m76

I hate to say it, but now it's not the time to invest into a gaming PC. But since starfield is still far away, you have the luxury of time. So my advice is wait and see. And whatever you do if you decide to get a pre-built be sure to do your homework on it, because pre-builts are kind of like lootboxes, you can get decent value, or you can be completely screwed over with something that won't run even fortnite, let alone starfield.

You serious? They'd be first on my don't touch with a 10 foot pole list. After the travesty that was avengers, outriders, and now the uninspired guardians of the galaxy.

I think lootboxes are real gambling. The only difference is that with real gambling you have the chance however marginal to win a big prize. With lootboxes you ever loose, because even if you get what you wanted, it is a digital item that literally costs nothing to the company selling the lootboxes. So the dealer wins no matter what.

I think Ghost Recon Wildlands has the most expansive open world with several towns and cities. According to its wiki it has 67 settlements.

This goes back to one of my earliest post on this forum on this thread.
 
 
That, for me, is an example of how Demon Soul's is difficulty done wrong. It's the same reason I hate games like Oddworld: Abe's Odyssey as well. It's all about that "trial and error" approach. It's a false, yet more frustrating way to make a game hard. You try, and the game by design decided you die. You try again, die again until you do what the game, and only what the game, wants you to do. Most likely something cryptic and nonsensical. I hate that philosophy to difficulty because the only thing about the player it really tests is thier patience.

I think lootboxes are real gambling. The only difference is that with real gambling you have the chance however marginal to win a big prize. With lootboxes you ever loose, because even if you get what you wanted, it is a digital item that literally costs nothing to the company selling the lootboxes. So the dealer wins no matter what.

One of my colleagues is into geocaching, he was at some point the leader of the local geocaching community. He still bicycles up to 10k miles a year at 65.
That said for geocaching your phone is not going to cut it. Firstly because its battery will die if you use to navigate all day. And second it's not nearly precise enough to pinpoint your location, especially in a forest. You need dedicated hiking GPS if you are serious about it.
Your phone's GPS can be 100 meters off, or even more, a hiking GPS should be accurate to around 5-10 meters.

Oh, I played Dirt, Colin Mcrae rally, and lots of others. they just didn't make it on the list.

Racing games are constantly evolving, so you can't have one favorite. A new game comes around from time to time to dethrone the others.
So here are my favorite racing games over the times:
 
Test Drive 3 1990 Stunts 1991 The Need for Speed 1995 Motorhead 1998 Need for Speed Porsche Unleashed 2000 Gran Turismo 4 2004 Test Drive Unlimited 2006 Gran Turismo 5 2010 NFS Shift 2 2011 Project Cars 2 2017  
Honourable mentions:
Car & Driver 1992 Fatal Racing 1995 Destruction Derby 1995 Need For Speed 2 SE 1997 Gran Turismo 1998 Gran Turismo 2 1999 1nsane 2000 Street Legal Racing 2003 Need for Speed Hot Pursuit 2 2010 Gran Turismo 6 2013  
I was a racing game fanatic, well I still would be, if there was any racing game worthy of the name.
I also love racing simulations that I excluded from this list.

Racing games are constantly evolving, so you can't have one favorite. A new game comes around from time to time to dethrone the others.
So here are my favorite racing games over the times:
 
Test Drive 3 1990 Stunts 1991 The Need for Speed 1995 Motorhead 1998 Need for Speed Porsche Unleashed 2000 Gran Turismo 4 2004 Test Drive Unlimited 2006 Gran Turismo 5 2010 NFS Shift 2 2011 Project Cars 2 2017  
Honourable mentions:
Car & Driver 1992 Fatal Racing 1995 Destruction Derby 1995 Need For Speed 2 SE 1997 Gran Turismo 1998 Gran Turismo 2 1999 1nsane 2000 Street Legal Racing 2003 Need for Speed Hot Pursuit 2 2010 Gran Turismo 6 2013  
I was a racing game fanatic, well I still would be, if there was any racing game worthy of the name.
I also love racing simulations that I excluded from this list.

i've seen this implemented in some games, can't remember which ones, but it made me feel really stupid, and I felt the game is being condescending to me.
I think a game should never offer you to skip a challenge, instead just give you hints if you fail many times. But even hints can get annoying when they are repeated too often, so the best thing is if they can be asked on demand, instead of being offered automatically. Most games that have them do it too aggressively and too soon. For example in Tomb Raider you explore a bit and Lara already starts mouthing off on what you should do.
But the worst offender is this regard is Force Unleashed 2, where the hints are not just too many and too soon, but outright wrong. in one bossfight the radio keeps screeching at you if you use force lighting, that it's poinless because you can't hurt it. Even when you are using force lighting to charge the batteries necessary to kill the boss.

Resident Evil is one of those franchises that I tried getting into numerous times because the games attained such a cult status.
I felt like I was obliged to like them if I want to call myself a gamer, but each time I was rebuffed. I just did not enjoy them very much.
The first game I tried was RE2, and the only thing that offered me was tedium.  I remember my friends raving about it, and we always played it when they were over, but I loathed it.
When the RE2 remake came out I gave it another shot and got much further than I ever did in the original. I was at the point where I thought I finally will get out of the dreaded police station, only for the game to make me go back in through a back door. And the whole tedious wandering around looking for something to do started again. That was the point where I quit the game for good this time.
I even tried RE3 remake, but it was just more of the same, and somehow even worse. So I didn't waste much time on it. The only thing that kept me going for a while was the ability o mod the character's appearance, that is the reason I bought the game in the first place. I thought if the character looked like someone I identified with better that would be enough to keep me playing the game, but alas the tedium was unbearable especially so soon after playing RE2.
As for RE4,5,6 I only played one of them, I don't even remember which, maybe the fifth. It was a mediocre action game, so not something that would redeem the franchise in my eyes.
Recently everyone was raving about how good RE8 Village is, but I was skeptical. I did not want to pay full price for a game that I'd probably end up hating. So I asked around among the fans, how different is RE7 from RE8. They said the two games are very similar conceptually. So I got RE7 to test the waters. I had low expectations, but not low enough. The game blew me away with how awful it was. It is a golden sample of everything I don't want in videogames.
So without further ado, here is the original short rant I posted after first playing RE7: Biohazard
 
This might be the worst "game" I ever had the misfortune of playing. Undercutting Sniper GW3, maybe even outriders.

Yeah, game in quotes, because this hardly qualifies as a game. It's just a string of scripted events with boring walking in between.
Occasionally interrupted by tedious cat and mouse games with invulnerable, unkillable enemies.
Oh and of course the cheapest kind of jump scares, that only make me angry with their predictability.

I abandoned RE2/RE3 remakes because they were quite tedious, but compared to this, they are master artworks of gaming, as this cranks tedium to over 9000.

Not to mention the ludicrous, outlandish "story" that no amount of suspension of disbelief can make even remotely immersive.
The premise of zombies is one thing, as long as the law of physics still applies. But I can't stomach total nonsense like gluing your leg back, or invincible zombies.
Also the fact that you have to play out the video recordings, is like kryptonite to immersion.

I'm glad I only paid $5 for this. Man, if Village is anything like RE7, count me the f out.

At this point I don't think there is any I'd pre-order from.

Congratulations!
I'm surprised it's only 100.000. I've had 31916 posts under my name alone on the first forum I was a regular member on. That took me almost 17 years to accumulate though. Between August 2001 and April 2018 (when sadly that forum closed down).

VGR Forum has just achieved an incredible milestone. We now have more than 100,000 posts! It seems like just yesterday we hit 10,000 posts. Our community truly has grown by leaps and bounds. I want to personally thank each of you for your contributions to our conversations here on the forum. You are what has made VGR the welcoming, thriving community it is today. I can’t wait to see how our forum will continue to grow and flourish over the years ahead.
If I could, I would thank every single member individually here. As it is, I know that I cannot possibly get around to everyone. But I want to at least highlight the contributions of some of our core members:
@Shagger: You have done a wonderful job as our first moderator on VGR keeping everything running smoothly and creating a welcoming, inclusive atmosphere. And even with all of your hard work as moderator, you still find time to compose detailed replies to threads. Thank you so much.
@Crazycrab: For two years now, you’ve offered members in-depth replies, especially on technical topics. Thank you for all of your wonderful posts, and for being our resident crustacean.
@The Blackangel Thank you for being one of our core members since 2018, and for taking the time to post thoughtful responses to so many threads over the years. As one of our longest-standing members, we can’t imagine VGR forum without you.
@StaceyPowers We know you don’t have as much time as you’d like here since you are busy with articles for VGR, but you still manage to get around to creating regular new threads. Thanks for giving us new topics to delve into.
@DylanC You have been with us since 2018, making you one of our most established core members. Over all of this time, you’ve been steady with your topics and posts, always keeping the conversation flowing.
@Family sedanNot only are you a prolific commenter, but you follow up on conversations and keep them going with plenty of enjoyable back-and-forth. Thanks for your contributions.
@m76 You’ve been a core member of our forum for more than a year now. Thank you for engaging our members with regular posts and compelling, in-depth responses on a range of topics.
@Head_Hunter It is hard to believe that you have only been with us for a couple of months now. In that time, you have been incredibly prolific, becoming one of our most active posters. We can count on you to reply to just about every topic—even those that other forum members miss. Thank you for actively engaging with so many threads.
@skyfire Since the beginning of 2019, you have shared your thoughts with us on so many gaming topics. You continue to post regularly to Gaming News. Thank you for making sure our members never miss out on the latest updates.
@Justin11 You also have only been with us for a couple of months, but already it is easy to forget that it hasn’t been for years. Your frequent posts have done a lot to keep the conversation going. Thank you for that.
@Boblee Since joining VGR forum earlier this year, you have become one of our most active and involved members, consistently connecting with everyone on the forum. Thanks for becoming a core member of our community.
@Heatman You are a member we can count on to respond to so many threads. I really appreciate your interaction with our members in the more than two and a half years you have now been with us.
@Razor1911 You have become a prominent member of our community since you joined earlier this year. Thank you so much for your continued posting and conversation.
@Darth For the past two years, you have been a consistent contributor around the forum, discussing systems, games and news. Thanks for being such a reliable and dedicated member.
@Empire For more than three years now, you have shared your insights with us and been an engaging conversationalist. Thank you for being one of our longest-standing core members.
@killamch89 Since joining up in December 2018, you have been one of the most active regulars around VGR forum. Moreover, you are always happy to help out other members who have a question about a game. Thank you for your part in making VGR such a great place.
@kingpotato We really miss you around here—you were one of our first really active members. We hope to see you again soon. It isn’t the same without you. Also, congratulations on being a newlywed.
@Reality vs Adventure Your insightful and detailed replies are always compelling to read, and do a lot to fuel conversation. Thank you for all of your contributions in the more than a year you have been a VGR member.
@Patrik You’re coming up on one year on VGR forum, and during that time, we’ve all come to appreciate your posts and replies. Thank you for being a core part of our community.
@AlexanderYou’ve now been with us for just over three years! Thank you for your post replies as well as your threads asking community members engaging questions.
@AndreiMirfi: Thank you for your contributions over the past year and more you’ve been on VGR forum. From welcoming new members to replying regularly to threads, you do a lot for our community. I hope school is treating you well.
@mont86 It’s been nearly three years since you joined us, and over that time, you’ve been a boon to our community. Thank you so much for being one of our core members.
@WithywarlockYour replies are always thoughtful and in-depth. And true to your name, you can make us laugh with your witty observations. Thank you for that.
Thank you all again for everything each of you has done for VGR forum—and to all of our members for being a part of the VGR family. I am so happy with what we have built here together.

Unfortunately my site has crashed, so all of my reviews are gone for the moment.
The good side is that it is re-started with a better platform, that includes the ability to subscribe to an email newsletter. I'll eventually re-publish most old content as well.
http://madblog.shacknet.us/
 

The way independence FM was done in GTA was great, outside of that I never listen to external music during gaming as it interferes with the narrative.

I'm not holding out hope. Black Friday has become a throwaway phrase here in Europe, there are literal companies that have a "black friday sale" all year long. And some do their own "black friday" one week before or after the actual black friday. They can do this because black friday is not an official thing here since there is no thanksgiving either.
Still if there are some unmissable deals I might go for them, but I doubt it.

Mass Effect trilogy on insanity difficulty. (Although I hear the legendary edition is made easier, I haven't played that yet)
Ghost Recon Wildlands / Breakpoint on extreme
Far Cry 1 on realistic
DeusEx on realistic
Max Payne 1-2
Crysis 1-2, Warhead
 
Basically any game I completed on hard difficulty, because if its not satisfying I turn it down, if it still isn't I quit playing that game.

A video game review should be an essay. That's the only review worth reading. Many people say that reviews should be objective and focus only on the subject game, but that is a literal impossibility. The only way a review could be completely objective if it was written by an AI that has no preferences, feelings, and prior experiences.

There were so many it would be hard to list them all. Here are 10 of the best.
Test Drive III: The Passion 1990, this was basically my introduction to PC gaming, and as a kid I was obsessed with cars, so this game blew my mind. I've played some games before this one on other systems but I wasn't much about videogames before this one, this changed everything. I immediately wanted a PC. But it was at least a year later until my parents had the opportunity to buy a retired PC from the company they worked for.  For an 8 year old a year is an eternity. Stunts. 1991 This was my favorite racing game for years, mainly due to it having a track builder. I used to plan maps on paper during the day while I was in dreary boring daycare, that I would build after I got home in the evening. Doom II 1994 The first FPS game that I really liked, John Romero is a genius for the level design of this game is another level, a level that I haven't seen since. if someone asked me to name the most perfect videogame this would be it. The Need of Speed 1995. The racing game that stepped up realism to an adequate level, everything before this was a joke, now we were getting serious. Command & Conquer 1995. My real introduction to real time strategy. I played Dune II but it was just a game for me it didn't really stand out. But C&C was a genre defining game, and it's sequel, Red Alert ended up as my most anticipated game ever, dethroned only by The Last of Us Part II. Transport Tycoon Deluxe 1995. The most satisfying game, one I still occasionally play to this date. There is no other game like it. It is timeless. I indeed played it this year too. That is 26 years later, I just want you to feel the weight of that. Other games become obsolete and not really satisfying to play without modern upgrades and remasters. Carmageddon 1997. I've mentioned my obsession with cars, but it's only half of the story, I was/am also obsessed with crashing cars, and this was the first game that allowed that with any kind of realism. So of course it become an instant favorite. The first game I stayed up until 1 am to play. Half Life 1998. If Doom II is the perfect game level design wise, this is the perfect one gameplay wise, shooting was never so visceral and enjoyable before, or since. I completely forgot time when this came out, and I only realized after 4am that I probably should go to sleep. That never happened to me since then, a complete loss of sense of time. System Shock II 1999. The most creepy and atmospheric game ever created. Bioshock is a mainstreamized knock off of System Shock, nothing more, this is the real deal. Gut wrenchingly scary, complex, but not overbearing. DeusEx 2000. Finally the model game that all games should be trying to dethrone as the best immersive simulator. Unfortunately that still hasn't happened to this date.

Doom II (1994) The Need for Speed (1995) Red Alert (1996) Carmageddon 2 (1998) Unreal (1998) Half-Life (1998) Gran Turismo 2 (1999) DeusEx (2000) Mafia The City of Lost Heaven (2002) Gran Turismo 4 (2004) Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory (2005) Test Drive Unlimited (2006) Mercenaries 2: World in Flames (2008) Mass Effect 2 (2010) COD: Infinite Warfare (2016) Ghost Recon Wildlands (2017) XCOM2 (2017) TLOU2 (2020)

Doom II (1994) The Need for Speed (1995) Red Alert (1996) Carmageddon 2 (1998) Unreal (1998) Half-Life (1998) Gran Turismo 2 (1999) DeusEx (2000) Mafia The City of Lost Heaven (2002) Gran Turismo 4 (2004) Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory (2005) Test Drive Unlimited (2006) Mercenaries 2: World in Flames (2008) Mass Effect 2 (2010) COD: Infinite Warfare (2016) Ghost Recon Wildlands (2017) XCOM2 (2017) TLOU2 (2020)

I wish the best for VGR forum, but having such a large user base might be good for ad revenue and clockthrough rate, but definitely isn't conducive to a healthy community. It is impossible to have a conversation when a topic gets a 100 new posts every minute.

I wish the best for VGR forum, but having such a large user base might be good for ad revenue and clockthrough rate, but definitely isn't conducive to a healthy community. It is impossible to have a conversation when a topic gets a 100 new posts every minute.