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Stately Scrying: What we’re playing this weekend

October 27, 2018 David Neumann Feature 17

As you may have heard, I’m on west coast time this week and I can’t quite get my head around it. I’m waking up way too early in the morning and going to bed right after the sun goes down behind the San Rafael Hills. At least I think those are the mountains I’m looking at. To be honest, after driving around this county for the last 4 days, I don’t know east from west anymore and am wondering how everyone who lives here doesn’t have constant headaches. I’m a simpleton.

Nevertheless, time never rests and neither will our attempts to look into the future and see what we’ll be playing on our devices this weekend. See what’s planned after the jump.

Battlestar Galactica Deadlock and Insomnia: The Ark

Rebecca, that priestess of the dark temporal arts. Here we are again.

Statelies, it really has been a week of Battlestar Galactica Deadlock, with that spiffy new DLC expansion. Anabasis is marvelous. It does the show justice, and spit-shines a bunch of the main campaign in the process. This is how it is done. Also, it has triggered a rewatch of the BSG miniseries, which will undoubtedly lead to a rewatch of the entire four seasons. Which will lead into the odd but endearing Caprica. All of which shouldn’t really happen, given it was less than a year prior to doing exactly that. But as Tricia Helfer did say, this has all happened before. And it will happen again.

Elsewhere, I’ve been snuggling up to a real oddity. The best kind, really. An Eastern Bloc action-adventure-RPG tumult by the name of Insomnia: The Ark. The cocktail is one part Metro, one part Bioshock, a dash of Dark City and served in an Outcast seidel. A sumptuous beast, with all the quirks you’d expect. You’re enlisted in the station military after being cracked from your cryogenic tube, and all is not well on the Ark. You spent your time wandering around the dank interior of a vast space station, not unlike the now-demolished Kowloon walled city. A conurbation as dense as the lore and narrative, it’s a dark, somewhat forlorn noir experience to traipse around this busted-arse catacomb of steel and bestial decay. Insomnia has a branching storyline with twelve or so possible outcomes, and to the game’s credit, I’ve thus far had absolutely no clue where the narrative forks are. Just playing the cards I was dealt, and letting the chips fall where they may.

Recommended, if Slavclunk is your bag. [and whose bag isn’t it, really? -ed.]

-Alex Connolly

Return of the Obra Dinn and EXAPUNKS

I will not be playing the Big Horsey Cowboy Game this weekend. There are too many boat murders left unsolved! That’s right, I’m playing everyone’s favorite insurance adjustment simulation, Return of the Obra Dinn. I didn’t think any more games would come out this year that would challenge Into the Breach for the top spot on my GOTY list, but Obra Dinn has consumed my waking thoughts. It’s one of a scant few games that actually makes you feel like a detective. A detective with a supernatural ability to explore the final moments of poor souls on the most cursed sea voyage of all time, but a detective nonetheless. I really don’t want to go much deeper into describing the mechanics, because realizing what the game was asking of me is maybe my favorite moment in any game I’ve played this year. Just know that if you’re interested at all in early 19th century seafaring, deduction puzzles, or death, you should be playing this game.

The other game that has my attention this weekend is the new Zachtronics joint, EXAPUNKS. It’s one that’s explicitly programming-focused, and like TIS-100, there’s a printable manual that goes along with the game. TIS never really caught my interest [heresy! -ed.], but the wrapper around EXAPUNKS is much more palatable to me. You play a hacker in a cyberpunk version of 1997 who is infected with the Phage, a mysterious disease that slowly turns your body into computer parts. Hacking is how you pay for the costly medication to stave off the infection, and the manual for the programming language is actually an in-universe ‘zine. It kind of rules.

-Tanner Hendrickson

Ascension, Puzzle Page, Pixel Puzzle Collection, Destiny 2 and board games

Ascension’s newest expansion has made the best first impression yet, which mostly means I’ve played it a bunch and still feel like I have no idea what I’m doing. My other iOS gaming is likely to be the continuation of my recent classic puzzle kick. I tried out Puzzle Page, which emulates the newspaper puzzle grab bag experience, but it hails from the wrong side of the free-to-play tracks. It did introduce me to a few types of puzzle which were new to me, and I was particularly taken with the Word Slides, which add a spatial element to anagrams. Unfortunately, the stand-alone app for those has some troubling design choices and takes ad support to an extreme which had me studying the mystic arts so I could open a third eye to roll. So I’m left with Konami’s picross nostalgia machine, which would better evoke my childhood if my memory weren’t so terrible. But, still, picross.

I’ve fallen back into Destiny 2 on PS4, though I still don’t have a crew there. I think what draws me to the game is simply that I played so much of the first that the basic controls and flow feel comfortable. Were I to go back and give Fallout 4 a second chance, I’d be relearning everything and would either have to lose my existing progress or cope with no tutorials. Destiny is moderately pleasant and has a very low barrier to entry for me. Plus, their Halloween event is kind of neat.

My neighbor plays Magic, and has managed to persuade my son to play. I don’t know where that’s going. Though I loved it myself for years and years, I’m sort of hoping it doesn’t catch on and push out other games as it so easily can. I want another run at Space Marine Adventures (an absolute delight of which I was informed by There Will Be Games)! I may also finish off the Carcosa campaign for the Arkham Horror LCG, but I’m finding that I relate better to the smaller-scale stuff at the beginnings of the campaigns. Once you’re exploring other dimensions and warping fundamental reality, the narrative gets away from me a bit. But it has made me reflect on the fact that I want no game crossover so much as AHLCG/Shadowfist.

-Kelsey Rinella (Yes, Kelsey is back!)

Stardew Valley

I’m stuck playing Stardew Valley mainly because I’m on vacation and my game options are extremely limited. Not that I’m complaining. I’m having a blast with the newly released iOS version of Stardew Valley despite some niggling UI issues that I’ve stumbled upon after giving it a few hours’ run-through. I’ve even told my middle kid that he can use my Switch on the flight home as I’ll be content building my farm on the iPad.

In other news, Terraforming Mars is still really good despite its faults and I wish it was on iPad as well. I could see myself playing pass-and-play all the way home with the kids but, instead, now we won’t speak for four hours. Oh well.

When I get home, I fully expect to dive into Return of the Obra Dinn and EXAPUNKS. RotOD is from Lucas Pope, creator of the transcendent Papers, Please! and looks to carry on in that game’s footsteps by giving you more to think about than winning or losing. EXAPUNKS is from Zachtonics and I don’t think I need to say more. Unfortunately, gaming on a laptop is a pain while traveling, so they’ll have to wait until Monday.

My kids are asking to buy the latest Rockstar monstrosity, Red Dead Redemption 2, so they can play on the Xbox when we get home. To be honest, while it looks fascinating, it also looks so god damned depressing and nihilistic I’m not sure I see the appeal. I’m not sure I understand why anyone wants to feel shitty for 60 hours straight, but, then again, I haven’t played a GTA game since Vice City when they were still winking a bit at the player, so maybe their stuff just isn’t for me [your current favorite game is Stardew Valley for fuck’s sake. I’m guessing their stuff ain’t for you, chief. -ed.]. Not sure I want my kids up to their necks in misery, either, though. I’ll be batting this one back and forth for a while, I think.

-Dave Neumann

 

 

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Notable Replies

  1. The asmodee beta test page for terraforming mars on iOS has changed. It previously said coming in October, but now it says coming soon. I can’t help but feel that ‘soon’ is somehow going to take longer than ‘october’.

    In other news I happened upon a local group of coin game players and I’m off to play a couple of rounds if twilight struggle, cardboard edition. Hopefully I’ve proven my chops with good showings in Brass Birmingham and twilight imperium 4. Now it’s time to show just where on the pecking order I deserve to be.

  2. I’m jealous!!!

    I want to play a COIN game on the table one of these days.

    I’m thinking that the numerous bugs and stuff in the Steam version of TM along with some of the bad reactions made them want to fix things before moving on to a different platform.

  3. The Kotaku review of RDR2 was interesting. I do want to play it, but money is tight, and I’m sick of Rockstar controls. Too often they’re not only clumsy, they also require incredible finger contortions to carry out anything beyond the simplest moves, e.g. riding a horse and shooting at targets. They refuse to rethink control systems.

    For me, it’s TFM in cardboard form, I need more time with Prelude, Twilight Struggle, and Obsession.

  4. In spite of my post regarding not planing on playing RDR2, I was close to making an impulse purchase anyways. That Kotaku review definitely made me stay my hand and I’m quite glad about it.

    I may download the Castlevania bundle that just came out on the PS4 and play through some Symphony of the Night. Otherwise, I’ll be dabbling in Stardew Valley and Dead Cells.

  5. I am into;
    iOS: marvel strike force (190 days played, still enjoying the grind and still F2P. Is there something wrong with me at this stage?)
    PC: pathfinder: kingmaker - playing a shape shifting Druid, though I haven’t got far enough to get my own baroney yet. First two attempts ended in party wipes in Ironman mode. Decided not to play Ironman mode.

  6. Avatar for univac univac says:

    I guess I’m the only one playing Red Dead 2 this weekend though I’m surpised about it. It seems I preordered it from Amazon a couple years ago. I had to search my Amazon orders to make sure it wasn’t some kind of mistake. It should be a welcome change of pace from Bloodborne.

    I finally finished Bloodborne and the dlc last weekend. I was extremely disappointed about the ending and had no idea what it meant, probably because I had no real story continuity over the many months it took to beat the game. But the game lacks a lot dialogue. I tried to find an “official” explanation of the ending but couldn’t find any and had to resort to fan theories which were disappointing. Oh well. Time to hunt for some raccoon pelts.

  7. Addendum:

    The Pit of Doom - Kerberos’ new early access thing, hopefully will get some thoughts penned up. First-person roguelike…lite…whatever it it, I am liking it. Same kitschy Kerberos colour palette, same menagerie of snakes, bats and robots as The Pit…everything feels marvellously tacky at this stage.

    But it works, and with the right updates and focus, this could conceivably be a real sleeper hit. Multiplayer is coming soon, too.

  8. iOS - Still Marvel Strike Force also. Have main team up to just shy of 130k power. Sort of also trying to get some Blasters, Cosmic and City teams leveled up.
    Legends of SolGard - Bears and Elfs to level 4. I had collected enough gems to get a legendary chest, so now I have 2 Legendaries, the Lamplighter and the Shield guy.

    Mac - Back on a Civ6 kick again, and I do daily stuff in WoW, but it’s boring until the next major update.

  10. “Well I told Ethyl that porch shaped trousers was a stupid idea, but she went and fixed me up a pair anyway.”

  11. How did the new wow turn out? I got a work promotion and first thing I did was uninstall

  12. Word of warning about Castlevania: it features the updated translation and VA from the PSP collection. No miserable little piles to be found.

  13. Yeah, I heard. Bit beggars can’t be choosers and all that.

  14. I had quit about 6 months after Panderia, and had not returned until around this time last year, so a full year into Legion. And at that time, Legion had two end game areas opened, and I just had a blast. I thought it was alt friendly, for the first time in WoW history, I actually got into the story lines and was paying attention to the game.

    The lead-up to BFA was great, and I liked how the story was continuing, and the idea that we were going to be at war seemed really cool. But BFAs story so far has been weak. They really lost momentum of story telling with this x-pac and the war stuff just is tacked on as an afterthought.

    BFA is very alt-unfriendly so far, none of the cool multi-class mystery loot that you can use for alts, and the faction grinding is horrible.

    And there is just not much to do at end game right now, other than grind things you don’t really need.

    Potential is there though. And the next major patch will be a good indication on the direction we will be going in.

    In the meantime…I bought Battle Chasers:Nightwar on Steam today, since I finished my few daily tasks in WoW too quick today, and it was on sale. Fun so far.

  15. Avatar for Kolbex Kolbex says:
    I finally finished Bloodborne and the dlc last weekend. I was extremely disappointed about the ending and had no idea what it meant, probably because I had no real story continuity over the many months it took to beat the game. But the game lacks a lot dialogue. I tried to find an “official” explanation of the ending but couldn’t find any and had to resort to fan theories which were disappointing.

    Have you read this: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1JL5acskAT_2t062HILImBkV8eXAwaqOj611mSjK-vZ8/edit

  16. Avatar for univac univac says:

    Holy shakespeare, Batman. That is quite a synopsis. I don’t know if like the game well enough to give that document a proper reading. I’ll skim it a bit to get a general sense of the story and timeline. But thanks for resource Kolbex.

  17. Avatar for Jaels Jaels says:

    Marvel Strike Force for me too (slowly setting up to make a run at Magneto in November, as my Nick Fury team is too underleveled-undergeared to fight at the top of the arena). Also (finally) started Valkyrie Chronicles (1, not 4!) on the PS4 this weekend, don’t know why I waited so long (oh yeah, life happened).

    Plus boardgames. Always time for boardgames. Going through a Field Commander: Napoleon run at the moment, by far the best of the FC series.

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