Marvel Rivals (PC) (2024)

Overview: Free to play, team-based PVP shooter with Marvel characters.

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20250419:
Today, my friend and I tried this game out for the first time.

Setup: Keyboard and mouse

Gameplay Log:
We each played individually through the tutorial
We played a couple of matches versus AI.
We each played inidivudally through some Hero tutorials which lets you choose from a subset of the roster and go in depth on using their abilities or team-ups.
We played two matches versus players.

Off the top of my head, I tried playing with the following characters: Spider-Man, Magneto, Hawkeye, Cloak & Dagger, Emma Frost, Storm, Iron Man, Wolverine, Captain America, and Invisible Woman.

Among the characters I tried, I most enjoyed Hawkeye, Emma Frost, and Invisible Woman. Wolverine is also a strong contender to being in my top three, but he does this jump which I didn't quite understand how to aim. One thing I didn't try was the Practice mode which probably would have been a more relaxed setting for experimenting with movesets. Oh, actually Magneto was kind of decent for me as well, but I suppose I disliked his lower firing rate. As for Invisible Woman, her shield and ultimate benefit from greater coordination and/or understanding from other players. This contrasts with the support ability of Claok & Dagger.

Looking at a tier list, I have not played many of the characters ranked S+ on a "Below Diamond Tier List": Rocket Raccoon, Groot, Moon Knight, Scarlet Witch, Peni Parker, Luna Snow, and Psylocke. I've only played Emma Frost and Cloak & Dagger.
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Steam Game Time: 2.9 hours

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20250421:
Today I played intending on practicing Emma Frost. But it can be tough to always lock the character in, because other players sometimes enter the character select first. Then I got sidetracked by the missions and started doing them. Currently I have three missions remaining related to each of the classes: deal damage, take damage, and heal.

Steam Game Time: 5.1 hours (cumulative game time) / 2.2 hours (session game time)

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2025042#:
Steam Game Time: 6.5 hours (cumulative game time) / 1.4 hours (session game time)

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20250424:
Steam Game Time: 7.2 hours (cumulative game time) / 0.7 hours (session game time)

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20250425:
Steam Game Time: 8.9 hours (cumulative game time) / 1.7 hours (session game time)

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Thoughts:
Pros:
+ Play as Marvel character

Neutral:
~ I believe running is default movement but characters don't feel fast when running. Some character seem to have better movement (action associated to "Shift") than others.
~ This type of game has so much going on for a player like me
~ A lot of cool MTX... Doesn't seem easy to generate free currency to make purchases. But certain missions do unlock some freebies...

Rating: None at this time

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Summary:
None at this time

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Marvel Rivals (PC) (2024)

Relevant Links:
Marvel Rivals (Wikipedia.org)
Marvel Rivals (PC) (MetaCritic.com)
Marvel Rivals (steamdb.info)
Marvel Rivals (Steam Store Page)

Bridge Constructor Portal (PC) (2017)

Overview: Cross between Bridge Constructor and Portal

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20250423:
While I controlled placement, I tried to have my son call out simple solutions.

Setup: Keyboard and mouse

Steam Game Time: 68 minutes

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Thoughts:
Pros:
+ The Portal theme adds a lot to the Bridge Constructor series

Neutral:
~ The game, at least at the moment, lacks the other build condition found in other Bridge Constructor games (least money spent). This score is still tracked, but there's no hint as to what is optimal

Cons:
- Some controls were convenient (building roads) while others were finicky (moving joints)
- I don't like the time it takes for the convoy to ride across. It'd be nice if there was a fast forward option

Rating: 4.0 out of 5

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Summary:
None at this time

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Bridge Constructor Portal (PC) (2017)

Relevant Links:
Bridge Constructor Portal (Wikipedia.org)
Bridge Constructor Portal (PC) (MetaCritic.com)
Bridge Constructor Portal (steamdb.info)
Bridge Constructor Portal (Steam Store Page)

The Talos Principle (PC) (2014)

Overview: Puzzle adventure game.

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20250417:
Taking a break Path of Exile 2, I decide to play this game which I've long heard about being a great puzzle game.
Setup: Keyboard and mouse.

Gameplay Log:
Finished 1 & 2.

Steam Game Time: 43 minutes

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20250418:
Today I did the Area #3 in the afternoon and Area #4 in the evening. I seem not to enjoy this game continuously. Perhaps I am not in the mood for this genre or perhaps not in the mood for gaming as I'm under the weather.

Gameplay Log:
Finished 3 with 1 of 2 stars
Finished 4 with 1 of 1 star

Steam Game Time: 115 minutes (cumulative game time) / 72 minutes (session game time)

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Thoughts:
Pros:
+ Story
+ Reasonable difficulty curve for puzzles
+ Pleasing environment

Neutral:
~ At the moment I can only handle the game in chunks. Might be my mood or just change in taste of games

Rating: 4.8 out of 5

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Summary:
None at this time

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The Talos Principle (PC) (2014)

Relevant Links:
The Talos Principle (Wikipedia.org)
The Talos Principle (PC) (MetaCritic.com)
The Talos Principle (steamdb.info)
The Talos Principle (Steam Store Page)

High Spirits (PC) (Demo)

20250417:
Taking a short break from Path of Exile 2, I took a look through the demos in my library and decided to try this one.
Setup:
Keyboard and mouse

Steam Game Time: 36 minutes

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First Impressions:
The pacing of the demo was slow. It took a while before getting to the first battle, which was overly simple. Eventually the game added the potion mechanic, but it felt underwhelming. In short, the fighting mechanic lacked impact and fun.

I was also not interested in the game's story. The protagonist falls under the archetype of nice guy underachiever. It is a common enough archetype, but somehow the delivery just didn't sustain my interest. As for the sentient staff, I found its dialogue annoying.

Overall, I didn't experience a reason to play this game.

Demo Rating: 1.0 out of 5

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High Spirits (PC) (Demo)

Relevant Links:
High Spirits (Steam Store Page)