Thrik

Spotify has once again pleased me with its recommendation engine. Apparently it's because I like AlunaGeorge and Janelle Monae.

My expectation that this will be some handheld device — eliminating the issue of no TVs while not succumbing to the world of mobile phones — that allows people to play the games that may or may not be available on other Nintendo platforms. For example, the Wii U would be a great candidate for such a market if it were much cheaper because it'd allow both those with and without a TV to enjoy it just the same. What I can't see happening is Nintendo not continuing to develop home consoles for developed markets along with its traditional first-party games, so I see no reason to say that Nintendo is dead or even different (from our perspective). They easily have the capacity to handle both markets if they really want to, and it could pay off for them big time. Plus, just because this machine is designed for emerging markets doesn't mean it has to be exclusive to them. Conceivably, Nintendo could work towards having two lines of consoles: one that's cheaper and more casual, and one that's 'serious' and can compete on specs alone (unlike the Wii and Wii U). Perhaps trying to appeal to all markets with one device is part of Nintendo's current predicament. Of course, I'm not sure what would distinguish this machine from an old DS or Wii, which should already be pretty cheap there. Maybe a big part of it is games, as presumably taste is different in India or North Korea.

Mojo's comparison of the two (which incidentally Udvarnoky wrote) covers the differences pretty well. It does seem to me that the PC version is the way to go: no iMuse is a glaring omission for a genre where music plays such a prominent role, and the loading times and lower frame rate would soon grow old. The PS2 does have advantages though, so I don't think that either can be described as better in every way — you just have to decide what matters most. Where things become less clear is when emulation is a factor. If a PS2 emulator now exists that can improve the frame rate, loading times, and maybe even the resolution that would be a very interesting thing to consider.

I have the same thought about showers.

It's very disappointing to see how things have gone with Godus. Progress really does seem to have been incredibly slow, and it's hard to see things about the gameplay that are legitimately fresh and original. In many ways, it just looks like a really poor version of Molyneux's own god games of the past. While I appreciate that it's a relatively low-budget affair, it seems so far detached from the soaring ambition of Black & White that I just can't see why I'd bother playing it. It also seems like something that's unlikely to hit the mainstream at this point, because the hype has all passed. I feel kind of bad for the guy whose ultimate reward was being a god of gods in Godus, because that's seeming like a pretty crappy reward right now.

At the moment my back has borderline 'crippled' status, following moving lots of heavy stuff around and also sleeping on it badly. This kind of turned into me having a very lazy few days and now I've discovered the point at which facial hair starts really getting on my nerves. Every time I have a drink I have it dripping off my hairs, and this isn't even very long. How the shit do people with actual beards cope? It's impossible to keep dry!

You damn nutters. When I'm about to walk out into the UK's invariably cold/wet weather, the last thing I'm doing is having anything but a lovely, warm shower.

Kratos. Seriously, sometimes it's just so unnecessary.

Bingo.

It's a bit like allowing a shitty sequel to ruin your enjoyment of a superb predecessor. In the name of not getting stressed out by really unimportant stuff, it's good to learn how to not be bothered by these things and just enjoy works as they are.

About ready to finally blow my wad on a Wii U with Mario Bros U, 3D World, and DKC — which will cost me less than just a PS4 by itself (another strong contender for my wallet). Think I'll be doing the deed tomorrow. By the time I get through those and the various PS3 games on my agenda, I'll be about ready for a bit of Mario Kart. Plus there's Wind Wanker to keep me going, although an actual new Zelda would truly sweeten things.

I dunno, I do see it a lot like comic books in that there are numerous different continuities and each has its own canon, including the movies. It should be pretty easy for most people to separate the two I imagine, just like how nobody really expects the Marvel movies to incorporate the comic canon (including comics that were partially based on the Marvel movies).

Heh, it's so weird how these changes are made over so many years. I just can't imagine that happening with many other big film series.

So... who DID shoot first?

Yeah, the lack of ownership wasn't lost on me but considering how completely cheap it is in general there's just no real downside. Even if you don't play the free games, the service is worth it to me for the overnight updating of the OS and games (useful when your connection isn't that fast), plus backing up of saved games. I'm glad I have a Super Slim PS3 now though, because I'd imagine that it uses infinitely less power when doing the overnight stuff compared to my original PS3.

Just bought three months of PlayStation Plus purely for backing up my saves following my recent PS3 death, and feel like I've been smacked in the face with value already after finding Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons and BioShock Infinite sat there waiting for me to download for free — two games I was planning to buy very soon. Now I see why everyone gushes about this offering.

Man, that is bad. Having just had my PS3 drop dead with me near the end of GTA5 following dozens of hours of play, I'd be near throwing myself out a window if I were unable to restore my saved game backups. As it is, one quick purchase and restore later, and I'm back in business.

Haha, oh man. Whether it's hipster-related or not, the tryhard beard shit that's been going around during the past few years is pretty tiresome. There is such a sickeningly shallow element to a lot of it.

I am now aware of these creatures and thoroughly horrified, thank you.

I have seen too much goatse over the years sadly, that is so goatse.

Splendid shelf, couldn't have done better myself — although that's one seriously tight bathroom. Not sure I'd have gone with the goatse wallpaper.

Well, after just moving and having basically nothing else to entertain myself with at home due to no internet access yet and my utter reliance on it for TV, films, and music, my PS3 just died — with me about 90% (70+ hours) through GTA5. Fucking Christ. Managed to get a quick backup of my saved games for GTA5 as the PS3 can survive like 30 seconds before giving up, although I suspect it won't boot at all soon. It also turns out you can't just plug the hard drive into another PS3 because it's all encrypted. I'm subscribing to PS+ the moment I get internet access. It was only £204 for a 500Gb model with Beyond: Two Face, which was a pleasant surprise because normally it's bad value to physically buy consoles in town. It's six years old now, so I guess it was about due to go kaput. As I still have numerous games I want to play on it plus a collection of stuff I'll want to replay for years to come, I figured I might as well just get a PS3 Super Slim. I use it so much for everything from music to Netflix that it just seems right to give Sony a little more money for something that's given me so many hours of joy. I still have no internet though, so I'm about to find out how ropey a state developers release their games in nowadays due to the assumption that everyone will just download a day-one patch.

I had very similar feelings about my home town. Moving to a city — even if it's relatively small and only half an hour away by train — was one of the best decisions I ever made and my overall happiness is infinitely higher. It's also setting me up nicely for giving me the confidence to go to a much bigger city at some point during the next few years; in some ways it's like 'moving to the city' on training wheels because I still have everyone close by, but there's enough distance that I'm obligated to make an effort to meet new people and get involved with local shit. Incidentally, local shit is something that basically didn't exist in my home town — if you didn't like sitting in a pub with the lads, you were in trouble. I personally think that nothing in life is more important than living somewhere that makes you happy; it's like finding the right partner, except even more important. There is absolutely nothing that should come between that, and — as harsh as it sounds — that includes friends and family. If you feel like another part of the country or world will be a better fit for you, find a way to get there. You can always return or go elsewhere if it doesn't work out.

The water draining puzzle is another one that I like because it's SO obvious in hindsight. The red herring vent on the ceiling that the game goes to great lengths to point out serves its purpose wonderfully. Maybe I'm just a fan of these asshole puzzles because it's been so many years since I myself faced being utterly stuck on them for hours. The gears one is shit though, probably the worst puzzle in the game simply because it's a total pain in the ass for me to get the movements right no matter how many times I've completed the game (about six). I used a PS3 pad last time I played — which incidentally really does feel like the way this game was meant to be played — and it doesn't even moderate the movements depending on the angle of the analogue stick, making it even harder.

Haha. I found that one a bit easy actually, the snake one is much closer to the addictive infuriation of Flappy Prime.