Online Saturday - Splatoon 3 - February's Salmon Run Gear

Welcome to Online Saturday

This Saturday I'm back playing Splatoon 3. The focus of this video is to firstly, get February's exclusive item, and to vote for the upcoming Splatfest.

As normal, my aim is to get two copies of this month's exclusive item and then keep the better of the two. the second one i earned was better than the first, but it only had two unknown pins rather than three. So there's a chance i'll play it again to try and get a better one. 

The other goal was to vote for the upcoming Splatfest. this month's Splatfest is what is the best type of chocolate, Dark, Milk, or White. I voted for Milk, coming from England as i do, it's what i grew up with and like the most. White would be second. i'd rather have pink as third as i really don't like dark.

There's a fun bit in the video where my controller dies. i'm unable to find a suitable USB cable quick enough and due to inactivity i'm disconnected from the game. Other than that, it's a fairly typical Salmon Run session for me. once again i'm unable to defeat the giant Salmon, but it was nice to face it as it had been a while. Salmon run is tough! 

Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade - What The Golf - The First 45 Minutes

This ninth, video in the new Mobile Friday: Apple Arcade series is on What The Golf. This is an exclusive game on Apple Arcade from Triband.

I decided to continue the Apple Arcade series for another couple of weeks. this was one game i was still interested in trying. i had heard some things about it, mostly that it was more than a golf game, so when things started happening i was excited.

Controlling it using my fingers was fine, but when i switched to a bluetooth controller i first tried using the triggers. when i saw they controlled the power i didn't try the other buttons until later. This means that for a little while, i complain about the triggers being too sensitive. it's not that much of a problem, but when i try out other buttons and find the A button controls the power level slower, the game once again becomes easy to play.

There's not too much to say about the music in the game other than it doesn't get in the way. Loading is also quick and unobtrusive. the only thing i found confusing about the game was how the menu system worked. when you click it, the first thing that pops up is a shortcut system and then it's the game menu. i can't help but think it doesn't work well and strangely becomes the most difficult and unintuitive part of the whole gaming experience with What The Golf.

This isn't a graphical show piece compared to some other games we've played in this series, but it could be the most pick up and play game. So it's more like Jetpack Joyride 2, https://youtu.be/zDsT94VQs-0, in that respect rather than a game that's closer to a console experience like Fantasian, https://youtu.be/RV_P04gnnKI.

Backlog Conquering - Pyre - Part 8 - The Rites Restart

Welcome to Backlog Conquering.

Today's video is part 8, of playing Pyre on PlayStation 4.

In part 7, https://youtu.be/eskzF0QYvGE, we said goodbye to Hedwyn as he was liberated back to the Commonwealth. This video shows the aftermath, and is maybe one of the slower videos in this series.

There is more lore revealed in this video than maybe in the previous 7 combined! we get soo many pages for the Book of Rites, too. some of the game's mechanics also change, like being given a choice of which Rite to take on. There's also a fun upgrade for our Wagon.

But, story wise, whilst it's interesting learning more about the world, it isn't fun knowing that we have to do the same thing over and over again. There will be a part 9, but i am a little concerned as to how the story will progress from now on.

Backlog Conquering - Pyre - Part 7 - A Win and a Goodbye

Welcome to Backlog Conquering.

Today's video is part 7, of playing Pyre on PlayStation 4.

You can watch Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, and Part 6 by clicking on the links. they'll take you to the YouTube Videos.

In part 6, https://youtu.be/06I8FfLbh1Q, we had the plot twist that all of us weren't getting out together. So this video shows the ramifications of such news. This is a more story driven part so i do recommend that you watch the last couple of videos so you're familiar with it.

As this part deals mostly with the story, not too much happens. We do the final Rite and it's one of the best matches i've played so far. the AI team feels well balanced and even tho i win, it feels like a well deserved win. And with that win, we do say goodbye to a character.

But this does leave me with many questions throughout this part and i do have a few guesses as to what could happen next. 

Puzzle & Dragons Tuesday - Nintendo Switch Edition - The Lu Bu Cup - Achievement Run

Welcome to Puzzle & Dragons Tuesday! Sit back and either watch me play through, with no commentary, the cup or leave it running in the background as BGM!

I play and earn all the achievements from The Lu Bu Cup! (1/29 4PM - 2/5 4PM (PST)) in Puzzle & Dragons: Nintendo Switch Edition whilst using a GamePad and a docked Nintendo Switch.

I'm happy with how i did this week. the gimmick for this cup was simple and the special abilities made it easy to do them. it was simply clear 4 of the same color and/or get a chain of 4 or more combos. But, because it was so simple i found that my competition was just as competitive or even more. in the first game, i defeated the boss but so did many of the other players i was playing against. so even tho i had a very high score, it wasn't enough to win as the other players had just as high scores. 

let me know in the comments how this week's Cup was for you.

Cloud Monday - Grip - Part 1 - A Lot of Racing With Some Streaming Issues

Today's Cloud Monday is part 1 with a new game. I'm starting these next two parts with Grip on PS4.

I was somewhat familiar with what to expect from the game as i had played Rollcage in the past and the PlayStation Plus Premium page had a trailer and screenshots showing off the game. what did surprise me was how much racing i was able to do in under an hour. the game does have a tutorial, but it's done in a race. it's somewhat unique in that when it has something new to teach, it slows down time long enough for the player to read it and the racing restarts enabling you to try it out straight away, usually the game gives you what you need too.

As for the streaming issues, only once did it get in the way. there was some macroblocking, there were instances of screen tearing where white/grey was shown for a frame or two and it was this that caused the only issue as it happened at a bad time. Grip is a game which is very fast, so macroblocking isn't that much of an issue as the square disappear quickly or are motion blurred. but when grey/white tears appear for a frame or two it can not only be distracting but potentially hide something coming up. this wasn't a constant issue, but it wasn't a one off either. we'll see what happens in part 2 next week.

Switch Funday - GoldenEye 007 - My First Time

Welcome to Switch Funday!

Even tho i've been playing video games since the early 1990's, i've never played GoldenEye 007. As i say in the video, my sister had a Nintendo 64 but we never had the game. I didn't even know anyone who had the game. so when it came out on the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack i was eager to try it.

i went in knowing full well that games from this time haven't always aged well but still, i was shocked at how bad the controls were. they haven't been updated for the Nintendo Switch release, they've merely been mapped to controls that already exist. but it's fun to watch the video and see how i gradually adapt to the controls.

In this video, i don't finish the second level. even tho it's over an hour long, i try 4 times to beat the second level and fail. and it's mostly because of my own mistakes. but gameplay wise i kinda had fun. it was somewhat nostalgic but it was perhaps even nicer to know that i have finally played the game.

i don't know if it's one i'll come back to and finish. maybe if they update it or maybe if i get the N64 controller for Switch i might. It would be nice to try the online multiplayer, but that's only for friends rather than randoms online which i had hoped it would be.