Getting Ready to Rumble

Well, not really, but I thought it sounded cool. Today was more about getting ready to get back into a couple of games that I’ve enjoyed in the past. First off is a game that I was planning on jumping into – Horizon Zero Dawn. I’ve been seeing the adverts for a while now, and finally, I went out and purchased the game in anticipation of getting started this weekend.

The other game I ran into was Wurm Online. I loved that little survival/building game, and I think I just might get back into it. But then we’ll see since I kinda already have 5+2 games I’m focusing on for August…

Gaming Prep

Today is basically me preparing to get on board with Horizon Zero Dawn on the PC. I went ahead and pre-purchased the game from Steam and did the pre-load thing, so things are all set. Now I just have to wait.

It’s been a while since I played HZD, but I recall it fondly. Sure, as with most games, I did not come close to finishing it up on the PlayStation 4, but I had fun while I was playing it. I’m certainly hoping to get further (and maybe even complete the game) on the PC.

One thing I think will be nice is that I’ve been playing a bunch of games with some really brutal fights, or at least they have been difficult for me to get through. If I recall correctly, while HZD has some fierce battles, the evolution of combat is much more gradual and not the brick wall that Nioh or Dark Souls throws you against. Hopefully, this is the case as I ease into the PC version.

We’ll find out tomorrow…

Wurm Online

Interestingly, as I was loading up the pre-load of HZD, I saw that Wurm Online was now on Steam. I really enjoyed Wurm way back when and seeing that it was on Steam brought back some cool memories of building my house, making a boat, designing towers, and just surviving.

The game has never had a huge following – as far as I can tell, they have been happy to have a few thousand simultaneous players – but I kinda see it as a take on the Minecraft style of gameplay, so there doesn’t have to be tons of players. And actually, some of my favorite times have been solo play as I built up my little plot of land planting trees, flattening areas, and making roads.

In addition to being on Steam, I saw that there was a macOS version, and it struck me that I could be building and maintaining a little Wurm village while I’m leveling in Warcraft or smacking home runs in Out of the Park Baseball. I’m gonna have to see about setting this up on my Mac Book Pro and checking to see what all has changed in the years since I’ve played. I know they’ve been doing a lot of work – incorporating bridges, underground buildings, and a better UI – so I might have a bit of learning to do.

Of course, as soon as I posted yesterday about the games I plan on playing in August, I find something else to look into. We’ll see how this integrates into my actual August gaming since it’s not in my plans.

Promptapalooza Prompt Day 7

Today is also day 7 of Blaugust, or rather it is the seventh day that we are posting a prompt for Promptapalooza. Yup, this year, Belghast over at Tales of the Aggronaut has suggested a different format…we’re gonna be posting writing prompts each day to get things rolling and to see the different perspectives on various topics in gaming, pop-culture, media, and fandoms.

The prompt for today (which I’ll tackle tomorrow) is:

What skill do you want to improve on the most?

I’m hoping to put on my thinking cap tonight as I sleep to figure out what to say.

It’s a Wrap

Ok, so August maybe a month of 5+3 games, but we’ll see how things turn out. For the most part, if – and I mean IF – I get back into Wurm, I’m thinking it would be more of a side-game that I only half attend to as I’m grinding my skills and building my house. If the game is anything like it was when I last played, once I get things set up with a small shack and fenced-in yard, I should be able to play reasonably safely. With a fence around me, I won’t have to worry about roaming animals and beasts and would be able to build without too much attention.

Horizon Zero Dawn, on the other hand, is a game I am hoping to make some good progress on this month. While Wurm pretty much starts you out in the end game right off the bat, HZD makes you work for the story. And I’m totally invested in discovering the story beyond where I got to on the PS4.

The bottom line is that August is already looking promising.

Ramble 2020.03.26 | Getting Ready to Rumble