PGen98

It feels like, with every new release and every new advancement in technology that comes around, the specifications for that game seem to be slightly more excessive than the game which came before it, and so on and so forth. Now it seems like every massive budget title that gets released doesn't typically look or perform well with even a mid-range GPU in place. This means a lot of money on upgrades and other essentials to get to the point where you meet the recommended settings. Is this a good thing for gaming, or do you feel the constant pushing of the envelope is getting to be too much for the average consumer? I think we need to plateau a bit, enjoy what we have before we move onto what we don't have. Step back from the bleeding edge a bit.

While you're not really supposed to discuss your experiences with pre-release software, is anyone participating in the beta for Halo Infinite? What are your thoughts on it so far? Do you find it controls well? Is it a step up from Halo 5 Guardians? Do you think Infinite will bring the franchise back, or is Halo doomed to carry on down a path of sub-par releases, like Guardians was?

We're getting close to the October 12th release date of Back4Blood on all of the major platforms. Has anyone here looked into it, and what are your thoughts on it? Looking forward to it? Disinterested in it? Disappointed in it? Personally, I completely disregarded it at first, thinking it was just another rip off of other franchises, not realizing that it's developed by and in the same vein as the original developers of Left4Dead. I looked at the beta, took in the feedback from players and now I'm actually quite looking forward to this game releasing! It seems like it's going to be a world of fun!

You can also run Windows in a Virtual Machine, as well. It does compromise performance, so not recommended for high-end games, but it's an option for older or less intensive games.

Oh yeah, the Steam libraries can grow out of control very quickly! I've got over 300 games on Steam, with a vast majority gathering e-dust. It's still a form of collecting, for sure! Have I played every single game I own? No, I haven't, but the vast majority, yes! Those game giveaways are fantastic on all of the consoles and distributors. Epic gives away some great games, too! Precisely, it's impossible to play every game after a certain point, so enjoyment and fulfillment is what it's mostly about.

There's a possibility, most definitely, though first party Nintendo games do tend to hold their value well enough. You should start to see it drop off a little bit soon, but I would expect it to hold that value moving forward.

I completely agree with you, KC would be a great market for hockey, and the Blues could do with a team in their own back yard taking away from their fanbase! Houston is another possibility, which would make for an interesting rivalry with the Stars, and either market would suit the needs of the divisions, so there are definitely options. I don't see the Coyotes folding anytime soon, but I do think it's well within the realm of possibility that they make a change in their location.

Those are fair points, but Linux is gaining ground almost by the day at this point. Every release brings it closer to parity with Windows, so while not all games work at the moment, that isn't to suggest there won't be workarounds or software available that can help with that. Plus, if you find a game that doesn't run on Linux, even with Wine, VMs are an option!

Has anyone seen The Tomorrow War? I watched it very recently and, while it starts quite slow, it is a surprisingly good movie with a great cast and great acting. The ending was fittingly brutal, and I liked the concept of the past having to save the future, it was a neat little plot point. I highly recommend it for anyone that has even a minor interest in SciFi action movies. Very good movie indeed!

I don't know how many hockey fans we have here, but I find this to be an interesting point of discussion and hopefully others will, as well. The City of Glendale have informed the NHL's Arizona Coyotes that they will not be renewing their lease on the Gila River Arena as of the 2022-2023 season. This leaves the Arizona Coyotes with nowhere to play their home games after this upcoming season. This begs the question -- After a torrid time in Glendale, does the team pick up and leave Arizona, or do they stay and find a new home? Some out of state suitors have already proclaimed their interest in having the Coyotes come to their town to play, including: -Houston, Texas -- As a Stars fan I like this. It opens up a new rivalry for the Stars, it keeps the Coyotes in the Central division so there's no more shuffling again, and they have facilities the Coyotes could move into quickly, along with ownership groups willing to put up a lot of money into the team. -Kansas City, Kansas -- Another suitor, Kansas City, have stepped forward as a potential suitor, as they have facilities, willing investors and also keep the team in the Central division, so they are strong runners in any potential out-of-state move. -Quebec City, Quebec -- Desperate to restore their Nordiques, Quebec are always a front runner whenever relocation is mentioned, and this is no exception. I don't see this as a fit as it would cause too much disruption in the divisions which were just recently reshuffled to accommodate the arrival of the Seattle Kraken into the league. So, good option, but no. What i personally think will happen is that the Coyotes will stay in Arizona, share facilities with the Tucson Roadrunners until their new facility is built in...Tempe, Arizona. Tempe have tried to get the Coyotes to move their way in the past and they're hot in the market once again, with a vibrant college atmosphere and quite close to Phoenix Sky Harbor airport, it makes a lot of sense as a location, and it appears the Coyotes are already scouting locations here. Many want them to move to Scottsdale, but this does not seem like a fit for the team, so I'm backing them to stay in Arizona and to settle in Tempe, in particular.

My apologies, I went looking for a emulation topics and found a couple, but nothing generalized. I suppose I didn't go back enough pages! You're quite right, emulation has very legitimate purposes and the rom-hacking and rom creating scenes are very active and very innovative. They add to the legitimacy of emulating and emulation software, without question!

Do you feel that gaming on Linux has reached a point where it is now essentially in line with mainstream Windows gaming? Obviously some games still don't work on Linux or have never been properly ported over to the system; however, for the most part, Linux is now more or less on par with Windows for gaming and has a great deal to offer the gaming enthusiast. Do you think gaming on Linux is a worthwhile experience, or do you feel it still has a long way to go?

Not necessarily just for gaming, but in general, what is your favourite keyboard? I just had to replace my Lenovo Black Silk keyboard, which was decent enough to serve me for the past 7 years. As a Mechanical keyboard fan, it was a bit awkward adapting to a membrane-based keyboard at first, but it was very smooth its' whole life. This time around I'm going for a Ducky One2 Horizon with Cherry MX Brown switches. Looking forward to getting it broken in properly and really getting a feel for it, it is a solid gaming product thus far. What is your favourite keyboard, for gaming or just working/typing?

Emulation has always been a popular way for people to game, but for very obvious reasons it has always fallen into a legal grey area, as it can be used to circumvent copyright and outright steal games; however, there are also those who, rather rightly, argue that emulation is a means to enjoy extremely rare games without devaluing the physical copies, and yet also letting the average person who could never afford those rare physical copies a chance to play the game itself. I can see both sides, because it is, strictly speaking, illegal to own and play downloaded copies of games that you do not physically own, but I appreciate that emulation gives us the chance to experience games we could otherwise never play. Where do you stand on the emulation topic, do you think it's just theft or do you believe it serves a valid role in preserving historical games that the average person would never get to experience otherwise?

Well the great thing about collecting is that it doesn't matter about having a massive collection, so long as it means something to you, that's still collecting!

Yeah, that's a problem I would never have. I like gaming far too much to just stick to one game over and over and over the whole time. That has to become tedious and feel like abject misery after a while! Variety is the spice of life, as they say!

The oldest console that I own is the Atari 2600, though I have a Pong clone console from '72, but I don't count that as a full-fledged console because it was a single-purpose gaming system, rather than what we typically consider a games console, with swappable media.

This is an extremely thorough method of cleaning mechanical keyboard, very nice! I mostly stick with aerosol cleaners, but have gone further before in the past. This seems like a very good video to follow, though!

Oh absolutely agreed! I mean, look at The Uncensored Library, for example, a huge undertaking to use Minecraft to bypass news blockages in certain countries. It's an immense undertaking, and yet it's used and updated frequently! Such incredible building there and such an innovative use for a video game. There are other equally amazing projects inside of Minecraft, so there is no question it is a platform for great innovation, it's just not for everyone.

I've played essentially every Mario Gold game from the NES onwards and I love them, they're a lot of fun, but I have to admit that I've been waiting on a price drop for this one :). I have no doubt it's as fun as the other Mario Golf games, but you're right, it's one that for whatever reason doesn't feel like one I want to pay $60 for. I actually watched Achievement Hunter play this on their YouTube channel, and it does seem extremely fun, particularly multiplayer, so it is a worthwhile game, but I'm still going to wait for a sale, personally :D

Yep, I absolutely understand where you're coming from! Trying to stop buying to play catch up, only for another one to roll down the pipelines and...well...you've got to grab it! That's how my backlog got so out of whack in the first place, and it just hasn't stopped :D. Hopefully one day I'll get a bit of free time to sit down and get through a few of those games, have a bit of fun with them!

Oh I absolutely understand your frustrations with it. It's great for building an idea, or just being silly with friends, but there has to be more than that! It feels aimless because it truly is aimless. Good game for those who can turn it into more than it is, but it's not for me, most definitely!

Thanks, @Shagger, I appreciate that and will do :)

Correct, games we own and have not had the chance to get into, for one reason or another. It happens over time, usually, but sneaks up on a lot of us until it becomes a bit overwhelming! That is a very sizeable backlog, indeed! It doesn't take much to become overwhelming! :)

Oh absolutely, Minecraft is excellent for some people, but I don't have the patience for a game like that. I can be creative and build things, but a whole game where that's the objective? No, thanks! Games with objectives are far more enjoyable for me!