Charles Nonsens’ profile
Personal gaming thoughts
With my limited time for gaming, a game has to be enjoyable to be played. I already have enough grinding in real life and would rather shelf an unsatisfying game than waste time on it. I don’t care much for achievements, unless they expand or improve the gaming experience.
Priorities for unfinished games
-
Games won on Steamgifts a fair amount of time ago
Well-reviewed games from mid-aughts and later
Games started and enjoyed but not finished
Games with sequels also in the backlog -
Recent Steamgifts wins
Newer games -
Older games
Off-Steam Game Library
Title | Status | Platform |
Assassin’s Creed II | Beaten | Uplay |
Bulletstorm | Beaten | Amazon DL |
Crysis | Beaten | GOG |
Dragon Age: Origins | Beaten | Origin |
Driver San Francisco | Beaten | Uplay |
Fallout | Beaten | GOG |
Fallout 2 | Beaten | GOG |
Full Throttle Remastered | Beaten | GOG |
Gone Home | Beaten | Amazon |
Grand Theft Auto V | Beaten | Rockstar, Epic |
Indigo Prophecy | Beaten | GOG |
Jade Empire | Beaten | Origin |
Mass Effect 2 | Beaten | Origin |
Mass Effect 3 | Beaten | Origin |
Medal of Honor Pacific Assault | Beaten | Origin |
Metro Last Light Redux | Beaten | Epic |
Mirror’s Edge | Beaten | Amazon DL |
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time | Beaten | Uplay |
The Saboteur | Beaten | Origin |
Trine | Beaten | Amazon DL |
Valiant Hearts | Beaten | Uplay |
Velvet Assassin | Beaten | Amazon DL |
The Whispered World | Beaten | GOG |
Title | Status | Platform |
STALKER Shadow of Chernobyl | Unfinished | Amazon DL |
The Witness | Unfinished | Epic |
Torchlight | Unfinished | GOG |
Title | Status | Platform |
10 Second Ninja X | Never played | Amazon |
12 is Better than 6 | Never played | Humble |
2064: Read Only Memories | Never played | Epic |
20XX | Never played | Epic |
3 out of 10: Season 1 | Never played | Epic |
3 out of 10: Season 2 | Never played | Epic |
A Normal Lost Phone | Never played | Amazon |
A Plague Tale: Innocence | Never played | Epic |
A Short Hike | Never played | Epic |
A Total War Saga: Troy | Never played | Epic |
Absolute Drift | Never played | Epic |
Adventure Pals | Never played | Amazon |
Aegis Defenders | Never played | Amazon |
Age of Wonders | Never played | GOG |
American Fugitive | Never played | Amazon |
Amnesia: Rebirth | Never played | Epic |
Among Us | Never played | Epic |
Anarcute | Never played | Amazon |
Anodyne 2: Return To Dust | Never played | Epic |
Antichamber | Never played | Humble |
Antihero | Never played | Amazon |
Ape Out | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
ARK: Survival Evolved | Never played | Epic |
Assassin’s Creed Chronicles China | Never played | Uplay |
Assassin’s Creed IV Black Flag | Never played | Uplay |
Assassin’s Creed Syndicate | Never played | Uplay |
Assassin’s Creed Unity | Never played | Uplay |
Assassin’s Creed III | Never played | Uplay |
Assassins Creed Syndicate | Never played | Epic |
Automachef | Never played | Amazon |
Aven Colony | Never played | Epic |
Avicii Invector | Never played | Amazon |
Axiom Verge | Never played | Epic |
Aztez | Never played | Epic |
Bad North Jotunn Edition | Never played | Epic |
Barony | Never played | Epic |
Batman Arkham Knight | Never played | Epic |
Battle Chef Brigade | Never played | Amazon |
Battlefield 1 | Never played | Origin |
Battlefield 3 | Never played | Origin |
Battlefield 4 | Never played | Origin |
Battlefield V | Never played | Origin |
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 | Never played | Origin |
Bejeweled | Never played | Origin |
Blair Witch | Never played | Epic |
Bomber Crew | Never played | Amazon |
Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel | Never played | Epic |
Borderlands 3 | Never played | Epic |
Braveland | Never played | Humble |
Bridge Constructor: The Walking Dead | Never played | Epic |
Broforce | Never played | Amazon |
Broken Age | Never played | Amazon, Humble |
Burnout Paradise | Never played | Amazon DL |
Carcassonne | Never played | Epic |
Cave Story + | Never played | Epic |
Celeste | Never played | Epic |
Chicken Assassin Reloaded | Never played | Amazon |
City of Brass | Never played | Epic |
Close to the Sun | Never played | Epic |
Cluster Truck | Never played | Amazon |
Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 | Never played | Origin |
Conarium | Never played | Epic |
Consortium | Never played | GOG |
Costume Quest 2 | Never played | Epic |
Crashlands | Never played | Epic |
Creature in the Well | Never played | Epic |
Crossing Souls | Never played | Amazon |
Crusader | Never played | Origin |
Crying Suns | Never played | Epic |
Cultist Simulator | Never played | Amazon |
Cursed Castilla | Never played | Amazon |
Daemon X Machina | Never played | Epic |
Dandara | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Darkest Dungeon | Never played | Epic |
Darksiders 2 | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
DARQ | Never played | Epic |
Dead in Bermuda | Never played | Origin |
Dead Space 2 | Never played | Origin |
Dead Space 3 | Never played | Origin |
Death Coming | Never played | Epic |
Death Squared | Never played | Amazon |
Defense Grid: The Awakening | Never played | Epic |
Deponia Doomsday | Never played | Amazon |
Desert Child | Never played | Amazon |
Devil May Cry HD | Never played | Amazon |
Distraint | Never played | GOG |
Double Cross | Never played | Amazon |
Downwell | Never played | Amazon |
Dragon Age 2 | Never played | Origin |
Dragon Age Inquisition | Never played | Origin |
Draknek & Co Puzzle Bundle | Never played | Amazon |
Drawful 2 | Never played | Epic |
Dubwars | Never played | Amazon |
Dungeons 3 | Never played | Amazon |
Earthlock | Never played | Amazon |
Elite Dangerous | Never played | Epic |
Enter the Gungeon | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Epistory - Typing Chronicles | Never played | Amazon |
Etherborn | Never played | Amazon |
Europa Universalis IV | Never played | Epic |
Faeria | Never played | Epic |
Far Cry 3 | Never played | Uplay |
Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon | Never played | Uplay |
Farming Simulator 19 | Never played | Epic |
FTL Faster Than Light | Never played | Epic |
Figment | Never played | Epic |
Football Manager 2020 | Never played | Epic |
For The King | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Fractured Minds | Never played | Amazon |
FRAMED Collection | Never played | Amazon |
Frostpunk | Never played | Epic, GOG |
Furi | Never played | Amazon |
Galactic Civilizations III | Never played | Epic |
Gato Roboto | Never played | Amazon |
Ghostbusters | Never played | Epic |
Ghostrunner | Never played | GOG |
GNOG | Never played | Epic |
Godfall | Never played | Epic |
Gods Will Fall | Never played | Epic |
God’s Trigger | Never played | Epic |
GoNNER | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Grim Fandango Remastered | Never played | Humble |
Guild of Dungeoneering | Never played | Amazon |
Gunpoint | Never played | Amazon |
Headlander | Never played | Amazon |
Heave Ho | Never played | Amazon |
Hello Neighbor | Never played | Epic |
Hellpoint | Never played | GOG |
Her Story | Never played | Amazon |
High Hell | Never played | Amazon |
Hitman: Absolution | Never played | GOG |
Hob | Never played | Epic |
Horace | Never played | Epic |
Horizon Chase Turbo | Never played | Epic |
Hotline Miami | Never played | Amazon |
Hotline Miami 2 | Never played | Amazon |
Hover: Revolt of Gamers | Never played | Amazon |
Hue | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Hyper Light Drifter | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
I, Hope | Never played | Amazon |
InnerSpace | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Inside | Never played | Epic |
Insurmountable | Never played | Epic |
Into The Breach | Never played | Epic |
Ironcast | Never played | Epic |
Jackbox Party Pack | Never played | Epic |
Jalopy | Never played | Humble |
Joggernauts | Never played | Amazon |
Journey to the Savage Planet | Never played | GOG |
Jurassic World Evolution | Never played | Epic |
Just Cause 4 | Never played | Epic |
Kabounce | Never played | Amazon |
Keep in Mind: Remastered | Never played | Amazon |
KID A MNESIA Exhibition | Never played | Epic |
Killing Floor 2 | Never played | Epic |
Kingdom: New Lands | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Kingsway | Never played | Amazon |
Knockout City | Never played | Origin |
Layers of Fear | Never played | Epic |
Layers of Fear 2 | Never played | Epic |
Legends of Eisenwald | Never played | Humble |
Lego Batman Trilogy | Never played | Epic |
Lifeless Planet | Never played | Epic |
Lightmatter | Never played | Amazon |
Little Inferno | Never played | Epic |
Loop Hero | Never played | Epic |
Mable & The Wood | Never played | Amazon |
Madden NFL 08 | Never played | Amazon DL |
Madden NFL 22 | Never played | Origin |
Mages of Mystralia | Never played | Epic |
Majesty Master Collection | Never played | Amazon |
Manual Samuel | Never played | Amazon |
Massive Chalice | Never played | Humble |
MDK | Never played | GOG |
Metal Slug 3 | Never played | Amazon |
Metro: 2033 Redux | Never played | Epic |
Minit | Never played | Epic |
Moonlighter | Never played | Epic |
Mothergunship | Never played | Epic |
Moving Out | Never played | Epic |
Mount & Blade | Never played | GOG |
Mr. Shifty | Never played | Amazon |
Mudrunner | Never played | Epic |
Mugsters | Never played | Amazon |
Mutant Year Zero | Never played | Epic |
My Time at Portia | Never played | Epic |
Narcos: Rise of the Cartels | Never played | Amazon |
NBA 2K21 | Never played | Epic |
Need for Speed Hot Pursuit | Never played | Origin |
Need for Speed Most Wanted 2 | Never played | Origin |
Neverwinter Nights | Never played | GOG |
Next Up Hero | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
NHL 09 | Never played | Amazon DL |
Night in the Woods | Never played | Epic |
Nioh | Never played | Epic |
Nuclear Throne | Never played | Epic |
Obduction | Never played | Epic, GOG |
Observer | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Oddworld: New and Tasty | Never played | Epic |
Offworld Trading Company | Never played | Epic |
Old School Musical | Never played | Amazon |
Orwell 2 | Never played | Amazon |
Outer Wilds | Never played | Epic |
Outlast | Never played | Humble |
Overcooked | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Overcooked 2 | Never played | Epic |
Overload | Never played | Amazon |
Pankapu | Never played | Amazon |
Pathfinder: Kingmaker | Never played | Epic |
PC Building Simulator | Never played | Epic |
Peggle | Never played | Origin |
Pikuniku | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Pine | Never played | Epic |
Planet Alpha | Never played | Amazon |
Plants vs Zombies | Never played | Origin |
Plants vs Zombies: Battle for Neighborville | Never played | Origin |
Poi | Never played | Amazon |
Prey | Never played | Epic |
Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands | Never played | Uplay |
Prison Architect | Never played | GOG |
Pumped BMX + | Never played | Amazon |
Pumped BMX Pro | Never played | Amazon |
Q.U.B.E. 2 | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Rage 2 | Never played | Epic |
Railway Empire | Never played | Epic |
Rayman Legends | Never played | Epic, Uplay |
Rayman Origins | Never played | Uplay |
Relicta | Never played | Epic |
Remnant: From the Ashes | Never played | Epic |
Republique | Never played | Amazon |
Retro City DX | Never played | Humble |
Rising Storm 2 Vietnam | Never played | Epic |
Riverbond | Never played | Epic |
Rocket Arena | Never played | Origin |
Rocket League | Never played | Epic |
Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 | Never played | Epic |
RUINER | Never played | Epic |
Saints Row 2 | Never played | GOG |
Saints Row the Third Remastered | Never played | Epic |
Salt and Sanctuary | Never played | Epic |
Sang Froid | Never played | GOG |
Sanitarium | Never played | Amazon |
Second Extinction | Never played | Epic |
Serial Cleaner | Never played | Amazon |
Serious Sam: The First Encounter | Never played | GOG |
Shadow Warrior 2 | Never played | Uplay |
Sheltered | Never played | Epic |
Shenmue III | Never played | Epic |
Sid Meier’s Civilization VI | Never played | Epic |
Silent Hunter 5 | Never played | Uplay |
Slime Rancher | Never played | Epic |
Smoke and Sacrifice | Never played | Amazon |
SNK Bundle | Never played | Amazon |
Solitairica | Never played | Epic |
Soma | Never played | Amazon, GOG |
Sonic Mania | Never played | Epic |
Speed Brawl | Never played | Epic |
Splasher | Never played | Amazon |
Splinter Cell | Never played | Uplay |
Splinter Cell Blacklist | Never played | Uplay |
STALKER Call of Pripyat | Never played | Amazon DL, GOG |
STALKER Clear Sky | Never played | GOG |
Star Vikings Forever | Never played | Amazon |
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order | Never played | Origin |
Star Wars Battlefront 2 | Never played | Origin |
Star Wars Squadrons | Never played | Origin |
Starseed Pilgrim | Never played | Humble |
Stealth Bastard | Never played | Amazon |
Stealth Inc. 2 | Never played | Amazon |
Steamworld Dig | Never played | Amazon, Origin |
Steamworld Dig 2 | Never played | Amazon |
SteamWorld Heist | Never played | Amazon |
Steep | Never played | Epic, Uplay |
Stellaris | Never played | GOG |
Steredenn | Never played | Amazon |
Stick it to the Man | Never played | Epic |
Stikbold | Never played | Amazon |
Still Life 2 | Never played | GOG |
Stories Untold | Never played | Epic |
Strafe | Never played | Amazon |
Stranded Deep | Never played | Epic |
Stranger Things 3 | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Strife | Never played | Amazon |
Subnautica | Never played | Epic |
Sundered Eldritch Edition | Never played | Epic |
Sunless Sea | Never played | Epic |
Super Meat Boy | Never played | Epic |
Superbrothers: Sword and Sworcery | Never played | Epic |
Superhot | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Sword Legacy Omen | Never played | Amazon |
Syberia II | Never played | Origin |
Symmetry | Never played | GOG |
System Shock | Never played | Amazon |
System Shock 2 | Never played | Amazon |
Tacoma | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
Tales from the Borderlands | Never played | Amazon |
Tales of the Neon Sea | Never played | Epic |
Terraforming Mars | Never played | Epic |
Tharsis | Never played | Epic |
The Alto Collection | Never played | Epic |
The Banner Saga | Never played | Amazon |
The Banner Saga 2 | Never played | Amazon |
The Bridge | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
The Crew | Never played | Uplay |
The End is Nigh | Never played | Epic |
The Escapists | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
The Escapists 2 | Never played | Epic |
The Fall | Never played | Epic |
The First Tree | Never played | Epic |
The Flame in the Flood | Never played | Amazon |
The Jackbox Party Pack | Never played | Epic |
The King’s Bird | Never played | Amazon |
The Last Blade | Never played | Amazon |
The Little Acre | Never played | Amazon |
The Messenger | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
The Metronomicon: Slay the Dance Floor | Never played | Amazon |
The Pillars of the Earth | Never played | Amazon, Epic |
The Red Strings Club | Never played | Amazon |
The Spectrum Retreat | Never played | Epic |
The Swords of Ditto | Never played | Amazon |
The Textorcist | Never played | Epic |
The Hunter: Call of the Wild | Never played | Epic |
Thimbleweed Park | Never played | Epic |
Ticket to Ride | Never played | Epic |
Titan Souls | Never played | Amazon |
ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove! | Never played | Amazon |
Tokyo 42 | Never played | Amazon |
Tomb of Annihilation | Never played | Amazon |
Torchlight | Never played | Epic |
Torchlight 2 | Never played | Epic |
Tormentor X Punisher | Never played | Epic |
Total War: Warhammer | Never played | Epic |
Totally Reliable Delivery Service | Never played | Epic |
Train Sim World 2 | Never played | Epic |
Transistor | Never played | Epic |
Treadnauts | Never played | Amazon |
Trine 2 | Never played | Humble |
Tropico 5 | Never played | Epic |
Turmoil | Never played | Amazon |
Turok: Dinosaur Hunter | Never played | Amazon |
Twinkle Star Sprites | Never played | Amazon |
Tyranny | Never played | Amazon |
Urban Trial Playground | Never played | Amazon |
Uurnog Uurnlimited | Never played | Amazon |
Valhalla Hills | Never played | Humble |
Verdun | Never played | Epic |
The Walking Dead: Michonne | Never played | Amazon |
Wargame: Red Dragon | Never played | Epic |
Wasteland 2 | Never played | GOG |
Watch Dogs | Never played | Uplay |
Watch Dogs 2 | Never played | Uplay |
What Remains of Edith Finch | Never played | Epic |
Wheels of Aurelia | Never played | Epic |
When Ski Lifts Go Wrong | Never played | Amazon |
Where the Water Tastes like Wine | Never played | Epic |
while True: learn() | Never played | Epic |
Whispering Willows | Never played | Amazon, Humble |
Whispers of a Machine | Never played | Amazon |
White Night | Never played | Amazon |
Wilmot’s Warehouse | Never played | Epic |
Windbound | Never played | Epic |
The Witcher 3 | Never played | GOG |
Witcheye | Never played | Amazon |
Wizardry 8 | Never played | Amazon |
Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap | Never played | Amazon |
World in Conflict | Never played | Uplay |
World of Goo | Never played | Epic |
World War Z | Never played | Epic |
Yoku’s Island Express | Never played | Amazon |
Yono and the Celestial Elephants | Never played | Amazon |
Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair | Never played | Epic |
Dungeons 2 | Won’t play | GOG |
Omertà | Won’t play | GOG |
Sim City 2000 | Won’t play | Origin |
The Sims 2 | Won’t play | Origin |
Report #28: July-December + 2022 Afterword
New Year’s Eve and my first post in six months. I haven’t had much free time and consequently haven’t played much. It’s alright, I don’t mind.
Metro Exodus which I finished in July was probably my favorite game played in 2022. I also enjoyed Yakuza 0, but at 76 hours to finish, it was way too long for my tastes. I expect 2023 to shape up similar to how 2022 ended, so I’ll try to focus on titles I really want to play. I’ll keep going with Fallout 4 and will start The Wolf Among Us. After that, who knows!
Wishing all you assassins an excellent new year. Stay frosty.
Beaten
Also Played
Added
Favorite Gaming Moments 2022
Steam Library Snapshot
End of 2022
End of 2021
End of 2020
Report #27: June 2022
Summer is coming.
Beaten
Also Played
Report #26: May 2022
Happy to report I finished two titles plus made significant progress on another big game. Also, no new additions to my Steam library, so another net negative month for the backlog! Hope to squeeze a couple of more games before summer begins for real.
Beaten
Working on
Report #25: April 2022
I’m posting this monthly report a bit early, since I’ll be going out of town and don’t expect to play any more until next month. Unexpectedly got some extra free time this month and put some of it into the backlog. The result: five titles moved to the Beaten category, including two that had spent a lot of time as Unfinished. Whoop.
Heaven’s Vault is a an interesting, modern take on the point&click genre set in a decaying galaxy (which for some unknown reason is referred to as a nebula). You play a space-faring archaeologist tasked with investigating the disappearance of a colleague at the university. Solving linguistic puzzles, you little by little uncover what happened to your colleague as well as the truth behind the extinction of long-gone civilizations and how it all connects to a current threat to the galaxy. A slow burn, but I enjoyed learning the ancients’ language and history.
Keeping with the archaeology theme, I have to admit I really enjoy the last Tomb Raider reboot, including this month’s Rise of the Tomb Raider. I love running around spelunking in caves, climbing trees, hunting animals, collecting resources, and crafting better equipment - it’s a great balance between excitement and relaxation. The story is the typical hodgepodge of myth, magic, and power-hungry antagonists, but the pacing is pretty good as are the set pieces, and it contrasts nicely with the freer inter-mission moments.
I recently realized I’ve collected quite a few racers that I rarely play, so I’m making an effort to move some of them off the backlog. I picked Grid first as is it is one of the oldest games on my Steam account. As far as the racing experience goes, it’s a good game, but there’s a limited number of circuits, perhaps fifteen in total, so progressing through the game gets a bit old with the same tracks appearing over and over.
Full Throttle Remastered is vintage LucasArts and together with The Secret of Monkey Island probably the pinnacle of the golden age of point&click. It’s got a short, fun story around a murder framejob, great voice acting, a couple of action sequences, but most importantly… no $%&( inventory puzzles! Pretty dated, but still enjoyable for a couple of hours.
You may know that Full Throttle was designed by Tim Schafer, who later founded Double Fine, where he designed the humorous open-metal-world game Brütal Legend. I imagine that if anybody with a lower standing in the gaming industry had proposed a major release based on the music, imagery, and fandom of heavy metal, they would have been laughed out of the room, but Schafer got it done. The gameplay is a mix of hack&slash and RTT and is… fine, but what makes this a game to remember is the love for its music genre. The voice acting is top notch: Jack Black is great in the lead, and the cameos from people like Lemmy, Ozzy, and Rob Halford are pretty cool.
Next month I’ll try to tackle Metro Last Light and Blacksad, mixed with some Don’t Starve and Yakuza 0. Til then!
Beaten
-
Heaven's Vault
-
Rise of the Tomb Raider
-
GRID
23.9 hours playtime
no achievements
-
Brütal Legend
-
Full Throttle Remastered
5 hours playtime
no achievements
Chipping Away
Added to Backlog
Report #24: March 2022
With this post, I celebrate my two-year anniversary as a backlog assassin. Cake will be served on the patio.
The good news of the month: I finished two games. Cheers to me!
The bad news: I added four games (of which I finished one). Boo!
Amazing how I’ve put over twenty hours into Yakuza 0 and almost all of it is cutscene-watching.
Stay deadly, assassins!
Beaten
Chipping Away
Added to Backlog
Report #23: February 2022
February didn’t see all that much gaming from me. At the beginning of the month and somewhat last minute, I decided to finally go ahead and take a professional licensing exam that I had originally planned to take two years ago but that I postponed because of our dear friend Corona (there is international long-distance travel involved). Because of that, and once travel plans were made, I spent all of my free time studying. Before that, though, I played through walking sim The Painscreek Killings and was pleasantly surprised. You play as a journalist traveling to an abandoned village before it goes on the auction block, in an attempt to uncover the murder mystery that caused its demise. Gameplay is simple enough, you move around the village, trying to find either documents that expose the village’s secrets or keys that unlock hiding spots or new areas. The writing, however, is quite evocative, and I frequently found myself moving through the game’s deserted houses and streets with a chill running down my spine. Recommended if you don’t mind a slow burn.
Completed
Also Played
Added to Backlog
Report #22: January 2022
This month I managed to put away four titles - more than I had expected - although, to be fair, one I had already played halfway through and two were very short. I also reached a milestone of sorts - 150 Steam games beaten. (I did not bring cake. :sadcat:)
Metro 2033 had languished in my Steam library since 2012, when I bought the THQ Humble Bundle, and it is the first game from that bundle that I’ve actually played… Overall, it’s a pretty dated FPS, and the voice acting in the English-language version is hammy and exaggerated. While I find the Moscovian underground setting interesting in theory, I am not fond of dungeon-crawling in general. The few missions where you have to venture up above ground are a welcome relief both in setting and gameplay - the underground levels play mostly on rails (sometimes literally) whereas the outdoor, above-ground ones are much more open to exploration and challenge as to where one needs to go. One more note about this game: Where are the women? The game depicts an already bleak future filled with war, disease, and radiation; if there are also no women, I’d just as well give it to the mutants.
I suppose Amnesia: The Dark Descent qualifies as a classic by now, being one of the first titles that popularized survival horror gaming aspects and that aimed to put the player in a state of intensely experienced vulnerability. In some ways, the goth-like setting of Amnesia’s medieval castle felt like a continuation of Metro’s repurposed subway, but of course, we do not have the option of pumping the monsters full of lead. This game too is rather dated, and it never feels like you are inside an actual castle, as opposed to a video-game dungeon. Also, isn’t it time to retire the overused memory-loss trope, as well as the torn-pages-from-a-diary-spread-out-over-several-levels one (it may technically have a different name)? I am not a fan of horror in general, but I have to admit that Amnesia contained a few delightful “OH S##T!” moments of pure adrenaline. It’s also fairly short, so I don’t regret playing it.
The Room is a relaxing, short, and sweet puzzler. The objective is to explore a few pieces of elaborate machinery to uncover the secrets hidden inside. This game knows what it is and doesn’t try to be anything else.
My final assassination of the month was walking sim The Fidelio Incident. You take control over the protagonist after a small-plane crash on Iceland and are tasked with finding your missing partner. There is a whole backstory to discover (also by way of torn-pages-from-a-diary-spread-out-over-several-levels), but thankfully there is no amnesia to battle - the player gets to uncover truths that are already known to the playing character. Some puzzles, nothing hard. Its achievements are bugged and didn’t unlock for me.
I don’t expect much gaming in February because of work obligations, so it was nice to be able to put away a few titles in January.
Stay pretty until next time, assassins! (Only a month away, you can do it!)
Beaten or Completed
Also Played
Report #21: December + 2021 Afterword
Happy New Year, assassins,
I had moderately high hopes for my December backlog-clearing and holiday gaming, which ended up dashed, mostly because one chosen title took a lot longer to finish than I had anticipated. I started the month by 100%-ing RiME, which I had already played to the end back in 2019. As far as gameplay goes, it’s not a deep game, but it’s has a bittersweet story, and as the sucker I am I always let myself be moved by tales of children in distress.
Each year, I try to figure out a game or two to play during the Christmas-New Year period that go well with that particular season. My requirements are a bit hazy, but I’m generally looking for titles that are story rich and adventure-y, with a touch of escapism and emotional hook. To give a few examples, games that I have previously picked out for this occasion include Beyond Good and Evil, Tomb Raider (2013), and Ori and the Blind Forest. I had originally planned to play Baldur’s Gate, but when I won Planescape: Torment on Steamgifts, I figured it might be a good swap. I do try to play my wins in a somewhat timely fashion. Torment, like Baldur, is a D&D-based, stats-focused roleplaying game, but has quite a different setting. Instead of the conventional high fantasy world of Forgotten Realms, it mostly takes place in a grimy city that lies at the center of a multiverse and that sees the tensions from being surrounded by all these various planes of existence. At the beginning of the game the protagonist wakes up in a morgue, having failed to properly die, and starts investigating the reason for this predicament. Parts of the story are great, and there’s a fair amount of freedom to play the character, which is cool, but it does not seem to me that the choices matter very much in the end. Also, what’s up with introducing a character that completely shapes the ending five minutes before you get there? I’m happy that I played this game and appreciate the work that went into it, but for me it has too many storytelling flaws to reach the expectations I had on it. And honestly, it’s a bit on the long side…
Overall, 2021 was a disappointing year for quality gaming for me; nothing like the glories of 2020, when it seemed I played a masterpiece every other month! Going through my list of completed games (twenty, a pretty good number!), I only find four memorable ones, which is way too few considering the time I put in. The meager result makes me wonder if I should maybe reduce my gaming time even further, or possibly change my game-picking criteria. Also a bit discouraging: I added 32 new games to my Steam account during 2021. Oh well, no need to bother you with all this, fellow assassins. I wish you a magnificent 2022 with plenty of backlog-crushing successes and gaming derring-do!
Be well.
Beaten or Completed
Also Played
I Am Weak, I Need Help (New Addition)
Favorite Gaming Moments of 2021
Steam Library Snapshot
2021
2020
Report #20: November 2021
Season’s greetings, assassins,
This month I did something I rarely do - went back and 100%-ed a game I had previously retired. Now, Everything is not a game you beat - it’s debatable whether it is a game at all - but its Steam achievements are an encouragement to explore more than anything. I got to hear all the Alan Watts clips and reached my zen, only to figure out I now have to unlisten to them! Jiminy. I also finished the more conventional The Secret of Monkey Island, one of the better point-and-clicks from the genre’s heyday. Its story and gameplay are often silly, sometimes funny, and only occasionally annoying (Hello Stan, used-ship salesman), so it was a somewhat successful choice and a decent counterpoint to the weightier Planescape: Torment, which I hope to finish in December.
Stay warm, friends! (or cool, for you southern-hemisphere individuals)
Beaten or Completed
Also Playing
The Curse of Sisyphus
Report #19: October 2021
I keep making a push on my Steamgifts wins; not that I will finish them anytime soon, but I’d rather not have a bunch of untouched year-plus-old wins. Up this month was XCOM 2, which entered my library in June 2020. :cryingspacecat: Last year, I played XCOM and loved it, so I already knew there was a good chance I would enjoy the sequel - it turns out I was correct! As with one of my favorite games from last year - Ori and the Blind Forest - there’s not one particular thing XCOM 2 does amazingly well, but it’s more that it doesn’t have any real weaknesses and that it all comes together to form a brilliant playing experience. I would definitely consider playing the campaign again, or maybe more likely, buying War of the Chosen DLC and play that campaign. That’s pretty high praise in the backlog-challenged community, I think you agree.
Stay beautiful, assassins!
Yes, I Finished a Game
Already Got a Leg up on my November Pledge
Stupid Steamgifts
461 | games |
54% | never played |
5% | unfinished |
24% | beaten |
12% | completed |
5% | won't play |