 8 boss was The Violet Vessel, with its insanely large blind. The cards went cold, and I narrowly lost. If any other blind had popped up, I'd be a well-rested man today. Alas, Balatro.

Gold stake has opened a whole new world for me. I'm now figuring out ways to use and weaponize jokers and tarots I never previously considered.

MUSYNX (Switch)
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 (Switch)
Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Switch)

This week was busy for me. I worked a lot (still working today), watch small, funny videos like TM's SEGA produced Shadow the Hedgehog and House House's Untiled Goose Game short, and I re-watched Wall-e last night/midnight (still my favorite animated movie).

This weekend, I be playing more TTYD when I can. Currently around the end of chapter 5. Also, a little Team Kirby Clash Deluxe, too probably. Need those gem apples, and I'm at Taranza.

Really looking forward for TGS next week. Hoping for good Professor Layton and the New World of Steam news, and the return of some of Activision's old Transformers games at the Xbox showcase. Have a good weekend!

Ocarina of Time on NSO. I got a N64 controller for Switch, and it's been amazing replaying the game the way it was meant to be played. Though, I find the controller way smaller now, compared to when I was a kid hahahaha! Fortnite with the kids, we just have so much fun with that game.

Beyond Shadowgate

Primary: Phantasy Star 2 (Genesis)

I continue my Legends of Gaming chronological play through of the luminaries of gaming history (my most wanted of each console generation).

I completed Final Fantasy 2 (SNES) and said goodbye to Cecil, Kain, Rosa and the rest of those old friends once again, perhaps for the last time. The game was brilliant. I give it a 9/10.

I then decided to update the rules for which games would be considered for the LoG playthrough. Originally, I had intended only for Nintendo consoles to be represented, giving myself a very Nintendo-centric journey back through the hallways of gaming history. But then, in reviewing my total list of 'Most Wanted' games yet to be played, I realized that there were a lot of amazing experiences from other systems that I didn't want to leave out, so I went back and revised the playlist, adding titles from those consoles back in. This meant that we would be traveling back in time a bit, before continuing forward.

First up was 1989's Legendary Axe for the TurboGrafx-16. The game was intensely difficult, but it was important for me to make it through. I've long wanted to play this one, in part because Jun Chikuma, who wrote the music for Faxanadu (my #1 game of all time) was also the composer for Legendary Axe. I picked up on the similarities in the score right away, with Chikuma's effortless ability to craft mood and ambience by bending tempo and melody in nuanced ways. It was extremely satisfying to one-shot enemies with a fully charged axe swing! Unfortunately, the brutal difficulty and cheap shots the game often takes knocks it down a bit. 6/10

With that cleared off the bucket list, we move on to Phantasy Star 2 (Genesis) from 1990. I regularly hear that it represents the worst entry in the series, but I am still eagerly looking forward to conquering it.

Alternate: Dragon Quest 6 (SNES)

Still grinding away in an effort to master all job classes. I'm tired...

Other News:

I pre-ordered Final Fantasy Pixel Perfect Collection for Switch. Also, we bought our tickets for the Portland Retro Game Show. I'm really looking forward to going this year. Besides the amazing sales floor with an embarrassing amount of gaming treasure piled up in abundance, waiting to be sorted through, R.J. Mical is going to be one of the (many amazing) guest speakers. He was the architect of the 3DO hardware (amongst several other notable game industry achievements). I am going to see if I can convince him to sign my 3DO FZ-10 and maybe a copy of Escape from Monster Manor!

Now if you'll excuse me, I have a star system to save!

@FishyS Oh, thanks! I'll use that!

Finished up on Persona 3 Reload - Episode Aigis this week whilst continuing a slow play through of Sonic Advance 3. Looking for something light before the new Zelda comes out next week!

@MegaChem I played it during the Olympics and wholeheartedly agree - incredible game!

The final section, going down to the Zero Suit before locating the fully kitted out suit is amazing. Going from being completely vulnerable to unstoppable was a helluva rush.

For some reason, I decided to go back to the Trials of Mana remake for the first time since I beat it in 2020. Back then, I only did one route (Duran/Angela/Riesz) so I decided to start over and hopefully I'll get through all three routes this time.

I'm also going to try and play more Link's Awakening, Final Fantasy IX and Atelier Ryza 1 as well. I was hoping to have Link's Awakening completed before Echoes of Wisdom came out but that might not happen. (I needed a break after the hookshot dungeon 😅)

A bit of Vampire Survivors, some Balatro, and some Jetpack Joyride 2 this weekend.

Oh, and I've been getting back into Pokemon Go.

Visions of Mana and Shadow of The Ninja Reborn. I'm eating good right now.

So my friend and I were chatting the other day about games we'd like to 100%. In the middle of this he said, "Hey, you haven't finished Mario Galaxy yet. How about you finish it before the end of this month?"
Really isn't much of a challenge. (I booted up the game to see I was already 90 stars of the way on my Luigi file). But I really have been in lack of a game to play lately, so this is good for me.

Jumping around platforms this weekend. Finally played copy of Astro Bot. So joyful and full of energy and fun.

Playing it makes me dream of Nintendo getting to play with higher fidelity for Mario, Pikmin, etc. Fortunately that's not too far away, maybe!

On the opposite end of high fidelity gaming is UFO 50 the game about a fictional game company and the games it released in the 80s. The first game feels fitting and unapologetically brutal, but I'm excited to dig in. That's how early computer games were.

Eager to get back to Castlevania Dominus Collection - Order of Eclessia. I'm still early but the big Skeleton in the prison is daunting, so I haven't jumped back in, yet.

Also want to play Plucky Squire and Yars Rising but not enough bandwidth so I haven't bought into those yet! Looking forward to Balatro coming to Apple Arcade, too. Should be an amazing fit for iPad.

UPDATE: added those to the backlog, might play a bit today after all.

Update 2: also bought Yars Revenge Recharged because it was on sale for $5 which turns out to be a perfect price the arcade-style dual stick shooter, more fun than I thought it would be! Which also goes for Yars Rising which has cringy dialogue but once I could just get into that vibe, it turns out mixing the retro game hacking in with the metroidvania is really working for me — well considered and really paying homage to the games with careful limitations and tweaks. So glad I started playing it (was skeptical of trailers). Didn't get to Plucky Squire yet.

Combing through the PS5 library. Finished FFVII Remake + Rebirth, tried Alan Wake 2 and didn't enjoy it, now in God of War: Ragnarok which I'm appreciating a lot more. It's repetitive and I'm not a big fan of the maze-like world design, but it's still consistently enjoyable and the story is extremely well done and compelling. I'm nearing the end after 50 hours but savoring my time with the side content. I don't think I'm going to go for every damn chest and raven, but I'd like to finish the Muspelheim challenges before facing off against Odin.

Weirdly, the gameplay loop reminds is quite similar to FFVII. Both worlds seem designed a central story, with the the rest of the world being a maze-like theme park filled with somewhat formulaic optional challenges. They both have a very guided feel, with a lot of invisible walls and unpassable areas. There's a ton of ground in this game that no human can step foot on -like it's trying to mask that the actual playable space is quite corridor-esque. There are a lot of treasures that you can see but can't quite get to unless you go a very convoluted route around, despite their clearly being a pretty easy way over if you just climb on a bit of level geometry you're not allowed to. Kratos can only land his boat at very fixed locations, leading to some annoying puzzles where you can't grab that thing that's just... right... there! I can't help but compare them to Breath of the Wild / Tears of the Kingdom where every element was interactive and there were no boundaries to be seen except for the very border of the world map. I much prefer that kind of level design. Even something like Half-Life 2, while being incredibly linear, never had any boundaries to what the player could do other than those forced by the actual level geometry.

Anyway, I don't know why I felt compelled to make that rant. Other than those complaints, I'm loving God of War: Ragnarok.

Can't wait for Echoes of Wisdom next week!!

Astro Bot. Damn what a game. I literally thought it would be okay and scores were probably overblown. They aren't. One of the bast platformers I've played in years, including the mustached plumber in the red hat.

My daughter got hooked on Breath of the Wild so I'm not likely to have much time. Maybe the final semester of Persona 5 Royal at night. O well. Part of a balanced life.

Happy gaming everyone!

Probably switching between Loddlenaut on my Switch and Astro Bot on my PS5 as my partner and I take turns on the latter.

Really should finish TotK though…

Mainly Genshin Impact, as usual. But I might also try to play Stellar Blade on my PS5, and either Wanted:Dead or Halo Infinite on my Xbox Series X, now that I’ve got my game systems hooked up to my new TV (sorry to brag, but it’s a 65” 4K Smart TV; ended up winning it in a prize drawing at a company picnic).

Currently playing through Apollo Justice Ace Attorney, on the third case now. I am also playing Fire Emblem Heroes, where I am still playing book 2 content, and last of all, I am playing Fire Emblem Awakening, where I am still doing support grinding. I am playing Persona 3 Portable as well, but I don't think I should count steam games here.

@Burning_Spear agree. Balatro is TOP-3 here. What a game!!

@Rykdrew I had unexpected spare time tonight and finally beat Gold stake, the Violet Vessel included. It's a special night in Balatro Country!

Whelp, I finished Act Raiser Renaissance, so that's another gone from my To Do list. This weekend I'm hooking up with a gamer friend, so we're doing some multi-player. Possible games will be...

Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise of the Dragons
Contra Collection
Abathor demo
Shadow of the Ninja - Reborn demo
The Cowabunga Collection

On my own I'll continue Fire Emblem: Three Houses

I’m currently trying to finish up Paper Mario: TTYD. I’m on Chapter 6 and I’m probably not getting to the credits by the end of the weekend, but I’m gonna try to make sure to finish it up this week. I’ll also probably spend a few hours doing some side quests and shrines in TOTK to get me in the mood for Echoes of Wisdom.

@AstroTheGamosian That is awesome you won that tv! Congrats!

Well here we go with another wonderful WAYP. Been a great and cool week around here. Speaking of cool Happy Fall to everyone. Easily my favorite time of year. Most of the week was just the usual games like Trails Into Daybreak and Dawntrail. Cracked open that Lollipop Chainsaw RePOP AND Plucky Squire and honestly of the two loved Plucky Squire more it’s just so charming whereas Lollipop well it still feels outdated for sure. Also played Yars Rising and honestly that game is incredibly charming and loads of fun. Most of the weekend when not working was taken up by Emio Famicom Detective Club, Trails into Daybreak and more Star Wars Outlaws. Trying to see Tranformers One with a friend but if that falls through I’m thinking the rest of the weekend will be again more Trails and Visions of Mana. Otherwise I’m thinking this week is mostly gonna consist of some Ace Attorney, Trails Through Daybreak, Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD, Paper Mario, Bakeru, Dawntrail, Astro Bot, Emio, WWE 2K24, Star Wars Outlaws, The Plucky Squire and Visions of Mana. Think I’m gonna try to crack open the Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster on my day off. Of course like most people here I’m also excited for the release of Echoes of Wisdom. So freaking hype. Also preordered that Silent Hill 2 Remake and still have that money put aside for Yakuza Kiwami on Switch and YS X on PS5 so pretty happy there. Also got that WWE2K24 Global Superstars DLC I was waiting on so I think alongside it I’ll wrap up the Showcase mode of that game I really am happy about adding wrestlers like Lyra Valkyria and Kairi Sane to that game. Only other wrestling thing I wanna mention this week is short and simple. WWE Bad Blood has pretty sure all of its matches decided like Rhea Vs Liv and Cody with Roman Vs Solo and Jacob and I just can’t wait I’m so hype. I’m especially interested to see who faces Nia Jax there: Bayley or Naomi. Anime of the week gotta go to Nokotan, Alya Sometimes Speaks in Russian, Oshi No Ko and Mission Yozakura Family. Again all of these anime are absolutely killing it they are some of the best anime this year. Podcasts of this week gotta go to Castle Superbeast, Big Think Dimension, Into The Aether, RPGsites Tetracast, Minnmax, Jeff Gerstmann, Kit and Krysta, Last Stand Media, Easy Allies, Second Wind, Nextlander, Cultaholic Wrestling, Weapon Wheel, Aetheryte Radio and Remap Radio. As always yall stay safe, be extremely wonderful to each other. Have a totally wonderful weekend and of course Happy Gaming.

I finished all my September retro games really early in the month, so I'm now making my way through October's list to free up time for Zelda next week!

Therefore some of my retro choices have a Halloween theme to them... but hey, I saw someone with decorations up yesterday so it's fine, right?

I'm nearing the end of Master Of Darkness on the Game Gear - great game and a really awesome soundtrack too. Enjoying it a lot!

Already finished Wave Race and Mystic Quest (what an awesome game this is by the way!) on the Game Boy and I have Jurassic Park Game Gear and Castlevania GBA lined up - will do JP next week and then save Castlevania for after Zelda I reckon.

I've been loving the retro games the past 6 months, but looking forward to Zelda on the Switch now.

@Burning_Spear I think the last one I beat was the green stake using the green deck. I think the green deck is my main because of always getting some money coming in. And yeah that boss blind that has an extra large blind is straight up troll. That one has b!tch slapped me more times than I'd like to admit. If it ever comes around I'm hoping it's towards the early runs, or have any of those blind killing jokers. Or even that one joker that requires you to only have like 25% of the amount to pass.

Balatro though may have been put on the backburner a bit for me though. If you see my post on this topic (#93) you'll see why. I think I'm toast again in such an unexpected game to do it.

@Diogmites Thanks! It comes about a year and a half after I won a PS5 in a prize drawing at a work party! And what's really cool (but kinda freaky) is that when you turn on the TV, it turns on the game systems (or at least wakes it from Sleep Mode)! It's almost scary how advanced our technology has gotten!

@Ganner I've had my eye on Snow Runner. Probably better to pick it up for my PS4 Pro, would you say? How much do the season packs add?

@Burning_Spear I don't know anything about the season packs because as of now I'm only playing the base game. And that alone is massive. It looks like the season packs add a ton more.

I may force myself to play a round of Balatro today because once I boot up Snowrunner then nothing else gets touched. Be careful because it could happen to you!