Didn’t think I played that, until I Googled some screenshots and it flooded me with unblocked* memories!
That was from a time when my parents would let me rent a new game from Blockbuster or a Video Ezy once a month or so, to supplement the 1-2 new games I would otherwise get per year.
I ended up playing a lot more than just the handful I remember owning - Bonanza Bros. being the most notable.
World Grand Prix for the Sega Master System 2.
Technically the second ever game I owned, as the system came bundled with Alex the Kidd in Miracle World.
Was maybe 6? at the time.
At least it would stop GamersTM from complaining about how “ugly” that character is?
AiSS: Arbitrarily Interfering Super Slop
I think that movement in general has similar vibes to:
I mean, Sony & Microsoft consoles are basically PCs with a custom OS now already (PS4 onwards, and Xbox One both used x86-64 CPUs).
There are fewer and fewer reasons to buy a specific (and expensive) piece of hardware that is less flexible in terms of functionality than the alternatives, so this is Sony trying to protect their own fiefdom.
Fuck ‘em.
GTA6 is likely going to be the only reason I’d get one, because the rest of the exclusives have been pretty lacklustre.
The fact this plays so well (interface wise) on a smartphone is ridiculous…
…massive nostalgia vibes, and I don’t even have to juggle 6 floppy disks to boot!
This is a slight historical re-write.
Blizzard’s parent company since ‘98 (Vivendi) was the larger of two companies at the time of the merger in ‘08, and put forward $2b towards the merger vs. Activision’s $1b.
Vivendi remained the majority shareholder of the new entity, and chose to appoint Bobby Kotick as the CEO.
Activision-Blizzard didn’t buy-out majority control until ‘13 - well after the enshittification began.
…and more importantly, what about NFTs?!
I want AI in games; Actual Innovation!
I’m in a similar situation with my wife not being particularly interested in games - I’ve had some success in playing LA Noire with her guiding the investigations and interrogations. The jazz soundtrack in particular helped convince her, funnily enough!
Not quite perhaps what you’re looking for, but may work for others with hesitant non-gamer partners.
I thought they were Canadian, though? Weird…
I think it mostly just didn’t feel like a Max Payne game because of the setting. Not New York? Not Max Payne.
Gameplay wise, it was definitely on the right track; and in a way - I remember it fondly as was the last time Rockstar seemingly experimented with game mechanics ahead of incorporating them into the next GTA game.
Started with the first GTA on the PlayStation; I used to rank Vice City as my absolute favourite entry in the series - but as I’ve matured over time, I’ve come to find GTA IV (or more specifically, The Ballad of Gay Tony expansion) has taken over the top spot - though VC is still a close second.
If you haven’t played TBOGT in a while, I highly recommend revisiting it - there are a lot of parallels to VC in terms of overall feel and the general “fun” tone.
This is an interesting development, for sure - and not one we will be able to accurately gauge the net impact of for a while.
It does feel like CD Project want to move it off their financial documents (P&L, cashflow, balance sheets etc.), while Michael wants to double-down and focus on building out the historical catalog.
Success will really depend on if GOG can remain profitable through lean years without having to ultimately rely on compromising their morals; and whether they will continue to receive support from modern publishers to help fund the more niche projects.
The only franchises I will pre-order are:
World of Warcraft Collector’s Editions : even though I stopped playing a few years ago now, I still buy the physical copy collector’s editions to add to my collection - I have every one going all the way back to vanilla.
Grand Theft Auto 6 : I have both the PS3 Collector’s Editions for IV and V, feels like getting the same for 6 to finish off that ‘trilogy’ would be apropos.
This is a cursed list, but at least 2/3rds eventually lived up to their initial promise!
Data centres aren’t run by hardware manufacturers. When Nvidia/Micron/Samsung run out of enterprise corporations to bilge funds out of, they will return back to selling to consumers.
Does this mean that things will 100% return to how they were in the ‘Before Times’? No, let’s be real - the surplus of under-used data centres will definitely result in a push towards cloud gaming, online experiences and the like - but in an ideal scenario we would end up with more choice and not less.
But again, this all hinges on the current AI bubble bursting in the near future - followed by a pretty bad recession/depression.
Can they just fucking not?
We have to persevere with US corporations remaining completely and totally unregulated for the next 2.5 years at least - but we should resist any more enshittification for as long as possible - until someone _competent _ like Lina Khan can resume control of the FTC.