Sulphur on 25/10/2025 at 01:25

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Guess it's spook season. I tried out SH2 for a bit, and it definitely has fleshed out more areas of the town, resulting in pathing your way through more puzzles and areas. I don't mind that so much as long as it brings additional depth to the game.

I also took a break from Metroid Prime to try Alan Wake 2 on the PS5 instead of waiting to upgrade to some hypothetical RTX card that can run it path traced at 60 FPS without requiring a dumb amount of money for it or framegen. Turns out it's a gorgeous looking game anyway without a huge difference in GI thanks to Remedy's history of baking lighting into the levels (since Max Payne 1, IIRC). It's also much more interesting to me than Alan Wake 1 because it leans into survival horror and weirdness more readily, where AW1 spent a lot of time on its frankly tepid combat loop. I also disliked Alan as a character intensely, but he seems more agreeable here because he's about as lost as the player is, and his sections are where the game's surreal vibe really get the spotlight. So far, it's been good enough that I think I'll just get the game outright instead of barrelling through it with PS+.

Which means that, instead, it's gonna be Indika next. And sure, why not, Crow Country. That's the one where you wild west a buncha crows into oblivion, right?

Tomi on 25/10/2025 at 06:49

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Same here, I really should remedy (lol) that. I even replayed the first Alan Wake in preparation for the AW2 release, but for some reason I never got around to playing the sequel, even though I was all hyped for it. And I still am! Perhaps I'll save AW2 for the Christmas holidays. :cool:

Right now I'm still playing DOOM: The Dark Ages, South of Midnight, and Silksong. Doom TDA is definitely getting better towards the end, South of Midnight has such a fascinating story that I can't wait to see how it turns out, and Silksong is getting better again after I've recovered from the disappointment of hitting my first difficulty spike.

PigLick on 25/10/2025 at 11:17

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Henke I am so disappointed in you, Silksong should be like an easy challenge for one such as you. Dont make me readjust the way my mind works, not now.

Still love you though
[video=youtube;k2mEQsPuq84]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2mEQsPuq84&list=RDk2mEQsPuq84&index=1[/video]

Sulphur on 26/10/2025 at 04:46

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So I finished Indika. If you need something to hold up as the epitome of, or the thing to point to when someone says 'contemporary arthouse indie video game project', this is it. But beyond that, it's also one of the few video games that are ostensibly walking simulators but justify why they're video games, because they've got something to say through their design, both thematically and mechanically, which clearly aligns with what the story is doing. It's pretty neat.

There's criticism to be had about many things it does, but ultimately it works as an experience, and its standout quality is that the visual and narrative design give the player things to chew on even when they're not playing it. It's a fascinating dive into the nature of orthodox faith and dogma and how it's of very little benefit to a person who society can't force into a box.

Yeah, I'll be writing more about it later.

Aja on 27/10/2025 at 02:57

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Me too. It's been on my list for ages.