Garwoofoo
Another month and off we go.
Play
Avowed. This is a game that does almost everything right - it looks fantastic, has decent world-building, great combat, interesting upgrade paths and entertaining characters - yet it's relentlessly, almost aggressively 7/10 and I'm not sure why. I think it's the pacing - it's quite a plodding game, really, despite everyone constantly screaming at you about the Dreamscourge, and every area plays out in exactly the same way as you methodically work your way through side quests to upgrade your equipment before you tackle whatever the story has in store. It also goes on far too long, I've just started the fourth area and it really should have ended by now. I like it - on a mechanical level at least, it's lots of fun to play - but it's hard to imagine people getting really excited by it and I'm kind of ready for it to be done.
Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective - I'm at least ten years late to the party on this one but it's really great, a point-and-click adventure from the minds behind Phoenix Wright that must have been absolutely astonishing on the DS and still looks pretty impressive to this day. It's funny, puzzly and has some of the best animation I've ever seen in anything. Lovely stuff.
Want
I'm increasingly keen to finish Avowed so I can get stuck into Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 before everyone moves onto the next exciting thing. Game Pass really has been nuts lately, I've barely been able to touch half the stuff I want to play; maybe it's just too many huge RPGs coming out all at the same time.
I'd still like to get Assassin's Creed: Shadows - I'm guessing no-one here has bought it? It's an Ubisoft game so it should begin plummeting in price right… about… now.
Bin
Game prices, console prices, subscription prices - everyone seems determined to price us out of everything right now. I don't see how it's sustainable. When even us middle-aged, middle-class nerds are starting to look at £700 consoles and £80 games with raised eyebrows, you do wonder how on earth younger people are going to pick up the gaming habit. Shit cellphone games, probably.
And oh god the state of the world right now. The apricot hellbeast they somehow put in charge of the USA is still on his demented rampage and as I write we're about five hours out from the result of local elections which will probably mean Farage's smug froggy features all over the press for weeks and weeks. I used to think we were making some progress in the world - I don't think that any more.