Still Off Work Play Want Bin (PWBE 16 Sep 2024)

[Kendrick Kerwin Chua]

Oops, almost forgot to post because I've essentially had a ten day weekend.

Play:
--=--

Club Penguin: Elite Penguin Force (NDS) - How did this stupid online
chat room spawn so many console games? This is one of the DS carts in
the pile of 'Might be Broken, Might be Repairable' that I've meant to
get back to for a while and it turns out the secret was to remove the
plastic guide separators at the contacts. I needn't have bothered as
it's a terrible games, with no narrative value or notable gameplay. And
it got a sequel! At least I know how to fix this particular failure
state now, which thankfully does not require prying the cartridge open
and then *gluing it shut again* after I'm done.

Toukiden: Age of Demons (PSV) - Koei Tecmo's first attempt at a Monster
Hunter clone was surprisingly good and I can't quite remember why I
bounced off of it initially. I think it's because the way the game
introduces itself to you is with a hafta-lose boss battle that doesn't
actually matter, making it sort of weirdly Souls-like in how it present
you with the challenge. I haven't played very much, just far enough to
get a house and a housecarl. This is essentially 'What if Monster Hunter
but medieval Japan with oni instead of western Europe with dinosaurs'
and I'm pretty well for it.

Minecraft (XB1) - I bought a big lot of twenty-ish Xbox One discs for a
buck a piece, and of them only two work. Which means I now have a
plausible excuse to go and get that disc resurfacing machine I've always
wanted. Anyway, I've played through the Minecraft tutorial on a new
platform now but for like the fifth or sixth time, and I have to
honestly say I still don't get the appeal. I mean, I understand it
academically but I just don't feel like I'm having fun moving little
blocks around in this way. So it's a good thing I own three different
ports of Minecraft to validate this observation of mine every two years
or so.

All the Vectrex Games (VEC) - I've been sort of out of touch and didn't
realise that Mr. Sean Kelly has been iterating on the Vectrex multicart
for the last 20 years. In case you weren't aware, GCE (the IP and
copyright holder) allows all of the original Vectrex games to be
distributed for free, on the basis that they can't really sell new
hardware or old cartridges anymore but that they also retain copyright
and ownership otherwise. So it's totally legal to put those 30-ish games
on a cartridge and then add the 70 or so newish games that have been
written since the 1980s where the hobbyist devs have allowed it. So I
have a brand new multicart, and I also splurged on an embarrassing
number of the newly-manufactured acetate overlays to enjoy all these
stupid games in their original glory. Web Warp in particular is just
magnificent with all the colours and intended presentation.

Want:
--=--

A disc-resurfacing machine - Well that's self-explanatory. I've thusfar
survived on manual scratch removal using auto rubbing compound and my
own artistic skills, but age and infirmity are catching up with me. So
obviously the way to solve that problem is with additional machinery
that spins uncontrollably quickly and uses tons of electricity.

Bin:
-==-

Nothing game-related.

Expenditure:
-----=-----

Balance forward - $2,156

Vectrex Multi-Cart 3.0 (VEC) - $60
Death Mask (SAT) - $15
Pokemon Moon (3DS) - $23
Disney Universe (PS3) - $8
Power Factory Featuring C+C Music Factory (MCD) - $16
Toukiden: The Age of Demons (PSV) - $7
MLBPA Baseball (GG) - $5
Joe Montana Football (GG) - $5
Super Off Road (GG) - $5
Super Space Invaders (GG) - $5
Oh my gods are these both sports games too? (GG) - $5
Yes they are and I can't even be arsed to test them (GG) - $5
Cities Skylines (XB1) - $1
Minecraft (XB1) - $1
Like twenty other games that don't work, yet (XB1) - $20

Total to date - $2,337

-KKC, who will spend some hours cleaning cartridge slot connectors now.

[Russell Marks]

Minecraft (Linux) - did most of an End city. These look fairly nasty
on Java, with the baddies seeming significantly more aggressive. Then
I tried another trial chamber with less annoying enemies, and somehow
still managed to die a bunch of times, so that was nice.

I also made a path through the Nether back to my main base, which was
far easier than I could have hoped - the portal was really close to
the Nether fortress that I'd already connected up on the other side,
with my original portal. So I have a really handy shortcut now, with
the entertaining prospect of having to risk death every time it's
taken due to a hefty chunk being on a completely exposed section of
that fortress, which will happily spawn nasty things all around you.
The scary narrow staircase up the outside of a tower is a particular
highlight. No doubt I'll eventually be very boring and make it much
safer by enclosing the whole route, but where's the fun in that? :-)

Hitman: Blood Money (PC) - did an actual non-tutorial level on
controller. Not exactly well, but I managed to avoid getting any
notoriety at least.

Post by Kendrick Kerwin Chua
Minecraft (XB1) - I bought a big lot of twenty-ish Xbox One discs for a
buck a piece, and of them only two work. Which means I now have a
plausible excuse to go and get that disc resurfacing machine I've always
wanted. Anyway, I've played through the Minecraft tutorial on a new
platform now but for like the fifth or sixth time, and I have to
honestly say I still don't get the appeal. I mean, I understand it
academically but I just don't feel like I'm having fun moving little
blocks around in this way. So it's a good thing I own three different
ports of Minecraft to validate this observation of mine every two years
or so.

I think the way I would describe Minecraft is dangerous Lego. Not
something that appeals to everyone, I'm sure.
To tackle the End ship at that End city in Minecraft. Given how the
End dimension has been for me thus far in the Java edition, I suspect
this will involve much dying.
Nothing.

-Rus.