Techwright

To be fair, No Man's Sky was terrible when it came out, but an aggressive rollout of patches and additional material over the years has made the game quite playable. This is one of the reasons I opted to wait a few months to access Starfield. Game companies these days feel the pressure to push out a product before it's fully baked, and fix it afterwards, something Bill Gates taught everyone decades ago. I've not sat down to watch the Starfield YouTube videos yet, but I've heard that despite the similarities, there's a major difference: NMS is 256 galaxies with trillions of worlds, but a limited amount of variety in those worlds. Starfield, I'm told, is around 1000 systems and their planets, and more detail in those worlds. Quantity vs. detail quality. Whether that detail difference means more flora and fauna per world, I don't know. If what is reported to me is accurate, that would seem to make them very different. What's the "less ability to explore"? Is that a reference to fewer worlds, more limited ground movement, etc?

Thanks, but the name of my character pictured should point to my (apparently very obscure) joke. His creation was heavily influenced.

I notice the OP didn't mention Architect Entertainment. I'd note that, despite the dominant talk of using AE for farming, it was actually intended to allow players to create great content to keep other players happy, and there've been many such creations over the years. It likely works because players like you know what's boring and what's exciting, and try to balance their creations accordingly. If this sparks an interest in anyone, head over to the Mission Architect forum and read up or maybe introduce yourself and ask for players' top 10 non-farms lists.

Adding to my original post, if you want to learn more about Statesman and Lord Recluse, you might try buying an old copy of The Web of Arachnos, a City of Heroes novel published in the game's heyday. It has more regarding the source of their powers. There was another novel, I think, but I've forgotten what it's name is.

The "how so" is a spoiler for new players, as it has ramifications throughout the game. So...SPOILER: Players do get to face Lord Recluse in a variety of cases depending on one's alignment. See the Homecoming wiki link here for more. Facing Statesman is more complicated, as his story has unfolded differently than other characters. The complication arises because the game presents somewhat of a compression of different times and events. The progress of a player's character is meant to show progression through time. Statesman is largely not present, and playing out story material especially the 7-episode Signature Story Arc (spoilers) will help to show why he's not easily available. All that said, there are more powerful beings in the game. These require large groups of players to band together to fight them, though I suppose some players with incredibly crafted characters might try to solo or duo these. Their ranks include such characters as Mot and Rularuu.

apparently so. 4GB of VRAM is a lot of wiggle room.

What's the dedicated video RAM on your nVidia? I'm going to guess 8 gigs. I think this is where it is going to be a problem for many. There's a lot of otherwise-solid video cards out there that were bought with 6 gig VRAM, mine included (just a year ago), but the game's minimum is 8 gigs.

Rewatching now that I'm back with the "usual resources".

While I can't recall seeing a GM attack them, I have seen Posi and Valkerie get into the thick of an invasion before, so they might get to fight Nemsie Boy at some point. Not a GM of course but potentially similar.

Sorry for the delay. I have been traveling for work, and have not had access to my usual resources. I will give a proper Techwright over-analysis on my return. Great episode. Not perfect as @Mr. Vee noted, but still quite enjoyable.

I've been to Vegas twice. Admittedly there's a lot of trash, but there was a lot of shine and glow as well. I don't think St. Martial has that. It could be that it was designed at a time when we really didn't have good neon in the game, not that it's gotten much better since. Were I designing the zone today, I'd think one part Vegas, one part Miami nightlife (due to the islands) and one part seedy neighborhoods at a distance from the casino district.

I missed it in the theaters, I'm not adding another subscription channel (especially just for one movie), and I'm not buying a film outright just to watch it, so I'll have to take the (probably) long slog waiting for Amazon to add rental option, rather than just selling it outright. I'll get to it eventually, even if just to see Keaton in the cowl again.

So no drop? That is odd. I've only played ice on range strikers, never melee (well, not since 2005), but everything flying that freezes drops to the ground or platform below them.

Possibly two of the lightest, cleanest views of this island I ever saw. I always hated that this island in particular had a seedy run-down look.

Theme song...hmmm....I'm thinking....I'm thinking....yeah, I got nuthin'.

I've said it before, but clipping (cutting? I'm always forgetting the word for it) of head components is actually a boon in this game and lends itself to some great looks. Glad you figured that out because that's a great helmet. The whole outfit is awesome.

I went through the credits on episode two and was surprised to see the following list just casually down in the stacks: Robin Atkins Downes is a prolific voice actor, known in Star Wars as the voice of the animated Freedom Fighter Cham Sindula, Hera's dad. But I first encountered him as live action Byron on Babylon 5. Sam Witwer is a Star Wars legend. He's one of the few able to correct Dave Filoni (and has, to the shock of all) as his knowledge of the franchise is nearly as great as Dave's. He's possible best know as the face and voice of Starkiller, from the non-canonical games of The Force Unleashed. However, he's become known for voicing the animated Darth Maul, and has played several other animated roles (and some live cameos?) including voicing Emperor Palpatine for a time. Matthew Wood is the voice of pretty much every Clone Wars era droid, and even the voice of the cyborg general Greivous in all works, live an animated. He briefly played the role of Bib Fortuna, Jabba the Hutt's major domo and replacement. He's also one of the lead sound designs in Star Wars back to the Prequel Trilogy. Due to his volume of contribution, he also ranks in the "legends" category. Helen Sadler has become the voice of Rey in all animated and game productions for Star Wars. I learned something interesting about Ahsoka's villains. Not sure if it will have any bearing on the story, but I'll put it out there anyway:

I've been (occasionally) asking for this for a couple of years now. While I don't have an underlying medical cause, I don't get much enjoyment in large events like the Mothership Raid or a Nemesis invasion because the close-quarter fighting overloads the visuals with all the effects. In the end, due to the white-out (or perhaps light-out) conditions, I end up guessing where my opponents are. Perhaps now that a medical need has been stated, something will be done. Anyone remember that is exactly what happened, in spades, when we were first given color options for powers? It seemed most players went for high-intensity colors and didn't understand the concept that subtle is more. The overload was such that it was making me nauseous, something that previously only happened if I played in 1st person perspective. I nearly quit the game then, until somehow some sanity began to return to the population, and the intensities were changed. Mostly.

Episode 2 is down: Yeah, This episode surprised me by making one big stride forward in connecting the dots between Original Trilogy and Sequel Trilogy:

Just finished episode 1. Haven't seen episode 2 yet, but after I write... The non-spoiler bits: This was some of Filoni's best work. I truly hope the series holds to the end. Not only from great storytelling, and a great cast, but even details like the use of light and shadow (especially on Lothal), and the willingness to both have moments of silence and slower pacing, in essence, letting it "breathe". I know he recieved counsel from his Mandalorian directors, and it seems to have really paid off. Combat seems improved from the Mandalorian episode "The Jedi". Responding to previous comments, then may add one of my own: And one thought of my own before Episode 2:

I'm going through another batch of game demos, mostly games still in development, so I take the not-quite-there-yet feel of them into account. So far this year I've found a handful I'm keeping an eye on: 1. Farewell North - first up is a demo I just finished. It's more of a story game, but has mild puzzle and platform elements, at least the demo does. Perhaps the full game will have harder challenges. The art and unfolding story are absolutely beautiful. The use of alternating color and monochrome (as well as solid/whole vs. ethereal/fractured) as symbols of emotional turmoil really work in context, and the game really connects on the nature of dogs as emotional anchors for their humans. 2. New Cycle - City Builder, Survival, Post-Apocalyptic. In this case, the apocalypse was a massive change in the sun causing a massive solar flare that wiped out our highly-dependent technological future, and set the survivors back almost to the stone age. The focus is on rediscovering our path to at least the late industrial age while designing a future that takes the changes of the sun and weather into account. No zombies anywhere (at least, not in the demo, nor hinted at.) Most of the demo is man-vs-nature, or rather a nature badly distorted by the change in the sun, and threatened by future re-occurrences of what happened. There are, however, strong indications that the full game will have greater interaction with the world around including other settlements, either friendly or hostile. I'm intrigued by the use of A.I. for key NPCs. While the system is currently very clunky by the creators' own admission, I found that I could converse more fluently than other games in dealing with these key NPCs. That is, when the system was working. The demo version only offers the tutorial, but it's clear from what is currently blocked in game that there are many other functions and environments, several of which will likely be quite challenging to conquer. 3. Aloft - taking Pandoria to a whole 'nother level. Well, at least the floating islands. Navigate the skies both by gliding flight and by converting small islands into essentially floating sailing ship with the included ability to raise or lower depending on your target's elevation. There's gathering, crafting, farming, as well a secrets hidden in crazy, sometimes challenging-to-reach places. Fighting is simplistic at first but grows ever more challenging. There's been quite a bit added since I first played this lengthy demo earlier this year. 4. Quilts and Cats of Calico - I can't believe I actually enjoyed this competitive puzzle game. Actually, I can't even believe I downloaded the demo, but I did and yeah, I did. Even crazier since I avoid cats due to severe allergies, so most references to them have no interest to me. The craziness of the theming aside, this is at its core a competitive puzzle game, taking turns against a human or A.I. opponent, each trying to create a high-scoring "quilt" according to the rules of the game. In a sense, it has elements of other games I've played in the past. Probably a similar comparison would be Scrabble: pulling components from a grab bag, and trying to fit what is in your hand to the board for maximum points. Saying it is matching colors and patterns is an understatement to the challenge, especially by the time the game teaches you all rules. I only played against the A.I. but I could see playing this against a friend. It probably takes about as long as a good game of checkers. There is a mild campaign mode, with some really odd characters and dialog, but I chose to ignore them and focus on the challenge their level of the campaign offered. 5. Dreadful River - This has since moved on to Early Access, but as the free demo remains available, I'll include it in my list. I first played the demo early this year. The game has grown hugely in 7 months and shows no sign of slowing down. The basic concept reminds me of the old fantasy adventure games of the 1990s, but instead of wandering the countryside, this tale is done on a river and the lands adjacent to it. Protect a king whose kingdom has been usurped as you travel a hostile river in search of the components needed to empower a McGuffin to in turn empower his fight against the usurper. You start with a small band on a humble raft. As you gather resources from river and land, you'll eventually trade enough to upgrade the raft, several times, increase your fighting force, as well as bring different classes to the fight, and arm them better. But the enemy is out hunting, and they're getting faster and better as well. More explosive, too. There's ruins, dungeons, and river caves to explore, and the growth of the game has brought in wild animals and supernatural creatures including river monsters. At the moment, my fighting force is far down the river and numbers 30 on the raft and includes archers, crossbows, spearmen, berserkers, priests and a mage, as well as, of course, the king.

It's already happening. Just...um...google it.

And for this we use Villains? 😉 Space station is good. Not sure we can get zero-g unless it is a variation on hover. Space station overrun is really good. First thought that came to mind was the Alien franchise. Imagine clearing a space station that has broken equipment, low lighting with flickering lights, creepy creaky metal, environmental control damage with reduced temperatures (permanent minor cold effect), and darting, jump-scare aliens. I'd very much take my characters into that. Can we give the aliens slime effects? Would love to see it used for hold and loss-of-traction effects.

Computer-wise, I've no recommendation. Hopefully someone else does. Board-wise, my late father taught me using the wonderful Educator Chess Set. The pieces are somewhat stylized beyond the basics, but the pedestals are fantastic: wedge-shaped to allow printed icon instructions for each piece. Mine came with a basic instruction book as well, but that was 5 decades ago. I'm not sure what the current one has. I've seen it under different names. Here, for example, is The Chess Teacher from Lakeshore. There are copies of the original 1972 one still being sold with collector prices on them.

Scott has also been portrayed as having eye gear that allows a dialed strength setting to his optical blast. That's something that, last I knew, we simply couldn't duplicate in the game. One could always create a character that was an amalgamation of the three Summers brothers. I believe Gabriel radiates the energy from his hands.