I’ve been so focused on active album listening lately that I haven’t been playing much, so I’m still chugging my way through Cyberpunk and Moonlighter currently, and enjoying both of them thus far.
Although I did pick up Furi while it’s 80% on steam, but honestly I only played it for a little bit so far so I don’t really have any opinions about it yet
What have you been listening to? I love listening to albums all the way through, definitely my favourite way to listen to music.
Oh god, I listen to a lot of music, so get ready, and fair warning I’m kind of a metalhead (but I genuinely do listen to everything), lol. Here’s a quick rundown of my recent listening, with minimal notes:
Sear Bliss - Heavenly Down. melodic black metal with a trombone!
Within Destruction - Animetal. deathcore goes pop sensibilities; I really think between this album and Left to Suffer’s ‘Leap of Death’ we’re on the precipice of the birth of a new microgenre that does to deathcore what easycore did to melodic hardcore and metalcore.
The Weeknd - Hurry Up Tomorrow. I’ve been a Weeknd fan since his original three mixtapes dropped, and finally got around to listening to his latest.
Dayseeker - Dark Sun. metalcore-tinged synthpop.
Watsky - Intention. kinda hippie-drenched indie hip-hop?
Rioghan - Kept. melodic and slightly djenty alt-metal; I was really hyped for Jinjer’s new album before it came out but honestly Rioghan’s Kept kind of sounds like what I wanted but didn’t fully get from Jinjer.
and I also recently caught up on some classics that somehow flew under my radar:
The Devil Wears Prada - With Roots Above and Branches Below.
Whitechapel - This is Exile
Emmure - Goodbye to the Gallows
As I Lay Dying - An Ocean Between Us
and today I’ve been obsessively listening to:
Deafheaven - Lonely People With Power. just absolutely insanely incredible blackgaze post-metal.
If you’ve been listening to anything, I’d love to hear about it as well!
Thanks for the list! The only metal band I really listen to a lot is Iron Maiden, I’m more a classic rock and folk kinda guy.
With everything going on politically right now, I’ve been listening to a lot more Canadian music recently. I tend to listen to records (and sometimes CDs) more than streaming, so I’m kind of limited to albums I own physically. With that being said, here’s some recents:
Tragically Hip - Up to Here. My personal favourite Hip record, just great classic Canadian rock. Side A gets spun a lot.
Neil Young - Harvest. Despite probably being the most popular album on this list, it’s probably the one I play the least. Still very good folk music though, I could just never get past his voice.
Stan Rogers - Northwest Passage. I only got into Stan Rogers a few months ago, and then found this record used in excellent shape for pretty cheap and had to buy it. Probably my favourite Canadian folk album now.
The Guess Who - Greatest Hits. Can’t go wrong with American Woman or Laughing. I don’t listen to a whole lot of their music, hence the comp album, but their popular stuff I quite like. I also have an old comp album of just their early stuff from before they were big which I actually like more, but haven’t listened to in quite a while. Maybe I should spin it again soon.
The Tea Party - Edges of Twilight. Definitely the most interesting album on this list, and another favourite. I’m yet to hear another album sound quite like this one, even from them. They’re an awesome band anyway, but this album is definitely their peak.
Mort Garson - Mother Earth’s Plantasia. This one unfortunately I have to stream, but I keep an eye out for it every time I go out to the record store. This is early electronic music.
Stompin’ Tom Connors - Stompin’ Tom Connors. Another one I’m currently streaming, but there’s nothing more Canadian than Stompin’ Tom. I’ve got one record from him, but it doesn’t have any of his biggest hits unfortunately.
Buddy Wasisname and the Other Fellers - The Serious Stuff. This one always makes me homesick. All my family is from Newfoundland but I’m currently living away from home. This album takes me home for a little bit.
Great Big Sea - Up. Another band from Newfoundland that takes me home.
Gordon Lightfoot - basically his whole discography. I’ve got a lot of Lightfoot records, and play all of them constantly. Probably my most listened-to folk artist.
Rush - Moving Pictures. I’m only just starting to get into Rush so I don’t have much to say yet. Awesome record though.
If you’ve got any questions I’d love to talk more about these guys! If there’s any bands you’re curious about I’d love to recommend songs too.
First off, I’m American, but I understand your decision. Elbows up!
Beyond that, gotta be honest I’m not a huge classic rock guy, so I don’t even recognize about half those names. But that’s cool; I like stumbling into stuff I haven’t before.
I know Harvest of course (it’s great but I agree on Neil’s voice). And the Guess Who are one of those bands I know the singles from, but haven’t really explored deeper than that. Likewise I have never really dove into Gordon Lightfoot but I like what I know of his a lot; I absolutely adore Sundown. Rush I’ve listened to a bit but I’m more a Yes guy when it comes to classic prog rock.
Beyond that I’ve heard of but haven’t heard anything by Tragically Hip and Great Big Sea, but the rest are new names to me.
I’d say if I were to try to find something at the intersection of our interests and you say you like classic rock and Iron Maiden, the most recent Pentagram album ‘Lightning in a Bottle,’ which is technically a traditional doom metal/stoner rock album, but to my ears I think sounds a lot like Maiden mixed with a real classic rock sound and just a touch of doom on top (and obviously Bobby Liebling is no Bruce Dickinson) would probably be my first thought… but they’re American (from my neck of the woods, actually) and I don’t want suggest crossing the metaphorical picket line, so maybe bank the suggestion as something to check out if we’re ever freed from the insanity of our current situation. ✌
I’ll keep an eye out for that album as a used CD or record, if I can find a copy for cheap. All my money will stay in Canada that way. Thanks for the recommendation!
You should listen to more Lightfoot! His discography is vast, there’s bound to be more of his stuff you like. At the same time, there’s probably lots of stuff you won’t like. I’m personally a big fan of his record Gord’s Gold, it’s a comp album but he re-recorded everything for it, so it’s all new recordings (or was all new in 1975), which gives you a more mature voice on some of his older tracks. Canadian Railroad Trilogy especially sounds way better rereleased (though I love the original too, it’s probably my favourite song of his). It’s a pretty early comp album though, and is missing a few of his biggest hits, like Wreck of the Edmond Fitzgerald. He has Gord’s Gold Vol. 2 as well but it’s not as good imo.
Playing shadows of doubt - a completely procedurally generated private investigator game. It’s basically a puzzle game without consistent solutions. Pretty fun so far.
I just finished up Spirtfarer. A sweet gentle game, that really hits the feels. To quote Yahtzee “full of light and wonder and melancholy humor, which does rather juxtapose against the underlying knowledge that our job is essentially to take our passengers one by one into the woods and ice them in the back of the head”
Just added it to my Wishlist on steam. Looks like a nice game!
Started No Mans sky a few weeks ago. I am liking it a lot. Very pretty game, lots of neat stuff. My umderstanding is that while its a very wide game, its somewhat shallow. What I have seen so far does not disprove that, but I have been progressing very slowly so I cant say one way or another.
It would definitely be nice if it was a lot deeper, but it has enough good points to entertain many people for a while.
I’ve been playing a whole heck of a lot of Celeste lately. Been having a good time with some modded content after clearing all the vanilla content
D sides? Strawberry Jam?
I did a bit of 1-D. Did a little bit of spring collab advanced lobby but heard that strawberry jam was a bit more polished so I’ve been trying the SJ expert lobby and it’s very hard (~10 hours per level so far). I think it’s in the sweet spot of difficulty for me rn
Roadwarden
Picked that up in the Dice & Destiny current bundle. It’s a take on old school text based RPG. I like it so far. It’s really more like an interactive book which is what I was after. Playing lay back on the couch with Moonlight
Citizen Sleeper
Text based RPG too. Barely touched as it came in the bundle too. I just don’t want to run 2 story game at the same time. This one is more gamy with dice placement. There seems to be just more mechanics and things to manage. Story looks promising :D
Pacer
Dug out Pacer, an antigravity racing game I never touched for some reasons (backed on Kickstarter). Think WipEout, F-Zero, Redout… It’s cool. It scratches my WipeEout itch, but its not at the same level of polish, even if it’s made by the same people.
I’m waiting for the BaldursGate3 update but until then I grabbed solasta. Also DnD based and more chill than BG3 but very fun. I love that you can design and play a whole party instead of just the “main char” like BG3.
I’m itching so bad for the BG3 update. It’s been one of those games where I’m in the shower and a new multiclass build pops in my head and next thing I know I’m reinstalling it. And now I get a bunch of new toys!
My least favourite character is Wyll so in my next run he will be my avatar. What multiclass do you recommend with Warlock? I (ofc) already did paladin and sorcerer.
I actually don’t have one with Warlock as the main class! I love debuffs/CC, and trying to get my spell DC as high as possible means staying in the class (and short rest spell slots).
Whenever I multi Warlock it tends to be in martial builds, getting the extra attack with Pact of the Blade, or a quick dip into it for Mortal Reminder. I have a crit build I do this with.
Have you ever played Divinity Original Sin II? How would you compare it to Solasta?
I played and enjoyed both. They feel very different. Divinity was built without the pen and paper foundation and solasta is very true to DnD 5e. While 5e is nice for roleplay where in theory everything is possible, it lacks in a videogame setting. I don’t go into detail here but in all DOS2 feels more like a complete game that isn’t hold back by sticking to a rulebook that was designed for something else.
As already mentioned, DOS2 also has premade Characters on with the story builds. Solasta focuses on ‘White Canvas’ characters which I like.
Baldur’s Gate 2 Shadows of Amn. I’ve been agonising about there being so many interesting companions and only five slots.
I suspect that’ll be my answer for many months to come.
Ooh, I love BG2. What is your current lineup? And are you using any mods?
Just one mod, to add more portraits to speaking NPCs.
I’m a sorcerer (dragon disciple) and I’ve got Minsc, Jaheira, Jan (just picked him up to replace Yoshimo), Aerie, and Nalia.
In BG1 I had two rules: no evil or lawful characters, and no male characters. I did that just for fun after I noticed 5/6 were female and I had a certain belt.
I don’t think I’ll be able to follow the same rules now if I need a good thief and a warrior. Besides, Aerie is lawful but too cute to let go. I do seem to have a surplus of wizards though.
If you’re ever doing a second playthrough I highly recommend the Tweaks Anthology, which has some fixes and tweaks to companions that I think are just improvements. Specifically “Happy Patch - NPCs can be angry about reputation but never leave” and “NPCs Don’t Fight” are two that I highly recommend, as it lets you do mixed-alignment parties without people eventually killing each other or leaving, and the mixed alignment groups have some of the best inter party dialogue and funny banter in the game. Both Edwin and Viconia are very iconic characters, and the Viconia romance is particularly popular. Though I think the Jaheira romance is also pretty great.
I’m a sorcerer (dragon disciple) and I’ve got Minsc, Jaheira, Jan (just picked him up to replace Yoshimo), Aerie, and Nalia.
As I’m sure you’re starting to notice, the class distribution among the available companions is not the most diverse, which is unfortunate. I usually recommend Yoshimo for a first playthrough as he’s a great guide around Athkatla and has some story connections, but Jan is of course very entertaining. Nalia is probably my least favourite of the original cast actually, but even she does have her moments.
You didn’t say whether you’re playing the Enhanced Edition or the original game, but presuming it’s EE I would also advise against using Neera, Dorn, Rasaad or Hexxat on your first playthrough. They are all written by Beamdog and inserted with the Enhanced Edition, and don’t fit neither the vibe nor the writing standard of the original cast in my opinion.
Thanks for the info! I am indeed playing the EE. I quite liked Neera in BG1, but we’ll see how it goes. And yeah Nalia is a bit grating already.
As for Yoshimo, I kind of messed him up by putting all points in traps, which meant he sucked at opening locks. After Imoen was taken I had no-one to open harder locks. Although with the amount of mages I could go for Knock… Jan’s burping is annoying me already.
Jan is definitely a divisive character, people tend to either love him or hate him. I think he has some really funny dialogues but I can see why some people find him annoying. He gets bonus points if you use him alongside Anomen as he constantly mocks him. A lot of people hate Anomen for being a pompous ass, but the trick is to use him in a chaotic and/or evil party where he is constantly the butt of everyone’s jokes.
As for Yoshimo, I kind of messed him up by putting all points in traps, which meant he sucked at opening locks.
How many points did you sink into it? Traps are actually super powerful in BG 1&2 and should not be underestimated. You still don’t need more than a score of 100 in it, though. The Special Traps you get as Bounty Hunter are also super strong. Not only are they AoE, but they can be thrown instead of placed at your feet. This means you can scout ahead in stealth, then back off until the enemy is just inside the fog of war and then throw the trap right at them. This makes Bounty Hunter a very potent kit.
Thieves level up fast so you should get more points soon, and there are some potions and items that buff thievery skills for locks and traps. You can also use both Jan and Yoshimo if you like and dump Nalia.
I’m still playing Divinity: Original Sin II.
I also picked up Hollow Knight recently and I’m making progress, albeit painfully sometimes haha.Hollow Knight has also had me a little stuck sometimes, just remember to check your map to see if there’s sometime you might be able to reach. I had to look up locations to get the other ending.
Yep, thanks - so far I’ve avoided any guides and went in completely blind, I’m starting to explore the map again for what I might have missed.
spoiler
I’ve been trying to beat the Mantis Lords for a while, but I feel like there’s some other place I might be able to go for now - I think I haven’t fully explored the City of Tears yet, but got my first nail upgrade
I’m on a hollow knight replay (only played through it once) and getting stuck is just part of the ride
As always, iRacing and DRG. However, for something new, check out Split Fiction. Very fun co-op game by the makers of A Way Out and It Takes Two.
DRG
My life for rock and stone!
I’ve been playing It Takes Two this week with my daughter and it’s really good. I highly recommend it too.
Such a great game. We really enjoyed our time with it. The boss fights were harder than I expected but quite manageable after a few attempts.
What is DRG?
Deep Rock Galactic
most likely Deep Rock Galactic
Started playing through the Assassin’s Creed series again but completely disabling the hud, even the minimap. I did have to open the big map frequently at the beginning but you get used to it and it just feels cool having to scope out/explore an area to find and get to your target and deal with guards as they come
I will say the first game feels like it was made to be played this way, but the second game (which I’m on now) and later unfortunately don’t feel like that. Still gonna try to get through the whole series like this though
Iirc (and the story was not complete bogus) the first game was designed for it but some exec didnt like it and forced hud and minimap late in development and is why it feels easy and repetitive if you play with minimap. Wouldnt be surpirsed if ac2 then was not developed with that in mind and would explain why it doesnt work as well
I believe it. I’m just glad they kept the option to turn it all off
I’ve been playing my comfort games since I’ve been really anxious and depressed.
- ESO
- Skyrim
- euro truck sim 2
- civilization 3
The Invincible. A short narrative-driven game based on a graphic novel. Pretty good so far.
Talos Principle mostly. Got it free on GOG a while back from Amazon Prim gaming. It a pretty fun puzzle game. I have had to look up a few puzzles because I was stumped, but generally trying to work my way through it without help
Some of the star puzzles are absolutely devious.
Robocop Rogue city, free with the ps plus monthly games. Fun little shooter with RPG elements that feels more like an xbox 360 era fps. Good game but kind of short and lacking in any real depth, if it was any longer it would’ve been a slog. So glad I got it for free because no way would I be paying full price for it.
I picked this up for $10ish on steam. Still haven’t gotten around to it
Good to kill a bit of time with. I definitely enjoyed it.
