@TheQuietGamer I really hated something they did with the lore, but I've already forgotten what it was, despite it having been only two years since I watched it.

stopped playing Heatwarped 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑
PROS: It's an almost exact copy of NFS Underground 2.
CONS: It's an almost exact copy of NFS Underground 2.

Much as I love Underground 2, it was a product of its time and should be evaluated on that basis. It's not a flawless game (few, if any, are), but this thing copies all its flaws, some of which were fixed in later NFS games. It's almost to the point where I don't see much of a point for this game's existence, as well-executed as it is. Marking it abandoned for now, unless I hear something from reviews and whatnot that will change my opinion.

@TheQuietGamer Seems I won't be able to play it on my current laptop, as it can't handle DirectX 12. Oh well, will have to wait till I get a better machine.

@TheQuietGamer I'm gonna have to give it a try if my computer can handle it. I only hope it engages with the themes of the original in a meaningful way, as opposed to just focusing on the gameplay and wrapping it in the original's aesthetics.

@TheQuietGamer Damn, the game is that good? I'm really looking forward to playing it too. I'm actually more a fan of the book all the movies are based on, but I've only seen three of them (1,2 and Inferno). Hopefully I'll be able to watch 3 and maybe more on this Halloween.

@TheQuietGamer It's flattering that I influenced you to get into the Simpsons and thanks so much for the shoutout! The feeling is mutual, I always enjoy reading your reviews too. Glad you liked the movie, but admittedly it's the worst entry-point into the series, lol. I have a friend for whom that's the only experience with it, and he didn't like it at all. I do think that having prior knowledge of these characters and their story arcs does affect the enjoyment of this movie. For me the movie is actually kind of a finale of my headcanon. It doesn't really get better afterwards. But I do highly recommend you check out at least the first three seasons, but I'm sure you've heard before that the first 9 seasons are considered the Golden Age of the show.

finished playing The Simpsons Game 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕

stopped playing Killzone 🌗🌑🌑🌑🌑
Just abysmal in every way. Can't believe this was once positioned as a platform seller and Halo killer. It sure does imitate some of the worst aspects of Halo, but at least Halo was responsive and satisfying kinetically and had a great aesthetic. Killzone feels like you're moving through a sludge, and it looks like a sludge, and the button presses register as poorly as if your buttons were submerged in a sludge. And the level design is absolute dogshit. I can't fathom who and why would ever enjoy this game.

finished reading Radical Religious Thought in Black Popular Music. Five Percenters and Bobo Shanti in Rap and Reggae 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑

stopped playing Warhammer 40,000: Squad Command 🌕🌕🌑🌑🌑
Very undercooked. There's no rotating camera and the level geometry is not legible enough to strategize around. Would be useful to have a context-adaptive cursor like in DoW 2 or other turn-based tactical games I've played like Shadowrun Returns. Furthermore, levels seem to be based around one loadout and one playstyle, which you can't infer from the briefing screen. You go into everything blind and suffer the consequences.

Decided to change my views on the Star Wars EU. Next to the movies, a lot of the stories look really bad and bastardize the lore, but if viewed as a separate universe, they're still the closest thing we got to the actual Star Wars. I think, going forward, I will try to perceive them as being a separate universe inspired by the movies and appreciate them for what they are. After all, that's probably how Lucas himself viewed them.

wants to play THREAT VECTOR

stopped playing Assassin's Creed III Liberation 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑
As someone who's only played the original, Bloodlines, a bit of 2 and this, I feel like the first game, despite all its flaws (most of which were fixed in Bloodlines), had an identity that has been lost over the years. Both stylistically, narratively and mechanically. The game looks plain and trying to stretch the definitions of the base crusades' factions makes the story silly. As for the gameplay, it fundamentally doesn't bring anything new, except eliminating friction to the point where it almost feels like the game is playing itself. The dress-changing mechanic adds nothing to the game except making the protagonist slower. You still don't have to be stealthy at all because all the AI is dumb, and slaughtering crowds is easier than ever with generous counter windows and the enemy's slow attack speeds. The only value of this game is that it provides a simple, streamlined experience of a proper Assassin's Creed on a handheld and you get to run around New Orleans.

wants to play Black Tides Draga's Wake

@TheQuietGamer I used to wait for a half-decent PC as well, but it never came, lol. Until the last year I hadn't played almost anything released post 2015, but once I started to give them a try last year, I realized that the scaling and anti-aliasing methods have improved so much that nowadays you can get a good performance out of many technologically advanced games if you're willing to settle for really poor graphics. Pretty much any game made on Unreal Engine has very customizable config files where you can set the resolution quality to below 50%. Sure, the game ends up blurry, but you can just pretend you're playing a PS2 game on a CRT screen, lol. In fact, they did run at 480p resolution which is about what 50% is for me (scaling down from 768p or 720p). Regarding the game, it seems to generally have pretty low scores across the board. But, I know you're very generous with ratings, so I imagine you probably just enjoy games more in general, so you might like this one.

stopped playing Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑

stopped playing RiME 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑
Seems to be a collectathon platformer with some basic puzzles. The visuals and music are gorgeous and there's an incredible sense of place, but the actual gameplay is mildly frustrating. Too much backtracking with a slow protagonist, which wouldn't be a problem if the game emphasized tactility, but it does no such thing. Very little guidance, you're just kinda stumbling around. It never told me I could pick up some statuettes by pressing E, so I missed a couple. After running around in circles for half an hour, the idea of backtracking the same locations became anxiety-inducing.

finished listening Internal Affairs 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑