I enjoy red meat, but I avoid it most of the time because of trying to be healthier. Also guilt from seeing videos of happy cows looking like gigantic dogs.

Fucking shit though I had no idea coffee was so high up the list. I probably should drink less of it anyway, but ouch, that one hurt me way more than the beef.

The sapling is native and will get huge, but its gonna be a few years. Admittedly I got it for free, anything already bigger is quite an expense. Ivy was actually a huge problem, I spent a ton of time and effort cutting it off the trees because it was choking them out and killing them. The trees I still need to get rid of are not native. I was told they will continue to grow until they are too tall to support themselves and fall over. The longer I wait the more expensive it is to cut them down. My best guess is they are 25-30 feet tall already. Shopping for trees even half that size is something I was not prepared for, but I am hoping to figure out soon knowing it needs to happen eventually.

I spent most my life in the city, so when I bought the property I wanted the mature trees, but was unaware of the problems these particular trees had. I still like this spot but I wish I knew more about what I was getting into. I’m using a pop up tent for cover while I figure out what exactly to do, but the shade it provides is nowhere near as cool as being under the trees.

I try them out. Been gaming since I could hold a controller. Been reading for the same. Been drinking since well before it was legal, I know what its like to drink a warm 40 cause you had to hide it, no fridge. I avoid ads like the plague and I’m old enough that listening to youtuber shills is like ear sandpaper, the only thing they influence me to do is turn them off.

I am constantly seeking new experiences, that is the fun in life. With games my tastes have changed because of it. I barely play shooters anymore when it used to be a core genre because really it just feels lile same old with a new coat of paint. I go to beer and food festivals and try whatever looks good… Basically everything. And my book list is much like my gaming back log - I need more time, theres just too much. This is where reviews and recommends help - how do I prioritize my list otherwise? If I just select at random I will waste my time and money on things I dont enjoy. But taking a recommendation doesn’t mean I must like the thing, I can still experience it and form my own opinions, as everyone else does. Hell, its good when I agree with a reviewer - if they have similar tastes as me it becomes an opinion wprth listening to.

You seem super jaded about liking something that this community mostly hates. Whats the point though, why not just go enjoy what you like? You’re obviously not persauding anyone here, but I bet you can find communities for those types of games - I know for a fact clash of clans, fire emblem, genshin, all have them.

I had to cut a major shade tree in my backyard, it was ready to fall over. We replaced it with a sapling and I cannot wait for it to grow up, holy shit my deck gets fucking hot! There’s a couple more that gotta go soon too and I’m very reluctant - expensive to cut down, expensive to replace, especially if they are already tall.

I’m not looking down on anyone, but dont pretend that’s high quality stuff over there. Just like with the games, I said earlier theyre having fun and thats great, but its still low quality games. I can continue the comparison - beer. The most popular ones are complete swill (bud miller coors). Books - James Patterson and Danielle Steel will keep pumping shlock out until they die, and I bet that shit will still sell like hotcakes for years after. Its not like I’m going around knocking burgers and beers out of hands going “hey loser get some taste!” I just choose a higher quality item for myself. Dont be too much of a victim here, you’re allowed to enjoy those things too, by all means. Just dont fool yourself into thinking it’s high tier premium grade caviar.

I love a good burger and fries, but mcdonalds is fuckin awful

Its the age old subjective vs objective criteria, and for certain people of different perspectives one will outweigh the other. Nostalgia is very subjective - most of those classics are called classics because they were fantastic at the time of release. They dont hold up today on a technical level, so objectively their quality by today’s standards is dirt, but whether or not someone still finds it entertaining or fun to play is entirely dependent on that person. The only way to measure that is to take an average of the judgemental reactions of many people - essentially consensus.

The problem with phone games is that objectively the large majority of them are poorly made, with subversive mechanics meant to manipulate the casual audience into spending on them. Their goal isn’t fun so much as addiction. It works because it is so largely available to a massive casual audience. The large majority of these people wouldnt bother to purchase a console or a PC for gaming. I’ve met people who actively say they think video games are a waste of time but they’re on level 1000 of candy crush and spending money on power ups. These people do not visit gaming forums and are not gaming enthusiasts, they dont see an issue, nor would they care if you point it out. Subjectively, they like it, they’re having fun, and that’s fine, but that is not the audience you are speaking to here. For this crowd the issues are readily apparent. Its immediately obvious to use why these games are balanced poorly, why ads are shoved in our faces constantly, why the constant updates are anti-consumer. An enthusiast audience will always be more critical of such practices that the larger casual crowd easily ignores.

Last time I went to mcdonalds it was because of that same kid who loves phone games. He was so excited for chicken nuggets. I tried one, it was horrible. I choked down a burger that is an insult to burgers. No food enthusiast would ever recommend this, no self respecting chef would ever endorse this, and I can easily make better food at home for cheaper. But they’ve served millions, and have franchises world wide! People love it, so it must be great! It sure as fuck is not, and I certainly have the capacity to be a more discerning consumer with that just like I am with video games or any other interest.

The potential has always been there for phone games, but its far a few between that are worthwhile. Touch screens suck for controls, really limits to a few good genres, but the stores suck too for any form of support. I’m still bitter that they updated iOs and not xcom so I lost that game and couldn’t get a refund. Most good phone games are ports though, and otherwise so riddled with poor design and mtx its not worth the time. Honestly, the buggest disappointment with phones is that games could be awesome on them and they’re not.

Kids are easily entertained by all kinds of arguably crappy things. Similarly mine has access to tons of great games but will spend weird amounts of time on some janky web based crap. Its not a sign its good, he just has no taste cause he’s an inexperienced kid. I similarly wouldnt look at his choice of mismatched clothes and chicken nuggets for every possible meal and think “wow that stuff’s great!” Maturity and judgement take awhile to develop, so I dont think its bad that he does that, but roblox is still utter garbage no matter how much him and his friends love it. A lot of people love garbage - it doesn’t make it good.

I’ve been using one of these on PC with Bazzite for awhile now with zero issues. I guess I could test it out on my steam deck but I keep ps3 controllers synced to it separately to prevent confusion.

This is all correct but I also gotta beat that multiplayer drum. The notorious difficulty was originally offset by using an item that let you have full health and summon help! Help is good, but now you can be invaded by other players and NPCs. Sometimes you ran out of those items when fighting hard bosses or areas, and now you need to invade to get more helper items. Then you find covenants that let you earn unique equipment through helping and invasions. The whole scenario had risk and rewards that was completely watered down in Elden Ring and totally absent in other souls likes.

They also used to be full of obtuse bullshit that was never explained and you just had to figure out, summon a guide, get lucky, or if all else fails look it up. World tendencies? Curses that dont go away when you die? Unkillable enemies (except with a certain weapon type)? Being able to murder every NPC for special weapons and absolutely fuck your playthrough? Weirdly hidden side quests, areas, and bosses (just jump off this specific cliff)? Demons souls and Dark Souls had all kinds of crazy shit I dont see anymore.

I still enjoy a lot of these other games but I really feel like “souls like” is thrown around pretty loosely on anything that just has a similar combat style, but none of those other hallmark traits.

This could literally kill you. You should stop using them immediately. Sensationalist headlines are rapant, but this is a serious problem worth getting attention over.

I’m with you on this. I also throughly enjoyed Blasphemous, and am looking forward to starting Blasphemous 2 soon. Dont need a game, just need more free time!

Its for invading. Problem is its elden ring, so you’re gonna invade and face 3 dudes at once so good fuckin luck

Im not totally sure either. I think the message is that a lot of countries / groups wanted something to be done about Iran but while they were discussing it Trump just pulled a leroy jenkins on that shit and now they’re mad about it.

So uh, does this work on PC, or is it locked to Xbox? What is the advantage here vs a non branded version?

I’m avoiding MS and Meta like the plague anyway but I’m just curious. I see VR still must be a thing but I haven’t heard of any stellar games since half life and beat saber. I’ve been waiting for price drops and forgot about it completely in the mean time.

Baby gates. Baby gates everywhere.

Also thats a weird toddler lock. Ours you have to push and hold a button to activate it and it wont run until you push and hold something else.

I actually had more trouble with the first boss, he just hits so hard. Took awhile but nailing the parries staggers him and gives a moment to get some hits in. For Markiona dodging more did it for me, and I focused her down the whole time while using the puppet ripper. I thought the wide swings would help stun her buddy but in the end that didnt matter. The rippers special did nice work on her while she was hopping around, and dodge slashing to her side worked well. Bit of luck dodging both of them though.

I can say on ng++ I have met more resistance than anywhere in the main game. Its fine once I learn the timings but thats hard to do when any mistake removes at least one third of my health.

I feel lile if you cant invade people its not really a souls like, its just an action rpg.

Colorblindness? I have to ask my SO all the time what color things are