Daft

As @Ashley pointed out, Buzzwole is one of my favourites. He's just so utterly bizarre but kind of amazing. Him and Marshadow I absolutely love.

So, basically it ended up that the account doesn't need me anymore which has left me kind of aimless at work and I'm not really getting regular briefs from the other accounts. I don't think this sustainable for obvious reasons and it's only a matter of time before they tell me that. In the meantime I've been speaking to recruiters and all that. I have an interview today for somewhere that I'm meh about. But we'll see. The money is better but the direction of work isn't really what I'm looking for and it's about time in my career that I settle on a specialty – I'm kind of bored of being a jack of all trades and master of none. Maybe I'll change my mind when I talk see this new place. But I doubt it.

Ah, yeah, at first I had it flat on the sofa next to me but I found a way to easily prop it up and have it sitting in front of me. If you can have it so it's easy to glance at on a stand, I 100% recommend it. Also, I went the other way with GPS and turned it on. I use the 'cinematic' thing a lot to auto-ride and just pay attention for any blips that pop up on the radar. I tend to switch between cinematic and manual quite a lot; usually manual when I have a good idea where to go and the auto when the journey requires a lot of turns and looking at the map and screen at the same time is impractical. When I'm not going anywhere in particular, having the map on the app isn't an issue. Yes, it's slightly more convenient to have it on the screen but it's also butt-ugly and I much prefer it without.

I had this issue too and I realised a setting on my TV meant to enhance Blacks was actually crushing them in RDRII (at least in the calibration screen).

I get criticisms about the game being slow (animations and looting and such), but it's clearly pretty deliberate and I actually really appreciate it. The world feels lush and alive. I was riding to a waypoint yesterday when a thunder storm hit, it looked unbelievable. The controls are another matter. They feel at best clunky, at worst convoluted. I think I'm getting used to them but they are certainly jarring at first. The inventory system is kind of trash. The absolute worst thing is the tutorials in the upper left-hand corner that appear as you're doing something. It was telling me how to quick-draw in a duel as the duel was happening...and there was no way I was going to win that one. Seems to happen a lot. And it's really shitty. But I guess that'll be less of an issue as the game goes on. I'm using the app and have the mini-map disabled on the man screen. I reeeeeeeeeeally love having virtually no HUD.

I cancelled my pre-order because there aren't enough boards.

Then who gives a shit? It's just one stupid game. One game gets cross-play/save? And that's it? Forgive me for not praising or damning Sony for an utterly pointless gesture. Wake me up when cross-play is standard across all games. 'Other titles'. Am I hallucinating this statement? What have you heard that point to the contrary?

I don't deny Sony held things up, but why is that a bad thing? like I said, Fortnite is a pretty homogenised experience, but what about my Warframe example? If cross-play/progression/commerce makes sense, then it is worth doing properly. So either this is just another singular exception (and a PR stunt), or it marks real change to all cross-platform games. So, which one do you think it is?

So less than four months.

Right, but that's not my point. If I buy a Season Pass on PSN, does it work for my XBL and for my Nintendo Switch? And if it does, who gets my money from the Season Pass? Sony? Okay, but Microsoft have a discount on V-bucks, so I'm going to buy it on XBL and use it on my Switch. That's just one game with a relatively homogenised system in place, but take Warframe for example, if I sell an item on one system to someone on another system...then I've just put money in the pocket of a competitor. I'm going to play Destiny on Xbox, but I'm going to use my Playstation exclusive gun... and Bungie have accidentally made this gun a bit too OP, but now I have an unfair advantage. Obviously Bungie is at fault...but it's going to tilt people. I'm going to play Overwatch on Xbox because Microsoft support Keyboard and Mouse, except that isn't supported on Playstation... I don't need to explain this one (but I will say K&M should be a standard option in all games and matchmaking should take into account input device). But what about when it comes to reporting people for abuse? Or party chat? Or sending messages? What about game invites? Cross-game cross-platform invite? The legals of signing into PSN has, up until this point, only had to concern itself with other PSN users – who all sign the same agreement. But how does that have to change to accommodate another network of gamers with its own T&Cs? Clearly, it's not too hard, but it was never simply about the flip of a switch IF this is meant to be rolled out into more games. And, this isn't just cross-play. It's 'cross platform gameplay, progression and commerce'. I too am happy that Sony have come around, but I would hardly call them slow on the up take – how long have Xbox and Switch players been playing together? About four months. I'd hardly say that was long when the real aim is standardised cross-play across both/all networks. I mean, the Fortnite cross-play is still in Beta. If it was as easy as flipping a switch, why would we even need that? We've had numerous cross-platform games before, so why is this different? It's either a pointless PR stunt for everyone, or we're actually looking at a more open way to play, and that has a lot of logistical and legal implications.

You say the backed down, but these things take time to implement and this beta is going live today. I'm not saying they weren't pushed into doing this, but cross-play is not a simple matter and if it is to be rolled out across more titles it needs a measured approach, especially since this isn't just cross-play, it's 'cross platform gameplay, progression and commerce across PlayStation 4, Android, iOS, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, and Mac operating systems'. Now if they could sort Keyboard and Mouse support out, we'd be golden.

Golden Sun, you say? * Screams from space *

I'm anxious because the account I work on basically gives me less work than it used to. I've done a few bits on other accounts recently but I don't really feel part of the process and I don't get much feedback. While I was picked for pretty particular reasons for this role, the two people involved in my hiring have left/are leaving; one agency side, the other client side, so I kind of think my role has become redundant. I've kind of just hoped things would return to normal and I'd start getting more regular briefs in (because I really like this account), but I think I'm kind of in denial. I could be over thinking it, I usually assume the worst but...part of me thinks this job is handled really fucking stupidly and that having someone full time on it is not worth it. Things do tend to calm down around this time of year but there's just been a bit too much change. While the processes involved in the job have never been efficient (and part of my job was dealing with that) I feel that it's got to a tipping point. So, yeah, I dunno. I'm having a catch up with one of the higher ups in the agency tomorrow. Last time we did a catch up, they were really accommodating but this account is just awkward. I often feel redundant, so I'm kind of expecting them to make me so at some point.

I used compressed air to clear out my Pro when I got God of War, it sounded distressed. Afterward it would still rev up occasionally (usually during cutscenes) but it's so much quieter now.

In the past couple weeks I have been playing this a lot. I built my first Prime, completed as of Friday. Rhino Prime. He's so rad and lets me jump in to activities slightly beyond me for now. Got all the parts for Valkyrie Prime too. Apart from that, I've built Oberon, who's ace. And Frost, who I'll probably try and trade for soon because he is also rad. I've polarised 2 of my Hek weapon slots and I have an Othros Prime which is amazing. It's like a blender. I've started The Second Dream. And it's a lot of fun. I am absolutely loving this game.

Black Manta looks amazing. Better than the comics. I'm wet for Orm, the trench, Atlana, Mera, Mamoa, Vulko.

It's SO overwhelming. I did the same as you, jumped back in last week to give it a go again. For some reason I had LOKI as my Warframe. And I'm not really sure how. Maybe on my initial attempt I used the Platinum you start with to get him? I definitely haven't spent real money on this game (...yet. I've no problem dropping money on games I think are worth it but clearly I bumbled around in the menus at some point and spent Platinum on him) Anyway, I still had enough Platinum to pick up Excalibur so I did that. And...I think I kind of love it. It is really overwhelming. I think I'd have ignored upgrading mods if the other half hadn't worked out how to do it and pointed it out to me. I'm making my way through Mars at the moment. I've grasped the basics now but still have so many questions. I've almost built my first new Warframe, Rhino. I've built the Helmet and the Chassis but still need the material for the Systems, but I don't think that'll take too long.

Honestly, if Nintendo announced a Golden Sun game for Switch you'd be able to hear my scream in the vacuum of space.

I don't want to make friends just so I can play doubles in a non-torturous way. I want to play this game casually and jump on randomly for a few games and then jump off. If I want to play a game with friends I'd rather just play Overwatch tbh.

Blocking is good and all, but screwing an attempt up shouldn't mean a fail state for the game. Especially when I'm co-oping with friends who has little to no experience playing the game. Considering the pick-up-and-playness of the game – to the point that you can only play Tie Break in online doubles (with a local co-op partner) and not a full set – this implementation is nothing but incredibly stupid. I genuinely had to tell my friend that when the other team did the super move to just leave it; the pros far outweigh the cons; I'd rather lose the point than risk THE WHOLE GAME. (Obviously he still went for it and failed and we lost...despite out reading the opponent at every turn) I don't really have an issue with tactics. I actually think this is one of the few games where you can read your opponents (and even kite them) pretty well, it's one of the best things. Yeah, you have a point with Boo. I started to cotton onto his schemes. Online doubles (with a local partner) seems to only let you choose between the normal and the simple rule set, but you can't change things like the number of rackets or if KOs are allowed. Edit: Also, how you select courts is atrocious. Why can't there be a normal stage select after the character select? Between this and the dumb stage rotation in Splatoon, I'm really starting to remember the inverse silver lining that comes with everything good from Nintendo.

Played local Doubles online. The KO mechanic is the dumbest thing ever. Basically, if anyone's racket breaks, they lose the whole thing so it not worth the risk so every time someone pulls off one of those super shots everyone just runs away. Also, you can only do Tie Breaker. And you basically can't tweak any of the other options (so you can't switch the KO mechanic off, or change the number of rackets everyone has...which is set at 1 for no good reason). Genuinely terrible, all of this. And I know people have mentioned there is an option to reject bad connections, but you can't reject the people who have apparently good/fine connections that then turn to crap (and usually never recover) over the course of a match. It's frustrating, because if it works and none of the players are gaming the systems, then it's a hell of a lot of fun. Also, fuck Boo. Edit: As for single player... Fuck Boo AND Why can you only play as Mario? And why is Toad even there. And why can't I restart challenges straight away? And why do I have to sit through crap before a challenge AND AFTER WHEN I'VE LOST?! I can't play this game for too long. It both brilliant and driving me barmy.

The lag online is absolutely awful. Edit: Second match was less awful

They seem to have the multiplayer DLC locked down with a free character every month (if I've read rightly), which shows their intent to keep interest in this game ongoing. So I don't think single player DLC is too farfetched. Fingers crossed

Any chance there might be Splatoon 2 like DLC for more single player?

I really like how they've integrated trading. I think this makes it virtually pointless for spoofers while actually being quite rewarding for friends who play. Sadly it won't really be an issue for the multi--accounters who I have more of a practical problem with...but then the fact Raiding with one Best Friend gives you 4 more Premium Balls is great and helps alleviate their presence a little.