You're back at it with Tales of Arise? Fun! I'm playing the remaster of Graces F right now, it really puts into perspective the improvements that have been made on Arise (that was my first Tales of game).

It's fun to read your updates on the the gacha games. I wish I would've stuck with them longer. A while back I retried Star Rail based on your advice but it was too long ago. I hardly remembered anything and it didn't feel right to start from where I was... Hopefully another gacha will speak to me one day. Persona X is not it, because I also didn't finish 5 (yet).

I'm really impressed with everyone's list! Most of you must've really been keeping track. I haven't, so my list will be a bit empty but I still like the idea of looking back in this way.

I will keep it to consoles I owned, and the last game I remember finishing on them no emulationed games (which will be a sad list), but I currently have some older consoles at my disposal so I might check out some games I never got the opportunity to play like Shadow Hearts.

Gameboy: I don't remember
SNES: I don't remember
Nintendo 3DS: Ocarina of Time 3D - Jan 13, 2022
Nintendo Switch: Great Ace Attorney: Adventures - May 30th, 2025

Sega Mega Drive: I don't think I finished a game on this console

Playstation: I don't remember
Playstation 2: I don't remember
Playstation 3: I don't think I finished a game on this console
Playstation 4: NieR Replicant - May 15, 2022
Playstation 5: Sea of Stars DLC Throes of Watchmaker - May 23rd, 2025

Xbox X: Mass Effect 3 - Apr 24, 2025

PC: Duck Detective: Ghost of Glamping - Jun 4th, 2025

Hi Domido!

So the battle system has two phases kind of. You can do action to try to stun the enemy to get an advantage then initiate combat. Or even outright defeat the monster, but that's only practical when they're wimpier. If you take too much damage during the action portion the enemies will get the advantage instead. Then turn-based as before is pretty familiar, but now you can move a character freely which is really nice. Move to the position you actually want AND do whatever action you're gonna take. You still have your attack, arts, crafts and items as usual. There are also S-boosts for various buffs that use up charges. No more Brave Orders from CS III and IV. S-crafts also need those S-boost charges, but that change doesn't feel like it's made much difference at the end of the day.

They changed the orbment system quite a bit and I'm still not sure how I feel about it. But yeah combat took a little getting used to because of the changes, but the core of it is still what we've known the whole series.

I'm enjoying the game overall and it reminds me of Crossbell in some ways! I'm really liking Van as the protagonist. And it's nice to finally see Calvard. We're in the finale now though who knows how long that'll be.

I'm savouring cold steel III but I'm really excited to start diving into the calvard arc. Patience... They're been spoiling us with so many game releases in one year! I'm excited about Trails FC too. So much good stuff!

I really enjoyed the Sea of Stars DLC too. I'm really curious what the studio will come up with /reimagine next, I hope that in the end everything will satisfyingly link together.

I liked that this dlc was 1. free and 2. offers new gameplay mechanics and a whole new environment. I've heard that there are a lot of FFVI throwbacks too which must've been exciting for you! (I haven't played it yet 🙈). Hopefully we don't have to wait all to long until they announce their new project!

Siver seems to be really good about tagging any spoilers. I'm curious about the series specifically because of her blog posts. I wouldn't worry about reading her thoughts on the games if spoilers are your main concern.

Yeah I've been enjoying Siver's posts about Trails for years. Happy to hear that she's inspiring you to play the series too! They're definitely worth it!

I know the posts are not spoiler-heavy but I'm now in that sensitive time where I'm too many games behind and even a character name or location would tell me more than I might want to know 😊

I don't dare to read any of your posts about daybreak because I'm worried to run into spoilers,but I'm still curious: how is it? How does it compare to the other games in the series? It's active battle system as well right? How is that? I'm curious how the Sky remake will play because I guess it'll be similar.

I'm currently on Cold Steel III, I'm progressing through the series slowly but steadily and loving it.

Ah, Jing Yuan, right? Unfortunately he's really only good for endgame content with his recent supports, especially Sunday, whose banner is now over. I'm personally very happy I can finally play with him, since he's still one of my favorite characters, however... the powercreep in HSR is really bad, tbh. As an example, Imbibitor Lunae, I don't know if you still remember that one, is so bad now in comparison to newer characters. I haven't used him in ages, either and he used to be my 'main' dmg dealer. I also still want to build a team around Blade, but it needs so much investing and then is only so-so that it's a bit annoying, tbh.
But I also believe that endgame modes shouldn't be such a big deal and the story can be enjoyed even without meta teams! And I have to say, aside from the 5 minutes of dailies and half an hour a week for weeklies and sorting through relics... I've mostly been doing events and the main story only and HSR is still my favorite game as far as the main story is concerned and it's not bad to jump back into! It's also the least time consuming of the games I'm playing.

I just saw a trailer or short overview video of 3.0 and it looks so good! 👀

I think I'll actually jump back into it. Let's see how much I have waiting for me since I ended it after 1.3. I think there is quite a lot of main game to get through!

Wait until you reach the end-game of Zelda Echoes of Wisdom, you'll have a full list to go through 😊 I used the sort option more often than the full scroll in order to pick my echoes more efficiently.

I see you've completed Trails into Reverie! That's exciting! I'm edging closer to that game little by little. I've just wrapped up Cold Steel II and I don't think the break between II and III will be very long for me, although other fun RPGs are calling my name now too! Decisions decisions! Are you diving straight into Daybreak after this?

I've not touched Star Rail since its release, I'm slightly intrigued to pick it up again especially when you mention characters that are part of your current party that I actually have. At the same time it feels really daunting to get back into it after such a long break. Who knows what kind of urges 2025 will bring though :-)

It's been 5.5 months since my last blog post. It seems I have a really hard time to consistently (ha, understatement of 2024?) update this blog, but right before the end of the year I'd like to get at least one more blog post out before my round up.

Let’s look at some stats of the past 5.5 months:

Games I completed (19):
• Senua's Saga (⭐⭐⭐)
• The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel(⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Cat Quest III co-op (⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Syberia: The World Before (⭐⭐💫)
• Dredge: The Iron Rig DLC (⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Duck Detective: The Secret Salami(⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Balatro (⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Turnip Boy Robs a Bank (⭐⭐💫)
• The Casting of Frank Stone co-op (⭐⭐⭐)
• Minami Lane (⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Black Myth: Wukong(⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Silent Hill 2 (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Ghost of Tsushima (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Alan Wake II: The Lake House DLC(⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Ghost of Tsushima - Iki Island DLC (⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Final Fantasy X (⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Octopath Traveler (⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom (⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Escape Simulator: Mayan DLC co-op (⭐⭐⭐⭐)

Games I retired (0):
None

Games I paused (0):
None

Games I’m Playing: 7

The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II on PC
I've calculated that I spend approximately 3 months without having a Trails game ongoing. This time around the time was much shorter. I loved Trails of Cold Steel I, and the ending left... a lot of things unresolved that I can't wait to find out how they will be resolved.

I've been slowly plugging away at the second instalment. I'm nearing the end of act 2. That's the point where you have to complete the three remaining shrines for Zemurian Ore (I have two left) and kill the five cryptids that spawned (I have three left).

I like how innocent my previous write up feels now. I had no clue what would happen with my boy Crow. I still don't, but the moment I was fighting C in a cave, I felt my heart sink because I realized it was Crow I was fighting. That's probably one of my favourite moments in this game series. The whole story is really well done, but like I said Cold Steel I didn't give me any satisfaction so I had to continue on.

Cold Steel II so far is a bit tedious to be honest. It's a lot of going around and collecting first your party members, and then after an awesome sequence in Pantagruel, all other Thors students. There are moments where the game shines, like when Celdic is burnt and you find out the market manager/mayor has passed away, and the moments when you fight Vulcan and Scarlet.

Overall the one thing I'm wondering about (and it's probably not hard to guess), is what will happen with (and there will be Trails in the Sky spoilers here, so don't read if you haven't played those) Crow. He's looking forward to being beaten by our crew, which hints at the fact that he might join as at some point. I would love that, but I also find it hard to believe. He's such a tragic character who unfortunately reminds me a lot of Loewe. Things didn't end well for him and I seriously hope that Crow won't have the same fate. Hopefully, Nihon Falcom won't do me dirty like that. I've been staying away from all box art or mentions about the future games, because I don't want to find out through other means. I do think that things will be resolved by the end of Cold Steel II, which is why I'm trying to make my way to the ending as soon as possible.

What I think will happen in Cold Steel III is that the Erebonia crew finds out that it's truly not a political conflict at all and all the crews from Crosbell and Liberl will start uniting to fight this bigger baddie. Whatever happens, this series is honestly a gift that keeps on giving!


Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred DLC on PC
In the months since I played the base game of Diablo IV I did a lot of research about how these type of games are meant to be played since I'm completely new to the genre. In the base game I had a necromancer level 49. Little did I know that the actual levelling up actually starts at level 60. That's where the paragon levels start accumulating. I also selected my skills myself, big mistake. I went back to the base game for a bit to get all remaining Lilith statues and to get my renown to at least level 4 so that that would benefit future characters, but I did this with a guide and my necromancer was more powerful than ever before. I easily made it to Expert difficulty level.

That having been said, I started a new character for the DLC. She's a Rake Jaguar Spiritborn, and I'm having a lot of fun so far. I'm slowly progressing the DLC story. I've only just made it to the new area Nahantu. In the meantime I'm clearing dungeons for my build and doing the Realmwalkers events when they pop up for delicious XP boost Opals. It's a lot of fun so far.


Case of the Golden Idol on mobile
I'm not loving this game. Luckily it was free on Netflix. I've uninstalled things like Facebook and Instagram from my phone so Golden Idol is what I go to now when I have a spare moment and a bored brain.


Vampire Survivors on PC
This is another one of those "my-brain-is-bored-let's entertain-it-for-a-bit" games I have going on. I'm really enjoying it though. I'm only playing the base game for now, I'm trying to 100% that one before I make my way through the different DLCs. I have cleared around 4 stages, but I've not made it past the 30 minute mark yet. Death keeps getting me.


Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney
My ongoing visual novel/chill game is the first installment in the Apollo Justice trilogy. It took me a while to get back into it, because all the games are so similar so I felt burnt out on the concept quite quickly. I've made it to the last case of the game though, and I'm finally enthralled again. The character design is so fun, as always, and the mechanics in this particular game are more varied than in the original. Trucy as side character is... not growing on me though. Her little magic animations and cheek are not doing it for me. The automatic saving is. I really appreciate that I don't have to save all the time in order not to game over.

I’ve been on a bit of a blog posting break again. I have, however, been very much into the games I’ve been playing and I’ve started a new Trails game which is something I generally enjoy writing about on the forum because this community actually got me hooked on those games.

Games I completed the last 2.5 months (15):
* Cat Quest II Co-op ⭐⭐⭐ 💫
* Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising ⭐⭐⭐ 💫
* Aurora Hills: Chapter 1 ⭐⭐⭐ 💫
* Spirit Hunter: Death Mark ⭐⭐ 💫
* Bokura Co-op ⭐⭐⭐ 💫
* We Were Here Too Co-op ⭐⭐
* Resident Evil 4: Separate Ways DLC ⭐⭐⭐⭐
* Super Mario RPG ⭐⭐⭐ 💫
* Alan Wake II: Night Springs DLC ⭐⭐⭐⭐
* Escape Simulator: Magic DLC Co-op ⭐⭐⭐ 💫
* Escape Simulator: PowerWash DLC Co-op ⭐⭐⭐
* Escape Simulator: Among Us DLC Co-op ⭐⭐⭐ 💫
* Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree DLC ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 💫
* Escape Simulator: Portal Escape Chamber DLC Co-op ⭐⭐⭐ 💫
* Final Fantasy VII Rebirth ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

As you can probably tell, my highlights were Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. These games captured my attention like no other. I liked the combat in FF a lot, and I adore the world the creators have crafted based on the original game. I hope they’ll release a DLC with my favourite character Vincent and that they start working on the third part of the instalment as soon as possible.

Games I retired (0):

Games I paused (2):
• Sun Haven: Co-op 65h 58m. There are too many bugs at the moment, especially in multiplayer so I’m awaiting updates before picking this one up again.
• Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood: 48h. I’m contemplating getting back into it as I bought the expansion Dawntrail. I’m so far away from reaching that point though!

Games I’m Playing: 7
I will only talk about the notable mentions below.


The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel PS5 – 4h 52mins
Here I go.
It’s soooo good to be back in the world of Trails. Trails through Daybreak will be arriving in my mail box soon, but I have quite a few games to get through before I can finally play that. That’s definitely not a punishment, and I’ll start making my way through Cold Steel.

I’m in the first chapter on the second day. The free day. I like the school setting. I also surprisingly like the 3d graphics and gameplay as you explore the world, it gives a bit more of a real-life point of view after years of playing Sky trilogy and the Zero duology. The map is an improvement too and the fact that you can see where the main characters are and where other people are. The fast travel function also works better than in Zero and Azure.

I’m liking the main cast of characters so far, of course I have favourites. I like Rean, he gives me Lloyd vibes but he’s also a bit more confident. He gets into these situations with Elisa which Lloyd would’ve definitely handled differently.. I like our quiet tall guy Gaius, our man from the north. I like Laura for the strength she portrays and the confidence in her skill. I like Elliot and Emma for their combat abilities (I don’t know who’s my favourite of the two yet (read: who I should take into battle with me). Machias and Jusis probably have to grow on me. Fie is a bit aloof so she will probably also need a bit more time to develop.

Now... I’m waiting for the big reveal of Crow. I’ve seen him in the introductions, but I don’t know who he is yet. His figurines are in my room, and he looks like the guy with the bandana which would fit because that guy’s personality is very likeable to me, and I have this feeling that I will really like Crow (but that I will also be incredibly conflicted by his character development). That guy has not introduced himself yet though, and the figurines aren’t sporting anything like this. I can’t wait to find out more about this character. Especially because the people I talk to respond in a mysterious way when I say I think I will like him.

Probably more about this in a future blog post. No spoilers of course please, I will get to a lot of truths soon enough (unless they’re all revealed in IV :D)


Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 Xbox X – 3h 51m
Very similar to Hellblade 1. It’s OK. It feels like a walking simulator, but it’s still unsettling and creepy which is exactly my vibe but I doubt I will rate this game higher than a 6 by the end of it.


Baldur’s Gate 3 Co-op PC – 22h 46m
I started a new playthrough with my BF. I’m a cleric now, and I don’t have to focus on too many things because he handles the other characters. This makes the game much more enjoyable for me. I can pew-pew from a distance and heal the party as we go, but I don’t necessarily have to get good at combat. This also helps me find the tricks in the battles too, like breaking the bridge enemies are standing on.
We’re still in the first chapter but we’re about to wrap up.


Syberia: The World Before PC – 7h 20m
It’s good to be in the world of Syberia again, this time in a more modern time. The puzzles are nothing compared to the older point-and-click games. I never really have to think. Everything that you can carry is straightaway used, but that makes it a more cozy HOG almost.
I like that the story of Kate Walker continues even after she has found Syberia for Hans in the previous games, but I am curious if there is a tie-in with the previous trilogy.

What a happy bunch! I would really like this game as part of my collection, it would be my first signed copy of a game :-)

Ahhh Ori 2! I played the first game during the GOTM too. I'm definitely going to pick the second game up soon!

It’s been an interesting three weeks in terms of gaming. I’ve finished quite a few hefty games, and I made progress with others.

Games I completed (4):
* The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure ⭐⭐⭐⭐ - 79h
* Final Fantasy VII Remake ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫 – 39h 28m
* Final Fantasy VII Remake – Episode INTERmission ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫 – 5h 11m
* Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown ⭐⭐⭐⭐ - 24h 11m

Games I retired (0):

Games I paused (6):
I formally paused no game on HLTB, but I’m not making progress with all of the ones I currently have ongoing though. Basically the upcoming month, I will not focus on:
• Sun Haven: Co-op 56h 26m. We’re in the last area. Collecting all the things for the Dynus’ altars and trying to make all the money for the remaining mounts & achievements.
• Spirit Hunter: Death Mark: 12h 42m. I have finished the main game. The only chapter remaining is the DLC one. It’s been fun, but the gameplay is slow and the battles actually need a guide because it’s wayyy too much trial-and-error.
• Halls of Torment: 3h 56m. A fun palate cleanser between other games. I’ve not played Vampire Survivor yet, but this one is a good trial to see if I want to invest the time.
• Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood: 48h. I hardly progressed, but I did the FFVI cross-over, so Torgal is now my new good boy mount.
• Final Fantasy VII Rebirth: 3h 3m. I dove right in. The start is already really good, but it’s only the tip of the iceberg if I understand the reviews well.
• Crashlands: 7h 31m. Slowly chipping away at this fun little resource gathering game.

Games I’m Playing: 2

Cat Quest II PS5 – 4h 54mins
I’m playing this one co-op. The puns are excellent, the gameplay is simple but it’s a fun to cross off all the different dungeons, collect the outfits and do the side quests. We’re in the land of the doggos currently. Story is a bit hard to follow because it's so tempting to just click through to get on with it, but it’s fun enough.


Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising Switch –
No real playtime, I’ve only just started it now that I finished Prince of Persia. I’m getting prepared for Hundred Heroes’ release. So far, the scenery looks beautiful and the side quest loop will probably be fun for the short amount of time it will take to finish this one.

Happy to hear you liked Apothecary Diary a lot too! It's unfortunate you're feeling a bit meh, hopefully things will take a turn for the better soon!

We're watching similar anime at the moment.

I'm also watching Frieren, which I still have to get into to be honest (I'm only at episode 4 though). I finished Solo Leveling which I thought was excellent. A Sign of Affection is so far so good. Did you watch Apothecary's Diary by any chance? I absolutely adored that one!

You're playthrough of Star Rail is making me quite curious to return to it... I've not played since pulling Blade and I'm curious about the new characters. You've made so much progress all this time. I might go and check it out again...

Welcome back!

My lips are sealed. But yeah Azure gets intense. The first time we played friend and I got kind of attached to Grimwood. And the (messy patchy) tanslation we used at the time had his nickname be Beardy Bear which was so endearing. Needless to say we felt utterly betrayed when the truth came out.

That is such a fitting nickname for him!

I beat Azure. I'm happy with the ending Grimwood got. That final boss though... What a way to put all JRPG's final boss tropes into one fight. That boss was a challenge! It felt very satisfying when I beat him though I was thinking of waiting a bit to start Cold Steel, but I installed it on my PS. I'm close to wrapping up FFVII Remake before my travels, so I might just start with it. It will be a similarly long timeframe as my playthrough of Azure, because I won't have access to my Playstation all the time this year, but... I feel the itch for more Trails!

Welcome back to the blogosphere!!!

Thank you! It's really good to be back!

Hello everyone (who reads this blog 😊),

It’s been a long long time since I posted anything. HLTB tells me it’s been 4.5 months, but it certainly doesn’t feel that long to me. A lot has happened (most of the things very good but they have kept me busy). I have been reading blog posts regularly, but I haven’t commented on them very often. I apologize! Other than that, I’ve basically only updated my hours and completions on HLTB. I did get a lot of gaming, anime watching and reading in. I’ll focus on games in this post to not make it too chunky.

Let’s look at some stats:

Games I completed (17):
• Life is Strange: True Colors (⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Honkai: Star Rail until patch 1.2 (⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• It Takes Two co-op (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• We Were Here co-op (⭐⭐⭐)
• Tales of Arise (⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Dredge (⭐⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Dredge: The Pale Reach DLC (⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Pony Island (⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Escape Simulator co-op (⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Untitled Goose Game co-op (⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Escape Simulator: Steampunk DLC co-op (⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Escape Simulator: Wild West DLC co-op (⭐⭐⭐)
• Tales of Arise: Beyond Dawn DLC (⭐⭐💫)
• Alan Wake II (⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion (⭐⭐⭐💫)
• Children of Morta co-op (⭐⭐⭐⭐)
• Escape Simulator – Magic DLC co-op (⭐⭐⭐💫)

Games I retired (4):
• Murder By Numbers (too long)
• Moving Out 2 co-op (too stressful)
• LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures co-op (too clunky)
• Subnautica (tooooo scary)

Games I paused (4):
• Baldur’s Gate 3 (thinking of retiring this playthrough so I can co-op it. I’m stuck at the end of chapter 2)
• Journey to the Savage Planet co-op
• Haven co-op (left PS Plus so might retire)
• Yakuza 0 (I might retire because I think I’ll watch a summary to start with Yakuza 7)

Games I’m Playing: 7

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown Switch – 12h 2mins
I’m basically taking a break to finish up Trails to Azure. The game was very easy up until the 10 hour mark when I made my way to the Sunken Harbor. There’s a boss near there that took me a good while. I needed a break after beating the Forest Queen. It felt more punishing than Elden Ring bosses..


Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood PC – 46h 39mins
I didn’t make much progress here. The hours I spent were mostly to get mounts in one of the Moogle Treasure Troves. I’m going to pause my subscription from July onwards. The game is very good, but I’m getting a bit tired. I invaded Doma Castle so that’s the last thing I did.


Spirit Hunter: Death Mark PC – 10h 21mins
I’m in the 5th chapter out of 6, so I’m near the end. I’m using a guide most of the time because conversations are not really skippable or fast forwardable so it takes a while when you make a mistake. I hope Death Mark 2 has improved on this. This is a horror visual novel, the scary elements are excellent but combat is a bit... hit-or-miss. I’m overall enjoying it, but definitely not loving it.


The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure Switch – 76h 52mins
I’m at the point in the game where the prompt was to prepare for the final battle, so I guess I only have the final battle to deal with.
The story has been mind-blowing. I miss keeping track of weekly updates so I can read back what I did and what happened, but this game will stick with me I think. What happened to Guy Bannings broke my heart. Arios didn’t end up killing him. It was the lawyer Mr. Grimwood. The fact that the Crois family is behind a lot of the plots was quite the shock. I thought Mariabell would have something to do with it because I thought I heard her voice in one of the baddies’ discussions, but I didn’t expect Dieter to also be a part of it. He wasn’t completely part of it I guess. The coup, and the way they weaponized KeA is so sad. I’m curious how this game will conclude and then it’s time (at some point to moving on to the dauntingly long Cold Steel series).

No spoilers please but when I was in Japan I found some Trails merch of the newer instalments (unfortunately nothing from Sky or Zero/Azure) and I bought Crow merch because he looks quite handsome. I don’t know who this person is or what he will do, but I like his looks. I hope he doesn’t disappoint. Fingers crossed, and I'm curious if this makes Siver laugh 🙈


Crashlands PC – 6h 7mins
Fun little game exploration/resource gathering game with some fun combat. I like it, though the humour is a bit much for me.


Sun Haven co-op PC – 45h 0mins
This game is sooo good. I especially like playing it in co-op because otherwise the farm management would be a bit too daunting for me and I wouldn’t be able to get anything done. We’ve unlocked all three farms, and it’s time to meet the third dragon after we’ve managed to progress the main quest a bit further.


Final Fantasy VII Remake PS5 – 24h 18mins
Last but not least I just finished chapter 13 of FFVII Remake. The story is so good. I finished Final Fantasy VII the original a few years back and it’s fun to see the different route the developers take in the story.

Combat is difficult. I have found a good approach now where I assess enemies first. Really read up on their weaknesses and then I switch between characters so that the one getting aggro’ed is not the one I’m playing with. That works for now.

Story-wise the plate has been dropped on the people of sector 7. We made our way back and found an underground lab where we battled the boss. We took Wedge to safety, poor Biggs and Jessie 😒 and now let’s see what other mischief we’ll get up to. I expect that we’re going to Shinra soon. My goal is to finish this game the upcoming two weeks which I think is manageable.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
That’s just a short overview of what I’ve been up to! I’m going to try to update my blog at least monthly again.

It's been taking a long long time for me but I'm super close to the final boss of Azure. I think I've reached the penultimate boss now. The last dungeon are a tiny bit long, but I'm very curious about how the story will pan out and then on to cold steel (at some point)

I have Minami Lane on my wishlist too. It looks so cute! Good to hear it's a fun little experience. I'm also playing through FFVII Remake. It's so good 👀 after twenty hours I'm still getting used to the battle system though, but I think I have a good switch character strategy now haha.

I'm finally able to participate in a GotM again! I agree with previous comments about how unexpected the messages from Steam friends were. I have to say I fell for all of Asmodeus.exe tricks. He also really got me with the game crashing... Haha I rebooted the game twice wondering what was wrong. This was my favourite boss fight in the game and the reason why I ended up rating it a 7 out of 10.

Playtime: 1h 28m
Notes: 2 Secrets and 7 out of 24 tickets.

Review:
This was a fun little game with devious mechanics. I fell for it a couple of times. I would've rated it lower if the platforming sections would've been more frustrating but luckily I found them to be manageable even if you have to coordinate your clicking really well.

What I liked:
* There are different elements to the game which are fun to explore
* The puzzles made me feel really smart.
* The style and atmosphere of the game fits within the horror genre without being scary.
* It surprised me multiple times.

What I didn't like:
* The music or sometimes lack thereof but the presence of an insistent sound is a bit annoying at times.
* The platforming parts weren't my favourite.

I'm curious about this developer's other games as I haven't played Inscryption yet. I'm looking forward to Pony Island 2 as well now.

I had a hard time deciding... I love Baldur's Gate 3, but I think Alan Wake 2 is fantastic too, and so is Resident Evil 4. That mixed with some other great releases make this year a very challenging year (we've been spoiled!!)

Week 43 (Mon 23 Oct until Sun 29 Oct)
The month is almost done, and I’ve made some progress but not on everything that I wanted to make progress on.

Games I added to backlog: 5
Alan Wake 2 was released this week, so I picked it up and started playing it straightaway. I also bought Slay the Princess, Paws of Coal, Looking for Aliens and A Tale for Anna.

Games I Finished: 0
None

Games I completed/retired/put on hold this week: 0

Games I’m Playing: 6
Baldur’s Gate 3 PC – 52h 21mins
No progress, I’m still daunted to get back into the fight in Moonrise Tower…

The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure Switch – 40h 44mins
I spoke to the nuns and Ries is the only one willing to share because the flowers I found near the cryptids are mentioned in a forbidden text which only Gralsritters are allowed to read.

I'm now on the second day. I finished the rounds, and I've completed three side quests. The one with the worms again?? went wrong. I know how to beat them, but I decided to simply attack them all in one go. Ha, my whole party was wiped apart from Randy. He managed to deal the final blow, and I'm OK with the result.
I finished the quest with the package delivery. Yes, they are delivered by the Capua's. It was so funny when the delivery guy mentioned the fact that their "president" mixed a label with a letter in the past. I remember that super annoying moment. The end result of this quest was creepy. We delivered a doll to an abandoned house, which a young girl picked up. That girl's also a doll. These dolls are weird….]

Murder by Numbers PC – 11h 31mins
No progress

Tales of Arise PS5 – 30h 29mins
I'm back with my crew and we're looking for the Crow guy (Vhalram? Names are impossible this game!) We're now on a jungle island. Next up: Free Shionne!

Which I have done in an incredibly long playsession. I made my full way through the new world and the subsequent castle. Vhalram seemed to be a sovereign just like me, but we beat him twice. Shionne is now fully back with us and she seems to have become the maiden to Alphen's sovereign.

It's now a month later. Time for side quests!

Life is Strange: True Colors PS5 – 9h 3mins
I'm currently at the last chapter of the game. My poor brother Gabe has died. Was there a way I could've prevented it? Probably not. I like how Ryan took the reigns in his own hands and cut the rope to save me. No emotion, but at the same time he saved my life. I'm thankful, I don't think my character will be.

My character is actually fine with all that has happened. She forgave Ryan. She's even flirting with Ryan (sorry Steph but he's too hunky). We've played a LARP game in the city to get the little kid's brain off of all the horrible things, but the main character will also investigate what caused the death of her brother because vindictive Mac really did get the call and called Typhon to stop the demolition of the mountain. Sounds like this big corporation is a bit fishy.

In the 4th chapter I gave a rose to Ryan and we kissed on the rooftop, what also happened in the 4th chapter is that we found out more about the corporation and that they’re trying to hide something with the explosions which is why they couldn’t stop the detonation. I don’t know what that something is, but Jed is in on it. At the end of the chapter he pushed Alex into a pit. Actually he shot her and she fell into the pit. I’m now going through all her memories of when she was younger.

Alan Wake II PC – 7h 4mins
Yesssss it's back! I've finished chapter 1 and chapter 2 which both feature Saga. It's so good to be back in creepy Bright Falls. So far, the detective mechanics are fun, the banter between Anderson and Casey (Max Payne <3) is great and the action is starting to increase.

I've beaten the first boss Nightingale and suddenly Alan Wake appeared on the shore of the lake. He's been missing for 13 years. Casey is not amused because Wake's famous detective shares his name.

I've finished chapter 3 and 4 as well. They both take place in Alan Wake's Dark Place. New York City. The voice overs of "Max Payne" give me chills. The things he says (as Alex Casey of course) are so fantastic. The mechanic in Alan's segments are fun too. You can use an old fashioned lamp as a clicker to absorb light and give light to change your surroundings. You can also find plot points which change the scene. I made my way through the subway station - it's hard because there are so many shadows there that don't harm you and then suddenly you're beaten to death by one which does :-)

I've spoken to Saga now through the veil and Alan is on his way to his apartment.

I'm likely not able to get to any game this month so I'll nominate... Alan Wake 2 which is what I'm going to try to finish against all odds :-)