LadyCrimson

^ Since I live in an extra warm place now - I'm not sure I'll notice much difference. Does make me wonder about droughts and floods tho. I keep telling hubby we should sell the Bay Area house semi-soon because it's so close to the Bay - with global warming, in 20-30 years it could be a problem, if you believe the global warming scientists. We had to get flood insurance for it recently (wasn't a req. before). eg, get rid it before no one wants it! Heheh. With the way hubby's work is restructuring (and his back), he may end up retiring a bit earlier than he expected. We've been working numbers a lot lately. Inflation is always a worry but we should be fine.

I guess that beaver city builder has left Early Access, and is currently on sale. Too bad I don't feel like playing it at this point. Maybe next sale. I think Crimson Desert is going to be the March purchase-try. Then DS2 on sale after that. Still waiting for Light No Fire news. Any news.

No one but well-known twitch/review/game influencer people are (and they're still under non-disclosure), since it doesn't release until the 19th. :D Not sure when the ND for those folks review video, will be lifted. I'd guess the 17th or 18th, assuming it'll be pre-release at all.

I noticed DS2 has a Win10 version requirement. 1909+ I remember a game some while back that had me upgrade Win10 once (vs. my purchase version). My System Information says ---Version - 10.0.19045 Build 19045. No ##H2 included in the byline. Not surprising, it was a long while ago (could've been 3-4 years ago, might have been 4++ years, sorry I can't recall). Does 1909+ include Build 19045? Is my 19045 actually 1909/19H2 or 22H2 but mine's an early/not updated version which is why that byline doesn't mention any ##H2? (dangit, web search+version naming jumbo is too confusing)/

The Pitt/HBO, ssn2, eps 8-9 Finally starting to get more interesting/compelling. Both in terms of hospital staff chrs, some patients, and a "tech/digital vs. analog" situation. Robby's arc (lead/Noah Wyle) this season is seeming fairly dark. Not in an over-dramatic way, it's more of a continuation of his 1st season state. Boyfriend on Demand/Netflix/k-drama --I only tried this one because of the cast list. A rom-com, where lead gal goes through usual IRL trials while testing this virtual-reality-bf tech (you wear a skinny eyepiece, maybe it connects to your brain, not sure). Apparently the best VR ever. The first episode was IRL setup, then the VR boyfriend stuff takes stage for a couple episodes. Those scenarios are big visuals and sometimes funny for ppl familiar with kdrama or k-romance webtoon tropes - more often it just feels like retread cheese. Beyond the stacked/pretty cast list, not even really guilty-pleasure/lulz binge worthy. I won't continue.

I definitely am picturing all the hype is going to = tons of people buying a game that ends up nothing like they were picturing. That's often the end case for hype. For one thing, it seems to be mashing together many styles and loops. It could feel too unfocused/messy, even re: discovery/exploration (my thing).

Crimson Desert's Steam store page now says Denuvo included. Which doesn't bother me personally. But it always feels a bit sneaky (or something) when a game adds such after it's already been available for pre-order for a bit etc. vs. just doing it/saying they will from the get-go, even if those that do mind can simply cancel their pre-orders. I'm still going to be waiting for those initial reviews re: gameplay/mechanics. Like, I'd like to know more about this settlement feature etc. I have high interest/hopes - the no chr-xp-levels aspect also interests me - but it's not quite a "must buy" for me yet. Almost, but not quite.

"Do you want to know more? (about this character)" Yes. (takes place after Once Upon A time in Hollywood) Tarantino/script, Fincher/director. DiCaprio, not involved. I read it'll have a limited theater release/Netflix.

A nice, quiet change of pace to see him in. Although of course it's hard for my brain to not immediately move towards certain meme-jokes. Ahem. But it was nice mellow vid - several of them at this point. Not sure how he got latched onto this project, but, cool.

There are five films I currently have more than a passing interest in renting/seeing. ( No Other Choice, Choral, Dust Bunny, Rental Family, Omniscient Reader: The Prophecy ) Plus a few others that are "well, small maybe" So far I have turned on streaming services, stared at them, then turned them off and went to do something else. If I don't watch them, I can't be disappointed. Plus maybe I'm tired of staring at screens. I think tonight I'll reread some Pip and Flinx shorter length novels - so I can stare at paper, instead. 😼 I never did buy/read all of them - stopped at Mid-Flinx (1995) - but I did like the early ones. Maybe I should look for the other half.

Yeah, pretty much me.

Luke Stephens video mentioned a person in the room that got stuck on a puzzle for like 30 minutes. I guess we know who it was, now. The four preview vids I've seen, my takeaway is: no "yellow paint"/hints on puzzles/you have to use your brain or (non-puzzles) try several things before you figure out something (I say yay, some will hate it), massive amount of controls (combat)/large learning curve for that, but combat is still kinda simple, don't expect sweeping/expansive or multi-options RPG story (I wasn't), good performance is real (relatively speaking for the era), non-main quest stuff is more expansive than MC and varied/discovery-cool or fun. So basically, one of those games where one is probably going to like it a lot, or one is going to find learning/control curves too much/not guided enough etc. The preview I liked the most was the one below - or Luke Stephen's (he claims he got the farthest in the MC/chapt 3), but his yapping style can be a bit annoying and it was extra long. My main concern as always is frustrating (to me) comabt, but eh. I'll risk it this time. I mean, at least I can steal a goat, toss it over my shoulder, and run away with it. Cute. There's apparently eventually some kind of small npc-settlement/animal husbandry stuff.

Over the weekend, after seeing a video of "The Catch", I somehow ended up down the rabbithole of watching full, 80's 49er Superbowls, then 49er championship rounds etc. That I haven't seen since they aired. I remember watching that '81 season/SB with my father, good memories. Edit: the SB XXIII vs. Bengals was one of the most nail-biting/fun to watch live, too. After all that, I decided to look up NFL 2025 highlight videos. I probably have watched zero US football for 20+ years (maybe a few news highlights here and there). The outfit designs/patterns seem even more weird/garish then before and in the wide shots those current helmets make players look like short bobbleheads. I chuckled. I'm sure one gets used to it (and hopefully those helmets are better protection), but 1st-sight caused amusement. :D It was interesting tho because I guess rules have changed a lot - the stuff I was seeing in the 2025 seemed a lot more gentle, so to speak, vs 1980's. I mean the tackles/hits. More safety reasons I presume. The long run catches or long scoring drives are still exciting tho.

There will be a particle slider so you can turn all that visual noise "off" or have it max. I never got past the intro of TW3 - Garult is not my kind of chr. Might have been another reason, like graphics at the time, but I don't remember. And watching later YT video let's play didn't change my mind so I never tried it again. I think for me Crimson D. looks like the sort of "world" I like to explore, mostly - since I'm not focused on any "RPG" aspect anymore - plus their seeming desire to optimize for native as much as possible (and optimization in general) vs. "just turn on dlss/frame gen". The 2080 rec. requirements these days is pretty decent for big expansive graphic/world games+RT global illumination (even if that's for native 1080/60). I think it started with 32gb system ram req, but then they got it down to 16gb. I like to see that in a dev. Maybe with upscaling and some lowered settings I can run it at "4k" at over 60fps instead of "mostly, kinda 60 fps." Heh. But yeah, gameplay is always the key. Is it interesting/fun, engaging, motivating, is it a decent open world or one of the boring nothingness types etc. We'll see. I'm willing to give it a shot as long as early reviews aren't "crash and burn".

I hope not, since I dislike/have zero interest in Elder Scrolls (overall). Looks more like Breath of the Wild+other adventure-rpg mashups, maybe with a hint of Witcher 3 (but not like W3, mind). The world aesthetics, questing/exploration reminds me a little bit of Enshrouded vibe, too. Again, not saying the same, just kinda reminds me a bit. EDIT: the dev's other/most recent game was a MT online MMO or something (same engine). I have a feeling this is a non-MT/SP version of that, kinda. Or it'll be cosmetic MT's after release, or maybe new chrs, area DLC. Who knows tho.

I know, I know, possibly way over-hyped game. Still. Single-player? In-house engine (not UE5 etc)? Possibly optimized well even for somewhat older systems while still looking pretty good (I don't think it's as uber visuals as some ppl think in that area, but it's way way more than good enough/nice for a 3rd person)? Giant open world? Visceral combat, mounts/traversal, exploration? Lots of puzzles and varied quests? Well, if the first early reviews are even 75% positive, I'm buying it to try it. Although the super spastic wind-blown trees kinda annoy me. lol. Also, pre-defined chr (main, others/companions to switch between later or something?) not chr creation, if one cares about that. A massive quest-y-story-adventure perhaps, vs. "serious rpg". Edit: also for those who care, its base price is $70 (USA). So not a cheaper side release.

I'm kind of itching for a mostly overpowered mage type game, vs over-gimped ones, that isn't from the 1990's. Tainted Grail was kinda like that by late game but already played that one. Sometimes I want mega-power-creep characters and screw any balance. Running around in MM7 spamming that Dark GM spell Souldrinker that covered a huge area was fun. Wish I could still get into that game - too many years ago tho.

Yeah I saw Daniel Owens vid re: those. Seems reasonable. The 1st game was pretty well optimized (imo) for the results at the time, was expecting similar. That engine they use seems pretty decent re: that stuff. The concept of a different upscaling offering is kinda interesting too, although nvidia users probably have no reason to use it over dlss.

^ Still haven't had any YT issues re: adblockers on desktop. Although I think sometimes there is a slightly longer delay re: the video actually starting, like 5 seconds. Doesn't bother me tho. I'll wait a tad for no ads. Tablet is still super-grandfathered with old old chrome version (I never update the 'app') and it still works fine so far. Hubby's having a bad week (both health, and recent work-restructuring stress), which means by spousal osmosis I'm having a semi-bad week. "My" toilet has a recent extra-mold problem for some reason so I bought a gallon of 6% hydrogen peroxide and dump some into the tank, let it sit, flush, brush, repeat a few times. Worked nicely, will have to upkeep it now and then etc. Exciting, I know. Been skimming some old made-for-tv movies people post on YT. Y'know, stuff with Richard Thomas and those other regular 80's tv actor staples of such times. Kinda weird nostalgia.

Death Stranding 2 now has a storepage on Steam. Where they want you to pre-order. But there are no min/req system specs listed yet. While I'm pretty sure I could at least get the game to run "kinda ok", I need some system specs. I mean come on, launch is less than a month (March 19), why the delay. Oh right, to not scare away get more people to pre-order. It's also been long enough that I'm now less motivated anyway - still interested, just maybe I'll wait for a sale. I bought DS1 full price twice last time (PS4, PC), so I don't feel bad waiting for a small discount this time around. :P

There's this guy on YT - Todd in the Shadows -with a lot of "one hit wonder" song breakdown/analysis videos. Guess he's been around a while/fairly popular, but I only noticed him the other week (when the almighty YT algorithm finally decided I might be interested, I suppose). Watched quite a few, hits the nostalgia vibes most of the time. Saw this one re: Barbie Girl, which made me wonder about the silly lip-synch vid that probably introduced me to that darn song. It's still on YT, too. 19 years. Sheesh. The days when ppl just randomly uploaded stupid stuff for giggles and it wasn't all "subscribe, hit that bell, sponsor" and MrBeast-like thumbnails. I kinda miss those days. Kinda.

The Pitt, ssn2 - think it's been 6-7 episodes now. The "quality" is still up there, but it feels a bit less compelling. Couple new chrs aren't gellin' with me overmuch either. They're not bad, but neither are they interesting/bringing anything much to the table. It's good, but feels too familiar already, I guess. But there's still time for some mega crisis re: characterizations and trauma of medical dramas. Heh.

^ Tainted Grail has that wonderful first half, and then it's an "ok" 2nd half. Very front loaded. Not that it becomes bad or something. But that first impression isn't ever quite matched. They've patched that 3rd act and I suppose it became a tad better but eh. But yeah, I had lots of fun with it. Anyway - I finally tamed a pet cat in Enshrouded. The cat is cute I suppose - if you pet it you get a small tiny health buff and it often runs to you and meows - but it sure eats a lot. I "locked" it in my bases main chr. bedroom (I've heard pets can get rather lost in this game), where the cat gets the zoomies and seems to run along wall edges/behind furniture, just like a real cat. Sadly, it does not jump on top of bookshelves, which is not like a real cat. Not sure I'll keep it out or stick it in storage. Am not taming the dog.

Long wonderful career. My personal faves were Lonesome Dove, Falling Down, and Open Range, but he's had lots of wonderful roles. I guess that leaves Dustin Hoffman (Gene Hackman, Duvall, Hoffman).

Well, when I posted that post, it wasn't happening in the Pics of your games thread/s. But today when I logged in, it is. shrug I thought it couldn't have been 2+ years since I posted in that food thread, but apparently so - I know I stopped looking/posting in there at some point, but has it been that long, sheesh Ok, noticed different thing - there's no more auto-smilie insertion, but now there's auto turn other things into something else. If I surround a word with asterisks, it gets auto-italicized, even if you put a space between asterisks and word. And if I try to do my typical three minus signs at start of a line after hitting Enter, it auto-turns into a full-width horizontal bar. Meaning I can't use my habit of three dashes as a bullet/"tabbed" points. Oh darn. ;) Makes me wonder if there are other things like that tho - maybe instead of BBcode there are other typing/symbols one can use to make the forum do something similar. Hm. If you hit Enter, then type an asterisk, it seems to indent and bullet point the line? Then if you hit Enter again it auto does it again. Heh. the