PixlBit

Wed/Thurs is my weekend right now, so that's when I do most of my gaming. This is what I did this week. 

Android

Plugging away at three Microsoft casual games: Suduku, Mahjong and Wordament. In all three I am working on getting medals in the Daily Challenge mode. I only need up to Gold medals in Suduku, but I need a complete month for the other two to start. It might be possible in Mahjong, but I don't know about Wordament. I have yet to beat an expert difficulty challenge in that game.

PS4

Got another hour in on Tales of Zestiria. I put the battles on AI controlled for the most part until I get a handle on the strategy. I discovered I'm a human raised by ghosts or some such thing. I talked to all the ghosts in a town and got my next objective. I think I've got to come up with a system in order to get more time with this. Xbox eats up too much, and I want to get to my other systems. 

Switch

Played more of Advance Wars 1+2 Reboot Camp. The graphical reskin makes it really feel like a new game, but I think the maps are exactly the same as on GBA. It's been a while. I cleared the first five or so missions. I'm about to be introduced to air combat. I like beginning a mission, not with analysis, but with an attitude or storyline. It's like playing with toys as a kid. I love establishing a kind of captian character and seeing how his plan plays out. This does not always mean victory, I'm afraid. I'm a literary person, not a mathmatician. 

Xbox Series S

Diablo II Resurrected: I reached level 70 as a Necromancer. Hel mode is still very difficult. My barbarian friend and I got through Tristram and saving Dekard Kane, but the sudden deaths that happen all too often drove both of us to frustration. Especially my friend because he kept running out of money from the death penalty and fixing up his equipment. My costs are mostly cheap since I just manage my undead and shoot arrows. My equipment doesn't break down as fast. So we both took a break for a while. 

Railway Islands: I bought this on a sale. It's a casual puzzle game. You build a railway between two points and try and pick up all the required cargo along the way. I got through about level 30 before getting stumped. Switches are tricky when there are a lot of them and each do different things. Some switch after two passes, others three, still others don't switch after a number of passes. I stopped for now. Brain hurts. 

Valheim: Random choice from Game Pass. It's a open world, survival MMO. I ranged far through the forests wondering how exactly I was supposed to eat or make weapons. I think they wanted me to poke around in the menu system to figure it out, but I was not going to cooperate. Tell me, or else! I figured out how to kick, but a goblin like thing killed me and left a tombstone to mark the spot. Brookie lies here, it said. 

Pac-Man: Another random choice (I was on a "Surprise Me" run with my game collection). I cleared a screen and decided that was enough. I like to play moment to moment, but this is how you get ghosted. I have no interest in memorizing ghost patterns. 

Hoa: A Games with Gold freebie I tried. It's a 2D platform adventure game with a gorgeous art style. I got through a bunch of levels until one that is in black & white and mirrored. You have to coordinate with your mirror image. Then the screen's horizon line tilts making the physics all confusing. I couldn't get a grip on it. The physics seemed wrong to me, and I couldn't make a particular jump. I gave up trying. Lots more to play out there. 

Star Wars Episode I Racer: Another Games with Gold freebie. It's a decent racing game. I love the quick cinematics of new planets as you travel to new raceways during Tournament mode. I completed the amatuer championship and dabbled in the more professional ones. I upgraded my ship, Watto complaining through every transaction. I really hate opening and shutting doors on a racetrack. When would that ever happen? I don't like rocks in my way either. Just give me a winding track and let me work on turning, enough with the obsticles. I couldn't figure out the way to boost too. There isn't any controls map, so I just guessed as to the right button to press. I think it was RB, but I couldn't figure out the timing. It eventually wore me down thinking about it. Nice racer though. 

Mass Effect 2: I've played ME1, ME3 and ME Andromeda, but for some weird reason, I've never played what most people call the best of the series, ME2. Well, I had enough time to watch the opening cinematics, go on my first mission and get my new ship working for the Illusive Man this week. I thought the story was fantastic and the cinematics really well done. I'm on easy and I automated my leveling so I could move more quickly through the game. Even though this is fully a third person shooter, the mechanics for using powers and changing weapons still feels a bit like old KOTOR (same dev). Time stops while you select these things. I figured out the various hacking mini games as well and I customized my character to look like a space pirate. Enough with these corporate issue space suits! It's like formal wear for astronauts. I think I might continue this next week. 

Maintenance on memberships: I turned off auto renewal for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and turned on auto redeem Game Pass Ultimate on rewards. As long as I make the 10.5 K rewards points every month, I'll stay online. I like that. I just saved $15 a month.