Just Playing

 One game I know for sure  has no themes of death, depression or  mental illness: Untitled Goose Game !! Oh, man. The way that I immediately needed to play this game.  I believe I had discovered this one by scrolling through the online shop. It was on sale, but it was still early days and I had just bought my first couple of games, so I didn't want to go too crazy all at once. But then... I couldn't stop thinking about it! I watched the trailer for it: some strategy; mostly silly (goose) gameplay.  So you're a goose. You are provided a to-do list each level. This list will have tasks such as "get farmer wet" and "steal little boy's glasses". And you're not done with the level until all tasks are ticked. So silly, so mischievous, so perfect  after my sustained practice in death and despair with the prior games. By the time I bought this game, I was all too ready for it. Stayed up a bit too late on that first run. In fact, had it not been for the e...

The cartoon font drew me in - looked quirky. Like the cover of a book with a good sense of humor. Scratchy animation, dark score. From an unfamiliar author you would never read again.  Something about returning to a small town in her twenties. Stagnancy of middle & lower classes. Oh, I guess I wrote this... With the storyline being relatable in a way that I did not share with many, my interest was piqued. And with a dark but quirky undertone? I felt like I had hit the jackpot.  Very unusual, this game. Unique. Original . And for once: Not about death! I mean, there's death bits in it , but honestly it's more about growing up, small town living and mental health.  You're Mae, a cat (naturally). You've just dropped out of college, returning home, you're stuck walking home from the bus station because your parents have totally forgotten about you/the fact that they were supposed to pick you up today. (Finally: realistic parents in media!) Between the mystery of why...

 I had never played Animal Crossing, never played Stardew Valley... I wasn't entirely sure I'd played any  "cozy games" before. I wasn't even sure how far the genre went back... had it even been available while I was still neck-deep in the gaming universe?? I have since educated myself.  Turns out there are plenty of cozy games on the Switch (there might be multiples already posted here!). After watching countless youtube " best cozy games on the Switch"  videos, what was the title mentioned most? Cozy Grove .  I don't tend to like games that are vomit-inducing saccharin, so the art style made me a bit wary. Seemed like the kind of game everyone my age would go ga-ga over in high school while I was left to play Ehrgeiz by myself (no easy task, as this is a fighting game). I don't always want to escape into a fantastic  world where animals talk to me. Where I look suspiciously like a child, regardless of my age. Where everything  has cutesy under...

I can explain. You know what? No. It's not my fault that every single indie Switch game has overlying themes of death and loss. I didn't ask for it!  It also isn't my fault that these sad mfers (production teams) really know how to treat a lady (gamer).  The most beautiful landscapes. Elegant, layered story lines. Scores that will transport you to other dimensions. Especially the makers of Gris .  This game caught my eye pretty early on when perusing the sales section. The art was unforgivingly beautiful. (Is this English? Perhaps not. And yet you cannot help but agree, yes?) The style felt like it was straight out of an adult animated film. Not that kind! Far from it. More like the artfully animated grand tales from the eighties with just-too-adult  themes. (Couldn't rent those  for the sleep over.) There was something nostalgic about it, like I'd been "always wanting" to play this game, but never had the means to. Too young, too poor, too busy, but now w...

* author's note: to get full effect on this entry, play game soundtrack on youtube in background* Have we collected that I'm cheap, yet? I will absolutely pay money for the Zeldas and other legends of the game world. But I will also absolutely spend days researching a game / reading non-spoiling (and spoiling) reviews (depending) / look up how long game play typically is / do mental math to weigh whether or not the ROI can be justified.  (Especially now: gone are the days of the 6-month epics, for the most part.) So you can imagine my excitement when I came upon the Last Campfire  at a whopping 1.99. After finding that average gameplay was around 5-7 hours and realizing how terribly sad it was that I even bothered to look it up I mean damn, man it was two bucks girl just live a little why don't you *gasps for air*... I pulled the trigger.  This story is about death, again. I can explain. It looked so interesting, so original and it promised decent puzzles. I had  to...

So there I was: Cozied up in our living room. Wrapped up like a little vegan burrito. Vacation.  Outside: snowing. quiet. dead. Inside: toasty. exciting. alive.  My brand new game console before me. 48 hours of whatever-the-fuck-I-want left before my return to adulthood.  The one game I have been craving ( Don't Starve  / see previous entry) safely cradled in the heart of my Switch. But... what else was there? What were games even like now? Hopefully they weren't just a bunch of first-person shooters... anything but those... The (aggressively) white screen of Nintendo Shop scrolled over my glasses. I was overwhelmed. I didn't know where to start. I figured: 1.    if I get something cheap and don't like it... it's only a few bucks wasted. no big deal. 2.    if I don't like the thing I get, I've still got Don't Starve  to flee back to.  In scanning the "Clearance" section, I discovered: a FREE demo! Free? That's the cheapest you can get wi...

Truly the reason for the season, this game.  I am fairly certain that Don't Starve  is the reason my lovely boyfriend bought me the console in the first place. I would wax poetic, recalling late nights that bloomed into crusty, dehydrated mornings. The I'll bet winter's almost over" nights, the "I should find a replacement tentacle spike" nights, the "just one more mushroom run!" nights. And as much as I love playing this game and clacking on about it, I feel it is my responsibility to not recommend it to anyone becauuuussee... This might just be the most addictive game I've ever played.  And honestly either it's the most addictive and temper-inducing or you really couldn't be asked. There are plenty of people who would find this game sinfully boring. "You're telling me you pick a guy, get plopped into a randomized setting and just try not to die? ...yeah, I gotta go..." Those people would be right in their thinking. I get ...

 This may be a placeholder entry  And this may never get properly edited.  Not sure which.  But suffice it to say:     I'm playing video games again. If it were a song:      God Help Us All (Good Riddance to Productivity) *Special thanks to Boyfriend for gifting me a console last Christmas. This is all your fault. -Management **This blog will contain spoilers ***I literally don't pay attention to story lines when I play games, depending on what mood I'm in when I start / what buttons I accidentally hit, so this will absolutely not be a complete guide to any of these games, just how I got on with them / what vibe they give / if they were worth the time spent.