Saturday Casual Gaming 320

In Which I Have Been Gaming!

So, this month, I've been gaming a lot! It's just... not free stuff :| Mostly.

Here's a list of games I've played this month and some notes on said games:

• Resident Evil 2 (N64)
• I am so glad I used Infinite Health and Infinite Ammo, because I couldn't figure out how to walk, much less run, away from the zimzams, resulting in my just... slowly circling as zombies chewed on me for about ten minutes
• Graphics? Not great, but holy crap I'm impressed at what they crammed onto an N64 cartridge, since... uh... it was not designed for a cartridge-based system but a cd-based one!!!
• Music: Gorgeous, eerie, some of my fav music.
• This was especially poignant due to Paul Haddad, voice of Leon S Kennedy, unfortunately passing away. Yes, he had cancer, but his surgery had to be postponed because of COVID, so we can thank the 21st century plague for us not having this absolute treasure of a man any longer :(
• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch)
• I love this game, even though it kicks my ass.
• Seriously, this game is kicking my ass.
• Maybe I overestimated my abilities with Master Mode?
• Yet! I totally killed three Hinox yesterday, a feat that was... much harder in the regular mode, especially with Black Hinox...
• I'm using way more two-handed weapons this go-round, but I haven't yet mastered the dodges.
• I... think I'm experiencing some pretty annoying Drift, because sometimes, my POV will just shoot straight down, so I'm in a top-down view, and sometimes I can't look up.
• I think I have more Star Fragments in this run than in my previous three regular modes combined...
• Watching so many speedruns has made me... not better at the game, but perhaps a little braver. But I still hate any of the falling hazard shrines (like the Synced Swing shrine - ugh)
• DOGS!
• My horses are murder machines in this runthrough - they won't stop running over all of the wildlife. On the plus side, I have so much food.
• I am hoarding arrows like a madbeast because I desire vast quantities of Ancient Arrows in the future...
• Coloring Pixels (Steam)
• What can I say? I like filling in boxes, and that's all this game is.
• Seriously, it's a paint-by-number.
• I like it. It's free.
• Escape Room Computer Office Escape (Kongregate)
• This game was fun!
• It was short, but only once I figured out the logic behind the puzzles. At first I was in chicken-with-no-head mode, running around and clicking everything. Thankfully, if you keep a level head, all of the puzzles give you their solutions... eventually.
• You should give it a go if you like escape room puzzles!

And that's my gaming updates for this week :)

Go Enjoy Something, guys!

FC

Saturday Casual Gaming 312: Chatting About Games

In Which I Discuss My Recent Gaming Habits

I talk a lot about games I'm trying out on here, but sometimes, I'm not venturing out in to the Great Kongregate/Steam Beyond. Sometimes, I'm just bumming around, playing games I've played a thousand times. That's what this week has been like.

I've been mostly sticking with a few oldies-but-goodies, and it feels pretty good to be so utterly familiar with a game that I don't have to worry about any surprises!

I've been fiddling around with PokefarmQ on a daily basis since May of 2018, and it's just as pleasant today as it was then - moreso, even, because now I can do a lot more on the site, since I've been progressing along :) I have a few shiny Pokemon, now, multiple Legendaries, Event Pokemon, and yes, I am loaded with Credits because of the Mass Click Weekends. If you're a fan of Pokemon and you just want to collect thousands of monsters, some of which are original to this site, like the adorable little Ghost-Dragon Gragon, then check it out for yourself (and hit me up - I'm called Tenleybean).

I also have been keeping up with my Pokemon Go addiction, and that's, of course, available for free on the app stores on most mobile phones now. If you're looking for a new Friend on there, hmu at 7089 7612 1171

Speaking of Mobile games, I'm still playing around with Merge Magic, which is still plenty of fun.

Back on PC, I've been playing some more of Coloring Pixels from ToastieLabs on Steam, so if you're looking for some mindless coloring fun, you can check that out!

I'm also playing some more Idle Pins on Kongregate, because it's still the Valentine's Event somehow and ding dong dangit I want to get 100% of powerups purchased before I soft reset lol.

Finally, in console gaming, I've been blundering around in Hero Mode on Breath of the Wild, because sometimes you just need to ride a horse around a barren landscape while pursued by octopus-urn robots intent on your epic destruction.

What are you guys up to with gaming? Any fun new games you're trying out?

Go Enjoy Something!
FC

Wednesdaymania 307: Keeping Up With Wrestling

What Do You Do When There's Too Much Wrestling?

I'm just one person. I have two eyes that are barely functioning, two sets of two limbs, one brain, one heart, same organs as almost anyone else. I have the same amount of hours in the day the rest of you have - 24. 8 of these hours are supposed to be spent sleeping, 3 are spent eating, and then there are various bathroom breaks. So let's say I've got about 10 hours total in which to do everything that needs doing - writing, working, etc. That's if I don't eat while doing other things (which I usually do).

So when you've got this many quality wrestling programs to keep track of, something's usually gonna give, and since I refuse to give up food, it's either gonna be sleep or wrestling.

Usually it's sleep, to be honest.

This week, wrestling kinda went to the wayside as I focused on writing, crochet, and other things that needed to be done (chores, for example). I don't have my usual company-by-company updating to give you, so instead, let me tell you what I have learned about wrestling, this week!

• The NWA: Powerrr episode this week was great, and I really enjoyed both it and last week's episode.
• I still haven't watched Cody Rhodes' back getting turned into hamburger, and I'm actually uncomfortable with the idea of watching it. I don't do well with real pain, guys. I just don't.
• Which is why I skipped the barbed wire match between Jimmy Havoc and Mance Warner on ep 94 of MLW Fusion. I have seen the next episode, but I haven't caught up to ep 96 yet!
• I'm still following Jyushin Thunder Liger on Twitter, and if you aren't yet, you really should, because his adorable posts about what he's eating, his love of carnivorous plants, and his extreme talent in sculpting are incredible and give me life.
• I haven't heard much about Ibushi's health, but apparently he was in some kind of kaiju movie? I only know about it because my Film and Editing Friendo heard about it and told me!
• I'm slowly warming up to the use of Pantera in the NWA: Powerrr opening, but I dig that they change themes after every PPV.
• It's really fun seeing Shawn Mooney again!
• Taz is a darn good commentator for AEW Dark
• Even the little guys are getting on tv now - I hear that one of the YouTube based wrestling channels will be on a small French network now? Cool!
• I just really like wrestling, guys, even if I don't always watch it

If you're falling behind on wrestling on YouTube and in the world, I strongly suggest subscribing to one of the many internet wrestling news services out there:

• Wrestling With Wregret
• Wrestlamia
• WhatCulture Wrestling
• Wrestle Talk
• Wrestling Observer/Figure 4

So it's a shorter blog than I'd intended, but it's almost time for my writing sprint (30 minutes where I just write without any tabs open or other distractions), so I've gotta go.

I love you all.

I love wrestling.

Go Enjoy Something!

FC

Wednesdaymania 303: The State of Wrestling in 2020

In Which I Blather About Wrestling

It's a new year, and wrestling is... very different than it was in January of 2019.

Let's go through, company by company, and see what's up on the Wrestling front as of 15 January, 2020!

WWE:

• RAW and Smackdown numbers are down pretty badly
• NXT has massively risen in popularity
• Local people are actually talking about wrestling now in my home town
• The Big Show is back in the ring
• R-Truth isn't a punchline, he's throwing the punchlines. And he's great.
• There is a lot more money being funneled to the talent.

ROH:

• The outlook is pretty grim, actually :(
• Due to talent being gobbled up by pretty much every other promotion, ROH is struggling to keep their roster up
• They managed to keep Marty Scurll by:
• paying him a ton of money
• making him booker
• telling him he only needed to wrestle a few times a year

NJPW:

• Despite losing a lot of talent (Kushida, the Bucks, Cody, Kenny, etc), NJPW has managed to really soup-up their roster with some amazing Young Lions (Karl Fredericks and Clark Connors) and really pushing their great talents (Naito, Ibushi, Shingo, Takahashi, etc)
• The LA Dojo and the US shows are fantastic
• Jushin Thunder Liger retired
• It's really fun, but there's a definite change in how matches flow. It's both more and less western, and the only way to explain that is to see it.

MLW:

• Holy mole, they lost a lot of talent when AEW formed
• Still, they have held onto some great guys and worked well with their roster to create interesting programming
• Also, they signed on with ICM Partners with an eye to better TV deals in the future, which could be huge.
• There's a lot of upward momentum, I think, despite the blows they took to their roster.

NWA:

• Oof, the Cornett stuff was bad, but they handled it fairly well, once people pointed out that there was flummery afoot.
• Dat roster, tho - it's both one of the best and worst rosters in wrestling, with some of the most charismatic and fantastic wrestlers... as well as some who I don't get why they're popular, but that's my own opinion, and you should really see the show for yourselves.
• Question Mark. That's all I'll say. Make your own judgments.
• I love, love, love the commercial segments, the cheesy set, the music... it's the real deal, and I love how corny it is. It's its own beast.
• Nick Aldis continues to be a National Treasure, and having Big Poppa Pump show up is amazing.
• Yes.

AEW:

• From their inception and debut, AEW has grown by leaps and bounds
• They have one of the most bizarre and interesting rosters of any show right now
• The seamless blending of internet content and television content, along with the way both storytelling mediums mix, is fantastic and definitely sets it apart as a new creature
• They just got renewed through 2023
• I really, really, really want to see more every time I watch
• I still don't really get the appeal of Britt Baker in the ring, but I like her as a person. Same with Brandi.
• I'm not 100% behind Riho as women's champion, because I feel like the storytelling is fairly lackluster with her.
• I'm 100000000% behind Kris Statlander, and I am beyond thrilled with the interactions between her and Orange Cassidy on BTE.
• Oh man, just... I love this company, and I hope they continue to grow and improve.

IMPACT:

• It's last here because I know next to nothing about it
• They employ some of my favorite workers, but I can't watch the show (legally), so I have no idea what's going on there.
• Hope everyone's getting paid!
• Hope everyone stays safe!
• Have fun, guys!

So those are my thoughts on wrestling as it stands today!

Any companies I should look into and cover more? Anything anyone would like to add? Let me know!

Go Enjoy Something!

FC

Saturday Casual Gaming 301: Gaming Goals 2020

In Which I Discuss Gaming

Yesterday, I mentioned 10 movies I'd like to see this year - some were old, some were new. Some were series!

I'd like to take a moment to discuss a few games I'd like to review this year on Saturday Casual Gaming.

Some will be newer, some will be older, and some will have even cost money, but I assure you: all will be fun!

• Final Fantasy Adventure (Switch)
• Peace Island (Steam)
• Secret of Mana (Switch)
• Merge Magic (Mobile)
• Trials of Mana (Switch)
• Idle Pins (Kongregate)
• At Least One Platformer
• At Least One Escape Room Game
• A Fighting Game
• At Least One Coloring Game

I know that not everyone is an Idle Game junkie like me, so I'm going to try and expand to more games this year. My biggest problems are that I:

a) suck at platformers

and

b) suck at fighting games

Maybe this will be the year I find some of these kinds of games that I don't suck at and can actually enjoy?

To be perfectly clear: I'm the problem with games I'm bad at. It's not the game design - other people have a wonderful time playing fighting games and platformers, after all! It's just my bad reflexes and poor eyesight working together with my limited attention span to baffle me and leave me with abysmal capabilities.

Also, a lot of these kinds of games require a fairly hefty monetary commitment, which I'm unprepared to make.

As for the Switch games I've listed...

Guess who had enough Amazon cards to buy The Collection of Mana when it came out?

This doofus. That's who.

So that's my gameplan (lol) for 2020! I plan to expand my gaming horizons, talk about some games that cost me money, and share my undying love for the Mana franchise. I also want to share some of my experiences with you, so I'll be trying to figure out this "streaming" thing all the kids are doing these days...

What are your guys' gaming goals for the new decade?

Go Enjoy Something!

FC

Filmic Friday 301: New Year, New Films

In Which I Talk About Movies I Haven't Seen Yet

Since 2020 is all about hindsight, I thought it might be fun for today to have a list of ten movies I haven't seen yet, but would like to this year! These are in no particular order, but I hope I can look back at today's post by the end of December and say "I saw those things!!!"

• Phantom of the Opera (1925)
• Tremors
• Friday the 13th
• CATS (2019)
• In The Bedroom
• Monkeyshines
• The Lighthouse
• Pulp Fiction
• Subspecies (all of them)
• Death on the Nile (2020)

Obviously, I'm going to see more than 10 movies this year, but these 10 are ones I'm really hoping to see. I mean, if I miss Monkeyshines because something cooler came up, I'm not going to be offended, that one is mostly inspired by Twitter.

Regardless, those are my movie goals this year!

Go Enjoy Something!

FC