Invalid characterset or character set not supported Gaming Progress: No Focus





Gaming Progress: No Focus
December 12, 2015

This is long overdue, mostly because I've been trying to get into another game since finishing Risen 2, and I've had a difficult time calling one my focal project. I'm not sure if it's that I'm playing 'meh' games or just that I lack focus at the moment. During the last couple of weeks, I tried out a handful of titles on Steam to see if any of them would stick. I've selected a couple to mainly focus on (indicated with *), with the others popping up from time to time.



Risen 3: Titan Lords*
I put a buttload of time into this one (or as "buttload" as my hectic life permits). Unlike the previous title, Risen 3 is pretty non-linear. It gives you several islands to check out near the beginning of the campaign and doesn't provide explicit details regarding where to go or what events you should trigger next. I chose to go to Calador, since it seemed that I could traverse most of that territory without rousing any overly difficult monsters. Since my arrival, I've initiated a fair number of quests, including one where I either had to clear a farm hand's name for stealing a golden candle holder or frame him so some bimbo would inherit the farm after her master's eventual demise. Since I'm playing as a "good" character, I decided to vindicate the guy. I've done a slew of other small tasks that have only amounted to a little bit of gold or positive Soul points (Soul being the stat that determines your alignment). For the main quest here, I'm supposed to talk to Eldric--a returning character from the last two Risen games--and convince him to form an alliance with a Admiral Alvarez. I've spoken to Eldric, but haven't even begun the negotiations. I will once I've completed more side quests on Calador.


Fallout: New Vegas
I didn't do much here besides create my character and loot the house in which I awoke. I probably won't be playing this one much, at least until I complete Risen 3. I may return here and there, though.


Greed: Black Border*
I actually played this game prior to a few days ago, using my previous computer. Sadly, that was when its graphics card was on the fritz and Greed wouldn't stop lagging (I may even still have a blog post on this site ranting about the ridiculous lag). Greed is basically Diablo in space. It's a simple, no-frills clone with nothing new to offer aside from a sci-fi theme. I'm a little over a third of the way through the game, and thus far I'm not impressed. I will soldier through this one, though, partly so I can scratch it off my list and partly so I can review it.


Pid
I defeated the first boss I mentioned in my last progress post and pressed onward. I found a robot who had her limbs removed blocking the path, and I have thus far succeeded in obtaining a few of her limbs. Baby steps...


Culpa Innata
This one is a point-and-click adventure title that I purchased when I first downloaded Steam. Here you work for a newly formed dystopian government, interviewing people and bringing about some kind of change that the game mentions during its opening cutscene. I have yet to interview anyone, sadly. I started the game and it seemed to suggest that my mission objective was finding my PDA before having a meeting with my boss. Try as I might, I couldn't find the PDA. It turns out I was supposed to click twice on my desktop computer to initiate a cutscene that got things moving. It took me so long to figure this out that I grew tired of the game. Between this and its cringeworthy voice acting, Culpa Innata is not off to a good start with me.


Valdis Story: Abyssal City
I can't remember if I mentioned that I defeated the first boss and advanced to the first town and received an assignment there. Though I want to tear into this game badly, I'm trying to take it slowly. I want to wipe out some of my more banal projects first.


I didn't touch Vessel at all over the last week or so, but I hope to get to it again soon. It's better than a lot of the games I'm playing, thanks to its clever puzzles. It's a bit of an overwhelming title, though, just because solving some of the puzzles can be exhausting. There's a lot to tinker with and discovering the order of operations can require a lot of trial and error, which hurts the old gray matter when you have to large segments with loads of climbing, falling, platforming, and lever-throwing. Thankfully, you can save at any time.

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