You don't have to wait long, the next part comes out tomorrow and the final part on the 10th. I don't like the Tranny either, I think I'll just give it a miss.

I had a lot of fun playing Planet Alcatraz. "Time to pull the trigger!".

Next one down: Tearaway on the PlayStation Vita. If Killzone and Uncharted demonstrated the raw power of the Vita then this game demonstrated what can be done using all its features. Funnily I hadn't noticed that this one is not entirely a Vita exclusive anymore, as there was a kind of remaster for PS4 in 2015 titled Tearaway Unfolded, but apparently they differ substantially due to the hardware differences so I'm not at all sorry that I picked this version.

At first glance Tearaway is just a cute mascot platformer in the vein of Banjo-Kazooie or Spyro with visuals stylised as paper craft and some random mechanical gimmicks attached. You soon discover that you can quite literally stick your finger into the game world to hit enemies or move large objects by putting it on the Vita's rear touchpad. Of course you can also move certain objects by swiping. As the hours pass you will discover more and more such features that will utilise literally everything the Vita has to offer: its gyroscope, both cameras and even its microphone. Given the game's paper craft setting you can also make cutouts and decorate stuff with them. So okay, there's some original ideas here, it's fun, cool.

The game's genius lies not just in the stuff you can do here, though, it's how all of it comes together. My main worry from the very beginning was that the story was too absurd and I just wouldn't care about anything going on there. That I wouldn't care about the journey that our little avatar, Iota, embarks on - that it would just be a sequence of random places and challenges. There's lots of fourth-wall breaking here, the game literally begins with two narrators coming up with the story as they go. Honestly: that was not a good sign for me. I was very worried that it would be one of those games which are far too aware that they are just a game or perhaps even *gasp* just a toy. What I got was the opposite.

I don't want to get into too much detail but briefly put Iota's journey is about trying to reach the sun... which has your face. Yes, your face. And you're helping him reach you. "You" is incidentally also what the narrators call the entity whose face is visible on the sun. Tearaway is a pretty impressive experiment that tries to tear down the barriers between a video game and reality - in both directions. This cutesy little platformer honestly raises some pretty interesting philosophical questions. Whatever your expectations towards the game may be - they are wrong.

Sure, in the end this is "just" a mascot platformer with gimmicks. And it's a very easy and forgiving one which is nowhere as challenging as the classics from the N64 and PS1 - it's also not very long. But it's also a game that will make you smile and wonder and perhaps even cry. This may not be Braid or The Witness but it's sure as hell closer to those than Mario 64.

Oh yeah, and the music is friggin' amazing.

30 I have "finished" Blasphemous, the base game at least. Now I have the DLC and NG+ waiting.

Dark Souls Remastered (XB1X)

Had to play it again after playing DS3 through 4 times, just to refresh my memory and see how it compared. I think this is the fourth play through of Dark Souls. I still think that this game is just slightly superior to DS3 and Bloodborne, but not by much. It's easier than than those two, but it still has the best level and world design. The Remastered version is smoother and looks better overall, yet still keeps all the game play the same right down to any tricks and exploits. So I still spent a good hour farming the forest protectors in Darkroot Garden early in the game to get a few levels- yes they still chase you and fall off the cliff to their deaths. Had to solo pretty much the entire game (only 7 co-op sessions) as multiplayer is already a bit dead. This was also my first time playing Artorias of the Abyss, as I never got that DLC for the 360. The DLC isn't must play material, but does have some interesting revelations about the overall story...like Artorias maybe didn't actually do what everyone thinks he did.
I'll probably come back to it for NG+ after I finish up a couple of shorter games in between.

Beautiful Desolation - 4/5

This game stands out as something genuinely unique and inspired, largely because the surreal, post-apocalyptic take on South Africa; but also because the game presents you with a lot more flexibility in choices and divergent paths than you'd expect from a point and click adventure game.

I absolutely loved the beautiful (and often desolate) environments in this game, as well as the quirky characters & creatures, Sadly, though, the main plot thread felt pretty dull. And, honestly, there were points towards the end where my interest really started to wane and I had to push myself to continue.

Also, I guess it might seem like a pretty minor gripe, but the Kickstarter backer names popping up in a bunch of places was pretty grating. Yeah, I get it, the game probably wouldn't exist without Kickstarter backers...and Kickstarter backers clearly want their name in the game, that's just how it is - but it still sucks. Seeing people's stupid internet handles added into in-universe epitaphs and plaques is the kind of fourth wall-breaking shit that really pulls you out of an otherwise incredibly immersive world.

So, yeah, there's definitely some annoyances and issues, but this is a game that truly feels special. And who knows, perhaps one day I'll do a second playthrough and make some different choices...

Shadow Warrior with Twin Dragons and Wanton Destruction expansions.

Got massive blasts with the game, no idea why did I delayed my playthrough. Surely hitscanners were annoying and there were some (explosive) suprises from enemies and by me but nothing
And I loved that higher dificulty = more enemies = more gibs. To hell with bullet sponges nonsense in modern games.

Played both expansion packs and while TD wasn't bad its levels surely felt boring. I'm not level designer myself but there was less fun with them compared to basic game.

Now there is last game - Redneck Rampage. Caaaaaan't wait....

Same, WL2 wasn't that good and sadly WL3 does not feel any better.
From these 3 games I played Atom RPG and Planet Alcataraz. First game is slower, there's a lot of content and you never feel overpowered unless you utilize some strange meta builds.
Planet Alcatraz was fun. Lot of shooting, inventory managements and crude humor (I'm easterneuropean so westernes might not find it funny).
I have two tips - make Boar (main character) a thief, stealing is good XP source.
Focus on main quests to recruit the whole team, then start looting, pickpocketing and do side missions.

My main problem with BD was that I find hard to find characters again, because I could not remember where to go to speak with them again. So I had to travel a lot just looking for them. It's unusual for me and also many other players had that experience. I have been told that something has been made to mitigate that - something like an in-game notepad.

I agree with you with the jarring feeling of the backers name killing the mood and credibility.

I did finally play Celeste and finish the main story. I currently have a save in the middle of Chapter 8, and still have the B-sides to come back to some day, not to mention Chapter 9.

(Of course, right not I'm playing a Super Mario World romhack, but it's not a kaizo hack; it's a troll hack.)

(By the way, maybe some day I might try my hand at making a Celeste custom map, and it would be a troll level. Maybe that might work? It wouldn't be hard the way Celeste custom maps tend to be.)

Looking at old footage of the game, it seems like they added a to-do list. I can definitely imagine it would be rough without that. I mean, it was even confusing in places with the to-do list.

Also, btw, this is a real thing in the game. There's straight-up a statue that has "RPG CODEX" written on it...

I wish these games would at least introduce on option to toggle off backer content or something. I know of no game that benefitted from it, it's always distracting and feels like watching a movie with product placement or a talentless nephew being cast as a prominent supporting actor in order to appease the producer. I understand that they need to cover the costs and give people incentives for providing the money, but compromising on the integrity of the work is the wrong approach, IMO. :/

Mmm, my problem was, I knew what to do, but I could not find the guys I needed to interact with in that huge world. XD But I have bad orientation in real life.
Backers mentioned in game are cool if they choose a fitting name, not ManchesterUnited1987, or appear as really part of the game world. Sadly the toggle off idea, while cool, might be a deterrent for someone to spend 500 $ on your game and then not be visualized. Several characters in Monkey Island were based on real people at Luucas Arts, Carla, the Sword Master, was actually based on a woman called Carla Green for example. That's how you fit a real person in a game and make it even iconic. But why do you have to use those silly Kickstarter names.

Far Cry Primal

Far Cry, in prehistorical times. A nice twist in the usual Far Cry fare, I must admit! Okay, you still have to unlock "radio towers" (here, bonfires) to travel faster between areas, but I found it well integrated in the spirit of the game.

So, you're a member a the Wenja tribe and, as you set foot in the land of Oros after a failed mammonth hunt which turned out to be a Wenja hunt by a sabertooth tiger, you'll have to gather the other Wenjas and build your village, so to make Oros welcoming to you all. But of course, there will be threats... and also unlockable NPC that will have their own backstories and will enable you to unlock new skills and new technologies.

What was the most impressive for me compared to the other Far Cry games is that, this time, you don't have any means to communicate with anybody else unless you're in their physical presence. No radio, no talkie-walkie. And honestly, when you start the game and have very few waypoints unlocked, yeah, you can feel "alone" in this world, and it was an interesting feeling, to be honest! ^_^

Otherwise, it's pretty much standard Far Cry fare, gather resources, craft things, unlock areas, follow the main and side quests. Which was, to me, not a bad thing at all, frankly! Everything was pretty well integrated, with that pinch of non sens and ridiculousness about the widlife I loved in Far Cry 5 ^_^

So, yes, a very good game, this Far Cry Primal!

So far in 2020: https://www.gog.com/forum/general/games_finished_in_2020/post29

Yeah, totally. And to be fair, there's a bunch of real names in there. But, also, the game seemingly wants me to believe that there was some great fallen warrior named SausageInYouFace.

I LOL'ed, and had to wipe the coffee from the screen of my monitor that I was drinking, as I was reading that ^.