Radio Commander....

I've been hitting the game a good bit since I last blogged about it. Over the last week and especially the weekend. I've now completed two full campaigns.

Today saw the end of the second of those. While there's scripted elements to the campaign(there has to be for a narrative to play out); There's enough elements of variation/luck/chance and RNG to make it enjoyable in victory. To bring me back for more. To try a new campaign and see how things play out again.

Yet since my second run has been done I'm not sure I can shoot for more perfection in any further runs. It's not that kind of game for me. Given the story that plays out it's apt as well. 

Steam says I have just over 17 hours on the game. I'd say that's 7 hours split up pottering about between last October when I got the game and now. With 10 hours between the two campaigns this week. Not bad for a short enough, cheap yet detailed strategy/management sim.

Campaign one this week was very much a getting used to the game again. Seeing the new management side of it as well. Not a bad run but one I knew I could do better.

So second time round there was improvement. Except on mission 7, where a major defeat seems scripted and can't be altered.... 1 star is all the stars your gonna get on that map. I'd be surprised if it wasn't.

I've gotten as much as I can from the game for now. If things get changed maybe I'll be back to it. Maybe I'll get back when I feel the urge for some extra custom missions....

VR in this game won't do anything for me. Looking around a tent, cave or open air camp is too limited. Using a controller as a hand set; Novelty if you happen to have the game and a VR headset. Good maybe if you have a VR headset and not the game but a hard sell the other way around. The games good don't get me wrong. Game is good but it's not buy a VR headset for it good.

The games not perfect but better then the majority of complaints against it.
Where some see flaws in the game mechanics I see it differently. The game assumes you know what your doing. You have to interpret achieving mission goals by whats happening and what you need to do(order units) rather than what you can do(tell units to run all over the map). Players are trying to do too much outside the box thinking n situations and get hampered when the simulation elements kick in. You have objectives and you radio orders to your units to achieve them. You have a map and overview, the units have you and the steep ground to hump over. This game isn't Command & Conquer. The real fog of war is communication or lack of it. Don't ask a unit where it is and it's map marker isn't going to be where you think it is.

Enough waffle form me.

Battlefield 1....

While I usually like the Supply Drop match mode; I've not been 'feeling it' this week. Still had some great matches, some woeful matches, player filled matches and matches with only 3 per side. Again playing Conquest added to the mix to bring........ well good matches and some woeful matches.

It's more easy to see this week that even the 'peek' times (EU 8pm to 10pm - ish for me) is a shadow of it's former self. So much less of a populated playerbase. For a while it was good to see the same names popping up(good, fair, balanced players). Now it's a mixed bag of band new with a handful of veterans...... Usually getting spammed by clan groups.

All in all I got some good games. Took my time with what I got.

A Casual Carebear Gamer

Radio Commander....

Radio Commander is an interesting sim. A game I purchased last October yet seems like I've had it a lot longer. Another game I've not had time to really get fully into. Partially my fault with having to many other games and partially because I've had my campaign save reset twice in the last few months due to patches. Take the good with the bad etc.

The base game today is a different creature then it was on release. All the patches that I've seen are good additions and changes to the game. A few weeks ago I picked up the Squad Management DLC on sale; That DLC alone is a huge change from the base game. Well worth it and a good motivation to get back to playing it.

I've also seen in the last week of so that the game is now available on android and iOS as well.

Despite your character sitting in a tent with a radio you are in the thick of it. Atmospheric and with realism it's a true simulation.

Narrative story with characters and intro scenes round out the sim. A great game but one a gamer will either love or hate. It's more a suspenseful 'grand strategy' radio sim.

The only first person view is of your tent with it's map table with the radio set and a view looking out the tent doors(and a window..... don't forget the window). Otherwise it's 100% eyes on the map view.

Campaign missions are varied and it's worth watching the mission replay as it shows enemy positions from the start. Good to have that kind of Intel if your looking to redo.

The mission editor is interesting, good that it's there if not the easiest to use; But I've not done much with it.

I'll continue to plink away at the game and progress when I can.

SplatterCatGaming did a quick look at the first mission a while ago, still worth a watch.

Games with Gold....

The Division. A game I wasn't into(see here in 2016, here in 2017 and here in 2019). Bullet sponge enemies and PvP and loot capture to kill a persons soul. Oh yea and those dudes that attack you with bats for one hit kills. All said and done free is free, I might just take another look and see how it's Xbox incarnation is.

The Book of Unrivalled Tales 2. A surprising game that's somewhat timeless in it's quirky style and story telling. A more classic game in a good way. Another game to try. Reminds me a lot of the OG Xbox game The Hobbit I looked at.

de blob 2 Another fun and quirky game, a platformer that looks like it would be worth giving a go.

Then there's Armed and Dangerous. Some humor to it but it's an original Xbox game that in my opinion hasn't aged well. Claim and shelve for me.


3 ish out of 4 free games to try.... Even if it's a download, try, uninstall.

Hitman 2...

Time has indeed told.

An Epic exclusive deal was announced. So I'll have to wait a year to get it on Steam. Where my other versions of Hitman 1 and 2 are. Motivation has gone out the window. I'm not even hyped for the third game. Far from it. At least giving it a year will probably get an all in one version on a sale price.

I dislike the newly promoted VR elements. I think it will take away from the game franchise as I've known it in 1 and 2. It's a distraction. I don't see it as a better way to play the game. I think it'll be restriction. But that's me.

A mixed bag of emotions about it. Sod it.

Maybe I'll get back into the second game in the middle of next year when Hitman 3 is in full swing.

Star Trek Online....

While I've always found the aliens in Star Trek funny when in Raisin Swimwear(in an odd haha funny way). Funny as in with Worf on DSN's visit to Risa etc. No better examples of this than Star Trek Online and the Risian event; Things you see on Risa eh!! I've always seen some Gorn players look 'funny' in the holiday gear. I mean a Gorn in tight shorts using a jetpack.... come on!

The modern Gorn look is a lot more menacing but for me the 'real' Gorn is straight out of the original series Kirk fight. Getting a character to look like that in game is a process of time and effort to unlock. To much for just getting a few screenshots.

The next best thing for me is to take a Klingon but that's been done and seen so many times.....

A Jem'Hadar on Risa isn't as uncommon as you'd think but it'd do me. So time to take my Jem'Hadar to the beach!

Unleash the ridiculous!

Epic!

Back to work!!

Two Point Hospital....

The second map of the 'Green' DLC is proving to be as much of a grind as I feared it would be. I had hope it would've worked out better but that hope was replaced with severe RNG and the usual grind.

The DLC theme is fun enough, but the usual percentages game and randomness really is mind numbing. Especially the 'Cure Rates' objective, very staff training/machine upgrade dependent. Even then the %'age is set back by a staff member on a break that's replaced by a lesser trained staff member that in turn ruins your %'age without you looking till it's to late...... Ah that's why there were 5 ghosts in that corridor..... etc etc

After some perseverance and brute force (click to send patients for immediate treatment) I got the first star.

Getting that star unlocks the last map of the DLC.

From what I've seen my wife play on that map it's unique and would be worth a try at least but I think I'm done with the second map. I can't see myself going for the second or third star there. At least not right now. I'll have to step away from the game for a 'bit' before doing any further progression.

Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 2....

Browsing the 'free with game pass' games on the Microsoft Windows 10 store; I came across Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 2. An install followed. After the last time I'd looked about the game I was sure I'd be hooked on a game with a harsh difficulty curve.

One install later and I was in the game. It's better than the first, sleeker UI, better more war torn universe encompassing story. Lore by the bucket load as you'd expect; And yes a difficulty curve to make a person cry.

The tutorial mission gets you used to losses from the start, a big loss as well. A game to avoid if your looking for perfection in your win or play-style. I had alarms going off in my head. I know the more I'd play the game the more I'd want to do things better. Replay-ability would be a curse as I'd be trying to improve from mission to mission. Then I'd be stuck in a loop of personal perfection hell.

Some games can still be pleasurable on an 'easy' mode but with games like this there isn't that much difference one way or another, it's still difficult. Even if it's a tiny bit easier, in this game 'easy' feels like cheating. Not really cheating, it just seems like it. More as an honor thing.

Anyway that's me in this game. Getting to play it only confirms all I've thought. Others may enjoy it one way or the other ('harder'). It's a game I'd play on normal but a game I know I'd get stuck on the more detail I got into. Persisting to the point of frustration and that's not fun. Next thing you know it's put on the back burner and tried every month or so till I get to a stage of culling it from a list of games I need to get back to.

I know better than to start and get into it.

Uninstall!

Star Trek Online....

The continuing voyages.

My Jem'Hadar is 1 more Doff assignment category away from getting 6 level 4's to claim his account wide unlock. Time and random assignments still make this a slow process.

His R&D is Dilithium hampered and a lot slower. To the point where I'm questioning going any further.

And for no other reason than it was there, all his reputations are at level 6. I've relatively not spent that much time on the character and he's more finessed than my two main 'alts'.

Until recently I think I was still in a mindset of character class, when the reality is that any character can use any ship with any setup(and 'class' traits) as to be equal to each other. That's from my generalist casual view. Class's in name only. So the effort to min/max isn't worth it, unless your really into that. I have love for my 'main alts' but it's a player choice to put a specific character of a specific class in a specific ship that are all labeled under the same heading. Engineer/Engineering. Science/Scientific. It all blends out the same. Unless your being specific. Really is a player choice or is that a players self limitation.....

On my KDF character the Vigilance unlock was confirmed by support as a 'bug'. So I presume that won't be fixed any time soon; Not if it's been a 'bug' in the game since they removed the mission arc(lots on Reddit and user groups on the subject).
I do have the accolade for it so did the arc at some stage of the alts life....

It's not a reward under the claim NPC so no account unlock is possible.....

I'd have thought it an important thing for devs to look at when altering the game as they did...

Is what it is.

On the sunnier side my main finished off the summer event and claimed the ship(account wide). My Xbox character has one more day to go.

I've continued doing the daily for the Dil rewards.

It's a better looking ship in person than I thought it would be. Smaller than I expected but still fast enough to be handy in close enough combat. With enough inertia to power-slide and turn gracefully.

Faster and more nimble than a lot of ships around it's size.

Given it's a Risian ship and the consoles they come with are based on speed/crowed control(ish); I ran with that theme for a best in inventory fit. I didn't strip other ships or go out of my way for anything on it and it's performance surprised me.... I get a lot of that with this type of shizfit scenario.

So much fun that I've not unfitted and discharged it after gaining the level 5 mastery.... Fun is fun. More to come.

Eve Online Echoes....

I can't help but take digs at CCP, they make it easy to draw conclusions. I'm a bitter vet it's what I do.

CCP so proud of their 1 million number..... Fair enough. I'm just wondering where the other 4 million pre-registered players are.

Wasn't that long ago they boasted of 4 million, then 5 million pre-registered before the game launched...... So 1 in 5 actually tried the game on the first week?
I wonder what % will stay with it. Longterm numbers need longterm analysis. Time will tell.

1 Million echoes gave a bump of 900-ish players to eve online.... maybe.

Battlefield 1....

The last week in Battlefield 1 has again been an on par experience......The usual. High's, lows and GG's in between. The previous weeks Frontlines mode was a fun one and I got a lot of good games. Like this one, even if it was a defeat:

A Casual Carebear Gamer

This week I've avoided the theme of the week matches; Hardcore Team Deathmatch with no UI/spotting/identification and team kills enabled. Close quarters combat and twitchy trigger fingers don't mix well with players who are overly verbose and critical. For my part I was killing anything holding a gun that came around a corner at me. So no I wasn't being a great team player. Not my match type for sure. I think I only played two rounds. When I'd wait to visually identify a target ... that split second was when I'd be killed by a team mate or an enemy. Funny how players who are low down the Kill/Death ration can be the most butt hurt, screaming abuse at players. The things some game modes can do to players. Needless to day I went and got matches from the general Conquest and Domination queues, my favourites. Seems most of the player-base has been doing the same as there were plenty of players in those types of modes.....

Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020)....

I've seen a good few simulation game based YouTubers fawn over the new Microsoft Flight Simulator. They are really, really excited about the graphics. Their interest, interested me about the game.

I'm no flight sim fan. If I do anything it's probably got weapons strapped to it and even then the last combat plane 'sim' was over a decade ago(outer space doesn't count).

Anyway like I said the hype and excitement of these YouTubers took my interest. It wasn't till yesterday when Microsoft Flight Simulator was freely playable under the Xbox Ultimate game pass that I said I'd take a look for myself. Even just to say I did.

It's a hefty install.  An initial 1 GB(ish) turns into an additional 92 GB once in the game and then it gets to download it's 'modules and expand it's file-system. Screwed if you have any kind of data cap.

It doesn't end there; From my understanding it's only as you play that it downloads more landscapes. Depending on the level of detail you are going for. The more detail, the more photo realism the more it needs to download. Buyer beware for sure.

There is no way I can give this game a 'proper go'. I've no H.O.T.A.S. setup and the last flight type joystick I owned was on an Atari 2600/C64, QuickShot Python 1!

Then again I didn't really need to be serious about taking the game. I'm just having a look at the game because I can. Even I can see the heresy of windowed mode never mind using a combo of Xbox joypad(!!), mouse and keyboard!

To fully complete my non sim heretic view of the game I set everything to easy mode. No need to make life difficult(show me the graphics!).

Is this an ultra fantastic simulation...? Yes. Yes it is. It has it all. Everything can be changed, altered and adapted to suit easy or hardcore players/gamers/pilots.

3 observations I'd like to make that are very much my own. Voice, graphics and A.I.

I love the voice communications in the game. The tower traffic control is great to hear. I'm a comms guy so no wonder I love the comms traffic, delicious procedure! Done well and fast in real life is a ballet to behold(two Tom Hanks films for communications - Sully & Greyhound).

Graphics for non Flight Sim me were underwhelming at first. Initially the thought I had was that a person would have had to live under a stone and not seen Google Earth or 3D modeling to be so super wowed by it. However once in the game and flying you start to notice the little things. Traffic moving(more like marbles on a track than actual traffic). The minor details. The refined, detail of everything you can see. It's impressive overall. Especially once you add in the lighting effects. I wasn't super wow'ed. My jaw didn't drop or anything but it has it's moments. This is as big a step up as there could be in versions so it's no wonder FS fans have been wetting themselves.
Even on Medium settings it's a good looking game(terrain, clouds and planes).

Once I had settings set to Ultra it was a real pleasure you can take for granted quickly. I didn't see any real lag with the graphic downloads. There was some very minor graphical fidelity switches I noticed. Even with broadband set to unlimited there was some delay in the best version of a graphics being shown. Low res one second, high res the next. Only if your close enough to notice. I'm sure that could be solved with more tweaking of the settings. A very forgivable thing given the extent of the games fidelity in or out of plane, 99.9% of the time.
Glistening of the sun on the wings made me squint for a second, that was cool.

The glisten of water as you fly over..... Very realistic.

Even the internal reflections on the windows. Subtle and superb.

A.I is A.I. Good when doing something it expects, bad when you throw a curve-ball at it.
Fly straight so I can take some beauty shots, no problem.
Set an A.I. autopilot and hop ahead in the course and it freaks out(9/10 times it crashes).
Those A.I. freakouts are a fun thing in themselves. Crashes are a bouncy affair rather than a true Flight Crash disaster simulator. There is no crash landing feature.

If your into Flight Sims you'll love this game. You'll fawn over banking your plane and seeing a sunset reflect off the plane etc etc.
If your not into Flight Sims, well Google Earth does the same job for ogling the planet, just without the sunset. Harsh but true.

Star Trek Online....

My KDF Delta Recruit reached 65 with the blink of a handful of advanced TFO's. With that also some more items became accessible(ships/rewards); As well as J'mpok's hail for the Specters mission arc.

So off to Drozana for the time travel shenanigan's. Strange doing it this time as a Klingon. Not even a personal holographic device in sight to cover his ridges. Then again it would be 'fun' if you could 'disrupt' the timeline by blasting everything as Klingons tend to do.

Still it all went without a hitch. Not as enjoyable and shorter than I remembered it being.

I was lazy and looked up the hypo settings and tonic mix; It's been a while since I played through it and I really had no patience for the NPC conversation text details be it subtle or blatant. Anyway. Done and claimed.

Yet still no sign of Vigilance. Looking back in my accolade list it is marked as 'done' so I must have done it with him at some stage before it was cut from the list. No idea why the account rewards hasn't unlocked, unless it was also a level thing.

Thinking it could be a glitch I was tempted to log a ticket straight away. STO support is good and prompt; But I wanted to try a few things first.

I redid the pre mission for the original arc, The Gates of Gre'thor. I also did the last mission in the chain again which now lives in another mission arc, Alpha. Yet still nothing else opened up.

One more quick reddit search revealed this thread. But even repeating the mission talked about in it(Temporal Ambassador) did nothing.

“Spoils of War” and “The Factory” also seem to count towards this goal but are not told anywhere I can see in about them in game re the old arc's. The further I dig the more hypothesis are cast and the internet is a deep ocean of fact, fiction and supposition.

I still feel like I'm probably missing the blindingly obvious. It's a really broken part of the game.

Support ticket it'll have to be(at some stage).... Given the mess this portion of the game is in, if they can 'do' anything it'll be an admin background unlock.