Pixelated Sausage - Attack the Backlog

This whole week has been a painful blur, starting with a scary injury I'm still recovering from--a scary injury that could have been much worse--and ending with this episode of Attack the Backlog about THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake. In some ways I feel lucky for picking this game before the injury happened because it was easy and short enough to still manage an episode in my compromised state, but, at the same time, that means I had to play THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD: Remake. You can probably already tell how I feel about the game, but if you really want to know, I guess you'll have to check out the show.

Well, I thought I had more time left than was actually the case. With only an hour and a half left to complete the story, I couldn't just stand and say that was enough for the final episode of this backlog attack. Being the considerate person I am, I went ahead and spent an additional hour and a half going after collectibles and completing every side race and side quest I found during my exploration. It was miserable. You're welcome.

Nothing like a random Seinfeld reference to start off a new Attack the Backlog series. As evident by the title, this new series is all about LEGO 2K Drive--aka LEGO Forza Horizon (even though there are LEGO expansions for Forza Horizon so it's kind of already been done, but also not, but also yes, and now I've gone cross-eyed, to make another random reference). I could keep fooling around, but I know you're all dying to find out what I think of LEGO 2K Drive, so without further ado...

I made a bit of a mistake committing to make this week's episode the last episode, "forcing" myself to play the game for almost 13 hours. This led to pushing through frustrating times when a break would have been welcome and a need of crunching when it came to recording, editing, and posting this here episode. Did this commitment completely ruin my experience? Not at all; however, I do think it soured it a bit more than it would have been normally. That said, in spite of some bloat, poor boss fights, a bad ending, and a few console-related issues, I still had a great time with System Shock; it just ended up as more of an 8 great than a 9 great.

You know that feeling when you push a button and accidentally kill millions of people on Earth, so you don't push the button until you know you won't accidentally kill millions of people on Earth and then you forget about the button you didn't push but can push now if only you remembered the button was there just waiting to be pushed? You know, a regular Saturday night... That's this week's episode in a nutshell. There's also a giant spider mech, super boots, and skulls in diving suit helmets, but who's counting, eh...

Unlike The Ascent, there were no 180s this week with System Shock; I'm still loving the game. Sure, it's not perfect--Cyberspace continues to frustrate and annoy, and combat in general hasn't changed all that much--but the story, world-building, and general sense of discovery and tension are all excellent, keeping me invested and engaged in this world I'm bummed to leave when I have to eat or sleep. You know it's a good sign when you want to keep playing when you call it a night.

It's been a long time coming, but I've finally started my adventure in the world of System Shock, a game I've been wanting to play ever since I played (and adored) BioShock--yes, I know System Shock 2 is the one most mention when talking about BioShock, but how could I play 2 before 1? As the title gives away, I'm currently loving my time with System Shock and can't wait to play more; and if you want to play along, this episode covers only the Medical Bay--which likely won't take you anywhere near as long as me to get through--so if that sounds like fun, feel free to pile up in the backseat for the ride.

Our journey with the The Ascent continues (and ends) this week with disappointment. The issues that showed their face at the end of last week were all over the place this week, with difficulty spikes galore and a story that continued to bore. What used to be mostly fun was frustrating and irritating to the bum. Butt it's okay because it's all over now; though, I can't help but feel a little sad--can't you tell from my frown? Weird rhyming aside, if you want to know my exact thoughts and specifics (and why I'd no longer recommend checking out The Ascent), give the episode a watch or listen.

We are back with a new game and a new episode of Attack the Backlog. Continuing with the new format, the game this week is The Ascent, an action-RPG twin-stick shooter set in a cyberpunk world full of characters named Poone and plenty of enemies to shoot. While you can play the game with a buddy, I've been playing the game solo and am currently in a bit of a love/hate relationship with it. "Why?" you ask. Well, I could tell you, but where would the fun be in that; I guess you'll just have to watch or listen to find out...

My time with Ghost Recon Wildlands has finally come to an end. While I originally wasn't sure if I was even going to keep playing the game after week one, I ended up completing the game 100%--not including the DLC--and I must say...it didn't really get any better; I just got more and more used to its repetitions and said repetitions ended up being quite therapeutic during a time when such an experience was exactly what I needed, so thank you Wildlands. Thank you for being the boring, repetitive, whatever game you are.