Elite Season
Yes, its Fall. What I am thinking, playing and an update on my UE5 game.
The Weekly Page # 7
Not often am I stuck without thoughts, but this week is proving to be that. But lets carry on through the veil.
Fall, the Elite Season
So yes, my weekly cadence already seems to be in jeopardy, but I will fight through the post covid brain fog that is plaguing me for this edition. Normally I would write what’s on my mind, usually about something I read or learned, but at this point in time all I can really think about is how underwhelming a villain Thanos was, how the purge movies are stupid and football. So as I attempt to break out of this slump, lets talk about the elite season. The one that stands on its own in greatness, the one that the others look to in awe.
That is fall.
Fall in the northeast is what we describe as elite season. The humid days of summer have led us to cool days and even cooler nights. The leaves start changing, the breeze breezes just a little bit cooler, you grab an extra blanket for the night and throw on a hoodie during the day. Fall ushers in a new season of football and hockey. It rings the bells of Ocktoberfest, Pumking and stout season. It is the calm before the storm that is winter. The lawn is marked with holes as the squirrels bury their nuts, the fireplaces getting tuned up fill the air with that rich, welcoming smoke. What’s not to love about this season. Throw on your best hoodie and get crunching in some fallen fall leaves. I just hope I can break out of this void and enjoy it before hell breaks loose and we get buried in snow.
What I am Playing
So, outside of Destiny, I did grab a couple games on the Switch that were on sale and caught my eye and there are some new additions to game pass this week that I am looking forward to.
DEATHLOOP
PS5, Xbox Series
I originally passed on this as I didn’t have a PS5 at the time, but now Deathloop is on GamePass so I am excited to start this (which, yes, technically I am not “Playing” this currently).
DEATHLOOP transports you to the mysterious island of Blackreef, where an eternal struggle between two extraordinary assassins will determine the island’s future. As Colt, you must find a way to put an end to the timeloop trapping the island in an endless cycle, all while being hunted by the island’s inhabitants. Using your powerful weapons and abilities, you’ll need to take out 8 key targets across the stunning, yet chaotic, island before the day resets in order break the loop once and for all. But lurking in the shadows is rival assassin Julianna whose sole mission is to take Colt out and keep the loop going. Learn from each cycle, try new paths and approaches, and break the loop.
Hourglass
Switch
I came across this on the Nintendo e-Shop and just loved the art style of this as well as the puzzle system that utilizes a cool time traversal rewind mechanic. I am a sucker for these stylized games.
In Hourglass you can create a time-clone of yourself to solve challenging puzzles. You will play as Aywa, a young adventurer who is traveling to Egypt to find her missing father - an archeologist, who never returned from his latest expedition.
Cozy Grove
Switch
Another impromptu Switch e-Shop purchase, this one is a life-sim game about camping on a haunted island. As a spirit scout you will wonder the island’s forest each day finding new secrets and helping the other ghosts. To me it feels like the perfect Switch game. Something you can play here and there, on a flight, during work, etc.
From the store listing:
Welcome to Cozy Grove, a life-sim game about camping on a haunted, ever-changing island. As a Spirit Scout, you'll wander the island's forest each day, finding new hidden secrets and helping soothe the local ghosts. With a little time and a lot of crafting, you'll bring color and joy back to Cozy Grove!
Cozy Grove is synced to real world time, and provides 30-60 minutes of new quest content each day. After that, you can fish, craft and decorate to your heart's content!
Features:
• Beautiful, dynamic, hand-drawn landscapes that come alive when you help a spirit in need.
• Dozens of memorable characters and spirits for you to find and befriend. Each spirit has a unique, extensive story for you to unravel over time.
• Collect spirit animals, craft decorations, go fishing and more!
• 40+ hour campaign filled with side quests, designed to span months of playtime.
What I am Working On
This is a new portion of the newsletter with the purpose of showing my work and keeping myself honest and motivated.
Tentatively titled “Of Gods, Puppets and Dreams” and is being built in Unreal Engine 5 (previously started on Unreal Engine 4). In this game you play as a being alone in large space station. It is a first person story and exploration game where you try to discover why you are where you are, and what your purpose is. All while being in a temporal loop, day after day looping back on itself. Its about exploring the ideas of emptiness, loneliness, excitement and confusion among others. The ideas stem from some of my favorite games such as “Gone Home”, “Firewatch” and the non-game-game “P.T.”. Here are some in progress screen shots.
The End
Until next week, go bills. Don’t forget to subscribe.